False Heroes (Lethal Weapon TV Fic)
May. 24th, 2019 09:23 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
asphaltcowgrrlTitle: False Heroes
Fandom: Lethal Weapon TV Series
Pairing: Gen
Rating: G/Teen
Word Count: 582
Summary: Trish reflects on how much her husband and his partner differ.
Author’s Note: Written for Say What Friday at 1_million_words. The prompt was: "To be heroic is to be courageous enough to die for something." - Criss Jami. Just found out this show was cancelled, too, which doesn’t surprise me but, eh, still makes me sad.
“Kids,” Roger said before turning to his wife. “Trish, my dear. What you have before you is a hero. A genuine, bonafide hero.”
“Whatever dad,” RJ said, standing up and exiting the kitchen.
“Wait, where do you think you’re going?”
“Roger,” Trish warned. “Let him go.”
“Me, too,” Riana said, scooting her chair out and bailing as fast as she could. “Gotta study, you know.”
“What?” Roger held his hands out in front of him, watching his kids scatter. “Where’s all this disrespect coming from?”
“Probably from the fact you like to toot your own horn a bit too much,” Cole said, winking at Trish.
“Your partner’s right,” she said. “They’ve had more than their fair share of your hero antics, Roger.”
“So, not even you want to know how I almost died today?”
Trish looked at Cole who shrugged. “No, that’s not it at all, Roger. Tell me what happened.”
“Well, okay,” Roger said, that confident smile that said he knew he had won returning to his face. “If you insist.”
While Roger launched into his story about some near miss resulting in them collaring a bank robber, Trish glanced over at Cole. Roger thought he was a hero and, in some ways, maybe he even was. He was certainly her hero – he was a good husband and an even better father – but did that make him heroic in the end? Probably not, although she’d never have the heart to tell him so.
Cole, on the other hand, had sacrificed so much for his country and his family. Between his work with the CIA, following his ex-wife to Los Angeles in order to be there for his daughter, and all that had come in-between, Cole was the real hero. He’d almost died several times over serving this country and Roger… what did Roger do anyway?
Catching her watching him, Cole smiled at Trish and winked again, as if he’d heard her thoughts. She gave him a questioning look and got a subtle ‘let it go’ shrug in response. If Cole was content to let Roger have his moment in the sun, she could, too. Even though Roger’s actions weren’t nearly as heroic as he wanted to believe, she was also certain that, if the time came, he’d lay down his life to protect her, his children, or even his partner, Cole.
In the end, that was the thing that defined a hero. The willingness to give everything for something – or someone – else.
“So, what do you think,” Roger asked, breaking Trish out of her reverie. “Heroic, right?”
“Absolutely, darling,” she said, standing up and hugging her husband. “Your family and your city are lucky to have you.”
“What Trish said,” Cole added. “I’ve got to go get Maya, so I’ll see you in the morning.”
Roger waited until his partner was out of hearing range before he beamed down at his wife. “Cole’s a good guy, but he’s still young. It’ll be a while before he’s the kind of officer that I am.”
“Of course,” Trish said, smiling. “Are you ready for dinner?”
“Starving,” he said, giving her a kiss before letting her go.
What Roger didn’t understand was that Cole had the added bonus of possessing enough humility to let others bask in their lesser glories. That was one thing Roger would never manage. But his bravado was one of the things that had attracted her to him in the first place, so she was willing to let it go.
Fandom: Lethal Weapon TV Series
Pairing: Gen
Rating: G/Teen
Word Count: 582
Summary: Trish reflects on how much her husband and his partner differ.
Author’s Note: Written for Say What Friday at 1_million_words. The prompt was: "To be heroic is to be courageous enough to die for something." - Criss Jami. Just found out this show was cancelled, too, which doesn’t surprise me but, eh, still makes me sad.
“Kids,” Roger said before turning to his wife. “Trish, my dear. What you have before you is a hero. A genuine, bonafide hero.”
“Whatever dad,” RJ said, standing up and exiting the kitchen.
“Wait, where do you think you’re going?”
“Roger,” Trish warned. “Let him go.”
“Me, too,” Riana said, scooting her chair out and bailing as fast as she could. “Gotta study, you know.”
“What?” Roger held his hands out in front of him, watching his kids scatter. “Where’s all this disrespect coming from?”
“Probably from the fact you like to toot your own horn a bit too much,” Cole said, winking at Trish.
“Your partner’s right,” she said. “They’ve had more than their fair share of your hero antics, Roger.”
“So, not even you want to know how I almost died today?”
Trish looked at Cole who shrugged. “No, that’s not it at all, Roger. Tell me what happened.”
“Well, okay,” Roger said, that confident smile that said he knew he had won returning to his face. “If you insist.”
While Roger launched into his story about some near miss resulting in them collaring a bank robber, Trish glanced over at Cole. Roger thought he was a hero and, in some ways, maybe he even was. He was certainly her hero – he was a good husband and an even better father – but did that make him heroic in the end? Probably not, although she’d never have the heart to tell him so.
Cole, on the other hand, had sacrificed so much for his country and his family. Between his work with the CIA, following his ex-wife to Los Angeles in order to be there for his daughter, and all that had come in-between, Cole was the real hero. He’d almost died several times over serving this country and Roger… what did Roger do anyway?
Catching her watching him, Cole smiled at Trish and winked again, as if he’d heard her thoughts. She gave him a questioning look and got a subtle ‘let it go’ shrug in response. If Cole was content to let Roger have his moment in the sun, she could, too. Even though Roger’s actions weren’t nearly as heroic as he wanted to believe, she was also certain that, if the time came, he’d lay down his life to protect her, his children, or even his partner, Cole.
In the end, that was the thing that defined a hero. The willingness to give everything for something – or someone – else.
“So, what do you think,” Roger asked, breaking Trish out of her reverie. “Heroic, right?”
“Absolutely, darling,” she said, standing up and hugging her husband. “Your family and your city are lucky to have you.”
“What Trish said,” Cole added. “I’ve got to go get Maya, so I’ll see you in the morning.”
Roger waited until his partner was out of hearing range before he beamed down at his wife. “Cole’s a good guy, but he’s still young. It’ll be a while before he’s the kind of officer that I am.”
“Of course,” Trish said, smiling. “Are you ready for dinner?”
“Starving,” he said, giving her a kiss before letting her go.
What Roger didn’t understand was that Cole had the added bonus of possessing enough humility to let others bask in their lesser glories. That was one thing Roger would never manage. But his bravado was one of the things that had attracted her to him in the first place, so she was willing to let it go.
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no subject
Date: 2019-05-24 04:54 pm (UTC)Nice use of the quote. Maybe one of these days Rog will catch the clue bus.
no subject
Date: 2019-05-24 05:08 pm (UTC)Thanks! Wasn't sure where I was going with this, but happy that it worked out. :)