awanderingbard | Dresden Files: Winter Nights

Entry tags:

Dresden Files: Winter Nights

Title: Winter Nights
Author: awanderingbard
Rating: G
Length: 1122 words
Book or TV verse: TV
Characters: Harry, Murphy, brief mention of Anna
Summary: Fun in the snow.
Author's Notes:

featherjean asked for 'Harry/Murphy, snow'. So, here it is. The idea is one that's been rolling around in my head since I had a few throwaway lines about it in Child's Play, and it seems an appropriate time to use it. Fluffy good shippyness abounds.

I pushed my foot into my freshly sharpened hockey skate and yanked on the laces to do it up. My skates were old, at least ten years, but they still worked fine. Well, I mean that they were perfectly sound. Whether or not I could work with them remained to be seen.

"Hurry up, Dresden," Murphy called, stepping out onto the ice. "I don't have all night to kick your ass."

"I find your lack of faith disturbing," I intoned, in my best Darth Vader voice. "I'm surprised you have girl skates, Murph. I woulda thought you'd be one of those chicks who commandeers hockey ones."

Murphy glided cleanly around a small patch in front of the barrier "I have small feet. You're stalling, Dresden."

"Am not," I declared, maturely. I stood up and clumped over to the edge of the rink, my hockey stick in hand. I tossed a regular, non-magic one to her. "You're just afraid you're gonna lose."

"I am not going to be beaten by a beanpole like you," she replied. "Get your butt out here."

I said a silent prayer, put a blade on the ice and pushed off. Much to my surprise, I stayed upright. All those years of working off my teenage aggression at the local rink came back to me. Just like riding a bike. I put my other foot down and stroked off down the empty outdoor rink, balancing my stick in front of me.

"Damn," I heard Murphy mutter, before she came after me.

I did a few laps around the outside of the rink, Murphy trailing behind me. I started to go backwards, so I could watch her. She had a look of determination on her face and she skated with a catlike grace, similar to the way she can leap over fences to chase after criminals. She frowned at me.

"Show off," she called.

I slid to a stop at centre ice with a satisfying spray of snow and she dragged her pick behind her to stop in front of me. She glared up at me, but there was a mischievous challenge in her eyes that softened it. I retrieved a puck from the pocket of my coat.

"First to five?" I asked.

"Alright," she agreed.

We assumed face off position and I dropped the puck between us. She was quick and immediately tapped it away and skated around me. She sped off down the ice and I couldn't catch up with her before she shot it off into the snowbank.

"One!" she called triumphantly. She did a little victory spin while I retrieved the puck and started back down the ice.

I managed to get halfway down the rink before her stick knocked mine away and she had the puck again. I looped backwards and went after her, circling in front of her. She feinted right and went left and the puck went into the snowbank again.

"Two!" she declared.

I got the puck again and dodged around her, zooming off ahead. I slid to a stop, set-up and gave it a good slapshot. It skimmed down the ice, into the snowbank at my end.

"Oh, I didn't see that," I called to her, as she chased after it. "Was that one for me? I couldn't see."

"Lucky shot," she called back.

The battle went on with Murphy scoring two more goals before I managed three in a row. She was starting to get vicious and I had to dodge her repeated attempts to whack me with her stick. I tossed some wind down the ice. The puck zoomed away from her and back towards me of its own accord before she could score again.

"Cheater!" she yelled.

"Hey, you said nothing about not using magic," I pointed out. "I have to defend myself somehow, before you take my freakin' head off with that thing."

I headed back down the ice with the puck, but Murphy caught up with me and swiped the blade of her stick around my ankle. I fell to my knees and spun a few times. She got the puck again. I called her stick and it flew out of her hands to me. She gaped and charged me. I got to my feet and sped off, both sticks held over my head.

"You're such a baby!" she taunted. "Can't stand to be beaten by a girl."

I skated backwards again. "You're not a girl, Murphy. You're a cop."

"Give me back my stick, so I can beat you with it."

"That's not a very persuasive argument."

I turned back around, heading towards where the puck had landed. There was suddenly a weight on my back as Murphy jumped up and wrapped her arms around my neck. My weight toppled forward but I managed to stay upright. I swiped at the puck with my two sticks while Murphy put her hands over my eyes. The puck went into my goal, I could see through a crack in her fingers. I dropped the hockey sticks into order to get hold of her legs and keep her from slipping down.

"I believe you owe me twenty bucks, lieutenant," I declared.

"Betting on sports is illegal," she replied, smugly. "I could arrest you."

"Who's a baby now?"

She leaned sideways and pulled me down into a snowbank, then smoothly straddled my hips and pinned my shoulders with her hands. She was grinning good-naturedly and the snow that had started to fall glittered in her hair.

"I would like you remind you that you have blades dangerously close to parts of my body I'd like to keep," I told her.

"Hold still and you can keep them," she replied.

She lowered her head and kissed me, sending a surge of heat through my body that stopped any concept of cold I was getting from lying in the snow bank. She pulled back before I would have liked and my head followed her, attempting to catch her again.

"Surrender?" she asked, silkily.

"Mmmhmm," was all I said.

"Good."

She bent down and kissed me again. This time I put my hand behind her head to make sure she wasn't going anywhere.

It's snowing out. I can see it falling in the streetlights' light outside the window. I guess that's what made me remember. Or maybe the fact that Murphy has rolled all the sheets around herself into a little cocoon and I'm feeling cold. Maybe both. The memory is nearly five years old now, but it still makes me smile.

I close my eyes again and listen to the sound of Murphy's breathing. Distantly, I can hear Anna's loud snores down the hall. I wonder, sleepily, if maybe Anna would like to go skating. We could all go together. That would be nice. I drift off to sleep again.

You know, Murphy still owes me twenty bucks.

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*GLEEEES* There is ice skating! And cheating by magic and threatened beatings and kissing in the show! And Harry and Murphy being together for at least five years and awwww! Thank you for writing this!

I think my favorite line is:

"Give me back my stick, so I can beat you with it."

I may have to make that an away message. And maybe an icon. If you'd be okay with that!

I'm totally okay with that. I'm glad you liked it. You make my inner Harry/Murphy fangirl come out. lol :D

Oh, I love them in this! The playfulness of it, Murphy's competitiveness, Harry cheating, the affection--it's just lovely. And then that sweet little paragraph at the end for dessert. ::happy sigh::

Well, you know Murphy plays dirty. She's totally a 'kick 'em in the head' kinda cop. :-) Thanks for reading!

I very much enjoyed this. It's cute without being cutesy. I love the idea of Harry playing hockey with his staff, the banter about Murphy in "girl skates" and how the whole thing built up palpable tension. Nicely done!

Thank you very much!

WIN. I'm with Jean: "Give me back my stick, so I can beat you with it" is just such a perfect Murphy line. GAH. Blonde or brunette, this works for every version of her and I love it. Brilliant.

Thank you! That's a very nice thing to say. :D

I always love your Dresden fics. This one is completely adorable. I love the happy ending and Murphy jumping on Harry and darn it so cute!

Thanks!

Awww! This was great!

The image of Harry playing actual hockey with his hockey stick/staff is pretty hilarious. And so Harry. I had a grin on my face the entire time I was reading this.

My particular favorite part:
"Oh, I didn't see that," I called to her, as she chased after it. "Was that one for me? I couldn't see."

HEE!

Well, I've always thought he must have chosen the hockey stick for a reason. Like, it must have been lying around for him to use. I figured it would be a good escape from the Morningway Mansion, too. Running off to play hockey for a bit. Get out all that wizardly energy. :D

Thanks for reading and commenting! :D

*Squee!!!* This was absolutely adorable! I'm saving the story to my favorites.

I especially loved that little ending paragraph. So cute!

Thank you. The ending came to me last night just as I was going to bed and I was like, 'dammit, must sleep, must not go back downstairs and write'. :D

This is too freaking adorable for words! A delight to read.

Thank you kindly!

*glee* *love*
So much love. I love the idea that Harry really can play hockey with his hockeystickstaff. and then I adore that they both cheat so much :)
fun!

Thanks! I had this mental image of Harry playing hockey with his staff for a long time, so it was fun to get it out of my head. :-)

This was fantastic. I can just see them fighting over hockey! Very cute!

(Here because

featherjean told me I should go check out your fic!)

Thanks! And thanks to Jean for send you over. :-)

"Hee" to Harry's being called a beanpole by Murphy. ^_^

There are so many things about this that are so delightfully cute! You have the Harry/Murphy banter spot-on, what with Harry's constant (polite) indignance always shinging through and Murphy's tough-girl-with-a-warm-heart attitude equally well-written. Something I quite enjoy about your fics is that, even when they're not written to be musing about the past, they feel like remembering something...and fondly at that. As if, for a moment, nothing else matters but the memory...

I relly did like the contrast between Harry's old skates and his surprise that Murphy used "girl skates." Hehe. Poor Harry, can't afford new things. If the old stuff works--sure, doesn't matter if it's a ten years old pair of skates--then there's no need to be replacing it. Gotta' love that aspect of his personality. He treasures the old stuff and doesn't even stop to consider that something newer would be better. *grins*

Another contrast between the two characters here that I love is how, while Murphy skates with "a catlike grace," Harry is just surprised when he stays upright. I completely was expecting him to fall over when he turned to watch Murphy skate, but alas. No dice. His ability to skate stuck with him. *amused smirk*

"Oh, I didn't see that," I called to her, as she chased after it. "Was that one for me? I couldn't see."

Hee. Why, Harry, so taunting! And yet your words are so innocent. You deceptionate man, you! I see your years with Bob!snark are still having a profound effect on you.

And then Harry's using a technicality to defend his use of magic and Murphy's responding by knocking him over was priceless, and the clever wording of, "I fell to my knees and spun a few times." left me giggling hysterically. What an amusing image that presents. Poor Harry, spinning around on his knees across a patch of ice. I can just see the bewildered, somewhat dizzy expression on his face as he flies about. *bg*

"You're such a baby!" she taunted. "Can't stand to be beaten by a girl."

I skated backwards again. "You're not a girl, Murphy. You're a cop."

"Give me back my stick, so I can beat you with it."

"That's not a very persuasive argument."

Oh, absolutely delicious Harry/Murphy! Sounds just like them. Truly a wonderful thing to be picturing alongside the image of Harry skittering away, both hockey sticks held above his head in a mocking way that half-way gives away his fear of her punishment for what he is doing. Heeee. He wants to ruffle her feathers, but at the same time is afraid of what will happen to him for doing it. I love that.

"I would like you remind you that you have blades dangerously close to parts of my body I'd like to keep," I told her.

"Hold still and you can keep them," she replied.

Eeee. More love. ^___^

She pulled back before I would have liked and my head followed her, attempting to catch her again.

"Surrender?" she asked, silkily.

"Mmmhmm," was all I said.

"Good."

She bent down and kissed me again. This time I put my hand behind her head to make sure she wasn't going anywhere.

*happy squeak* "wasn't going anywhere." I must say that I have scarsely ever been a fan of shippings in any of the shows/movies/books/etcetera that I have ever gone through great obsessions for, but with you, I am not only willing to read ship, I look forward to reading ship. You have such a sweet, wonderful, clean way of putting the story out there, and I just love it. You may not realize this, but I think you may be the sole reason I started to like the show's turning Harry and Murphy's attentions to each other. And thank you for that. I quite like them together now, and it's quite nice to apply that to the episodes of the show that are available to view.

Others have said that the winning point to the end of this fic is Harry's thought that Murphy still owes him twenty bucks, but for me it's this line: "The memory is nearly five years old now, but it still makes me smile."

Yeee. Happy nostalgia. It gets me nearly every time. ^__^

A brilliantly written memory fic. I feel content and happy now. Very nice. Thank you for writing it. =)

*blinks* Actually, now I see that the twenty dollars comment has not been specifically pointed out about the end. o_o

Oh well. I still stand by my thoughts as to why the end was so memorable. =)

I always appreciate your very in-depth comments, so thank you for taking the time to write them. :-) It's nice to know what specifically people enjoy so I can keep trying to do that.

You can blame

featherjean for my Murphy/Harry tendencies. She got me on the ship with her stories and then when I was writing, it just sort of came naturally to the two characters. Even when they aren't romantically linked, there's such a tender affection in their friendship that I think can go either way, depending on how the person reading it wants to look at it. Plus, I love Murphy and Harry in the books, even though I'm a staunch Susan/Harry shipper. But I like their friendship and the casual flirting that they have, so I've tried to include that a bit when I write.

Thanks for the lovely comments!

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Dresden Files: Winter Nights

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