Fragments | 12: Love's Labour's Lost

[luxken27]

Read it at: LJ | MM.org | FF.net | dA

Pairing: Miroku/Sango
Rating: T
Inspiration: “Brandy (You're a Fire Girl)” © 1972 Elliot Lurie [Looking Glass]
Based upon: “Sometime Around Midnight” © 2008 Mikel Jollett [The Airborne Toxic Event]

This was a bit of unusual inspiration, I must admit. I've had the rest of this fic mapped out for a couple of weeks now, but as per usual, it was a matter of getting into the right frame of mind to write it that was the struggle. On an absolute whim, I managed to catch this song on the radio, and the lyrics immediately spoke to me:

(LOL 1970s attire.)

I've always loved this song, and immediately start belting it out whenever it comes on the local oldies radio station. So tragic, but so catchy ~ man, they don't make 'em like they used to! Anyway, the relevant lyrics are this:

Yeah, Brandy used to to watch his eyes as he told his sailor's story
She could feel the ocean fall and rise
She saw his rage and glory
But he had always told the truth
Lord, he was an honest man
And Brandy does her best to understand

At night when the bars close down
Brandy walks through a silent town
And loves a man who's not around
She still can hear him say...

In this case, Miroku, not Sango, is the analogue to Brandy. The climax and denouement of the song is really beautiful; I strongly encourage everyone to give it a listen =)

This chapter, to me, is strangely reminiscent of episode #78, especially in terms of Miroku's attitude. He realizes what he can and can't offer Sango, he is cognizant of her bitter rejection after their night spent together, and he sees no point in rushing off to crusade for something Sango herself might not even want. As he mentioned in his last chapter, the ball is in her court. Thanks to Karanousuke's campaign for justice, he can at least follow part of what's going on in her life, and he's taken a "no news is good news" approach regarding her personal life. He's there, if she wants him, but he's not going to force it. One of the hardest things to come to terms with is the fact that you can't make anyone else happy, no matter how badly you want to.

I had a hard time choosing both a title and a summary quote for this chapter. I settled on both after finishing the chapter and re-reading it. The quote is, of course, from B.o.B's awesome “Airplanes,” a song that has come to mean a great deal to me as I transition back into active fandom again. The title is, of course, from Shakespeare's play, Love's Labour's Lost, one of the lesser-known comedies but one that is rather eerily similar to what I was going for in this chapter. *shudder* Spooky!

There will be three more chapters after this, so we're definitely winding down! Its almost too hard to believe I might actually finish a WIP sometime in the near future, LOL :P