Chapter 6

...in the place just right.

2032

Since Michael wouldn't arrive until morning, Kristin and Sophia spent the rest of the evening setting up the guest room for him, with Sophia being the master decorator. Kristin had to hold back her laughter as Sophia set up the stuffed animals on the bed in just the right order.

When they were finished, Sophia turned to her grandmother. "Do you think he'll like it?"

"I think so. Just remember, he'll probably be a little shy when we first meet. This will all be new to him, and he'll be away from his parents."

Sophia thought for a moment. "I think we should bring a present to the airport." She looked around at the toys they'd got for him. "It should be something soft and cuddly and something that will help him feel better 'cause I'm sure he'll be a little sad."

"That's a good idea. Why don't you pick one out?"

She brought a finger to her chin, deep in thought as she looked through the stuffed animals on the bed. "Not Mr. Turtle. He's not that tough. Not Mr. Panda, and not Mr. Raccoon either." Then she spied the perfect one and snapped her fingers. "That's it. The gorilla. He's perfect; he's cuddly and he's tough so he'll protect him from all the bad things." She handed him to Kristin. "Mr. Bananas."

Kristin smiled. "Just remember that Michael might decide to change his name."

"I know," she replied, "but for now, he's Mr. Bananas. Can we wrap it?"

"Yes, but then it's bedtime. We have a long day tomorrow," Kristin replied.

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The next morning, Kristin and Sophia waited patiently at the airport. Well, Kristin waited patiently while Sophia bounced up and down in her seat in excitement. As soon as the plane landed, Sophia grabbed her hand.

"Come on, Grandma! We'd better get up there so Michael can see us!"

Kristin obediently stood, but she suddenly became nervous. Did Michael remember what she looked like? Not only that, what if she couldn't coax him to talk? Being a doctor, she'd dealt with many children over the years, and she had a few tried and true methods in getting even the shyest child to warm up to her...but what if none of them worked? Her heart skipped a beat when she noticed the passengers beginning to walk through the gate.

After several minutes, however, they didn't see him...that was until he entered the gate holding the hand of a young female flight attendant.

"Hello," the young woman said with a smile. "Are you Kristin? Your daughter gave us a picture."

"Yes."

"I'm Mona," the woman continued. "When we have children fly alone, we attendants keep an eye on them and make sure everything goes well. Michael was a pleasure to have with us." She put a hand on his shoulder. "It was nice meeting you Michael. Have fun."

"Bye, Mona," he said, waving to her as she turned. He then turned back to Kristin, but he didn't speak.

"Hello, Michael," she said quietly. "I'm Kristin, and this is Sophia."

"Hi," he said quietly. "Um, I have a bag..."

"We'll get it in a moment," Kristin assured him, "but first-"

"We brought you a present!" Sophia thrust the gift towards him. "I picked it out."

Michael grinned from ear to ear. "Thank you." He glanced to Kristin, as if asking her if it was all right to open it.

"Oh, go right ahead, dear."

He quickly tore the paper off; when he saw the gorilla, he exclaimed, "Oh, cool!"

"So you like it?" Sophia asked.

"I love it," he replied. "Thank you so much." He hugged it to his chest.

"I think you should name him Mr. Bananas," Sophia said hopefully.

Michael thought for a moment. "All right. I think it fits."

While the two children seemed to be becoming fast friends, Kristin cleaned up the wrapping paper and disposed of it in a nearby trash can. "Well, what do you say we get your bags and see about getting some breakfast? I'll bet you're hungry."

"Starved," Michael replied.

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Later that afternoon, Kristin smiled softly as Sophia and Michael played a board game. She wasn't sure why she'd been so worried about him; the children seemed to get on just fine, and Michael didn't seem as shy as when they first met him.

"I won!" Sophia announced. "Let's play again!"

Michael shook his head. "Maybe later. I'm kinda tired."

"But it's only... Well, it's not dark yet."

"Michael was on a plane all night, dear," Kristin gently reminded her. "I'd imagine he didn't sleep very well."

He shook his head. "Not really."

"I think a nap would do us all well," Kristin said. "Why don't we go on the sofa and relax? I know I'm a little tired."

"Oh, fine," Sophia muttered. "But you have to tell us a story, Grandma."

As Kristin got out some blankets, she nodded. "I suppose I could do that...but we should let Michael get to choose it then." She glanced toward him. "What would you like to hear? Do you like knights? Or dinosaurs?"

"I do, but..." He thought for a moment. "My mom said you knew my grandpa. Could you tell me about him...please?"

"Oh..." she muttered. "I-"

"She knows lots of stories about him," Sophia piped up. "She was in love with him, you know."

"Sophia," Kristin said warningly.

"Well, it's true."

"Do you have any pictures of him?" Michael asked.

Kristin sighed. As much as she didn't want to have a trip down memory lane, she didn't want to deny Michael a chance to get to know the grandfather she knew and loved. "Just give me a moment. I have a whole album."

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"...and this was Darwin. He was Grandpa Nathan's pet, of sorts."

Michael's eyes grew wide. "My grandpa had a pet dolphin? That is so awesome! I wish I had one."

"Well, when that man on TV finds him, maybe he'll give him to you," Sophia said.

Kristin didn't have the heart to correct her granddaughter. No, she still didn't think that Oliver Hudson could possibly bring Nathan back, but she didn't want to crush any hopes Michael had either. "And he taught him to talk," she continued.

"He had a talking dolphin?"

"Well, he didn't talk exactly. Your grandpa taught him sign language. Do you know what that is?" she asked.

Michael nodded. "There was a boy at my old school who had to use it. He couldn't hear very well, so he talked with his hands."

She nodded. "That's exactly what it is, but in Darwin's case, he had no trouble hearing. It's just that we humans don't speak in whistles and squeaks. But eventually, Lucas...he was a friend of ours...designed a special computer program that translated Darwin's squeaks into words."

"So he was a talking dolphin?" Michael asked.

Kristin nodded; there was really no other way she knew to explain the concept of the vocoder to a five and six-year-old. She turned a page in the photo album. "And this was taken after your grandpa saved the lives of the crew."

"He saved lives?"

She nodded. "He was a very wonderful man," she confirmed. "There was an accident at the underwater power plant... Your grandpa... He made us all get off the boat to make sure none of us got hurt. And then..." She shook her head. "I really don't know how he did it. I never asked for details, and I'm not sure I want to know. But somehow, he got away, and the boat was destroyed."

"He blew up his own boat?" Michael asked after a moment.

"To save us and the world," she replied.

"Whoa, my grandpa was a hero. I wish he were here now. We could use someone to save the world."

Kristin ran a hand through his hair. You can say that again, she thought. "He built a new boat, though."

Michael yawned and glanced to Sophia, who was already curled up on the corner of the sofa fast asleep. "Can we see just one more picture?"

"All right," she replied, turning the page to reveal Nathan and her in each other's arms on the beach. The memory brought tears to her eyes, but she blinked them back. "This...this was on your grandpa's island."

"You look happy," Michael said quietly. "You really did love him, didn't you?"

"Yes, I did. I still do..."

Michael laid his head on her shoulder, eyes half closed. "I can see why. I'm glad...glad Mom asked you to..." His words were cut off by a soft snore.

Kristin smiled softly and put her arm around him, knowing exactly what he meant. She then set the photo album aside, laid back, and closed her eyes. Even in the madness of the world, there were many wonderful things, and for that, she was grateful.

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2022

"I think it's apparent he'll be taken care of, but you didn't really have a doubt, did you?" Tobias asked.

Nathan shook his head quietly. "I just needed..." He sighed. "I guess I've seen everything I needed to."

Tobias nodded and made the screen in front of them go black. He motioned to a cot in the middle of the room. "I need you to lie down and just relax. You can close your eyes if you'd like. This will only take a moment."

Nathan did so, but then he suddenly realized he'd lose everything he'd known on Hyperion. All the memories wiped way, including that of Kristin, Bill, Janet, Ben, Katie, Robert, and even Michael. He suddenly panicked. He didn't want to lose them. He sat straight up. "Wait!"

Tobias gave him an odd look. "What's wrong?"

"I don't want to... I...I can't throw it all away. I...I want to keep them. Please...can...can I keep them?"

"You're sure? There are some things that might be better for you to forget..."

"I'm sure," Nathan replied. He motioned to the screen. "Even if I never get back to them, I can't lose them."

"Very well; then it's time for the cryostasis," he told him. "With any luck, I'll see you soon."

Nathan smiled softly. "Let's hope so, my friend. Thank you...for everything."

A/N: They never did explain why Nathan was the only one to know they had their memories wiped. Well, at least he was the only one who seemed to remember what happened on Hyperion. So hopefully, this would be a plausible reason why he still had the memories the others didn't.

Again, thank you so much to all readers and reviewers.

I have been trying to update fairly consistently, but I might not get a chance to update tomorrow due to real life things, though I will try. Again, I am trying to have this story finished by Christmas or shortly thereafter. Thank you for staying with me.