First-Lines meme

[deelaundry]

As seen on everyone's LJ, here is the "first lines" meme. Under the cut are 30 first lines from my fics. Everyone reading this is free to build an entirely new story from one or all of them, whether it's a drabble, a ficlet, or an epic, using the same first line. Please leave me a note in comments if you do!

For added fun, I've left off the name of the fic each came from. If you make a guess in comments where it's from (hint: these are all more than a year old), I'll answer any question you have on any of my stories or 'verses.

Allison Cameron sighed as she walked in through her front door.

Bob sat on the exam room table and tried not to fidget.

Cameron was having a House moment.

Canada is boring.

Dr. House, I really appreciate all that your team has done for me.

"Get the hell over here!" House screamed down the line.

He tells her all the time how pretty she is.

Hey, House, look at this.

House said it as a joke first.

House wonders sometimes if the apology is to blame for all of this.

House, stop it.

House's head was hanging low over his desk when he heard the door open.

I don't mind the eyes on me.

I’m not normally the kind of person who talks on planes.

It was an unusually warm Tuesday in late March, so they chose to have lunch outside.

It was without a doubt the worst conference Wilson had ever gone to.

It’s ten-thirty on a Thursday, and Chase can’t imagine how he ended up here, squeezed between Cameron and Foreman, across from House and Wilson, in a booth that’s really meant for four.

Julie hadn’t laughed this much in ages.

She'd expected the bar to be deserted; it was Christmas Eve, after all.

So, your Dean-ship, light of my life, that’s my plan. What do you think?

The streetlights had gotten sparser and sparser, and the buildings had gotten dingier and dingier.

There are several people in this world who hate Greg House, and at the moment James Wilson is one of them.

They weren’t the first ones to do this, but close enough.

Things had a way of working out for Jimmy Wilson.

Wilson comes by to get House for lunch, but it's only eleven a.m. and the latest round of tests on - hell, House hasn't even thought up a nickname yet for this patient.

Wilson opened his eyes to another normal day.

Wilson was able to knock off work reasonably early - five-fifteen - but he still felt the weight of the world on his shoulders.

Wilson was in pretty heavy denial about why he cheated on his wives, but he knows exactly why he cheats on House.

Wilson, would you get on with it?

You don't talk about your family.

Comments

[inlaterdays.livejournal.com]

This is SO COOL! Swiping...

[deelaundry.livejournal.com]

Swipe away! : )

[inlaterdays.livejournal.com]

On second thought I'm not going to because your first lines are AMAZING and mine are all lame sentence fragments D:

[deelaundry.livejournal.com]

Do it anyway! Did you see tasha_elizabeth's? They're almost all sentence fragments, too. The point (I think) is just to provide prompts for other people who want them.

Look below: Both Zulu and HWshipper picked the very boring "Canada is boring" to work from!

♥ you

July 1, 198_ (Mathletes 'verse, House/Rodney, G)

[zulu.livejournal.com]

"Canada is boring."

"Mmhm," Rodney says, not listening (really, genius at work, he can't be expected to actually take in, consider, and formulate a response to everything everybody says to him (which isn't a lot, if they're Tami Hutchinson, for instance, but which is more than enough, if they're his parents yelling or Jeannie complaining or his English teacher sighing in despair over his 'creative writing', which, okay, turned into a diatribe on how wrong, wrong, wrong traditional physics is, and how he is going to tell them so and grow up to win the Nobel Prize; but nobody said the short story shouldn't have footnotes or an accurate bibliography, so really, it's her fault for sloppy grading rubrics (and the real problem, Rodney thinks--about listening, that is--is the nested parentheses he gets into when he's busy thinking.))) "Wait. What?"

"Canada," House repeats, rolling his eyes, "is boring."

Rodney blinks and looks up from the scribbling he's been doing to correct their out-of-date science textbook. He plans to send it back to the manufacturer so that next year's grade twelves don't have to suffer as he did from misinformation. He can, however, reorient, when House launches an unprovoked attack on his nation's sovereignty. "No, it's not."

House is leaning against a tree and poking a stick into an anthill, watching the soldier-ants scurry each time he digs a new hole into the foundation of their universe. He's wearing a plain white t-shirt, the back brushed with dirt and grass stains from, uh...earlier, and shorts that show off that, yeah, even a nerd can have really nice, muscley legs. Not that Rodney noticed, at all. "Yes, it is," he says, his voice laced with more sarcasm than even Rodney can work up on a good day. "It's Canada Day, and nobody's getting drunk and drowning in their own kiddie-pool or shooting fireworks into their faces or exploding their barbeques with lighter fluid or anything. You call this a celebration?"

Rodney frowns. Admittedly, all his mom said was "Go play outside, for once, Meredith, honestly." Later his dad might make them sing the anthem along with the television when the Stamps-TiCats game starts. Football, ugh. "The ice cream truck came by," he says, which is so, so lame, but it did, and for once they weren't out of triple-fudge bars and he actually had some allowance left to buy one. Except House stole the last bite, and of course Rodney had to get him back for that, and then House said that he knew how chocolate tasted better anyway, and kissed him, and that led to, um. Earlier.

"Anyway," he says, before House can mock him for the ice-cream truck comment, "Canada so isn't boring, for you."

House squints at him suspiciously. "What do you mean?"

"You have a secret boyfriend," Rodney points out. "Which we aren't telling anybody, and which, you know, we do--" He blushes like an idiot, but he finishes his point admirably with a very lewd sort of handwave. "So yeah. If that's so boring, why are you still even here? Why don't you go back to Egypt? Because you were getting so lucky there."

House's face sort of does this thing, when he gets upset, where all of a sudden he doesn't have any expression at all. Rodney wonders frantically what he said that must have been really really wrong and stupid. And how to take it back. He glares down at his textbook and suddenly that seems stupid too, because of course the textbook publishers aren't going to listen to him, just like the CIA refused to, even though the bomb wasn't a working model anyway.

House shoves the stick into the anthill and wraps his arms around his grubby, knobby knees (Rodney really doesn't like his legs that much), and then he mutters, "You're not boring."

"Oh," Rodney says. And grins. Probably he looks really dumb, because House smirks at him, and kind of waggles his eyebrows. "Yeah, well. You too," he says, and then House pushes him over before he can make the whole thing worse, and kisses him again.

This time, Rodney's the one who ends up with grass stains all over his back, but at least he'll be able to tell his mom that he had fun playing outside.

Re: July 1, 198_ (Mathletes 'verse, House/Rodney, G)

[deelaundry.livejournal.com]

Awesome! Canada Day and grass stains and Earlier. They are neither of them boring *happy sigh*

[hwshipper.livejournal.com]

"Canada is boring," House opined, looking suspiciously at the wrinkled plastic carrier bag with the maple leaf motif.

"I knew you'd appreciate it." Wilson handed the bag to House.

"I'm glad to see you scoured the local markets for Canadian delicacies." The bag was emblazoned MONTREAL AIRPORT. House reached in and took out a large bottle of maple syrup. He stared and grinned. "'You expect me to... cook with this?"

"Not really." Wilson took the bottle, unscrewed the cap, and dipped his finger in. He held out his hand.

House lowered his head and took Wilson's finger in his mouth.

***

100 words exactly!

I don't know what fic this line came from, but I know a couple of the others. Wilson was in pretty heavy denial about why he cheated on his wives, but he knows exactly why he cheats on House is Respite; House finds out he's cheating by messages on his phone.

And I'm pretty sure Things had a way of working out for Jimmy Wilson is Wilson The Great. I couldn't use either of these lines myself because the real fics are both such absolute favourites of mine :)

[deelaundry.livejournal.com]

Mmmm, so sexy in a G-rated fic! How do you do it?

The Canada line is from "O Canada," a ficlet in the "My Fathers' Son" universe. You're right on both the others (although House doesn't find out about the cheating until the sequel, "Resolution.")

[hannahrorlove.livejournal.com]

Canada Is Boring - O Canada

"Get the Hell over here!" - Not Angels

I'm not normally... - Why [Dr.] House Canceled Poker Night

It was without a doubt... - Second Petition

Julie hadn't laughed... - Shiksa

They weren't the first ones... - Petition

Things had a way of working... - Wilson The Great

You don't talk about your family. - My Fathers' Son

[deelaundry.livejournal.com]

Damn, you're good! "Julie hadn't laughed" is "Sequel to Shiksa" but every other one is exactly right. Any questions you want to ask? (Aside from "Where the hell is my SGA fic, you lazy bitch?")

[hannahrorlove.livejournal.com]

I assume the SGA fic is finished, just unwritten. Besides, I still owe several commentaries; no need for me to point fingers.

I'd rather ask about Not Angels - does the mass media leap on the event like a pack of wild dogs on a dead zebra, and how long did it take House to figure out the muscle coordination needed to fly?

[deelaundry.livejournal.com]

I'd rather ask about Not Angels - does the mass media leap on the event like a pack of wild dogs on a dead zebra,

Oh, hell yeah, they do. Fox News proclaims it a hoax perpetrated by liberals to expand the size of the federal government and socialize medicine. One of the editors of The Star has a massive heart attack from the shock and almost dies. People and Us Weekly start speculating on which celebrities are dating The Angels (what Chase, Foreman, and Cameron are instantly dubbed). And the medical journals have huge fights over manuscripts -- Chase's goes into Spine, JAMA gets Foreman's, and New England Journal of Medicine gets House & Wilson's (which Cameron mostly wrote, but she ends up with fourth author credit, behind Stein from Orthopedics).

and how long did it take House to figure out the muscle coordination needed to fly?

This one, I don't know. It's the first thing he turns his mind to, though, ignoring all pleas to focus on how they got this way and how to get them back. House knows a good deal when he sees it -- who needs a leg when you can fly?

[hannahrorlove.livejournal.com]

People and Us Weekly
That's so petty, but then, petty is why those magazines exist in the first place.

Did they go into quarantine? Is it infections, spontaneous wing-growth?

[deelaundry.livejournal.com]

No quarantine. House declared immediately that it wasn't infectious. A couple of the others thought that decision was premature, but on the other hand none of them wanted to be quarantined.

[hannahrorlove.livejournal.com]

I hope you won't think too badly of me when I say I'm really more interested in the set-up and background to a throwaway fic than I probably should be.

[deelaundry.livejournal.com]

World-building is awesomely fun.

Non-fandom-based drabble.

[hannahrorlove.livejournal.com]

The streetlights had gotten sparser and sparser, and the buildings had gotten dingier and dingier. When his parents were kids, they’d have called this area the wrong side of the tracks; now it was known as the bad part of town. The air smelled of ruddy gasoline and smoke. Oddly enough, it was quieter here than where he’d come from when he’d started this little journey. Or that wasn’t quite it. It was just as quiet here as it was there, but now he was more aware of the sounds he wasn’t hearing, and what he should be listening for.

Re: Non-fandom-based drabble.

[deelaundry.livejournal.com]

Ooh, awesome. The last standing was an excellent observation, wow.

[phinnia.livejournal.com]

(note: I have NO IDEA where this came from in my brain.)

"I don't mind the eyes on me."
It was the kind of casual, layered statement that House was best at - a verbal Towers of Hanoi puzzle Wilson had figured out the trick to solving long ago.
But this was the first one that had been whispered there, within the whipstitched borders of their king-sized mattress, night-out clothes in puddles on the floor and Wilson's fingers ghosting the red remainder-circlet around House's throat.
Wilson turned the words around in his head for a moment, smiled. "Okay."
Next time they went out, they brought the harness as well as the collar.
(100 words)

[deelaundry.livejournal.com]

I LOVE IT! Collars are so sexy - and especially worn in public! Mmmmmmmmmmmmm.

[xaipw.livejournal.com]

There are several people in this world who hate Greg House, and at the moment James Wilson is one of them.

That's from Perchance, right? One of my favorites.

[deelaundry.livejournal.com]

YEP! *hugging you back*

Did you see the post ragging on the S5 promo pics? Hilarious.

[xaipw.livejournal.com]

Promo pics? I haven't even checked HHoW yet. I've been running around like crazy all day. )))sore feet(((

[deelaundry.livejournal.com]

Boo for sore feet! I meant the SGA S5 pics. Walking through water without getting wet, not casting a shadow, etc.

[xaipw.livejournal.com]

Oooh. And I got all excited thinking that there were new House promos. *pouts*

Yeah, the SGA pics are laughably bad. Look! No shadows! Who are the space vampires now?!

[deelaundry.livejournal.com]

Sure is!

[daisylily.livejournal.com]

Hey House, look at this.

That's from The Registry, which I think is my very very favourite of your fics...

And 'You don't talk about your family' is from Jack My Fathers' Son, of course.

Back later to see if I can remember the titles of at least some of the others (because you know I'm completely hopeless at remembering titles... :D )

(And yes, I do know that you'll tell me anything about any of your fics ;P )

[deelaundry.livejournal.com]

All my good fics were in the first few months...

You're right, of course, on both of those. :D

[daisylily.livejournal.com]

No they weren't! ;P

And now I'll see what else I can remember - still not looking at anyone else's comments (I'll do that when I've finished trying to remember titles).

Allison Cameron sighed as she walked in through her front door. The Time Cameron Had Mono (or is it 'That Time'?)

Canada is boring. Hmm. Is that from one of the SGA crossovers, or is that a cunning red herring?...

Dr. House, I really appreciate all that your team has done for me. That's from The Proposal (I can remember the Monoverse titles XD ) - the bigoted patient.

Hey, House, look at this. The Registry.

House wonders sometimes if the apology is to blame for all of this. This is on the tip of my brain, but is refusing to come forward and make itself known.

House's head was hanging low over his desk when he heard the door open. Is that the one where Wilson's parents are coming to visit and Cameron gets House to take her out of the hospital for a performance review so he doesn't keep getting harrassed by a stressed-out Wilson?

I don't mind the eyes on me. Pillory.

I’m not normally the kind of person who talks on planes. Is that from the second part of Why Doctor House Canceled Poker Night? When Dry Cleaner meets Wilson on a plane? I have absolutely no idea what the title is, though...

It was an unusually warm Tuesday in late March, so they chose to have lunch outside. This is another tip-of-the-brain one...

It was without a doubt the worst conference Wilson had ever gone to. Second Petition? That's the one with Laura the Hotel Lady and the mattress exhibition, isn't it?

It’s ten-thirty on a Thursday, and Chase can’t imagine how he ended up here, squeezed between Cameron and Foreman, across from House and Wilson, in a booth that’s really meant for four. That's the karaoke one, where Chase gets all confused. No idea of the title!

The streetlights had gotten sparser and sparser, and the buildings had gotten dingier and dingier. Ooh, I know this one! Theater 3.

There are several people in this world who hate Greg House, and at the moment James Wilson is one of them. That's the one where Wilson is really tired and wants to go home, but House has his car keys, and he ends up stealing House's bike and going to House's apartment. I can almost remember the title but can't quite get it.

They weren’t the first ones to do this, but close enough. The divorce one. Petition?

Things had a way of working out for Jimmy Wilson. Wilson the Great.

Wilson comes by to get House for lunch, but it's only eleven a.m. and the latest round of tests on - hell, House hasn't even thought up a nickname yet for this patient. I'm pretty sure I re-read this recently, and yet I still can't remember the title!

Wilson was in pretty heavy denial about why he cheated on his wives, but he knows exactly why he cheats on House. That's the one with the gay Mensa thing in it. Oh, it's just come to me - Respite. And yes, I do know that gay Mensa is in Resolution, but those two belong together.

Wilson, would you get on with it? I can remember the next line of this, I think ("Impatience - so sexy") and I seem to remember that it's the fic that had someone comment about 'old people' having sex = EWWW, but as usual, I can't for the life of me remember the title.

You don't talk about your family. My Fathers' Son.

I actually remembered more than I thought I would XD

ETA: stupid html tags...

[deelaundry.livejournal.com]

You remembered a lot!

Canada is boring. is from "O Canada" which is a MFS-ficlet

House wonders sometimes if the apology is to blame for all of this. - It's a friendship fic, does that help?

House's head was hanging low over his desk when he heard the door open. is from "Having an Issue" just before Stacy walks in.

I’m not normally the kind of person who talks on planes. is indeed Dry Cleaner from "Why Doctor House Canceled Poker Night"

It was an unusually warm Tuesday in late March, so they chose to have lunch outside. - This is another friendship one. You wrote an MST of it...

It was without a doubt the worst conference Wilson had ever gone to. - Second Petition, yep. : )

The Wilson-tired one is called "Perchance."

The divorce one is "Petition" - great memory!

Wilson comes by to get House for lunch, but it's only eleven a.m. and the latest round of tests on - hell, House hasn't even thought up a nickname yet for this patient. - "Sniffles" (heh)

Wilson, would you get on with it? I can remember the next line of this, I think ("Impatience - so sexy") is "Proposing, version two"

YAY!

[daisylily.livejournal.com]

The warm Tuesday is Green (that's why I remembered it XD )

[poeia.livejournal.com]

Without reading anyone else's comments

Dr. House, I really appreciate all that your team has done for me.
Proposing, Version 1

He tells her all the time how pretty she is.
After the Fourth Wedding

She'd expected the bar to be deserted; it was Christmas Eve, after all.
Shiksa

Things had a way of working out for Jimmy Wilson.
Wilson the Great (your view of Wilson has changed a lot since then)

Wilson was in pretty heavy denial about why he cheated on his wives, but he knows exactly why he cheats on House.
Respite (or Resolution -- I always get them confused)

Wilson, would you get on with it?
Proposing, Version 2

[deelaundry.livejournal.com]

A+!

"...why he cheats on House" is Respite. Because that's why he cheats on House: respite.

Wilson the Great (your view of Wilson has changed a lot since then)

Wilson the Great was a fun depiction of Wilson, different from my other fics. I still could see him being that kind of pleasure-seekingly manipulative. In fact, in a way, that fic presaged how conniving Wilson was in early S3. Not for the same motive but every bit as scheming. : )