Well, this can't be good (Keith, Veronica, Logan) 2/?
Title: Well, this can't be good (WIP) 2/?
Author: Kristen
Pairing/Character: Keith, Veronica, Logan (mentions of ensemble)
Word Count: 2362
Rating: G
Summary: It's called 'stealth', dad. One of the things I picked up from the FBI.
Spoilers: Futurefic, know the whole series
Warnings: None
Disclaimer: I am in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of Veronica Mars. No copyright infringement is intended.
This really shouldn't have taken as long as it did to post. Let's hope the next installment goes better. Thanks to
peznarskifor the partial beta, all mistakes are mine.
Part One
Keith Mars never really thought about what his life would be like outside of law enforcement. The moment he fitted the badge to his chest, he stopped worrying about the position itself and focused on what it represented. Catch the bad guys, fight for justice. All those things he dreamt of doing when scurrying through his neighborhood on a Radio Flyer, a makeshift cape flapping behind his shoulders.
The blind sense of civic duty had rewarded him a position as sheriff, a comfortable life, and a doting family. He hadn’t taken any of them for granted, but when everything unraveled, he couldn’t help but be surprised how quickly everything could change.
Lianne’s departure that first time had almost broken him. If it weren’t for Veronica, he might’ve ended up an empty shell of his former self, rather than a man wounded but on the mend. There had been days where she was the only reason he got out of bed in the mornings.
“My dad used to say if you scrunch your face like that, it’ll stay that way,” she said.
Keith looked up from his musings and returned a drowsy smile, as if emerging from a dream. Lately he’d been thinking a lot about the past, wondering if his reminiscing would provide insight to their future, his or hers.
“He lied.”
Veronica set her bag across the table and helped herself to a bowl of mystery-Food-Network-recipe she had put together in the slow cooker that morning. He looked at her for a moment and narrowed his eyes.
“How long have you been here?” he said. “I didn’t hear you come in.”
“It’s called ‘stealth’, dad. One of the things I picked up from the FBI.”
Keith watched her quip visibly deflate as the words ran away from her. It had been almost a week since her confession on the beach. She hadn’t mentioned the FBI or her future prospects since then. He had worried she wouldn’t ever.
“Has anyone ever told you that unemployment suits no one?” she said.
“My daughter’s made a few disparaging remarks.”
She smiled and offered him a spoon. “Have you eaten?”
He shook his head, but set the spoon down as soon as he picked it up. She quirked her eyebrow in question. To be perfectly honest, Keith hadn’t eaten a suitable meal since that day with Veronica. There had been a strange vacancy in her eyes that had scared him.
He didn’t want his only daughter to have given up hope at the tender age of twenty. She had her whole life ahead of her.
“I wanted to wait until you got home to tell you the good news,” he said.
Veronica set the bowl down and looked at him with piqued interest.
“You took the consulting job from Farraway and Monk?”
Keith bit back exasperation. Veronica was having a hard time believing he was no longer pursuing the dirty picture biz. The San Diego PI firm had offered him a generous signing bonus and yearly salary. He could handpick the jobs he would take, and set his own hours. But the perks just weren’t enough.
When it came down to it, he had lost his drive. And what Veronica couldn’t seem to understand was that he felt no shame in throwing in the towel. He was finished, and for him, that was a good thing.
“Simon & Schuster’s advance came through this morning. My semi-autobiographical, creative nonfiction, spy novel is gonna be published,” he said.
Veronica looked disappointed, but hid it well. She raised her hand in encouragement and he hi-fived her.
“Good going, pop,” she said.
“Thanks, kid,” he said. “Now spill. How was your second day of school? Did you play nicer than your first day of school?”
She pretended to look affronted that he would even suggest she hadn’t been on her best behavior. “I tried to share my juice and cookies like you showed me, but this one guy was a total cootie burger so I had to jab him with my taser.”
“I thought I checked your bag before you left this morning,” he said. “Am I going to have to talk to this boy’s parents?”
Veronica stuck out her tongue and returned her attention to her bowl. After a second, Keith noticed her odd fixation on a meal that was quickly becoming cold. Her back had become rigid as if she was trying to calm herself without making it known.
He even thought he saw a tear fall from her lashes and hit the side of the red ceramic lip. She tensed when he wordlessly stroked her back, willing her to calm.
“Veronica?” he said.
“I’m okay,” she said instinctively.
He nodded, though she hadn’t looked up. Failure had been a wary companion to him in the last few years. But despite sheriff elections and dating relationships, there was one thing he never questioned. Keith Mars was a good father. Imperfect but dedicated. Veronica wasn’t the easiest person to comfort. It was often difficult to gauge when she even needed it. But she allowed herself to receive comfort from him, and that brought its own kind of merit.
Veronica straightened and blew her bangs from her face in frustration. She looked towards Keith’s direction and delivered a wan smile.
“I don’t know what’s the matter with me. I can’t stop crying.”
The fragility in her voice broke his heart.
“Dad?” she said. “How did everything get so messed up?”
He shrugged his shoulders and motioned her to follow him to the couch. After an obvious internal debate she plopped down against him, laying her head against the crook of his side. He rubbed her head in rhythmic circles.
“I don’t think I can help Logan,” she said.
Keith stopped to peer down at her. He had never known her to give up on a case, especially if it was to help a friend.
“Okay,” he said.
She looked up at him, surprised that he was giving her permission.
“It’s not that I don’t want to,” she said. “I want to.”
He started to shush her, and she rose, eager to explain herself. The determination in her eyes was piercing. It might have been a little amusing if Veronica wasn’t developing sweat across her brow. Clearly, she had agonized over it. He hated to see her this way.
“I can’t go to my criminology classes without wondering what I’m even doing there,” she said. “I can’t help Logan find his missing girlfriend, without feeling like I’ll never…”
He waited for a few seconds without her elaborating. She slunk into the couch cushions, the weight of her thoughts clouding her mind.
“Like you’ll never…?” he said.
She looked at him defeated, pausing out of concern for his feelings.
“Like I’ll never get out of this place, like I’ll be stuck here forever,” she said.
Keith nodded, lost for words. She hadn’t said anything he didn’t already know. Veronica was always bigger than Neptune. Even knowing that didn’t make saying the words sting any less. She looked at him in concern. The regret in her confession was written all over her face.
“I didn’t mean to say it like that,” she said.
He smiled with a sad glint in his eye. She didn’t mean to say it to him.
“Are you mad?” she said.
He scoffed at her and rose from the couch. Hearing the bustle of activity, Backup ambled into the living room, eager to convey his desire to relieve his faculties. Veronica stayed where she was on the couch. Her cautious look made him return an encouraging smile.
“I’m gonna take Backup for a walk. Do you wanna come with me?” he said.
She brightened but shook her head.
“I should really do some research for a case,” she said.
“Logan’s case?” he said.
She shrugged in nonchalance, but Keith could feel the sadness radiating off her from across the room. Veronica would pursue this case for Logan, even if it killed her.
As he reached the front door, he stopped, looking at the last rays of light beaming through the slits of the screen. He was about to suggest something monumentally foolish, and needed a moment to get the wording just right.
“What’s wrong?” she said.
“I had a thought,” he said.
Keith’s hand was still on the doorknob as he spoke. The touch of the metal seemed to warn against finishing his sentence, whispering persuasions for a hasty exit. Backup had similar ideas, as the scamp nuzzled the back of Keith’s legs. He would have guided the slobber away from his pants if he hadn’t become immobile. It seemed to take all of his energy just to muster up the will to execute his thought.
“Dad?” she said. “When you get quiet like that it usually means I’m in trouble or you’re going to be.”
“We’re gonna take a walk,” he said.
“How’d I know it was the former?” she muttered.
He turned towards her and opened the door behind his back. Backup tried to shoot out through the entryway, and whined when Keith tightened his hold on the leash.
“You’re gonna brief me on Logan’s case, and I’ll take it from there,” he said. “It’ll be like my last stand.”
Veronica’s eyes widened. This was obviously the last thing she had expected from him. After Veronica had started dating Logan last year, Keith had kept all comments to himself. He didn’t think Logan was good enough for her, but found a strange comfort in knowing that Logan was aware he wasn’t good enough for Veronica either.
After they broke up, got back together, and broke up again, he had thought it was for the best. He might’ve even laid it on a little thick when voicing his approval of Veronica’s choice in dating Stosh Piznarski.
Stosh was easygoing and unassuming. He had no criminal history. True, there were a couple of speeding tickets besmirching an otherwise pristine record, and Keith hadn’t forgotten the confiscated fake ID. But he also hadn’t forgotten who was Stosh’s supplier.
The best thing about Stosh was that Keith truly believed he could make Veronica more happy than sad. And after the last few years, she could use a chance for happiness.
“Dad,” she said. “I don’t think…”
Keith silenced her with a raised hand. The incredulity of his request resided in both parties, but the sacrifice felt like it needed to be done. There were a lot of things he couldn’t do for her, but this wasn’t one of them.
“C’mon,” he said. “Before Backup decides to just pee on my leg.”
As if in solidarity, Backup tilted his head towards Veronica and released a small whimper. She narrowed her eyes at the two males, one of whom was trying hard to hold in his laugh.
“Fine,” she said. “But only because I gave you those pants for Christmas last year.”
“Okay, honey,” he said. “Start from the beginning.”
They had chosen a different path than Backup’s usual romp. It was closer and shaded by more foliage. Backup had run a few yards ahead, delight apparent in his jaunty investigations.
Keith knew Veronica preferred the beach for its open spaces and calming surf, but the small park invited fewer patrons. If she was going to divulge any details of Logan’s case, it was better to do it here than there.
“Veron--” he said.
“Two weeks ago, Logan overheard a phone conversation Candice was having with Grandma Leary. Logan didn’t get the details, but it had something to do with grandma’s ailing health. Candice ended their date early so that she could spend time with her. Three days later, grandma’s life-flighted to Balboa County Hospital and Candice is nowhere to be found.”
Veronica sat down on a bench, scratching behind Backup’s ears in distraction. After a moment, her eyes followed a careless bird weaving in between trees. Its feet landed on one branch only to flit to another, too restless to keep stationary. Keith tried to keep the amusement at her concentration from his face.
“The official word, meaning the word that was given to Logan by the family lawyer, is that Candice has left. She’s off for a probably permanent vacation to some island, whose name I can’t pronounce, off the coast of Fiji. Apparently, it’s a big hotspot for the uber rich.”
Keith nodded periodically at Veronica’s words.
Backup had scampered from Veronica’s grasp. Once, the mischievous pit bull wandered off the trail in search of squirrels. Keith whistled sharply and Backup returned, only moderately chastened.
Veronica continued without pause.
“Per his usual self, Logan has chosen to believe that there’s something up, rather than the more obvious possibility that Candice is just celebrating the multiple billions she will have access to, come Grandma Leary’s very imminent death.”
“She’s a freshman, right? Who’s taking care of the estate until she’s legal?”
Veronica stopped to catch her breath and give Keith a wry smile, “Uncle Alfie.”
Keith began to say something, but stopped at Veronica’s interjection.
“Otherwise known as Alfred Hughes. Contrary to his moniker, he’s about as related to the Leary estate as you or me. I hit up the college roommate for details. My brief encounter as vapid sorority girl makes me think Uncle Alfie is a sleazy letch, but harmless. There’s nothing to suggest Candice is anywhere besides where he says she is. Plane ticket, credit card activity, ‘farewell, Logan’ voicemail message? Everything pans out.”
“I don’t think you have to guess what my next question’s gonna be,” he said.
“Try me,” she said.
Keith finally turned to look at her. The defense behind her lashes made him swallow back a well-timed quip. There were shadows under her eyes and a weariness to her frame that he hadn’t seen since her junior year. Veronica wouldn’t be able to keep the walls up for long.
“If Candice’s been gone for over a week now, how’d you get information from a roommate she would have only met three days ago?” he said.
Veronica’s face blanched, and Keith began to seriously wonder how badly this FBI rejection was affecting her.
Author: Kristen
Pairing/Character: Keith, Veronica, Logan (mentions of ensemble)
Word Count: 2362
Rating: G
Summary: It's called 'stealth', dad. One of the things I picked up from the FBI.
Spoilers: Futurefic, know the whole series
Warnings: None
Disclaimer: I am in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of Veronica Mars. No copyright infringement is intended.
This really shouldn't have taken as long as it did to post. Let's hope the next installment goes better. Thanks to
peznarskifor the partial beta, all mistakes are mine.
Part One
Keith Mars never really thought about what his life would be like outside of law enforcement. The moment he fitted the badge to his chest, he stopped worrying about the position itself and focused on what it represented. Catch the bad guys, fight for justice. All those things he dreamt of doing when scurrying through his neighborhood on a Radio Flyer, a makeshift cape flapping behind his shoulders.
The blind sense of civic duty had rewarded him a position as sheriff, a comfortable life, and a doting family. He hadn’t taken any of them for granted, but when everything unraveled, he couldn’t help but be surprised how quickly everything could change.
Lianne’s departure that first time had almost broken him. If it weren’t for Veronica, he might’ve ended up an empty shell of his former self, rather than a man wounded but on the mend. There had been days where she was the only reason he got out of bed in the mornings.
“My dad used to say if you scrunch your face like that, it’ll stay that way,” she said.
Keith looked up from his musings and returned a drowsy smile, as if emerging from a dream. Lately he’d been thinking a lot about the past, wondering if his reminiscing would provide insight to their future, his or hers.
“He lied.”
Veronica set her bag across the table and helped herself to a bowl of mystery-Food-Network-recipe she had put together in the slow cooker that morning. He looked at her for a moment and narrowed his eyes.
“How long have you been here?” he said. “I didn’t hear you come in.”
“It’s called ‘stealth’, dad. One of the things I picked up from the FBI.”
Keith watched her quip visibly deflate as the words ran away from her. It had been almost a week since her confession on the beach. She hadn’t mentioned the FBI or her future prospects since then. He had worried she wouldn’t ever.
“Has anyone ever told you that unemployment suits no one?” she said.
“My daughter’s made a few disparaging remarks.”
She smiled and offered him a spoon. “Have you eaten?”
He shook his head, but set the spoon down as soon as he picked it up. She quirked her eyebrow in question. To be perfectly honest, Keith hadn’t eaten a suitable meal since that day with Veronica. There had been a strange vacancy in her eyes that had scared him.
He didn’t want his only daughter to have given up hope at the tender age of twenty. She had her whole life ahead of her.
“I wanted to wait until you got home to tell you the good news,” he said.
Veronica set the bowl down and looked at him with piqued interest.
“You took the consulting job from Farraway and Monk?”
Keith bit back exasperation. Veronica was having a hard time believing he was no longer pursuing the dirty picture biz. The San Diego PI firm had offered him a generous signing bonus and yearly salary. He could handpick the jobs he would take, and set his own hours. But the perks just weren’t enough.
When it came down to it, he had lost his drive. And what Veronica couldn’t seem to understand was that he felt no shame in throwing in the towel. He was finished, and for him, that was a good thing.
“Simon & Schuster’s advance came through this morning. My semi-autobiographical, creative nonfiction, spy novel is gonna be published,” he said.
Veronica looked disappointed, but hid it well. She raised her hand in encouragement and he hi-fived her.
“Good going, pop,” she said.
“Thanks, kid,” he said. “Now spill. How was your second day of school? Did you play nicer than your first day of school?”
She pretended to look affronted that he would even suggest she hadn’t been on her best behavior. “I tried to share my juice and cookies like you showed me, but this one guy was a total cootie burger so I had to jab him with my taser.”
“I thought I checked your bag before you left this morning,” he said. “Am I going to have to talk to this boy’s parents?”
Veronica stuck out her tongue and returned her attention to her bowl. After a second, Keith noticed her odd fixation on a meal that was quickly becoming cold. Her back had become rigid as if she was trying to calm herself without making it known.
He even thought he saw a tear fall from her lashes and hit the side of the red ceramic lip. She tensed when he wordlessly stroked her back, willing her to calm.
“Veronica?” he said.
“I’m okay,” she said instinctively.
He nodded, though she hadn’t looked up. Failure had been a wary companion to him in the last few years. But despite sheriff elections and dating relationships, there was one thing he never questioned. Keith Mars was a good father. Imperfect but dedicated. Veronica wasn’t the easiest person to comfort. It was often difficult to gauge when she even needed it. But she allowed herself to receive comfort from him, and that brought its own kind of merit.
Veronica straightened and blew her bangs from her face in frustration. She looked towards Keith’s direction and delivered a wan smile.
“I don’t know what’s the matter with me. I can’t stop crying.”
The fragility in her voice broke his heart.
“Dad?” she said. “How did everything get so messed up?”
He shrugged his shoulders and motioned her to follow him to the couch. After an obvious internal debate she plopped down against him, laying her head against the crook of his side. He rubbed her head in rhythmic circles.
“I don’t think I can help Logan,” she said.
Keith stopped to peer down at her. He had never known her to give up on a case, especially if it was to help a friend.
“Okay,” he said.
She looked up at him, surprised that he was giving her permission.
“It’s not that I don’t want to,” she said. “I want to.”
He started to shush her, and she rose, eager to explain herself. The determination in her eyes was piercing. It might have been a little amusing if Veronica wasn’t developing sweat across her brow. Clearly, she had agonized over it. He hated to see her this way.
“I can’t go to my criminology classes without wondering what I’m even doing there,” she said. “I can’t help Logan find his missing girlfriend, without feeling like I’ll never…”
He waited for a few seconds without her elaborating. She slunk into the couch cushions, the weight of her thoughts clouding her mind.
“Like you’ll never…?” he said.
She looked at him defeated, pausing out of concern for his feelings.
“Like I’ll never get out of this place, like I’ll be stuck here forever,” she said.
Keith nodded, lost for words. She hadn’t said anything he didn’t already know. Veronica was always bigger than Neptune. Even knowing that didn’t make saying the words sting any less. She looked at him in concern. The regret in her confession was written all over her face.
“I didn’t mean to say it like that,” she said.
He smiled with a sad glint in his eye. She didn’t mean to say it to him.
“Are you mad?” she said.
He scoffed at her and rose from the couch. Hearing the bustle of activity, Backup ambled into the living room, eager to convey his desire to relieve his faculties. Veronica stayed where she was on the couch. Her cautious look made him return an encouraging smile.
“I’m gonna take Backup for a walk. Do you wanna come with me?” he said.
She brightened but shook her head.
“I should really do some research for a case,” she said.
“Logan’s case?” he said.
She shrugged in nonchalance, but Keith could feel the sadness radiating off her from across the room. Veronica would pursue this case for Logan, even if it killed her.
As he reached the front door, he stopped, looking at the last rays of light beaming through the slits of the screen. He was about to suggest something monumentally foolish, and needed a moment to get the wording just right.
“What’s wrong?” she said.
“I had a thought,” he said.
Keith’s hand was still on the doorknob as he spoke. The touch of the metal seemed to warn against finishing his sentence, whispering persuasions for a hasty exit. Backup had similar ideas, as the scamp nuzzled the back of Keith’s legs. He would have guided the slobber away from his pants if he hadn’t become immobile. It seemed to take all of his energy just to muster up the will to execute his thought.
“Dad?” she said. “When you get quiet like that it usually means I’m in trouble or you’re going to be.”
“We’re gonna take a walk,” he said.
“How’d I know it was the former?” she muttered.
He turned towards her and opened the door behind his back. Backup tried to shoot out through the entryway, and whined when Keith tightened his hold on the leash.
“You’re gonna brief me on Logan’s case, and I’ll take it from there,” he said. “It’ll be like my last stand.”
Veronica’s eyes widened. This was obviously the last thing she had expected from him. After Veronica had started dating Logan last year, Keith had kept all comments to himself. He didn’t think Logan was good enough for her, but found a strange comfort in knowing that Logan was aware he wasn’t good enough for Veronica either.
After they broke up, got back together, and broke up again, he had thought it was for the best. He might’ve even laid it on a little thick when voicing his approval of Veronica’s choice in dating Stosh Piznarski.
Stosh was easygoing and unassuming. He had no criminal history. True, there were a couple of speeding tickets besmirching an otherwise pristine record, and Keith hadn’t forgotten the confiscated fake ID. But he also hadn’t forgotten who was Stosh’s supplier.
The best thing about Stosh was that Keith truly believed he could make Veronica more happy than sad. And after the last few years, she could use a chance for happiness.
“Dad,” she said. “I don’t think…”
Keith silenced her with a raised hand. The incredulity of his request resided in both parties, but the sacrifice felt like it needed to be done. There were a lot of things he couldn’t do for her, but this wasn’t one of them.
“C’mon,” he said. “Before Backup decides to just pee on my leg.”
As if in solidarity, Backup tilted his head towards Veronica and released a small whimper. She narrowed her eyes at the two males, one of whom was trying hard to hold in his laugh.
“Fine,” she said. “But only because I gave you those pants for Christmas last year.”
“Okay, honey,” he said. “Start from the beginning.”
They had chosen a different path than Backup’s usual romp. It was closer and shaded by more foliage. Backup had run a few yards ahead, delight apparent in his jaunty investigations.
Keith knew Veronica preferred the beach for its open spaces and calming surf, but the small park invited fewer patrons. If she was going to divulge any details of Logan’s case, it was better to do it here than there.
“Veron--” he said.
“Two weeks ago, Logan overheard a phone conversation Candice was having with Grandma Leary. Logan didn’t get the details, but it had something to do with grandma’s ailing health. Candice ended their date early so that she could spend time with her. Three days later, grandma’s life-flighted to Balboa County Hospital and Candice is nowhere to be found.”
Veronica sat down on a bench, scratching behind Backup’s ears in distraction. After a moment, her eyes followed a careless bird weaving in between trees. Its feet landed on one branch only to flit to another, too restless to keep stationary. Keith tried to keep the amusement at her concentration from his face.
“The official word, meaning the word that was given to Logan by the family lawyer, is that Candice has left. She’s off for a probably permanent vacation to some island, whose name I can’t pronounce, off the coast of Fiji. Apparently, it’s a big hotspot for the uber rich.”
Keith nodded periodically at Veronica’s words.
Backup had scampered from Veronica’s grasp. Once, the mischievous pit bull wandered off the trail in search of squirrels. Keith whistled sharply and Backup returned, only moderately chastened.
Veronica continued without pause.
“Per his usual self, Logan has chosen to believe that there’s something up, rather than the more obvious possibility that Candice is just celebrating the multiple billions she will have access to, come Grandma Leary’s very imminent death.”
“She’s a freshman, right? Who’s taking care of the estate until she’s legal?”
Veronica stopped to catch her breath and give Keith a wry smile, “Uncle Alfie.”
Keith began to say something, but stopped at Veronica’s interjection.
“Otherwise known as Alfred Hughes. Contrary to his moniker, he’s about as related to the Leary estate as you or me. I hit up the college roommate for details. My brief encounter as vapid sorority girl makes me think Uncle Alfie is a sleazy letch, but harmless. There’s nothing to suggest Candice is anywhere besides where he says she is. Plane ticket, credit card activity, ‘farewell, Logan’ voicemail message? Everything pans out.”
“I don’t think you have to guess what my next question’s gonna be,” he said.
“Try me,” she said.
Keith finally turned to look at her. The defense behind her lashes made him swallow back a well-timed quip. There were shadows under her eyes and a weariness to her frame that he hadn’t seen since her junior year. Veronica wouldn’t be able to keep the walls up for long.
“If Candice’s been gone for over a week now, how’d you get information from a roommate she would have only met three days ago?” he said.
Veronica’s face blanched, and Keith began to seriously wonder how badly this FBI rejection was affecting her.