[204] Captain's Son

[mirrorbrothers.livejournal.com]

Title: Captain's Son
Prompt: 204, "Letters"
Words: 533
Notes: If things had happened differently.


Max didn't guess from the invitation. Queen Minnie had asked him up to the castle at least once a month while his father was away. He didn't even think of her that way, as "Queen Minnie" - she was Aunt Minnie, and "Her Majesty" were just words to be used on formal occasions. It should have been just another auntly visit, where fed him cheesecake and asked about his grades.

Max didn't even guess from her face. He saw right away she'd been crying, and asked what was wrong, but he assumed it would be something wrong with her. Loneliness, or, or something. She handed him the letter, addressed to him and sealed with the king's mark, and he still didn't guess.

Max,

I'm so sorry to have to tell you this. . .

Max's dad was lame. This was a fundamental fact. His jokes were lame, his cooking was lame, his idea of "quality time" was unbelievably lame. His friends pointed out that at least Max's dad had a cool job, but Max knew better. Being the captain of the king's knights sounded cool, but what it actually meant was that he fell asleep in the King's garden every afternoon instead of his own. It wasn't like he actually fought anything - what in the world was there to fight?

. . . during the successful defense of a world called Hollow Bastion. . .

Max felt so stupid. Of course, his father wasn't away for so long just to sleep. Of course there was danger. Of course there hadn't been any warning - obviously everything had been fine, until it wasn't. Of course. Of course. He should have been thinking about this all along. He should have been terrified at the summons, or at Minnie's face.

. . . a hero. I was so lucky to have him fighting beside me, I can't tell you. . .

Aunt Minnie was saying his name, pulling gently on his wrists. Max barely heard her. The letter sounded like a description of a stranger. Like he hadn't even known who his dad was. He never would now, of course.

. . . saved my life, and by helping win the battle saved hundreds of others. . .

He was shaking, so hard he could barely read the paper in his hands. He needed to do something, but there was nothing to do. There was no other family to tell. The body had already been buried, weeks ago, in the cold rock of a world he'd never see. There was no way to - to take back anything. Everything he'd ever said to his dad, or about him, every embarrassed groan, every chore he'd blown off, every day he should have been worried, or just forgoshsakes just thinking about his father and hadn't been, that was all forever, now. That was all over, and couldn't be changed.

"Max, can you hear me?"

Max stared. For a moment he didn't know why she was talking to him. "I'm fine, Aunt Minnie."

"Do you know you're crying?" Max didn't know anything. He let the letter fall. He let the Queen lead him away.

Comments

[chokethewind.livejournal.com]

Oh my gosh.

This is so much win.

[mirrorbrothers.livejournal.com]

Hee. Thanks!

[06seconds-left.livejournal.com]

My gosh. Words cannot describe how wonderful this is. Poor, poor Max! And his relationship with his dad still stays true to the movie.

I love it. :D

[mirrorbrothers.livejournal.com]

Most of my impression of Max actually comes from the TV series. The movie for me was more of a sequel. Though I think this Max is closer to the high school age he was in the movie.

I'm glad you liked it!

[dandew702.livejournal.com]

This is lovely. You used Max in a fic. Win win win win win. And it was well written. Kudos.

[mirrorbrothers.livejournal.com]

Yeah, Max is awesome. I just wish they'd use him in the games - can you imagine Sora meeting Max? "You have a kid? And he's my age? O.o"

[tabitha-dornoc.livejournal.com]

Oh, I heart this. I like the letter split and woven in. I like Aunt Minnie. I just love Max. Do you know you're crying? Gah. <3

[mirrorbrothers.livejournal.com]

Doesn't she just seem like she'd be everyone's self-appointed aunt?

[mirrorbrothers.livejournal.com]

Yeah... I think something in me doesn't like how short a time people spend reading drabbles, so I end up writing drabbles you have to read twice.

... making someone cry is a guilty pleasure... I hope it was good crying?

[crimsoncookie.livejournal.com]

poor maxling. :x my heart nearly stopped in hollow bastion during that bit - i knew, i knew they wouldn't do it, but. but.

i love how you twined the lines of the letter through max's reaction. so beautiful. ;-;

[mirrorbrothers.livejournal.com]

I think they should have done it. Not because I dislike Goofy, but because the trick of "he's dead... oh, wait, no he's not" has always struck me as really cheap. It takes advantage of our emotional reaction to death, but weasels out of addressing the actual consequences of it, when the consequences are the whole reason we have an emotional reaction in the first place.

Of course, you're right, Goofy can never die. The Disney Deities forbid it.