Afterwards (The Wolf Among Us) M

[AppleBlossom]

"I'm sorry, Sheriff. I have to take care of this."

That same line repeated itself over and over again in Bigby's head.

He just didn't understand it; the way Snow and him were... They were close enough. 'Sheriff' didn't seem so bad, until she said 'Mr Wolf', which was when he felt it. It distanced them, 'Sheriff' could suggest that they were co-workers, that they use each other; but 'Mr Wolf' was something else. The way Snow had said it, it felt as if they didn't even know one another, detached, they were...

Strangers.

Bigby shook his head, trying a long drag to try and remove such a thought. Maybe it was just some power complex, her trying to seem authoritative to everyone else. At least, he hoped. And Bigby hoped with all of his might.

It was raining, and it had been raining for a while, only Bigby had just noticed. Listening to Nerissa, or whom he thought was Nerissa explaining what really happened with the murders, she had left him to ponder in the rain. He let the rain trickle down his skin, watching the storm unfold.

The sky was dark with night and the rain clouds were drifting through the city. Rain battering the roofs like a hail of bullets; it hammered it down, the world was obscured with a wall of water. Bitter wind broke through the night, and the roads became shallow rivers.

Soon, Bigby was soaked through. His work shirt slowly showing the sculpted outline of his torso; his tie and trousers: blackened with the rain water. His hair was glistening with raindrops and strands stuck against his forehead. He blinked the droplets away from his eyes, cheeks now flushed from the cold. 

Bigby coughed as he crinkled his nose sharply, the cold seemed to have affected his sinuses, he tried desperately to fight off the tingling irritation. With a quivering sigh, the itch inside his nose burned, as his nostrils began to flare wildly. 

He wanted to just let himself sneeze. Desperately. But a Mundy could just walk just around the corner, and then what? All Bigby wanted was for everyone to just get off his back for once; the poor man couldn't even sneeze without someone ducking for cover or sighing in frustration.

He could hear them.

Bad dog, go back to the wild where you belong.

His voice was breathy, desperate, and his nostrils quivered as his irises flickered with amber shades, pressing cold fingers to his nose. "Hih’IGHHShh!” The sneeze shook his whole body only allowing him a second of recovery before another caught in his throat. "gh'SCHHiishhhh!”

He hid underneath a cover, leaned his back against the wall behind him, letting go of the tension in his muscles, feeling his muscles relax felt abnormal to him. Realising that his efforts to hide from the cold had been in vain as his fingers tingled with a pain that felt like they were burning. 

The cold seemed to have visibly settled into the tall man's body, as the shaking of his shoulders came more noticeable. Eyes closed, subtly muscled shoulders slumping as he gave a sigh of utter exhaustion. His nose hovering over his knuckles, still sore and red from the harsh wind and unrelenting tickle. The icy fabric of his shirt clung to his chest, giving him more reason to tremble silently. He pressed his fingertips to his nose and sneezed fiercely, shoulders jerking with the force of it: 

"Hhh--! hhk'NGHkt! ...hk'ngtSHuh!" 

Droplets of water fell to the ground, trying to breath through his nose, only to snort and cough violently, noting his nose was now completely clogged up.

"Fuckin' shit--"

It was only when his cigarette had become a wet-through, soggy roll of tobacco did he decide to go inside, back to his office-- wishing Snow wouldn't see him in this state.

[Garnet]

Excited clapping! It's like miniature Christmas whenever someone posts TWAU fic.

Ugh this was so sad and good, though. Look at that miserable wet puppy out in the rain. You set a lovely atmosphere here, it perfectly matches that "oh... okay " mood towards the end of the game. I remember trying a bunch of the different options with The Crooked Man and that final trial in an effort to please Snow more, but nope. She was just eternally frustrated.

Rain battering the roofs like a hail of bullets; it hammered it down, the world was obscured with a wall of water. Bitter wind broke through the night, and the roads became shallow rivers.

Excellent description of a heavy rain in the city, I don't know. I just really liked these lines.

Soon, Bigby was soaked through. His work shirt slowly showing the sculpted outline of his torso; his tie and trousers: blackened with the rain water.

Hello, yes, I will take this visual and let it gestate happily until I end up drawing it. Bigby could get it in a wet t-shirt contest just saying.

He wanted to just let himself sneeze. Desperately. But a Mundy could just walk just around the corner, and then what? All Bigby wanted was for everyone to just get off his back for once; the poor man couldn't even sneeze without someone ducking for cover or sighing in frustration.

Oh, baby This tugged at my heart a lot. As much as I enjoy playing with the trope of his overblown sneezes, I imagine he would get very frustrated by it. Especially given how sensitive his nose is anyway. You touched on that nicely here.

And of course, those harsh, wet sneezes

In summation: B'AW.

Thank you so much for sharing!

[*Dark_Side*]

It was only when his cigarette had become a wet-through, soggy roll of tobacco did he decide to go inside, back to his office-- wishing Snow wouldn't see him in this state.

Ok the story is fantastic but that last line killed me. I totally need more. Bigby needs to run into Snow and have an angsty somewhat hurt/comfort-y meeting. As per usual, I love any story with Bigby, thanks for writing it.

[Orionbob]

This plays with themes I love, everyone being afraid of Bigby losing control even one tiny bit, and the way having to be in control constantly would be wearing on him. Very nice, thank you!