Title: Cherish, Respect, Shelter, Defend
Author: Mareel
Author's email: Mareel@earthlink.net
Author's URL: http://www.geocities.com/bdebpr
Archive: Permission granted to Archer's Enterprise, Reed's Armory, Warp 5, others please ask.
Rating: G
Category: Slash
Status: Complete
Pairing: Archer/Reed
Series: Refuge
Sequel to: When Winds of Changes Shift
Number in Series: 8
Next Story: Always Remember
Disclaimer: They belong to Paramount, or more likely, to each other
Spoilers: Zero Hour
Warning: Deathfic
Summary: "It should have been me."
Notes: This is part of my Season 3 A/R series (Refuge) and refers to earlier stories in the series, including the vows the two exchanged before leaving Earth for the Expanse (see "Memory and Promises"). I have a feeling that there is a great deal about Zero Hour that I need to explore. This is my first, but certainly not only, take on it, and is Malcolm giving voice to some of his thoughts.
Cherish, Respect, Shelter, Defend
We made four vows to one another
when we chose to wed, to join our lives.
All have been tested.
There were days I didn't like him,
but I loved him…
times I couldn't accept the Captain's decisions,
but never lost respect for the struggling man under the uniform…
nights when I thought he would spurn the refuge I offered,
but still he found his way to my arms.
I thought the fourth would be the easy one…
How could I not protect him, defend him with my life?
I failed to keep that fourth vow.
And now he's dead.
***
Finis