Fic: Tyrant (2/2)
Sep. 17th, 2005 08:09 pm![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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rugbytackleTitle: Tyrant (2/2)
Author:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
clocks
Pairing: VM/SB, Others
Rating: PG
Archive:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
rugbytackle
Feedback: Would be devoured and slobbered upon.
Disclaimer: Don't know them, this is not real, did not happen, la di da.
Summary: "There's noises in my head, just noises in my head. If I could, I'd drown them all out. I'd bury all of these noises from your tyrant mouth." - The Bravery
Notes: Happy birthday,cykie!
I can't remember how long I must have stood there, frozen, staring at him with my mouth open while he shifted his weight from one foot to another, waiting for my reaction. "Well?"
"Jesus." I just stared at him. Part of me wanted to break down, and the other part of me was just numb, save for this strange, stirring feeling in my stomach. "Um, how long?" I tried not to wince at how my voice came out sounding strangled.
Thankfully Viggo didn't notice, just staring off into space with that silly smile that seems to infect all lovelorn people. Fuck, it probably was on my face only a few minutes ago. "Just...I don't know. Probably the first time I laid eyes on him. Hell, I sound like a schoolgirl."
I closed my eyes, taking in the chilly night air of Wellington. At that point I think I heard Viggo call out my name in concern, but all of a sudden the rising nausea in my throat overtook my senses and my eyes opened just in time as I threw up all over Viggo.
~
The only thing I remember about that mindnumbing night was being helped into the bar by Viggo, whose soiled clothes quickly attracted attention and help. I remember someone sitting me down in a chair, but somehow I managed to slip and I fell down, hitting my head on one of the legs of a bar stool. I was fast becoming a believer in the saying that bad news always comes in threes. When Bean got up to help Viggo clean off the vomit, I looked away and asked anyone, anybody, to take me home. I felt strong, gentle hands lift me up and soon I was being escorted to a car, not caring whose it was as I lay slumped in the seat.
The door opened, and my benefactor got into the driver's seat. I felt kind blue eyes gaze at me with compassion and empathy. "I'm so sorry, Orli. I wanted to warn you bu-"
"Just drive me home," I said in a flat voice.
The ride home seemed endless, and later I realised it was because Elijah was driving around town instead of heading straight home. The stereo was on, and it was playing one of his Pumpkins CDs but I wasn't paying much attention. Instead I looked out the window, somehow feeling comforted by the quiet nightscape of Wellington when all the shops were closed and the streets were dark and quiet. Elijah mostly kept silent, occasionally humming along to the songs, but just driving endlessly. But I definitely could feel his presence, like some silent, protective guardian that smelled of cloves and knew all the words to 'Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness'. Later on, I would realise that it was his own special way of taking me under his wing.
I would never find out if Viggo knew about my feelings for him at the time he told me about Bean, and my guess was he must have been oblivious, because he isn't the hurtful type. Anyway, it didn't matter because the damage had been done. If it weren't for the hobbits – especially Lij – who constantly surrounded me and refused to let me mope by myself, I might have been worse off.
My friendship with Viggo went on as usual, and it made the hurt somehow worse because I had gotten used to seeing him everyday, to the point where he had become part of my routine. Sometimes he'd invite me to go fishing or to dinner with Bean, but I simply couldn't go anymore, even though he and Bean weren't together then. The very fact that the gentle love in his eyes was being directed at someone else – in fact, one of my other good friends – was unbearable. I didn't want to think about what I was missing. You know the old adage that if you love someone, you'd just want them to be happy? Rubbish. I didn't want Viggo to be happy with Bean. I wanted him to be happy with me.
Thankfully, there was an upcoming long break and everyone had plans for the holidays. In between their endless Playstation tournaments, Elijah and Dom were talking about going somewhere for a surfing holiday, and I inevitably became part of their plans. It was hard to describe how I felt when I found out that Viggo and Sean were going on a trip to see the South Islands. My stomach felt like it was going to cave in again even after I had spent so much time gingerly rebuilding everything. I wasn't planning on seeing them off, but upon Lij's advice, I did go. We helped them load the car, then I gave Viggo a long hug and whispered "Good luck" in his ear. He pulled back, then gave me this look of absolute gratitude and friendship that I'll never forget, and somehow it made everything slightly less askew. I watched him and Bean drive off, then I turned to Elijah.
"Is there anywhere we can get drunk?"
"Orli, it's 8 in the morning!"
"Jesus, okay, okay." I grinned, then ruffled his hair. "Let's go jump out of a plane."
He flashed his unique gap-toothed grin back at me. "That's much better."
~
After Viggo and Bean came back from their trip and work resumed on the set, I could instantly tell things were slightly different. To the casual observer, things might have been normal, but I knew where to look, and so did Elijah. I saw the clasped hands under catering tables, I saw the moments stolen under a tree during lunch break, Viggo quietly writing in his journal with Bean looking over his shoulder, a hidden arm wrapped around Viggo's waist. At last I finally acknowledged the same gentle love that was in Bean's eyes, directed back at Viggo, and I'd be a fantastic liar if I said it had stopped hurting by then.
Why did I love Viggo so much? To be honest I couldn't really put it down into words and rationalise it. And I don't think Bean could have, either. There was just something so...Viggo about him that made him the sun of everyone's life, with events and people and emotions orbiting around him. But I was glad to realise that the hurt was slowly but surely fading away, and really, when you're surrounded by hobbits and Elves and pranks and food and birthdays and divorces and marriages and orcs, you find yourself not having time to wallow in self-pity.
During the times I was with Viggo without Bean around, which was mostly while we were shooting ROTK or TTT scenes, I could tell that every atom in his body was in love, and he told me about their trip and how he finally confessed his feelings to Bean at a rundown Anglican church somewhere in the South Island. The part of my brain that kept going 'It should have been me' was eventually drowned out by my excitement over Elijah taking me basejumping the next day. For the first time, I actually felt happy for Viggo and Bean.
It was obvious to anyone who paid attention how much Viggo loved Bean. He had photos in his basement everywhere of Boromir in sunglasses, Boromir lying on the ground, Boromir sitting under a tree frowning over Yeats. I was given a privileged sneak peek at a then-unfinished painting of what Viggo tentatively titled 'Boromir's cloak' and it made me feel sad just looking at it. No doubt I was in a lot of Viggo's photos too, as was Elijah and Dom and Bernard and Karl and everyone else on the set, but none were treasured as lovingly as the ones of Bean laughing and flipping two fingers in jest at the camera.
Then I caught sight of one of the photos Viggo had taken at Te Anau, of Elijah smoking outside in the snow and looking upwards, slightly puzzled. I stared at it for a long time, and when I turned around, I found Viggo standing behind me with a quiet smile. "Do you want that one?"
"Yeah," I said, and we didn't say anything else as Viggo took down the photo and gave me the print, but the soft understanding look in his eyes and the way my hands shook as I took the photo from him said everything.
~
I turned to look at Ian, and his eyes were closed but he was smiling to himself, as though savouring the soft tones of music coming from another room. "Sir Ian?"
"Yes, my dear boy." He opened his eyes, and slowly brushed his hair back like some dignified old Persian cat. "That was a lovely story."
"You already knew most of it."
"You'd be surprised. The wags certainly had a lot of gossip to report, and let's just say it got in the way of the truth." His eyes had that quiet glimmer, which always looked like he was sharing some private joke with you.
"It did. Sometimes. I even believed it myself at one point." I chuckled as I laid my head back and stared at the sky. The sunset was over, and now the first few stars were starting to come out in the brilliant blue twilight.
"Hi Ian. And hey, you lazyass elf." I smelt the cloves first before spotting him at the doorway, and I smiled so widely that my cheeks hurt.
"About bloody time! Where were you?"
"Sorry!" However he looked completely unapologetic as he flung himself onto my lap, squashing me. "Feet took a much longer time because I had too much glue on one foot. C'mon, Dom and Bills are waiting in the car, and Viggo and Beanie are already at the restaurant."
"Kay, but you gotta help me find my keys, I don't know where I-"
Lij reached into his pocket and yanked out a familiar set of keys with a Bart Simpson keychain. "They were with me, you goof. You forgot to take them last night."
Beaming, I leaned forward and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, and he yanked me up with a firm hand, and when I was on my feet he didn't let it go. As we were heading for the door, Sir Ian stood up as well, stabbing his cigarette butt into an old can. "So you do know the moral of the story, right?"
We paused in the doorway, and I forcibly took my eyes off Lijah and grinned at Sir Ian. "Uh, never tell anyone bad news on a full stomach?"
Sir Ian laughed. "Actually, that's a good one too. But I was thinking: it's always the last place you look."
I looked confused, but Lij just laughed and tugged my hand, pulling me towards the door.
THE END
(*This story is inspired by lead singer Sam Endicott of The Bravery, who told the people in the audience about the inspiration behind his song 'Tyrant'. "This is about a girl who used to live next door, and we used to go out. When we broke up, I was still living next door to her. And at night, I'd hear her with these men who were bringing her home. It drove me crazy, thinking of her with someone else.")
Author:
clocksPairing: VM/SB, Others
Rating: PG
Archive:
rugbytackleFeedback: Would be devoured and slobbered upon.
Disclaimer: Don't know them, this is not real, did not happen, la di da.
Summary: "There's noises in my head, just noises in my head. If I could, I'd drown them all out. I'd bury all of these noises from your tyrant mouth." - The Bravery
Notes: Happy birthday,
cykie!I can't remember how long I must have stood there, frozen, staring at him with my mouth open while he shifted his weight from one foot to another, waiting for my reaction. "Well?"
"Jesus." I just stared at him. Part of me wanted to break down, and the other part of me was just numb, save for this strange, stirring feeling in my stomach. "Um, how long?" I tried not to wince at how my voice came out sounding strangled.
Thankfully Viggo didn't notice, just staring off into space with that silly smile that seems to infect all lovelorn people. Fuck, it probably was on my face only a few minutes ago. "Just...I don't know. Probably the first time I laid eyes on him. Hell, I sound like a schoolgirl."
I closed my eyes, taking in the chilly night air of Wellington. At that point I think I heard Viggo call out my name in concern, but all of a sudden the rising nausea in my throat overtook my senses and my eyes opened just in time as I threw up all over Viggo.
~
The only thing I remember about that mindnumbing night was being helped into the bar by Viggo, whose soiled clothes quickly attracted attention and help. I remember someone sitting me down in a chair, but somehow I managed to slip and I fell down, hitting my head on one of the legs of a bar stool. I was fast becoming a believer in the saying that bad news always comes in threes. When Bean got up to help Viggo clean off the vomit, I looked away and asked anyone, anybody, to take me home. I felt strong, gentle hands lift me up and soon I was being escorted to a car, not caring whose it was as I lay slumped in the seat.
The door opened, and my benefactor got into the driver's seat. I felt kind blue eyes gaze at me with compassion and empathy. "I'm so sorry, Orli. I wanted to warn you bu-"
"Just drive me home," I said in a flat voice.
The ride home seemed endless, and later I realised it was because Elijah was driving around town instead of heading straight home. The stereo was on, and it was playing one of his Pumpkins CDs but I wasn't paying much attention. Instead I looked out the window, somehow feeling comforted by the quiet nightscape of Wellington when all the shops were closed and the streets were dark and quiet. Elijah mostly kept silent, occasionally humming along to the songs, but just driving endlessly. But I definitely could feel his presence, like some silent, protective guardian that smelled of cloves and knew all the words to 'Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness'. Later on, I would realise that it was his own special way of taking me under his wing.
I would never find out if Viggo knew about my feelings for him at the time he told me about Bean, and my guess was he must have been oblivious, because he isn't the hurtful type. Anyway, it didn't matter because the damage had been done. If it weren't for the hobbits – especially Lij – who constantly surrounded me and refused to let me mope by myself, I might have been worse off.
My friendship with Viggo went on as usual, and it made the hurt somehow worse because I had gotten used to seeing him everyday, to the point where he had become part of my routine. Sometimes he'd invite me to go fishing or to dinner with Bean, but I simply couldn't go anymore, even though he and Bean weren't together then. The very fact that the gentle love in his eyes was being directed at someone else – in fact, one of my other good friends – was unbearable. I didn't want to think about what I was missing. You know the old adage that if you love someone, you'd just want them to be happy? Rubbish. I didn't want Viggo to be happy with Bean. I wanted him to be happy with me.
Thankfully, there was an upcoming long break and everyone had plans for the holidays. In between their endless Playstation tournaments, Elijah and Dom were talking about going somewhere for a surfing holiday, and I inevitably became part of their plans. It was hard to describe how I felt when I found out that Viggo and Sean were going on a trip to see the South Islands. My stomach felt like it was going to cave in again even after I had spent so much time gingerly rebuilding everything. I wasn't planning on seeing them off, but upon Lij's advice, I did go. We helped them load the car, then I gave Viggo a long hug and whispered "Good luck" in his ear. He pulled back, then gave me this look of absolute gratitude and friendship that I'll never forget, and somehow it made everything slightly less askew. I watched him and Bean drive off, then I turned to Elijah.
"Is there anywhere we can get drunk?"
"Orli, it's 8 in the morning!"
"Jesus, okay, okay." I grinned, then ruffled his hair. "Let's go jump out of a plane."
He flashed his unique gap-toothed grin back at me. "That's much better."
~
After Viggo and Bean came back from their trip and work resumed on the set, I could instantly tell things were slightly different. To the casual observer, things might have been normal, but I knew where to look, and so did Elijah. I saw the clasped hands under catering tables, I saw the moments stolen under a tree during lunch break, Viggo quietly writing in his journal with Bean looking over his shoulder, a hidden arm wrapped around Viggo's waist. At last I finally acknowledged the same gentle love that was in Bean's eyes, directed back at Viggo, and I'd be a fantastic liar if I said it had stopped hurting by then.
Why did I love Viggo so much? To be honest I couldn't really put it down into words and rationalise it. And I don't think Bean could have, either. There was just something so...Viggo about him that made him the sun of everyone's life, with events and people and emotions orbiting around him. But I was glad to realise that the hurt was slowly but surely fading away, and really, when you're surrounded by hobbits and Elves and pranks and food and birthdays and divorces and marriages and orcs, you find yourself not having time to wallow in self-pity.
During the times I was with Viggo without Bean around, which was mostly while we were shooting ROTK or TTT scenes, I could tell that every atom in his body was in love, and he told me about their trip and how he finally confessed his feelings to Bean at a rundown Anglican church somewhere in the South Island. The part of my brain that kept going 'It should have been me' was eventually drowned out by my excitement over Elijah taking me basejumping the next day. For the first time, I actually felt happy for Viggo and Bean.
It was obvious to anyone who paid attention how much Viggo loved Bean. He had photos in his basement everywhere of Boromir in sunglasses, Boromir lying on the ground, Boromir sitting under a tree frowning over Yeats. I was given a privileged sneak peek at a then-unfinished painting of what Viggo tentatively titled 'Boromir's cloak' and it made me feel sad just looking at it. No doubt I was in a lot of Viggo's photos too, as was Elijah and Dom and Bernard and Karl and everyone else on the set, but none were treasured as lovingly as the ones of Bean laughing and flipping two fingers in jest at the camera.
Then I caught sight of one of the photos Viggo had taken at Te Anau, of Elijah smoking outside in the snow and looking upwards, slightly puzzled. I stared at it for a long time, and when I turned around, I found Viggo standing behind me with a quiet smile. "Do you want that one?"
"Yeah," I said, and we didn't say anything else as Viggo took down the photo and gave me the print, but the soft understanding look in his eyes and the way my hands shook as I took the photo from him said everything.
~
I turned to look at Ian, and his eyes were closed but he was smiling to himself, as though savouring the soft tones of music coming from another room. "Sir Ian?"
"Yes, my dear boy." He opened his eyes, and slowly brushed his hair back like some dignified old Persian cat. "That was a lovely story."
"You already knew most of it."
"You'd be surprised. The wags certainly had a lot of gossip to report, and let's just say it got in the way of the truth." His eyes had that quiet glimmer, which always looked like he was sharing some private joke with you.
"It did. Sometimes. I even believed it myself at one point." I chuckled as I laid my head back and stared at the sky. The sunset was over, and now the first few stars were starting to come out in the brilliant blue twilight.
"Hi Ian. And hey, you lazyass elf." I smelt the cloves first before spotting him at the doorway, and I smiled so widely that my cheeks hurt.
"About bloody time! Where were you?"
"Sorry!" However he looked completely unapologetic as he flung himself onto my lap, squashing me. "Feet took a much longer time because I had too much glue on one foot. C'mon, Dom and Bills are waiting in the car, and Viggo and Beanie are already at the restaurant."
"Kay, but you gotta help me find my keys, I don't know where I-"
Lij reached into his pocket and yanked out a familiar set of keys with a Bart Simpson keychain. "They were with me, you goof. You forgot to take them last night."
Beaming, I leaned forward and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, and he yanked me up with a firm hand, and when I was on my feet he didn't let it go. As we were heading for the door, Sir Ian stood up as well, stabbing his cigarette butt into an old can. "So you do know the moral of the story, right?"
We paused in the doorway, and I forcibly took my eyes off Lijah and grinned at Sir Ian. "Uh, never tell anyone bad news on a full stomach?"
Sir Ian laughed. "Actually, that's a good one too. But I was thinking: it's always the last place you look."
I looked confused, but Lij just laughed and tugged my hand, pulling me towards the door.
THE END
(*This story is inspired by lead singer Sam Endicott of The Bravery, who told the people in the audience about the inspiration behind his song 'Tyrant'. "This is about a girl who used to live next door, and we used to go out. When we broke up, I was still living next door to her. And at night, I'd hear her with these men who were bringing her home. It drove me crazy, thinking of her with someone else.")
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no subject
Date: 2005-09-17 12:41 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-09-21 04:27 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-09-17 12:42 pm (UTC)Made me feel all squishy inside, in a good way of course! Fantastic fic!
no subject
Date: 2005-09-21 04:33 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-09-17 02:16 pm (UTC)Many thanks for this lovely fic!
xx
no subject
Date: 2005-09-21 04:38 pm (UTC)I'm essentially a VigBean girl at heart so this was the ending I had in mind at the very beginning when I first started writing this story. So no matter what I do, my endings are always predictable - Viggo will get his Bean, and vice versa, heheh.
Thanks again for reading!
no subject
Date: 2005-09-17 03:56 pm (UTC)I think I may heve gotten a little weepy--but you know I'm a sap anyway. Heh. Awesome job, girl.
no subject
Date: 2005-09-22 07:53 pm (UTC)Thank you so much for your support for my writing over the years, and in return, you've taught me invaluable things about writing that I'll always remember! *squishes you*
no subject
Date: 2005-09-23 07:05 am (UTC)Well of course. You are seriously one of the best writers that I know and I would so love to have your skill. And eep! I've taught you? Heck, you've taught ME so much, girl.
Miss you tons. *squishes you back*
no subject
Date: 2005-09-17 04:36 pm (UTC)~Kris
no subject
Date: 2005-09-22 07:56 pm (UTC)Thanks for the feedback! I've always loved your A/B drabbles :)
no subject
Date: 2005-09-17 04:44 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-09-22 07:56 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-09-17 04:44 pm (UTC)Just a great fic all around and the perfect middle of the night read -- yes this is the second time I've read it. *grins*
no subject
Date: 2005-09-22 07:59 pm (UTC)But again, thanks for your kind words! And I agree with your icon: RPS *is* hot!
The Tyrant
Date: 2005-09-17 11:02 pm (UTC)Loved both morals to the story!
Re: The Tyrant
Date: 2005-09-22 08:01 pm (UTC)But glad to see you enjoyed it :) Thanks again for your sweet comments!
no subject
Date: 2005-09-18 05:58 am (UTC)loved every bit of the story.. thank you for sharing the wonderful tale :D
no subject
Date: 2005-09-22 08:03 pm (UTC)Thank you very much for your kind comments!
Hello
Date: 2005-09-18 07:22 am (UTC)Re: Hello
Date: 2005-09-22 08:04 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-09-18 07:47 pm (UTC)Very unusual and very well done!
no subject
Date: 2005-09-22 08:06 pm (UTC)Thanks again for reading! *hugs*
no subject
Date: 2005-09-19 03:13 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-09-22 08:08 pm (UTC)Thanks again for reading!
no subject
Date: 2005-09-21 09:28 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-09-22 08:11 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-09-21 02:31 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-09-22 08:16 pm (UTC)Sorry, I can't get over the Toronto picture! Tee hee. It still gives me the thrills whenever I see it. Anyway, it was my sneaky intention to subtly suggest that it was Sean, and the blonde woman reference was not Abby, but Jodie Kidd. It took a lot of frowning and head-scratching on my part to make the narrator sound ambiguous, so I'm glad it worked in a way! Anyway, I could never ever let Viggo and Sean end up with anyone else apart from each other so no matter the plot twists and turns, they'll always end up together anyway ;)
Thanks for reading and your kind comments! *squishes*