Tomorrow Never Knows - Chapter Twenty One
Authors: lovely_rita_mm, jenny_wren28, & pennylane_fic
Starring: The Beatles and Maggie Sue
Rating: M for language, implied sex (though none of it is explicit) & implied drug use. Characters used in this story are either our creation, or are historically-based (ie, The Beatles).
Disclaimer: We don't own any of the Beatles, this obviously never happened, and is a complete work of fiction.
Linda left the morning after the party, wanting desperately to put some distance between herself and Paul. Maggie walked Linda and Heather to their gate at the airport, something that still felt a little strange to her. She was used to post-9/11 security, and here security was nearly non-existent. The lack of security also worried Maggie a bit because if she were recognized, she wasn't sure if there would be help quickly forthcoming. However, at this early hour and without an actual Beatle present, she figured she'd be all right.
"Are you sure you can't stay longer, Lin?"
"No, I think it's time to go home." She smiled sadly, "I wish things could have gone differently. It's partly my own fault. I knew Paul had a girlfriend and I let myself get emotionally involved."
"Paul is emotionally involved too, you know. And who knows if he still has a girlfriend after last night?"
"Either way, I think we both just need time. I know you want us to get together, but even if Paul beckons to me again, I'm not going to just come running."
"No. I wouldn't either," Maggie admitted. "I'll miss you. You'll still come visit, won't you?"
"Of course, and you're always welcome in New York. You could even bring Julian sometime if his mum will let him. I'm sure Heather would love to see him. And of course John is always welcome."
Maggie hugged both Linda and Heather and then sadly watched them board their plane home.
On the way back from the airport, Maggie dropped by Paul's to see how he was faring. She found him massively hungover, unhappy, and confused. Though he richly deserved the miserable state he was in, she took pity on him when he begged her to stay and give him some advice. He did seem to genuinely feel badly for the spot he'd put Linda in, and even wondered if he should call her to apologize.
"I think an apology is an excellent idea. Do you have anything else to say to her? You know, about having a future together?" Maggie hinted.
"We can hardly have a future together if I haven't broken it off with Jane yet, can I?"
"Didn't Jane dump you last night?"
"No, no, it's fine. I just explained that since she couldn't make it to the party, that I'd escorted your friend to the party, that it was nothing serious."
"That's such a lie!" Maggie was outraged. "Nothing serious? Paul, you're sleeping with her."
"I know, like I said, it's nothing serious."
Beatles! Maggie thought again in frustration. Sex was nothing to them, obviously. It was unnerving how casual they were about it. Maggie often wondered if Paul, Ringo or George would even bat an eye if she'd made them a casual offer. Probably any or all of them would accept without so much as an awkward pause, and then afterwards, go about things like they were perfectly normal.
"That's ridiculous, and I'd be willing to bet you have actual feelings for Linda too," Maggie protested hotly.
"Be that as it may, Jane is just put out that I wasn't more attentive, and she'll come 'round if I give it some more time."
"Do you really want her to come around? Did you ever think that this might be the perfect opportunity to bring up the fact that you might not be right for each other?"
"Maggie, I just can't break it off with Jane. Our lives are just too…bound up together."
"What about Linda? Where does she fit into all this?"
"I don't know. I'd hoped we could just keep things casual and on the side, and I don't know, maybe we still can. She didn't seem too angry at the party."
"She was hurt, Paul. She was too proud to show you and everyone else, but she was hurt."
"Did she say she was done with me?"
Maggie shifted uncomfortably. "It's not my place to say. That's between you and her. But I will tell you this – she's not the sort that is going to be at your beck and call just because you're Paul McCartney."
Paul groaned and rested his forehead on the coolness of the table. "Mags, I don't know what to do." He lifted his head slightly. "Tell me what to do?"
"I'd love to, Paul – but you're a grown man. I think you have to make up your own mind this time. You can't keep things going they way they have been – you're going to have to choose."
"And you won't tell me whether the Paul in your timeline chose Linda or Jane?"
"Nope, that'd be cheating. And I think we both know how I feel about that sort of thing."
"Just do me a favor and don't slag me off to Linda, okay?"
"Don't worry. Anyway, I think you've done a good enough job of that yourself."
"Thanks, luv. Now, go get me an aspirin, there's a good girl." Paul carefully laid his aching head back down onto the table.
***
December 26, 1967
"Quiet, everyone, it's starting!" Paul shushed the room of people that were gathered at his house to watch the premiere of their new film. Everyone in the Beatles inner circle was there – except Jane. She was still upset with Paul and though Paul still seemed sure she would come around eventually, her absence was noticeable.
The film started.
Maggie hadn't seen Magical Mystery Tour in a few years. She'd remembered being underwhelmed by it, and in black and white it was even more underwhelming.
It wasn't all bad, of course – even as hard as Maggie had been on it over the last few months, she knew it had its moments. The music video of "I Am The Walrus" would be deservedly famous for its absurdity and distinctiveness. Most of the songs had a certain charm – it was just the randomness of the footage that stitched the musical bits together that made one scratch one's head in puzzlement. Clearly this was no "A Hard Day's Night", and even "Help!" had a more cohesive narrative.
The band cheered when they saw themselves on screen and Maggie actually had a lot of fun watching them watch themselves. They mocked each other mercilessly, not seeming to realize that there might be more of that to come from outside of the group. Maggie greatly feared what the next day would bring.
The next day brought exactly what Maggie expected it might. The reviewers seemed almost surprised. After all, the Beatles had not yet had a false step musically or cinematically. No one knew what to do with this black and white, bizarre, and somewhat amateurish piece of work. The surprise quickly turned to anger and betrayal that the Beatles had somehow let them down. Magical Mystery Tour was called self-indulgent, which it probably was, and the critics complained that it needed professional editing and directing – also no surprise. Apparently without any real news on Boxing Day, everyone was free to write scathing reviews about the movie and the Beatles in general.
Paul took most of the blame, and the group was only too happy to let him. Maggie didn't totally escape though – after all, she should have known, shouldn't she?
"Why didn't you tell us?" Paul grumbled at her, the next evening over dinner at Ringo's.
"Would you have listened?" Maggie demanded. "If I'd said that you needed a real director and a real film editor – or, how about, oh, I don't know, a script?"
"We could have fixed it, if we'd only known," Paul insisted stubbornly.
"Maybe, maybe not. Maybe there some things you can't change. Nothing I did saved Brian, so how do you know that my interference could have saved your precious film?"
"I guess we don't know that it would have helped," George replied, "But some warning might have been nice."
"Would you have listened?" Maggie glared around at them, finally settling her gaze on John. "I told you that the film wouldn't go over well, John, but you just said it would be fine. You were completely unconcerned. Did you even mention any of what I told you to the others?"
John looked away uncomfortably. He was used to being the one yelling and making a scene – it was odd to be on the receiving end of it. Of course he'd said nothing to Paul. In a way, he felt that interfering would have been cheating. He'd wanted to see how things would turn out if he let them proceed unmolested. It was what Maggie sometimes called the fatal flaw of the novel reader.
"And you," Maggie jabbed a finger at Paul. "You were so wrapped up in your plans, would you have even listened if I'd given you any input?" Tears were starting to come, as Maggie thought back to the days when they had been planning the film. Brian's loss still hurt, and like any half-healed wound, when you poked it, it brought pain. "Maybe I should have sat you all down and told you how your film would end up, but you know what? I'm not your prophet, and I'm not your savior. I can't save you all every time. I just can't. I'm just one person, and the future is changing all the time. I…" Unable to keep the tears back anymore, and unable to face these boys, these men, that she'd grown to love but felt powerless to protect, she simply left the table. She slipped out the front door and sat on the porch, letting the chilly wind cool the tears running down her face.
She heard the door open and close behind her. George sat down next to her and wrapped his arm around her, pulling her close. "It's shite, you know – thinking you can't make any difference. You already have. Maybe we couldn't save Brian…and I do mean we, you know. We all failed, including Brian. He's got to have some responsibility for his own life, doesn't he? But you're overlooking something. Haven't you saved Apple? The Boutique. You said that was originally a dismal failure, and it's doing quite well. Apple is doing beautifully and that's all you."
Maggie sniffed. "As happy as I am to have made Apple into something good for you, none of that matters if in the end I can't save the people I love. And I won't know any of that for years."
"But you already have saved me," George reassured her. "I've quit smoking, so you've already made a difference, haven't you? If I don't smoke, I won't get lung cancer. Just knowing that was waiting for me..." he shuddered. "So you already have made a difference. As for John – well, we will do everything in our power to keep him safe. Who else – Mal? We're forewarned about him. Ringo knows to keep an eye on Mo's health. And Paul's future wife…" George paused, the truth having dawned on him. "It's Linda, isn't it?" he said quietly. "Linda is the one that dies of breast cancer, not Jane."
Maggie nodded her head miserably.
"Christ, he lost his mum to that, and he loses his wife too?"
Maggie nodded again.
"Well, even if Paul doesn't marry her, you can still warn her. You haven't told her any of this yet, have you?"
"No. I want to, but I'm afraid she'll think I'm crazy."
"You know we'll all back you up."
"I know. And I will tell her someday. But I just really, really wanted Paul and Linda to get together. They were married for 30 years in my original timeline. They were so amazing and happy together. But now…I…I just don't think it's going to happen. Since Brian died, everything seems so up in the air. I've done nothing but doubt everything I was once so sure about. I feel…lost."
"I know losing Brian was huge. It was for all of us. Don't forget that we've been given direction by someone or another for years. It's hard to not know what move to make next when you've never had the freedom to figure it out for yourself. I know you feel like your changing everything has made it more difficult for you to help us and that scares you. But I think it's okay if we don't know the exact future – to know that nothing is set in stone – there's a certain freedom in that. It's the natural order of things."
"And I'm outside of that natural order."
"No, you're a part of it now. Either way, I just know that your being here is a good thing. I don't know what I'd do without you."
Maggie smiled at him. "And I can't imagine not knowing you."
George hugged Maggie again. "It'll all be okay somehow."
She leaned her head on his shoulder, and wiped her the lingering tears away. "I hope that's true, George. I really do."
A/N: Thanks for reading! The next update will hopefully be next Sunday! We love comments, so please tell us what you think!
Also we have to give credit to Pamela Dean for the "fatal flaw of the novel reader" concept. It just seemed to fit here!