Wonder City Stories II #78
Dec. 21st, 2011 08:55 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
wonder_cityThat Name Does Not Belong To Me
Author's Note: A little experiment, playing with typography. This contains the entirety of the episode below. Please be aware that there is language above and beyond my occasional-f-bomb variety, so it is probably NSFW. There is, however, no sound to the video, so there's that.
ETA: If you can't see the video, try this link and let me know if it works.
Nereid was so pleased to finally convince Tam to come with her to the Stars 'n' Garters that she'd nearly forgotten to be embarrassed by her parents.
Worse, she was embarrassed by Tam.
He'd wanted her to take him shopping that day; she promised they'd go after, if only he would come meet her parents, since they’d asked her to bring him by that day. While they got dressed that morning, he had picked three fights out of sheer bad temper. She had only lost her temper once, had kept it both other times, and felt positively saint-like for doing so. It was culture shock, she was certain, and she was helping him through it. He'd been born in Victorian England and it hadn't been like this world. Nothing for it but patience -- a virtue for which she'd never been known, but was exercising now to great effect. Or, if not effect, at least some personal satisfaction.
Flo hugged Nereid when they stepped into the cafe, hard and warmly. Nereid realized that she hadn't visited her parents since she left the hospital, and felt vaguely guilty about it. "Hi, Mom," she said. When Flo released her, she stepped back and said, "This is Tam, Mom."
Flo smiled at Tam a little nervously. "You are a handsome young fellow," she said, extending her hand. "I'm Flo Starr."
No court manners for her lower-class oddities of relations, apparently. "Nice to meet you," he said without emotion, shaking her hand perfunctorily.
"Why don't you two have a seat?" Flo said, fiddling with her apron. "I'll get us some milkshakes. I might even pry Ebb out of the kitchen." She hurried away.
Nereid glanced around. The regulars were here: the Tinkerer, Damned Yankee, Lady Justice. She was surprised at Madame's absence, and the Equestrian's presence. "Oh!" she said. "Hi."
The Equestrian turned around to face them with a friendly smile; she was uncharacteristically out of uniform, wearing only a t-shirt and jeans and muddy sneakers. She sat at Lady Justice's table, and had been sipping a soda. "Have a seat," she said. "Flo can pull up a chair easier to this table than that one."
Nereid could hardly refuse the invitation, given the truth of the statement, the smallness of the place, and the desire to avoid being rude to Lady Justice, at least, if not the Equestrian. She tugged Tam forward to sit down at the table across from her.
Lady Justice smiled cheerfully and stuck her hand out to Tam. "Sorry, I'm an old lady and my hearing is crap these days. What's your name again?"
"Aloysius MacCready," Tam said, bored. Then his eyes opened wide.
"When and where were you born?" the Equestrian snapped.
"1917, in Philadelphia," he said, then stood up, breathing hard. "What are you doing to me?"
Nereid stared at him as wheels began to turn in her head. Lady Justice hadn't left when they arrived. She always left when someone new came in. Because...
... because no one around her could lie. Lady J met her gaze steadily, if sadly.
"Why did you use the name Tam Lane?" the Equestrian pursued, standing up and leaning across the table.
"Stop!" Nereid cried, leaping to her feet as well. "Stop it!"
"To use the story! Jesus Christ, you WITCH! You've True Thomased me!" Tam shouted, staggering backward from the table, overturning his chair.
"Did you get someone to separate Nereid from me?" the Equestrian said, chasing him the few steps across the cafe.
"Yes, fuck you!" Tam shouted.
"Tam, I'm sorry!" Nereid said, leaping to his side and seizing his arm.
"You bitch," he snarled, his hand closing on her wrist with painful force. "You conspiring, lying cunt. You brought me here, you knew, you KNEW, you were working with this crone. After you killed someone to save me, after everything I did for you..." He cast her arm away from him and ran from the cafe.
Nereid turned a stricken look on the Equestrian, then on Lady Justice. Neither woman said anything, just met her gaze unflinching.
With an incoherent shout, she turned and ran after Tam.
---
Note from the Author:
I hope my little experimental holiday present is something you all enjoyed. I apologize for any timing issues you encounter; it's my first attempt at such a thing.
There will be one more episode next week for the year, though I suspect it will be February before this story arc wraps (since today's ep is #78, you may notice that this novel is running longer than the first one!).
In the meantime, I hope the holidays (or the long weekend, if you don't celebrate these particular holidays) treat you extremely well and you get some relaxation time somewhere in there.
Please remember to vote for WCS!
Author's Note: A little experiment, playing with typography. This contains the entirety of the episode below. Please be aware that there is language above and beyond my occasional-f-bomb variety, so it is probably NSFW. There is, however, no sound to the video, so there's that.
ETA: If you can't see the video, try this link and let me know if it works.
Nereid was so pleased to finally convince Tam to come with her to the Stars 'n' Garters that she'd nearly forgotten to be embarrassed by her parents.
Worse, she was embarrassed by Tam.
He'd wanted her to take him shopping that day; she promised they'd go after, if only he would come meet her parents, since they’d asked her to bring him by that day. While they got dressed that morning, he had picked three fights out of sheer bad temper. She had only lost her temper once, had kept it both other times, and felt positively saint-like for doing so. It was culture shock, she was certain, and she was helping him through it. He'd been born in Victorian England and it hadn't been like this world. Nothing for it but patience -- a virtue for which she'd never been known, but was exercising now to great effect. Or, if not effect, at least some personal satisfaction.
Flo hugged Nereid when they stepped into the cafe, hard and warmly. Nereid realized that she hadn't visited her parents since she left the hospital, and felt vaguely guilty about it. "Hi, Mom," she said. When Flo released her, she stepped back and said, "This is Tam, Mom."
Flo smiled at Tam a little nervously. "You are a handsome young fellow," she said, extending her hand. "I'm Flo Starr."
No court manners for her lower-class oddities of relations, apparently. "Nice to meet you," he said without emotion, shaking her hand perfunctorily.
"Why don't you two have a seat?" Flo said, fiddling with her apron. "I'll get us some milkshakes. I might even pry Ebb out of the kitchen." She hurried away.
Nereid glanced around. The regulars were here: the Tinkerer, Damned Yankee, Lady Justice. She was surprised at Madame's absence, and the Equestrian's presence. "Oh!" she said. "Hi."
The Equestrian turned around to face them with a friendly smile; she was uncharacteristically out of uniform, wearing only a t-shirt and jeans and muddy sneakers. She sat at Lady Justice's table, and had been sipping a soda. "Have a seat," she said. "Flo can pull up a chair easier to this table than that one."
Nereid could hardly refuse the invitation, given the truth of the statement, the smallness of the place, and the desire to avoid being rude to Lady Justice, at least, if not the Equestrian. She tugged Tam forward to sit down at the table across from her.
Lady Justice smiled cheerfully and stuck her hand out to Tam. "Sorry, I'm an old lady and my hearing is crap these days. What's your name again?"
"Aloysius MacCready," Tam said, bored. Then his eyes opened wide.
"When and where were you born?" the Equestrian snapped.
"1917, in Philadelphia," he said, then stood up, breathing hard. "What are you doing to me?"
Nereid stared at him as wheels began to turn in her head. Lady Justice hadn't left when they arrived. She always left when someone new came in. Because...
... because no one around her could lie. Lady J met her gaze steadily, if sadly.
"Why did you use the name Tam Lane?" the Equestrian pursued, standing up and leaning across the table.
"Stop!" Nereid cried, leaping to her feet as well. "Stop it!"
"To use the story! Jesus Christ, you WITCH! You've True Thomased me!" Tam shouted, staggering backward from the table, overturning his chair.
"Did you get someone to separate Nereid from me?" the Equestrian said, chasing him the few steps across the cafe.
"Yes, fuck you!" Tam shouted.
"Tam, I'm sorry!" Nereid said, leaping to his side and seizing his arm.
"You bitch," he snarled, his hand closing on her wrist with painful force. "You conspiring, lying cunt. You brought me here, you knew, you KNEW, you were working with this crone. After you killed someone to save me, after everything I did for you..." He cast her arm away from him and ran from the cafe.
Nereid turned a stricken look on the Equestrian, then on Lady Justice. Neither woman said anything, just met her gaze unflinching.
With an incoherent shout, she turned and ran after Tam.
---
Note from the Author:
I hope my little experimental holiday present is something you all enjoyed. I apologize for any timing issues you encounter; it's my first attempt at such a thing.
There will be one more episode next week for the year, though I suspect it will be February before this story arc wraps (since today's ep is #78, you may notice that this novel is running longer than the first one!).
In the meantime, I hope the holidays (or the long weekend, if you don't celebrate these particular holidays) treat you extremely well and you get some relaxation time somewhere in there.
Please remember to vote for WCS!
