Due South: Living Gets Easier, Constable Maggie MacKenzie
Title: Living Gets Easier
Author: faycequevoudras
Beta: None
Character/Pairing/Group: Constable Maggie MacKenzie
Word Count: 780
Rating: PG
Prompt: Rough
Summary: Maggie is reminded that she lost someone, not that her life is over.
Disclaimer: I don't own Due South, Maggie, or Jessica Steen. Please do not sue.
A/N: Set just after CotW with a few slight liberties taken.
Outside the walls of the cabin the wind howled, a cold and bitter thing that battered at the walls yet the air within was warm and toasty. Maggie and Casey had built the cabin from the ground up, each aspect of it put together with their own hands. Each wall had been sealed, the floor layered and the fireplace was built with hand collected stones from the land they owned. It was a snug and sweet cabin meant for a loving couple to live out their life. Now Maggie was unwilling to give up their home, working as many hours as they'd let her and living her nights there alone. Mostly alone.
"Have you thought about taking a vacation?"
The first few times Bob had just shown up in the cabin, Maggie had been shocked and let it show. It didn't take long before she'd gotten better control of her reaction but that didn't stop her from being shocked. It wasn't every day a ghost, the ghost of the man you'd never known was your father, just started popping into your life.
"I took one a few months ago when I went to Chicago,' she pointed out, draping her coat over a chair at the table and squatting down beside the fire. Pointedly not looking at Bob as she stoked the fire.
He snorted, moving closer and laying his hat on the table. "That wasn't a vacation. You were looking for Casey's partners. Chasing down killers doesn't count as a vacation. You need to get out, enjoy your life. If I had it to do all over again, I would've taken more time for living. I'd have spent more time with Benton, more time with you and..."
"And what,' she asked, on her feet and spinning to face a man that was so very real and yet not there at the same time. "And gave up catching criminals? Would you have stopped doing what it is we do best just because now you know how it ends? Too little too late,' she said sharply. "This is my life. This is Fraser's life. Just because he's not here and is down in Chicago doing it doesn't change that we live the same life and..."
"He's on his way here."
"And I'll tell you something else." Maggie stopped mid-tirade. "What?"
"Your brother, Benton, my son, he's on his way here." Bob titled his head, eyes narrowing in concentration. "I'd say another hour or so."
"Why? What's wrong?" It had to be a problem, someone hurt, something wrong. "Did something happen to Ray?"
Bob shook his head, waving his hand to dismiss it all. "Nono, nothing like that. He and Ray are traveling by sled, exploring the world. Seeing what more there is than criminals and spending their lives chasing down others."
Maggie didn't miss either the tone, or the words. She didn't let it show though. "By sled... what about the force? What about the consulate?"
"He's living, Maggie, and you should be too."
His words weren't meant to be rough but something in them struck the constable hard. It hurt. Because this wasn't the life she'd meant to live. Once upon a time Maggie had hopes and dreams and ideas. They were all things that seemed to have died when Casey had. All that had mattered was catching the men that had taken him from her and yet they had been brought to justice. They were answering for her crimes and Maggie had two choices. She could either stay in that cabin and spent the rest of her life thinking about how it should have been, or she could remember what it had been like to live.
Grabbing her coat, she grabbed a pair of skis from beside the door and carried them outside. Bob grabbed his hat and followed, nodding his approval at her sudden action.
"Which way,' she asked, strapping the skis onto her boots.
"South-east about three miles. Head that way,' he said, pointing with two fingers. "And you'll find them in about twenty minutes."
Nodding, she pushed the poles against the snow. Maggie paused though, looking at Bob. "Will you be here when I get back, she asked.
Bob shook his head. "You're not the only one that needs to move on."
Maggie nodded. "Until I see you again,' she said, standing straight and tall. Smiling, she saluted a man she'd always respected, a man that hadn't lost that respect when she found out they were related.
Returning the salute, Bob nodded. "Off with you now."
Maggie didn't look back as she pushed the poles against the snow and followed the path he'd shown her.
Author: faycequevoudras
Beta: None
Character/Pairing/Group: Constable Maggie MacKenzie
Word Count: 780
Rating: PG
Prompt: Rough
Summary: Maggie is reminded that she lost someone, not that her life is over.
Disclaimer: I don't own Due South, Maggie, or Jessica Steen. Please do not sue.
A/N: Set just after CotW with a few slight liberties taken.
Outside the walls of the cabin the wind howled, a cold and bitter thing that battered at the walls yet the air within was warm and toasty. Maggie and Casey had built the cabin from the ground up, each aspect of it put together with their own hands. Each wall had been sealed, the floor layered and the fireplace was built with hand collected stones from the land they owned. It was a snug and sweet cabin meant for a loving couple to live out their life. Now Maggie was unwilling to give up their home, working as many hours as they'd let her and living her nights there alone. Mostly alone.
"Have you thought about taking a vacation?"
The first few times Bob had just shown up in the cabin, Maggie had been shocked and let it show. It didn't take long before she'd gotten better control of her reaction but that didn't stop her from being shocked. It wasn't every day a ghost, the ghost of the man you'd never known was your father, just started popping into your life.
"I took one a few months ago when I went to Chicago,' she pointed out, draping her coat over a chair at the table and squatting down beside the fire. Pointedly not looking at Bob as she stoked the fire.
He snorted, moving closer and laying his hat on the table. "That wasn't a vacation. You were looking for Casey's partners. Chasing down killers doesn't count as a vacation. You need to get out, enjoy your life. If I had it to do all over again, I would've taken more time for living. I'd have spent more time with Benton, more time with you and..."
"And what,' she asked, on her feet and spinning to face a man that was so very real and yet not there at the same time. "And gave up catching criminals? Would you have stopped doing what it is we do best just because now you know how it ends? Too little too late,' she said sharply. "This is my life. This is Fraser's life. Just because he's not here and is down in Chicago doing it doesn't change that we live the same life and..."
"He's on his way here."
"And I'll tell you something else." Maggie stopped mid-tirade. "What?"
"Your brother, Benton, my son, he's on his way here." Bob titled his head, eyes narrowing in concentration. "I'd say another hour or so."
"Why? What's wrong?" It had to be a problem, someone hurt, something wrong. "Did something happen to Ray?"
Bob shook his head, waving his hand to dismiss it all. "Nono, nothing like that. He and Ray are traveling by sled, exploring the world. Seeing what more there is than criminals and spending their lives chasing down others."
Maggie didn't miss either the tone, or the words. She didn't let it show though. "By sled... what about the force? What about the consulate?"
"He's living, Maggie, and you should be too."
His words weren't meant to be rough but something in them struck the constable hard. It hurt. Because this wasn't the life she'd meant to live. Once upon a time Maggie had hopes and dreams and ideas. They were all things that seemed to have died when Casey had. All that had mattered was catching the men that had taken him from her and yet they had been brought to justice. They were answering for her crimes and Maggie had two choices. She could either stay in that cabin and spent the rest of her life thinking about how it should have been, or she could remember what it had been like to live.
Grabbing her coat, she grabbed a pair of skis from beside the door and carried them outside. Bob grabbed his hat and followed, nodding his approval at her sudden action.
"Which way,' she asked, strapping the skis onto her boots.
"South-east about three miles. Head that way,' he said, pointing with two fingers. "And you'll find them in about twenty minutes."
Nodding, she pushed the poles against the snow. Maggie paused though, looking at Bob. "Will you be here when I get back, she asked.
Bob shook his head. "You're not the only one that needs to move on."
Maggie nodded. "Until I see you again,' she said, standing straight and tall. Smiling, she saluted a man she'd always respected, a man that hadn't lost that respect when she found out they were related.
Returning the salute, Bob nodded. "Off with you now."
Maggie didn't look back as she pushed the poles against the snow and followed the path he'd shown her.