Fic: Ambrose's Letter (G), Discovery (PG)
What better way to start the new year than by posting fic?
Title: Ambrose's Letter
Fandom: Tin Man
Characters: Ambrose, mentions of DG
Rating: G
Length: 699 words
Summary: Ambrose writes a letter to DG on her 18th birthday.
Notes: This story is the prequel to the one below. :)
DG,
You would have been eighteen today. I know that if given the chance you would have grown into a beautiful young woman here in the OZ. I imagine you would be as fair and just as the queen herself. And even more beautiful.
If you were still here, I doubt Azkadellia would have been able to get as far as she has in her plans. The OZ would still be the bright, shiny place you left behind, that I remember fondly - not the war-torn, dirty, tattered shade it is now. Your light would have kept her at bay. The OZ is nothing without that light.
It's been nearly ten years since Azkadellia stole you from me. From us. The queen surely suffers more than I from losing you. But I can't seem to forget the beautiful little girl who had helped welcome me to the royal household, who had enchanted me so thoroughly and who had somehow become my sole confidante all those years ago. And while the ache I feel for you has lessened over the years, I feel it especially at times like these, moments that I know we would have celebrated with so much glee and joy that I would have felt like a child again.
Of course, I am not a child. I haven't been for a long time. Even when I had first met you, I was already an adult and you a child of five. I was uncomfortable in my new role as advisor then, but you had managed to calm my nerves, to bring me out of my shell. For that kindness, I am eternally grateful.
You didn't know then, you were too young, and I wouldn't tell you now, except I know you'll never see this. But back then, when we had become such close friends, there were whispers about us. About me. Cruel, terrible things were said. Things that had never even crossed my mind. I thank the gods that the queen and king didn't believe them, but that never stopped the rumors. It never does.
I can't help but think that today those rumors would no longer be whispered, that we could, and would, be seen as equals in the eyes of the law. I can't help but wonder how our relationship would be today if you were still here. Would we be the close friends we were when you were young? Would you have grown tired of me, embarrassed by the difference in our age? Would we have become closer with you an adult?
I try not to think long about these things because they pain me each time I let them slip, but you've been the one thing in the OZ that I could never forget.
I hear tell that Azkadellia has amassed a veritable army of followers. It's only a matter of time until she unleashes them on us here. We've been spending our time at the palace, but soon we'll be going to Finaqua, hoping to put off the inevitable. She's already tried to take the plans to my Sunseeder, but I managed to hide them. For now. I don't pretend to believe that she won't try again.
DG, I wish you were here. I miss you more than anything else I've ever missed. I miss the little girl you were, the young woman you'd be today, and the brilliant woman you would've become. I miss my friend, my confidante, and as odd as I'm certain it sounds, the only girl I have ever truly loved.
I'm going to end this here as I fear I've gotten far too sentimental for my own good. It's time I focus on doing all I can to save the OZ instead of on old pains. You will always hold a place in my heart and in my memories. A place I will carry with me wherever I go and whatever I do.
And even though I'll never see you again, young or old, I needed to write this to you, to share with you all that I had bottled up these past years.
I love you, DG. More than either of us could ever have imagined.
-Ambrose
Title: Discovery
Fandom: Tin Man
Characters: Ambrose/DG
Rating: PG
Length: 1244 words
Summary: DG discovers the letter Ambrose had written for her.
Notes: Follow-up to Ambrose's Letter and takes place shortly after Nightmares.
The workshop was in tatters. Inventions and plans were thrown and destroyed, in pieces all over the tables and floor. The sight of his space in such disarray brought an ache to Ambrose's chest that he hadn't expected. He stared at the space, his mouth open in shock and it was only when DG squeezed his hand that he realized what he'd been doing.
"I'm sorry," he said abruptly. "I just-" Ambrose ran a hand over his head, looking around. "I hadn't seen this space since before Azkadee's goons trashed it."
DG nodded, overwhelmed herself by the sheer volume of the mess. "Don't worry, we'll get this place fixed up in no time."
The pair stood in silence, their gaze roaming over the mess for several minutes before Ambrose moved to action, speaking up.
"Well, no time like the present," Ambrose said, bending down to pick up the pieces to an old copper-toned toy. He placed it carefully on a bench and continued to clean other various pieces from the floor.
DG watched Ambrose quietly, how he moved and touched everything so carefully, like he was afraid of further damaging the pieces. Once he had a small area clear of debris, DG moved to help, picking up pieces of paper here and there, making neat piles on a table as she organized the pages.
The pair worked like that together for some time, the room slowly coming together in their care, when DG came across an old letter still sealed in it's envelope. Across the front in a hasty scrawl was her name.
"Ambrose," DG asked, walking across the room toward Ambrose, letter in hand. "What's this?"
Ambrose glanced up, distracted. "Hm?" He asked before his eyes settled on the envelope. "Oh! That. Well... Um. It's nothing. Really, nothing." He started to move closer to DG, reaching out for the letter.
DG's eyes narrowed with suspicion as Ambrose let his Glitch side shine through. The envelope couldn't have been more than a couple years old, leaving DG wondering just what had been written inside. She pulled back as Ambrose came closer, reaching for the envelope. "No way. This is mine." She turned the front to face Ambrose and pointed to the name. "See? DG."
Ambrose's face looked panicked. "Please," he begged. "It was never meant to be seen. You were gone... Dead."
DG held the letter firm, but moved closer to Ambrose, allowing his hands to slide over hers. "Why would you write a letter to a dead girl?" She asked, watching the panic and worry flit over his features.
"It was the only way I could allow myself to move on. To release what I had been feeling." He said, surprising DG with his honesty.
"And what exactly were you feeling?" She pressed, never one to let things go. She wondered how much more he'd reveal or if he'd even let her read it. He seemed genuinely upset that she had even found the letter.
Ambrose shook his head, stepping away, dropping his hands from hers. He moved across the workshop, stopping at a table where a half-finished toy for DG sat. He picked the object up, sliding in a spring where it had worked itself loose. He busied himself with the toy, attempting to sort out the mess in his head as he did.
After several minutes, he could feel DG behind him, her hand sliding over the small of his back. "You wouldn't understand," he said finally, his voice sounding small to his ears.
DG leaned closer. She set the letter on the work bench and wrapped her arms fully around Ambrose from behind. She felt him tense under her touch, probably uncertain in how to handle the closeness after he had tried to close her off. It didn't stop her, though. She rested her head against his back, the fabric of his jacket soft against her skin. And as she nuzzled against him, she felt him slowly relent, his muscles relaxing under her touch.
After several minutes like this, Ambrose finally turned to face DG, seeing her open expression. Fear, worry, and curiosity mingled on the surface, making his pulse race. "Try me," she said and Ambrose nodded.
With shaking fingers he picked up the envelope from the table, the thick paper felt strange in his hands, the memory of the day he had sealed it just as fresh as if he had done so just a few minutes ago. He broke the wax seal and removed the pages from the pouch before unfolding them, holding them open before himself. Ambrose was quiet as he looked at the pages of his neat, precise handwriting, strangely both familiar and unfamiliar to him. He ran a finger along the lines before reading the words aloud to DG. As he did so, he could feel those old pains rise up again in his chest, threatening to overtake him, making his dark eyes sting with the suppressed tears.
DG listened intently as Ambrose read, his voice wavering as he spoke. She could see the way the memories played across his face as he talked of his sadness, his fears, his hope, and his love. All the emotions within the letter moved over the surface as he read it aloud and it was all DG could do not to cry herself.
At the end of the letter, Ambrose paused and DG wondered if he was done or just composing himself. He lowered the letter and looked into DG's face, his eyes shining with unshed tears. DG's heart ached as she saw this. Finally he took a deep breath before speaking again. She couldn't tell whether what he was saying was from the letter or just himself, but the effect of his words would've been the same.
"I love you, DG. More than either of us could ever have imagined." Ambrose spoke those final words and he could feel a weight lift from his shoulders. He reached up and swiped at his eyes, stopping the tears before they could fall. DG was silent, her eyes riveted to him, questioning, hoping. He didn't know what she was feeling or what was going through her mind. But he knew what he feared. And he knew what he hoped.
When Ambrose had begun to feel like his fears were going to be true, he began to speak. "Look, DG-" he began, but was cut off by a finger to his lips. That was followed swiftly by DG's mouth as she moved in for a kiss, her lips meeting his with an intensity that practically blew him away. And for several moments Ambrose couldn't think or do anything, so overwhelmed he was by DG's actions. That is until DG wrapped her arms tightly around him, pulling back from the kiss to catch her breath.
Her voice was low, filled with emotion, but Ambrose could hear her clearly, his stomach flip-flopping with joy. "I love you too, Ambrose. More than even your brilliant mind could understand."
Ambrose heard laughter before he realized it was his own, and only after DG's voice had joined his. He dropped the letter to the ground and reached up to cup DG's face in his hands before pressing a kiss to her mouth. Earnest and intent, he kissed her as she matched him. Kiss for kiss. Touch for touch. Tear for tear. Until nothing mattered at all except that they were there. Alone. Together. In love.
Title: Ambrose's Letter
Fandom: Tin Man
Characters: Ambrose, mentions of DG
Rating: G
Length: 699 words
Summary: Ambrose writes a letter to DG on her 18th birthday.
Notes: This story is the prequel to the one below. :)
DG,
You would have been eighteen today. I know that if given the chance you would have grown into a beautiful young woman here in the OZ. I imagine you would be as fair and just as the queen herself. And even more beautiful.
If you were still here, I doubt Azkadellia would have been able to get as far as she has in her plans. The OZ would still be the bright, shiny place you left behind, that I remember fondly - not the war-torn, dirty, tattered shade it is now. Your light would have kept her at bay. The OZ is nothing without that light.
It's been nearly ten years since Azkadellia stole you from me. From us. The queen surely suffers more than I from losing you. But I can't seem to forget the beautiful little girl who had helped welcome me to the royal household, who had enchanted me so thoroughly and who had somehow become my sole confidante all those years ago. And while the ache I feel for you has lessened over the years, I feel it especially at times like these, moments that I know we would have celebrated with so much glee and joy that I would have felt like a child again.
Of course, I am not a child. I haven't been for a long time. Even when I had first met you, I was already an adult and you a child of five. I was uncomfortable in my new role as advisor then, but you had managed to calm my nerves, to bring me out of my shell. For that kindness, I am eternally grateful.
You didn't know then, you were too young, and I wouldn't tell you now, except I know you'll never see this. But back then, when we had become such close friends, there were whispers about us. About me. Cruel, terrible things were said. Things that had never even crossed my mind. I thank the gods that the queen and king didn't believe them, but that never stopped the rumors. It never does.
I can't help but think that today those rumors would no longer be whispered, that we could, and would, be seen as equals in the eyes of the law. I can't help but wonder how our relationship would be today if you were still here. Would we be the close friends we were when you were young? Would you have grown tired of me, embarrassed by the difference in our age? Would we have become closer with you an adult?
I try not to think long about these things because they pain me each time I let them slip, but you've been the one thing in the OZ that I could never forget.
I hear tell that Azkadellia has amassed a veritable army of followers. It's only a matter of time until she unleashes them on us here. We've been spending our time at the palace, but soon we'll be going to Finaqua, hoping to put off the inevitable. She's already tried to take the plans to my Sunseeder, but I managed to hide them. For now. I don't pretend to believe that she won't try again.
DG, I wish you were here. I miss you more than anything else I've ever missed. I miss the little girl you were, the young woman you'd be today, and the brilliant woman you would've become. I miss my friend, my confidante, and as odd as I'm certain it sounds, the only girl I have ever truly loved.
I'm going to end this here as I fear I've gotten far too sentimental for my own good. It's time I focus on doing all I can to save the OZ instead of on old pains. You will always hold a place in my heart and in my memories. A place I will carry with me wherever I go and whatever I do.
And even though I'll never see you again, young or old, I needed to write this to you, to share with you all that I had bottled up these past years.
I love you, DG. More than either of us could ever have imagined.
-Ambrose
Title: Discovery
Fandom: Tin Man
Characters: Ambrose/DG
Rating: PG
Length: 1244 words
Summary: DG discovers the letter Ambrose had written for her.
Notes: Follow-up to Ambrose's Letter and takes place shortly after Nightmares.
The workshop was in tatters. Inventions and plans were thrown and destroyed, in pieces all over the tables and floor. The sight of his space in such disarray brought an ache to Ambrose's chest that he hadn't expected. He stared at the space, his mouth open in shock and it was only when DG squeezed his hand that he realized what he'd been doing.
"I'm sorry," he said abruptly. "I just-" Ambrose ran a hand over his head, looking around. "I hadn't seen this space since before Azkadee's goons trashed it."
DG nodded, overwhelmed herself by the sheer volume of the mess. "Don't worry, we'll get this place fixed up in no time."
The pair stood in silence, their gaze roaming over the mess for several minutes before Ambrose moved to action, speaking up.
"Well, no time like the present," Ambrose said, bending down to pick up the pieces to an old copper-toned toy. He placed it carefully on a bench and continued to clean other various pieces from the floor.
DG watched Ambrose quietly, how he moved and touched everything so carefully, like he was afraid of further damaging the pieces. Once he had a small area clear of debris, DG moved to help, picking up pieces of paper here and there, making neat piles on a table as she organized the pages.
The pair worked like that together for some time, the room slowly coming together in their care, when DG came across an old letter still sealed in it's envelope. Across the front in a hasty scrawl was her name.
"Ambrose," DG asked, walking across the room toward Ambrose, letter in hand. "What's this?"
Ambrose glanced up, distracted. "Hm?" He asked before his eyes settled on the envelope. "Oh! That. Well... Um. It's nothing. Really, nothing." He started to move closer to DG, reaching out for the letter.
DG's eyes narrowed with suspicion as Ambrose let his Glitch side shine through. The envelope couldn't have been more than a couple years old, leaving DG wondering just what had been written inside. She pulled back as Ambrose came closer, reaching for the envelope. "No way. This is mine." She turned the front to face Ambrose and pointed to the name. "See? DG."
Ambrose's face looked panicked. "Please," he begged. "It was never meant to be seen. You were gone... Dead."
DG held the letter firm, but moved closer to Ambrose, allowing his hands to slide over hers. "Why would you write a letter to a dead girl?" She asked, watching the panic and worry flit over his features.
"It was the only way I could allow myself to move on. To release what I had been feeling." He said, surprising DG with his honesty.
"And what exactly were you feeling?" She pressed, never one to let things go. She wondered how much more he'd reveal or if he'd even let her read it. He seemed genuinely upset that she had even found the letter.
Ambrose shook his head, stepping away, dropping his hands from hers. He moved across the workshop, stopping at a table where a half-finished toy for DG sat. He picked the object up, sliding in a spring where it had worked itself loose. He busied himself with the toy, attempting to sort out the mess in his head as he did.
After several minutes, he could feel DG behind him, her hand sliding over the small of his back. "You wouldn't understand," he said finally, his voice sounding small to his ears.
DG leaned closer. She set the letter on the work bench and wrapped her arms fully around Ambrose from behind. She felt him tense under her touch, probably uncertain in how to handle the closeness after he had tried to close her off. It didn't stop her, though. She rested her head against his back, the fabric of his jacket soft against her skin. And as she nuzzled against him, she felt him slowly relent, his muscles relaxing under her touch.
After several minutes like this, Ambrose finally turned to face DG, seeing her open expression. Fear, worry, and curiosity mingled on the surface, making his pulse race. "Try me," she said and Ambrose nodded.
With shaking fingers he picked up the envelope from the table, the thick paper felt strange in his hands, the memory of the day he had sealed it just as fresh as if he had done so just a few minutes ago. He broke the wax seal and removed the pages from the pouch before unfolding them, holding them open before himself. Ambrose was quiet as he looked at the pages of his neat, precise handwriting, strangely both familiar and unfamiliar to him. He ran a finger along the lines before reading the words aloud to DG. As he did so, he could feel those old pains rise up again in his chest, threatening to overtake him, making his dark eyes sting with the suppressed tears.
DG listened intently as Ambrose read, his voice wavering as he spoke. She could see the way the memories played across his face as he talked of his sadness, his fears, his hope, and his love. All the emotions within the letter moved over the surface as he read it aloud and it was all DG could do not to cry herself.
At the end of the letter, Ambrose paused and DG wondered if he was done or just composing himself. He lowered the letter and looked into DG's face, his eyes shining with unshed tears. DG's heart ached as she saw this. Finally he took a deep breath before speaking again. She couldn't tell whether what he was saying was from the letter or just himself, but the effect of his words would've been the same.
"I love you, DG. More than either of us could ever have imagined." Ambrose spoke those final words and he could feel a weight lift from his shoulders. He reached up and swiped at his eyes, stopping the tears before they could fall. DG was silent, her eyes riveted to him, questioning, hoping. He didn't know what she was feeling or what was going through her mind. But he knew what he feared. And he knew what he hoped.
When Ambrose had begun to feel like his fears were going to be true, he began to speak. "Look, DG-" he began, but was cut off by a finger to his lips. That was followed swiftly by DG's mouth as she moved in for a kiss, her lips meeting his with an intensity that practically blew him away. And for several moments Ambrose couldn't think or do anything, so overwhelmed he was by DG's actions. That is until DG wrapped her arms tightly around him, pulling back from the kiss to catch her breath.
Her voice was low, filled with emotion, but Ambrose could hear her clearly, his stomach flip-flopping with joy. "I love you too, Ambrose. More than even your brilliant mind could understand."
Ambrose heard laughter before he realized it was his own, and only after DG's voice had joined his. He dropped the letter to the ground and reached up to cup DG's face in his hands before pressing a kiss to her mouth. Earnest and intent, he kissed her as she matched him. Kiss for kiss. Touch for touch. Tear for tear. Until nothing mattered at all except that they were there. Alone. Together. In love.