Sacred and Profane (one-shot, PG-13)

A place for redwinter101's G to PG-13 stories
User avatar
redwinter101
100% Moonlightaholic
Posts: 23759
Joined: Fri Jan 16, 2009 10:19 am
Location: lost in Moonlight, forever

Sacred and Profane (one-shot, PG-13)

Post by redwinter101 »

Title: Sacred and Profane
Author: redwinter101
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: I don't own Moonlight or any of its characters
Note: One of those rare moments when the story pretty much wrote itself, inspired by listening to Verdi's requiem. As with all my historical stories, the details (except for our beloved vampires) are as accurate as my research permitted.

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



--- Sacred and Profane ---

Milan, May 22, 1874

As she stepped into the church, Coraline breathed deeply; the smell of God and money. She paused, savouring, eyes closed, head tilted back ever so slightly, looking to the casual onlooker like any other worshipper come to cleanse her soul or perhaps to admire the finery on display both on the walls and in the pews. But her reasons were more personal and less devotional. It was a year since Alessandro's death and she was an invited guest to the first performance of a new requiem mass, composed by his dearest friend in his honour. Even though it was nearly forty years since they had last seen each other, she retained an affection for him that was obviously reciprocated as he had chosen to dedicate the final version of his greatest work to her. It was this dedication that had given her entry into the inner sanctum of Milanese society and brought her to the church today, even though everyone assumed she was an illegitimate child rather than a lover from long ago.

She had always loved churches; others in her family and community were childishly fearful, as though a mere building held sway over immortality or fate or destiny, but she loved the ritual, the inherent drama, the persistence of hope. It had been nearly a century since her last visit here and much had changed, the recent restoration giving a modern look to the exterior that belied the ancient riches within. The Baroque style was definitely to her taste; austerity seemed such a waste when worshipping a supposedly all-powerful God. Work was still ongoing to complete the campanile, which was a disappointment as the peal of bells across the city had served as a daily reminder of all the wonders Milan had to offer.

She had met Alessandro less than a year after the death of his first wife; he was bereft, adrift, seeking solace. And he found it in her arms and in her bed; the ageing academic finding new life and purpose in the heat of her embrace. They were each pupil and teacher and in the brief time they were lovers, she discovered that they shared both an understanding of instinct and a disregard for the conventions of their respective societies. He was one of the few men she had wanted to confide in and for a time she gave serious consideration to showing him her true nature. By the time her mind was made up however, his grieving had evolved and he no longer had need of her. His dismissal still rankled, even though she knew he needed a housekeeper as much as a wife and that was a role for which she was uniquely unsuited. She was unsurprised to hear that he had married again less than a year after she took her leave; his decision to return to the well-trodden path was proof that she had been right to keep her secrets close.

But she still treasured the well-thumbed copy of "The Betrothed" that she carried with her today, like a secret password that gave her entry to this ritualised world.

"For Coraline, my finest hour." It was stark and elegant and she was flattered.

As she moved to take her seat, she paused to admire the frescoed ceiling; in so many respects the Milanese were the poor relations compared to their Neapolitan and Venetian brethren, but this church, dedicated in the gift of the citizens of Venice, merged the best qualities of both cities: rugged, individual, whimsical and grandiose. It felt like home.

The rest of the audience were taking their seats now and she admired the finery on display. As usual, she had opted for simple and dramatic; a red velvet cloak, hooded, light enough not to stifle in the humidity of the late-Spring days but warm enough for the cool nights that followed. Others had not been so reserved; the seamstresses, jewellers and milliners of the city had been kept occupied and she doubted if there remained a peacock unplucked in the entire state.

She found her seat, two rows behind the guest of honour, the great Giuseppe Verdi, here to honour his friend with his new work. She would have expected him to conduct the performance himself but apparently he was happier remaining among his patrons. They were equally eager to have the opportunity to ogle, many of them in attendance for reasons that had nothing to do with worship or musical appreciation. Verdi was a celebrity and they wanted to see the great man for themselves. At sixty years old, he still had the vigour of a much younger man and bristled with nervous energy as he waited for the performance to begin.

Coraline's reason for attending was to ensure her place in this society where she had made her home and she had not expected to be so transported by the music. Although she was a longstanding admirer, the master had outdone himself; passion, regret, grief poured through every line and phrase. The desperation of the "Libera Me" brought a tear to her eye and a chill to her stone-cold heart. But it was the "Dies Irae" that would be her abiding memory. The day of judgement, the day of wrath indeed. For the first time in many years, she was frightened by the intensity and import; the creation of such music must surely signify the presence of a divine hand. What would be her reckoning?

As the performance ended, she gathered her thoughts, reminded herself why she was there and fixed her most dazzling smile as she approached the composer, having made sure that her tears remained resolutely visible. "Signor Verdi, forgive me for interrupting you at your time of grief, but I wanted to thank you. Alessandro would have been honoured and moved." The older man took her hand in his and kissed it. Like everyone there who mattered, he knew who she was and their mutual acknowledgement was in both their interests.

"Thank you, my dear. I am honoured. Your father was a great, great man and a true friend. I shall always miss him and this is my paltry tribute to his genius." He droned on for a while about Alessandro and the meanings in his work, a subject that held little interest for her; Coraline was glad that he was a composer not a poet. Eventually she took her leave by the rear exit, pausing to admire the Angel of the Resurrection depicted on an ancient tombstone. She smiled, a fleeting, self-satisfied smile; for Alessandro, she had been that angel.
Image

Click here for my story index

"Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality" - Emily Dickinson
User avatar
wpgrace
100% Moonlightaholic
Posts: 16429
Joined: Sat Jan 17, 2009 2:25 pm

Re: Sacred and Profane (one-shot, PG-13)

Post by wpgrace »

OK, I chose this this evening rather than Sense... no big surprise. I'm not hearty when it comes to Mick...

The first time I read this, I hadn't yet read your Emancipation of Josef story... I know writing is all about the muse and what hits when... I totally get that since I never get hit by a muse and totally live vicariously thru y'alls'...

But you have a talent for these historical pieces (and a talent for the modern pieces, but this comment is about this, historical, story)... there is a richness of sight and color and sound, and smell even, woven into your historical stories, like a tapestry. I so see her in the church, but I can even see her with Alessandro in their days together...

if the muse starts prompting you to write another background story for these characters, you should go with it. Cause ML story or not, this and the Josef piece kinda stand on their own. Even if someone didn't know them from the ML show.

And I'll get to Sense again eventually. I cycle back to everything eventually, but the dead-Mick stories are tough... sigh.
Image
Banner by redwinter101. I miss you, Beloved.
Awesome avatar by the awesome, clever, and gracious Lilly.

If you read a lot of books you are considered well read. But if you watch a lot of TV, you're not considered well viewed. Lilly Tomlin

Grateful to Alex for Mick, Andy, and McG. :)
User avatar
redwinter101
100% Moonlightaholic
Posts: 23759
Joined: Fri Jan 16, 2009 10:19 am
Location: lost in Moonlight, forever

Re: Sacred and Profane (one-shot, PG-13)

Post by redwinter101 »

Thanks, Grace. Out of all the ML stories I've written, this remains one of my very favourites - it never found much of an audience, but I like it nonetheless. I'm sure there will be more at some point :)

And re Sense, oy, well, I did promise....

Red
Image

Click here for my story index

"Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality" - Emily Dickinson
User avatar
wpgrace
100% Moonlightaholic
Posts: 16429
Joined: Sat Jan 17, 2009 2:25 pm

Re: Sacred and Profane (one-shot, PG-13)

Post by wpgrace »

Yeah this is one of my favorites of yours too... which is why I came here to find it. But I find Cora fascinating and that is PARTLY why I love this story... the other reason why is in my first post above... it being just a remarkable piece of writing.

I think the great shame for me, in just having the one season, is that the rich and checkered backgrounds of Cora and Josef-- and Mick, but his back-story is just shorter--will never be revealed and shown. For me, of course, not getting more Cora sucks.

She is so much more complex than most people who watched the show get. Even given the few little snippets we got about her, her life has been all over the place and so is her personality. And Shannyn was a great choice playing her. (Not even mentioning the actor-chemistry with Alex).

But if you think about, just historically, what a woman would have seen and experienced and been thru in the particular 300-odd years of her existence, the stories that COULD be told run the gamut. Such a shame not to tell them. And as here, she can be invested with so many more layers of experience and thoughtfulness than just the evil chick who surprise-turned the handsome guy.

But then you HAVE thought about that... to the benefit of the rest of us... or at least the ones willing to give a Cora story a chance.
Image
Banner by redwinter101. I miss you, Beloved.
Awesome avatar by the awesome, clever, and gracious Lilly.

If you read a lot of books you are considered well read. But if you watch a lot of TV, you're not considered well viewed. Lilly Tomlin

Grateful to Alex for Mick, Andy, and McG. :)
User avatar
redwinter101
100% Moonlightaholic
Posts: 23759
Joined: Fri Jan 16, 2009 10:19 am
Location: lost in Moonlight, forever

Re: Sacred and Profane (one-shot, PG-13)

Post by redwinter101 »

Grace,

I'm not a great believer in "the muse".... I promise I will try to write some more Cora backstory.

Red
Image

Click here for my story index

"Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality" - Emily Dickinson
User avatar
wpgrace
100% Moonlightaholic
Posts: 16429
Joined: Sat Jan 17, 2009 2:25 pm

Re: Sacred and Profane (one-shot, PG-13)

Post by wpgrace »

redwinter101 wrote:Grace,

I'm not a great believer in "the muse".... I promise I will try to write some more Cora backstory.

Red

Wow, really? Just like that?

Seek and ye shall find, ask and it shall be given...

Who knew? Thanks, you lovely lovely person you...
Image
Banner by redwinter101. I miss you, Beloved.
Awesome avatar by the awesome, clever, and gracious Lilly.

If you read a lot of books you are considered well read. But if you watch a lot of TV, you're not considered well viewed. Lilly Tomlin

Grateful to Alex for Mick, Andy, and McG. :)
User avatar
redwinter101
100% Moonlightaholic
Posts: 23759
Joined: Fri Jan 16, 2009 10:19 am
Location: lost in Moonlight, forever

Re: Sacred and Profane (one-shot, PG-13)

Post by redwinter101 »

Note the "try".....

Once I've worked out how to make more hours in the day, of course...

Red
Image

Click here for my story index

"Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality" - Emily Dickinson
User avatar
wpgrace
100% Moonlightaholic
Posts: 16429
Joined: Sat Jan 17, 2009 2:25 pm

Re: Sacred and Profane (one-shot, PG-13)

Post by wpgrace »

redwinter101 wrote:Note the "try".....

Once I've worked out how to make more hours in the day, of course...

Red

I get that... I'm still trying to put away all the Christmas wrapping paraphernalia... and my behind has been parked in front of the tv all day watching the inauguration, so needless to say, no progress is being made...

No worries. I'll be here whenever... if ever... whatever...
Image
Banner by redwinter101. I miss you, Beloved.
Awesome avatar by the awesome, clever, and gracious Lilly.

If you read a lot of books you are considered well read. But if you watch a lot of TV, you're not considered well viewed. Lilly Tomlin

Grateful to Alex for Mick, Andy, and McG. :)
LynetteC
Kostan Industries intern
Posts: 45
Joined: Sun Jan 18, 2009 2:39 pm

Re: Sacred and Profane (one-shot, PG-13)

Post by LynetteC »

redwinter101 wrote:Thanks, Grace. Out of all the ML stories I've written, this remains one of my very favourites - it never found much of an audience, but I like it nonetheless. I'm sure there will be more at some point :)

And re Sense, oy, well, I did promise....

Red
I guess the benefit of posting on a new board is that there are less fics for gems like this to get lost in! I'd never seen this one before; perhaps because I'm not really that much of a Coraline fan so tend not to read Cora-centric fics that often. Having said that, an idea for a Coraline story has been running around my head all day - don't ask me why. :shock: It'll probably end up the same as the last three ideas I've had - half written and gathering virtual dust in some dark and lonely sector of my hard drive! Then again, I'll do anything to avoid doing my Tax Return so you never know...... :P

This was beautiful Red. I could visualise Corline in her red cloak, gliding down between the pews to her seat; her emotions as she listened to the music. I'm glad I took the chance to read this before it got lost amongst all the other stories.

L.
My eternal thanks to Pinkiepie230 for my awesome banner!

Image

My first ever fanfic Revelations (PG-13) Mick/Beth in response to Champagne Challenge #103
User avatar
redwinter101
100% Moonlightaholic
Posts: 23759
Joined: Fri Jan 16, 2009 10:19 am
Location: lost in Moonlight, forever

Re: Sacred and Profane (one-shot, PG-13)

Post by redwinter101 »

*hugs Grace*

Lynette, thanks for giving this one a chance. Another Coraline story will be along shortly... I sympathise with stuff getting buried (because there is so much wonderful fic out there) but I'm hoping that the way offices and indexes are organised here will make things easier to find :)

Red
Image

Click here for my story index

"Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality" - Emily Dickinson
User avatar
nutmegger911
Cleaner
Posts: 6233
Joined: Sat Jan 17, 2009 10:36 pm
Location: Right here - right now

Re: Sacred and Profane (one-shot, PG-13)

Post by nutmegger911 »

A richly descriptive piece that paints a believable portrait of Coraline.

Never would have found it had I not wandered into the coffee house.
NM911
Image
LIVE WIDE
It ain't canon until they've shot it (and aired it) - I said that.
Trust the Muse. - Catmoon
The system isn't broken, it's fixed. - Billo
User avatar
coco
Cleaner
Posts: 6983
Joined: Fri Jan 16, 2009 6:17 pm
Location: In my own little corner of Moonlight heaven :)
Contact:

Re: Sacred and Profane (one-shot, PG-13)

Post by coco »

Red I'm back reading this for the Coffee House but I now realise that I've never left a comment for this on this board before now :blushing: Let me rectify that now.

This is a superb piece of writing that highlights so beautifully all there is to see in Coraline. This is a woman who has so much history and so much to explore and I am the first to admit that the Coraline I saw on screen didn't appeal to me. I didn't discover what I liked in Coraline until I read fics like this that gave us a more rounded Coraline with a back story. I know she had one on the show too but I don't think they took much care with her as a character (or maybe that's just me :eyes:)

There are so many layers to Coraline and you are one of the best when it comes to portraying Coraline :biggrin:
coco's Fan Vids/coco's Graphic Art
Image
Avi by TugaFanatic & banner by me. Thank you.

"Maybe it was her blood in my veins that let me feel her. The beating of her very living heart. Or maybe, we've always been connected." Mick & Beth - Moonlight


coco's YT channel
coco's Vimeo channel
100% Moonlight Tumblr
:twothumbs:
User avatar
redwinter101
100% Moonlightaholic
Posts: 23759
Joined: Fri Jan 16, 2009 10:19 am
Location: lost in Moonlight, forever

Re: Sacred and Profane (one-shot, PG-13)

Post by redwinter101 »

nm911, thank you.

coco, I so love that you are so willing to read stories about characters, like Coraline, who just don't float your boat. I agree with you, with bells on, that Coraline was established in the show, set up to be fabulously interesting, and then just dropped. It's a continuing source of ire :angry: . Having said that, as someone who started out disliking her intensely (as we were supposed to) I grew to find her intriguing and fascinating, both as a character in her own right and as a route to understanding Mick.

Red
Image

Click here for my story index

"Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality" - Emily Dickinson
User avatar
allegrita
Moonlightaholic Admin
Posts: 45961
Joined: Sat Jan 17, 2009 9:22 am
Location: Snuggled under the brown afghan, watching the fire

Re: Sacred and Profane (one-shot, PG-13)

Post by allegrita »

Red, I was prompted to reread this by the Coffee House, and I'm so glad I did. Like coco, I realized that I never commented on this story in this forum...and I'm very fond of it, both because it's about music and because it's about Coraline's past. I love this little vignette pulled from her rich life. It provokes so many questions...when did she leave France? How did she meet Manzoni? How will she take her place in Milanese society, without becoming too obvious? What kinds of accommodations are there for female vampires in this era--are there male "swallows," to steal Librarian_7's wonderful pun? Coraline is obviously well off, but what has she been doing--is she still a courtesan? Oh, I'm incredibly intrigued by all this, and yet the story is complete as it stands.

I guess it shouldn't surprise us that there aren't many stories about Coraline's early days. For one thing, as you and grace discussed, Coraline just isn't that popular among the fandom--which is a great shame. For another, it's harder to place women in history, because women weren't written about much, so it requires more research and a better imagination than writing about men, I think.

You've written the story in such vivid sensory terms. The sensuality of it is partly what makes it an incredibly vampire-ish story. Coraline's appreciation of what her senses tell her is another thing that sets her apart from everyone else in that church. Well, that and her age, of course...

I was struck by this wonderful phrase, which describes her perception of religion, but also captures her personality perfectly:
...she loved the ritual, the inherent drama, the persistence of hope.
I'm pretty sure she still does...
Image
User avatar
redwinter101
100% Moonlightaholic
Posts: 23759
Joined: Fri Jan 16, 2009 10:19 am
Location: lost in Moonlight, forever

Re: Sacred and Profane (one-shot, PG-13)

Post by redwinter101 »

:happysigh: What a lovely comment, alle. I do have answers to some of those questions (swilling around in my head somewhere) but not all, as this really did just come about as a stand alone without too much thought as to how Coraline got here or where she went afterwards. I really wish I had more ideas for Coraline's backstory but they just aren't coming to me at the moment.

Someone pointed out to me after reading this months ago that Morgan had lots of photos of churches on her desk and on her computer; I'd never spotted that so it did give me a little thrill that her fascination with all things religious was so in line with canon.

:rose: :rose:

Red
Image

Click here for my story index

"Unable are the loved to die, for love is immortality" - Emily Dickinson
Post Reply

Return to “redwinter101's Office”