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discoveredinaljLooks to be a busy weekend. Thought I'd post a bit early! Happy Easter to all!
Okay, Professor. Tell me again. What’s all this got to do with Easter?” Bodie waved his hands in the direction of the kids crawling all over the lawn of the church. “I don’t see what eggs and bunnies and chocolates…well maybe the chocolates…have to do with the celebration of the resurrection of Christ.”
“Nothin,’” was the smug reply, “and everything.”
“Nothing and everything...”Bodie raised a skeptical eyebrow.
“Exactly.” Ray tried, but failed to hide a smirk. Getting up Bodie’s nose was a favorite pastime.
“Oh, well that’s all right then. Explains it all, that does.” Bodie punched his partner’s shoulder. “If it’s got nothing to do with it, what’s all this for? Why the egg hunt?”
“Fertility, spring, pagans, crops, rebirth.”
“How did all that get mixed up with Easter?”
“Someone, probably one of the Cow’s ancestors relatives…”Doyle cackled, “…decided to organize all the individual celebrations. Can’t be given us workin’ stiffs too many holidays, now can we? So they took the Christian celebration of Easter, rebirth without sin, and combined it with the pagan solstice rites and bang! Easter, eggs, bunnies and chocolate!”
“Still don’t see what bunnies and hidden eggs and sweets have to do with crosses and saviors.” Bodie pouted.
Ray affectionately ran his finger across the protruding lower lip. “So I should just get rid of all the Cadbury Crème eggs…” He let his voice trail off.
“No! I mean no, not necessary. It’s tradition innit? Holds the world together, that does. Mustn’t mess with tradition, Sunshine.”
“Tradition is at the heart of it. Most of what people commonly associate with Easter is pagan in origin. Its roots lie in celebrating the spring equinox. That’s been an important part of many religious celebrations for centuries. It’s the celebration of the end of the dead seasons and a welcoming of rebirth. The rabbits and the eggs represent fertility, reproduction, new beginnings.” Ray looked over at Bodie to see if he was boring him. Bodie was looking out the window nodding his head.
“Jesus’ own death and rebirth symbolize the death and rebirth of this time of the year. Pagans also have stories like Jesus’ in their lore. The Anglo-Saxon lunar goddess, Eostre lent her name to the new Christian holiday. The rabbit was thought to be her sacred animal. The pagan symbol for rebirth was the egg and it was adopted by early Christians as a symbol of the Jesus’ resurrection. The French gave decorated eggs to new brides to promote a fertile marriage. Farmer’s wives distributed eggs to field workers in Germany to insure a plentiful harvest. Russians decorated eggs to symbolize abundance and good fortune. Coloring eggs goes back to ancient Greece, where red eggs were used to symbolize rebirth, and green ones represented the budding of spring’s plants and flowers.”
“Impressive Sherlock. But where’s the Easter egg hunt in all that?” Bodie asked with a tone that implied he might just have stumped his partner with that one.
“Some believe it is an off shoot of the French crusades through Ireland. The crusaders would use food or money to bribe unsuspecting kids to grass on the farmers who practiced the pagan tradition of burying a blue egg in their field in hopes of a better crop. The farmers were then executed for practicing pagan rituals.
Bodie looked at his partner, speculating. “So how do you know all this stuff about pagans and rites? From that witch you’d been dating?”
Ray snorted. “Jealousy doesn’t become you, petal.”
“Jealous! Bah. Don’t flatter yourself!”
“Just ‘cause you didn’t have a broom to sweep me off my feet…” Ray’s laugh was dark and promising.
They sat in silence for a few minutes, watching the activity on the lawn.
“This holiday is wasted on us, no?” Ray broke the silence.
“Whaddya mean?”
“Fertility and all…unless there’s something you’ve been keepin’ from me petal?
“Only if you’ve lost your copper’s powers of observation!”
“Better double check then.” Ray reached across the seat and grabbed Bodie’s belt.
“Gerroff you pillock!” Bodie was laughing too hard to stop Ray’s exploration. “We’re on the job, you!”
Ray settled back in his own seat while Bodie straightened his clothes, both breathing hard. Cowley had sent them on this surveillance obbo. One of Doyle’s grasses had called him just hours ago and told him of a plot to smuggle some diamonds out of the country using the plastic Easter eggs from this church’s children’s festival. One of the vicars of the church was in on the plot. Somehow the diamonds, wrapped in the same foil as the chocolates to disguise them, were accidently put into the eggs that were hidden for the children. The grass told Ray that some heavies were going to come and make sure they got the diamonds back.
Reaching around into the back seat for the thermos, Ray stiffened.
“Company mate. Behind us.” He reached into his jacket to free his gun.
“Yeah, they don’t look like they’re here for eggs or chocolate.” Bodie checked his weapon too. He picked up his R/T and called for backup.
They watched four men dressed in long dark coats, faces obscured by low slung hats make their way across the lawn to where the children were investigating their treasures. They went unnoticed by the revelers until one of the men grabbed a small blonde girl and carried her up the church stairs.
Ray hissed, “We can’t wait for backup, Bodie. Not with all those kids at risk.”
Bodie nodded in agreement. They quietly got out of the car. Working together, without the need for words, they separated. Bodie circled wide while Ray moved toward the front of the church using trees and shrubs as cover. He could hear the little girl start to cry.
The man on the stairs held the little girl in front of him. He did not show a weapon. He called out “Put all the plastic eggs in the basket being passed. Best not to try any heroics.” He squeezed the child in a mock hug and she cried out. “Think about the consequences of rash action.” The parents and their children began to collect the eggs.
Once all the eggs were in the basket, the four men regrouped on the church stairs. A black Cortina pulled up to the curb. The men headed toward the car, still carrying the girl. A woman’s voice could be heard crying out in fear. “Please, my daughter…let her go.”
“She’s our insurance. We’ll turn her loose once we’re clear.”
The woman called again. “No, please…”
Ray stepped out from behind the shrub he had used as cover. Both arms stretched over his head, he let his gun dangle freely in his left hand. “Let the child go. I’ll be your safe conduct.”
“Who the ‘ell are you!” Guns were finally drawn, all pointed at Doyle.
From his perch on the stairs at the opposite side of the church Bodie cursed his partner. “Bloody bastard, what are you up to?”
“Name’s Doyle. CI5. I’ll make a much better bargaining chip than a five year old.”
Bodie groaned. “Why Ray?” But he knew why. Doyle would never let the men take the child. This is why Ray had been a copper, why he was in CI5, to protect the innocent. And in Ray’s eyes, there wasn’t anything more innocent than a small child. He would just have to sit tight and see how this all played out. He hoped their backup would get here soon.
“Drop your gun.” The man with the child demanded.
“As soon as you let her go.” Ray’s eyes swept past Bodie’s hiding place, letting his partner know he was aware of him.
“What’s keeping me from just shooting you now?”
Ray sighed theatrically. “Because you don’t know if I’m here alone or if there are guns aimed at you as we speak. Let the girl go. I’ll put down the gun and we can leave. Better for everyone that way.”
The men conferred. The girl was released. She ran to her mother and was gathered up in loving arms. The gunmen kept their weapons trained on the child.
Ray tossed his gun to the pavement. Two of the men grabbed him from behind. One hit him on the back of the head with the butt of his gun. Bodie watched him drop to the ground like a puppet whose strings had been cut. He was picked up and shoved into the back seat of the car.
Bodie growled with aggravation. With guns still trained on the families he couldn’t risk taking a shot to free Ray. He watched with frustration as the Cortina sped away. Backup arrived on the heels of the villain’s departure. Bodie threw himself into the front seat of the first car to arrive. Jax was driving.
“Black Cortina. They’ve got Ray. Follow it!” Bodie pulled his R/T out of his pocket and relayed the situation to Cowley. The chase lasted fifteen minutes, finally ending when a lorry pulled out of a side alley cutting the CI5 car off. The Cortina sped away, lost to sight.
“Bloody hell!” Bodie slammed both hands down on the dashboard.
It was several hours later when a call came in from a small airport just outside London. The locals were dealing with an attempted hijacking. Several men were trying to commandeer a plane to take them to Amsterdam. The descriptions given to CI5 matched the men from the church. There was no information on a curly headed hostage.
Cowley put a team together and they drove to London-Luton Airport. Bodie’s team came in quietly and set up behind a building on the airport grounds. Jax’s team approached through the main airport entrance. They found the suspects gathered around a van on the tarmac.
Holding up his CI5 ID, Jax called out “Who do we talk to?”
One of the men pulled a battered and bruised Raymond Doyle out of the back of the van. His hands were tied behind him and he had been gagged.
“All right Ray?” Jax asked.
Ray nodded. A gun was pushed up under his chin.
“We want a plane out of here. We’ll keep him, “he elbowed Doyle in the stomach, “until we reach our destination.”
Everyone present knew that to be a lie. Ray would be dead as soon as the plane left the ground.
“Don’t think we can do that, mate.” Jax tipped his head toward Doyle as the gun was pressed tighter against his neck. He took his cue and groaned, his legs buckled and he fell surprising the man who held him at gunpoint. As soon as he was down gunfire erupted. Bodie’s team of marksmen opened fire and took out each of the thugs.
Bodie raced to Ray.
“You bloody fool! What were you playin’ at?” Bodie roughly removed the ropes binding his partner’s wrists and the gag in Ray’s mouth. His anger and frustration finding an outlet in manhandling the bound figure sprawled on the ground in front of him.
Ray coughed dryly as the gag was removed. His voice was rough. “Doin’ me job, Bodie. Just doin’ me job.” He looked into Bodie’s eyes and saw the anger, fear and relief that were driving his partner. “Take me home, Bodie. Please.”
Seeing the exhaustion in Ray’s face, Bodie swallowed the rest of his rant. There would thankfully be time for all he had to say later.
“Need a stop at casualty on the way?” Bodie asked.
“Nah. Just a few bruises and scrapes. You can tend to them.” Ray winced and closed his eyes. “Just want to go home, mate.”
Cowley strode up to them radiating anger.
“Jax,” he shouted. “Get Doyle to Guy’s. Bodie, Murphy, you’ll stay here to clean this up. All four CI5 agents sighed. There was no arguing with the old man when he was in this kind of mood. Bodie helped Ray into the car.
“See you later, Sunshine.” Bodie gently caressed Ray’s bruised cheek.
“I’ll see to him Bodie. No worries.” Jax got into the car and Bodie watched them drive off.
Bodie quietly opened the door to Doyle’s flat. He stepped inside, reset the locks and removed his boots. Ray had looked knackered after the op and he didn’t want to wake him. He walked across the dark lounge and stepped on something small and hard. He turned on a light and found a trail of foil wrapped eggs leading to the bedroom. He shook his head and smiled.
“Not very good at this “hide the eggs” thing are you Raymond?” He leaned against the door frame.
“Hmmm…wanted them to be found, didn’t I?” Ray put down the book he’d been reading and stretched languidly causing the bed sheet to slide a bit lower. Bodie could see the bruises coming out on Ray’s chest and arms. He was beginning to look like one of the decorated eggs that had started all this. The soft light from the bed side lamp glinted off one final foil egg.
Bodie chuckled with raised eyebrows. “You little devil!”
Ray smiled. “Uh,uh. That’s an altogether different holiday, mate.”
Title: Bunnies & Crosses
Author: merentha13
Slash or Gen: slash
Archive at ProsLib/Circuit: yes
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters; no infringement intended, no $$ made!
Notes: Some of the inspiration for this came from Eddie Izzard’s “Church of England Fundamentals" rant in the Dress To Kill stand-up routine. It can be found on You Tube and is very funny – in a sacrilegious kind of way. (Don’t view if you’re easily offended!)
Okay, Professor. Tell me again. What’s all this got to do with Easter?” Bodie waved his hands in the direction of the kids crawling all over the lawn of the church. “I don’t see what eggs and bunnies and chocolates…well maybe the chocolates…have to do with the celebration of the resurrection of Christ.”
“Nothin,’” was the smug reply, “and everything.”
“Nothing and everything...”Bodie raised a skeptical eyebrow.
“Exactly.” Ray tried, but failed to hide a smirk. Getting up Bodie’s nose was a favorite pastime.
“Oh, well that’s all right then. Explains it all, that does.” Bodie punched his partner’s shoulder. “If it’s got nothing to do with it, what’s all this for? Why the egg hunt?”
“Fertility, spring, pagans, crops, rebirth.”
“How did all that get mixed up with Easter?”
“Someone, probably one of the Cow’s ancestors relatives…”Doyle cackled, “…decided to organize all the individual celebrations. Can’t be given us workin’ stiffs too many holidays, now can we? So they took the Christian celebration of Easter, rebirth without sin, and combined it with the pagan solstice rites and bang! Easter, eggs, bunnies and chocolate!”
“Still don’t see what bunnies and hidden eggs and sweets have to do with crosses and saviors.” Bodie pouted.
Ray affectionately ran his finger across the protruding lower lip. “So I should just get rid of all the Cadbury Crème eggs…” He let his voice trail off.
“No! I mean no, not necessary. It’s tradition innit? Holds the world together, that does. Mustn’t mess with tradition, Sunshine.”
“Tradition is at the heart of it. Most of what people commonly associate with Easter is pagan in origin. Its roots lie in celebrating the spring equinox. That’s been an important part of many religious celebrations for centuries. It’s the celebration of the end of the dead seasons and a welcoming of rebirth. The rabbits and the eggs represent fertility, reproduction, new beginnings.” Ray looked over at Bodie to see if he was boring him. Bodie was looking out the window nodding his head.
“Jesus’ own death and rebirth symbolize the death and rebirth of this time of the year. Pagans also have stories like Jesus’ in their lore. The Anglo-Saxon lunar goddess, Eostre lent her name to the new Christian holiday. The rabbit was thought to be her sacred animal. The pagan symbol for rebirth was the egg and it was adopted by early Christians as a symbol of the Jesus’ resurrection. The French gave decorated eggs to new brides to promote a fertile marriage. Farmer’s wives distributed eggs to field workers in Germany to insure a plentiful harvest. Russians decorated eggs to symbolize abundance and good fortune. Coloring eggs goes back to ancient Greece, where red eggs were used to symbolize rebirth, and green ones represented the budding of spring’s plants and flowers.”
“Impressive Sherlock. But where’s the Easter egg hunt in all that?” Bodie asked with a tone that implied he might just have stumped his partner with that one.
“Some believe it is an off shoot of the French crusades through Ireland. The crusaders would use food or money to bribe unsuspecting kids to grass on the farmers who practiced the pagan tradition of burying a blue egg in their field in hopes of a better crop. The farmers were then executed for practicing pagan rituals.
Bodie looked at his partner, speculating. “So how do you know all this stuff about pagans and rites? From that witch you’d been dating?”
Ray snorted. “Jealousy doesn’t become you, petal.”
“Jealous! Bah. Don’t flatter yourself!”
“Just ‘cause you didn’t have a broom to sweep me off my feet…” Ray’s laugh was dark and promising.
They sat in silence for a few minutes, watching the activity on the lawn.
“This holiday is wasted on us, no?” Ray broke the silence.
“Whaddya mean?”
“Fertility and all…unless there’s something you’ve been keepin’ from me petal?
“Only if you’ve lost your copper’s powers of observation!”
“Better double check then.” Ray reached across the seat and grabbed Bodie’s belt.
“Gerroff you pillock!” Bodie was laughing too hard to stop Ray’s exploration. “We’re on the job, you!”
Ray settled back in his own seat while Bodie straightened his clothes, both breathing hard. Cowley had sent them on this surveillance obbo. One of Doyle’s grasses had called him just hours ago and told him of a plot to smuggle some diamonds out of the country using the plastic Easter eggs from this church’s children’s festival. One of the vicars of the church was in on the plot. Somehow the diamonds, wrapped in the same foil as the chocolates to disguise them, were accidently put into the eggs that were hidden for the children. The grass told Ray that some heavies were going to come and make sure they got the diamonds back.
Reaching around into the back seat for the thermos, Ray stiffened.
“Company mate. Behind us.” He reached into his jacket to free his gun.
“Yeah, they don’t look like they’re here for eggs or chocolate.” Bodie checked his weapon too. He picked up his R/T and called for backup.
They watched four men dressed in long dark coats, faces obscured by low slung hats make their way across the lawn to where the children were investigating their treasures. They went unnoticed by the revelers until one of the men grabbed a small blonde girl and carried her up the church stairs.
Ray hissed, “We can’t wait for backup, Bodie. Not with all those kids at risk.”
Bodie nodded in agreement. They quietly got out of the car. Working together, without the need for words, they separated. Bodie circled wide while Ray moved toward the front of the church using trees and shrubs as cover. He could hear the little girl start to cry.
The man on the stairs held the little girl in front of him. He did not show a weapon. He called out “Put all the plastic eggs in the basket being passed. Best not to try any heroics.” He squeezed the child in a mock hug and she cried out. “Think about the consequences of rash action.” The parents and their children began to collect the eggs.
Once all the eggs were in the basket, the four men regrouped on the church stairs. A black Cortina pulled up to the curb. The men headed toward the car, still carrying the girl. A woman’s voice could be heard crying out in fear. “Please, my daughter…let her go.”
“She’s our insurance. We’ll turn her loose once we’re clear.”
The woman called again. “No, please…”
Ray stepped out from behind the shrub he had used as cover. Both arms stretched over his head, he let his gun dangle freely in his left hand. “Let the child go. I’ll be your safe conduct.”
“Who the ‘ell are you!” Guns were finally drawn, all pointed at Doyle.
From his perch on the stairs at the opposite side of the church Bodie cursed his partner. “Bloody bastard, what are you up to?”
“Name’s Doyle. CI5. I’ll make a much better bargaining chip than a five year old.”
Bodie groaned. “Why Ray?” But he knew why. Doyle would never let the men take the child. This is why Ray had been a copper, why he was in CI5, to protect the innocent. And in Ray’s eyes, there wasn’t anything more innocent than a small child. He would just have to sit tight and see how this all played out. He hoped their backup would get here soon.
“Drop your gun.” The man with the child demanded.
“As soon as you let her go.” Ray’s eyes swept past Bodie’s hiding place, letting his partner know he was aware of him.
“What’s keeping me from just shooting you now?”
Ray sighed theatrically. “Because you don’t know if I’m here alone or if there are guns aimed at you as we speak. Let the girl go. I’ll put down the gun and we can leave. Better for everyone that way.”
The men conferred. The girl was released. She ran to her mother and was gathered up in loving arms. The gunmen kept their weapons trained on the child.
Ray tossed his gun to the pavement. Two of the men grabbed him from behind. One hit him on the back of the head with the butt of his gun. Bodie watched him drop to the ground like a puppet whose strings had been cut. He was picked up and shoved into the back seat of the car.
Bodie growled with aggravation. With guns still trained on the families he couldn’t risk taking a shot to free Ray. He watched with frustration as the Cortina sped away. Backup arrived on the heels of the villain’s departure. Bodie threw himself into the front seat of the first car to arrive. Jax was driving.
“Black Cortina. They’ve got Ray. Follow it!” Bodie pulled his R/T out of his pocket and relayed the situation to Cowley. The chase lasted fifteen minutes, finally ending when a lorry pulled out of a side alley cutting the CI5 car off. The Cortina sped away, lost to sight.
“Bloody hell!” Bodie slammed both hands down on the dashboard.
It was several hours later when a call came in from a small airport just outside London. The locals were dealing with an attempted hijacking. Several men were trying to commandeer a plane to take them to Amsterdam. The descriptions given to CI5 matched the men from the church. There was no information on a curly headed hostage.
Cowley put a team together and they drove to London-Luton Airport. Bodie’s team came in quietly and set up behind a building on the airport grounds. Jax’s team approached through the main airport entrance. They found the suspects gathered around a van on the tarmac.
Holding up his CI5 ID, Jax called out “Who do we talk to?”
One of the men pulled a battered and bruised Raymond Doyle out of the back of the van. His hands were tied behind him and he had been gagged.
“All right Ray?” Jax asked.
Ray nodded. A gun was pushed up under his chin.
“We want a plane out of here. We’ll keep him, “he elbowed Doyle in the stomach, “until we reach our destination.”
Everyone present knew that to be a lie. Ray would be dead as soon as the plane left the ground.
“Don’t think we can do that, mate.” Jax tipped his head toward Doyle as the gun was pressed tighter against his neck. He took his cue and groaned, his legs buckled and he fell surprising the man who held him at gunpoint. As soon as he was down gunfire erupted. Bodie’s team of marksmen opened fire and took out each of the thugs.
Bodie raced to Ray.
“You bloody fool! What were you playin’ at?” Bodie roughly removed the ropes binding his partner’s wrists and the gag in Ray’s mouth. His anger and frustration finding an outlet in manhandling the bound figure sprawled on the ground in front of him.
Ray coughed dryly as the gag was removed. His voice was rough. “Doin’ me job, Bodie. Just doin’ me job.” He looked into Bodie’s eyes and saw the anger, fear and relief that were driving his partner. “Take me home, Bodie. Please.”
Seeing the exhaustion in Ray’s face, Bodie swallowed the rest of his rant. There would thankfully be time for all he had to say later.
“Need a stop at casualty on the way?” Bodie asked.
“Nah. Just a few bruises and scrapes. You can tend to them.” Ray winced and closed his eyes. “Just want to go home, mate.”
Cowley strode up to them radiating anger.
“Jax,” he shouted. “Get Doyle to Guy’s. Bodie, Murphy, you’ll stay here to clean this up. All four CI5 agents sighed. There was no arguing with the old man when he was in this kind of mood. Bodie helped Ray into the car.
“See you later, Sunshine.” Bodie gently caressed Ray’s bruised cheek.
“I’ll see to him Bodie. No worries.” Jax got into the car and Bodie watched them drive off.
Bodie quietly opened the door to Doyle’s flat. He stepped inside, reset the locks and removed his boots. Ray had looked knackered after the op and he didn’t want to wake him. He walked across the dark lounge and stepped on something small and hard. He turned on a light and found a trail of foil wrapped eggs leading to the bedroom. He shook his head and smiled.
“Not very good at this “hide the eggs” thing are you Raymond?” He leaned against the door frame.
“Hmmm…wanted them to be found, didn’t I?” Ray put down the book he’d been reading and stretched languidly causing the bed sheet to slide a bit lower. Bodie could see the bruises coming out on Ray’s chest and arms. He was beginning to look like one of the decorated eggs that had started all this. The soft light from the bed side lamp glinted off one final foil egg.
Bodie chuckled with raised eyebrows. “You little devil!”
Ray smiled. “Uh,uh. That’s an altogether different holiday, mate.”
Title: Bunnies & Crosses
Author: merentha13
Slash or Gen: slash
Archive at ProsLib/Circuit: yes
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters; no infringement intended, no $$ made!
Notes: Some of the inspiration for this came from Eddie Izzard’s “Church of England Fundamentals" rant in the Dress To Kill stand-up routine. It can be found on You Tube and is very funny – in a sacrilegious kind of way. (Don’t view if you’re easily offended!)
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Date: 2011-04-23 09:15 pm (UTC)