Chapter 17: Reflections of a House
Week 4, Day 1 in another area of town
It was early, about 5:30 in the morning and May was out
on the second floor balcony just outside her bedroom. The
balcony afforded a wonderful view of Toyko. But she didn't
come outside to sight-see, she came out to see the sunrise,
to reconnect with nature as a way of spending quiet time with
God. Toyko was actually getting in her way.
May smirked to herself. In a way, that fit. Her mission in
Toyko was to reunite Endymion with his family, the family
he was separated from a long time ago. But everything in
this Toyko, from the empress's timewalker to the life Mamoru
Chiba had lived up to that point, just got in the way of the
possibility of a reunion. The lies and confusion blocked the
reunion like the buildings of Toyko blocked the sunrise. And
a little second-story balcony does not solve the problem.
May yearned for the sunrise, for nature, as a way to reestablish
her connection with her Lord and Savior. She deseparately needed
guidance and she had nowhere else to turn.
May sight as she searched for the bit of sky she could see for
the pink of the oncoming sunrise. The biggest part of the
problems is that she had never been a worried mother before, at
least not in this life. She wasn't even quite sure how to frame
her prayers in this case; all she was sure of is that she wanted
to help her children. She just didn't know how.
First, there was Yusuke. It was near impossible for May to
figure out what was going on in his head. He was either shouting
or sarcastic or quiet. Since the conversation yesterday died (or
everyone just collectively suffered from overload) at noon that
day, Yusuke had been quiet, spending time in the home gym, but
not really spending time with May.
What worried May the most about Yusuke is something she recalled
about Yusuke's life last night. While he was still a ghost, before
he got his life back, his (girl)friend Keiko ran into a burning
building to save his body. She nearly died; in fact, she would
have died if Yusuke hadn't intervened. The story of May's actual
death was so similar to what nearly happened to Keiko that May
had to wonder if her story revived unpleasant memories in the
teen.
May closed her eyes briefly. Her problem was that she didn't
know how to reach her youngest. Even after seeing his whole life,
she still didn't really know him. He was like a 5,000 piece
puzzle. He may play down the importance ot the important people
in his life, but he'd do amazing things for them. May could clearly
remember how Yusuke reacted to that demon that tried to kill his
unconscious friend Kurama in something called The Dark Tournament.
It was imprinted on her mind because she marveled at the many
ways Yusuke showed, without words, that Kurama was important to him
and all the emotions that ran clearly over Yusuke's face. One
of the things that helped him deal with his anger, fear, and
helplessness was that he was able to fight.
Here, in this situation, the ability to fight was taken away from
Yusuke. There was no one he beat up that would bring May back to
life. On top of this, May would not let him fight the timewalker
Pluto for his older brother or even for vengence for the attempt
she made on his life. Most of the time that he had been with
May centered around waiting, with moments of rushing thrown in.
May smiled to herself. She remembered that Yusuke hated both
states, waiting and rushing.
Then, there was Terry, who was almost harder to read than Yusuke.
Family was very important to Terry, in part due to the murder
of his father. In discovering who May was, she had provided
Terry with another parent, only to yank it away with the revelation
of her death. Over a week ago she gave him knowledge of brothers
from a past life, older and younger. The older one was also "taken"
from Terry by the work of the time walker and a "not-so-white" lie.
What does that do to a young man who values family?
On top of all of this, Terry was more closed up than Yusuke about
everything. Since convincing Terry to come with her, she had taken
away his ability to protect others from crime and pain, both by
barring Batman from this plane and by constraining some of his
actions. It was through his role as Batman that Terry was able
to handle the challenges of guilt, anger, and loss; May had denied
him that.
May looked back up to the sky. 'I seem to have a habit of ripping
away the coping mechanisms of my children,' she thought to herself.
The person that May felt the most torn up about, however, was Reika,
the "almost daughter" from another life. Of all of them, Reika truly
was the walking wounded. She didn't ask for anything that had
happened; she was never given the option of not having to deal with
it. Her engagment was one of the casualities of this skirmish
between a time walker and a former queen. She looked so defeated.
The look that May now saw in Reika's eyes she had only seen once
before, in the eyes of a victim of a racial assault. A song by
a group called Everything But the Girl floated through May's head.
She could almost here Tracy Thorn singing, "Out amongst the
walking wounde, every face on every bus is you and me and him
and her. Nothing can replace the us I knew." Reika must feel
like that, dealing with all the pairings she remembers. Endy and
Dani, Motoki and Reika, Mamoru and Usagi. For someone who a
week ago was just planning a wedding, how do you deal with your
whole life being turned upside down on its head...and then still
having to live it?!
"I take it back," May murmurred to the sky, "Reika has it worse
off that both Mary the mother of Jesus or myself. At least Mary
was given good news and at least I had the luxury of being dead."
May sighed and took a moment to say a prayer for all of those on
her mind this morning...and to wonder and worry about her "other
child" that was out there in that Toyko she saw from her balcony.
*****
In the kitchen Reika sat with a cup of tea in front of her.
Yesterday, it was decided that she should stay in the mansion
with Yusuke, Terry, and May until the last week was up. For
the moment it was a safe space for Reika to try and figure
out her life, but what was she going to do when that space was
gone in a week?
Reika looked done at her tea cup. Her life had given new meaning
to the word "clusterfuck". There was so much to deal with.
First, there were the issues left over from her first life.
She never really got the chance to grieve the love she lost.
She never adjusted to the adrupt shifts in her status. And,
lately, she was thinking that there was something else she was
forgetting or repressing. Something about her little sister.
And then of course, there was the end of that life. How did
she die, and was she alone?
Then there was her current life. She was looking at the wreckage
of an engagement. She hadn't returned calls from friends or family.
She had plans up in the air, some of which she needed to cancel.
Then there was the issue of her ex-fiance. She still didn't know
how she really felt about Motoki. She loved him, but she had
doubts. She was going to marry him, but it didn't feel right.
Actually, a lot of there relationship on her end felt like she
was paying Motoki back for being so nice to her, for making her
laugh and for making her feel beautiful. But didn't he deserve
someone who loved him? Or did he deserve to be with the one
he loved, regardless of the feelings on the other side of the
relationship?
All those problems alone came from just her two lives. Then
there were the problems that were the intersection of these two
lives, problems that can be summed up in one question: What does
she do about Mamoru?
Reika took a sip of her tea, a little annoyed with herself that
her hands were shaking slightly. She was not going to cry again
this morning. She had done enough of that in the last few days.
Crying was understandable. It was like she was a survivor of a
wreck, a wreck that happened when her two lives collided without
warning.
To be honest, Reika really wasn't sure of who she was anymore.
Was she Lady Daniella, Duchess of Amerwest? Was she Reika, a
normal Japanese young woman about to be married? Was she both?
Was she neither? It was near impossible to answer these questions
in her current home. She'd hear Motoki's voice and think she was
Reika, but then she'd like of Endy, of Mamoru, and think she
was Daniella.
The real question was who did she love and what did she do about
it? And, Reika really couldn't answer that question. The Mamoru
she knew as Reika was...an okay guy. He wasn't really her type.
He was too closed off. At times he seemed cold. And, before Usagi
came into his life, he didn't seem to be the type that would get
into a serious relationship. At the same time, she still saw that
under all those walls could possibly be a great guy. And there were
moments, when he'd open a door for her or say something to Motoki
when there was a glimmer of...something that touched her. Maybe
that glimmer was Endy.
Motoki actually reminded her a lot of her, that is Daniella's,
Endy when she thought about it. The love of people, the laughter,
the kind heart...where all so like Endy. Motoki was a little more
confident than Endy; he would make a wonderful doctor some day.
And, at least in some areas of the world, being a doctor's wife
was like being nobility.
All her thinking just seemed to lead to more questions. It was
like looking at a room that desperately needed cleaning and wondering
what to do first. "I'm going to need more tea. Or maybe
something stronger," Reika whispered to the empty room.
*****
In another part of the house, the punching bags in the home gym
were getting a rough beating...and the room echoed with shouts.
"Damn you, timewalker. Girl or not I'm going to kick your ass!"
Yusuke shouted as he charged the punching bag and executed
some kicks and punches. "GIVE ME BACK MY BROTHER!" he screamed as
he knocked the bag so hard that it flew across the room. Then
he collasped.
He'd been in the gym trying to find something to fight, something
to do. All this talking and waiting frustrated him.
If he were more honest with himself, he'd realize that he was
running away. Running away from all the loss and pain and..."Shit."
Finding out that May was his mother was a shock, maybe because she
was more responsible in some ways than the mother he had now. Or
maybe because she was still the pushy lady in his head, the one
that promised him a fight and threatened him with her ax. And,
just when he was beginning to get used to her, maybe even like
her a bit, she announces she's dead. "At least she can still
punch people, talk trash, and walk on the ground while being
dead. It would have been a hell of a lot easier for me if I
could have done that."
Yusuke didn't really know how to deal with any of the craziness
of the last few weeks. He almost wanted to go back to the old
hag's crazy tournament. At least the rules there made sense: fight,
find dangerous demon, stop him, get his bride from Botan. This
world, however, didn't have easy rules for how to get his
brother back or how to understand what happened and was happening.
Damnit, he just wanted to do some damage to something. Fight
something. Maybe that would help.
He looked across the room and saw the punching bag he'd just
knocked over there. He got up off the floor, pointed his
finger at it, concentrated and shouted, "Spirit Gun", using
a now slightly rusty power. The bag was destroyed and a hole
was created in the wall behind it. In a weird way, firing
off his Spirit Gun made him feel better, like he wasn't
just waiting for the next big thing.
*****
He'd never thought that he'd actually miss patrols. All those
times that he wanted to be out with Dana, sleeping, or doing
anything but patroling Gotham, he never thought he'd miss it.
But he did miss it today, because it would be something to
take his mind off of everything.
He honestly didn't know what he thought of everything. Admittedly,
life had been weird ever since the night his father was killed.
Now, knowing he had this other family, a family that was taken
away from him...he honestly did not know what to do.
Terry laughed. Part of him wanted to talk to Max to walk through
all of this, although that would be weird as he was convinced that
Max was Lady Maxine. Then, of course, Lady Maxine was a great
shoulder for Tremaine to lean on. Why should Max be any different.
The more disturbing impulse was a need to talk to Mr. Wayne about
all of this. Wayne would think that Terry was blitzing out on
him, but he could really use some of that Wayne logic and detachment
about now. Knowing Mr. Wayne, however, something like this probably
happened to him. And he probably handled it better too.
Then, there was May. He still couldn't believe she was dead.
Dead people can't talk to you. They don't eat. They can't
touch you. They are just gone. But May insisted that she was
dead. It was a sick twist of fate and May die and then become
important to him. Death was so final. When this little
window of time was over, he'd wake up and the dream would be over.
And he'd be mourning another parent.
Terry got out of bed. Even though it was still early, he was
restless. He didn't sleep well last night. He didn't want
to have any more dreams of a time that he couldn't get back, so
he tried to stay awake. When he did finally fall asleep, he had
a dream about a fire. He was in his Batsuit trying to find
May and Mamoru to save them. But he couldn't find May anywhere,
and the room in which Mamoru sat was blocked by a wall of fire.
Even with Wayne in his ear giving advice, he felt helpless.
There was nothing he could do. "Three guesses what inspired that
nightmare," Terry muttered to himself.
Terry took a deep breath and began to walk toward the bathroom.
Maybe he could just wash away some of the confusion.
*****
Evening fell and the mansion was quiet. The people of the house
really didn't really interact that much all day. In fact, May
had only seen Terry awake. He was kind enough to bring her food
when she didn't want to move from the balcony for...well, any
meal, but he came to check on her at lunchtime. At about 9pm,
everyone else in the house went to bed, probably exhausted after
battling there own demons. But May couldn't sleep yet. Like any
worried mother, she had to check on all of her chicks. She
concentrated and changed into her own timewalker outfit. Sure,
she couldn't talk to her oldest, but she could make sure he was
alright.
****
She stood in the shadows on the roof of a nearby building. From her
vantage point she could see into Mamoru's apartment just barely.
He had come home just a few minutes ago. He looked agitated and
seemed to be brooding. Something was obviously wrong, but what
was it?
She watched him run his hands through his hair for the thirty-first
time as he continued to pace. He looked confused and resigned.
"My poor baby," May said in a quiet voice.
Feeling helpless, May looked up to the sky. "Lord, what do I do
now? How can I help my children?" She felt her eyes begin to
fill with tears. "Can you look after them for me? Will you take
care of them for me?" she asked the night. After looking in the
sky for several minutes more, she turned back to look into in
Mamoru's apartment. "I can't leave, not yet," May whispered
quietly as she sat in the shadow on the roof, determined to spend
most of the night looking over her oldest.
- to be continued -
Hey everyone.
First, I'd like to apologize for the length of time it has taken
me to get this next chapter up. Schoool, life...these things
happen, and when they do, they mess up your schedule.
Another part of the problem is that I'm now taking this story
in another direction...again. The story I thought I was writing
was really almost finished in February. Then I received great
feedback from a reader. In the course of her email she pointed
out that there were a lot of issues that I'd stirred up in the
past chapters that she was looking forward to see how I resolved.
That was when I realized that I hadn't resolved the issues, but
written one of those unrealistic, too "pat" endings that I
absolutely hate reading. So, I've spent some time with the
story and have plan a good 5 more chapters at least to deal with
some of these problems. And some of my original ending (which
is already written) may have to go. Oh, well.
Thank you all for reading and for your reviews and emails. Please
let me know what you think of this chapter and any questions
or suggestions that you have. In many ways it is those emails
that make this a better story.
~December.
Week 4, Day 1 in another area of town
It was early, about 5:30 in the morning and May was out
on the second floor balcony just outside her bedroom. The
balcony afforded a wonderful view of Toyko. But she didn't
come outside to sight-see, she came out to see the sunrise,
to reconnect with nature as a way of spending quiet time with
God. Toyko was actually getting in her way.
May smirked to herself. In a way, that fit. Her mission in
Toyko was to reunite Endymion with his family, the family
he was separated from a long time ago. But everything in
this Toyko, from the empress's timewalker to the life Mamoru
Chiba had lived up to that point, just got in the way of the
possibility of a reunion. The lies and confusion blocked the
reunion like the buildings of Toyko blocked the sunrise. And
a little second-story balcony does not solve the problem.
May yearned for the sunrise, for nature, as a way to reestablish
her connection with her Lord and Savior. She deseparately needed
guidance and she had nowhere else to turn.
May sight as she searched for the bit of sky she could see for
the pink of the oncoming sunrise. The biggest part of the
problems is that she had never been a worried mother before, at
least not in this life. She wasn't even quite sure how to frame
her prayers in this case; all she was sure of is that she wanted
to help her children. She just didn't know how.
First, there was Yusuke. It was near impossible for May to
figure out what was going on in his head. He was either shouting
or sarcastic or quiet. Since the conversation yesterday died (or
everyone just collectively suffered from overload) at noon that
day, Yusuke had been quiet, spending time in the home gym, but
not really spending time with May.
What worried May the most about Yusuke is something she recalled
about Yusuke's life last night. While he was still a ghost, before
he got his life back, his (girl)friend Keiko ran into a burning
building to save his body. She nearly died; in fact, she would
have died if Yusuke hadn't intervened. The story of May's actual
death was so similar to what nearly happened to Keiko that May
had to wonder if her story revived unpleasant memories in the
teen.
May closed her eyes briefly. Her problem was that she didn't
know how to reach her youngest. Even after seeing his whole life,
she still didn't really know him. He was like a 5,000 piece
puzzle. He may play down the importance ot the important people
in his life, but he'd do amazing things for them. May could clearly
remember how Yusuke reacted to that demon that tried to kill his
unconscious friend Kurama in something called The Dark Tournament.
It was imprinted on her mind because she marveled at the many
ways Yusuke showed, without words, that Kurama was important to him
and all the emotions that ran clearly over Yusuke's face. One
of the things that helped him deal with his anger, fear, and
helplessness was that he was able to fight.
Here, in this situation, the ability to fight was taken away from
Yusuke. There was no one he beat up that would bring May back to
life. On top of this, May would not let him fight the timewalker
Pluto for his older brother or even for vengence for the attempt
she made on his life. Most of the time that he had been with
May centered around waiting, with moments of rushing thrown in.
May smiled to herself. She remembered that Yusuke hated both
states, waiting and rushing.
Then, there was Terry, who was almost harder to read than Yusuke.
Family was very important to Terry, in part due to the murder
of his father. In discovering who May was, she had provided
Terry with another parent, only to yank it away with the revelation
of her death. Over a week ago she gave him knowledge of brothers
from a past life, older and younger. The older one was also "taken"
from Terry by the work of the time walker and a "not-so-white" lie.
What does that do to a young man who values family?
On top of all of this, Terry was more closed up than Yusuke about
everything. Since convincing Terry to come with her, she had taken
away his ability to protect others from crime and pain, both by
barring Batman from this plane and by constraining some of his
actions. It was through his role as Batman that Terry was able
to handle the challenges of guilt, anger, and loss; May had denied
him that.
May looked back up to the sky. 'I seem to have a habit of ripping
away the coping mechanisms of my children,' she thought to herself.
The person that May felt the most torn up about, however, was Reika,
the "almost daughter" from another life. Of all of them, Reika truly
was the walking wounded. She didn't ask for anything that had
happened; she was never given the option of not having to deal with
it. Her engagment was one of the casualities of this skirmish
between a time walker and a former queen. She looked so defeated.
The look that May now saw in Reika's eyes she had only seen once
before, in the eyes of a victim of a racial assault. A song by
a group called Everything But the Girl floated through May's head.
She could almost here Tracy Thorn singing, "Out amongst the
walking wounde, every face on every bus is you and me and him
and her. Nothing can replace the us I knew." Reika must feel
like that, dealing with all the pairings she remembers. Endy and
Dani, Motoki and Reika, Mamoru and Usagi. For someone who a
week ago was just planning a wedding, how do you deal with your
whole life being turned upside down on its head...and then still
having to live it?!
"I take it back," May murmurred to the sky, "Reika has it worse
off that both Mary the mother of Jesus or myself. At least Mary
was given good news and at least I had the luxury of being dead."
May sighed and took a moment to say a prayer for all of those on
her mind this morning...and to wonder and worry about her "other
child" that was out there in that Toyko she saw from her balcony.
*****
In the kitchen Reika sat with a cup of tea in front of her.
Yesterday, it was decided that she should stay in the mansion
with Yusuke, Terry, and May until the last week was up. For
the moment it was a safe space for Reika to try and figure
out her life, but what was she going to do when that space was
gone in a week?
Reika looked done at her tea cup. Her life had given new meaning
to the word "clusterfuck". There was so much to deal with.
First, there were the issues left over from her first life.
She never really got the chance to grieve the love she lost.
She never adjusted to the adrupt shifts in her status. And,
lately, she was thinking that there was something else she was
forgetting or repressing. Something about her little sister.
And then of course, there was the end of that life. How did
she die, and was she alone?
Then there was her current life. She was looking at the wreckage
of an engagement. She hadn't returned calls from friends or family.
She had plans up in the air, some of which she needed to cancel.
Then there was the issue of her ex-fiance. She still didn't know
how she really felt about Motoki. She loved him, but she had
doubts. She was going to marry him, but it didn't feel right.
Actually, a lot of there relationship on her end felt like she
was paying Motoki back for being so nice to her, for making her
laugh and for making her feel beautiful. But didn't he deserve
someone who loved him? Or did he deserve to be with the one
he loved, regardless of the feelings on the other side of the
relationship?
All those problems alone came from just her two lives. Then
there were the problems that were the intersection of these two
lives, problems that can be summed up in one question: What does
she do about Mamoru?
Reika took a sip of her tea, a little annoyed with herself that
her hands were shaking slightly. She was not going to cry again
this morning. She had done enough of that in the last few days.
Crying was understandable. It was like she was a survivor of a
wreck, a wreck that happened when her two lives collided without
warning.
To be honest, Reika really wasn't sure of who she was anymore.
Was she Lady Daniella, Duchess of Amerwest? Was she Reika, a
normal Japanese young woman about to be married? Was she both?
Was she neither? It was near impossible to answer these questions
in her current home. She'd hear Motoki's voice and think she was
Reika, but then she'd like of Endy, of Mamoru, and think she
was Daniella.
The real question was who did she love and what did she do about
it? And, Reika really couldn't answer that question. The Mamoru
she knew as Reika was...an okay guy. He wasn't really her type.
He was too closed off. At times he seemed cold. And, before Usagi
came into his life, he didn't seem to be the type that would get
into a serious relationship. At the same time, she still saw that
under all those walls could possibly be a great guy. And there were
moments, when he'd open a door for her or say something to Motoki
when there was a glimmer of...something that touched her. Maybe
that glimmer was Endy.
Motoki actually reminded her a lot of her, that is Daniella's,
Endy when she thought about it. The love of people, the laughter,
the kind heart...where all so like Endy. Motoki was a little more
confident than Endy; he would make a wonderful doctor some day.
And, at least in some areas of the world, being a doctor's wife
was like being nobility.
All her thinking just seemed to lead to more questions. It was
like looking at a room that desperately needed cleaning and wondering
what to do first. "I'm going to need more tea. Or maybe
something stronger," Reika whispered to the empty room.
*****
In another part of the house, the punching bags in the home gym
were getting a rough beating...and the room echoed with shouts.
"Damn you, timewalker. Girl or not I'm going to kick your ass!"
Yusuke shouted as he charged the punching bag and executed
some kicks and punches. "GIVE ME BACK MY BROTHER!" he screamed as
he knocked the bag so hard that it flew across the room. Then
he collasped.
He'd been in the gym trying to find something to fight, something
to do. All this talking and waiting frustrated him.
If he were more honest with himself, he'd realize that he was
running away. Running away from all the loss and pain and..."Shit."
Finding out that May was his mother was a shock, maybe because she
was more responsible in some ways than the mother he had now. Or
maybe because she was still the pushy lady in his head, the one
that promised him a fight and threatened him with her ax. And,
just when he was beginning to get used to her, maybe even like
her a bit, she announces she's dead. "At least she can still
punch people, talk trash, and walk on the ground while being
dead. It would have been a hell of a lot easier for me if I
could have done that."
Yusuke didn't really know how to deal with any of the craziness
of the last few weeks. He almost wanted to go back to the old
hag's crazy tournament. At least the rules there made sense: fight,
find dangerous demon, stop him, get his bride from Botan. This
world, however, didn't have easy rules for how to get his
brother back or how to understand what happened and was happening.
Damnit, he just wanted to do some damage to something. Fight
something. Maybe that would help.
He looked across the room and saw the punching bag he'd just
knocked over there. He got up off the floor, pointed his
finger at it, concentrated and shouted, "Spirit Gun", using
a now slightly rusty power. The bag was destroyed and a hole
was created in the wall behind it. In a weird way, firing
off his Spirit Gun made him feel better, like he wasn't
just waiting for the next big thing.
*****
He'd never thought that he'd actually miss patrols. All those
times that he wanted to be out with Dana, sleeping, or doing
anything but patroling Gotham, he never thought he'd miss it.
But he did miss it today, because it would be something to
take his mind off of everything.
He honestly didn't know what he thought of everything. Admittedly,
life had been weird ever since the night his father was killed.
Now, knowing he had this other family, a family that was taken
away from him...he honestly did not know what to do.
Terry laughed. Part of him wanted to talk to Max to walk through
all of this, although that would be weird as he was convinced that
Max was Lady Maxine. Then, of course, Lady Maxine was a great
shoulder for Tremaine to lean on. Why should Max be any different.
The more disturbing impulse was a need to talk to Mr. Wayne about
all of this. Wayne would think that Terry was blitzing out on
him, but he could really use some of that Wayne logic and detachment
about now. Knowing Mr. Wayne, however, something like this probably
happened to him. And he probably handled it better too.
Then, there was May. He still couldn't believe she was dead.
Dead people can't talk to you. They don't eat. They can't
touch you. They are just gone. But May insisted that she was
dead. It was a sick twist of fate and May die and then become
important to him. Death was so final. When this little
window of time was over, he'd wake up and the dream would be over.
And he'd be mourning another parent.
Terry got out of bed. Even though it was still early, he was
restless. He didn't sleep well last night. He didn't want
to have any more dreams of a time that he couldn't get back, so
he tried to stay awake. When he did finally fall asleep, he had
a dream about a fire. He was in his Batsuit trying to find
May and Mamoru to save them. But he couldn't find May anywhere,
and the room in which Mamoru sat was blocked by a wall of fire.
Even with Wayne in his ear giving advice, he felt helpless.
There was nothing he could do. "Three guesses what inspired that
nightmare," Terry muttered to himself.
Terry took a deep breath and began to walk toward the bathroom.
Maybe he could just wash away some of the confusion.
*****
Evening fell and the mansion was quiet. The people of the house
really didn't really interact that much all day. In fact, May
had only seen Terry awake. He was kind enough to bring her food
when she didn't want to move from the balcony for...well, any
meal, but he came to check on her at lunchtime. At about 9pm,
everyone else in the house went to bed, probably exhausted after
battling there own demons. But May couldn't sleep yet. Like any
worried mother, she had to check on all of her chicks. She
concentrated and changed into her own timewalker outfit. Sure,
she couldn't talk to her oldest, but she could make sure he was
alright.
****
She stood in the shadows on the roof of a nearby building. From her
vantage point she could see into Mamoru's apartment just barely.
He had come home just a few minutes ago. He looked agitated and
seemed to be brooding. Something was obviously wrong, but what
was it?
She watched him run his hands through his hair for the thirty-first
time as he continued to pace. He looked confused and resigned.
"My poor baby," May said in a quiet voice.
Feeling helpless, May looked up to the sky. "Lord, what do I do
now? How can I help my children?" She felt her eyes begin to
fill with tears. "Can you look after them for me? Will you take
care of them for me?" she asked the night. After looking in the
sky for several minutes more, she turned back to look into in
Mamoru's apartment. "I can't leave, not yet," May whispered
quietly as she sat in the shadow on the roof, determined to spend
most of the night looking over her oldest.
- to be continued -
Hey everyone.
First, I'd like to apologize for the length of time it has taken
me to get this next chapter up. Schoool, life...these things
happen, and when they do, they mess up your schedule.
Another part of the problem is that I'm now taking this story
in another direction...again. The story I thought I was writing
was really almost finished in February. Then I received great
feedback from a reader. In the course of her email she pointed
out that there were a lot of issues that I'd stirred up in the
past chapters that she was looking forward to see how I resolved.
That was when I realized that I hadn't resolved the issues, but
written one of those unrealistic, too "pat" endings that I
absolutely hate reading. So, I've spent some time with the
story and have plan a good 5 more chapters at least to deal with
some of these problems. And some of my original ending (which
is already written) may have to go. Oh, well.
Thank you all for reading and for your reviews and emails. Please
let me know what you think of this chapter and any questions
or suggestions that you have. In many ways it is those emails
that make this a better story.
~December.