Dogma, Seven Sins, Bartleby/Loki
title: Psalm 35 (Verse 1 - "Plead My Cause, O Lord")
author: windsor blue
theme: seven sins (pride)
rating: NC-17 for language
warnings: heresy, potentially offensive to those with Christian beliefs
fandom: Dogma
pairing: Bartleby/Loki
word count: 498
with thanks to darthanne for the Bible-check and the moral support
"You know what got us kicked out of Heaven?" Bartleby said.
Loki chewed his gum a few times before he replied. "Your big mouth?"
Bartleby sat up straighter, and as he did the hard plastic airport-chair creaked on its metal post. "Excuse me? You're the one who flipped Him the bird."
"You know what - fuck you. I only did that because you dared me to."
"So what, now, the Angel of Death has the mentality of a third-grader? Jesus. Good thing I didn't dare you to set a flaming bag of dog shit in front of the Gates."
Loki sat back a bit, stretching his legs out in front of him, and chuckled. "That would have been kinda funny, actually..."
Bartleby snapped his fingers in front of Loki's nose. "Focus on the conversation here. What got us kicked out of Heaven was pride - pure and simple pride."
Loki nodded thoughtfully. "It did take a lot of hubris on our parts to tell God to take His job and shove it."
"No, no - we weren't the proud ones; He was."
"...alright, now, that's just heretical."
"No, listen! You had every right to want out of that job. Think of all the shit He'd made you do over the years, in His name, might I add: the Flood, for starters; Sodom and Gomorrah - remember how fucked up you were after Sodom and Gomorrah? Nowadays that's called post-traumatic stress disorder, my friend." Loki nodded slightly, making a rolling gesture with his hand. "And then the plagues visited upon Egypt - oh, and the cherry on the friggin' cake, there - the slaughter of the firstborns."
Loki winced. "Ooh, yeah - that was a rough one."
"Those were kids, man - children born pure into the world, utterly without sin."
Loki nodded. "And the animals, too. Kids and puppies..."
"Exactly - kids and puppies. What the fuck did they do to deserve the wrath of the Almighty?"
"Well, they were the children of Pharoh's people, you know. Oppressors of the Israelites, enslavers of the Chosen People of God - is this ringing a bell for you? Sins of the father being visited upon the sons and whatnot."
"But that's my point! That's my whole point, right there! Why should the sins of the father be visited upon the sons? Does that sound like Divine Justice to you?"
"Divine justice is whatever He says it is."
"No. No, that's not fair. To say that one person - even if that person is God - gets to decide on a...on a fucking whim what justice for the whole of Creation is? That's not justice, my friend, that's hubris. Hubris in it's most dangerous, most awful form. Pride taken to its logical - and horrible - extreme." Bartleby sat back, looking vaguely self-satisfied, while Loki watched him, frowning.
"Wisconsin has made you a fucking heretic," Loki said.
"Fuck, man," Bartleby replied, "Can you blame me?"
author: windsor blue
theme: seven sins (pride)
rating: NC-17 for language
warnings: heresy, potentially offensive to those with Christian beliefs
fandom: Dogma
pairing: Bartleby/Loki
word count: 498
with thanks to darthanne for the Bible-check and the moral support
"You know what got us kicked out of Heaven?" Bartleby said.
Loki chewed his gum a few times before he replied. "Your big mouth?"
Bartleby sat up straighter, and as he did the hard plastic airport-chair creaked on its metal post. "Excuse me? You're the one who flipped Him the bird."
"You know what - fuck you. I only did that because you dared me to."
"So what, now, the Angel of Death has the mentality of a third-grader? Jesus. Good thing I didn't dare you to set a flaming bag of dog shit in front of the Gates."
Loki sat back a bit, stretching his legs out in front of him, and chuckled. "That would have been kinda funny, actually..."
Bartleby snapped his fingers in front of Loki's nose. "Focus on the conversation here. What got us kicked out of Heaven was pride - pure and simple pride."
Loki nodded thoughtfully. "It did take a lot of hubris on our parts to tell God to take His job and shove it."
"No, no - we weren't the proud ones; He was."
"...alright, now, that's just heretical."
"No, listen! You had every right to want out of that job. Think of all the shit He'd made you do over the years, in His name, might I add: the Flood, for starters; Sodom and Gomorrah - remember how fucked up you were after Sodom and Gomorrah? Nowadays that's called post-traumatic stress disorder, my friend." Loki nodded slightly, making a rolling gesture with his hand. "And then the plagues visited upon Egypt - oh, and the cherry on the friggin' cake, there - the slaughter of the firstborns."
Loki winced. "Ooh, yeah - that was a rough one."
"Those were kids, man - children born pure into the world, utterly without sin."
Loki nodded. "And the animals, too. Kids and puppies..."
"Exactly - kids and puppies. What the fuck did they do to deserve the wrath of the Almighty?"
"Well, they were the children of Pharoh's people, you know. Oppressors of the Israelites, enslavers of the Chosen People of God - is this ringing a bell for you? Sins of the father being visited upon the sons and whatnot."
"But that's my point! That's my whole point, right there! Why should the sins of the father be visited upon the sons? Does that sound like Divine Justice to you?"
"Divine justice is whatever He says it is."
"No. No, that's not fair. To say that one person - even if that person is God - gets to decide on a...on a fucking whim what justice for the whole of Creation is? That's not justice, my friend, that's hubris. Hubris in it's most dangerous, most awful form. Pride taken to its logical - and horrible - extreme." Bartleby sat back, looking vaguely self-satisfied, while Loki watched him, frowning.
"Wisconsin has made you a fucking heretic," Loki said.
"Fuck, man," Bartleby replied, "Can you blame me?"