I Hope You Dance
By Jenny
Disclaimer: ok, I don't own any characters, lyrics, whatever. I wish I did own this song. It's wonderful. It makes me cry. YOU HAVE TO LISTEN TO IT! IT ROCKS! I'm SO singing this to my kids in the future.
Rating: G
Dedication: there are sooo many people I'd like to thank, so I'll just put on a few. To Delenn, Destiny, Eris, and Cora. To my mom and my friends. To Kevin Smith, may the gods grant you eternal peace. To all the people at the shippers club. And to all A/X fans!
Feedback: Always welcome.
Summary: This is a little ficlet of Xena and Eve before the whole 25-frozen-years thing. Eve is being fussy and is worried about something and Xena sings her a lullaby to calm her down. This is right before 'Looking Death in the Eye'. The song is 'I Hope You Dance' by Lee Ann Womack.
I Hope You Dance by Lee Ann Womack is a wonderful song. I hope everyone has a chance to listen to it.
Eve wailed. She had a foreboding sense something was going to happen to her mother. Xena picked her up, and rocked her gently, trying to soothe her baby's cries. Nothing worked. Xena knitted her eyebrows together and frowned. "It's OK little one." She remembered an old lullaby her mother had once sung to her. Ares had sung it to her when she was upset. Xena closed her eyes at the thought of Ares and sighed. Pushing the God of War away from her thoughts, she concentrated on the situation at hand. It was worth a try. She sung softly, "I hope you never lose your sense of wonder. You get your fill to eat, but always keep that hunger." Eve whimpered, her cries softer. "May you never take one single breath for granted. God forbid love ever leave you empty handed." Xena smiled as her daughter stared at her with big blue eyes. "I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean. Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens. Promise me that you'll give Faith a fighting chance." Xena had forgotten how much this song meant to her. She wanted this for Eve so much. "And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance, I hope you dance. I hope you dance. I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance. Never settle for the path of least resistance. Living might mean taking chances, but they're worth taking. Loving might be a mistake but it's worth making." She kissed Eve's forehead. Gods know she lived up to that millions of times. "Don't let some hell-bent heart leave you bitter." She thought of Ares. "When you come close to selling out, reconsider." She thought of the many times she was tempted to go back to Ares. "Give the Heavens above more than just a passing glance. And when you get the choice to sit or dance." She looked at the clouds above her and looked back at her daughter tenderly. "I hope you dance, I hope you dance. I hope you dance. I hope you dance." Eve had stopped crying, a hint of a smile on her small face. "I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean. Whenever one door closes, I hope one more opens. Promise me that you'll give Faith a fighting chance. And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance. Dance. I hope you dance. I hope you dance. I hope you dance. Time is a wheel in constant motion, always rolling us along." She smiled slightly as she thought of what the future held for them. "Tell me who wants to look back on their years and wonder, where those years have gone." She hummed a few notes, her voice fading away. "I love you Eve. And I will always be here for you." Eve gurgled happily at her mother and yawned. Xena put her to bed and kissed her. "Never forget I love you." She looked up at the stars and sighed, smiling, knowing her future with her daughter was secure and will always be so.
