Make It Stop - fic
Jan. 29th, 2014 09:54 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
deird1And to begin the bingo card... For the prompt of "iron".
Title: Make It Stop
Rating: PG
Word Count: 760
Summary: This is what's left.
Make It Stop
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Yes I do, she almost says. Because Mom always wanted me to do it. She used to put the washing basket in front of the TV and tell me that I couldn’t watch Spy Sistas until I’d ironed at least five things. And I’d hold out as long as possible and pretend I didn’t care about television. So I’m going to, because Mom asked me to.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Yes I do, she almost says. Because there’s still ironing, and washing, and checking for stains, and accidentally burning fingers. There’s still normal stuff here, somehow.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Yes I do, she almost says. Because if I let you do it, then you’d really live here and it’d all be different for real.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
No, she almost says, but at least this is something I can handle.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Fine then, she almost says. You do the ironing, since you’re so interested in it.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
There’s no way I’m stopping, she almost says. If I stop, the Buffybot will try doing it again – and I’m not going to let her stand there with my sister’s face, doing something my sister hated worse than I did. She’s already dead, she shouldn’t have to iron as well.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
I will if I want to, she almost says. I can do anything I want, now. There’s no-one left to stop me. And I’m going to iron, so you can suck it.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
It’s not all of it, she almost says. I’ve got a whole wardrobe left upstairs.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Yeah, I really do, she almost says. Because Mom said that suffrage was no reason not to be skilled at chores, and if I don’t iron ever again, I’ll be letting her down.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
If you want me to stop, she almost says, why don’t you program the stupid robot to bribe me with ironing money? That’d be more realistic.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Yes I do, she almost says. Because I’m all that’s left. If I don’t do it, it won’t get done. Not Mom, not Buffy, not Dad. I’m the head of the family now, and heads of the family do the ironing even if they don’t want to.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Yeah, I really do, she almost says. Because if I pretend hard enough, it’s almost like the world didn’t end.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Stop trying to coddle me, she almost says. So I got kidnapped and blood-sacrificed and my sister died in front of me – so what? I’m not a baby.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Go away and leave me the fuck alone, she almost says. And yeah, I’ll swear if I want to! You can’t stop me! You’re not my mother.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Actually I do, she almost says, because I used my horrible not-really-real trauma as an excuse to get out of ironing – so I’m like a thousand hours in debt, and if you’ll excuse me I’d really like to get on with that, thanks.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
She almost says lots of things. But instead she keeps her mouth shut – and stands there pressing seams.
Title: Make It Stop
Rating: PG
Word Count: 760
Summary: This is what's left.
Make It Stop
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Yes I do, she almost says. Because Mom always wanted me to do it. She used to put the washing basket in front of the TV and tell me that I couldn’t watch Spy Sistas until I’d ironed at least five things. And I’d hold out as long as possible and pretend I didn’t care about television. So I’m going to, because Mom asked me to.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Yes I do, she almost says. Because there’s still ironing, and washing, and checking for stains, and accidentally burning fingers. There’s still normal stuff here, somehow.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Yes I do, she almost says. Because if I let you do it, then you’d really live here and it’d all be different for real.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
No, she almost says, but at least this is something I can handle.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Fine then, she almost says. You do the ironing, since you’re so interested in it.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
There’s no way I’m stopping, she almost says. If I stop, the Buffybot will try doing it again – and I’m not going to let her stand there with my sister’s face, doing something my sister hated worse than I did. She’s already dead, she shouldn’t have to iron as well.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
I will if I want to, she almost says. I can do anything I want, now. There’s no-one left to stop me. And I’m going to iron, so you can suck it.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
It’s not all of it, she almost says. I’ve got a whole wardrobe left upstairs.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Yeah, I really do, she almost says. Because Mom said that suffrage was no reason not to be skilled at chores, and if I don’t iron ever again, I’ll be letting her down.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
If you want me to stop, she almost says, why don’t you program the stupid robot to bribe me with ironing money? That’d be more realistic.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Yes I do, she almost says. Because I’m all that’s left. If I don’t do it, it won’t get done. Not Mom, not Buffy, not Dad. I’m the head of the family now, and heads of the family do the ironing even if they don’t want to.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Yeah, I really do, she almost says. Because if I pretend hard enough, it’s almost like the world didn’t end.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Stop trying to coddle me, she almost says. So I got kidnapped and blood-sacrificed and my sister died in front of me – so what? I’m not a baby.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Go away and leave me the fuck alone, she almost says. And yeah, I’ll swear if I want to! You can’t stop me! You’re not my mother.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
Actually I do, she almost says, because I used my horrible not-really-real trauma as an excuse to get out of ironing – so I’m like a thousand hours in debt, and if you’ll excuse me I’d really like to get on with that, thanks.
“Dawn, why don’t you sit down for a while? You don’t have to do all the ironing.”
She almost says lots of things. But instead she keeps her mouth shut – and stands there pressing seams.
no subject
Date: 2014-01-29 01:28 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-01-29 08:49 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-01-29 04:23 pm (UTC)Gabrielle
no subject
Date: 2014-01-29 08:49 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-01-29 06:11 pm (UTC)Very effective. Oh Dawn, honey.
no subject
Date: 2014-01-29 08:49 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-01-29 10:04 pm (UTC)Perhaps my favorite bit was:
I used my horrible not-really-real trauma as an excuse to get out of ironing – so I’m like a thousand hours in debt
Poor kid. Using her perfectly normal malingering as a bargaining chip. *sniff*
no subject
Date: 2014-01-29 10:11 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-01-29 10:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-01-29 10:42 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-01-29 10:50 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-01-29 10:54 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-01-30 08:44 pm (UTC)I love the tension in this, Dawn grinding through all the thing she's supposed to just accept and sit down and do nothing. Especially
If I stop, the Buffybot will try doing it again – and I’m not going to let her stand there with my sister’s face, doing something my sister hated worse than I did. She’s already dead, she shouldn’t have to iron as well.
My heart.
no subject
Date: 2014-01-30 08:49 pm (UTC)Here from buffyversetop5
Date: 2015-01-06 06:03 pm (UTC)Re: Here from buffyversetop5
Date: 2015-01-08 06:38 pm (UTC)