4. Terce (nine a.m.) - PG
Posted: Tue Feb 16, 2010 11:51 pm
Title: Terce
Author: redwinter101
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: I don't own Moonlight or any of its characters
Note: this is the fourth story in the Divine Office series - there is a separate A/N here explaining a bit more.
It's 9 a.m. on a very specific day - the same day as Mick is waking up at the start of FtP, enjoying those pillows and blankets and making his longed-for coffee. So while he was doing all that, precisely what were Beth and Josef up to?
*************************************************************************************************************
For Anthony
--- Terce ---
"Beth. How lovely to see you. Thank you for coming." Josef's invitation, delivered by hand the previous day, had left little room for refusal. The feeling of being summoned rankled but when the limo pulled up outside her apartment block, curiosity had trumped dignity.
"I was expecting to meet at your office." Her eye drawn by the stark decor and breathtaking view, Beth forced herself not to gape. A cast around the room took in quiet, background bustle, purposeful, discreet, and underneath it all, the smell of wealth, exclusivity, success.
Her reverie was broken by Josef's guiding arm at her elbow, "Ah. The office is still… out of commission. I hope you don't mind the venue." A twinkle of satisfaction; he knew the capacity of his home to impress. Beth took a seat and waited, lips clamped shut, determined to make him do the talking. Her knowledge of Josef might be limited, but she knew enough to assume this was no idle, social occasion.
Fragrant coffee and delicate pastries arrived and Josef reached for a cup and began to pour, "Shall I be mother?" He was amused both at his role as mein host and at Beth's obvious unease. She had no idea why she was there or the nature of this particular game; the feeling of being one pace behind unsettled her and delighted him.
"You cover lots of terrible crimes - the things people do to each other. Rape and murder, for example. Horrific, wouldn't you agree?" Beth nodded her non-committal acquiescence over the rim of the steaming demitasse, wondering if this was all some elaborate stratagem to get her to cover a story. Josef waited for her to take a sip, "I don't know how much Mick has told you about Coraline."
She winced at the scald of too-hot coffee as she gulped. "That she's gone; that it wasn't meant to be."
Josef smiled, a slight shake of his head, "Always so immediate. I didn't mean her most recent foray into Mick's life."
"Oh. Well… I know enough." There was a hint of bravado to her words; she knew as much as Mick had been prepared to tell her and she had been prepared to ask. The darkness that pressed in on them whenever Coraline's name was mentioned, the heavy sadness in Mick's voice, the regret that pulled him from her; she chose to push them away. Perils for a rainy day.
"Really? Well then you have me at a disadvantage; I always feel there's an awful lot between them that I don't know." Cursing her too-quick response, unsure if she was being baited or berated, Beth held her tongue.
Josef pressed on, "As I said, rape and murder."
"Rape and murder? I don't understand."
He fixed her, eyes narrowing, as he weighed how far to go. "That's what she did to him and he's spent the last half century trying to find a way to deal with it."
"Who? I don't…"
"She penetrated his body without his consent, what would you call it?" His rising cadence betrayed exasperation at her inability to keep up, but like so many of his questions, he neither wanted nor expected an answer, "Then she sucked the blood from his body while he fought for his life."
The pieces started to fall into place, "Mick told me he went to bed a happily-married man and woke up a monster."
Josef rose and sauntered to the window, back turned, his soft tone forcing Beth to crane to make out his words, "Mick is many things; a monster is not one of them."
"I don't need you to tell me that," she snapped, a flare of anger bringing her cup clattering down to its saucer.
"But above all, he is a practical man. He found a way, bit by bit, to go on. That's the great challenge of immortality - finding something to… keep oneself occupied. He pushed away the 'why' whenever he could and concentrated on survival. Existence. Persistence. Making his way in the world," an airy waft of his hand, "and all that jazz." He took a sip from his glass, fully aware that his audience was within his thrall. "Then everything changed when he had to decide to take a life, his wife's life, in order to save a child. And finally, he had his 'why'."
"I know the story, Josef. I don't see-"
"You know it but do you understand it?" Josef interrupted, one eyebrow raised in query. "I wish he'd found his reasons… elsewhere," he looked her up and down with a hint of sneer, "but that's not my call. He saved you, killed for you, protected you and still left you free to live your life, fall in love with the estimable Mr. Lindsey and never asked you for anything in return." He couldn't contain a snort of laughter, "Sounds like I'm nominating him for sainthood, doesn't it? Well I think he's a fool but he's my friend so I put up with it." Another swig smoothed his pained frown.
"I don't know why you're telling me all this. I-"
"I haven't finished," his glare silenced her. "So the unfortunate Mr. Lindsey finds himself on the wrong end of a gangbanger's bullet and you," Josef took a deep breath, setting down his drink and turning to face her, "you ask Mick to repeat what was done to him." His words were deliberate, controlled, his stillness a sharp contrast to Beth's agitation as she fidgeted with the hem of her shirt. Thoughts of vengeance, an unpredictable friend's punishment for her unintended cruelty, tightened the knot of fear in her belly. "It makes me wonder if you know him at all."
"You weren't there, Josef," her voice dropped to a whisper.
"So I'm wrong? You didn't ask him to turn your soon-to-be-ex-boyfriend?" There was a snap of disdain in Josef's voice and he began to pace, warming to his task. "And then, to top it all off nicely, in your 'grief' you throw Mick's own existence back in his face. 'Why do you go on living?' you cry." His whining mimicry stirred her anger but the knowledge that Mick must have recounted her words verbatim kept her silent. "The very question he's been asking himself every day for the last 55 years. Grief can excuse many things but…"
"I understand he's your friend, Josef, but this is none of your business. Besides, I've seen him since then and he's fine. We're fine." She couldn't help but wonder who she was trying to convince.
"Ah yes. The unfortunate Mr. Lindsey's-"
"Stop calling him that!"
A nod, a smile, "Very well, Josh's funeral. A touching scene. When all thoughts were of the dearly departed." He turned away to hide his sly smile as he sensed her shame. "Of course Mick's 'fine' as you put it. As I said, he's a practical man. Right at this very moment I'm sure he's enjoying his newly-rediscovered humanity and blissfully ignoring the fact that he's dying. And dying alone."
That stopped her cold; all thoughts of evasion disappeared, replaced with a panicky need for information, "Dying?" The quaver in her voice betrayed her fear, to Josef's satisfaction. He hadn't been sure he was on the right course until that very moment.
"Isn't that what a terminal illness is? The knowledge that in a very short period of time the body will die? In Mick's case that means he'll become a vampire again but I assure you, it is as significant and meaningful to him as to any other human." He glided closer, "So here you sit, wracked with guilt because your every thought is of him rather than Josh. Every time I mention Mick's name I can hear it, you know. Your pulse picks up, your breathing quickens, and," he darted forward, bending over her, inhaling deeply, "ah, the sweet scent of desire." He straightened, peering down at her, "So tell me, Beth, why are you here, going through the motions of a grief you don't really feel, while the man you love-"
"I loved Josh. No matter what you think, I loved him," she looked down at her hands, her naked ring finger.
Josef relented, taking a seat next to her, his voice softened with care, "While the man you love is across town counting each precious day, wishing he could spend it with you."
For the first time Beth saw the concern behind the steel. Angry protest died in her throat and she looked him straight in the eye, holding his gaze, seeking his understanding, "Thank you for the coffee, Josef." She rose, as sedately as she could manage and left without a backward glance.
He watched her measured stride to the door, calling after her, "Any time."
She managed to hold her tears of anger and humiliation until she was safely cocooned in the limo, sweeping along the drive, out of sight. She wanted to tell him he was wrong, to throw his judgement back in his face, but she couldn't. She couldn't lie to him any more than she could continue to lie to herself.
There was only one place she wanted to be today.
Taking a deep breath, smoothing greasy palms across her jeans she pulled out her phone and dialled, biting down the icy blast of fear that swelled in her throat. What if he didn't answer? What if she had passed the point of forgiveness?
One ring.
But she knew, as she'd always known, that point didn't exist for Mick.
Two rings.
Perhaps that was why she'd pushed him so hard, hurt him so carelessly; because she knew he'd take it and come back for more. The crushing realisation of how much she'd taken for granted, of the precious days she'd wasted, and of the limitlessness of his care for her.
Three rings.
Because devotion has no boundaries.
Because he loved her.
"Hey, Beth."
"Hey. I was wondering if we could meet. Lunch, maybe?" She had her answer as she heard his smile.
Today was a new beginning; today she would start to get to know Mick St. John.
Author: redwinter101
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: I don't own Moonlight or any of its characters
Note: this is the fourth story in the Divine Office series - there is a separate A/N here explaining a bit more.
It's 9 a.m. on a very specific day - the same day as Mick is waking up at the start of FtP, enjoying those pillows and blankets and making his longed-for coffee. So while he was doing all that, precisely what were Beth and Josef up to?
*************************************************************************************************************
For Anthony
--- Terce ---
"Beth. How lovely to see you. Thank you for coming." Josef's invitation, delivered by hand the previous day, had left little room for refusal. The feeling of being summoned rankled but when the limo pulled up outside her apartment block, curiosity had trumped dignity.
"I was expecting to meet at your office." Her eye drawn by the stark decor and breathtaking view, Beth forced herself not to gape. A cast around the room took in quiet, background bustle, purposeful, discreet, and underneath it all, the smell of wealth, exclusivity, success.
Her reverie was broken by Josef's guiding arm at her elbow, "Ah. The office is still… out of commission. I hope you don't mind the venue." A twinkle of satisfaction; he knew the capacity of his home to impress. Beth took a seat and waited, lips clamped shut, determined to make him do the talking. Her knowledge of Josef might be limited, but she knew enough to assume this was no idle, social occasion.
Fragrant coffee and delicate pastries arrived and Josef reached for a cup and began to pour, "Shall I be mother?" He was amused both at his role as mein host and at Beth's obvious unease. She had no idea why she was there or the nature of this particular game; the feeling of being one pace behind unsettled her and delighted him.
"You cover lots of terrible crimes - the things people do to each other. Rape and murder, for example. Horrific, wouldn't you agree?" Beth nodded her non-committal acquiescence over the rim of the steaming demitasse, wondering if this was all some elaborate stratagem to get her to cover a story. Josef waited for her to take a sip, "I don't know how much Mick has told you about Coraline."
She winced at the scald of too-hot coffee as she gulped. "That she's gone; that it wasn't meant to be."
Josef smiled, a slight shake of his head, "Always so immediate. I didn't mean her most recent foray into Mick's life."
"Oh. Well… I know enough." There was a hint of bravado to her words; she knew as much as Mick had been prepared to tell her and she had been prepared to ask. The darkness that pressed in on them whenever Coraline's name was mentioned, the heavy sadness in Mick's voice, the regret that pulled him from her; she chose to push them away. Perils for a rainy day.
"Really? Well then you have me at a disadvantage; I always feel there's an awful lot between them that I don't know." Cursing her too-quick response, unsure if she was being baited or berated, Beth held her tongue.
Josef pressed on, "As I said, rape and murder."
"Rape and murder? I don't understand."
He fixed her, eyes narrowing, as he weighed how far to go. "That's what she did to him and he's spent the last half century trying to find a way to deal with it."
"Who? I don't…"
"She penetrated his body without his consent, what would you call it?" His rising cadence betrayed exasperation at her inability to keep up, but like so many of his questions, he neither wanted nor expected an answer, "Then she sucked the blood from his body while he fought for his life."
The pieces started to fall into place, "Mick told me he went to bed a happily-married man and woke up a monster."
Josef rose and sauntered to the window, back turned, his soft tone forcing Beth to crane to make out his words, "Mick is many things; a monster is not one of them."
"I don't need you to tell me that," she snapped, a flare of anger bringing her cup clattering down to its saucer.
"But above all, he is a practical man. He found a way, bit by bit, to go on. That's the great challenge of immortality - finding something to… keep oneself occupied. He pushed away the 'why' whenever he could and concentrated on survival. Existence. Persistence. Making his way in the world," an airy waft of his hand, "and all that jazz." He took a sip from his glass, fully aware that his audience was within his thrall. "Then everything changed when he had to decide to take a life, his wife's life, in order to save a child. And finally, he had his 'why'."
"I know the story, Josef. I don't see-"
"You know it but do you understand it?" Josef interrupted, one eyebrow raised in query. "I wish he'd found his reasons… elsewhere," he looked her up and down with a hint of sneer, "but that's not my call. He saved you, killed for you, protected you and still left you free to live your life, fall in love with the estimable Mr. Lindsey and never asked you for anything in return." He couldn't contain a snort of laughter, "Sounds like I'm nominating him for sainthood, doesn't it? Well I think he's a fool but he's my friend so I put up with it." Another swig smoothed his pained frown.
"I don't know why you're telling me all this. I-"
"I haven't finished," his glare silenced her. "So the unfortunate Mr. Lindsey finds himself on the wrong end of a gangbanger's bullet and you," Josef took a deep breath, setting down his drink and turning to face her, "you ask Mick to repeat what was done to him." His words were deliberate, controlled, his stillness a sharp contrast to Beth's agitation as she fidgeted with the hem of her shirt. Thoughts of vengeance, an unpredictable friend's punishment for her unintended cruelty, tightened the knot of fear in her belly. "It makes me wonder if you know him at all."
"You weren't there, Josef," her voice dropped to a whisper.
"So I'm wrong? You didn't ask him to turn your soon-to-be-ex-boyfriend?" There was a snap of disdain in Josef's voice and he began to pace, warming to his task. "And then, to top it all off nicely, in your 'grief' you throw Mick's own existence back in his face. 'Why do you go on living?' you cry." His whining mimicry stirred her anger but the knowledge that Mick must have recounted her words verbatim kept her silent. "The very question he's been asking himself every day for the last 55 years. Grief can excuse many things but…"
"I understand he's your friend, Josef, but this is none of your business. Besides, I've seen him since then and he's fine. We're fine." She couldn't help but wonder who she was trying to convince.
"Ah yes. The unfortunate Mr. Lindsey's-"
"Stop calling him that!"
A nod, a smile, "Very well, Josh's funeral. A touching scene. When all thoughts were of the dearly departed." He turned away to hide his sly smile as he sensed her shame. "Of course Mick's 'fine' as you put it. As I said, he's a practical man. Right at this very moment I'm sure he's enjoying his newly-rediscovered humanity and blissfully ignoring the fact that he's dying. And dying alone."
That stopped her cold; all thoughts of evasion disappeared, replaced with a panicky need for information, "Dying?" The quaver in her voice betrayed her fear, to Josef's satisfaction. He hadn't been sure he was on the right course until that very moment.
"Isn't that what a terminal illness is? The knowledge that in a very short period of time the body will die? In Mick's case that means he'll become a vampire again but I assure you, it is as significant and meaningful to him as to any other human." He glided closer, "So here you sit, wracked with guilt because your every thought is of him rather than Josh. Every time I mention Mick's name I can hear it, you know. Your pulse picks up, your breathing quickens, and," he darted forward, bending over her, inhaling deeply, "ah, the sweet scent of desire." He straightened, peering down at her, "So tell me, Beth, why are you here, going through the motions of a grief you don't really feel, while the man you love-"
"I loved Josh. No matter what you think, I loved him," she looked down at her hands, her naked ring finger.
Josef relented, taking a seat next to her, his voice softened with care, "While the man you love is across town counting each precious day, wishing he could spend it with you."
For the first time Beth saw the concern behind the steel. Angry protest died in her throat and she looked him straight in the eye, holding his gaze, seeking his understanding, "Thank you for the coffee, Josef." She rose, as sedately as she could manage and left without a backward glance.
He watched her measured stride to the door, calling after her, "Any time."
She managed to hold her tears of anger and humiliation until she was safely cocooned in the limo, sweeping along the drive, out of sight. She wanted to tell him he was wrong, to throw his judgement back in his face, but she couldn't. She couldn't lie to him any more than she could continue to lie to herself.
There was only one place she wanted to be today.
Taking a deep breath, smoothing greasy palms across her jeans she pulled out her phone and dialled, biting down the icy blast of fear that swelled in her throat. What if he didn't answer? What if she had passed the point of forgiveness?
One ring.
But she knew, as she'd always known, that point didn't exist for Mick.
Two rings.
Perhaps that was why she'd pushed him so hard, hurt him so carelessly; because she knew he'd take it and come back for more. The crushing realisation of how much she'd taken for granted, of the precious days she'd wasted, and of the limitlessness of his care for her.
Three rings.
Because devotion has no boundaries.
Because he loved her.
"Hey, Beth."
"Hey. I was wondering if we could meet. Lunch, maybe?" She had her answer as she heard his smile.
Today was a new beginning; today she would start to get to know Mick St. John.
)
thank you so much. I love that you're enjoying this as a series; it's a challenge as the stories are unconnected, but I'm happy with how this Moonlight "day" is working out so far.
I agree about Beth taking Mick for granted sometimes - and also just not understanding what being a vampire meant to Mick.
Mick had only been human for 6 days at this point and I was trying to provide an explanation of how that lunch at the beach came about so quickly. ITA though, at the beginning, even the depths of grief don't excuse some of the things Beth said to Mick. Thanks for reading. 
What I love most about it is that even with Mick not in the action here, and this being purportedly about Mick and Beth advancing THEIR relationship, this is very much a Mick and Josef story too.