REPOST. Just trying to get all my Peanuts stuff where off belongs.

Lucy stared at herself in her floor-length mirror. Her midnight blue dress was especially fluffy and especially blue for today's occasion. She glanced at the calendar for about the millionth time. The little red X's had been filling her vision for at least a month, counting down the days until today. The date was December 16th.

Now, you may be thinking, "What's so great about December 16th? It's just another day. No big deal." Well, if you're thinking that, you're wrong. And don't let Lucy hear you say that, or she'll throw a fit. December 16th isn't just any old day in December. It's Beethoven's birthday.

This particular year, Lucy was ready. Heck, she'd been ready for the past 364 days! Today she had done her hair up nice, going all out with perfect black curls and pins just about everywhere. She had done her makeup very, very carefully, making sure to get every last eyelash coated in mascara, and making sure every inch of her face was masked in cover up. She had to look especially good. After all, she had a job to do. She was bound and determined to make Schroeder love her this year. Every year she did something special for him on Beethoven's birthday, because well, he celebrated the birth of his favorite musician more enthusiastically than his own. This year, she had gone all out. She paid for the bakery to specially bake a dozen Beethoven cupcakes, complete with his face on them. She had bought Schroeder a complete songbook set of Beethoven's symphonies, nothing that he didn't already have, she was sure, but it was the thought that counted. Plus she was really looking forward to seeing his face once he saw the dedication page she'd purchased in that day's newspaper. "Beethoven," it read, "A man of many talents." She had written the article all on her own, and she was proud of herself.

She checked herself in the mirror for the billionth time, and finally decided that she looked as close to perfect as she was going to get. She grabbed the box of cupcakes, newspaper, gift bag holding the songbook, and "Happy Birthday Beethoven" balloons (also custom ordered) and headed out the door. As she left, she received two very confused looks from both Rerun and Linus.

Linus rolled his eyes. "Must be Beethoven's birthday again," he muttered under his breath.

Rerun whistled low. "Yeah, no kidding."

When she got to Schroeder's house, she let herself in, as usual. She headed straight for his room, where she could hear beautiful music emitting from inside. She knocked lightly with her free hand, having learned from experience that you always knock before you enter a teenage boy's room. (Long story short, we'll just say that Linus never forgets to lock his door now.)

The music stopped abruptly, and she heard soft footsteps across the floor towards the door. It opened, and Lucy smiled her best, prize-winning smile for the love of her life.

"Happy Beethoven's Birthday!" she cheered, entering the room and tossing everything down on Schroeder's bed. "Look at all the stuff I got! You're gonna love me for it. Look, I got balloons, and cupcakes, specially made, so you better appreciate them. They cost me an arm and a leg! Oooh! Here you go, open your present!" She thrust the gift bag in his face. He just stared at her. His face was completely blank. He hadn't moved from the spot since he opened the door.

"Hello?" Lucy called, waving her hand in front of his eyes. He simply stared straight ahead, watching the balloons as they floated up and bumped the ceiling. "Schroeder? Don't tell me you hate it. All this stuff I got; all this trouble I went through just to make you happy..."

She put her hand on her hip. He said nothing. He didn't even blink. Instead, he shook his head slowly from side to side, still staring at the balloons. Lucy's eyebrows shot up and her mouth formed a huge, round O.

"Oh...my...gosh..." she gasped. "You didn't."

Finally he moved. He slowly brought his hands up to his face and covered his eyes.

"I did," he whispered, shaking.

"Schroeder!" Lucy shouted in outrage. She threw the gift bag down onto the bed with the cupcakes and newspaper. "After all this I did...and you forgot Beethoven's birthday? AGAIN?"

Schroeder said nothing. He trembled, tears running down his face. He dropped to the floor. Lucy just watched him in disbelief. Schroeder was normally such a strong person. He never cried. He didn't even cry when his own grandmother died. Yet, here he was, bawling his eyes out over forgetting Beethoven's birthday. This had only ever happened once before, and then, Lucy had been younger and crueler to him. This time, though, Lucy actually felt kind of bad. I know, it's weird, right? Lucy never feels bad for anyone.

She walked over to him and put her arm around him.

"Hey, cheer up," she said softly. "Everyone forgets stuff sometimes. Even me. And I'm practically flawless." This didn't seem to help very much. Schroeder just shrugged.

"I don't know why I even try anymore, Lucy," he moaned, lifting his head, not looking at her. "I've applied to so many art schools...they've all rejected me. I must not be good enough. I just can't stand it anymore. There's no point in trying."

"Now wait just a second, you blockhead!" She exclaimed, causing him to cringe. "I didn't spend half my life savings on stupid balloons and cupcakes and that crap just to have you give up! Where's the Schroeder I know? I've said it before, and I'll say it again: So what if you forgot Beethoven's birthday? He's been dead for a hundred years. You're the next generation, Schroeder! You have to be the Beethoven you want to be!"

For a second, Schroeder seemed to heed Lucy. He wiped his eyes and stood up. Lucy was proud of herself. That was a pretty wicked speech.

But then he shook his head. "No, I can't. There are more important things to worry about than some stupid dream. I've tried for so long and it's just causing me trouble. Did you know that my mom had to start working a second job so she could pay for all the repairs and stuff to my piano?" He walked over to his piano and started collecting the sheet music that lay around the room, on the desk, and on the floor. "And all this other pointless junk... pianist magazines... tuners... CDs..." as he said each item he picked it up and threw it away. By the end of his speech, his trash can was overflowing. "I can't believe I wasted so much of my life with this."

Lucy stared at him, speechless, for once. She'd never seen Schroeder so intense about anything before. Here he was, throwing away everything that meant the world to him, like all of a sudden it meant nothing. She used to secretly hope he'd give up his obsession with Beethoven and pay more attention to her, but she had lost all hope of that ages ago. Her heart leapt in her chest. This was her chance.

"You know what Schroeder," she said thoughtfully, "You're right. You've wasted too much time with this. If those schools haven't accepted you by now, then who's to say they ever will?"

She stood up and stomped her foot indignantly. He stared at her again. She hoped she didn't say the wrong thing this time. She really wanted this to work. But he just looked at her. It was actually kind of curious, the way he looked at her, as if he was seeing her for the first time. She looked right back at him, melting into those liquid blue eyes she loved so much.

"Lucy," he finally said eerily, his eyes glazing over. She raised an eyebrow questioningly. "You've always been there for me, encouraging me, and I've always just ended up kicking you out. I mean, sure, you can be a little straightforward sometimes, always talking about marriage and whatever, but... Just look at what you did to make me happy!" He gestured to the balloons. "After all I've done to hurt you and you keep coming back..." he shook his head slowly, not breaking their eye contact.

Lucy blushed. "Well, you know me," she stuttered, but she was grinning widely. He'd never said anything so nice to her before. Before Lucy had a chance to say anything else, Schroeder had closed the distance between them in a single stride. He took hold of her hands and her words caught in her throat.

Then he kissed her.

She was so surprised, she fainted. She fell into his arms and he caught her before she hit the floor.

Schroeder sighed. He took a deep breath and hoisted Lucy into his arms. With a cold glance at the Beethoven balloons, he carried her out into the hall. Luckily his mother wasn't home. It would look a bit suspicious if she saw him carry an unconscious girl out of his room. He carried her all the way out of the house. He trekked through the light snow that was falling down the street to her home. When he reached the Van Pelt home, he knocked on the door with his foot. Luckily he had been wearing his shoes when Lucy fainted, otherwise he'd be barefoot right now.

Linus opened the door. He took one look at the scene before him, and rolled his eyes. "What'd she done this time, hit her head on the piano again?" he asked half heartedly, stepping to the side so Schroeder could bring his sister inside.

Schroeder set her gently on the couch and explained to the Van Pelt brothers what had happened. They both stared at him in disbelief. He acted as if it was a perfectly normal occurrence as if, you know, he kissed Lucy every day so it was no big deal.

When Schroeder finished his story, Linus and Rerun burst into fits of hysterical laughter.

"I can't believe this," Linus cried, tears coming to his eyes. "You've gone soft! This is just too funny."

Schroeder just shrugged. "I guess with the whole Beethoven thing consuming my life, I never really stopped to care about how much she really meant to me," he said simply. The boys were speechless. Never in their lives did they think they'd live to see the day that Schroeder actually returned Lucy's affections. And yet, here they were, watching with their own eyes as Schroeder gave Lucy one last peck on the forehead and strutted out of the house, nose in the air.

Three months later

By now, everyone had almost gotten used to the fact that Lucy and Schroeder were, indeed, an item, and not simply a figment of Lucy's overactive imagination. They were often seen walking through the halls together, arm in arm or hand in hand, talking and laughing as if their sudden official relationship should not come as a complete shock to anyone. You have to admit, it's a little bit hard to believe that someone who had only weeks before hated the living guts of this girl, and within a week they were a couple. So yeah, it was a bit shocking to some people.

But soon people had started to warm up to the fact and had in fact decided that Lucy was an altogether better person when Schroeder was around not sending her hate filled glares and loathing her existence.

Everyone seemed happy, or at least content with the new arrangement. Everyone, that is to say, except for the couple themselves.

Lucy had been noticing something was up with Schroeder. He would always have little nervous quirks when they talked together, such as a twitching his neck or kicking his leg out.

"Schroeder, are you listening to me?" Lucy whined as they sat together at Lucy's house one day after school. Schroeder had been staring out the window, nodding in tune to the beat only he could hear. He rapped his fingers anxiously on his lap with one hand, his other hand intertwined with Lucy's.

"Hmm?" he muttered, only half snapping out of the trance, "Oh, yes, of course Lucy, you were talking about Violet's ...erm ...aunt's ...something-or-other." his fingers continued to do their little dance in his lap.

Lucy grabbed hold of his hand to stop him from doing that. "Is there something wrong?" she asked, concerned, "You usually at least pay attention when I tell you about Vi's Aunt Griselda." she studied his face for a moment when he did not answer right away. "You're acting really weird lately," she murmured. "Are you sure you're alright?"

He nodded. "No, I'm fine Lucy, really." he smiled as best he could, but he wouldn't look directly at her. She knew he was lying, and she was going to find out why.

The next day at school, Lucy approached Charlie Brown in the lunchroom. "Hey, you blockhead!" she called to him down the table. He looked up with a puzzled expression on his face. "Yeah, you, Charlie Brown, come here for a sec!" He spotted Lucy and went over to her as quickly as he could.

"What is it, Lucy?"

She scowled. "What's the deal with Schroeder lately?" she asked him, not inviting him to sit down. He stood awkwardly next to the table. "He's been acting all weird, and I want to know why."

Charlie Brown blinked. "Well, Lucy, I could tell you what I think the problem is, but I'm not so sure you'll like the answer."

Lucy showed him one tightly clenched fist. "And I'm not sure you'll like the answer you give when somebody asks where you got that black eye."

He gulped. "Okay, okay... I think Schroeder misses playing the piano," he said hesitantly. "And Beethoven and all that stuff. Ever since you two became an item, he hasn't touched his piano. I hear he even sold some of his music on eBay."

Now this information was new to Lucy. He had sold something of his on eBay? Some of his music? "He misses playing that old thing?" Lucy exclaimed. She pounded her fist on the table. "How can he, he's got me now. I'm at least fifty million times better than any old think with black and white keys!" Charlie Brown just shrugged. He sure couldn't afford a black eye from Lucy, so he kept his mouth shut.

As much as Lucy hated to admit it, she knew Charlie Brown had been right. Schroeder did seem to be missing that old piano an awful lot. He hummed under his breath, tapped invisible keys with his fingers, and tapped invisible notes with his feet. He missed playing Beethoven. But what was Lucy to do? Was she willing to give up her one chance at true love just do he could live his stupid dream?

Heck no, she wasn't! She was Lucy Van Pelt, for goodness sakes! She wouldn't let a stupid little piano stand in the way of her man! She had to do something about Schroeder, and fast.

"Okay, Linus, tell me everything you know about hypnosis."

Lucy darted into the living room where her second youngest brother was sitting on the couch, watching television. He looked up, confused.

"Hypnosis?" he said with a blank stare. "Hmm, well let's see. I know that it only works when done properly, and that if done properly one may alter another's memory with a snap of the fingers."

Lucy snapped her fingers, right on cue. "Brilliant!" she cried. "It's got to work!" she stood up again and began to pace the floor, thinking further to herself.

"But, Lucy," Linus started, pointing his finger in the air.

Lucy ignored him and continued to mutter to herself. "I can just hypnotize him using our great great grandfather's old pocket watch, like they do in the movies!"

"Er, Lucy?"

"I'll just hypnotize him into forgetting he ever knew how to play the piano! And then he'll be mine forever!"

"Lucy..."

"It's a brilliant plan, flawless!" she patted her own cheek in admiration of herself. "Oh, Lucy, you are a genius!"

"Lucy!"

"And a beautiful one, at that!"

"LUCY!"

Finally, she turned to look at her brother. "What now, blockhead? You're interrupting my evil plot."

Linus sighed. "Lucy, while hypnosis is a brilliant procedure, it can also be dangerous, and chances are, it won't work. Plus, it takes years to master the art—"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, I'm Lucy, what could possibly go wrong?" she smirked and left the room with an evil grin on her face.

"Hello? Schroeder!" Lucy muttered for the billionth time. Her boyfriend slowly brought his gaze from the window to back towards her face.

"Hmm?" he hummed.

"I was showing you my great great grandfather's watch, remember?" she said, holding the watch in the air by the string so he could see it. His eyes flickered to the watch.

"Oh!" he cried, snapping out of the trance for a rare moment. He looked from the watch to her face. "I'm sorry Lucy; I guess I'm just a little bit out of it lately."

Lucy looked him right back in the eyes. This apology, while simple, seemed the most sincere thing he could have possibly said. She smiled weakly, remembering what she was about to do. He leaned in and kissed her lips tenderly. Her mouth melted into his and she dropped the cruel facade.

"Oh, it's alright," she said as they pulled apart. "I was just so excited about my great great grandfathers pocket watch." she held up the watch again and this time his eyes were fully fixed on it. She swung it back and forth ever so slowly, and his eyes followed the pendulum as it swung. She hummed softly as she swung it, his eyelids growing heavy and drooping.

"You're sleepy," she mumbled, watching his eyes close slower and slower. He nodded hesitantly in response, his eyelids now fully closing over the icy blue eyes as he fell asleep instantly. Lucy stopped swinging the pendulum. His eyes stayed closed and he snored softly. Lucy could hardly believe she'd done it. She'd hypnotized him! This was crazy. She thought about what she was going to say next. She was going to make Schroeder forget all about his piano and Beethoven, and make him hers forever.

She looked at his innocent, sleeping face and smiled. He was so cute when he slept. She couldn't bring herself to hurt that innocence. Even if she was Lucy Van Pelt. She loved Schroeder, and even she knew that if you truly loved something, you set it free. She sighed. She knew what she had to do. She held up her fingers to his ear.

"When I snap my fingers," she said eerily, "you will forget all about our relationship. You will go back to your old self, Beethoven obsessed and piano crazy. You will forget all about everything that has happened in the past three months." She thought for a moment. "And, you will have remembered Beethoven day this year."

She closed her eyes. Her hands still lingered by his ear, fingers poised and ready to snap. Before she did though, she leaned in close to him and kissed him one last time. Then, she snapped her fingers.

Schroeder jerked awake, blinking a few times and jolting upright in the chair. "Wha- who- huh?" he mumbled, scratching his head. He saw that he was in his room, and he saw Lucy, sitting on his bed with a pocket watch in her hands. "Lucy? What are you doing in my room?" he shouted, standing up. "I thought I told you I didn't want you in here anymore!" He lifted her up off the bed by the arms and shoved her out the door.

Lucy sighed. He was back to normal, all right. Yet somehow, on her way out, when she heard Schroeder sit down at his beloved piano and begin to play Beethoven's fifth symphony, she couldn't keep the smile off of her face.