FIC: Before (AB)
Dec. 21st, 2005 06:08 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mhalachaiTitle: Before
Characters: Anita, Jean-Claude (mention of Asher)
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fanfic100 Prompt: 008 -- Weeks
Word Count: 401
Disclaimer: Laurell K. Hamilton owns all things Anita Blake. Only the story is my own.
Fandom: Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter (master list here)
Note: Oops, forgot to mention that this is for![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
sparrow015 in the Ficlette Fiasco II.
~~*~~
"Jean-Claude?"
"Oui, ma petite?"
I rested my head against his shoulder, cuddling up against him under the sheets. "Can I ask you a question?"
"But of course." Jean-Claude smoothed my hair off my shoulder, his skin the colour of bronze in the candlelight. I sighed, wanting to revel in the sensation, but I'd asked a question.
"What was Asher like? Before?"
I lifted my head and propped myself up on my elbow, looking down at Jean-Claude. "What has brought this on?" he asked.
I traced one finger down the side of his face as I thought about how to answer. "You know how he's been, for the last few weeks." Jean-Claude nodded. "I was thinking, you know, about if he's always been like this."
"Ah. Do you mean since Asher joined us in St. Louis, or are you talking about before he was scarred?"
"Before the holy water," I said softly. The weight of my question lay in Jean-Claude's eyes, and it was on the tip of my tongue to take the question back when he surprised me by replying.
"Before, he was not as moody, ma petite, but he still clung tightly to those he loved, was still... flighty." Jean-Claude took my hand in his fingers and kissed the skin on my palm. "But he was more innocent. He truly believed that his beauty could see him through any situation."
I drew my hand out of Jean-Claude's grasp and sat up, pulling the sheet with me. "I'm sorry."
"For what are you sorry?" Jean-Claude asked. He sat up and gathered me into his lap. "Are you sorry for asking the question? Or for wondering what Asher was, before?"
"A bit of both." I stared at the painting over the fireplace, a charming, boring landscape. While Jean-Claude had never had a picture of Asher up in his bedroom, I knew he had three of them: a portrait of Jean-Claude, Asher and Julianna from long ago, of Asher and Jean-Claude mimicking Psyche and Cupid, and one of Asher alone, painted after he was scarred, as Vulcan at his forge. I wondered what Jean-Claude had done with the paintings.
"Do not be sorry for wondering, ma petite." Jean-Claude kissed my cheek. He was shielding his emotions from me so hard that I didn't have any idea what he was feeling. "You know Asher as he is now, and that is what counts."
"I know."
--fin
Characters: Anita, Jean-Claude (mention of Asher)
fanfic100 Prompt: 008 -- WeeksWord Count: 401
Disclaimer: Laurell K. Hamilton owns all things Anita Blake. Only the story is my own.
Fandom: Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter (master list here)
Note: Oops, forgot to mention that this is for
sparrow015 in the Ficlette Fiasco II."Jean-Claude?"
"Oui, ma petite?"
I rested my head against his shoulder, cuddling up against him under the sheets. "Can I ask you a question?"
"But of course." Jean-Claude smoothed my hair off my shoulder, his skin the colour of bronze in the candlelight. I sighed, wanting to revel in the sensation, but I'd asked a question.
"What was Asher like? Before?"
I lifted my head and propped myself up on my elbow, looking down at Jean-Claude. "What has brought this on?" he asked.
I traced one finger down the side of his face as I thought about how to answer. "You know how he's been, for the last few weeks." Jean-Claude nodded. "I was thinking, you know, about if he's always been like this."
"Ah. Do you mean since Asher joined us in St. Louis, or are you talking about before he was scarred?"
"Before the holy water," I said softly. The weight of my question lay in Jean-Claude's eyes, and it was on the tip of my tongue to take the question back when he surprised me by replying.
"Before, he was not as moody, ma petite, but he still clung tightly to those he loved, was still... flighty." Jean-Claude took my hand in his fingers and kissed the skin on my palm. "But he was more innocent. He truly believed that his beauty could see him through any situation."
I drew my hand out of Jean-Claude's grasp and sat up, pulling the sheet with me. "I'm sorry."
"For what are you sorry?" Jean-Claude asked. He sat up and gathered me into his lap. "Are you sorry for asking the question? Or for wondering what Asher was, before?"
"A bit of both." I stared at the painting over the fireplace, a charming, boring landscape. While Jean-Claude had never had a picture of Asher up in his bedroom, I knew he had three of them: a portrait of Jean-Claude, Asher and Julianna from long ago, of Asher and Jean-Claude mimicking Psyche and Cupid, and one of Asher alone, painted after he was scarred, as Vulcan at his forge. I wondered what Jean-Claude had done with the paintings.
"Do not be sorry for wondering, ma petite." Jean-Claude kissed my cheek. He was shielding his emotions from me so hard that I didn't have any idea what he was feeling. "You know Asher as he is now, and that is what counts."
"I know."