Original Fic:Resting Place (an outsider pov from Shake your Tree)
Title: Resting Place
Rating: PG
Summary: Shannon Connor ruminates on the return of his son Brantley and meeting Fitzy.
Author's Notes: I've been telling people I'm working on Shake Your Tree and I have been, however when I first tried to get back to it, I couldn't really get Brantley to talk to me, so I took a left turn at Albuquerque and wrote a little bit of B's father's point of view. This is not going to be part of the story proper, so I figured I'd share it until I can get the next proper chapter together.
Resting Place
It was something which he'd spent a considerable time worrying about early on his marriage to Celeste- that Brantley's mysterious blood father would turn up and usurp Shannon's place with both his wife and his son. Years later, when he'd finally met the man, Shannon understood that no matter when Jack Floyd turned up, he never could have replaced Shannon in their hearts. Celeste had known all those years how to find the man and had chosen over and over to keep him out of their lives and away from their son. Now it was coming up on three years without Celeste and over two years of Brantley living down in Nebraska- in Jack's hometown. That did sting a bit, but Shannon knew that the boy needed to work out his grief and anger towards his mother to understand her choice, and that getting to know Jack was the way for Brantley to do that.
Still, even though he and Brantley talked and wrote and emailed so that there was almost daily contact, over the two years of Brantley's absence, it was good to have him home, warm and solid in Shannon's embrace for the first time in so long. And Brantley brought along the person he'd assured Shannon was the far greater reason for staying away so long- his Michael.
Shannon had to admit, Brantley's young man resembled Celeste in both temperament and form. Not that the boy was overly effeminate, but something about the line of his cheek bones and the slender build of his shoulders and most especially the almost brittle way he carried himself- Michael Fitzpatrick reminded Shannon of his Celeste during her most uncertain days- early in their courtship when she stilled worried that Shannon would not accept her pregnancy by another, when she'd spent days in a dark depression after her second show had be so ill received by the Montreal art critics, when she'd been so ill in her last days. It made Shannon want to gather Michael up to him and only let go to cook heavy meals to fatten him up. Shannon wondered what haunted to boy so.
Brantley had seemed to have settled into a good place over the last year- until just a few months before when he'd hinted at trouble concerning Michael but hadn't given Shannon details. And then suddenly, the mention of Jack's name had made Brantley tend to hang up the phone or change to subject as soon as he could. Shannon didn't know what it all was about, but he recognized Brantley coming home- Brantley bringing Michael home with him- for what it was- a pause for them to regroup and refocus. Shannon was pleased to be the resting place for Brantley and Michael while they weathered this storm. He was proud to mean that to his son.
Rating: PG
Summary: Shannon Connor ruminates on the return of his son Brantley and meeting Fitzy.
Author's Notes: I've been telling people I'm working on Shake Your Tree and I have been, however when I first tried to get back to it, I couldn't really get Brantley to talk to me, so I took a left turn at Albuquerque and wrote a little bit of B's father's point of view. This is not going to be part of the story proper, so I figured I'd share it until I can get the next proper chapter together.
Resting Place
It was something which he'd spent a considerable time worrying about early on his marriage to Celeste- that Brantley's mysterious blood father would turn up and usurp Shannon's place with both his wife and his son. Years later, when he'd finally met the man, Shannon understood that no matter when Jack Floyd turned up, he never could have replaced Shannon in their hearts. Celeste had known all those years how to find the man and had chosen over and over to keep him out of their lives and away from their son. Now it was coming up on three years without Celeste and over two years of Brantley living down in Nebraska- in Jack's hometown. That did sting a bit, but Shannon knew that the boy needed to work out his grief and anger towards his mother to understand her choice, and that getting to know Jack was the way for Brantley to do that.
Still, even though he and Brantley talked and wrote and emailed so that there was almost daily contact, over the two years of Brantley's absence, it was good to have him home, warm and solid in Shannon's embrace for the first time in so long. And Brantley brought along the person he'd assured Shannon was the far greater reason for staying away so long- his Michael.
Shannon had to admit, Brantley's young man resembled Celeste in both temperament and form. Not that the boy was overly effeminate, but something about the line of his cheek bones and the slender build of his shoulders and most especially the almost brittle way he carried himself- Michael Fitzpatrick reminded Shannon of his Celeste during her most uncertain days- early in their courtship when she stilled worried that Shannon would not accept her pregnancy by another, when she'd spent days in a dark depression after her second show had be so ill received by the Montreal art critics, when she'd been so ill in her last days. It made Shannon want to gather Michael up to him and only let go to cook heavy meals to fatten him up. Shannon wondered what haunted to boy so.
Brantley had seemed to have settled into a good place over the last year- until just a few months before when he'd hinted at trouble concerning Michael but hadn't given Shannon details. And then suddenly, the mention of Jack's name had made Brantley tend to hang up the phone or change to subject as soon as he could. Shannon didn't know what it all was about, but he recognized Brantley coming home- Brantley bringing Michael home with him- for what it was- a pause for them to regroup and refocus. Shannon was pleased to be the resting place for Brantley and Michael while they weathered this storm. He was proud to mean that to his son.