strangevisitor7: I will call Her george (Mag 7 - all)
strangevisitor7 ([personal profile] strangevisitor7) wrote2008-10-22 09:22 am

Child Of My Heart (12/12) - Mag7/Highlander

This is now complete. Thanks to all of you who have read, left feedback and cheered me on. *hugs* to all. This story would not have been possible with out the help of the wonderful [livejournal.com profile] ithildyn who held my hand throughout. We have plans for Ezra now that he is Immortal, so rest assured there will be more stories.


Title: Child Of My Heart (12/12)
Author: [livejournal.com profile] strangevisitor7
Fandom: Magnificent 7 and Highlander
Beta: Much thanks to [livejournal.com profile] ithildyn
Prompt: #16 - Purple for [livejournal.com profile] crossovers100. My table is here
Rating: PG, Gen
Characters: HL: OFC Charlotte Sparrow (AKA Pearl Black); Mag7: Ezra Standish, Chris Larabee, Vin Tanner, Buck Wilmington, Josiah Sanchez, Nathan Jackson and JD Dunne

Chapter Summary: Ezra finds out that being Immortal is useful in a gunfight

A/N: Charlotte is an Immortal and an original character created by [livejournal.com profile] ithildyn. In Charlotte’s bio, Ith mentioned that she’d lived in New Mexico in the 1860’s, so it was obvious to me she knew the Mag7 boys. I have added the idea that she was Maude Standish’s teacher, longtime friend and one of those people Maude would occasionally ‘dump’ Ezra with. The rest of Charlotte’s stories can be found on [livejournal.com profile] ithildyn’s journal Here


Chapter List
Chapter 1; Chapter 2; Chapter 3; Chapter 4; Chapter 5; Chapter 6; Chapter 7; Chapter 8; Chapter 9; Chapter 10; Chapter 11; Epilogue




Child Of My Heart, Epilogue


One month later

The gunfire fell away as the last of the bandits were subdued. As Ezra kept his gun trained on one of the miscreants, he reached inside his coat to hold himself upright. Even though he was Immortal now, the bullet wound still hurt like hell. He could sense it healing. He just had to keep still and away from Nathan long enough for it to finish.

Suddenly, he was spun around to face a very irate man in black. “What the hell were you thinking?”

“To which thought were you referring, Chris?”

The gunslinger glared at him and Ezra enjoyed the moment. He shouldn’t ramp the man up so much, but it had become a bit of game between them and he suspected there was a part of Chris that enjoyed it when they butted heads as well.

“You know damn well,” he said. “Running into the street like that; making yourself a target.”

“I was simply preventing that man,” he gestured to the criminal that Vin was now leading away, “from shooting JD. If I hadn’t acted, our young compatriot might have been irreparably harmed.” It had been a reckless act, and the wound he suffered might have killed any other man, but he didn’t have that problem any more. In fact, he felt a great deal of satisfaction for his ability to take a bullet for his friends and keep them from harm.

“Yeah, Chris, he saved my life,” JD said as he approached. “Thanks, Ezra. That was too close.” The young lawman slapped the gambler companionably on the shoulder.

Ezra tried not to wince from the friendly contact. “My pleasure, JD,” he said.

“It was still stupid. We don’t need to be trading one man for another.” Implied in the gunslinger’s tone was that Ezra was just as important as JD. It still surprised the gambler when he recognized such sentiments being directed at him.

Chris studied him. “You’re hurt.”

“I assure you, Chris, I am fine.”

“Then why are you standing funny?”

Ezra cursed to himself as he realized that he was unconsciously favoring his side, supporting the wound. “You are mistaken.”

Chris ignored his protests as he spotted their healer. “Nathan. Get over here, Ezra’s hurt.”

Nathan jogged over and took in the way Ezra was holding himself. “Foolish man. Wonder you ain’t got yourself killed pulling a crazy stunt like that. Now let me see.”

Ezra waved him off. “I have no need of your attentions, Nathan.”

He backed away from the healer and bumped into Buck and Josiah who each laid a hand on one of his shoulders preventing his escape. They had obviously finished installing the remaining outlaws in the jail and had joined the group to see what all the fuss was about.

With his free hand, Buck reached over to JD, flipped the bowler hat to the ground and ruffled his hair. “You ok, kid?”

“Cut that out, Buck,” JD groused as he bent away from Buck to retrieve his hat. “I’m fine thanks to Ezra.”

Buck gave the gambler’s shoulder he was holding a squeeze. “You done good, Ezra.”

“Thank you and please release me, Buck.”

“Can’t do that,” Josiah said “Let Nathan do his job, son.”

Ezra deflected once again, now that he sensed that the wound was fully healed. “Do you gentlemen seriously believe that if I was bleeding from a shot to the gut that I would resist Nathan’s ministrations?”

“He’s got a point,” Buck said as he loosened his grip on Ezra’s shoulder.

“You sure you’re not hurt?” the healer asked.

“I am sorry to disappoint you, Nathan, but I assure you I am unharmed.”

“Yeah, big disappointment because you are such a cooperative patient,” Nathan teased.

This evoked a round of laughter from those gathered.

“If your bedside manner were to improve, I would have fewer qualms about allowing myself to catch bullets with my body,” Ezra responded with a laugh. “As for today, my garments are the only things wounded because of the confrontation with those miscreants.”

Ezra stuck a finger through the hole in his plum colored jacket, careful to not reveal any of the blood on his vest. “I am dismayed at how often I must repair this type of damage,” he groused dramatically.

Buck looked down at the location of the hole and whistled. “You are one lucky son of a bitch.”

Ezra's performance seemed to put to rest any thoughts that he was injured. He noticed the relief in the faces of his friends and he was profoundly touched by their concern. With each passing day, he was growing more comfortable with the idea that these men cared about him. Immortality, instead of separating him from his mortal friends, had somehow given him the courage to get closer to them.

“It was a calculated risk, Buck. Luck had nothing to do with it,” Ezra said. “Now if you’ll excuse me?”

“Where the hell do you think you’re going?” Chris said, the twinkle in his eye at odds with the sternness of his words.

“To the saloon for a drink,” Ezra explained, confused by Chris’ demeanor.

“Don’t think so, pard,” Vin said. Ezra hadn’t noticed when their seventh member had joined the group. The man moved like a ghost.

The tracker had a smirk on his face that Ezra recognized and returned. “Of course, how could I have forgotten? We are all invited for supper at my cousin’s.

“And we’re late,” Chris said as he gestured for the men to head toward the livery. “Let’s get a move on. Don’t want her worrying about us.”

“But what of our prisoners, surely one of us must stay and watch over them?”

Ezra had to restrain himself from laughing at the stricken looks that passed between his friends at his suggestion. None of them wanted to miss a meal at Charlotte’s.

“I’ll ask some of the livery boys to keep an eye on them. Shouldn’t be no trouble,” JD offered.

“Good idea, kid,” Buck said.

The others tossed in their approval of the plan as the seven headed down the street.

“What kind of pie you think she made this time?” Vin asked.

Ezra chuckled. “Now, Vin, does it really matter?”

“Nope.”

“Hey, Ezra,” JD called as he came to walk beside the southerner. “I just noticed something.”

“And what miraculous observation has captured your attention, JD?”

“You don’t call nobody by their last names anymore. How come?”

Ezra stared at the young man as he thought back over his conversations from the past few days. It was true and the reason made him smile. “One should always address ones friends with familiarity,” Ezra explained.

Chris looked over his shoulder and grinned. “About damn time.”


********************************

[identity profile] lorency.livejournal.com 2008-10-22 01:49 pm (UTC)(link)
Wow! I mean...WOW! Absolutly wow! I read all the parts and I just completly adore this story! *squee* You better have a sequal planned for this one. It doesn't matter if it's going to take you some time to write a sequal, I'm willing to wait because seriously....*squee*....*dances around happily* ...

I love Immortal!Ezra!

And Charlotte rocks! I can see the potential for Ezra meeting descendents of the rest of the Seven in the future (ATF verse) and become one of the Seven again and Charlotte shows up, giving him comfort over the old days lost....and I'm on a roll again. Sorry about that. Thank you so much for yet another awesome story! *hugs you*

[identity profile] sivanshemesh.livejournal.com 2008-10-22 01:56 pm (UTC)(link)
LOL! Hillirious chapter.

Yep, it was certainly about time that Ezra would called them in their first name, rather their last name.

Great work, and i love the way they be there for him and concerning that he might was shot.

Well-done, and you better write more stories with Ezra... *evil grin*

Thank you for writing it.

*Hugs*

Sivan Shemesh

[identity profile] lyonza.livejournal.com 2008-10-22 02:02 pm (UTC)(link)
**squishes all the boys**

Great epilogue dear. Now to see what you guys come up with for Charlotte and Ezra further down the line :D

[identity profile] sparrowwritings.livejournal.com 2008-10-22 02:13 pm (UTC)(link)
Yay!! And go Ezra for those amazing acting skills with the bullet in the gut. :D

All are one big happy family! With pie included! :D

[identity profile] sophiedb.livejournal.com 2008-10-22 02:50 pm (UTC)(link)
I think I need to find a British channel showing this or reruns :)

Very ta for sharing!!!
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[identity profile] tygermama.livejournal.com 2008-10-22 03:08 pm (UTC)(link)
*squeeee!* sorry can't help it, this was the first thing I read when I got up this morning! Immortal!Ezra finally able to let himself be close to his friends and believe they care too! Which I think has more to do with finally feeling in control of his life than the immortality, even though he's in control because of immortality, if you know what I mean :(

Will there be more?

Slightly Off Topic: You have Immortal!Buck and Immortal!Ezra in two seperate universes, which universe will eventually have Immortal!Dean in it?
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[identity profile] conjured-1.livejournal.com 2008-10-22 04:06 pm (UTC)(link)
Quelle histoire fabuleuse. You' roches re de caractérisation; les émotions si crues, si vrai; Charlotte est étonnant, Ezra est magnifique. J'adore vous et votre écriture.

[identity profile] bumpkin-is.livejournal.com 2008-10-22 05:29 pm (UTC)(link)
Oh, so very cool - that ending just resonates so perfectly. :D

thank you so much for sharing and I hope to heaven that you write more in this 'verse you have created in the future. :)

keep penning,
Marns
~pN

[identity profile] dnalia.livejournal.com 2008-10-22 11:37 pm (UTC)(link)
Loved it, as usual. Now I'll just have to patiently (?) wait for more ;)

[identity profile] egorstandish.livejournal.com 2008-10-23 12:45 am (UTC)(link)
I applaude you!

*clapping and cheering*

For such a wonderful story. You had me hooked from the beginning and eager for each part!

Thank you so much for writing this and sharing. And [livejournal.com profile] ithildyn thank you for sharing such a wonderful character as Charlotte!

[identity profile] jedishadowolf.livejournal.com 2008-10-23 01:40 am (UTC)(link)
Oh this is beyond awesome! I love the effect Charlotte had on Ezra and the explanation for where his better qualities came from. This is a fantastic crossover!

[identity profile] ronneem.livejournal.com 2008-10-23 02:21 am (UTC)(link)
Absolutely awesome fic. I love how well you integrate Charlotte into the M7 universe while sliding Maude and Ezra into the immortal'verse. I feel for Ez though. He's going to be broken when the others pass on, though I like the idea of him running into their descendants in the future. Until that happens, though, I'll be happily waiting for any more pieces of this that creep into your wonderful muse's pen.

[identity profile] sfulton229.livejournal.com 2008-10-23 04:07 am (UTC)(link)
Wonderful ending to this story! Ezra had that streak of heroism and do gooder in him and Maude was unable to squash it. Charlotte and the guys really encouraged that side of Ezra to come out. Love how he was able to distract them from checking him too closely with misleading questions and a little misdiretion. I'm not surprised that dinner with Charlotte is a highly anticipated event, especially since there will be pies. Chris' concern is very touching and I agree that they do love to tease each other. Very observant of JD to pick up on Ezra using their first names now. Now that Ezra knows the truth and has control over his life, he's so much happier. Thanks so much for sharing this story! It was just so wonderful and I'm looking forward to more.

[identity profile] tpena19.livejournal.com 2008-10-23 04:53 am (UTC)(link)
*whoohoo* Happy and sad, all at once. :):(

It was a great story and introduced some real cool takes on beloved characters, even introduced a new OC who was cool and didn't suck at all (that is rare).

Love how Ezra is coming into his own and out of his shell, and the interactions with the others here was spot on. Love how he is making his immortality work for him and not really changing anything, except for the better.

Hmmm...Ezra meeting the descendants of, or a reincarnated version of, the seven in the future (ATF?) would be so kewl. It would have plenty of ops for funniness and angst (my faves), and they are all so good together, it makes me sad to think of Ez w/o the boys.

I am sad it's over, this was a great plot and a wicked cool universe, can't wait to read more stories! *runs off to read Ith's page*
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[identity profile] bookaddict43.livejournal.com 2008-10-23 11:17 am (UTC)(link)
Great ending! I like how you ended Ezra's initial journey and love the interaction with the others of the 7. I think it's great that Ezra's immortality has enabled him to relax and give friendship a chance and love that they all are willing to abandon their duties for pie! :D

[identity profile] lyl-devil.livejournal.com 2008-11-07 01:34 am (UTC)(link)
Awwww. They're bonding! I love team bondage...er....bonding. I totally meant bonding!

:D

[identity profile] flingslass.livejournal.com 2009-01-02 03:05 am (UTC)(link)
Mrs S raises a toast to you! I've just read the whole story and I love your Ezra and Charlotte. I'm off to read the next story :D

[identity profile] gemspegasus.livejournal.com 2009-01-16 05:09 pm (UTC)(link)
Hi,

Okay, just caught up with this and am totally in love with it. :) You have such a fabulous way of interweaving your characters. I adore how Charlotte fit into the M7 universe and how Ezra slid into immortality. Do not like how Maude shot him dead to make him immortal. I know Chris and the others won't like it either. Loved the relationship between Ezra and Charolette. And how she explained Immortality to him. I Am thinking of Charlotte as Ezra's mom.
Loved how she introduced herself to the others and how they enjoyed her pies. Vin and Ezra don't forget she needs new pie making ingredients. Love how Ezra interacting with JD and Ezra's cousin, Jemmia. Totally adored the story.
Thank you for creating and sharing this riveting, captivating story.

P.S. Buck was glad you enjoyed the flowers.

take care
hugs
Angela

*hugs* --/@

[identity profile] jeiel.livejournal.com 2009-01-27 07:21 pm (UTC)(link)
Wonderful story! I hope you keep writing this series. Off to read more of your stories.
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[identity profile] deaniebtvs.livejournal.com 2009-04-05 06:30 pm (UTC)(link)
While I've seen the show (because of your SPN/Mag7 crossover, actually), I'm not a huge Mag7 fan... but this fic was just delightful. I love Ezra growing up, learning about himself, and finally telling his mother just where she can shove it.

Now, I'm off to read more of the series :)

[identity profile] rubystandish.livejournal.com 2009-04-18 09:19 pm (UTC)(link)
This is a great story...I mean really GREAT! It was so great, it's one of the reason why I got this account but anyways. I agree with lorency about Immortal Ezra.

I love Charlotte, she is a great OFC that really fit well with the boys, as well as her background with Ezra and his mother. I can't wait to read the other stories in this AU and thank you so much for posting this for us to read.

*Hugs*
Ruby Standish