Fragment: House and Wilson stormy night fic

[bironic]

I started this in 2007 as a surprise for elynittria (er, surprise?) based on a conversation she and purridot and I had, and I thought it would be an easy one-shot. No such luck. Here's what was going to happen: House and Wilson are caught in a terrible thunderstorm in the English countryside; they find a lit inn and take shelter; little do they realize that something ~magical~ happened during the brightest lightning strike and they were transported back in time, just for the night -- as they discover when they meet Lord Byron and Percy Shelley. The four of them while the night away with drink and conversation.

It was going to be grand and witty, and Byron was going to speak in the style of his written journals, and all the ways House is and isn't a Byronic hero were going to come under discussion. Probably House would have inspired a character trait or two. It would've been awesome.

Honest.

* * *

Write a little bit each day and don't worry about polishing or finishing, right? Here is a snippet I wrote today in a fit of pique against my slave drivers employers. Be forewarned: I don't know when I'll come back to add more to it. It's the very beginning of a story I've been meaning to write for someone for almost a year.

House and Wilson (and soon two more), currently ~400 words.


It was a dark and stormy night. Lightning flashed across the rain-streaked sky as our intrepid hero and his faithful companion struggled on through the wild hinterlands of England. Shivering, barely able to see a few feet down the road before them, they bravely pressed on into the unknown, venturing ever-further from the warm, dry safety of the broken-down car they had abandoned at the insistence of our hero's idiotic sidekick--

"House," Wilson shouted over the howling wind.

"What?" House shouted back. "I was just getting to the good part."

Wilson pulled his overcoat tighter around him, even though the driving rain had long since plastered his hair to his head and trickled down the back of his neck to soak his collar. Another strobe of lightning, purple-tinged, revealed in quick, washed-out glimpses the tiny rivulets streaming from the hair on his forehead down his cheeks, dripping off his nose and chin and making stars of his eyelashes. "I think I--"

The rest was lost in a peal of thunder that cracked the sky open and made them both wince. Even when it degraded into a low rumble, it was powerful enough to shake the ground beneath them, vibrating from their feet up into their chests like the bass at a bad bar mitzvah.

"What?" House yelled as the echoes faded. He cupped a hand to his ear. "I couldn't hear you over the apocalypse we're standing in because you thought it was a better idea to go for a stroll than sit in the car."

"Yes, please forgive me for wanting to find some sign of civilization when the battery died on a deserted road and there's no network signal to call for help." Wilson blinked rapidly as the wind shifted and blew the rain straight into their faces. "Also, the storm hadn't broken yet."

"Some tourist or sheep-herder or something would have come by before we starved to death." House wiped the stinging water out of his eyes, a futile move considering his hand was as wet as his face. "Well, before I starved to death. I would have eaten you if it came down to it."

A sudden gust knocked him off-balance. Blessedly ignoring the misstep, Wilson asked, "How do you know I wouldn't have eaten you first?"

"You couldn't do it. Your noble soul is more naturally suited to sacrificing itself for the needy."

"Hm," Wilson said, making a thoughtful face. "You'd probably taste like crap anyway. Too tough and stringy and bitter."

[more banter/bickering, and then--]

"I think I see light up ahead."

Comments

[blackmare.livejournal.com]

Whatever this is, I adore it so far.

*grins*

[bironic.livejournal.com]

And there will be time travel.

Yay!

[blackmare.livejournal.com]

Oh, my.

They're in England. And time travel will be involved.

Are they ... about to meet an entirely different kind of doctor?

Please say yes please say yes please say yes ...

[bironic.livejournal.com]

Oh, alas, no. I'm sorry! It is only inexplicable storm-induced time travel to bring together some people who live far apart in time and place.

[blackmare.livejournal.com]

Hee. Oh, don't worry about me -- I'll be following this wherever it might happen to go.

:-)

[zulu.livejournal.com]

haHA, House's internal monologue for the win!

[bironic.livejournal.com]

Hee! I'd like to pretend that House was saying all that out loud.

[zulu.livejournal.com]

It works both ways, that's at least half of what's great about it.

[bironic.livejournal.com]

It works both ways

Oh, good, I was hoping it would read that way.

I am very happy to hear that you approve of this House. :)

[mer-duff.livejournal.com]

This is great! And I can totally hear House narrating that first paragraph as they struggle along. Looking forward to more!

[bironic.livejournal.com]

Yay. I'm so glad to hear that House's opening monologue works for you; one of the things that has been plaguing me is that I've lost their voices in my head, which is something I've always had (until recently...) when I write fanfic. In drafts of other stories, it's been a struggle to get the dialogue sounding like they're speaking it. This one came out okay for a change -- maybe because they're bickering. Heh.

Anyway. This is another story for which I have some idea of where to take it, and even how to end it, but the middle is going to consist of formless conversation, which is a real challenge for my structure-loving self, and I don't know whether I'll be able to keep any momentum up on this thing with everything else that's going on. Still, it feels great to get something down that I like, even if it's unfinished.

[perspi.livejournal.com]

EEEE! How very exciting!

*happy encouraging dance*

[bironic.livejournal.com]

*g* I was lucky that this beginning occurred to me for the months-old bunny just when I needed to write something.

[deelaundry.livejournal.com]

House would taste terrible, wouldn't he?

Hope this was fun for you!

[bironic.livejournal.com]

It was, and he so would.

Hope you're feeling better today. Happy Thanksgiving!

[purridot.livejournal.com]

I love your description of the effects of the storm, very original! And the dialogue is lovely and snarky. This is sounding very Hound of the Baskervilles*!

(Is it headed that direction? You know what I mean :-)

*The LJ spellchecker wants to replace "Baskervilles" with "Bisexuals".

[bironic.livejournal.com]

Now that would be an interesting story....

Thanks! Though I do need to change the "stars of his eyelashes" bit; I think I stole that from a book I read when I was a kid.

(It's not, I'm afraid -- I'm not nearly familiar enough with Holmes canon to attempt that kind of crossover. But I know you will like where it does go. And, heh, I wasn't intending to foster this kind of mystery -- I just didn't want to spoil the surprise for the person this will eventually be for.)

[nightdog-barks.livejournal.com]

*beams*

Oh, this is wonderful! The storm! The rain! The bickering! The bass line at a bad bar mitzvah!

Love it!

[bironic.livejournal.com]

Yay! I had a feeling you would like the bar mitzvah line.

[jadesfire.livejournal.com]

This is great. So much fun! And the descriptions of the storm (pitch-perfect House, BTW) are making me want to shiver and turn my collar up.

the broken-down car they had abandoned at the insistence of our hero's idiotic sidekick--
*snort* Brilliant!

[bironic.livejournal.com]

You know House narrates some of his days at PPTH like that.

Thanks! I'm so happy to hear that House sounds right and the storm comes across well. At first, there was much more dialogue than description, so I went back and added those bits about the gust and Wilson blinking.

[topaz-eyes.livejournal.com]

Whee! Cannibal talk and dark stormy nights and pounding rain! I don't know why, but I'm envisioning a Rocky Horror Picture Show scenario. :-D

[bironic.livejournal.com]

...And thank you so much for the image of Hugh Laurie as Frank N. Furter. 'Scuse me while I go wash out my brain. *g*

[topaz-eyes.livejournal.com]

Let's do the Time Warp again!

XD

[daasgrrl.livejournal.com]

"I think I see light up ahead."

LOL, topaz snap. I have to say my first thought on finishing this snippet was "over at the Frankenstein place" XD

[elynittria.livejournal.com]

Hee! I am indeed surprised.

What a foursome House, Wilson, Bryon, and Shelley would make! I have no doubt that their conversation would be as electric as the storm.

No pressure, but I really hope this gets written one of these days....