Theodore Fletcher

[curiosouomo]

a sudden sense of liberty

A self-indulgent extra lite-smut oneshot (just barely) feat. @wickedlehane because why not?

***

“The Cure, huh? Didn’t peg you for a goth boy,” Faith smirked, popping a chocolate covered strawberry between her lips. If it was possible for Theo to turn any more pink, he would have. His cheeks flushed with warmth.

“Well, I certainly ‘ad the complexion for it. And you? Let me guess- Nirvana, Nine Inch Nails, and the Foo Fighters.”

“If I said ABBA, would you believe me?”

“Not in the slightest, luv. But Fleetwood Mac, yes,” the redhead chuckled, sweeping the plates off the dining table and depositing them in the kitchen sink. Theodore’s phone buzzed heartily against the wood and his head whipped around. “Issat Mel?”

Faith slid the device closer to herself to look at the illuminated screen before it faded out. “No, looks like someone named... Heidi69- ooh, and she’s horny and in your area!”

“Oh stop that.”

“I’m serious! Nothing but junk. Why are you so worried about Mel? I’m sure she’ll be fine,” the Slayer assured him.

Theo continued to scrub dishes as he spoke. “Oh, it’s just... she doesn’t do well at sleepovers. Stays up all night and calls me to come bring her home. I don’t blame her, I’m usually wide awake waiting for the call myself,” he sighed. “It’s all the-”

“Monster business,” Faith finished. “Yeah... I’m real sorry. But maybe your nervous vibes are throwing her off from afar- just assume she’s having a good time. Painting her nails, eating too much pizza, playing Mario Kart. Kid stuff. She’ll be alright, and if she does call, I’ll go with you.” 

Never mind that “kid stuff” sounded like an ideal Friday to Faith.

What she also failed to mention was the fact that she and Melody did discuss her nerves before they dropped the girl off. The brunette miiiight have packed a fresh-whittled, very dull wooden stake for her to keep under her pillow. What? The kid didn’t exactly do security blankets at this age.

“C’mon, Theo- let’s put on some of your sad boy music and take your mind off her. She’s honestly probably not even thinking about you right now,” the woman said, lowering herself to the couch and beckoning for her sudsy beau. “Sorry, that sounded harsh. She loves her father and knows he’ll be there to save her if she needs it but right now she’s probably drinking all the sodas you won’t usually let her have. Yeah?”

“Yeah,” he finally agreed, wiping his hands off on his trousers. He moved to the stereo and rifled through the albums he kept organized alphabetically by title, all sorts of bands mixed in with one another. Nerd. Once Theodore was in arm’s reach, Faith grabbed him by the waist and pulled him on top of her. He was so cute when he was worried about his kid. Was this what a good dad was supposed to be like? Hell if she knew. But it was as much a mercy to him as it was a favor to herself, getting his mind off of Mel.

“Mm, wait- this isn’t The Cure,” Faith said, pausing just before pressing a kiss to his scruffy lips. “I’ve heard this one- which is it?”

A wry smile curled Theo’s mouth. A bit of a joke, on his part. “Substance, 1987, New World Order. Hit no. 4 on the charts the year it came out- this one’s called True Faith. Bit of a tough subject, about drug addiction, the tempting euphoria. But it’s catchy, innit?”

“Me, or the song?”

Theodore laughed, rearranging their positions on the couch. He scooped the woman up and put her across his lap. Faith wrapped her arms around him, enjoying the warmth and comfort of his embrace. She’d spent so long running from moments like this. The familial, the domestic, the parental. In her heart, she knew her childhood had been the awful exception, not the rule- there were still plenty of men in the world who confirmed her worst biases but... wouldn’t it be nice to believe this wasn’t the unicorn, the one and only? (Speaking of... she’d never exactly seen a unicorn, but if vampires and werewolves were real, they surely had to exist.)

I used to think that the day would never come-

“I like the mystery. Hidden meanings,” Theo said, pressing a kiss to her jaw. “Something thrilling about things that can be so beautiful and complex. Meant to be explored.” Another kiss went to her neck, hovering just above a suspicious scar the Slayer bore from an age gone by. Theo’s hand crept up Faith’s back, his fingers teasing at the back of her bra clasp. A twist of thumb and forefinger freed the garment, and the woman’s breasts heaved forward, practically relieved.

“Again, you talkin’ about me, or the song? Eugh,” she muttered. “Your pants are wet from the sink. Take them off.”

The duo untangled themselves briefly as the song played on. Clothes were discarded- pants, shirts, a bra, but the glasses stayed on. They reconvened after a few moments, wrapped up in one another once more.

-to the childhood I lost, replaced by fear-

Faith straddled Theodore’s lap, admiring him. A nerd he might be, but not the string bean kind. No, he had a youthful but fatherly figure- solid yet soft, not a gym rat in the least. The woman was kinda into it- in her past experience, jocks were all about themselves, wimps were no fun to push around, and total shlubs just didn’t do it for her. But Theo had the look of a guy who knew the importance of eating your vegetables and the fun of sneaking an extra scoop of ice cream before bedtime. Hardly a thrilling, rock and roll rebel- but it was really working for him. And her.

The Slayer was mindful not to bruise the peachy boy as she gently rocked her hips against him. The exchange of kisses resumed rather equally between them until Faith grabbed the back of his ruddy head and held him close. Theo inhaled the scent of those strawberries they’d been enjoying, red as her lips, a decadent brunette flow of hair surrounding them. Never a sour bite between them- if Faith had a bitter side, it was well hidden in the tune of her words, the melody of her movements.

-I feel so extraordinary, something’s got a hold on me-

Speaking of biting, Faith nipped at her man playfully as Theo held her with one hand on the plush curve of her hip, one cupping a generously rounded breast. God, she was a fabulous woman. He bashfully wondered what he’d done to meet someone so interesting, so lovely as her. Who could speak to him and to his daughter in their own languages. She was caring, a bit irreverent, and the shallow side of his deep intellect recognized how bloody stunning she was. Powerful, too- those self-defense trainings really made an impact.

As their movements heightened in pitch and hunger, the Slayer too admired the piece of sweetness she had before her (and below her, growing aroused). He made her feel safer than anyone she’d ever been with before, and there was something about him... Faith didn’t want to shut him out. Not like the others. And it wasn’t just because he could cook, or because she felt bad for the way he’d lost his wife. Yeah, okay, maybe some of it reminded her of the crush she had on Mr. Giles when she was a teenager, but this was much more age-appropriate, equal. Call that character growth. And just because he had a dorky streak didn’t mean he didn’t know how to treat a lady (he was a dad and a widower, after all).

-That my life would depend on the morning sun-

The song rolled on to the next as Faith and Theo continued to grow increasingly intimate, but they weren’t really listening anymore. Not worrying about a thing. There was only the here and now, and a lot of hands going places that would normally make the ginger blush the same color as his hair. Their breaths drowned out the record. True faith, an act of mutual worship. Addicting, in its own way.

Elsewhere, across town, a little girl called Melody was eagerly telling her sleepover companions about the monsters that lurked in the darkness, and about the wooden weapon she would use to fend them all off if it came down to it.

Not a one of them, save the stake-wielding tween and her elsewhere distracted dad, got much of any sleep that night.

[curiosouomo]

lostsovl​:

He’s just sweet, isn’t he. Blushing so easily even though he’s braving the initial, icy part of interaction so well, talking about his daughter with such candid emotion. Admittedly, it strikes a chord in Valerie she knew well how to pretend it wasn’t there, but still felt the dull ache of it every time anything came close to grazing it. What a privilege, what a thing to miss. She holds it together impeccably well though, nodding with quiet encouragement as Theo explains how he knows her, too. “Is that so? Whereabouts are you, if it is alright to ask?” Was that why Faith had been washing up at her door so frequently? ‘I was in the area’? Val would have to reward this behaviour, then. A good shag was an infinitely better way to pass the time as opposed to running around staking night creatures.

Valerie follows the man’s line of sight out of curiosity, mouth pursing as she meets the back of Faith’s head. Of course. She loved the woman but may some other company keep her a little longer; the assessment wasn’t over yet. “I see. It must be awfully difficult, especially if you feel like she became ready before you did.” There goes the chord again. “But it is certainly lovely to hear that you will still spend part of the celebrations with them — and no doubt Faith is overjoyed that you could make it.” A nervous wreck, too, but that’s just part of it. They’re still so fresh. 

Valerie plucks a raspberry from the top of a miniature frosted cupcake that she had been meaning to find the time to savour, popping it between crimson lips, crushing it with her teeth.

“Did she tell you how we met?”

“No trouble. I live in Bridgwater, but I work at the Museum of Somerset down in Taunton. I curate a wing of exhibits, our current focus is Greco-Roman art and relics,” Theo explained, wondering if she’d ever happened to stop by. Faith mentioned that Valerie had a fondness for older things and he wondered if there was any area of study or interest that perhaps overlapped. Of course, with her elegant ensemble and refined air, it might have been the case she was more interested in owning old things than visiting them behind thick protective panes.

His gaze returned to the woman and he gave a small, sad smile. “Melly has been awful keen on having ‘grown up’ experiences, even if she’s still content to have her dad take care of all the boring house activities,” he said. “Since we lost her mum, I think she’s torn between being brave and feeling helpless. Faith’s been a real sport about spending quality time with her.”

Theo took another sip of his punch, an errant whole cranberry bobbing against his lip. He was glad for the change of topic, and actually come to think of it- “Actually, she hasn’t,” he said, hoping she didn’t think him rude for not being in the know. “But she insists you’re an old friend - although I can’t imagine too old unless you met in school, as you’re both quite young.”

[curiosouomo]

lostsovl​:

Well, this one surely is a handful of levels above the one Valerie drained all those years ago. First things first — the age was right. He didn’t scream dickhead, he smelled like he had recently showered, and he had a stunning head of hair going. Easy on the eye, too. Val had to give it to Faith: the woman had certainly gone off-course and struck gold. Good for her, it was surely about time she stopped pining after those that did not deserve a morsel of her attention. While enjoying the lull in demand for her company, the vampire lingers by one of the many ‘fountains’ scattered around the house, unintentionally listening in on the cute redhead’s phone call, getting inexplicably wistful once she realises he had been talking to his mother about his own daughter. That’s right, he was a dad. His score just kept climbing.

Admittedly, she could have led that opening line, but she was enjoying the sprinkle of awkwardness in the air followed by such a timid, endearing approach. The brunette at once draws a sharp, clear breath, reemerging from deeper thought, offering a long, languid glance the man’s way. Welsh boy, huh. Jackpot. “Hello, handsome. That’s right, Alfred wouldn’t have settled for less.” She gracefully stirs the drink in her hand while briefly regarding the crowd, though her attention does not stray for long. “Is this your first Christmas away from your child? Faith told me a little bit about you.”

Maybe it was just his imagination, but there seemed to be an extent of silence, quiet appraisal, between his greeting and the woman’s response. Of course, Valerie was busy entertaining and ensuring the guests had plenty of food and drink, so maybe the pause was his own fear of dead air between himself and any number of the ones Faith called her friends. Theo blushed all too readily at the word ‘handsome’.

“Suppose then there’s no need to introduce myself. And you’re Valerie, yes? Faith’s also mentioned you, says you’re actually not too far from where I work,” he said, raising his cup and tipping his wrist at her as thought to say a quick cheers before taking a modest sip. “Small world, and all. I’ll have to thank Alfred for extending the invitation.”

His own eyes look to the crowd, scanning and hoping his partner might see the conversation in progress and sweep in to make things easier. Faith always made things like this a little easier. “Y-yes, actually,” Theo nodded as he turned his attention back to the woman. “She’s old enough to be alright with it, young enough that I’m a bloody mess over it. She’s home with her gran and we’ve got plenty of plans for the holiday, but... This was important to Faith, and I thought it might be nice. Haven’t done as much travel as I’d like to, but that’s quite alright.”

[curiosouomo]

{ @lostsovl }

"Alright, mum, love you. Be home before you and Mel even begin to miss us.”

Theo waited on the line until he heard the other end click off. It had been a few years since he’d gone anywhere for the holiday, and even longer than that since he’d been away from his daughter. But it was only for a brief trip, and they’d be back for their family celebration soon. Knowing what he knew of Faith, this gathering was important for her, and she did promise him a trip to the MOMA before they headed home (although she seemed to pronounce it more like Momma, which he found charming if a bit odd).

With the check-in call completed (and it was more for his comfort than theirs), Theo slowly eased his way back into the party. The scene had shaken like a festive snowglobe, with none of the players where he had left them. He gave a small “hmm” in his throat before searching for something of an opening -- everyone seemed to be engaged, with Faith nowhere to be found. The only other person currently with an air of unoccupied freedom about them was... Valerie, was it?

Theo made his way across the room to fix himself a cup of punch, giving Valerie a polite, somewhat awkward smile (he didn’t know where to put his eyes in all of this) as he passed. “H-hullo. Quite a lively affair, innit?”