SNIPPET SATURDAY!

[agilebrit]

Oh, puppy...

I've been itching to post this for awhile, y'all. Setup: Ben has just awakened from a nightmare in which Janni died, he blamed himself, and then killed himself inside the dream. This brings home the realization that he's stuck here, he's not getting out, and all hope is basically lost. Angeline chooses this moment to successfully seduce him in a botched attempt to make him feel better. Which works about as well as you'd think. And, go:

"Oh! Oh, Benji, no..."

He'd been here for six weeks. Even strapped to the table, with all of his buttons being pushed at once, he'd never cried, she'd noticed. He'd fallen apart on her plenty of times, when the triggers got pulled too often, when the nightmares got too bad, when the whole situation just hit him too hard at the wrong time. None of that had been enough to wring a single tear from his eye.

And now he was coming to pieces in her arms. She'd caused this. She'd tried to make it better and only made it worse. This utterly abandoned weeping was horrifying.

She rolled them so his head rested on her chest. Petting him, kissing his hair, trying to soothe him, although he wouldn't be soothed. "It's all right. Let it out, puppy. I've got you."

He finally wound down, after over an hour. The shakes still had him, though, and his eyes were squeezed shut. He hadn't relaxed at all. If anything, he was more tense than when they'd started. He lay across her, and she could feel the effort he was making to breathe normally.

"I still want you to kill me."

Her unbeating heart clenched in her chest. "I won't."

"I know." More breathing. He calmed, marginally.

"Makes a lady feel insecure, aye, when a man has a reaction like that."

"This is the part where I say it's not you, it's me."

"Do I need to hide the silver?" She was going to anyway.

"No." A few seconds of silence. "But if you slipped, or something, when you fed from me next time, and took too much, or nicked an artery? I'd forgive you."

Comments

[ithildyn.livejournal.com]

Very nice!

[agilebrit.livejournal.com]

*grins* Thank you. It's got one of my very favorite exchanges.

[mela-lyn.livejournal.com]

Ooo... very well done. :) Good last line.

[agilebrit.livejournal.com]

Thanks! Yeah, poor puppy is having a tough time...

[texanfan.livejournal.com]

Oh, oh! I hurt for both of them. There she is, trying to give comfort, and she's the one person he absolutely can't get any comfort from.

[agilebrit.livejournal.com]

I am an Equal Opportunity Meanie. *nods*

[pensive]

when is he NOT tied down?

[agilebrit.livejournal.com]

Well. When he can avoid it. And Ange doesn't tie him down, because she's trying to make it easy on him and knows his triggers. SHE LURVES HIM. *evil laughter*

[garnigal.livejournal.com]

The last line is amazing. Ben is completely broken and Angie is so lovely but blind. What a mess they are in.

[agilebrit.livejournal.com]

*grins nastily* Looks like I cut the snippet off at a good spot. There's a little more to the scene--she ends up losing it after he falls asleep too.

I'm probably having more fun with this than I ought to. I'm glad you liked it. :)