Sra (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
sarcasticsra) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
rainbowfic2012-01-02 11:55 pm
sarcasticsra) wrote in rainbowfic2012-01-02 11:55 pm
Entry tags:
Grey, 8 + eraser.
Author: Sara
Colors: Grey, 8. the men in grey suits.
Supplies: Eraser (Marietta + Truth AU)
Word Count: 600
Rating: PG
Story: Polyfaceted; title of this is Influence.
Summary: Maria has surprising news for Torey.
Notes: Takes place in an alternate July 2030. This is what happens when our AUs breed. Also, apparently Kelly and I were trading AUs. Oh, and to be clear: Torey and I do not remotely share an opinion on a certain topic herein.
“I’m pregnant.”
There are certain things Torey never expected to hear come out of his baby sister’s mouth, and that’s definitely one of them. It’s not that it’s shocking from an age standpoint—she is, after all, almost twenty-five and just done with school. Two of his other siblings couldn’t even manage that much. It is, however, pretty damn shocking for other reasons, the first of which being that this particular sister is a full-fledged sociopath without the normal human trappings of empathy or love. Second of all, he knows it can’t be because she wasn’t being careful. He went with her when she had her surgery, for Christ’s sake.
“You’re pregnant,” he repeats, because there is the off-chance that he heard her wrong.
“According to my doctor,” she says, sounding like a bizarre mixture of her normal, dryly clinical self and, in his opinion, totally fucking stunned. The last time he remembers her being this surprised is when he confronted her with her rules, roughly a decade ago. “I told him I’d had my tubes tied. He said it was rare, but possible, especially since I was so young when I’d had it done.”
“So you’re pregnant,” he says.
“Apparently.”
“Do you know who the father is?”
“Yes. There’s only one possibility.” She shrugs. “Petty criminal. I killed him. No one’s loss.”
Of course she had. “What do you plan to do?” he asks finally. He’s honestly not sure what he’s hoping she’ll say. On the one hand, he’d welcome another niece or nephew, and he’s always been pro-life. On the other…a sociopath raising a child. How could that possibly end well?
Well, he supposes, answering his own thought, he or she would have plenty of cousins to play with. He would help out, and he’s sure he wouldn’t be the only one.
Maria hasn’t responded yet. She’s obviously thinking, and after a long moment, she gives him a shrewd look. “You would be upset if I aborted.”
“I…” He’s not sure what to say.
“Not obviously, I suppose,” she says, interrupting. “But you would be. I shouldn’t let that influence me.”
“It’s up to you.” He puts as much conviction into that sentence as he can.
“I shouldn’t let that influence me,” she continues, as if he hadn’t even spoken, “but I think I am.” She pauses, then actually adds, out loud, “Huh.”
He meets her gaze, eyebrows rising. “Are you sure?”
“No,” Maria says, and she looks almost surprised again. “I should be more bothered by that.” She looks thoughtful for another long moment and then shakes her head.
“You won’t be in this alone,” he says, and she snorts.
“Don’t be ridiculous. Of course I will be. Pregnancy isn’t a shared entity.”
“I meant after. Raising the kid. We’ll help. I will, at least. I’m sure Eileen will. Johnny and Nic and Is too.”
“Oh. That. Well, obviously,” she says. “I can’t exactly provide everything it will need, can I? Substitutes will be required.” She shakes her head again. “This child won’t turn out like me. I won’t allow it. That is something I’m sure about.”
The determination in her tone surprises him, but he doesn’t doubt it for a second. “Okay.”
“Besides, I don’t think I could be any worse a parent than Melissa,” she adds dryly. “I guess she served a purpose after all. She showed me precisely what not to do.”
He snorts. “There is that.”
She smiles. It’s blank and kind of unsettling, but he thinks it’s supposed to be sincere. “You and Eileen showed me the opposite.”
At that, Torey smiles.
Colors: Grey, 8. the men in grey suits.
Supplies: Eraser (Marietta + Truth AU)
Word Count: 600
Rating: PG
Story: Polyfaceted; title of this is Influence.
Summary: Maria has surprising news for Torey.
Notes: Takes place in an alternate July 2030. This is what happens when our AUs breed. Also, apparently Kelly and I were trading AUs. Oh, and to be clear: Torey and I do not remotely share an opinion on a certain topic herein.
“I’m pregnant.”
There are certain things Torey never expected to hear come out of his baby sister’s mouth, and that’s definitely one of them. It’s not that it’s shocking from an age standpoint—she is, after all, almost twenty-five and just done with school. Two of his other siblings couldn’t even manage that much. It is, however, pretty damn shocking for other reasons, the first of which being that this particular sister is a full-fledged sociopath without the normal human trappings of empathy or love. Second of all, he knows it can’t be because she wasn’t being careful. He went with her when she had her surgery, for Christ’s sake.
“You’re pregnant,” he repeats, because there is the off-chance that he heard her wrong.
“According to my doctor,” she says, sounding like a bizarre mixture of her normal, dryly clinical self and, in his opinion, totally fucking stunned. The last time he remembers her being this surprised is when he confronted her with her rules, roughly a decade ago. “I told him I’d had my tubes tied. He said it was rare, but possible, especially since I was so young when I’d had it done.”
“So you’re pregnant,” he says.
“Apparently.”
“Do you know who the father is?”
“Yes. There’s only one possibility.” She shrugs. “Petty criminal. I killed him. No one’s loss.”
Of course she had. “What do you plan to do?” he asks finally. He’s honestly not sure what he’s hoping she’ll say. On the one hand, he’d welcome another niece or nephew, and he’s always been pro-life. On the other…a sociopath raising a child. How could that possibly end well?
Well, he supposes, answering his own thought, he or she would have plenty of cousins to play with. He would help out, and he’s sure he wouldn’t be the only one.
Maria hasn’t responded yet. She’s obviously thinking, and after a long moment, she gives him a shrewd look. “You would be upset if I aborted.”
“I…” He’s not sure what to say.
“Not obviously, I suppose,” she says, interrupting. “But you would be. I shouldn’t let that influence me.”
“It’s up to you.” He puts as much conviction into that sentence as he can.
“I shouldn’t let that influence me,” she continues, as if he hadn’t even spoken, “but I think I am.” She pauses, then actually adds, out loud, “Huh.”
He meets her gaze, eyebrows rising. “Are you sure?”
“No,” Maria says, and she looks almost surprised again. “I should be more bothered by that.” She looks thoughtful for another long moment and then shakes her head.
“You won’t be in this alone,” he says, and she snorts.
“Don’t be ridiculous. Of course I will be. Pregnancy isn’t a shared entity.”
“I meant after. Raising the kid. We’ll help. I will, at least. I’m sure Eileen will. Johnny and Nic and Is too.”
“Oh. That. Well, obviously,” she says. “I can’t exactly provide everything it will need, can I? Substitutes will be required.” She shakes her head again. “This child won’t turn out like me. I won’t allow it. That is something I’m sure about.”
The determination in her tone surprises him, but he doesn’t doubt it for a second. “Okay.”
“Besides, I don’t think I could be any worse a parent than Melissa,” she adds dryly. “I guess she served a purpose after all. She showed me precisely what not to do.”
He snorts. “There is that.”
She smiles. It’s blank and kind of unsettling, but he thinks it’s supposed to be sincere. “You and Eileen showed me the opposite.”
At that, Torey smiles.
no subject
Jeez.
Also, I love how determined Maria is to do right by her kid.
no subject
Yeah, she wants her kid to be normal. She knows how terrible Melissa was, and she doesn't want that to repeat.
Thanks!
no subject
MADE OF "awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww". Maria, you don't remotely see it, but you can be weirdly sweet!
Good job!
no subject
Thanks!
no subject
no subject
Thanks!
no subject
I love this line so much, Sara, you don't even know. It says so little, but you can practically see the full range of emotions (or, erm, almost emotions? This is Maria...) racing through her mind at this. I love it.
Awww, the ending, though. Really, this whole fic. I LOVE IT SO.
no subject
Thank you!