yes brain, you can has (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
astro_noms) wrote2011-02-19 12:09 am
astro_noms) wrote2011-02-19 12:09 am
Entry tags:
fic: (AV) Heart Full of Cheer
Title: Heart Full of Cheer
Wordcount: 2,541
Rating: mature
Pairings: Tim/Conner
Summary: Something is very wrong with Tim's boyfriend.
Author's Notes: There's a video under the lj-cut, a short animation about the Cat with Hands. You, uh, don't have to watch it, but it's a nice and creepy introduction, and hopefully it'll set the mood for the story.
Atomic Vaudeville master post
Tim paced the green room as hit the call button for the twentieth time in the last two days. Conner hadn't been at work, according to his assistant, and he wasn't answering the phone at home. Tim's messages had filled the mailbox until he couldn't leave any more, but he kept calling again and again, if only to hear Conner's voice in the outgoing message. It was almost show time, and he wanted to try one more time.
On the third ring, someone picked up the phone and immediately disconnected again. Tim stared at his phone and was about to redial when a text message popped up.
"SEE U ON VIDEO?"
Tim opened his laptop and started the video chat program. The connection was opened almost immediately after he requested it, and he started talking as he cleared a space on the table and grabbed a chair.
"Where the hell have you been? I've been so worried, the least you could do is check your messages, the mailbox is full and I-" He broke off when he saw what was on the screen. The young man in front of the camera in Conner's apartment wasn't Conner. He was tall and gaunt, his pale skin looking washed out even in the dim light from the monitor. "Who the hell are you? What are you doing in Conner's apartment? Where is Conner?"
"You must be Tim," the man said, and the sound of his voice sent shivers down Tim's spine. "I'm afraid Conner can't come to the phone, he's..." he waved his hand vaguely, "indisposed."
"What. Have. You. Done. To him." Tim had never more wanted to be able to reach through a computer monitor than he did now. "Where is he?"
"Oh, he's around here somewhere," the pale man said. "We had a nice chat about you, he and I. He really loved you, you know."
"Loved? What do you mean, loved? What the hell have you done to him? I want to see Conner!"
"You're not going to like this," the man said in a singsong voice. He leaned forward and picked up the web cam, and started walking through the apartment, carrying the web cam so his face was still visible. Tim watched as the camera panned from the pale face over to the walls of the living room. There was something splattered on them, and Tim bit back a moan as he realized what it most likely was. Somewhere inside his head, a small voice started repeating the word "no" over and over again. The camera panned further, from the walls to the shattered glass table, to the rug with a dark stain slowly spreading through it. Suddenly, he was looking at a closeup of the intruder's face. "I can stop now, if you want. Once you've seen this, you're not going to be very happy."
This time, the moan slipped out and Tim let it.
"I'll take that as a no," the man laughed, and the giggle sounded like a hyena's howl instead of a human laugh. The camera panned down slowly, moving from side to side. It stopped when just a corner of the rug was in view and the voice spoke off-camera. "Last chance!"
"Damn, you, you sonofabitch, stop playing with me!" Tim screamed and hit the laptop, sending it flying backward. He scrabbled to right it, clinging to the hope that Conner was still all right, that maybe all this was just some terrible joke.
The camera panned down the last few inches, and he saw Conner, lying in a pool of his own blood, his throat ripped to shreds. A scream tore itself from Tim's mouth as the camera lingered on his wounds—the shredded throat, the rips and slashes that separated the body into pieces.
"You... Why would you..." He babbled at the screen as he watched close-ups of Conner's mangled body, filmed in loving detail. "Why..."
The camera switched back to the man's face. He grinned, showing a mouthful of teeth that were pointier than human teeth normally were. "Because it was fun. Now, if you'll excuse me," a shudder ran through him and he grimaced, rubbing at the back of his neck, "I really need to go." And with that, the connection was cut.
Tim clutched at the computer, sobbing. He heard someone open the door and call out "Five minutes!" and turned his face away so the stagehand wouldn't see him. Mercifully, he was left alone. He sat at the table, staring blankly into space. There was no conscious thought as he reached up and closed the lid on the laptop. His phone was on the table, vibrating, and he reached for it, not really seeing anything.
There was a text message on the screen. "SRY I EATED UR BF. HAV A GUD SHOW! ;)" Tim let out a scream and threw the phone across the room, where it almost hit Teri in the face when she popped her head into the room.
"Whoa, what the fuck?" Tim didn't answer, and she walked closer to him, until she could see him in the dim light of the room. "Tim, what's going on? Are you OK?"
"Yeah," he said, staring into the distance. "I'm fine. Is it time to go on yet?"
"Tim, you're scaring me. What's going on?"
"Nothing," he said, standing up. "I'm sorry I scared you. Let's get going, shall we?"
"Yeah, let's go," Teri nodded. She let Tim go first and picked up his phone from where it landed. The screen was cracked, but she pocketed it anyway and followed Tim out. Alex met her on the way to the stage.
"Everything OK?"
"I don't think so. He threw his phone at me. Well, not at me, but he threw it so hard it cracked. Tim just doesn't do things like that. Something's not right."
"I'll talk to him," Alex said. The stage manager was motioning them over furiously, practically pushing them on stage. "Later," she mouthed to Teri and then the audience was screaming and she put a little extra strut in her step as she grabbed the microphone.
#
Later, when they were back in the green room, Alex cornered Tim before he could leave.
"Okay, what's going on? It's like you were somewhere else, the whole show."
"I'm tired, Alex, can we please talk about this tomorrow?" He tried to push past her, but she stood in his way.
"No, Tim, we're going to talk about this now." Alex told him, and put her hands on Tim's shoulders. "Teri said you were upset before the show. Is it Conner? Did you manage to reach him?"
Tim looked up, meeting Alex's eyes. "Conner's dead, Alex." When she gasped at his words, he kept going, his voice going up in volume. "Some sick fuck killed him. Ripped his throat out, cut him into pieces, and then showed it to me." By now, he was yelling, and everyone's eyes were on him. "Is that what you wanted to hear, Alex? Is that what you all wanted to hear?" He turned to the room. "My boyfriend is dead, and I'm getting text messages from his murderer." While everyone stood there in shock, Tim pushed Alex out of his way and stormed out of the room.
"Holy shit," Jay said. "We have to call someone. We have to call David."
"We have to call the police," Marty added. "They can check out Conner's apartment, see what's going on. Maybe this is some kind of sick joke? Some deranged fan, out to fuck with Tim?"
"Nathan, call the police and get them to check Conner's apartment. Tim said he hasn't been at work for a few days, but that could be anything. Teri, you and Jay and Marty, deal with the crew. I don't want this spreading around until we know what's going on. I'm going to... I don't know. Anyone have any sedatives?"
Jay raised his hand. "I have sleeping pills. They're in my bunk, in the red bag."
"OK, I'll go and check on Tim, try and get him to sleep." Alex headed for the door, and then turned back to Teri. "Make sure no one talks about this to anyone, OK? With the Backwash people all over the place, the last thing we need is for this to get out."
It only took a little bit of persuading to get Time to take the sleeping pills. After his outburst backstage, he had pretty much shut down and Alex had to practically drag him to the bus and to his bunk. Once she got the pills into him, she sat with him until he fell asleep. There was a bottle of the Good Scotch, as her band had named it, in the cupboard in the kitchen area, and she poured herself a generous portion. She wanted more than anything to be able to curl up with Titus and talk to him about what was going on, but all the bands had an early start in the morning, and it was too late to go anywhere. At least it was the last night of the stop, and tomorrow they would be on the road again. Tim always got reenergized when they were on the road. It wouldn't be as easy this time, but everyone would help him cope, and they'd get through this together. They always did.
#
A couple of days later, Alex had just come back from sitting with Tim—everyone in the band took turns with him, despite his protests and assurances that he was all right—when Nathan shook her awake.
"Alex, I need to talk to you."
She sat up, wincing as the cramped muscles in her back twinged. "What is it?"
"The detective I spoke to about checking out Conner's apartment just got back to me."
"What did she find?"
"Nothing," Nathan shook his head. "The apartment was spotless. The detective was very insistent that we owed her one. As far as she and her partner are concerned, Conner's just a bored rich kid who took off without telling anyone where he was going. She thinks he just ran off with someone and will show up having spent too much money, with no memory of where he's been and what he's done."
"What about the video that Tim saw?"
"Maybe it was a prank after all? If someone really did kill Conner in the apartment, it would take a lot of work to make it look like it never happened."
"Do you really think there is someone sick enough out there to do that? Tim was really shaken up, and the things he said he saw..." Alex wasn't sure what she hoped for—a horrible prank or a terrible murder. Either way, Tim would need all their help.
"I don't know, Alex," Nathan shook his head.
There was a knock on the door, and Nathan got up to answer it. He stepped back from the door, pale as a sheet.
"Nathan?" He looked as if he'd seen a ghost, Alex thought. She stood up and realized that he might as well have, given who was at the door.
"Guys?" The young man stepped onto the bus, looking from Nathan to Alex in puzzlement. "What's going on?"
"Conner?" Tim's voice cracked in the middle of the name. "How? Is it really you?"
"Who else would it be?" Conner looked from Tim to Alex to Nathan, who were all staring at him, wide-eyed. "What is going on, you guys look like you've seen a—"
Nathan practically threw himself at Tim who was about to launch himself into Conner's arms. "Tim, wait, we have to make sure it's really him."
"Who else would it be?" Tim struggled in Nathan's arms and tried to shake him free. "I don't see how it could be anyone else."
"What about the video, Tim?" Alex asked.
"What video? What are you guys talking about?" Conner walked towards Tim, and Nathan pulled Tim back a couple of steps.
"Just... back off for a minute, OK?" Nathan held Tim back with one hand and held the other up in front of him. "A couple of days ago, someone got Tim onto a video call, and showed him your apartment, splattered with blood."
"You were dead," Tim said in a small voice. "I saw you lying there, ripped to pieces." He slumped against Nathan, head bowed and eyes closed.
"Well, obviously it wasn't me, since I'm here, and very much alive," Conner spread his arms to the sides. "Take a look, check for yourself."
"Maybe it was just a prank, then," Alex said. "The detective Nathan talked to said they checked out your apartment and it was clean."
"I had a break in a couple of weeks back," Conner said. "Nothing was taken, or even disturbed, but maybe they, I don't know, took photos of the place to set up the prank. It had to have been staged somewhere else, obviously."
"Why would anyone want to play a prank like that?" Tim asked. Nathan loosened his hold on him, and Tim took a couple of steps toward Conner, holding a hand out in front of him. He touched Conner's chest gently, placing his hand over Conner's heart. As Nathan and Alex watched, the whole line of Tim's body changed, from tightly wound and jumpy to relaxed. Tim grinned and stepped into Conner's space, pulling him into a hug. Conner wrapped his arms around Tim and held him just as tightly as Tim held onto him.
"Why didn't you call, tell Tim that you were on your way?" Alex asked, and Nathan couldn't help but notice the way Conner's hands tightened on Tim's back.
"I lost my phone," Conner said, his hands relaxing, fingers spreading wide again. "And I would have used a payphone, except they're not working so well these days. As soon as I heard about all the weird stuff on the news, I got into my car and started driving." He looked up at Alex and smiled. "I didn't want to be alone. Figured if the world was going to end, I might as well spend what time there's left with Tim. Hope you guys don't mind."
"Of course not," Alex shook her head. "You're welcome to stay, as long as you want. Not sure how comfortable you'll find the bunks, but at least you'll get a taste of life on the road."
Tim pulled back from the hug, and turned around, wrapping Conner's arms around his waist. "We can always get a hotel room if it gets too uncomfortable."
Conner grinned at Alex and Nathan and nuzzled Tim's neck. "I'm sorry you had to worry about me," he murmured. "Let me make it up to you?"
Tim smiled and headed towards the bunks, pulling Conner along with him. Alex watched them go with a frown on his face. When Conner looked back over his shoulder, Alex could swear she saw a green glow flash in Conner's eyes for a split second. She really needed to get more sleep, she thought, shaking her head. Too much booze and partying and not enough sleep were starting to play tricks on her.
Wordcount: 2,541
Rating: mature
Pairings: Tim/Conner
Summary: Something is very wrong with Tim's boyfriend.
Author's Notes: There's a video under the lj-cut, a short animation about the Cat with Hands. You, uh, don't have to watch it, but it's a nice and creepy introduction, and hopefully it'll set the mood for the story.
Atomic Vaudeville master post
Tim paced the green room as hit the call button for the twentieth time in the last two days. Conner hadn't been at work, according to his assistant, and he wasn't answering the phone at home. Tim's messages had filled the mailbox until he couldn't leave any more, but he kept calling again and again, if only to hear Conner's voice in the outgoing message. It was almost show time, and he wanted to try one more time.
On the third ring, someone picked up the phone and immediately disconnected again. Tim stared at his phone and was about to redial when a text message popped up.
"SEE U ON VIDEO?"
Tim opened his laptop and started the video chat program. The connection was opened almost immediately after he requested it, and he started talking as he cleared a space on the table and grabbed a chair.
"Where the hell have you been? I've been so worried, the least you could do is check your messages, the mailbox is full and I-" He broke off when he saw what was on the screen. The young man in front of the camera in Conner's apartment wasn't Conner. He was tall and gaunt, his pale skin looking washed out even in the dim light from the monitor. "Who the hell are you? What are you doing in Conner's apartment? Where is Conner?"
"You must be Tim," the man said, and the sound of his voice sent shivers down Tim's spine. "I'm afraid Conner can't come to the phone, he's..." he waved his hand vaguely, "indisposed."
"What. Have. You. Done. To him." Tim had never more wanted to be able to reach through a computer monitor than he did now. "Where is he?"
"Oh, he's around here somewhere," the pale man said. "We had a nice chat about you, he and I. He really loved you, you know."
"Loved? What do you mean, loved? What the hell have you done to him? I want to see Conner!"
"You're not going to like this," the man said in a singsong voice. He leaned forward and picked up the web cam, and started walking through the apartment, carrying the web cam so his face was still visible. Tim watched as the camera panned from the pale face over to the walls of the living room. There was something splattered on them, and Tim bit back a moan as he realized what it most likely was. Somewhere inside his head, a small voice started repeating the word "no" over and over again. The camera panned further, from the walls to the shattered glass table, to the rug with a dark stain slowly spreading through it. Suddenly, he was looking at a closeup of the intruder's face. "I can stop now, if you want. Once you've seen this, you're not going to be very happy."
This time, the moan slipped out and Tim let it.
"I'll take that as a no," the man laughed, and the giggle sounded like a hyena's howl instead of a human laugh. The camera panned down slowly, moving from side to side. It stopped when just a corner of the rug was in view and the voice spoke off-camera. "Last chance!"
"Damn, you, you sonofabitch, stop playing with me!" Tim screamed and hit the laptop, sending it flying backward. He scrabbled to right it, clinging to the hope that Conner was still all right, that maybe all this was just some terrible joke.
The camera panned down the last few inches, and he saw Conner, lying in a pool of his own blood, his throat ripped to shreds. A scream tore itself from Tim's mouth as the camera lingered on his wounds—the shredded throat, the rips and slashes that separated the body into pieces.
"You... Why would you..." He babbled at the screen as he watched close-ups of Conner's mangled body, filmed in loving detail. "Why..."
The camera switched back to the man's face. He grinned, showing a mouthful of teeth that were pointier than human teeth normally were. "Because it was fun. Now, if you'll excuse me," a shudder ran through him and he grimaced, rubbing at the back of his neck, "I really need to go." And with that, the connection was cut.
Tim clutched at the computer, sobbing. He heard someone open the door and call out "Five minutes!" and turned his face away so the stagehand wouldn't see him. Mercifully, he was left alone. He sat at the table, staring blankly into space. There was no conscious thought as he reached up and closed the lid on the laptop. His phone was on the table, vibrating, and he reached for it, not really seeing anything.
There was a text message on the screen. "SRY I EATED UR BF. HAV A GUD SHOW! ;)" Tim let out a scream and threw the phone across the room, where it almost hit Teri in the face when she popped her head into the room.
"Whoa, what the fuck?" Tim didn't answer, and she walked closer to him, until she could see him in the dim light of the room. "Tim, what's going on? Are you OK?"
"Yeah," he said, staring into the distance. "I'm fine. Is it time to go on yet?"
"Tim, you're scaring me. What's going on?"
"Nothing," he said, standing up. "I'm sorry I scared you. Let's get going, shall we?"
"Yeah, let's go," Teri nodded. She let Tim go first and picked up his phone from where it landed. The screen was cracked, but she pocketed it anyway and followed Tim out. Alex met her on the way to the stage.
"Everything OK?"
"I don't think so. He threw his phone at me. Well, not at me, but he threw it so hard it cracked. Tim just doesn't do things like that. Something's not right."
"I'll talk to him," Alex said. The stage manager was motioning them over furiously, practically pushing them on stage. "Later," she mouthed to Teri and then the audience was screaming and she put a little extra strut in her step as she grabbed the microphone.
Later, when they were back in the green room, Alex cornered Tim before he could leave.
"Okay, what's going on? It's like you were somewhere else, the whole show."
"I'm tired, Alex, can we please talk about this tomorrow?" He tried to push past her, but she stood in his way.
"No, Tim, we're going to talk about this now." Alex told him, and put her hands on Tim's shoulders. "Teri said you were upset before the show. Is it Conner? Did you manage to reach him?"
Tim looked up, meeting Alex's eyes. "Conner's dead, Alex." When she gasped at his words, he kept going, his voice going up in volume. "Some sick fuck killed him. Ripped his throat out, cut him into pieces, and then showed it to me." By now, he was yelling, and everyone's eyes were on him. "Is that what you wanted to hear, Alex? Is that what you all wanted to hear?" He turned to the room. "My boyfriend is dead, and I'm getting text messages from his murderer." While everyone stood there in shock, Tim pushed Alex out of his way and stormed out of the room.
"Holy shit," Jay said. "We have to call someone. We have to call David."
"We have to call the police," Marty added. "They can check out Conner's apartment, see what's going on. Maybe this is some kind of sick joke? Some deranged fan, out to fuck with Tim?"
"Nathan, call the police and get them to check Conner's apartment. Tim said he hasn't been at work for a few days, but that could be anything. Teri, you and Jay and Marty, deal with the crew. I don't want this spreading around until we know what's going on. I'm going to... I don't know. Anyone have any sedatives?"
Jay raised his hand. "I have sleeping pills. They're in my bunk, in the red bag."
"OK, I'll go and check on Tim, try and get him to sleep." Alex headed for the door, and then turned back to Teri. "Make sure no one talks about this to anyone, OK? With the Backwash people all over the place, the last thing we need is for this to get out."
It only took a little bit of persuading to get Time to take the sleeping pills. After his outburst backstage, he had pretty much shut down and Alex had to practically drag him to the bus and to his bunk. Once she got the pills into him, she sat with him until he fell asleep. There was a bottle of the Good Scotch, as her band had named it, in the cupboard in the kitchen area, and she poured herself a generous portion. She wanted more than anything to be able to curl up with Titus and talk to him about what was going on, but all the bands had an early start in the morning, and it was too late to go anywhere. At least it was the last night of the stop, and tomorrow they would be on the road again. Tim always got reenergized when they were on the road. It wouldn't be as easy this time, but everyone would help him cope, and they'd get through this together. They always did.
A couple of days later, Alex had just come back from sitting with Tim—everyone in the band took turns with him, despite his protests and assurances that he was all right—when Nathan shook her awake.
"Alex, I need to talk to you."
She sat up, wincing as the cramped muscles in her back twinged. "What is it?"
"The detective I spoke to about checking out Conner's apartment just got back to me."
"What did she find?"
"Nothing," Nathan shook his head. "The apartment was spotless. The detective was very insistent that we owed her one. As far as she and her partner are concerned, Conner's just a bored rich kid who took off without telling anyone where he was going. She thinks he just ran off with someone and will show up having spent too much money, with no memory of where he's been and what he's done."
"What about the video that Tim saw?"
"Maybe it was a prank after all? If someone really did kill Conner in the apartment, it would take a lot of work to make it look like it never happened."
"Do you really think there is someone sick enough out there to do that? Tim was really shaken up, and the things he said he saw..." Alex wasn't sure what she hoped for—a horrible prank or a terrible murder. Either way, Tim would need all their help.
"I don't know, Alex," Nathan shook his head.
There was a knock on the door, and Nathan got up to answer it. He stepped back from the door, pale as a sheet.
"Nathan?" He looked as if he'd seen a ghost, Alex thought. She stood up and realized that he might as well have, given who was at the door.
"Guys?" The young man stepped onto the bus, looking from Nathan to Alex in puzzlement. "What's going on?"
"Conner?" Tim's voice cracked in the middle of the name. "How? Is it really you?"
"Who else would it be?" Conner looked from Tim to Alex to Nathan, who were all staring at him, wide-eyed. "What is going on, you guys look like you've seen a—"
Nathan practically threw himself at Tim who was about to launch himself into Conner's arms. "Tim, wait, we have to make sure it's really him."
"Who else would it be?" Tim struggled in Nathan's arms and tried to shake him free. "I don't see how it could be anyone else."
"What about the video, Tim?" Alex asked.
"What video? What are you guys talking about?" Conner walked towards Tim, and Nathan pulled Tim back a couple of steps.
"Just... back off for a minute, OK?" Nathan held Tim back with one hand and held the other up in front of him. "A couple of days ago, someone got Tim onto a video call, and showed him your apartment, splattered with blood."
"You were dead," Tim said in a small voice. "I saw you lying there, ripped to pieces." He slumped against Nathan, head bowed and eyes closed.
"Well, obviously it wasn't me, since I'm here, and very much alive," Conner spread his arms to the sides. "Take a look, check for yourself."
"Maybe it was just a prank, then," Alex said. "The detective Nathan talked to said they checked out your apartment and it was clean."
"I had a break in a couple of weeks back," Conner said. "Nothing was taken, or even disturbed, but maybe they, I don't know, took photos of the place to set up the prank. It had to have been staged somewhere else, obviously."
"Why would anyone want to play a prank like that?" Tim asked. Nathan loosened his hold on him, and Tim took a couple of steps toward Conner, holding a hand out in front of him. He touched Conner's chest gently, placing his hand over Conner's heart. As Nathan and Alex watched, the whole line of Tim's body changed, from tightly wound and jumpy to relaxed. Tim grinned and stepped into Conner's space, pulling him into a hug. Conner wrapped his arms around Tim and held him just as tightly as Tim held onto him.
"Why didn't you call, tell Tim that you were on your way?" Alex asked, and Nathan couldn't help but notice the way Conner's hands tightened on Tim's back.
"I lost my phone," Conner said, his hands relaxing, fingers spreading wide again. "And I would have used a payphone, except they're not working so well these days. As soon as I heard about all the weird stuff on the news, I got into my car and started driving." He looked up at Alex and smiled. "I didn't want to be alone. Figured if the world was going to end, I might as well spend what time there's left with Tim. Hope you guys don't mind."
"Of course not," Alex shook her head. "You're welcome to stay, as long as you want. Not sure how comfortable you'll find the bunks, but at least you'll get a taste of life on the road."
Tim pulled back from the hug, and turned around, wrapping Conner's arms around his waist. "We can always get a hotel room if it gets too uncomfortable."
Conner grinned at Alex and Nathan and nuzzled Tim's neck. "I'm sorry you had to worry about me," he murmured. "Let me make it up to you?"
Tim smiled and headed towards the bunks, pulling Conner along with him. Alex watched them go with a frown on his face. When Conner looked back over his shoulder, Alex could swear she saw a green glow flash in Conner's eyes for a split second. She really needed to get more sleep, she thought, shaking her head. Too much booze and partying and not enough sleep were starting to play tricks on her.