At the Lamb Inn

[venusinfurs90]

Title: At the Lamb Inn

Rating: PG

Pairing: Horatio/Archie

Word Count: 2,651 (!!)

Summary: Archie and Horatio have a heartfelt conversation as Archie tries to learn to open up to his once closest friend. Set just after The Duchess and the Devil - I wondered what Archie must have felt about being friends with Horatio again, and how many conflicting

Comments

[anteros_lmc]

*waves madly* You're back! With fic! Huzzah :D Dying to have a chance to read this! Comments soon hopefully :)

[venusinfurs90]

Hello!! I am back! *waves* huzzah! (for a little bit - but university is determined to get in the way as always) XD please do let me know what you'd think, I'd love to hear your comments! :D

[anteros_lmc]

*shakes fist at pesky uni* Sorry, hope your studies are going well :)

I'm still enjoying your tumblr immensely but this fic is something else all together. It's beautifully written, as I would expect of course, but it's the characterisation that really makes it for me. This is very much how I see both characters, right down to their slightly antagonistic relationship. Archie may have his demons but he's no pushover and he has a sharp tongue when provoked. But it's Archie's unwillingness to reveal those demons that I really identify with here. He may be prone to panic but there is something incredibly resilient at Archie's core and it's partly his ability to lock away the trauma. I've just said more or less the same thing in a comment on eglantine_br's moving and chilling He who is dry cork. You've both identified what I think is one of Archie's most fundamental characteristics.

Deep down though, he knew that he clung to Horatio’s friendship because a desperate part of him needed to believe that those values were true, and in Horatio

[venusinfurs90]

studies are indeed going well, but I am also shaking fist at pesky uni! *shakes fist* So much writing to do, so little of it navy-related alas

[anteros_lmc]

I think Archie does a lot to deflect from his own issues and I think that combined with the pressures of the time and the stigma attached to what he's been through I can easily imagine that he would be both unwilling to reveal them to others but also unwilling to acknowledge them himself a lot of the times.
Oh yes. I absolutely agree.

the book always makes me sad in how lonely both him and Bush are despite both of them wanting to be better friends.
It's hard not to feel a little sorry for them both. Hornblower trapped by his insecurities and Bush worrying like a mother hen!

alas, this term is going to be a tough one for me. I entered a competition-type thingy
Good luck with your competition-thingy! I'm sure you'll do splendidly. And the navyboys will still be there when you're done :)

Has she picked up more inappropriate sailor-songs?Toots is splendid and she is a handful of the first order! She still adores her pirate songs and she got two new swords for Christmas! However she has also discovered Smash Hits Radio.... *sigh

[venusinfurs90]

It probably will be at the rate that the work is piling on, but yey for the young one learning more pirate songs, even if she has discovered Smash Hits Radio (to be fair, I think listening to bad contemporary pop music is an obligatory part of being younger than 10) :)

[anteros_lmc]

even if she has discovered Smash Hits Radio
Rather more worryingly she has also discovered Kerrang radio...

to be fair, I think listening to bad contemporary pop music is an obligatory part of being younger than 10
Definitely. We even caved in and bought her a "Hits" cd for Christmas, so she can't turn round in later years and accuse us of denying her her pop culture heritage XD