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telarynTitle: Stand-Off
'Verse: BTVS/Leverage/SPN
Characters: Nate/Sophie
Rating: PG
Word Count: 1104
Warnings: None
Summary: Nate confronts Sophie about her refusal to give up trying to get him out of his deal with Crowley.
Author's Note: I recently put up an offer for a fic a day for the first twenty days of December. This is prompt #9, provided by![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
alinaandalion, who wanted Nate/Sophie angst, set in The Ties That Bind Job 'Verse. It is the first time anyone has ever requested a fic set in this bizarre little alternate Leverage setting that my daughter and I created, so I am both humbled and honored writing this one.
In the events of The Let's Make a Deal Job a deal Sophie made with a certain crossroads demon came due. In order to free her from that deal and save Eliot's life and Hardison's sanity, Nate bartered his own soul to Crowley for the demon to claim "at a time and place of his choosing". The catch is that if Nate or Faith (who witnessed the deal) discuss the terms with anyone but each other, the deal is void.
This story will likely be a scene from the upcoming "The Fall Asleep Job", where Nate confronts Sophie about helping Faith find a loophole in Crowley's terms. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy it Alina!
Even at his worst, Sophie had always been able to read Nate. The problem was when she looked too closely she rarely ended up liking what she saw. “You’re angry,” she said coolly, setting her purse on the bar and sliding up onto one of the stools.
He had a glass of whiskey between his hands, but she couldn’t tell if he’d actually drunk any of it, or if he was using the alcohol as some kind of demented worry stone. “I get that way when people I care about start engaging in suicidal behavior.” He looked up finally, meeting her eyes. “Paul called me. I wasn’t aware St. Nicholas was going to be part of your travel itinerary.”
Sophie’s stomach twisted itself into a painful knot. “Nate…”
All the anger he’d been holding in seemed to burst out then. “Dammit Sophie!” He slapped the surface of the bar hard, and she flinched away from the noise. “How far does this have to go before you start taking it seriously?”
Sophie clenched her hands into fists. “Don’t you put this on me, Nate. Don’t you dare expect me to just sit back and wait for Crowley or Sterling or whoever the hell he is to show up and take you away from us. It was my stupid desperation that helped put you into this situation in the first place!” Younger and far more foolish than she was now, Sophie had once sold her soul to a very powerful demon in exchange for ten years to build her fortune and reputation as the greatest grifter the world had ever known. At the time she hadn’t even been able to fantasize about the way her life would turn out, or how much she would have to lose when the deal came due.
It was the reason she hadn’t hesitated when Faith had asked for her help. She would never forget that the only reason she was alive today was that the demon who’d bought her soul wanted Nate’s more. “You promised me the deal with Crowley wasn’t about you trying to kill yourself,” she said coldly.
They stared at each other for a long moment, neither of them daring to speak. Finally Nate pulled on a chain she hadn’t noticed around his neck, bringing into view the crucifix pendant he’d hidden beneath his shirt. “Paul had a few ideas,” he said, obviously struggling to keep his voice level. “He’s still looking into things, but he wanted me to start wearing this right away.” He let the necklace fall, and reached into the pocket of his jeans, pulling out a jumble of beads that he set on the bar. “I won’t bore you with the prayers, or the number of times I’m supposed to recite them.”
The blazing anger in his eyes was starting to bleed away, leaving a terrifying vulnerability in its wake. “I don’t want to die, Sophie,” he said softly. “I especially don’t want to die now, when I’m starting to believe we’re in for the long haul with each other. You have to remember what’s at stake, though.” Overcome with emotion, he ducked his head – staring at his hands for a moment until he could trust himself to speak again. “If we fuck this up, my deal with Crowley was for nothing. He gets my soul, and you and Eliot both die. Worse than that, you go to hell.”
It wasn’t the first time Sophie had felt like her heart was breaking when it came to her relationship with Nate, but every time she was forced to confront the truth of his deal it felt like her world was coming unraveled around her and there wasn’t a thing she could do to stop it. “Faith…” she began, trying to remind Nate that he still had something very precious to lose.
“I’m going to have a talk with my daughter,” Nate said firmly, and Sophie knew she would make no progress on that subject. Not while he’s in this mood. “Is she really off on Slayer business?” he finished.
Sophie grimaced, hating that she still had to justify some things to him. “Yes. She was genuinely surprised to run into Mr. Giles outside the church.” She sighed. “Honestly Nate, Faith’s just not that good a liar. Certainly not good enough to pull something over on me.”
He seemed to accept that, which was a relief. Faith had never been an easy subject between them, and Sophie knew she wasn’t up to arguing with Nate about his daughter right now. Or anything, for that matter. She didn’t want to waste whatever moments they had left together, but… “How can you ask me to give up?”
*******************
He didn’t want her to give up. That wasn’t it at all. He’d talked for over an hour with Paul that morning, and when he’d hung up Nate had come unraveled in a very ugly, very emotional way. It was the first glimmer of genuine hope he’d had since being forced to make his deal, and if the price hadn’t been unacceptably high he would have been falling all over himself to thank Faith for thinking of it and Sophie for backing her play.
“You know me better than anyone alive,” he said, wincing at the suddenly tremor in his voice. “You know how hard it is for me to sit back and let something like this just happen. I can’t make any plans for the future. I can’t even say a proper good-bye to any of you, because whatever’s going to happen could be twenty years or two minutes from now. I have no control, Sophie. And in a very real way, it’s slowly driving me out of my mind.”
“Then why..?” she began, but he cut her off. He couldn’t hear the argument again, because it was her and especially now she could make him believe that it was worth the risk; that his life and soul were worth the risk.
Pushing off his stool, he closed the distance that separated them and pulled her into a light embrace. “If I promise to work with Paul, will you promise to finally let this go? I can’t lose you, Sophie. None of this means anything, if I lose you.” Before she could say anything, he kissed her. It was slow and thorough and she moaned softly, pressing into him as her lips parted and his tongue slipped inside her.
“You make a very persuasive argument,” she murmured when he finally let her up for air.
He sighed quietly, giving her a reproachful look. “And that wasn’t an answer.”
'Verse: BTVS/Leverage/SPN
Characters: Nate/Sophie
Rating: PG
Word Count: 1104
Warnings: None
Summary: Nate confronts Sophie about her refusal to give up trying to get him out of his deal with Crowley.
Author's Note: I recently put up an offer for a fic a day for the first twenty days of December. This is prompt #9, provided by
alinaandalion, who wanted Nate/Sophie angst, set in The Ties That Bind Job 'Verse. It is the first time anyone has ever requested a fic set in this bizarre little alternate Leverage setting that my daughter and I created, so I am both humbled and honored writing this one.In the events of The Let's Make a Deal Job a deal Sophie made with a certain crossroads demon came due. In order to free her from that deal and save Eliot's life and Hardison's sanity, Nate bartered his own soul to Crowley for the demon to claim "at a time and place of his choosing". The catch is that if Nate or Faith (who witnessed the deal) discuss the terms with anyone but each other, the deal is void.
This story will likely be a scene from the upcoming "The Fall Asleep Job", where Nate confronts Sophie about helping Faith find a loophole in Crowley's terms. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy it Alina!
Even at his worst, Sophie had always been able to read Nate. The problem was when she looked too closely she rarely ended up liking what she saw. “You’re angry,” she said coolly, setting her purse on the bar and sliding up onto one of the stools.
He had a glass of whiskey between his hands, but she couldn’t tell if he’d actually drunk any of it, or if he was using the alcohol as some kind of demented worry stone. “I get that way when people I care about start engaging in suicidal behavior.” He looked up finally, meeting her eyes. “Paul called me. I wasn’t aware St. Nicholas was going to be part of your travel itinerary.”
Sophie’s stomach twisted itself into a painful knot. “Nate…”
All the anger he’d been holding in seemed to burst out then. “Dammit Sophie!” He slapped the surface of the bar hard, and she flinched away from the noise. “How far does this have to go before you start taking it seriously?”
Sophie clenched her hands into fists. “Don’t you put this on me, Nate. Don’t you dare expect me to just sit back and wait for Crowley or Sterling or whoever the hell he is to show up and take you away from us. It was my stupid desperation that helped put you into this situation in the first place!” Younger and far more foolish than she was now, Sophie had once sold her soul to a very powerful demon in exchange for ten years to build her fortune and reputation as the greatest grifter the world had ever known. At the time she hadn’t even been able to fantasize about the way her life would turn out, or how much she would have to lose when the deal came due.
It was the reason she hadn’t hesitated when Faith had asked for her help. She would never forget that the only reason she was alive today was that the demon who’d bought her soul wanted Nate’s more. “You promised me the deal with Crowley wasn’t about you trying to kill yourself,” she said coldly.
They stared at each other for a long moment, neither of them daring to speak. Finally Nate pulled on a chain she hadn’t noticed around his neck, bringing into view the crucifix pendant he’d hidden beneath his shirt. “Paul had a few ideas,” he said, obviously struggling to keep his voice level. “He’s still looking into things, but he wanted me to start wearing this right away.” He let the necklace fall, and reached into the pocket of his jeans, pulling out a jumble of beads that he set on the bar. “I won’t bore you with the prayers, or the number of times I’m supposed to recite them.”
The blazing anger in his eyes was starting to bleed away, leaving a terrifying vulnerability in its wake. “I don’t want to die, Sophie,” he said softly. “I especially don’t want to die now, when I’m starting to believe we’re in for the long haul with each other. You have to remember what’s at stake, though.” Overcome with emotion, he ducked his head – staring at his hands for a moment until he could trust himself to speak again. “If we fuck this up, my deal with Crowley was for nothing. He gets my soul, and you and Eliot both die. Worse than that, you go to hell.”
It wasn’t the first time Sophie had felt like her heart was breaking when it came to her relationship with Nate, but every time she was forced to confront the truth of his deal it felt like her world was coming unraveled around her and there wasn’t a thing she could do to stop it. “Faith…” she began, trying to remind Nate that he still had something very precious to lose.
“I’m going to have a talk with my daughter,” Nate said firmly, and Sophie knew she would make no progress on that subject. Not while he’s in this mood. “Is she really off on Slayer business?” he finished.
Sophie grimaced, hating that she still had to justify some things to him. “Yes. She was genuinely surprised to run into Mr. Giles outside the church.” She sighed. “Honestly Nate, Faith’s just not that good a liar. Certainly not good enough to pull something over on me.”
He seemed to accept that, which was a relief. Faith had never been an easy subject between them, and Sophie knew she wasn’t up to arguing with Nate about his daughter right now. Or anything, for that matter. She didn’t want to waste whatever moments they had left together, but… “How can you ask me to give up?”
*******************
He didn’t want her to give up. That wasn’t it at all. He’d talked for over an hour with Paul that morning, and when he’d hung up Nate had come unraveled in a very ugly, very emotional way. It was the first glimmer of genuine hope he’d had since being forced to make his deal, and if the price hadn’t been unacceptably high he would have been falling all over himself to thank Faith for thinking of it and Sophie for backing her play.
“You know me better than anyone alive,” he said, wincing at the suddenly tremor in his voice. “You know how hard it is for me to sit back and let something like this just happen. I can’t make any plans for the future. I can’t even say a proper good-bye to any of you, because whatever’s going to happen could be twenty years or two minutes from now. I have no control, Sophie. And in a very real way, it’s slowly driving me out of my mind.”
“Then why..?” she began, but he cut her off. He couldn’t hear the argument again, because it was her and especially now she could make him believe that it was worth the risk; that his life and soul were worth the risk.
Pushing off his stool, he closed the distance that separated them and pulled her into a light embrace. “If I promise to work with Paul, will you promise to finally let this go? I can’t lose you, Sophie. None of this means anything, if I lose you.” Before she could say anything, he kissed her. It was slow and thorough and she moaned softly, pressing into him as her lips parted and his tongue slipped inside her.
“You make a very persuasive argument,” she murmured when he finally let her up for air.
He sighed quietly, giving her a reproachful look. “And that wasn’t an answer.”
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(no subject)
12/12/12 14:01 (UTC)Oh, I'm about to have to leave for work, but I just saw this and had to read it. I will be back to leave coherent feedback, complete with favorite lines.
(no subject)
12/12/12 14:08 (UTC)I'm so glad you like this, and I look forward to your more detailed reactions!
(no subject)
13/12/12 13:04 (UTC)I think this is my absolute favorite line. It just speaks so much to how complicated they are.
It wasn’t the first time Sophie had felt like her heart was breaking when it came to her relationship with Nate, but every time she was forced to confront the truth of his deal it felt like her world was coming unraveled around her and there wasn’t a thing she could do to stop it.
Just, THIS. It's so sad.
I can't get over all the little touches. The way the tensions between the two of them over Faith run right underneath, the fact that it's obvious they're both ridiculously fucked up people who love each other (even if they don't always really like each other), and just EVERYTHING!