My first song-fic. O, joy. The song, "The Promise" by Tracy Chapman will complete your life. It's spectacular. I've uploaded it for you guys, so if you don't have it and would like to listen to it while you read (I really, really recommend doing so) then you can find it at the top of my Profile page.

(Grins)

Enjoy!

Here on this Hill

Temperance released a tormented sigh, her gaze sweeping across the scintillating sky. Heavy white fog settled low over the sleeping city; an invisible sapient weight pressing down with force so unhampered that she was immediately put at ease. Her heart rate slowed, a languid beat that reverberated inside the walls of her chest, and the tears that had fallen on her journey here ceased with silent departure.

If you wait for me, then I'll come for you

She tilted her body back, her head resting back on her hunched shoulders. A thoughtful expression crossed her face as her eyes scanned across the expansive white sea of jubilant stars; stars that shone with such fierceness on this night that she was almost glad that the events of this day had fallen without thought, unplanned, on her calendar.

Although I've travelled far

Warm air cut though the still night, soothing her as it always did, here on this hill where she leant back on her elbows. She closed her eyes briefly, waiting and welcoming the stream of thoughts that flooded her mind whenever she was here. She imagined the knot of painful memories slowly untangle; the long limbs that sprouted in her mind's eye resembling long cords that she was able to read from and decipher whatever secret message it harboured.

Here on this hill, she remembered.

Here on this hill, she forgot.

Here on this hill, she understood.

This was her sanctuary, an unknown place for her to run to when she needed to be alone; where she sought and found the comfort that was so rare in her life.

I always hold a piece of you in my heart

Mourning, she grieved, was something she no longer wished to waste away on. She was tired, so very tired, could feel fifteen years of exhaustion and draining loneliness settle in the hidden depths of her bones. She was harassed by the bonds of her anger, anger at her family that she loved so unconditionally; love so unforgiving that it was sure to mark her downfall.

If you think of me, if you miss me once in a while

Her father and mother, the two people in her life that should love her without fault haunted her very soul. They killed, she knew, to stay alive, to protect their children. But she was too angry, felt the burn of abandonment too intensely to care for their reasoning. She was not selfish in her need to want them back. She longed for normality and the sense of security that came with having a family.

Remembering

Your touch

Your kiss

Your warm embrace

"Temperance."

She had felt him standing behind her before he spoke. She looked up at him, at the man that was so familiar to her, yet such a recent discovery in her life. She didn't bother to wipe away the tears that still stained her cheeks, didn't dissuade him when he sat down quietly next to her, wasn't surprised he had found her.

I have longed for you and I have desired

"Angela told me."

She nodded but remained silent, opting to stare at the coruscating stars instead. She knew all about the stars. It was just another thing her father had taught her when she was a young child, imparting his enthusiasm and knowledge to his little girl. She remembered everything he had told her. Stars. Something that connected them no matter where they were. Hot balls of gases burning for millions of years.

If you dream of me like I dream of you

"Why here?" He asked curiously, watching as her hands splayed wide over the grass beneath them, pulling softly at the long green blades not yet riddled with dew.

"It means forever." She answered, "Without end."

Baffled, he asked, "What does?"

She smiled; a smile he had long ago decoded. It was a smile that was seen often, but meant more if you only read the underlying meaning. "Rosen Hill." The smile faltered then, her lip quivering with imperceptible cunning. "It means forever."

He understood then. She came here because of what it represented. Forever to her meant there would always be opportunity, a chance to be with her family one day, even if that day would never be. She still had hope. And that hope was as painful as any loss.

I'll find my way back to you

The tears she strove to dodge sprung unbidden, curving smooth trails down her cheeks and dipping to the corners of her mouth. "I miss them all over again, Booth."

Her eyes bore into his with such raw emotion that he was loath to dare look away, even for a second. "I know, Bones."

"I want…I…" She took a deep breath and he placed his hand on her shoulder. "I want it to stop."

Together again

It would feel so good to be

In your arms

A silent cry caught in her throat, as if this was the hardest thing she would ever have to say. "I wish I didn't love them so much."

Booth squeezed her shoulder gently. "Don't think it would hurt any less." He rationalised.

She screwed her face up. "Love is so…"

"Love is undefinable." Booth interjected, "Love is not easily dismissed."

Please say you'll be waiting

I've longed for you

She sighed. "Is it wrong to hate them the way I do, for leaving…?"

He smiled. "No. I hate them a little bit too."

"Booth?"

"Hmmm?"

"I'm…scared."

I'll return and fill that space in your heart

Booth smiled knowingly and pulled her close, till she was pressed against his side. She went without restraint because she had asked him for this comfort; their own special code words understood by both. Her head dropped softly against his shoulder, her warm breath dancing over his skin.

In a place where I can feel the beating of your heart

She wiggled closer, her eyes lingering on the twinkling lights above her.

Here on this hill, she accepted.

I always hold a place for you in my heart