Fic: Spin Recovery, Part Five
Nov. 16th, 2007 04:52 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jeriendhalNotes: This scene is shorter than I'd intended, but it gets the point across. I may expand it later if I can figure out how.
”White Knight! You can’t leave us! We’ve got over four hundred civilians on board!”
“Smart little vulp,” the voice on the galleon interjected, “better you don’t get involved.”
“White Knight! WHITE KNIGHT!” the liner’s XO screamed, as Rufus’ fighter accelerated past light speed and the radio channel dissolved into static.
He shot up out of bed with a yell, throwing his bed cover to the floor. Panting, it took two tries from him to call up the lights, leaving him blinking in the sudden yellow glow.
“A dream, just a dream,” he told himself, feeling suddenly chilled as the night air came through the open window and hit his sweat sodden fur. He was in his own room, in his own home, on a nice safe planet with a thick atmosphere, not a tiny fighter spinning out of control in an airless, limitless void.
He thought to lay down again, but knew that would be a fruitless effort. He’d just gotten up to close the windows when he jumped again at a soft knock at his door. Then he heard Bethany call out, “Rufus, are you all right?”
“Fine, Beth,” he called back, pressing his hand down on the mattress to try and stop it from shaking. “Just a bad dream.”
“It sounded like more than that. You were yelling out to someone. May I come in?”
“Beth, it’s barely 0300 and I’m indecent.”
“Then pull your covers over yourself, I’m coming in anyway.” He had just enough time to hop back into bed and yank the comforter back up over his waist before Bethany opened the door and slipped inside, dressed in a thick robe tossed over her sleeping gown.
“Haven’t you heard of privacy?” he grumbled, pulling the covers up a bit higher. Aside from the comforter he was naked, as was his habit.
She yawned widely, stretching her arms over her head. “Haven’t you ever heard of eating? I can count your ribs, Ru!”
“I’ve been eating. The blasted cooking staff seems intent on stuffing me like a goose,” he said defensively. “Go back to bed, Beth. I’m fine.”
Bethany instead sat down on the edge of the bed, apparently having no intention of letting him get off that easily. “You were saying someone’s name. Jolly, I think it was.”
Rufus sighed and rubbed palm against his eyes, trying to blink away sleep. It felt as if his head was stuffed with lead right now. “Joli. A Creo boy, a year or two younger than yourself.”
“Oh, a friend of yours?”
He shook his head. “I knew him for barely a week. Seemed a decent lad, if a bit excitable. Most children are.” Of course he’d been all of three years older than the boy at the time. It only feels like a thousand these days.
“What happened to him?”
“He died,” Rufus answered, a bit more sharply than he’d intended. He took a breath and tried to gather his wooly thoughts. “He was my wingman on the Blue Horizon run.”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Bethany said, raising her hand to her lips.
Rufus drew in a sharp, pained breath, as if he’d been lanced through. “Bethany, don’t do that. Don’t apologize to me, for anything, ever.”
“Why ever not?”
“By the Holy Den Mother do I have to give you a star chart? I made you weep, Bethany! After that last performance I gave over the comm to you and Mother you should hate me!”
Bethany looked shocked. “Hate you? Rufus, you weren’t well. Yes, you made me cry, but it wasn’t for being cursed at, though that hurt. I was crying because I could see how ill you had become.”
“Ah.” He let his head hang, eyes closed, not trusting himself to look into his sister’s face. “Bethany, dear sister, I am so sorry. For all the pain and grief I made you feel, I am so profoundly sorry.”
He felt her arms wrap around his bony frame. “Rufus, please, now you are going to make me cry,” she said.
He managed a chuckle. “There, you see?” That made her laugh, which made him laugh in turn more genuinely and wrap his arm around her in turn. If I can make her laugh, perhaps I am not completely worthless in the Mother’s eyes.
Still, when she had gone, after he’d made promises to sleep, he spent several long hours staring at the ceiling until the sun came up, fearing dreams of the Blue Horizon.
TBC
”White Knight! You can’t leave us! We’ve got over four hundred civilians on board!”
“Smart little vulp,” the voice on the galleon interjected, “better you don’t get involved.”
“White Knight! WHITE KNIGHT!” the liner’s XO screamed, as Rufus’ fighter accelerated past light speed and the radio channel dissolved into static.
He shot up out of bed with a yell, throwing his bed cover to the floor. Panting, it took two tries from him to call up the lights, leaving him blinking in the sudden yellow glow.
“A dream, just a dream,” he told himself, feeling suddenly chilled as the night air came through the open window and hit his sweat sodden fur. He was in his own room, in his own home, on a nice safe planet with a thick atmosphere, not a tiny fighter spinning out of control in an airless, limitless void.
He thought to lay down again, but knew that would be a fruitless effort. He’d just gotten up to close the windows when he jumped again at a soft knock at his door. Then he heard Bethany call out, “Rufus, are you all right?”
“Fine, Beth,” he called back, pressing his hand down on the mattress to try and stop it from shaking. “Just a bad dream.”
“It sounded like more than that. You were yelling out to someone. May I come in?”
“Beth, it’s barely 0300 and I’m indecent.”
“Then pull your covers over yourself, I’m coming in anyway.” He had just enough time to hop back into bed and yank the comforter back up over his waist before Bethany opened the door and slipped inside, dressed in a thick robe tossed over her sleeping gown.
“Haven’t you heard of privacy?” he grumbled, pulling the covers up a bit higher. Aside from the comforter he was naked, as was his habit.
She yawned widely, stretching her arms over her head. “Haven’t you ever heard of eating? I can count your ribs, Ru!”
“I’ve been eating. The blasted cooking staff seems intent on stuffing me like a goose,” he said defensively. “Go back to bed, Beth. I’m fine.”
Bethany instead sat down on the edge of the bed, apparently having no intention of letting him get off that easily. “You were saying someone’s name. Jolly, I think it was.”
Rufus sighed and rubbed palm against his eyes, trying to blink away sleep. It felt as if his head was stuffed with lead right now. “Joli. A Creo boy, a year or two younger than yourself.”
“Oh, a friend of yours?”
He shook his head. “I knew him for barely a week. Seemed a decent lad, if a bit excitable. Most children are.” Of course he’d been all of three years older than the boy at the time. It only feels like a thousand these days.
“What happened to him?”
“He died,” Rufus answered, a bit more sharply than he’d intended. He took a breath and tried to gather his wooly thoughts. “He was my wingman on the Blue Horizon run.”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Bethany said, raising her hand to her lips.
Rufus drew in a sharp, pained breath, as if he’d been lanced through. “Bethany, don’t do that. Don’t apologize to me, for anything, ever.”
“Why ever not?”
“By the Holy Den Mother do I have to give you a star chart? I made you weep, Bethany! After that last performance I gave over the comm to you and Mother you should hate me!”
Bethany looked shocked. “Hate you? Rufus, you weren’t well. Yes, you made me cry, but it wasn’t for being cursed at, though that hurt. I was crying because I could see how ill you had become.”
“Ah.” He let his head hang, eyes closed, not trusting himself to look into his sister’s face. “Bethany, dear sister, I am so sorry. For all the pain and grief I made you feel, I am so profoundly sorry.”
He felt her arms wrap around his bony frame. “Rufus, please, now you are going to make me cry,” she said.
He managed a chuckle. “There, you see?” That made her laugh, which made him laugh in turn more genuinely and wrap his arm around her in turn. If I can make her laugh, perhaps I am not completely worthless in the Mother’s eyes.
Still, when she had gone, after he’d made promises to sleep, he spent several long hours staring at the ceiling until the sun came up, fearing dreams of the Blue Horizon.
TBC
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Date: 2007-11-16 10:01 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-11-17 04:35 pm (UTC)Poor Ru, his life sucks.