Fic: Truth Hurts (Lorne/Cadman)
Title: Truth Hurts
Author: Wabbitseason
Fandom: SGA
Pairing: Lorne/Cadman, references Beckett/Cadman
Rating: G
Summary: Sometimes the truth hurts more than the regrets.
Words: 599 words
Spoilers: "Duet", "Critical Mass", maybe "Return part 1" and "Enemy Mine" if you squint hard
Author's Notes: Back in November, sga_flashfic had their Body Modification challenge. I eventually turned out the Ronon piece "Tattoo", but I started a Lorne/Cadman interaction on the subject, mainly because Kavan Smith has a massive one on his arm. He had it redone recently. It's not quite the wacky antics raisintorte wanted, but I thought this would be close enough. Call it an early birthday present. *grins* Besides, she's been pulling the whole "Truth or Dare" game in her journal, so this seemed like a fun exercise in character discovery... or so I told Lorne and Cadman after the fact.
**
"So what shall we play to pass the time?" Lt. Laura Cadman asked.
Major Lorne suggested. "Truth or dare?"
Cadman rolled her eyes. "I'm game if you are. Fire away."
"Truth. Rumor has it you were a tap dancer." Lorne said.
Cadman groaned, "I never said I was a good one. But yes, I took dancing when I was younger." She knew she'd regret mouthing off to McKay. "My turn. Truth. You have a skin condition, so you have to stay covered up all the time."
"You've received some lousy intel, Lieutenant," Lorne said. "I stay covered up because well, it's the regs." At her frown, he quoted the regulations in a mock command voice. "All body modifications must be covered at all times."
"Body modifications.. you have a tat?" Cadman was surprised. Major Lorne struck her as the fairly square by the book type. She couldn't imagine him hanging out in a tattoo parlor.
"On my arm." Lorne pointed towards to point just below his left shoulder, safely covered by his t-shirt. "I had it done with two teammates from the SGC." He continued. "We'd just come back from a bad offworld mission. We were just glad to be alive." He shrugged. "It seemed like a good idea at the time."
"Story of my life," Cadman laughed. "Still you must have sweated bullets over the examination later."
Lorne grinned. "You don't know the half of it." He added. "I'm just glad I didn't get one like Jeff. He'd gotten one for his high graduation present. My buddy could endure any kind of pain. The Genii would have loved working him over. So Jeff went in for one of those big ones that covered his entire back. If I'd had one of those, I would have been lucky to still be around."
"Your folks must have flipped," Cadman couldn't even get a removable one without her mother pitching a fit.
"What they don't know..." Lorne admitted.
"You never told them," Cadman said.
Lorne shrugged, "I get used to not telling them stuff." Finally he asked. "Do you have one? Truth, Cadman."
"Sorry to disappoint you, sir, but nope." Judging by his expression, Lorne had expected Cadman to have one. Cadman didn't know whether to be annoyed or flattered. "I wanted to get one for ages," she explained. "Nothing fancy, just a dainty little butterfly or angel above my abs." She shrugged. "But I always thought better of it."
"I wouldn't expect that from you," Lorne said. "To hear McKay talk, you're the queen of impulsive."
"He called me that?" Cadman scoffed. "After all the help I gave him, that's the thanks I get."
"Maybe you should have thought of that before you liplocked with the Doc." Lorne grinned. "That was all you, wasn't it?"
Cadman flushed with embarrassment. "I hate to admit it, but maybe he's right. I do whatever comes into my head without thinking about it first, without imagining the consequences."
"So why not a tattoo?" Lorne frowned. "God knows I didn't think too much before I went off and did it."
Cadman shrugged. "I thought it'd be something I'd regret later." She continued, realizing she wasn't talking about the tattoo anymore. "We didn't even know if Zelenka's jury-rigging was going to work. I might have been gone for good. I didn't want to go without letting Carson know how I felt. A lot of good it did me. We never were quite at ease with each other after that."
With some sadness, Lorne offered. "Sometimes there is such a thing as knowing too much."
Author: Wabbitseason
Fandom: SGA
Pairing: Lorne/Cadman, references Beckett/Cadman
Rating: G
Summary: Sometimes the truth hurts more than the regrets.
Words: 599 words
Spoilers: "Duet", "Critical Mass", maybe "Return part 1" and "Enemy Mine" if you squint hard
Author's Notes: Back in November, sga_flashfic had their Body Modification challenge. I eventually turned out the Ronon piece "Tattoo", but I started a Lorne/Cadman interaction on the subject, mainly because Kavan Smith has a massive one on his arm. He had it redone recently. It's not quite the wacky antics raisintorte wanted, but I thought this would be close enough. Call it an early birthday present. *grins* Besides, she's been pulling the whole "Truth or Dare" game in her journal, so this seemed like a fun exercise in character discovery... or so I told Lorne and Cadman after the fact.
**
"So what shall we play to pass the time?" Lt. Laura Cadman asked.
Major Lorne suggested. "Truth or dare?"
Cadman rolled her eyes. "I'm game if you are. Fire away."
"Truth. Rumor has it you were a tap dancer." Lorne said.
Cadman groaned, "I never said I was a good one. But yes, I took dancing when I was younger." She knew she'd regret mouthing off to McKay. "My turn. Truth. You have a skin condition, so you have to stay covered up all the time."
"You've received some lousy intel, Lieutenant," Lorne said. "I stay covered up because well, it's the regs." At her frown, he quoted the regulations in a mock command voice. "All body modifications must be covered at all times."
"Body modifications.. you have a tat?" Cadman was surprised. Major Lorne struck her as the fairly square by the book type. She couldn't imagine him hanging out in a tattoo parlor.
"On my arm." Lorne pointed towards to point just below his left shoulder, safely covered by his t-shirt. "I had it done with two teammates from the SGC." He continued. "We'd just come back from a bad offworld mission. We were just glad to be alive." He shrugged. "It seemed like a good idea at the time."
"Story of my life," Cadman laughed. "Still you must have sweated bullets over the examination later."
Lorne grinned. "You don't know the half of it." He added. "I'm just glad I didn't get one like Jeff. He'd gotten one for his high graduation present. My buddy could endure any kind of pain. The Genii would have loved working him over. So Jeff went in for one of those big ones that covered his entire back. If I'd had one of those, I would have been lucky to still be around."
"Your folks must have flipped," Cadman couldn't even get a removable one without her mother pitching a fit.
"What they don't know..." Lorne admitted.
"You never told them," Cadman said.
Lorne shrugged, "I get used to not telling them stuff." Finally he asked. "Do you have one? Truth, Cadman."
"Sorry to disappoint you, sir, but nope." Judging by his expression, Lorne had expected Cadman to have one. Cadman didn't know whether to be annoyed or flattered. "I wanted to get one for ages," she explained. "Nothing fancy, just a dainty little butterfly or angel above my abs." She shrugged. "But I always thought better of it."
"I wouldn't expect that from you," Lorne said. "To hear McKay talk, you're the queen of impulsive."
"He called me that?" Cadman scoffed. "After all the help I gave him, that's the thanks I get."
"Maybe you should have thought of that before you liplocked with the Doc." Lorne grinned. "That was all you, wasn't it?"
Cadman flushed with embarrassment. "I hate to admit it, but maybe he's right. I do whatever comes into my head without thinking about it first, without imagining the consequences."
"So why not a tattoo?" Lorne frowned. "God knows I didn't think too much before I went off and did it."
Cadman shrugged. "I thought it'd be something I'd regret later." She continued, realizing she wasn't talking about the tattoo anymore. "We didn't even know if Zelenka's jury-rigging was going to work. I might have been gone for good. I didn't want to go without letting Carson know how I felt. A lot of good it did me. We never were quite at ease with each other after that."
With some sadness, Lorne offered. "Sometimes there is such a thing as knowing too much."