Primeval ficlet: The Flip Side of the Coin
Title: The Flip Side of the Coin
Author: SCWLC
Disclaimer: Don't own nothin', not makin' no money.
Rating: G
Summary: Cutter stumbles out of the anomaly into a world that's different than the one he left.
AN: Anyone want this little 'verse? Or has someone already done this and I didn't know?
******************************************
Cutter stumbled from the anomaly. Lester stepped forward at once, demanding, "What happened? Did you find the anomaly?"
Nick shook his head. "Captain Ryan didn’t make it, and all his men are dead. Whatever happens, nobody goes back through."
Claudia, in an ecstasy of relief, flung herself at Nick, kissing him. "I'm so glad you're alright, Nick. I was worried."
Confused, he stepped away. "Who are you?" he asked. "Not that I'm complaining about the greeting," he joked. The joke fell flat.
"What do you mean, Nick? I'm Claudia," she said.
Nick and Helen exchanged glances. "I've never met you before," Nick told her firmly.
Helen added, "Really, I'd know. I've been watching your operation for a while, I've seen neither hide nor hair of you."
"And we should trust your opinion, why?" :Lester demanded coolly of her.
"I really could care less if you do," Helen said. "Nick, I do so hate to break your new rule, but I have absolutely no intention of staying."
Aggravated, he snapped at her, "Why would you have come through then?"
"Oh, just a little, erm, unfinished business," she said with patently false casualness. "You see, Nick, it was just one of those things. I was lonely, and you didn’t seem to care about me. And Stephen was so sweet and attentive."
Stephen stared at her a moment, then snapped, "You're going to make out you catching me unawares when we were both drunk into an affair?"
Helen's eyes narrowed. "That is interesting," she said slowly. "Because I don't remember it that way."
"Well, then your memory is faulty," Stephen told her sharply.
The whole exchange seemed to have wrong-footed the normally smug woman, who turned on her heel and vanished through the anomaly. "Now that that unpleasantness is over with," Claudia said in exasperation, "Would you mind explaining why it is you can't remember me?"
"I can only tell you that I've never seen you before in my life," Nick said frankly. Then he looked around, frowning. "Where's Leek?"
"Who?" Lester asked. "First you don't know Claudia, one of your primary governmental liasons, and now you're inventing people who don't exist."
"What do you mean?" Cutter asked, more confused. "Leek's our governmental liason, the slimy weasel. I think I'd recall if our liason wasn't a balding Harvey Bains imitation."
"A who imitation?" Connor muttered from where he'd been forgotten in the background. Abby shushed him.
"Should I expect you to demand the services of a crabby old woman wielding a cane as well, now, Cutter?" Lester sneered.
Suddenly something seemed to lock into place in Cutter's mind. "Wait, something’s wrong. This isn’t right. Something’s gone wrong. Something’s happened. Something’s changed. We’ve done something, we’ve . . . something that we’ve done has changed the past and Leek’s not here anymore." The anomaly pulsed, and Cutter ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head as he tried to put his thoughts in order. The rip in time fluctuated a few more times, then vanished. "Well, I suppose that's done it," Cutter said ruefully. "I can't really regret the loss of Leek, of all people."
"What are you rabbiting on about?" Lester asked, for them all.
Connor had been thinking quickly, however, and his eyes suddenly widened in understanding. "It's a sort of temporal paradox thing, professor?" he asked. "You think something that happened in the Permian was enough to change things here, but not enough to change things like evolution, just . . ." he trailed off, looking for the right word.
"I guess I'll see how much has changed," Cutter said ruefully. "I suppose we'd best get to the ARC and figure this all out."
"The what?" Abby asked.
"The . . . Anomaly Research Centre?" Cutter offered hesitantly. "When we moved out of the Home Office, Connor was the only one with the patience to put up with Leek, and he wound up de facto naming the place."
"A centre?" Connor murmured, looking rather dazzled at the concept. "That'd be brilliant. What do you think, Claudia?"
"Heaven help me," Lester grumbled. "Let's just get back to the Home Office and figure out exactly how mad Cutter's gone there. Somewhere we're closer to some place with a ward for mental patients to drop him in."
They loaded into their cars and headed back to London. Cutter looking consideringly at this Claudia woman. His trip through the anomaly might have gained him rather a lot.
Go to the Primeval Archive Page
Author: SCWLC
Disclaimer: Don't own nothin', not makin' no money.
Rating: G
Summary: Cutter stumbles out of the anomaly into a world that's different than the one he left.
AN: Anyone want this little 'verse? Or has someone already done this and I didn't know?
******************************************
Cutter stumbled from the anomaly. Lester stepped forward at once, demanding, "What happened? Did you find the anomaly?"
Nick shook his head. "Captain Ryan didn’t make it, and all his men are dead. Whatever happens, nobody goes back through."
Claudia, in an ecstasy of relief, flung herself at Nick, kissing him. "I'm so glad you're alright, Nick. I was worried."
Confused, he stepped away. "Who are you?" he asked. "Not that I'm complaining about the greeting," he joked. The joke fell flat.
"What do you mean, Nick? I'm Claudia," she said.
Nick and Helen exchanged glances. "I've never met you before," Nick told her firmly.
Helen added, "Really, I'd know. I've been watching your operation for a while, I've seen neither hide nor hair of you."
"And we should trust your opinion, why?" :Lester demanded coolly of her.
"I really could care less if you do," Helen said. "Nick, I do so hate to break your new rule, but I have absolutely no intention of staying."
Aggravated, he snapped at her, "Why would you have come through then?"
"Oh, just a little, erm, unfinished business," she said with patently false casualness. "You see, Nick, it was just one of those things. I was lonely, and you didn’t seem to care about me. And Stephen was so sweet and attentive."
Stephen stared at her a moment, then snapped, "You're going to make out you catching me unawares when we were both drunk into an affair?"
Helen's eyes narrowed. "That is interesting," she said slowly. "Because I don't remember it that way."
"Well, then your memory is faulty," Stephen told her sharply.
The whole exchange seemed to have wrong-footed the normally smug woman, who turned on her heel and vanished through the anomaly. "Now that that unpleasantness is over with," Claudia said in exasperation, "Would you mind explaining why it is you can't remember me?"
"I can only tell you that I've never seen you before in my life," Nick said frankly. Then he looked around, frowning. "Where's Leek?"
"Who?" Lester asked. "First you don't know Claudia, one of your primary governmental liasons, and now you're inventing people who don't exist."
"What do you mean?" Cutter asked, more confused. "Leek's our governmental liason, the slimy weasel. I think I'd recall if our liason wasn't a balding Harvey Bains imitation."
"A who imitation?" Connor muttered from where he'd been forgotten in the background. Abby shushed him.
"Should I expect you to demand the services of a crabby old woman wielding a cane as well, now, Cutter?" Lester sneered.
Suddenly something seemed to lock into place in Cutter's mind. "Wait, something’s wrong. This isn’t right. Something’s gone wrong. Something’s happened. Something’s changed. We’ve done something, we’ve . . . something that we’ve done has changed the past and Leek’s not here anymore." The anomaly pulsed, and Cutter ran a hand through his hair, shaking his head as he tried to put his thoughts in order. The rip in time fluctuated a few more times, then vanished. "Well, I suppose that's done it," Cutter said ruefully. "I can't really regret the loss of Leek, of all people."
"What are you rabbiting on about?" Lester asked, for them all.
Connor had been thinking quickly, however, and his eyes suddenly widened in understanding. "It's a sort of temporal paradox thing, professor?" he asked. "You think something that happened in the Permian was enough to change things here, but not enough to change things like evolution, just . . ." he trailed off, looking for the right word.
"I guess I'll see how much has changed," Cutter said ruefully. "I suppose we'd best get to the ARC and figure this all out."
"The what?" Abby asked.
"The . . . Anomaly Research Centre?" Cutter offered hesitantly. "When we moved out of the Home Office, Connor was the only one with the patience to put up with Leek, and he wound up de facto naming the place."
"A centre?" Connor murmured, looking rather dazzled at the concept. "That'd be brilliant. What do you think, Claudia?"
"Heaven help me," Lester grumbled. "Let's just get back to the Home Office and figure out exactly how mad Cutter's gone there. Somewhere we're closer to some place with a ward for mental patients to drop him in."
They loaded into their cars and headed back to London. Cutter looking consideringly at this Claudia woman. His trip through the anomaly might have gained him rather a lot.
Go to the Primeval Archive Page