Five Letters... By Exploded Pen (Five things challenge)

[explodedpen.livejournal.com]

Title: Five Letters that were never sent. 
Rating: PG15 - for swearing
Warning:  OC Character death
A/N:  Huge thanks to tli who looked this over for me :)
Disclaimer:  Lets face it, I don't own Stargate Atlantis, I'm just borrowing it for a while :D
Word Count: 970
Summary:

On the Sharing and Division of snacks:
 
To all in Lab 4,
 
I LICK MY POWERBARS. 

Signed,
Doctor Jason Francs 

Unsent Because: By the time he’d written the note he realised someone had already replaced the ones taken. Francs left the note in his pocket and it was eventually destroyed in the wash. 


An apology:
 
Mike, 

I thought things would be easier, I thought it wouldn't be this hard to stay faithful to you. I've been here so long that I'm starting to forget what you sound like, what you look like. The thing is the work so incredible here, but it's dangerous. Really dangerous. When you come down off the adrenaline rush you're shaking, your heart's pounding and you feel like you're about to fly apart - everyone does, you can see it in their faces.

I didn't mean for it to happen. I didn't set out to. It gets so lonely here. You need someone to hold you when the danger's over.

I had sex with another man.

If it makes any difference... I'm sorry. I love you, and I miss you so much... but I guess it wasn't enough.

I can't promise it won't happen again.

I love you, Mike. I do.

I'm sorry. 

Unsent Because: She couldn’t bring herself to send it. It was consigned to the back of her bedside cabinet and later thrown away.


The Unfinished Letter:

Hello Darling, 

Not too long now, another few months and I'll be home again. That's something to look forward to at least. I've been put on a team since I last wrote, we’ve been out once so far but Jim has been getting the team together for films and poker games. It’s something to do at least. Makes it seem less quiet round here.

How's Saoirse been? She been having more luck at school? 

Unsent Because: The soldier died before completing it. It was lost when his personal effects were packed up and sent to his wife.


Guilt:

Dear Mrs Mason,

You've probably received the official letter of condolence now, the one that says Tim was a good soldier and died doing his duty. Well it's wrong. On both counts. Only the best are sent out here, when compared to that standard Tim was average. He was an average soldier. He was a quiet, sarcastic bastard who fought dirty. He followed orders. He did his job.

We were out on a mission when he was killed. You should know he wasn't killed by the enemy. He was killed when I snagged a tripwire and something shot out the undergrowth and exploded in his chest. We were so damn close to the exit but it took us a few minutes to free him from the trap. He bled like a stuck pig. When we got him back to base he was choking on his own blood, trying to reach that damn photo and the letter he kept in his pocket. He bled out on the gateroom floor while we waited for the medical team.

So, as you can see he didn't die doing his duty. He died because I was a thick shit who didn't have my fucking eyes on the ground ahead of me.

It's my fault your husband died. He was my teammate and my friend, and I killed him. It's my fault he's not coming home.

He loved you, he loved his daughter, and he didn't deserve to go like that.

God I'm so sorry.

Corporal James Tompkins

Unsent Because: The remaining members of the team realised what was going on. The contents of the letter were divulged to the base psychologist, but the letter itself was ripped up.


Birthday Greetings:

Hi Mum,

Tell everyone thanks for the birthday cards, and also remind Auntie Wyn it’s been a good few years since I turned eighteen. Plus we really have to stop Great Grandma from sending chocolate pennies with the cards – actually just stop her sending cards full stop – I opened the envelope to find a chocolate covered card that read ‘To Wilfred’. I know I was the first girl born into the family for a few generations but all joking aside she doesn’t seriously believe I’m a boy? For the last six years she’s not gotten my name right once. Now all the rest of the people in the lab are calling me ‘Wilfred’.

There was a sort of mini-celebration in the Lab. Well, there was a powerbar with a candle stuck in it, but everyone sang happy birthday...in about three different languages which was kinda awesome – at least it was till the head of the science department stormed in and ended it. He wasn’t objecting to the song, just the singing talents of the people singing it.

The man had a point.

Anyway, the picture Caroline drew was lovely – I’ve put it up alongside some of the birthday cards I got. I probably won’t be back in time for her birthday though, so if you could buy her something from me and I’ll send you the money, that would be great. Remind my brother it’s not a cop out, because he will pass comment, you know it, I know it. There’s not really any local toy shop here that I can just go out and get her something from – at least not something that’s an anally childproofed as Mick wants it.

Sorry, sorry, I’ll stop complaining!

Thanks again for sending over the cards and the letters, Mum. I know you’re worried about me but I’m fine, really I am, the work is fantastic and for the most part it’s been the greatest experience of my life so stop worrying!

I’ll write again soon.

Love,
Emma xxx


Unsent because: She was sent home on leave and was able to thank her family in person. 

Comments

[kiku65.livejournal.com]

"To all in Lab 4,

I LICK MY POWERBARS."


Memo to self: That is such a good way of making sure no-one nicks my chocolate stash ^&^

[explodedpen.livejournal.com]

It's the best way of making most people avoid nicking your food ;)...Although some take it as a personal challenge :P

thanks for the comment :D

[goddess47]

Oh, so very nice..... There are all sorts of reasons - sad, happy, forgetful - that letters don't get sent and you've done these up well...... I also like the focus on the others of Atlantis who are often forgotten...

[explodedpen.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much, I'm glad you enjoyed it :D

[adafrog.livejournal.com]

Great fic, thanks.

[explodedpen.livejournal.com]

Thank you :)

[skieswideopen]

Very nice! I particularly like the ending of the last one, which is a lovely relief after the increasingly depressing reasons the previous letters weren't sent.

[explodedpen.livejournal.com]

Thank you! Yeah, had to put in a nice reason after all the depressing ones - glad you enjoyed it :D

[dr-dredd.livejournal.com]

Oh my God, the fourth one was incredibly powerful! I work with veterans, and your description of Corporal Tomkins' guilt is spot on.

[explodedpen.livejournal.com]

I think that's the best compliment I could've been given - thank you very much, I'm glad you enjoyed it :)

[dragonladyk.livejournal.com]

My favorite is the fourth: so spot-on the kind of thing war does to people.

The last one was a great way to end it. Very good job, and lovely OCs. Not a Mary Sue in the bunch.

DragonLady

[explodedpen.livejournal.com]

I have a deep overiding hatred of Mary Sue's so I'm very relieved my OCs didn't come across as one! Thank you very much for the comment and I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[vccv.livejournal.com]

I've really got a thing about the 'other' members of the expedition. Yeah, J/R save the world on a weekly basis, but how many people behind the curtain make that possible? Thank you for sharing these 5 people's worlds with us. #4 broke me. Very powerful, very honest. *waves broken pieces at you* Excellent job.

[explodedpen.livejournal.com]

eek! *offers superglue* I really enjoy writing about the other members of the expedition, I think I've actually written more stories about the other members than I have of the main cast lol.

Thank you so much for the comment :) I'm glad you enjoyed it, even if it broke you lol

[ceares.livejournal.com]

very nice-sweet, heartwrenching and very realistic.

[explodedpen.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much :)

[alleonh.livejournal.com]

wow, I just had a roller coaster ride with this entry!

my side splitting laughter at the Powerbars note was very quickly sobered by Guilt. Like... bucket of ice water sobered.

then it turned into Awwww at the last one.

Wonderful job!

[explodedpen.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much! Surprisingly I found 'Guilt' easiest to write - in my mind it was about the same soldier who died before finishing his own letter - it might also be because it felt like an offshoot of something I wrote a couple of years ago lol.

Thanks again for the comment - I'm really glad you enjoyed it :D

[alleonh.livejournal.com]

I pictured it being the same guy too. And something about that makes it all the more tragic *sniffle*

[psyko-kittie.livejournal.com]

Wonderful. Great work!

[explodedpen.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much! :D

[(Anonymous)]

I like this. Especially the last one.

[explodedpen.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much :)

[miss-chant.livejournal.com]

Four really pulled on my heartstrings. I pictured 3 and 4 being about the same team too, which made it all the more tragic.

[explodedpen.livejournal.com]

Hee hee - you're right :) When I wrote 3 and 4 they were about two lads on the same team, it was based off I story I wrote a long time ago called 'The Letter'

Thanks for the comment :) I'm glad you enjoyed it :D

[raksha38.livejournal.com]

Fantastic! I love these little snapshots of the lives of everyone else in Atlantis. In the X-Men fandom, stories like this about regular every day people, not the Big Damn Heros or Big Damn Villains, are called TCP (The Common People) stories and I think Atlantis would benefit from having entire archives full of TCP stories, with this one as one of the first entries!

[explodedpen.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much! I'm glad you enjoyed it! :D

[gelbes-gilatier.livejournal.com]

I love it. Simply love it. Because they're OCs and because all the letters are special in their own way and because it has everything one needs - humor, sadness, guilt... I really, really do love it. Thanks for sharing :)

[explodedpen.livejournal.com]

You made me blush! Thank you so much for your lovely comments! I'm glad you enjoyed it :D