Music Is The Link

Disclaimer: My Dark Angel ownership extends only to the DVD boxsets. And I own nothing else you might recognise...

Summary: 'All deep things are song'. A series of drabbles/ficlets set to a random playlist of songs. Some general, but surprisingly (not), mostly M/A.

Notes: And finally, the final piece, set to It's My Life, by Bon Jovi. I'm well aware this is actually kind of cracky, but since it was the last drabble, I thought "what the hell, just go with it!" Hence it being more fun and less serious, so I hope you enjoy it anyway!

Huge thanks to everyone who's reviewed the series despite its randomness and shortness, I didn't expect such amazing comments, but I was blown away! I really appreciate it :-)

It's My Life

Another day gone, another long night ahead. Max walked the silent streets of Terminal City, her keen eyes on the look-out for anything amiss, and ears pricked for the slightest sound of something unfamiliar. As always, the guards had started their night watch bang on time, positioned strategically throughout the city to keep a look-out, but Max still preferred to run her own check every evening, just to make sure. She wasn't about to take their feeling of safety for granted.

"This ain't a song for the broken-hearted..."

The song came drifting out from one of the buildings to the side, capturing Max's attention and making her do a double-take. She relaxed slightly as she noticed it was coming from the newly-formed "leisure centre", but still, curiosity got the better of her and she made her way towards it, wondering what was going on. The sound of music and voices only got louder as she went inside and turned the corner to enter the main hall, mouth dropping open at the scene in front of her. A hybrid of decorations outlined the walls and ceiling, their bright colours and flashy shapes giving the room a considerably nicer look, while a table the length of the wall was overflowing with drinks and an array of party food. The floor was filled with people, all dancing to their heart's content, while the shyest of the bunch were standing to the side, chatting amicably amongst themselves, switching between watching the crowd and stage with amusement. Max followed their gazes, where the sight that met her eyes on stage almost made her choke in disbelief.

Alec, Mole and Joshua all stood at the front, party hats sitting atop their heads and arms linked around each other's shoulders, singing (or barking, in Josh's case) loudly and with abandon into the microphone, while the crowd sang along with them, cheering them on. Max felt as if her brain had suddenly been overloaded with too many alien images all at the same time – Joshua singing? Mole in a party hat? She wondered if she'd been slipped some serious mind-tripping drugs without knowing, and thought about running to the medic centre, where she could find something to knock herself out and undo the effect, when Alec spotted her. His face broke out in a huge grin, and he mouthed "MAX!" while waving. She could only wave weakly in reply, pinned down by his gaze as he belted out the last few words to the song with added gusto.

"My heart is like an open highway, like Frankie said, I did it my way! I just wanna live while I'm alive. It's. My. LIFE!"

The crowd burst into cheers and applause, whooping their appreciation while the trio on stage shared a group-hug, raising their arms in victory and punching the air. Alec slipped out from under Mole's and Joshua's arms, bounding off the stage and across the floor to where she stood. She watched him approach with a look of disbelief.

"Alec...what the hell is going on?!"

Alec shook his head and took her under his arm, steering her towards the table, where he swooped up a cup and handed it to her, encouraging her to drink. Max held the cup and narrowed her eyes, giving him a "you're-not-fooling-me" look until he gave in and answered, smile beginning to falter.

"Everyone's been so down lately, I figured I would do something to cheer them up, keep up morale. And I don't think you've had the time to notice, but it's New Year's Eve, Max. What better excuse for a party, right? But I swear, every one of these freaks must have bloodhound DNA or something because somehow, they all figured out what I was doing. And I didn't want to disappoint them so I forced them not to tell you, incase you stopped us. Take it out on me tomorrow if you want Max, but please, don't ruin this for the rest of them."

He gazed at her solemnly, imploring her with wide green eyes, while she said nothing, just stared back at him firmly. She raised one hand and he flinched, afraid that she'd do worse than just whack him upside the back of his head, but he was dumbfounded when instead she smiled, reaching out to ruffle his hair.

"I figured about the party weeks ago, you dumbass," she filled him in, a slight twinkle in her eye. "I was actually talking about the karaoke, and more specifically, how the hell you roped Mole into doing it? And please tell me someone is getting all of this on video."

A slow smile graced Alec's features as he realised he wasn't in for an ass-kicking and he laughed, reaching out to grab her in a hug unexpectedly. Max was taken-aback for a second before she wrapped her arms around him just as tightly, returning the hug and saying with her actions what she couldn't find the courage to say out loud, just yet. After a moment or two, they broke apart, just watching each other with shy grins, before Alec took her drink and put it back on the table, then held out one hand to her.

"Care for a dance?"

Max looked up at him, shrugging as if to say "what the hell", and took his hand, letting him lead her out into the middle of the crowd. She smiled and answered the various greetings thrown in her direction, letting the carefree feeling of happiness wash over her as she listened to the music, her body already moving in time to the beats and rhythms.

"So seriously, Mole in a party-hat? Singing?"

"Ah, a magician never reveals all of his secrets, you should know that."

She snorted, giving him a raised eyebrow, but he simply raised his own back at her. "Alright, so what about the Bon Jovi? That was kinda lame."

She watched in surprise as he stopped, raising a finger almost as if to reprimand her. "Hey, I'll have you know that that song is the unofficial freak nation theme song."

She stopped dancing herself, placing her hands on her hips. "And what secret meeting was this decided in?"

Alec smirked, placing his hands on her shoulders and starting to sway them both along to the music again. "It was no secret, you obviously just weren't paying attention."

Max rolled her eyes, but couldn't find the effort to argue the point. She would just let him have his moment. For the time being anyway.

"Besides, Bon Jovi rocks. On occasion."

Notes: I couldn't resist ;-) Thanks once again for all your kind words, and thanks in advance for whoever reviews this, you're awesome too :-D