Fragile Truth and Tragic Freedom 6/?
Title: Fragile Truth and Tragic Freedom 6/?
Series: TDS, TCR, Countdown w/ KO.
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Language, Violence
Disclaimer: I do not own Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert, Keith Olbermann, Rachel Maddow, or any known political figures who appear in this story.
Summary: Keith-centric AU- Ages and backgrounds have been totally messed with. With the rise of a dictatorship regime in America, comes the rise of rebels. This is the story of the rebel group in New York City, fighting to bring the truth to the people and return their freedom.
Author's Note: Please comment. Feedback is good.
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Chapter 6
“Rachel?” Keith called as soon as he rushed into the house.
“”What’s wrong?” asked Jon.
“Nothing’s wrong. Where’s Rachel?”
“In her room. Are you alright?”
“Thanks. Yes, I’m fine. I just need to talk to her,” Keith replied before hurrying down the hall to Rachel’s room. He knocked on the closed door. “Rachel, can I come in?”
“Just a minute,” was Rachel’s response through the door, leaving Keith
fidgeting with anticipation. She opened it a few seconds later, pulling her
t-shirt down the rest of the way. “What-“
Keith strode in and shut the door behind him. He put his hands on Rachel’s shoulders and backed her up until she sat on the bed. Keith bit his lip and turned away. When he started pacing, Rachel prompted, “Keith? What’s wrong? What happened?”
Keith stopped pacing. He got the sense that, with Rachel sitting down, he seemed intimidating. He sat on the bed and turned to her. “Rachel, do you remember the night the Regime began, when they took us all away from our families?”
“Not much. I was only three years old at the time.”
“What do you remember?”
Rachel furrowed her eyebrows in concentration. “My… my brother, Jake, fighting to get me back… a dark and crowded van… crying… someone holding me…”
“Someone holding you? Can you describe him?”
Rachel closed her eyes. “A boy, some years older than me. He had dark hair and… glasses. And he… he cried with me.” Rachel slowly exhaled and opened her eyes. “But that was twenty years ago. What does that have to do with now?”
Keith’s voice was uncharacteristically breathy. “Rachel… Rachel, I want you to look at me. Really look at me.”
“Okay…” Rachel whispered.
Keith held the gaze of Rachel’s warm brown eyes. He breathed slowly to control himself. Rachel wasn’t satisfied with just studying Keith. She felt the need to touch him.
Keith cherished the sensation of Rachel’s warm hand caressing his cheek. Her hand slowly moved down his neck, chest, and side before settling on his waist.
Rachel pressed the side of her face to his chest, over his heart. “It’s you,” she realized. “You’re that boy.”
Keith put his arms around Rachel. “Yes, and there’s more.”
“You mean we met before that?”
“Once, about two years before. You lived down the street from me.” Keith paused before telling Rachel what had happened twenty-two years ago.
Rachel was silent for a long minute after Keith finished. “Wow,” she finally said. “We met twenty-two years ago.”
“It’s a hell of a coincidence,” Keith replied.
“I don’t think it’s a coincidence.” Rachel looked up at Keith’s face. “Maybe we were meant to be friends.”
“You mean like fate or destiny? I’m not into superstition.”
Stephen’s fake Southern woman accent came through the door. “Now, now, y’all better not be doing anything impure in that room. If y’all are, we’re gonna have ourselves a shotgun wedding.”
Rachel picked up her pajama shirt from the floor and balled it up. Playing along, she invited, “Ma, you can come in.” As soon as Stephen opened the door, Rachel threw the shirt at his face. It hit the target.
“You sassy young lady,” Stephen reprimanded. “I did never raise you to brig strange boys into your room.”
“He’s not strange, Ma, I swear. He loves me. I-“ Rachel’s statement was cut off when Keith pulled her into a tight hold ad started faking a passionate kissing session.
Stephen swatted at Keith’s back. “Young man, get off my daughter. I’ll get the shotgun.”
At Stephen’s threat, Keith pulled away from Rachel. “I’m so sorry, Ma’am, but I’m in love with her.”
“What’s your name?”
“Keith Olbermann, Ma’am.”
“Olbermann, ya say? I’m gonna have a word with your parents about you coming in here and ravaging my daughter.”
“Please, Ma’am, don’t do that,” Keith objected, getting up and grabbing Stephen’s forearms. “Please don’t tell my father. He don’t like your husband. Not one bit. If he finds out I’m courting Mr Stewart’s daughter, he’ll kill me.”
Stephen fanned himself with his hand. “Oh, I do declare. How can anyone not like my husband?”
Jon, unable to pull off a convincing Southern accent, joined the scene with one of a British aristocrat. “Yes, do tell what this Mr Olbermann finds so offensive about me.”
The unexpected British accent threw Keith off for a second. He let go of Stephen and sat back down next to Rachel. “He says you think you’re better than everyone else, and that you don’t do a ‘real man’s’ work.”
“What, pray tell, does he consider to be ‘real man’s’ work?” Jon inquired.
“He didn’t specify, Mr Stewart, but he did say that any children of yours would be beggars or whores. I tried to tell different, but we doesn’t listen to me.”
“Then… I shall challenge him to a duel,” Jon stated.
“Jon, you can’t,” objected Stephen. “If this young man’s size is anything to go by, Mr Olbermann will leave you dead in the street.”
“He has decried my family’s honor,” Jon explained. “He will learn that that disgrace will not be stood for.”
“Pa, please think this through,” said Rachel.
“Mr Stewart, my father won’t honor the rules of a duel. He fight real dirty,” informed Keith.
“Then I will teach him to follow the rules,” Jon said.
“Pa, before you go,” Rachel said. “Why haven’t I realized you’re from England before?”
The four friends were silent for a few seconds, before simultaneously bursting into laughter. They laughed harder when Jon suddenly tackled Keith down onto the bed.
Keith pushed him off and asked, “Why?”
“Practice,” Jon answered with a smirk. Rachel leaned and whispered something in his ear.
Keith saw the grin on Jon’s face widen, and he knew exactly what Rachel had told him. Before he could defend himself, the two of them teamed up and started tickling Keith’s side. Stephen got the idea and joined in.
“Rachel, you traitor,” Keith managed to gasp out in the middle of a laugh.
“Thanks to her, we’ve finally found the great Keith Olbermann’s Achilles heel,” Stephen said in her defense.
With all the flailing around Keith was doing, it was inevitable that he would fall off the bed. Stephen reached down to help him up. Keith grabbed his hand and yanked hard. Stephen flipped over and landed flat on his back next to Keith.
“Bastard,” Stephen cursed.
“I love you, too, Stephen.” Keith climbed back up and stretched out on the bed, laying his head in Jon’s lap.
Keith, Rachel, Jon, and Stephen ended up in a complex cuddle that felt completely natural to them.
Despite all the horrible things that had brought him here, Keith, surrounded by the love of his friends, felt like he was finally home.
Series: TDS, TCR, Countdown w/ KO.
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Language, Violence
Disclaimer: I do not own Jon Stewart, Stephen Colbert, Keith Olbermann, Rachel Maddow, or any known political figures who appear in this story.
Summary: Keith-centric AU- Ages and backgrounds have been totally messed with. With the rise of a dictatorship regime in America, comes the rise of rebels. This is the story of the rebel group in New York City, fighting to bring the truth to the people and return their freedom.
Author's Note: Please comment. Feedback is good.
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Chapter 6
“Rachel?” Keith called as soon as he rushed into the house.
“”What’s wrong?” asked Jon.
“Nothing’s wrong. Where’s Rachel?”
“In her room. Are you alright?”
“Thanks. Yes, I’m fine. I just need to talk to her,” Keith replied before hurrying down the hall to Rachel’s room. He knocked on the closed door. “Rachel, can I come in?”
“Just a minute,” was Rachel’s response through the door, leaving Keith
fidgeting with anticipation. She opened it a few seconds later, pulling her
t-shirt down the rest of the way. “What-“
Keith strode in and shut the door behind him. He put his hands on Rachel’s shoulders and backed her up until she sat on the bed. Keith bit his lip and turned away. When he started pacing, Rachel prompted, “Keith? What’s wrong? What happened?”
Keith stopped pacing. He got the sense that, with Rachel sitting down, he seemed intimidating. He sat on the bed and turned to her. “Rachel, do you remember the night the Regime began, when they took us all away from our families?”
“Not much. I was only three years old at the time.”
“What do you remember?”
Rachel furrowed her eyebrows in concentration. “My… my brother, Jake, fighting to get me back… a dark and crowded van… crying… someone holding me…”
“Someone holding you? Can you describe him?”
Rachel closed her eyes. “A boy, some years older than me. He had dark hair and… glasses. And he… he cried with me.” Rachel slowly exhaled and opened her eyes. “But that was twenty years ago. What does that have to do with now?”
Keith’s voice was uncharacteristically breathy. “Rachel… Rachel, I want you to look at me. Really look at me.”
“Okay…” Rachel whispered.
Keith held the gaze of Rachel’s warm brown eyes. He breathed slowly to control himself. Rachel wasn’t satisfied with just studying Keith. She felt the need to touch him.
Keith cherished the sensation of Rachel’s warm hand caressing his cheek. Her hand slowly moved down his neck, chest, and side before settling on his waist.
Rachel pressed the side of her face to his chest, over his heart. “It’s you,” she realized. “You’re that boy.”
Keith put his arms around Rachel. “Yes, and there’s more.”
“You mean we met before that?”
“Once, about two years before. You lived down the street from me.” Keith paused before telling Rachel what had happened twenty-two years ago.
Rachel was silent for a long minute after Keith finished. “Wow,” she finally said. “We met twenty-two years ago.”
“It’s a hell of a coincidence,” Keith replied.
“I don’t think it’s a coincidence.” Rachel looked up at Keith’s face. “Maybe we were meant to be friends.”
“You mean like fate or destiny? I’m not into superstition.”
Stephen’s fake Southern woman accent came through the door. “Now, now, y’all better not be doing anything impure in that room. If y’all are, we’re gonna have ourselves a shotgun wedding.”
Rachel picked up her pajama shirt from the floor and balled it up. Playing along, she invited, “Ma, you can come in.” As soon as Stephen opened the door, Rachel threw the shirt at his face. It hit the target.
“You sassy young lady,” Stephen reprimanded. “I did never raise you to brig strange boys into your room.”
“He’s not strange, Ma, I swear. He loves me. I-“ Rachel’s statement was cut off when Keith pulled her into a tight hold ad started faking a passionate kissing session.
Stephen swatted at Keith’s back. “Young man, get off my daughter. I’ll get the shotgun.”
At Stephen’s threat, Keith pulled away from Rachel. “I’m so sorry, Ma’am, but I’m in love with her.”
“What’s your name?”
“Keith Olbermann, Ma’am.”
“Olbermann, ya say? I’m gonna have a word with your parents about you coming in here and ravaging my daughter.”
“Please, Ma’am, don’t do that,” Keith objected, getting up and grabbing Stephen’s forearms. “Please don’t tell my father. He don’t like your husband. Not one bit. If he finds out I’m courting Mr Stewart’s daughter, he’ll kill me.”
Stephen fanned himself with his hand. “Oh, I do declare. How can anyone not like my husband?”
Jon, unable to pull off a convincing Southern accent, joined the scene with one of a British aristocrat. “Yes, do tell what this Mr Olbermann finds so offensive about me.”
The unexpected British accent threw Keith off for a second. He let go of Stephen and sat back down next to Rachel. “He says you think you’re better than everyone else, and that you don’t do a ‘real man’s’ work.”
“What, pray tell, does he consider to be ‘real man’s’ work?” Jon inquired.
“He didn’t specify, Mr Stewart, but he did say that any children of yours would be beggars or whores. I tried to tell different, but we doesn’t listen to me.”
“Then… I shall challenge him to a duel,” Jon stated.
“Jon, you can’t,” objected Stephen. “If this young man’s size is anything to go by, Mr Olbermann will leave you dead in the street.”
“He has decried my family’s honor,” Jon explained. “He will learn that that disgrace will not be stood for.”
“Pa, please think this through,” said Rachel.
“Mr Stewart, my father won’t honor the rules of a duel. He fight real dirty,” informed Keith.
“Then I will teach him to follow the rules,” Jon said.
“Pa, before you go,” Rachel said. “Why haven’t I realized you’re from England before?”
The four friends were silent for a few seconds, before simultaneously bursting into laughter. They laughed harder when Jon suddenly tackled Keith down onto the bed.
Keith pushed him off and asked, “Why?”
“Practice,” Jon answered with a smirk. Rachel leaned and whispered something in his ear.
Keith saw the grin on Jon’s face widen, and he knew exactly what Rachel had told him. Before he could defend himself, the two of them teamed up and started tickling Keith’s side. Stephen got the idea and joined in.
“Rachel, you traitor,” Keith managed to gasp out in the middle of a laugh.
“Thanks to her, we’ve finally found the great Keith Olbermann’s Achilles heel,” Stephen said in her defense.
With all the flailing around Keith was doing, it was inevitable that he would fall off the bed. Stephen reached down to help him up. Keith grabbed his hand and yanked hard. Stephen flipped over and landed flat on his back next to Keith.
“Bastard,” Stephen cursed.
“I love you, too, Stephen.” Keith climbed back up and stretched out on the bed, laying his head in Jon’s lap.
Keith, Rachel, Jon, and Stephen ended up in a complex cuddle that felt completely natural to them.
Despite all the horrible things that had brought him here, Keith, surrounded by the love of his friends, felt like he was finally home.