Chapter 9: Memory Relapse

(Same day before trial)

After spending at least an hour in flight, I finally reached home. The hyppogryph landed right in front of my house. A human girl rushed out to greet me and I recognized her as one of mothers nurse maids.
"Kai, how wonderful it is to see you again." Sonia said as she reached out and hugged me. "Are you here to visit your mother? Or were you a bad little boy again and was sent home from school?"

I chuckled lightly from embarrassment over the thought. I leaned slightly to her with an almost whispered voice "you might say that"

Sonia grins at me as she had expected much, even though in truth it really didn't end that way in the Academy. I moved on to our conversation "How is mother doing? Is she alright?"

"Your mother has not been doing well as of late, but she is putting up with it quite well. She seems to have more energy today since she knows your coming. I'm assuming she is doing this not to make you worry so much."

I smiled. My mother was always the strong willed type. Should anything come around to make her seem the weak and fragile kind of woman, she will force herself right up and face the day like it was a challenge from hell. Sonia walked inside with me. As we entered the house, she stepped in to my mother room and notified her that I was there. Mother had asked Sonia to step forward and take an envelope to have it delivered urgently. When I finally decided to come inside, there she was laying on the bed with her bed sheets covering her all the way up to her waist while she read a book. She gave a weak smile, but heaven forbid me to make notice of the weak part of it. I rushed over to hold onto her and sat beside her in the bed.

Mothers hug felt frail but again, I didn't make it noticeable to her. The long, waist length dark blue hair flows down my arm, and as I pulled away slowly. I held a strand of it in my hand and stared at it for quite a while as I noticed that it was the only thing in her that seemed healthier than her health.

"What is the matter with you Kai?"

I snapped back to reality "Oh, nothing mother. How were you doing?"

"Ugh, I answered that question far too many times today; I want to know how the academy is treating you. So, what have you learned so far?" Her eyes were anxious, filled with curiosity. It felt like my mother was back to her healthy self again, but even I knew that was not true. I knew that deep down she was simply trying to keep how she was truly feeling inside to herself. "Well, I learned about hybrid eggs that are being used and am currently caring for one right now, all the while raising a wyvern cub".

In that very moment, Yuki pops up from out of my bag and leaps on top of my mother lap. She begins to purr as she pets Yuki on her head. "What an adorable little wyvern cub"

That Yuki can easily win the heart of anyone with her large eyes and cute nose. She purred even more when mother picked her up and held her close to her. She then looks at me with her eyes narrowed.
"Now…we both know the question I had asked you wasn't much about the lessons you have learned in the Academy, but rather more about the subject that has been in this house."

I swallowed hard. I knew it was coming; I just wanted to push the thought away. "Subject? What subject?" I felt this was a mistake already by pretending not to know.

"Kai, I am your mother, and as such, I know everything about you. Do NOT take me for a fool"

She was not going to make it easy on me. Sonia slightly looks back at me and from the rear of her eyes I can see she was enjoying this torture. After finally setting the bowl of Drakari soup, she walks past me and patted my shoulder in pity as she "Tsk tsk tsk, you should know better Kai" and suddenly teleports herself to where ever mother had sent her. Where do I start and how do I tell her? Is all that crept in my mind.

"I'm waiting" She definitely was not going to make this easy for me. I scratched my head hoping to stall just a little bit. I honestly didn't want to talk about this; I felt her health was more important than what has been happening in school. "Kai, I'm becoming very impatient". I flinched for a second after she said that in her 'very annoyed voice'. I took in a deep breath and began explaining every detail, and when I mean every detail…she literally wanted it in full description. She didn't seem all too surprised when I mentioned that it was Leira's fault.

"Ah…I see." Mother said as she held her chin curiously.

"What?" I wanted to know what she was meaning with that. "Mother?"

She looked at me with devious eyes and a crooked grin. I thought; is there something she knows that I don't know about? Surely mother made no mention afterwards. She simply asked me to help her up.

After helping her get off the bed, she held onto my arm. She took a deep breath and held it in momentarily. After exhaling she smiled and started to walk with me out of the room.

"So, all this happen because little Leira couldn't keep her temper in check and you just so happen to be there to take the fall…" Mother began to chuckle softly as she covered her smile "...just like she used to when you were both so very young."

I gaze at my mother wide eyed. She began to chuckle even harder when she saw my reaction. I personally didn't think it was so funny but apparently I was missing out on the joke. How in the world does she know Leira? What does she mean, when we were very young?! I never met Leira in my whole life; is my mother finally losing it? But then I remembered what Leira had told Vellamoon that night in the Hymn Garden. Perhaps mother can shed some light to that.

"Mother..." I asked as we finally reached outside the house, she looked at me with a clever yet mischievous smile. Looking at her made me panic somewhat, I wasn't sure what she thinking.

"Yes Kai? I'm waiting".

"Uh…yes. Well, I wanted to ask you since you seem to know who Leira is…and…"

"You don't remember her, do you son?"

Was I supposed to? I asked myself

I swear, if it isn't one thing in my life that doesn't get any more complicated, it would have to be this. Now I'm somehow supposed to remember the woman that made all of this happen to me. If she was someone who loved causing trouble, I see no reason why I would even bother knowing her in the first place. Mother pulls onto my arm leading me to the bench. The sun was shining above but it wasn't too hot with the cool breeze. It seemed to make mother feel better to take in that fresh air and sun light. I sat next to her. I loved watching mother's long dark blue hair dance within the breeze. She closed her eyes during that. I waited patiently for her to answer. When she finally opened her eyes, she smiled softly as she brought up a memory she knew long ago.

"I remember when the two of you used to go by the lake, tossing stones across the water. Her mother and I were watching over the two of you. Your father was at his first post in Dolonar at the time, till he was transferred to Night Song Forest. The lake was always a good place for us to spend time when our husbands were away. Leira was already starting to miss her father…" Mother gently took my hand onto hers "…You was such a brave and warm hearted friend to her. I recall that you stop throwing stones just to sit beside her. You told her that as long as she always felt alone, you would always be there for her no matter what."

"That's impossible, I would have remembered that, why is it that I can't recall any of this your saying?" I gave my mother a concern stare, but all she could tell me was…

"That is something your father can explain better Kai. I was not there when the accident happened."

Accident? This is news to me. Surely if something had occurred to me then I would assume my parents would be considerate enough to tell me about it. I held my mother's hand firmly and pondered, of all people why would it be my father to not tell me anything about this…Accident. I stood up and looked over at mother and at Yuki who was lying asleep under mother's feet. I had asked her if she wouldn't mind watching Yuki until I returned, explained what I was going to do. I knew that if I wanted answers, I would have to go and ask him.

Mother looked up at me and pondered if I was ever going on my way.

"Don't you think you need to rush over to your father for answers?"

I snapped out of it and padded the Hyppogryph to fly me to Night Song Woods as quickly as it can beat its wings; but before doing so I gave my mother a kiss. I mounted the Hyppogryph and the beast understood and flew off. Night Song was not very far but it did in fact give me enough time to figure out the kind of questions I wanted answered. This was starting to bother me. I want to know what happen when I was young and why he kept this secret from me. Finally reaching my father's post, I notice from above that my father was talking very close to Aruhulu. I wasn't really jealous, just that…it didn't look appropriate. When the beast landed I was approached with Aruhulu hugging me. My first intention was to grope her large breast but I hesitated on that thought. I dare not receive another unwanted slap from her.

"It is good to see you again Kai" She said as she kissed my cheek and almost touching my lip.

"Thanks, I missed you too Aruhulu". I glanced at my father who was happy to see me there too. When he came closer to ask me how mother was doing, I stopped him before hand and simply blurted out "What happen to me when I was a kid?!"

My question had drawn my father back. He was literally in shock and was caught completely off guard by my sudden impulse to ask that question. But of course I would; it's all based on my past life to which this man has refused to notify me of, which by the way, includes nutsy Leira in the mix!

"Well…uh…um…what do you…mean?" I gave him a blank stare that practically read 'seriously?' on my face.

"The accident dad, you know, the one that left me forgetting someone named Leira" Father cleared his throat before responding.

"Ah…that accident. Hm…" Father took a moment to compel himself back to composure when suddenly he replied with "…well, that was a terrible accident and let us not speaks of it again. I lost a great beast that day and I really think you should put that behind you" Soralai my father starts to walk away slowly and stopped abruptly when I called out to him.

"Father!" I haven't been in a good mood lately and for him to tell me to put it behind me was absurd. "Tell me what happen and why I can't remember Leira"

He sighed heavily. He held his back turned to me and asked Aruhulu to please wait by the flight stand to greet incoming allies in flight. As Aruhulu agreed to do so, father walked beside me and told me to follow him. We walked over by the shed that was once used to stable the injured or fatigued Hyppogryphs. My father didn't seem too happy to be here, but I was beginning to feel a sudden pang in my chest. My heart was starting to race and my head felt as though it were throbbing, as if not wanting me to remember what had occurred here. Father then grimly looked at me as he then opened the shed doors. Dust particles and threads of silk from old spider nests blew out from it. As I slowly walked into the shed, flashes of images came before my eyes. Distant memories echoed in my mind as I recalled a young female's voice yelling out my name.

"Kai! Look out!" and suddenly fading away the minute my father started telling me what had occurred.

"This is where you had the accident, right here where I'm standing." I walked towards him as I can see an old blood stain on the ground. "If I hadn't come in on time, we would have lost you that day."

"What…exactly happen?"

Father took a moment, hesitating for a brief second. He then sadly looks at me and begins to tell the story:

(Distant Memory)

"Father! Can Leira and I go see Kaijin in the stable?" the young night elf boy humbly asks his father who is posted at the Night Song Woods flight paths. The father, speaking to a priest that had just landed for an errand, told the boy to wait.

"Hold on Kai, I'm very busy here. Why don't you go over there and play with your friend while I handle things here"

The boy looks upon his father with disappointment. He simply takes the little night elf girls hand and guides her with him. "Come on Leira, he's too busy to say yes to us." The boy stopped in that moment looks over to the shed with a grin in his lip, he then turns to Leira with excitement. "Let's go Leira, I'm sure father won't mind if we took a quick peek!"

Leira, hesitantly holds back from being pulled by Kai. "I…I don't know about this Kai. He told us to play over here."

"Nah, its ok, we're only just going to look." He didn't wait for Leira to protest. He simply held her hand tightly and dragged her off with him. He pulls her in close to him and tells her she will be safe with him by his side. She blushed and nodded. "Ok, follow me".

Following Kai and going behind the shed and climbing up the barrels to look into the large window, they could see the injured Hyppogryph lying down. Leira knew there was something wrong with the beast as its breathing was rasp and his cooing was almost aggressive. It showed that the beast pain was making it very uncomfortable as well as irritable. Leira thought to herself that even she would feel the same way had she been ill for so long. Kai then begins to open the window high enough that his little body could fit. Leira grabs Kai by the arm with both her hands, shaking her head no and warning him not to, but little Kai did not listen. He shook his head with a smile and continued further. Sliding through the window, Kai accidentally slipped from the window and fell behind the injured Hyppogryph.

The Hyppogryph Kaijin was startled and got on its feet. Kai, barely able to stand up, face down had not realized what he had done. Leira watched in horror as the Hyppogryph began to screech and tromp its hooves onto the boy.

"Kai! Watch out!" She tried to call out before the blows of the beast hooves hit. Screaming, panicking and crying she ran off to get Soralai. In doing so, his father ran ahead of Leira to the shed as he could hear his son screaming in pain and stopped abruptly as he finally reached the stable. Soralai threw open the doors and there before him was the beast thrashing its hooves on his son's body. Kai was wounded badly from head to toe. Fearing his son to be near death, Soralai took up a heavy shovel and lifted it above. The minute the beast landed down its head, Soralai crashed down the shovel, severing the beast head clean off. He then drops the shovel and hovels over to his son who was barely breathing and bleeding terribly. The priest who was still there and had run behind Soralai as he raced to the shed approached the boy.

"Please…save my son. He is all my wife and I have."

The human priest nodded and gently touched the boy. Healing him slowly and stopping the bleeding wounds. After the bleeding stopped, he made mentioned that the boy was near death and that the blows to his head, as an experienced medical healer, knew that it would lead to Amnesia. Soralai took the boy home. For several days, he rested and his body progressed but his mind was lost. It took the parents several weeks to bring back his memory, but Leira, poor Leira was never remembered. She came often to greet and spend time with Kai, until one day she ran home in tears…

Father made an emphasis that no matter how much he tried to tell me who Leira was as a child, I never was able to remember her. I had changed that time she had last come to visit me; and the blow to the head? That made perfect sense since I had always felt a slight cut on my head, healed, but still there. Throughout all of that, I never could have imagined how it all happened till now. I felt almost bad for Leira, for me to never remember a person like her who tried to stop me…but…can it be that she is the same Leira they are talking about? She certainly doesn't seem like it since she was the one who got me into this mess, and the Leira they speak of was preventing me from getting into one. Ugh, my head was hurting from thinking too much about it.

Father put his hand over my shoulder and smiled greatly as I returned the smile back to him when he told me. "I thank Elune for providing us with a priest on that day. Had he not been there, I would not have been able to see my little boy grow up to be a man. I'm sorry for never telling you what happened. I just wanted to forget about that horrifying incident."

I held his hand and nodded. I kind of figured there would be a reason. Still, there was also that matter of Leira mentioning the Lunar Festival and being betrothed. So I took that moment to ask him about it.

"Father, there is something else I would like to discuss with you about."

"Oh? What can it be I wonder." Father chuckled to himself as he crossed his arms pondering of the question.

"Well, you see, it's about the lunar festival. Do you know anything that is…I don't know….supposed to happen on that day in particular?"

Father grinned wickedly at me, just as much as mother did. I was beginning to think they were both in cahoots with each other. I narrowed my eyes at him and he began to laugh.

"I'm assuming you know already, correct?" I nodded to him as he continued "And I bet you think it was our idea, as your parents to set it up, right?" I nodded again with furor eyes as father begins to laugh to himself almost trying not to laugh out loud. "Well! The jokes on you son, we were not the ones who made that arrangement."

"Then…who did?" I couldn't imagine anyone else but them or her parents.

"It was…well, you Kai".

I was in so much shock…that everything went black.