Future Possibilities, Present Loves
by Annabelle Leigh

I often ponder why the relationship between Jim and Blair is so
powerful to me; my interest in it far exceeds my interest in any
other pairing. I mean, it's not just that I think the actors are cute or
that I'm a hopeless romantic or even that I like the whole
heightened senses thing, which I do. It's more than that. 

Their relationship *means* something to me. It's almost like it's
become part of my belief system. It provides a strange sort of
solace and reassurance, in the same way that real life couples
who seem devoted to one another sometimes do. Only it's more
profound with Jim and Blair, because this is fiction, and they can
only leave each other and spoil the illusion if I read certain kinds of
stories, which I won't. 

I think my own anxiety about the future--this worry I have that
nothing lasts forever, that even though people love each other it's
still so easy to break apart, despite the best of intentions and even
the best of efforts--has everything to do with why I find the idea of
Jim and Blair's relationship so comforting and compelling. Story
after story in this fandom includes some little mention of how Jim
and Blair will always be in each other's lives, no matter what,
because they are Sentinel and Guide and this is forever, a true
commitment, an immutable connection. In a world where so many
things are ephemeral and so many commitments falter, it warms
me inside to think that these two people, fictional though they may
be, will always have a soul-deep bond between them.

The sense of certainty I have about Jim and Blair renews my faith
in what is possible, not just for them, but for me.