Back again, due to unpopular demand, it's the Author's Note!: This is a direct result of a plot bunny that popped into exsistance as suddenly as a dandelion, and dissapeared as quickly. I was forced to run after it, shouting "Come back! Come back!" at the top of my lungs. I hope you enjoy, I find I rather like it.

Disclaimer: Do you honestly think I'm making any money off of this? Anyway, many kudos to Mignola for letting me muck around with his beloved characters.

P.S- Johann's character is one from the comics, in case anyone didn't know. Also, this story is not based in any way, shape, or form on the spoilers you may or may not have looked up about the 2nd Hellboy movie.

Love's Melody

now

He's making her sad again, angry again. How can he do that to her? Anger seethed on the surface of her thoughts, a feeling that rarely showed itself in her. If looks could kill, the one she was sending Hellboy at the moment would have had him dead twice over. Desperate rage rolled through her, choosing its own course.

I'd never hurt her. Never. All I'd have to do is sing. One song and he'd be dead. Gone forever. He'd never hurt her again. One song and she could be mine. I could do it. I could show her, make her know. She would fall in love with me. It would be so easy. The urge was so strong within her it hurt. The music almost broke out. It caught on the tip of her tongue, caught in her throat, choking her. She held it back, just barely.

She stayed in the shadows, watching the fight. Even after the last screams had long faded from the sight and the combatants had gone their separate ways, she stayed there, breathing in softly, wondering at how close she had come to breaking, and half wishing that she had. "I don't know what to do," she whispered brokenly into the night.

………………………….one year ago

Darker clouds were forming on the horizon, covering the already gray sky with a sickly yellow tinge. It was going to rain again soon; they needed to get this over with.

"How much longer is this going to take?" Melody asked Liz. Liz kept wiring fuses into a circuit board, trying to finish up the system before the moisture ruined it.

"It won't take too much longer. I'm almost done. Let's just hope that Johann and HB are doing as well on their end."

Melody grimaced slightly into her soaked shoulder. She didn't trust HB with anything detailed, but she was sure Johann could get the job done. It would be up to Hellboy and her to finish up once the trap was in place.

"There, all done." The curve of Liz's neck arched up as she checked the last connection, then her hand darted to her belt for the walkie talkie. Her bare wrist stood out like a work of art against the stark function of the phone. Melody forced herself to look away. "Sparkie to Big Red, do you have that contraption hooked up yet?"

The voice on the other end was distorted and crackly, but it was still recognizable as HB's deep baritone. "Yeah 'Sparkie', we just finished it. Is Screech ready to turn on the vocals?" Melody burned at the nickname Hellboy had christened her with, but she had to admit that it was one aspect of her that worked well when there wasn't time for a song to take affect. Luckily, she wouldn't have to resort to that this time.

"Yep, she's all warmed up and everything. I can't wait to hear this," Liz responded, turning to face Melody with a smile. Melody blushed even more; attention was something she rarely sought out, and compliments from Liz held special meaning for her.

"Okay, Fire 'er up!" Hellboy yelled over the com. Liz flicked the power switch that connected to its opposite box on the other side of the field they were standing in. The wires across the ground began to fizzle with electric energy, and the dead that had been held in a cautious stasis began to stir once more. Melody's job was to send the creatures into their final rest. Helboy's job was to smash them if she failed. She was determined though. She wasn't going to fail. Taking a deep breath, she stepped up before the horde and began to sing in a slow, strong voice, weaving power and binding into the notes. Between words she sang the melodies and harmonies of the spell, drawing it around the souls of those before her.

Oh friends, oh foes,

The long worn soul, that warrior heart.

How tiring all your life has been,

What price to pay for every part?

I know thou fearest not the dread-

That final stop, the last decree,

To hear the final lull to rest,

Only peace and sleep for thee.

How long hast thou been wandering here?

Watching all the years go by

However long will thou resist

When now the double death is nigh?

An honor end, a noble cease

To all the torture beckoning.

Come, and lay ye down at last,

To swift, eternal reckoning.

As her song grew in power, one by one the living dead stopped their advance and stood still, sinking then onto the grass and laying down their arms. Not one resisted the sweet call of release and the unrelenting power of the binding. The last note trailed off into silence, and the others pulled off the muffs they had worn, just in case. Hellboy was silent, but Liz's eyes were moist.

"Melody, that was beautiful. It made me want to dream forever," she said.

Melody grew white with alarm, and reached out a hand to grab Liz's arm, holding her firmly. "That is why you must always wear protection when I'm doing a spell. Sometimes the focus gets loose and draws others in. I won't let that happen to you!" she said desperately. "Any of you."

"Relax, Melody," Hellboy and Liz said at the same time.

Johann added his own sentiments. "You seem to have a strong control over your abilities. I do not think the slip would be strong enough to cause us any harm."

"We won, be happy!" Liz concluded. "Look, even the sun is coming out now!" It was true; the sun was letting a few rays pierce through the blackness of the sky. A few golden beams drifted down to them, and Liz sat down by Hellboy, pulling Melody to her side. She started laughing, just because, and Melody had to laugh with her. She made sure not to stare too long at her sparkling eyes or the beautiful red hair that flew around Liz's face. She only smiled happily when Hellboy put his arm around her. She had to be happy that Liz was happy, after all. That much was enough for her.

……………………now

It was well past midnight, but Melody was still staring up at her ceiling, making out patterns in the cracks in the plaster. There was a bird. A music note. A rose. A flame. Winding in and out of each other; patterns looping back on themselves with intricacy and precision. It was as if the cracks had been placed there deliberately, waiting for her. There was a heart, wreathed in flames.

She got up forcefully from her bed, the covers already thrown back in warmth of the summer night. The air conditioning had been out in this wing for a while, so all she was wearing was a thin nightgown. She opened the door softly, peeking down the darkened hallway, looking to see only the bare floor and the gleam of fluorescent lights every fifty feet. She patted her way quietly down the hall, making her way barefoot towards the library. She didn't know whether Abe would be up at this hour, but she needed to talk. If he wasn't, she could always climb up to the roof.

The massive doors barely creaked on their well-oiled hinges as she pushed them open gently. "Abe?" she whispered, peering into his tank as best she could, trying to see in the gloom. There was nothing there, and she scolded herself for thinking he would still be up. Still, she couldn't repress a feeling of loneliness as she curled up by the bookstands, all desire for fresh air gone.

……………………six months ago

Melody twitched her head as she heard raised voices from the next table. She was eavesdropping, but she couldn't stop herself. She needed to know. Liz and Hellboy were arguing again. They seemed to be doing that a lot lately. It made her sad, knowing that Liz wasn't happy all the time. But it also drew out feelings she rarely ever had; feelings of anger. She wanted Hellboy to get his perspective straight, which was that Liz was the most important thing in his life. He just didn't seem to understand her sometimes. And the two already strong personalities were rubbing against each other more and more.

It was nothing specific, but Melody decided she needed to do something anyway. It was almost her turn to sing anyway, so she got up from her seat and asked to switch turns with agent Dannik. Karaoke night was always a fun night in the BPRD rec room, and even Manning showed up now to watch.

And much to her embarrassment, after the first time she had been cajoled into singing by Abe, everyone seemed to love it. Melody knew her voice was far above par, but didn't like showing off, even though she didn't place any power in it when she sang for fun. But she didn't really have a choice, because Liz had told her she loved it when she sang.

Everyone began clapping as she climbed the little stage, and she put on a big smile. As shy as she was, when she was singing nothing else seemed to matter. That night she sang 'Love Dodecahedron' by Amber Pacific, and many people later told her that it had been her best yet; happy and energetic and loving.

The next day Liz threw a portable CD player at Hellboy.

…………………………now

"Melody? What are you doing here?" Abe had come up silently behind her, still rubbing his eyes. It looked as though he had just woken up. She started a little away from the glass, murmuring an apology for waking him.

"Melody, do you need to talk? You've been so quiet lately. Everyone has noticed." Melody smiled slightly.

"Abe, I'm always quiet."

He shook his head in disagreement. "Yes, but less quiet, and it's a happy quiet. Like the sun. Please tell me what is troubling you." Now faced with actually telling someone about it, Melody found she was nervous, not even knowing how to begin. Abe floated patiently on the other side of the glass, waiting for her to speak. In the end it came out in a rush.

"I love her so much, Abe! I see her in pain, and I know she's not happy, and I want to make her happy, and I want to be with her, to sing to her. I want her to love me, and I want to kill HB for hurting her, and I don't know what to do about any of it!" She started crying, unable to help it. Abe placed his hand on the glass, trying to offer some comfort. Almost to himself he said "Ah, so that's it." He considered what to say for a while. This wasn't something that you just spit out an answer to.

"Abe, what should I do?" she asked him softly, well aware that she was trying to take the easy way out.

He answered with a sigh, causing her to hang her head slightly. "Melody, I don't know. These things are never the same in every circumstance, and you can never know how they'll turn out." He continued on. "I do know, however, that you need to make up your mind."

"But I don't know how to tell her."

"Ah, so you have made up your mind!" She looked up at him again, confused. "You have already gotten past the hardest part, which is deciding whether or not to do anything about it. Now all you have to do if actually carry it through."

Melody gave a strangled laugh, letting her head thonk against the thick glass. "You make it sound so simple."

Abe floated downwards just a little so as to be on eye level with her. "It is simple, Melody. That doesn't mean it's easy, or that it isn't frightening." He nodded slightly, as if confirming this statement as truth. Melody smiled a little, for real this time. She knew what she wanted; she just had to work up the courage for it.

"Thank you, Abe. I'm sorry I had to bother you with this."

"Never be sorry for your feelings, Melody. Believe it or not, this place has been much brighter since you came here. You're being gloomy just makes everyone depressed."

Melody's curiosity couldn't help but be a bit piqued at this; even though she was embarrassed about finding out she seemed to stand out more than she had thought. "I never noticed anything…" Abe nodded solemnly.

"Well, everyone was normal around you, of course. But I personally saw Manning put more vodka in his prune juice when you didn't sing last Wednesday." She laughed at that picture, but stifled it a bit when she thought of Tom's already gloomy state lowered even further. The last thing she ever wanted to do was make people sad.

"I'll sing tomorrow, Abe. I promise." She got up stiffly to leave, and waved to Abe from the heavy doors, her mind already racing with plans and music notes.

………………………..one month ago

"Liz, what are you doing out here?" Melody leaned around the exit to the roof cautiously, her front half soaked through to the skin in seconds from the driving rain. Liz was standing near the edge, staring out into space. She turned slightly to look at Melody when she heard her, but didn't say anything.

"Liz, you hate the rain. Is anything wrong?" The urge to go over and kiss her was so strong. The need to sing was even stronger. Love ran equal to fear in her heart, and so she just stood there, dripping in the rain, watching Liz. Eventually, she replied.

"I- I don't know, Melody. I don't know what's wrong with me."

"But something is wrong? Will you tell me what it is?"

"Yes. And no."

…………………………………….now

"Are you sure, Johann? Are you absolutely sure?!" Melody wasn't the only one anxious for him to answer. All the occupants of the break room (which, at the time, was almost the entirety of the field agents) were crowded around him, staring in various stages of shock.

Johann replied sadly. "Ach, I am afraid it is quite certain, my friends. Or does 'This isn't going to work, it's over' mean something other than vat I am aware of?" The whole group kind of slumped in place, either in puzzlement or pity, and quickly broke up into respective groups to discuss the occurrence. Melody sat down in the farthest corner, not touching her coffee, which was by now cooling rapidly and congealing along the top. Abe walked over to her table, sitting down with an audible thump.

"Well, that's either really good timing or really bad timing, depending on how you look at it." Melody just nodded once. She didn't turn her head to look at him, but simply stared straight at the coffee stains on the table.

"Are you going to tell her?"

"No, of course not. Not now, just after. I can wait."

……………………

"It's been a year, Melody. When are you going to tell her?"

"It's too soon, Abe. I don't want to hurt her. I'll tell her when she starts feeling better."

……………………

"Melody, I don't think she's getting any better."

"I told you Abe, I can wait."

"Yes, but can she?"

"…….."

Life goes on, and eventually you have to start your life again. Even if you weren't exactly stopped in the first place. Melody had been waiting. She hadn't known exactly what she was waiting for, but she was finally coming to realize that she couldn't wait any longer. It was time to move out of the limbo she had created for herself, because Liz was only getting worse.

Melody was scared as she drew closer, stepping quietly along one of the forest paths on the grounds. She was scared of hurting Liz further, or of provoking any kind of response that would impede her healing. And even after all this time, all of this waiting, Melody was still afraid of being rejected. She was afraid her feelings would mean nothing to the one she loved so much, and that she would be discarded as one would throw away a book with a bad ending.

Melody could see her now, standing with her back to the path. She was staring off into the trees, as if entranced with some scene she saw there. But her eyes were empty and lifeless, and the vitality that Melody so loved in her was barely there. She was less than ten feet away, and hadn't seemed to notice her yet. Melody drew in a breath, but words failed her, and she had to close her eyes for a moment, remembering a time over two years ago when she and Liz had sat side by side, smiling in the sunlight that had finally pervaded the rainy season of India. She released the air in her lungs, drew a fresh breath, and began to sing.

Look the planet over girl;

But there is only one

Who'll love you more than all the stars;

Who'll be there when your life is done.

Look 'round every corner, girl.

Look in all the land.

Just one you'll find will have the time

To come and take your hand.

Just one in all this longest age

Will love you more than their own life.

That one will give their very heart

And never cause you care or strife.

However long you take to search

Will long and futile be.

I'm right beside you, dearest heart,

If only you would see.

She used no power in her song, none of the gifts of persuasion and influence. She sang only with her heart and her love, the truth imbedded in every note. It was a soft song, clear and gentle, drifting across the path like a healing wind. She held her breath, teetering on the edge of a precipice, not knowing whether or not to fall yet. Liz stood unmoving at the edge of the trees.

Melody felt tears begin to well up in her eyes. The hopelessness was closing in on her; she had done nothing to help her love; she had only made things worse. Her eyes closed, she heard only the soft rustle of leaves. Then a voice:

"Am I dreaming?" The words were barely audible, and when Melody jerked her head back up to look at Liz she couldn't tell if she had really spoken or not, she was so still.

"L- Liz?" She asked hesitantly.

"I asked if I was dreaming." Her voice was still soft, but she could hear now the broken edges on it. "If I'm dreaming, I'm not going to wake up. You can't make me. If this is a joke, then just stop right now." Her arms were wrapped around herself tightly, griping her sides as if to hold herself in. Melody rushed the last few feet over to her side, then paused and wrapped her arms gently around her.

"You're not dreaming Liz. Or if you are, then I am too, and I'll fight Morpheas himself before he can make me go. And I'd never joke about this. Never." Liz was still for a few seconds longer, and then began shaking slightly, the tears streaming down her face. Melody looked into her eyes with concern, but Liz began speaking again, faster and faster.

"You were always in the back of my mind, even though I was with him. And then I kept thinking about your voice, and I realized that the thing with HB wasn't working. But I never thought you would actually feel the same way, not about me at least. You were always so happy, and so beautiful, inside and out. I never believed you would feel anything for this… this bitter... this cynical person I'd become! I still think I'm dreaming, but I don't care anymore…"

"You might be cynical upon occasion, Liz, but it's just part of your sense of humor. And the bitterness isn't you, not really. It's the things you've had to put up with." Melody hugged Liz tighter to herself, whispering notes in between the words. "Please believe me when I say that I love you."

"I'll believe it if you keep saying it." Liz whispered back, finally embracing Melody in return.

"Forever, Liz. I love you."