Can You Forgive? is a Flash Forward Fic of The Brittas Empire first published by quietanalyst
in 2022, who also authored It's a Wonderful Christmas, Carole.
First set in 2009, Brittas' New Year's Eve celebrations are coming up and he really wants everyone to come. Tim hasn't been to them for several decades and has also not spoken to Gavin for a long time. Meanwhile, Gavin has decided to marry his former fiancee Jenny in the end and has had a son with her. However, her death in a fire leads to some interesting developments.
The fic was originally found here, but has since been removed. It can now be found here.
Tropes in this fic:
- Adaptational Timespan Change: In canon, the length of time between Brittas' resurrection in "The Last Day" and his return to the leisure centre at the beginning of "Back with a Bang" is stated by both Brittas and Helen to be only two months. However, this fic goes with the idea that it was actually 6 months, which does line up with what is stated in both the back of the Series 6 DVD and newspaper clippings of the time.
- Cheating with the Milkman: Helen appears to be currently having an affair with the Brittas' family butler, Sébastian.
- Dead Fic: Removed from the internet after only 2 chapters, leaving it to end on a Cliffhanger of something horrible apparently happening to Tim.
- Fan-Created Offspring: In this fic, Gavin and Jenny have one child, Matthew, who has never even been mentioned in the series on which this fic is based.
- Flash Forward Fic: This fic takes place in 2009, long after the events of the final episode occurred in around 1996/1997 (an episode which the author has stated didn't occur (although Councillor Drugget is stated to still have died) due to its reveal that the events of the series was All Just a Dream of Brittas). Notably, the characters are shown to be on the career trajectories predicted by the show's canon Flash Forward episode, "In The Beginning..."
- Married in the Future: In the parent series, Jenny had been Gavin's fiancée, but he elected not to go through with the engagement in the end due to his love for Tim. This fic reveals that he eventually married her sometime in the future, much to the surprise of everyone.
- Noodle Incident: Helen mentions Brittas being blacklisted from four countries. What exactly did he do that led to that?
- Questioning Title?: The name of the fic is "Can You Forgive?".
- Posthumous Character: Jenny, Gavin's wife, whose death in a fire kickstarts the plot.
- Titled After the Song: The fic is named for the song "Can You Forgive Her?" by the Pet Shop Boys.
- We Used to Be Friends: Tim and Gavin, once passionate lovers, have split apart for reasons unknown at this point in time.
