Dresden Files: "The Irish-American Magnet" (PG) (for Fififolle)
Title: the Irish-American Magnet.
For: Fififolle.
…who requested: Dresden.
(if this is not satisfactory for a Christmas present, just say so - it’s no trouble)
Rating: PG
Warnings: None.
Pairings: slight Connie/Harry
Spoilers: all Murphy eps, Things that go bump.
Characters: Connie Murphy, Dresden, Anna Murphy, Ned C. Tor, Kirmani.
The character of Ned is a gift to Fififolle. Until and unless she decides otherwise, his depiction is Daragh O’Malley, aka Patrick Harper of the Sharpe films.
Length/Word Count: 884 words.
Disclaimer: None of the characters are mine. I’m only exploring the characters we’ve seen onscreen.
Short Summary: Three moments from Murphy’s life.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There were things Detective Connie Murphy didn’t know. She didn’t know why her ex had been so amiable and generous during the divorce proceedings. She didn’t know why Harry (Dresden) was in such need of a clue as to how she felt about him. And she didn’t know why she was having such rotten luck lately.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Case One: where a witness goes bye-bye
“Hey Murph,” Dresden said, coming up to where she was crouched beside her car. To give him credit, he kept low and avoided looking like a target that someone in the foreclosed townhouse could fire at from the windows.
“I’m not even going to ask how you got past…” Murphy started to say, then shook her head and thought better of it. Looking back towards the townhouse, “Áine Randall,” Murphy said through the megaphone, “we’re not going to ask you again - put down your weapons and come out now. You can still plead to a lesser charge.”
“She someone important?” Harry asked.
“You could say that,” Murphy said as she and Kirmani reloaded their sidearms - it never hurt to be prepared in advance, just to cover all eventualities. “She’s a minor supplier, one we were sure would testify in court.”
“So you can fry the big fish? Makes sense. What happened?”
Murphy gave him the eye, wondering what he knew that he wasn’t telling this time - and what would bring him to the scene of what could all too easily become a shoot-out. “What -?”
“Murph!” Dresden said, and you look where he’s looking, and there’s a shadow at one of the windows, the tell-tale outline of someone raising a rifle, and -
The townhome went up in flames before the rifle could even be aimed.
“Aw crap,” Dresden said.
“Yeah,” Kirmani agreed.
Even from where they were parked, you could smell the…it wasn’t so much sulfur, as it was brimstone.
Forensics revealed that there had been a leaky gas pipe in the room, which combined with the state of the floorboards, made the place a bomb waiting to go off.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Case Two: where Murphy’s ex stops by
“So,” Connie asked when Ned came by to drop Anna off at her house, “did the two of you have fun?”
Anna nodded enthusiastically.
“We did,” Ned replied. “And yourself, Connie?”
“Constance,” Connie corrected him. “And yeah, I had a good time.” To Anna, “Missed you something fierce.”
“Sorry,” Anna said. “I’m back now,” before her mom could say anything.
“Yes you are.”
Noticing what was still around Connie’s neck, Ned remarked casually, “I see you’ve still got the necklace.”
“Of course I do,” Connie replied defensively.
“See, dad?” Anna asked. “I told you mom would like -”
Her dad coughed.
But Connie Murphy wasn’t having any of it. “She told you I’d like what?” she asked her ex since he still hadn’t left yet.
The charm had indeed been made by Anna, out of materials her father let her use - a wearable ward of Protection from nonmagical attacks. “I took her to get some ice cream so long as she promised to go to bed early tonight.”
“Anna always goes to bed early. If she’s having trouble sleeping when she’s at your place, maybe we need to revisit the terms of the custody arrangement.”
“She doesn’t and we don’t,” he said.
“And,” Anna said, jumping back into the conversation with ease, “we went to see Mr. Dresden.”
“You - what?” Connie asked, not sure which of them she was asking that of.
“He’s harmless,” Ned said. And for one as powerful in magic as himself, that was true, as far as Dresden was concerned. Though with Dresden’s increasing influence on his ex, Ned wasn’t sure how long the ward would feel the need to protect.
“And I got to play with Bob!” Anna said.
“Who?” her mother asked.
“I think it’s a stray,” Ned answered. “Well, daughter-mine, I’ll see you next time.”
“HUG!” Anna shouted, giving her da a big bear hug.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Case Three: where someone tries to off Murphy
Murphy was in her car, waiting for the light to turn from red to green. When it finally did so, and her car had begun to cross the intersection, somebody tried to crash into her, barreling towards her from the left.
At the last minute, the attacking car did a hard left turn and tumbled once, twice, and lay there.
Murphy called in the accident before getting out to see if anyone in that car needed help - or a breathalyzer, based on how recklessly fast they’d been going. Her police radio replied that squad cars and an ambulance were on their way.
The beretta on the ground - fallen out from the car - was an additional clue that something was amiss. Murphy unholstered her own gun right away, continuing towards the overturned vehicle. “Police! Show me your hands,” she instructed.
A moan answered her, the sound of someone unable to do or say anything more.
Testing and questioning would reveal that the driver, one E.Quinn, was not only clean and sober, he had also been hired by the Ford gang to kill her.
Upon hearing that news in the bullpen, Murphy had sighed and asked rhetorically, “What is it about the Irish that robs men of reason?”
Kirmani just looked at her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The End
For: Fififolle.
…who requested: Dresden.
(if this is not satisfactory for a Christmas present, just say so - it’s no trouble)
Rating: PG
Warnings: None.
Pairings: slight Connie/Harry
Spoilers: all Murphy eps, Things that go bump.
Characters: Connie Murphy, Dresden, Anna Murphy, Ned C. Tor, Kirmani.
The character of Ned is a gift to Fififolle. Until and unless she decides otherwise, his depiction is Daragh O’Malley, aka Patrick Harper of the Sharpe films.
Length/Word Count: 884 words.
Disclaimer: None of the characters are mine. I’m only exploring the characters we’ve seen onscreen.
Short Summary: Three moments from Murphy’s life.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
There were things Detective Connie Murphy didn’t know. She didn’t know why her ex had been so amiable and generous during the divorce proceedings. She didn’t know why Harry (Dresden) was in such need of a clue as to how she felt about him. And she didn’t know why she was having such rotten luck lately.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Case One: where a witness goes bye-bye
“Hey Murph,” Dresden said, coming up to where she was crouched beside her car. To give him credit, he kept low and avoided looking like a target that someone in the foreclosed townhouse could fire at from the windows.
“I’m not even going to ask how you got past…” Murphy started to say, then shook her head and thought better of it. Looking back towards the townhouse, “Áine Randall,” Murphy said through the megaphone, “we’re not going to ask you again - put down your weapons and come out now. You can still plead to a lesser charge.”
“She someone important?” Harry asked.
“You could say that,” Murphy said as she and Kirmani reloaded their sidearms - it never hurt to be prepared in advance, just to cover all eventualities. “She’s a minor supplier, one we were sure would testify in court.”
“So you can fry the big fish? Makes sense. What happened?”
Murphy gave him the eye, wondering what he knew that he wasn’t telling this time - and what would bring him to the scene of what could all too easily become a shoot-out. “What -?”
“Murph!” Dresden said, and you look where he’s looking, and there’s a shadow at one of the windows, the tell-tale outline of someone raising a rifle, and -
The townhome went up in flames before the rifle could even be aimed.
“Aw crap,” Dresden said.
“Yeah,” Kirmani agreed.
Even from where they were parked, you could smell the…it wasn’t so much sulfur, as it was brimstone.
Forensics revealed that there had been a leaky gas pipe in the room, which combined with the state of the floorboards, made the place a bomb waiting to go off.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Case Two: where Murphy’s ex stops by
“So,” Connie asked when Ned came by to drop Anna off at her house, “did the two of you have fun?”
Anna nodded enthusiastically.
“We did,” Ned replied. “And yourself, Connie?”
“Constance,” Connie corrected him. “And yeah, I had a good time.” To Anna, “Missed you something fierce.”
“Sorry,” Anna said. “I’m back now,” before her mom could say anything.
“Yes you are.”
Noticing what was still around Connie’s neck, Ned remarked casually, “I see you’ve still got the necklace.”
“Of course I do,” Connie replied defensively.
“See, dad?” Anna asked. “I told you mom would like -”
Her dad coughed.
But Connie Murphy wasn’t having any of it. “She told you I’d like what?” she asked her ex since he still hadn’t left yet.
The charm had indeed been made by Anna, out of materials her father let her use - a wearable ward of Protection from nonmagical attacks. “I took her to get some ice cream so long as she promised to go to bed early tonight.”
“Anna always goes to bed early. If she’s having trouble sleeping when she’s at your place, maybe we need to revisit the terms of the custody arrangement.”
“She doesn’t and we don’t,” he said.
“And,” Anna said, jumping back into the conversation with ease, “we went to see Mr. Dresden.”
“You - what?” Connie asked, not sure which of them she was asking that of.
“He’s harmless,” Ned said. And for one as powerful in magic as himself, that was true, as far as Dresden was concerned. Though with Dresden’s increasing influence on his ex, Ned wasn’t sure how long the ward would feel the need to protect.
“And I got to play with Bob!” Anna said.
“Who?” her mother asked.
“I think it’s a stray,” Ned answered. “Well, daughter-mine, I’ll see you next time.”
“HUG!” Anna shouted, giving her da a big bear hug.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Case Three: where someone tries to off Murphy
Murphy was in her car, waiting for the light to turn from red to green. When it finally did so, and her car had begun to cross the intersection, somebody tried to crash into her, barreling towards her from the left.
At the last minute, the attacking car did a hard left turn and tumbled once, twice, and lay there.
Murphy called in the accident before getting out to see if anyone in that car needed help - or a breathalyzer, based on how recklessly fast they’d been going. Her police radio replied that squad cars and an ambulance were on their way.
The beretta on the ground - fallen out from the car - was an additional clue that something was amiss. Murphy unholstered her own gun right away, continuing towards the overturned vehicle. “Police! Show me your hands,” she instructed.
A moan answered her, the sound of someone unable to do or say anything more.
Testing and questioning would reveal that the driver, one E.Quinn, was not only clean and sober, he had also been hired by the Ford gang to kill her.
Upon hearing that news in the bullpen, Murphy had sighed and asked rhetorically, “What is it about the Irish that robs men of reason?”
Kirmani just looked at her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The End