More Than Distance Between Us
Title: More Than Distance Between Us
Rating: PG
Word count: 475 words
Characters/Pairings: Marian, Guy; Guy/Marian
Prompt: Guy/Marian; storytime
Summary: It’s heart-wrenching to hear his whispered assurances that his own child will never suffer the same fate as he had to. Not if he can help it.
Notes: Another drabble that got away from me, this time in more ways than one. It started out as total fluff, with Guy murmuring idle nonsense to Marian’s stomach, but well... you’ll see. Suffice to see that it’s more angst than fluff now =( Title is taken from Rihanna’s California King Bed. And I was watching an episode of Doctor Who while writing this, so what Guy says at one point is probably influenced by something Amy says in 6x07.
She wakes up to a curious rumbling sound and the feeling of someone’s hand caressing her bare stomach. Her mind is hazy from sleep and she’s fully prepared to doze back off, then the rumbling resumes and she recognises the low, dulcet tones of her husband’s voice. She nearly stirs and alerts him to the fact that she’s awake, but her mind registers what he’s actually saying and convinces her otherwise.
“... and even though there was once a time she would have said no, she agreed to marry me.”
Marian is curious. She knows he’s talking about her, but she has no idea why or who to.
Guy’s hand moves again against her stomach and he starts tracing slow, soothing circles on her swollen belly. As if that didn’t make it clear to her, his next words do.
“I love your mother very much,” he murmurs, “and I hope that one day she will love me in return.” Guy trails off and his hand pauses in its motion. Marian bites her lip nervously and prays he will continue. “But whatever the future brings, know that you will always be loved and cared for and protected. I will never let anyone hurt you. And nor will your mother; she will love and cherish you for the rest of her life, whether she comes to love me or not, and she will look down on you from heaven and watch over you even after we’re both gone...”
Guy’s omission of himself from heaven, the conviction in his voice and then his audible faltering brings a tear to Marian’s eye. Even after everything that has passed between them she can’t help but feel guilty as he speaks so openly about his feelings for her, knowing full well that she does not return his sentiments, and yet feeling the need to reassure their unborn child that they will never be alone. She knows enough about his past now to understand that was not always the case for him, and that her assessment that he was ‘deprived of love’ was more accurate than she could ever have guessed, so it’s even more heart-wrenching to hear his whispered assurances that his own child will never suffer the same fate. Not if he can help it.
It feels like an odd invasion of Guy’s privacy to continue listening as he bares his heart and soul, especially since she knows he would not - could not - be doing this if he knew she could hear, so she deliberately shifts positions slightly, feigning waking up. He immediately withdraws his hand from her skin and pulls away, putting a gap between their bodies as he lies back down, turned away from her. The tears that have gathered in Marian’s eyes start to fall, and she finds herself wishing for his arms around her once more.
Rating: PG
Word count: 475 words
Characters/Pairings: Marian, Guy; Guy/Marian
Prompt: Guy/Marian; storytime
Summary: It’s heart-wrenching to hear his whispered assurances that his own child will never suffer the same fate as he had to. Not if he can help it.
Notes: Another drabble that got away from me, this time in more ways than one. It started out as total fluff, with Guy murmuring idle nonsense to Marian’s stomach, but well... you’ll see. Suffice to see that it’s more angst than fluff now =( Title is taken from Rihanna’s California King Bed. And I was watching an episode of Doctor Who while writing this, so what Guy says at one point is probably influenced by something Amy says in 6x07.
She wakes up to a curious rumbling sound and the feeling of someone’s hand caressing her bare stomach. Her mind is hazy from sleep and she’s fully prepared to doze back off, then the rumbling resumes and she recognises the low, dulcet tones of her husband’s voice. She nearly stirs and alerts him to the fact that she’s awake, but her mind registers what he’s actually saying and convinces her otherwise.
“... and even though there was once a time she would have said no, she agreed to marry me.”
Marian is curious. She knows he’s talking about her, but she has no idea why or who to.
Guy’s hand moves again against her stomach and he starts tracing slow, soothing circles on her swollen belly. As if that didn’t make it clear to her, his next words do.
“I love your mother very much,” he murmurs, “and I hope that one day she will love me in return.” Guy trails off and his hand pauses in its motion. Marian bites her lip nervously and prays he will continue. “But whatever the future brings, know that you will always be loved and cared for and protected. I will never let anyone hurt you. And nor will your mother; she will love and cherish you for the rest of her life, whether she comes to love me or not, and she will look down on you from heaven and watch over you even after we’re both gone...”
Guy’s omission of himself from heaven, the conviction in his voice and then his audible faltering brings a tear to Marian’s eye. Even after everything that has passed between them she can’t help but feel guilty as he speaks so openly about his feelings for her, knowing full well that she does not return his sentiments, and yet feeling the need to reassure their unborn child that they will never be alone. She knows enough about his past now to understand that was not always the case for him, and that her assessment that he was ‘deprived of love’ was more accurate than she could ever have guessed, so it’s even more heart-wrenching to hear his whispered assurances that his own child will never suffer the same fate. Not if he can help it.
It feels like an odd invasion of Guy’s privacy to continue listening as he bares his heart and soul, especially since she knows he would not - could not - be doing this if he knew she could hear, so she deliberately shifts positions slightly, feigning waking up. He immediately withdraws his hand from her skin and pulls away, putting a gap between their bodies as he lies back down, turned away from her. The tears that have gathered in Marian’s eyes start to fall, and she finds herself wishing for his arms around her once more.