Chapter 6 Omitted Memory

As Brendan and May prepare to go downstairs Brendan gets an ominous feeling.

"...I want to go upstairs." Brendan said Bluntly.

"But why? We can leave." May said. She didn't understand what was going on but this concerned her.

"I feel like there's something upstairs that we need." Brendan said intent of discovering the source of this ominous feeling.

"If you say so..." May would have wanted to leave but Brendan was her best friend. She couldn't leave him behind.

Suddenly, they heard a rumbling.

"What was that?" May said surprised by the noise.

"Oh no..." Brendan said realizing what was happening. The floor was collapsing.

"RUN!" Brendan screamed as he and May ran up the stairs as fast as they could. Surprisingly they made it.

"*Sigh* That was close..." May sighed relieved.

"Tell me about it..." Brendan panted with also a hint of relief in his voice.

"What's going on here?" May said still confused about the events that just occurred.

"Could be that the house is really old and its falling apart." Brendan concluded.

"Yeah maybe... anyway let's just find a way out."

They looked around and May found a familiar door.

"Brendan over here! Maybe what we're looking for is in here." May said hoping that this could help them.

"Ah! Good eye!" Brendan said going over to May.

Just to clarify if you're expecting another death then don't because there won't be any more of them from here on out.

May put her hand on the door and was about to open it when...

"...What's this feeling?" May wondered.

"Go in." 'Brendan' said in the same tone that May didn't like.

"I don't know... I get this cold feeling just by holding the door knob." May said a little bit frightened about how cold Brendan sounded.

"You will never be hurt again." 'Brendan' whispered coldly.

"No... No bro I don't want to."

"You really don't want to?"

"I'd rather not. It doesn't feel safe."

"Fine."

"Brendan? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine... Just... Fine..." 'Brendan' said breathing heavily. Suddenly he collapses in May's arms.

"Brendan?! Brendan!" May cried out to her friend. He was breathing heavily. May sat him down on the sofa.

"Please be okay..." May said worried about Brendan. Suddenly he starts to say something strange.

"I miss you darling... I need you..." 'Brendan' said strangely. May could've sworn she heard a hint of a women's voice in his tone.

"Brendan! Brendan!" May called out again.

"Brendan? B...re...n...da..n? Bre...n...d...an..." It was no good. She obviously wasn't getting through to him.

"Brendan please be ok..." May said her voice trembling in fear.

"*Pant* *Pant* Just... Leave me alone..." He breathed out.

Blood ran out of his mouth.

"I'll help you somehow..." May looked at the door she was first reluctant to enter. "Guess I have no choice." May said seeing how her options were rather limited. She entered the door. Then she sees a woman sort of familiar to her. It was the maiden she saw earlier.

"Are you... Rosa?" May asked trembling at how injured the handmaiden had looked.

"*Sniff* I saw you earlier... Who are you?" Rosa said sniffling.

"My name is May. I came here looking for my friend Brendan. I found him but... he seems to be in some sort of a trance." May explained.

"It sounds like... she's taken him..." Rosa said cold with fear.

"W-who?" May said also feeling a little bit scared.

"Alice Aduraice... The damned owner of this house... I worked as her handmaiden. She got married to a man. I can't remember his name but I know they had a kid together. They wanted to use her for some sort of sacrifice."

"What does this have to do with Brendan?! Why has he been acting the way he has?!" May cried desperate for an answer.

"She's taken over his body. She probably wants to use him to complete the ritual." Rosa said.

"Ritual?"

"A ritual that allows the one performing it to live forever as an entity. It requires multiple sacrifices. That's why she... killed us all."

"What can I do to help him?! I'll do anything!" May didn't care what she had to do or how long it takes. She would free her best friend from this curse. He was like a brother to her.

"It's probably too late... By now Brendan's long gone. I suppose the only thing you can do is... put him out of his misery." Rosa said. May knew exactly what she meant.

"No! I won't accept this! I'll do whatever it takes to save my brother!" May said still determined to help Brendan.

"I admire your dedication but you're only putting your life at risk." Rosa said.

"I know..." May said saddened by the fact that she knew Rosa was right.

"...If you're sure... I may be able to help you if you do me a favour." Rosa said seeing how desperate May was.

"Really? What do you want me to do?" May said seeing the opportunity to save her friend.

"I know there was someone who loved me... But I can't remember his name. Please help me remember who he was."

"I'll try." May said making no promises.

"Thank you. Here is something that may help you." Rosa gives May mystery key.

May left the room in search of clues of the man that Rosa loved. She then comes across a room. It seems the key that Rosa gave her. May unlocks the door and enters the room. She noticed that both sides of the room are the same. She found it a bit strange but she shrugged it off. She rummages through a bookshelf in search of anything that could help with her search.

"Hm is there anything useful here?" May wondered as she kept going through the bookshelf. Then book fell out of the bookcase. May picks it up.

Log 1

I have been working here for some time now and trust me, it's been so long that I have forgotten my real name. Not that it really matters. I just go by 'Alfred'.

Log 2

A woman has caught my interest. Her name is Rosa. She was the new handmaiden that the mistress recently hired. I was thinking about asking her to tea. Strike up a conversation and maybe get things going with her.

Log 3

I asked her to tea but she refused me. Why? What is it that I don't have that Rosa looks for in a man? Whatever it is, I will find it and I will make her mine.

Log 4

What is wrong with me? I tried to assault her! What was I thinking?! Now she'll never love me. What should I do? I can't lose her! I know! I'll write her an apology letter and with all the money I have I'll propose to her!

Upon further inspection there's a letter stuck between one of the pages in the diary. May picks it up.

"I'm supposing this is the aforementioned letter that 'Alfred' wrote. Hmm... I have his name and the apology letter but will that be enough to put Rosa's spirit to rest? Maybe I should try looking around a bit more."

May wondered around the room a bit more looking for anything else that might prove useful. As she comes over to a wall trying to see if there's anything suspicious about it. Then she notices a gap under it. She slips under it and then she sees the corpse of a man.

"Isn't this..." May paused observing the corpse realising who it belongs to.

"This is the guy I met in the bathroom... Maybe he has the ring mentioned in the diary." May stared at the corpse feeling guilty for what she's about to do.

"...I'm sorry..." May said as she started prying through the mans rotted corpse. He had several stab wounds to the abdomen which at the sight made May shiver. She then found a bloodied ring.

"This is it... with this and the ring I might be able to put Rosa's spirit to rest." May was feeling happy because she had a chance to save Brendan but at the same time, she felt awful because she had disturbed a man's peace by looting his dead body. Before she left the enclosed space, she stared at the man's deceased corpse one more time.

"I'm sorry..." May said still a flow of guilt washing over her. But just as she was about to leave the room, she hears a voice.

"Give it back..." May hears a cold and angry voice say. She then feels something pulling at her leg.

"GIVE IT BACK!" The voice belonged to Alfred, whose vengeful spirit was full of anger and hatred.

"Ah! No!"

"I should have killed you when I first had the chance!"

"Get away!" May struggled and struggled and she freed herself from her captor and ran out of the room. "That was close..." May said a little shaken at what just happened. May returns to Rosa.

"Oh, you're back. Did you find anything?" Rosa said hoping May found something that could identify her lover. May hands Rosa the letter and the ring. "Alfred X Rosa may our hearts be connected. Oh Alfred... I never knew you were going to propose to me. And you even wanted to apologize..." Rosa said with tears in her eyes.

"Hey it's okay. There's no need to feel regret anymore. Alfred is waiting for you Rosa, go to him."

"Thank you so much! Take this, it will dispel Alice from Brendan's body." Rosa said as she departed with a Joyful expression. May obtained Holy Water. May returns to Brendan.

"I hope this works..." May said holding her breath. May feeds Brendan a little bit. Suddenly he starts screaming.

"AHHHHHH! OH GOD! OH GOD! AHHH!" Brendan screamed.

"B-Brendan!" May said taken aback by Brendan's outburst.

"*Pant**Pant* M-may? What happened?" Brendan asked as he finally calmed down.

"Oh my god Brendan! I'm so glad you're okay!" May rejoiced as she pulled her Best Friend into a hug.

"It happened again didn't it? Sorry I worried you." Brendan said feeling guilty of the trauma May must have put herself through to save him.

"I don't care about that Brendan. I'm just glad you're okay. Now let's find a way out." May said relieved to have her Brother back.

"Yeah... I second that." Brendan agreed. Seeing the roof upstairs route, the only way, they go up only to see something horrifying.

"Oh my god... Riba!" Brendan said horrified at the sight of his friends deceased corpse. By the looks of it, Alice had ended his life.

"Riba! Riba are you ok?! Please no..." Brendan called out to his friend but it was no use. He was dead.

"B-brendan did she... kill that guy?" May said also shocked at what she had seen.

"M-may stay back..." Brendan trembled fearing the worst that could happen. It was useless. May ran over to try to help Riba.

"MAY NO!" Brendan screamed.

"Sir! Are you okay?!" May shouted.

"MAY!" It was too late. A mysterious force had knocked May unconscious.

"You foolish child! You've ruined my plans! You're just as useless to me like Riba was!" Alice violently exclaimed, her eyes full of malice.

"Why you... you'll pay for that!" Brendan responded with an equal amount of anger.

"Give me your body... I promise I'll take care of it." Alice said hysterically.

"No way! I won't let you spread your curse!" Brendan yelled his voice filled with determination.

"You stubborn little brat... I'll make you wish you never set foot in this house!"

Brendan takes out the holy water and splashes it on her.

"AH! It hurts!" Alice screamed in pain.

"Get off me!" Brendan struggled as Alice grabbed him.

"You won't stop me boy... I will kill you!" Alice shouted.

Regardless of her attempt Brendan pushes her back and throws more holy water at her.

"AHHH! Stop it... Stop...!" Alice said almost as if she were begging for her life. But Brendan showed no mercy. He was ready to deliver the final blow.

"THIS IS FOR RIBA AND MAY!" Brendan yelled as he spilled out the last gush of holy water onto Alice. And that's when...

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" ...the last scream of pain came out of Alice. For a moment Brendan felt a flow of relief.

"Is it finally over? Yes... I can no longer feel her trapped in my soul... now I can rest. ...Whats this uneasy feeling I'm getting?" Just as Brendan thought Alice was defeated, the darkness began to grow and consume him. "No! NOOO! May please help me! I don't want to die! No! NO!" Brendan screamed helplessly. Now May wakes up.

"What... What happened?" May said confused at the events that had occurred. Then she notices the growing darkness. "AH! What the hell is that?!" Suddenly May hears a cold and distant voice.

"We must feed... We must feed... until we are satisfied... we cannot rest... everyone sacrificed here... the curse is too strong... M A Y run..." The mysterious voice sounded familiar to her.

"B-Brendan?! Is that you?!" May said confirming the voices owner.

"Leave... Leave..."

"No bro! I won't leave you here! I already thought I lost you once! I won't let it happen for real!" May said determinedly unable to bear the thought of losing her friend.

"May I'm sorry... But this is for the best." Brendan said with a glum expression on his barely visible face.

"What are you talking about? No!" May exclaimed with a fear welling up inside her.

"This is all my fault... I realised... the music box was a seal. The seal was broken when I disturbed it. The curse will spread to Littleroot Town without a host. That being my body." Brendan said dawning on the last remaining solution he had.

"No way! This is insane! We won't be a team without you around." May cried with the fear of losing her brother.

"Heh Maybe not... but you don't have to be my sidekick anymore. You can have all the love and attention I was given." Brendan laughed without a hint of fear in his voice.

"You're crazy! I don't care about that! Don't do this Bro! Please!" Begged a teary-eyed May.

"Goodbye May. I will watch you from afar." Brendan said saying his final goodbye.

"Brendan!"

Then May woke up in her room in Littleroot town. She saw Max and Brock standing beside her bed.

"Hey May glad to see you're awake." Said May's happy brother.

"W-what happened?" May said trying hard to focus.

"You were unconscious for the past two days. Thank goodness you've finally woken up." Brock explained with a wash of relief in his voice.

"Ah is Brendan okay?! Where is he?!" May shouted looking around the room Brendan nowhere in sight. Max and Brock at each other with confused expressions.

"Brendan? Who's that?" Max asked confusedly.

May looked shocked.

"Brendan is our friend! What do you mean by 'who is he'?!" May screamed at her brother.

"We've never met anyone with that name." Brock said worriedly.

"What...?" (How can they not know who Brendan is?) May thought trying to fight back the tears she felt from hearing this.

"May are you okay? Do you need some more sleep?" Max said even more worried than brock was.

"...Yeah I'll get some more sleep."

"(We should probably get a doctor.)" Max whispered concerned about his sister's health.

"(Yeah she's kinda delusional about her so called 'Best friend'.) Brock whispered back.

It's now night time and May is scavenging through some Photos.

"Dammit! There has to be some proof! Ahhh Brendan! Why did you have to go?!" May screamed frustratedly.

Now May is asleep and Brendan's spirit appears.

"Oh May... It must be rough knowing that you're never going to see me again. But know that I will always be with you. So... I think its best I erase any memory of me that ever existed in your mind. I'm sorry but this is for your own good." Brendan puts his finger on Mays head.

"*Snore*" May's depressed expression on her face while she was sleeping has now turned a rested and happy expression.

"*Sigh* I'll miss you. You won't be able to see or hear me but I will always be with you. Please... Take care of yourself. And Max and Brock."

And now... its morning.

"Hey May good morning." May saw her cookie-mouthed brother at her bedside. She wasn't surprised she knew he loved cookies.

"Hey Max what's up?" May said happily.

"We're thinking about taking about you to the Doctor today." Brock stated. May looked confused.

"Doctor? What for?" May asked curiously baffled at what was going on. Max finished his cookie and explained.

"Well we're worried about you May. Yesterday you went crazy over this guy called Brendan." Max explained.

"Brendan?" May said even more confused.

"Yeah some guy called Brendan."

"Honestly it doesn't ring a Bell. If I knew someone like that, I would need to see his face to remember."

"Alright if you say so..."

"Brendan... Where have I heard that name before?" May said wondering who this person was.

BRENDAN AND THE MUSIC BOX

OMITTED MEMORY ENDING