1963-07-28 - Quiet Morning at Home
Summary: A quiet morning at home in the Sousa-Carter House
Related: None
Theme Song: None
sousa peggy mickey 


Sousa has never really been a late-sleeper. Maybe it's from having sisters and knowing that if he had to get into the bathroom, he had to be up before them. Maybe it was from the early hours working at the docks or from the Army, but Sousa rarely sleeps in, which is good for Mickey and good for Peggy. All issues with work aside, he's decided that this weekend is going to be about as much family-time as possible. So, with their daughter still in her nightgown and Daniel in his pajama pants, and a bathrobe, the two are in the kitchen talking as breakfast is being made. Mickey is actually helping by setting the table with Daniel's instruction even as he stands by the stove frying up some bacon and eggs.

While Peggy is also not *exactly* a late sleeper, the military does that to anyone, her natural inclination is the exact opposite. Doubly so when she's hormonal, cranky, work stressed and just exhausted to the bone. This morning, Daniel barely got a muttered hullo and kiss before she sprawled out in the warmth of his spot in their bed and went straight back to sleep. Weekends were rare gifts and, it seems, she was taking full advantage of it this weekend. So, Daniel and Mickey have had MORE than enough time to do with as they please.

Mickey is meticulously setting each fork out, adjusting as she goes so the line up exactly, her dark curls a muss from sleep but she clearly doesn't care. This is going to be an elegant family breakfast in their pajamas. "So, I was thinking…" Nothing good starts with that, in her best Peggy Carter Doing Business tone, because she's heard that enough from her mother and it just comes out that way, "If we just got a *cat*, then we wouldn't have to walk it as much, but I could still train it because they aren't dumb and I'd be real good with it and work really hard. And I'm stubborn. You said. I can be more stubborn than a cat."

Sousa enjoys these days as well and is perfectly happy for it to be an 'elegant family breakfast' in pajamas. Even he's barely combed his hair, although Mickey did give him enough time in the morning to shave.

"You were thinking, huh?" is offered with a grin as he works on the eggs. "You sure are stubborn," he agrees, especially since she hasn't given up on this pet thing. "You don't walk cats. But you still have to feed them and clean out their sandbox and I don't think you'll be doing that, Mickey. Besides, it won't be fair to the cat when we go on vacation next month. It would be all alone with no one to feed it." Logic. It may or may not work with 5 year olds.

Sousa pauses and glances at the girl, "Why do you want to train something? What do you want to train it to do?"

The last fork is set down and adjusted before Mickey then goes to claim knives — butter knives, of course — but she handles them with the upmost care. She's generally good, but she's being extra good this morning. Either she knows mum isn't feeling well or she REALLY wants this cat. Most likely both. She moves to the table with the three blunt knives in hand and starts to put them out while still chattering away. "You COULD walk cats, if you put them on leashes, and I like sandboxes so I could clean it, that's fine, and…"

Then it hits her little mind what he said and she stares at him with wide, excited eyes. "…What?! Vacation?! What?!! Disney?? Are we going to Disney! DADDY, you don't give me surprises when I'm holding DANGEROUS THINGS!" She gestures, somewhat dramatically, with the butter knife that is left in her hand, "SOMEONE COULD HAVE BEEN HURT!!" She then puts the knife down and RUNS over to his side, half slamming into his good leg and tugging at his pajama shirt. "Where are we going? When? How long? I wanna go. I need a new swim suit and two new dresses and probably shoes if we go to Disney because my old ones are all dirty."

"Cat sandboxes are different," Daniel starts, but he's not going to elaborate when he's in the kitchen making food. He can't help but chuckle as his words actually hit her and the reaction actually gets a laugh — his first real laugh in a little while. Somehow, he manages to brace himself before the whirlwind of his daughter slams into him so that he doesn't lose his balance but her excited question gets a look of apology. "Oh, honey…we're not going to Disneyland this trip. Maybe in a few years, ok?" He leans down to ruffle her curls, "We're going to go to Cape Cod. Your Tias and Tios will be there, and your cousins…so you'll have a lot of people to play with. And we'll be on the beach." It's not quite Disney…they couldn't get that sort of time off right now. "It'll be fun, right? Maybe we can get you a new swimsuit…"

He can practically see it in her eyes, the calculation of if seeing her family is more exciting than Disney World. Mickey's eyes narrow a bit o him, listening to the explanation. Beach does make her smile, that excitement creeping back in her eyes, but she's trying to be tough about it because that tends to be the way she is, "…Fine. But I get a new swimsuit! I can't have Tia Inez see me in the old one, she'll just get me a new one, you know it!" Sometimes, little things come through that show *just* how sharp Mickey is. She hasn't seen Inez in a year, and she remembers that aunt as the most spoiling one. She then grins, "We're goin' to the beach! Maybe I'll get a fish there!" She's STILL on the pets thing.

This is when Peggy finally makes her appearance. Mussy curled, still tired eyes, her robe on but not tied around her waist right now because she's simply not feeling it. She looks just a touch piqued, but seeing the table set, Mickey excited and Daniel cooking, it all draws a long smile to her lips. "…don't suppose there is tea on?" She asks gently, far more quiet than her daughter right now.

There's actually some relief that she's happy for the trip that isn't Disneyland. California is a long way away! "That's not how it works and you know it, Princess. What's the right way to ask about that?" The swimsuit, that is. His daughter may have a lot more than he grew up with, but he will -not- let her feel that she's entitled or that she can push her parents around. She pushes and they push back. It's the way of things.

"I think the fish you find at the beach are the fish you eat," Daniel points out before he puts the eggs into the serving bowl and goes back to check on the bacon. "Did you finish with the table? Did you get napkins?"

And then Peggy is down. She gets a smile, "How are you feeling, sleepyhead?" and he then nods to the pot of tea that's been steeping. "Just for you."

"Well, then, the fish will like me all the more because I saved it's life!" Five year old logic. Mickey looks just a bit humbled, though, as her father does push back and he IS right about this one, "…May I *please* have a new swim suit for vacation?" She asks as calm, mild and sweetly as possible. Then she sees her mom and she's dashing off, line backering into Peggy's legs. She gets a bit of an ooph from her mother and a gentle stroke to her hair.

"Good morning, my love. Go, listen to your father. Get the napkins." The fact that Peggy hasn't entirely registered that they are talking about vacation, and she missed the big announcement, is proof to how not awake she is. She kisses Mickey's hair and musses it before sending the girl off to get the cloth napkins from their drawer. Peggy finishes making the way over to her husband, tugging down one of their mugs for the tea. "… I feel like words that should not be used in Mickey's company." She mutters with a half teasing smile. She picks up the lid of the tea, sniffing to see if it's black or the ginger than Ana Jarvis recommended so many years ago. It does seem to help.

"You can talk to your Avo about fishing," Daniel offers with a grin, seeing that's what his father did for a while for a living. When she asks nicely, however, he answers, just as calmly, "Yes, you may." And then Peggy's down and swimsuits and pet fish may be forgotten. Maybe.

"If you want to go back to bed after this, I can watch Mickey," is offered quietly as Peggy comes over to get the tea. Knowing she was under the weather, he made the ginger tea. "The doctor said you needed to rest and not overexert yourself…especially right now." They need to be sure that everything is copacetic.

"I might. But…breakfast is good. We don't do this enough." For once, there are no arguments from Peggy. She actually seems to be taking it easy this time around. With Mickey, she was determined to let NOTHING change and was waddling into work seven months in, stubborn as a bull. She got up the same, ate the same, very much forced herself to act like everything was the same. She would not be one of those women felled by some 'delicate condition'. This time, not so much. He's not getting near the arguments he used to. Maybe it's a good thing? She breathes a sigh of relief as she catches the scent of the tea and pours some out, leaning her hip against the counter and just sort of nursing the scent of it all.

Mickey's done with napkins in a minute and then she comes back, standing neatly before her mother and father, hands folded behind her back with the big eyes that say she's about to ask for something again. But then she peers to the side of Daniel's shoulder. "…Breakfast? I'm hungry." Even Mickey is trying to be a bit subdued. It won't last.

Sousa knew better then to say anything about Peggy 'taking it easy' but it was also over five years ago. They're both older and maybe a little wiser, so the lack of argument, while not seen as a victory, is at least seen as some relief. He'll also try to be better — no more drinking binges after being mentally probed. Although, with luck, that won't be happening again.

As Mickey declares her hunger, he jerks his head over to the table, "Go sit down and we'll bring the eggs and bacon over." The bacon is slid onto a plate, the frying pan set in the stove to sizzle and soak to get the grease off later. "Mind grabbing the eggs?" is asked of Peggy as he takes the plate of bacon and starts to limp over to the table. There is a pause to grab a bottle of milk and chuck that under his arm to also be brought over.

Peggy hasn't mentioned the drinking binge once. She took care of him, had asprin waiting for him in the morning, gave him a single look, and that was it. They were both older, wiser, grown adults who have made this marriage thing work for ten years. They had a handle on it pretty damn good, even when life threw curveballs. Peg leans over, though, before he grabs the bacon, and just presses a single kiss to the corner of his mouth before she nods to Mickey, "Listen to your father. Wait. here. Grab that milk. Careful with it." She wasn't one to baby her daughter, even with glass or knives. She was one to teach her daughter to be responsible over potentially dangerous things. Hence the scolding about being surprised while holding a butter knife.

Peggy does turn to scoop up the eggs and brings them over to the table also, dishing a few out to each of them before she sets the plate down and then goes back for her tea. That was essential this morning. Mickey has very carefully taken the milk from her father and carried it to the table where it's placed gently before she slips up into her chair. She looks at them both, almost waiting for permission for something, but then there is bacon on her plate and she's attacking it like she's been starved. She waits until she's swallowed enough not to get it everywhere to start talking again, "When are we going to the beach? Is it next week? I should get my hair cut, and I want to go fishing with Ano and make one of them my friend, but then we couldn't get a cat because the cat would eat the fish. But dad says they are eating fish at the beach anyway.."

Peggy is content just to sleepily eat, sip tea, and listen to her daughter ramble. Her smile is genuine, as a bare foot slips beneath the table and rests toes against the outside of Daniel's proper ankle.
ne.

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