Tuesday: Numbers

[sherlockian-syn.livejournal.com]

Welcome back! I’m sherlockian_syn and today's theme is Numbers. Prompts can be about anything from specific numbers, math, phone numbers... basically if it relates to numbers in some way, feel free to leave it as a prompt!

Just a few rules:
No more than five prompts in a row.
No more than three prompts in the same fandom.
Use the character's full names and fandom's full name for ease adding to the Lonely Prompts spreadsheet.
No spoilers in prompts for a month after airing, or use the spoiler cut option found here.
If your fill contains spoilers, warn and leave plenty of space, or use the spoiler cut.
If there are possible triggers in your story, please warn for them in the subject line!

Prompts should be formatted as follows: [Use the character's full names and fandom's full name]
Fandom, Character +/ Character, Prompt

Some examples to get the ball rolling...
+ Marvel Cinematic Universe, Tony Stark/Stephen Strange, falling in love with Tony while looking at 14 million+ possible futures
+ Stargate Atlantis, John Sheppard/Rodney McKay, John helps Rodney solve a mistake in his math and Rodney is both angry and turned on at the same time
+ BBC Sherlock, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson, AU where John is a witness in a case and after Sherlock questions him, he asks for Sherlock's number

We use AO3 to bookmark filled prompts. If you fill a prompt and post it to AO3 please add it to the Bite Sized Bits of Fic from 2018 collection. See further notes on this new option here.

Not feeling any of today’s prompts? Check out Lonely Prompts Spreadsheet 1 (not very current), Lonely Prompts Spreadsheet 2, or the Calendar Archives, or for more recent prompts, you can use LJ's advanced search options to find prompts to request and/or fill.

While the Lonely Prompts Spreadsheets and LJ's advanced search options are available, bookmarking the links of prompts you like might work better for searching for in the future.


tag=numbers

Comments

[sherlockian-syn.livejournal.com]

Marvel Cinematic Universe, Tony Stark/Stephen Strange, falling in love with Tony while looking at 14 million+ possible futures

[nagi-schwarz.livejournal.com]

Stargate Atlantis, John Sheppard +/ Rodney McKay +/ Any, John and Rodney are playing Prime Not Prime and someone totally unexpected chimes in - and gets it right.

[sherlockian-syn.livejournal.com]

Stargate Atlantis, John Sheppard/Rodney McKay, John helps Rodney solve a mistake in his math and Rodney is both angry and turned on at the same time

Fill 1/3: AU - no SGC (yet)

[nagi-schwarz.livejournal.com]

Rodney hated having to pass the construction site next to the physics building because the construction workers always looked at him when he went by. He could feel their gazes on him as he passed, and he was pretty sure they were judging him.

Atlantis Construction, it had seemed, had hired mostly thugs and delinquents. There was the youngest on the crew, Ford, who had seemingly boundless energy and was always borrowing other people’s tools without asking, and the others yelled at him. There was the biggest on the crew, Ronon, who was all bulging biceps and grunts instead of words and intimidating (but also intriguing) tattoos. There was Lorne, the unofficial crew boss, who had broad shoulders and big hands and a seemingly perpetually sarcastic expression. There was Sheppard, who was surprisingly lean compared to some of the others, and who called Ronon “Chewie” and Lorne “R2” and Ford “Luke” and Teyla, the only woman on the crew, “Obi-Wan.” Even though Rodney dreamed of the day he had a real conversation with Sheppeard, Sheppard who was lean and sexy and had just-fucked hair and bright eyes slender hips that Rodney couldn’t help but imagine putting his hands on, he dreaded the day John called him “Princess.”

Of all of them, Teyla seemed the most pleasant and polite, and for a while she had seemed the most non-threatening till the day she and Ronon got into a friendly sparring match and she almost killed him. Rather than break it up, the others had egged them on, Lorne taking bets and shouting encouragement to both fighters in turn.

Some days they called out to him, a “good morning” or a “hey” or “nice day, isn’t it?”

One day Rodney had a very frustrating staff meeting with the likes of Dr. Kavanagh, the stupidest of all the science faculty at the university - and it was a very big university - and when Lorne called out to him, he snapped,

“It’s Dr. Rodney McKay, not hey, and I have nothing to say to any of you.”

After that they looked at him as he went past, but they didn’t say anything to him.

Rodney figured they’d finally settled into a non-communicative detente and he could walk to and from the physics building and the student center (with its admittedly excellent food selection, citrus-free on request) without too much disturbance, and then one day a sudden gust of wind tore his papers out of his hands and scattered them.

All over the construction site.

Lorne whistled shrilly, and immediately all of his coworkers abandoned what they were doing to attempt to catch what they could.

“Be careful with this,” Rodney called out, fretting when Ford pinned one of them to the ground with his boot and then plucked it up out of the dirt.

Teyla, Ronon, and Lorne all proved to have quick reflexes. Lorne could snatch pieces of paper out of the air on the fly. Ronon caught pieces that had blown up high. Teyla ran the fastest, darting here and there to grab what she could before they blew too far away.

Sheppard, though, stopped with just one paper. Was staring at it.

Rodney hurried over to him. “Give me that.”

Sheppard didn’t answer, his gaze intent.

Like a construction worker understood advanced physics or calculus. “Look, Sheppard, Han Solo, whatever you call that, those are very important calculations -”

Sheppard lifted his head, eyebrows raised. “Han Solo?”

“It’s - you call Ronon Chewie,” Rodney protested. Why was he defending himself against this cretin who refused to hand over Rodney’s property? “Give that back.”

“Sure,” Sheppard said. He turned the paper around and tapped at one of the formulas. “But this is wrong.”

Rodney, who was reaching for the paper, paused. Peered at it. “What? That’s impossible.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m a genius and -”

“And you got this wrong.” Sheppard tapped the paper again. “You confused the negative and fractional exponents.”

Rodney stared at him. Unbelievable. “I didn’t get it wrong, I’ve been working on these calculations for months.”

“It’s a pretty common algebra mistake people make when they’re doing calculus,” Sheppard said.

“What would you know about it?”

“Well, I know how to do both algebra and calculus,” Sheppard said.

[sherlockian-syn.livejournal.com]

BBC Sherlock, Sherlock Holmes/John Watson, AU where John is a witness in a case and after Sherlock questions him, he asks for Sherlock's number

[nagi-schwarz.livejournal.com]

Justice League (2017), Barry Allen/Arthur Curry, barista AU where one always puts his number on the coffee cup and the other takes forever to notice.

[nagi-schwarz.livejournal.com]

Stargate Atlantis, Dave Sheppard + John Sheppard, Numb3rs fusion where Dave is an FBI agent and John is his math genius brother who helps him solve crimes.

[sherlockian-syn.livejournal.com]

Marvel Cinematic Universe, Tony Stark/Steve Rogers, AU where Tony is a math teacher and Steve is an art teacher

[nagi-schwarz.livejournal.com]

Stargate Atlantis, Rodney McKay +/ John Sheppard, AU where as part of the Tau’ri-Ancient alliance Rodney McKay is assigned a fancy calculator to help with his research - only his calculator is not an impressive Ancient device but a disgraced combat pilot named John.

[sherlockian-syn.livejournal.com]

Any, any,

Five hundred twenty five thousand six hundred minutes
Five hundred twenty five thousand moments so dear
Five hundred twenty five thousand six hundred minutes
How do you measure, measure a year
(RENT - Seasons of Love)

[brumeier.livejournal.com]

Trixie Belden Mysteries/The Three Investigators, Trixie Belden +/ Jupiter Jones, an unknown number keeps popping up on Trixie's cell phone

Fill -- The Affair of the Anomalous Area Code

[vanillafluffy.livejournal.com]

The first time the strange number pops up on her phone display, Trixie ignores it. She doesn’t recognize the area code--it certainly isn’t Westchester County--so she shrugs it off as a wrong number or a telemarketer.

It shows up again a couple days later as a missed call, no message. This time, she’s curious enough to look up the area code. Florida? Definitely not anyone she knows!

The mystery number appears twice more, and finally shows the little red bubble indicating they’ve left a message. Trixie plays it back.

“Hi, Trixie, it’s Diana.” Trixie smiles as her friend continues. “Diana Lynch? I hope this is the right number for you? I got it from your mom, but maybe I make a mistake? Anyway, I’d love to hear from you. Bye!”

That sounds like Di, alright--a little hesitant, but with lively enthusiasm underlying it. She calls back at once.

“What in the world are you doing in Florida?” is Trixie’s first question.

“Oh, Daddy took the twins to Orlando for the holidays, and bought them all new phones--he got me one, too. The calling plan was set up down there, so I have a Florida phone number. What about you? California? Tell me all about it! Have you met any movie stars?”

Trixie laughs at Di’s rush of questions.

“Wow, where do I start? I’m sharing a giant geodesic dome with Mart, who’s bought an orange grove-slash-farm, I’ve got a really neat part-time job at a salvage yard, and it wasn’t exactly meeting movie stars, but I got to be an extra in a few scenes for that daytime drama, Fame and Fortune.”

“That sounds like fun,” Di giggles. “Is that something you’re looking to get into, acting? Because I’m doing photography, and I’d love to do your headshots!”

Comparing herself to the actresses she’s met, Trixie knows she doesn’t have the looks and thinking about the two days of shooting, she doesn’t have the patience, either. “No, that was just a case of being in the right place at the right time. They were filming at the hotel where I was staying, and I got chummy with one of the production guys. Photography, huh? Have you given up painting?”

Diana gives a little squeak, sounding like a kitten that’s been disturbed. “I dabble a little when I’m in the mood, but photography is a different kind of artwork.” She sounds serious, as if she’s thought about the two art-forms at length.

“And I’m starting to get commissions,” she goes on, “which is great--things like family photos for Christmas cards, engagement pictures, and the reason I didn’t go to Florida was I had two Christmas parties and a family reunion to shoot that week. The first few things I did last spring were for friends of our family, but I’m starting to get word-of-mouth referrals, so people are happy with my work!”

Trixie blinks. Diana Lynch’s family is rich enough that she doesn’t need to work, but apparently she has a thriving career. Whereas she, Trixie, is sorting other people’s junk and dabbling in homemade preserves. The Universe is laughing at her.

They chat for a while longer, and as they say good-bye, Trixie promises to add Di to her contacts. She’s happy to know Diana’s doing well. Successful, in fact.

So why does she feel like a failure? Neither of them is in college, so what does it matter that Trixie flunked out? Diana’s good fortune doesn’t take anything away from her. Different people, different lives.

Photograpphy is a different kind of artwork, Diana declared, but hadn’t that sound she’d made at the question been sad? She’d probably like to paint more, but if photography is also artistic, easier and more lucrative…?

After all, Trixie chides herself, Mr. Lynch may want Diana to be independent. Or maybe it’s she who wants to rely on no one.

It must be nice to have that freedom…still,Trixie is three thousand miles away from where she grew up. She’s minimally dependent on her folks, and while she may not have a clear plan for the rest of her life, she’s seeing the world and trying new things. It’s only failure if she gives up trying.

With that thought, Trixie adds a new contact to her list.

….

[brumeier.livejournal.com]

Stargate Atlantis, John Sheppard/Rodney McKay, love notes hidden in math equations

[brumeier.livejournal.com]

Any, Any, counting sheep

Fill: SG-1, gen

[nagi-schwarz.livejournal.com]

"Daddy, I can't sleep."

Jack turned, saw Charlie peeking around the corner into the den where he was sitting, reading mission reports. Jack closed the file, tucked it back into his briefcase, closed his briefcase, locked it. Operational security had been drilled into him so it was almost second nature. Almost.

"C'mere, buddy." Jack beckoned.

Charlie padded into the den and crawled up into Jack's lap, nuzzled under his chin and tucked against his chest. He was five now, small and warm and soft, but smart enough to read, to throw and catch a ball.

And to count.

"What's keeping you awake?"

Charlie shrugged.

"You know what always helped me fall asleep?"

Charlie shook his head.

"Counting sheep."

"Sheep?"

Jack nodded. "Want to try?"

Charlie considered. He had Sarah's mouth, her eyes, her smile, and his thinking face was just like hers. Then he nodded.

"Okay. Close your eyes. Can you picture a sheep?"

"Uh-huh."

"That's one. Picture another sheep.

"Okay."

"That's two. And another?"

"Three," Charlie said dutifully.

He counted softly under his breath, and while he counted, Jack rocked him and began to hum an old Irish lullaby his mother used to sing to him.

Charlie barely made it to twenty before he fell asleep.

Jack looked down at him, so small and innocent and sweet, and didn't take him to bed. Instead he held him and watched him and hoped he came back from this next mission.

[brumeier.livejournal.com]

Hawaii Five-0, Steve McGarrett/Danny Williams, Danny is a forensic accountant for the FBI

[reeby10.livejournal.com]

any, any/any
So 1, 2, 3, take my hand and come with me
Because you look so fine
And I really wanna make you mine
Are You Gonna Be My Girl by Jet

Fill NCIS Bishop x Torres

[helsinkibaby.livejournal.com]

Character limits and me occasionally don't get along so well...

https://archiveofourown.org/works/14856000

[reeby10.livejournal.com]

Person of Interest, The Machine + Root or Harold Finch, binary

[reeby10.livejournal.com]

any, any, "The numbers don't add up"

[reeby10.livejournal.com]

Stargate Atlantis, John Sheppard/Rodney McKay, math had always been the easiest thing in the world

Fill 1/2: bit of body-swap and angst

[nagi-schwarz.livejournal.com]

Math had always been the easiest thing in the world for John, he said. Easier than talking to people or being charming or even flying a chopper. Rodney understood that, he thought. Music hadn’t been easy for Rodney, though he’d worked doggedly to attain the technical skill he needed to perform complex pieces. But physics - that always been easy for Rodney. Understanding certain parts of the universe, forces and movement and wave harmonics, light and motion and sound, how it all fit together - Rodney had always understand that.

So he figured he understood what John meant when John said math had always been the easiest thing in the world.

And then they went offworld and touched the wrong Ancient device at the same time and ended up in each other’s bodies.

Miko, Radek, and every other scientist with even any remote knowledge of Ancient tech and biology and physiology was sent to tackle the problem, some to examine the device, others to examine John and Rodney.

While Rodney had always been attracted to John, he wasn’t about to violate the man’s privacy, and he didn’t want John to figure out Rodney was attracted to him while he was in Rodney’s body, so he wanted the situation fixed as soon as possible. At first he thought it’d be fun, being in better shape, being handsome. John disliked being in Rodney’s body - he missed orange juice and his back hurt all the time and when he got hungry, he turned mean and got headaches.

“It explains so much about you,” John said over lunch, where he was eating twice as much as Rodney normally did.

Rodney was enjoying orange juice while he could.

“Honestly,” John said, “given how awful you feel all the time, I’m surprised you’re not crankier.”

“Thanks,” Rodney said flatly.

Just when he thought things couldn’t get worse - John hated his body, hated him - Lorne approached them and suggested, very quietly, that maybe they attempt to reverse the process themselves.

“We already tried. Poked the device a bunch of times,” Rodney said. “Nothing works.”

Lorne cleared his throat. “Back at the SGC, there was precedent for you two reversing the process yourselves by, you know, commingling. In this state.”

John stared at him. Was that what Rodney looked like when he was unimpressed? No wonder he hadn’t dated a woman in forever. “You’re going to have to be a bit blunter, Major.”

Lorne blushed bright pink, and Rodney realized what he meant. He wouldn’t have been opposed to that, but judging by the look on John’s face once he also caught on to the implication, he was very opposed to that option.

Lorne turned and scurried away without saying another word.

“I’m sure Miko and Radek and the others will figure something out,” John said stiffly.

“Yeah. We can wait,” Rodney said.

Turned out he couldn’t, though.

Because John’s head was filled with math all the time. John was so effortlessly good at math because existence was math to him. Time, crunched down into minutes and seconds and microseconds. Firearm accuracy, calculated to minute of angle in an instant. And endless, endless probabilities. Rodney in John’s body watched Lorne speed by on his morning run and he knew Lorne was only running at eighty percent efficiency, that he was still getting over a cold, and that Lorne and his team’s scheduled mission today had a mortality rate of about forty percent, but that number steadily ticked upward as John assessed each team member’s condition.

John’s head was screaming with probabilities and possibilities when Rodney watched Lorne’s team go through the gate.

And John’s head was filled with the same probabilities and possibilities every time he encountered someone.

How John ever agreed to let anyone go through the gate was a total mystery.

Math was easy for John.

Living with it was impossible for Rodney.

After a mere fifty hours - not even two full Lantean days - Rodney cornered John.

[reeby10.livejournal.com]

any, any m/m or f/f, "Can I get your number?"

[geckogirl89.livejournal.com]

Angel the series, Angel/Cordelia Chase,
When the evening shadows and the stars appear
And there is no one there to dry your tears
I could hold you for a million years
To make you feel my love
(Bob Dylan, “Make You Feel My Love”)

[geckogirl89.livejournal.com]

Angel the series, Winifred Burkle (/any),
I was just guessing at numbers and figures

Pulling the puzzles apart

Questions of science, science and progress

Do not speak as loud as my heart
(Coldplay, “The Scientist”)

[geckogirl89.livejournal.com]

Any, any,
Life has led us here,
Together all these years.
This house that we have made,
Holds twenty-thousand days.
And memories we've saved,
Since life has lead us here.
(Yellowcard, “Dear Bobbie”)

[geckogirl89.livejournal.com]

Guardians of the Galaxy, Gamora/Peter Quill,
I'm afraid if you go you might disappear behind a mist
And I'd rather be hung from a tree or shot by a gun
And of all of these things that matter here upon my list
You are my number one, yes you are my number one
(Smash Mouth, “You Are My Number One”)

Smash Mouth is the ultimate Peter Quill band. :-D

[geckogirl89.livejournal.com]

Any, any, “My love for you is like pi, irrational and never-ending.” (Adapted from https://pickupline.net/)

[4bdnsn0wflake.livejournal.com]

Author's choice, any+/any, high five

[4bdnsn0wflake.livejournal.com]

MCU, Deadpool+any adversary, your number's up