AN: Hello, this is my first fic on Pearl Harbor, so please nobody kill me. The idea for this popped into my head late one night while I couldn't sleep. There will probably some technical problems through out the story, though I do try my hardest to get things right I'm not perfect. Anyways please review to tell me what you think, because let's face it reviews for a new story is always encouraging, even if I get told it's a stupid idea.

Oh and I should add the story is already pretty far along on my computer, so I'll be updating about once every four to five days.

Disclaimer: I own no one and nothing, except for my own character.

Living Through the Past

Chapter 1: The Sky was a Gift

A startled gasp left the young woman's mouth as she watched the movie play out. Tears filled her wide eyes and spilled down her cheeks as the main character went through the last stages of life. She swallowed over the dryness in her throat and tried forcing the tears to stop.

"No…" she whispered seeing him go limp. "Ugh…stupid tears." she cursed scrubbing away at the wet trails staining her face. After the tears were gone she refocused on the movie. She watched the remainder pilots that survived climb out of the airplane, and the wooden box they carried with the jacket on top nearly broke her heart. "Of course Ben Affleck lives." the young woman muttered bitterly as she watched the two timing female lead walk up to the coffin. "I don't like her…"

"You're getting this worked up over a movie?" the interrupting loud voice drew her attention to the door. Her coworker stood in the doorway to the private lounge of the room.

"It's an amazing movie." the woman stated fiercely watching the rest with narrowed eyes. Her coworker rolled his eyes and walked into the room to sit down on the padded chair next to hers.

"Long as hell too. How'd you fit in the time to watch it?" he asked glancing at her before looking to the TV. He sighed silently. She was so oblivious to things around her when she set her mind to something.

"The flight got delayed…the wife had some party to attend." she shrugged scowling as the credits came up. The young woman unfolded herself from the chair and stood. Revealing she was about 5'10. She racked her fingers through her short hair while stretching out her muscles. She had never been a very feminine girl while growing up, and it stuck with her through adulthood. She didn't have the sensual curves most women had her age, or the bouncy full breasts. She was broad shouldered with the minimal curve at her hips and small petite breasts. It was a blessing and a curse for the young woman.

"I really hate when that happens." the man muttered diverting his attention elsewhere.

"I know me too…makes me lazy." The young woman yawned cracking her back. "Did you just get back?" she asked looking over at the middle aged man. He had the slightest of graying hair expertly woven into his slicked back hair. He still wore the blue and white uniform of a commercial pilot. The golden wings a blinding contrast to the navy blue.

"Yep…gods I hate eleven hour flights. I was on my way home when I heard this sniveling sound." he said with a playful smile rocking himself back into a standing position.

"Oh whatever Fred you'd be crying too." she said with an eye roll.

"Skyla your passengers just pulled up." both pilots looked over to the secretary. Skyla smiled widely, she loved getting up in the air.

"Thanks Barbara, bye Fred." she said slipping on her shoes and combing her hair straighter. Skyla drove her personal plane for the more exclusive clients that came through. It fit about six people max and had been her faithful companion for years.

The family she was flying today were the typical lot. They were rich and they flaunted it. The husband was wearing his most expensive suit, and the wife was wearing a dress that looked like it belonged on the window then on her. They had two kids who were in too tight looking suits for their pudgy bodies. Skyla plastered on her most professional smile and walked up to the family.

"Hello Mr. Burke, Mrs. Burke how are you this evening?" she asked gaining their attention. Mr. and Mrs. Burke looked at her with distaste.

"You're the pilot?" Mr. Burke asked in a heavy voice.

"Yes I am sir." 'He's gunna say women shouldn't be allowed to pilot a plane.'

"Didn't know they let women fly." Skyla's mouth twitched slightly in distaste but her smile stayed in place.

"I reassure you Mr. Burke I am the best pilot here. Shall we go?" Skyla made a sweeping motion toward her plane. Mr. Burke nodded. She began leading the rich family toward her plane. She didn't like flying during the night personally, but she wouldn't complain.

Once everyone was seated, and the door closed Skyla made her way to the cockpit. With practiced ease she began turning the engines on. She grabbed the little walkie talkie that went through the plane and advised that everyone should wear their seatbelts. Then she placed the large headphones over her ears and went through procedure.

The one thing she loved most about flying, was taking off. It was the most thrilling feeling anyone could have. Knowing that she had full control of a piece of machinery so much bigger then her was something she would always remember. Getting into the air went smoothly. Now there was the four hour flight to the small airport the family was going to for their vacation house.

Being up in the sky was a gift people took far to much advantage of. Millions of people boarded planes everyday and thought nothing of the fact that they were soaring through the sky thousands upon thousands of feet in the air. Skyla smiled wickedly to herself as she piloted the plane. She heard movement and hushed conversations from the back and rolled her eyes. For some reason they always thought that because they were in a small plane that the pilot would get nosy and start butting into their conversations.

"Blackbird." Skyla sighed at the nickname everyone had given her from when she first started working there. "Your heading into a storm, not bad, but you'll probably get some turbulence."

"Alright I understand." she answered into the headphone's mic before grabbing the walkie talkie. "We're going to be experiencing some turbulence here soon, just stay calm and we'll ride it out." she returned the black little box to it's stand.

The storm did kind of look daunting from where she was sitting, but there was no bolts of lighting, or the deafeng crashing of thunder. Only a minor storm. The turbulence wasn't bad at all, though the two children got a few screams out. Tiny planes meant harder turbulence effects. The plane ride went smoothly after that.

Skyla poured herself a cup of strong bitter coffee into the Styrofoam cup before taking a large sip. The black liquid scalded her tongue and throat but boy did it feel good. The airport she landed in was a small one, kind of like the one she worked at, but no big planes went through here. People didn't know her, but they were friendly enough. She was given a room for what was left of the night as her plane was refueled so she could go back home.

With a sigh she set the half empty cup on the nightstand in the room. Running her fingers through her hair Skyla sat on the bed. She took off her shoes before slipping out of her shirt. The familiar metal clinking drew her eyes down to the middle of her chest. Resting between her bosom were dog tags. She gently lifted them forcing herself not to read the name stamped into the metal.

"It's been a long while…" she said almost silently as she slipped under the stiff covers. Her eyes fluttered closed, her hand still grasping the dog tags.

Skyla woke up early in the morning. Her eyes slightly stinging and her joints stiff from the bed. She changed back into her shirt and put on her shoes. She would leave at nine in the morning. It was seven now. She walked to the little diner that lay across from the tiny airport.

"What can I get for you hun?" a nice looking waitress came up smiling.

"A Cheeseburger and a coke please." Skyla didn't even bother looking at the menu. The waitress nodded with a smile and a flirtatious wink before going off to tell the cook. Skyla resisted the urge to slap her forehead. A lot of people who didn't know her mistook her for a man. A small man, but a man no doubt.

The food was good, like any tiny diner would be, and chalk full of fat and calories. Growing up her mother had hounded her about being healthy, and getting fat. Her mother was a woman who if she ate a cheeseburger the next day she'd of gained six pounds. Skyla on the other hand could eat until her stomach was bloated, and not gain a pound. Goes to say she didn't have the best childhood. Skyla stood up after she ate and went to the cashier. She paid the six dollars and went back over to the airport. It was about eight forty now.

"Is she all ready?" Skyla asked the man who was working the runway.

"Yep. You're all ready to go." he said with a nod. Skyla smiled in return and went to her plane. She went through the same procedure's, and waited for the tower to tell her she could go. When they did she was up in the air in no time.

Flying alone had never been a problem for Skyla. She was a pretty solitary person by nature. But today felt different. Almost as if something was off. She checked all the gages and controls. They plane was in working order so what was wrong? She decided to see if there was a storm up ahead and it was her intuition picking up on it.

"It's Blackbird…is there a storm over there?" Skyla asked into the headphones, but the only response was static. "You're just paranoid…totally paranoid." she murmured to herself. She passed through one white fluffy cloud before the engine shut down. Just went off. No explosion, no fire, it just shut off. "Oh fuck." her mind went on autopilot as she tried restarting the engine.

The screaming noise of wind rushing passed her forced her to stop trying to start the engine and level the plane out. She had a slight chance of living if she didn't nosedive into the nearest mountain. Which was all she was surrounded by. As land came up to her fast she did all she could to level the plane out. Our at least stop it's vertical flight path by the slightest. Skyla looked down as the green landscape came hurdling toward her. She felt fear rip at her heart, but her mind went completely clear.

"I'm going to die." she closed her eyes as she felt the first signs of the plane being hit by the towering trees.

She never felt the impact. Confused and disoriented Skyla opened her eyes to see the hard gray cement of a sidewalk. She could hear the sounds of people and cars around her. Looking up she found she was standing in the middle of a semi busy sidewalk. Women in dresses and bonnets hurried passed her while men in khaki's and tucked in shirts with crisp clean hair strode this way and that. The cars she had heard were old. Exactly like the one's she use to see while walking through car shows as a teenager.

'What the hell? Am I dead?' Skyla asked herself before pinching her arm. The pain that shot up her arm was her answer. 'Okay then…where am I?'

Skyla slowly walked to the nearest store that looked like it might have a newspaper of some kind. It turned out to be a grocery store. Ignoring everyone around her she casually picked up a newspaper and scanned the front for the date. April 5, 19-

"WHAT THE-" she cut off her outburst as the other people in the store were staring at her weird. The man behind the counter was glaring at her. 'I can not be in the thirties…there's no way. My grandfather isn't even born yet!' as Skyla tried being invisible while looking at a date where she wasn't even a glimmer in the future two young men walked down the street.

They were laughing and joking, as most young men did. One had ashy blonde hair and a square jaw, he was wearing a white t-shirt and jeans. His friend had dark brown hair and a little boy smile. He wore the same thing. Skyla glared at the newspaper before looking up at the street through the glass.

'Is that Ben Affleck and Josh Hartnett?' her gaze followed the two young men as they walked down the street. 'I'm going crazy…that can't be them…' she silently placed the newspaper back on the stand and left the store, much to the store owners relief. She followed the men who looked eerily like the two actors at a safe distance.

They turned into a shop. Quickening her pace she hoped she didn't look like a stalker. Skyla looked at the front of the store and her mouth dropped. It was for enlisting in the military. The military of all places. She opened the door and walked through. She had to see what they were doing in here. Going to a brochure table she listened in on the conversation.

"My daddy's gunna kill me for doing this Raif." a southern accented familiar voice said. Raif merely pat his friend on the arm with an encouraging smile.

"Ahhh c'mon Danny it's the one thing we've been wanting to do sense we were kids." Raif smiled, getting a nod from Danny.

'Raif and Danny? Isn't that the names from…oh hell no!' the papers she had been skimming through fell back into place. 'I did not get transported to the Pearl Harbor movie. That just isn't possible…well they are here…and it is the thirties. Why me?'

"You looken to be a nurse sir?" a raspy voice skewered Skyla's freak out in half. She looked up seeing an aging man in a uniform, that looked vaguely like a Navy suit.

"Uh, no sir." She answered in a forced deeper voice, it still sounded pretty high pitched to her ears. 'If I'm here I'm sticking close to them two…now their going into the Air Force. Okay…thank the Gods I'm a pilot.'

"Then what are you doing over here for?" She looked down and saw it was the papers to sign up as a nurse.

"Just killing time…I'm a bit nervous." her voice sounded extremely non-accented. She could see the man's eyes soften slightly, and hoped that he hadn't figured out she was female.

"Aint nothing to be nervous about. Where are you looking to join?" he asked with a friendly smile, and judging from the silence of the two other men in the room. He usually wasn't nice. Skyla herself smiled confidently feeling the bubbles of excitement float into her stomach.

"The Air Service sir, I'm looking to be a pilot." 'I have all the female charm without being a female. Oh this is going to be very very interesting…' the old man directed me to where Danny and Raif were filling out paperwork. They were talking in lowered tones then before.

"Say how'd you get that old man to smile?" Skyla glanced to see Raif giving her a curious look. Danny looked up from his paperwork as well.

"Well…" she started and realized she had no idea. "I guess I have that look?" she shrugged uncomfortably and began filling out the papers. The chuckling signaled she had said the right things. "Joining the Air Service as well?" She asked just to keep up conversation.

AN: Well that's it for chapter one. Please review and tell me what you think.