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Title: A is for…
Author:
emmastark
Rating: R
Warnings: Slash, here and there…
Comments: Please.
Summary: Just a few glances at our guys. In alphabetical order.
Disclaimer: The A-Team belongs to Stephen J. Cannell.
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A is for…
Murdock glanced up at the sound of a whippoorwill calling. There were no whippoorwills in Vietnam. Sunlight filtered down through the green
jungle canopy. Face smiled down from
his perch. He held an M-16 in one hand
and his face and clothes were caked with mud.
But the way the sunlight filtered through his golden hair made Murdock
think of angels…
B is for…
The tranquilizer dart worked almost immediately. BA’s knees buckled and his eyes rolled
back. Face and Murdock grabbed for him,
but all three of them ended up on the floor in a heap. Murdock grinned at Face. “He ain’t heavy, he’s my brother.” Face groaned. “He~is~ heavy.” Hannibal
put out his cigar, and together the three of them hauled BA onto the plane.
C is for…
Face drove fast along Mulholland Drive. The headlights of his sleek Corvette (white,
red stripe) cut crisply through the darkness.
The engine purred and he liked the feel of the stick in his hand. He liked the way the car moved at his
touch. He liked the smooth velvet dark
and the way the white car traced the curves of hills and valleys until it took him
to the place where everything was silence and you could look down on the city
and the ocean and up at stars.
D is for…
Face and Murdock sat across the table from each other with
candlelight and history between them.
The sommalier brought wine and poured out a measure, which Face breathed
in, then tasted. Face nodded, and the man
poured two glasses of old red out of the dusty bottle. Murdock grabbed his glass (tiny red droplets
spilling on white cloth) and downed it.
The sommalier put his hand over his mouth, Murdock glanced up at Face
guiltily, and Face laughed. He’d been
on a lot of dates, but everything was different with Murdock. Everything was better.
E is for…
Hannibal and Murdock and Face leaned up against the refreshment
table (covered in pink paper, decorated with crepe). They drank sweet red punch out of small paper cups and watched BA
(fierce, take-no-prisoners, bad attitude green beret) carrying an easter basket
(filled with fake green grass) around the grounds of the East Avenue Children’s
Center. A three year old girl holding a
blue easter egg, wearing a white dress perched on his shoulders. Murdock juggled a few eggs of his own. Whatever else you say about that mudsucka,
he makes a mighty fine bunny…”
F is for…
Hannibal ran along the trail. His legs ached, but he ignored that. His breath came in white puffs.
The air smelled like the pine needles that muffled the sound of his
steps. He stopped when he reached the clearing. A red fox was bounding over the frozen grass
in great, daring leaps. Hannibal
watched it run, smiled at the sunrise, and stood there for a long time.
G is for…
No van. No money. No dry clothes. And they were in Eldridge, Ohio. Along with fourteen bad guys and an undisclosed number of soldiers armed with M-16s. Hannibal didn’t feel up to a plan and Face was too bedraggled to scam transportation. Murdock’s broken wrist grounded him. Face looked wearily over at BA. Then up at the sign (handwritten) in the dirty window that said “Leo’s Pawnshop.” BA scowled. After he’d scowled for awhile, he lifted two heavy gold chains over his head and laid them across Face’s palm.
H is for...
BA broke down the door and Murdock followed him through. Hannibal and Face hung from the ceiling by their
wrists. Their feet didn’t touch the
floor. BA cut Hannibal down. “If we do not hang together, surely we
shall... all hang separately,” Hannibal said, “Ben Franklin.” “Shu’up, foo’,” BA said, drawing Hannibal’s
arm across his shoulders. “Tha’s from
BA Baracas.” Murdock drew the knife
across the rope that held Face, then caught him as he fell. His eyes were fierce and dangerous. Face smiled a little as Murdock untangled
the rope from around his hands. “My
hero,” Face said. After a moment,
Murdock smiled back.
I is for...
The guard and the cook and the nurse all stared at the driver
of the delivery truck. The driver kept stacking
crates onto the dolly. “I just deliver
the stuff, ya know?” he said. “They
don’t tell me nuthin’.” The nurse shook
her head, but threw up her hands. The
cook lifted the lid on the pink box that the driver had set carefully on top of
the crates. The cake had a dog drawn on
it with black licorice frosting. The
dog was staring up at a (blue frosting) plane in the sky. “Happy Birthday” was written across the
top. The driver shoved a clipboard into
the guard’s hands. “Sign by the X,
okay? Twenty four gallons of fudge
ripple ice cream and one cake.” The guard
scribbled his name and the driver, pushing the dolly in front of him, followed
the cook inside.
J is for...
“Move it!” Hannibal shouted over the sound of the helicopter rotor, beating against the sky. Face leapt out of the open door, landed hard, rolled around his M-16, and laid down cover fire. Robby, Murdock’s door gunner, let rip with the 60. BA dropped into the tall grass and Ray followed him. Murdock fought to keep the chopper steady, ten feet off the ground. “Gettin’ hot, Colonel! Gotta go, gotta go...” He glanced over his shoulder. Hannibal grinned at him. “See you at the LZ at 1800 hours, Captain.” He tossed down his cigar, and jumped.
K is for…
Face stared at Murdock increduously. Hannibal chuckled. BA shook his head.
Murdock put his hands on his hips and struck a rakish pose. The edge of his kilt fluttered in the
breeze. “I’m ready, Face,” he said. “Ready for what?” Face asked. “Ready for da funny farm,” BA growled. “Ready for our scam, muchacho.” Face flung out his arms. “Hannibal, what am I supposed to do with
this?” Hannibal touched a lit match to
his cigar and smiled around it. “You wanted
him to help, Lieutenant.” “This is not helping,”
Face said. He put his hands on
Murdock’s shoulders and looked into his eyes.
“We’re scamming people named Scott, Murdock. Not Scottish people.” Murdock
grinned unrepentantly. “I kinda like
it,
Face. Do you think I
should dress like this all the time?
An’ I could learn how to play the bagpipes...” Face and BA and Hannibal all said “no” at the
same time.
L is for…
Murdock held up his toasting stick, and the flaming marshmallow
on the end of it lit up the small camp. He waved it around a little, watching the orange tracers it made
in the dark. Face, lying next to him, turned
his stick a millimeter clockwise and watched as his marshmallow puffed out and
turned golden brown. Above them, an owl
hooted softly and sparks from the fire rose up into the starry night. Murdock popped his sooty, black marshmallow
into his mouth and sidled closer to Face.
“Love is two sleeping bags zipped together,” he said. “And marshmallows, and thou.” He leaned down and pressed his lips to
Face’s lips and they shared a sticky, marshmallow kiss.
M is for…
Hannibal paused. Face was sitting on the floor by the half-closed door, peering through it. Hannibal moved up beside him and looked out into the front room of the small apartment. Mama was sitting on the davenport. BA was curled on his side, with his head on her lap, fast asleep. Mama’s eyes were closed, but she stroked BA’s temple with her fingers. Hannibal could hear her humming softly. Hannibal patted Face’s shoulder.
N is for...
If they weren’t handcuffed (tightly, behind the back), they’d
be able to crawl out through the vent.
But they ~were~ handcuffed. Face
sidled over next to BA. “Give me your
foot,” he said. BA glared, but stuck out
his red hightop. Face dropped over on
his side, grabbed hold of BA’s foot, and drew a small, silver lock pick from
the sneaker’s thick rubber sole. He unlocked
his own cuffs, then moved over next to his Colonel. Hannibal leaned back against Face as Face unlocked his
cuffs. “Nice, Face,” he said, grinning.
“Nice.”
O is for...
The child’s hand was small in Father Maghill’s hand. They
walked to the end of the room together.
“This is yours,” Father Maghill said.
The little boy looked up at the priest, then back at the bed and
footlocker. “C’mon, m’boy.” Father Maghill lowered his bulky frame down
onto practiced knees, and the child (after a wary moment) knelt beside
him. “Oh Father, hear and bless thy
beasts and singing birds,” the priest said softly, “and guard with tenderness
small things that have no words.” He
sighed, then patted the boy (who stared up at him with large, blue eyes) on the
head. After a long moment, the boy
smiled (sweet, tremulous smile).
“Amen,” Father Maghill said, smiling back at him.
P is for...
“Aaaahhh!” The old
lady (who just happened to be wearing purple) screamed. Murdock and Face turned and looked, then
took off after the running man. They hurtled
over a park bench and tackled him just west of the playground. BA arrived in time to give the knock-out
punch. Hannibal offered the old lady
his arm, and they walked over to inspect the damage. Pow!
The old lady beaned the unconscious thief with her cane. Murdock winced and grinned. “Where’s my purse?” the old lady demanded. Face handed it to her. She took out a handkerchief, dabbed at her eyes, then stuck it down her bosom. She looked up at Hannibal. “Thank you, sir,” she said. Hannibal bowed slightly. “Our pleasure, ma’am.”
Q is for…
People gave them things.
Strange things, sometimes, thrust impulsively into their hands just
before they rode off into the sunset.
Mrs. Norris gave them an old, worn patchwork quilt. That night, when Face got back to the motel
($18 bucks a night, cable and cockroaches included), Murdock had spread the
quilt across the bed. They made love
beneath it, and drew it up around their shoulders after. It smelled like lavender. They slept well.
R is for…
Murdock struggled to keep the chopper steady. There hadn’t been room to land, and there
wasn’t time for Face and BA to get to the next LZ; gunfire roared out at them
from the treeline. Ray let down the
rope ladder, and BA and Face ran for it.
As soon as they’d grabbed on, Ray shouted. Murdock lifted and turned the Huey fast, getting them out of
there. BA and Face clung to the end of
the rope ladder, swinging like a pendulum, as the chopper took them up over the
jungle. Rounds whizzed past their ears
and the wind roared. Face gripped the
rope tightly with his left hand, but reached out and took hold of BA’s belt
with his right. BA’s eyes were
closed. “I got you,” Face shouted. “I got you.”
S is for…
They limped into the house at Langely. Dropped wearily onto the couch and
chairs. Three hours later, when
Stockwell came in, Hannibal was still sitting there in the dark. “You’ve got them?” Stockwell asked. Hannibal dropped the diamonds into
Stockwell’s palm. Stockwell smiled
(like a crocodile smiles). Hannibal
grabbed Stockwell’s wrist with steel fingers.
Stockwell’s eyes narrowed behind his yellow-tinted glasses. “We won’t wait forever,” Hannibal said. When Hannibal had gone upstairs, Murdock
moved silently out of the shadows. He
walked the dog with his yo-yo.
Stockwell glared at him. “What
do you have to say about it, Captain?”
Murdock spun the yo-yo around the world. “Well, it’s not like he’s a ~tame~ lion,” Murdock said. “Ya never know what he might do. ‘Course, for us, that’s part of the fun…”
T is for…
“I like tanks,” Face said, gazing up at his new acquisition
(borrowed from Decker in a gloriously audacious scam). “Hmm…” Murdock said. Face turned around. “What?”
“What what?” Murdock asked.
“What ‘hmm’?” Face said. Murdock
put a finger on his cheek. “Eet ees
very clear to me dat zee subject ees externalizing heez need for strong defense
mechanisms to protect heem from zee uncertain world in which he eexists.” Face scowled. BA walked out into the courtyard. “Ah like tanks,” he said, climbing up the side and checking the
engine. Face turned to Murdock. “He’s just a violent mudsucka,” Murdock said.
Hannibal came around the corner and
patted the tank with one gloved hand.
“I like tanks,” he said. Face looked
at Murdock. “He’s just on the jazz,”
Murdock said. Face threw up his hands.
U is for...
A small tent of multi-colored umbrellas had sprouted on the
VA’s lawn. Dr. Richter found Murdock
sitting inside, crosslegged. “It feels
like rain,” Murdock said softly.
Richter nodded, even though rings of sweat were forming under his arms,
on his white coat. The two of them sat
there for a long time. When it started
getting dark out, Murdock sighed and glanced up at Richter. “How’d you get stuck helpin’ crazy people
anyhow, Doc?” Richter smiled. “Just lucky, I guess,” he said. “Come on, I’ll buy you a popsicle.” Murdock handed a red umbrella to Richter and
took a yellow one for himself, settling it on his shoulder. “I could be wrong here, Doc, but I think
they’re free...” he said. They walked
inside together.
V is for...
BA had always been a little lonely, but February reminded
him. He scowled a lot and threw bad
guys through windows, even when it wasn’t strictly necessary. On the morning of the fourteenth, he woke up
sad. But when he picked up his mail
from Mrs. Garcia, he found a card from his Mama. “Remember who loves you, Scooter,” it said. When he went to the
Center that day, all the kids gave him cards, in tiny little
envelopes. Later, he found a red piece
of construction paper stuck under the windshield wiper of the van. A pink heart was glued onto it with thick glops
of Elmer’s glue, and on the heart was written, “You’re okay for a big angry
mudsucker.” BA smiled.
W is for...
“So you got any, like, words of wisdom for me here, Faceman?” Face lit his cigar and looped a companionable
arm over Frankie’s shoulder. “Women are
a wonderful thing,” Face said. He took
another sip of whiskey. “Sweet and
feisty,” he murmured. “Soft, beautiful
to look at.” “Yeah, Suzy’s all that,” Frankie
said. “So what do I gotta do? Flowers?
How ‘bout you get me into that one restaurant downtown, Face...” Face shook his head. “Not without supervision. And a new wardrobe. The main thing about women, Frank, that you have to remember, is that each one is
unique. If you really listen to Suzy, you’ll
find out what’s special about her. And
if you really listen to her, really hear her, you won’t need any flowers.” Frankie thought for a moment, then nodded
and smiled brightly. After he’d left
the room, Murdock moved out of the shadows.
Face looked up at him. “Hey,” he
said. Murdock sat down on the couch beside
Face. He grinned a little. “So, you got any, like, words of wisdom for
me here, Faceman?” Murdock asked. Face
looped a friendly arm over Murdock’s shoulder.
“Men are a wonderful thing...” he said.
Murdock rolled his eyes, but hugged Face back.
X is for...
“Murdock, will you quit poking at me?” Face said. Murdock
shook his head. “Two at least,
muchacho.” BA peered over Murdock’s
shoulder. “You ain’ got no sense,
takin’ thet guy on, Faceman.” “He took
~me~ on,” Face complained. Hannibal unbuttoned
Face’s shirt and eased it open. Murdock
clucked his tongue. Face’s side was
bruised purple. Hannibal reached down to
assess the damages, but Maggie slapped Hannibal’s hands away. Her eyes crackled. “If Dr. Smith and Dr.
Murdock are done consulting,” she said, “do you think we
could get Face into x-ray?” Hannibal
grinned. “Sounds like a plan,” he said.
X is for... (the X
variations)
Murdock stroked his fingers down Face’s spine very slowly,
then back up again. His hands traced
ribs and pressed into muscle. Face
sighed. “Good,” he said. “That’s...”
He sighed again. Shivered a
little, and hummed contentedly.
Murdock’s eyes were closed. He felt
his way down his lover’s body blind, letting his fingertips see for him. He smoothed his hands down
Face’s neck and over his shoulders and down his arms, until
their fingers intertwined, and they lay against each other, skin to skin, in
front of the glowing fire. “I’ve got
you now, my pretty,” Murdock said. Face
turned over in Murdock’s arms. “Glad to
be got,” he said. Face pressed his lips
to Murdock’s, stealing Murdock’s breath away.
“What do you want to do now,
Facey?” Murdock asked.
Face grinned seductively and pressed up against Murdock. “Something x-rated,” he said.
Y is for...
Their unofficial motto was “When in doubt, build something.” But the village was more than slightly short
on supplies. No rusted out trucks, ripe
for conversion into armored vehicles.
No tractors that could be changed into cabbage throwers with a welding torch
and three hammers. In all, they had two
tons of hand-picked yams (the whole year’s crop), a ball of yarn, a can of
yellow paint and one large, grumpy, domesticated yak. Hannibal grinned and turned to BA. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking, Sergeant?” “Ah nevah know what yo’ thinkin’,” BA
growled. “You on the jazz again,
man.” Hannibal laid it all out. BA painted the yak with the yellow paint and
Murdock lead it into the enemy camp as a diversion, with a rope woven from the
yarn. Once the bad guys were sufficiently
distracted, Face and Hannibal picked them off with the rock-hard yams. The villagers cheered! The team tied up the bad guys and helped pick
up the yams. There was nothing quite
like the feeling of one of Hannibal’s plans coming together...
Z is for...
The “client” was a plant and the meet turned into a spectacular
chase through the LA Zoo. Murdock lost Crane
in the Koala Cave and BA knocked out a couple MPs in the snake house. Face picked the lock on the zebra cage, lead
Decker in and left him there. Hannibal
borrowed a tour tram full of parents and kids, and the guys all jumped on as it
passed. One of the kids pulled at his
mother’s arm. “What’s that man doing in
the zebra cage?” he asked. Decker
rattled the bars as they drove by and cringed as the zebras made threatening
sounds behind him. “I’ll get you next
time, Smith!” he shouted. Hannibal lit
a cigar and grinned. BA scowled his
most menacing scowl. Murdock patted
Billy’s head, then threw his arm over Face’s shoulders. Face smiled his most charming smile. “You’ll never catch us, Decker,” Hannibal said. “Not as long as we stick together.” He let the kids and parents off at the petting
zoo. Then the A-Team climbed back into
the van and rode off into the sunset.
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~fin~