A/N: Note, this is based off the movie as I haven't had a chance to read the book yet.
I don't own anything. This is purely for fun, out of a love for the wonderful Disney movie.
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Chapter 1
August 1998.
Gusts of wind tugged at her skirt and hair, tossing the tidy curls into disarray, the cotton calico dress plainer than her usual wear. Clouds cloaked the western horizon, muting the colors of sunset beneath their ominous bulk, the muggy summer evening tense with the coming storm.
Pinning her hat down with one hand, clasping her small travel case in the other, Winnie hurried down the steps. Securely locked and barred, the empty mansion watched her go, the place of her childhood left behind by all who had called it home. Gravel sprayed under her feet, dispersed as she halted momentarily to swing the gate open, and disappear down the road.
Many had been the years since she'd traveled around the world with her parents, the settings of that long ago August so different from these. On that other trip, her heart had been fresh with the ache of leaving Jesse, of the decision that weighed on her, and hope in that the Tucks would return. Since then, her parents had passed on, laid to rest in their graves several years ago, the Depression being nearly their ruin and playing a large role in their early deaths. The servants had all been dismissed, the money stretching only enough to keep the property, not sparing enough to save Winnie from labor. Times had changed, women no longer succumbed to the strict scruples of men, but made their own way in the world, and earning enough keep for one was a simple enough task that Winnie achieved through small jobs. Long outdated were the notions of what were required of a proper lady, something that would've made her mother gasp with indignity had she been there to see it.
But she was her own person, in charge and capable, and it was time to realize that.
Raindrops dappled the asphalt by the time she reached Tree Gap, the mile walk enough distance for the storm to catch up with her, the thick, solitary drops quickly becoming hoards. Ducking her head as she entered the station, letting the wide brim of her hat fall low over her face, she paid for her ticket with the barest of murmurs, never meeting the booth keeper's eyes as she accepted the narrow piece of paper.
Her means of escape.
The quiet train station was void of patrons, the hour being uncommon for when most sought travel. Those who regularly used the commuter trains had already arrived home, tucking into their long awaited dinners, glad to rest for the remainder of that evening. Up on the wall above the door, the grand clock ticked, hands pointing that it'd be another quarter hour to half hour wait.
Taking a seat on an available bench, she relaxed with a quiet sigh, shoulders losing the rigidity that had gripped her since receiving Miles' letter. Setting the travel case at her feet, her posture primly proper and straight, toes aligned with the edge of the suitcase, she carefully pulled out the two letters from her pocket.
The first fell crumpled into her lap, the sides of the envelope foxed from running her fingers over it so often, the letter inside in no better condition. This was the letter that she had received from Miles, the one that had made her heart jolt with an irrational fear, and her body tremble with sudden fright when she had received it.
The second bore no return address, fastly sealed shut, just as it had been when it'd arrived earlier that day. A carefree, confident scrawl slanted across the front of it, oh so familiar and dear, inscribing her name and address in the same hand that had written to her regularly for over the past fifty years.
Returning from her world travels with her parents, she had found the first few letters waiting for her on her nightstand, placed there by the servants. The words inside had brought equal parts breathless joy and overwhelming pain, Jesse's simply stated proclamations making her loss that much more evident.
"My Winnie," he'd written at the start of the first letter, "We're far from Tree Gap now. Tuck and Mae have a safe place to call home for the while, but Miles and I will be moving on. He wants to join the war…" Further down, it had stated, "…I can't bear living like this, I miss having you by my side. I reach for your hand, but you're not there, your voice doesn't echo with mine in laughter, and the day is dull without the sight of your smile. My days are burdened by eternity until I can return for you. Forever can't replace the pain of these moments without you…" At the end, he'd signed it, repeating the last words he'd said to her, "Wake up with the dawn, yours till I die, Jesse."
The others had echoed the sentiments of the first, describing moments that he wished he could've shared with her, reminiscing when they had been together, and the things they'd do once eternity was theirs to share. Immediately after reading his letters, she had written one of her own, responding to his declarations, telling him of the places she'd seen with her parents, and how much the pain of their separation tormented her heart.
Gradually, their letters fell into a pattern, he would write of the latest with his family, subtly reassuring her that they were all well, before ardently admitting his longing for her, how the memory of their summer still haunted him, and finishing with vivid descriptions of where they'd go, the things they'd do, and the moments they'd live once they were together. Upon reading it, she would write one back, returning his fervor, begging him to return soon, voicing the quiet fear that she was forgetting him, and once she'd sealed it in an envelope, she'd hide it away in a box with others, waiting for the day when she could give them to him.
Opening Jesse's latest letter, she smoothed the page over her lap, quickly reading what he'd written, the familiar warmth filling her as it did every time she read his letters.
"May 1998
My dearest Winnie,
Miles and I have been in Venice upwards of a week now. We'll be returning to Mae and Tuck after this, visit with them a while before traveling again. I'm hoping this is the year I make it back to Tree Gap.
The years since I was last there have passed in a blur. All that stands out to me is how much I've missed you. Everything was warmer and happier when you were around, my family better able to forget about our timelessness in your company. Even Miles was a little more cheerful back then. But time didn't drag at me like it does now. I can't seem to make it pass as quickly as it once did, and to my memory, it seems that my time with you passed much too quickly.
But I wish you could see Venice! History is still alive here, the past part of the present for all to see and feel. Long ago, the city was built on a lake, and it's streets are still made of water, with fancy little boats, called gondolas, that they mostly use to tourists to sight see in, but they're same as the ones they used over a hundred years ago. At night, the water's beautiful; lights sparkle like fairies on the surface, music plays quietly through the streets, and the sunset goes on for ages. And if you go out in the middle of the lagoon, away from everybody else, when the night is black as pitch, a million stars fill the skies.
If you were here with me, I'd show you all of it. We'd visit the markets, see the theatres, and dance in the squares. I'd take you on a gondola, and we'd explore the waterways, until, at the end of the day, it's just the two of us, far away from the rest, watching the sunset fade and the stars come out. And we'd stay out there, just us and the stars, for as long as we felt like it.
I still remember the promise I made you that we'd see the world together, and I'll keep that promise. Someday, we'll see it all. We'll recover the ground that I've already trod and find sights neither of us have dreamed of. And it'll be ours.
Wake up with the dawn,
Eager for day I'll see you again, Jesse."
A tender crossing her face, a faint blush coloring her cheeks, Winnie folded the letter carefully, replacing it to the safety of its envelope. Taking out the parchment she had placed in the side pocket of her case, hidden there in preparation for writing him back, she uncapped the ink pen, sure strokes dainty and beautiful, leaving the page covered in calligraphy.
"August 1998
My dear, dear Jesse,
I wish you were here right now so I could explain to you all of my thoughts. Just the other day, I was thinking about our first kiss, how nervous and excited I was. When we danced that night, your arms around me, holding me fast and safe, I felt like our souls were one, our hearts beating in tandem with each other and our lungs sure to fail should we breathe without the other. The joy I felt, the wonder. I had never felt more alive.
I long to feel that again, to have your arms around me, to feel each breathe renewed by your presence. To live the scenes you've described to me would be a dream come true. I want to experience each and every single one of them for the rest of forever, for all I've ever wanted was to be with you.
But Jesse, I must tell you, Miles wrote me. He unraveled the riddle that has tormented me these many years, and I must heed his words…"
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A/N: First, thank you for reading! This story kind of came out of nowhere, but I love the story of Jesse and Winnie, their relationship was just so sweet, and I wanted to write something in tribute to it. While I've taken several liberties with this (technically, one could say it's an AU of sorts), I hope the characters come off properly, and that I'll be able to give them the happy ending that they deserve^^
Also, I wanted to explain a few things...
The way the Tucks left and vanished without another word was honestly surprising to me. Especially with Jesse. To leave her like that, and never contact her, just didn't sit well with me. So it made more sense to me to have it where he does contact her, and even though she can never send a letter back, and least it won't be just a fond a memory and she knows that he's still very much in love with her.
On that note, I decided to play with the idea of what if she had drank from the spring. Now here, I put a lot of thought into what she would've done. First, she's waiting for Jesse, believing she'll see him again someday. Secondly though, I don't think she'd take well to sitting at the house forever, wondering when he'll return. That's why the letters are such a key part. Now, she has a reason to wait patiently. Yet, she'd still feel trapped, but out of fear of missing from hearing him, she won't leave. So that prompts the reason of why she'd leave... But I'm not going to answer that now, that will be discussed in another chapter ;)
Which brings us to the next problem: Why did he take so long in coming back to her? Why not wait twenty, or even thirty or forty, years before coming back? The name Tuck would've faded into local legend by then, no one would be looking for them anymore. There would just be the strange memory of the summer Winnie went missing, and the mysterious Tuck family (whom no one knew about in the first place, if I may point out) who were her captors. So, to answer as to why he took so long... I believe it was because of his family. I think Tuck would've wanted to give Winnie time and space to live with whatever decision she made, to allow it to be her own choice, without interference. That way she'd have a chance to live her life. And Miles would've helped with that by keeping Jesse distracted to prevent him from returning prematurely.
My last point (and really, you can skip this one if you feel like it, it's not really important) is the idea behind this story. It came from listening to Trading Yesterday's "She is the Sunlight". In truth, I can't believe there aren't any videos out there for those two with some of Trading Yesterday's songs, their lyrics fit them perfectly! But anyway, the idea tickled at the lyrics "She is tomorrow, and I am today" and somehow immediately following that I read it wrong. So to my brain it said, "She is my yesterday, and I am today." Following that, my mind went into overdrive and decided that together they are tomorrow lol XD Anyway, just wanted to share that, in case anyone was wondering about the inspiration behind this^^
So those are my reasons for why I chose the angle that I did with this story. I would love to hear if anyone has any differing opinions, or thoughts on what I said, but thanks for reading and I hope to see you in the next chapter!
Jesse: "Hey, Winnie Foster. You asleep?"
Winnie: "Not anymore."
Jesse: "Good. How would you like to see a review?"
Winnie: "What? Someday."
Jesse: "No, right now, this instant. I hear it makes the author's day."
Just couldn't resist there! But regardless, I'd love to hear from you guys!