Love and Burden
by The Great Red Dragon
Chapter 20
"I miss you…but I haven't met you yet
So special…but it hasn't happened yet
You are gorgeous…but I haven't met you yet
I remember…but it hasn't happened yet"
-I Miss You
Björk
Reihana slept soundly in Stitch and Twyla's bedroom, her small body enveloped in a roll of blankets.
They had hurriedly returned to the house from the beach soon after Auron had swum her back to the shore, and rushed her to Jumba for examination. Jumba (although seemingly ready to go into conniptions and kill Auron), thankfully, had found nothing wrong with her, although she had cried some more when he held her in his arms. She had swallowed some water and had encountered slight shock…she was shivering, but that still stemmed from the past event.
Rest was needed, he ordered, and had sat next to her in the bedroom until she finally fallen asleep (he didn't want to give her any sleeping-medicine).
But her sleep remained restless: she dreamed not of nightmares, but of the others…the Experiments, Jumba, Pleakley, and Lilo and her sister.
Owen, Stitch, Twyla, and Peka would most likely be sitting in the living room, on the couch and in the chairs, worrying about her condition (Auron would probably be on the roof, worrying in his own way). Jumba would be drinking tea (with a shot of something stronger) in the kitchen, and Pleakley would be sitting with him, not knowing what to say. Lilo would…be sitting with the Experiments, between Stitch and Twyla. Nani was…worrying, as usual. Maybe she was calling David, who had carried her (Reihana) back to the car.
Anxiety…concern…disarray…worry…unhappiness…all because of her.
She groaned in her sleep and turned over onto her side, wanting to dream of something else.
Her wish was fulfilled – a new scene was opening up before her…
She was being dragged down a long, metal hallway by a creature with pale skin and a long, elongated mouth. She was kicking, screaming, and crying, but he seemed to be paying no attention to her racket. Deafly, he pulled her through a door in the side of the corridor and down several more passages, until they reached another door. The creature opened the mechanic panel angrily, and Jumba Jookiba fell out of his bed. He looked up, saw what was happening, and quickly took Reihana from the creature's hands. She was hoping that he'd hold her and comfort her, but instead he shut her into a nearby room and told her stay there and keep quiet.
From there, she listened to him and the creature shout at eachother…pidgin Turian: she couldn't understand a word of it.
After a while, the shouts turned into barely-audible, threatening whispers.
Then, silence…
Finally, Jumba opened the door to the small room. She cried at the first sight of him, begging for some comfort, but he didn't present it, even though the creature was gone. He gently lifted her onto his arm and carried her over to his office, where he sat her on top of the desk. He then began to rummage through a nearby cabinet, and she sat there, sniffling. Finally, he unearthed a small orange flask that contained red tablets. He dropped several of them into his palm and turned to Reihana. He told her that she must eat them – she must eat all of them right away.
At this, she began crying even more. She had no idea what was going on, what Jumba was trying to feed her, or…
…She feared the worst: was Jumba trying to kill her?
"No, my child, never", he assured her, finally taking her into his arms and cuddling her against his chest.
"I…I am making you forget."
Finally, after a while, she nodded, teary-faced, and swallowed the pills all in one gulp; she didn't even need to chew.
Now, Jumba looked very relieved and happy – he began hugging and kissing her, fatherly, and began telling her that everything was going to be alright now; there was nothing more to worry about.
It had been a secret, hidden place…a gymnasium, a laboratory, and someone…something in a cell.
Five-forty…five-forty…she couldn't remember.
She eventually became very drowsy and fell asleep.
The next day, she dreamed of a real memory she held: she woke up in Jumba's bed, and he was sleeping next to her. That day, Jumba was all about paying her extra attention, offering her more to eat than she even desired, and buying her expensive things; the other Experiments became more than jealous.
A few days later, Jumba took her to a private lab of his…a special-training lab for special Experiments, he said.
When he left the room, she met a curious character; Experiment 541.
He was a bit dark-tempered and negative, but was always there for her to talk to at night, whenever she sneaked out of bed (he was kept in a small cell, and always spoke badly of Jumba).
…What was with him? Why did he always seem to forget her?
Well, of course, Jumba was making him forget; slipping him medication to erase her presence from his mind…but why was he continuing to let Reihana see him, if he was dangerous to be kept isolated? Surely Jumba monitored 541's cell…why did he turn blind whenever Reihana turned up?
…And why did 541 seem to remind Reihana of someone she had met before?
She couldn't remember the person…but why did he remind her so much of 541?
Reihana decided to forget about this question, in her dream and in life. She turned over once more on the mattress and hid her face in the pillow.
Before she began dreaming of something else and more pleasant, she wondered slightly who was the pale creature that had dragged her to Jumba…and what had become of him…
"No matter", she thought.
"I'll have forgotten it by the time I wake up…"
It was true; when she awoke some time later, she had forgotten about everything she had dreamed of.
(A/N: forgive me: this is a short chapter, but I just wanted to drop another hint for you all to what happened after the last chapter ended.
If anyone's confused…you'll just have to wait. The next chapter will be on its way soon, as quickly as I can spare my eyes and fingers. Forgive me for the big delays every time – I really should do better.
Thank you to everybody who took the time to compliment me. Mercy and good fortune on all of you! See ya!)