Date: 2012-04-27 06:17 am (UTC)
ext_20969: (0)
Better late than never? - 2/2

Mulder is also very well characterized, even though I feel like I’m seeing him through a window in this fic. Scully’s POV seems to contain the story, and even when she’s thinking about mulder, she seems to be thinking about him with a bit of a disconnect between her observations and the feelings they invoke.

"We've got a new case," Mulder said, leaning against her desk. He
radiated his special brand of flat, nervous concern.


"I hate to disappoint you," Mulder said. "I know you had your heart set
on werewolves."


I love both these lines. Also, I love that he guesses “BITE ME” instead of “BILL ME” during Wheel of Fortune. That’s so him, and the thing is, I can’t decide whether I think he guessed wrong on purpose.

Favorite lines include:

"We've got a dead body asking for us," Mulder said, and it was strange
enough that she didn't understand what he was saying and thought she
might still be dreaming in some motel bed in a state she couldn't
remember, but he was touching her arm. Mulder never touched her in
her dreams.


Because it’s the opposite of every sexy, romantic fanfic trope, and I like the way it’s both mundane and poignant at the same time; what it must feel like to love someone and dream about them but never dream about their touch – even Scully’s subconscious is professional and disinclined to cross any lines.

She knew this man, and was relieved she wouldn't have to
introduce herself to him ever again. She didn't know what she'd say.


I actually like that this fic focusses on Scully struggling with an identity crisis, rather than on the trauma itself. It’s different, a bit unexpected, giving the fic a bit of an up-on-the-down-beat feeling.

Wearing tennis shoes instead of high heels, she barely came
up to his shoulder and she hated being near him when he was so tall.
He was hard to talk to, and look at, and believe in.


An example of a line that starts off predictable and then smoothly leads to something I wasn’t expecting. I’ve read dozens of fanfics that talk about how Mulder’s height makes Scully feel about herself, but I’m not sure I’ve read one that addresses what Mulder’s height makes her feel about him.

She wanted him to stay there forever, so that at least one of them
could be sure of her humanity. But then his hand slid lower, and she
could finally feel her heart beating and so broadened her idea of forever
to include this, to include everything.


I’m not 100% clear on how to interpret this, but it’s dream-think, so it’s good that it’s a bit unclear, and I think I understand the basic meaning - the dream sensation of expanding the way you’ve conceptualized the amorphous structure of your dream. In this case, Scully’s acceptance that their relationship is more than what it has been strictly defined as, that it has no boundary, and maybe that can be okay.

There are many fics I prefer to this one. At no point does LWTDB leave me feeling particularly struck or overcome by feeling or emotion. It doesn’t make me feel giddy or dazed or aching or aggrieved. But it’s thoughtful and well written, even in tone, the characters feel distinctly mature, and I suspect it’s a fic that would hold up well if I were to reread it in several years.
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