Random Oz (from BtVS) Ficlets
title: Contacts
word count: 200
fandom: Highlander
challenge: #045 - Come as you aren’t
summary: Methos needs assistance and he’s playing the line close to get it
author: PaBurke
disclaimer: I own nothing and gain no money from these few words
Methos stood in the corner of the club and walked away from the child he had been flirting with. She had been dressed as Elizabeth Barton and he as Death at this Halloween Bash. She had done her research and actually resembled the founder of the Red Cross. She had recognized him as Death as well even though he wasn’t wearing a cowl and carrying a sickle. Mac would flip if he saw him now. Methos glanced around the club again, wary.
He needed a new identity and someone the Watcher’s had bugged his normal routes, so he had to find someone new. This ‘Wizard’ better be as good as his reputation claimed.
“Adam?” an unfamiliar voice asked.
Methos turned to face a short man dressed as a werewolf. “Yes.”
The man brushed close and pressed a package into the Immortal’s hands. Methos accepted it and handed back an envelope of money. The Wizard… or his flunky disappeared into the crowd. Methos made his way to the bathroom. In a stall, he checked the documents and blinked.
These were very good. Methos couldn’t tell that they were fakes. This Wizard would be a good one to keep in touch with.
*
Title: Bars on our Doors, Bars on our Hearts
By PaBurke
Summary: Oz trying to survive in a human world.
Spoilers: Season five.
Rating: PG-15
He had thought that he needed human contact. He had thought that he had been alone in the woods too long. He had thought that a quick trip into the city would cure what ailed him.
Oz had thought wrong.
He had been with the animals for far too long. There the only emotions were ‘need’ and ‘fear.’ And fear was in short supply when you were on the top of the food chain.
Oz had forgotten fear.
The human fear of rejection, the beast’s fear of being caged, warred within Oz. The buildings that towered skyward made the beast quiver. The distraction of taking the bus turned into a failed experiment. Most of the occupants feared something: money problems, job problems, health problems. Oz could smell decay. One of the riders was dying and knew it and feared what was beyond death.
A child’s laughter brightened the bus for a moment and offered hope. But the mother feared rejection, feared that the child was too loud, that he might bother the other riders and shushed the laughter. The hope flickered and died.
Oz got off the bus miles before he had planned. The streets were slightly better and they were slightly worse. He could walk away from the people and their fears, but he would only run into a new set of fears from a new set of people.
He saw those who thought they were strong prey on those they saw as weak. The beast had no problems with this. It took a few moments to realize that Oz did. A boy, bruised, lifted himself up from the mud and smiled at Oz, for no reason, than because Oz was there. The boy was not as prey as previously believed. The boy walked away and no one offered to help him.
Oz didn’t know if he had smiled back at the boy. He hoped that he had. Had he been the one to hush and smother the flickers of hope this time?
Dusk was falling and the shops were closing up for the night. Shopkeepers turned off lights and lowered the gates. The rattles unnerved the beast within. It didn’t like cages.
The beast feared cages.
It even feared cages that it was kept out of. All the beast saw were the bars. Bars intended to keep out danger did not feel secure to Oz, to the beast. The bars kept Oz on the outside with the danger, but Oz could not have handled being inside the bar and ‘safe.’
There was danger on the streets, but Oz walked by it unnoticed.
He had learned that in the woods and it served him well. As Oz had walked by the danger, so he walked by those in danger. Those people didn’t see how close they were to the edge, they didn’t see how long the drop was down. They didn’t see the sharpened pikes at the bottom.
Oz saw it though. He did not comment to those on the edge. He did not help.
He didn’t push them over the edge either.
Where was there hope? Why had he come here?
He hadn’t seen the sun because of the rain clouds and he couldn’t see the stars for the smog. There was barely any grass to be seen and fewer trees.
Oz abruptly changed directions. He had had enough. It was time to leave this city. Street by street Oz walked out of the city. The further apart the houses, the higher Oz’s spirit rose. The lights seemed brighter, the roads cleaner. There weren’t people out on the street here, but there weren’t bars on these windows.
Oz could smell trees and animals from here. It was calling him home.
A church bell tolled the hour. The automated sounds hovered on the winds.
Oz paused and listened.
Was that hope?
Oz didn’t know.
He kept on walking until he was surrounded by woods.
Alone.
*fin*
Title: Candlelights
Author: PaBurke
Disclaimer: No copyright infringement intended, no money made, no characters created.
Spoilers: Hasn’t everyone seen all of BtVS Season Seven? AU of the Episode Chosen.
Challenge Description: They're dead. All but one. The last Scooby reflects on his/her friends deaths and tries to go on with his/her life. Should include: how did they die? Angst. Should not include: resurrection Buffy as the last one.
Crossover Fandom: Highlander
***
***
He stood at the edge of the lake.
It looked normal, much as the town had but its depths were so dark. The lake held a multitude of secrets and bodies. Riley had e-mailed him the official report. The MIA list contained a lot of familiar names, but more than names. That list had evoked feelings of loss.
Everything was lost.
Something big and bad happened here.
The Scoobies had not escaped the final grasp of the Hellmouth. It claimed them all in the end.
“Daniel, you ready to go?”
Oz stared down into the water looking for answers.
“Daniel, the Boy Scout got you on the next flight to Cleveland. You said that a girl would find us there. You don’t want to miss your flight.”
Oz looked at the Old Man. “You have a ticket too.”
Methos looked chagrined. “I’d hate to leave you in the translating mercies of MacLeod. He’d have you chasing every yahoo who dabbled in the dark magicks or lived next door to a demon.”
Oz knelt by the edge of the lake and with a lighter lit the five candles on the floating barge. He stood, pocketed the lighter and toed the barge on to the Sunnydale Lake. It floated away, the candlelights flickering, reflecting on the water.
****
Title: Crème de la crème
by PaBurke
Disclaimer: No copyright infringement intended, no money made, no characters created.
Spoilers: NUMB3RS season 3
Summary: It’s all in how you define the terms.
Word Count: 100
Charlie and Larry sat in the college café. They had a good view out the windows and were available for questions from any students that passed by. They were chatting -playfully arguing- about complex concepts.
Then the newly-minted, adjunct professor, Amita, stopped by. She greeted each of her teachers, and then turned to introduce the slight man following her.
“Professors Eppes and Flienhart, here is a new addition to computer science program here at CalSci. I’m also trying to talk him into studying Applied Mathematics.”
“Wonderful!” Charlie held out his hand. “Call me Charlie. I didn’t catch your name.”
“Oz.”
*
word count: 200
fandom: Highlander
challenge: #045 - Come as you aren’t
summary: Methos needs assistance and he’s playing the line close to get it
author: PaBurke
disclaimer: I own nothing and gain no money from these few words
Methos stood in the corner of the club and walked away from the child he had been flirting with. She had been dressed as Elizabeth Barton and he as Death at this Halloween Bash. She had done her research and actually resembled the founder of the Red Cross. She had recognized him as Death as well even though he wasn’t wearing a cowl and carrying a sickle. Mac would flip if he saw him now. Methos glanced around the club again, wary.
He needed a new identity and someone the Watcher’s had bugged his normal routes, so he had to find someone new. This ‘Wizard’ better be as good as his reputation claimed.
“Adam?” an unfamiliar voice asked.
Methos turned to face a short man dressed as a werewolf. “Yes.”
The man brushed close and pressed a package into the Immortal’s hands. Methos accepted it and handed back an envelope of money. The Wizard… or his flunky disappeared into the crowd. Methos made his way to the bathroom. In a stall, he checked the documents and blinked.
These were very good. Methos couldn’t tell that they were fakes. This Wizard would be a good one to keep in touch with.
*
Title: Bars on our Doors, Bars on our Hearts
By PaBurke
Summary: Oz trying to survive in a human world.
Spoilers: Season five.
Rating: PG-15
He had thought that he needed human contact. He had thought that he had been alone in the woods too long. He had thought that a quick trip into the city would cure what ailed him.
Oz had thought wrong.
He had been with the animals for far too long. There the only emotions were ‘need’ and ‘fear.’ And fear was in short supply when you were on the top of the food chain.
Oz had forgotten fear.
The human fear of rejection, the beast’s fear of being caged, warred within Oz. The buildings that towered skyward made the beast quiver. The distraction of taking the bus turned into a failed experiment. Most of the occupants feared something: money problems, job problems, health problems. Oz could smell decay. One of the riders was dying and knew it and feared what was beyond death.
A child’s laughter brightened the bus for a moment and offered hope. But the mother feared rejection, feared that the child was too loud, that he might bother the other riders and shushed the laughter. The hope flickered and died.
Oz got off the bus miles before he had planned. The streets were slightly better and they were slightly worse. He could walk away from the people and their fears, but he would only run into a new set of fears from a new set of people.
He saw those who thought they were strong prey on those they saw as weak. The beast had no problems with this. It took a few moments to realize that Oz did. A boy, bruised, lifted himself up from the mud and smiled at Oz, for no reason, than because Oz was there. The boy was not as prey as previously believed. The boy walked away and no one offered to help him.
Oz didn’t know if he had smiled back at the boy. He hoped that he had. Had he been the one to hush and smother the flickers of hope this time?
Dusk was falling and the shops were closing up for the night. Shopkeepers turned off lights and lowered the gates. The rattles unnerved the beast within. It didn’t like cages.
The beast feared cages.
It even feared cages that it was kept out of. All the beast saw were the bars. Bars intended to keep out danger did not feel secure to Oz, to the beast. The bars kept Oz on the outside with the danger, but Oz could not have handled being inside the bar and ‘safe.’
There was danger on the streets, but Oz walked by it unnoticed.
He had learned that in the woods and it served him well. As Oz had walked by the danger, so he walked by those in danger. Those people didn’t see how close they were to the edge, they didn’t see how long the drop was down. They didn’t see the sharpened pikes at the bottom.
Oz saw it though. He did not comment to those on the edge. He did not help.
He didn’t push them over the edge either.
Where was there hope? Why had he come here?
He hadn’t seen the sun because of the rain clouds and he couldn’t see the stars for the smog. There was barely any grass to be seen and fewer trees.
Oz abruptly changed directions. He had had enough. It was time to leave this city. Street by street Oz walked out of the city. The further apart the houses, the higher Oz’s spirit rose. The lights seemed brighter, the roads cleaner. There weren’t people out on the street here, but there weren’t bars on these windows.
Oz could smell trees and animals from here. It was calling him home.
A church bell tolled the hour. The automated sounds hovered on the winds.
Oz paused and listened.
Was that hope?
Oz didn’t know.
He kept on walking until he was surrounded by woods.
Alone.
*fin*
Title: Candlelights
Author: PaBurke
Disclaimer: No copyright infringement intended, no money made, no characters created.
Spoilers: Hasn’t everyone seen all of BtVS Season Seven? AU of the Episode Chosen.
Challenge Description: They're dead. All but one. The last Scooby reflects on his/her friends deaths and tries to go on with his/her life. Should include: how did they die? Angst. Should not include: resurrection Buffy as the last one.
Crossover Fandom: Highlander
***
***
He stood at the edge of the lake.
It looked normal, much as the town had but its depths were so dark. The lake held a multitude of secrets and bodies. Riley had e-mailed him the official report. The MIA list contained a lot of familiar names, but more than names. That list had evoked feelings of loss.
Everything was lost.
Something big and bad happened here.
The Scoobies had not escaped the final grasp of the Hellmouth. It claimed them all in the end.
“Daniel, you ready to go?”
Oz stared down into the water looking for answers.
“Daniel, the Boy Scout got you on the next flight to Cleveland. You said that a girl would find us there. You don’t want to miss your flight.”
Oz looked at the Old Man. “You have a ticket too.”
Methos looked chagrined. “I’d hate to leave you in the translating mercies of MacLeod. He’d have you chasing every yahoo who dabbled in the dark magicks or lived next door to a demon.”
Oz knelt by the edge of the lake and with a lighter lit the five candles on the floating barge. He stood, pocketed the lighter and toed the barge on to the Sunnydale Lake. It floated away, the candlelights flickering, reflecting on the water.
****
Title: Crème de la crème
by PaBurke
Disclaimer: No copyright infringement intended, no money made, no characters created.
Spoilers: NUMB3RS season 3
Summary: It’s all in how you define the terms.
Word Count: 100
Charlie and Larry sat in the college café. They had a good view out the windows and were available for questions from any students that passed by. They were chatting -playfully arguing- about complex concepts.
Then the newly-minted, adjunct professor, Amita, stopped by. She greeted each of her teachers, and then turned to introduce the slight man following her.
“Professors Eppes and Flienhart, here is a new addition to computer science program here at CalSci. I’m also trying to talk him into studying Applied Mathematics.”
“Wonderful!” Charlie held out his hand. “Call me Charlie. I didn’t catch your name.”
“Oz.”
*