Scene 43 - Rebuilding
It had been a fortnight since M'gann had begun to fastidiously repair Kaldur'ahm's broken psyche and already, there was quite a vast improvement. He was back to his old calm, caring, and thoughtful self but he agreed with Miss Martian and Artemis that all of them should keep his recuperation a secret from his father to buy the trio some time to think of a plan to allow the red headed alien to escape.
Now that they were done fixing all the main structures of Atlantis in his mind, they had to begin the arduous task of reconstructing the littlest things including the rocks and underwater plants which contained parts of his memories. For now, he seemed to be obsessed with the notion that Tula was his one true love and his memories of Brianna were that of a teammate from his first year on the Team.
The girls broached the topic that the brunette was his first girlfriend but their suggestions were repeatedly cast aside. "This is no time to be playing practical jokes. I am eager to make contact with Tula," The blonde Atlantean said enthusiastically as he and M'gann fixed a few rocks on the seabed which allowed him to gain several memories from his childhood.
Both of the ladies began to talk privately on their telepathic link.
This is bad; he doesn't even know he was in a relationship with Brianna! Which object symbolizes her? I can't seem to find a treasure chest anywhere. Even those grand looking statues aren't related to her! The archer exclaimed with frustration and the Martian replied calmly. We have to be patient, Artemis. Fixing psyches takes a lot of time and we should be thankful he is no longer a vegetable.
The blonde sighed out loud and it appeared that Aqualad was done fixing the little bits of the landscape but a huge chunk of his memories was missing. Where could they be?
"Is that all from my psyche? It feels like a part of me isn't back yet. Some of the years seem unclear and jumbled up," Kaldur spoke once more and there was a slight desperation in his voice.
M'gann reached over to place a hand on his shoulder, "Kaldur, is there anything you remember from your past that is really important to you? Maybe the first time you held a water bearer, or being accepted as Aquaman's apprentice, or perhaps going to the surface to join the Team?"
It just so happened that the last part of her sentence rang a bell to Aqualad and instinctively, he looked up at the "sky" in his psyche.
Something triggered within him and he said a sentence out loud, "The stars were bright that night…"
Artemis's interest was piqued, "Which night?"
The Atlantean kicked his foot off the ground to swim upwards and he thought carefully, "The first time I came to the surface. It was night time and the stars appeared to be greeting me."
As they reached the highest point, Kaldur'ahm frowned, "It looks disjointed." Suspecting that perhaps this was part of his psyche, he reached out and allowed his finger tips to touch the heavens. It shimmered under his touch, revealing numerous black spots dotted throughout the sky. "M'gann, I think this is another broken part of my psyche…" He whispered and the alien grabbed his hand to begin the healing process.
The first patch of the sky he fixed, a memory of him and Brianna kissing flashed through his mind. He was a little stunned by that scene and wondered what led to that so he doubled up the speed of the repair work. Bit by bit, various parts of his relationship with the brunette came flooding back to him, filling up the gaps in his memories.
So, they were telling the truth after all… From his confession to her realization of her feelings for him to their first date and various anniversaries, he slowly fuelled up his love for her. It also appeared the moment of Tula's death was up here too and while he was saddened by her death, he felt happy that he and Brianna were safe, alive, and would be able to make through any hardships.
Finally, he and M'gann reached the last patch of sky and that contained scenes from their first Valentine's Day where they joked about meeting on a set of constellations they invented. It was from that moment on that he equated the shining stars of the Milky Way to his ever burning love for Brianna. Kaldur'ahm saw her as his sky.
Wiping away a tear, he smiled at the red head, "Thank you, M'gann."
The Martian smiled back and calling it a day, the trio left Kaldur's psyche and "returned" back to his quarters. Just in the nick of time, the troopers brought them dinner which was a simple fare of juice and sandwiches as Black Manta was afraid his son would choke on more complex foods.
Once they left, Tigress then began the process of hand feeding Kaldur but blocked the camera's point of view, allowing the Atlantean to eat his bread independently. All of them began talking on their psychic link.
We've made very good progress today. M'gann, if you get out of here, I want you to tell Brianna the truth. Kaldur spoke hopefully and the alien shifted in her seat.
I already did after our encounter on the Reach ship. I'm sorry but I had no choice…The girl was apologetic and the Atlantean shrugged it off.
It's alright. What was her response?
The red head inhaled and replied. She was sympathetic at first but then she became furious at you for keeping the truth from her. Brianna still hates you… I tried to reason with her but apparently she is not pleased that you weren't honest with her.
Aqualad could only blink sadly and wasn't too surprised by his ex-girlfriend's reaction but he couldn't help but hope for the better. He exhaled and said sadly. I understand… Now I am even more determined than ever to be done with this mission for good and explain it to her personally.
M'gann then made a suggestion. I can pass the message to her for you if you want.
Kaldur drank the pre-offered water from Artemis. Thanks M'gann, but this is something I need to do in person. Please give her my best regards and tell her I will talk to her soon. Even if it would take him months, he was willing to re-build their relationship all over again from scratch.
Author's Note: This chapter takes place in between "The Fix" and "Runaways". I decided to just write the part where he regains his memories for Brianna. To under the sky reference, please read Chapter 20: Valentine's Day. ;)
I got the stars and sky idea from an indie game called, "To The Moon" where one of the characters and his wife promised each other to "meet on the bunny on the moon" if they ever got lost. It was very sweet that I found it appropriate for this couple.
To keller75863548274483: Thanks for the suggestions but I've already finished this story, just posting them up in bits so people have time to savor it slowly. =)
To Eszra: Thanks! You're so mischievious. =P
To Masmune lover: Thanks, I hope you log into your account soon!
To Molly Grace 16: Yup, you're spot on. Thanks again for reviewing! =D
To piggythelaw: Oh don't feel bad about being relieved, this is a Kaldur/Brianna fic after all. ;)
Thanks for the chocolate!