Juvenal

Beggar that I am, I am even poor in sleep, most nights.
You want in? Well, I won’t stop you, but I must say,
in these slant walls you’ll find only the gifts of Juvenal.
Would you like screech of rubber meets road at one a.m.?
Or there’s slam of door at four if you’d prefer it — no?
Then have a nice howl of dogs bewailing chainlink fences
or the cats mewling nextdoor – tumbledown tumbleweeds
cram into slat board windows. But birds are the stupidest
neighbors, squatting in avian attic. They can wing away.

ICONS: Hornblower - AK, HH, EP, KC, General

WARNING: Spoilers for the Hornblower TV series.

Archie Kennedy
01. 02. 03.

04.

Horatio Hornblower
01. 02. 03.

04. 05.

Edward Pellew


Horatio and Archie
01. 02.

Edward and Horatio


Edward and The Duchess


General
01. 02. 03.

The Credits:

Screencaps and photos:
angelfire.com_wizard_hornblower
diary.ru/~01062009
jamiebamber.co.uk
anteros_lmc of livejournal.com
fridgefreezer-repairs.co.uk
Quotes and notes:
AK 01. 'from the...' quote from 'One Word is Too Often Profaned,' by P. B. Shelley
AK 03. 'My career is...' quote from 'The Wrong War,' Hornblower [Archie to Horatio]
HH 04. 'the Seaman...' quote from A Treatise on Practical Navigation and Seamanship, by William Nichelson, 1792
HandA 02. 'watch out...' quote from 'The Wrong War,' Hornblower [Edrington to Archie]
EandA. 'A big, damp...' quote from "Duty,” Hornblower [Edward to Hornblower]
Gen 01. 'true British sailors,' lyrics from Spanish Ladies trad. song
Gen 02. 'absolute discipline...' from a quote by Alan Rickman

Floor Nine

“Going up?” Devin asked a leather-jacketed, long-haired young man as they entered the elevator.

A nod, that was all. Devin tugged his suit hem smooth then edged his way toward the control panel. As he pressed the top arrow, he took care never to let his fellow passenger out of his sight. The guy looked like he belonged in a street gang, somewhere.

With a quiet whoosh and a bit of a lurch, the machine began its ascent. Devin felt more than heard the pulses as it rose. Floor one. Floor two. His eyes darted to the gang kid who was planted against the opposite wall, hands sunk in his pockets and booted feet crossed with a sort of insolent nonchalance that rubbed like grit under Devin's starched collar. Devin gripped his ridiculously light briefcase firmly and went back to counting floors.

Pulse. Pulse. Pulse. That made floor seven - or was it eight? He looked at the display over the door. Nine.

The gang kid coughed. He had a rough cough, like Devin's grandfather had before he died, except he'd been nearly eighty and a lifelong smoker. Devin caught the scent of cigarettes now. They couldn't have been in the elevator for more than half a minute and already it was permeating the place. His nostrils twitched of their own accord but he was careful not to let his physical irritation show otherwise. Never let a guy like that onto the fact that they were affecting you, his grandfather'd always said. It meant he won.

Gang kids had no business beating executives. Not on Devin's watch.

Watch. Damn. What time was it? He reached into his pocket for his cell phone. It was gone. Why was it gone?

He was about to dig into his briefcase when he realized two things. One, the phone was gone because he couldn't afford it anymore. Two, the elevator wasn't going anywhere.

“Looks like we're stuck,” the gang kid was saying. He had left his post and was examining the emergency instructions with the attention a big investor gives the stock market. Just before he could push a red button that was supposed to alert the proper authorities, the lights went out.

In the dark, there was a brief scuffle, a plunge, a muffled thud; then quiet.

Devin clutched the wallet tight in abruptly clammy hands. It was heavy. He held it to his nose; breathed deep the scent of cigarettes and cocaine - they said all money carried traces of it.

“Please remain calm,” an automated voice intoned, startling him. “Mechanical Assistance will soon correct the situation.”

Devin grinned and slipped the wallet into his pocket. Using the sole of his oxford, he shoved the body into the corner. With the lights out, no one would notice until he was well away.

The elevator dropped with a gut-clenching suddenness. Then it began to ascend again. Pulse. Pulse. Pulse. Pulse... Floor thirteen.

Beneath his feet, the car shuddered and was still. The door slid open. Devin squared his shoulders and strode into the electrically illuminated hallway of company headquarters.

Van Gogh

A crimson poppy skims his calf. Its slender stem bends in the breeze, dancing. Petals soft as a lover’s touch open upward. The edges form graceful, imperfect arches. Breathe slow, breathe madness and sleep.

He closes his eyes to see blue night. Stars set the sky alive, reflecting in the water. Whirls of light spinning; all the world spinning. Below, a couple stroll the bank. He’d worked by heavenly orbs and earthly candle.

The brushes are fraying, ragged now. He runs them through his fingers; feels rough edges against his skin. Golden wheat heads sway in the blazing sun. The canvas stretches with the field around him. Above, fly arching birds. A reaper struggles to reach day’s end.

The colors burn inside him, bleed at the edges. His brushstrokes, his heartbeats, fall uneven. He stumbles back, finds the door; the stairs. His paint drags out to black.

BACKGROUNDS: Films, TV & Music - Sherlock BBC, Sherlock Holmes '09, Amazing Grace, Coldplay

(Click for full size.)

Sherlock BBC
01.

Sherlock Holmes '09
02.

03.

04.

Amazing Grace
05.

Coldplay (Prospekt's March/Poppyfields)
06.

The Credits:
01. Trifalger Square on sunny winter day LONDON 2-10-2010 photo by lynnmannix of picasaweb.google.com
side by side photo from justvin.com
'Snowing texture pack' by wchild of deviantart.com
02. JW and SH in buggy, BTS photo from paperflower86 of livejournal
'Paper Based Old' textures, by Rain Harbour
scratch texture from an unknown source
03. "I think that..." quote, from 'A Scandal in Bohemia,' by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Holmes & Watson side by side screencap from fanpop.com
1886 London Tower Bridge River Thames Foundation Stone illustration from old-print.com
adventure of the greek interpretor manuscript from dkarpeles.com
scratches texture from an unknown source
04. 'the little things...' quote from 'A Case of Identity,' by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (Holmes speaking)
sherlock chest shot from fanpop.com
'10 Large Light Textures Set 2', by ~Traitors-stead of deviantart
05. screencaps from crediniaeth of livejournal.com
quote from 'Amazing Grace' (film)
Paper Textures from entrochique.org
06. Poppy Field IV photo by Steven Danby of trekearth.com
Dreaming photo from top-10-list.org
'I don't wanna die...' lyrics from 'Prospekt's March/Poppyfields,' by Coldplay

Icons: Actors - Benedict Cumberbatch

01. 02. 03.

04. 05. 06.

07. 08. 09.

10. 11. 12.

13. 14. 15.

16. 17. 18.

19. 20. 21.

The Credits:
photos...
stolensmile14 of livejournal.com
soophelia of livejournal.com
leafie_phoenix of livejournal.com
sweet-religion.ucoz.ru
fuckyeahsherlock.tumblr.com
EmmiLi of weheartit.com
brushes and textures...
'Latex and Leather' brushes, by iconmasks of deviantart.com
'Grab Bag - 100 Icon Textures', by ~n0vacancy of deviantart
'80_icon_textures', by rhcp_csi of livejournal.com
'16 Radial Light Textures 05', by ennife of livejournal.com
'fireandwater', by nerwende of livejournal.com
'set #6 (little lights)', by graphic_sl of livejournal.com

Air Born

I

am bird bones and feather.

I cannot sink for shelter.

I have no house

nor

tether.

Backgrounds: TV - Highlander (Methos and Co.)

(click for full size)

01-02: Methos
03-04: Adam and Alexa
05-06: Methos and Others

The Credits:

01. Methos clasping sword close screencap, from a_lanart of photobucket
'Paper Based Old' textures, by Rain Harbour
texture, from immortal-memories.net
02. sword over shoulder screencap, from lucylooo of livejournal
sword angled down screencap, from lucylooo of livejournal
seated on wall photo, from desktoproject.net
'Light Beam Brushes GIMP,' by booklover323 and redheadstock of deviantart.com
'Paper Textures', by Rain Harbour
03. quotes from Highlander episode 'Timeless'
Methos and Alexa before water photograph from Adam_Pierson of photobucket
Grand Canyon photograph from pacocard.com
Kansas Wheat, '07 photograph by bmcguirk of flickr.com
Giza Pyramids photograph from triporati.com
Santorini Sunrise art from valerytours.com
Chillon Castle, Lake Geneva, Switzerland photograph from citypictures.net
intertwined hearts clip art from QuickGuide2009 of photobucket.com
'77 Words' Dots'n'Dashes,' brushes, by PStoGIMPbrushes of deviantart.com
'Gimp Grungey Brushes,' by NinjaBunnyX of deviantart.com
'Paper Textures', by Rain Harbour
World Map texture from resources.bloguite.com
04. playing around on beach film strip photographs from Islandkat of highlander-community.com
Methos and Alexa before water photograph from Adam_Pierson of photobucket
'Paper Textures', by Rain Harbour
Caribbean splash wave photograph from lilja-art.prv.pl
05. 'there's no...' lyrics from 'Who Wants to Live Forever,' by Queen
Methos hugging woman To Be/Not to Be screencap,from highlander-community.com
no time art, from lilja-art.prv.pl
nuclear fireball photograph from salars.net
Hohenzollern 1 photograph by -~sacral-stock of deviantart
black scratches from an unknown source
'Paper Textures', by Rain Harbour
06. 'Just because I...' quote by Peter Wingfield as Methos in Highlander: The Series
quickening, Chivalry screencap, from sgforum.hu
Methos fights Walker, indiscretions screencap, from filmweb.pl