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tigriswolfTitle: solid as ivory, dreamy as smoke
Fandom: The Last Unicorn
Disclaimer: Molly, the magician, and the unicorn aren't my characters; title from C. Day-Lewis
Warnings: pre-canon and post-canon
Pairings: Schmendrick/Molly
Rating: PG
Wordcount: 330
Point of view: third
Prompt: Any, any, the perfect birthday party must involve unicorns
Molly was turning seven tomorrow, and Mama was sick, and Daddy was still gone, and Davey leaned down to sadly whisper, "We'll do our best, Mol, but I'm sorry—I don't think we can have a party tomorrow."
Molly understood. That night, she prayed for Mama to get better and Daddy to come home.
On her seventh birthday, Mama wasn't coughing and Daddy walked in the door, stamping snow off his boots, and he shouted, "Karen, I got even more than we thought!"
Packages spilled out of his arms, cloth for Mama and a knife for Davey, and three things wrapped in special shiny paper, and he said, "Molly my girl, I saw these and knew."
Molly cried in joy and hugged them all, Mama and Daddy and Davey, and she would never have a better birthday.
(In thirty years, when she's tired and worn-down and an outlaw's woman, when she's forgotten her birthday, she will meet a unicorn and a magician.
In thirty-one years, when unicorns are once again in the world, when she's a magician's wife and has adopted a son, she will tell him, Phillip, never forget that magic exists, or that hard work can change things, or the sound of a unicorn's laughter.
In fifty-nine years, when she's dying, she will pray. Her husband and children and grandchildren will wait around the bed, and outside, snow will melt as the unicorn walks up to the house. Most of them will see a pale mare, more dainty and graceful than other horse in the world.
Schmendrick and Molly will see their old friend, and Schmendrick will say, "Oh, Molly my love, happy birthday." He will be crying, and Molly will smile.)
Molly was seven years old and she told her mama and her daddy and Davey, "One day, I'll find a unicorn, and we'll be friends forever."
Mama kissed her cheek, Daddy twirled her around, and Davey ruffled her hair, saying, "You can do anything you want, Mol."
Title: if you're gonna play the game, boy, you gotta learn to play it right
Fandom: RED/White Collar/Inception
Disclaimer: not my characters; title from Kenny Rogers
Warnings: implied child abuse; post-films; takes place after season 2 for White Collar
Pairings: Arthur/Eames, unrequited Neal/Peter
Rating: PG
Wordcount: 665
Point of view: third
Prompt: White Collar/Inception, Neal and Arthur as fraternal twins, how they chose and honor their birthday
Note: follows this
Arthur claims that he's older, though they're about the same size and look the same age. Neal laughs and calls him old man.
0o0
It takes awhile before Neal warms up to Frank. He shies away when Frank comes up behind him, and he censors himself whenever Frank is present.
He adores Arthur, though. Tries to copy him in everything, until about a month after the bar fight, when Arthur sits him down and tells him, "You're not my clone, Neal. Be yourself. Frank won't throw you out, and I won't leave you."
Neal nods. The next day, he sits down across from Frank and tells him the dirtiest joke Frank has ever heard. From then on, he lets Frank see him shine, just as much as Arthur.
0o0
Frank and Arthur consider his birthday to be the day Frank found him. Neal says, "I've been using the day I finally left the home, but I'd—" He cuts himself off, looking down.
"You'd what, kid?" Frank asks.
Arthur smiles like he knows.
"The day Arthur stepped in where he wasn't needed and applied too much force to a few bar patrons well into their liquor," Neal mutters. "Can that be my birthday?"
"Yeah," Frank says gruffly, blinking back tears.
0o0
After Neal runs off to be a criminal and Arthur joins the army, they send each other messages on their birthdays. Postcards or untraceable (for anyone else) emails or actual handwritten letters, in a code no one else can break.
The four years Neal is in prison, he receives a major care package two days a year – his birthday and Arthur's.
When Arthur is at a safe-house, recovering from a nearly-fatal injury, his dad shows up on his birthday and says, "Neal wanted to come. I wouldn't let him."
Neal's present that year is a sketch of the bar fight that introduced them, with Neal small and bloody, and Arthur looking like a superhero. He smiles, and he laughs, and he bursts into tears, turning to Frank. Frank pulls him into a hug, and holds him, and whispers, "Hey, kid, he'll be free soon."
0o0
Eames says, "So, when's your birthday, Arthur?"
Arthur replies, "That's classified, Mr. Eames." He flicks his gaze up from his notes and says, "Yours is the fourth of July, though."
Eames laughs.
0o0
A week before Neal's birthday, Arthur takes Eames to meet Frank, at the only safehouse within Neal's range.
Eames knows who Frank is, of course, and Neal. He didn't realize they were Arthur's family, though.
"My father, Frank Moses," Arthur says, smiling. "My brother, Neal Caffrey."
Eames asks Frank questions he's always wondered about, and flirts back when Neal flirts with him, and tries to embarrass Arthur whenever possible.
On Thursday, their eighth day in New York, Arthur vanishes for nine hours. Eames doesn't panic until lunch time, but when he calls Frank, Frank says, "Calm down, Mr. Thief. It's Neal's birthday."
"And that means Arthur can just run off and terrify his man?" Eames demands.
Frank laughs. "It means they haven't been together for a birthday in a decade. Give 'em the day."
Eames sulks, but he quits leaving Arthur nasty voicemails.
0o0
"The FBI owns me for another year," Neal says. "And I want… I want to stick it out." He buries his face in Arthur's chest, sighing when Arthur's arms come up around him. "Peter and El are so perfect, but I can't help wanting…"
"Oh, Neal," Arthur murmurs.
"Yeah." Neal chuckles bitterly. Arthur shifts, supporting more of his weight, and listens as Neal finally says what he's been thinking for ever eight years.
Finally, when Neal's all cried out, Arthur tells him, "You can come with me and Eames."
"No," Neal replies. "I can't."
0o0
Peter asks Neal, "When's your birthday?"
Eames says, "Arthur, will you finally tell me your birthday?"
Arthur writes a letter and Neal sketches a drawing, and Frank lifts his beer in a toast, murmuring, "Boys, I'm so glad I know you, you clever little snots."
Title: O how glad I waked to find this but a dream!
Fandom: Inception
Disclaimer: not my characters; title from Milton
Warnings: character death
Pairings: Dom/Mal, Arthur/Eames
Rating: PG
Wordcount: 640
Point of view: third
Prompt: Inception, Cobb + children, watching them grow up
Phillipa remembers Mal; she tells her little brother fairy tales about their mother, jokes she gets half right, proverbs she rewords accidentally.
Phillipa promises Dom that she'll dream like her mother. Dom hugs her close and hopes so very hard that she won't.
0o0
James makes up stories as he grows, adventures his parents went on, reasons for why his mother left. That's what he always says; he never utters the words dead, dying, or death. That leads to confused teachers and questioning friends, but James doesn't care.
James tells Dom that one day, he'll make a name for himself, just like his mother. Dom pulls him close and hopes that he doesn't.
0o0
Arthur is present for every birthday, including Mal's. He stays for a week, usually, with lavish yet practical gifts. He frequently checks to make sure Dom and his kids are safe, and Dom knows about half a dozen times he takes matters into his own hands, leading to vanished individuals. Once, it was an entire group.
Phillipa and James both have childhood crushes on their Uncle Arthur. Dom completely understands.
0o0
Eames visits every few years, usually with Arthur. He teaches the children things Dom wishes they didn't need to know. Arthur watches with a careful eye, correcting every now and then. They teach different styles of self-defense: Arthur learned his from the military, Eames from street fighting. Both have dirty tricks, and both tell the kids to make sure whoever goes down won't get up.
Eames teaches painting, pick-pocketing, and poise. Dom isn't surprised that Phillipa and James crush on him, too.
0o0
Both of Dom's children go to college. Phillipa goes on to medical school and eventually becomes a neurologist. James graduates and then backpacks his way through Europe. He disappears somewhere in France; Arthur and Eames track him down, put the fear of God in those foolish enough to waylay him, and bring him home.
Phillipa and Dom meet them at the airport. James can't look either of them in the eye, but he clings just as tightly when they both envelope him in massive hugs.
0o0
When James calls Arthur later that same year and says, If not you, somebody, Dom knows what he means. Arthur does, too, and he says, Put your father on.
Dom says, I trust you, Arthur. You'll protect him. No one else would.
0o0
Phillipa is the child Dom can brag about. She's far more successful in a way the real world understands. Phillipa marries a dream researcher, a man with no idea of what his father-in-law used to be. Who he was. She has two children, both daughters.
James is always away on business. Dom tells people that James does something with computers, something his father just can't understand. It usually works. Whenever James calls home, he talks about different 'friends'; Dom jokes that James has a lover in every port, a reference that flies over both his children's heads. James is a forger, trained by the best: Eames. He never marries, but he does have a son Dom never meets.
0o0
Phillipa does not dream like her mother. She stays firmly rooted in the real world and when her daughters learn about the history of dreamsharing, what little is known, they have no idea how much it is part of their legacy.
James makes a name for himself, eventually eclipsing his parents. At first, he trades on his teachers' reputations—Arthur and Eames are legends, the best of all dream-thieves. Soon enough, though, when people say Cobb, they mean James.
0o0
Phillipa outlives her father by many years. She outlives her beloved Uncles Arthur and Eames by more.
James, though… he dies young, just like his mother. Eames isn't alive to attend his funeral; he died trying to save James' life. Arthur doesn't live much longer.
Dom buries them all.
Title: Venus is taught with Dian's wings to fly
Fandom: Glee
Disclaimer: not my characters; title from Sidney
Warnings: AU
Pairings: Kurt/Mercedes, Kurt/OMCs
Rating: PG
Wordcount: 445
Point of view: third
Prompt: Glee, Kurt/Mercedes (friendship or relationship), He looks at her sometimes and wonders how things might have been if he was different. He thinks he likes it.
In another world, where Kurt kept parts of himself tucked tightly away, where he wore flannel and his father's trucker hats and rarely spoke, where he never sang, he was befriended by a boisterous girl named for her father's first paycheck in his corner office.
Kurt stayed in the background; Mercedes made sure the world noticed her. She entered the room and people looked up, while Kurt followed in her wake.
They experimented together, went to college in New York together, moved in together, and married a year after Mercedes graduated law school. Kurt had a communication studies degree and a job he hated; Mercedes became a lawyer, focusing on children's rights. They barely saw each other.
Kurt thought he was happy. Mercedes knew he wasn't. So after a long week at the office, when they were both worn down and weary, she swept him into a whirlwind vacation and took him to California, leaving their dreary apartment in the dust.
Pretty boys flirted with Kurt beneath California's sun; Mercedes grinned, sipping her daiquiri by the pool. After a quick glance at Mercedes and seeing her nod, Kurt let himself flirt back.
In their room the next morning, Kurt pulled Mercedes into a passionate kiss and thanked her. "You're the best girl a boy could have," he told her.
"I just want you happy," she replied, staring up at him, forcing him to meet her eyes. "Are you happy, Kurt?"
He thought for a moment, leaning down to kiss her again. "I am, Sadie. I promise."
When they went home, Kurt sang in the shower and the kitchen and the den as he slaved over information for a boss he didn't like. Mercedes got caught up in a nasty case that couldn't end happily no matter what, and Kurt listened to her rant, and finally he sat her down, put a bowl of chocolate mousse in front of her, and said, "Are you happy, Mercedes?"
She thought for a moment, looking at her mousse. "No," she said quietly.
"Neither am I," he admitted, dipping his finger in the mousse and licking it off. "What are we doing here?"
Mercedes shrugged.
Kurt set aside the bowl and grabbed her hands, waiting until she looked him in the eye. "Sadie," he said, "let's go to California."
She nodded, starting to smile.
They left behind their dreary apartment, jobs that would break them before long, and lives they'd never wanted.
Kurt flirted with pretty boys but always went home to Mercedes. He found a new job, a better job; Mercedes decided to teach. And on the weekends, they'd go to karaoke bars and light up the stage.
Title: gain glory or die
Fandom: Glee
Disclaimer: not my characters; title from Beowulf
Warnings: early to mid-season 1
Pairings: none
Rating: PG
Point of view: third
Wordcount: 160
Prompt: Glee, Kurt/Mercedes (friendship or relationship), she thinks that it's about time he gets a solo
Listening to Rachel sing another song flawlessly but emotionlessly, Mercedes decided she'd had enough.
She leaned over to Kurt and whispered, "Hey, boo, why don't you get up there and show her how it's done?"
Kurt looked at her, then around at the chairs near them: Quinn was glaring at Rachel, Santana was texting someone (probably Puck, by the leer on his face), and Brittany was nodding off.
"I know you know this song," Mercedes continued. "You sang it yesterday."
"Schue will slap me down," Kurt muttered.
"You sing better than her, and we all know it," Mercedes said. "Now, get up there and prove it."
Rachel finished, striking a pose and waiting for applause that only Finn gave her. Mercedes glared at Kurt; he met her eyes, nodded, and stood.
"Mr. Schue, if I may?" he asked and sauntered to the middle of the room after Schue nodded.
Kurt took a deep breath, opened his mouth, and sang.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2011-08-02 04:12 pm (UTC)I want to be her.
(no subject)
Date: 2011-08-03 01:24 pm (UTC)Thanks for reading!
(no subject)
Date: 2011-08-02 04:39 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-08-03 01:28 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-08-02 09:54 pm (UTC)Arthur and Neal as brothers never gets old.
And that glimpse into the future of the Cobb children was sad, but I could see it happening oh so clearly.
Thanks for sharing!
(no subject)
Date: 2011-08-03 01:28 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-08-02 11:07 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-08-03 01:29 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-08-04 10:39 am (UTC)*hugs Neal* :)
(no subject)
Date: 2011-08-04 02:57 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-08-04 05:01 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-08-04 09:43 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-08-06 07:33 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2011-08-10 06:14 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2012-01-07 04:08 am (UTC)Wow. Absolutely perfect.
(no subject)
Date: 2012-01-08 02:13 am (UTC)