[For Lionel]

[gonewiththereap]

There's something morbid about the whole thing, but then, there's something morbid about Daisy's whole existence and she's not in the mood to dissect and diagnose it on the whole. All she knows is that she's got a drink and a blanket and a Lionel Thayer and there's a movie that she's seen a hundred times on before her, put into print in '39 and displayed on screens everywhere.

It's just starting now and she gestures Lionel over, patting the couch beside her. "C'mere and make yourself comfortable," she encourages, all perk and vim and cheer, like she hasn't told Geoffrey that her life's just one big waste of space or that there's some poor girl out there being breathed on by Mason's terrible breath.

Comments

[lionelthayer.livejournal.com]

Lionel just gives Daisy the kind of look that says sometimes he really just doesn't get her, and does as she says. Maybe there's some kind of complicated rule book in Daisy's head, and despite how much it frustrates Lionel, he still makes mental notes.

He settles in when the credits start, and despite how dubious about this whole thing he feels (knowing Daisy died while this film was made is just a little creepy), he always has liked it. "We are going to have an intermission, right? I never could take the entire movie in one sitting."

[gonewiththereap.livejournal.com]

"That's just lack of character," she teases with enough oomph that a person might hear a giggle in her voice. But she knows that she'll probably need help in the way of alcohol when it comes time to see a fire flicker on the screen and nods. "Intermission, just like the olden days," she says, slightly softer.

"How've you been, sweetie?" she asks, barely caring that she's talking over the movie. She knows the plot intimately by now.

[lionelthayer.livejournal.com]

"I've been good," Lionel answers, and when he thinks about the way the month's started, he smiles involuntarily and can't help but amend that. "I've been really, really good."

[gonewiththereap.livejournal.com]

Daisy can sense that something good's happened, but she's not selfless enough to ask right away, instead preening away and fixing her hair before letting minutes slip by.

Then, eventually, she does ask. "Does really, really good have a name to it?"

[lionelthayer.livejournal.com]

"I was waiting for you to ask," Lionel says with a chuckle, and he nods slowly. And he has, in a way; it's easier to talk to Daisy about certain things than it is with Jack, not matter how close they are.

He waits a few moments for a lull in the conversation on screen, then adds, "His name's Peter."

[gonewiththereap.livejournal.com]

"Well, well," Daisy says lightly, and though she's a bit stung that yet another person she knows has found a small corner of happiness, she's mostly happy for Lionel, who deserves this. "A name doesn't mean anything to me until you paint me a picture, you know."

[lionelthayer.livejournal.com]

"Or I could just take one," Lionel suggests lightly, but he knows he's going to talk anyway. "He's handsome," he starts, and the of course is obviously implied, "green eyes, dark hair. He plays the piano, and used to be an opera repetiteur."

[gonewiththereap.livejournal.com]

Daisy gives him an 'of course' look in return because while she may think herself the prettiest face in any room, she knows that Lionel's not bound to pull anyone into his grasp that isn't up to par. "How musical," she says in return, eyes on the screen. "What year is he from?"

[lionelthayer.livejournal.com]

"1959," Lionel answers, turning to Daisy without looking away from the screen. "And," he adds, because it's oddly important enough to Lionel the more he considers it, "he was actually gay before he got here."

[gonewiththereap.livejournal.com]

Daisy's not sure if that's a mark on his jacket for or against, so she just raises a brow in Lionel's direction. "Should we make a badge of honor or something?" she asks curiously.

[lionelthayer.livejournal.com]

Lionel colors a bit, realizing the way that might have sounded, and he shrugs. "I just mean...he actually knows what it was like, back home. The hiding and lying, all of that."

He shrugs again with one shoulder and turns his full attention on Daisy. "It matters, I guess."

[gonewiththereap.livejournal.com]

"Lots of us had plenty to hide," she reminds him, but there's absolutely no malice in her tone. She's hardly about to hold it against Lionel for daring to feel one way. Well, at least, not today.

Her gaze is on the screen, anyway. "I've been sleeping, lately," she says, softly.

[lionelthayer.livejournal.com]

His own problems always seem to shrink when he thinks of Daisy's life before, and Lionel nods silently.

"That's great," he says, his own voice lowered to match hers, and he can't help but tease. "Does this mean my chances of getting you in my bed again have disappeared?"

[gonewiththereap.livejournal.com]

"Honey, you just need to ask," Daisy promises, feeling that safe blanket of warmth that she gets with Lionel. She knows he'll never hurt her, not the way a shotgun or a fire can, not the way a man's words can.

"It's great and it's not," she admits at length, finally. "I have bad dreams a lot."

[lionelthayer.livejournal.com]

Lionel doesn't really try to be stealthy in moving closer to Daisy when she says that; he just pulls himself back into something of a proper seated position, and ends up there.

He's there for comfort whether she needs him or not. "What kinds of dreams?"

[gonewiththereap.livejournal.com]

"Dreams where I met the star of this," she murmurs, glancing to the screen and watching several people she's never met and always wanted to be. "I never did get to meet them. I died before I had the chance."