You'll remember me
when the west wind moves
Upon the fields of barley
You'll forget the sun
in his jealous sky
As we walk in fields of gold
So she took her love
For to gaze awhile
Upon the fields of barley
In his arms she fell
as her hair came down
Among the fields of gold
Will you stay with me,
will you be my love
Among the fields of barley
We'll forget the sun
in his jealous sky
As we lie in fields of gold
See the west wind move
like a lover so
Upon the fields of barley
Feel her body rise
when you kiss her mouth
Among the fields of gold
I never made promises lightly
And there have been some that I've broken
But I swear in the days still left
We'll walk in fields of gold
We'll walk in fields of gold
Many years have passed
since those summer days
Among the fields of barley
See the children run
as the sun goes down
Among the fields of gold
You'll remember me
when the west wind moves
Upon the fields of barley
You can tell the sun
in his jealous sky
When we walked in fields of gold

Prospect Park, 1886

A warm, light west wind flitted through the trees of Prospect Park. It smoothly carressed the grass of the Long Meadow and brought the sweet smell of spring flowers to the young couple standing by the lakeside.

First one might notice they were both rather short. He was perhaps 5' 7" , with the dark hair and eyes of a Welshman. She was a few inches shorter, delicately made with fair skin and golden brown hair. Their true distinguishing feature, though, once one looked closer, was the look of adoration each gave the other. It was unusual to see two people so absorbed with one another, looking so completely happy. Their laughter echoed across the pond, sprinkling joy through the summer air.

"Rhys!" Sarah Whitehurst laughed, slapping him playfully across the chest. "That's mean!"

"Yeah, but it's true." Rhys Edwards replied with a grin. He found himself smiling a lot around Sarah. She was the most beautiful, kindest, sweetest girl he' d ever met in all his twenty years of life. And the most amazing thing of all, she loved him. Just a few short weeks ago, Sarah had agreed to marry him.

Sarah always felt warm inside when Rhys smiled at her. The smile softened his rough features, making him, in her eyes, the most handsome man who ever walked the earth. And despite his rather rough edges, Rhys was kind and gentle , a really wonderful man. The thing which amazed Sarah most, though, was that he loved her. She'd never expected him to ask her to marry him, but when he did, it made her happier than she'd ever dreamed of being.

Sarah couldn' t help but giggle a bit at his comment, blue-grey eyes dancing. "Yes, I suppose Mrs. Helms -does- look a little like a frog." She said as she put her arms around the strong young stagehand. "But that doesn't mean you ought to say it!"

" I know, I know..." he said reluctantly, pulling her close and smiling at her. Once again, he found himself marveling at the fact that in a few short months, Sarah would be his wife. As she stood on her tiptoes to kiss him, Rhys Edwards was sure that no one in all of recorded history had ever been happier than he was.

~*~

It was a beautiful wedding. The bride's dress was simple but lovely, pure white and trimmed in lace. Her light brown curls were pulled into a simple chignon and threaded through with pale pink roses from her mother' s small garden. Her heart thrummed with anticipation as she stood waiting at the back of the church, nervous and thrilled all at once.

The groom shifted nervously at the altar. He was far from accustomed to being in church and even less accustomed to wearing a suit. His discomfort was added to by the fact that he was more nervous than he' d ever been in his whole life. Being stared down by a giant Scotsman at a pub had nothing on waiting to be married. This, however, was a much happier sort of nervousness.

At last, the wedding march began playing. Rhys couldn't help but turn around and look at the girl he hadn' t seen for a full two days. As he gazed at her walking up the aisle, Rhys smiled. She was beauti ful, more beautiful than ever...and he was going to spend the rest of his life with her.

" Dearly beloved..."

Rhys could barely pay attention to the service. He certainly couldn't take his eyes off Sarah, or the smile off his face.

"Do you, Rhys Edwards, take this woman, Sarah Whitehurst, to be your lawfully wedded wife? To have and to hold,..."

"I do." He said, his eyes locked with hers.

Sarah wore just as ridiculously happy a smile. "I do." She answered dreamily when the minister finally asked her the same question.

" ...I now pronounce you man and wife."

Rhys didn't even wait for the "You may kiss the bride" before sweeping her into his arms and kissing her lovingly. Sarah wound her arms around his neck, kissing back with equal passion. The moment they'd waited for for months had finally arrived.

~*~

Sarah looked up with a bright smile as the door opened. Rhys had been working late that night, helping finish the set strike. She didn' t usually stay up on strike nights, since Heaven only knew how long it might last. But tonight was different.

Rhys blinked with surprise before smiling at the sight of his beautiful young wife. "Hey sweetheart...what' re ya doin' up dis late?"

Sarah smiled and stood up. "I' ve got good news, and I couldn't wait 'til morning to tell you."

"Really?" Rhys asked with a grin. "Tell me, den."

She walked over and threw her arms around his neck, unable to contain her excitement another moment. "I'm going to have a baby!"

Rhys' jaw dropped in stunned happiness. "A...a baby?"

Sarah laughed at the look of shock. "Yes, a baby!" she said with a grin. "In about seven months."

Rhys blinked at her. "Dat's...dat's...I mean...wow." Rhys ran his fingers through his hair, still trying to absorb the information. "A baby." He marveled. He and Sarah were actually going to have a child.

Sarah giggled a bit more. She had felt much the same way when the doctor confirmed her suspicions, but seeing the amazement on someone else' s face was rather amusing.

Her laughter finally filtered through Rhys' shock. "You laughin' at me?" he asked with a grin, looking down at her.

"Laughing?" Sarah asked innocently, her eyes sparkling. "Of course not!"

Rhys had to laugh, too. The look of happy astonishment came back over his face. "A baby." He smiled down at Sarah, putting his arms around her waist. "You're amazin' , ya know dat? "

Sarah blushed a little. "I'm just having a baby, Rhys." She said, smiling back. "It's done every day."

"Yeah, I know." Rhys said. "But dis is -our- baby." He leaned down and kissed her, almost unable to believe his good fortune.

Sarah smiled softly as the kiss ended. Rhys was right...this baby would be special.

~*~

"Congratulations, Edwards!" John McKay said, smiling as he helped load the large flat onto the stage. "Got any ideas fer names yet?"

Rhys grinned as they set the flat upright. "Sarah likes Elizabeth Marie fer a goil, an' Michael Robert fer a boy."

"You don' get any input?" McKay said with a laugh, kneeling on the stage to screw the flat into place.

Rhys laughed, too. "I ain' t too particular 'bout it." he said. "Those work good enough fer me, so I'll let 'er have 'er way."

" Dat' s usually a good idea." McKay said. As he looked up, he noticed his wife walking across the stage toward them. He grinned, knowing this would be an opportunity to push her buttons. "Gotta let women have deir way, or dey'll make yer life hell!"

" John McKay!" Angelique exclaimed, crossing her arms. She'd reached them just in time to hear the last line of the conversation, just as her husband had intended. "I do not believe you are saying such things!" she continued. Her English was perfect, though her accent told of her southern French birth and raising.

"You sayin' I don' always let ya win?" McKay said, grinning broadly as he stood up, towering over the very small Angelique.

Angelique lifted her chin, looking up at him in a lady-like gesture of contempt. "You do not -let- me win, monsieur." she said. Rhys snickered at the small smirk that came over Angelique' s delicate features. " I win because I am right."

McKay gave her an amused half-smile. " 'course ya are." he said, bending to kiss her.

The two had been married for ten years and had a nine-year-old boy, but they still had a tendency to behave like newlyweds now and then. They teased each other mercilessly, but always in fun. As Rhys turned back to work, leaving them alone, he hoped with a smile that he and Sarah would still be like that ten years from now.