White Chocolate 29 [Divide and Rule]
Title: Feathers
Author: lost_spook
Story: Heroes of the Revolution (Divide & Rule)
Flavor(s): White Chocolate #29 (levity)
Toppings/Extras: Gummy Bunnies (also for hc_bingo square “unwanted transformation”).
Rating: Teen
Word Count: 1413
Notes: May 1952; Edward Iveson/Julia Graves, Caroline Sheldon. (Terrible fluff and nonsense I ought to be ashamed of. Warning for mentions of pregnancy.)
Summary: Edward is unreasonably reasonable, and Julia is a duck.
***
Julia put the telephone down and turned back to Edward, who was showing Caroline to the door. She had to swallow a sudden pang of irrational loneliness, maybe even jealousy. Must they stand in the doorway and talk, so close together? What was she saying to him?
Of course, she knew it was ridiculous: Edward didn’t even like Caroline. It was only, Julia thought, biting back a sigh, she had been his wife, once, and knowing Edward, very likely his first real girlfriend, and Julia was currently feeling stupidly huge in the last stages of pregnancy - waddling about like a duck, as she kept complaining to herself - and would rather not have had Caroline there. She tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ears, overheated and cross and ready to be unreasonable about anything, especially Caroline, who had had Edward first, when Julia couldn’t, and it wasn’t fair. It was even more unfair of her to visit right now. Edward didn’t have long before he had to go to Kent again - and Caroline had turned up before they’d barely spoken and Edward wouldn’t throw her out, like any rational person would; he had to stand there talking to her, wasting all their precious time together.
“Hmph,” said Julia, and Edward, finally closing the door behind Caroline and turning to face her, raised an enquiring eyebrow.
“Julia? Is something wrong?”
She took that as her cue to explode. “Oh, no, nothing at all! You just stand there and talk to Caroline as if don’t even exist!”
“You were on the telephone,” he pointed out, keeping his tone carefully level and reasonable. It was maddening. She worked up further steam, her duck feathers badly ruffled.
“Just then,” she said, as if that was irrelevant. “What did you even have to let her in for? Oh, well, I don’t care. It’s not as if I wanted to see you, anyway! You get on off to Kent and stay as long as you like! Take Caroline with you if you want.”
“Julia -”
She glared. “Well, if you’re going to stand there, whispering secrets like that, making me feel -” She stopped, biting back hot, angry tears and swallowed. “I’ve just been stupid; so stupid.”
“Do you even mean any of that?” he asked, taking a wary step towards her.
Julia moved back sharply. Maybe she wasn’t a duck, after all, maybe she was a goose, feathers on end and ready to hiss. Why couldn’t Edward shout back at her like a normal person instead of standing around humouring her in that insufferable way of his? “Yes, well, I know you don’t take me seriously, of course! And, I suppose, I can see that she would have to still mean something - I suppose she was your first -”
“Honestly, Julia!”
She raised her chin and struggled inadequately for more accusations to throw at him. “And,” she said, “I expect you had to sit around and do the research first!”
He didn’t look angry yet; he merely looked bemused, leaning against the wall and surveying her as if she actually had transformed into some sort of strange creature.
“Oh, stop it!” she said. “Stop looking at me when I’m just a - a duck!”
Whatever Edward might have been going to say, that silenced him, and instead he slumped back further against the wall and laughed helplessly. Julia threw the telephone notepad at him and stormed somewhat awkwardly away up the stairs.
“If I may?” said Edward, arriving in the bedroom a few minutes later. He paused, and then sat down on the bed next to Julia. She was lying there with one of the pillows over her face, hiding her tears. “You know, I really hadn’t liked to mention the beak and the feathers, but since you bring it up -”
Julia gave another ‘hmph’ and removed the pillow, pulling herself up to give him a half-hearted glare. “Pig,” she said, but she gave way to a small laugh, despite herself, and wiped her eyes with her hand.
“And,” said Edward, encouraged enough to slide his arm around her, “for your information, what Caroline was saying to me in the hallway was - oh, I barely even recall. She wondered if I was taking proper care of you and recommended soup or broth or something. That’s all. And,” he added with a humorous quiver in his voice, as he tightened his hold on her, “you aren’t remotely like a duck, darling.”
Julia hesitated for a moment - hot, tired, and still cross - and then she sighed a little, leaning her head against his shoulder. “I feel like one - Jemima Puddleduck, waddling about.”
“Well, then, Jemima,” he said, pulling her in nearer, “as to the rest of your complaints, the first is none of your business, I think, and as to the second - well.” He put on his most serious expression, a sure warning that some sort of joke was imminent. “Have I never told you before about my grandfather’s collection of Victorian erotica?”
“Now you’re making things up.”
Edward grinned. “No. Word of honour! To the best of my knowledge they’re still in a trunk up in Aunt Daisy’s attic. Nancy and I found them one rainy summer when we were about eleven or twelve. As we’d read most of the other books in the house that weren’t textbooks, we set to work on them. We weren’t very impressed, I can tell you. I mean, some of them, we thought, weren’t too bad, if you skipped all the tiresome parts, but that was about as much as anyone could say. A couple of years later, we both had to find them again just to make sure we hadn’t imagined them.” He took her hand, distracted by the memory. “God, they were the most awful things I’ve ever read!”
“No, no,” said Julia, “I’m not being taken in by this. What on earth would your grandfather be doing with them anyway?”
“I think some elderly professor of literature or whatever it was, left them to Grandfather because the university wouldn’t take them. He said one day they would want them. As yet, nobody has ever asked for them, and they’re still up in the attic. Next time we visit Aunt Daisy, I’ll prove it to you.”
Julia shook her head at him and then twisted her hand in his, playing with his fingers.
“Of course, they were all a little too archaic and strange,” said Edward,” but what school gossip and questionable Victoriana didn’t provide, I had Aunt Daisy for. You can imagine how I felt on by lectured by her a week before the wedding -”
Julia turned. “Oh, now, I’m sure Aunt Daisy wouldn’t have -”
“Not the facts of life, no. She assumed I knew those, even if I don’t think she ever realised we’d been at Grandfather’s books. She did, however, feel the need to inform me that men were generally selfish and careless about these things and gave me a whole collection of instructive literature to read. So, I’m afraid you’re right, I can’t deny it; I did do the research, although in my defence, it wasn’t intentional.”
Julia let go of any residual annoyance and let him hold her as she laughed. “I wish you wouldn’t be so silly,” she said eventually. Then she bit her lip and glanced at him. “I suppose you have to go to Kent?”
“I won’t be too long,” he said. “Well - unless you think there’s reason for me to stay?”
“Sadly, no,” said Julia, and then felt cold. She wanted this over, more than anything, but that of course, meant there would be a child and she decided that she would no doubt be a terrible mother, or worse, something might go wrong again, and then -
Edward interrupted her dark thoughts, stroking her hair. “Julia. Are you sure you’re all right?”
She nodded and did her best to pull herself together. “Oh, yes. Just out of sorts yet again. I shall be fine - you get on and go before you miss the train.”
“Oh,” said Edward, “downstairs, on the table in the hall - Caroline left some things for you. A book and a box of chocolates. That was why she was here, you know.”
Julia sat up. “Oh!” she said. “Oh, no, that’s too unfair! Can’t I even be allowed to hate her in peace? Is that too much to ask for?”
“Apparently, it is,” said Edward. “Jemima.”
***
Author: lost_spook
Story: Heroes of the Revolution (Divide & Rule)
Flavor(s): White Chocolate #29 (levity)
Toppings/Extras: Gummy Bunnies (also for hc_bingo square “unwanted transformation”).
Rating: Teen
Word Count: 1413
Notes: May 1952; Edward Iveson/Julia Graves, Caroline Sheldon. (Terrible fluff and nonsense I ought to be ashamed of. Warning for mentions of pregnancy.)
Summary: Edward is unreasonably reasonable, and Julia is a duck.
***
Julia put the telephone down and turned back to Edward, who was showing Caroline to the door. She had to swallow a sudden pang of irrational loneliness, maybe even jealousy. Must they stand in the doorway and talk, so close together? What was she saying to him?
Of course, she knew it was ridiculous: Edward didn’t even like Caroline. It was only, Julia thought, biting back a sigh, she had been his wife, once, and knowing Edward, very likely his first real girlfriend, and Julia was currently feeling stupidly huge in the last stages of pregnancy - waddling about like a duck, as she kept complaining to herself - and would rather not have had Caroline there. She tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ears, overheated and cross and ready to be unreasonable about anything, especially Caroline, who had had Edward first, when Julia couldn’t, and it wasn’t fair. It was even more unfair of her to visit right now. Edward didn’t have long before he had to go to Kent again - and Caroline had turned up before they’d barely spoken and Edward wouldn’t throw her out, like any rational person would; he had to stand there talking to her, wasting all their precious time together.
“Hmph,” said Julia, and Edward, finally closing the door behind Caroline and turning to face her, raised an enquiring eyebrow.
“Julia? Is something wrong?”
She took that as her cue to explode. “Oh, no, nothing at all! You just stand there and talk to Caroline as if don’t even exist!”
“You were on the telephone,” he pointed out, keeping his tone carefully level and reasonable. It was maddening. She worked up further steam, her duck feathers badly ruffled.
“Just then,” she said, as if that was irrelevant. “What did you even have to let her in for? Oh, well, I don’t care. It’s not as if I wanted to see you, anyway! You get on off to Kent and stay as long as you like! Take Caroline with you if you want.”
“Julia -”
She glared. “Well, if you’re going to stand there, whispering secrets like that, making me feel -” She stopped, biting back hot, angry tears and swallowed. “I’ve just been stupid; so stupid.”
“Do you even mean any of that?” he asked, taking a wary step towards her.
Julia moved back sharply. Maybe she wasn’t a duck, after all, maybe she was a goose, feathers on end and ready to hiss. Why couldn’t Edward shout back at her like a normal person instead of standing around humouring her in that insufferable way of his? “Yes, well, I know you don’t take me seriously, of course! And, I suppose, I can see that she would have to still mean something - I suppose she was your first -”
“Honestly, Julia!”
She raised her chin and struggled inadequately for more accusations to throw at him. “And,” she said, “I expect you had to sit around and do the research first!”
He didn’t look angry yet; he merely looked bemused, leaning against the wall and surveying her as if she actually had transformed into some sort of strange creature.
“Oh, stop it!” she said. “Stop looking at me when I’m just a - a duck!”
Whatever Edward might have been going to say, that silenced him, and instead he slumped back further against the wall and laughed helplessly. Julia threw the telephone notepad at him and stormed somewhat awkwardly away up the stairs.
“If I may?” said Edward, arriving in the bedroom a few minutes later. He paused, and then sat down on the bed next to Julia. She was lying there with one of the pillows over her face, hiding her tears. “You know, I really hadn’t liked to mention the beak and the feathers, but since you bring it up -”
Julia gave another ‘hmph’ and removed the pillow, pulling herself up to give him a half-hearted glare. “Pig,” she said, but she gave way to a small laugh, despite herself, and wiped her eyes with her hand.
“And,” said Edward, encouraged enough to slide his arm around her, “for your information, what Caroline was saying to me in the hallway was - oh, I barely even recall. She wondered if I was taking proper care of you and recommended soup or broth or something. That’s all. And,” he added with a humorous quiver in his voice, as he tightened his hold on her, “you aren’t remotely like a duck, darling.”
Julia hesitated for a moment - hot, tired, and still cross - and then she sighed a little, leaning her head against his shoulder. “I feel like one - Jemima Puddleduck, waddling about.”
“Well, then, Jemima,” he said, pulling her in nearer, “as to the rest of your complaints, the first is none of your business, I think, and as to the second - well.” He put on his most serious expression, a sure warning that some sort of joke was imminent. “Have I never told you before about my grandfather’s collection of Victorian erotica?”
“Now you’re making things up.”
Edward grinned. “No. Word of honour! To the best of my knowledge they’re still in a trunk up in Aunt Daisy’s attic. Nancy and I found them one rainy summer when we were about eleven or twelve. As we’d read most of the other books in the house that weren’t textbooks, we set to work on them. We weren’t very impressed, I can tell you. I mean, some of them, we thought, weren’t too bad, if you skipped all the tiresome parts, but that was about as much as anyone could say. A couple of years later, we both had to find them again just to make sure we hadn’t imagined them.” He took her hand, distracted by the memory. “God, they were the most awful things I’ve ever read!”
“No, no,” said Julia, “I’m not being taken in by this. What on earth would your grandfather be doing with them anyway?”
“I think some elderly professor of literature or whatever it was, left them to Grandfather because the university wouldn’t take them. He said one day they would want them. As yet, nobody has ever asked for them, and they’re still up in the attic. Next time we visit Aunt Daisy, I’ll prove it to you.”
Julia shook her head at him and then twisted her hand in his, playing with his fingers.
“Of course, they were all a little too archaic and strange,” said Edward,” but what school gossip and questionable Victoriana didn’t provide, I had Aunt Daisy for. You can imagine how I felt on by lectured by her a week before the wedding -”
Julia turned. “Oh, now, I’m sure Aunt Daisy wouldn’t have -”
“Not the facts of life, no. She assumed I knew those, even if I don’t think she ever realised we’d been at Grandfather’s books. She did, however, feel the need to inform me that men were generally selfish and careless about these things and gave me a whole collection of instructive literature to read. So, I’m afraid you’re right, I can’t deny it; I did do the research, although in my defence, it wasn’t intentional.”
Julia let go of any residual annoyance and let him hold her as she laughed. “I wish you wouldn’t be so silly,” she said eventually. Then she bit her lip and glanced at him. “I suppose you have to go to Kent?”
“I won’t be too long,” he said. “Well - unless you think there’s reason for me to stay?”
“Sadly, no,” said Julia, and then felt cold. She wanted this over, more than anything, but that of course, meant there would be a child and she decided that she would no doubt be a terrible mother, or worse, something might go wrong again, and then -
Edward interrupted her dark thoughts, stroking her hair. “Julia. Are you sure you’re all right?”
She nodded and did her best to pull herself together. “Oh, yes. Just out of sorts yet again. I shall be fine - you get on and go before you miss the train.”
“Oh,” said Edward, “downstairs, on the table in the hall - Caroline left some things for you. A book and a box of chocolates. That was why she was here, you know.”
Julia sat up. “Oh!” she said. “Oh, no, that’s too unfair! Can’t I even be allowed to hate her in peace? Is that too much to ask for?”
“Apparently, it is,” said Edward. “Jemima.”
***