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rivendellroseHere it is - please be kind. I already just barely caught one two mistakes; there's probably at least one more hiding in there somewhere. Hazards of writing a series I don't know so well yet. And the dialogue nearly killed me. Damned Minbari. :P
Fandom: B5
Characters: Delenn, Lennier
Disclaimer: Not mine, not making money, just trying to figure them out. If it seems familiar, it belongs to JMS.
Notes: Don't expect plot. With as many twists as there are in canon, I'll be sticking with character vignettes, thanks, at least until I hit the end. Also, please to not spoil the writer. She is still only three episodes into Season 3. If at the end of this season, Lennier dies/turns into a Vorlon/cross-dresses, confesses his wooby love for Garibaldi and begs for a threesome with the motorcycle, I don't want to know about it.
Other than that, all I can say is... my apologies. I am weak versus the cuteness.
For the first hours after she returned to her quarters following Sebastian’s departure, Delenn did not speak. Lennier took this as a sign that she wanted peace and time to reflect, and went about the business of preparing her dinner and rearranging her appointments the next day to accomodate her exhaustion, all without a word. She put aside the traditional portion of food for Valen, then ate in silence, and Lennier accepted this as well, waiting, as always, until she had finished to take the portion she had carefully left for him. It was more than usual - she had taken a smaller amount of food than he’d seen her eat in his two years of service with her, and he was flustered by the unnecessary abundance.
“Are you certain you don’t want more to eat, Ambassador? This is too much, and you ate nothing yesterday.”
“I am fine, Lennier. I am simply not hungry, after my ordeal.”
She had not so much as blinked at his inadvertant use of her title. More than anything else, this convinced Lennier that more was wrong than Delenn was willing to show. “You should eat, to keep up your strength...” Lennier trailed off and bowed his head. “Forgive me. It is not my place to question.”
Silence fell again, and for a moment Lennier was sure that it was his gentle reprimand for speaking out of place. Delenn stood and removed the plates from their low table, leaving only Lennier’s untouched and over-sized portion, and when she finally spoke, it was without looking at him. “What you did yesterday was very brave, Lennier. To defy my direct order and first attempt to intervene yourself, then seek out Captain Sheridan and bring him to me.”
Ah. Speech, not silence, would be his punishment for presumption. Lennier folded his hands and took a moment to compose himself before responding. “I did not mean it as defiance. I believed that Ambassador Kosh’s emissary might kill you, and I could not allow that if it was in my power to stop him. I apologize for defying your orders, but I cannot ask forgiveness for my actions.”
“Lennier...” Delenn sighed and turned back to him. She looked so tired, and so frustrated, that he was ashamed to cause her further discomfort by his words. In all his time with her, Delenn had been everything an acolyte could desire in a mentor. She was patient and kind, yet firm and, when necessary, even stern with him; her orders were direct and clear, and never beyond what he was willing to attempt, and yet she exhibited great faith in him. Perhaps greater than he deserved, he often thought, but it gave him something to work toward. What an honor it would be, to spend his life working to be worthy of her teachings. But no amount of shame, even if she were to dismiss him entirely, would be worth the agony of knowing that he had willfully allowed her to come to harm.
“I understand the impulse to act without sanction. The council believed that I should let the universe follow its own course, rather than changing the flow by my own will, by going through with my transformation. But if I had waited, who is to say what would have happened, or what may still yet come of it?”
“The transformation has not changed you so much.”
“The body is only a shell,” Delenn agreed. “But to our people, it is significant, as we have already seen. And to others as well. Had I not gone through with the transformation, I would still be on the Grey Council, still welcomed in their midst, and I wonder... I wonder what difference it would have made with Captain Sheridan. Would he be so welcoming, so understanding, of a pure Minbari?”
“He has been very pleasant to me, and to the others here,” Lennier offered. He disliked the way this conversation led - the captain was a good man, but the thought of Delenn changing herself for him was... unpleasant, to Lennier’s mind, even if she took on those changes willingly.
“He has. He is a good man, not given to prejudice or undue bias. We would certainly have maintained a good working relationship, I believe, but he would perhaps not have been so eager to tie his destiny to mine, had I been when we met still as I once was.”
“Perhaps.”
“The bond between the captain and I is great, Lennier. I have felt it... Even before I met him, I knew that something was soon to change. Something for which that I must be ready, something greater even than the will of the Grey Council. Mine is to serve, but a greater purpose than the council is currently willing to see.”
“I understand. You know that I would never question the wisdom of your decision.”
“You say that, Lennier, and yet you have twice defied me when you believed that my decisions put me in unnecessary danger.”
“I--”
“It is good, and right. You are young, and perhaps it is right that Minbari should learn something of curiosity and impetuous individuality from the younger races. In the times that are coming, we must all support each other, and watch, and question to be sure that we remain on the true path. We are all seekers, with only the smallest light to see by in the vale of darkness that comes. But it does... worry me.”
“I would never put you in danger, Delenn.”
“And what of our war? In the times that come, I must place myself in harm’s way. It will be a long and hard battle, and my way... I cannot see the end of it, Lennier. It is possible that I must die to fulfill this duty. And if that is what must be...”
“Then I will be by your side. I told you that already.”
Delenn shook her head, smiling at him as sadly as a parent at a child who doesn’t know the sorrows of the world and innocently asks questions beyond the powers of the parent to explain. “But there may come a time when our paths divide. You must be willing to see that. I have pledged my life to fight directly against the darkness, but you--”
Lennier stood and squared his shoulders against her doubt. This, at least, he knew how to answer. “I have not sworn to fight this war, but I have sworn to serve you. Always. As long as you have need of me, I will walk by your side.”
“And what if I tell you that it serves me best if you leave this place, to go home and return to your family, to safety?”
“Then I must respectfully decline to submit, Ambassador. I know my place, and it is with you.”
This time she recognized the use of her title and, no doubt, his reason for using it - if she was going to lean on the power relationship between them, it followed that he could, as well. Delenn sighed again, and rested her fingertips against her forehead. “I wish I could say that this angers me, Lennier. But I am grateful to have you. I cannot imagine walking this path without your friendship.”
“I am honored to serve,” Lennier replied, and bowed his head again, this time to hide the grateful pleasure and relief in his eyes. He had been afraid that Delenn would insist, forcing him to willfully shame family, clan, and her by virtue of his position as her acolyte, all for the sake of remaining by her side. There was not a doubt in his mind that this was where he belonged. Wherever she would go, he would follow, welcome or not, as needed. Hubris, perhaps, but he couldn’t change where his soul led him. Delenn had Captain Sheridan at her side, yes, but an additional guard and servant couldn’t hurt, particularly one who understood better the battle they were fighting and the details of her own culture. That did bring up one other thought, however... “If I may ask one question?”
Delenn looked so tired that Lennier suspected she already knew what he was going to ask, but she inclined her head gracefully. “Of course.”
“Did you ask these same questions of Captain Sheridan? Did you likewise attempt to convince him... that the time might come when he had to make a choice?”
The ambassador’s slender fingers detoured to her hair, an unnecessary attempt to push it out of her face. This was a nervous twitch she had only developed since her transformation. Was it wrong to miss the old Delenn, so still and unflappable?
“No, Lennier. I have not. I cannot explain why, exactly, but I believe in my heart that Captain Sheridan and I walk the same path, together. Your instinct in telling him was right.”
But that was not the question troubling the younger Minbari.“And yet he, too, was willing to defy both Kosh’s will and your orders for your safety,” Lennier pointed out quietly, focusing his attention on his hands. This was dangerous ground, taking advantage of the friendship that had grown out of his position to directly question his mentor. “Perhaps you underestimate your importance to those around you.”
“In the times that will come--”
“Forgive my presumption, Delenn, but in the times that will come, you are certain to be important. Ambassador Kosh was concerned enough with your place in the coming struggle to test you personally. Not Captain Sheridan, but you. And yet you do not seem willing to believe that you would be important enough to us, your friends, to protect and care for with all our strength.”
“That is not entirely it...”
“But it is. You have devoted yourself to the great cause - to protecting the universe from the shadows. A great cause for a great soul.” Lennier twitched an awkward smile before continuing. “My cause is to follow you, to protect you, and make your path easier where I can. It is, in some ways, a smaller cause. But it is mine, and I am no less willing than you to do whatever is needed to accomplish it.”
For a moment, Lennier was unsure of Delenn’s reaction, and then she smiled, so sudden and bright that he was sure the universe was less dark for it. “My friend, I have truly been blessed in you,” she murmured, crossing the space between them to bow her head against his. “You make my path easier just by being here with me. How can I refuse company that is so welcome, and so warm?”
That, then, was enough to be satisfied. Lennier smiled back at her, with relief this time rather than apology, and was relieved to see Delenn much more relaxed, now, than she had been since her ordeal. He could not be her hero - that part was best left to Captain Sheridan. But he could still walk beside her, and ease her way whenever possible, while enjoying the light of her presence for as long as he was allowed.
Fandom: B5
Characters: Delenn, Lennier
Disclaimer: Not mine, not making money, just trying to figure them out. If it seems familiar, it belongs to JMS.
Notes: Don't expect plot. With as many twists as there are in canon, I'll be sticking with character vignettes, thanks, at least until I hit the end. Also, please to not spoil the writer. She is still only three episodes into Season 3. If at the end of this season, Lennier dies/turns into a Vorlon/cross-dresses, confesses his wooby love for Garibaldi and begs for a threesome with the motorcycle, I don't want to know about it.
Other than that, all I can say is... my apologies. I am weak versus the cuteness.
For the first hours after she returned to her quarters following Sebastian’s departure, Delenn did not speak. Lennier took this as a sign that she wanted peace and time to reflect, and went about the business of preparing her dinner and rearranging her appointments the next day to accomodate her exhaustion, all without a word. She put aside the traditional portion of food for Valen, then ate in silence, and Lennier accepted this as well, waiting, as always, until she had finished to take the portion she had carefully left for him. It was more than usual - she had taken a smaller amount of food than he’d seen her eat in his two years of service with her, and he was flustered by the unnecessary abundance.
“Are you certain you don’t want more to eat, Ambassador? This is too much, and you ate nothing yesterday.”
“I am fine, Lennier. I am simply not hungry, after my ordeal.”
She had not so much as blinked at his inadvertant use of her title. More than anything else, this convinced Lennier that more was wrong than Delenn was willing to show. “You should eat, to keep up your strength...” Lennier trailed off and bowed his head. “Forgive me. It is not my place to question.”
Silence fell again, and for a moment Lennier was sure that it was his gentle reprimand for speaking out of place. Delenn stood and removed the plates from their low table, leaving only Lennier’s untouched and over-sized portion, and when she finally spoke, it was without looking at him. “What you did yesterday was very brave, Lennier. To defy my direct order and first attempt to intervene yourself, then seek out Captain Sheridan and bring him to me.”
Ah. Speech, not silence, would be his punishment for presumption. Lennier folded his hands and took a moment to compose himself before responding. “I did not mean it as defiance. I believed that Ambassador Kosh’s emissary might kill you, and I could not allow that if it was in my power to stop him. I apologize for defying your orders, but I cannot ask forgiveness for my actions.”
“Lennier...” Delenn sighed and turned back to him. She looked so tired, and so frustrated, that he was ashamed to cause her further discomfort by his words. In all his time with her, Delenn had been everything an acolyte could desire in a mentor. She was patient and kind, yet firm and, when necessary, even stern with him; her orders were direct and clear, and never beyond what he was willing to attempt, and yet she exhibited great faith in him. Perhaps greater than he deserved, he often thought, but it gave him something to work toward. What an honor it would be, to spend his life working to be worthy of her teachings. But no amount of shame, even if she were to dismiss him entirely, would be worth the agony of knowing that he had willfully allowed her to come to harm.
“I understand the impulse to act without sanction. The council believed that I should let the universe follow its own course, rather than changing the flow by my own will, by going through with my transformation. But if I had waited, who is to say what would have happened, or what may still yet come of it?”
“The transformation has not changed you so much.”
“The body is only a shell,” Delenn agreed. “But to our people, it is significant, as we have already seen. And to others as well. Had I not gone through with the transformation, I would still be on the Grey Council, still welcomed in their midst, and I wonder... I wonder what difference it would have made with Captain Sheridan. Would he be so welcoming, so understanding, of a pure Minbari?”
“He has been very pleasant to me, and to the others here,” Lennier offered. He disliked the way this conversation led - the captain was a good man, but the thought of Delenn changing herself for him was... unpleasant, to Lennier’s mind, even if she took on those changes willingly.
“He has. He is a good man, not given to prejudice or undue bias. We would certainly have maintained a good working relationship, I believe, but he would perhaps not have been so eager to tie his destiny to mine, had I been when we met still as I once was.”
“Perhaps.”
“The bond between the captain and I is great, Lennier. I have felt it... Even before I met him, I knew that something was soon to change. Something for which that I must be ready, something greater even than the will of the Grey Council. Mine is to serve, but a greater purpose than the council is currently willing to see.”
“I understand. You know that I would never question the wisdom of your decision.”
“You say that, Lennier, and yet you have twice defied me when you believed that my decisions put me in unnecessary danger.”
“I--”
“It is good, and right. You are young, and perhaps it is right that Minbari should learn something of curiosity and impetuous individuality from the younger races. In the times that are coming, we must all support each other, and watch, and question to be sure that we remain on the true path. We are all seekers, with only the smallest light to see by in the vale of darkness that comes. But it does... worry me.”
“I would never put you in danger, Delenn.”
“And what of our war? In the times that come, I must place myself in harm’s way. It will be a long and hard battle, and my way... I cannot see the end of it, Lennier. It is possible that I must die to fulfill this duty. And if that is what must be...”
“Then I will be by your side. I told you that already.”
Delenn shook her head, smiling at him as sadly as a parent at a child who doesn’t know the sorrows of the world and innocently asks questions beyond the powers of the parent to explain. “But there may come a time when our paths divide. You must be willing to see that. I have pledged my life to fight directly against the darkness, but you--”
Lennier stood and squared his shoulders against her doubt. This, at least, he knew how to answer. “I have not sworn to fight this war, but I have sworn to serve you. Always. As long as you have need of me, I will walk by your side.”
“And what if I tell you that it serves me best if you leave this place, to go home and return to your family, to safety?”
“Then I must respectfully decline to submit, Ambassador. I know my place, and it is with you.”
This time she recognized the use of her title and, no doubt, his reason for using it - if she was going to lean on the power relationship between them, it followed that he could, as well. Delenn sighed again, and rested her fingertips against her forehead. “I wish I could say that this angers me, Lennier. But I am grateful to have you. I cannot imagine walking this path without your friendship.”
“I am honored to serve,” Lennier replied, and bowed his head again, this time to hide the grateful pleasure and relief in his eyes. He had been afraid that Delenn would insist, forcing him to willfully shame family, clan, and her by virtue of his position as her acolyte, all for the sake of remaining by her side. There was not a doubt in his mind that this was where he belonged. Wherever she would go, he would follow, welcome or not, as needed. Hubris, perhaps, but he couldn’t change where his soul led him. Delenn had Captain Sheridan at her side, yes, but an additional guard and servant couldn’t hurt, particularly one who understood better the battle they were fighting and the details of her own culture. That did bring up one other thought, however... “If I may ask one question?”
Delenn looked so tired that Lennier suspected she already knew what he was going to ask, but she inclined her head gracefully. “Of course.”
“Did you ask these same questions of Captain Sheridan? Did you likewise attempt to convince him... that the time might come when he had to make a choice?”
The ambassador’s slender fingers detoured to her hair, an unnecessary attempt to push it out of her face. This was a nervous twitch she had only developed since her transformation. Was it wrong to miss the old Delenn, so still and unflappable?
“No, Lennier. I have not. I cannot explain why, exactly, but I believe in my heart that Captain Sheridan and I walk the same path, together. Your instinct in telling him was right.”
But that was not the question troubling the younger Minbari.“And yet he, too, was willing to defy both Kosh’s will and your orders for your safety,” Lennier pointed out quietly, focusing his attention on his hands. This was dangerous ground, taking advantage of the friendship that had grown out of his position to directly question his mentor. “Perhaps you underestimate your importance to those around you.”
“In the times that will come--”
“Forgive my presumption, Delenn, but in the times that will come, you are certain to be important. Ambassador Kosh was concerned enough with your place in the coming struggle to test you personally. Not Captain Sheridan, but you. And yet you do not seem willing to believe that you would be important enough to us, your friends, to protect and care for with all our strength.”
“That is not entirely it...”
“But it is. You have devoted yourself to the great cause - to protecting the universe from the shadows. A great cause for a great soul.” Lennier twitched an awkward smile before continuing. “My cause is to follow you, to protect you, and make your path easier where I can. It is, in some ways, a smaller cause. But it is mine, and I am no less willing than you to do whatever is needed to accomplish it.”
For a moment, Lennier was unsure of Delenn’s reaction, and then she smiled, so sudden and bright that he was sure the universe was less dark for it. “My friend, I have truly been blessed in you,” she murmured, crossing the space between them to bow her head against his. “You make my path easier just by being here with me. How can I refuse company that is so welcome, and so warm?”
That, then, was enough to be satisfied. Lennier smiled back at her, with relief this time rather than apology, and was relieved to see Delenn much more relaxed, now, than she had been since her ordeal. He could not be her hero - that part was best left to Captain Sheridan. But he could still walk beside her, and ease her way whenever possible, while enjoying the light of her presence for as long as he was allowed.
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no subject
Date: 2006-07-24 08:16 pm (UTC)I really like your voices for both these characters. I think you nailed them both, I could easily hear them speaking the dialogue you gave them. Great job! ♥
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Date: 2006-07-24 08:31 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-24 08:47 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-24 08:59 pm (UTC)The funny thing about Delenn and Lennier is that they sort of do wear their hearts on their sleeves. They have a lot of secrets, yes, but at the same time I don't think it's possible to really be in doubt about how they feel about something. Delenn is very transparent about her emotional reactions, and Lennier is moreso. Particularly when it comes to each other.
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Date: 2006-07-24 09:38 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-24 09:41 pm (UTC)