http://springflingmod.livejournal.com/ ([identity profile] springflingmod.livejournal.com) wrote in [community profile] spn_springfling2015-03-18 11:08 pm

Let her under your skin by [livejournal.com profile] lyryk for <user site="livejournal.co

Title: Let her under your skin
Pairing: Jody Mills/Linda Tran
Rating: PG-13
Any warnings: None


They walk miles and miles every day, the sun beating down on them like a silent storm. Jody would have preferred the kind of weather that smashes windows and blows away rooftops, but she’s never been one to complain. At least they still have air to breathe. At least they still have guns and knives and the determination to stay alive.

Linda doesn’t talk much. In fact, Jody can’t remember the last time they talked. She remembers Linda storming the station at Sioux Falls, the place empty except for Jody, her eyes and hair wild, terrible questions in her eyes that Jody didn’t have the answers to.

The world has all but ended and they’re making their way to Lebanon, Kansas, to the only place where they believe they might find friends and safety. Jody secretly hopes the boys are okay, but she also retains enough of her senses to remember that the place they call home is also the place that Linda’s only child lost his life, and she’s careful not to mention it. It’s not as though dealing with the loss of your child ever gets easier. Jody should know, after all. (She doesn’t even know if Linda knows, but it hardly matters now. All that matters is that they’re both used to living with ghosts.)

The car ran out of gas two towns behind them. Jody had driven it since she became sheriff, but she’d discarded it without hesitation once it became useless, necessity supplanting sentimental attachment.

Linda’s new. She’s new to Jody’s world, the sort of hunter who’d be better off alone than working with a partner. She’s still with Jody for some reason, has been from the day a few weeks ago when everything went to hell and they left Sioux Falls together.

“There.” Linda speaks, as always, only when necessary. She’s pointing to a house a few hundred meters off the road that seems to have survived. They’ve spent nights in almost-intact houses along the road, never staying for more than the time that they need to rest their eyes, never speaking of the things they do when they’re surrounded by walls. It started a few days ago, Linda pushing Jody against the wall as they passed each other in a corridor with half the ceiling fallen in, shoving her hand into the trousers of the uniform Jody still wears every day, mouthing at the dry skin of Jody’s throat.

The house still has its walls and roof, the door swinging lightly in an innocuous breeze. In the kitchen, there’s rotting food and unwashed dishes in the sink. There are also cans of baked beans and tinned fruit, enough to see them through the remainder of their journey. If they’re lucky enough to arrive in Kansas in one piece. In the bathroom, there’s running water and scented soap and a half-full bottle of shampoo.

“Such luxuries,” Linda says as she comes out of the bath, the dirt and grime of the road washed away like a layer of discarded skin. There’s a towel wrapped around her hair and another around her body, water trickling from her wet hair along her neck and shoulders and arms. They spend the afternoon in the king-sized bed in the master bedroom.

At night, Jody sits on the porch steps and watches the stars come out as though nothing’s changed. (People lived here once, maybe a family, maybe a dog and a couple of cats.) A light wind is raising the dust at her feet, bringing with it a faint smell of rain. She imagines droplets coming down, settling the dust, cleaning the air.

When she hears Linda behind her, she doesn’t turn around.

“Look what I found.” Linda’s wearing the cotton dress she’s taken to sleeping in, as though there were any point to changing before bed when, most nights, they don’t have beds to sleep in.

She’s holding two opened bottles of beer, already raising one to her lips as she hands the other to Jody.

Jody takes it, clinking her bottle against Linda’s as Linda sits down beside her on the steps, her bare toes curling against the dusty wood.
frozen_delight: (jody)

[personal profile] frozen_delight 2015-03-19 07:20 am (UTC)(link)
I loved the atmosphere in this, and the understated sadness of it all. Well done!

[identity profile] lyryk.livejournal.com 2015-03-31 07:57 pm (UTC)(link)
Thank you! Couldn't really write anything fluffy for these two. I'm glad you liked it.
ext_1602671: (girlies)

[identity profile] jalu2.livejournal.com 2015-03-19 08:52 am (UTC)(link)
This is so great! An understated feel throughout that came across as very natural between the two of them.

[identity profile] lyryk.livejournal.com 2015-03-31 07:58 pm (UTC)(link)
Thanks so much! I'm so happy it felt natural to you.

[identity profile] tifaching.livejournal.com 2015-03-19 11:06 am (UTC)(link)
I can see this. Beautifully done.

[identity profile] lyryk.livejournal.com 2015-03-31 07:58 pm (UTC)(link)
Thanks so much! <3

[identity profile] sophiap.livejournal.com 2015-03-19 11:46 am (UTC)(link)
This is beautifully written and oh-so-sad (while still being kind of hopeful). I love Jody's thoughts about knowing what it's like to lose a child and living with ghosts.

[identity profile] lyryk.livejournal.com 2015-03-31 07:59 pm (UTC)(link)
I'm a sucker for angsty but hopeful stuff, so I'm really glad it felt hopeful to you! Thanks so much for the lovely comment.

[identity profile] marciaelena.livejournal.com 2015-03-19 06:06 pm (UTC)(link)
So beautiful and so atmospheric. I'm a sucker for post-apocalypse and this hit all the right spots for me.

[identity profile] lyryk.livejournal.com 2015-03-31 08:02 pm (UTC)(link)
I love post-apocalypse and dystopian stuff too. I'm so glad you liked this, bb.

[identity profile] road-rhythm.livejournal.com 2015-03-19 08:34 pm (UTC)(link)
Such a vivid picture of both this world and the women making their way through it packed into so few words. Even though we know next to nothing about what happened, the result still feels real.

Jody takes it, clinking her bottle against Linda’s as Linda sits down beside her on the steps, her bare toes curling against the dusty wood.

Beautiful ending.

[identity profile] lyryk.livejournal.com 2015-03-31 08:03 pm (UTC)(link)
I'm so glad it felt real to you. Thank you so much for the lovely feedback.

[identity profile] lysanatt.livejournal.com 2015-03-19 09:43 pm (UTC)(link)
Wonderful. I loved how you pictured so clearly how cool and powerful Linda and Jody are in their own right, both just doing what needs to be done, surviving by enjoying the small pleasures they find and by being clever and strong. A short fic, but it said a lot.

[identity profile] lyryk.livejournal.com 2015-03-31 08:05 pm (UTC)(link)
"Surviving by enjoying the small pleasures they find and by being clever and strong" -- that about sums it up. <3 Thanks so much!

[identity profile] balder12.livejournal.com 2015-03-20 02:14 am (UTC)(link)
This was beautifully written. I really loved your characterization of Linda and Jody, and the quiet, uneasy intimacy of their relationship here felt very believable to me.

[identity profile] lyryk.livejournal.com 2015-03-31 08:06 pm (UTC)(link)
Thanks so much! I'm so glad this felt believable to you.

[identity profile] mako-lies.livejournal.com 2015-03-20 02:26 pm (UTC)(link)
Oh my goodness! Thank you so much! I really love how you capture both Linda and Jody's quiet drive and determination. The way they come together felt very right to me--understated and intimate. I love how Jody relates to Linda's loss of Kevin--you do a really good job of highlighting the parallels between them in a way that feels natural to me.

I also really dig that we never find out exactly what happened to the world, we just get a taste of what is happening. The way you incorporated two of my prompts really works well here. I'm just so delighted by this--thank you! This is fantastic.

[identity profile] lyryk.livejournal.com 2015-03-31 08:08 pm (UTC)(link)
Thank ~you for prompting this lovely pairing! I feel as though I latched on to them immediately and have become very fond of the pairing. Your prompts immediately put images in my head too, and were really great to work with. I'm so glad you liked this.

[identity profile] madebyme-x.livejournal.com 2015-03-20 06:15 pm (UTC)(link)
Quiet and sad, and yet very beautiful! Thank you for sharing :)

[identity profile] lyryk.livejournal.com 2015-03-31 08:09 pm (UTC)(link)
Thank you very much! I'm so pleased you liked this. :-)

[identity profile] tipsy-kitty.livejournal.com 2015-03-20 10:29 pm (UTC)(link)
Hoo-boy, what'd the Winchesters do this time? :) This was lovely.

[identity profile] lyryk.livejournal.com 2015-03-31 08:10 pm (UTC)(link)
Heh, right. If it's the end of the world, the boys have to be involved somehow. ;-) Thank you!

[identity profile] fiercelynormal.livejournal.com 2015-03-23 09:08 pm (UTC)(link)
Great storytelling, the two women brought together by shared grief and purpose. Well done!

[identity profile] lyryk.livejournal.com 2015-03-31 08:11 pm (UTC)(link)
Thank you very much! I'm so pleased you liked it.
colls: (SPN Impala gas station)

[personal profile] colls 2015-03-23 11:47 pm (UTC)(link)
This is wonderfully sad and somewhat hopeful at the same time. These ladies have grit and I love the way you've written how they deal with the end of the world.

[identity profile] lyryk.livejournal.com 2015-03-31 08:12 pm (UTC)(link)
Thanks, you. <3 I'm glad you thought it was a bit hopeful, too.

[identity profile] theymp.livejournal.com 2015-03-27 06:58 pm (UTC)(link)
Two strong women who've had their share of pain, thrown together and making the best of what little's left. What's not to like?

While I hope they find the Winchesters, we know they'll manage if they don't.
Edited 2015-03-28 03:17 (UTC)

[identity profile] lyryk.livejournal.com 2015-04-01 11:11 am (UTC)(link)
Thanks so much! I love that my giftee got me to think of these two incredible women together. I'm glad you enjoyed the fic. :-)

(Edited for suffix fail, lol.)
Edited 2015-04-01 11:12 (UTC)

[identity profile] glovered.livejournal.com 2015-03-30 05:46 am (UTC)(link)
Oooh, this is so lovely and very in character. Their quiet interactions really worked for me. And you've done excellent world-building!!

[identity profile] lyryk.livejournal.com 2015-04-01 11:13 am (UTC)(link)
I'm so pleased this worked for you! Thank you very much. *g*