Ink challenge by estrella

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

Thanks to lyra_sena for the kickass beta.

Title - The Permanence of Ink
Spoilers - From VS through to post CoTW
Word Count - 3051

Summary - Five different surfaces for ink.





The Permanence of Ink



Skin


Stella could tell Ray was excited; his knee kept bumping into hers as he bounced it under his parents' kitchen table, and when she reached over and put her hand on his leg to still it, he just smiled at her and ducked his head, not meeting her eyes.

They ate their pot roast and mashed potatoes, and when Ray pushed his chair back and excused himself, Stella smiled at Mrs. Kowalski and did the same. Mr. Kowalski barely grunted at them, just kept his head down and ate. Stella dropped her eyes and followed Ray out of the kitchen and through the house.

Ray's bedroom was a mess - books and clothes and shoes all over the place. Rock-and-roll posters hung crookedly on the blue paneled walls. He flicked the light on and kicked the jacket that was on the floor out of the way, then reached back and took Stella's hand, pulling her inside the room.

"Ray, your parents- "

"Will get over it," Ray said, smiling as he leaned in to kiss her lightly on the lips. "We're old enough - god, we're getting married, Stel. If they can't handle a little- "

Stella pushed Ray back, her hands resting on his chest. "Ray," she warned. "Behave."

Ray rolled his eyes and stepped back. "Okay. Fine, fine." His blue eyes twinkled as he smiled at her. "I got something I wanted to show you anyway."

Finally, Stella thought. Ray had absolutely no patience and was the worst at keeping secrets than anyone she knew. "What is it?" she asked.

Ray smiled again, then reached over and started rolling up the sleeve of his t-shirt. There was a big white bandage on his arm, and Stella gasped and stepped closer, lightly touching the bottom of it.

"Oh god, what happened? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, I'm fine. Wait a sec- " He slowly peeled the bottom of the tape up, pulling the thick gauze away. Stella was waiting for a bruise or a cut or - god, something - she just wasn't sure what. Her eyes focused on the black and red pattern, the word written on his arm, but for a split second her brain couldn't actually process what she was seeing.

"Wait. Ray, is that- "

"A tattoo, yeah." Ray finished pulling off the bandage and tossed it behind him onto the floor. "I did it a little over a week ago."

"A week?" Stella shook her head. This was Ray. Ray who gave her birthday and Christmas presents the same day he bought them because he couldn't manage to wait until the actual day. Ray who told her every day he'd call her when he got home, and then called her three more times before that because he couldn't wait to hear her voice. Ray who proposed to her in his car in front of the restaurant they had reservations for because he couldn't wait until they got inside. "You got that done a week ago?"

"Yeah." He ran his fingers over the tattoo. "I wanted it to be a surprise."

"Oh, it's a surprise all right." Stella stared at it a little longer, then looked up at him and shook her head. "I don't get it though."

She was afraid Ray was going to be upset. Upset or mad or not understand why it was that she wasn't understanding. Instead Ray looked at her and smiled.

"Don't you?" he asked. She felt his fingers brush against the tiny diamond of her engagement ring before curling around her hand. "It's me - it's my life lately. I got into the academy," he said, tugging her away from the wall and up against his chest. "I'm gonna marry you. See? Champion," he said, lowering his head to kiss her softly.

Stella smiled and pulled her head back. "You're such a geek," she said teasingly.

Ray shrugged his shoulder. "Yeah. I know."

His eyes were clear and blue, and this time Stella leaned in to kiss him. "God, I love you," she said.



Paper


"Besbriss!"

Elaine squeezed her eyes shut and cringed as Lieutenant Donnelly shouted her name from his office. She looked quickly at the reports on her desk: no, none of them too far overdue. Okay, so there was the Fitzgerald case, but she was working on that - she told Donnelly that it would only be another few hours before she-

"Besbriss!" Donnelly shouted again. "I'm not kidding. Get your ass in here."

"Coming," she muttered, tossing her pen down on her desk and pushing her chair back.

The rest of the bullpen was as close to quiet as they ever got as she wove her way through the desks toward the Lieutenant's office. A few detectives glanced up at her quickly, giving her a small encouraging smile. Most of them though pretty much high-tailed it out of there as soon as Donnelly called her name, probably thankful that it wasn't them he called.

She knocked once on Donnelly's door, then pushed it open, sticking just her head inside. "Sir?"

"Get in here, Besbriss," Donnelly grunted, waving her into his cluttered office.

Elaine stepped all the way in and pushed the door closed behind her. God knows what she did - she didn't think anything had been screwed up lately - but you didn't get called into Donnelly's office for no reason, and the last thing she needed was every other detective in the 19th precinct hearing her get chewed out.

He was leaning back in his chair, with his daily cigar clamped unlit between his teeth. Elaine clasped her hands together and straightened her spine, looking right into Donnelly's sharp, blue eyes. "You wanted to see me, sir?"

"I got a call this morning from a Harding Welsh over at the 27th precinct."

Elaine was pretty impressed with herself that she managed to keep her jaw from dropping on the ground.

Donnelly though, was a smart man and something she did must have given away her surprise. "I see you're familiar with the name," he said, a little more gently.

"I'm familiar with Lieutenant Welsh, yes." Elaine cleared her throat. It would do her no good to sound like a nervous teenager on her way to the prom no matter what Welsh had told Donnelly.

"Good, good." Donnelly pushed back from his desk and folded his arms. "It seems that they have a bit of a situation over there at the 2-7. One of their top detectives, a Ray Vecchio, is moving down to Florida- "

"Ray Vecchio is what?"

"And their civilian aide is out on maternity leave- "

"-wait, Francesca?"

"And something about a Mountie?" Donnelly shook his head. "I have no idea. But he's back in Canada - which actually makes sense - but some cop that was with him is back here and needs a partner."

"Ray is back? From Canada?"

Donnelly looked at her as if she had a head wound. "Is there an echo in here, Detective?"

Elaine shook her head and snapped her mouth shut. "No - I'm sorry, it's just that - " She took a deep breath and let it out slowly, a small smile curving her mouth. "I apologize, Lieutenant. You just caught me off guard."

"So it would seem," Donnelly drawled. "Anyhow, the point is this. Harding Welsh is down quite a few detectives. My guess is that they told him he'd be getting a few replacements, so he called me here this morning to see if you'd be interested."

The words were out there for a good few seconds before Elaine could even really make sense of them. She was a detective here, she was never a detective there, but it seemed that Welsh wanted her back and Donnelly...

Donnelly was watching her, that same stern, unsmiling look that he always had.

"Lieutenant- "

"I told him it was up to you," Donnelly interrupted gruffly. "I could have sent you back myself or just told him no right off the bat, but it's your call." He paused for a second, then stood up from his chair. "You're a good detective - one of my best - but that's where you came from. It's your choice if you go back."

Elaine stood there, in her Lieutenant's office, and thought back to all her time at the 2-7. Welsh and the filing and the hassles. Leaving to start the academy. The way the halls must echo now with the footsteps of all the ghosts in that building.

She glanced down at her holster and saw her badge clipped to the waistband of her jeans. "I think I'd like to say no, Lieutenant, if it's all the same to you."

Donnelly looked at her, one side of his mouth twisting into a half-smile. "I'll let him know."



Card



Frannie kicked her suitcase under the barstool in the airport lounge and ordered three fingers of Dewar's on the rocks. If there was one thing her son of a bitch father had taught her family, it was to order your whiskey by brand; there was nothing worse than a bar-whiskey hangover.

The bartender slid the glass in front of her, and Frannie took a long swallow just as they announced the final boarding call for her flight to God Knows Where, Canada.

"Here's to you, Frase," she said, raising her glass in a toast, before knocking back the rest of her drink.

"So, you coming or going?" a voice next to her said.

Frannie ignored him; the last thing she needed right now was to be talking to a man.

"I'd say from the heavy scarf and hat you were going out, but I think they just called final boarding for most parts up north."

The bartender walked over and Frannie ordered another drink.

"Of course, you could be on your way back and just haven't- "

"Look," Frannie said, whirling around to face the guy. "It's late and I'm tired and I'm really not in the mood to be making small talk with- "

The guy had smooth dark hair and a beautiful smile. He was watching her like she was half-insane, which she kinda felt like, and Frannie felt herself running out of steam in the middle of yelling at him. God, she was just so tired lately.

"Look, I'm sorry," Frannie said, rubbing her forehead with her hand. She unraveled the scarf from around her next and let it fall on the floor next to her suitcase. "I just - I had a stupid idea. That was all."

The guy smiled at her and nodded down at her case. "Going to visit a friend?"

Frannie laughed sharply, but if sounded sad even to her own ears. "I was going to, but now, no."

"Did something happen?" the guy asked.

"Yeah. About three months ago when he didn't come back from Canada," Frannie muttered picking up her second drink and taking a much smaller sip. "I was going to go up there now and, I don't know, surprise him or something, but..." she trailed off and shrugged. "Decided against it."

The guy leaned in closer and said quietly, "Maybe that was a good idea."

"Oh yeah?" Frannie rested her elbow on the bar and dropped her head into her hand. "And why's that?"

"No reason," the guy said, shrugging one shoulder. "I just get the feeling you probably belong here, that's all."

His voice was deep and smooth, and Frannie felt almost like he was trying to hypnotize her. He was watching her with serious eyes, and Frannie could see now that they were a soft, dark brown, and the edges crinkled at the corners when he smiled at her. "What makes you say that?" she asked him, ignoring her drink and the bartender and all the other people around them.

The guy stood from his barstool and reached into his back pocket. He pulled out a card and laid it on the top of the bar, and smiled at her slowly. "Call me tomorrow and I'll tell you."

Frannie felt her mouth hang open a little bit, and the guy winked at her and started to walk away. "Wait, who are- "

"Frannie - what the hell are you doing here?"

Frannie spun around and saw Ray walking up behind her. "Ray. I was just…" she turned back around to find the guy but he was already gone. "Nothing. I have no idea what I'm doing."

"Yeah, well, apparently you're not going to Canada either," Ray said, and bent down to pick up her suitcase.

Frannie frowned at him. "How did you know that's where I was going?"

"I know this guy who's a detective," Ray drawled, standing back up. Frannie rolled her eyes and Ray chewed on the toothpick in his mouth. "I looked on the computer at ma's house. Rule number one; you want to run away from home, don't save your airline confirmation on your mother's computer." Frannie looked away, but she could see Ray grinning at her from the corner of her eye. "Come on," he said quietly. "I left Stella at the house. She's probably ready to leave for Florida without me."

"Yeah, okay," Frannie said, bending down to pick up her scarf from the floor. "I just gotta..." The card on the top of the bar caught her eye, and she reached over and picked it up.

There was no name on it, just seven numbers, but for some reason Frannie felt almost like she didn't even need his name - not yet.

Ray cleared his throat. "You coming?"

"Yeah," Frannie said, slipping the card into her pocket. "Let's go."



Parchment



Meg Thatcher flipped through the mail, tossing aside the junk items and placing the things she needed to look at in a small pile on the right side of her desk.

There were magazines and training manuals from the RCMP. Bulletins from Ottowa. A few bills that she needed pay for the Consulate. And stuck in between the local Yellowknife newsletter and the new S523 transfer forms, she found a thick, perfectly square envelope made of heavy parchment paper.

It was addressed to her personally - Ms. Margaret Thatcher - not Inspector or Constable or Sir. She ran her fingers over the rough texture of the envelope, purposely ignoring the return address, letting herself imagine for just a minute that it was an invitation to some faraway ball, or a magical waltz.

The back of the envelope was sealed with a flat circle of gold wax, and she slid her finger under the lip, breaking the seal and revealing a muted gold liner. The invitation was a single card, protected by a flimsy piece of tissue paper that fluttered to the floor when she pulled the card from the envelope.

We cordially invite you to the wedding of
Madeline Rose Thatcher
and
Andrew Michael Preston...

Meg stared at the thick, swirling writing, thinking of Maddy. She could see them as children, running around in the snow outside of their cabin, throwing snowballs at each other as they ran away.

When Meg was fifteen and Maddy was thirteen, Maddy got caught smoking in town by one of their parent's friends, but she just tossed her hair over her shoulder and smiled and the man never told their parents.

Meg graduated top of her class from Regina, but when Maddy took the entrance exams she failed, opting to go back home and work at the corner store for Old Mrs. Preston. Meg told her she was making a mistake - she'd never be able to support herself that way, but Maddy just smiled and said, "Well maybe I'm not looking to be able to support myself." Meg never understood that - it was so far from what she wanted in her own life that it didn't even make sense.

But now Maddy was getting married, and Meg was where, exactly? An Inspector, of course. In Chicago. But with who? What did it really matter in the end?

She lifted her pen from her desk and let it hover for a split second over the response card, before firmly checking the decline box and sliding it back into the envelope.



Money



The wind blows her hair across her face, and Victoria wakes up one more time in Ben's arms. They're very close to the town now - she can see the church in the distance - and she turns her head to kiss his chin.

His arms tighten around her in his sleep, and Victoria thinks about him - about him finding her and keeping her alive - and she shifts to face him, kissing him harder.

"Ben," she whispers. "Wake up, it's morning."

He grunts softly and kisses the top of her head, one hand sinking into the back of her hair.

Victoria never wished for things in her life. If there were things she wanted she just took them, or figured out ways to get other people to give them to her. Clothes, men, money. They were all fair game and Victoria spent most of her life trying to figure out how to get them to work to her advantage.

But she wishes now. Oh god, she wishes.

She wishes she met Ben years and years ago, before she was so hard and empty inside, and then she wishes that she never met him, because she never thought things like that before. She wishes that he had found her earlier in the storm, when she could have used him more to her advantage, and then she wishes that he never found her at all, and that she had frozen right there in the snow. She wishes that he would run away with her, right now, today, and then she wishes that he'd just let her leave and never follow.

Ben's mouth is so cold it's nearly frozen as she kisses him, but the rest of his skin is warm when she slides her hands into his jacket. His fingers tighten in her hair as he kisses her back, and it hurts but she moans for him to twist harder.

Snow is swirling around them, and the wind is carrying flecks of ice that melt on her skin like tears. She thinks she's happy that it's too cold to cry, because maybe now she won't.

Victoria pulls away, leaving Ben gasping for breath, and she looks into his grey-blue eyes and knows the answer before she even asks the question.

"You're not going to let me go, are you?"

Ben's eyes are sad, and he ducks his head, but his arms around her don't ever loosen. "I'm sorry..."

"No, you're not," Victoria says, her fingers still twisted in the thick layers of his shirt. "You could let me go, Ben, you know you could." Something moves in his eyes, and Victoria wonders if she can do this - if maybe she can pull just this one last thing off.

"Ben, please."

Comments

[chickwriter.livejournal.com]

Do you have *any* idea how much I hate the fact that I have to do a conference call in about 4 minutes?...do you?

::chickwriter bookmarks story and hopes the call is short

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

Hee! Damn work getting in the way of our porn reading. What's wrong with people??

*boggles*

[qe2.livejournal.com]

Holy...OUCH, Estrella.

This is beautiful, and quiet and sweet and intense and heartbreaking, and so sad I think I'm not going to be able to bear it.

You have Moebiused my heart.

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

Oh no! I didn't mean to injure you!

*pets Q and kisses it all better*

Thanks!

[shayheyred.livejournal.com]

Wow. What an overachiever, girl. This is terrific, and each part is better than the next. And Elaine! You wrote Elaine!

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

Hee! Yes!! Elaine!!

The world needs more Elaine stories, is what I think *g*

Glad you liked it!

[akite.livejournal.com]

Why don't you just rip my heart out, E? That first one seems so cute, but when you know that Ray isn't going to stay the Champion, WAH! Then you go on with the Elaine, Frannie, Meg and Victoria stuff. I'll be over here in the corner sniffling if anyone needs me. Beautiful, wonderful stories, just in case you didn't know.

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

Aww - I didn't mean for it to be so sad! Thanks for reading and commenting, A. I really appreciate it!

[misanthrope7842.livejournal.com]

Ow. This was just so heartbreakingly beautiful. So soft and sad and just ... I'm all broke. You broke me.

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

*smooshes miss anne back together*

See? Not broken!

*g* Thanks, babe! I appreciate it!

[tex.livejournal.com]

Only one story where we can foresee a happy conclusion but boy, did you nail all of them. They all break my heart, but in a good, sweetly aching way. Does that make sense? Just wonderful.

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

They all break my heart, but in a good, sweetly aching way. Does that make sense?

Perfect sense, yes. Thank you, darlin!

[beledibabe.livejournal.com]

Uh, wait a sec...

::gathers pieces of heart scattered over floor::

Damn, woman.

::gingerly touches achy spot on breastbone::

*Man*, this hurts.

::admires Nancy immensely::

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

*touches the spot on your breast err - breastbone too*

Thanks, Carla!

[tazical.livejournal.com]

Oooh! Nice. I love the format. Ouchy-ouch! And Elaine! Elaine! ::loves::

(Although, small thing, first sentence- parents needs a possessive apostophe: parents'...You know me and my nitpicking *g*)

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

Thank you, and yes! Elaine! We all need to write more Elaine!

(And thank you for the heads up. I corrected that as soon as I saw your message. Thank you, darlin!)

[hackthis.livejournal.com]

I'm just sitting here, like, poleaxed. These are just fan-fucking-tastic. Damn. Rock on, baby!

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

Thank you, zhara! Coming from you that's a terrific compliment!

[kassrachel.livejournal.com]

Holy wow. This is...oh, man. Yeah.

Sniffling now, but in the good way. :-)

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

Well good sniffling is ok, then.

Thanks so much, Kass! I really appreciate it!

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

Oh, man, honey, I adore this madly. Wow.

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

Well yay! Because *I* adore *you* madly!

[serialkarma.livejournal.com]

Oh, sweetie, this is so good!

"Don't you?" he asked. She felt his fingers brush against the tiny diamond of her engagement ring before curling around her hand. "It's me - it's my life lately. I got into the academy," he said, tugging her away from the wall and up against his chest. "I'm gonna marry you. See? Champion," he said, lowering his head to kiss her softly.

This is so perfect! I can so see this happening!

And the one with Victoria broke my heart for poor Fraser.

You have such lovely, interesting characterizations of people here, particularly the women. Lovely!

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

*squees*

Thank you, SK! So glad you liked it and thanks for the wonderful comments!

[silverakira.livejournal.com]

Holy shit. Holy fucking shit.

This -- this is just -- [flails wildly]. BRILLIANT.

Because in each piece, there is just so much emotion; like, you can't label it as just happy or just sad -- everything is so complex and layered and mixed together. And I love how everything is so much more heartbreaking because you know what's going to happen; the things that are off-screen are what give each section that extra punch in the stomach -- I can't even describe it, but you are a fucking genius.

And then, in the first part Ray, being so impatient and not being able to keep a secret with Stella -- oh my fucking god, you have no idea how much I love that. And then the "Champion" thing -- gaaah.

And ELAINE. Elaine is one of my most favorite minor characters of all time, and this part -- it's happy and heartbreaking and bittersweet and this: She glanced down at her holster and saw her badge clipped to the waistband of her jeans. "I think I'd like to say no, Lieutenant, if it's all the same to you."

OMFG. This killed me dead. Because I can see this happening and I don't want it to happen that way, but it's what most likely will happen even though it's not the easiest or most obvious path, but it makes so much sense.

And then Frannie. I heart this part so much. Because this:

there was one thing her son of a bitch father had taught her family, it was to order your whiskey by brand; there was nothing worse than a bar-whiskey hangover.

I love this and it breaks my heart. But then: There was no name on it, just seven numbers, but for some reason Frannie felt almost like she didn't even need his name - not yet.

[heartheartheart]

And Thatcher -- god. One thing I love about this story is how you give everyone a background or a scenario and and it's just so rich in character and feeling. The details. And I loved Thatcher's part because it makes her human, which is definitely not something that many authors do. You make all the characters so human and believable at the same time, which takes skill, lady.

The last one. I have no words. I have no words at all. But this paragraph:

She wishes she met Ben years and years ago, before she was so hard and empty inside, and then she wishes that she never met him, because she never thought things like that before. She wishes that he had found her earlier in the storm, when she could have used him more to her advantage, and then she wishes that he never found her at all, and that she had frozen right there in the snow. She wishes that he would run away with her, right now, today, and then she wishes that he'd just let her leave and never follow.

Jesus Christ.

I love you. I love you so much for writing this. And there is no question that this will be constantly on my mind for the next few days because there is just so much to think about.

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

Damn girl, can I like, hire you to write feedback?

*g*

You have no idea how much your comments thrilled me. You always manage to pick out pieces that I'm particularly happy with, and knowing that someone else appreciated them completely makes it all worth it.

You're wonderful! I love you madly!!

*twirls you*

[claire.livejournal.com]

I don't even know where to start listing all the things I love about this. Beautiful and achy. *sigh* I wanna write like this when I grow up.

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

*beams*

Thank you so much. What a terrific compliment!

[lalejandra.livejournal.com]

*cries*

Why are these all so sad? They are sad! They make me sad! I love them!

Especially: Maddy just smiled and said, "Well maybe I'm not looking to be able to support myself."

Oh, poor Meg! I felt a depth of sympathy for her there that I don't think the show ever pulled from me. Awesome.

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

They're not *all* sad, are they?

*rereads*

Fuck!

*g*

Thank you, babe. I really appreciate the comments. You're wonderful!

[engenda.livejournal.com]

What can I say? My heart aches. In the best possible way.

And, oh my god, the loneliness. The distance. The love.

My god. This was so...so human.

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

Oh, thank you so much, engenda. What a beautiful compliment.

*kisses you hard*

Thank you again!

[ekaterinn.livejournal.com]

Wonderful - so layered with emotion and this abdolute love for the characters that I don't know where to start

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

You started just fine *g*

Thanks so much for reading and commenting. I really appreciate it!

[chickwriter.livejournal.com]

I am exploded ded now. I totally adore you.

The characterizations. The emotions. The angst.

You rock.

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

Heh. No way baby. YOU rock.

*drags you to the corner and kisses you*

Thanks so much!

[elmyraemilie.livejournal.com]

I was just thinking over the last day or so how slash writers and many fic writers avoid writing women (except femslash, yeah). So here you come with five wonderful women, fully realized from the bits and pieces they gave us in canon, and you use them to break my heart.

Damn, but you are very, very good.

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

Oh yay! Thank you!

I have to admit, I was wondering if people were even going to want to *read* a story about all the women, but it got stuck in my head and I couldn't get rid of it. I'm so glad you liked it!!

[mergatrude.livejournal.com]

Oh wow! this is just wonderful! I especially loved Elaine - man I could see this happening right in front of my eyes! I loved Meg almost as much. Whereas Victoria just plain killed me stone dead. So wonderful to see the women get to have a say rather than to just be the cardboard cutouts.

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

Thank you - yes!! I had the idea and then it would't go away until I wrote it, but I have to admit I was a little worried about an all female character story.

So glad you liked it and thank you for commenting!!

[sage]

This is brilliant.

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

Wow. Dude. What a freaking *wonderful* compliment.

Thank you!

[zebra363.livejournal.com]

Meg never understood that - it was so far from what she wanted in her own life that it didn't even make sense.

I often feel like this. Great to see it in print.

I really liked Elaine deciding not to go back to the 2-7, too.

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

I have to admit, I was back and forth on a few points in the story, but Elaine turning down the transfer was never one of them That one I was pretty firm on *g*

So glad you liked it - thanks so much for commenting!!

[veredus.livejournal.com]

I *HATE* you. I am dead today from running errands for hours, coming home to watch marathon anime with a friend, and you pop THIS into my flist?!

My aunt from halfway around the world is coming to town tomorrow and staying the weekend! *cries* Why do you tempt me with things I can't have? You need to know that me and instant gratifications are siamese twins.

Next time, please consult with me about your posting schedule. I will give daily updates if that will help. Thanx! (j/k...well, not really but okay FINE :3 )

*runs off*

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

But - but - But I LOOOOOOOOOOVE YOOOOOOOOOOOOU!!

*kisses*

I'll make sure to clear the schedule with you forst from now on though. Just to make sure.

*g*

Thanks!

[doll-revolution.livejournal.com]

dude, i think i have broken my brain, or something, but i didn't finad any of them sad. at all

the first was just sweet and happy and lovey. i mean, yeah, you know where it's going to end up, but the story isn't depressing. it just makes you see how much in love they were in the beginning, and why they would try to hold on to it for so long.

the second is kind of. . .wistful and empowering. you see the nostalgia elaine has for the 2-7, but she knows she can't go back without lessening the cop she has become, and the fact that she knows this is a good thing.

the third is just keen, especially the brother-love, and very optimistic, especially on frannie's part. it made me happy, to know that you couldn't keep her good heart down. (although she needs a better checklist for how she picks her guys) do you have anybody in you head, playing that guy?

the fourth was sad only in that she wouldn't go to her sister's wedding, but it wasn't (to me) intrinsically sad. meg knew what she wanted out of life, and she basically got it. it didn't seem (again, to me) that she was particularly bothered by the fact that she had no man.

and then the fifth - the fifth seems poignat and a little desperate, but not sad. it's like those things you think of in the middle of the night, when it's really dark and you don't seem to fit inside your own skin, but then just make no sense in the morning. i bet these were the only five minutes of her life victoria felt this way. desperate and angry, and regretful.

so there you go. i am the freak swimming against your feedback tide.

but YMMV

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

Lol! Yay, doll!! The freak swimming against the tide *g*

But yes, I have to admit I didn't really *intend* for them to be sad, and while I can see how they can be read that way, I also think you're right, and there's a way to read them the other way to, so THANKS!!

(Oh, and also? " i think i have broken my brain, or something" uhm - YA THINK?? *g*)

[wistful-fever.livejournal.com]

This is just... kick ass. And so strong. The characters were believable, and I wanted to cuddle them, and tell them everything was going to be okay. You got such an expansive world here, for it be under 4,000 words.

Recing.

[estrella30.livejournal.com]

Thanks so much for the wonderful comments! I really apprecaite them, as well as the rec!!

thanks again!