"Apology", by Luzula

[luzula]

Title: Apology
Pairing: Fraser/Thatcher
Prompt: pink
Rating: PG
Length: 242 words
Summary: Fraser and Thatcher dancing around each other.
Notes: For the snippet tag event. I wanted to write some sex, but these two just kept being awkward. If I get tagged again, I'll write a prequel. *g* Not beta read (although I thank malnpudl for a brief chat about the subjunctive mood).

There was a knock on the door, and Meg looked up. "Come in."

It was Constable Fraser, of course. (Benton? Ben? No, best stick to formalities.)

"Sir, I came to apologize." Constable Fraser looked as if he were headed for a court-martial, and was bound and determined to endure it with his head held high.

Meg sensed the impending awkwardness, and it made her voice sharper than she intended. "For what, Constable?"

"For last night, sir. I was...well, I was entirely sober, and you were not."

"Are you apologizing for being sober?"

"No, sir." He swallowed. "I thought you might--I mean, I was afraid I might have been taking advantage. That is--"

Meg stared at him, distracted by the sudden appearance of his pink tongue, coming out to wet his lips. She squirmed in remembrance, and fled into formality. "Constable, do you think this is an appropriate conversation to have during work hours?"

"Ah, perhaps not, sir. I apologize."

Now he was apologizing for his apology. Christ, the man drove her crazy--in more ways than one.

"Well, I'll just dismiss myself, then," he said, and Meg realized she had been silent for too long. She nodded at him, and he turned and headed for the door.

No, she couldn't let him leave like this. "Constable?"

He looked back.

"I'm quite capable of knowing what I want even after a glass or two of wine."

Fraser's face relaxed slightly, and he nodded. "Understood."

***

And I tag akamine_chan!

Comments

[spuffyduds]

Oh, I love this! Very Fraser to be all honorably concerned, and very Meg to be (almost reluctantly)...kind, in her stiff Meg-ish way.

[luzula]

Thank you! I'm glad I got them right.

[slwatson]

Oh, nice. I like the way this was handled -- awkward situation, but especially Meg's, "I'm quite capable of knowing what I want even after a glass or two of wine."

[luzula]

Thank you! They keep being awkward with each other when I write them, for some reason. Maybe because they're so often awkward in canon.

[helens78]

Eeee! I love them together so much, and it might be awkward, but go Meg. :D

[luzula]

Yay, glad you like! Will be writing the prequel sometime soon, so you can see what made them awkward. : )

[how_obscure]

I'm not a Fraser/Thatcher fan, but I read this anyway and wow, you have their interactions spot on! This is a great little piece of writing! Very nice glimpse into how Meg thinks.

[luzula]

Hey, I'm glad you tried something new and liked it! Thank you.

[thursdaynext_27]

Very true to the characters. And I loved She squirmed in remembrance, and fled into formality.

[luzula]

Thanks! Yeah, I liked that sentence, too.

[hazelwho]

Loved this! Especially this line "Now he was apologizing for his apology. Christ, the man drove her crazy" - very Thatcher to react to Fraser's polite mode that way.

[luzula]

Thank you! I bet he can be infuriating. *g*

[brigantine]

Heh. I like the way you've hinted at what might have happened, but ultimately left so much up to our imaginations. *cough* Yiss.

[luzula]

I feel confident that I can rely on my readers' dirty imaginations. *g*

[mergatrude]

Oh, so very them. I think you got the awkwardness pitch perfect, here. And like Brigantine, I like the fact that you left so much up to our imaginations. *g*

[luzula]

Thank you! They don't make it easy for each other, those two.

[jesse_the_k]

Lovely! Fraser dismissing himself is so silly and true.

And isn't the English subjunctive mood a tricky thing?

[luzula]

Thank you! And yes, subjunctive can be tricky when you start to think about it. I wrote it right the first time, but then started second-guessing myself and had to check with someone else.

[exbex]

They are so delicious here, totally in-character and awkward but with that tension that makes it so gleeful for us to watch :D

[luzula]

Thank you! Actually, they were hard for me to watch sometimes, especially in that whole adoption misunderstanding. Embarrassment squick, hello.

[osaraba]

Ahahah, you really got their voices down perfectly -- it was awfully easy to imagine this was a deleted scene from the show! =D

[luzula]

Thank you! I'm glad you thought it was true to the show. : )

[wintercreek]

"I'm quite capable of knowing what I want even after a glass or two of wine."

I love all the things this line does: how it clears up some of the origin of Fraser's awkwardness, how it highlights the differences between them wrt alcohol (Meg is almost certainly accustomed to one or two glasses of wine most nights, Fraser doesn't touch alcohol - and thus probably has trouble judging someone else's responses to it), and, of course, the way it brings some resolution to Fraser's concern.

I hope you do write a prequel! And maybe a sequel, too. *g*

[luzula]

Ooh, in-depth feedback, yay! Thank you so much. Prequel coming up when my hands hurt less. : )

[akamine_chan]

"For last night, sir. I was...well, I was entirely sober, and you were not."

"Are you apologizing for being sober?"

Hee! Love that so very much! Because Fraser is so apologizing for being sober!

This was great, Luz. Felt very much like them.

[luzula]

Thanks, Aka! I liked that line, too. : )

[icepixie]

This is fabulous, and so very them. I also really like everything the "I'm quite capable of knowing what I want even after a glass or two of wine" line does.

[luzula]

Thank you! So glad you think it works. And I'm in the process of writing the prequel to this story, which turned out to be much longer than a snippet. : )

[lyr]

You've captured both of them very well---I could well believe that this happened on screen and I simply forgot it.

[luzula]

Thank you! They do tend to be awkward around each other in canon, at least when it comes to the personal stuff.