talisman ficlet
Mar. 20th, 2004 06:25 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
zarahemlaFor ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
karabou: A Talisman ficlet. I don't know how good it is, I just wrote it superfast, but it's all yours.
Jack asked Richard one time, "Are your dad and my dad friends?"
And Richard said he didn't know.
* * *
When Richard said he was going back to Thayer, Jack asked him why. They were sitting up on top of an old abandoned roof, watching cars go by and eating sunflower seeds. Jack watched the noon sun glint from Richard's glasses, gilding Richard's serious expression.
"I like to be somewhere -- where no one knows me."
"What? What's wrong with here? There are lots of good private schools, they can get you into some hot shit college like Stanford." At the mention of Stanford, Richard's face crinkles up.
"Stanford is stupid. I want to go East. Princeton. Yale. Harvard."
"What, Stanford doesn't have enough tradition?" Jack twists up his mouth. He doesn't think about college. Ever. If his mother mentions it, he changes the subject. He is quite sure that he's not going to college. Maybe he'll backpack through Europe. The Yukon. Find some hot Swedish girl to make out with. After the Territories, even hot Swedish girls have lost some appeal, but Jack expects he can make do.
"I want somewhere that never changes."
"And you'll be an ... economist or something." Jack tosses a handful of sunflower seeds into the air, and they flutter down toward the cars. "And you'll never even mention that you saw a new world."
"Jack," says Richard. His voice is a warning, but Jack rushes on.
"You'll never mention that you saw trees that screamed. A black house. An orb that contained the universe."
"Will you please shut the fuck up?"
"The universe, Richard!"
Richard stands abruptly and stalks away, his face dead white, not even sunlight giving color to it. Jack stares openmouthed at him before scrambling down into the abandoned house.
It takes a minute to catch him. He is stronger, faster than before. Jack thinks breathlessly that he ought to go out for track, or at least speedwalking.
"Rich -- ard -- wait -- up!"
His friend stops as suddenly and rounds on him. Jack flinches, putting his hands up instinctively. Richard's eyes are blazing, filled with a righteous fire Jack hasn't seen in a long time.
"Fuck your universe, Jack. Your universe is one without my father in it. Your universe is one where he died, Jack, he died with a curse on his lips, one foot in our world and one foot in the other. Keep your orb and keep your Territories, because I . Don't. Want. To. Hear. It. Hasn't it occurred to you that I want to go east because you can't stay away from California? You'll be here and I'll be there, and I want it that way." He wheels again and takes off toward the street, nearly running. Jack stands still, paralyzed, upset.
He climbs back up to the roof and watches as Richard makes his way down the street, turns the corner, and disappears. He puts his head in his hands. The sound of traffic recedes, and Jack slowly fades out, headed for the only place that comforts.
--end
karabou: A Talisman ficlet. I don't know how good it is, I just wrote it superfast, but it's all yours.Jack asked Richard one time, "Are your dad and my dad friends?"
And Richard said he didn't know.
* * *
When Richard said he was going back to Thayer, Jack asked him why. They were sitting up on top of an old abandoned roof, watching cars go by and eating sunflower seeds. Jack watched the noon sun glint from Richard's glasses, gilding Richard's serious expression.
"I like to be somewhere -- where no one knows me."
"What? What's wrong with here? There are lots of good private schools, they can get you into some hot shit college like Stanford." At the mention of Stanford, Richard's face crinkles up.
"Stanford is stupid. I want to go East. Princeton. Yale. Harvard."
"What, Stanford doesn't have enough tradition?" Jack twists up his mouth. He doesn't think about college. Ever. If his mother mentions it, he changes the subject. He is quite sure that he's not going to college. Maybe he'll backpack through Europe. The Yukon. Find some hot Swedish girl to make out with. After the Territories, even hot Swedish girls have lost some appeal, but Jack expects he can make do.
"I want somewhere that never changes."
"And you'll be an ... economist or something." Jack tosses a handful of sunflower seeds into the air, and they flutter down toward the cars. "And you'll never even mention that you saw a new world."
"Jack," says Richard. His voice is a warning, but Jack rushes on.
"You'll never mention that you saw trees that screamed. A black house. An orb that contained the universe."
"Will you please shut the fuck up?"
"The universe, Richard!"
Richard stands abruptly and stalks away, his face dead white, not even sunlight giving color to it. Jack stares openmouthed at him before scrambling down into the abandoned house.
It takes a minute to catch him. He is stronger, faster than before. Jack thinks breathlessly that he ought to go out for track, or at least speedwalking.
"Rich -- ard -- wait -- up!"
His friend stops as suddenly and rounds on him. Jack flinches, putting his hands up instinctively. Richard's eyes are blazing, filled with a righteous fire Jack hasn't seen in a long time.
"Fuck your universe, Jack. Your universe is one without my father in it. Your universe is one where he died, Jack, he died with a curse on his lips, one foot in our world and one foot in the other. Keep your orb and keep your Territories, because I . Don't. Want. To. Hear. It. Hasn't it occurred to you that I want to go east because you can't stay away from California? You'll be here and I'll be there, and I want it that way." He wheels again and takes off toward the street, nearly running. Jack stands still, paralyzed, upset.
He climbs back up to the roof and watches as Richard makes his way down the street, turns the corner, and disappears. He puts his head in his hands. The sound of traffic recedes, and Jack slowly fades out, headed for the only place that comforts.
--end
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
!!!
Date: 2004-03-20 05:35 pm (UTC)I really love this, would you mind if
Re: !!!
Date: 2004-03-21 08:28 pm (UTC)If you were ever going to archive it, I would want you to tell me so that I could clean it up & give it a title, etc., first. :)
(no subject)
Date: 2004-03-20 06:54 pm (UTC)*meep*
i liked this. i had the weirdest relationship with "the talisman" when i was reading it. i loved the story but i hated the writing. it was incredibly frustrating. this, however, is fabulous.
and reading the comments in the "i feel like writing" post, DT fic is mentioned? where is it? *checks out userinfo, links to webpage* ohhh, i actually found it when i was going through the yuletide stuff and adored it. whoot! now i get to tell you that. *g*
(no subject)
Date: 2004-03-21 08:29 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2004-03-21 07:39 am (UTC)And yes! Archive, please? Much loving to abound on the site, I promise. When I actually build it....heh.
(no subject)
Date: 2004-03-21 08:30 pm (UTC)That's the long way of I'm glad you liked it.