On Border Patrol, for Snitchnipped.

[nfe-gremlin.livejournal.com]

On Border Patrol, for snitchnipped. Written by heliopausa.

Peter surveyed the Leopard. The stars shone hard as diamonds: another bitter night. Behind him, the silent patrol made camp. He stared blankly into darkness. They’d be decorating the tree at the Cair now – laughing, singing, hanging this year’s – the fifteenth! – exquisite bauble. Red Dwarf work: golden, delicate, warm jewels glowing… He shrugged, focussing on reality: poor, hard ground, scrubby pine-forest – before him, one tiny, scrawny tree… Unexpectedly, the High King laughed – and dropped, manoeuvring… just…so! …and smiled to see it: a Christmas Tree for border-guards, its thin, gallant branches ablaze with the stars of the Leopard, bright as diamonds.

Original prompt: Peter and a Christmas tree. Either world. Serious or funny. Just no Peter/Tree smut. ;-)

Comments

[rthstewart.livejournal.com]

I love how Peter makes his own Christmas tree by looking at it just from a certain perspective with stars overhead as the decoration. You can really sense his weariness and then that sliver of joy he gets from looking at the tree just so, a tree in the wilderness. Lovely.

[vialethe]

The brightest and best ornaments a tree could have! And of course Peter would notice even the most humble bits of nature's beauty.

[snitchnipped.livejournal.com]

Oh, so lovely and poignant! And you manage to capture a bit of melancholy and happiness all in one fantastic drabble. It's perfect! Thank you so much! Merry Christmas!

[heliopausa.livejournal.com]

:) I'm so glad you liked it! and Merry Christmas! :)

[snacky]

That was lovely! A really creative interpretation of the prompt. Well done!

[autumnia]

A lovely way to think of Christmas while far away from home. I think Peter's version of a Christmas tree was probably the most wonderful of all, without all the unnecessary decorations and only the stars above hanging as ornaments.

[starbrowsings.livejournal.com]

[Insert incoherent babbling here] This was incredible. Gorgeous. Peter putting the Giant wars ahead of the pleasures of home and the traditions of decorating the tree - I'm picturing a Narnian Rockefeller-type unveiling - but it is so very cold and lonely out there on the moors, and the toils of the campaign take their toll.

Then your picture of him dropping to the ground and seeing the "Christmas Tree for border-guards"...!!!! That last line broke my heart.

Your use of words here was exquisite. It really added to the mood of the setting, too, lean and sparse storytelling but each word counting. Truly wonderful job, Helio!