[Fic] let them talk
Fandom: James Bond
Characters: Gareth Mallory, Q, Eve Moneypenny
Pairing: Mallory/Q
Rating: PG-13
Word count: c.600
Warnings: Non-graphic major character death.
Disclaimer: Characters are not mine.
A/N: Anon prompted: “Could you please write a Q x Mallory drabble where Mallory dies? Pweetty pwease *puppy dog eyes*”
***
Q sees it on the news. Reports of gunshots at the Prime Minister's office, victims unconfirmed--
All the talk is of the PM, whether it was an assassination attempt, and if he survived, but all Q can think of is M. He had a meeting with the PM today, and Q has seen him jump right in front of a bullet meant for someone else, no hesitation, just the thought that someone is in danger. Q knows him, and the only thing that M considers is that someone might die, and then his reaction is just automatic.
Q knows M so well, and sometimes he wishes he didn't.
Eve shows up at M's house where Q has been waiting, and she doesn't even get a word out before Q is half collapsing in her arms, still standing in the open doorway.
The funeral is formal, all stiff officials that make speeches about his achievements and his bravery and his service to the country. Q can hardly believe that he used to think M was like these people, wearing a smart suit and always following the rules and never relaxing, but he knows different now, and he'd never wanted it to end. The lazy Sundays they spent at home and thankfully weren't called into work, curled up together. The way that M actually wore the oversized sweaters that Q bought him, content to abandon his suits at the end of the day and do his work with Jilly's head in his lap, scratching at her ears every now and then.
When M's sister comes by his house, Q is still there, unable to bring himself to leave yet. Jilly is with him on the couch, whining a little because M hasn't come home yet. They couldn't tell anyone about their relationship -- Moneypenny and Bond and Tanner knew, but that's it -- and M hadn't even told his family, but it isn't hard for Karen to put the pieces together. M was her brother, after all, and she hasn't missed the way that he had changed, how his smiles were more frequent and more genuine, how he'd been happier than he had in the last ten years. Karen lets him stay, lets him wander around the house, Jilly following at his heels, torturing himself with all the memories of M that everything in this place triggers.
Q is no stranger to loss, to losing everything, but he never thought that losing just one person could defeat him so completely.
They remember him as a martyr, self-sacrificing, and Q supposes that he is, but that's never how he'll remember M. He'll remember him as the man who told him not to get caught, as the man who stayed away as long as he could and then never wanted to let go once he gave in. Someone more human than the picture of a selfless hero that's been painted, the person that Q fell in love with, that was brave but not fearless, who was strong but just as damaged as Q in some ways.
Q will remember the man who kissed him like he had everything to lose, looked at him like he couldn't believe that Q was really there. Who doted on his dog because she'd been with him for almost a decade and had never let him down. Who was dedicated to his job but was always there when Q needed him. Who was still a little broken behind his shield of a suit and a serene smile, who was still a little afraid of never being enough, who was only ever seen like that by Q and no one else.
Characters: Gareth Mallory, Q, Eve Moneypenny
Pairing: Mallory/Q
Rating: PG-13
Word count: c.600
Warnings: Non-graphic major character death.
Disclaimer: Characters are not mine.
A/N: Anon prompted: “Could you please write a Q x Mallory drabble where Mallory dies? Pweetty pwease *puppy dog eyes*”
***
Q sees it on the news. Reports of gunshots at the Prime Minister's office, victims unconfirmed--
All the talk is of the PM, whether it was an assassination attempt, and if he survived, but all Q can think of is M. He had a meeting with the PM today, and Q has seen him jump right in front of a bullet meant for someone else, no hesitation, just the thought that someone is in danger. Q knows him, and the only thing that M considers is that someone might die, and then his reaction is just automatic.
Q knows M so well, and sometimes he wishes he didn't.
Eve shows up at M's house where Q has been waiting, and she doesn't even get a word out before Q is half collapsing in her arms, still standing in the open doorway.
The funeral is formal, all stiff officials that make speeches about his achievements and his bravery and his service to the country. Q can hardly believe that he used to think M was like these people, wearing a smart suit and always following the rules and never relaxing, but he knows different now, and he'd never wanted it to end. The lazy Sundays they spent at home and thankfully weren't called into work, curled up together. The way that M actually wore the oversized sweaters that Q bought him, content to abandon his suits at the end of the day and do his work with Jilly's head in his lap, scratching at her ears every now and then.
When M's sister comes by his house, Q is still there, unable to bring himself to leave yet. Jilly is with him on the couch, whining a little because M hasn't come home yet. They couldn't tell anyone about their relationship -- Moneypenny and Bond and Tanner knew, but that's it -- and M hadn't even told his family, but it isn't hard for Karen to put the pieces together. M was her brother, after all, and she hasn't missed the way that he had changed, how his smiles were more frequent and more genuine, how he'd been happier than he had in the last ten years. Karen lets him stay, lets him wander around the house, Jilly following at his heels, torturing himself with all the memories of M that everything in this place triggers.
Q is no stranger to loss, to losing everything, but he never thought that losing just one person could defeat him so completely.
They remember him as a martyr, self-sacrificing, and Q supposes that he is, but that's never how he'll remember M. He'll remember him as the man who told him not to get caught, as the man who stayed away as long as he could and then never wanted to let go once he gave in. Someone more human than the picture of a selfless hero that's been painted, the person that Q fell in love with, that was brave but not fearless, who was strong but just as damaged as Q in some ways.
Q will remember the man who kissed him like he had everything to lose, looked at him like he couldn't believe that Q was really there. Who doted on his dog because she'd been with him for almost a decade and had never let him down. Who was dedicated to his job but was always there when Q needed him. Who was still a little broken behind his shield of a suit and a serene smile, who was still a little afraid of never being enough, who was only ever seen like that by Q and no one else.