Domestic Polycule AU

Maleficent

*Six Months Before Stella*

It was so relieving to see the tree's leaves bursting from the buds to coat the world in lush green that matched the grass. Connie pointed out a cherry blossom and Anna gasped. "Picture! Picture now!"

They flagged down a kind old woman and she held up the camera. "Say 'Best Friends!'"

The temptation to say 'Polyamory' was ridiculous but they didn't want to give the poor woman a stroke. As soon as they got it back Anna huddled over the phone for a minute and picked out the best one. "Hey, who got Adam to smile for a picture?! I love it!"

Adam shushed her and reached for the phone. "Whoa, baby, why don't you just give me that?"

"We always have to screenshot videos and even then he barely ever smiles all full and handsome like that!" Hazel complained and reached for him, but he ducked, eyes locked behind the group.

When Steven followed his gaze he gasped and squealed, "Oh my stars, it's a black cat!"

"I see that," Adam muttered, squeezing between the group to walk a bit closer to it. He sat on the ground slowly; the feline was already approaching him. "Look at you," He mused, brushing his fingers over its head and grinning even fuller than before. "You're beautiful."

He wasn't wrong. Sure to the naked eye it was just a cat, but its fur was immaculately groomed. Clearly it was friendly too, and when it rolled over, Adam scratched under her chin. "She's pregnant, assuming she identifies that way." He laughed at his own joke and she mewled up at him, seeming to find it funny too.

They watched the very hands that had given Jasmin a pretty brutal spanking earlier glide over the cat with gentleness and caution. He glowed and it reflected in the cat's blue eyes. She trilled when he shifted onto his bottom and climbed onto his lap clumsily, trying to find a comfortable way to lie. Adam made a little sound of absolute adoration and leaned back on his hands to observe her soak up the sun. They may as well have been the last two beings on the planet the way he settled and stilled as if he had nowhere to be and no one to attend to.

Hazel wanted to let him pet her forever, he looked like he was having what Hazel was sure was his first happy boy moment. Connie squeezed his hand and gave him a sympathetic look as Anna asked if they could keep it. "Oh, Anna, baby I wish we could but Lion would totally eat that thing."

Steven and Alex made offended sounds. "Fuck you, Lion would probably never eat a cat," Alex snapped in defense.

His owner nodded. "He hung out with Cat Steven all the time, and if he ate people he'd go for me first. He'd just get really jealous."

Connie crouched, wondering if she was surrounded by idiots. Adam had a scowl on his face now as they talked in detail about the complexities of a lion eating a cat and if that counted as cannibalism. They'd killed his smile and she was about to do it again. "That's not why we can't keep her Adam..." She told him gently.

His eyes grew misty and he muttered, "Just five more minutes."

They sat with him, actually quite happy to be off their feet and enjoy the day. Connie watched as the cat and Adam stared at each other, right into each others souls. What was probably a deep conversation seemed to be happening between them for a while. Adam grinned suddenly. "For now, I'm going to call you Maleficent, because I can't name a child that apparently."

Maleficent seemed to accept the name and got up to trot off. Adam stood and brushed off his pants. He looked a little distant but nodded for them to keep walking again.

After they'd turned and started heading back home, Anna grabbed a completely silent Adam's hand. "I'm sorry your friend disappeared, Daddy. I didn't know you wanted a kitty."