Passing the Torch (Mick/Beth) PG-13

[librarian_7]

Disclaimers: I don't own Moonlight.

A/N: This is an alternate universe story, a brief look at how things might have played out if a certain event had never happened. And, uh, you might want to grab a hankie.

Passing the Torch


The bus was crowded, and the old woman was glad to be getting one of the last seats. “Even if this hard plastic kills me,” she said under her breath. It was already sending pains shooting through her hips, and she shifted her weight uneasily. She was going to have to get those hip replacements her son kept urging, she supposed. Especially if she wanted to keep riding the bus. She’d given up her driver’s license—reluctantly—the previous year (and all right, Joshua had been correct to insist; at 76, she really didn’t see well enough to drive anymore) but she wasn’t ready to lose all her independence. And she could hardly expect Joshua, or his daughter Elizabeth, to keep ferrying her around. She sighed a little at that. Elizabeth was a worry, with her wild ways.

She glanced up and caught the young man staring down at her from where he stood in the aisle. She patted the seat next to her, the last available one on the bus. “Sit down, son, I won’t bite.”

He smiled, crookedly, at that, but he sat.

“No reason for you to stand when there’s a seat empty,” the old woman said.

“No, ma’am,” he replied politely, his dark hazel eyes focused on her face with an unnerving intensity.

“Hmmph. They don’t teach manners like that much these days,” she commented, then paused, looking at him more closely. “Do I know you? You look so—familiar.”

“I get that a lot,” he lied. “I’m sure I’d remember you if we’d met.”

She laughed. “I guess it’s not likely, is it?” Joshua would fuss at her, if he knew she was talking to a strange young man on a city bus. He’d gotten so protective, since his father had died two years ago. A good boy, but as he’d gotten older, he’d become a real stuffed shirt. His father’s influence shining through, she supposed. Something random crossed her mind, and she laughed a bit.

Her new acquaintance gave her a quick, questioning frown, his dark brows drawing together.

“I was just thinking about all the trouble I give my guardian angel,” she said.

“Guardian angel?”

She laughed again. “When I was very young, I was kidnapped. It was a terrible experience, but I was rescued. When I asked my mother about it, as I got older, she said it was my guardian angel who saved me. And after that, whenever I managed to get out of a scrape, she’d shake her head and say my guardian angel must be working overtime. Or predicted he’d get so exasperated with me, he’d just up and quit his job.”

The young man nodded, amused understanding written on his face. “I’ll bet you gave him a wild ride.”

The blonde hair might have faded, her figure grown stooped and blurred with age, but her smile hadn’t really changed, over all those years, or the mischievous twinkle in her bright blue eyes. “Oh, I did. But somehow, I don’t think he ever gave up on me.”

In the road ahead, a car stopped suddenly, and the bus driver slammed on the brakes, causing all the passengers to take a hard lurch. One woman tumbled from her seat with a small shriek, and packages went flying everywhere. Beth would have pitched forward, if Mick hadn’t shot an arm out to prevent it.

She looked up at him, wistfully. What a handsome man he was, and his touch, so gentle. “See?” she said. “My guardian angel is still watching out for me.”

“What?” Mick replied, startled.

“Well, he sent you to me, tonight.”

“Oh. Perhaps he did.” There could be no harm, Mick thought, in this little conversation. He’d watched so long, so carefully. He’d been tempted, more than once, to reveal himself, to let her know of his existence, but he’d always backed away, unwilling to face the consequences, the certitude he had that if she knew her guardian angel was a monster, she’d recoil from him in horror.

It had been a lonely life, though, hiding in the shadows, just out of sight. He’d followed Josef’s advice, now and then, but the fleeting relief he got from sampling his friend’s freshies had been ultimately unsatisfactory, and after a few years, he’d given up on it. He’d never been able to convince Josef, but for him, that sort of empty exchange had been like white noise, background static when he longed for music.

He told himself, again, sternly, that he’d been right. It wouldn’t have been decent, to have drawn her into his world, to have robbed her of the long, pleasant, human life she’d had. But she was speaking again, and he wrenched his attention back to her voice.

She laid a wrinkled hand on his arm. “You’re very kind to listen to an old woman’s ramblings.”

“Not at all,” he said with a slight shake of his head. Her touch was burning through him. It had been so long…

“Well, then,” Beth said, “may I tell you one more silly thing?”

“Of course.”

She leaned over, a little confidentially. “If you really were my guardian angel, you know what I’d tell you?”

“No ma’am,” he said. “What?”

“I’d tell you, I don’t need you anymore. But my granddaughter does. She’s a real spitfire, and she could use someone to watch over her.”

“I’ll bet she’s a lot like you were, at her age.”

“Everyone says she’s the spitting image of me.” Beth laughed again. “I like to think it’s true. She’s a beautiful girl.”

With a squeal of brakes, the bus halted, and Beth glanced out the window. “My goodness, it’s my stop already.”

Mick rose at once to assist her to her feet.

And before she turned to go to the exit, she reached up and touched his cheek. “Her name’s Elizabeth Lindsey,” she said. “And the one thing I always wished, was that my guardian angel would have talked to me. That he would have trusted me enough to know that whatever it was he feared, I’d understand.”

Her touch was benediction and farewell, and as Mick watched her make her way painfully down the steps to the curb, he knew he would do as she asked. After all these years, how could he not? “Maybe I never spoke,” he murmured to her retreating back, “but I always loved you.”

[cassysj]

Oh My! That's so sad. This has to be so hard on Mick to see Beth at the end of her life without a lifetime of memories stored up.

Beth may be old but she is still very persceptive. Poor Mick

[francis]

Oh, Lucky, your first MickBeth. And what a story it is. Sad, but not really sad. Not for Beth, anyway. I feel so much for Mick, who lived not only 60 years, but much longer without the touch of another, always staying in the shadows. Beth lived a long life and became a wise old woman, but as she doesn't know the alternative there is no way to know which life would be better for her. It just is.
You've done well with this story. I love how Beth knows that it's him, and that she absolves him and gives him something else, someone else to live for. She knows instinctively that he's a good person.

Now I dream of a sequel where Elizabeth Lindsey meets Mick St. John in the 2060s or so and they live happily ever after. Just for Mick's sake.

Why do so many writers write sad stories at the moment? But I'm a glutton for punishment, I just love to read something that breaks my heart.

[jenstc2003]

Awww Lucky.... your first M/B and it was a doozy! I LOVE it!

[fairytoes]

That was sad and beautiful at the same time. Mick being Beth's Guardian Angel all her life, and at some point he will have to watch her go. It nearly breaks my heart. And then there is Beth giving Mick a push in a certain direction. That made me smile again.

[allegrita]

I love this little "what if" story. You did it so believably! Beth reminds me of my grandmother. I'm glad she let Mick know that she knew who (and what) he was...and I'm glad she told him she wished that he had approached her. Heck it might have saved her from a lifetime tied to Josh!!! But then again, she wouldn't have her son, or her spitfire granddaughter. Yeah, francis is right: Beth can't know what would have been better. This just is the life that she led.

I'd love to see another story in this universe. Maybe if Mick begins to watch over Elizabeth, he'll finally let his guard down a little. Maybe he'll come out of the shadows and begin to allow himself to live....

[librarian_7]

Oh, thanks, people...but I should point out, this is NOT my first Mick/Beth. I just don't write Mick/Beth very often. (However, if you're interested, you might want to check out... A Delicate Balance, Twilight Call (which was my first Mick/Beth, and my very first fic), Either/Or, and Promise...all Mick/Beth.)

Lucky

[RangerCM]

This is so sweet, and although it's sad too, it's not tragic. Beth had a long and happy life, and Mick still has many lifetimes ahead of him to find happiness..... it's not one of those stories that's full of regret...... I like that!!

[francis]

Oh. Not your first. But you write so much Josef and Lucky that I forgot about them. Have to reread now.

[eris]

Wow, Lucky. You have done M/B in a while (of course you've had a better than decent reason, IMNHO )

I'm happy to see that this one wasn't quite as final as the Either/Or fic, here there's a hope of future yet to come (even with that "Lindsey" tacked on to the family name...)

Meeting Little Elizabeth might be something worth writing about. Just sayin'

I think, in some ways, the life chosen here would be harder than the one presented in the show. To watch from a distance while someone withered would be a nightmare.

[coco]

Man! He stayed in the shadows the entire time.

This was so wonderful, Lucky. How lovely that Beth said what she said to him on the bus.

Thanks for this lovely little slice of M/B, Lucky.

[one.zebra]

Nice, Lucky.

I really didn't find this sad....Beth had a good life with steady Josh and the joys of motherhood...and Mick? Well, he chose not to make peace with the vampire, or let Beth know him. He got the 'life' he wanted too.

Beth leaves him with a new assignment, so he has another chance to make a new life.

[tucutecats]

As always, and as expected, a terriffic story. You are one of the best.
thanks, Liz

[darkstarrising]

Awww Lucky,

This is lovely, not sad at all, at least not for Beth...she has been watched over and had a full life. Her only regret is not having known her guardian angel....but maybe she has after all

Her touch was benediction and farewell, and as Mick watched her make her way painfully down the steps to the curb, he knew he would do as she asked. After all these years, how could he not? “Maybe I never spoke,” he murmured to her retreating back, “but I always loved you.”

[Luxe de Luxe]

this is a strange one, Lucky. I feel so sad reading this, but it's my sadness that they never 'met', never had their time. And then I realise I shouldn't feel sad, Beth has had a happy life, she has children, grandchildren and a lifetime with a loving husband - Josh, of course. (Ok, he's a little of a stuffed shirt - but a smokin' hot one.)

I also got a very strong feeling that Beth had an inking that this was indeed her guardian angel. I thought her comments about trust and her request about her granddaughter were very pointed.

Another great story from you, Lucky.