Fluff, Relationships, and Traditions

[scribblemyname]

This entry is part 52 of 52 in the series 365 Challenge

So characters have habits, ways they interact with certain people and situations, things they do and like to do, stories and histories together. I've known a lot of my characters' for a long time but getting them all into fic is interesting, particularly for the ones I don't know that for.

I've got about five novelettes I want to turn out plus a short story, created out of the 5 Things Meme and then the whole Pieter/Ashen dynamic that originally played in my head before I even wrote that first Ashen drabble (and it is awesome to me, but got sidelined drastically with a deluge of other prompts), but, but, but...

I'm on day 265 of my challenge and story count 157 and I'm still plying angles and there's all those little things above that I'm itching to nibble at. Want to help a girl out?

Particularly of interest to me are things like where does Wesley work (not sure actually), and then relationship things that I haven't gotten to like how Justus always recognizes Shift regardless of her current form or demeanor, friendships, sibling relationships, Ilsa and her husband, etc.

Calling for prompts, as promised:

1. character(s) and/or canon/fandom
2. random word, quote, or other prompt

Oh, and I'll try to keep it short and fluffy or sweet. Try is the operative word. :grins:

Prompts

• Meld, couples, prank war
• Justus + Special Unit
• From thecatisacritic's fluff-fest
• Justus' family + Shift, Rachelle
• dancing, quotes, and not without you
• who is Justus when he's Rachelle's?
• undercover Justus
• more quotes
• From Daily Scribble post 1 AND from previous promptfest
• Ilsa prevents
• the work they do
• finding Justus, about that memory

Ficlets

Seven Days

• Wesley/Lena: Shall We Dance?
• Wesley/Lena: Stubborn
• Wesley/Lena: You are My Photograph
• Wesley/Lena + Angelita: Learning to Tango
• Wesley + Connor: Just Saying
• Wesley + Connor: On Practical Uses for Journals
• Wesley + Connor: A Spaghetti-Flavored Aftermath
• Wesley + Connor: Maybe Next Week
• Wesley + Connor: The Apple Don't Fall Far
• Wesley + Mom: The Joys of Motherhood
• Connor + Ashelynn + dogs: On the Acquisition of Dogs
• Connor + Ashelynn + dogs: Girls

Kingdoms and Thorn

• Shift + Team ensemble: That'll Work
• Shift + Meld: Soon
• Sear + Meld: Bone-Weary Need
• Rachelle + Meld: Between
• Rachelle + Meld: The Leash
• Rachelle + Special Unit: Anywhere But Here
• Rachelle + Heather + Shadow: An Absurdly Dangerous Shadow
• Rachelle + Joseph: What the Emptiness Fills
• Justus + Joseph: Cracking the Ice
• Justus + Team Ensemble: In the Business
• Justus + Larique: The Unsuspecting Suspect
• Shift + Justus: Self-Preservation
• Sear + Justus: Gratitude in an Off Note
• Rachelle/Justus + Heather: Backfire
• Rachelle/Justus + Sophocles: Comfort Objects
• Rachelle/Justus + Sophocles: On the Care and Feeding of Cats
• Rachelle/Justus + Sophocles: The Taste of Coffee
• Rachelle/Justus: Living with Hope
• Rachelle/Justus: Tiny Significant Pieces
• Rachelle/Justus: Side Effects
• Rachelle/Justus: Remind You to Dance
• Rachelle/Justus: Family
• Rachelle/Justus + Red Wolf and Whisper's kids: Cure to All That Ails
• Storm + Red Wolf + Anya: We Can't Have That
• Red Wolf and Whisper's kids: Don’t Forget the Ice Cream
• Red Wolf/Whisper: The Fox and the Wolf
• Red Wolf/Whisper: Taste of Regret
• Red Wolf/Whisper: Business as Usual
• Red Wolf/Whisper + Ashen: A Gift Well-Chosen
• Red Wolf: Rearranging Assets
• Storm + Minder: The Five W’s of Declaring War
• Storm + Minder: Tell Me in the Morning
• Storm + Minder: Moral Support
• Storm + Mirage + Surge: Waiting for Blood
• Hasheni/Ilsa Killinger: Homework
• Hasheni/Ilsa Killinger: Catalyst
• Ilsa Killinger: Linger
• Ilsa Killinger | Special Unit: Reality Check
• Keeper/Brushfire: When Memory Burns
• Anna/Lightsculpt: Dinnertime Distractions
• Anna/Lightsculpt: Needing a Break
• Anna/Lightsculpt: Worth Something
• Anna/Lightsculpt: Working Up the Nerve
• Anna/Lightsculpt: Would That It Were
• Sketch + Team ensemble: Something Other Than Smoke
• Shift/Kilter + Watcher: Wedding Gift
• Shift/Kilter + Elisabeth: You're My Heart
• Shift/Kilter + Elisabeth: The Answer to All Problems
• Shift + Elisabeth: Little Girl Reminders
• Surge + Maker: Embrace of Freedom
• Watcher + Team Ensemble: An Ounce of Protection

Originally published at Liana Mir. You can comment here or there.

Comments

[thecatisacritic.livejournal.com]

Well, Rachelle could always do it to get that reaction she likes so much out of Justus.

And there's Red Wolf/Whisper. Or maybe one of their kids distracting him when he's about to discipline them.

Lena interrupting Wesley because he's not thinking he can kiss her because he won't remember her, and she doesn't want to let him use that as an excuse.

Sketch/Lightsculpt when he wants her to rest again.

Burnfire/Ricki when a memory gets bad or something.

I don't know. I might have had more specific things before, but the last few weeks have left me kind of brain dead.

[scribblemyname]

Thank you! Very helpful.

Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: When Memory Burns

[scribblemyname]

"Brushfire." Ricki traced her finger over her husband's cheek as she whispered the name of his she would rather let fade. But it worked.

He woke. His hand caught her throat and she felt his other hand twisting her wrist beneath the covers, then his eyes cleared of whatever nightmare had gripped him and he let go with a startled exhale.

"Don't do that," Alex said softly, barely more than a whisper in the night darkness of their room.

Both of them had enhanced senses, enhanced regenerative capabilities. They could see each other and hear every nuance in each other's voices even now.

Ricki shrugged and waited out the soothing restoration of her throat before trying to exercise it. It was the name that had woken him. An operative had reflexes honed by years of living as a weapon; time would never gentle certain triggers. She closed her eyes, ran her hand through her own hair as if she could comb out the memories. She did not like to think of that time. It was over. It had been over longer for her than for him.

He hadn't spoken, and she knew the way these nightmares left if ignored—they lingered as unwanted fetters—so she leaned over swiftly and kissed him with an intensity that claimed his focus.

He kissed her back, hand weaving into her hair tight enough to hurt, holding her with the very hand that had crushed a moment ago. For a little while, they forgot everything else but each other.

#

[thecatisacritic.livejournal.com]

Ah, the dangerous waking from those kinds of memories.

This reminds me of a scene I wrote myself, and I admit, I am tempted to post it now, where Effie wakes Garan from his nightmares, though she doesn't have the healing. It was kind of interesting, to me, how similar they were, and how different as well.

Still... I really like this moment, the care and the comfort and the distraction. The devotion, the sharing and helping no matter what the cost or the problem...

Love.

[scribblemyname]

:thinks back: If this is the same story as those unidentified snippets I loved... I need to dig back through your archives, I can see.

I really don't think I can add anything to your description here. It's perfect and more than I could have hoped to convey.

[thecatisacritic.livejournal.com]

Possibly. Though I think most of the snippets were the first Effie/Nick, not Effie/Garan.

I did give in and post the part I was reminded of, though it's two scenes, not just one.

I'm surprised it conveyed anything. I just kind of... rambled.

Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: Dinnertime Distractions

[scribblemyname]

Letters. They arrived in a never-ending stream, one after another after another sliding through the slot in the door of Anna’s little beach house in Ariat Springs. Lightsculpt tried to ignore them, even as he ignored the teetering pile of files and artifacts on the back table that revealed his own history. He had a name besides the ones he had been given, a family postmarked from four different cities—and wasn’t it illegal to track former operatives?

He went in the kitchen to distract himself by cooking dinner.

“Smells terrible,” Anna’s voice hollered out of the back studio less than twenty minutes later. A moment after, person followed voice and she came out through the living room, waist-length shiny brunette hair swinging about her hips to peek over his shoulder.

She gave him a dubious look.

“It’s curry, okay? I actually like the stuff.”

Anna sighed and leaned her head against his shoulder, reminding him suddenly that she did not smell terrible and that he had never been a good cook. “What’s bothering you?” She rubbed his other shoulder with one hand.

And he had been trying to not be obvious about it. He stirred the curry.

Anna hummed softly to herself and swayed slightly to the tune. It took Lightsculpt a moment to recognize it before he stiffened and stared at her.

“Where did you hear that?” That melody, that simple melody that had played in his head whenever he pretended to comfort himself.

Anna shrugged. “Ricki. Keeper as you know her. She sang it to all of us.” Then she stood on her tiptoes and startled him with a kiss, then another and another.

A few moments later, he pulled away and realized she had shoved the curry off the stove and was now gently pushing him out of the kitchen. “I’ll make dinner,” she said. “You go sculpt something.”

He stared at her. “I like curry.”

She sniffed at the slightly—okay, seriously—burnt and poorly seasoned grain. “I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that.”

Lightsculpt sighed and wandered past the teetering stack of files, then thinking better of it, wandered right back into the kitchen where that familiar tune was humming and Anna was putting on garlic toast and salad.

He wrapped his arms around her waist and danced with her—“Lightsculpt!”—while she laughed and had to work around him to make any progress. Distracting her beat out distracting himself any day of the week.

#

Re: Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: Dinnertime Distractions

[thecatisacritic.livejournal.com]

:)

He's right. Distracting other people is easier.

And usually more fun.

Re: Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: Dinnertime Distractions

[scribblemyname]

I had too much fun writing this one. They're cute and he really CAN'T cook. But he can dance.

Re: Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: Dinnertime Distractions

[thecatisacritic.livejournal.com]

:)

I'm glad it was fun. They are sweet, and dancing is good.

I almost prompted more dancing after looking back at Luna/Tynan, but... I think you have plenty of prompts already, and I don't want to be overwhelming...

Re: Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: Dinnertime Distractions

[scribblemyname]

:makes grabby hands: More prompts! Later prompts help me get older prompts that are being reticent. The more, the merrier always. It keeps my inspiration from stagnating.

Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: The Fox and the Wolf

[scribblemyname]

Red Wolf was sitting on the floor in front of the coffee table in the living room, working on taxes. In a good year, taxes were hard, now that he owed in what were technically multiple countries for all manner of kinds of work.

"We should move to a tax-free zone," he muttered to himself as he marked up a set of forms in red ink.

He could feel quiet motion around him in the open space of the living room and kitchen. Whisper when he felt for her energy, but for the most part, he didn't.

"Niq retu?" she asked sotto voice in… Alaric.

He narrowed his eyes and translated the words in his head. She preferred the language, but it wasn't his native. What's bothering you? He shook his head ruefully. "Myrrwick." He slid smoothly into the low tonal language himself. "They're taxing vigilantes now."

She hummed thoughtfully to herself, then went quiet again. He thought little of it until she was settling in beside him and handing him a cup of iced tea. He caught her wrist and kissed it lightly before noting he could deduct his train fare to the other cities.

Whisper shook her head beside him, then leaned over and kissed him gently. When she pulled away, she was smiling slightly as she got to her feet and said, "Don't stay up too late," over her shoulder on the way to the bedroom.

She did that sometimes. Distracted him when she decided what he was doing wasn't vitally urgent. He groaned and ran one hand through his hair then went back to write something and realized she had stolen his pen.

"Red Fox," he muttered heatedly, calling her by another name she often took, and went to go extract vengeance of a kind he doubted she would mind.

#

Re: Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: The Fox and the Wolf

[thecatisacritic.livejournal.com]

Lol. I think she had that kind of vengeance in mind. :)

And being distracted from taxes is always good, right?

Re: Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: The Fox and the Wolf

[scribblemyname]

She probably did indeed.

Amen, sister!

Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: The Unsuspecting Suspect

[scribblemyname]

A/N: So hope you don't hate me, but I thought of Justus and kisses as distraction and this is before Rachelle and Justus are actually in a relationship and after the Thorn Rebellion at some point.

---

"What the h— was that?" Larique demanded as soon as she could without drawing undue attention. She would have slapped her new partner had they not been on assignment (following their unsuspecting suspect) in a very public place (the back of a local gathering place crammed with people of all ages there to read, chatter, dance, nibble, sip, and conduct business).

Justus Ellison just gave her the look, the one she was beginning to associate with you shouldn't have to ask and I don't intend to answer. He glanced in the direction of the lower counter, where their suspect, a teenage girl, was asking the tender about a book.

"You said you hated dancing," he said in an undertone, then smiled winningly with disturbing sincerity.

Larique just glared at him. "I hate being kissed by strangers." She headed for the counter, close to the girl to ask the tender for iced coffee—"To wash the taste out." She met the curious gaze of the interested girl beside her (their suspect) with a flash of a smile, then an annoyed glance in Ellison's direction. He was doing an impression of crossed arms, exaggerated boyfriend patience.

"In my experience," the girl said wide-eyed, "books make for better company than men."

Larique laughed and accepted her glass from the tender. "I'll drink to that."

#

Re: Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: The Unsuspecting Suspect

[thecatisacritic.livejournal.com]

I tried to tell myself that with the operative past, it made sense. I tried to remind myself that even sometimes married cops have to make those kinds of distractions.

I still came off regretting asking to see him work, because now I don't want to. Not when he thinks like this.

Re: Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: The Unsuspecting Suspect

[scribblemyname]

Well, that's hardly his only work and it was literally only a quick kiss, which is quite different from a lot of other things. Normally, I won't write this part for you but I was going with random prompt, must write, and I admit when there's no strings attached to ANYONE, I don't have a problem with quick kiss.

Re: Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: The Unsuspecting Suspect

[thecatisacritic.livejournal.com]

Like I said, I tried to reason on it.

It didn't work.

It still bothered me.

I guess it's just... he may not be an operative anymore, but he was already in love with Rachelle by then, wasn't he? So... if he has a choice, why kiss someone else, even if he is just doing it for a brief moment?

And it was... not a good way to be introduced to his teammate/partner, not for me. :(

Re: Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: The Unsuspecting Suspect

[scribblemyname]

Sorry about that. Thus, the warning. Though of course, it might help that his partner was actually quite ticked off about it and forced to put on a good front. I thought about writing the fallout and Justus realizing he had to shift gears (he actually stayed in the business, which is a lot of why yeah, it took shifting gears toward nonoperative work), but thought I'd wait for your comment first.

Re: Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: The Unsuspecting Suspect

[scribblemyname]

No. He actually was not in love with her at that time. Because at that point in his life, he was quite jaded and had just come out of a period where kisses did not mean anything unless there WAS a relationship attached.

And that's actually the trouble with skipping around the timeline and not being clear enough in author's note.



Quick, side question: was the other Killinger one bad? I didn't think it had objectionables.

Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: Taste of Regret

[scribblemyname]

A/N: So I wasn't expecting this one, but it fits a whole lot better than I expected. Sorry for the… hints? Hopefully, it's not too opaque.

---

"Alpha."

Whisper's quiet voice interrupted the roll of panic and just-the-facts underlying the images on the viewer. Red Wolf did not look up. He could feel her as she rounded the table in their hotel suite and came to sit beside him on the couch.

They didn't look, they didn't touch, for they had long ago mastered intimacy without unnecessary gestures.

Finally, the voices of commentators moved from practicality to heated emotion, and unthinking, he simply flicked out with mind and caught the energy stream feeding the machine and squelched it with a clenched fist.

The viewer obediently went dark. They sat in silence as he absorbed the news: the Thorn Republic, the land he had been born to, was facing serious threats abroad with half of their nation gone and without the strength of the military operatives they had once commanded. Wars and rumors of war. His fingers tapped out a pattern on the arm of the couch.

He felt Whisper move before he felt her touch, kissing him gently on the mouth, then pulling away to see that she had gained his attention.

"It's not your job to fix this," she said softly, sotto voice, almost a whisper. She spoke in the low tonal language she preferred.

He heard her. He reached out and took her hand to kiss it apologetically, then stood to begin pacing. It wasn't his job, not even his country any more, but he had never asked them to start a war for his life or fracture the Thorn Republic into a hundred sundered pieces—the kingdoms—with only ten solid districts left clinging to each other fiercely on the eastern side of the continent. He had never asked her to protect him.

It wasn't fair to couch it that way. Wolf turned and caught her soft, chin-length hair with his fingers, smoothing over the wing of hair that slid over her eyes. There was warmth in the touch, something more genuine than anything they had ever put into words. He leaned down and kissed her in return for the other and clung to her for a moment as fiercely as those districts clung to their Republic.

"I'm sorry," he whispered against her jaw when he could breathe.

She murmurred something wordless, comfort, then kissed him again, wrapping him in a tight embrace.

There would be other battles, other wars. He would disagree with her at times, and she would obey because he was the alpha she had wanted him to be. But there would be no unwinding of history to wake him from that frightening sleep before she could protect him, before she could fight for him, before she could make a choice between the man and his country and choose the man.

#

Re: Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: Taste of Regret

[thecatisacritic.livejournal.com]

So this is why he does the mercenary work... he blames himself for the Thorn Republic being almost destroyed?

Re: Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: Taste of Regret

[scribblemyname]

No. And it's not actually mercenary. He does a lot of things, and sometimes he consults for folks and ends up going into some situations because of friends—like how Rachelle ends up going into them.

Re: Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: Taste of Regret

[thecatisacritic.livejournal.com]

Oh. Okay.

I guess I didn't understand his work after the tax one.

I admit, I don't know what a lot of them do now that they're civilians.

Re: Kingdoms and Thorn Ficlet: Taste of Regret

[scribblemyname]

That's partly because I haven't gotten into most of them. Who did you want to know?

And as said earlier, that wasn't typical of Justus', so you're pretty safe unless you get a warning, which I try to always be good about warning for things I think you won't like.