994 words - Julia/Ferris - no warnings - [AO3]
Sidestep era days banter drabble done as an experiment to get into Ferris' voice since I haven't written her much. Wanted to show how close they were back in the day with still some early warning signs of what was to come.
"Hey, are you ok?" Julia places a hand on Ferris' shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze.
"What?" Ferris blinks up at her, puzzled by the soft concern in her voice, its not a side of Julia often seen, far more used to the bravado she wears like a second skin. "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"
"I didn't want to say anything in front of the others," Julia's hand lingers on her shoulder, smoothing her thumb over the material of Ferris' skinsuit in a soothing gesture. "And I know it was your plan to go in as bait but…I just wanted to make sure you weren't hurt. Or scared, you were crying."
"Oh that?" Ferris laughs. "That was just a distraction. That henchman who had me tied up, his surface thoughts were on his daughter, so I played up the scared young woman act pretty hard." She snorts at the memory. "Can't believe he actually started to feel bad, he might have even let me go if you and the others hadn't come in guns blazing." It wouldn't have been the first time, some people were just too soft to be career criminals.
"So, you were faking?" Julia smirks, relieved.
"I was acting." Ferris corrects. "Crying usually makes people upset or uncomfortable. It's a handy skill to have." Though its not like she can tell Julia how she learned such skills. Even if the memories are painful, you don't discard a tool you can still use. That was something she learned well from them too.
"So what, you can just cry on command?" Julia raises an eyebrow.
"Yep." Ferris' smile is smug, too smug for Julia to believe it.
"Prove it."
"Right now?"
"Right now. Unless you can't, that is." Julia folds her arms across her chest.
Ferris scrunches up her face, not wanting to take the bait but knowing her ego is on the line, she has no choice. If she lets Julia have the last word she'll never live it down. Time to get into character. A different character.
Ferris closes her eyes taking a deep breath thru her nose and letting it out thru her mouth. It takes a moment to pick a memory, not her own, but one they made her read. The grieving widow? No, too dated. The broken solider? Too morbid. Ah, there. The messy break up? Classic. Drawing on the impressions of abandonment and loss she increases the pressure of her eyelids and when she looks back up at Julia her eyes are shiny and wet.
"I can't believe you would say that Julia." She takes a shuddering breath, lower lip trembling slightly for added effect.
"Ok, ok, I see what you're trying to do." Julia rolls her eyes, shifting her weight to her other foot.
"It's just…" Ferris' voice hitches as tears start falling down her face in earnest. "You're my best friend." She pauses to sniff loudly. "I don't know what I'd do without you."
"Ok…I get it, you can cry on command, congrats." Julia hugs herself a little, suddenly uncomfortable with the sudden emotional turn. Too personal, too close to an echo of her own fears.
"Just please…" It isn't difficult to affect a sob that wracks Ferris' shoulders, wiping her eyes with the heel of her palm. "Please don't leave m-" She doesn't get to finish as she's pulled lightning-quick into a strong, tight hug.
"Alright, I get it, stop!" Julia continues to hold her close, a gut reaction, even though she knows its fake, waiting for the sobs to subside. "Dios mio, you're almost making me feel bad here." She mumbles into the top of Ferris' hair.
Ferris giggles where she's pressed against Julia's chest.
"You little shit." Julia's tone is more fond than harsh.
"Yep, that's me." Finally released from the embrace, Ferris hopes the flush on her cheeks reads as a byproduct of the weeping, rather than the racing of her tattle-tale heart. Having a crush on the Marshal was about as stupid as you could get. Falling for straight girls was an exercise in futility. "So, are you going to buy me dinner for my amazing performance?" She can't help it, futility be damned.
"I was going to anyway," Julia laughs. "but for the record don't think the little sob story act would actually work on me. I'm starting to learn your tells." She jabs a finger in her direction.
"I solemnly swear I'll only use my evil powers for good." Ferris places a hand over her heart. "Or if its funny."
"I'll hold you too that." Julia throws an arm around Ferris' shoulders as they start walking. "I'm thinking Hoots?"
"We always go to Hoots." Ferris whines, placing her mask back over her head but leaving most of her face exposed. "But I guess its one of the only places we can go still in our onesies."
"Our very expensive onesies. Wait does that make them battle onesies?" Julia chuckles at her own joke.
"So does the press know the Marshal is such a dork or…?" Ferris can't help but tease her, even if she's enjoying the closeness.
"You started it! Besides, I don't think its that much of a secret. The press sees what it wants to see." Julia shrugs.
"A rapidly aging woman." Ferris says with all the seriousness of a wake.
"You are such a brat!" Julia tries to pinch her in the side but Ferris knew it was coming and ducks out from under her arm, sticking her tongue out at her for good measure. "Next time your ass gets kidnapped, I'm leaving you there." Julia huffs.
"Some threat, you love playing the dashing hero too much - hey can I drive?" Ferris switches gears as they reach Julia's bike.
"Not a chance." Julia winks, leaving Ferris to pout as she sides onto the seat behind her, doing her best not to think about how nice it feels with her arms around Julia's waist.
Gonna be horribly broad lol pick uour favourite from the kisses section for Ferris?
27. A kiss for cover
Julia/Ferris - 605 words - no warnings - prompts here
Ferris pushes the small umbrella around the rim of her glass, having already forgotten what the drink was called. Something fruity with a salacious name that Julia had dared her order with a strait face.
Easy, she's a good actor, been trained for it most of her life, not that Julia knows. She can say a few dirty words without giggling. Most of the time. Just like it's easy to sit here shoulder to shoulder and pretend she doesn't like the touch too much, pretend not to notice the couple at the end of the bar stealing kisses from each other and wonder what that's like. Pretend that the alcohol isn't tempting her to do something stupid like tell Julia how she feels. Idiot. Falling for straight girls is an exercise in futility.
"Shit." Julia swears under under her breath, eyes darting to the door then back to her drink.
"What is it?" Ferris doesn't need to look, the bar isn't packed in the middle of the day, the new presence easily picked up through the small crowd, even if she doesn't know who it is.
"An ex." Julia sighs heavily. "A jerk. It didn't really end well."
Do they ever? Ferris keeps that thought to herself.
"Should we go?" She asks instead.
"What?" Julia blinks at her incredulously. "We were here first and I'm not running away just because he's an asshole." She throws out an arm in frustration. "Besides, I'm having fun with you, you rarely agree to go out like this, I just don't want him to ruin it."
"Running away is a perfectly valid tactic for avoiding assholes, Julia." Trust the Marshal's ego to get in the way of sense. She could be so stubborn over the smallest things.
"So is standing your ground, you can't let people intimidate you like that. If people think you're a pushover, they'll just keep pushing." Julia taps her index finger against the bar to emphasize her point.
"What are you even talking about?" Ferris' voice is a loud stage whisper. "We're just trying to avoid your annoying ex boy-toy."
"And he's coming this way, shit." Julia weighs her options, pushing a few stray strands of hair from her face. "Uhh quick, need a distraction, kiss me." Julia looks as serious as she does on the battlefield. May as well be.
"What!?" Ferris is sure her volume turns a few of the nearest heads.
"Fine, then I'll kiss you."
Quick as lightning, the Marshal doesn't hesitate. Ferris barely has time to take a breath before Julia's lips are on hers. It doesn't land perfectly, and it's nothing like you see in the movies but Ferris closes her eyes and leans into all the same. So this is what being kissed is like? Sure there's no swell of music, and she never expected an audience but Julia's lips are warm and tinged with the burn of alcohol. Julia's hand rests against her cheek, gently holding her in place to where she can almost feel the tingle of her mods against her skin. It feels like flying and drowning all at once. Wonderful, terrible, reckless. Dangerous.
And as soon as it's started it's suddenly over, crashed back to reality like a fall out a fourth story window. Not that she'd know.
"Looks like he took the hint and left. Coward." Julia's eyes dart back toward to entrance.
"Yeah." Ferris says in a voice she's not sure is her own.
"Thanks for helping cover for me, I owe you one." Julia winks, clapping Ferris on the shoulder.
"Anytime." Ferris downs the rest of her drink in one go.
