Star in the Future (G)
Aug. 9th, 2007 09:04 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
skidmo_ficTitle: Star in the Future
Author: skidmo
Approx Word Count: 1000
Rating: G
Pairing: none
Fandom: Stargate: Atlantis
Summary: Lorne gets a glimpse of his future..
Author’s Notes: Written for![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
ana_grrl’s Random Title Generator challenge.
He’d known it would be strange. How could it not be? But he hadn’t expected to feel this...revulsion.
The man staring back at him has his face (his smile, his eyes, his nose), but Lorne can’t bring himself to believe that they’re the same person.
And it isn’t just the minor physical differences. (This other Lorne has shots of grey streaking his hair, which he wears longer than regulation, brushing over the tops of his ears. And there’s a thin scar bisecting his left eyebrow, and another running from the bottom of his right ear down his jaw to his chin.) It’s something deeper.
Lorne has always been confident, sure of himself, but this other Lorne is cocky, full of himself. Lorne’s eyes sweep from his doppelganger’s face to that of the beautiful woman on his right arm, and then to the one on his left.
Twins.
And at least fifteen years younger than him. Probably twenty.
The one on his left is giving Lorne an appraising glance and a leering smile.
“So...you’re me?” Lorne is almost afraid to hear the answer.
The other Lorne grins. “I’m you. Hard to believe, isn’t it? Who’d have ever guessed that you’d end up...” He spreads his arms wide and looks around, and Lorne guesses he means to indicate the impressive mansion behind him and the private beach and the two girls.
“Yeah...who’d have guessed,” Lorne says, not at all impressed. “Um...why’d you...why did I leave the Force?”
The other Lorne winks at him and sends the girls off down to the pool with a kiss, patting them each on the ass before turning back to Lorne and saying, “I just knew there was more to us. Haven’t you ever sensed that? That we were made for great things?”
Lorne frowns, unsure of how to answer. He crosses his arms. “I’d like to think I’m accomplishing great things now. You telling me you’ve done something better than saving Earth?”
He laughs, and puts a companionable arm around Lorne’s shoulders. “I’m not saying what you’re doing now isn’t important,” he says in a patronizing voice, “but you have to admit that this life is tempting.” He’s looking sideways at Lorne, and Lorne has the possibly unique sensation of wanting very badly to punch himself in the face.
Instead, he shrugs off the arm and says, “Tempting and great are not the same thing.”
The other Lorne laughs again, and Lorne is beginning to hate that sound. “Hey there, flyboy, don’t get your shorts in a knot. Saving the world is very important, but don’t tell me you don’t sometimes want a little recognition for it. I mean, I figure the world owes us for saving its ass so often. The least it can do is pay up. Know what I mean?” He punctuates this with an elbow to Lorne’s side.
Lorne grimaces. “So all this...this is what happens when the program gets made public? This is what we can look forward to?”
Lorne notices that the other man looks guilty for just a moment before re-applying the playboy grin. “Well, some of us can look forward to this. The ones who are willing to play ball.”
“Whose ball?”
“The government’s of course. And the IOA’s.” He seems to notice that Lorne is still skeptical. “Look, the idea of the stargate...it’s pretty damn scary, right? So when it was unveiled, they needed people to give it a good face. Heroes of Earth, they called us. And the public ate it up. Couldn’t get enough of us. Still can’t, actually. It’s made for a pretty sweet retirement. Of course, not everyone was as happy to work with the government. Sheppard wouldn’t cooperate. Hey,” he adds when Lorne is still frowning. “They’re making a movie about us. It’s opening in L.A. next weekend. You should come.”
“Yeah, no thanks. I think I’ll pass. I’m not planning on being here next weekend.” He’s already been to see Sheppard, so he’s got a pretty good idea of what happened to anyone who didn’t “play ball.”
“Right, right. You’ve got to get back to fighting aliens and saving Earth. Don’t let me keep you. If you don’t go back, there won’t be anything to make a movie about, will there?” He pats Lorne on the back and turns to follow the path the twins took earlier. “Hey,” he says, turning back to Lorne momentarily, “look me up next time you’re in the future, yeah?” He laughs at his own joke before disappearing into the night.
***
When Lorne gets back to Atlantis, he spends his first few days explaining to McKay what the scientists in the future had told him about how he got there and how they got him back. He gives Weir a shortened version of his time there in his debriefing, leaving out the twins and the mansion and the movie premiere.
It’s several weeks later when Teyla corners him.
“Something is upsetting you, Major.”
“What makes you say that?” He tries to give her a carefree smile, but he’s pretty sure it looks forced.
“You have not been the same since your return from...the future.” She’s looking at him with raised eyebrows and a face full of concern, and he finds himself telling her about his future self and the world he lives in.
She listens patiently, frowning and furrowing her brow at his descriptions. When he finishes, she embraces him in the Athosian style. “It seems to me, Major, that you have been gifted with a choice. You have seen how your future may turn out, and it is up to you to decide now which path you will take. I have full confidence in your ability to make the correct choice.” She smiles at him and walks away without waiting for an answer.
Lorne watches her leave and wonders if she’s right. He hopes she is, because he would rather have her respect than twelve sets of twins on his arms.
fin
Author: skidmo
Approx Word Count: 1000
Rating: G
Pairing: none
Fandom: Stargate: Atlantis
Summary: Lorne gets a glimpse of his future..
Author’s Notes: Written for
ana_grrl’s Random Title Generator challenge.He’d known it would be strange. How could it not be? But he hadn’t expected to feel this...revulsion.
The man staring back at him has his face (his smile, his eyes, his nose), but Lorne can’t bring himself to believe that they’re the same person.
And it isn’t just the minor physical differences. (This other Lorne has shots of grey streaking his hair, which he wears longer than regulation, brushing over the tops of his ears. And there’s a thin scar bisecting his left eyebrow, and another running from the bottom of his right ear down his jaw to his chin.) It’s something deeper.
Lorne has always been confident, sure of himself, but this other Lorne is cocky, full of himself. Lorne’s eyes sweep from his doppelganger’s face to that of the beautiful woman on his right arm, and then to the one on his left.
Twins.
And at least fifteen years younger than him. Probably twenty.
The one on his left is giving Lorne an appraising glance and a leering smile.
“So...you’re me?” Lorne is almost afraid to hear the answer.
The other Lorne grins. “I’m you. Hard to believe, isn’t it? Who’d have ever guessed that you’d end up...” He spreads his arms wide and looks around, and Lorne guesses he means to indicate the impressive mansion behind him and the private beach and the two girls.
“Yeah...who’d have guessed,” Lorne says, not at all impressed. “Um...why’d you...why did I leave the Force?”
The other Lorne winks at him and sends the girls off down to the pool with a kiss, patting them each on the ass before turning back to Lorne and saying, “I just knew there was more to us. Haven’t you ever sensed that? That we were made for great things?”
Lorne frowns, unsure of how to answer. He crosses his arms. “I’d like to think I’m accomplishing great things now. You telling me you’ve done something better than saving Earth?”
He laughs, and puts a companionable arm around Lorne’s shoulders. “I’m not saying what you’re doing now isn’t important,” he says in a patronizing voice, “but you have to admit that this life is tempting.” He’s looking sideways at Lorne, and Lorne has the possibly unique sensation of wanting very badly to punch himself in the face.
Instead, he shrugs off the arm and says, “Tempting and great are not the same thing.”
The other Lorne laughs again, and Lorne is beginning to hate that sound. “Hey there, flyboy, don’t get your shorts in a knot. Saving the world is very important, but don’t tell me you don’t sometimes want a little recognition for it. I mean, I figure the world owes us for saving its ass so often. The least it can do is pay up. Know what I mean?” He punctuates this with an elbow to Lorne’s side.
Lorne grimaces. “So all this...this is what happens when the program gets made public? This is what we can look forward to?”
Lorne notices that the other man looks guilty for just a moment before re-applying the playboy grin. “Well, some of us can look forward to this. The ones who are willing to play ball.”
“Whose ball?”
“The government’s of course. And the IOA’s.” He seems to notice that Lorne is still skeptical. “Look, the idea of the stargate...it’s pretty damn scary, right? So when it was unveiled, they needed people to give it a good face. Heroes of Earth, they called us. And the public ate it up. Couldn’t get enough of us. Still can’t, actually. It’s made for a pretty sweet retirement. Of course, not everyone was as happy to work with the government. Sheppard wouldn’t cooperate. Hey,” he adds when Lorne is still frowning. “They’re making a movie about us. It’s opening in L.A. next weekend. You should come.”
“Yeah, no thanks. I think I’ll pass. I’m not planning on being here next weekend.” He’s already been to see Sheppard, so he’s got a pretty good idea of what happened to anyone who didn’t “play ball.”
“Right, right. You’ve got to get back to fighting aliens and saving Earth. Don’t let me keep you. If you don’t go back, there won’t be anything to make a movie about, will there?” He pats Lorne on the back and turns to follow the path the twins took earlier. “Hey,” he says, turning back to Lorne momentarily, “look me up next time you’re in the future, yeah?” He laughs at his own joke before disappearing into the night.
***
When Lorne gets back to Atlantis, he spends his first few days explaining to McKay what the scientists in the future had told him about how he got there and how they got him back. He gives Weir a shortened version of his time there in his debriefing, leaving out the twins and the mansion and the movie premiere.
It’s several weeks later when Teyla corners him.
“Something is upsetting you, Major.”
“What makes you say that?” He tries to give her a carefree smile, but he’s pretty sure it looks forced.
“You have not been the same since your return from...the future.” She’s looking at him with raised eyebrows and a face full of concern, and he finds himself telling her about his future self and the world he lives in.
She listens patiently, frowning and furrowing her brow at his descriptions. When he finishes, she embraces him in the Athosian style. “It seems to me, Major, that you have been gifted with a choice. You have seen how your future may turn out, and it is up to you to decide now which path you will take. I have full confidence in your ability to make the correct choice.” She smiles at him and walks away without waiting for an answer.
Lorne watches her leave and wonders if she’s right. He hopes she is, because he would rather have her respect than twelve sets of twins on his arms.
fin
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2007-08-10 10:12 am (UTC)Lorne has the possibly unique sensation of wanting very badly to punch himself in the face.
That is a great line!
no subject
Date: 2007-08-10 03:28 pm (UTC)Hee. That was one of my favorites :).