Four Animorphs fics, one Firefly, one BSG
Title: 119 Minutes
Fandom: Animorphs
Characters: Tobias
Spoilers: None
Words: 371
Rating: PG
Prompt: Numbers: Animorphs, any, 120 minutes
He morphs to human and stares at the clock. One minute. Two. Two and a bit. Why are sixty seconds so slow?
He paces for eleven minutes. Sits back down and twiddles his thumbs for another six. Gets up and paces again for eight. Twenty-seven and a half minutes passed.
He picks up a book and spends nine minutes looking at the first page before he realizes it's upside down. He turns it over, spends six more minutes reading the first paragraph over and over without seeing the words. Forty-three minutes.
He goes over to the window and clutches at the sill with human fingers, stares out at the sky through dull human eyes. He wants to fly. He wants to be human. He wants to fly.
He looks at the clock. Forty-six.
He goes downstairs (the house is empty, he thinks) and finds a bag of chips in the cabinet and a slice of leftover pizza in the fridge. He eats them slowly, dragging out the time, trying not to gag on the food he's going have to learn to eat again. He wants to catch a mouse. He wants to be human. He wants to catch a mouse.
He goes back upstairs, checks the clock. Sixty-three minutes gone. Fifty-seven to go.
He looks at the TV, reaches for the remote. He turns it on and stares at the screen. He doesn't know the show because he hasn't watched TV for months. He watches but doesn't pay attention and turns it off after twenty-three minutes when the credits start rolling.
Eighty-six.
He paces again, nine minutes. Wanders through the empty house, twelve. Washes the dishes, six. One hundred and thirteen. Seven minutes to go.
Oh God. Oh God. He can't do this. He can't do it. His hands tremble and he looks at them. Fingers, skin, arms. He wants feathers, wings. He wants to be human. He wants his wings.
One hundred and sixteen. The seconds drag. He can't tear his eyes from the ticking second hand. One minute. Two minutes. Two and a bit.
One hundred and nineteen. He's sweating. He can't do it. He demorphs.
He flies away. He wants to be human. He flies away.
*
Title: October 22
Fandom: Animorphs
Characters: Marco, Peter
Spoilers: None
Words: 195
Rating: PG
Prompt: The Dead and the Dying: Animorphs, Marco, Peter, the three year anniversary of his mother's death is so much different for him than his father
For Peter, October 22 is a dark day, a black hole in his wall calendar. A day to lie on Eva's side of the bed and pretend the warmth in the sheets is hers and not his, and he's just keeping it warm until she comes back in a minute. It's a day to drag himself out of the room at one in the afternoon and make a belated sick call to work and a day to get drunk in the living room, stashing the bottles under the couch so Marco won't see them when he comes home even though he'll smell it on his breath.
For Marco, October 22 is any other day. A day to fight and bleed and hope to God he doesn't die, not today, not today. A day to come home in bike shorts and turn off the TV and clean up the mess and leave Peter passed out on the couch because he's not strong enough to move him anywhere else. A day to remember the last October 22, and the one before, all exactly the same, but never think of the October 22 before that because he can't.
*
Title: Crying at Weddings
Fandom: Animorphs
Characters: Naomi, Jordan
Spoilers: #54
Words: 80
Rating: G
Prompt: Do It Yourself: Animorphs, Ani-moms (Eva, Naomi, Michelle, Loren, Jean, in whatever combination), planning/planning for _______'s wedding/post-54
She flips through the wedding catalog and her fingers tremble.
"What do you think of this one?" she asks, and pushes the magazine across the table.
"Too fancy," Jordan says, and pushes it back. Naomi keeps looking.
She doesn't want to do this. Doesn't want to plan Jordan's wedding because Rachel's should have been first.
But she plans anyway because she's Jordan's mother more than she was Rachel's in the end, and it's a wedding, so she's allowed to cry.
*
Title: This is Your Kid
Fandom: Animorphs
Characters: Loren, Tobias
Spoilers: #49
Words: 100
Rating: G
Prompt: Hospitals: Animorphs, Loren, "this is your kid"
This is your kid, Loren. This is the blonde haired child they place in your arms.
This is your kid, Loren. This is the boy you can't see when he turns into your dog.
This is your kid, Loren. This is the child you can't remember.
This is your kid, Loren. This is the boy without a home.
This is your kid, Loren. This is the child you want to love but have to give away.
This is your kid, Loren. This is the boy trapped in the body of a hawk.
This is your kid, Loren. This is Tobias.
*
Title: Silence
Fandom: Firefly
Characters: River
Spoilers: None
Words: 61
Rating: G
Prompt: Silence: Firefly, River, Silence is a rarity
In River's head, there is no such thing as silence.
There is screaming pain and unknown knowledge. There is beautiful grace and happier days. There is Simon and there is Dr. Tam.
There is rushing water and places with no air. There are roaring engines and grinding gears. There is everything and there is nothing.
In River's head, everything is silent.
*
Title: Whimper
Fandom: Battlestar Galactica (2003)
Characters: Helo/Athena
Spoilers: 2x18 "Downloaded"
Words: 35
Rating: PG
Prompt: Quotes and Sayings: Battlestar Galactica, Helo, "This is the way the world ends/This is the way the world ends/Not with a bang but a whimper" ~T.S. Eliot
He stands over the tiny body and tightens his grip on Sharon's shoulders. He can't believe it, won't believe it. Hera isn't dead, Hera isn't dead, ohgodsHeraisdead.
Sharon cries quietly and Helo holds her close.
Fandom: Animorphs
Characters: Tobias
Spoilers: None
Words: 371
Rating: PG
Prompt: Numbers: Animorphs, any, 120 minutes
He morphs to human and stares at the clock. One minute. Two. Two and a bit. Why are sixty seconds so slow?
He paces for eleven minutes. Sits back down and twiddles his thumbs for another six. Gets up and paces again for eight. Twenty-seven and a half minutes passed.
He picks up a book and spends nine minutes looking at the first page before he realizes it's upside down. He turns it over, spends six more minutes reading the first paragraph over and over without seeing the words. Forty-three minutes.
He goes over to the window and clutches at the sill with human fingers, stares out at the sky through dull human eyes. He wants to fly. He wants to be human. He wants to fly.
He looks at the clock. Forty-six.
He goes downstairs (the house is empty, he thinks) and finds a bag of chips in the cabinet and a slice of leftover pizza in the fridge. He eats them slowly, dragging out the time, trying not to gag on the food he's going have to learn to eat again. He wants to catch a mouse. He wants to be human. He wants to catch a mouse.
He goes back upstairs, checks the clock. Sixty-three minutes gone. Fifty-seven to go.
He looks at the TV, reaches for the remote. He turns it on and stares at the screen. He doesn't know the show because he hasn't watched TV for months. He watches but doesn't pay attention and turns it off after twenty-three minutes when the credits start rolling.
Eighty-six.
He paces again, nine minutes. Wanders through the empty house, twelve. Washes the dishes, six. One hundred and thirteen. Seven minutes to go.
Oh God. Oh God. He can't do this. He can't do it. His hands tremble and he looks at them. Fingers, skin, arms. He wants feathers, wings. He wants to be human. He wants his wings.
One hundred and sixteen. The seconds drag. He can't tear his eyes from the ticking second hand. One minute. Two minutes. Two and a bit.
One hundred and nineteen. He's sweating. He can't do it. He demorphs.
He flies away. He wants to be human. He flies away.
*
Title: October 22
Fandom: Animorphs
Characters: Marco, Peter
Spoilers: None
Words: 195
Rating: PG
Prompt: The Dead and the Dying: Animorphs, Marco, Peter, the three year anniversary of his mother's death is so much different for him than his father
For Peter, October 22 is a dark day, a black hole in his wall calendar. A day to lie on Eva's side of the bed and pretend the warmth in the sheets is hers and not his, and he's just keeping it warm until she comes back in a minute. It's a day to drag himself out of the room at one in the afternoon and make a belated sick call to work and a day to get drunk in the living room, stashing the bottles under the couch so Marco won't see them when he comes home even though he'll smell it on his breath.
For Marco, October 22 is any other day. A day to fight and bleed and hope to God he doesn't die, not today, not today. A day to come home in bike shorts and turn off the TV and clean up the mess and leave Peter passed out on the couch because he's not strong enough to move him anywhere else. A day to remember the last October 22, and the one before, all exactly the same, but never think of the October 22 before that because he can't.
*
Title: Crying at Weddings
Fandom: Animorphs
Characters: Naomi, Jordan
Spoilers: #54
Words: 80
Rating: G
Prompt: Do It Yourself: Animorphs, Ani-moms (Eva, Naomi, Michelle, Loren, Jean, in whatever combination), planning/planning for _______'s wedding/post-54
She flips through the wedding catalog and her fingers tremble.
"What do you think of this one?" she asks, and pushes the magazine across the table.
"Too fancy," Jordan says, and pushes it back. Naomi keeps looking.
She doesn't want to do this. Doesn't want to plan Jordan's wedding because Rachel's should have been first.
But she plans anyway because she's Jordan's mother more than she was Rachel's in the end, and it's a wedding, so she's allowed to cry.
*
Title: This is Your Kid
Fandom: Animorphs
Characters: Loren, Tobias
Spoilers: #49
Words: 100
Rating: G
Prompt: Hospitals: Animorphs, Loren, "this is your kid"
This is your kid, Loren. This is the blonde haired child they place in your arms.
This is your kid, Loren. This is the boy you can't see when he turns into your dog.
This is your kid, Loren. This is the child you can't remember.
This is your kid, Loren. This is the boy without a home.
This is your kid, Loren. This is the child you want to love but have to give away.
This is your kid, Loren. This is the boy trapped in the body of a hawk.
This is your kid, Loren. This is Tobias.
*
Title: Silence
Fandom: Firefly
Characters: River
Spoilers: None
Words: 61
Rating: G
Prompt: Silence: Firefly, River, Silence is a rarity
In River's head, there is no such thing as silence.
There is screaming pain and unknown knowledge. There is beautiful grace and happier days. There is Simon and there is Dr. Tam.
There is rushing water and places with no air. There are roaring engines and grinding gears. There is everything and there is nothing.
In River's head, everything is silent.
*
Title: Whimper
Fandom: Battlestar Galactica (2003)
Characters: Helo/Athena
Spoilers: 2x18 "Downloaded"
Words: 35
Rating: PG
Prompt: Quotes and Sayings: Battlestar Galactica, Helo, "This is the way the world ends/This is the way the world ends/Not with a bang but a whimper" ~T.S. Eliot
He stands over the tiny body and tightens his grip on Sharon's shoulders. He can't believe it, won't believe it. Hera isn't dead, Hera isn't dead, ohgodsHeraisdead.
Sharon cries quietly and Helo holds her close.