Shock (Mick, PG-13) Champagne Challenge #115

[allegrita]

Shadow, thank you so much for going to the trouble of finding this story! It hadn't seen the light in over a decade! I think you're the one who mentioned that this story and "Unbirthday" are kind of like bookends to Mick's week of being human. I hadn't thought of that when I wrote them, but you're right, and I love that you like to read them together as a set. Nothing like being given your heart's desire and a helluva beating to make you think... and nothing like giving up that heart's desire on your own terms to make you rethink everything once more. I love that he spoke to me about those crucial points in his life (or unlife, whatever) and in the show.

Thanks for pointing out the uncertainty Mick expressed about his new status. Was it real? It sure felt real, but he didn't know how to interpret it. He didn't get much information from Coraline, and he hadn't gotten any answers from her blood. So on top of everything else, he didn't know what to expect in the future. And the whirl of thoughts in the "now" kept getting interrupted, so he really couldn't concentrate well. What a strange experience it would be!

[Lilly]

How wonderful to read this again!

Alle, I stand by my quote from my first comment:

So many wonderful lines here, but my favorite was perhaps the most unexpected. This really caught me by surprise and it's an absolutely brilliant tie in...

I close my eyes. Without the chill of the freezer, there’s nothing to lull me to sleep but the tiny ticking sound of my watch’s second hand. What was it Josef said about humans listening to the tick-tick-tick of their own looming demise? Every second another step closer to death. I could get used to that…
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I love that.

But this time I was taken by this:

Yesterday I could see in the dark as easily as by daylight, maybe easier. Tonight, everything’s distorted. Nothing looks the way it does with the lights on… the dark is unfamiliar, a little scary.

And I couldn't help but think that Mick is realizing that it's not just the dark -- it's become human again and how very unfamiliar those human feelings are to him now -- that is truly scary.

Fabulous job.

[allegrita]

Lilly, thank you so much! Ooh, I love your interpretation of that line. It's such a treat when people see things in a story of mine that I hadn't thought of, but which fit perfectly. And it gives me a new way of looking at my own story!