Loud, booming sounds echoed in the dark. And he was scared… why was he so scared? What was happening?
"It'll be okay, sibs."
That was Yakko. He sounded scared too. Why? Yakko was never scared.
"It'll be okay… Mom and Dad'll be back soon. Don't be scared…"
Light suddenly filled Wakko's vision, and he was running, running as fast as he could. Another loud boom came from behind, but he couldn't stop… he had to keep going…
Bam!
The ground seemed to shake, and an explosion of pain filled his body. It was agony to move… but he had to move… he had to…!
Wakko didn't realize he was screaming until his eyes flew open and he jerked upright, barely noticing his surroundings. But within a second, there was a jolt on the bed and someone's arms were around him.
"Wakko, it's okay! It's okay, you're safe!"
At the sound of that voice, his wild panic began to fade. He blinked, still panting, and realized there were tears in his eyes.
"D-Dot?" The arms around him tightened just a little, but not enough to hurt.
"Yeah, it's me," came his sister's gentle voice. "I'm here."
A hand rested on his head.
"We're both here."
Wakko looked up, still trembling.
"Yakko?"
His older brother's concerned look came into focus, along with the room behind him. The disjointed sounds and intense emotions from his dream still fresh in his mind, Wakko closed his eyes tight and felt tears running down his face.
"I-it was a dream… I… I heard things, saw…"
The hand on his head ran through his hair.
"It's okay, Wak. Scratchy said this would probably happen."
"But…" The middle sibling clenched his eyes tighter shut. "I think I was… remembering something, but… I don't know what…"
A sudden, sharp ache in his head made him break off with a sharp inhale. He heard Dot gasp too as she drew back, her anxious voice echoing too loud in his ears.
"What? What's wrong?"
Wakko pressed his hands to his head.
"Not… so loud…"
His sister's voice immediately dropped to a whisper.
"Sorry."
The ache slowly faded, and he opened his eyes.
"I… I couldn't think of it. I don't know what I…"
He bit his lip hard, feeling angry at himself.
"Why can't I remember?!"
Yakko patted his shoulder, and the middle sibling looked up with tear-filled eyes to see his brother's sad look.
"It's okay, Wakko," he said softly. "Don't blame yourself."
Dot wrapped her arms around him again.
"And whether you remember or not, we'll never blame you."
More tears filled Wakko's eyes, escaping as he closed them again and returned the hug, sniffling. Another pair of arms wrapped around him and Dot, and a strangely familiar sense of comfort slowly filled him. When his sniffling stopped, he heard the smile in his brother's voice.
"This always made ya feel better. Especially when we were little… we did it at the orphanage all the time."
Wakko released a quiet sigh as he nestled into his siblings' embrace, his voice quivering a little.
"I wish I could remember…"
His siblings just tightened their arms around him. They sat that way for a long time, no one speaking. But the silence had a strange reassurance to it, and something stirred ever so slightly in Wakko's mind.
But to his disappointment, it had faded before he could place it.
…
"Just take it slow, Wak."
Wakko glanced behind him at Yakko, giving him a half amused, half annoyed smile as he grasped the bars.
"Yeah, Yakko, I heard you the first time. And the four times you said it yesterday."
A sheepish look crossed his brother's face, and he heard Dot giggle.
"Okay," Yakko said. "Go for it."
Looking down at his feet, Wakko stuck his tongue out in concentration and began moving forward with slow, careful steps. A little way past the half point, he felt his legs begin trembling again. He gripped the bars tighter, frustration tugging at him again.
"Don't look there, look at me."
At his sister's voice, he looked up to see her giving him an encouraging smile. Yakko spoke from behind him.
"That's it, focus on her. Nice and easy."
Taking a deep breath, Wakko kept his eyes on Dot and focused every ounce of determination into keeping his legs moving. A small smile tugged at his face, slowly growing as he got closer and closer to her. Finally, he reached the other side and Dot jumped to support him when he let go. His heart gave a joyful leap, and he heard the same joy in his sister's voice.
"You did it! You did it!"
A hand ruffled his cap and hair, and he looked up at his older brother's proud grin.
"Way to go, sib!"
Wakko grinned back, still leaning on Dot.
"Thanks, guys."
But then his mood sobered.
"At least I can do something," he sighed. Though recovering from his physical injuries, every attempt to restore his memory seemed to fall short. He'd had dreams, but they were all full of disjointed images and voices that he couldn't make much sense of. Sometimes he heard two voices that he felt he knew: one sounded a lot like Dot, only older, and the other was like his own, deeper but with the same accent. He was pretty sure that they were the voices of his parents, but that was all he could really recall. Everything else was still just a blank.
Wakko's dispirited thoughts were interrupted when his older brother placed a hand on his shoulder, making him look up.
"We told you," he said with a smile. "You don't have to feel bad about it."
"But… I know you guys want me to remember, and I…"
There was a light thump against the back of his head, causing him to blink in surprise and look at his sister.
"What did I tell you about thinking that way?" she scolded gently. "What we want is for you to be okay. You don't need your memories for that."
But don't I, really? How can I be okay when I've lost my whole life? When I barely know my own family?
The thought came unbidden, but Wakko couldn't bring himself to say it out loud… it would only hurt his siblings more, and they had been through enough.
"You feel okay?" Yakko asked. Wakko gave him another smile. Yeah, he was fine… they didn't have to worry.
"Little tired." He wasn't lying… the pain was pretty much gone now, but he still tired really easily. It bothered him a little, being weak like this, but he'd been told he was progressing well considering how serious it was. His brother nodded and lowered himself to his level.
"Okay. C'mon, jump up."
Wakko climbed onto his back and Yakko stood, hoisting him up. As they headed out, followed by Dot, something seemed to stir in Wakko's mind. It was a feeling he got whenever they did this, but he hadn't voiced it yet, mainly because he didn't want to get his siblings' hopes up. But now, he couldn't keep it to himself anymore.
"Yakko…" he said slowly. "We did this before, didn't we? When I was little?"
His older brother stopped, glancing back at him.
"Do you remember that?"
Wakko frowned a little, trying to think back. He still couldn't form an image, but there was something there…
"I'm not sure," he said softly. "It's like… like a feeling. It feels familiar, but I can't actually see it."
He chanced a glance at Dot, worried that he might see disappointment in her look. But to his surprise, she was smiling.
"Well, that's more than you had before, right?"
After a moment of hesitation, Wakko spoke in an unsure tone.
"Yeah."
Yakko hoisted him up a little higher and spoke with a teasing note in his voice as he started walking again.
"C'mon, grumpy gills, why so gloomy? You're doing great, and don't let anyone tell ya otherwise."
A grin tugged at the younger brother's face. It wasn't the first time they had told him something like this, but it was always a bit of a pickup when they did. Honestly, the only person who told him otherwise was himself, but he had a feeling they knew that.
He was trying to think positive, really, but he couldn't shake the feeling that there was always something missing. Something that he needed to feel complete again. Would he always feel that way, if his memory loss was permanent? It was a disheartening thought. And even though he was still getting to know his siblings, he found he cared about them a lot and felt like he was somehow failing them.
"Here ya go."
Wakko blinked, his train of thought interrupted by Yakko's voice. Shaking his head to clear it, he climbed off his brother's back onto his bed.
"Thanks," he said. Some of his discouragement must have leaked into his voice, because Dot climbed up in front of him and looked at him with a mix of sternness and concern as she poked his chest.
"If you still think you're letting us down, cut it out, mister."
Wakko stared at her for a moment; not for the first time, he wondered if she and Yakko could somehow read his mind. Was he able to do this with them, before?
"If you do get your memory back," Dot continued. "We don't want you to do it for us… we want you to do it for you, if you want it. We have you here with us, and that's all we need."
She shuffled forward and wrapped her arms around him.
"And remember us or not, we still love you."
At those words, a feeling of warmth and comfort filled the middle sibling. As if on instinct, he returned the hug as he murmured back.
"I know. Thanks, sis."
