Quotes

Every now and then, I get an urge for a tiny piece of dialogue. It won't be in use in the stories for some time, and I don't want to forget it.

When I don't have time to craft the dialogue into blurbs, I'll stick it here.

1. "So, your name is Coley?" Ray regarded his unofficial patient with curiosity. "Is that a diminutive of Cole?"

"No," Coley grunted, closing one eye as he glowered at the tall blond. "My name is Coley. That's it. I don't like nicknames. Use one and you'll regret it."

Ray held up his hands in surrender. "Alright. Nevermind. I was just asking. It's not a very common name in this time."

"It never has been, in any time. But Ray's always been pretty common."

-From

The Night of the Time Travel

I still can't decide whether Ray's name should be short for something or just plain be Ray. I do know I do not want his full name to be Raymond. Raymond Norman? It sounds terribly awkward. It's either Rayburn or just Ray.

2. "Do you have any family . . . back there?" It was strange how it had never occurred to him to ask before now.

"My mother." Coley's answer was crisp and matter-of-fact. But for the first time, the other man detected a hint of regret or even homesickness.

"Don't you miss her?" he queried in surprise.

Coley shrugged. "I hadn't seen her for years as it was. I couldn't go home; it's the first place they would've looked for me. Being in another time really doesn't make me feel any farther apart from her than I already did. She'd be glad to know I'm safe now, anyway. That's what would be the most important to her."

"That isn't what I asked." His voice was low, quiet, somehow understanding.

Coley gazed out at the modern-day sunset, idly rubbing at his knee. "It's a stupid question," he muttered under his breath. "Of course I miss her."

- First draft, from

The Night of the Time Travel.

I can't decide to whom Coley is speaking. The most logical choice is Ray, but on the other hand, he and Arte have been sharing some deep conversations in The Night of the Lazarus, and I could imagine Arte asking these questions too. I've deliberately avoided telling who Coley is speaking to, since I'm not sure.

And if it is Arte, I'm getting kind of a squeeable little plunnie of him going to Coley's mother at the end of the story and telling her that her son is safe. When she asks who he is, Arte thinks on his answer and says he's a friend of her son's. Which of course he never would have previously said, but after everything they would have been through by that point, he feels he can honestly say it.

3. Lucrece stepped farther into the smoke and debris caused by the explosion, waving it away as she walked.

"Pinto?" she called. Was he dead? Had the stand-off between him and Rodman resulted in only one victor? Or had the blast rendered it a draw, with either both men alive ... or both dead?

Not that it would make any difference to her. Well, it would be inconvenient, starting the search all over again to find someone to take Pinto's place, but that was all. She did not return his feelings for her. She could not and would not.

But that did not stop the strange prick when she rounded a corner and found his hat, battered and torn from the explosion. She bent to pick it up as her stomach twisted in an odd way.

"Lucrece?"

She jumped a mile at Pinto's voice. Now he was limping out from around another stack of fallen debris, coughing as he waved away the smoke.

The pressure on her chest eased. She gave him a reproving look. "I thought you were dead."

He took the hat from her and drew his arms around her. "I cheated death once," he said. "I'm not letting it take me again."

She could sense that there was more he wanted to say, although he lapsed into his customary silence instead. Perhaps he wanted to ask if she had been worried, but he had not, because he was sure he knew the answer would be No.

She closed her eyes, allowing him to hold her.

It was No, wasn't it?

Of course it was. She had no time for real feelings and emotions. They only got in the way of her plans, interrupting her cold efficiency and making it more difficult to work.

But then, why had such comfort swept over her when she had realized he was alive?

-Rejected scene from

The Night of the Time Travel

Does Lucrece care for Pinto or doesn't she? She is the cold businesswoman and career criminal, not needing or wanting love in her life. But perhaps it has crept up on her anyway.

If I go that path, it would be interesting writing her trying to sort through her feelings and trying to come to terms with actually having them. I've participated in role-plays where the other person has played such characters in similar scenarios, but I haven't played them. It would be an interesting challenge.

And in spite of my preferences in focusing on friendships, I have to admit that Yes, somewhere in me is a romantic side. If I like a pairing, I can get quite enthusiastic over it and enjoy writing it. I could like this pairing. It feels so right and possibly canon-supported, at least on Pinto's part. Or at least, these two troublemakers probably deserve each other.