Unstable Memories

Edgar has a hard time realizing he is back to the real world

Chapter 6 �" Unstable Memories

 

 �" ...No? �" Cosack can’t believe what he’s currently hearing. You can see his face of disappointment for a second, which makes your heart scream you to change your mind. You start to sweat at the thought of what he could try to do to you because of your no. His reaction however is unexpected, to say the least. �" Well then... I don’t think I can keep up with this anymore.

 

 As he approaches you your mind starts to race until he unlocks you..? �" What’s... what’s the big idea Doc? Not going to kill me or enslave me... On second thought... �" You start to freak out because of the suggestions you are giving him. He just shrugs you off and sighs.

 

 �" No... Like I said I don’t want people following me against their will. I want people who I can trust, but I’ll only trust them if they come to me by their own free will, and that’s not what happened here. �" He analyzes you from top to bottom, as if he was looking for a flaw in a machine. �" But I can’t see why you refused. Care to tell me why? Once you’re done you’re free to go.

 

 �" Oh... �" You don’t think you can hold in the tears that are forming inside you. Will he really let you go if you just give him a simple answer? �" Well, if that’s the case... I don’t want to join your cause because your idea of an ideal reign is stupid... �" You try to tame your tongue, but you don’t want to tell him lies or half truths. �" You can’t make a whole city submit to your will just because you have power or influence. Some would rebel, and many would die. Besides, I don’t want people to respect me out of fear. That’s just plain wrong... Sir. �" You’re still skeptical about what Cosack will do with your answer, but surely enough he gestures you to leave the room. Takeshi and Hirusha try to stop you, but he lets them know that you have a free one-way ticket to anywhere but there. They look at you with angry faces, especially Hirusha, like her little pet dog was being taken away while you make your way out.

 

 �" Don’t think this is over kid! If I stumble across you again you won’t like what happens next! �" Hirusha barks at you, making you flinch and apologize for any trouble you gave her. �" Yeah, that’s how I like it! Now scram! �" You don’t waste time there anymore, but bow to Takeshi before leaving. That catches him off guard, making him bow back to you. Looks like he really is just obsessed with the idea of people having a more polite demeanor.

 

 

Natasha

 

 

 �" Mom, dad, I’m going to the hideout. My friends could need something, and I can’t sleep no matter how hard I try. �" You barely finish your explanation as your parents jokingly shoo you with their hands.

 

 �" I know it’s about Edgar that you can’t sleep honey, it’s okay. �" Your mom makes you blush quite a bit. How did she figured it out?

 

 �" Anyways, I’m leaving. Don’t know when I’ll be back, or... �" They let you know that you can come back whenever you feel like. Wow, your parents, especially your father sure are being more reasonable with you tonight. It makes you happier than intended, but you manage to control yourself while you walk outside like a normal person.

 

 As you make your way back to the hideout you look up to the black sky. The stars are quite beautiful and easy to see. Suddenly you see a shooting star flying by, making you wish for something rather special... �" I wish Edgar makes it out in one piece, and I hope I get to see him as soon as possible... 

 

 You then see an average sized teenager around 17 years old with very short black hair, despite some visible dark grey strands making him look like he just had to carry the weight of the world in his back. He wears simple, longer than average black pants with a rather tight black t-shirt, both of them having white stripes to their sides. Black laceless shoes with a white base can be seen in his feet. Even closer inspection reveals a white ring with a single black stripe on his right ring finger. It doesn’t take an expert to see who that boy is, and if you were holding something right now you would have definitely dropped it. It’s...

 

 

Edgar

 

 You look around with a rather sad expression. You can’t feel like this is the same city you grew to love and desire to protect anymore.

 

 You keep looking around to make sure no one will try to gang up on you like they once did. Despite your Powers being back you still feel like anyone could break your arm with a chop if they wanted to, making you extremely nervous to even look at people.

 

 Something you stopped paying attention to was the sky, which despite the rather bright lights of buildings around it’s still incredibly beautiful and with visible stars in it. You can’t help but appreciate the sight while making your way to... the hideout... Will they really be your friends, or is this another alternative reality made by Cosack? Your answers are short lived as you spot a rather familiar girl staring at you with wide open eyes, like she just saw a ghost. For some reason however it takes you much longer to realize who she is.

 

 A girl with short, kinda messy black hair. She’s also quite shorter than most girls her age, but what stands out the most are her clear white eyes, almost as if she was blind, which she isn’t. She wears a long sleeved shirt with outside shoulders with long pants similar to yours, the main diference being that her shirt has two different shades of blue for her torso and her sleeves, and her pants also being of a similar shade of blue. She wears a pair of dark orange sandals, resembling gold, breaking the blue pattern. She also wears a necklace with an orange sword-shaped pendant made of steel. It’s her... It can’t be...

 

 She slowly walks towards you, opening her arms for a hug, but the way she does it is almost as if she couldn’t control it. You can almost taste the joy in her face for seeing you... Someone is feeling joy for seeing you, especially after what you did... How..? You don’t seem to realize the tears forming in your eyes as you make a terrified face thanks to a thought: what if I kill her like I did before?

 

 Merely thinking about that makes you immediately fall on your knees, more tears streaming down without your consent. She stops dead on her track as she hears you whisper between heavy sobs. �" I’m so sorry... Please forgive me...

 

 �" Forgive you... for what..? Edgar, you’re making me... �" She starts to sob with you, but nowhere near as intensely. Soon she decides to kneel down and hug you, which only makes you feel even worse, because it makes you remember what you did to her last time she went for a hug. You can still hear it breaking in two like a wooden plank...

 

 You can’t bring yourself to hug her back, instead you just stay there apologizing for things she can’t understand.

 

 After a few more minutes of sobbing and apologizing she finally decides to take you back to the hideout. Once there you see your friends, except for Bastion, beaten up, which makes you think that it was your fault, until you remember that it was... Magnus’s fault... Fergus, Magnus, such strong opponents... For some reason thinking about fighting them again fills you up with determination, restoring some of the light to your eyes. Once they realize you’re there, they go for a hug, but seeing them coming for you makes you back off in fear... All you expect is Rose with a knife, Derick pummeling you like a ragdoll while screaming like a wolf for some reason or even Bastion with his cold blooded glare. Instead they keep going and hug you so tightly you’re almost breathless, making you blush quite a lot... You have friends... Friends who care for you and your safety... You start to sob lightly, taking everyone aback.

 

 �" ...Edgar, are you... Crying? �" Rose asks in disbelief as she slowly lets you go while analyzing you like someone who’s heavily diseased. The others do the same, shocked expressions in their faces. �" What... What happened to you in these 9 hours? �" 9 hours..?

 

 �" I... I was out for 5 months, not 9 hours... �" Everyone is stunned by this comment, not knowing what to do with the information given to them.

 

 �" 5 months? What are you talking about? You’ve been out for 9 hours, and I counted! �" Derick says, annoyed at your comment. You flinch at his sudden angry demeanor, something everyone notices.

 

 �" Yes... Maybe I... �" You shake your head wildly. �" No, I know what I’m talking about. I’ve been out for 5 whole months! I counted! �" You fight back, but your voice squeaks a bit, making you look down. �" Sorry about that...

 

 �" ...We need to look for help, because you’re anything but fine right now. �" Rose suggests while everyone agrees.

 

 

 �" Why are we going... there..? �" You ask everyone, who’s taking you back to the deadly trap that is your house. They seem to be confused at this question, but answer regardless.

 

 �" Maybe someone from your family could help us... �" Rose’s comment alone makes you stop dead in your track. You family? Helping? The very thought makes you try to run away, but almost as if Derick saw it coming he grabs you by your arm, looking at you with an uncharacteristic face of sadness..? Everyone else looks at you with weird mixed expressions, the prominent being of confusion.

 

 �" Going somewhere? �" As quickly as it came he let go of it, bringing back his overconfident face again. �" If you are, that’s the wrong direction buddy. We’re going to your home right there. �" He then points to where your house is located.

 

 �" Ah... �" You try to play it cool. �" I... already knew! I was just going to... �" Derick finishes the sentence for you.

 

 �" Run away, scared..? �" That catches everyone but Bastion, for some reason, off guard. �" Dude... What happened to you? �" For the first time since you can remember Derick shares genuine concern over something, that being you of all things. Your lack of answer is enough proof for him. �" I knew it... But don’t worry! Whatever’s inside that house that makes you of all people scared will have to deal with us! �" He reassures you.

 

 You decide to reluctantly keep going for your house, but the closer you get from there the more livid the memories of that false reality comes to play, terrifying you further. Now within inches from the door you instinctively close your eyes and embrace yourself for the usual beating your father is sure to give you, but once you enter all you see is your family, your real one, about to finish dinner. Once they realize you’re in they stop eating to greet you.

 

 �" Oh, so decided to come home today? �" Your sister asks while sipping her drink.

 

 �" Well, if you’re all here might as well serve yourselves. �" Your mother says with such a cheerful and soft voice... When was the last time you heard her voice like this? You don’t remember, but something you notice is that your father isn’t home. Good grief...

 �" Well, we’re not hungry but thanks anyways. �" Natasha says as everyone agrees.

 

 As you walk in you avoid eye contact with your mom, instead looking down with a sad expression. Before she can ask you why of that you bow to your sister and instinctively ask her.

 

 �" Hello madam... Do you wish for something..? �" She laughs at first before answering.

 

 �" Well, if you want to do something for me you could bow for me like the queen I am! Just... �" She says with a rather comical tone to her voice, but before she can finish her sentence you immediately kneel down with one fist on the ground while saying.

 

 �" Edgar Wildwest at your services. �" That makes her feel extremely uncomfortable, and even blush a bit.

 

 �" Hey... Knock it off you jackass. I was just... �" She, again, can’t finish her sentence as you stand up, already apologizing.

 

 �" I’m sorry! I should have knew better. �" The tension in the room raises exponentially with your weirdly formal behaviour. As you just stand there Derick makes that sad face again, but no one seems to notice since he’s the one furthest in the back. Despite it you don’t stop behaving this way as you ask her. �" Where’s f... Where’s Diask?

 

 �" Right here you punk... �" Your father says while placing his hand on your shoulder and changing your gravity, making you feel heavier. That freezes your spine with chills, but that doesn’t stop you from losing balance and falling like a rock. Upon landing you say while sobbing once or twice.

 

 �" Just end this quickly, and please... don’t break my leg again. Last time you went for it I could... barely go to the academy. �" That makes everyone, and especially Natasha and your mom get so shocked that your father just let go of you while forcing you on your feet by your shoulders. His glare is so deep it’s almost as if he was staring at your soul.

 

 �" ...What? �" He asks with such a deep voice it makes you flinch. You have never heard him talk this way before, and you’re scared of what it could happen. �" Looks like you’re all in trouble, big time. �" He says while looking back to your friends with a menacing face. �" Kid, what happened in these past 9 hours, what really happened. �" He asks with impatience in his voice while letting your shoulders go. Another person saying that only 9 hours passed.

 

 It takes you some time to put yourself together and grow a backbone big enough to talk with your father with some confidence in your voice. �" I... I wasn’t out for only 9 hours, I was out for 5 whole months... �" As you see their expressions of what’s-this-kid-talking-about you start to tell everything that you went through, you fighting Fergus and being captured by Magnus, you meeting Tenesse Cosack and how he throwed you in a world where everything was different, and there you stayed for 5 months. You don’t tell them what actually happened inside that world regardless of how much pressure they placed on you, but once your father looks to you he decides to not make more questions about it. You wrap everything up with how you started wandering around when you found Natasha.

 

 It takes a good minute for everyone to absorb the situation. Your mom is the first one to run for a hug, with her usual sobbing. �" How can I call myself a mother while my son is captured by bounty hunters and tortured by a maniac! Oh son, please forgive me! �" You hug her back, saying that everything is alright. Feeling your mother’s hug is so good after so long that your grip is tighter than what you wanted, making her “oof” a little, which immediately makes you let her go while apologizing. �" It’s okay son. It’s only natural after everything you went through...

 

 �" So, what about this Cosack guy? Should we teach him a lesson? �" Derick speaks up while clashing his fists. He really wants to punch the guy that did that to you. 

 

 �" I’m in! �" Bastion agrees with Derick, surprisingly. �" No way I’ll let someone that does such thing to my friend get away! �" His determined look is enough proof that he’s serious about this.

 

 �" Well, if they’re going in might as well make sure they don’t get caught the way you did... �" Rose sighs at the thought of having to deal with the group’s shenanigans again, but she smiles regardless. �" I’m in.

 

 �" Well... If everyone’s in, I probably should... �" You freak out at the thought of having Natasha trapped in a similar scenario as you did, making you step in and disagree with her statement.

 

 �" Listen Natasha. You don’t want to know what’ll happen if he does the same to you, so please... �" Your voice fails as she speaks louder, a determined look in her face.

 

 �" This Cosack guy took you hostage and tortured you like you were some guinea pig, and all of that to try and make you join him! Despicable! No way I’ll let you go and face him again by yourself! �" Her fierceness is almost tangible, making everyone look at her. She realizes this and blushes mildly, lowering the tone of her voice. �" But of course that’s up to you...

 

 �" I don’t think so young lady. �" Your father steps in. �" You’re far too young to do anything remotely close to fighting someone, let alone someone that can do this kind of damage to my son of all people. �" Hearing that makes you extremely proud for some reason. �" And besides, your parents wouldn’t like the idea of her daughter putting herself in unnecessary danger for someone else, and if they find out it’s Edgar, well... I’ll have to deal with their complaints for a good while, so no thanks.

 

 You don’t dare to disagree him, but at least now you can breathe somewhat normally knowing that Natasha won’t take part in whatever your friends come up with, and that he won’t fist your bones to dust at any second now.

 

 �" Well guys, thank you for everything. �" You bow politely, making them uncomfortable again. �" But I think I should have some rest now...

 

 Before you do anything else Natasha suggests you to sleep over her house... Why though, and why her of all people? �" I mean... What if something happens to you while you’re sleeping or something... �" She looks around, avoiding eye contact with you. As you look over to your father and sister you see their characteristic smug, signalling that something’s up and you should know what it is, but you don’t.

 

 As sudden thoughts of nightmares haunting your sleep come to play you decide to agree. When you say you will your father starts laughing so hard he uses his Power on himself, cracking the floor a bit. Mom gets upset at it and smacks his head. When you look back to Natasha her happiness is visible, which is odd. Why would she be so happy with something as normal as you sleeping over her place? And you nonetheless! It seems that your face gave your question away because you see Rose and Derick holding their laughs back with a fist.

 

 �" Well then! Let’s get going before it gets too late. Besides, Derick and Rose aren’t fully healed yet, so you should also go home and do something about those bruises. �" Natasha says while gesturing for you to follow her. Derick, and Rose just shrug their pain away with a tough guy/gal face, but that makes them hiss a bit.

 

 

 As time goes on and everyone is at their homes you are greeted by Natasha’s parents: Ted and Grace. They give you some fruits before you go to bed because of how hungry you were and didn’t notice until now for some reason.

 

 Once in Natasha’s room you lay down on the floor while she goes to change her clothes. �" Don’t you dare peek here or I’ll... �" She closes the door of her bathroom before finishing her sentence. While she’s at it you start to wonder if it’s normal for a boy to be in a girl’s room like this without them having some connection... Those thoughts go away once you analyze her room. It has a yellow with odd green symbols for wallpaper, one single, but larger than average bed, a lamp next to it, her wardrobe which is rather big for your taste and her computer. That makes you wonder if she play games, and which...

 

 

Natasha

 

 �" Alright Natasha, you can do this... �" Your breathing gets considerably heavier while you change your clothes. You take off your unique and favorite shirt and pants to put a pair of simple shorts and a plain white shirt with a more open collar than most, exposing one of your shoulders.

 �" This will do! He likes simple things anyways... �" She stops. �" And maybe that’s why he doesn’t look to me this way... Maybe this wasn’t a good idea after all, not for him at least... But... �" She looks to the door with a worried face, like she can’t make her mind up. That make her breathe in and out once more before leaving her bathroom.

 

 

Edgar

 

 Once Natasha finishes changing clothes you can’t help but blush a bit. The outfit she seems to use to sleep is... something you enjoy looking at. She sees it and blushes a bit too. You try to look away so it doesn’t get any weirder, but you keep coming back to her.

 

 Eventually she goes to her bed and you give her good night while trying your best to sleep on the hard floor, but it doesn’t take long for you to realize it won’t happen. You also see she can’t sleep either for some other reason, and when you’re about to ask her why she looks over to you and gestures you to go over to her bed... Wait what?

 

 Your body freezes on the spot. Why though? You don’t think you would act this way before all of that happened, but something about the way she calls you feels... rather wrong. Regardless you do as she says and lay next to her while facing up. She does the same and you just stay there, doing nothing, before she starts to make questions.

 

 �" So... How was it inside that world? �" Your eyes close a tiny bit while you make the face of someone that got stung by a small splinter. �" I... I mean, you don’t have to actually share with me or anything! It’s just that I think that there’s something you don’t want to tell me... �" She have no idea.

 

 Since you don’t tell her what you did to her... You shrug the thought away and wiggle a bit, something she notices and get worried about. Regardless of that she decides to talk a bit about the things you did on recent times.

 

 �" Do you remember that one time when we went over to the Overseer’s Peak 3 months ago and saw how beautiful the view of the sunset was? �" Did it really happened? It’s hard to tell since you don’t think you left your room around that time spam. �" Or that one time you saved Lucy from her uncle? �" That girl who’s parents turned on you, was her name Lucy? And did you really saved her? �" Or that one time on Halloween when Bastion and Derick dressed as a sheep and a wolf? Bastion was so cute, but Derick was really cool. You just dressed as a generic martial artist. �" You don’t think you remember celebrating Halloween, instead doing something else in your room... Wait, in fact you don’t even remember anything before the 5 months timeskip, let alone all those things she’s telling you. Your head aches a bit from all of this sudden information about what you did and didn’t.

 

 �" Listen Natasha. All of those things we did together as a team... It hurts to remember them. I hope they come back naturally with time, but right now I don’t want to think about that. �" You let her know before readying yourself to leave her bed, but she grabs your neck and asks you to stay.

 

 �" Just... Stay here. �" She tries to come up with an excuse while blusing a mild red. Since when she could get this cute in such way... �" I don’t want you to rest on the floor, and if I have to share room, if it’s with you... I don’t mind at all...

 

 With that you decide to have things her way and lay down again. She lets you go and turn to the side to sleep. �" Thank you Edgar, and good night.

 

 �" Good night Natasha... �" You swallow nothing while giving a hint of what you didn’t wanted to talk about. She deserves to know after everything she did for you. �" And... sorry for what I did to you. I promise I’ll never act that way again, ever.

 

 She just shrugged it off and said. �" We’ll have enough time to talk about that tomorrow. Now you should rest...

 

 

Natasha

 

 �" Turn around and hug him, turn around and hug him! When you’ll have this opportunity again you dumbnut? Just grow a backbone and do it! He won’t mind, you know he won’t! �" You think to yourself while holding back a tear. True, you don’t know if you’ll have another chance like this, but it would feel forced and... wrong. He isn’t in his best mental condition, and abusing it wouldn’t be something you could forgive yourself for doing, so you just swallow your tears up and try to rest.