His Voice: Memories are such frail things, very much like that of a child; for what can a three year old remember when the years continue to pass on without him?

There was nothing particularly special about that day; nothing to separate it from any other day at all. It had been simplicity at it's finest. A day that was neither too hot or too cold, with a gentle breeze streaming in. Elicia Hughes had spent the large portion of her day in school, as all kids do when they reach a certain age and now her mother and her were driving off once more to speak with a man that could never talk back.

She was being unusually quite and her mother asked her what was wrong but no answer came. Elicia continued to watch the world rush by outside of the window. Her mother continued to eye her with apprehension "Has that time already come?" She began to wonder.

Elicia held her mother's hand as they made their way passed the countless headstones. She gazed down upon them with a certain level of numbness. She'd passed by these stones now for many years, at first she'd ask her mother why so many people had died, once she'd even wept for them, particularly those who no longer had families to visit them. Now she felt nothing. She was still so young and yet she'd become jaded by the almost daily sight of these endless amount of tombstones. After all that's all they were, right? Nothing but stones.

Then they came to his grave; her fathers resting spot. Her mother began to talk to him sweetly as though he were going to suddenly awaken and converse with her, like he really was just sleeping.

"Elicia, you should tell your daddy about what's going on in school. Didn't you want to show him your drawing?" She turned back to face her husband "Her teacher says she's an amazing artist."

That's when something happened, something that Elicia's seven year old mind simply could not comprehend. For the first time since her mother had started to bring her here, she didn't see her father, all she saw was a stone. Her mother was beaming down at her, expecting her to speak to this inanimate object as though it could hold her and take pride in her accomplishments. A sickening feeling began to grow inside of Elicia's stomach; a mix between fainting and vomiting.

"Elicia? Sweetie what's wrong?" Her mother reached out to touch her daughter's shoulder but she quickly pulled away. Her own mothers touch felt so foreign. Elicia continued to back away, from her mother, from the grave, from everything that was now on the verge of rising out of her. She ran.

She continued to run long after she had reached the exit of the graveyard and she just kept going. Her dainty feet kept kicking up on the concrete, as she made her way into the city area she darted in and out of the endless array of people, tears fleeing from her eyes out of every direction. Elicia had never felt so out of control, so unlike her self. She was far from reality now as in her mind she tried desperately to envision the man that she had once called "Daddy" and loved so dearly. He'd held her, he had tucked her in at night, he had read her stories. These weren't memories these were stories that her mother had told her, she told her everyday to remind her that her father had existed and that he had loved her. However there was one thing Elicia wanted more then anything else in that moment, something her mother couldn't give her…

CRASH! THUD!

Elicia had been running so fast and her distorted state of mind had kept her from being able to watch where she was going. She'd hit someone and landed on her behind. Elicia looked up to find a hand reaching out for her. She grabbed a hold of it and apologized, with tears still falling. Her small frame trembled as her furious excitement was suddenly crashing down.

"I'm sorry Aunt Riza." She whipped away another sorrowful droplet from her eye.

"It's alright." Riza bent down and pulled out a handkerchief from her pocket and she whipped Elicia's face dry. Riza looked around in search of Gracia; she was no where to be found.

"Elicia? Where's your mother?"

Elicia sniffled and explained what had happened.

Riza took hold of Elicia's hand and they began to walk back and look for Gracia, who was no doubt wondering around in search of Elicia.

"It's not your fault that you've forgotten." Hawkeye maintained her usual stoic expression but she spoke kindly and with her own personal knowledge. "But mommy remembers, she tells me everyday all sorts of things that daddy used to do." The word Daddy felt strange as her tongue was quite unadjusted to saying it.

"Of course she remembers more then you. You were only three when your father passed away, you were only a baby."

Riza could tell that her words were having no effect on the young girl. She felt herself becoming as useless as when the Colonel had nearly gone and destroyed himself. It took three people but she had known that her words alone would never have stopped him. Still she was alone this time and while Elicia bore no immediate harm to herself, if left in her condition, her guilt would only grow.

She could not relate to the desire of wanting a father, as her own had been the source of many nightmares. She could, however, connect to the wish of being with a family member who had already passed on.

"My mom died when I was very young."

Elicia's head shot up.

"She got sick and sicker and then one day she just never woke up. I was even younger then you when that happened. For years I tried to remember her, what it felt like to be held by her. It was silly of me though to even try to remember such a detail like that when I couldn't even imagine her face. Your father had so many photos of you and him together; all you need to do is look at one and know that he loved you."

Riza was now holding Elicia's hand much tighter then before, and she didn't even realize it. "Aunt Riza, I have all those photos but…what I really want…" Her voice began to crack "I want to hear his voice. I can't remember what he sounded like. I want to hear him say that he loves me."

Hawkeye stopped walking and she pulled Elicia close to her "Have you ever heard of the gate?"

Elicia shook her head.

"There is a gate that exists within each of us, it is there that our loved ones reside after they have passed on. I'm not sure if this is true or not but some people believe that when you sleep the gate can upon up and allow our loved ones to speak to us because for those brief moments we can become connected with them. Perhaps if you try hard enough, you may get to hear your father's voice."

Elicia smiled warmly at this hopeful thought and she hugged Riza tightly before continuing onward to find Gracia. A short while later they spotted the frantic Gracia walking down the street. Elicia was calmer now and she darted towards her mother and apologized for worrying her mother.

Riza Hawkeye walked away from mother and daughter, a sad smile on her face as she thought to herself "Did you ever love me…mom?"

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