It's a Wonderful Life by Katyfanfics

Owen

Owen Blackbourne sat heavily on the park bench. The cold of the wood seeped through his suit pants but he was oblivious to it; he felt numb all over anyway. He was only a young man of eighteen, but today he felt a hundred.

He'd failed.

He'd never failed a mission before and his ever present quest for perfection berated him for it. The results of the flopped mission weren't life threatening, but people were depending on him. Failure on his part was unacceptable.

Frustration clouded his judgement. Why was he the head of their academy family? Why was he even needed? The truth was, he wasn't. He knew it in his core. He was cold, unemotional and demanding. He didn't know how to be any other way and his presence didn't do anything positive for the team. It never had.

Coming to terms with this in his warped thinking, he decided it was time to walk away. From all of it. The Academy, the team....the family. They'd be better off without him.

He felt surprisingly emotional at the thought, though his mind verified the logic of the decision. Tears threatened, but he kept them at bay. A weak man was a useless one.

He'd been useless long enough.

Everyone would soon be gathered at Kota's on Christmas Eve. He'd go, keep his plan to himself, and be gone from Charleston the next day.

As he rose from the park bench, his heart and mind heavy, an unnaturally warm breeze for the time of year engulfed him. He closed his eyes, enjoying the feel. When he opened them, a young woman, perhaps younger than he was, stood in his path.

Startled by her sudden presence, he at first didn't notice her attire. She was dressed all in white, in a simple dress that flowed to the ground, covering her feet. Her golden hair hung down her back in waves. Eyes, green as new grass, held a sadness as she watched him.

She was beautiful.

Momentarily at a loss for words, he eventually found his tongue. "Hello."

She nervously smiled, not wanting to mess this up. Her short life on earth had been riddled with mistakes and she wanted to do this right. After fifteen years she'd finally been given an assignment, and if successful, her wings.