Return-Path: Delivered-To: ishmael@fkvoyage.win.net Received: (qmail 10216 invoked by uid 1001); 28 Apr 2003 12:10:36 -0000 MBOX-Line: From owner-fkfic-l@LISTS.PSU.EDU Mon Apr 28 12:10:27 2003 Delivered-To: ishmael@FKVOYAGE.COM Received: (qmail 6752 invoked from network); 28 Apr 2003 12:05:49 -0000 Received: from f05s16.cac.psu.edu (HELO f05n16.cac.psu.edu) ([128.118.141.59]) (envelope-sender ) by nb-203.win.net (qmail-ldap-1.03) with SMTP for ; 28 Apr 2003 12:05:44 -0000 Received: from f05n16 (f05s16.cac.psu.edu [128.118.141.59]) by f05n16.cac.psu.edu (8.9.3p2/8.9.3) with ESMTP id IAA149688; Mon, 28 Apr 2003 08:01:14 -0400 Message-Id: <200304281201.IAA149688@f05n16.cac.psu.edu> Date: Mon, 28 Apr 2003 05:01:11 -0700 Reply-To: Patty Costantino Sender: Forever Knight TV show stories From: Patty Costantino Subject: I Will Always Love You 01/02 To: FKFIC-L@LISTS.PSU.EDU X-PMFLAGS: 33554560 0 1 P764D0.CNM Sorry for the delay in posting the rest. Got sidetracked last night with my daughter's need for help in Geometry~not that I was much help!!! Along with Phylis,my beta reader, I'd like to thank April, Deborah and Stacy for inspiring me to write again. You're all the best. One other note: From Knight Vision, (waves and thanks to Kristin) I uploaded a couple pictures to make this story more touching, so if you prefer, you can go to: http://www.geocities.com/pas_20197/homepage08.html to read it. It's located under fiction. Disclaimer in 00/02. ************************************* I Will Always Love You By Patty Costantino/psmoot43@hotmail.com Chapter 01/02 ************************************* It was a night like no other, the lustrous stars shining brilliant threads of light across the northern sky, the full moon casting gleaming tendrils of luminosity over the vociferous city. In one apartment, the incandescence was especially bright, imparting golden beams across the terrace, into the bedroom, and over a woman, tossing and turning in an uneasy slumber. A short distance away in the shadows, another figure stood watching, her restlessness inescapable to him. He shifted slightly, for a moment feeling the same disquiet, and then moving into the light, approached. At the end of the bed, he stopped and continued to stare, his eyes never wavering from her ceaseless, agitated state. Could he be the cause of it? He sighed, as an old familiar feeling washed over him: guilt. Naturally, he was to blame. How could he not be? All at once, he heard a moan escape her lips, shattering his self-recriminating musings. Without hesitation or thought, he drew near, kneeling down beside her. He reached out with his hand to caress her cheek, forehead and hair, all the while whispering comforting words into her ear. Gradually, his actions and words calmed her and she began to settle into a quiet repose. Minutes passed as he continued to stroke her hair, twining his fingers through the illustrious curls, savoring this precious moment between them, impressing it into his mind. Like all the others, it would have to last him through eternity. After another moment, with tremendous effort, he removed his hand, and then nodding his head in a firm resolve, stood up. It was time. Far past time. If I… should… stay I would only be in your way So I’ll go He knew, now more than ever, he must go, leave this life, this incarnation…and especially… this woman: This feisty, remarkable, determined woman. He had to. It was the only answer, the only way to save her. Before…. Oh God! A shiver of dread suddenly washed over him as he buried his face in his hands, remembering. Only a week ago, she’d asked him to be brought across and oh *how* close he’d come to granting her wish. He knew her decision had stemmed partly from her fears about the asteroid. But another part had desired him, wanted to be with him. Wanted to… love him. <> Yes, he’d wanted it too. He’d wanted her desperately and for so long, and when she’d reached up to touch his face, he’d nearly given in, almost taking her in the morgue. The allure had been *that* great. But somehow he’d managed to find the strength to turn her down, push her away. His rejection had left her hurt. He could see it in her eyes. At that moment, he’d wanted nothing more than to pull her into his arms, cradling her against him and explain why he couldn’t relent to her wishes. It wasn’t about rejection; it was about saving her soul. But turbulent emotions had roiled to the surface, preventing him from moving or even speaking. He’d remained rooted to the spot; the words still catching in his throat as she’d disappeared down the hall, the image of her wounded spirit becoming a permanent fixture in his mind. The following evening at the precinct, the same look had appeared on her face when she’d accepted his decision to not bring her across. Grabbing her hand, again he’d tried to convey his reasons, to say that she meant too much to him to condemn her to this living hell, but the words would not come forth as deep emotions had again tugged at his heart. With reluctance, he’d let her go. And, as he’d turned away from her retreating form, he’d suddenly realized how wide the bridge and how high the wall existed between them. He was a vampire and she, a mortal, and as long as they stayed this way, the wide chasm would remain unless they allowed their hearts to override reason and throw caution to the wind. He shuddered to think what would happen then. Sadly, he knew it was time to move on. But I know I’ll think of you Every step of… the way How could he not? In eight hundred years, he’d known many women, some more externally beautiful than she, but not one compared to her inner beauty. She possessed a true goodness of heart, genuinely concerned about people…about *him. * At times, he found this to be uncanny. She actually cared about him, a creature fallen from grace! Once, when she and everyone at the precinct were being held hostage by a perp, who was going to force them out into the sunlight, he remembered her worried eyes gracing his. She was more anxious about him imploding in the daylight than her own dire situation, placing his welfare above hers. In his long existence, no one, especially a mortal, had done this before, willingly putting his life before hers. She was one in a million. Suddenly, tears sprung to his eyes, emotions overtaking him. He reached over again to brush a wisp of hair from her damp forehead, gazing at her with wonder through his blurred vision. Another moment passed as he continued to caress her smooth skin, and then swallowing hard to force down his feelings, removed his hand. Could he forget her? Never! She would remain embossed on his wounded heart and painted on his tormented soul for eternity. To be continued...... *************************************** Patty http://www.geocities.com/pas_20197/homepage08.html --------------------------------- Do you Yahoo!? The New Yahoo! Search - Faster. Easier. Bingo. -- End -- Return-Path: Delivered-To: ishmael@fkvoyage.win.net Received: (qmail 12382 invoked by uid 1001); 28 Apr 2003 12:13:30 -0000 MBOX-Line: From owner-fkfic-l@LISTS.PSU.EDU Mon Apr 28 12:13:29 2003 Delivered-To: ishmael@FKVOYAGE.COM Received: (qmail 9433 invoked from network); 28 Apr 2003 12:09:29 -0000 Received: from f05s16.cac.psu.edu (HELO f05n16.cac.psu.edu) ([128.118.141.59]) (envelope-sender ) by nb-203.win.net (qmail-ldap-1.03) with SMTP for ; 28 Apr 2003 12:09:24 -0000 Received: from f05n16 (f05s16.cac.psu.edu [128.118.141.59]) by f05n16.cac.psu.edu (8.9.3p2/8.9.3) with ESMTP id IAA147158; Mon, 28 Apr 2003 08:05:15 -0400 Message-Id: <200304281205.IAA147158@f05n16.cac.psu.edu> Date: Mon, 28 Apr 2003 05:05:12 -0700 Reply-To: Patty Costantino Sender: Forever Knight TV show stories From: Patty Costantino Subject: I Will Always Love You 02/02 To: FKFIC-L@LISTS.PSU.EDU X-PMFLAGS: 33554560 0 1 P40360.CNM Disclaimers in 02/02 *********************************** I Will Always Love You April 2003 By Patty Costantino/psmoot43@hotmail.com *********************************** And…I…will always… love you I…will always... love you… You… My darlin’… you He couldn’t say the exact moment he’d fallen in love with Natalie. It was just something that happened and became an essential part of his being; he no longer existed apart from it. He loved her more than words could say, more than life itself. She was everything to him. She was his beacon: Lighting his dark path with hope of redemption, and promise of mortality. His strength: Continually there to boost him up, providing him with hope when hopelessness descended and crushed him into bleak despair. His compass: Guiding and centering him with caution and realism, steadfastly trying to make him a better person. His protector: Faithfully keeping his secret to the point of jeopardizing her career to cover for him and the Community. Simply put: She was his other half, the other part of his soul. His reason to go on. When had he fallen? He couldn’t say, but he knew he worshiped the ground she walked on. Bittersweet… memories That is all I’m taking… With me… The movies, dinners or just the drop-bys at the loft to talk. Plays and shows with her and Schanke. All precious memories, filled with laughter, joy and hope. Always hope. The precinct picnic, insisting that he come, wanting him to feel the rush of humanity, to feel included in the mortal race. She was always doing things like that, invariably trying to make him feel a little more human and he loved her for it. The kiss. As his lips had brushed across hers, he’d felt exuberance at the brief warmth of her lips and the sweet smell of apricots in her freshly shampooed hair. Although chaste and friendly, it was a sweet kiss, filled with promise, warming his cold heart. His day in the sun. Although the result was disheartening, he wouldn’t have traded it for another ten thousand lifetimes. Seeing her standing in front of the morgue with the sunlight shimmering on her auburn tresses and creamy complexion, and planting a tender, fleeting kiss on her petal-soft skin while holding her in his arms had made it worthwhile. The day before Valentine’s Day. At last, breaking down those barriers with loving words, gentle kisses, and heartfelt gazes. All these memories and much more he’d carry within his cold and ancient heart forever. So goodbye Please don’t cry We both know I’m not what you… You need He wasn’t good for her. She deserved a husband to love, and children of her own, to live a normal mortal life, showering the world with her generous gift of healing others and saving souls. He couldn’t deny her the same mortal pleasures that, in a moment of weakness centuries ago, he’d relinquished without thought of the consequences. *He* could not deprive her of them by loving her, by allowing her to love him. He desired much more for her. And…I…will always… love you I…will always… love you I hope life Treats you kind And I hope you have All you dreamed of And I wish you Joy and happiness But above all this… I wish you love As difficult as it was to admit, causing him great anguish, he wished her the best, a man who could give her everything, give her the world. Someone to hold, to cherish, to protect, to spoil, to pamper…to love her. If only… And…I…will always… love you I…will always… love you I…will always… love you I…will always… love you I…will always… love you I…will always… love… you Darlin’ I love you… Without warning, his heart thumped once then twice in pain. <> I’ll always… I’ll always… love you < But you were right. I do revere all that is mortal, all that is human and because I love her truly, couldn’t take that away from her. > Nick leaned over and pressed his lips sweetly to hers in one final, reverent kiss. Standing up, he brushed his hand once, softly across her cheek, his adoring eyes never faltering from her face and then he was gone, the only trace that he’d been there at all: A red rose and card on her table and one drying blood tear on her face…. Fin A sequel? What do you think? Should I leave N&N like this? Nick gone, Natalie getting on with her life? Let me know at psmoot43@hotmail.com or pas_20197@yahoo.com ************************************* Patty http://www.geocities.com/pas_20197/homepage08.html --------------------------------- Do you Yahoo!? The New Yahoo! Search - Faster. Easier. Bingo. -- End --