Green Lantern Corps. General. 083. And.
Title: Rock and A Hard Place
Fandom: Green Lantern Corps
Characters: Hal Jordan, Oliver Queen
Prompt: 083 - AND
Word Count: 1615
Rating: PG
Summary: Hal + Ollie + Roadtrip does not equal wacky fun, no matter how much Ollie tries
Author's Notes: Set during and references the Hard-Traveling Heroes roadtrip of the 70s. Slashy. Fluffy.
"I've got it, just GO!" Hal braced himself against the earth, holding back a truly awesome rockslide. He and Ollie had been driving through a little-used road in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains when they’d heard a rumbling sound over the noise of the engine. Hal had looked around quickly enough to see a veritable hail of stones pouring down one of the nearer slopes, although it wasn’t anywhere close enough to the road to cause a problem. Acting on instinct, he had used his ring to scan for anyone in the area, and it had told him that not only was another, larger avalanche bare moments away but there were seventeen people stuck in the middle of where it would probably fall.
"Going!" Ollie darted forward, ducking around and through the boulders held in suspended animation. Hal’s ring hadn’t told them how young the people in danger were; Ollie was that much more relieved they’d happened by in time to stop this potential disaster. He gritted his teeth as he went back and forth along the single narrowly twisting strip of safe ground. One by one, the group of children hiking in the mountains followed, trembling as they threaded the precarious path. Their guide remained with the group, waiting until everyone was safe.
"Hurry," Hal ground out, quietly enough that only Ollie could hear. The amount of concentration it took to keep each individual stone in its place was incredible, and with the ring weakened, he wasn't sure how much longer he could hold out.
"This is the last one!" Ollie reappeared with one child under each arm and the guide carrying a third behind him, and Hal realized that they had a new problem. The group of children and their guide were off the crumbling ledge where the first rockfall had trapped them, but now they were in the path of the avalanche. If he let go, it would crush them all, but he didn't think he could hold it long enough for everyone to get to safety. The only solution was to pick up the 16 children and two adults and lift everyone out of the way. He wasn’t sure he could do that either, but it was a risk he would take.
"Group," Hal said, and Ollie nodded; they'd been together long enough that few words sufficed.
"Everyone as close together as you can!" Ollie herded the milling children into a tight circle, their guide taking his cue and assisting with a reassuring smile. "That's right, all together now," Ollie repeated, glancing at Hal as the children clung to each other.
A bubble slowly formed around the small group of people, Hal's concentration stretched to the breaking point. The rockslide shivered and inched forward, and Hal poured all of his will into the ring. The bubble snapped closed and rose into the air, missing the suddenly released rockslide by bare inches. The children wailed, all but panicking inside the bubble, and Ollie did his best to keep them calm. The more they moved, the harder it was on Hal, and he was already at the breaking point. Their guide did a better job of it, distracting them with a song, and by the time Hal let them down, the entire group was as calm as could be expected. Hal was all but shaking with fatigue, but he hid it with practiced ease.
"You okay to get back to the truck?" Ollie asked in an undertone. “We could walk, you know.”
"It’s fine," Hal muttered, smiling at the children and dismissing their guide's thanks. The group would have no trouble making it to the next town. Hal took Ollie by the elbow and lifted them both back towards the truck. To Ollie’s relief, it was untouched by the rockslide; only upon seeing the swathe of devastation from above had he truly understood its scope. His second thought was surprise that Hal had managed to hold onto such a huge amount of stone for so long.
"All better?" Although the ring had said that the surrounding area was once again geologically stable, Ollie had wanted to get a little farther away before setting up their camp. The truck was now parked near a river, and Ollie was making sure the campfire he’d started would burn safely.
Hal was just coming out of the no doubt freezing water, towel wrapped around his waist and water dripping out of his hair. He smiled brilliantly and crouched in front of the fire, stretching his hands out. "Much better."
"You'll catch cold," Ollie said, tossing a set of mostly clean clothes at him.
"Is that chili?" Hal asked, ignoring the clothes entirely and peering at the pot bubbling cheerfully on the other side of the flames.
"Wilderness chili," Ollie answered, pushing one of the logs in order to better support the pot.
"You're not trying to kill me, are you?" Hal stood, pulling the towel up to his hair to dry it off briskly, only turning his attention to the clothing once he appeared satisfied with the lack of water on his person. Ollie enjoyed the view; Hal’s ass was his best physical attribute, but that didn’t mean the rest of him wasn’t easy on the eyes.
"How are we supposed to find America if you die from my chili?" Ollie tore his gaze away and poked at the pot. "It's not quite done yet. Give me a hand with the tent, would you?"
Tents were not Hal's forte, but somewhere along the line he'd managed to learn how to put one up with minimal hassle, or at least with minimal amounts of yelling from Ollie about where tent poles were and were not supposed to go. He even managed to properly fasten a tarp over the top of the tent to keep out the incipient rain, without (much) direction.
"Get the sleeping bags, will you?" Ollie tossed them one at a time, and Hal caught them easily. He vanished into the tent, and after a few moments, a flare of green light and a muttered string of words told Ollie that the ring had been charged for another twenty-four hour period.
Judging the chili finished, Ollie took the pot off the fire and covered it; the hotter the better, in both senses. "Hey, Hal!" he called, and got no response. Lack of an answer wasn't really a source of consternation; Ollie just shook his head and walked the six feet to the tent, poking his head inside the flap. "Hal."
The other man was seated cross-legged in front of the lantern-shaped power battery, hands resting on his lap and ring quiescent. He was shirtless, skin an odd shade of greenish-blue in the shadowy glow coming through the tent walls. "Hal," Ollie said again, somewhat more loudly. Hal jumped, spinning around and landing crouched on his feet in a whirl of motion that wasn't quite humanly possible. The ring sparked green and his costume flashed briefly before he caught sight of Ollie and his eyes widened. The costume vanished and Hal rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.
"What's up?"
Ollie grinned. "A bit jumpy, are we?"
"I wouldn't be if you weren't always sneaking up on me," Hal retorted. Outside, the wind picked up just enough to send a cool breeze snaking through the tent. Hal shivered, rubbing his arms.
"I don't sneak," Ollie said, kicking his shoes off and wiggling inside. Really, it wasn't quite large enough for two adult men, particularly when one of them had a habit of sleeping wrapped around whatever was in arm's reach. "You just weren't listening."
"Yeah, yeah." Hal fumbled for the shirt that he'd apparently taken off earlier, but Ollie wrapped his arms around him instead.
"I have a better idea," he said softly.
Hal turned, twining his arms around Ollie's waist. "I'm game," he said. Ollie kissed him, feeling Hal's lips pliant and willing against his, and pulled him down to the floor of the tent.
"Glad to hear it," he murmured, shifting until he was on top. An errant curl of dark hair lay over Hal's eyes, and Ollie brushed it away. It was at that point he realized that Hal's eyes were not, in fact, open.
"Hal?" he asked softly.
"Just give me a second," Hal said sleepily. "Rockslide was really...." His voice trailed off and within seconds his breathing was deep and even.
Ollie stifled a groan. This was the third time this week Hal had been too exhausted by the stress of handling the ring at half-power to do anything but sleep at night; at the rate this was going, he was never going to get laid. It was almost as if the universe was laughing at him - what were the odds of finding so many crises in such a short period?
Furthermore, now that he knew he wasn't getting any, his stomach was sharply reminding him that he hadn't eaten since early that morning. Carefully, he set about trying to extricate himself from Hal's surprisingly tenacious grip and slip outside. Unfortunately for Ollie's peace of mind, Hal wasn't about to let go. After several minutes of unsuccessfully attempting to maneuver away from the human limpet laying claim to his right side, Ollie gave up and flopped back onto the sleeping bag. He was going to strangle Hal in the morning for this. Then again, the happy little noise Hal made deep in his throat as he wrapped himself even more tightly around Ollie made it hard to stay angry. Ollie sighed and put an arm around his friend and sometimes-lover. Eventually, he told himself. Eventually.
FINIS
Nalanzu's Little Damn Table
Fandom: Green Lantern Corps
Characters: Hal Jordan, Oliver Queen
Prompt: 083 - AND
Word Count: 1615
Rating: PG
Summary: Hal + Ollie + Roadtrip does not equal wacky fun, no matter how much Ollie tries
Author's Notes: Set during and references the Hard-Traveling Heroes roadtrip of the 70s. Slashy. Fluffy.
"I've got it, just GO!" Hal braced himself against the earth, holding back a truly awesome rockslide. He and Ollie had been driving through a little-used road in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains when they’d heard a rumbling sound over the noise of the engine. Hal had looked around quickly enough to see a veritable hail of stones pouring down one of the nearer slopes, although it wasn’t anywhere close enough to the road to cause a problem. Acting on instinct, he had used his ring to scan for anyone in the area, and it had told him that not only was another, larger avalanche bare moments away but there were seventeen people stuck in the middle of where it would probably fall.
"Going!" Ollie darted forward, ducking around and through the boulders held in suspended animation. Hal’s ring hadn’t told them how young the people in danger were; Ollie was that much more relieved they’d happened by in time to stop this potential disaster. He gritted his teeth as he went back and forth along the single narrowly twisting strip of safe ground. One by one, the group of children hiking in the mountains followed, trembling as they threaded the precarious path. Their guide remained with the group, waiting until everyone was safe.
"Hurry," Hal ground out, quietly enough that only Ollie could hear. The amount of concentration it took to keep each individual stone in its place was incredible, and with the ring weakened, he wasn't sure how much longer he could hold out.
"This is the last one!" Ollie reappeared with one child under each arm and the guide carrying a third behind him, and Hal realized that they had a new problem. The group of children and their guide were off the crumbling ledge where the first rockfall had trapped them, but now they were in the path of the avalanche. If he let go, it would crush them all, but he didn't think he could hold it long enough for everyone to get to safety. The only solution was to pick up the 16 children and two adults and lift everyone out of the way. He wasn’t sure he could do that either, but it was a risk he would take.
"Group," Hal said, and Ollie nodded; they'd been together long enough that few words sufficed.
"Everyone as close together as you can!" Ollie herded the milling children into a tight circle, their guide taking his cue and assisting with a reassuring smile. "That's right, all together now," Ollie repeated, glancing at Hal as the children clung to each other.
A bubble slowly formed around the small group of people, Hal's concentration stretched to the breaking point. The rockslide shivered and inched forward, and Hal poured all of his will into the ring. The bubble snapped closed and rose into the air, missing the suddenly released rockslide by bare inches. The children wailed, all but panicking inside the bubble, and Ollie did his best to keep them calm. The more they moved, the harder it was on Hal, and he was already at the breaking point. Their guide did a better job of it, distracting them with a song, and by the time Hal let them down, the entire group was as calm as could be expected. Hal was all but shaking with fatigue, but he hid it with practiced ease.
"You okay to get back to the truck?" Ollie asked in an undertone. “We could walk, you know.”
"It’s fine," Hal muttered, smiling at the children and dismissing their guide's thanks. The group would have no trouble making it to the next town. Hal took Ollie by the elbow and lifted them both back towards the truck. To Ollie’s relief, it was untouched by the rockslide; only upon seeing the swathe of devastation from above had he truly understood its scope. His second thought was surprise that Hal had managed to hold onto such a huge amount of stone for so long.
"All better?" Although the ring had said that the surrounding area was once again geologically stable, Ollie had wanted to get a little farther away before setting up their camp. The truck was now parked near a river, and Ollie was making sure the campfire he’d started would burn safely.
Hal was just coming out of the no doubt freezing water, towel wrapped around his waist and water dripping out of his hair. He smiled brilliantly and crouched in front of the fire, stretching his hands out. "Much better."
"You'll catch cold," Ollie said, tossing a set of mostly clean clothes at him.
"Is that chili?" Hal asked, ignoring the clothes entirely and peering at the pot bubbling cheerfully on the other side of the flames.
"Wilderness chili," Ollie answered, pushing one of the logs in order to better support the pot.
"You're not trying to kill me, are you?" Hal stood, pulling the towel up to his hair to dry it off briskly, only turning his attention to the clothing once he appeared satisfied with the lack of water on his person. Ollie enjoyed the view; Hal’s ass was his best physical attribute, but that didn’t mean the rest of him wasn’t easy on the eyes.
"How are we supposed to find America if you die from my chili?" Ollie tore his gaze away and poked at the pot. "It's not quite done yet. Give me a hand with the tent, would you?"
Tents were not Hal's forte, but somewhere along the line he'd managed to learn how to put one up with minimal hassle, or at least with minimal amounts of yelling from Ollie about where tent poles were and were not supposed to go. He even managed to properly fasten a tarp over the top of the tent to keep out the incipient rain, without (much) direction.
"Get the sleeping bags, will you?" Ollie tossed them one at a time, and Hal caught them easily. He vanished into the tent, and after a few moments, a flare of green light and a muttered string of words told Ollie that the ring had been charged for another twenty-four hour period.
Judging the chili finished, Ollie took the pot off the fire and covered it; the hotter the better, in both senses. "Hey, Hal!" he called, and got no response. Lack of an answer wasn't really a source of consternation; Ollie just shook his head and walked the six feet to the tent, poking his head inside the flap. "Hal."
The other man was seated cross-legged in front of the lantern-shaped power battery, hands resting on his lap and ring quiescent. He was shirtless, skin an odd shade of greenish-blue in the shadowy glow coming through the tent walls. "Hal," Ollie said again, somewhat more loudly. Hal jumped, spinning around and landing crouched on his feet in a whirl of motion that wasn't quite humanly possible. The ring sparked green and his costume flashed briefly before he caught sight of Ollie and his eyes widened. The costume vanished and Hal rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.
"What's up?"
Ollie grinned. "A bit jumpy, are we?"
"I wouldn't be if you weren't always sneaking up on me," Hal retorted. Outside, the wind picked up just enough to send a cool breeze snaking through the tent. Hal shivered, rubbing his arms.
"I don't sneak," Ollie said, kicking his shoes off and wiggling inside. Really, it wasn't quite large enough for two adult men, particularly when one of them had a habit of sleeping wrapped around whatever was in arm's reach. "You just weren't listening."
"Yeah, yeah." Hal fumbled for the shirt that he'd apparently taken off earlier, but Ollie wrapped his arms around him instead.
"I have a better idea," he said softly.
Hal turned, twining his arms around Ollie's waist. "I'm game," he said. Ollie kissed him, feeling Hal's lips pliant and willing against his, and pulled him down to the floor of the tent.
"Glad to hear it," he murmured, shifting until he was on top. An errant curl of dark hair lay over Hal's eyes, and Ollie brushed it away. It was at that point he realized that Hal's eyes were not, in fact, open.
"Hal?" he asked softly.
"Just give me a second," Hal said sleepily. "Rockslide was really...." His voice trailed off and within seconds his breathing was deep and even.
Ollie stifled a groan. This was the third time this week Hal had been too exhausted by the stress of handling the ring at half-power to do anything but sleep at night; at the rate this was going, he was never going to get laid. It was almost as if the universe was laughing at him - what were the odds of finding so many crises in such a short period?
Furthermore, now that he knew he wasn't getting any, his stomach was sharply reminding him that he hadn't eaten since early that morning. Carefully, he set about trying to extricate himself from Hal's surprisingly tenacious grip and slip outside. Unfortunately for Ollie's peace of mind, Hal wasn't about to let go. After several minutes of unsuccessfully attempting to maneuver away from the human limpet laying claim to his right side, Ollie gave up and flopped back onto the sleeping bag. He was going to strangle Hal in the morning for this. Then again, the happy little noise Hal made deep in his throat as he wrapped himself even more tightly around Ollie made it hard to stay angry. Ollie sighed and put an arm around his friend and sometimes-lover. Eventually, he told himself. Eventually.
FINIS
Nalanzu's Little Damn Table