Harboured and Encompassed, Chapter 5

[bbcphile]

Title: Harboured and Encompassed
Author: BBCPhile
Chapter: 5/25  
Word Count: 3298
Pairing: Horatio Hornblower/Archie Kennedy
AO3 link: http://archiveofourown.org/works/9135700/chapters/21454868

Summary: All Horatio wanted from his internship at the National Maritime Museum’s special collections was some time alone with the Nelson-era naval

Comments

Dating Research!

[bauhiniakapok]

So I was at our cozy, well-stocked, church library, chatting with a sweet, innocent young friend there about Hornblower, of all things, and blushing furiously because, even though I was very carefully NOT mentioning all the slash and especially smut I've been reading lately, it has become so engrained in my perception of Horatio that it's hard to remember the books and TV are probably only rated G or PG and are therefore Safe To Discuss In Church. (I mean, the first time I saw Horatio Carrying Archie's Unresisting Body In The Rain, I was at home with my parents, and we thought nothing of it. We never thought anything slashy of Holmes and Watson, Wooster and Jeeves, Sharpe and Harper, or Poirot and Hastings, either. I didn't even know slash was a thing until about a year ago. I tell myself that it's okay to be into it now, because the boys are so pretty together, and all these authors are such lovely intelligent people. True, right?)

So, I happened to glance down at the bookshelf next to me, and saw this title:




And I thought, Dating Research for Horatio! Squee!

So I quickly scanned the table of contents to see if they mentioned the protocol for Situation 22B: You Wake Up With Your Arms Around An Attractive Near-Stranger And Don't Want To Be Suspected Of Taking Advantage:





And, well, they didn't quite. Because this book is in church and contains the kind of good advice that helped me avoid losing my heart and virginity until I found a man who was really worthy of it - i.e., my husband, on our wedding night - and which I would give to my own kids to help them avoid heartbreak - but which I sort of suspend when I am reading about pretty navyboys in love, because that is Not Real Life and the regular rules don't apply. (The same paradox applies to my odd love of seeing Archie all broken to pieces and being put back together by Horatio, versus how I would feel if anyone even slightly resembling Jack Simpson ever came within five miles of my kids at any age. Shudder! NOT pretty!)

But, there WAS a section of dating advice specifically regarding snuggling on sofas:





Basically, it said, Stay Vertical, ya dorkasaurus, lest you conjure up hormones you are not prepared to deal with. Which is, in fact, good advice. But our boys did stay vertical, and they still ended up sleeping snuggled together and in love. And I am okay with that because this is fiction and we know it will all turn out well.

But anyway... Dating Research! Couldn't resist!

Also...Dorkasaurus. *snigger*

RE: Dating Research!

[bbcphile]

I'm honored that you felt so inspired by my story that you decided to look around for books Horatio might use for research! Also, welcome to wearing slash goggles ; your world will never be the same! :D

And yeah, as evidenced by the fact that I'm writing a novel-length AU about our navy boys falling in love, I unabashedly love this stuff; I just wish more media would make queer relationships explicit rather than implicit! Representation is so important! But that's a very long spiel for another day! :D

Thanks again for your dedication to my fic!