The Hours And The Days 8 : Moonlight Madness	  

(Standard, all-purpose disclaimer) All pre-existing characters are the
property of the creators and producers of "Due South." No copyright
infringement is intended. All new characters and situations are the sole
property and responsibility of the author. 

Rated PG for m/m content and language 

And here we are at the end. This started out as a single two page story
with an offhanded mention of a sequel, but one thing led to another. Thank
you all for staying with me ... I appreciate all the kind comments ... and
I'm never doing anything like this again. :) 

 THE HOURS AND THE DAYS 8 : MOONLIGHT MADNESS 

by Katrina Bowen 

"Now, Ray." Ben propped himself on one elbow and looked down at Ray.
"You've never even tried it, so how do you know whether or not you'd enjoy
it? You really shouldn't jump to conclusions like that, you know." 

Ray put his arms behind his head and closed his eyes. "Who's jumping to
conclusions? I'm psychic. I had a vision. It was revealed to me in a
dream." He risked opening his eyes to look up and instantly regretted it;
Fraser was giving him the big-eyed Mountie look. He sighed and sat up,
pulling the blankets closer around him. "Look, Benny. I know you meant
well, but it's just not my thing, ya know?" 

Ben raised his eyebrows. "If you're worried about any possible danger, you
shouldn't be. With a little practice and preparation, there's no danger to
speak of. Oh, I know everyone's heard these stories, but the accident
statistics don't really bear them out. I promise you it's perfectly safe."


"Safe? You're asking me to strap boards to my feet and fling myself off
the side of a mountain, with nothing between me and certain death except
for two long pointy sticks and the occasional pine tree. We have a word
for that kind of behavior here in Chicago, Benny, and believe me, it's not
'safe'. Suicidal, maybe. Dangerous. Insane --" 

"Just in the interest of accuracy, Ray, you're up to three words now," Ben
interrupted. 

"See? It's such a stupid idea, one word isn't nearly enough to describe
it." 

Sitting up as well, Ben put an arm around Ray's shoulders. "I can
understand that you might find the idea of skiing frightening at first,
Ray --" 

"Wait. Wait, wait." Ray pulled as far away as he could without falling off
the narrow bed. "This isn't about me being afraid, Fraser. It's about
whether or not we should spend our first vacation together doing something
that one of us thinks is a very bad idea." 

"Oh. Well, I guess that's a valid interpretation," Ben said judiciously. 

"It's not an *interpretation*, it's the truth ... oh, hell." He fell
silent and rubbed his eyes. Looking up, he said, "You're really serious
about wanting to go skiing, aren't you?" 

Ben hesitated, then nodded. "Yes, Ray, I do. I think skiing is something
you would enjoy once you got used to it." 

"Oh yeah? And what if I don't enjoy it?" Ray asked truculently. 

Ben thought for a few seconds. "At least you'll look very nice in ski
clothes." 

"Geez, I can see it now. Raymond Vecchio, terror of the bunny slope." Ray
rested his head on his raised knees. "Little kids will laugh at me. I'll
probably break both legs ..." 

"Not necessarily, Ray," Ben said as he began rubbing slow, soothing
circles on Ray's back. "I think you're exaggerating. Why don't you try
looking on the bright side?" 

Ray let out his breath in a long, resigned sigh. "Okay. Maybe I'll only
break *one* leg." 

"There you go." Ben leaned over and kissed the nape of Ray's neck. "Shall
we start making reservations in the morning, then?" 

"Excuse me?" Ray turned around slowly, his face unreadable. "That's it? I
agree to go along with this, you talk about making reservations, end of
conversation?" 

"Um ..." Ben thought for a few seconds. "Would you like to discuss *where*
we'll be going?" he asked cautiously. 

"No, I don't want to talk about that -- shit. Where'd I leave my
underwear?" Ray threw back the covers and started hunting for his
discarded clothes and putting them back on. Lying on the couch, Dief
raised his head sleepily and watched the two men with mild interest. 

Alarmed, Ben turned on the bedside lamp and got out of bed as well. "Ray?
Ray, what are you doing? You're putting your clothes on." 

"Ah, there's no getting around your famous eye for detail. I'm getting
dressed, Fraser. What's it look like?" Ray's voice was muffled as he
pulled his sweater over his head. 

Trying to remain calm, Ben replied, "Yes, I see that. I meant to ask *why*
you're getting dressed." 

Ray sat down on the floor to put his socks on. "Because I'd feel sorta
self-conscious walking out to my car naked." Dief jumped down from the
couch and stuck his muzzle in Ray's face with a little questioning whine.
"What, am I keeping you awake? Don't worry, I'm going. Do you know where
my shoes are?" he demanded of Fraser. Dief growled deep in his throat, and
Ray looked down at him. "This doesn't concern you, Dief, so just go catch
a rat or something, okay?" 

"I think you left them in the kitchen." Automatically, Ben went to get
them. Coming back out, he said, "Ray, would you please just tell me what's
bothering you?" 

"No." He stood up and held out his hand. "Would you give me my shoes,
please?" 

Ben looked at Ray; he looked at the shoes. Shrugging, he walked to the
window, opened it, and tossed the shoes to the dark alley below. He calmly
folded his arms as Ray rushed to the window and pushed him aside. "No." 

Spluttering for a few seconds, Ray finally managed to blurt out, "Fraser,
what the hell do you think you're doing? Those are good shoes -- hey!" He
stuck his head out the window. "Get away from those shoes!" 

"Ray, I'm not sure what's bothering you, but I'm not going to let you walk
out of here until we get to the bottom of it. Move your fingers, please,"
he asked politely as he closed the window. Dief sat down and glared at
Ray. 

"This is insane." Ray waved his hands around, at a loss for words. "I'm
arguing with a deaf wolf and a naked Mountie while some wino in the alley
steals my shoes." 

Glancing down at himself, Ben blushed. "Oh ... yes. I'll be right back."
He walked over to the bathroom door and took his bathrobe down from its
hook. Belting it as he came back, he said, "Ray, I've obviously said
something to upset you. If you would just tell me what's bothering you, we
could discuss it." 

"There's no point in discussing it, Fraser, because you're not gonna get
it, then I'm going to get madder than I am now, and then Dief will
probably bite me or something." 

"I won't let him." Ben folded his arms and stared at Ray, patient and
stubborn. 

Sighing heavily, Ray went over to the kitchen table and sat down. "Okay.
You wanna know what's bothering me? Let's go over it step by step." Dief
laid down in front of the door, eying both men warily. 

Pulling out another chair, Ben sat across from Ray. "All right. You
brought up the possibility of our going on vacation together. I suggested
skiing. You got angry --" 

"Uh-uh." Ray shook his head. "You skipped a couple steps, Fraser. You
suggested skiing. I wasn't crazy about the idea, but I let you talk me
into it. *Then* I got angry." He leaned his arms on the table and looked
across at Ben. "Do you see the connection yet?" 

Ben thought hard. He finally hazarded, "You're angry because you don't
want to go skiing?" 

"Benny --" Ray took a deep breath. "Let's try this again. I agreed to
something I didn't really want to do because it would make you happy. What
did you say to me after that?" Ben stared at him, confused. "Okay. What do
you always say to everyone when they do something for you?" 

"Well, I say thank you, of course -- ohhh." Ben blinked slowly. "You're
angry because I didn't say thank you?" 

Ray shook his head. "Not really. I'm angry because it never *occurred* to
you to say thank you." 

Ben rested his head on his hand. "Ray, I'm very sorry, but I'm thoroughly
confused." 

Ray stared up at the ceiling. "Fraser ... when somebody holds a door for
you, you say thank you. When Elaine looks something up, you say thank you.
Damn it, I've heard you say thank you to Dief when he gets out of your
way." 

"Ray --" Ben reached across the table to grab Ray's wrist gently. "Ray,
I'm sorry. We don't have to go skiing. If there's something else you'd
rather do, I'm perfectly willing --" 

"That's not *it*, Benny." Ray pulled his arm away and made a move to stand
up; then he spread his hands flat on the table. "You really don't get it,
do you?" 

"Apparently not," Ben said helplessly. 

"Look. We're going on vacation. We're going on vacation together. We're
going on vacation together as a *couple*. You probably never thought of it
like this, but that makes us, I don't know, officially together. So I
agreed to go along with what you wanted, and you didn't seem to notice
that." 

"Oh, dear -- Ray, I'm so sorry, it never occurred to me how important this
was." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I do tend to be a little dense in
these areas, don't I?" 

"Right. And now I'm wondering if our life together is going to be me
giving in to you, and you taking that for granted." He gave Ben a
significant look. "Now do you get it?" 

Ben stared at him, then nodded. "Yes, Ray ... I believe I do." Standing,
he walked around the table and pulled Ray to his feet, loosely wrapping
his arms around his shoulders. Choosing his words carefully, he said,
"Ray, I never want you to feel ... unappreciated. You're so much a part of
my life, of my heart, that I can't imagine any segment of my life that
you're not a part of. But never think that I'm taking you for granted,
because I can't bear the thought of you not being with me." He drew Ray
closer, tightening his arms, trying to say with his body what he couldn't
say with words. 

Ray returned the embrace. He whispered in Ben's ear, "Benny, I'd never
leave you. I couldn't leave if I wanted." 

Ben turned to kiss him, but he froze at his lover's next words. "I can't
leave because I don't have any damn *shoes*. Geez, Benny, why do you have
this sick urge to destroy my wardrobe?" 

"I suppose it's because I enjoy the thought of you out of your clothes so
much. I really do apologize for that ... it was the only way I could think
of to keep you from leaving." Ben tried not to laugh, but the relief he
was feeling made that impossible. "Don't worry, I can send Dief down to
the alley for them in the morning." 

Ray sighed and leaned his head against Ben's shoulder. "Great, wolf
slobber all over my good shoes, which probably aren't there anymore anyway
... just never say I'm not willing to make adjustments to be with you,
okay?" 

"Oh, believe me, Ray, I'll never say that ..." 

THE END!