Title: Buried
Author: Allana
Rating: PG
Summary: Years after Liz leaves Roswell, someone comes to visit…
Disclaimer: I don't own Roswell. Jason Katims and the WB do. The quotes come from
Charles Dickens' "A Tale of Two Cities". Read it sometime, it's interesting.
Dedication: Thanks Jo!!!!! Also to my "acquaintance", Chaz Dickens, for the
inspiration.
Spoilers: There is a spoiler out there that says that Alex is going to die ::SOB!::. That's
included in this, but I hope I didn't ruin anyone's day by saying that.
["Buried how long?"
"Almost eighteen years."]
Liz woke up to a dark, drizzly morning in Chicago. It was going to be another
dull day, one without love or pain. No feeling at all was best, she thought. She didn't
care whether or not it was sunny or rainy out.
She hurriedly cleaned up her apartment and gathered the materials for the
continuation of her case. As hard as some prosecuting attorneys were, she was perfect
for the job. She never got personally involved with her cases. Nevertheless, she didn't
feel happy with her occupation, either. She had abandoned science long ago. Anything
that made her feel joy would eventually cause her pain.
All throughout the day, she listened to and participated in arguments considering
the guilt of a man who supposedly killed his wife. "I didn't kill her!" he would yell at the
jury. "I loved her!" Then he would burst into tears.
Liz remained indifferent. All of the evidence pointed to him, so that was all she
cared about. It was probably just a big act, anyway. Love, after all, is like a game…
["You had given up all hope of being dug out?"
"Long ago."]
Late that night, Liz woke up from another nightmare. The fear only got to her for
a few moments, then she calmed down and slipped into another troubled sleep.
FLASH. The Skins coming after her. All connected with the Royal Four would
be killed. It was what loving Max had brought her. She was going to die from a war that
didn't have anything to do with Earth, except that the aliens had landed there and were
pursued by their enemies. FLASH. Max was holding her, telling her it was going to be
all right. He made the Skins go away. "I won't let you die, Liz." FLASH.
Liz woke up again. She didn't quite remember the dream, but she felt a terrible
longing for something. Something she once had. Then she thought, what's the use?
Whatever it is that I want, I seem to be living just fine without it. She relaxed and drifted
off to her hidden torment.
The next morning dawned brightly. Liz got up and got dressed, readying for
another hectic day in court. After finishing a bland breakfast of toast, someone knocked
on her door. Curious as to why someone would visit her at that hour, she tentatively
undid the catch and opened the door. What she saw on the other side of the threshold
caused her to reel backward and nearly faint.
"Max!" she gasped.
["I hope you know that you are recalled to life?"
"They tell me so."]
"Liz," he replied, sadness and hope in his soulful brown eyes.
He had no roses, no mariachi band, nothing but himself. Liz felt a mix of warmth,
emptiness and longing running through her abdomen. She began to shake, slightly. "It's
been almost eighteen years, hasn't it?" she asked.
"Since you left Roswell." Max looked down awkwardly at the floor before
venturing to meet her gaze again. "May I come in?"
Liz started. "Oh, yes, of course." She stepped aside enough for him to enter and
closed the door behind him. She seated him on her black leather couch and took a place
on the other side of it. "What are you doing here?"
"I came to see you. To… to see how you were."
"I'm fine, Max. Has much happened since I've been gone?"
Max sighed. "The war is escalating. All of us are still alive, but all of us have
scars. Not just physical ones, either." He diverted his eyes for a moment. "Michael and
Maria are married, and Kyle and Tess are certainly thinking about it. Isabel feels so
lonely, ever since… Alex died."
Liz remembered. It had been a car accident. A stupid car accident…
"Alex," she whispered softly.
"Liz, I know that I don't really have any right to ask you this, but…"
"Max, please don't…."
"Please come back to Roswell with me. We need you. Maria's nearly going
crazy worrying over you. Liz, I can't just… I can't live without you. It's too painful."
The feeling was something in between her heart leaping and a dagger being
stabbed through it. She feared the dagger more than she loved the leaping. "It's too
painful for me to love. I've learned to deal with it. At least this way, I'll stay alive. I'm
safe here, don't you understand? I have a good job, a good place to live, and I'm
respected. I'm not about to go to the crusades with you and get myself killed. Is that
what you want?"
Max looked down at the floor again, almost as if he were going to cry. He slowly
got to his feet. "Like I said, I didn't have the right to ask you. I'm sorry, Liz." He
walked with his shoulders hunched and paused at the door. He turned around once and
stared at her intently, as if to search her heart or re-memorize her face. Then he left,
closing the door behind him.
Liz felt mixed emotions. Then her obstinance dropped and she felt a deep sense
of regret. What had she done now? She had re-cut into Max's old scar and *watched* it
bleed. And now it was too late to go back…
Liz ran into her kitchen with her head in her hands and opened the knife drawer.
Outside, the sun had clouded over and looked as if it might rain.
["I hope you care to live."
"I can't say."]
A/N: For those of you who don't get it, I'm not telling you whether or not Liz is going to
kill herself.
Author: Allana
Rating: PG
Summary: Years after Liz leaves Roswell, someone comes to visit…
Disclaimer: I don't own Roswell. Jason Katims and the WB do. The quotes come from
Charles Dickens' "A Tale of Two Cities". Read it sometime, it's interesting.
Dedication: Thanks Jo!!!!! Also to my "acquaintance", Chaz Dickens, for the
inspiration.
Spoilers: There is a spoiler out there that says that Alex is going to die ::SOB!::. That's
included in this, but I hope I didn't ruin anyone's day by saying that.
["Buried how long?"
"Almost eighteen years."]
Liz woke up to a dark, drizzly morning in Chicago. It was going to be another
dull day, one without love or pain. No feeling at all was best, she thought. She didn't
care whether or not it was sunny or rainy out.
She hurriedly cleaned up her apartment and gathered the materials for the
continuation of her case. As hard as some prosecuting attorneys were, she was perfect
for the job. She never got personally involved with her cases. Nevertheless, she didn't
feel happy with her occupation, either. She had abandoned science long ago. Anything
that made her feel joy would eventually cause her pain.
All throughout the day, she listened to and participated in arguments considering
the guilt of a man who supposedly killed his wife. "I didn't kill her!" he would yell at the
jury. "I loved her!" Then he would burst into tears.
Liz remained indifferent. All of the evidence pointed to him, so that was all she
cared about. It was probably just a big act, anyway. Love, after all, is like a game…
["You had given up all hope of being dug out?"
"Long ago."]
Late that night, Liz woke up from another nightmare. The fear only got to her for
a few moments, then she calmed down and slipped into another troubled sleep.
FLASH. The Skins coming after her. All connected with the Royal Four would
be killed. It was what loving Max had brought her. She was going to die from a war that
didn't have anything to do with Earth, except that the aliens had landed there and were
pursued by their enemies. FLASH. Max was holding her, telling her it was going to be
all right. He made the Skins go away. "I won't let you die, Liz." FLASH.
Liz woke up again. She didn't quite remember the dream, but she felt a terrible
longing for something. Something she once had. Then she thought, what's the use?
Whatever it is that I want, I seem to be living just fine without it. She relaxed and drifted
off to her hidden torment.
The next morning dawned brightly. Liz got up and got dressed, readying for
another hectic day in court. After finishing a bland breakfast of toast, someone knocked
on her door. Curious as to why someone would visit her at that hour, she tentatively
undid the catch and opened the door. What she saw on the other side of the threshold
caused her to reel backward and nearly faint.
"Max!" she gasped.
["I hope you know that you are recalled to life?"
"They tell me so."]
"Liz," he replied, sadness and hope in his soulful brown eyes.
He had no roses, no mariachi band, nothing but himself. Liz felt a mix of warmth,
emptiness and longing running through her abdomen. She began to shake, slightly. "It's
been almost eighteen years, hasn't it?" she asked.
"Since you left Roswell." Max looked down awkwardly at the floor before
venturing to meet her gaze again. "May I come in?"
Liz started. "Oh, yes, of course." She stepped aside enough for him to enter and
closed the door behind him. She seated him on her black leather couch and took a place
on the other side of it. "What are you doing here?"
"I came to see you. To… to see how you were."
"I'm fine, Max. Has much happened since I've been gone?"
Max sighed. "The war is escalating. All of us are still alive, but all of us have
scars. Not just physical ones, either." He diverted his eyes for a moment. "Michael and
Maria are married, and Kyle and Tess are certainly thinking about it. Isabel feels so
lonely, ever since… Alex died."
Liz remembered. It had been a car accident. A stupid car accident…
"Alex," she whispered softly.
"Liz, I know that I don't really have any right to ask you this, but…"
"Max, please don't…."
"Please come back to Roswell with me. We need you. Maria's nearly going
crazy worrying over you. Liz, I can't just… I can't live without you. It's too painful."
The feeling was something in between her heart leaping and a dagger being
stabbed through it. She feared the dagger more than she loved the leaping. "It's too
painful for me to love. I've learned to deal with it. At least this way, I'll stay alive. I'm
safe here, don't you understand? I have a good job, a good place to live, and I'm
respected. I'm not about to go to the crusades with you and get myself killed. Is that
what you want?"
Max looked down at the floor again, almost as if he were going to cry. He slowly
got to his feet. "Like I said, I didn't have the right to ask you. I'm sorry, Liz." He
walked with his shoulders hunched and paused at the door. He turned around once and
stared at her intently, as if to search her heart or re-memorize her face. Then he left,
closing the door behind him.
Liz felt mixed emotions. Then her obstinance dropped and she felt a deep sense
of regret. What had she done now? She had re-cut into Max's old scar and *watched* it
bleed. And now it was too late to go back…
Liz ran into her kitchen with her head in her hands and opened the knife drawer.
Outside, the sun had clouded over and looked as if it might rain.
["I hope you care to live."
"I can't say."]
A/N: For those of you who don't get it, I'm not telling you whether or not Liz is going to
kill herself.