A Way Home
Chapter 2 – Decision
"We all fall down sometimes/we all let ourselves down/Sometimes there's nothing left/but to live with what's been done/and know you're not the only one who falls/We all fail sometimes/we all let someone down/Sometimes there's nothing left to do/but to promise to ourselves/that next time we won't be the one to fail/I want to tell you, you can go on/that beginnings come from ends/I still believe in you"
-We All Fall, Superchick
-
I peeled my eyes open and sighed. I had been in the hospital for a while now, and I didn't know when I was going to be allowed out. It was agonizing torture just lying there on the bed and not doing anything. Every now and then, when AM2 would come in and ask me what I planned to do when I got out, I would say, "Go home."
He would always answer me, "Well, we can always take you there."
"Not that home," I would say. "Home to Erik."
"You can't go back there anymore," he would say. "You've changed the timeline enough as it is, and you failed in your task to bring him with you. You're not going to get paid if you don't complete the task."
"I don't care."
"You should." And then he would leave.
I felt like I had made a big mistake in coming back to the future. I had very little chance of ever returning to Erik and Charity, whom I loved with all I had. In the meantime, what if he was executed while I was gone? What then? I was so scared that I might return and find him dead. I didn't think I would be able to go on if that happened.
Then, as though he was right there, I heard Erik's voice in my head. "That would never happen. I love you too much to let that happen. Remember, I am the former Phantom of the Opera."
I nodded to myself. He was right; neither of us would ever let something like that happen.
Joey walked in as I was reminding myself of this. "Hey," she said.
"Hey," I replied. I leaned my head back. "This is so boring!" I exclaimed.
"We've reached a decision," she said. "AM2 didn't want you to know, but you have right to."
"A right to know what?" I asked, picking at the gunk under my nail. Living without nail care products had done serious damage to them.
"That AM2 is planning on taking Dominique to the past, where she can be with her father and sister."
I looked up at her in horror. "What?" I whispered in terror. He was going to try to take my baby away from me!
"I am telling you this because I have an alternative," she began hurriedly. "I know that you want to return to Erik, but you can't leave while you're in this state."
"Sure I can," I replied, sitting up and throwing the covers off of me.
Joey shoved me back down so that I was lying on my back. "No, you can't," she said. "You and I both know you can't leave until you are discharged from the hospital. I also know that you don't trust AM2 to be truthful. We both know that he is someone who will only help others if it's for his own gain."
"If he goes back in time," I mused aloud, "he might drop off Dominique at Henri's, but then take Erik back with him, the way he wanted to begin with. If he does that, then my girls will be without anyone to take care of them."
"Who is Henri?" Joey asked, interrupting my thoughts.
"He's the one who Erik works for," I replied.
"He works for someone?" Joey asked, totally confused.
Instead of answering her question, though, I asked one of my own. "Where's Dominique?"
"She's in her little plastic bassinet," Joey replied, pointing. "Right beside you. Why?"
I sat up straight. "Give her to me," I ordered.
Joey wordlessly picked up the baby girl and gently handed her to me. I took her in my arms and looked down at her sleeping face. She had such a tiny nose, and such miniscule eyelashes. Her eyelids were closed, and they were so tiny, that I had to kiss them.
I looked up at Joey, who was looking at me expectantly. "You have to make a decision," Joey said. "You can either stay here with Dominique, and somehow fight AM2, and probably the entire Council of Music," she paused for breath, "Or, you can give Dominique to me, and give me directions where to take her. Then, I will take her there myself, and return with the belt in time for you to return home.
I looked down at Dominique's sleeping form. Her tiny, itty-bitty lips were pursed together tightly and, after a moment, she cooed in her sleep and yawned as she woke.
I felt a tear trickle down my cheek. I didn't bother to wipe it away. I looked up at Joey, who was standing in front of me expectantly. For the first time, I realised that she was wearing a very old-fashioned dress, the kind that I wore for the longest time; it was the kind that I had worn when I had returned to the 21st century, before Dominique was born.
"You're all ready, then?" I asked. It was made clear that, although years had passed for me, and months had passed for her, neither of us had changed, and she had already known what my answer would be even before she asked the question.
She nodded. "She's still breast-feeding," I said, looking at the pack that Joey had set down on the chair.
"I've brought bottles," she replied. "The plastic kind that can be re-used, and that aren't as hard to clean as the glass kind you're used to using."
I nodded absent-mindedly. I knew I had to give her directions to Henri's house. After I finished giving her the directions, I decided to give her a piece of advice. "Remember," I said. "When you ask to speak to Henri, be sure to tell him that I sent you. If you don't, he could seriously harm you. He has a lot of power, and would make a terrible enemy. Lucky for me, he is my friend, and Erik's employer."
Joey nodded. "Oh, and give him this," I said, a tear sliding down my cheek as I slipped off my wedding ring. It was a very unique ring, and it meant a lot to me. It was made of silver leaves, linked together, and with tiny diamonds on the end of each. I was important to me, not just because it was a symbol of the eternal vows I had taken to always stay faithful to and love my husband, but also because the man I loved had given it to me as a token of his love for me, and that was very important to me.
"Henri will know that you speak the truth when you show him the ring," I said.
Joey looked at me sadly. She knew what I was giving up to be able to get my daughter back to her father and sister. I swallowed hard and prayed that Henri had been able to find a way to save Erik.
Then, I handed the baby to Joey. I knew that she would take care of my little girl. I just hoped that I would be able to get back home in time to repair the damage that had been done to my family.
Joey took Dominique in her arms, and smiled sadly at me. Then, holding Dominique close, she pressed in the numbers. Gradually, she began to fade, and then she was gone. I just hoped that she would end up in a safe place where she could find her way to Henri's.
-
Joey watched as Rebecca and the rest of the hospital faded from her view, and books took their place. I shocked and frightened young woman with brown skin and black hair was staring at her from across the room.
"Don't be afraid," Joey said, but that was all she could get out before the young woman gave an ear-piercing shriek and fainted, collapsing onto the floor with a soft thud. Joey sighed and stepped over the woman, hoping that she didn't wake up with too bad a headache.
She carried little baby Dominique across town, to where Rebecca had said Henri's mansion would be. There was a crowd gathered around the house, and tall man with brown skin and black hair was speaking to them. Whenever he said something, shouts of protestation were heard throughout the area.
"We know that the monstre is in there!" Someone shouted, and the rest yelled along with him.
"Calm down," the tall man said. "Whether he is or not is not your business. Now return to your homes."
"He probably killed his wife!" A female voice from the crowd shouted. There were calls of agreement. "Why else would she have disappeared?" More shouts of agreement.
"Because she went home to have a baby!" Joey called. Everyone turned to her. "And I bring her baby to be taken care of the owner of this house," she added, and pushed through the crowd. She didn't have to take more than a few steps, though, before the crowd parted, and let her through.
She walked up the steps, and handed the little baby to Henri. "Her name is Dominique," she said.
A/N: There you go! An update, as promised. I figured out a way to update from my school, so it's all good now! Yay! Review, please.