Memories returned (Emily Niah and Invite)

[Robert Pratt]

Robert had had a headache and a buzzing in his mind for a number of days now. He'd ignored it and presumed it was just stress, because there was a lot going on in his life that was constantly on his mind. Last night, he'd faced up to one of his stresses and finally followed through with something he'd been wanting to do for a while now. He'd been seeing Serry for months, and Lizzie had been kept in the dark the entire time - and it just didn't sit right with him. Not in the slightest. He'd talked about it with Serry and she'd agreed it needed to be done, better it come from them than from some gossip who just wanted to hurt her. However, when it had come down to it - Serry admitted she'd been lying and had no intentions of telling Lizzie. He'd told her anyways, and been shot for it - twice. Serry had refused to see him, and vanished into thin air when he'd tried to see her - and he was just, annoyed. He'd passed out into a black nothingness, which had slowly formed pictures and faces from the shadows of his mind.

He lay there on the floor, tossing and turning as his mind was filled with faces and emotions attached to those faces. It was as if his life were going in reverse, rewinding itself piece by piece and showing him the faces of his life and what they meant to him. Some of them came singly, others came in groups or there was just a flash of a face that he recognised and couldn't name.

Serendipity - Love, devotion, pain, confusion, betrayal.
Lizzie - Pain, anguish, regret, betrayal, love.
Oria - Love, concern, devotion.
Belle - Love, concern, devotion, regret.
Lux - Love, purity, awe, humility
Muga - Hatred, loathing, strength of will and in his conviciton to kill him.
Sidalia - Love, concern, regret, concern.
Madison - Confusion, concern, anger, love, pain.
All of the other childre he'd had, their faces swimming and merging together - Regret, pain.
Elliot - Concern
Pi - Hatred, Pain, Betrayal.
Doc - Unadulterated hatred, fear.
Mathias - Love, concern, longing.
Aurora - Pain, concern, love, longing.
Asteria - Concern.
Aidan - Concern, love.
All of Tyt, and those of the Darkness - Loathing, Hatred, Venom, Pity.
All of those from Solace - Concern, Love, Thanks, Humility.
Habren and Mircea - Curiosity
Eagle - Pain, such pain, love, regret, sorrow, disappointment
Yekaterina - Fear, Hatred
The others from the blood thieves - Pain, regret, sorrow.
Faces of those who'd helped him as he lived on the streets - Indebted, greatful.
Phoenix as she had been - love, indebted, greatful.
The faces of the doctors, the police, the courtroom staff and government workers - Fear.
His sister, Diane - Pain. Such terrible, terrible pain. Regret.
His parents - Pain, regret, longing.

And then, things got weird - as if they weren't already.

Robert twisted around on the floor as if he were having a fit. His whole mind felt like it were on fire and trying to explode and there was a voice whispering away in a soft and accusatory manner.

Yeah,
Won’t do no good, if you run from me
There ain’t no cheatin’, schemin’ my heart don’t see
You left your troubles in my head, in my head
You left your secrets in my bed, in my bed
You’re like the cover of a book that’s been read, baby
I know what line is coming next, coming next

His own voice whispered out within his mind.

"No, no, I don't know. What's.... what's happening to me? What's going on?"

He felt himself form a body and become whole, like a projection of himself in his mind to make him more whole and make it all more real. The accusation came again, repeating the same words a it just had. Only now, it seemed to have more of a directionality to it. He turned, listening, and then followed it through the recesses of his mind. As he 'walked', the surroundings became less black and there was definition to it. Trees appeared, a pavement for him to walk on, a road beside the pavement. Gardens formed beside him with houses just beyond them. His feet seemed to know their way though as he walked, as if there were a specific destination he was going for. Once more, the woman's voice whispered to him, louder this time and closer.

You can’t hide from me,
There ain’t no tricks that you can try on me
I know your every move before you even breathe baby
Thinking you know something I don’t know
But my eyes, my eyes, my eyes are like a telescope

His vision narrowed and it became tunnelled, just as if he were looking down a telescope. The only thing he could see was a house at the other end of the street, framed perfectly in that sphere of colour at the end of the telescope. He had no idea what was going on here, or where he was being led, let alone why the voice was accusing him of hiding, of leaving something behind. And yet, at the same time, there was this feeling of dread building within him. Something was jingling at the far edges of his mind, like Tinkerbell had come to visit and was trying to remind him of something, trying to warn him. But whatever it was that was jingling, danced just out of reach like a faerie in the breeze. Heis footsteps sped up, trying to reach that house he saw before him and taking in all of the details he saw there. It was a small wooden house, 2 storeys, compact - but it looked homely and welcoming. There were toys in the garden, a bike, scooter, climbing frame, balls, bats - the sort you'd expect to find in a loving and normal family home. The flowers were out and dancing in the imagined breeze, while the shutters were open on the windows to reveal the lace privacy curtains. It looked very pretty, and the sort of place he'd imagine he'd have wanted had he ever had a family. However, his thoughts were interrupted at that point, the voice once more coming and almost shouting at him now.

You’re kissing her, when my head is turned
You must be crazy baby, haven’t you learned?
You can’t deceive me silly child, silly child
I don’t believe that greedy smile, greedy smile
My intuition can see for miles and miles baby
Every little sin, and everywhere you’ve been

You can’t hide from me,
There ain’t no tricks that you can try on me
I know your every move before you even breathe baby
Thinking you know something I don’t know
But my eyes, my eyes, my eyes are like a telescope

He finally reached the gate and looked around carefully. There was definitely something strangely familiar about this place. It was a major case of deja vu going on, and he couldn't place it in the slightest. He knew that if he walked in through that white door he would find a dresser behind the door, with a little plate for keys. Beside that would be a cupboard for coats, and then it would open out with the living room to the left, stairs up to the right, the kitchen through the door under the stairs, and the dining room straight ahead. All of this he could clearly see in his head and he could even remember himself walking through such a place. But the why of the thing and the when was what he couldn't work out.

He looked up to one of the upper windows and he saw a red headed woman standing there, staring down at him in an accusatory manner. There was a jolt of recognition that went through him as he looked at her face, even conjuring a name to go with it.

"Marie!"

He whispered, stunned. Where had her face come from? Where had the name come from? The jingling in his head was louder, much more urgent now. The woman disappeared from the window, out of sight and he needed to know more. He had so many questions to ask, so many feelings of confusion that needed quelled and sated. He opened the gate and hurried up the path to the front door. He didn't bother knocking and instead just walked right on in. He pulled up though, as the door clicked closed behind him. What he'd imagined in his mind was exactly what was now before him. Right down to the detail of the plate for the keys on the dresser. In fact, as he'd walked through the door - his hand had absentmindedly found his keys and dropped them into the plate. There they were, sitting looking at him, as if they were home...... home? Had he lived here sometime?

You left your troubles in my head, in my head
You left your secrets in my bed,

The voice came from upstairs and so up he went, taking them two at a time. He was so creeped out, so worried, so anxious - there was even a great longing and pain welling up deep within him and he was beginning to dread the answer of the why of it all. He reached the landing and looked around. There were three doors there on the landing, and a smell of fairly new paint. One door in particular caught his eyes though, because on the door in pink lettering was the word "Emily". He stood there, staring at it and wondering if it were a coincidence - but that feeling he'd had when he'd met her..... the one of recognition, that he'd brushed off as nothing.....

You can’t hide from me,
There ain’t no tricks that you can try on me
I know your every move before you even breathe baby
Thinking you know something I don’t know
But my eyes, my eyes, my eyes are like a telescope

There was a duality to the voice, and it sounded like it came from within the two rooms that were side by side. He didn't hesitate, and he went straight for the one that was marked as Emily's. The door thrown open it was empty of people, but full of clothes, toys, all of the paraphernalia associated with a little girl of 1 or younger. He backed out of the room and threw open the other door. This one again had no-one inside, but it was a boys room, of around 10 or younger. Once more with all the toys and clothes, everything perfectly in it's place, or perfectly out of place - as was the way with kids.

You can’t hide from me,
There ain’t no tricks that you can try on me
I know your every move before you even breathe baby
Thinking you know something I don’t know
But my eyes, my eyes, my eyes are like a telescope

"No!"

He whispered as he backed out, looking around for the owner of the voice. It had coe from downstairs and so down he went. He was in such a fluster that he missed a step and went careering down the stairs in a tumble of arms and legs. He barrelled through the door of the living room, unable to stop himself..... and stared.

My eyes see

"No!"

My eyes see

The tears welled in his eyes and poured down his cheeks.

My eyes see

The four people all turned and looked at him, their mouths moving.

My eyes see.........

And with that final word - he did see. There was a blinding light that blocked the tableau from his vision and instead implanted it in his mind. No longer were he, his wife, his son and daughter all sitting posing for the camera. No longer were they blocked behind the scars of the electro-shock therapy he'd undergone in the asylum. No. His family had been returned to his mind and had been remembered, 16 years after they'd been forgotten.

His eyes opened and he stared at the ceiling, surrounded in a pool of his own blood that was slowly dissipating into the atmosphere, as the tears fell from his eyes in torrents.

He had a family.
He had kids.

He would find them, he HAD to find them.

**** the vampires. **** the blood thieves. **** Solace.

This was FAMILY! The one thing he had longed for for years...... and had always unknowingly had.

[Emily Niah (DELETED 5213)]

Emily had made it back home the day after she had left. She did not do much that day. She still wanted to talk to her Pastor about things before she approached her mother. She still was unsure of how to even bring this up to anyone. She thought maybe she should try to get some answers from her grandparents first. Her grandmother would probably just tell her what she always had. Her grandpa on the other hand would be different. She could probably get him to talk a whole lot easier. She wished her brother had been at home for her to talk to or at least get him to come with her to help.

She got up off of her bed and grabbed her back pack. What had once been pink walls where now a purple, now that she had grown up. She walked out of the door the onto landing. She took a moment to look at the other rooms. Her brothers was clean for once but that was mostly due in part to the fact that he was gone. She was sure her mother had probably done most of the clean up after he had left. Her mothers door was shut, much like it always was. She grabbed the handle of the door that still have 'Emily' painted on it from when she was a baby and she shut it behind her.

She made her way down the steps and into the living room. Her mother was on the sofa reading one of her many books. She walked over and kissed her mother on the cheek.

"I'll be back later on tonight. I'm going to go by the church and see whats been going on while I gone."

Looking up at her daughter she smiled. "Alright, but be safe. I might be at your grandparts by the time you get back."

"Alright I will be and I'll go see them tomorrow."

She walked to the dresser by the door and pulled her keys out of the plate before going through the door and out to her car.

It wasnt a very long drive to the church she had spent so much time at as a child. It was like a second home to her. She parked around towards the back where most of the people that worked there parked. She got out of her green VW beetle and walked up the cobblestone pathway to the side door and rang the bell to be let in.

Pastor Mike turned a corner and was that it was her who had rung the door bell. He quickly unlocked the door and let her in and greeted her with a hug, like he did most people that volunteered regularly at any of there ministries.

"Why hello Emily. I didn't think you'd be back in the sates anytime soon."

"Hello Pastor Mike. Yeah I didn't think I'd be back so soon either, but I wanted to talk to you about some thing that had happened while I was in a place called Harper Rock in Canada."

The older man nodded his head as he led the way fro the two of them to go into the sanctuary. She loved it in here this time of day. The light was just barely coming through the stained glass windows and it made the colors almost dance across the opposite wall. They walked up onto the platform where the podium and the two chairs were where both him and one of the assistant pastors would sit while the praise and worship team where leading everyone in song. They sat down and she felt the red velvet on her skin.

"Alright. So what would you like to talk about?"

She made herself comfortable before she started. "I know you never knew my father but I know you that you know that he died when I was a baby, or at least that's what I was told."

He looked at her confused for a moment "You dont think that that is what happened?"

"Well I never had a reason not to believe it. It was just something that was true to me for my whole life, but while I was away I went for a job interview at a community center the man the started the place had the same name as my father and I thought that was strange but didn't think too much of it till I saw him. He WAS my father."

She went on to tell him the story of how he had not remembered anything or her, her mother, or her brother. How he had not know anything at all about them. How it had been depressing to know that there was her father and he had hugged, held, and kissed her in a way to that made her feel like an arrow had been shot through her heart. Pastor Mike sat there listening the whole time and taking in the whole story, offering her tissues when needed.

"Do you think I should do? I know I want to talk to my mother about it but I dont want to hurt her by telling her this."

"Well Emily, sometimes you hurt the ones we loved to show them just how much we really do care about them. It will probably hurt but in the end it will easy some demons that she may be dealing with if she knew that he was still alive and she had to lie to you and your brother, but if she didn't know this could help her to get onto a normal life knowing that he had moved on and was doing well"

[Robert Pratt]

A day had passed since Robert had remembered aboout his long lost family, and the shock of it all was beginning to wear off. Which wasn't a good thing. He'd kept himself to himself as much as he could - with just one incident with a boy that was.... odd, another with a blind girl, and of course.... Aurora. She was the reason he was still here in fact, because he really didn't feel like he could leave the city with her in such turmoil. He'd only just got her back, he couldn't abandon her now. But at the same time, these were his children. His own flesh and blood that he'd not seen for 16 years. Evey minute he spent not looking for them was driving the spikes further into his mind and heart. He felt like he was dying again, if he was honest with himself.

He found himself in his home that he'd told no-one about. It was his own little piece of tranquility where he could relax and just be himself. There wasn't going to be anyone walking in on him. No-one calling out for his attention. No screaming or crying babies above or below him. He put on a CD and then headed for the couch. However, it didn't matter what position he tried to sit in, he just couldn't get comfortable and it just didn't seem right. It wasn't the wounds he'd received from Lizzie, because he'd healed them already with his powers. It was his conscience. He got up and walked over to the corner of the room and slid down the wall. His bum hit the ground and his knees pulled to his chest and were clasped. It was the same position the boy had been in when he'd found him, and it seemed to be effective. He slid to the side a fraction, and his head leant against the other wall as he let the music wash over him as the memories came forth.

Hold on until the feelin' is so strong
Until the ground that you walk on
Is where you stand.
This dream, it heals and it haunts me
It's tempted and taught me who I am

This town ain't yours
And this town ain't mine.
We all come here with a light in our eyes
Some will burn out.
Some will burn bright.
Some learn to fly.
Some will run for their lives.
In this town.
In this town.

Strangers, we're nothin' but strangers
When our heart's in danger
For the song we sing.
I've seen the devil inside me
But I won't let him guide me
Or take my wings

This town ain't yours
And this town ain't mine.
We all come here with a light in our eyes
Some will burn out. (Some will burn out.)
Some will burn bright. (Some will burn bright.)
Some learn to fly.
Some will run for their lives.
In this town
In this town

This town ain't yours . (This town ain't yours.)
And it surely ain't mine. (This town ain't mine.)
We all come here with a light in our eyes
Some will burn out.
Some will burn bright.
Some learn to fly.
Some will run for their lives.
In this town
In this town (This town.)
Ooh ooh ooh ooh
(Ooh this town.)
In this town.

He didn't hear anything but the lyrics of that song spinning around in his head. It wasn't so much the lyrics on their own, but more a coupling of the lyrics and the haunting melody that went with them. They both created an ethereal feel in the room. Another track after who knew how many came on with a loud and brash tune and jolted him from the trance he'd slipped into. However, the trance had helped him creep closer to some of those lost memories. So grabbing the remote from his pocket, he flicked back through the songs to find that specific one and then set it to loop, and **** the neighbours. The piano intro started, then the voice and guitar joined in and he felt the tears pricking his eyes as he tried so desperately to remember anything and everything.

There was the disappointment in his parents eyes as he and Marie told them she was pregnant, yet he remembered feeling ecstatic. Yes, he'd been young, they both had. But they were in love and this was their baby. They were keeping it and they would love it. So full of the ideals of youth and the plans of how perfect their little family would be. The way they had looked at each other and held each other then - that's what had swayed it for his parents. They had said they could see the love between them, and so would support them however they could.

The birth of his son. There, in the delivery room where he'd cut the cord and been presented with his son. The immediate love he'd felt for that tiny squalling child, even while it was covered in goop. Turning and bending to Marie, and seeing how she glowed - exhausted as she was - and how he'd loved her and kissed her through his tears of happiness.

Being accepted to Florida Uni and the debate that had caused. How would they manage, what could they do, was it possible? The way his parents had stepped in to help, offering to childmind while she went to work and he went to Uni. They would even pay his travel to come home every other weekend to be with his family so he missed as little as possible.

The wedding. It had been a glorious wedding and she had looked stunning in her dress and veil. A proper church wedding, with the full blowout party afterwards and his sister as maid of honour while his son was a page boy.

Birthdays and Anniversaries, all so happy and celebrated together. They had been so cute together, so in love and the envy of every couple who saw them. They'd been dealt a hand that was thought a bad one - but they had come through it all together, strong as ever. However he'd known, and looking back he knew, that there was no way they could have done it without the support of both their parents.

Then the news, oh the happy happy news that she was pregnant again. Preparing the room as best they could, while keeping both colours of paint on standby. The birth of his daughter, giving him the perfect family with one boy and one girl and a beautiful wife. He'd driven at breakneck speeds through town to get home and paint the bedroom pink - so that it would be dry and fume free before the baby got home. Calling all his friends and family to tell them the news.

Her Christening, and the party - offering her up to god, to ask him to look after her and keep her safe, just as they had with their son. The family gathering around them to wish them well and say how proud they were. Perfect.

He could feel his grip on the memories becoming shakey and he knew that things were about to take a turn for the worse..... and they did.

He'd gotten in with the wrong crowd at Uni, he could see their faces plain as day and yet clear as mud. He'd changed that semester at Uni, and when he came home for Christmas he'd argued with Marie, and just been a dick in general. Then of course, that traumatic event reared its head and he was made to relive the death of his sister and his hand in it. He watched in perfect detail as if suspended above the action as he hit a patch of black ice and skidded. How he over compensated in his turn, and when they'd hit solid road - had shot off and straight into the tree. His seatbelt had saved him, but she hadn't been wearing one and had flown through the windscreen and there was a sickening crunch as her head hit the same tree and her body seemed to crumple in on itself like an accordion.

Locked away in the asylum, non responsive and staring for weeks. He saw Marie come to visit regularly, but he didn't respond to her, didn't recognise her, didn't give any indication that he even knew she were there. He saw her signing the papers beside him, giving the authorisation for him to be given the EST.

She was back, repeatedly, and he was awake and moving, responding and doing things. However, there was no recognition there when he looked at her. He saw the pain on her face and could see how hurt she was as the doctors explined that the EST had caused some scar tissue to grow within his brain. However, there was every possibility that it would improve in time, she just had to be patient. He heard her telling him how she blamed herself, that it was her fault and she'd made him like this, while he just sat and stared at her. He wanted, with every fibre of his being, to reach out to that Robert of the past and shake him. If only he'd remebered - how different might his life had been?

Visit after visit she came, usually on her own, but sometimes with the children - trying anything to bring him round. She did everything to try and spark some form of a memory from him - but there was just nothing from him. She apologised for his parents, who hadn't visited and whom he remembered. She gave all the excuses under the sun as to why they weren't there. But he now knew, they weren't there because they had disowned him.

He snapped from the trance and from the memories, panic settling in his chest. If his parents had disowned him and cast him aside..... had they done the same to his children and wife? Had they been forced into poverty, a single mother and two young children. A young woan society would look down upon and whom he'd made into a pariah. She'd always be 'the woman who's husband murdered his sister', and his children would grow up knowing their father was a murderer. The tears were flowing hard and fast, spilling down his cheeks and soaking into his shirt to create a dark stain upon the material. However, it was nothing, compared to the dark stain that now sat upon his soul.

He leant to the side and unwrapped one arm, slippingit into the pocket to remove his phone. Once freed, he settled back down again and brought up flight information. He'd speak to Aurora, explain he had to go... though he wasn't sure if he could explain why or where to. That would be.... difficult. And then he would be gone from Harper Rock, back to Pittsburgh. To confront his parents and try to find out what had happened to his children and wife!

[Emily Niah (DELETED 5213)]

It was the next day as she woke up. It was a little before noon, she had gotten to sleep in for once. She had made her way down the stairs and into the living room after grabbing an apple to eat. As she sat down on the sofa she saw a note on the small table in front of her. Picking the note up' she found it was from her mother.'Hey honey, I've left you some lunch. I'll be home in time for dinner and then maybe you and I could watch a movie. You should go see your grandparents today. Your grandfather wants to see you. Love mom.' She put the note back down and thought of what to do. She wanted to talk to her mom about everything and after talking with Pastor Mike the night before she knew she had to, but she wanted to find some kind of proof that he was still alive. She should of gotten a piture with her phone while she was there but she had not thought of that till after she had already been on the plane. She had also lost her locket some where that had his piture in it. She was going to have to try and find it when she could but for now she needed to think on other things. She walked over to the staireo and turned on one of the mixed CD's her friends had given her with all her favorite musicals on it. She turned the volume up, most people around here where at work by now so she would not have to worry about anyone complaning about how loud it was. She started singing along as she walked around her house. She new that her mother liked to keep copies of anything and everything. If her father had died she would have the death certificate somewhere. She thought for a moment of where it could be. The only place that made any logic to her was in her mother's bedroom. She made her way up the stairs and tried to open the door. It was locked. Lucky over the years she had learned how to open locks pretty easily. She went into her room and grabbed a booby pen and hair barertt. She went back to the door and after a few seconds the lock was popped and the door was open. She went in and started looking around. She went into the dresser and found nothing. Same thing with the nightstand. That left the closet. She opened the door and looked around around the top shelf and nothing. Then something cought her eye. There in the bottom of the closet behind some shoes was a safe. She had never seen or heard her mother say anything about it. It wasn't very big and it weighed about as much an old computer moniter. She dug it out and picked it up and brought it over to her mothers bed. She saw that is was a combination lock. She tried to think of what it could be. First she tried her own birthday. Nothing. Her brother's. Nothing. Her mother's. Nothing. She looked around the room to try and get some ideas. She saw the picture that was on the nightstand of her mother and father on their wedding day. She had looked so beautiful and her father so handsome. They both looked so happy. She tried the wedding date and still nothing. She then tried her father's date of death and still nothing. Then it hit her. She entered her father's date of birth and the lock popped open. There where all the documents. She found birth and wedding certificates and other important documents but nothing about a death. As she fliped through the pages again she read thing more carfully. There was something here. She read through the document and found that it information that proved he was alive and it helped to explane why he had no memory of her or the family. She took the papers that she need and put the rest back. Locked the safe and put it back. She left her mothers room, relocking it behind her, and went to get dressed. After she was done and everything had been turned off and locked up properly she was on the way to her grandparents. After a short drive she was parked in their driveway. She made her way to the door and knocked as she waited for someone to answer. Her grandpa opened the door with a surprised look on his face. He was never much of a talker for as long as she could remember but her mother said that had happend after the deaths. He smiled at her and hugged her as she entered the home. "Hey papa." She smiled at him as they walked him the living room and sat down, him in his chair opposite the TV and her on the sofa in front of the window. He looked at her as he put the TV on mute "Your grand mother isn't here right now. Went to get her hair done." She was okay with this she needed to talk to him more anyway. She knew he wouldn't lie to her. "That okay. I needed to talk to you anyway." He looked even more courious as she fished the paper out of her back pack. "What do you need to talk to me about?" She handed him the papers for him to look at. She waited as he got his classes on and started reading them. "Where did you get these?" There was no anger in his voice but a mixture surprise and pain. "I found them in my mom's room. I just need to know the truth." He looked at her for a moment before he started telling her about the crash. About how difficalt it had been on everyone and how her father had just stopped responding to just about everything. How they had left everything up to her mother because they had disowned him and she had give permisson to do EST. How after he hadn't remembered her or the kids that she had come to talk to both his wife and himself and she explaned everything everything to them. He told her how they had decided to still be a big part of their lives and that that was when they had come up with the idea to tell everyone that he had died do to the crash. After he had finished she explaned everything that had happened in HR and why that was what made her want to know what had happened. Her grandmother had entered to the two of them crying. Emily looked at the time and knew she needed to be home soon to talk to her mother. She got up and said her goodbyes and gave them both hugs and she left and made her way home.

[Robert Pratt]

He booked the flights that left the next night, wanting to leave as little time between these memories and finding them again and then set an alarm on his phone to remind himself of the time of the flights and to make sure he had everything. He needed to speak to Belle, let her know he'd be gone for.... who knew how long. She would have to take on the running of Solace, with Lizzie being mental and twisting the past to suit her own needs, all while shooting people and Oria being missing in action - she'd have to take the brunt of it on herself as best she could. He dragged himself to his feet again and slowly made his way to Solace. Every single footstep echoed in his mind and brought another memory with it. Usually, it was just the smiling face of a child in one place or another. Or there was their laughter tinkling and echoing through his mind. The feel of little hands in his own, his boy calling him Daddy, his wife kissing him and the soft, berry flavour of her gloss. He knew he passed people by in the street, he was aware of their shapes and bodies being around him, but he saw no faces and heard no words he was too enthralled by the faces and words within his mind that were spilling forth.

He stumbled off the pavement and down a snicket between two houses, ending up in the wilderness. His arms lifted to brush away the low hanging branches that tried to claw at his face. Bushes snagged on his jeans and tried to hold him back, while the mud beneath his feet seemed to try and weigh him down. The mud couldn't weight him down anymore than his own heart was currently weighed down. The bushes snagging reminded him of little hands grabbing at him and asking to be picked up. The snapping branches in his face were the slaps from his parents for what he'd done. Reality and memory were becoming confused in his mind and he couldn't distinguish one from the other and panic was settling in. Up ahead there was a light, just a glimmer at first, but as his stumbling legs moved him forwards, the light got brighter, clearer and with more definition. It was Solace, just ahead, and he felt like he could weep for joy.

He made it to the wall and stood there, legs slightly apart and hands planted against the moss covered wood. His fingers gently gripped, clenching and unclenching at the wood as something tangible for him to hold onto. His head was bowed between his elbows and he was taking large and deep breaths to try and sort out his mind. The people within the building looked to him for leadership and guidance, in their darkest times - they would come to him for advice and help. He couldn't let them see him in such a state, it would ruin what he'd built here and destroy the tenuous trust he'd built with some of the more vulnerable inhabitants. He owed it to them to pul hiself together, just for an hour or so - and then he'd be packed and gone. With one more deep breath he plastered a smile on his face, walked around the corner and then pushed open the door and walked on in to the building.

There weren't too many people around just now as it was fairly late. Belle, as usual though, was bustling around the place and getting things ready for the morning shift. If Robert hadn't known better, he'd have sworn she were a vampire and a telepath, she could always read him perfectly. As soon as she saw him, she knew soething was wrong and came right over to his side, took his arm and led him through to his office. Once in there, she shut the door and looked at him pointedly.

"Well?"

He couldn't do it. It was like when anyone ever asks 'How are you' when you're terrible. Those three simple words make you actually question yourself and ask yourself how you are and break through the wall of denial you had up to keep yourself ploughing through. The look she gave him, that one word, and he collapsed - literally. On his knees he wept and told her the whole story, while she stood there and held him to her, caressing his head in a very motherly fashion as she debated something within herself and waited for him to calm himself. Finally, she came to a decision and sighed, pulling back from him and carefully lowering herself onto a seat nearby while fishing in her pinny pocket.

"Robert..... This makes sense now. But, I think you should see...."

Out of her pocket she pulled a little locket and held it out to him, waiting for him to take it. His hand lifted and extended, taking the locket and looking at it quizzically.

"Open it"

She whispered to him in a soft and kind tone. His face still puzzled, he opened it up - and nearly died. There in the locket was a picture of himself, but from 20 years ago. And there, next to his picture, was the girl he'd spoken to the other day. Emily. His knees rolled out from under him so that he landed on his *** with a thump. Both of his hands were now holding the locket together as if it were the most precious thing in the world. His suspicions had been right, it had been a miracle. The Emily he'd spoken to, was HIS Emily.... His Emily, who thought that he was dead. His Emily who had sobbed in his arms for the father she'd never known. And yet, she had known - when she'd seen him. She had to have known, he hadn't changed all that much since this picture had been taken. And he'd talked about never having kids, but having wanted them.... hadn't he? His brain was MUSH, and he couldn't recall what they'd spoken about and what he'd said. Whatever must she have thought, seeing a man who looked exactly like her father talking about all of those things, when she'd thought him dead.

He could feel the shakey hold he kept on his mind unravelling right there, and he knew Belle had stepped closer and was kneeling down to hold him, rock him. He could feel her breath on his ear as she said something unheard, but well meant. All of the good he'd done since finding Lux in getting himself mentally stable and well was unravelling at the seams, fraying piece by piece. There was only one person he could think of right now that he needed to talk to. One person who made him feel better, made him smile - both inside and out. She was and had his heart, and he needed her more than he'd ever needed anyone in this city right here and right now. Gently, so as not to unravel his mind any further, he sent out a telepathic message to her, hoping she would hear and respond....

Robert Pratt: He sent her a telapathic message *Are you free?"

Serendipity: *sends a message back* Im here. What?

Robert Pratt: *R* Can I see you? I.... need to talk to you. About.... well, I remembered something. From my past.

Serendipity: R: Fine. You can come over but Its not going to be fun. *she commented*

Robert Pratt: He wasn't in a fun mood, not in the slightest, and he knew that was more of a threat than anything else. However, he tomed away from where he was and then made his way to Beta, climbing the stairs and walking in through her door. "Serry?"

Serendipity: *she continued to lay on the couch on the third floor, watching the tv. She could hear Robert come in the door. She sent him a telepathic message, still nursing the bullet wound in her gut* Third floor. TV room.

Robert Pratt: He climbed the stairs, slower than he normally would due to the bullet wound in his leg to go with the one in his neck and the other in his shoulder too. He grumped and grumbled at the pain, but he made it, and then walked around the corner to the TV room, offering her a smile as he did.

Serendipity: *she sighed and then, as he came into sight, her anger too over. She turned up the tv volume and shifted a bit* What do you want? And speak loud, seems my tv show is good today.

Robert Pratt: He saw her turn up the TV, and he wasn't speaking over it, or fighting for her attention. Not for this. He limped over to the TV, bent down and switched it off with the main button so that she couldn't turn it on again with the remote. "Serry.... this is important." His face was etched with pain, pale, drawn, he'd not fed properly since Lizzie had shot him - and his thin frame was looking even thinner. He looked ill, if not dead as he looked down at her.

Serendipity: *she finally allowed her eyes to look at him after he turned off the tv. He looked sick. Tiny,. Pale. She frowned heavily, though her anger refused to let her jumped up and run to him as he wanted, though the bullet in her gut also kept her at bay as well. She instead growled a little and then sat up, pointing to the chair across from her now* So sit and talk. Ill listen.

Robert Pratt: He walked over and sat down, but not before reaching into his pocket with his good hand to pull out a little locket. He opened it up and then held it out to her, holding it by the chain so the pictures dangled. Inside, was a picture of a girl with dark hair and a picture of him that was coming up on 20 years old. The resemblance between the two in the pictures, couldn't be missed. He was silent, as he was waiting for her to take the locket and look at it, waiting to see what her reaction would be.

Serendipity: *she watched him remove the locket from his pocket and then sit. She tilted her head as she looked at it, just wanting the conversation over and yet, curiosity got the better of her. She reached out after a moment or two and grabbed hold of the locket, looking at the picture. She was pretty. She blinked a few times and then, the realization began to dawn on her. She perked a brow and then looked over at him* Do you know where she is?

Robert Pratt: He shook his head and then paused, nodding his head. "I think, she's gone home to see her mother. But where that is - I don't know. I.... know where it used to be. But.... if they're still there.... I don't know. She.... has an older brother too. Serry. How? How could I not know and forget? With how desperate I am for a family, for a partner - you - and the whole family thing. How... could.... I...." He broke down, his head falling to his hands and then both to his knees as his voice cracked and stopped working, the tears flowing as he simply sobbed and let his grief out.

Serendipity: *she shook her head after she had listened to his words about the girl leaving to go see her mother. Also, she listned to him as he questioned how he could forget. She frowned not knowing and not really having a response. She sighed as she watched him begin to cry and frowned heavily as she spoke* Robert? Things happen in the turning process. For a while, I couldnt remember my mothers face. I couldnt remember my fathers name. It just takes time. Some longer than others and with the way your life has been since hitting Harper Rock..... I cant really say Im all that surprised by this.

Robert Pratt: He just shook his head, still unable to physically talk, but he tried to send it to her telepathically. "No. I haven't seen her since she was one.... 16 odd years Serry! (Oh Lux, please don't let me have lost Serry!) It was the mental asylum.... the EST they gave me. (I love her so much, and she's been shot! I just want to hold her and be held!) I.... I think.... I might have a new power? The memory one, I read my own memories and found them - my family. LUX Serry! I left them! Abandoned them! She.... she.... Emily.... She thinks, no, thought - that I was dead! It's what she'd been told! (Just to have her arms around me, she's so close - but I daren't.)"

Serendipity: *Her head was floating with all the thoughts and words coming into her mind, bombarding her all at once. She shook her head, hands moved to the sides of her head as she spoke back to him* Robert stop..... Please. Please stop. Stop thinking. *she rocked back and forth as she whimpered*

Robert Pratt: He tried to shut off his mind as she asked, however one last thought slipped out unbeknown to him. "(I love you Serry!)"

Serendipity: *she ran a hand through her hair and then sighed as she looked at him* Robert.... we broke up. Please stop saying that right now. I dont need that right now.

Robert Pratt: He shook his head, mumbling into his hands as he tried to control himself. "We haven't. I won't let us."

Serendipity: *she growled and then ran a hand through her hair* Robert.... you cant control it. Im sorry but you cant. *she commented and then sighed gently as she sat back on the couch* One issue at a time. What are you going to do about your.... kid?

Robert Pratt: He looked up, the pain on his face even greater than it had been before. "Serry...." He whispered, the neckwound having reopened again so it oozed black. "I cannot cope right now.... if... if we are over." His left hand wiped his cheek, the ring she'd given him glistening on his finger where she'd placed it just over a week ago.

Serendipity: *she sighed gently and then got up, grabbing a towel from the side of the couch she had kept there for herself. She handed it to him for his neck and then retook her seat* Robert.... I lost my daughter. I lost her because I wanted happiness. I told you what it would do should you tell her. I told you the reprocussions of your actions. You chose to ignore my warnings and you spoke your peice anyway because it always has to be your way *she frowned* I stand by my actions and words.

Robert Pratt: He got up and set the towel on the seat and then pocketed the locket again. "And I had to stand by mine Serry. We agreed we'd tell her. You might have been lying, but I wasn't. I stood by my word. But.... if you really want me gone. That there's nothing I can say or do? I'll go."

Serendipity: I never said I wanted you gone *she commented as she watched him* I said we are not together, Robert. I never lied. Lying and placating someone are two very different things. If you would like for me to go and get you a dictionary, I will.

Robert Pratt: "Indeed, lying and placating are different. You said you would tell her with me. You then said you wouldn't. That therefore, was a lie when you said you would." He was having a massive issue holding himself together now and he was biting down on his tongue to give himself something else to focus on. "So. What do you want? Me gone, or us together?"

Serendipity: No, that was me getting you off my god damn *** for a while. I wanted to make sure she was okay enough to handle said information. Youre the asshole that decided you knew better than anyone ******* else. I KNOW MY daughter, Robert! I know her a hell of a lot better thatn you no matter what you think! *she grabbed her stomach from the yelling and doubled over a bit ebfore speaking again* I dont want either right now. My focus has got to be Lizzie if you understand that or not. Im not saying stay away from me for good. Im not saying I want you back. Im saying all my attention has got to be on Lizzie. Shes gonna ******* lose her mind and really, shes MY daughter so yes.... she comes first. I warned you this would happen.

Robert Pratt: He removed the ring from his hand and placed it on the table near her. "Then concentrate on Lizzie, and when she's grown up enough to be left to make her own decisions and life, and you can have your own - then let me know. Until then - you can have your space. Since you seem to know best in all things." With that he gave her one last look and thought his heart would break, before he turned around and left the way he'd come, once more, his mind slipping. "(I love her so much, this is the hardest thing I've ever done. Lux be with me, I don't think I can cope with this.....)"

He managed to get out of the building, down the street and away to the abandoned shop. He'd just run and his mind had filled in the gaps and offered his feet somewhere to go to where there would be no people to watch his self implosion. He got in through the back door, blowing it to smithereens in his haste to just, get away from people. Something caught his toe and he went down like a tree that had been felled with a clatter and a bang, his head banging off the ground as he made no attempt to catch himself from the fall. He just lay there as if he were dead. His eyes were open, staring into nothing, as if he were just another dead blood thief, abandoned and discarded like a piece of trash that no-one cared about. He lay there so still and for so long, that after a while the rats re-emerged and went back about their business as they had been before they were so rudely interrupted. One even clamboured up onto his shoulder to sit having a wash, thinking he really was nothing. Meanwhile, Robert lay there, a broken man with nowhere to go and no-one to hold him and tell him it would all be ok. He just had to wait until the alarm went off in his phone to remind him of the plane. Until then - he was going nowhere and was simply going to revisit the movies in his mind as he remembered when he really and truly was happy and content.




(( YIM convo posted in its entirety with permission ))

[Emily Niah (DELETED 5213)]

She got in her car and headed home. As she drove she thought of how tonight was going to go and she knew it was not going to be easy. Her grandfather had sat and cried with her as he recanted his side of the story. Her grandmother had been crying as well though she did not share her thoughts on anything but she could tell it had been very hard on her, not only the death of one child but also losing the other, not to death but to ones own doing. She could tell how hard it had been on both of them to know that their son was alive but no way of knowing where he was or how he was doing. Her grandfather had talked about how they had thought of trying to find him once but did not want to put her mother, brother or herself through any pain if he had still no memory of them. Her thoughts then drifted to her brother. He was older then herself and he had had some memories of there father. She wondered if he had known anything. Had he known that their father was still alive and out there. If he did know had it been hard for him to deal with the fact that his father no longer knew his face. Had he ever cried himself to sleep at night like he said their mother had. Or had he thought his father had died as well. She really wished he was at home for her to talk with about all these thing. As she got closer to her childhood home she thought of how she was going to be able to brake the news not only to her mother but also once she returned to HR, how was she going to tell Robert and convence him that he was her father. If he had no memory that he had even married her mother, there was no way he was going to remember not only her brother but her. They at least had had some time with him but her...she had been so young that the chances where if he did start to remember anything it was not going to be her. She pulled into her drive way and thought on that for a moment more till she saw the light at the door blink into life. Her mother was home and knew she had pulled in. She grabbed her backpack from the seat next to her and composed herself for what was about to happen.She walked into the home. It was filled with the smell of food. She looked and saw that her mother had cooked and dinner was already on the table. "Hey mom." She said with a smile. "I'm sorry I'm late. I was at grandmas." She went and washed her hands before making her way to the table to sit down. Her mother quickly joined her and sat. They said grace before they started eatting. As she looked at her mother across from her, her mother talking about her day at work and how someone had spilled paint all over the floor, she really looked at her mother. She had not changed very much over the years. She hair had some gray here and there but was not noticable unless she was looked at carefully. She also had started to develop tiny lines near the corners of her eyes. There were also hints of laugh lines around her mouth. She wondered if her would of looked any different if her father had been around. Had the added stress of keeping things hiden coused the gray to start to show? Would she have more then a hit of laugh lines? There was no way to know. They had finished eating and had cleaned up quickly. Her mother had said something about watching a movie together and she knew what she wanted to watch. She popped in the movie Sleeping Beauty and when and sat on the sofa and curled up next to her mother.As the movie started she knew this was when she had to do it otherwise she might never bring it up. "Mom I want to talk to you about dad." Her mother said nothing but she heard the deep inhale of air and slow exhale of it a moment later. "Can you tell me what happened to him again?" She knew of no other way to start this conversation. "It was late one night when your aunt and your father where driving. It was dark, late, and cold out and they slid on some ice and off the road. Your aunt had not been wearing a seat belt and she died there. Thats why we go on holidays and leave presents for her spirt there every year. Your father was taken to the hospital and they had tried everything to make him better and bring him back to the way he was but it was no use. Your father was gone." She took a moment to stop herself from crying "His body was donated so that he might be able to save others lives and that why he does not have a grave fro us to visit. He still lives on in the world." She could see now that her mother was very cleaver in how she had worded thing. She had never lied to her or her brother she had only left some things out changed a word here or there. Emily got and gotten her back pack from by the door. "Mom I know you might be mad about this and I don't blam you but I had to know and there is something you need to know." She pulled out the documents about the EST and handed them over. Her mother looked at them for only a second before she could tell her mother knew what it was as soon as she saw it. "Mom...I saw dad while I was away...He did not knew who I was but I know it was him...Grandpa told me about the memory loss...it helped to explane things...He also told me about how they disowned him and how the three of you had come of with the idea of him being dead..." She watched as she mother started to brake down and cry. "It was easier to come up with him dieing then it was to tell you and your brother that he had no idea who you two where. You where not going to have any memories of him and your brother was still young as well." Emily movied in and hugged her mother and they held onto each other "I understand." Was all that she could come up with to say. They held each other the rest of the night as the movie played in the back ground.

[Robert Pratt]

The alarm on his phone went off, and he didn't move.

The reminder went off 15 mins later. And he didn't move.

The final reminder went off 15 mins later. And he twitched.

His body rolled over from lying there face down, to lie on his back. He was covered in detritus from the dusty and manky floor of the abandoned building. There were cars going by outside, footsteps echoing around the hollow shell of the building, reverberating within his equally hollow shell of a body. Life was going on outside as if his entire world hadn't just shattered and come apart at the seams, pieces of it lying strewn about the city and world. He just lay there for a moment, blinking and letting everything settle in his mind and coming to the realisation that this whole thing, wasn't some bad dream but was actually happening. Finally, he knew he just couldn't lie there any longer and had to get up and move if he were to catch the plane.

His body ached all over, echoing the feelings emanating from his now long dead heart. He hated that it didn't beat, but that it seemed to still hold sway over him. He loved, and he loved hard. He cared deeply for the people in his life, as well as for the innocents who surrounded him on a nightly and daily basis. He wanted what was best for them all, he wanted to keep them safe from all harm, he wanted a family, he wanted Serry.... he wanted his children, he wanted that life back that he'd lost. That hole he'd always felt and had tried to fill, was now filled. However, it was filled with a pain that was excrutiating and felt as if it would burn a physical hole in his flesh. His Hunter. His Emily. His Marie.

He teleported himself home, a little strength having returned as he slept, and headed straight for the shower. Dirt covered, blood covered, tear stained clothes were left in a grimey trail from door to bathroom as he disrobed without care or conscience. He stepped into the shower and then turned it on, barely flinching as the ice cold water hit him before slowly heating to scorching temperatures. He just stood there and let the water wash over him, supporting himself on the wall so he didn't fall - and let the water wash away the tears that fell once more. He was trying to cleanse himself in the water, as if it were some sort of baptism that could wash away the sins of the past and he could start again. Of course, the only thing that was washed away was the dried blood and the grime from the city - and he felt no better for it.

Dried and dressed a few minutes later, he dragged himself downstairs to the fridge and drained a number of bags of blood. He had a long journey, and the state he was in meant that he wouldn't last if he didn't feed. The cold blood sat in his stomach like a lead weight, reminding him of the guilt that sat heavily on his conscience. He needed to heal himself, so summoned some spirits and then fed again, making sure that energy and health were sorted - healing the more obvious of his wounds and the one that affected him the most. Immediately, he felt like he had more energy, and after one last pack he was ready to go..... though he hadn't packed. When that realisation hit, he sighed and quickly grabbed a large gym bag and filled it with all manner of clothes. He wasn't thinking, he was just stuffing items into the bag haphazardly so that he wouldn't look suspicious going through the airport. He snapped a selfie on his phone and checked it out, grimacing at how he looked.

His face seemed so much older than the 40 he was. His cheeks had sunken in, as had his eyes, and both had a grey look about them against his much paler skin. His receding hairline seemed to have pretty much scarpered and abandoned him - but touching his head with his hand, he could still feel the hair there, so put it down to the light and his bad photography skills. Back to the bathroom he went and pulled out the makeup he kept, quickly covering his face in a tinted moisturiser and then adding on a liquid foundation on top. This was finished with a light brush of powder before another selfie was taken. There was nothing he could do about the sunken eyes, but his pallor had certainly been improved. It was something he had Lizzie to thank for - teaching him how to apply make-up for the nights he'd burned the candle at both ends and ended up literally looking like he was dead the next night. Satisfied he wouldn't scare small children anymore, he grabbed his bag and teleported out and to the wilderness near the airport.

Everything went as it should and after an hour or so, he was in his seat, forehead on the window and gazing out at the runway. The plane rumbled to life and he was off, the runway and buildings flashing by, faster and faster as the plane picked up speed. Upwards, onwards, through the cloud cover that seemed eerie as the red and green lights of the plane flashed in their midst, giving them an ethereal, momentary glow. He jumped and let out a yelp of surprise as he peered into the clouds. He had to reassure the attendants he was fine, apologising and claiming he'd nodded off and had a bad dream. They gave him a funny look, but said no more on the matter and he went back to looking out of the window - trying to search out the face he'd seen there moments before.

His thoughts were interrupted as Serry broke through telepathically, telling him how hurt she was. There was nothing he could do from his seat on the plane however. Besides which, she'd cast him aside and said she wanted no more to do with him - at least that's what he'd heard in his head. This, was just cruel and unusual punishment if he were honest with himself. However, he couldn't be honest with himself, not over this and so he'd replied and then contacted his wraith to have her watch over Serry. However, Leyna wasn't in the right frame of mind and had always hated Serry. She'd thought that Lizzie was the better match and had lectured him repeatedly over it. He heard what she'd said to Serry, how she'd treated her - and so had breated her and told her to stand there and watch. Silently. That way, wherever Serry went and whatever happened to her - he'd be able to see it through Leyna's eyes. And no. That wasn't stalking. Was it?

Nothing else of interest happened in the journey, and Robert even managed to drift off into a fitfull sleep that was plagued with dreams and nightmares of what had happened to his children as they'd grown up without him there, without a father. Or worse, a father who wasn't him and who hadn't loved them as he had.... no, did! Emily seemed good, well, a wonderful human being - but what of Hunter? How had he turned out? Emily had no memories of him, she'd only been 1 after all, but Hunter, Hunter had known him and would possibly have memories of him. How abandoned must he have felt? How much hatred would be pointed in Robert's direction? It tore him apart, and his mind helped by conjuring the worst possible scenarios of abuse, death, accidents, poverty and all sorts. He all but ran off the plane and through customs, meriting himself a pat down and bag search. Of course, there was nothing to find and so after a couple of hours he was freed.

He jumped in a taxi and simply asked it to take him to Garfield, via Friendship. The 30 minute journey seemed to take FOREVER, and he was impatiently shuffling around on his seat and wishing the driver would put his bloody foot down! When they hit the few streets that made up Friendship, more and more memories were surfacing of himself as a child, playning here and there with one gang of friends or another. Bombing around the Victorian houses on their bikes without a care in the world. He had the driver slow down so he could look at each house, just waving away the drivers comments about the meter being on. Robert didn't give a toss - he'd pay whatever price to hold onto these memories right now as the tears pricked at his eyes. So much had been lost to him, so much happiness he could have had - and all of this loss had started with his own stupidity. He'd gone from this loving life, to a life of pain and fighting against the Darkness that was inside all of his kind. He had led himself to it all, there was no-one else to blame. They pulled up at the other side of the street to his parents house, and simply sat as he stared. Did they still live there? Someone obviously did - there was a car outside and a light flickering upstairs in what had been his parents bedroom. Were they there, now, reading? While he sat here, outside, having not seen them for the last 16 years! What a reunion that would be!

Finally, he directed the driver to the correct street in Garfield - not too far from his parents house in Friendship. Walkable even. They drove by the house and turned the corner, his heart had jumped into his mouth as he'd seen the house and the two trees outside that they'd planted - one for each child's birth - and how big they'd gotten. Quickly, he paid the driver and got out, tears streaming down his face once more. He was so close to the house, so close to finding out if they were there still and what had happened. So close to quieting the demons that were within his mind. And so close to yet more pain and disappointment. He couldn't do it, he just couldn't, not yet. He stood there at the end of the street, looking down it's length and staring at the house. He'd find a guest house nearby, grab a room for the night and build himself up for it tomorrow, or the next day, or the next, at a more reasonable hour than this. Yes. It was too late, it wouldn't be fair on those who lived there now..... whoever they were, though he knew who he hoped they'd be.

So turning around, he walked away from the house. Again. Only this time, it wouldn't be so long before he was back!

[Hunter (DELETED 2392)]

“Hey Pratt, I heard you were off home today.”

That was the voice of Corporal Evan Jones, recently promoted Corporal Evan Jones. He and Private Hunter Pratt had served side by side for the past six years, they’d even signed up together, gone to the same school in the same sleepy-eyed town, grown up together, been friends for years, but Evan was ambitious and Hunter was not. Well, that wasn’t entirely fair. It wasn’t that Hunter lacked ambition, he lacked direction. He didn’t know what to do with his life and was just drifting from one point to another like a pile of kelp at sea.

“That’s right,” Hunter said. “Off back home to the Pitts.”

“Does your family know you’re coming?”

“Nope.” He hitched his backpack higher on his shoulder. “Thought I‘d surprise them.”

The look on Evan’s face made Hunter force a breath; there’d been a few concerns lately. Hunter denied it of course, but the rumours kept up and the suspicion was that Hunter wasn’t going back home to see his family at all, he was off to some institute to get his brain tested or worse, he was off chasing illusions. Truth was that even he didn’t know what he was going to do. There wasn’t much to go home for and frankly, he hated the idea of taking his troubles back with him. He was certain he wasn’t hallucinating, he couldn’t be sure that he wasn’t crazy, but he was sure that everything he’d seen had happened – it was real, he even had proof.

“Come on, Jonesy. Don’t tell me you believe all that crap. I’m going home to see Emily, to see mom. What’s wrong with that?”

“Ain’t nothing wrong with it if that’s what you’re doing—”

“So you don’t believe me. You think I’m off to get my brain cut open or something.”

“I don’t think that—”

“So what? Huh? What’s wrong? What am I doing wrong, Jonesy?”

Corporal Evan Jones stepped up to him in a swift movement, forcing his face close to Hunter’s. Their equal height made them stand shoulder to shoulder, jaw to jaw. Evan might have been able to intimidate the other Privates with his size and strength, but Hunter wasn’t the least bit threatened. It was only by respect that Hunter stood still and let his friend, and commanding officer, whisper forcefully into his ear without doing something rash.

“Keep your voice down, Private. Control yourself. I think it would be good for you to go home. I encourage it, I insist. Go home, see your family, clear your head and come back in a better state of mind. No more talk of crazy ****, okay?”

“Yes, sir.”

Evan stepped back so that there was a safe distance between them. They exchanged cold glances before Corporal Evan Jones finally dismissed him. Hunter made his farewells with a curt nod then carried on up the road until he was out of camp. He made his way to the Cherrydale Station and took a connecting train to the Harper Rock City Airport. He paid for a flight out to Pittsburgh, picking up the last ticket but for a couple since the plane was due to take-off in about thirty minutes. He had just enough time to jog down the terminal and get to his plane before they were calling for last boarders.

If not for his army greens, Hunter figured that the staff here wouldn’t have thought twice about rejecting him. They gave him the usual treatment, passed him through the security checks, scanned his bag, sent the dogs over, but when they didn’t find anything, he was free to go on. He put his bag in the compartment above his head then sat down and buckled up. It was pretty quiet where he was, right at the back of the plane, but he preferred it like that; it gave him a chance to catch up on his sleep. He’d barely banked ten hours in the last week, so he was pretty much out of it before the wheels had even left the ground. Only moments later he was stirred from his sleep by some disturbance near the front of the plane. He leaned into the aisle, but couldn’t get a good enough picture of what was going on; just a flight attendant hovering around a passenger. He tried to sit up and get a look over the chairs and heads of the other passengers, but his seatbelt cut harshly into his stomach and made him regret that instantly. He dropped back into his seat, he was still suspicious, but he decided not to care. When the flight attendant stepped back from the passenger and returned to her usual duties, Hunter was determined not to care. He was still too tired for any of this, especially some panicky passenger who’d probably forgotten to pack their toothbrush or something. Hunter settled back into his seat, settled back into a slumber and dreamt the moments of his journey away.

After the plane had touched down and crooned to a stop, the passengers were informed to collect their belongings and exit the plane. Hunter moved lazily to take his bag down from the overhead compartment and was shuffled languidly off the plane into arrivals. He went through the same security processes as earlier then left the airport, hailing one of the cabs waiting out front. It was pretty late into the night so there was little competition and when he got into the cab, neither one of them was desperate for small-talk. They said just enough to get where they needed to be and establish a price for the fare. As they came up the street to Hunter’s family home, the cab slowed down and Hunter saw a man standing on the sidewalk. He didn’t get a good look at him, but there was something eerie about the man and something strange about how he just stood there in the middle of the night. When Hunter’s cab pulled up directly outside the house, he paid the driver and got out. He looked down the road to where the strange man had been, his thoughts warring with the idea to march down the street and chase the guy off. Fortunately, he didn’t have to go there; just a second or so later, the guy began to walk away and after a short delay, Hunter walked away too.

He turned back to the house; this was the first time he’d been home in two years and it all looked the same. Two trees, racing to the stars, stood out front on the lawn leading up to the typical American house. His dad had planted those two trees, one for him and one for Emily, just to kind of distinguish their house from the others in the street and also because he loved them. Hunter had never quite understood the importance of planting a tree to remember your kid, but he understood the value of family and remembering them even when they were no longer here. There wasn’t much room on the front lawn to plant another tree, so when Hunter’s father passed away, he planted a tree called the Tree of Heaven in the backyard. The fast-growing tree didn’t take long to make an impact on their yard and when Hunter was still a kid, he’d check the tree every day, wondering if it had reached heaven yet and if his father was able to climb down and come back to them. It was a silly, childish dream of his that perished with age, but the tree was still there. His mom made sure that it was trimmed so it never protruded over the roof of the house, but it was still a glorious tree.

Although it was late, Hunter still walked up to the front door and tried his luck with his keys. When the door opened with a click, he was taken aback. Why hadn’t they changed the locks in all these years? Were they hoping he’d come back one day? Pushing the thoughts aside, Hunter walked into the hallway, clicking the light on as he went. He would have called out, but, would anyone be up to answer him? He didn’t want to wake anyone, so he moved toward the kitchen in silence, but as he took a few steps into the hall, he noticed activity in the house; it sounded like the TV was left on in the lounge. Anxiety pumped his legs as he crossed into the doorway and then he found them, his sister and mother curled up on the sofa together watching some God-awful movie. Hunter rolled his eyes and made a purposeful, loud mention of his boredom.

“Aren’t you both a little old for kids’ films?”

[Emily Niah (DELETED 5213)]

She hears a mans voice and it slightly wakes her from her sleep. It sounds like her brother and she thinks she must be dreaming.

"Oh shut up Hunter. I just turned 17 a few months ago."

She says sleepily and she snuggles into her mother again. Then It hits her and her eyes open wide.

"Hunter! You're home! Like really home!"

She jumps up off the sofa, waking her mother with her almost yell. She leaps over to him and hugs him tightly

"Oh my God Hunter! I've missed you so much! I have so much to tell you! I'm sure you have some stuff to tell us too but I have found Dad! He's not dead!"

She looks back to her mother, her eyes welling up again at the sight of both her kids home and safe again.

"Tell him mom!"

Emily is eager to tell him everything and before her mother can even open her mouth she starts specking again.

"Dad did not really die because of the car wreck that happened all those years again. He was injured mentally and Mom gave the okay for him to have elector shock therapy. Well he could not remember who she was or you were or me. He went away after he got out because grandma and grandpa had disowned him. Well I went up to this place called Harper Rock in Canada. I was sent an email by a man who had the same name as our dad. Well i went to see him for a job interview and IT WAS HIM! It was dad though he did not remember me I knew it was him."

She finally took a breath as she took a step back and just looked at her brother. It was unreal to see not only her brother but also her dad in the same week.

[Hunter (DELETED 2392)]

Hunter let the bag fall from his shoulder to thump against the ground next to his feet. He was expecting to be tackled to the floor by two hysterical women, but instead he got a bratty response out of his sister. His mother too, was slow to respond, seemingly still asleep, but then, all of a sudden, Emily leapt up, ran over and crushed him with a hug.

“Hey, watch out,” he told her. “I still need those arms.”

There was a smile on his face, but it was only half there. Even though he had only just walked through the door he was already thinking about leaving. Of course he was going to stay the night, get some sleep, catch up with his two favourite girls over breakfast the next morning, but he wasn’t going to stay forever. In a day, maybe two, he’d be heading back to Harper Rock, heading back to service and he couldn’t really envision another moment like this one for a long, long time. Emily was growing up, his mother was getting older and he was getting himself into more trouble than he could probably handle. The chances for another family reunion like this one wasn’t something he saw coming up on the horizon anytime soon, if, ever at all.

Still, Emily didn’t notice the worry in his eyes or the sorrow in his smile and he thought to himself that if he could convince her that everything was fine then maybe it didn’t matter if it wasn’t. There was nothing diagnostically wrong with faking it into making it, in fact, he was sure there was a very common phrase about the matter. But then, Emily kept talking and as she kept talking, she started making less sense and he couldn’t hide the worry anymore. He stared at her, features dead-serious and concerned. She’d found their dad, he wasn’t dead? Was she ******* insane?

Hunter pinched her elbows, holding her at arm’s length from him. The look on her face told him she was serious too, not kidding around. She looked back to their mother hailing a conviction, but never gave the woman time to speak. Emily kept talking. Hunter kept glaring at her. Everything she was saying was washing over him and all he could do was look into her eyes and gaze at her mouth. She was convinced she was telling the truth and he didn’t know whether to smack some sense into her or pull her into a hug because his sister had clearly lost her mind.

When she was finished, she took a breath and stepped back from him. Hunter couldn’t maintain his grip on her and they broke contact. His eyes watched the floor for the longest moment and then he looked over to his mother; still on the couch, her eyes a picture of sorrow and regret, her mouth unmoved. He didn’t know what to make of that face – did she think Emily had gone insane too? Hunter didn’t know what to do. He wanted to ask his mother what was going on, but he couldn’t do it in front of Emily. It seemed… cruel. He turned his back to them. He couldn’t process any of this, he needed air or space or something. He headed for the stairs.