Fic: Worlds Away 3/6
Mar. 21st, 2010 07:13 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
amediaTitle: Worlds Away
Author:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
amedia
Word Count: 6706
Rating: PG
Pairing: Cain/Ambrose
Summary: Ambrose returns from a strange journey.
Warnings: None
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by Imagiquest. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
Author's Note: Many thanks to TODS for beta-reading far above and beyond the call of duty.
Part 1 may be found here.
Part 2 may be found here.
Now that Ambrose realized he was not yet home, he noticed things more clearly. The Queen had not dyed her hair, as he had first assumed; she had never given up her magic to save a daughter and so had never gone silver. DG seemed to be at home because she was at home; she had grown up in the O.Z. As for Azkadellia, she had grown up without the shadow of monstrous evil. These were the people he loved as they were meant to be. And Cain—his thoughts ran off the rails as he looked at Cain. He was the only one, thought Ambrose, who seemed as haunted as his counterpart.
"You must be exhausted," Cain said to him. "And it's getting late."
Ambrose nodded, rubbing his eyes. "Yes, but we have so much more to do. For one thing, we need to figure out what happened to your Ambrose. I wonder if Tutor can help."
Cain turned to the Queen. "Your Majesty, may we continue this conversation tomorrow? Perhaps with Tutor—I mean, Professor Patmol—here as well?"
"Of course, Mr. Cain," the Queen said, rising gracefully to her feet. Cain and Ambrose immediately stood as well. She exchanged a look with Cain and addressed her guest. "Ambrose, I would ordinarily offer you quarters befitting a visiting dignitary. However, I'm sure that word has spread rapidly of your return; your counterpart was sadly missed. I don't think my people are ready yet to learn your true identity."
Ambrose looked from one to the other, his weary mind struggling to divine the message behind her words.
Cain took pity on him. "In this dimension, your counterpart and I share living quarters," he said. "Any other arrangement would send gossip flying from the servants' quarters all the way to Finaqua and back." He paused, hesitating. "But if you'd rather be alone…"
Ambrose interrupted him. "I'd really rather not be alone," he said firmly. As a momentary sadness flitted across Cain's face, Ambrose suddenly wondered if he were being too selfish. Surely it must be painful for Cain to see and touch someone who looked exactly like the one he missed so desperately, but who wasn't the same. He realized now why this Cain looked so much like the one he knew. "If you don't mind, that is," he added hastily.
Cain was planning to make up the couch in their quarters as a spare bed, but somehow he never got around to it. Small talk gradually turned into a lengthy conversation about their respective dimensions; he and Ambrose found themselves mapping out the places where their personal histories matched or diverged.
"What about Adora?" Ambrose asked at one point.
Cain smiled. "There's a name I haven't heard in a couple of decades," he said, shaking his head with a rueful smile. "Sometimes I wonder how things would have turned out if I'd asked her to marry me just a few days earlier."
"What do you mean?" asked Ambrose.
"My former best friend Zero asked her first," Cain said. "And she said yes. I still don't know which of them I was angrier with." Then he shrugged. "But it all worked out. I didn't want to hang around Central City any more, so I put in for a transfer. The Mystic Man gave me a bang-up recommendation, and I wound up in charge of the security detail for the royal family at Finaqua."
"That's quite a responsible position," said Ambrose.
Cain nodded. "My predecessor apparently didn't think so. Would you believe those little princesses were running around the woods unsupervised all day long? It was my idea to put a guard on them just to keep them from drowning in the lake or being eaten by bears!" He broke off his reminiscences when he saw the shaken look on Ambrose's face. "What?" he asked.
"I can tell you exactly what would have happened if you'd asked Adora a few days earlier," said Ambrose. "You were right about the little princesses…"
By the time he finished, Ambrose was yawning so much that he could hardly put words together, and Cain was struggling to keep his eyelids open. "We'll have to talk about this more tomorrow," Cain said at last.
Ambrose nodded. "Did you say something about a couch?"
Cain looked toward the other room, nodded, and began the arduous process of climbing to his weary feet.
"Oh, never mind," said Ambrose suddenly. "It's a huge bed, and I think I can trust you to be a gentleman."
Cain smiled. "Your—I mean, your counterpart's—pajamas are in the third drawer of that dresser," he said, waving tiredly.
"Snuggly" was not the word that Ambrose would have used to describe Wyatt Cain in any dimension. In fact, he thought, Cain had a long way to go just to get to "demonstrative." Ambrose was therefore astonished, when he awakened from a troubling dream in the middle of the night, to find Cain sleepily nuzzling the back of his neck. It seemed obvious that Cain was not fully awake, and Ambrose felt guilty accepting a kindness intended for someone else. He tried to persuade himself to move away, but he couldn't bring himself to do it before he fell back to sleep.
He awoke again sometime later to find Cain threading his fingers through his hair; Ambrose could not keep from leaning into the touch, savoring the human contact he had missed for so long. When Cain's unsuspecting fingers ran into the zipper, Ambrose felt a shock go through Cain's body and heard him gasp involuntarily as he startled awake. He then felt Cain move abruptly away, taking warmth and reassurance with him.
Now what to do? Ambrose wondered. He regretted the pain he had caused this Cain by his thoughtless desire not to sleep alone; for a moment he wanted nothing more than to roll over and promise Cain earnestly that he would stop at nothing to get his Ambrose back. Upon consideration, he realized that Cain would probably be embarrassed to learn that Ambrose had been awake and aware of Cain's confusion. Besides, so far he couldn't even get himself home; his promise of assistance would be cold comfort indeed. If he spoke to Cain now, he would make only himself feel better; Cain would feel worse.
Furthermore, he thought, Cain might be suspicious that he had been awake the whole time and had willingly accepted Cain's misdirected affection. Come to think of it, he was wondering the same thing himself. He was still wondering when he fell fast asleep. When he awoke, he found that it was now he who had flung an arm over Cain sometime before dawn.
Part 4
Author:
amediaWord Count: 6706
Rating: PG
Pairing: Cain/Ambrose
Summary: Ambrose returns from a strange journey.
Warnings: None
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by Imagiquest. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
Author's Note: Many thanks to TODS for beta-reading far above and beyond the call of duty.
Part 1 may be found here.
Part 2 may be found here.
Now that Ambrose realized he was not yet home, he noticed things more clearly. The Queen had not dyed her hair, as he had first assumed; she had never given up her magic to save a daughter and so had never gone silver. DG seemed to be at home because she was at home; she had grown up in the O.Z. As for Azkadellia, she had grown up without the shadow of monstrous evil. These were the people he loved as they were meant to be. And Cain—his thoughts ran off the rails as he looked at Cain. He was the only one, thought Ambrose, who seemed as haunted as his counterpart.
"You must be exhausted," Cain said to him. "And it's getting late."
Ambrose nodded, rubbing his eyes. "Yes, but we have so much more to do. For one thing, we need to figure out what happened to your Ambrose. I wonder if Tutor can help."
Cain turned to the Queen. "Your Majesty, may we continue this conversation tomorrow? Perhaps with Tutor—I mean, Professor Patmol—here as well?"
"Of course, Mr. Cain," the Queen said, rising gracefully to her feet. Cain and Ambrose immediately stood as well. She exchanged a look with Cain and addressed her guest. "Ambrose, I would ordinarily offer you quarters befitting a visiting dignitary. However, I'm sure that word has spread rapidly of your return; your counterpart was sadly missed. I don't think my people are ready yet to learn your true identity."
Ambrose looked from one to the other, his weary mind struggling to divine the message behind her words.
Cain took pity on him. "In this dimension, your counterpart and I share living quarters," he said. "Any other arrangement would send gossip flying from the servants' quarters all the way to Finaqua and back." He paused, hesitating. "But if you'd rather be alone…"
Ambrose interrupted him. "I'd really rather not be alone," he said firmly. As a momentary sadness flitted across Cain's face, Ambrose suddenly wondered if he were being too selfish. Surely it must be painful for Cain to see and touch someone who looked exactly like the one he missed so desperately, but who wasn't the same. He realized now why this Cain looked so much like the one he knew. "If you don't mind, that is," he added hastily.
Cain was planning to make up the couch in their quarters as a spare bed, but somehow he never got around to it. Small talk gradually turned into a lengthy conversation about their respective dimensions; he and Ambrose found themselves mapping out the places where their personal histories matched or diverged.
"What about Adora?" Ambrose asked at one point.
Cain smiled. "There's a name I haven't heard in a couple of decades," he said, shaking his head with a rueful smile. "Sometimes I wonder how things would have turned out if I'd asked her to marry me just a few days earlier."
"What do you mean?" asked Ambrose.
"My former best friend Zero asked her first," Cain said. "And she said yes. I still don't know which of them I was angrier with." Then he shrugged. "But it all worked out. I didn't want to hang around Central City any more, so I put in for a transfer. The Mystic Man gave me a bang-up recommendation, and I wound up in charge of the security detail for the royal family at Finaqua."
"That's quite a responsible position," said Ambrose.
Cain nodded. "My predecessor apparently didn't think so. Would you believe those little princesses were running around the woods unsupervised all day long? It was my idea to put a guard on them just to keep them from drowning in the lake or being eaten by bears!" He broke off his reminiscences when he saw the shaken look on Ambrose's face. "What?" he asked.
"I can tell you exactly what would have happened if you'd asked Adora a few days earlier," said Ambrose. "You were right about the little princesses…"
By the time he finished, Ambrose was yawning so much that he could hardly put words together, and Cain was struggling to keep his eyelids open. "We'll have to talk about this more tomorrow," Cain said at last.
Ambrose nodded. "Did you say something about a couch?"
Cain looked toward the other room, nodded, and began the arduous process of climbing to his weary feet.
"Oh, never mind," said Ambrose suddenly. "It's a huge bed, and I think I can trust you to be a gentleman."
Cain smiled. "Your—I mean, your counterpart's—pajamas are in the third drawer of that dresser," he said, waving tiredly.
"Snuggly" was not the word that Ambrose would have used to describe Wyatt Cain in any dimension. In fact, he thought, Cain had a long way to go just to get to "demonstrative." Ambrose was therefore astonished, when he awakened from a troubling dream in the middle of the night, to find Cain sleepily nuzzling the back of his neck. It seemed obvious that Cain was not fully awake, and Ambrose felt guilty accepting a kindness intended for someone else. He tried to persuade himself to move away, but he couldn't bring himself to do it before he fell back to sleep.
He awoke again sometime later to find Cain threading his fingers through his hair; Ambrose could not keep from leaning into the touch, savoring the human contact he had missed for so long. When Cain's unsuspecting fingers ran into the zipper, Ambrose felt a shock go through Cain's body and heard him gasp involuntarily as he startled awake. He then felt Cain move abruptly away, taking warmth and reassurance with him.
Now what to do? Ambrose wondered. He regretted the pain he had caused this Cain by his thoughtless desire not to sleep alone; for a moment he wanted nothing more than to roll over and promise Cain earnestly that he would stop at nothing to get his Ambrose back. Upon consideration, he realized that Cain would probably be embarrassed to learn that Ambrose had been awake and aware of Cain's confusion. Besides, so far he couldn't even get himself home; his promise of assistance would be cold comfort indeed. If he spoke to Cain now, he would make only himself feel better; Cain would feel worse.
Furthermore, he thought, Cain might be suspicious that he had been awake the whole time and had willingly accepted Cain's misdirected affection. Come to think of it, he was wondering the same thing himself. He was still wondering when he fell fast asleep. When he awoke, he found that it was now he who had flung an arm over Cain sometime before dawn.
Part 4
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2010-03-22 01:18 am (UTC)I'm so looking forward to see wherever this may lead! :D
no subject
Date: 2010-03-22 02:01 am (UTC)This is written so well! The emotion is just seeping through the lines.
no subject
Date: 2010-03-22 02:06 am (UTC)I'm very sure this story will have a very, very interesting ending!
no subject
Date: 2010-03-22 03:04 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-03-22 12:40 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-03-23 02:47 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-03-23 02:48 am (UTC)Oh, good point! I imagine that was a very painful conversation for both Ambrose and Cain.
This is written so well! The emotion is just seeping through the lines.
Thank you so very much! I'm so glad you're enjoying it.
no subject
Date: 2010-03-23 02:49 am (UTC)What a lovely mental image you conjure up! Of course, it might lead to ... complications. ;-)
no subject
Date: 2010-03-23 02:52 am (UTC)Thank you!!!
i also like that he saved the OZ and didn't even know it just by keeping a better eye on the kids.
I'm glad you liked that part! I really enjoyed writing it and hoped people would connect with it, so your comment makes me extra happy. :-)
no subject
Date: 2010-03-23 02:58 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-03-28 03:35 am (UTC)Would you believe those little princesses were running around the woods unsupervised all day long?
Oh, this was painful, to think how it would have turned out if Cain had been in charge of security, the result being happier, healthier versions of everyone Ambrose loves, and Ambrose himself.
Love how they just go from sharing conversation to sharing the bed. But poor Ambrose, to have the warmth he wants, but to know from Cain's reaction to the zipper that he thought he was cuddling someone else.
no subject
Date: 2010-03-30 01:42 am (UTC)You have this wonderful way of phrasing what I'm trying to get at - exactly! ♥
Love how they just go from sharing conversation to sharing the bed.
TODS gave a big grin at this part of the comment because that was a section he helped with a lot. :-D I'm so glad you liked how it turned out!