TITLE: Goodnight, My Angel AUTHOR: Snark RATING: G SUMMARY: None other than to say it's post-Ascension. Feedback, should you choose to send some, can be sent to snark_911@yahoo.com ~~~~Begin~~~~ As the stars appeared above her, the wind rose over the hillside and searched for the man. She knew he would be there, somewhere. He came to the fields every night without fail, picking a spot among the tall grasses near the pines. Even the rain of the past few weeks had not deterred him. He would arrive in the middle evening and sit in the same place, his raincoat closed tight around him. Sometimes, he forgot to wear a raincoat, but this seemed of little consequence--he would simply sit further in under the trees. Not too far, though. A view of the sky seemed important. The man was usually silent as he searched the nighttime sky. The wind would look up as well, never knowing what to look for but looking just the same. At times, the man would speak to the darkness around him. Always the same feelings, always the same pain. "I lost her," his voice would scream. /I need her/, his heart would whisper. The wind heard both. Slipping between the last of the trees, the wind caught sight of the man. He was as he always was, arms hooked around his knees as he watched the night. Even as she crossed the field, the wind could see the tiny cross dangling from its chain. Even as she reached him, she could hear the tears falling across his hands. The wind flowed over the man and wrapped herself around him. A gentle hand dried these tears just as it had dried all the ones before. The man lay back in the grass, rubbing his eyes with the heel of each hand. One arm behind his head, the other draped over his eyes, the man relaxed. His breathing slowed, small movements stilled as sleep overcame him. Gathering the warm air together, the wind rustled the grasses into a soft lullaby. Slowly, gently, she whispered a song of peace to the man as he slept, a song of dreams and of things not yet lost. A song of hope. * * * "Feeling better today, Agent Mulder?" Mulder turned back as he was about to exit the main doors. "Pardon?" he asked as Debbie caught up to him. "I asked if you were feeling better today, sir," she said as they stepped outside. At his questioning glance, she continued. "You've just seemed so tired lately. Exhausted. But you seem a bit more relaxed today, that's all. I mean, you were laughing at something in the cafeteria today, and I haven't heard you laugh since she... well, since, um..." "Yeah," he said, saving her from having to finish. "Yeah, I know." "All I meant to say was that it's good to see you feeling more like yourself," she said. He slipped out of his coat as they stood on the sidewalk, the sun shining for the first time in days. Only a few clouds dotted the sky here and there, forgotten by the storms the day before. He realized he actually did feel better today, lighter somehow. "Yeah, I guess I am," he said, a hint of a smile crossing his face. "Well, that's good, sir. You deserve it," Debbie said, with a gentle smile in return. "Have a nice evening, Agent Mulder." "You too, Debbie." Mulder swung his coat over his arm and headed for his car. He had parked outside this morning, finding the dark stillness of the underground parking suffocating. It now meant a walk of several blocks and probably a parking ticket as well, but he didn't mind. "Oh, sir? I meant to ask you earlier," Debbie called out, turning back to him. "What's that song?" At his uncomprehending look, she sang a few notes for him. "I've heard you humming that song several times today. It sounds really familiar, but I can't place it. What is it?" He was surprised to find the song continuing on in his mind, a song he couldn't remember ever hearing before but that he knew from beginning to end. "I'm not sure, actually," he said, thinking. So familiar, comforting, like something he had heard long ago. Like a lullaby. * * * The wind watched as the man and the woman spoke for a few moments more, parting after another round of farewells. The man continued down the street and around a corner, walking along unhurried. He stepped aside to let a large family pass by him and laughed something the father said as he passed. His body seemed to drink in the sun after the long days of rain. The man paused at a city bench, sitting down as he folded his coat beside him. Loosening his tie, he pulled something from beneath his shirt. He stared at it for a long time, tracing the pattern against his hand several times. After a while, his fingers closed around it as he looked again to the sky. But this time, the wind saw there were no tears. This time there was only a soft smile, remembrance mixed with the beginnings of hope. A while later, the man rose and continued on his way, not noticing he had begun humming the song again. He also didn't notice a second voice had joined his. But the wind didn't mind. She just smiled and kept singing. ~~~~End~~~~ AUTHOR NOTES: This fic was inspired by a writing challenge, where you were supposed to use song lyrics in a fic. I chose instead to incorporate just the feeling of a certain type of song, the soothing action a lullaby can have on someone. I was specifically thinking of the song "Lullaby (Goodnight My Angel)" by Billy Joel, since that song is one of my absolute favorites. Because I stole his song title for my fic title, I have included his lyrics below. snark_911@yahoo.com LYRICS: ----------- Goodnight, my angel, time to close your eyes, and save these questions for another day, I think I know what you've been asking me. I think you know what I've been trying to say. I promised I would never leave you, and you should always know wherever you may go, no matter where you are I never will be far away. Goodnight, my angel, now its time to sleep, and still so many things I want to say. Remember all the songs you sang for me when we went sailing on an em'rald bay. And like a boat out on the ocean, I'm rocking you to sleep, The water's dark and deep inside this ancient heart you'll always be a part of me. Goodnight my angel, now it's time to dream, and dream how wonderful your life will be. Someday your child may cry, and if you sing this lullaby, then in your heart there will always be a part of me. Someday we'll all be gone but lullabies go on and on. They never die, that's how you and I will be.