right, so I'm back.
...and thank you all for the good wishes and lovely thoughts. I'm stuck at home again, but it's not all bad -- I hate going out in the winter anyway, and I tend to write more when I'm trapped in the house.
Which brings me to the fic. And yes, this is the product of several days' boredom while in hospital plus the really good pain meds they give me from time to time. This is my first foray into the whole 'five things' bit; it's also going to fill some of my highlander50 table, because I'm a cheater like that.
Five People Cory Raines Probably Shouldn't Have Stolen From, But Did Anyway:
one - follow (#14)
The guy had hair like Billy Idol in his heyday, but since Cory still occasionally wore a fedora, and called women 'dollface' when a certain mood took him, he acknowledged that it would be hypocritical to make fun of anyone else for nostalgia, especially considering how well the guy pulled the look off. Cory settled for swiping his wallet instead, only to be very thoroughly surprised the next night when the former mark tracked him down and drained him dry before stealing said wallet back from his corpse. Cory left Rio a few hours after he recovered. He really hates vampires. (spike - 100 words)
***
two - game (#27)
It all started with a truck hijacking that went down harder than usual. Cory took two bullets to the leg and spent a week dodging unusually well-dressed thugs around Denver before fencing the goods, giving away the money, and taking off for Paris and Amanda's welcoming arms. That was the second thing that didn't go as expected, though it was beyond funny to see Amanda shacked up with an honest cop, even an honest ex-cop. That the guy was destined to end up Immortal was even better, at least in Cory's opinion.
Wolf had a scowl that rivaled Duncan MacLeod's, and Amanda, despite an almost defiant show of independence, had clearly fallen hard for yet another do-gooder. Cory spent his entire visit flirting outrageously with her and stole Wolf's credit cards before he left, all in the same spirit of mild and non-specific malice with which he'd repeatedly run Richie Ryan into a ditch a few years earlier.
When he left Paris he headed back to the States, where a Brinks truck in Cleveland led to a three month stint in Federal custody before Matthew got word and pulled enough strings to get him temporarily killed and sent on his way with a lecture still burning in his ears. After that there'd been a bank in Atlanta, followed by an intricate plot to knock over a Las Vegas casino that got him killed halfway through his first attempt. Cory woke up in the morgue and spent the next month dodging an uncomfortably persistent fellow from the crime lab before he gave up and left for Miami.
By the time he got back to Paris, Wolf had come into his Immortality and taken off for parts unknown, leaving Amanda worried and discontent. Cory suggested an attempt on the Smithsonian's jewelry collection to cheer her up: however, the desire to avoid another of Matthew's lectures meant settling for the Louvre instead. After that, they went on a spree across Europe that only ended when Duncan MacLeod himself flew all the way to Prague to deliver a thundering denunciation of their irresponsibility. Cory hid his snickers throughout the entire self-righteous speech, and promptly took Amanda off to rob the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
As a final gesture of defiance, it didn't go so well. Mackie-boy had obviously been taking lessons in deviousness from someone, as Matthew met them at JFK International with a scowl that Cory took much more seriously than he did the Highlander's. That prompted an immediate departure to the Riviera, where they decided to lay low for a while. Three days after their arrival, he found himself on his own for the day, Amanda having taken off for some heavy-duty shopping. After wandering through the Musée de la Castre for most of the morning, Cory decided to head back to their hotel for a nap. The lawyer was waiting for him when he opened the door to the room. (kaiser soze - 500 words)
***
three - exotic (#20)
The castle looked vaguely familiar. In fact, Cory had the distinct feeling that he'd been there before. Of course, he also had the feeling that neither he nor the castle had been in Kansas at the time. It was enough of a curiosity to warrant investigation, and if his fingers happened to stick to a few things while he was investigating, well, there was no harm in that, was there? He didn't have Amanda's touch with alarms, being more of the smash-and-grab type, but he could certainly handle anything that a town called Smallville could throw at him. (lex luthor - 100 words)
***
four - longing (#4)
The Bentley looked as black and gleaming and perfect as it had been the day it had rolled off the factory floor in 1926. Cory Raines had no idea what a beauty like that was doing parked down a dingy side street in Soho, but he knew in an instant that it would be criminal to leave it there. He'd always appreciated a fine piece of machinery; surely it wouldn't upset anyone too badly if he were just to take it for a spin... His fingers were already twitching in anticipation as he moved towards the car. (crowley - 100 words)
***
five - thief (#8)
Cory really, really should have known better. There were some things that even he was too foolhardy to attempt, but he'd been half-drunk when he'd come up with the idea, and it was always the insane plans that ended up being the most fun in the end. That was before he'd gotten caught. He'd been wrist-deep in jewelry when she showed up, and the worst thing of all was that even dying wasn't going to get him out of this one; not unless he wanted to go in for a permanent shortening at the neck. He didn't, of course, but after three months of suffering the consequences of trying to steal from Amanda, the idea was looking a lot more tempting. (amanda - 125 words)
***
Author's Notes: Crossovers are as follows: BtVS, Highlander: The Raven and The Usual Suspects (with a side of CSI), Smallville, and Good Omens. Cory Raines is an 800 year old Immortal bank robber. The Matthew mentioned in the second piece is his long-suffering teacher, who has spent most of his own Immortal life as a law enforcement officer of some kind.
Which brings me to the fic. And yes, this is the product of several days' boredom while in hospital plus the really good pain meds they give me from time to time. This is my first foray into the whole 'five things' bit; it's also going to fill some of my highlander50 table, because I'm a cheater like that.
Five People Cory Raines Probably Shouldn't Have Stolen From, But Did Anyway:
one - follow (#14)
The guy had hair like Billy Idol in his heyday, but since Cory still occasionally wore a fedora, and called women 'dollface' when a certain mood took him, he acknowledged that it would be hypocritical to make fun of anyone else for nostalgia, especially considering how well the guy pulled the look off. Cory settled for swiping his wallet instead, only to be very thoroughly surprised the next night when the former mark tracked him down and drained him dry before stealing said wallet back from his corpse. Cory left Rio a few hours after he recovered. He really hates vampires. (spike - 100 words)
***
two - game (#27)
It all started with a truck hijacking that went down harder than usual. Cory took two bullets to the leg and spent a week dodging unusually well-dressed thugs around Denver before fencing the goods, giving away the money, and taking off for Paris and Amanda's welcoming arms. That was the second thing that didn't go as expected, though it was beyond funny to see Amanda shacked up with an honest cop, even an honest ex-cop. That the guy was destined to end up Immortal was even better, at least in Cory's opinion.
Wolf had a scowl that rivaled Duncan MacLeod's, and Amanda, despite an almost defiant show of independence, had clearly fallen hard for yet another do-gooder. Cory spent his entire visit flirting outrageously with her and stole Wolf's credit cards before he left, all in the same spirit of mild and non-specific malice with which he'd repeatedly run Richie Ryan into a ditch a few years earlier.
When he left Paris he headed back to the States, where a Brinks truck in Cleveland led to a three month stint in Federal custody before Matthew got word and pulled enough strings to get him temporarily killed and sent on his way with a lecture still burning in his ears. After that there'd been a bank in Atlanta, followed by an intricate plot to knock over a Las Vegas casino that got him killed halfway through his first attempt. Cory woke up in the morgue and spent the next month dodging an uncomfortably persistent fellow from the crime lab before he gave up and left for Miami.
By the time he got back to Paris, Wolf had come into his Immortality and taken off for parts unknown, leaving Amanda worried and discontent. Cory suggested an attempt on the Smithsonian's jewelry collection to cheer her up: however, the desire to avoid another of Matthew's lectures meant settling for the Louvre instead. After that, they went on a spree across Europe that only ended when Duncan MacLeod himself flew all the way to Prague to deliver a thundering denunciation of their irresponsibility. Cory hid his snickers throughout the entire self-righteous speech, and promptly took Amanda off to rob the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
As a final gesture of defiance, it didn't go so well. Mackie-boy had obviously been taking lessons in deviousness from someone, as Matthew met them at JFK International with a scowl that Cory took much more seriously than he did the Highlander's. That prompted an immediate departure to the Riviera, where they decided to lay low for a while. Three days after their arrival, he found himself on his own for the day, Amanda having taken off for some heavy-duty shopping. After wandering through the Musée de la Castre for most of the morning, Cory decided to head back to their hotel for a nap. The lawyer was waiting for him when he opened the door to the room. (kaiser soze - 500 words)
***
three - exotic (#20)
The castle looked vaguely familiar. In fact, Cory had the distinct feeling that he'd been there before. Of course, he also had the feeling that neither he nor the castle had been in Kansas at the time. It was enough of a curiosity to warrant investigation, and if his fingers happened to stick to a few things while he was investigating, well, there was no harm in that, was there? He didn't have Amanda's touch with alarms, being more of the smash-and-grab type, but he could certainly handle anything that a town called Smallville could throw at him. (lex luthor - 100 words)
***
four - longing (#4)
The Bentley looked as black and gleaming and perfect as it had been the day it had rolled off the factory floor in 1926. Cory Raines had no idea what a beauty like that was doing parked down a dingy side street in Soho, but he knew in an instant that it would be criminal to leave it there. He'd always appreciated a fine piece of machinery; surely it wouldn't upset anyone too badly if he were just to take it for a spin... His fingers were already twitching in anticipation as he moved towards the car. (crowley - 100 words)
***
five - thief (#8)
Cory really, really should have known better. There were some things that even he was too foolhardy to attempt, but he'd been half-drunk when he'd come up with the idea, and it was always the insane plans that ended up being the most fun in the end. That was before he'd gotten caught. He'd been wrist-deep in jewelry when she showed up, and the worst thing of all was that even dying wasn't going to get him out of this one; not unless he wanted to go in for a permanent shortening at the neck. He didn't, of course, but after three months of suffering the consequences of trying to steal from Amanda, the idea was looking a lot more tempting. (amanda - 125 words)
***
Author's Notes: Crossovers are as follows: BtVS, Highlander: The Raven and The Usual Suspects (with a side of CSI), Smallville, and Good Omens. Cory Raines is an 800 year old Immortal bank robber. The Matthew mentioned in the second piece is his long-suffering teacher, who has spent most of his own Immortal life as a law enforcement officer of some kind.