Story 20: Reliving the Memories
221B 1/2 Baker Street, July 2nd, 1913
The human occupants at the home of the famous detective Sherlock Holmes were taking shelter from a nasty heat spell. Despite the fact that London had pleasant weather in the summer, there would be a few days where the temperature would go pass 30 degrees Celsius. This was usually a sign that a storm would come later in the day or in the week as a way for the earth to cool down.
In the rodent quarters, the mouse detective, Elliott Basil was attending to some important paperwork. The school that his children would be attending in the fall needed the paperwork to be filled out and signed by a parent. Basil decided to take care of this, as his wife Olivia was in bed following a bad case of morning sickness earlier. His partner, Dawson was writing a letter to Jodie and the two housekeepers, Mrs. Judson and her daughter Rachel were attending to some chores. The three of them did return to Baker Street from Scarborough a day after the Basil family left for Alfriston.
It had been three days since they returned from Alfriston following a case that made the detective feel uneasy of sending his children to school. The case involved a mouse woman who killed her aunt and uncle, her guardians as a way to retrieve some of their finances. However, the woman mouse had a tragic past; she was abused by the boarding school she was sent to and Basil believed the staff had broken her mind, as well as her spirit.
The commissioner for Scotland Yard's mice division, Charles Winston went with them as he had plans to retire early and was in the process of locating a home for him and his wife to settle as he was battling cancer, but he had surgery to remove a tumor in his lung. He decided to find some property in Seaford as he preferred a view of the water and his wife didn't want to care for a big garden due to her age. Basil did hope the two of them would live a life of leisure before death would come and collect both of them.
The detective comes back to the present as his twin children, John and Leana were doing their best to keep their minds occupied, as well as keeping cool. "I hate the heat," John complains and goes to the kitchen to retrieve a cold treat.
Leana goes over to her father at his desk and looks at the forms he was filling out. "Want to choose what classes you want to take?" Basil asks his daughter and shows her a list of classes at the Kingswood Academy, a school that catered to children with higher than average intelligence.
"I do want to take a French language class," Leana said and Basil nods, "Maybe John should take Greek. If we do go to Greece, we would need an interpreter," she adds and her father chuckles.
"Yes indeed," he replies and fills out a section where it showed the child's desire for a specific class.
"I would like to take psychics, too and maybe a..." Leana begins to think, she wanted to expand her intelligence like her father. "I always love reading, would there be a class on classic literature?" she asks.
"Hmmmm, let me take a look," Basil replies and retrieves the list from her. There was such a class and he writes down the two classes on Leana's section. John returns with an ice treat and joins the two.
"John, would you like to take Greek?" Basil asks and the boy mouse nods. "And would you like to try psychics?" he asks, again.
"I don't know, sounds hard," John answers, but his sister gives him a scolding face. "What? At least I think it does. I'll stick with a basic math class and that classic literature course," he said and then, he jumps in excitement, "What about a physical course?! I want to be big and strong, just so I can beat those crooks to a pulp!" he exclaims as he shows a 'strong man' pose, and his father quiets him down.
"Well, the two of you will have to take a physical exercise course, that is a big requirement for children," Basil informs them, which delighted his son, but his daughter wasn't so sure. "I know, I wasn't sure about physical exercise when I was your age, but it does come in handy, especially when you need to run after criminals and physically defend yourself. I don't want any crook hurting you, but I feel it is necessary for you two to know how to defend yourselves," he tells Leana and she smiles.
"There is room for one more class for the two of you, what do you two think?" Basil asks and they look at the list of classes.
"How about this European history class?" Leana asks her brother and he begins to think.
"Would taking a history course help us on some investigations?" John asks their father.
"Why yes," Basil replies, "I am fascinated by some historical figures, mostly on those who changed the views on society or invented amazing things," he adds and writes down the history course. "But yes, there are times during an investigation that you need to know some historical facts and sometimes reveal secrets long hidden from view," he adds.
Basil looks over the forms before signing them, he wanted to be sure everything was filled out correctly. When he saw no errors, he signs the forms on the last page. "Just two months to go, but I would like to spend quality time with you for the rest of the summer. It's going to be really difficult to get use of not having you by our side," he tells his children.
"Will you take us out of school for a case?" John asks and his father sighs.
"I'm afraid I can't do that," Basil replies, "Even though I would like to, but you two need to get an education and decide on what you want to do in life. Plus, the teachers and the headmaster would probably call on child services if I take you out for too long."
The twins groan and their father chuckles a bit. "I know, it's really disappointing," he said, but an idea pops into his head, "But if you two do well this first part of the year, I will treat to a case during your winter holiday. Hopefully, there will be one waiting for us by then," Basil promises.
Dawson lets out an annoyed sigh, "Basil, you really are a bad influence on them. I'm really afraid of what's going to happen when your third child comes," the doctor said, but the twins glare at him.
"We wish you would stop worrying about us," John tells his friend.
"I delivered you two into this world, the least Basil could do is not put you in death defying situations," Dawson replies and looks at his friend with a scowl.
"Well Dawson, Olivia did say children need to experience some danger, otherwise they might not know what fear is like," the detective explains, which didn't help.
Basil places the forms in a stamped envelope written out to the school and decides to take a walk out to find a postal box, despite the heat. "Oh, I need you to take this, too, if you don't mind," Dawson said, referring to the letter he written to Jodie. As he was writing the address on the envelope, John snatches the letter and reads it.
"John, give it back!" the doctor demands and he obeys; the letter was mostly on the romantic side and John never liked romance.
"Daddy," Leana said and Basil looks at her, "Do you think Dawson and Jodie will become an item?" she asks and they notice Dawson's cheeks turning bright red.
"I think we will have to wait and see," Basil replies, "However, I can tell Dawson really likes Miss Judith," he adds, using Jodie's real name. Dawson places the letter in the envelope and sticks a postage stamp on it.
"I suppose it's too hot for my coat," the detective comments and places his deerstalker cap, but changes his mind. The twins decide to go with their father and they leave their home. A few clouds blocked out the sun for a few seconds before it shined down on them.
"Let's go to the market place, it's always filled with vendors and plenty of postage staff go by to collect letters," Basil suggests and they take a trolley to the main square. The twins watch the many humans and rodents walking out on the street, even though a lot were trying to locate a shady spot to rest.
When the trolley stops, the detective and his children step off with a few others. The square was filled with vendors selling many items for those who came to London to visit. The detective listens to the various sounds and sniffs the air, it was filled with unusual aromas. "Oh!" Leana exclaims, covering her nose as an automobile went past.
Basil watches the automobile ride away; he had seen these unusual things many times, but he didn't like the smell they produced. He did prefer the ones that ran on steam or electricity.
"Do you think rodents will invent a motor vehicle?" John asks, but Basil lets out a chuckle.
"If we do, then the humans will think they're seeing illusions or probably catch us. Which is why we have to be very careful not to get caught. There's no telling what the humans will do if they discover that we have an intelligence similar to theirs," he warns his children and they proceed to locate a postal box. They find one and drop it in, and then a postal service rodent came to collect the many envelopes in the box.
"Can't wait for autumn," Leana said, "I mean it will be getting cooler by then," she adds. Basil looks around the square and the shops nearby, then he realizes something. He takes out a piece of paper, it showed an address of a shop where the children could buy their uniforms.
"I suppose we should take care of this while we are here," Basil suggests and they walk around, locating the shop. They were greeted by the owner and Basil explains that the twins will be going to Kingswood Academy.
"Ah, Kingswood," the owner, a friendly middle-aged male mouse said and shows them the uniforms on some mannequins. The boy's uniform had a navy blue blazer with a white neck line and navy blue trousers. The girl's uniform also had a navy blue blazer and a skirt of the same color.
The school's crest was displayed on the breast pocket of the blazers. It was of a shield, which was pretty typical of many school crests; it featured a silhouette of a full grown tree on the upper left. There was an open scroll with some Latin writing on the right. At the bottom was a wreath with a lit torch and a cap with a tassel.
"Let me take your measurements," the owner said and John goes first. "I can tell the lady is excited, but you young sir are not," he adds and Basil laughs.
"I was a bit like him when I first started," the detective replies. The shop owner writes down John's measurements and Leana takes her turn. After finishing with Leana, the owner does some calculations.
"I should have these done by the end of next week, turns out I get big orders from families who send their children to Kingswood. Some folks want to get the uniforms early, but there have been a few times where the child gained weight or had a growth spurt over the summer," the owner explains and laughs a little, "I always believe it's best to wait until the end of August, however it's usually when those last-minute scramblers panic."
Basil does some thinking and looks at his children. They had not grown since their birthday last year and boy mice would experience a growth spurt by their 9th or 10th birthdays.
"I will keep an eye on their weight, but they don't eat much," Basil said and they bid the shop owner a good day. They step out into the heat, again, but there was a wind blowing in more hot air.
"Might be a storm coming," Basil said, taking a sniff of the hot air. "I do hope autumn comes quick, too, but as I said before, I still want to spend time with you before you start school," he adds and his children hug him at his waist.
They take the trolley back to Baker Street, just as the first thunder cloud rolled in from the distance. "I actually find thunder and lightening not so scary anymore," Leana said as they take a moment to listen to the rumbling thunder.
They then step inside their home, where Olivia was in her chair and eating some crumpets. "Where did you three go off to?" she asks and the twins explain of stopping at the uniform shop in the main square. "A smart decision," she teases her husband.
"Daddy, when should we go up to Linlithgow?" Leana asks and Basil fishes out a calendar.
"Your birthday is on a Friday this year, so I would say we go up on the 27th. I do want to spend time up there and to give your mother some time to recuperate," he answers and then he realizes that the twins and Dawson wanted to stop in Scarborough to see the opening of the Sullivan sisters' new dancing school.
"Dawson, did you happen to ask Jodie what day she and her sisters plan to open the school?" he asks his partner.
"Yes, they wish to have a grand opening celebration on the 8th of August," Dawson replies and the twins became excited.
"So we will stay in Scarborough for a week maybe?" Olivia asks Basil and he thinks about it.
"We'll see," he answers and then came the sound of thunder, the dark clouds had rolled in over their home. "Oh good, we need a cool down," he adds and takes a crumpet from the plate Olivia had.
As the day started to wind down into evening, the storm was steadily moving out. It produced a lot of rain and strong gusts of wind blew away any debris or leaves from the trees. Leana listens to the booming thunder, admiring it rather than be scared of it.
Mrs. Judson and Rachel prepare dinner for their employers; Olivia was craving for meat, so the two housekeepers went to the butcher to buy some chicken as they wanted to make a savory pie.
Both Basil and Leana liked savory meat pies as they didn't like sweets, but it also satisfied Olivia's pregnancy cravings and filled up Dawson and John. "Mrs. Judson, you should publish your recipes," John said and the old housekeeper chuckles.
"Maybe I will; I most certainly want you two to remember it for many years to come," she replies.
"I will greatly remember the savory taste of this dish," Olivia said and Mrs. Judson smiles at her.
"Speaking of remembering," Leana begins, "Will Tsura teach us about how to relive memories tonight? She said she would," she asks.
"We'll just have to wait and see," her father replies and they clean up after finishing their meal. Olivia takes a moment to look at the many journals on the book shelf near the table that had Basil's chemistry equipment, which he rarely used, mostly to keep the air inside clear for her.
She did recall after the case in Paris back in May that Basil kept record of his cases. However, she didn't have the energy to keep her eyes open for long. "Olivia, are you all right?" she hears her husband behind her. He takes a look at his journals and sighs, "I would like for you to find out on what I wrote on the first time we met, but I can tell you're exhausted."
Olivia nods, "I would like to know, too," she said and settles in her chair. Basil was about to take the journal out, but then changes his mind.
"Perhaps some other time," he suggests and she nods, again, just as she lets out a big yawn.
"I suppose we should turn in, even though it's a bit early," Basil said to his family and the twins agree as they were getting sleepy. There a gentle rain outside the house, nothing like the storm that came earlier.
After freshening up for bed, the Basil twins settle in their beds first and receive the usual good night kiss. "I wonder if we can go to the dream realm this early," John said, recalling that the sun would not set until some time after 9 o'clock.
"I hope so," Leana replies to her brother and they lay their heads down on their pillows.
In their parents' bedroom, Basil gives Olivia a back rub as she lays on her stomach. "I must be getting more than 24 hours of sleep," she mutters and then adjusts herself in bed.
"At least one of us is getting enough sleep," Basil joked, but he wasn't sure if it was funny. The two of them then doze off, eagerly awaiting to arrive in the dream realm.
()()()()()()()()()()()()()
"Hello you good friends!" a female voice calls out, which nearly startled the family. They were at the Flaversham homestead, their deceased family and friends had been waiting patiently for them.
Tsura the witch and her assistant Lulu were also waiting for them. "I know I said I would be teaching you how to relive memories, so that's going to happen now," Tsura said, which excites the children, especially John and Leana.
"Now, what do you know about memories?" Tsura asks and Leana raises her hand.
"Part of our brains are used to store information," she said, but Tsura makes a noise with her lips.
"Well, you're not wrong in a factual sense, but memories are meant to be looked back upon, see what was done and relive them if we desire," she replies, but she notices the rodents looking at her in a strange way.
"We'll try to help you understand this," Lulu offers and summons a spell that transports them out of the valley and into a strange looking forest.
"What is this place?" Olivia asks and gazes up at the mighty looking trees. She then notices some faces craved into the barks of the trees. A leaf falls at her foot and she picks it up. Then, she notices something strange within the leaf, it was as if she was watching a moving picture.
"You found something?" Lulu asks and Olivia shows the leaf. "Oh, old man Roades," she sighs and points to a tree that looked to be withering and dying. "I'm afraid Mr. Roades isn't long for the mortal world, but he won't be suffering from memory loss soon," Lulu said, sadly and another leaf falls. Olivia sees the image as showing the wedding day of Mr. Roades and his wife, which made her feel really sad as memory disorders often took away the best of one's lovely time.
"So what is this place?" Basil asks the witches.
"This is what we call the 'Memory Forest'," Tsura begins and the two witches show them around. "The many trees you see represent the many rodents in the mortal realm. As you can tell, there are millions of these trees, but this part of the forest happens to represent those living in England. Trust us, there are a lot more in this part of the realm." The Basil family looks around the forest, it was something they haven't seen in the real world.
Tsura and Lulu stop in front of a sapling and they look into the three leaves. "Awe, this baby girl was born a few hours ago," Tsura said and the twins look into the tiny leaves. Then, they could hear a baby's cry and two voices, a male and female, the baby's parents most likely. They do notice two faces within the leaves, but they were hard to make out. They do see a craving on the sapling's body, it had a baby's face.
"So a tree represents us, but the leaves store our memories?" John asks.
"Exactly, even though in the mortal realm, they say our brains store the memories, but here in the realms, the superiors like to keep record on the living," Tsura said and adds, "This is actually a nice way to keep an eye on them, but to also see if a mortal life is worthy of going to the Heaven realm or be punished in either Hell or the River Styx. It also keeps record on the life a mortal has lived; a bigger tree means that person has lived a meaningful life."
Basil and Olivia were amazed by what they heard. Their memories were here in this forest, but where were they?
"Where are our trees?" Leana asks, she was excited about this and so was her brother.
"Well, this is a big forest, so need to keep an eye out," Tsura answers and they roam around the forest.
"I have a question," John asks, "What happens to these trees when we die?" The two witches stop, their ears were perked up and the others listen too. Then, they hear a tree tumble to the ground, it was close and they found the source not too far. A mighty tree had fallen, but it looked healthy and beautiful.
Tsura then shows a leaf; it featured a male mouse, roughly Basil's age, but he was lying on the ground, clutching a bullet wound over his chest. The last of the memory showed two figures stripping the mouse of his possessions and leave him as he died.
The tree then begins to wither, but then Lulu summons a spell that collects all the leaves and then the tree trunk vanishes. Lulu holds a bright looking orb and lifts it up into the air. It floats away from her hands.
"What was that?" Leana asks.
"A rodent met an untimely death. He will be entering the In-Between soon, but the orb you saw had all of his memories. The superiors will decide which realm he will reside in. However, given that he had a good life with a loving family, he will be going to the Heaven realm," Lulu explains and the twins look up at their grandfather, Hiriam. The toy-maker, as well as his wife had met untimely deaths and they were upset about it. The same happened to Henry and his family.
"So sorry you had to see that, but a lot of rodents meet untimely deaths. It doesn't mean that you will, you folks have a full life ahead of you," Tsura apologizes to Basil and his family and they nod.
"Upon death, the individual receives all their memories, even the ones they have lost over the years due to disease. That way, when their living relatives visit, they can experience the deceased's memories if they want to. It's the same for the living," Lulu explains.
"Speaking of which, lets find a memory and relive that moment," Tsura tells the group of mice.
"Oh, lets find one of mummy first meeting daddy," Leana suggests, but both of her parents were not so sure, for obvious reasons.
"Still need to find their trees, I thought for sure it's somewhere in this part of the grove," Tsura said and they resume their search. Many of the trees were big and full of green leaves, while others were a bit short, and there were some saplings that were starting to spurt.
Basil stops at a tiny sapling with no leaves, which made him curious, and the two witches notice the sapling. "Hmmmm, that baby isn't ready to born yet, might be..." she trails off and looks up at two enormous trees with two small ones next to them.
"Hey, that one has my face!" John exclaims and Leana also points out hers. Basil and Olivia look up to see that two bigger trees had their faces craved into the bark.
"So that means this one is..." Basil points to the sapling and Tsura gives a smile.
"That one will be your baby's tree," she replies and the detective stares at the tiny plant. "Once your baby is born, that sapling is going to be similar to the one we examined earlier," Tsura adds.
The others look at the sapling and both the Flaversham and Basil elders were elated. "So, this sapling doesn't have any leaves, but it'll start growing leaves once the baby is born?" Leana asks.
"Correct, but a baby's memory doesn't fully function until they are a few weeks old. A baby's brain is kind of on the 'off' switch, unless they are scared or hungry, which I am pretty sure you two went through the same thing," Tsura said and both Basil and Olivia were recalling the stormy night Ilse Altendorf almost killed them in their crib, but she startled them after kicking their crib down.
Suddenly, a leaf appears before them, it was glowing a bright light and the detective hears two babies' wailing. "Oh, here's one of your memories, Mr. Basil and Olivia," Tsura said and they look into it.
Like a moving picture, it showed Basil pushing Ilse towards the wall, getting entangled in the window curtain. "How did that...I mean how do we stop it?" Basil asks in a rather shaky voice.
Tsura looks at the two, she could tell they were scared. "Just calm down and let your mind go blank," she instructs them and they obey. The leaf stopped glowing and it goes back towards the two enormous trees.
"How did that happen?" Hiriam asks.
"If your mind recalls a certain memory, it'll start playing in your mind," Lulu said, "But here, the leaf that contains that certain memory, it will glow, but if an individual wants it to stop, it will eventually stop."
Tsura then summons her staff and she says, "Now lets find a memory to relive." She summons a levitation spell and the mice were lifted off their feet, floating towards the top of one of the trees, Basil's tree.
Once they were at the top, John Frederick takes a peek down and falls back, as if he was afraid. "Grandfather, are you all right?" Leana asks and Basil and Sarah come to his side.
"Oh, I forgot to tell you," Sarah tells her grandchildren, "Your grandfather has a terrible fear of heights."
John Frederick does his best to calm down, but his face was pale and his eyes were showing immense fear. "I think it's best to take him home," Sarah suggests, but the twins groan.
"I have to agree, sorry about that Mr. John Frederick," Lulu apologizes and summons a spell that sends the two away. The twins and their parents look at the two witches in confusion. "I know what you're thinking; your fears stay with you when you pass on," Lulu said.
"So there's no cure for Grandfather's fear?" John asks and both witches shake their heads.
"To be honest, nothing can cure your fears. There might be some "therapies" or "treatments" out there, but our fears always live within us. As for you living folks, it all resides in the subconscious, or most of us call it the 'Restricted' part of the trees," Tsura explains.
"We have a 'Restricted' section?" John asks and the witch chuckles.
"Why sure, everyone has dark secrets," she adds and they proceed to locate a memory. Olivia begins to look around the tree; she was immediately curious of Basil's hidden secrets and wanted to locate the 'Restricted' part of the tree.
They come upon some branches that had intertwined with the branches from Olivia's tree, featuring a lot of leaves. "What's this?" John asks and Tsura looks into a leaf; it showed Basil and Olivia's wedding day on December 18th, 1907.
Hiriam and his wife, Leana look at the memory and tears filled their eyes. "I suppose we will be coming here to relive this memory," Hiriam said and his wife nods.
"This here would be the 'connecting' branches. When the mortal folks fall in love, their trees become connected and create new memories together," Lulu explains and checks something. "These branches are very solid, meaning you Mr. and Mrs. Basil will be having a long, loving marriage," she adds and the two blush a bit.
"Now let's see," Tsura said and notices a leaf and it begins to glow. "I bet you kids are going to love this," she adds and uses her staff to summon the memory from the leaf.
The world around them changes to that of the Basil household on Baker Street, but something was very different. It was full of clutter, there was a table that had a full working chemistry set and a few odd things working at once.
Then, they hear a woman's voice and three bodies fill the space. Mrs. Judson had handed everything she had in her hands to Dawson and comes to a young child's side at Basil's chair. She removes the coat and hat, and retrieves into the kitchen.
The twins look at the girl in their father's chair and gasp, it was their mother! She was ten years old, again, but she still had the same glow that the present Olivia had. Olivia stares at her child-self and both her parents look at her in surprise.
"Oh no," Basil said in a whisper and backs away, just as they hear a menacing laugh outside the door. Suddenly, the door bursts open to reveal a stout looking male mouse with white fur, wearing a red and black robe and hat.
The twins let out a surprise scream as the figure rushes pass the young Dawson, who didn't age a bit as they recall. "I'd say!" the doctor shouts, just as the hat the mouse wore lands on his head, "Who are you?!" Dawson demands and the white mouse looks back at him.
"Oh!" the mouse replies and pulls off the mask, "Basil of Baker Street, my good fellow!" The others watch as the younger version of the detective deflates the robe he was wearing and Henry starts to laugh.
"Oh my boy! You certainly came a long way!" Henry said to his student, but the present Basil was bright in the face.
"Can they see us?" John asks, but the two witches shake their heads.
"What was it that the Ghost of Christmas Past said in that Christmas book?" Tsura asks, scratching her chin and then remembers, "'These are the shadows of the things that have been.' It means that no one in the present can interact with something that already happened, does that make sense?" she tells the others and they nod.
They look back to see the younger Basil ignoring Olivia's pleas for help and he produces a pistol and was about to shoot into the pillows that Dawson had in his hands. In a panic, Dawson places them on Basil's chair and takes cover with the young Olivia. There was a loud 'Bang!' and feathers flew everywhere.
"What in Heavens name?!" the younger Mrs. Judson cries out and sees the feathers. She angrily calls out to her employer, but he pushes her back into the kitchen. He resumes his search for the bullet and the young Olivia shows it to him. He grabs it out of her hand, "Thank you Miss...?" "Flaversham," she replies.
"Whatever," he rudely said and the present Basil scurries into a corner, covering his ears.
"Are you all right, Elliott?" Leana Flaversham asks and they hear the young detective give a shout. The present Basil recalls the failed bullet experiment and watches himself slump in his chair, and then takes his violin in hand.
The young Olivia then pleads for his help, but he gives her a sad look. "Young lady, this is a most inopportune moment," he replies, then plays, again. He then gives her a distasteful look, "Surely your mother knows where he is," he said in a cross tone.
"I...I don't have a mother," Olivia answers and that causes the young Basil to react, making a stretching noise on the violin.
"STOP! STOP IT!" the present Basil shouts and the memory suddenly starts to fade and the mice return to the tree. The others look at Basil in surprise, he covers his eyes as if in shame. "I don't know why I hate that part of the memory, but I didn't mean to show any disrespect to anyone at that time," the detective said and looks at Hiriam and Leana, his in-laws. "I certainly didn't mean to be such a...such a..." he struggles to think of a good word, so he looks at his daughter, "What would be a good word to define me then?"
"A jerk maybe?" Leana answers and he nods, "But daddy you were experiencing a downturn, those bullets didn't match," she adds and Basil lets out a sigh.
"It doesn't mean I shouldn't have acted like that in front of your mother and Dawson," he replies and apologizes to his in-laws. "I would like to apologize for being a crude mouse to your daughter then," he said and they nod.
"We have forgiven you for that, but why apologize, again?" Hiriam asks and looks at Tsura and Lulu, wondering if they had an answer.
"Well, we are not doctors, but your son-in-law here has what Dr. Dawson describes as 'shell shock', but there might be something else. There will be moments that he doesn't want to relive certain parts of a memory and with that one, he doesn't want to relive the part of being rude to Olivia. I think it's understandable because he later fell in love with her and the rest is history," Tsura explains.
Oh my boy," Henry said and places a hand on his student's shoulder, "You really need to let go of the past," he suggests, but the two witches shake their heads.
"It's easier said than done," Lulu said, "We've met a lot of folks who can't let go of a traumatic memory. Mr. Basil here still recalls the memory of your untimely death and it will stay with him," she finishes and Basil nods. Olivia pulls him into a hug and rubs his back.
"I have been trying to live in the moment as Tsura said, but ever since telling you the time of first meeting Henry, it is difficult for me sometimes," he said and notices his children hugging him at his waist. He briefly remembers the hug Olivia gave him all those years ago before she left with her father after closing the case. Olivia looks ahead and sees a dark section of the tree. She sees a little sign that said 'Forbidden-Stay Away!' and her curiosity peeks once again.
"I think there might be a few happy memories we can find," Tsura suggests and leads towards to a different part of Basil's tree. Olivia, however, looks back and watches her family leave. She then walks up to the 'Restricted' section, where it was dark and gloomy, nothing like the bright leaves she saw.
She then hears whispers within the leaves, but avoids looking into them. She wanted to locate her husband's darkest fears or secrets. After walking pass a few leaves, Olivia decides to look into one. It showed a younger Basil in bed, but there was a woman mouse. Basil showed a look of distaste and ignores the woman touching him. The memory then fades to feature the female mouse leaving, but Basil didn't seem to mind as he was focusing on a case.
Olivia recalls that Basil had neglected the women mice that came before her. He didn't find any passion for love making then and she did remember Basil telling her that he wanted to marry a girl who didn't want to stay in the house and attend to chores.
She leaves the memory alone and proceeds to locate any other restricted memory. She did fail to notice a dark figure coming up from behind her. When she does notice the shadow behind her, she turns around and lets out a scream. The creature was Ratigan, who stares down at her, his clothes were torn and she sees the hate in his eyes.
Suddenly, a second figure hits the creature and shouts, "Away you beast!" The dark figure disappears into the blackness and Olivia looks up at the second figure; it took the shape of her husband and he turns to face her.
"Why did you come here?" he asks in a warm voice and offers his hand.
"I'm sorry," Olivia said and looks at the figure; even though it was in the shape of Basil, it was obvious that it wasn't her husband. "Who are you?" she asks.
"I keep watch in this part of Elliott's memories; everyone has a 'memory guardian', but my job is keep Elliott's dark thoughts from interfering with his living moments," the specter explains and looks back where the Ratigan creature went off. "Even though the real Ratigan is dead, Elliott still has a fragment of him living in his mind. However, he isn't much of a threat thanks to you and your family.
"Elliott loves you and your children, but the one thing he fears the most is losing you. After Henry was killed, Elliott's mind spiraled into this dark depression and he did tell you that he saw Henry as a father-figure," Basil's specter said and Olivia nods.
"Yes, he did tell me and that he vowed to never love another until Ratigan was captured or killed," she replies and he nods.
"Olivia, Elliott is a cleaver mouse, but he is full of pride and that pride will take him down if he were to lose either you or one of your children," he warns and he features the memory following the runaway horse incident.
"Olivia! Please wake up!" they see Basil cradling Olivia, who was out cold due to using too much magic to stop the horse and the guardian resumes his talk.
"The thing about him, he desires to be a good husband and father, even though he has achieved it, he is afraid of not living up to many expectations, particularly of not protecting you. Miss Lulu is right, it is a lot harder to let go of a traumatic memory, but you can help Elliott in living the present and not reflect on his past actions," he explains and she looks at him.
"How so?" Olivia asks and the specter chuckles a bit.
"The answer is just within your reach," he replies and summons a bright light that blinds Olivia.
Meanwhile, the group realizes that Olivia was not with them and Basil starts to panic. "Calm down, she's all right," Lulu said and summons a sphere of light. It shows Olivia, she awoke in the real world. "She must've met your memory guardian, Mr. Basil," Lulu adds and he looks at her in confusion.
"Everyone has a memory guardian," Tsura said and takes them to the 'Restricted' section of the tree. Upon arriving, they see a ghostly figure that took the shape of the detective. Basil and the specter lock eyes, then a second figure appears beside him, it took took the shape of Olivia.
"I'm afraid we can't interact right now," the figure of Olivia insists and looks at Basil's specter. "Our subconscious needs to be taken care of, but you Elliott need to find inner peace, even though it's not easy, you have a lot of friends and family who care about you," she tells the mortal Basil. He looks at his children, who smile up at him and he looks back at the two specters, but they already gone away.
"How do I wake up?" Basil asks the two witches, he wanted to be with Olivia, but they shake their heads.
"I think it's best to wait just a few moments," Tsura said and Lulu nods in agreement. They then resume their search for some of Basil's happiest memories.
()()()()()()()()()()()()()()
Olivia was awakened by the light Basil's memory guardian had summoned, it was still flashing in her eyes and she rubs her eyelids. She looks over to see her husband, still fast asleep, but normally he would be aroused by her wakening.
He was probably still with the others, including her parents and she tries her best to go back to sleep. However, the bright light was still irritating her and she decides to leave the bedroom. She checks on her children, they were still asleep and she walks into the living room.
She turns on the oil lamp on the wall, illuminating the room as the fire had gone out. Basil did place an appointment with an electrician to install new lights in a few days and it would be better than having these oil lamps. She takes a moment to locate the journal that Basil recorded the Flaversham case, the one that she wanted to read about.
Instead of sitting in her chair, Olivia sits in her husband's and opens the journal to 'June 20-21, 1897'. Most of it was in detail on the actual case, but Olivia scans over the pages. She wanted to see Basil's thoughts on her.
I never thought I would live to see the day that the slimy rat got his due for the crimes he has committed after all these years. However, I couldn't have done it without the help of a certain young child, who I fear I will never see, again.
Miss Olivia Flaversham came to me with the aid of Dr. David Q. Dawson, desperate, if not determined to locate her father, the toy marker Mr. Hiriam Flaversham. Oh, that girl, she was a feisty little thing. I've never seen a child with such spirit. She did remain me of myself when I was her age, but my father didn't approve of my behavior.
Even though she had a fire within her, I was imaging all these horrible things that Ratigan would've done if he did have the opportunity to do them. I wasn't going to let that rat rape another child like he did to those innocent youngsters all these years. If he were to come back from the grave and take her during the night, I will hunt him to the ends of the earth!
Olivia stops for a minute; Basil did have feelings for her then, even though she did recall him saying he tried to deny them. She resumes her reading, wondering if he would mention the denial here.
I find this all too strange; why am I feeling this way? Then again, I've noticed a heavy weight lift from my shoulders after Miss Flaversham and her father left, but it was replaced with a new sense of dread. What is wrong with me?
Part of myself said I am incapable of loving another, mostly due to my selfish character that I've noticed during the case. I did act like a brute as Miss Flaversham pleaded for my help. That I will never let down. If I do run into her sometime in the future, although I highly doubt it, I hope she accepts my apology. The reason I made fun of her family name was in the hopes of cheering her up, but I haven't retained my fun-loving nature then, not ever since Rupert was killed. I'm pretty sure that little boy is teasing me in the afterlife.
I'd give anything to hear his voice, again and play those wonderful games. I do hope that Henry, Anne, Flora, Alfred, and especially Rupert found some peace at last.
That was the end of the entry and Olivia was overcome with happiness. Even though Basil did deny his feelings for her, but in the end, he fully accepted them when she came back into his life. More curiosity fills her and decides to locate the journal that would've taken place a year after the case.
She finds the year for 1898 and locates the entry 'June 21'.
It's been a year since the Flaversham case. I am reliving it in my mind as we speak. In fact, I've been reliving it for the passed year, but the best one I have to say was saving Miss Olivia from being crushed by that clock gear in Big Ben.
What would've happened if I were to delay any further? I would never forgive myself if I didn't save her from Ratigan or from being crushed to death.
My mind is currently screaming at me right now. I do find myself to be unfit to love a child, I think it's best to leave Miss Olivia and her father alone.
Olivia puts it away and decides to skip a few years, picking up the year '1902' and opens to the fifth anniversary of the case.
It's been five years now. Miss Olivia Flaversham would be a young lady now, ready to decide her future. I did walk down the street where her father's shop would be located, but I decided to turn around and go home.
I wish my inner thoughts would stop telling me of how unworthy I am to be her friend. Even though I consider Dawson as a great partner in my cases, I still can't help but feel miserable.
I hope in time, I will stop listening to my thoughts and pursue Miss Olivia and ask her to come back into my life, as well as her father.
Olivia puts the journal away, but she struggles with her emotions. She knew that Basil went through a period of denial, but she did wonder why he didn't pursue her earlier. She picks up the '1903' journal and opens it to the same date.
I spent an hour gazing at Big Ben tonight, its face glowing like it had been those years ago. I can still hear the mechanical gears inside my head and Olivia crying out to me. What have I done to deserve such torture?
I let the one friend I wanted leave and never to see her, again. Even with Ratigan dead, I can't stop all the vulgar thoughts play inside my mind. If I couldn't keep a close eye on a child, such as Olivia then I don't deserve her. I was selfish in my haste to locate a clue in that human toy shop where that horrid bat took her.
There must be a way to block all the negative words inside my head, but it would be best to ignore my feelings for Olivia for the time being.
Olivia stops reading the entry and sniffles a bit, trying to contain the tears that threatened to fall. Basil did learn from his mistakes on the case, but the denial inside of him was consuming him at this point and he did go blind with denial.
She puts it back and locates the year '1907', ten years after the case. She skips to the September entry and begins to read the case, the memories of it were replaying in her mind, but she wanted to see Basil's thoughts like he wrote for the first time they met.
My heart has been beating for the pass ten years; it was consumed in ice after Henry and his family were killed, but it can beat at an easy pace now, as well as my mind. I will try my best to block out the agitating voice that told me I was unworthy of loving her. I was a fool in not locating Olivia, even a year after the case, but she is back in my life now. This will be the greatest achievements in my life, even if it took ten years to admit my feelings to Olivia, it will still hold a special place in my heart.
If Hiriam is in the afterlife, I made a promise to protect his daughter, the one young lady that burned the icy barrier over my heart. I thought I would become a unaffectionate recluse for the rest of my days, but I am hoping that we will have many years ahead of us. Olivia Flaversham, soon to be my wife, I will always look to you as the one who saved my life from years of torment and unfulfilled desires.
Olivia looks at the entry and tears were falling from her eyes. She closes the journal, just as she hears footsteps coming down the hall and into the living room. Basil and Olivia lock eyes, then a smile forms on his face.
"Elliott, now I know why you are protective of me," she said and he encloses her in his embrace.
"Some children look to me as their hero, but you will always be mine," he whispers and she cups both sides of his face and kisses him. They return to their bedroom and cuddle before they succumbed to sleep once more.
()()()()()()()()()()()()
The two mice return to the Flaversham homestead in the Heaven realm, where the twins and the deceased were waiting. "There you two are!" Henry exclaims and notices their eyes, they were glistening with tears. "Oh dear," he said.
"Mummy, daddy, are you two all right?" Leana asks and they pull their children in a tight embrace. "You're squeezing too hard," their daughter mutters, but they ignore her.
"John, Leana, I might feel down at times, but it's because some bad memories will pop up in my mind," Basil said, "However, when your mother first came into my life, she pulled me out of that black abyss, although I still suffer from terrible relapses and a voice inside my head had pester me in being someone unworthy of being her friend.
"But I'll do my best to ignore those pesky comments on my character as I achieved more than I ever dreamed of," he finishes and holds them tight.
Just then, Tsura and Lulu arrived with Dawson, it appeared that he ended in the wrong place, again. "Where did you find him this time?" Hiriam asks and the two witches groan.
"He ended up in the desert," Lulu said and Dawson brushes off some sand.
"Maybe next time we should teach him how to come to this place," John teases and the doctor gives him a glare.
"I do want to ask you Tsura," Olivia said and asks, "Is it possible to...oh how do I say this? To actually go to a place that exists in our memory, but want to have fun there?"
"It is possible, but will require a special kind of magic," the witch replies and laughs, "Actually, it is pretty simple," she adds.
"Olivia, what are you saying?" Basil asks and she chuckles.
"I was thinking of showing everyone the human toy shop we went to those years ago, but to have it all to our selves," she replies and the memory of pursuing clues in the toy shop springs up in Basil's mind.
"Oh that place, but what about Fidget and the-" "I might actually help you in getting rid of all those moments that went wrong and that creep Fidget," Tsura cuts in, "You know you can use your imagination in this place, remember?"
"Yes!" the twins exclaim, "Let's go to that toy shop you mentioned!"
"Perhaps another time," Olivia said, "I would like to invite both Tsura and Lulu," she adds, looking up at the witches.
"Can you show us the entire memory of the first time you and dad met?" John asks, "I really want to see the daring rescue and those other intense stuff." Basil and Olivia look at one another, they were still unsure about reliving that certain case.
"We will think about it, but to be honest, I'd say we wait until you're ten years old," Basil suggests, but his children scowl at him. "I did say I'll think about it," he said, but it didn't help. They then start to laugh and rough house with their father.
The living and deceased spent the remainder of their time playing before the living were set to depart at sunrise.
From the author: I think this is more of a dramatic chapter, but as I was reexamining Basil in the film, he displays some symptoms associated with manic depression or bipolar disorder. Some symptoms are similar to PTSD, but I am not a psychologist, although I love to research on a person's behavior.
I do have another story on reliving a certain memory in mind, might do that in the next chapter and answer some questions that were asked some time ago. Anyway, hope you're enjoying this!
See you soon!