Disclaimer: I do not own the To The Moon series or any of the characters mentioned in this story. All original characters and lines belong to Freebird Games, Kan Gao and other respectable parties. This story is purely for entertainment purposes and not to be sold anywhere.
A/N: I decided to write a short story based on the game To The Moon by Freebird Games. The game was beautifully done and I highly recommend anyone that appreciates good story telling to give it a try. You won't be disappointed. But if you're here, you most likely played the game ...but if you're here because of my Scott Pilgrim stories and wonder what I've been doing, well...this is it. Enjoy!
~V4tM
This is a work of fiction, any similarity or likeness to any events or persons living or dead is purely coincidental.
Voice4TheMute Presents
Sigmund Corp: Ingenuity, innovation, imaginative. The pinnacle of mind altering technology. It's not brainwashing, but a new way of thinking. That's the line my company likes to use as they send doctors like me to alter the mind of our dying patients to make their last wish come true. Don't get me wrong. I don't think Sigmund Corp. is a bad company. They are using their technology to give people on their deathbeds two things they desire before departing this world: fulfillment and peace of mind. No one wants to leave this world feeling unaccomplished or heaving a heart full of regrets. That's where we come in. Our devices allow us to go into our patient's mind and alter their memories, creating 'artificial' memories...memories of them doing things they wish they could have done, but didn't. Of course there is a downside to this. The memories they construct after our tampering becomes permanent. That means the life the patient lived in reality, the people they met, the places they've seen, the people that they will know as family, will all be lost. This is why our technology is only used on patients on their deathbeds. If they were to pull through after our tampering...well, I'm just going to say that I hope I'm never put in that situation.
That's Sigmund Corp.
That's the company I work for.
We make dreams come true…
...and that's our slogan.
Case 001: Tulips
"It looks terrible outside." I said, looking out the passenger car window.
"Don't remind me..." My partner said bitterly as he kept his eyes on the road. This was a big step up for his driving. Usually he would be swerving to scare me or pretending to fall asleep to freak me out. But no...he's really focused right now, keeping the car between the lines. Though I'm pretty sure it's because of frustration and restlessness...afterall we were driving through, was feels like, a desert.
"Maybe about one hundred degrees outside. Maybe even more."
"Stop it, Eva."
"..."
"..."
"...man I would hate it if I had pale skin."
"I get it! Thank you! Hahaha... Neil didn't read the file on our patient and didn't prepare for the excruciating heat that we'll be exposed to." Neil said sarcastically, accelerating the car. The AC was on full blast but even then the heat could still be felt from the outside. "I mean, come on Eva! I thought we're partners here! Don't you have enough sunscreen for the both of us?"
"I do...but it's scented. So unless you want to smell like jasmine peach breeze..."
"No, thank you."
"At least you have transition lenses. Don't have to worry about your eyes burning out." I said, trying to lighten the mood, even it if was sarcastic.
"You're transition lenses."
I laughed under my breath as I looked out the car window. Today's patient, according to headquarters, has a simple wish and that it shouldn't take us all day. What's nice is that this isn't going to be an all night job. Again, nice since this will be our first 'job' since graduating from the academy. In the past we had a third person who was our supervisor. In case something happens, he would step in and help us. But our 'training' period is over and we are now out on our own. Granted, our supervisor didn't have to interfere too much...there was one incident where he had to step in but all other times Neil and I were able to hold our own. I looked behind me at the backseats where our supervisor would sit and kept us company on long drives like these but the vacant seat made me feel sad and a bit exposed.
"Nervous?" Neil asked as I turned back around.
"A little." I said. Off the corner of my eye, a sly smile crept up on Neil's face.
"Don't worry baby. If you need a strong man to keep you safe, you can lean on me." he said, looking over at me and winking. I scoffed at his dumb line.
"Whatever macho man, just keep your eyes on the road before you run over a rattlesnake or something."
"They have rattlesnakes here?" Neil panicked, concentrating on the road again.
Sigmund Corp. usually receives calls from the family of potential patients months even days upon realizing their mortality. The future patient tells us our representatives their information and what they want their last wish to be. Then our company will either approve or ask to come up with another wish...because let's face it... 'being able to ride a dinosaur through the lost city of Atlantis' is a pretty steep wish. We tell our future patients that the wish must 'come from the heart' and usually that expels all ludicrous wishes. Once they get the OK, the person is put on the list and are assigned to a team when the 'time' gets close. Patients also have the option of selecting their doctors, though not recommended. Sometimes, calls come in last minute but as long as they can present written consent from the patient, and the wish is achievable, then we can help them.
"We're here." I heard Neil say as we pulled up to an adobe building that was separate from all the other modernized homes. We exchanged glances as we pulled up in front of the house.
"Think they have working AC in there?"
"I wish they have an outlet for us to us. Let's go Neil." I said as I gripped the car door handle. I saw off the corner of my eyes Neil reaching out to me.
"Eva, wait!"
I opened the car door and instantly we were blasted by a wave of heat from the outside world.
"It feels like I'm in a sauna…" Neil said, his glasses completely steamed over.
"Yeah…a sauna with all out clothes still on." I added. "Man I hope they have AC. Get the stuff out of the trunk and let's get this over with."
"If it means getting out of this fireball, then I'll gladly get the equipment."
I decided to go knock on the door since I knew it'll take Neil awhile to get the equipment out. Afterall, the entire thing is incased in a metal safety box. Good luck handling that! I approached the door of the single floor white adobe house and gave it three loud knocks. Apart from the faint sounds of cursing from the car, I heard footsteps coming. The door unlocked and swung open, revealing an aged woman, around my height, maybe shorter. Her hair was a hybrid of grey and dark red and it was tied back in a single ponytail. Despite her elderly look, she had the liveliest brown eyes.
"Oh, hello. You must be from Sigmund Corp." She said with a faint smile.
"Yes, I'm Dr. Eva Rosaline and my partner-"
"Made it!" I heard Neil yell as he reached the front door with the metal box that held out equipment. I felt a headache start to form when I saw what he was using to carry the box without getting burned by the hot metal. "Found this thick blanket in the backseat! I wonder who left it there."
"Neil…that's my blanket! And you stretched it to the point where it's paper thin!" I snapped at him.
"Hey! It's not my fault. It's hotter than hell here and this thing has the temperature equivalent of the center of the sun! Besides, why do you have a blanket anyways?"
"You really didn't read the report, huh?"
"Umm…excuse me?" The elderly woman's voice snapped us out of our bickering and reminded us why we were here. I instantly bowed my head in apology.
"S-Sorry. I'm Dr. Eva Rosaline. And this is Dr.-"
"Rudolpho. Fredrick Rudolpho. The third. "
"Dr. Neil Watts."
"Killjoy."
"Thank you for coming Doctors. Please come in." The elderly lady said as we stepped inside and the door behind us closed. Despite the aged look, the house was neatly furnished. And to our amazement, well AC'ed. "Henry's physician is with him now monitoring his health. I have written consent if you need it. Oh I hope this goes well. I have only heard of your program through other people and-"
"It'll be ok miss. We are professionals. We will see to it that Henry's last wish comes true. Right Neil?" I said, looking over at him.
"Of course. Place your trust in us, Mrs…?"
"Grace. Grace Carter."
"Well Mrs. Carter, we'll make sure Harvey's-"
"Henry's." I corrected.
"Henry's last wish is fulfilled." He said to her. A reassuring smile spread across Grace's face, a sense of trust formed between us now exist.
"Thank you Dr. Watts. Come. Henry and his physician are waiting for you two." Grace said as she led us to the master bedroom. There, laying in his bed, was our patient Henry Carter. His vitals were being monitored by his physician next to him.
"Good afternoon doctors."
"Good afternoon. How is Henry holding up?" I asked as I saw Neil walk off to the other side of the room to set up.
"Henry is fine right now but he doesn't have much time left." The doctor said, looking at the monitors reading his vitals. "I requested his daughter to drive back to the hospital to fetch me some things to keep him going but if something were to happen now, he may not make it past midnight."
"We'll work fast, doctor. Hopefully we won't linger too long in his mind." I said to reassure him.
"So can you do it?" The Doctor asked us. "You can really give him a second chance to live? To fulfill his dream?" I looked over at Neil, who was already staring at me with confidence. It what I needed to reply to his question.
"Oh course."
"Eva, we're ready to go here." I heard Neil say as I nodded in confirmation.
"Right. Doctor, please keep us informed of any health changes and do your best to keep him in stable condition. We'll contact you if we need anything." I walked over and picked up an oversize helmet from the equipment case. "Please fasten this to Henry's head, if you will." I said, handing the helmet over.
"Not to sound like I didn't read the file or anything, but what is Henry's last wish?" Neil asked, his helmet half on. I turned my attention to Grace who looked at us both before walking to the window.
"He wanted his tulip garden to bloom…"
"His tulip garden?" Neil asked. I distinctly remembered a cleared fenced off area that was adjacent to the home…maybe that was where he was gardening prior to him getting sick. "It's not some childhood wish or anything, but at some point in his adult life…he just really wanted to grow flowers near our house. Tulips to be exact."
Theoretically this wish didn't seem hard, but realistically, weather was going to be our big problem.
"Well don't worry, we'll make Henry a world class gardener."
"At least finish his garden outside the house…" I reasoned, trying not to get Grace's hope up for a 'Garden of Eden' kind of ending.
"Ready to go, Eva?"
"…ready." I said as I sat down in the closest chair.
"Ok then. To infinity…and beyond!"
I regret making that bet.
With a flash of white light and the sound of static discharge, Neil and I were standing in a now empty bedroom. It always fascinates me whenever we make the first memory leap. The memory of the present day still lingers in my head and though the first leap is small, I can see small changes that happen from then and now. Neil and I like to play a game whenever we arrive in the past for the first time. It's called 'spot the difference.'
"Vase in the corner was not there before!"
"Dammit!"
"Yes! Looks like you're driving back too, Neil!" I laughed. It may seem like harmless fun, but it was helping us pay attention to detail. To be a doctor in this field of work, paying attention to detail is key. Sometimes our job requires us to change an outcome of an event…like a turning point in one's life. One small detail change may or may not help us achieve our goal. Also, since our patient usually can't tell us his life's story, we rely on information gathering, situation analysis, and the memory itself to piece together the patient's life. But as we learn more and more about our patient, we cannot be emotionally attached to them. We must stay objective and remember that we are there to do a job. Any stalling we do because of personal feeling towards a patient only robs time away from them and us. Neil has a hard time in that category. While he means well, he is prone to connecting with the patient and would sometimes refuse to fulfill the patient's last wish, knowing it would heavily alter their picture prefect life. But that's what makes us a good team. I make sure we complete our job while he make sure we keep our morals in check.
"I think I see him outside." Neil said as he peered out the window. I looked out as well and saw Henry and Grace overlooking their fenced-off garden. However, there were no plants on the field, no sprouts to be seen, and no tulips to tell about. The earth was tilled and the bulbs were planted but nothing grew out of it. "Let's go Eva. We'll just tell him to build a greenhouse and problem is solved." Somehow I knew it would be more complicated than that. We headed to the front door when suddenly I remembered something. "Neil, wait! Don't open that door! Deactivate our-" But Neil already opened the door and we were blasted by a wave of heat similar to our arrival.
"It feels like I'm in the middle of a packed dance floor…and it's filled with fat people!"
"Would you please deactivate our sense of touch before we sweat ourselves into coma?!" I yelled but Neil was already on it. Within seconds the feeling of every pore on my body screaming stopped and a sigh of relief escaped my lips. "Thank God. I don't know how those two do it."
"Maybe they're cold-blooded."
"If they're cold-blooded, why is their house well AC'ed?"
"You know what? Shut up."
We both approached Henry and Grace, who were already in conversation. Normally we would phase ourselves out of the memory so we can silently observe and collect information but we needed to talk to Henry to start our job. Even if he's just a memory, he still retains all the knowledge of the present day Henry, at least up to this point of his life.
"Please come in, Henry."
"One more time, honey. Just one more sow. This is it…I can feel it."
"Henry, the growing season is long gone now. Please, I-"" Grace started but stopped to turn around to look at us. "Um…can we help you?"
"Yes. We're from Sigmund Corp. I'm Dr. Eva Rosaline and this is Dr.-"
"Alexander-"
"-Neil Watts. We're here to see Henry." I said to her. As much as I enjoyed Neil's shenanigans, we were now on the clock.
"Ah yes. I was meaning to call you." Henry said, a smile on his face. He was a welcoming old man. His hair was mostly grey but a few brown strains remain. His wife, not looking any different since we last saw her, was not pleased to see us.
"Sigmund Corp? You were going to call Sigmund Corp?" Grace raised her voice, obviously upset with her husband's future decision.
"I have to Grace! I want to finish this! I…I have to finish this!"
"Um, Neil?" I quietly said.
"On it."
"So that's how it is huh? You would rather-" Grace started but then suddenly stopped, in all aspects of the word. Grace was 'frozen' in time, thanks to Neil's tampering with the memory.
"Grace?"
"I'm afraid you already contacted us, Henry." I said as Neil made the memory figure of Grace disappear. I was never a fan for the 'shock' realization but time was not on our side and this proves to be the most direct approach to get things done. "We're in your memory already."
"Am…Am I dead?" A flustered Henry said.
"Dead? No. Dying? Yes. We are here to grant your last wish." Neil said as we watched Henry walk to the nearest fence post and sat down against it, still visibly shocked.
"So am I real? Or this a dream? Is Grace permanently erased from my memory?"
"Calm down, Henry. We can reset the memory and everything will go back to normal. But we need to talk to you so we can better understand your last wish. Plus if you help us, we can get out of here fast and get hom-OW!"
"What he meant to say was the faster we can help you achieve your dream before it's too late." I added. Henry was silent for a moment, his brain trying to process everything we just told him. After ten seconds of silence, Henry spoke up.
"…can you do it?"
"Do what?"
"…turn this desert wasteland into a blooming tulip field?"
"…we can't…" Neil said, "…but you can. And you will. Trust us." I saw a smile spread across Henry's face. I felt a smile creep up on my face as well but I'll be damned if I let him see me smile at his sly remark.
"So tell us…why a garden? Why Tulips?" I asked. Standard question, afterall. To tackle a dream, you must first see where it originated from. Henry looked over his shoulder to where his garden laid barren then at the spot where Grace 'disappeared'.
"…it was for her."
"Her?" I pointed my thumb over my shoulder."
"It was always for her. Ever since the beginning…so many years ago. She was holding a red tulip in her hands when we first met at the flower festival in town. We would met again next year at the same festival…again, holding a red tulip. She really loves those tulips, you know? She would always smile whenever she sees them. I guess age got the best of me and I would eventually forget…but as I got older, I remembered. I remembered how happy she was…. I just…I just want to see her smile one more time. Just how she did back then." Neil and I looked at each other as we both knew that this was really about: a man wanting to rekindle his love life.
"We'll help you with your garden. But to help you, you need to help us."
"What do you mean?"
"In order for us to help you, we need a memento, something of significance to you. I'll help us move through your memories were we can pass on the knowledge to how to grow tulips in the desert so that in the future, you'll be the proud owner of the biggest, and only, tulip field in the middle of the desert." I said as Henry started looking around. He pointed towards a pile of gardening tools and bags of tulip bulbs.
"There. That's is probably what's you're looking for." He said as Neil walked to where he was pointing. A flash of white light coming from the tool shed was the confirmation we needed to start.
"Thank you Henry. We'll be right back. See you with your new garden." I said as I started to head to where Neil was.
"W-wait! Ms. Rosaline!" Henry called, stopping me in my tracks. "So you'll be going through my memories?"
"Yeah. It's part of the process."
"…"
"…"
"Just…" Henry started, but then let out a sigh. "…don't judge me, ok"?"
It wasn't the first or the last time I would hear a patient say those lines and truthfully, it was always concerning. I just nodded before making my way to Neil.
"Check it. Found the memento." Neil said as I tried to look over his shoulder at the memento.
"What was it?"
"A bag of red tulips. Go figure." Neil said. "So…a case of a love-lorn fool? If I had a girl, I would show her I love her all the time." I couldn't help but laugh at the statement.
"You mean how you 'love' Sarah at the academy?" I teased as Neil shook his head.
"Sarah was crazy! Body of a Goddess, but crazy!"
"Whatever 'expert on love'. Just prep the memento so we can get going. And please don't say some stupid Hollywood one-liner like-"
"Judo chop!" Neil yelled as the barrier around the memento shattered.
"Yeah, that. Stop that."
"Can't hear you, prepping for time leap." Neil quietly said as he prepared the memento. I looked back at Henry then back at the bag of red tulip bulbs. It seemed like a simple case. But simple doesn't mean easy.
"Here we go!" Neil said as a white light irradiated from the bag of bulbs and engulfed us both. As the scene began to reconstruct itself, Neil was already inputting the commands to make us invisible to everyone in the memory.
"Nooo! Not again!" A voice called over at the field. I looked over at Neil who was pointing at himself then pointed away from the scene. I sighed as I understood what he meant by that gesture: he wanted me to go see what was going on while he go finds the next memento. I, begrudgingly, shooed him away, granting his wish.
"What's wrong Henry?" I heard Grace's voice call. We parted ways, Neil checking the house while I went to the field where Henry and Grace were having a discussion.
"The coyotes! They're digging into my field again! Arg! What's good of this fence if it can't do what it was designed to do?!" A younger, but still in this late adult years, Henry yelled as he was re-tilling the field. The field itself did not look good. The land look like something was digging around and most, if not, all the tulip bulbs were unearthed and cut into.
"Calm down honey…"
"I-I can't! I've been doing this for almost ten years with nothing to show my work. There is only a small chance a year where the weather is suitable to grow and harvest and every time I try and fail…it's just another year wasted."
"Henry…" Grace started, talking a deep breath. "I think you should stop with the garden."
"What?!"
"What…?" I said, but quickly closed my mouth. I knew they couldn't see or hear me but I couldn't help but project my feelings at that moment. That small comment from Grace revealed something big: she never knew why he was planting those flowers. She never knew these flowers were meant for her. Maybe he was hoping for one huge romantic gesture but why he wanted to keep it such a secret after all this time was a mystery.
"You've been working on this for ten years, Henry. Ten tries so far and ten failures. If it was meant to be then-"
"No! I refuse to believe that. I'm no gardener, but I've done my research. I've done my homework. Heck, I've done my thesis! I have read countless books, watched numerous videos, and consulted many gardening experts. This window is the only time to grow and the prep work has been done down to the period. Yet…yet I still fail."
"Is that what this is all about? You think you can't succeed in anything?"
"No, it's…I just want to do something right for once. I just want something I plan out work right…at least once."
The memory stopped there. Now there was a new question in my mind: who was he really growing these flowers for? Grace? Or for his own psyche?
"Found the memento, Eva" Neil said as he walked to where I was standing. "Did you learn something?"
"Yeah…this may not be about love at all."
"Huh?"
"It may be about personal merit." I said.
"What? You saying that he's doing this just to say he can do this?"
"It's a possibility." I said as we made our way towards a small tool shed. "He did say to me before we did this jump not to judge him."
"Ouch…the red flag, huh?" So you think he's lying to us about doing it for Grace?"
"Or he could be lying to Grace saying it's for him. Either way, he's lying about something and that complicates things." I said, rubbing my chin. "Anyways, what did you find?"
"Something that may 'shed' some light." He laughed at his own pun before opening the tool shed door. Inside were books about gardening, bags of fertilizer, almanacs from the past ten years, and bags of tulip bulbs.
"What do you think now?" Neil asked.
"We need to go deeper…" I admitted to him.
"Inception. I like it." Neil said as I punched his arm. "Well, like I said, the memento is ready."
"What was it this time?" I asked as he pointed at the books on the workbench. There laid an almanac, dating back 10 years. "Guess we'll see where it all started." I said as I placed my hand over the memento and shattered the barrier.
"What? No quote? No fun…" Neil pouted as a white light engulfed us again. The light started to fade. And we found ourselves standing in front of their house. A middle age man sat against the front door with a middle age woman wrapped around his arm as they looked at what was in the man's hand.
"No way…"
"Unreal…"
In his hands was a pot…and blooming out of the pot was a single, bright red tulip. Could it be? Is it possible to grow tulips in this weather?
"Humor me for a minute Neil."
"Ok, a priest, a Rabi, and the Incredible Hulk walk into a bar…"
"No. I mean enable my sense of touch again." I said, predicting his reaction to my proposal.
"Are you on crack?"
"Just do it, ok? If I tell you to turn it off, then do it as soon as possible." I said to him, putting my trust in my partner. He couldn't only shrug at my request as he began to input the command to enable my sense of touch again, exposing me to the heat once more.
"Ready?"
"Do it."
"Enabling…" he said and with a push of a button, I felt the heat hit me again. But this time…it wasn't that bad. In fact, it was bearable. Granted, it was still hot but not like before. It felt like a warm spring day.
"Turn yours off!" I said to Neil but he crossed his arms in protest.
"Nice try."
"Neil, I'm not burning up. I'm comfortable!" It's nice out here." I reasoned. He looked at me with judging eyes before he disabled his sense of touch. At first, he made a face of 'I've been tricked' but then the face of realization showed.
"…it's nice outside."
"Do you know what that means?"
"…it's totally plausible." Neil said as now a new question rose up. Why couldn't he do it? "He failed for ten straight years. You would think he would learn after the third or fourth try." He said as we looked at the potted plant.
"But the flower is blooming right there in his hands. He did do it but why couldn't he do it afterwards?"
"Dad!" A girl's voice called as Neil and I looked over. There, running to the man and woman, was a young girl, her dark brown hair flowing behind her as she ran to her parents. "Wow…did you grow that?"
"I sure did, sweetheart. Do you like it?" Henry asked.
"Like it? I love it!" She replied. Henry gave a look to his wife who then glanced over at him then her daughter. He seemed to understand the signal as he offered the pot to her.
"Then it's yours, Rachel."
"Really? Thank you Dad! I'll take good care of it!" She said as she took the pot and ran back into the house. Henry gave a shrug to Grace, laughing a bit. "Well, I guess the first flower won't be going to you afterall."
"Meanie…that was mine…." Grace said, a bit mad, but she continued to hug her husband's arm. "You should grow more."
"Yeah? I'll think about it." Henry said. "Do you have a color in mind for my first batch?"
As the memory came to a stop, the confused look came back to our faces as we tried to analyze what happen. If anything, there was one thing we could conclude….
"She knew the flowers were for her." Neil said, nodding his head.
"But why would she make him stop planting flowers for her ten years later? I mean, it's only once a year."
"Maybe she's allergic."
"Now that's just stupid." I said to Neil. "Maybe he got lucky the first time?"
"No…the gardening equipment, books, pots, and fertilizer would show he had some knowledge of gardening. Plus he knows when to plant these flowers. Maybe it is the coyotes. Maybe it's the time of season they patrol this particular area at night and dig up his garden."
"The fence would have kept them out."
"Their fence sucks. They need a wall. Or a greenhouse."
We stared at each other for a minute. The goal was to get Henry to grow a tulip garden, not discover its origins. He had the skills, the knowledge, and the time…maybe we were overthinking the situation. "We should just tell him to make a greenhouse…"
"Yeah…that seems more direct." I said as Neil started inputting the command to travel forwards to the last memory we were at. With a push of a button we both phased out of the memory we were in, knowing we were home free after this last memory leap.
…unfortunately five minutes later…
"I can't believe that didn't work!" Neil yelled as we phased back right where we left off.
"The plants are still dying regardless of an existence of a wall or a greenhouse."
"Potted plants, plants in the ground, and plants above ground! That man has a black thumb!" Neil said as we sat down on the ground. Traveling back to the memory of him getting frustrated at his garden, Neil and I posed as fellow gardeners willing to share our 'tips' to the desperate Henry. Though he ultimately took each of our advices, the end result was the same: not a single bulb bloomed.
"What do we do now?" Neil asked as I rubbed my chin. I knew the obvious answer, but I felt like I was being baited to say it.
"…we need to go deeper." I said as Neil's mouth opened, witty comment already loaded. "Don't say it! Just…find the memento and let's go. I'll try to process what happened."
"Fine." As Neil got up to look for the memento, I started to piece together the events in chronological order.
Henry wants to grow tulips for Grace and possibly for this daughter too. There is a time period, once a year, where the weather is suitable to grow tulips. He's done it before but right when he decided to grow a field of them, he is unable to. He blames it on wildlife but his solution to that doesn't work. Our solutions don't work as well. Either the man is cursed, or wildlife is getting smarter. Or maybe…
"Ban…kai!"
"Neil…" I sighed. I walked over to where he was and saw the memento his just prepared for our next time leap. "A turtle statue?"
"Surprised, huh?" Me, too. Something so small hanging outside near the front door. They say these things protects homes from storms and harsh weather."
"…I don't believe you."
"What? Why?"
"Because when you told me owning an orange vase was bad luck, I immediately threw it away…only to realize that you dumpster dove for it later, saying it wasn't cursed at all."
"Your point?"
"You lie. A lot."
"I'm a guy. Guys lie all the time, same with girls."
"We do not!"
"How old are you?" Neil asked. I immediately kept quiet. Not that I'm ashamed of my age…it's just Neil witnessed an event where I was lying about my age to a guy back at the academy.
"Whatever, can we just get going?" I said as I touched the memento and we transverse into the white light. The memory slowly appeared in front of us as we appeared in an unfamiliar place. We were standing in the middle of a park, complete with picnic benches, tall trees, and lush green grass. While I believe that we were still in the same hot, desert-esk city, it was a refreshing sight to see a green park like this. It took me a second look around to realize we were in the middle of a wedding reception. How did I know that? Well, seeing Grace in a wedding dress and Henry sitting next to her in a tux was a big giveaway.
"May this stone turtle statue protect your home from the elements. Congratulations, Henry and Grace."
"Dammit." I cursed as Neil laughed at me.
"Thank you Aunt Julie. Now we'll open the floor up for some dancing!" The MC of the event said as he pointed to the band, who instantly burst into song. Everyone started to get up from their seats and headed towards the gazebo that stood in a nice clearing in the park. Off the corner of my eye I saw Neil offer his head to me. I rolled my eyes, ignoring it.
"Come on, Eva."
"We have a job to do."
"What's the harm in one little dance?"
"A lot."
"What about Sophie's? Remember her case and what we did?"
I felt my cheeks get warm at that second. I turned my body away from him and started to walk away. "L-look. We still have a lot to do and we have no leads. Just…go look around and see if any of the presents were tulip bulbs." Neil's hand dropped, defeated, but he adjusted his glasses when I mentioned the tulip bulbs.
"…what? You think someone's giving him tulip bulbs this early in his life?"
"Maybe what we saw wasn't the start of the dream. Maybe it started here." I said as I wanted to survey the area.
"What makes you think that?"
It is then I got slapped with the answer. "This. This is why I think that." I said, pointing to a banner nearby. Neil walked over to the banner and read it out loud.
"The 63rd annual Floral Convention. Three days of events, panels, food, and flowers.'" Neil read. "Henry is holding a wedding reception at a gardening convention? Lame."
"Guess this explains were the knowledge of gardening came from." The town must realize the sudden change from harsh to perfect weather so they use it to hold this convention. While this is new information, it did lead us to a dead end to a theory I was working on. "…shoot. There goes that thought."
"What thought?"
"The thought that the bulbs he was buying were bad. If he was buying them here the there is no question that he quality of tulip bulbs will be the best." With that, we hit another wall in the case. I heard Neil let out a cry of frustration.
"God dammit. Who knew flowers could bring so much pain! The man could have wished for anything and he picked flowers! Why? What's so great about these flowers?!" I started to feel frustrated too but not in the same way Neil was. A simple request to be this hard to fulfill…maybe we weren't ready to be on our own just yet. It's then the earth started to shake. Neil and I both were thrown off balance but manage to regain our footing. We book looked at each other, knowing what that sudden earth tremor meant. It wasn't the memory living out an earthquake…it was the memory becoming unstable because Henry's life was slowly coming to an end.
"Doctor, are you there?" Neil said out loud.
"Y-Yes, I'm here." The voice of Henry's physician said, seemingly coming out of thin air.
"How's Henry doing?" I called out to the sky.
"His health is starting to decline. He's starting to circle the drain here, Doctors." Rachel should be here soon with my supplies. I can keep him going if you need more time." Neil and I looked at each other, knowing we had a choice: ask for more time and attempt to break through the wall we just hit, or give up and go home.
"Eva…don't look at me like that."
"The bulbs were not the problem…"
"Eva."
"The knowledge is all here. He's been doing this for ten years straight so he has the tools to do it."
"Eva, no. Don't think like that."
"He manage to grow a single bulb so he knows his methods work."
"This is our first case, Eva. We need this."
"He even ruled out wildlife by constructing a fence. WE even helped him by making a wall and a greenhouse. Yet somehow, the bulbs keep dying."
"Eva, don't say it!"
"…it's over Neil. There's nothing more we can do." I said painfully. Though our company doesn't guarantee a 100% success rate for our patients, this would be our first unsuccessful case…our first official case to boot. I didn't want it to end this way…neither did Neil, but heading backwards in Henry's memory wouldn't give us new info. Without knowing what we're looking for we will forever be lost in Henry's memories until he dies. We both stood there in silence, wondering if this was, indeed, the end.
"Doctors, Rachel is here. Do you need more time?"
Both Neil and I looked at each other.
"We did our best." Neil said, shrugging.
"We did."
"We can't win them all."
"I suppose."
"…we really calling it quits?"
"…"
"…"
"…yeah." I said softly, turning around to go sit down at one of the reception tables. Neil didn't say anything. He just started inputting commands to return us back home and restore the stream of memories. I sighed as I stared at the single tulip that served as the table centerpiece at all the tables. I picked up the taunting flower and rotated it between my index finger and thumb.
Such a dumb flower…causing so much pain…
"So will you need more time doctors?" The physician called.
"…no, Doctor. We're finished here. We're prepping for extraction so-" Neil said as I continued to stare at the flower.
"When all possibilities are eliminated…whatever is left must be the truth." I quoted Sherlock Holmes to myself. As I finished my thought, my eyes widen again and recalled what elder Henry told us. Something he said didn't make sense and this wedding was the key. In fact, the answer was on the tip of my fingertips…literally.
"-it would seem that we were unable to achieve the patient's-OOF!" Neil exhaled all the air out of his lungs as I tackled him to the ground. "E-Eva! What the hell!"
"Doctor Watts? Doctor Rosaline? You there? I didn't catch all that."
"W—we're fine! Just ignore our statement. Go ahead and treat Henry. We need more time." I said, talking louder than usual.
"Eva! I thought we gave up!"
"Shut it, Neil!"
"Now I'm confused. Do I treat him or not?"
"Treat him!" I yelled out loud as hard as I could.
"O-Ok! I'll begin treatment immediately."
I started to pant. That last blast of energy really took it out of me. I heard Neil press a few buttons, probably to cut our line with the Doctor, but he was staring at me with disbelief in his eyes.
"Eva, what the hell? I thought we gave up."
"Neil, what is this?" I said, showing him the tulip that was still in my hand.
"A tulip."
"Be more specific."
"A dead tulip."
"…and?"
"It's part of the Plantae Kingdom."
"Less specific."
"It's a plant!"
"Adjectives!"
"It's yellow!" Neil shouted, obviously frustrated by my game. But his answer was exactly what I was fishing for. Suddenly, Neil's eyes widen, just like mine did. "It's…it's yellow. Why is it yellow?"
"I don't know."
"…all the tulips here...they're all yellow."
"Exactly."
"…shouldn't they be red?"
"Why?" I asked, even though I knew the answer.
"Well…Henry said the girl of his dreams had a red tulip and all the bulbs I saw in his shed have been red bulbs. Yellow…wouldn't make sense…" Neil said, realizing the conclusion I came to a few minutes ago. "…we need to go deeper!" I got off him and offered a hand to get him up.
"Much deeper."
We went through the memories as fast as we could. With Henry now on the verge of death, there was little time for 'sightseeing'. There was one memory we must see and it holds all the answers to all our questions. Soon, we finally reached the memory we were looking for
"This it?" I asked as Neil and I stood at the 53rd annual Floral Convention, 10 years before the wedding. There, standing a few feet away from us was a young teenager who resembles Henry. Standing even farther away was a young teenage girl, dark red hair, and youthful brown eyes. In her hands, a single red tulip.
"That's Grace with a red tulip. Now I'm confused again…"
"Shh Neil! This is it!" I said as we saw Henry gather all his courage to approach the girl. We tailed right behind him but kept our distance. Teenagers trying to hit on one another was excruciating to listen to so we respected their space…even though we are invisible. Their conversation started light and they started to laugh. But then the mood went serious as, what I expected, his confession came up. At first she was nervous, but then she smiled and nodded. I couldn't help but feel my heart melt at the small scene. Neil, however, staying cynical.
"That's sweet and all…but that didn't answer anything. We're at square one…again!"
The feel good mood I was in was shifted back to reality. He was right. Nothing changed. We're back right where we started. This couldn't be it. There had to be more. I started to desperately look around, hoping to see something that would help us. Anything…
"It can't be…" I said, my vision fixed on something that was coming towards us.
"Well, I guess I'll contact the doctor and-"
"Neil, LOOK!" I pointed in the distance towards a girl coming towards Henry and Grace. Her hair, her face, her clothes…they were the same as Grace. There was one difference between the two, however. There was a yellow tulip in her hands…that, and her dark green eyes. As Grace's clone approached the two, Grace and Henry greeted her in a way that would suggest that they all knew each other.
Then…the unthinkable happened.
The girls switched tulips.
"Neil!" I yelled, but he was already looking around the memory, trying to look find next memento.
"I'm on it!"
"We don't have time for another time leap! Make me visible!"
"What? Why?"
"I need to talk to them! This is our chance!" I shouted as I saw him input the commands. My opaque body became solid and I did my best to casually walk to the trio. "H-Hello!" I greeted as the three of them looked at me with questionable eyes. "I-I'm Eva Rose. Dr. Eva Rose. Botany and Biology researcher. I noticed that you two ladies have very beautiful tulips in your hands. May I see them Miss…?"
"Grace. This is my older sister, Abigail."
"Abigail…" I repeated. "Er… I see. Red and yellow huh. Is red your favorite color, Abigail?" I asked as the older sister nodded her head.
"Yeah. Red is my favorite."
"I see. What about you, Grace?" She looked at me as if I couldn't put two and two together. She waved the yellow tulip in front of my face.
"Uh…yellow?"
Just one more question…
"S-Sir! Since I asked everyone, why don't you tell me your favorite color?" I asked. Admittedly, that question came a bit strong, since now all three of them started to back away from me.
"Mind your own business." Henry said.
"Yeah! What kind of researcher are you?"
"Go away or we'll call the cops!"
"Wait!" I pleaded. This was it. The break in the case. All Henry had to do was answer a simple question…but they're slipping through my deceptive fingers. "I just need to know…!"
"Help! Stanger danger!"
"N-No! I'm not a danger. I-"
"Help!"
"I just need to know-!"
"I'm sorry kids." A voice called from behind me. I felt a hand on my shoulder that forced me to act calm and relax. And I knew had to relax…because if I didn't, we have to reset the memory and that's time we didn't have. Plus, relaxing will help me through the nonsense that was about to come out of this voice's mouth. "My fiancé was curious on which color tulip was popular: red or yellow. Since you two had both colors, she wanted to ask you guys." Neil said as the teens looked at each other. They were still skeptical, but at least they weren't screaming. "So tell us. You're the tie breaker. Which color tulip do you like best? Red? Or yellow?"
There was a moment of silence. Everyone was anxious of what young Henry's decision was. After all…it might be the difference for us completing our job or not. Time was ticking down, small tremors were being felt, and this may be our last memory we get a chance to visit. Then, after much anticipation, Henry gave his answer.
"Red."
"Ah! Doctors! Thank God! I'm doing my best to keep him going and-" Neil and I ignored him for now. We both went to the metal equipment box and pulled out our spare Sigmund Corp helmets. "W-What's going on?"
"You gotta see this." Neil said to Grace, handing her a helmet.
"Rachel right? Come see your father's greatest accomplishment." I said, handing one of our spare helmets to the girl I haven't seen when we got here. I can only assume she was the daughter of Henry.
"Doctor's please!"
"You're coming too, Doctor." Neil said, fetching Henry's physician a helmet as well.
"That's impossible! He's moments away from dying and I'm the only thing keeping him alive."
"Here's no need anymore, Doctor." I said as I helped Rachel and Grace with their helmets. "We're done." Neil handed him a helmet as he looked at us two dumbfounded.
"Don't worry. Just trust us." Neil said. The physician reluctantly agreed as he placed the helmet on his head and in a flash of white light, we went back to Henry's latest memory.
As the white light faded all five of us stood on the same property we left…same house, same 'fence', same tool shed…but it was all different. People were everywhere: locals, tourist, foreigners, teenagers, kids…everyone was on this isolated plot of land, all staring and taking pictures of something.
"Follow me. We can phase right through them. They also can't hear or see us. Better that way, right?" I said, particularly towards Grace. As we made it to the 'front', we saw what everyone was looking and taking pictures of. Behind the white adobe house, spanning as far as the eye could see, were rows and rows of tulips, ranging from all colors of the visible spectrum. Our three guest were at a loss of words.
"We are here live of Carter farm where Henry Carter has his annual 'Blooming of the Tulips.'" A news reporter said as I listened in. "Every year he and his wife go out of their way to plant thousands of tulips in their field during the season we know as 'harvest season.' During this season, temperatures and rain patterns change, allowing farms to grow crops and stock up for the rest of the year. The city, who runs the annual Floral Convention, donates tulip bulbs for the Carters to grow along with other crops to sustain them. At the end of the 'harvest season', the Carters open their field to the public so they can see what some describe a as a 'once-in-a-lifetime' view."
I looked over to see where everyone went. Neil was already knee deep in tulips, Grace was walking along the perimeter of the field with Henry's physician, and Rachel was just staring at her father and his wife.
"It's time kids!" A voice called out. "Everyone line up!" I looked over at the person yelling to see an aged but still energetic woman. She wore gardening clothes and had plastic shovels in her hands. She definitely looked her age, but you wouldn't be able to tell if you look at her youthful brown eyes. "The 'Blooming of the Tulips' is coming to an end and to wrap it up, we're holding our crowd favorite event: 'Tulips for Two Lips!' For a small donation, you can take home a Carter-grown tulip! But before you pot these plants, I should tell you…they're magical. Giving these tulips to the one you love will solidify your love for them. And who knows, you might get 'tulips' in return. There's a catch! In order to make the magic to work, you must give them their favorite color tulip without asking them which is their favorite. No cheating! So please form a line and my lovely assistant Rachel will help pass-"
But before I could listen to the rest, a tremor was felt…one bigger than Neil and I have felt before. It was that time, and Neil was already on it, trying to weave through the field to see where our guest have wandered off to. I was the last one he found. I made sure of it. I just wanted to see the look of happiness and satisfaction on Henry's face before we went back to reality…
…and to see the smile he wanted to see after all these years.
"Good job today, Dr. Rosaline."
"Good job today, Dr. Watts." I said waiting in the passenger seat of our car. He got into the car and started it up. It was already pitch black outside and we had a long ride back to headquarters.
"Can't believe we almost gave up." I muttered, huddling in my stretched blanket.
"I can't believe YOU almost gave up."
"It was a moment of weakness. You raped me."
"Bull! You wanted to get out of there the most."
"But I solved it!" I said to him as there was a moment of silence. "But…thanks trying to keep us going."
"We're partners now. If we give up over a small case like that, we're doom to fail. Can't let that happen." I smiled at that comment. I didn't want to say it to him, but he was right. This marks the beginning of our professional career. If we gave up then…we were screwed for the future when ACTUAL tough cases come our way. I'm glad Neil's my partner…and I'm sure he feels the same way.
"Say Eva?"
"Yeah?"
"Why were Henry's tulips unable to grow?"
"The case is over…let it go."
"Can't…it's like the last loose end for me on this case." He said, but I felt his gaze on me. "You don't know either, huh?" It's true…I still couldn't figure out why his tulips kept dying. And although it bugged me, I knew I had to let it go. Because if I don't…
…I might stop being objective about people…
"The great Eva Rosaline is stumped, huh?" Neil laughed. I just closed my eyes and tried to get comfortable. I recounted today's events in my head: meeting in the afternoon, our first memory leap, our lowest moment, our highest moment, and finally seeing the smile on Henry's wife's face as she looked at the field of tulips Henry grew for her. We did something amazing today and it reaffirmed why I was a doctor for Sigmund Corp. I was looking forward to our next case…because this case is officially-
"That Rachel sure is a real looker huh? Wish we could stay a bit longer to talk." Neil said.
Rachel?
Suddenly, I realized something. Rachel's name…it was mentioned in the last memory of Henry's. Then I remembered her face. I remembered it clearly since I was helping her put on the helmet. My eyes shot open as I sat up in my seat. I realized why Henry's tulips weren't able to grow, regardless of it being fenced or enclosed. "Y-You ok, Eva?"
"Rachel…she loves Henry, right?"
"Um…yeah. I'd imagine a daughter should love her father unconditionally. Why?"
If not Rachel then…
I swallowed hard as a realization came to mind. One that I was kicking myself for not seeing it sooner.
"Eva?"
"Rachel…has green eyes."
"…um, ok. So?"
"…it's genetically impossible for Henry and Grace to have a child with green eyes."
Case 001: Tulips
"Eva! It's like, below zero outside and the car is freezing! Give me your blanket so I can drive us back to headquarters!"
"Shut up. Trying to sleep. Read the file next time."
The End