Her Majesty's Armed Forces

United Kingdom

18th June 2013

Dear Miss. Powers

It is with the deepest regret that we must inform you of the death of Captain Sophie Lauren Webster, who was killed in battle at 07:24 on the morning of 11th June 2013, while defending her Company from enemy forces.

Her courage and bravery enabled the extraction of the rest of her Company saving their lives, and for this she will never forgotten.

Captain Webster distinguished herself during her service and earned the respect of the men and women who served under her. Our Country has lost not only a good soldier, but an exceptional individual, and she will be honored as such.

I extend my greatest sympathy to you for your loss, and can only hope that you can take comfort in the knowledge that Sophie gave her life selflessly, doing something she believed in.

Sincerely,

Major. Tom Cartwright

Major Tom Cartwright

British Army

Her Majesty's Armed Forces

As Sian looked over the letter she'd read countless times already, her tears fell on to the paper. It was like she was waiting for the words on the page to change, or hoping that she'd wake up realising it was all just a nightmare. She ran her thumb over the top of the medal in her hand, feeling sudden anger as she threw it at the opposite wall. ''WHY?!'' she screamed as she let herself fall to the floor on her knees.

If this was reality she didn't want to live in it, not without Sophie. They were supposed to get married, have a family and spend the rest of their lives together. Sian didn't want a forever with anyone else. She'd made up her mind a long time ago that the Brunette was it for her, the only person she could ever imagine spending a lifetime with.

''I miss you.'' she whispered out sat on the floor in her black dress and looked over at the photo frame next to the bed. It held a picture of her and Sophie from two years ago at Christmas and they were both beaming at each other. Sophie was sat behind Sian, her arms wrapped securely around her waist as she looked down and rested her forehead against the Blonde's who was looking back at her. That had been the year that Sophie had managed to get four weeks leave over Christmas and New Years, and it was one of the happiest times Sian could remember them having, and they had definitely made the most of their time together.

Having to sit and listen to people talking about Sophie in the past tense, hear all their stories of the good she'd done, the times she'd made people laugh, the accomplishments she'd achieved, it was agony for Sian. When she stood up at the front of the church and spoke about the love of her life, she could barely get a few words out before she'd broken down, causing Rosie to rush up and wrap her in a hug before guiding her back to her seat. She couldn't and didn't want to believe that Sophie was gone, she couldn't say goodbye. She felt as though she was still there, and she just couldn't face the thought that she would never see her beautiful smiling face again, or hear her tell her she loved her.

3 years later…

''It's been three years Sian, I know it's hard but you can't hold on to all this forever.''

''It's hers Katie, I can't just throw it out.''

''I'm not telling you to throw it out Hun, just move some of it back to her parents and they'll sort through it. You need to be able to move on, and you're not going to be able to do it if you're surrounded by reminders.''

''It's Sophie. You're asking me to get over the one person I love more than anything in this world.''

''No Babe, I'm not…'' The younger girl stepped towards the Blonde and rested her hand on her back, rubbing gently. ''I just don't want to watch you hurting anymore.''

''Then bring her back.'' Sian cried as she clung on to one of Sophie's hoodies and held it close to her face taking in what little scent remained.

''She's gone Sian.''

''Thank you Madam, you're sat in 14A which is straight ahead and on your right. ''Have a nice flight.'' The flight attendant smiled as she handed back the ticket to the young woman who had just walked on to the plane. The Brunette smiled in return and made her way to her seat, placing her carry-on luggage in the overhead compartment and shuffling in beside the window as she settled down for her flight.

''Can I get you a pre-flight drink Madam?''

''Just water please.''

''Of course.'' As the flight attendant walked away, a voice came through the in flight announcement system.

''Good morning ladies and gentlemen, my name is David Henries and I'll be your captain for the duration of your flight today. Accompanying me in the cockpit today is John Mackie and hope to make your flight as pleasant and carefree as we can. Flight time is expected to be approximately seven and a half hours and we should arrive in the UK at about 9:30am local time. We want you to be as comfortable as possible, so please do not hesitate to ask any of our flight attendants should you require any assistance...'' Sophie pulled out the headset for the entertainment unit and looked around for where to plug it in.

''… and we also appreciate your cooperation with our no smoking policy onboard this aircraft. Thank you ladies and gentlemen, and we wish you a pleasant flight.'' The announcement ended as young Brunette continued to search where to plug in the headset.

A second later, the flight attendant returned with her drink, setting it down on the drinks rest beside her. She reached across and took the plug from the other woman's hand and slid it into the socket hidden under the arm rest, her chest on display as she was leaning into the girl sat in front of her. ''Thanks.'' The Brunette smiled gratefully at the Blonde in front of her.

''No problem.'' The whispered, her face close enough for the other woman to feel her breath on her lips. ''If I can do anything else for you, anything at all, please just let me know.'' She winked as she stood back up. ''Enjoy your flight Miss Webster.''

''You'll feel better about it soon love, she wouldn't have expected you to hold on to everything forever.'' Sally stated as she placed her hand on Sian's shoulder and they watched Kevin load the last box into the car.

''It's only for storage though Sally, I don't want any of Soph's stuff gotten rid of.''

''Sian love, what are you going to do with al-''

''Storage only Sally, I mean it.'' Sian cut her off. While she knew that legally she had no right over Sophie's belongings or what happened to them, she was determined that nothing would be thrown out or given away, and she was grateful that the Webster's had respected the girls' relationship enough to accept that.

''Okay, okay. Storage only. You have to let go one day though love, it's not good for you this.'' Sally told her as she squeezed her shoulder gently. ''See you soon love, maybe you can come for tea sometime next week, it's been too long.'' Sally walked in the direction of Kevin and their car, knowing that it was unlikely they'd see the Blonde. Ever since it happened, Sian had spent less and less time around them and generally around other people. No matter how much people tried to get her to go out, she didn't want to be out there enjoying herself without Sophie being there to enjoy it with her.

''Bye Sally.'' Sian said quietly as she leaned against the door frame and watched the couple get into the car. She glanced down at her left hand and looked at the shining reminder of the one person she had missed for the past three years. ''I'll never let go of you, Soph.''

She had only agreed to clear out some of Sophie's things from the apartment after even more pestering from Katie and a few of her other friends. In all honesty, she knew that they were right, that if she wanted to get over the Brunette, then she couldn't expect to do so when surrounded by constant reminders. The only problem was though, that she just didn't want to forget. The ring on her left hand had not come off once since she'd put it on after receiving it with the letter from the Brunette. It was something that made her feel that Sophie was still with her, and she had no intention of removing it.

''Okay, everything has been arranged here for you. The Major will be here first thing in the morning, so you should try and get some sleep.'' Sophie entered the small room and looked around, it wasn't much, but then neither had the space she'd become accustomed to over the past 3 years. Walking over to the bed, she placed her bag down on it before she took a seat.

''Thanks.'' she said as the young soldier nodded and turned to leave the room. ''Wait!'' she quickly stopped him from leaving and he turned around waiting for the Brunette to continue. ''Was I a good soldier?''

''I've only been in the army for the past two years…'' Sophie nodded as she looked down, slightly disappointed that she wasn't able to find out anything more about herself. ''But all new recruits talk about you, and from the stories I've been told, you were one of the best. You saved your entire Company, you're a hero, Captain.'' Sophie looked up as the young soldier gave her a small but genuine smile before he saluted her and walked out of the room, closing the door behind himself, leaving Sophie alone.

It had been almost two years and four months since the day she'd woken up suddenly shouting. Unsure of where she was as she looked around the clinical white room, the erratic beeping noise almost deafening as people in white coats rushed to her side and held her down and she felt the sharp prick of a needle pierce her arm

She'd hadn't even been able to even remember her own name, she had no idea where she was from or how she'd gotten to where she found herself, but one thing she seemed to have clung on to was one word, and surely if it was the one thing her brain had remembered it must have been important. For the past two years and four months she'd been trying to remember even the smallest detail of her life, and she was sure that she sometimes dreamed about it, but by the time she woke up, the faces of the people in her dreams had faded, and any detail that might have helped her figure out who she was, had vanished. No matter how many times she fell asleep or how much time passed, she never stopped thinking about that one thing that stuck in her mind, and she wanted desperately to find out why it was so important that her mind wouldn't let her forget. The one small word, four small letters, one name she was determined to put a face to… Sian.

Sophie opened her eyes slowly at the sound of footsteps in the corridor. A few moments later a knock at the door made her sit up and swing her legs over the edge. She'd been awake and dressed for the past couple of hours, having been a light sleeper over the past few years, ''Come in.'' she called before the door opened and the light from the corridor shone into the room making her squint slightly.

''Good morning Captain.'' The voice was deep and quite gruff, not quite matching the tall, well built image of the man who walked into the room and stood in front of her. ''I'm Major Tom Cartwright.''

''It's good to meet you Major.'' Sophie stood up from the bed and held out her hand to him. He stood for a few seconds studying the Brunette's face for any signs of recollection before he took her hand and shook it.

''You don't remember me?'' he asked as she took back his hand and removed his hat, tucking it under his arm as Sophie swept the hair back from her face and sighed.

''No, I'm sorry, I don't. Did we know each other?''

''Yes, we did. Since the day you joined us as a recruit I knew you'd be one of the best, Sophie, and I was right. You may have tried to prove me wrong a few times in the beginning, but you soon proved your worth, and you made me proud.''

''I wish I could remember. Up until a week ago I didn't even know my own name. I can't remember anything…'' she let herself slump back down on to the bed, her hands in her lap as she looked down.

''Yet.'' The Major stated, making Sophie look back up to him. ''You just don't remember yet, but you will. We're going to help you, I'm going to help you, and you'll have you're old life back in no time. But we're going to do things slowly, no rushing and chancing doing more harm than good.''

Sophie nodded ash she looked down to her fingers she was fidgeting with. ''Just tell me one thing…'' she said quietly as she looked up to him. ''Is my old life one that I want to remember?''

Major Cartwright smiled as he thought about the question before he answered her. ''More than you could imagine.''

''So, I'm told you were in a coma for eight months before you finally came around.''

''Apparently.''

He opened a paper folder in front of him and flipped over a page of what appeared to be quite a thick report. ''Two bullet wounds to the chest, punctured right lung, fractured right fibula, three broken fingers, shrapnel scattered throughout 70% of your soft tissue and a perforated left eardrum.'' The Major winced as he read through the list of injuries that Sophie was found to have when she was first found. ''You died twice during surgery…'' He couldn't help but feel guilty as he realised that the young woman in front of him had had to face all of this alone. ''It's believed you're suffering from Post-tramatic amnesia, but with time you can gain regain your memory.''

''After two years?'' Sophie asked. She been trying to remember her life since she'd woken up. She'd hoped that something, anything would trigger a memory that would help her get back to wherever it was she was from and to the people she belonged with.

He'd been telling the truth when he'd said Sophie had made him proud, becoming one of his best recruits. He'd always thought of the young Brunette almost as a daughter and was determined right from the start to help her become the best person she could. They'd talked quite a bit and she'd told him all about her problems at home, her parent's divorce when she was younger, her trouble at school, college and even her run- in with the police. Then she started talking about the person she'd met who made her want to change and leave all that behind, and the Major had seen how her face light up as she described her blonde hair, her bright sparkling eyes, how stubborn she was in the beginning, turning the Brunette down more than a few times before finally agreeing to go on a date with her, and how she was the first person in a long time that made Sophie feel as though she could be more than she was.

It was obvious that Sophie loved the Blonde, and during the three years that Sophie was in the army, any time she spoken about her, it was clear that she fell more and more in love with Sian with every day that passed. The Major had met Sian on one occasion at the promotion ceremony when Sophie had become a Captain, and he'd watched the couple as they smiled and talked, with the Brunette barely leaving the proud looking Blonde's side.

He'd been the one that had sent the death notification letter to Sian, having fought to have one sent to her even though she wasn't legally her next of kin given that they hadn't married, but he knew how important the Blonde was to Sophie and believed that she should be treated as though they had been.

Now sat here with the Brunette, he knew Sian, nor the rest of Sophie's family knew yet that she'd been found, or that she was actually alive. As much as he wanted to let them know, he was under strict orders to keep it confidential, at least until they'd been able to find out what she'd been through, where she'd been, who she'd been with and if she had any information on the opposing forces that could help the army. He knew by keeping Sophie apart from the ones she loved and who loved her he was betraying someone he cared about, but she was after all a soldier, and she always said she'd do anything to protect her country and the innocent. He just hoped that Sophie would understand.