(no subject)

[slybrunette]

Title: Authority Figure
Fandom: Lost
Characters/Pairings: Kate centric, various pairings including Jack/Kate, and Kate/Sayid.
Prompt: Kinks and quirks for gemjam
Word Count: 607
Rating: PG-13
Summary: Kate's always had a thing for authority.

Kate’s always had a thing for authority.

 

It’s not hard to figure out if you look at her track record. The best friend who turned into something more was a doctor. Her husband was a cop.

 

It goes further than that, deeper than that.

 

After she’d left Kevin, when she was exhausted and looking for a way out of this mess she’d gotten herself into, she’d entertained the thought of setting her sights on the one person who seemed to want to bring her down the most. Part of her thought that perhaps if she got involved with him, if she could make him feel something towards her, she could convince him to stop chasing her, to just leave her alone. But there was always another part that was intrigued by the thought of having that power over him, of having authority under her thumb instead of continually being at its mercy.

 

Wayne was always the authority when she was a kid. And it wasn’t just her that he seemed to rule over, it was her mother too. Too many tears shed, too many black eyes, and she had promised herself that no one would ever hold that kind of power over her again.

 

She killed Wayne. But she didn’t get anything out of that but a lifetime of pain, and a lifetime of running, always having to look over her shoulder wherever she went. She didn’t get her independence, her freedom. Power was just simply transferred.

 

With Edward Mars, her plan was to play his emotions against him. She wasn’t going to kill him. She’d learned that lesson; death solved nothing. And it worked for awhile, she could see cracks, he was starting to fall for her games. But he figured her out too quick, and when he did he was just that much more dead set on making sure she was brought to justice. At least that’s what he called it.

 

But he was dead and buried now, and she’d never have to run from him again.  

 

Enter Jack.

 

This was a different kind of attraction though. This wasn’t all about using him to get what she wanted. She genuinely cared about him. It just happened to work out that way. Everyone trusted him, his word was as good as gold, and he could get what he wanted. Then she tricked him one time too many, lied to him too often in a desperate attempt to hide a part of her that she wasn’t proud of, and ran when he got too close, when too much of her heart was at stake.

 

And now she’s here. And now she’s got a whole other problem. This one involving Sayid.

 

Because they’ve been friends to some degree since they landed here, and she was focused on Jack and Sawyer, and he had Shannon. Now Shannon’s dead, Jack is kissing Juliet right in front of her, and her conversations with Sawyer have dissolved into childish moves like splashing him with water to get his attention. And suddenly Sayid is looking more like an option.

 

Her obsession, and her need for, authority is what is attracting her to him. She knows this. She also knows that it’s not right. That entering into, or even trying to enter into, anything with him would be unfair because she would be using him. Not that she thinks Sayid would be someone who would let himself get used. He isn’t stupid. Like the Marshal, he would figure her out. She’d rather have someone left on her side then give in.

 

That doesn’t mean she doesn’t think about what might happen if she did. 

Comments

[bebitched.livejournal.com]

It's an interesting dynamic that Kate has, fighting with the idea of authority while still being kind of turned on by it. She does tend to go for powerful men ;) Although I'm not sure how Sawyer figures into that...

[slybrunette.livejournal.com]

You know I didn't want to write porn for this, and I thought that this was an interesting obsession of hers, so I did this instead. While Sawyer doesn't fit into that she's gone for two doctors, a cop, and, judging by what we saw with her and Ed Mars, has some history with a U.S. Marshal. *shrugs* I thought it worked to a degree.

Thanks for reading!

[bebitched.livejournal.com]

It's probably that all those guys (good guys, I might point out) remind her of who she wants to be, like her father. Sawyer remind her of who she thinks she is, who she thinks she deserves, and of the part of her that she accounts to Wayne. And it does work. That's what I was saying.

[cmonkatiekatie.livejournal.com]

Oh wow. This is so insightful and just interesting, you know? I'm a little in awe.

I'm gonna have to friend you, I hope that's okay.

[slybrunette.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I really was at a loss for what to write until about an hour ago when this just poured out.

And after that Kate/Sayid you wrote, I'm gonna have to friend you back.

[gemjam.livejournal.com]

This is so perfect for Kate. I absolutely love it. The whole authority figure thing makes so much sense for her. She is attracted to strong men, and I love how you take the roots of that right back to Wayne. Wayne was the first man to have power over her, and yet, after she kills him, she finds herself looking for other men with power, ones who can maybe protect her, ones who she can twist to her needs.

I love her thoughts on the Marshal, on how she tries to get his sympathies, but how he sees through her and it ends up so much worse. And then there's Jack, who's trusting and naive, but who she pushes her luck with one too many times and she loses him too. And then with Sayid, I love the way you turn her attentions around to him, after she loses both Jack and Sawyer.

The thing with Kate, in a lot of ways, she needs a man, someone to take care of her, but she can't let anyone do that, can't let anyone close, which is why she ends up alone. It comes back to the power. She doesn't want anyone to have power over her, and yet, at the same time, she kind of craves it. It's such a complex little thing, because she simply doesn't know how to settle these two halves of herself between what she wants and what she wants to want.

I just love what you've done with her here, it's so interesting and complex. And then how she wants Sayid at the end, but she kind of works it out, she sees that if she's smart and she keeps him as a friend instead of trying to push further, then she won't lose him and she'll still have an ally. And yet, you can see her resolve weakening, because she needs more than that.

Thank you so much for this, it's such a though provoking piece and definitely something I need to come back to. Really interesting look into her inner workings here. Great fic :)

[slybrunette.livejournal.com]

Thank you! You know, with Kate a lot of her issues seem to go back to Wayne, and her need to seperate herself from him. And if you look at all these men that she's been involved with they all have the common denominator of having a great deal of authority and power. I'll have to admit, this started as just a way to do something with Kate/Sayid, I had no idea what it was going to turn into.

And you're very right with what you said about Kate. She doesn't want anyone to have a hold over her, and yet she does crave it.

I can't tell you how much I enjoy reading your reviews, they're always so thorough, and you always manage to make some very interesting points. So thank you for commenting, and for reading! And of course for the awesome prompts.

[tinkerbell99.livejournal.com]

This is a really interesting look inside Kate's head. It really IS obvious that she has a thing for authority, and I like how you explored the different types of authority - everything from Jack to Wayne. (And Ed Mars! I love Ed Mars!)

[slybrunette.livejournal.com]

The Ed Mars thing is something I'm going to blame you for just like I did with Jack/Shannon, because the Kate/Ed Mars fics you wrote totally got inside my head, and now it's forever canon.

But she does obviously have a thing for authority, I don't know why I hadn't seen that before.

I'm glad you liked it, thanks for reading!

[gottalovev.livejournal.com]

I am really convinced that something happened between Kate and Ed Mars. I hope they explore that, because I find it fascinating.

as is this fic, this portrait of Kate. I really enjoyed it a lot, thanks!

[slybrunette.livejournal.com]

I am too, because there just seemed to be so much history with the two of them.

I'm glad that you enjoyed it, thanks for reading!

[raisingirl99.livejournal.com]

That was fascinating. As I'm sure you know by now, I love how you write Kate. It's always so insightful, and the way you present (and delve into) her dark side without being overly sympathetic or completely unsympathetic. I don't think I'm describing this very well, so just take it as praise (because that's how I originally intended it to be, lol).

Oh, and of course I enjoy any reference of Kate/Sayid. ;)

[slybrunette.livejournal.com]

I know exactly what you're saying, and I appreciate that you're saying it at all. My feelings toward Kate change as the seasons go along, and I think as a writer you can't really be too biased. You have to present them as they are on the show, for good or for bad, and work with what they give you. There are times I hate her and I can't let that bleed through.

And I figured you would like the Kate/Sayid angle, which is part of why I tried to work that in there ;)

Glad you liked it! Thanks for reading!

[raisingirl99.livejournal.com]

And I figured you would like the Kate/Sayid angle, which is part of why I tried to work that in there ;)

Thank you!!! :)

[ladybeth.livejournal.com]

Hmm..interesting character study of Kate.

[slybrunette.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

[zelda-zee.livejournal.com]

I really liked this - it brought up some things I hadn't thought about in regards to Kate, probably because, in all honesty, I don't spend a lot of time thinking about her, so I'm glad you be given this insight. I am rather fond of Kate/Sayid though, so I liked your ending, especially her acknowledgment that Sayid is not the type of man to let himself be used.

[slybrunette.livejournal.com]

Well I'm glad that you got something out of this -- to be honest I hadn't even really thought about it until I wrote this, and I write a lot of Kate. And I too am very fond of Kate/Sayid, it's something I wish they would've experimented with more in Season 1.

Thank you for reading, and for the feedback!

[halfdutch.livejournal.com]

I love this -- such a brilliant insight into Kate. She's kind of like Shannon, isn't she, sizing up the men in her life and gravitating towards the ones who can help her the most or whom she can use? I like that she realizes that about herself and yet she kind of can't stop.

And hey, I meant to friend you during the luau but I'm doing it now. :)

[slybrunette.livejournal.com]

Thank you! She is like Shannon actually, though I'd never really said that to anyone since I figured people would think I was a bit crazy. But you are totally right. She figures out which ones she can use to get what she want. They both do.

I'm friending you right back :)

[zelda-zee.livejournal.com]

So true! Great insight into Kate. It really makes perfect sense with her personality and her behavior in canon.

Plus, Kate/Sayid is one of my favorite het pairings, and I think she's quite correct in thinking that Sayid is not one to let himself be used.

And damn, you made me want to write Kate/Mars, lol!

[slybrunette.livejournal.com]

Thank you! It was one of those things where if you think over what you know of a character enough times you start to see things you hadn't before.

Kate/Mars is something I'd love to write, just never found the inspiration for. You should totally write it though.

I'm glad you liked this!