AN: Well, hello, Kats and Kittens! How're things? This just so happens to be my first ever Tin Man fic (and hopefully not my last), so go gentle on me. I've been reading a lot of Glitch/Cain fics lately, and I've just fallen in love with every single one of them. :huggles all fics closely: So I thought I'd try one of my own. The theme seems to fit the general consensus; maybe a little sadder than the rest, though. But I'll stop my rambling now so that you can get on with it.
Disclaimer: I do not own the miniseries Tin Man. I do not own the characters of the miniseries Tin Man.
Waltz With Me Courageously
Everything in the O.Z. was returning to normal. Slowly, mind you, but returning nonetheless. Azkadellia's gothic tower lay in ruin, destroyed by the sisters themselves, and the wasteland where the monstrosity had stood was now in bloom, thanks mostly to the sun-seeder that had almost caused utter destruction. And the royal family had returned to the palace, resuming their duties as peaceful rulers over the lands.
Only one thing seemed amiss in all of the O.Z., and that very thing was slowly making his way down a long, overly-decorative corridor in the palace. Ambrose had yet to feel at home with his new family. With Glitch's memories clashing with his own, he was having trouble sifting through thoughts from both lives. In some instances, they bled together so seamlessly that he could barely tell the difference anymore. And he still displayed tendencies of them both. True, Ambrose shined through more than the head case ever did, but the sudden urge to glitch arose more often than he liked.
They'd told him it would take time, that this was a natural reaction. The years spent without his brain had afforded him new opportunities, new experiences. He'd adapted to not having a brain, and he would have to adapt again to having one. It was a strange feeling having his brain back. He could feel the pressure of it in his head, so physically he supposed he was fuller, more complete. But emotionally he was split between Ambrose and Glitch. Ambrose wanted to be studious and stay cooped up in his lab all day, designing new and more wondrous things that could further aid the O.Z. in this time of healing. Glitch wanted nothing more than to be outside and have fun and run off with DG whenever she mentioned a new adventure in the making. Was there no way to be only one person again? Whole?
Ambrose pondered this as he continued his leisurely walk down the corridor, remaining an arm's length from the nearest wall as his fingertips ghosted over the smooth stone and tapestries. His gaze was plastered to the carpeted floor, and he watched each step of his finely-shined boots as they smoothly but firmly carried him on his way.
"You lost, head case?"
Ambrose resisted the urge to stiffen at the playful tone of the voice that echoed from behind him – the voice he hadn't heard in more than half an annual. He did stop, however, clasping his hands behind his back before turning and smiling politely at the man.
"Mister Cain," he greeted quietly with a nod of his head, and the smile on the other man's face waned. "You seem to have found my hiding place."
"You . . ." Cain stumbled around his thoughts for the right words, ultimately unable to do any better than: "You went ahead with the surgery."
"I did," Ambrose nodded, standing his ground as the tin man took a few unsure steps towards him.
Cain barely recognized the man now. In fact, he'd only been able to do so from behind because of the coat the other man wore, and even that was different – as a guest of the palace, and now the queen's adviser once more, he couldn't very well be expected to run around in the tattered thing they'd found him in. The zipper was gone, or seemed to be. The inventor's hair was styled neatly and parted at the side so that it swept over the spot where Glitch's zipper had once been. His posture was straighter, regal, and his stance no longer represented the brash aloofness that belonged to their favorite zipper head but emitted the very essence of his noble upbringing.
No, this was certainly not Glitch at all, and the heartbreak that polished those accusing blue eyes almost made the inventor's knees buckle from the sheer shame he felt.
"You said you wouldn't," Cain argued through clenched teeth. "You promised. You said you didn't want all that knowledge back, that it scared you."
"Oh, it did," Ambrose agreed sagely, his gaze drifting to a spot just over Cain's shoulder. "It still does . . . But you were gone, Cain. I had no one to fight for me except DG, and even she fell weak to her mother's pleading."
"But we talked to the queen," the tin man said desperately, nearly standing a foot in front of the man now. "We told her you didn't want it, and she backed down."
"Perhaps because she believed you were influencing my decision," Ambrose countered civilly, remaining patient with the man's outburst. "You cannot blame her, Cain. She missed her best and most dear friend. It hurt her to see what I'd become."
"Well, a lot of us didn't mind what you'd 'become,'" Cain huffed, his hands moving to his hips as he straightened to his full height. "In fact, a lot of us didn't think the kingdom needed Ambrose anymore."
The look of hurt that crossed the adviser's face twisted Cain's gut as a feeling of guilt washed over him. He sighed and looked to the ground, his eyes, suddenly, taking in the shaking of Ambrose's knees. He looked up again quickly, finding the inventor's chocolate-brown orbs swimming with what could only be tears . . . but not Ambrose's tears.
"Glitch?" Cain asked cautiously, placing a hand on the other's shoulder. "Glitch, is that you?"
"Do I know you?" Glitch's small, tear-laced voice whispered, and Cain's chest tightened as the absent tone tugged at his heart.
"Hey, sweetheart," the tin man choked with an attempted smile.
Glitch's head tilted to one side before his eyes widened and he launched himself at the older man, wrapping his arms tightly around Cain's neck and nearly lifting himself off of the ground.
"Cain!" He breathed into the man's neck as Cain's arms immediately came around his middle, supporting the both of them. "Cain, Cain, Cain! You were gone for so long! You were gone! I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I remembered! I did, I promise! But the queen was so sad, and DG was sad because the queen was sad, and I was sad that DG was sad because the queen-"
"All right," Cain interrupted, rubbing a soothing pattern on his friend's back. "Easy now, head case. Just slow down."
"I didn't know what the right thing was, Cain," Glitch sobbed, holding tighter to his lifeline. "I know you told me to do what made me happy, but I couldn't be happy when everyone around me was so sad."
"I understand, Glitch," the tin man assured him. "But what kind of life is this? The two of you living in one body?"
He gently pulled the other man away from him so that he could properly look him in the eyes. Glitch sniffled and wiped at his wet cheeks with the sleeves of his finely-pressed coat. He warily looked up at Cain, his eyes widening, suddenly, as a large grin spread across his face.
"Cain!" He exclaimed with excitement, grasping the man's shoulders tightly. "It's been so long! Where have you been?" The smile on Glitch's lips faltered. "You look so sad. Has something happened?"
Cain swallowed on a dry throat, glossing over the distressed look on his face with a forced smile. "No. Everything's fine," he lied. "How have you been, Glitch?"
The grin appeared again on the other's face as he said, "Oh, wonderful, Cain! Things have been so busy with the queen's gala next month!"
"Tonight, Glitch," Cain corrected with a practiced patience. "The queen's gala is tonight."
Glitch blanched. "Oh my! Then we have no time! No time at all! Come on. I'll show you the lab quick before we have to change. It's so big, Cain! Sometimes I get lost just in that room." Glitch's laugh echoed down the hallway, and Cain was glad to hear it. "And you can't imagine where I've ended up around the palace! I've spent hours just trying to find my own bedroom."
"Oh, I can imagine," the tin man sighed, allowing his friend to pull him in what he knew was the wrong direction.
"And the gala tonight," Glitch continued unhindered, stopping, suddenly, and turning to the man with a hopeful look. "You'll dance with me, won't you, Cain?"
Cain smiled, the action crinkling the skin around his eyes and hiding the sadness within them. "Sure," he promised, reveling in the joyous look he received before Glitch turned again and pulled him down the opposite way they had been heading – and ultimately the right way, which made Cain wonder if Ambrose had given him a discrete nudge in that direction.
"Hope you can waltz," Glitch chuckled.
"Should be easy enough. It's all about rhythm," Cain murmured, making the other man laugh and his own heart ache.
AN: Questions? Comments? Vague disregard for any or all words written and established in the mind of one who has no sanity?
I think this one turned out a lot different than I had originally thought it would. I'm still sort of happy with it, but not as much as I would be had I written it the way I truly wanted it... which I couldn't do anyway, seeing as I would have to scrap everything and start from scratch. Plus there was a lot that I wanted to add that I just didn't have time or room for, so I'll do that for my next fic, eh? Later, Gators! Catch you on the flip side. :)