14valentines Day Four: Motherhood/Reproductive Rights
Today's 14valentines is about Motherhood and Reproductive Rights. Please click on the link to read the (quite excellent) essay and browse the other contributions.
I'm going on day nine hundred of less than four hours sleep (or so it feels), so I'm going to skip the blathering I would normally do here and skip straight to the fic.
***
There Must Be Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover
twelve;
Title: Gone in the Morning
Fandom: The West Wing
Pairing: Kate/CJ
Rating: PG
Summary: Kate has a lot of vices, but this is the worst.
Kate has half a dozen vices. She drinks and plays poker. She indulges in the occasional cigarette. She relies a little too heavily on Cadbury bars when she's feeling low, and when she's stressed, she bites her nails.
Her worst vice by far is sex.
It's not sex in general. Sex in general is great. Sex in general mellows her out enough to eschew drink and smoke and chocolate. Sex in general allows her to spend a little extra cash for a manicure.
It's sex with women.
No, scratch that. It's sex with straight women that gets her down.
She doesn't know what about her attracts the lonely and questioning. (She hopes she's not as desperate as that would imply.) She's lost a lot of friendships to half-hearted relationships with women who were mad at their ex-boyfriends and didn't know what they wanted.
So when she wakes up next to CJ, she has a moment of absolute panic. She stares and swears, slipping out of bed to look for her panties.
Because she likes CJ. She likes CJ more than all of her ex-husbands and ex-girlfriends. She likes CJ too much to ruin their friendship by dating her.
She gets dressed and leaves before CJ wakes up.
***
thirteen;
Title: Thinking of You
Fandom: Dead Poets Society
Pairing: Neil/Todd
Rating: PG
Summary: Neil spends much of his time thinking about Todd.
Neil spends much of his time thinking about Todd. Sure, he thinks about classes and poetry and Shakespeare, takes notes and daydreams ideas for meetings and studies his lines. He doesn't stop living his life, but Todd slots into it so easily that Neil can't remember what life was like before Todd took up residence in the bed across from his. He thinks about Todd when he's brushing his teeth and walking to classes and biking to play rehearsals.
He thinks about Todd when they're lying in bed together, fingers bumping awkwardly, nervous laughter smothered by pillows. He thinks about Todd afterwards, when Todd is dozing next to him and Neil is wondering if this can truly be real, if this is honestly his life, if he's really allowed Todd and Puck and Mr. Keating and freedom all at the same time.
He's not, as it turns out. Not at all. That might have been okay if he could still have one or two of those things, but none of them....
When he gets his father's pistol out of the drawer, he very deliberately does not let himself think about Todd. Todd's shy smile doesn't need to be sullied by this.
***
fourteen;
Title: Welcome Back
Fandom: Stargate Atlantis
Pairing: Teyla/Kanaan
Rating: G
Summary: Teyla worries about leaving.
In the days leading up to her first mission after giving birth, Teyla worries.
She doesn't worry about her accuracy (she makes time every day for training) or getting along with her team (all three stop by every day, still) or about Torren (Torren has a loving father and if her father could raise her, then his can do the same).
Teyla worries about leaving Kanaan. She worries it will change their relationship. She worries he can't or won't adjust to Atlantis. She worries she'll decide she'd rather be with him than in the field.
She worries she'll decide she'd rather be in the field than with him.
She's not used to being the uncertain one. It catches her off-balance, plagues the back of her mind up until the day she's snapping her tac-vest into place in the ready room, just like she'd never left.
She looks at her team as they approach the gate. She looks over her shoulder at Kanaan and Torren as they watch from the balcony. When Kanaan smiles at her and waves goodbye, something inside of her snaps. For the first time in days, she relaxes.
Leaving won't be so bad, as long as she has this to come home to.
I'm going on day nine hundred of less than four hours sleep (or so it feels), so I'm going to skip the blathering I would normally do here and skip straight to the fic.
***
There Must Be Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover
twelve;
Title: Gone in the Morning
Fandom: The West Wing
Pairing: Kate/CJ
Rating: PG
Summary: Kate has a lot of vices, but this is the worst.
Kate has half a dozen vices. She drinks and plays poker. She indulges in the occasional cigarette. She relies a little too heavily on Cadbury bars when she's feeling low, and when she's stressed, she bites her nails.
Her worst vice by far is sex.
It's not sex in general. Sex in general is great. Sex in general mellows her out enough to eschew drink and smoke and chocolate. Sex in general allows her to spend a little extra cash for a manicure.
It's sex with women.
No, scratch that. It's sex with straight women that gets her down.
She doesn't know what about her attracts the lonely and questioning. (She hopes she's not as desperate as that would imply.) She's lost a lot of friendships to half-hearted relationships with women who were mad at their ex-boyfriends and didn't know what they wanted.
So when she wakes up next to CJ, she has a moment of absolute panic. She stares and swears, slipping out of bed to look for her panties.
Because she likes CJ. She likes CJ more than all of her ex-husbands and ex-girlfriends. She likes CJ too much to ruin their friendship by dating her.
She gets dressed and leaves before CJ wakes up.
***
thirteen;
Title: Thinking of You
Fandom: Dead Poets Society
Pairing: Neil/Todd
Rating: PG
Summary: Neil spends much of his time thinking about Todd.
Neil spends much of his time thinking about Todd. Sure, he thinks about classes and poetry and Shakespeare, takes notes and daydreams ideas for meetings and studies his lines. He doesn't stop living his life, but Todd slots into it so easily that Neil can't remember what life was like before Todd took up residence in the bed across from his. He thinks about Todd when he's brushing his teeth and walking to classes and biking to play rehearsals.
He thinks about Todd when they're lying in bed together, fingers bumping awkwardly, nervous laughter smothered by pillows. He thinks about Todd afterwards, when Todd is dozing next to him and Neil is wondering if this can truly be real, if this is honestly his life, if he's really allowed Todd and Puck and Mr. Keating and freedom all at the same time.
He's not, as it turns out. Not at all. That might have been okay if he could still have one or two of those things, but none of them....
When he gets his father's pistol out of the drawer, he very deliberately does not let himself think about Todd. Todd's shy smile doesn't need to be sullied by this.
***
fourteen;
Title: Welcome Back
Fandom: Stargate Atlantis
Pairing: Teyla/Kanaan
Rating: G
Summary: Teyla worries about leaving.
In the days leading up to her first mission after giving birth, Teyla worries.
She doesn't worry about her accuracy (she makes time every day for training) or getting along with her team (all three stop by every day, still) or about Torren (Torren has a loving father and if her father could raise her, then his can do the same).
Teyla worries about leaving Kanaan. She worries it will change their relationship. She worries he can't or won't adjust to Atlantis. She worries she'll decide she'd rather be with him than in the field.
She worries she'll decide she'd rather be in the field than with him.
She's not used to being the uncertain one. It catches her off-balance, plagues the back of her mind up until the day she's snapping her tac-vest into place in the ready room, just like she'd never left.
She looks at her team as they approach the gate. She looks over her shoulder at Kanaan and Torren as they watch from the balcony. When Kanaan smiles at her and waves goodbye, something inside of her snaps. For the first time in days, she relaxes.
Leaving won't be so bad, as long as she has this to come home to.