X and Y (character to make suffer and character to protect, respectively) for the fic ask game? I mean, I can already guess, but...
X: a character you enjoy making suffer.
Y: a character you want to protect.
i mean. my answer to both of these is leela. also verity. i love them both so very much but also. angst.
but caryo falls specifically under y; they're too adorable to make suffer. i just want to protect them and cuddle them and wrap them up in blankets like a cute little burrito and give them headpats. great mother of rassilon i love them so much.
From when we were playing ‘Family Matters’. Got inspired to write some specfic and churned this out. Best time to read: after reading/listening to session 2 of ‘Family Matters’.
“Nic?” Cordelia asks in disbelief. “You? You’re the one who’s been trying to kill everyone?”
Nic only nods, unable to say anything around his weeping. He buries his face in his knees, his whole body shaking with the force of the sobs.
“But why?” Cordelia asks. “This isn’t like you, Nic!”
Nic looks up at her, his face red and snotty and stained with his tears. “I watched you die, Del. All the different ways you could die, I’ve seen them! Every timeline; I’ve seen it all!” He raises a shaky finger and points at the group. “Everyone here kills you in one way or another; I had to do it! To protect you!”
He chokes on a sob and coughs, before lowering his head again. Everyone exchanges looks with each other as Cordelia softly says, “Oh, Nic.”
Leela’s the first to move - ever the tender-heart - and kneels down beside Nic, bringing her hand up to run it gently over the top of his head in an attempt to comfort him. In one smooth motion, Nic’s head shoots up, his hand grabs Leela around the throat, and he forces her to stand, her back pressed against his chest. There’s a cry of panic from the others, and Cordelia holds out her hand to stop him.
“Nic! What are you doing?!”
“Protecting you!” Nic says, sniffling. His tears are still falling, but he now seems steelier. Determined. Desperate. Dangerous. Leela doesn’t move a muscle, watching Cordelia.
“Oh, Nic,” Cordelia sighs, pushing her hair back with both her hands. She sighs deeply. “Not like this, Nic.”
“Why not?” Nic challenges, his voice wavering ever so slightly. “She’s going to kill you, I saw it.”
“What? No I’m-” Leela cuts herself off with a gasp as he tightens his grip around her throat, just tight enough to frighten her, but not enough to cut off her breathing. Yet.
“Nic, stop it!” Cordelia pleads and then sighs. “I don’t want this! I don’t want you doing this!”
“So you’d prefer to die, then?” Nic asks, this voice rising an octave. He sounds angry. Furious. “And make me watch you die?!”
“Nic…”
“Don’t use that tone with me!” Nic hisses, almost subconsciously gripping Leela harder. She chokes out a gasp, her face contorting as her breathing becomes laboured. Her hand starts to snake slowly across her abdomen, towards her knife. “I’m doing this for your own good! For us!”
“For you!” Cordelia accuses, her anger a very thin veil for her fear. “You’re doing this for you! We all die someday, and I’m sorry you had to see all those ways I could die, but that’s no excuse to murder people!”
“You’d have done the same thing if it was you!” Nic retorts. Then, digging his fingers into Leela’s neck as a warning, he hisses at her, “stop it.”
Leela’s hand stops, inches from her knife and she drops her hand back to her side. Nic loosens his grip again and Leela takes in a big breath of air, panting softly. Cordelia looks horrified; she’s never seen Nic like this before. The other Time Lords are watching with a mix of interest and concern, but none to the level of Cordelia. Verity has one hand on Dissent’s arm, and one on Clare’s, to stop them from launching themselves at Nic to try to save Leela. Caryo simply looks on helplessly, having an inkling that trying to sneak up on Nic to save Leela isn’t going to work.
“Nic, please,” Cordelia begs, tears welling up in her eyes. “Let Leela go. We can talk about this and come up with a plan so we’re both happy, yeah?”
“There’s no other way!” Nic cires. “Why can’t you see that?!”
“There has to be!” The Professor rests a comforting hand on Cordelia’s shoulder and she sighs, speaking softer. “There has to be. Please, Nic.”
“Besides,” Ylem chimes in. “Leela’s from the past. Imagine the devastating consequences that could have on the timeline.”
Everyone turns to Ylem and gives them a look. They shrug.
“I’m just saying.”
“I don’t care about the timelines!” Nic shouts. “I just want you all to leave Cordelia alone! Stay away from her!”
“We can do that,” Verity agrees quickly. “We’ll agree that none of us goes anywhere near Cordelia, and then Cordelia can’t die. Does that sound good?”
“Guns exist,” Nic grumbles. “I want you to all leave. Now!”
“Nic, you know they can’t,” Cordelia reasons. “Not until the fifth door has opened.”
“Then I’ll just keep Leela with me until then,” Nic decides, his voice and face hard. “If any of you try anything; do anything to Cordelia that could endanger her, I’ll just kill Leela.”
“Nic!” Cordelia scolds, appalled. “You can’t just take hostages because you’re upset about things that will probably never happen!”
“Yes, I can,” Nic says, sniffling and blinking away the last of his tears. “And Cordelia, you’re going to stay near me so I can protect you.”
Cordelia looks like she wants to give Nic a good punch in the nose, and indeed she would if he wasn’t holding Leela. She sighs deeply and turns to the Doctor’s friends.
“I’m sorry. I’ll make sure Nic doesn’t kill Leela. Just...maybe keep a good five feet from us at all times, just in case, yeah?”
There’s a series of defeated nods, and Cordelia joins Nic and Leela. The three of them disappear through the door, leaving the other seven attendees standing there, unsure what to do or think. Theseus is the one who breaks the silence.
“This party sucks. There’s only been one murder so far!”
