Dot felt strangely numb as she watched Yakko talking to Scratchansniff, trying to process what had just happened. Just a few moments ago, she had been happier and more relieved than she had ever been, but now it was as if the ground had collapsed beneath her. The sinking feeling increased when her oldest brother visibly drooped and ran a hand over his head, and when he turned to walk to her the look on his face confirmed it wasn't good.

"So, what…?" she managed to ask. Yakko sank down into the chair next to her.

"He knows his name," he said in a dull tone. "But it looks like that's about it."

Dot stared at him for a moment as the words sank in.

"So… he forgot everything?" Her voice broke. "Everything we did, Mom and Dad… us?"

Yakko swallowed hard, then finally looked at her and nodded. It looked like it was taking all his effort not to break down, and she felt even closer to doing that herself.

"But zhere is a chance his memories vill come back."

Dot jumped and looked up at the doctor; she hadn't heard him walk over. She felt a small twinge of hope at his words, and she heard some in Yakko's voice too.

"How long could it take?"

"Difficult to say," Scratchansniff replied. "It could be anyvhere from a few days to a few months, possibly longer."

"But… it could be…"

Yakko trailed off, and the doctor sighed.

"Zhere is no vay to say, but… yes, it could be permanent."

Dot's heart sank at those words, and it took all her willpower not to burst into tears. But still a hushed whimper escaped her, and she felt her oldest brother gently rub her back.

"It's okay, sis… it's gonna be okay."

But it wasn't okay… it was far from okay, and Dot could tell from the barely audible catch in Yakko's voice that he was thinking the same thing. He was good at hiding worry and sadness, but she knew her brothers better than anyone, just like they knew her.

Except now, one of them didn't know her. To him, she was a stranger now. And the thought of that made her feel as though they had lost him after all.

Dot barely heard the rest of the conversation as Scratchansniff explained that in addition to the memory loss, Wakko was facing a difficult recovery. She had already known that… she had been prepared for that, but never for this. How could anyone be prepared for something like this? A hand on her shoulder interrupted her dispirited musing and she looked up at Yakko.

"We can see him now," he said, his voice gentle. Dot bit her lip but nodded and stood, letting him take her hand. She found herself feeling nervous as they headed inside the room; it was an alien feeling, being nervous about seeing her own brother, and it made her even sadder.

When they reached their brother's bed, Yakko picked her up and set her on it before sitting on the edge himself.

"Hey, sib," he said softly, smiling. Wakko looked between him and Dot with heavy lidded eyes, and she searched his face, hoping beyond hope to see some trace of recognition.

There was none. He looked at her and Yakko like he had never seen them before, and that hurt more than she could believe. But as much as she wanted to just cry, she gulped it down and forced herself to smile too.

"Ya know who we are?" Yakko asked in the same gentle tone. Wakko nodded.

"Y-yeah… th' bald guy told me. But…" A look of guilt came to his face. "I d-don't remember."

A lump rose in Dot's throat again and she glanced at Yakko. His eyes were sad, but he kept smiling.

"Yeah, we know."

He reached out toward Wakko but then hesitated, apparently unsure whether he would be comfortable with contact yet. The middle sibling appeared to guess what he was thinking and nodded his consent. At that, Yakko smiled again and ran a hand through his hair.

"But ya don't have to feel bad about it… it's not your fault."

"But… what if I n-never…"

"Don't think like that!" Dot blurted. "You will!"

Her immediate older brother looked at her with wide eyes, and she realized how sharp her voice had been. Her throat tightened and she lowered her eyes in shame.

"I-I'm sorry," she whispered. "I didn't mean…"

A hesitant hand touched hers, and she looked up in surprise. Wakko was looking at her with concern in his eyes.

"S' okay," he murmured. Dot blinked, then a small but genuine smile tugged at her face. Her brother's memory might be gone, but his caring heart clearly wasn't. She could tell Yakko was thinking the same thing from the smile on his own face.

"But she's right, Wakko. Don't think that way when there's a chance, okay?"

Wakko looked at him and his mouth twitched up in a slight smile, though his siblings could see it didn't reach his eyes.

"D' you… r-really think I'll remember?"

Dot felt a sharp ache inside at the doubt on his face; it was a look so out of place on him. She could tell it was hurting Yakko too, but he didn't show it.

"I think you can do anything," he said. Wakko looked between him and Dot, then let out a little sigh.

"Okay."

Everything seemed to hurt, especially his head. And that wasn't doing much to help Wakko think, and he'd been thinking whenever he could stay awake. But whenever he tried to think of anything before yesterday, it only made his head hurt more.

Eleven years, gone. His whole life, even his family, forgotten. It was still hard to believe.

Wakko glanced at his siblings sleeping in their beds. He hadn't remembered so much as their names before that doctor guy told him, and he didn't even mention their parents. Neither had Yakko and Dot, for that matter. Wakko was sure now that something had happened to them but hadn't brought himself to ask yet. Something told him he wasn't going to like the answer.

A rustling sound made his ears twitch, and he looked to see Yakko sitting up. He wondered if his brother had some kind of radar when it came to his siblings.

"Wakko? What're you doin' up?" He got up and walked over. "You hurting?"

Wakko gave him a half smile. He'd been doing his best to humor his brother, since it was obvious he felt bad about everything.

"Some," he said softly. "But it's not too bad, really."

Yakko cocked his head, frowning a little.

"So, what's wrong then?"

Wakko shifted, shuffling his feet.

"I just…" He took a deep breath, then looked up. "Something happened to our mom and dad, didn't it?"

His brother's face immediately dropped, and he looked so sad that Wakko felt his heart sink. He swallowed before speaking in a small voice.

"They're…"

His throat was too tight to finish, but Yakko seemed to guess the rest. Looking down, he nodded. A few moments passed before Wakko could speak again.

"H-how?"

He saw his brother's jaw clench, and he swallowed hard before speaking again.

"Look, it's really late and you shouldn't be thinking about this right now…"

Wakko just kept looking at him, making no move to let it go. After a few moments, Yakko sighed and sank down on the side of the bed.

"I can only tell you what I know."

Wakko nodded, bracing himself. He wanted to know… he had to know.

It wasn't the first time Yakko had to explain to one of his siblings what happened to their parents, but that didn't make it any easier. And the look on Wakko's face immediately made him wish he hadn't.

What was I thinking, dropping something like this on him so soon?!

"I'm sorry," he said quickly. "I shouldn't have told ya now…"

"No…" His brother was staring at his hands, his voice quivering. "No, I wanted to know."

His face grew even sadder.

"It's not like I can even remember them. I can't remember anything."

The utter despondency in his voice broke Yakko's heart, and it took a few moments before he could speak without crying.

"Do… do you wanna talk?"

"No, it's okay," Wakko said softly. "I'll be fine. Sorry I woke you up."

Yakko hesitated; he didn't want to push his brother to talk if he didn't want to, but he hated to just leave him like this.

"Are you… sure?" he asked.

Wakko nodded.

"Yeah. Don't worry 'bout me."

Despite his reluctance, Yakko sighed and stood. Telling people not to worry about him had probably become second nature to Wakko, even with his amnesia.

"Okay, but if you do wanna talk, you can. Just tell me."

He hesitated a moment, then reached out and gently ruffled his brother's hair.

"Feel better, sib. See ya in the morning."

Wakko looked up at him with another slight smile.

"Thanks, Yakko… night."

The eldest Warner smiled in return, then headed back to his own bed. After he settled in, only a few moments passed before he heard the faint but unmistakable sound of stifled crying. His heart broke even more, and it took all he had not to follow suit. Even though he'd lost his memory, Wakko was still dealing with things in the only way he knew how… by himself.

Nice going, genius… he had enough to deal with without this hanging over him.

Despite the strong urge to go back to him, Yakko gritted his teeth and forced it back, knowing he wouldn't be welcome. If he wanted Wakko to open up, he needed to remember that first he had to earn his trust, and that was going to take time. Especially if his memory never returned…

A lump rose in Yakko's throat at the thought, and he stared up at the ceiling with stinging eyes. It was far too soon to assume the worst, at least that's what they were told, but he couldn't help fearing it anyway. He knew Dot did too, and he didn't know how she would bear it if it did happen. He wasn't sure how he would either, for that matter.

And their poor brother… he had lost so much, and he was so alone. If his memory didn't come back, Yakko knew with a certainty he couldn't explain that Wakko would blame himself for it. He already felt guilty about it, even though he tried to hide it. Just like he tried to hide how he was feeling before all this.

Well, that's gonna stop now.

Yakko's despondency was pushed back with a sense of determination. Whether Wakko's memory came back or not, he wasn't going to be facing this alone. Whatever happened, they would get through this together… like they always did.