Okay, here we go...

[nos4a2no9]

Title: Quiet in Drowning
Fandom: Wilby Wonderful
Characters: Duck, Buddy, OMCs
Rating: NC-17
Length: 8,495 words
Author's Notes: Many thanks to zabira, ignazwisdom, secretlybronte and isiscolo for hanging tough and completing a very difficult beta. You're all troopers, and I promise to send you something warm and fluffy next time.
Warnings: This story contains graphic, violent and

Comments

[zabira]

wow, nos! i am really blown away by the changes you've made to this story since i last read it. you've really added so much richness to duck's character, and to his interaction with buddy, and...well...to the horror, too.

it's such a powerful story, and a believable version of duck's back story, and frankly, makes me love and respect him and buddy as characters even more than i did.

thank you for being brave and writing and posting it, my friend!

[nos4a2no9]

Awww, Z, thank you so much! Your support and encouragement with this really meant a lot to me: you and SB and Isis were instrumental in convincing me to finally post it. I'm glad you liked the changes and additions. Isis kept telling me I needed to provide background and context for everyone's actions, and she was totally right. I think it's made for a much richer story and a clearer narrative. And, yeah, with the horror. *sigh* I should write a romantic comedy or something. Enough with the schmoopiness and the horrific events.

Thank you so much for everything, dear!

[umbrella_half]

Yeah, this is full of angst and ouch and... yeah. Good, but... angsty.

I really like Duck's character, and Duck backstories. I think with Dan, in the film, a lot of his pain is obvious and in the moment, whereas Duck has a lot more buried and unknown backstory.

Buddy as a true friend was great, comforting Duck and kissing and rain slickers. And angry, violent Duck was also spot on. And Buddy thinking it was Duck's father who was responsible... the closeted/repressed character of Tommy, and how he manipulated Duck into going with him in order to rape him with an act of love and kindness... that was...
Duck's sucking him off and looking forward to just the touch of Tommy's hands on his hair? That broke me a little.

I dunno, the whole fic has a very real, believable quality about it. Verisimilitude, or some such thing. It's not exactly enjoyable reading as such, but it's very gripping and believably and yeah. Like lamentables said, well-crafted.

PS Write something nice and happy for us now, please?

[nos4a2no9]

Hiya! Thank you so much for your comment! It really did fill me with, well, not glee because I don't aim to upset or horrify people (honest!) but I'm so glad you responded to the material and that you liked the way I handled Duck and Buddy.

I think with Dan, in the film, a lot of his pain is obvious and in the moment, whereas Duck has a lot more buried and unknown backstory.

Oh yes, definitely. Duck is *such* a mysterious character, and I really love the stories that combine an exploration of his history with the development of his intimacy with Dan. I'm glad that you liked the anger/violence aspect, too: along with the alcoholism it's not really a side we see in Wilby stories set close to the movie, since by then Duck has (apparently) overcome a lot of those issues. But I think it's interesting to look at the person he was, and in my next (hopefully much less angsty) story, I'm hoping to take a look at that aspect, about how the two halves of Duck match up and overlap.

I dunno, the whole fic has a very real, believable quality

[akamine_chan]

Oh, nos, well done.

You handled a difficult subject matter deftly, with such a light touch that I really envy.

There's so much I loved about this. I loved the rain framing the story - echoing Duck's despair. I could feel the rain, feel the cold soaking in. Such wonderfully detailed imagery.

I loved how you drew Duck, quick flashes of his character as he struggles with himself, with his father, with Tommy and the others. I love the courage of him leaving, rather than staying in Wilby, staying invisible.

What I really loved, though, was the way this story fits in with the movie. This is the start of the circle - Duck leaving Wilby for the wider world. He probably discovered that it was hell out there, too. He lived in the world but in the end, he came back home, to Wilby. Now he's content to be invisible, because he doesn't give a damn what other people think. It's like Buddy planted a seed of calmness it him that took years to germinate

[nos4a2no9]

Oh, wow, this was such a lovely and thinky comment - I'm really overwhelmed. I'm so glad you liked the story, and that you identified so much of what I was trying to do, to show how those seeds planted in childhood/adolescence bear fruit so many years later. I love your comments about Buddy, and you're spot-on about his narrative arc and the journey he takes in the film.

And Duck! Yes! I think he did discover that the world outside Wilby was equally difficult, and when he returned as an adult he was able to handle a lot of the things that he found so suffocating before. It was tough to figure out what would bring him back to Wilby after such a horrific event, and I think it was the kindness Buddy showed him in that moment: it demonstrated to him that there's always a seed of good, and if you're able to find it and nurture it you can deal with almost anything, no matter how painful. (Or, well, okay, that metaphor made sense in my head). Anyway, yes, thank you so much for the insightful feedback! You're the best!

[akamine_chan]

(Or, well, okay, that metaphor made sense in my head).

No, that made perfect sense to me. I think that last moment with Buddy, with that touch to Duck's cheek and the kiss, are crucial. It shows Duck that the world isn't all people like Tommy Ellis and I think you're right, that it was the thing that allowed Duck to eventually come home.

[sisterofdream]

Ow.
*pets Buddy and hugs Duck forever*

The backstory here was excellently done if painful (even for you). Just...oh, Duck!

[nos4a2no9]

Yeah, it was a little...intense, wasn't it? Poor Duck!

Thanks for the feedback, Sis! And for finishing the story, despite it's high ouch-content :-)

[lipsum]

Waaaaaaa!

This was so believable and just-- ouch. And. I want to know what happened that could have brought Duck back to Wilby after that, because it seems like he'd be taking his life into his hands.

[nos4a2no9]

Thank you! And yes, that's the million dollar question, isn't it? Why would he come back to Wilby after experiencing something like that? I hope I'll get a chance to answer that question. Duck is such a fascinating character and I've still got a lot more to say about him (and Dan) but, yeah, ouch. :-)