Story 4: Belmont, Ohio, 3:36 P.M. by Sarah Segretti

[wendelah1]

This week's post was nominated bywendelah1. That would be me. I read this story for the first time this year, although it was originally posted back in September 2000. It is rated PG for a couple of naughty words, the category is VRA, although I haven't a clue what that is supposed to mean. The author's summary says: "A minivan, some classic rock, and a trunk full of babygear. All is not as it appears." Yes folks, this is AU, MSR, babyfic and songfic. Happy Holidays! I hope you enjoy it, too. I don't know why Sarah Segretti never archived it but here it is:

http://groups.google.ca/group/alt.tv.x-files.creative/msg/92d0d0913d9895c0?dmode=source

Let us know what you think; let the author know what you think; and please, let us know your suggestions for next time.
Come on, people, we know you are out there! Please,  I am at home on disability and I am lonely and bored! Don't make me beg...

Edit: as pointed out, by tree, this story is also at Gossamer, and on her webpage, which is somewhere out there in cyberspace. My bad, folks. I should have looked closer... her webpage is now down. But Gossamer lives!

Comments

[emily-shore.livejournal.com]

Oh. A lovely choice, Wendy.

The reveal is so subtle, and it sneaks up on you so slowly. I love the superficial normality of it... the minivan, the cupholders, all of the baby things. And then Scully's mood... at first you think that she's just having an off day, maybe she has postpartum depression, and then you wonder. The author says that she's familiar with the roads that Mulder and Scully are driving, and that shows.

One of my favourite things about the story is the way that it recapitulates all of the places that Mulder and Scully have visited over the years, traveling the journey in reverse. It shows up how far they have come, how much things have changed and how much they've remained the same. All that they've lost and all that they've gained. The power of this story comes from how difficult those two things are to disentangle.

And yes, I liked the music. It is used to good effect. Usually songfics are bad either because the music is intrusive or because the author has imposed their own tastes on the characters. (No, I don't think M&S would listen to Nickelback, thanks.) In this case, it definitely reinforces the themes rather than distracting from them. "Free Bird" certainly makes a lot of sense. Any mention of the Smiths gets me on board, although "How Soon Is Now" wouldn't have been my first choice. And "I Can See Clearly Now"... perfect. I could see the scene.

[wendelah1]

Thank you. I think this might now be my favorite of her stories and I loved "America's Games." This one just captured me from the summary right on through. I didn't hear a false note, although she is teasing us a little bit with the heredity is spooky line. Since the show did it all the time, I forgave her. I thought the song choices were perfect, too. I could completely see this scene unfolding as I read it. That is always the goal, but it is harder to do than one might think, isn't it?