A Man For All Seasons (Queen or Freddie Mercury Fanfic)

4. Three Cigs in the Ashtray

Julia

It was toward the end of breakfast, when the phone call finally came.

All five of us were crowded around a table built for four, idly picking at what crumbs were left on our plates while the stereo shuffled its way through Billy Joel's The Stranger. No one except Danny was really paying attention to the music, though- but I was glad that was where he chose to direct his attention; he didn't need to trouble his young mind with the things we grown-ups were pondering at present.

I wish I knew how to accurately describe what it felt like to sit there, look at the men surrounding me on all sides. All I can say is that it was mind-blowing, that it transcended reality, to see a modern day John Deacon sipping quietly on his tea, directly across from Freddie Mercury, who had finished eating his small portions and was now dragging casually on yet another cigarette, while Danny, sandwiched between the two, happily mouthed the words to "Anthony's Song" yet still made sure to keep a watchful eye on his father at all times.

And Wes? Wes just stared. Not that I could blame him; after all, right then, that's pretty much all the rest of us were doing too. Despite all the adults at the table being more or less on the same page with one another now, we didn't have very much to say in that moment, making for a somewhat awkward silence- something my dear, earnest boy noticed very quickly and immediately sought to destroy.

"I had a weird dream last night," he suddenly announced.

I coughed. "Oh, you did? What about?"

"Weird stuff." Danny slumped back in his chair; it would seem that having every pair of eyes fall upon him had already lost its appeal. "It was kinda scary, to be honest."

"What happened?"

He thought about it a moment. "I was in this really big house, and everything was half-dark."

"Half-dark?"

"I mean, it wasn't completely dark, I could still see," Danny explained. "It was daytime and everything, but it was like all the windows were closed, so it was all real gray in there."

Then he paused, bit his lip, let the suspense build until an intrigued Freddie impatiently waved his hand, gesturing for him to continue.

So, with some hesitation, he did. "And, uh- you know those ghost guys in Super Mario World?"

Wes's eyes lit up. "That's a throwback."

"What is?" Freddie asked.

"Super Mario World."

He blinked. "What's that?"

"Old Nintendo game from the early nineties."

"Mm." Freddie's mouth twitched ever so subtly. "Yes, that would explain it. My God, how ancient."

After a beat Wes seemed to realize what he had just said, and hastily stammered, "I - I mean, it's not really that old, actually, it's just- I mean, the nineties weren't that long ago at all, and- I mean you said you came from 1985, so- yeah, you'll definitely have heard of it yourself, eventually- I think- probably-"

"I'm sure I will, dear, now stop having kittens," Freddie said through a drag. Under his casual tone, however, I could almost hear his teeth clench a little in unspoken frustration. All through breakfast, Wes had been bombarding us all with questions- especially Freddie, who by this point had just about had it with our neighbor altogether. But for whatever reason, no matter how absurd the inquiry, Freddie kept his temper in check. Just to be on the safe side, however, I stepped in once again, steered the conversation back to the kid who started it.