Too late

[mylodon]

My first Law and Order fic. Not the last, I hope. I don't own these characters; if I did the ending would have been different.

That must be the father.
Ronnie’s not seen him before, but anyone who looks that much like Matt – Matt with a beer belly and grey hair – could only be Devlin senior. The muscular hands are a giveaway, too. Ronnie knows they’re the ones that belted Matt when he was younger, but he never asked why. Too late to ask now.
That must be Mrs. Devlin, with the priest.
Ronnie’s not sure Matt would have wanted all this palaver – full mass with all the trimmings – but he supposes the lad never got the chance to put in his two penn’orth. Planning funerals is for old men.
Nice turn out from both sides – our lot and the court mob.
Ronnie’s not surprised. Matt was a good bloke, popular all round. There’ll be plenty of tears shed – and beers drunk – in his memory.
He’s a surprise, though. Bloody hell, how long had Ronnie and Matt been working together and not a word said about him?
Ronnie’s learned more about Matt’s home life – how he could afford that flat, who’ll feed the cat now – this last hour or so than he’s done the last few years. Why couldn’t the idiot have said something? This is 2011, not 1911, for God’s sake. Ronnie would have bought them both a pie and a pint.
He’d had his suspicions. He should have asked. Too late to ask now.

Comments

[eglantine-br.livejournal.com]

Ohno, oh. Matt is dead.

I love Ronnie here. Old and worn and still kind on the inside.

This little story is heroic in its brevity. It hurts.

[mylodon.livejournal.com]

Thank you. I'm not absolutely sure Matt is dead but the signs aren't good.

If there's one thing I've learned (and which i thank fanfiction for) it's using fewer words.

[anteros-lmc.livejournal.com]

Dammit. I knew reading that would be a bad idea. Just when I thought I had stopped sniffling... This is just perfect. I just hope it's not prophetic. (If I hope hard enough maybe this time he will live) Poor Ronnie, he'll be kicking himself forever for not asking.

[mylodon.livejournal.com]

I hope it's not prophetic, too.

That's the whole thing about bereavement. The things left unsaid.

[lee-rowan.livejournal.com]

Oh, screw it all, not ANOTHER burnt Crumpet. should have known.

[shezzawatto.livejournal.com]

From up the mountain, where the snow is melting early but still OK environment for the non schussers on R & R.
Er .... what Lee said.

[mylodon.livejournal.com]

It's just too depressing for words...

[mylodon.livejournal.com]

I'm npt 100% certain but all the indications are he's gone. And real echoes of 'Retribution'.

[rikibeth.livejournal.com]

TOTAL echoes of "Retribution," down to the places those damned bullets hit and Trope: Blood From The Mouth. I'm studying medical billing and coding, and one of my instructors this term is an EMT outside of school, and I made a point of asking him what survivable injuries could cause that bit, so I could FIX IT. Because, as lj user="lee_rowan"> said, not ANOTHER burnt Crumpet. It just won't DO!

[charliecochrane.livejournal.com]

Mylodon here - just swopped idents.

We could always cheat and have the blood from the mouth due to nothing worse than a bitten tongue or a knocked out tooth!

[rikibeth.livejournal.com]

Aiee! You're Charlie Cochrane? *fangirl moment* I know I've read at least one thing of yours, pointed at it by Erastes - I've known her since her Underlucius days. *

My instructor said any injury in the digestive or respiratory system could do that, so I let one of the bullets open up his esophagus. Messy and bothersome, but nothing that won't heal.

[charliecochrane.livejournal.com]

You've known Erastes longer than I have, then!

I like the thought of oesopageal injury. He'll need lots of rest and TLC from Andrew. :)

[rikibeth.livejournal.com]

Good thing Andrew's quite the cook. ;)

[kristen-mara.livejournal.com]

Lovely *runs off and cries*

Now let's hope it doesn't come true!!

[mylodon.livejournal.com]

I'vre been in a state all week. I do hope it's another officer, but...

[talithax.livejournal.com]

Okay.

I have to confess that I kept this open in my browser all day at work yesterday in the hope that I'd be able to come up with the right words to express how lovely I thought it was...

... but I was having a bad day and was too busy wishing considerable ill will towards a few lawyers to find the words...

... but even then, because it was still open, I'd keep going back to it and re-reading, and that in itself, despite the sadness, helped improve my day somewhat.

So... Thank you. Better words are still escaping me, so I'll just leave it at... Lovely.

(BTW - I think it's really, really not looking good. If you go over to IMDB you'll see that while Ronnie, Nat & Aleesha are now up to 32 episodes listed, Matt's stuck at 31... ::sniff::)

[charliecochrane.livejournal.com]

Thank you for all the kind words. I feel this is one of my best ever bits of fanfic, although I'd have preferred not to have the inspiration.

[onlyariana.livejournal.com]

Random person commenting in your journal but I came upon this and wanted to tell you how wonderful it was. Ronnie's POV was just beautiful and I'm happy Lucky isn't going to be neglected. Oh, Mattie. :-( sniff

[mylodon.livejournal.com]

Nice to 'meet' you. Thank you for the nice feedback; poor Mattie indeed.

[nodbear.livejournal.com]

Beautifully done and the sense of so much being offstage - proeprly cathartic in the sense that Aristotle intended it and that teh average post modern screenwriter has long since despised -which is their - and our -loss sometimes

Thank you for many things with this gift of a fic - and
more to say but later .

[mylodon.livejournal.com]

I found it incredibly cathartic; helped me deal with the 'grief'.

*big hugs*

[just-jac7.livejournal.com]

*lovely*
xxx

[mylodon.livejournal.com]

Thank you. :)

[emeraldreeve.livejournal.com]

How heartbreaking!

[charliecochrane.livejournal.com]

I think it reflects my own heartbreak. :(

Thanks.

[rikibeth.livejournal.com]

*FLAILYHANDS OF GLEE*

I see I'm not the only one to deduce an offscreen boyfriend! (Let me guess. Yours is ALSO played by Ioan Gruffudd.)

We all know why Matt didn't say anything. "Of course he got stick, we ALL get stick. Too short, too tall, too fat, too thin... they called me Mick my first six months because my family's Irish." Matt didn't want any MORE stick, from others if not from Ronnie, so of course he kept his mouth shut.

I think canon has Matt's mother already dead, but that's inconsequential. And the flat's modest for London -- here, have a look at one in the given neighborhood: http://www.primelocation.com/uk-property-to-rent/details/id/EGOL1457961/ -- but it was a good way to get the line in, so artistic license. ;-) ETA: I now see you wrote this well before "Survivor's Guilt" aired, so there was no canon on the flat. PERFECT way of getting the line in, given that!

Why do I know all of this? Because I wrote my own fic, where Matt SURVIVES. Ronnie's reaction to the boyfriend was dead-on the same, of course. Have a look if you like: http://archiveofourown.org/series/11437

[charliecochrane.livejournal.com]

Hm. I don't think it is played by Ioan this time. I see somebody quiet and bookish - Benedict Cumberbatch in restrained mood.

Your line about the flat confused me, as I haven't yet summoned up courage to seek out Survivor's Guilt. Will go look at that fic now.

[rikibeth.livejournal.com]

Survivor's Guilt is WRENCHING. I tried to include as many details from it as I could (I even made a timeline, which meant I watched it TWICE, oh the agony) but make them Kinder And Gentler.

According to that ep, Matt lives in Golders Green. With the boyfriend I gave him, they could afford somewhere better, but I got the impression (from "Vice," if nothing else) that Matt would feel a little out of place, so I stuck with it.

Benedict Cumberbatch! An excellent choice, even if he's not Horatio. ;)