SKETTY24 and HUGHLOVERX :D!!! WHOOO!!! Here's the next chap :D!!! And yah, the professor's going to play a major part in the story from this point on ;). After all, he's the one who's going to help our Yuriko put her past together ;)! With a little help from Logan (and Stryker) of course )!

Chapter 84: The past is inevitable

The professor calmly exhaled, closed his eyes and slightly bowed his head down. His hands gently gripped on the armrest of his wheelchair as he tried to block his mind from Stryker's memories, before they cloud his senses. Now was also not the right time for reflections or self-pity. There were more important matters at hand…matters that needed his immediate attention, before it was too late.

He opened his eyes and looked directly at Yuriko. "Do you still want your past back?" He asked. There was a tone of directness in his voice.

Yuriko's eyes opened wide and her chest tightened as she heard the professor's question. She had almost forgotten about her past. Ever since she woke up, the only thing she wanted was to see William again. Her past didn't matter to her that much anymore. She just wanted both of her friends back. To have them both back in her life would have been enough for her to let go of the past and move on to a new future...to start anew with them like the people they once were. But when she found out that William was starting to remember his own past, she had lost all hope that she would have him back. She had also lost hope that she would have her past back too, because Stryker's mind was now closed to the outside world. But it seemed like it still wasn't too late for that yet.

"What do you mean?" She asked, looking at the professor.

"As long as he still hasn't remembered all of his memories, I might still be able to override the neuro-chip in his brain and combine your memories with his. But we have to do it before he regains his consciousness. Because once he regains all of his past while we're in the middle of the process…I might lose you both." He said firmly. His eyes never left Yuriko's. "And that's why I need your decision now, Ms. Oyama. The more we postpone the process, the more dangerous and risky it's going to be."

He was now giving her the choice. Now was the time --- the only time left for Yuriko to decide the fate of her past, her present, and her future, and the professor hoped that she had finally made her decision.

Yuriko breathed in and slowly nodded her head. Now that Stryker was gone, she had no choice but to unravel her forgotten past.

Then she softly spoke. "You said that while he still hasn't remembered everything, you can still override the chip in his brain." She said softly. "Professor, can't you find a way to erase his past before we end the process?" She asked hopefully, longingly. "I want him back…I want him back as the man I met two days ago." She said, hoping…looking for a glint of a sign in the professor's eyes that it was still not too late for him.

The professor returned her gaze with a firm look. He understood her…he understood her all too well. Because if he too had the choice to bring Eric back in the way that he was, before he became the human-hater Magneto, he would. He would.

Charles' shoulders drooped and he shook his head from side to side. "You can't have both him, and your past back." His words echoed in Yuriko's mind. They felt like shards against her raw skin. "Stryker is beyond my powers now." He added. "He cannot hear you, or me. Even if I try, I won't be able to stop his memories from regaining their rightful place in his mind. Each and every one of his past memories is now like a grain of sand, sifting through the chip in his brain. And if I try to interfere with the process, if I try to alter his state of mind, I could kill him." He said factually. His voice never showed a hint of doubt or confusion.

"If it weren't for the microchip, I could easily erase his past and give him back to you as the man that you found by Alkali Lake two days ago. I know he would have wanted it the same way. He told me so himself. He told me that he would want nothing more, but to live the life of the man he has become." He said.

In his talk with Stryker yesterday, he was able to form a bond of friendship and understanding with the man. Without Stryker's hatred for mutants, he was a naturally good person --- A man who had a passion for life. He was a wise man, a caring man, who knew the difference between right and wrong, friend and foe.

In fact, the professor discovered that they had more in common than he thought they did. And he was quite amazed when Stryker spoke of 'mutants' in a positive way. Stryker talked about mutants as if they were the gifted ones. The notion of mutants 'amazed' him. He marveled at how mutants could contribute to the betterment of the world, and how they could save people's lives with their powers. There was even one time in their discussion, when Stryker said that he wished he was born as a mutant, so that he could rightfully belong in the mansion and stay there with them.

And that had left the professor with the feeling that, like Yuriko, he too was losing a friend that he had just met…a man who could have been an ally, even a comrade in their aid to create peace and harmony between humans and mutants. Stryker's connections in the government and in the military could have helped them in their goals. But it was too late for that now…and at least it still wasn't too late for her.

A sad sigh escaped from Yuriko's lips as she looked down at her fallen friend. She knew that what the professor had said was true. She knew that she could never bring him back as the man that she wanted him to be. It was too late for that now. This was goodbye, both for him and for her. This was where their story was going to end. It was going to end in tears and silent goodbyes. And the sad fact was, he wasn't even able to see the tears that she had cried for him and him alone. He wasn't even able to hear her tell him how important he had become to her, and how much she had cared for him.

Yuriko leaned down and moved her lips closer to William's ear. Grouped strands of her ebony hair fell down the sides of her face and covered the sadness in her eyes. They shielded her sadness from the view of both Logan and the professor.

"Goodbye, William." She whispered. "I know you can't hear me now…" She said faintly. "You probably don't even know that I'm here…but if you're still there, listening silently, I want to thank you…for giving me another chance to see my old friend again. Thank you for letting me touch a part of my past even if it was only for a short period of time. Thank you for letting me look into the eyes of the person I thought I had lost forever." Yuriko forced a sad smile on her lips, and then she closed her eyes and gently pressed her temple against his cheek. "Goodbye…" She whispered again.

She slowly pulled her face away from cheek, and took a second to stare into his empty eyes for the last time. She couldn't believe that this was how they were going to part. She couldn't accept the fact that this was how they were going to say goodbye. She gently slipped her arms from his torso and carefully lay him back down on the bathtub, in the way she had found him there earlier. She tried to avoid looking at his face as she let him go. She just couldn't bear to look at his lifeless visage again.

Then she stood up and looked at the professor. This was it. This was the time. This was the moment that was going to change her life forever…or rather, give her, her real life back. But before she could say anything to the professor, she stepped out of the bathtub and stood right next to Logan. She looked at him, and Logan's eyes looked into hers.

Logan knew what she was about to do, and he was ready for it. He knew that this moment would come, whether he liked it or not. She was now about to uncover her past. It was the past that 'he' feared as much as she did, because he knew that she would see the animal that he once was. But something about the way that Yuriko was looking at him right now lessened that fear in him. Something about her gentle dark eyes calmed him, telling him that everything was going to be fine. And deep inside, he knew that Yuriko would accept him despite the animal that he was once. He knew that Yuriko would not judge him for the sins that he had committed in the past. He knew that, because she loved him even then, when he was the animal that he himself could not stomach. She once 'loved' the man, the 'animal' that he himself hated.

Kurt and Rogue suddenly appeared right outside the doorway of the bathroom. Kurt had his arms wrapped around Rogue while a dark cloud of smoke, with almost the same color as Kurt's skin, started to dissipate around them. They had just teleported from the lower level of the mansion. Rogue was on her way up to follow both Logan and the professor when she ran into Kurt. She found out that Kurt was telepathically contacted by the professor to go to the second floor because of an important matter.

Rogue gently pulled away from Kurt and walked inside the doorway. Then she stood there, and placed her hand on its frame as she looked at Logan and Yuriko. She noticed the intensity in their stare. She had never seen Logan look at someone in that way before…not even her…and she couldn't help but feel a hint of jealousy. She loved Logan like an older brother, and she considered herself as his best friend in the mansion. But she had never seen Logan look at her like that…not even once.

Logan was looking at Yuriko as if she was the only one who truly knew who he was. There was a certain gentleness and deepness in his eyes that she had never seen before. Rogue couldn't help but wonder how Yuriko was able to 'tame' Logan in such a short period time. He seemed captivated by her, almost entranced and engrossed, and they've only known each other for less than two days, while she herself had known Logan for almost two years. What did Yuriko have that she didn't?

Logan's eyes never left Yuriko's. He stared into them. He memorized her face, as if this was the last time he was going to see her looking at him. Then after a few seconds, he breathed in and nodded his head. That meant that he understood Yuriko's final choice. That meant that he would accept whatever their future would bring.

A nearly invisible smile curled up the corner of Yuriko's crimson lips, and she nodded her head in return. Logan's nodding was a sign that he would be with her no matter what. It was a sign that he was never going to leave her, like he did so many, many years ago when they parted their ways. She knows that when she opens her eyes after the procedure, he is going to be there to welcome her back. And she couldn't wait to look at him again, holding all of the memories of their past together.

Neither of them said a word as they stared at each other for the last time, but the look in their eyes was enough to say what they wanted to stay.

Yuriko turned away from Logan and focused on the professor. She had a determined and unwavering expression on her face. There was neither fear nor doubt in her eyes. She looked like a woman who was ready for anything, even death.

"I'm ready." She said firmly. There was no turning back now. She had made her final decision, and this was it. She was finally going to have what she had always wanted for the past decade of her life. She was finally going to have her life back, her identity back.

"Good." The professor replied with a brief nod.

He turned his mental attention towards Kurt. He had sensed Kurt and Rogue's presence ever since the two first appeared outside the doorway. "Kurt, take Stryker to the medical facility in sub-basement level 1, room B14. Quick…We don't have much time." He said. There was a sense of urgency in the professor's usually calmed and collected voice. He didn't even turn around to look at Kurt.

"Yes, professor." Kurt quickly replied.

He suddenly disappeared from outside the bathroom, and in less than a second, reappeared right next to the bathtub. Then his eyes immediately opened wide with shock as he saw Stryker's lifeless figure laying there within the white porcelain bath unit. The smudges of blood on the white tiles and the thick red liquid on Stryker's face almost made Kurt want to puke. And there was something in Stryker's bloodshot widened eyes that deeply disturbed him. It was as if the man's soul had escaped with the blood from his body. It was something he had never seen before, and hoped would never see again.

Kurt gasped and quickly turned to his side. "What happened to Mr. Stryker?" He asked worriedly. His words trailed hastily through his German accent.

"This is not the right time for questions, Kurt. I'll explain it all to you later." The professor replied. He hoped Kurt would understand the urgency of their current situation.

Kurt hurriedly nodded in approval. Then he quickly stepped inside the bathtub, and positioned himself so that he was on his knees on the tub, and on top of Stryker. Without wasting another second, he leaned down and wrapped his arms around the unconscious man's torso, and the two of them suddenly disappeared in a blue cloud of smoke.

Right after Kurt and Stryker disappeared from the bathroom, Yuriko turned her full attention towards the professor. "What now, professor?" She asked.

"We follow them." The professor replied. Then he looked at Logan. "Will you be coming with us?" He asked, looking firmly at the taller man.

Logan pursed his lips and exhaled. He looked at Rogue, who was still standing by the doorway, and then he looked at Yuriko. There was a sense of longing in Yuriko's eyes, begging him to come. He knew she wanted him to be there with her, maybe even hold her hand, as a husband would his wife while she was giving birth to their child. And maybe he really would hold her hand while she was undergoing the memory procedure. He wanted to touch her and be with her while she was in another time and in another place. He wanted to hold on to her, and make sure she wouldn't slip away.

He looked back at the professor. "I'm going with you." He said gruffly.

Rogue suddenly spoke up. "I'm going too." She said immediately.

She took her hand off the frame of the doorway and stood up straight. Like Yuriko, she too had a determined look on her face. She had never had that much friends in her life…The only friends she'd ever had were the people in the mansion. And now that Yuriko was one of them, Rogue was determined to stay by her side too.

"Very well." The professor said. He looked at Logan and Yuriko. "Let's go."