Penguin Challenge by Aingeal
Title: Penguin to Stallion
Author: Aingeal
Pairing: Fraser/Vecchio
Rating: PG
Word Count: 1541
Summary: Post-Pizza and Promises Ray buys himself and Fraser two new radios but what sort of things can they talk about on an open frequency?
Notes: Thanks to prudence_dearly for a lovely beta. And prodding me to post ;-)
Penguin to Stallion
Fraser wasn't sure why Ray insisted they keep radios after they had broken the car thieving ring. Of course these weren't the original radios, these were ones with an extra boosted signal. 'It's the closest thing to a phone I can get you,' Ray had said. Indeed that was Ray's reasoning. It wasn't that Fraser disliked cellphones but he didn't have any experience with them. So Ray had decided it was important to keep in touch and to put Fraser at his ease had bought them radios.
The understanding was they would use code names, as they were on an open frequency. Ray said there were people with special radios that could listen in to different frequencies; including the police bands. Fraser wondered why anyone would eavesdrop like that. The reply had been that people were nosy in cities. Fraser didn't argue.
The radio had been sat on his father's old chest for weeks until he had cause to use it. The controls were simple. He was hesitant, though. Should he really bother Ray? It wasn't technically an emergency. The radio felt heavy in his hand. After sitting there cradling it for at least four minutes Fraser decided to try it.
“Penguin to Stallion, come in Stallion.”
There was a long pause. Wondering if Ray even had his receiver switched on Fraser tried again. “Penguin to Stallion. Come in Stallion.”
This time along with the background noise he could hear a reply.
“Benny?”
“I thought you said we should use code names on an open frequency, Ray,” Fraser corrected himself. “Stallion.”
He thought he heard a sigh. “All right, Penguin, why are you calling me?”
“Well, Ray. Stallion. The wolf is in the maze.”
“Is this about Dief?”
“It seemed to be a good codename.”
There was a pause with static. “Okay, so where is Dief?”
“He's in the maze.”
“What?”
“The wolf is the maze,” Fraser repeated.
“In English, Penguin.”
“He's lost, Stallion.”
“Okay, so Dief is, sorry, wolf, is missing. Do you want me to help find him?”
Fraser nodded even though Ray couldn't see. “If we co-ordinate our resources we could find him quicker.”
“You just need to go to the nearest doughnut stand.”
“Is that code, Stallion?”
“No, Penguin. Okay, I'll come and pick you up.”
“We can keep in touch via our radios. You don't need to pick me up. If we circle the forest and meet in the clearing I'm sure we'll find him.”
“Are meeting in your apartment?”
It appeared that Ray was starting to understand Fraser's code. He hadn't exactly briefed Ray on the nuances of it. But then to do so over the radio would seem to contradict the very reason for the code. “Yes, Stallion.”
“Okay.”
Fraser was wandering the alleyways near the apartment when his radio crackled into life. “Have you seen anything yet, Penguin?”
“I thought I found some tracks near the cave but it turned out to be a jackal.”
“We need to work on this code thing.” Fraser could almost see Ray rolling his eyes.
“Would you prefer I use different metaphors?”
“What sort of metaphor? Something about hockey?”
“I could say that the puck is on the ice.”
“Penguin, I don't know hockey.”
“Ah, sorry, Stallion.”
A few more minutes went by. Fraser heard a noise by a large pile of rubbish and slowly made his way over so as not to startle whatever it was that in the shadows by the garbage cans. He approached carefully and gradually he could pick out the outline of a wolf. He could see said wolf nosing around an open garbage bag. Dief hadn't noticed until Fraser got close and spoke his name. “Diefenbaker?”
Diefenbaker looked up, rather startled and surprised to see Fraser so close. There was a candy bar wrapper hanging off his nose and the hint of chocolate stains around his mouth, even in the dim light of the alleyway. Dief barked, as if to protest his innocence. Fraser sighed and spoke into his radio.
“I've found the wolf, Stallion.”
“Good. Do you want to meet in the puck?”
“Do you mean the clearing?”
“Yeah.”
“I'd like that.”
“See you in a few minutes, Stallion out.”
Once Fraser had used the radio for the first time he discovered Ray wasn't so reticent in using it himself. He was getting ready for bed after a long day at the consulate that had cumulated in a buffet and dance with a live band. He was tired but he couldn't help feel cheerful when he heard the crackle of the radio.
“Stallion to Penguin. Come in Penguin.”
Fraser reached over to answer the radio. He kept it very close to his bed these days, always within easy reach. He wasn't sure why.
“Ah, hello, Stallion.”
“So, Penguin, did you have to dance with any monkeys?”
“Are you referring to the ball that was held tonight at the Cave?”
“No, I'm wondering if you were dancing with monkeys. Yeah, the ball.”
Fraser tried to think up a good code metaphor. “The monkeys were very...parrot-like.”
“So they were polite?”
“They talked a lot.”
“Did you have to slide across the ice with them?”
“No, Stallion. I was guarding the treasure chest.”
“The food table? From who?”
For some reason Fraser was very pleased at how quickly they picked up each other meanings though this strange code. “The foxes. They would have broken the clock.”
“So politicians have lousy timing.”
“It would have been nice if you'd been able to attend, Stallion.”
“Well, Penguin, the weasels needed arresting.”
“Do you want to come to the clearing after work tomorrow?”
“I was thinking we could go to the castle.”
“Which castle?”
“A Chinese one.”
“Ah. A restaurant.”
“What would you call it in code?”
“I'm not sure, Stallion.” Although castle made a sort of sense.
“So you want to go to the castle?”
“Yes, Stallion. I'd like that.”
“See you tomorrow, Penguin.”
“Goodnight Stallion.”
It wasn't a traditional way of signing off a radio conversation but it seemed to work. It felt right.
The next night, after they had returned from the restaurant and Fraser was puzzling over something. It had been a very pleasant evening but something about the interactions between himself and Stallion - Ray - had got him thinking. Perhaps he should ask Ray - Stallion - about it. He eyed the radio for a long time before gathering the courage to pick it up.
“Penguin to Stallion.”
Ray's response was immediate. “Are you okay?”
“Yes. I wasn't sure if I'd thanked you for the meal at the castle.”
“You did, Penguin. Twice.”
“Ah. Well, it was very enjoyable, Stallion. Thank you. I was wondering if it was a...calendar.”
“A calendar?”
“Yes. Or perhaps a week.”
“What was a week?
“Not. I was trying to think of a codeword for a date.”
“A...” Ray trailed off and there was static.
“Stallion?”
“It was a calendar, Penguin.”
“Could you meet me in the clearing, Stallion?
“Give me five minutes. And, no, that isn't a metaphor.”
It was longer than five minutes before Ray appeared. Fraser spent much of the time seated at the kitchen table staring at the radio in the faint hope it might crackle into life but it stayed silent. He was just contemplating contacting Ray when there was a knock at the door.
He went over and opened it.
“Hey, Penguin.” Ray's voice was gentle and he was smiling a little.
“Hello, Stallion.”
Fraser stepped to one side, allowing Ray to come in. He closed the door behind him, carefully.
“You know on the way over here I was trying to think of a code metaphor for 'kiss me',” Ray said.
Fraser licked his lower lip. “Do you think we need one?”
Ray's answer was to step forward and give him a kiss, it was quick but more than more than a simple peck on the lips. Ray stepped back afterwards, looking unsure. Fraser responded by stepping close to him, pleased when Ray came forward to kiss him again and this time he didn't pull back - neither of them did. Fraser decided if there was a codeword for kissing Ray it should be heaven.
“So what now, Penguin?” Ray asked when the kiss had ended but they still had hold of each other.
“I think it would be nice if we built an igloo in the forest. We could visit castles and spend time together in the clearing.”
Ray laughed. “Yeah, we could do that.” He became more serious and looked Fraser in the eyes. “I'd like that.”
“Are we going to conduct our relationship entirely with metaphors, Ray?”
“No. But you can always call me Stallion.”
Fraser smiled. “Thank you, Stallion.”
A few days later they were lying in bed when Ray spoke up.
“Stallion to Penguin.”
“Yes, Stallion?” Fraser leaned on one elbow.
“You need a bigger bed, Penguin.”
“Don't you mean a larger nest?” Fraser asked, giggling.
“Penguin!”
Ray rolled on top of his lover and kissed him to stop the giggles. Ray's voice was much nicer in person, Fraser reflected. In fact having the whole of Ray with him was much nicer. After -all, who wouldn't want a Stallion like Ray in their bed?
Author: Aingeal
Pairing: Fraser/Vecchio
Rating: PG
Word Count: 1541
Summary: Post-Pizza and Promises Ray buys himself and Fraser two new radios but what sort of things can they talk about on an open frequency?
Notes: Thanks to prudence_dearly for a lovely beta. And prodding me to post ;-)
Penguin to Stallion
Fraser wasn't sure why Ray insisted they keep radios after they had broken the car thieving ring. Of course these weren't the original radios, these were ones with an extra boosted signal. 'It's the closest thing to a phone I can get you,' Ray had said. Indeed that was Ray's reasoning. It wasn't that Fraser disliked cellphones but he didn't have any experience with them. So Ray had decided it was important to keep in touch and to put Fraser at his ease had bought them radios.
The understanding was they would use code names, as they were on an open frequency. Ray said there were people with special radios that could listen in to different frequencies; including the police bands. Fraser wondered why anyone would eavesdrop like that. The reply had been that people were nosy in cities. Fraser didn't argue.
The radio had been sat on his father's old chest for weeks until he had cause to use it. The controls were simple. He was hesitant, though. Should he really bother Ray? It wasn't technically an emergency. The radio felt heavy in his hand. After sitting there cradling it for at least four minutes Fraser decided to try it.
“Penguin to Stallion, come in Stallion.”
There was a long pause. Wondering if Ray even had his receiver switched on Fraser tried again. “Penguin to Stallion. Come in Stallion.”
This time along with the background noise he could hear a reply.
“Benny?”
“I thought you said we should use code names on an open frequency, Ray,” Fraser corrected himself. “Stallion.”
He thought he heard a sigh. “All right, Penguin, why are you calling me?”
“Well, Ray. Stallion. The wolf is in the maze.”
“Is this about Dief?”
“It seemed to be a good codename.”
There was a pause with static. “Okay, so where is Dief?”
“He's in the maze.”
“What?”
“The wolf is the maze,” Fraser repeated.
“In English, Penguin.”
“He's lost, Stallion.”
“Okay, so Dief is, sorry, wolf, is missing. Do you want me to help find him?”
Fraser nodded even though Ray couldn't see. “If we co-ordinate our resources we could find him quicker.”
“You just need to go to the nearest doughnut stand.”
“Is that code, Stallion?”
“No, Penguin. Okay, I'll come and pick you up.”
“We can keep in touch via our radios. You don't need to pick me up. If we circle the forest and meet in the clearing I'm sure we'll find him.”
“Are meeting in your apartment?”
It appeared that Ray was starting to understand Fraser's code. He hadn't exactly briefed Ray on the nuances of it. But then to do so over the radio would seem to contradict the very reason for the code. “Yes, Stallion.”
“Okay.”
Fraser was wandering the alleyways near the apartment when his radio crackled into life. “Have you seen anything yet, Penguin?”
“I thought I found some tracks near the cave but it turned out to be a jackal.”
“We need to work on this code thing.” Fraser could almost see Ray rolling his eyes.
“Would you prefer I use different metaphors?”
“What sort of metaphor? Something about hockey?”
“I could say that the puck is on the ice.”
“Penguin, I don't know hockey.”
“Ah, sorry, Stallion.”
A few more minutes went by. Fraser heard a noise by a large pile of rubbish and slowly made his way over so as not to startle whatever it was that in the shadows by the garbage cans. He approached carefully and gradually he could pick out the outline of a wolf. He could see said wolf nosing around an open garbage bag. Dief hadn't noticed until Fraser got close and spoke his name. “Diefenbaker?”
Diefenbaker looked up, rather startled and surprised to see Fraser so close. There was a candy bar wrapper hanging off his nose and the hint of chocolate stains around his mouth, even in the dim light of the alleyway. Dief barked, as if to protest his innocence. Fraser sighed and spoke into his radio.
“I've found the wolf, Stallion.”
“Good. Do you want to meet in the puck?”
“Do you mean the clearing?”
“Yeah.”
“I'd like that.”
“See you in a few minutes, Stallion out.”
Once Fraser had used the radio for the first time he discovered Ray wasn't so reticent in using it himself. He was getting ready for bed after a long day at the consulate that had cumulated in a buffet and dance with a live band. He was tired but he couldn't help feel cheerful when he heard the crackle of the radio.
“Stallion to Penguin. Come in Penguin.”
Fraser reached over to answer the radio. He kept it very close to his bed these days, always within easy reach. He wasn't sure why.
“Ah, hello, Stallion.”
“So, Penguin, did you have to dance with any monkeys?”
“Are you referring to the ball that was held tonight at the Cave?”
“No, I'm wondering if you were dancing with monkeys. Yeah, the ball.”
Fraser tried to think up a good code metaphor. “The monkeys were very...parrot-like.”
“So they were polite?”
“They talked a lot.”
“Did you have to slide across the ice with them?”
“No, Stallion. I was guarding the treasure chest.”
“The food table? From who?”
For some reason Fraser was very pleased at how quickly they picked up each other meanings though this strange code. “The foxes. They would have broken the clock.”
“So politicians have lousy timing.”
“It would have been nice if you'd been able to attend, Stallion.”
“Well, Penguin, the weasels needed arresting.”
“Do you want to come to the clearing after work tomorrow?”
“I was thinking we could go to the castle.”
“Which castle?”
“A Chinese one.”
“Ah. A restaurant.”
“What would you call it in code?”
“I'm not sure, Stallion.” Although castle made a sort of sense.
“So you want to go to the castle?”
“Yes, Stallion. I'd like that.”
“See you tomorrow, Penguin.”
“Goodnight Stallion.”
It wasn't a traditional way of signing off a radio conversation but it seemed to work. It felt right.
The next night, after they had returned from the restaurant and Fraser was puzzling over something. It had been a very pleasant evening but something about the interactions between himself and Stallion - Ray - had got him thinking. Perhaps he should ask Ray - Stallion - about it. He eyed the radio for a long time before gathering the courage to pick it up.
“Penguin to Stallion.”
Ray's response was immediate. “Are you okay?”
“Yes. I wasn't sure if I'd thanked you for the meal at the castle.”
“You did, Penguin. Twice.”
“Ah. Well, it was very enjoyable, Stallion. Thank you. I was wondering if it was a...calendar.”
“A calendar?”
“Yes. Or perhaps a week.”
“What was a week?
“Not. I was trying to think of a codeword for a date.”
“A...” Ray trailed off and there was static.
“Stallion?”
“It was a calendar, Penguin.”
“Could you meet me in the clearing, Stallion?
“Give me five minutes. And, no, that isn't a metaphor.”
It was longer than five minutes before Ray appeared. Fraser spent much of the time seated at the kitchen table staring at the radio in the faint hope it might crackle into life but it stayed silent. He was just contemplating contacting Ray when there was a knock at the door.
He went over and opened it.
“Hey, Penguin.” Ray's voice was gentle and he was smiling a little.
“Hello, Stallion.”
Fraser stepped to one side, allowing Ray to come in. He closed the door behind him, carefully.
“You know on the way over here I was trying to think of a code metaphor for 'kiss me',” Ray said.
Fraser licked his lower lip. “Do you think we need one?”
Ray's answer was to step forward and give him a kiss, it was quick but more than more than a simple peck on the lips. Ray stepped back afterwards, looking unsure. Fraser responded by stepping close to him, pleased when Ray came forward to kiss him again and this time he didn't pull back - neither of them did. Fraser decided if there was a codeword for kissing Ray it should be heaven.
“So what now, Penguin?” Ray asked when the kiss had ended but they still had hold of each other.
“I think it would be nice if we built an igloo in the forest. We could visit castles and spend time together in the clearing.”
Ray laughed. “Yeah, we could do that.” He became more serious and looked Fraser in the eyes. “I'd like that.”
“Are we going to conduct our relationship entirely with metaphors, Ray?”
“No. But you can always call me Stallion.”
Fraser smiled. “Thank you, Stallion.”
A few days later they were lying in bed when Ray spoke up.
“Stallion to Penguin.”
“Yes, Stallion?” Fraser leaned on one elbow.
“You need a bigger bed, Penguin.”
“Don't you mean a larger nest?” Fraser asked, giggling.
“Penguin!”
Ray rolled on top of his lover and kissed him to stop the giggles. Ray's voice was much nicer in person, Fraser reflected. In fact having the whole of Ray with him was much nicer. After -all, who wouldn't want a Stallion like Ray in their bed?