Uncle Illya (Chapter 2)
Jul. 3rd, 2014 12:04 am![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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section7mfuChapter 2
Getting out of the building was like running the gauntlet for Illya and Napoleon. The sight of the beautiful blond agent with a baby in his arms was almost too much for some of the women; who openly sighed as they approached. It irked Napoleon a little that the Russian was garnering so much attention. Admittedly though, Pyotr was getting more attention than his uncle. At any other time, none of the HQ staff would dare to take something from Illya without asking. It seemed, however, that all the rules were changed where a baby was concerned. Pyotr was plucked from the Russian’s grip and passed between the women in the corridor. Illya, against expectations, allowed it to happen; knowing that no harm would come to the child.
“What is it with women and babies?” He asked his partner, as Pyotr was cooed over.
“I have no idea Chum,” Napoleon replied with amusement. “But, I’m thinking of asking my sister if I can borrow her kid for a few hours.”
“What’s the strategy when I finally get Petya back?” Illya queried. “A carriage would be advantages to start with.”
Napoleon laughed. “It isn’t a mission Tovarisch. We’re just shopping.”
He did have to agree about the carriage. Illya couldn’t be expected to carry the Pyotr in his arms all afternoon.
“How about one of the department stores?” The American suggested. “We can get everything under one roof, including a few clothes for Alexey and Sofiya.”
Forty minutes later, Illya, Napoleon, and Pyotr finally made it out of the building; having been held up a further three times. Illya was convinced he’d had easier escapes from THRUSH satraps. Napoleon opted to drive to allow Illya to keep hold of Pyotr.
As agreed, the first purchase was a carriage. It wasn’t the cheapest, but neither was it expensive. Illya had no wish to take advantage of Mr Waverly’s generosity. As soon as Pyotr was placed into the Navy Blue contraption however, he decided to voice his displeasure.
“How can something so small make that much noise?” Illya complained.
“He was too happy in his daddy’s arms,” a sales assistant interjected.
“I’m his uncle,” Illya informed her, a little too testily.
“Excuse me miss,” Napoleon interrupted smoothly. “Young Pyotr and his parents have had a trying time of it, losing everything they own. Mr Kuryakin and I…I’m Napoleon Solo by the way… are attempting to furnish the child with the basics. Could you help us please?”
Like most women, the assistant was powerless against the Solo charm offensive.” It would be my pleasure Mr Solo.”
“When you’re ready,” Illya snapped, lifting Pyotr back up. “Have you got anything to stop him crying?”
“Certainly Sir,” the assistant replied, curtly. She decided she didn’t like the man. Yes, he was nice to look at, but he was so surly.
Napoleon smiled apologetically on his partner’s behalf. He was well aware of how tetchy the Russian could be; especially when stressed. The assistant, who offered her name as Lydia, produced a selection of pacifiers.
“I would recommend getting two or three,” she advised. “That way, if the first is lost, there is a spare.”
“That is an excellent contingency plan,” Illya commented.
Solo laughed again. His partner seemed determined to treat this as a mission. Illya choose one the pacifiers and pushed it into Pyotr’s mouth. He held the infant next to his shoulder and began to sing softly to him, to calm him down.
“Looly-looly-loolenki (Looly-looly-loolenki)
Gde vy, gde vy, gulen’ki (Where are you, where are you, little doves)
Priletayte na krovat’ (Come to the bed)
Nachinayte vorkovat” (Begin to Coo)
No wonder he’s surly, Lydia thought to herself. What else could you expect from a damn Ruskie? Still, she worked on commission and didn’t really care where the money came from. She waited until the infant was quiet and back in the carriage, before continuing the sale.
“Would you gentlemen allow me to gather together the things I think you might need? It’ll be a lot quicker than looking for one item at a time.”
Illya was more than happy to do anything which would speed the whole process up. There was something about the sales assistant he just wasn’t sure about. Napoleon on the other hand seemed to like her very much, but then again, she was a woman. The two men stood in an uncomfortable silence for ten minutes while Lydia set about her task. Though Napoleon did entertain himself by watching her. Eventually, everything was on the counter top, with the exception of one thing.
“Do you want cloth or disposable diapers?” She asked.
“Erm...,” was Illya’s reply
“I would say disposable for now, purely for the sake of ease,” Napoleon ventured. “Once Alexey and family are settled, Sofiya may want to change to cloth.”
Illya could see the sense in it and asked for disposable. He looked at the, somewhat mountainous, pile on the counter with concern.
“Are you sure this is just the basics?”
“Yes,” Lydia told him, slightly annoyed that the Commie immigrant was questioning her judgement. “I’ve given you ten sets of clothes, pacifiers, diapers, formula, bottles, a basinet, blankets…”
“Thank you,” Napoleon stopped her litany. “I’m sure this is fine. Could you charge it to this account?”
He handed over the UN.C.L.E. credit card. Lydia charged the card and called for someone to help the gentlemen with their purchases. Making sure to get her phone number first, Napoleon bid Lydia farewell. Illya grunted a thank you and pushed the carriage away from the woman. After a quick detour to get some clothes for Alexey and Sofiya, they were ready to head back to HQ.
Napoleon was just about to start the car when he suddenly got back out.
“Give me a couple of minutes.”
He was gone before Illya could open his mouth, but returned fairly quickly carrying a ridiculously large teddy bear.
“He has no toys,” he said to Illya, by way of explanation.
“And you thought a stuffed animal which would smother him in his cradle would be a good choice?”
Napoleon simply shrugged before trying to work out how to get it in the car. Most of the stuff was in the trunk, while the carriage and basinet were jammed into the back seat.
“Looks like he will have to sit between us.”
Illya rolled his eyes, but said nothing. The teddy bear probably cost a fortune and he had no doubt Napoleon had paid for it with his own money.
When they got back to HQ, Napoleon enlisted the help of several of the support staff to get the purchases up to medical. Sofiya was awake and sitting up in bed when the two agents arrived. She looked very anxious; obviously worried about her son. She held out her arms to accept the child.
“Spaciba Illya Nickovitch (Thank you) ,” she said with a broad smile.
“Please, I am Illya,” he replied warmly. “It is wonderful to finally meet you.”
“Mr Waverly told us about the apartment,” said Alexey. “We cannot allow him to be so generous.”
“I tried to turn him down on your behalf,” Illya informed him. “He wouldn’t let me. A lot of people arrive here with nothing, as you have, but very few are given this sort of aid.”
“I hope you are able to make your home here,” Napoleon added. “There are a lot of other Russians in the city, so hopefully, there won’t be too much of a culture shock. Plus, you have Illya and me.”
Napoleon made a discreet exit to allow the family to catch up and properly get to know each other. Even though the circumstances weren’t ideal, Napoleon was glad that his friend would finally have family close to him. It was something he’d definitely been missing.
The end.
Getting out of the building was like running the gauntlet for Illya and Napoleon. The sight of the beautiful blond agent with a baby in his arms was almost too much for some of the women; who openly sighed as they approached. It irked Napoleon a little that the Russian was garnering so much attention. Admittedly though, Pyotr was getting more attention than his uncle. At any other time, none of the HQ staff would dare to take something from Illya without asking. It seemed, however, that all the rules were changed where a baby was concerned. Pyotr was plucked from the Russian’s grip and passed between the women in the corridor. Illya, against expectations, allowed it to happen; knowing that no harm would come to the child.
“What is it with women and babies?” He asked his partner, as Pyotr was cooed over.
“I have no idea Chum,” Napoleon replied with amusement. “But, I’m thinking of asking my sister if I can borrow her kid for a few hours.”
“What’s the strategy when I finally get Petya back?” Illya queried. “A carriage would be advantages to start with.”
Napoleon laughed. “It isn’t a mission Tovarisch. We’re just shopping.”
He did have to agree about the carriage. Illya couldn’t be expected to carry the Pyotr in his arms all afternoon.
“How about one of the department stores?” The American suggested. “We can get everything under one roof, including a few clothes for Alexey and Sofiya.”
Forty minutes later, Illya, Napoleon, and Pyotr finally made it out of the building; having been held up a further three times. Illya was convinced he’d had easier escapes from THRUSH satraps. Napoleon opted to drive to allow Illya to keep hold of Pyotr.
As agreed, the first purchase was a carriage. It wasn’t the cheapest, but neither was it expensive. Illya had no wish to take advantage of Mr Waverly’s generosity. As soon as Pyotr was placed into the Navy Blue contraption however, he decided to voice his displeasure.
“How can something so small make that much noise?” Illya complained.
“He was too happy in his daddy’s arms,” a sales assistant interjected.
“I’m his uncle,” Illya informed her, a little too testily.
“Excuse me miss,” Napoleon interrupted smoothly. “Young Pyotr and his parents have had a trying time of it, losing everything they own. Mr Kuryakin and I…I’m Napoleon Solo by the way… are attempting to furnish the child with the basics. Could you help us please?”
Like most women, the assistant was powerless against the Solo charm offensive.” It would be my pleasure Mr Solo.”
“When you’re ready,” Illya snapped, lifting Pyotr back up. “Have you got anything to stop him crying?”
“Certainly Sir,” the assistant replied, curtly. She decided she didn’t like the man. Yes, he was nice to look at, but he was so surly.
Napoleon smiled apologetically on his partner’s behalf. He was well aware of how tetchy the Russian could be; especially when stressed. The assistant, who offered her name as Lydia, produced a selection of pacifiers.
“I would recommend getting two or three,” she advised. “That way, if the first is lost, there is a spare.”
“That is an excellent contingency plan,” Illya commented.
Solo laughed again. His partner seemed determined to treat this as a mission. Illya choose one the pacifiers and pushed it into Pyotr’s mouth. He held the infant next to his shoulder and began to sing softly to him, to calm him down.
“Looly-looly-loolenki (Looly-looly-loolenki)
Gde vy, gde vy, gulen’ki (Where are you, where are you, little doves)
Priletayte na krovat’ (Come to the bed)
Nachinayte vorkovat” (Begin to Coo)
No wonder he’s surly, Lydia thought to herself. What else could you expect from a damn Ruskie? Still, she worked on commission and didn’t really care where the money came from. She waited until the infant was quiet and back in the carriage, before continuing the sale.
“Would you gentlemen allow me to gather together the things I think you might need? It’ll be a lot quicker than looking for one item at a time.”
Illya was more than happy to do anything which would speed the whole process up. There was something about the sales assistant he just wasn’t sure about. Napoleon on the other hand seemed to like her very much, but then again, she was a woman. The two men stood in an uncomfortable silence for ten minutes while Lydia set about her task. Though Napoleon did entertain himself by watching her. Eventually, everything was on the counter top, with the exception of one thing.
“Do you want cloth or disposable diapers?” She asked.
“Erm...,” was Illya’s reply
“I would say disposable for now, purely for the sake of ease,” Napoleon ventured. “Once Alexey and family are settled, Sofiya may want to change to cloth.”
Illya could see the sense in it and asked for disposable. He looked at the, somewhat mountainous, pile on the counter with concern.
“Are you sure this is just the basics?”
“Yes,” Lydia told him, slightly annoyed that the Commie immigrant was questioning her judgement. “I’ve given you ten sets of clothes, pacifiers, diapers, formula, bottles, a basinet, blankets…”
“Thank you,” Napoleon stopped her litany. “I’m sure this is fine. Could you charge it to this account?”
He handed over the UN.C.L.E. credit card. Lydia charged the card and called for someone to help the gentlemen with their purchases. Making sure to get her phone number first, Napoleon bid Lydia farewell. Illya grunted a thank you and pushed the carriage away from the woman. After a quick detour to get some clothes for Alexey and Sofiya, they were ready to head back to HQ.
Napoleon was just about to start the car when he suddenly got back out.
“Give me a couple of minutes.”
He was gone before Illya could open his mouth, but returned fairly quickly carrying a ridiculously large teddy bear.
“He has no toys,” he said to Illya, by way of explanation.
“And you thought a stuffed animal which would smother him in his cradle would be a good choice?”
Napoleon simply shrugged before trying to work out how to get it in the car. Most of the stuff was in the trunk, while the carriage and basinet were jammed into the back seat.
“Looks like he will have to sit between us.”
Illya rolled his eyes, but said nothing. The teddy bear probably cost a fortune and he had no doubt Napoleon had paid for it with his own money.
When they got back to HQ, Napoleon enlisted the help of several of the support staff to get the purchases up to medical. Sofiya was awake and sitting up in bed when the two agents arrived. She looked very anxious; obviously worried about her son. She held out her arms to accept the child.
“Spaciba Illya Nickovitch (Thank you) ,” she said with a broad smile.
“Please, I am Illya,” he replied warmly. “It is wonderful to finally meet you.”
“Mr Waverly told us about the apartment,” said Alexey. “We cannot allow him to be so generous.”
“I tried to turn him down on your behalf,” Illya informed him. “He wouldn’t let me. A lot of people arrive here with nothing, as you have, but very few are given this sort of aid.”
“I hope you are able to make your home here,” Napoleon added. “There are a lot of other Russians in the city, so hopefully, there won’t be too much of a culture shock. Plus, you have Illya and me.”
Napoleon made a discreet exit to allow the family to catch up and properly get to know each other. Even though the circumstances weren’t ideal, Napoleon was glad that his friend would finally have family close to him. It was something he’d definitely been missing.
The end.
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Date: 2014-07-03 12:06 am (UTC)I like how you're letting this on-going tale progress. :D
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Date: 2014-07-03 06:32 am (UTC)This series has the potential to fly I think, though I will still be doing some that aren't part of it.