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rainbowfic2019-04-01 08:50 pm
thisbluespirit) wrote in rainbowfic2019-04-01 08:50 pm
Snow White #7, Cloudy Grey #1 [Divide & Rule]
Name: thisbluespirit
Title: Better Forgotten
Story: Divide & Rule
Colors: Snow White #7 (make a wish) , Cloudy Grey #1 (play)
Supplies and Styles: Pastels (also forgenprompt_bingo square “dreams/daydreams/wishes” and hc_bingo square “loss of vision”).
Word Count: 1443
Rating: PG
Warnings:None.
Notes: 1954: Edward Iveson/Julia Graves
Summary This isn’t how this scenario had played out in Julia’s mind...
***
Julia paced up and down on the tiled floor of the darkened conservatory, cursing herself. Why must she do these things? She stopped, up against the wall and closed her eyes. What did it matter whether or not Michael Campbell – who had always been a rat, whom she had never even really cared about herself – regretted letting her go, or even remembered her?
But she’d imagined this moment before, hardly thinking it would ever be a reality – running into him now that her fortunes were on the rise, and getting her revenge in passing. Her favoured idea had been to pretend to have forgotten his name, and move on with the kind of dignity she rarely possessed outside of such dreams.
Of course, when it happened, it wasn’t like that, and Michael wasn’t obliging enough to act out the script she’d written for him. She couldn’t have revenge on someone if she needed first to explain to him who she was and why, and if she had any sense, she’d never have tried. But then, if she’d had any sense, she wouldn’t have done most of the things that had led to this moment, good and bad.
She sank down onto the hard green bench beside her and rested her chin on her hands. She’d made such a mess of everything, it would almost be funny once she’d calmed down, but she’d seen, for a moment, the shadow of reproach, maybe even hurt in Edward’s eyes earlier. Wasn’t it enough that she had Edward and Emily?
“Julia,” said Edward, and she lifted her head to see him standing in the doorway. “There you are.”
She turned her head away, not wanting to see that reproach again, or worse. “Have you come to take me home in disgrace? Read me a lecture, perhaps? If only we could all be as perfect as you!”
“Am I?” murmured Edward with a raise of his eyebrows, refusing to take the bait. “That wasn’t the impression you gave me earlier.” As she let herself look at him, he held up a hand, as if to warn off another outburst of temper. “Julia. I’ll take you home if you want, but I was hoping for a dance. It’s been too long.”
Julia bit her lip.
“Why should I lecture you about Campbell, anyway?” he asked, moving into the room. “I don’t care about him. I didn’t think you did, either.”
Julia smiled, and hastily wiped her eyes, before drawing herself up. “Well, you could try for a little jealousy sometimes, darling. It’s infuriating of you to go round being reasonable all the time.” She rose and stretched out a hand to him. “Oh, Ned, you should lecture me – somebody should! I seem to have given him entirely the wrong idea being so persistent – and then I’m afraid I hit him. With my handbag. You don’t think he’ll make a complaint, do you?”
“Julia, why?”
She shrugged. “Well, as I said. He got the wrong end of the stick and put his hand on my knee – and he sneered at you. And you may have your faults, but Michael Campbell, of all people, has no right to talk about you, or assume anything about us!”
“I see my period of perfection was very short-lived,” said Edward, closing his fingers around hers. “Probably all for the best. And, don’t worry, he won’t be rushing to tell that story to anyone else and, as far as I’m concerned, it serves him right.”
Julia’s lips twitched. “It was so very satisfying for a moment, and then I wondered if anyone had seen us – if it might even get in the papers, and I felt awful. If I’d ignored him the way any sensible person would have done, none of it would have happened. No, don’t laugh, Ned – how would you feel if tomorrow’s headlines read ‘MP’s wife batters military hero with handbag’?”
“I very much doubt they will,” said Edward. “Alas. If they did, I think I might frame it. Besides, that’s not the line they’d take – your Mr Campbell seems to be something of a shady figure. A dishonourable discharge, debts, a few misjudged schemes and more, I gather. He’s here as Mrs Wystan’s guest, and she’s a notably wealthy widow. I don’t suppose that’s a coincidence, either.”
Julia choked back a laugh. “Oh, you would. I thought you were in close discussion with Mr Harding about the bye-election, or whatever it was.”
“Who is,” Edward reminded her, “the worst gossip I’ve ever known. I thought it would be useful to make enquiries, that’s all. One never knows.”
She squeezed his arm. “Yes, yes, and if I had let that rat fondle my knees, you wouldn’t have hit him for me, you’d only have turned around and used all that against him and been terribly underhand and polite about it.”
“You don’t seem to need any help with hitting him,” said Edward, but he grinned. “I promise to call him out on the spot next time, if it’ll make you happy.”
“There’s no need to be absurd,” said Julia. “I don’t suppose it’d look good in the press. What if you do get to be a Cabinet Minister one day?”
“Well, there is precedent for that,” Edward said, straight-faced. “Now, shall we see if we can have one last dance or must I slap Campbell round the face with my gloves first before you’ll say yes?”
Julia slipped her arm through his. “I think I’ll settle for a dance. We don’t want to ruin your career solely to satisfy my vanity.”
“Why?” murmured Edward, halfway through the waltz, his hand shifting on her waist. He met her gaze.
Julia didn’t need to ask what he meant. “I honestly don’t know. Because I’d wished for it, almost – planned it out in my head. Or it was only me shooting myself in the foot again. Maybe because you were off talking politics.” She gave a rueful smile. “Perhaps Caroline, too. It’s not fair that I’m the only one who has to be jealous. You should be, at least every now and then.”
“If it came to that,” said Edward, suddenly distant, “what would be the point?”
Julia tightened her grip on his hand. “Don’t be like that, darling. If it was you, if you fell into the clutches of some horrid, designing female –”
“If I was behaving that stupidly, I can’t see why you would still want me.”
Julia sighed. “Have it your way, but the point is, Edward, that I fight, and sometimes I don’t know if you do. If this was a fairy story and you got enchanted by an evil sorceress, I would rescue you, no matter what it took. You would assume I had gone away somewhere because I was bored with you, and that would be that, regardless of spells, walls of thorns, or evil wizards. I’d be stuck under whatever curse it was forever.”
“Is that what you think?” he asked, and the playful light had gone out of his eyes, as he led her away from the rest of the dancers. “Julia, I should hope by now that you realise that if you were in any real danger, I would try to do whatever needed to be done.”
She nodded. “I’m sorry. You know my nonsense by now.”
“And, you know,” said Edward, ushering her past a knot of people making their farewells, “it’s not that I wouldn’t do anything – it’s what I might do that’s the thing. What I’d rather not do. You said before, about being underhand and devious. Well, even now, even out of power, I have contacts – I could take all that information, whisper a few words into the ears of the right person and ruin Campbell. That isn’t a path I want to go down. I can’t quite joke about it.”
Julia stroked his sleeve. “Yes. I know. And don’t worry – you needn’t. I shall just hit people for you when needed. I seem to be quite good at it, as it turns out.”
“Julia!” said Edward, and then laughed as she threw him a look, daring him to say or do more in the middle of a reception. “Time to get you home – I should read you a lecture, wasn’t that it?”
She set off for the cloakroom. “No, no – I can get plenty of those from the BBC. While we have the house to ourselves, I had something entirely different in mind from you.” She smiled up at him, and hoped she’d distracted him.
But the trouble was, she did fight, and not always wisely – and so did he.
***
thisbluespiritTitle: Better Forgotten
Story: Divide & Rule
Colors: Snow White #7 (make a wish) , Cloudy Grey #1 (play)
Supplies and Styles: Pastels (also for
genprompt_bingo square “dreams/daydreams/wishes” and hc_bingo square “loss of vision”).Word Count: 1443
Rating: PG
Warnings:None.
Notes: 1954: Edward Iveson/Julia Graves
Summary This isn’t how this scenario had played out in Julia’s mind...
***
Julia paced up and down on the tiled floor of the darkened conservatory, cursing herself. Why must she do these things? She stopped, up against the wall and closed her eyes. What did it matter whether or not Michael Campbell – who had always been a rat, whom she had never even really cared about herself – regretted letting her go, or even remembered her?
But she’d imagined this moment before, hardly thinking it would ever be a reality – running into him now that her fortunes were on the rise, and getting her revenge in passing. Her favoured idea had been to pretend to have forgotten his name, and move on with the kind of dignity she rarely possessed outside of such dreams.
Of course, when it happened, it wasn’t like that, and Michael wasn’t obliging enough to act out the script she’d written for him. She couldn’t have revenge on someone if she needed first to explain to him who she was and why, and if she had any sense, she’d never have tried. But then, if she’d had any sense, she wouldn’t have done most of the things that had led to this moment, good and bad.
She sank down onto the hard green bench beside her and rested her chin on her hands. She’d made such a mess of everything, it would almost be funny once she’d calmed down, but she’d seen, for a moment, the shadow of reproach, maybe even hurt in Edward’s eyes earlier. Wasn’t it enough that she had Edward and Emily?
“Julia,” said Edward, and she lifted her head to see him standing in the doorway. “There you are.”
She turned her head away, not wanting to see that reproach again, or worse. “Have you come to take me home in disgrace? Read me a lecture, perhaps? If only we could all be as perfect as you!”
“Am I?” murmured Edward with a raise of his eyebrows, refusing to take the bait. “That wasn’t the impression you gave me earlier.” As she let herself look at him, he held up a hand, as if to warn off another outburst of temper. “Julia. I’ll take you home if you want, but I was hoping for a dance. It’s been too long.”
Julia bit her lip.
“Why should I lecture you about Campbell, anyway?” he asked, moving into the room. “I don’t care about him. I didn’t think you did, either.”
Julia smiled, and hastily wiped her eyes, before drawing herself up. “Well, you could try for a little jealousy sometimes, darling. It’s infuriating of you to go round being reasonable all the time.” She rose and stretched out a hand to him. “Oh, Ned, you should lecture me – somebody should! I seem to have given him entirely the wrong idea being so persistent – and then I’m afraid I hit him. With my handbag. You don’t think he’ll make a complaint, do you?”
“Julia, why?”
She shrugged. “Well, as I said. He got the wrong end of the stick and put his hand on my knee – and he sneered at you. And you may have your faults, but Michael Campbell, of all people, has no right to talk about you, or assume anything about us!”
“I see my period of perfection was very short-lived,” said Edward, closing his fingers around hers. “Probably all for the best. And, don’t worry, he won’t be rushing to tell that story to anyone else and, as far as I’m concerned, it serves him right.”
Julia’s lips twitched. “It was so very satisfying for a moment, and then I wondered if anyone had seen us – if it might even get in the papers, and I felt awful. If I’d ignored him the way any sensible person would have done, none of it would have happened. No, don’t laugh, Ned – how would you feel if tomorrow’s headlines read ‘MP’s wife batters military hero with handbag’?”
“I very much doubt they will,” said Edward. “Alas. If they did, I think I might frame it. Besides, that’s not the line they’d take – your Mr Campbell seems to be something of a shady figure. A dishonourable discharge, debts, a few misjudged schemes and more, I gather. He’s here as Mrs Wystan’s guest, and she’s a notably wealthy widow. I don’t suppose that’s a coincidence, either.”
Julia choked back a laugh. “Oh, you would. I thought you were in close discussion with Mr Harding about the bye-election, or whatever it was.”
“Who is,” Edward reminded her, “the worst gossip I’ve ever known. I thought it would be useful to make enquiries, that’s all. One never knows.”
She squeezed his arm. “Yes, yes, and if I had let that rat fondle my knees, you wouldn’t have hit him for me, you’d only have turned around and used all that against him and been terribly underhand and polite about it.”
“You don’t seem to need any help with hitting him,” said Edward, but he grinned. “I promise to call him out on the spot next time, if it’ll make you happy.”
“There’s no need to be absurd,” said Julia. “I don’t suppose it’d look good in the press. What if you do get to be a Cabinet Minister one day?”
“Well, there is precedent for that,” Edward said, straight-faced. “Now, shall we see if we can have one last dance or must I slap Campbell round the face with my gloves first before you’ll say yes?”
Julia slipped her arm through his. “I think I’ll settle for a dance. We don’t want to ruin your career solely to satisfy my vanity.”
“Why?” murmured Edward, halfway through the waltz, his hand shifting on her waist. He met her gaze.
Julia didn’t need to ask what he meant. “I honestly don’t know. Because I’d wished for it, almost – planned it out in my head. Or it was only me shooting myself in the foot again. Maybe because you were off talking politics.” She gave a rueful smile. “Perhaps Caroline, too. It’s not fair that I’m the only one who has to be jealous. You should be, at least every now and then.”
“If it came to that,” said Edward, suddenly distant, “what would be the point?”
Julia tightened her grip on his hand. “Don’t be like that, darling. If it was you, if you fell into the clutches of some horrid, designing female –”
“If I was behaving that stupidly, I can’t see why you would still want me.”
Julia sighed. “Have it your way, but the point is, Edward, that I fight, and sometimes I don’t know if you do. If this was a fairy story and you got enchanted by an evil sorceress, I would rescue you, no matter what it took. You would assume I had gone away somewhere because I was bored with you, and that would be that, regardless of spells, walls of thorns, or evil wizards. I’d be stuck under whatever curse it was forever.”
“Is that what you think?” he asked, and the playful light had gone out of his eyes, as he led her away from the rest of the dancers. “Julia, I should hope by now that you realise that if you were in any real danger, I would try to do whatever needed to be done.”
She nodded. “I’m sorry. You know my nonsense by now.”
“And, you know,” said Edward, ushering her past a knot of people making their farewells, “it’s not that I wouldn’t do anything – it’s what I might do that’s the thing. What I’d rather not do. You said before, about being underhand and devious. Well, even now, even out of power, I have contacts – I could take all that information, whisper a few words into the ears of the right person and ruin Campbell. That isn’t a path I want to go down. I can’t quite joke about it.”
Julia stroked his sleeve. “Yes. I know. And don’t worry – you needn’t. I shall just hit people for you when needed. I seem to be quite good at it, as it turns out.”
“Julia!” said Edward, and then laughed as she threw him a look, daring him to say or do more in the middle of a reception. “Time to get you home – I should read you a lecture, wasn’t that it?”
She set off for the cloakroom. “No, no – I can get plenty of those from the BBC. While we have the house to ourselves, I had something entirely different in mind from you.” She smiled up at him, and hoped she’d distracted him.
But the trouble was, she did fight, and not always wisely – and so did he.
***
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I hope good things for these guys.
LOL, well, I feel kind of bad about this, because of me coming in with my old canon to a new place, but they have a terrible ending. Which is written already, we don't need to go there again (much) and so I just write early Edward/Julia fluff and happy AUs. *coughs*
This section of canon was supposed to be the backstory to the main story, which was in a dystopia so by default, Divide & Rule wound up being rather rocks fall everyone dies. But Edward & Julia made their relationship work; the whole bit where they accidentally helped bring down the gov't is just unfortunate, we don't need to mention all that.
(I am hoping to branch into a new canon soon, though!)
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I look forward to anything, honestly! Your writing is so good.
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