Of Love and Death.

The Present Chapter 14: The Past Pt. 5

A blast of heat, like Shu had just entered a furnace, hit him. It felt like he was standing in the middle of a roaring bonfire. In a lot of ways, he kind of was. After all, apparently, he was made of the same stuff as bonfires. And forest fires. And all kinds of fires. The heat was much appreciated. He felt surrounded by something familiar. And almost safer than ever before in his life.

There was the crunch of hooves on stone as Valt hopped down next to Shu. They both stood on the hill for a second, getting their bearings. The "world" in front of them was vast. It seemed to go on forever, into the murky horizon. That being said, something told Shu his head wasn't that big. It felt like an optical illusion, the horizon. Like how the world keeps going in video games, but the character can't go there.

"So, where to first Mr. Mind?" Shu asked with a joking smile. The words got the desired reaction from Valt. The other blader snorted, trying to hold in laughter. After a moment, Shu's best friend seemed to calm down a little bit.

With a smirk, Valt pointed to what looked like a random spot on a random hill, somewhere in the northwest of Shu's view. It wasn't any different than the rest of the lava covered landscape, but it was. Now that his boyfriend had pointed it out, there was almost a tug there. "So the way your mind works," Valt began, lowering his hand, "is that your memories are scattered all over the place. Most people are like this."

Okay, that made sense. Shu was pretty sure. He nodded, even with his uncertainty. "So, then, that place you're pointing, is that my very first memory from when I was Fire?" he asked. Even though that would make sense, Shu didn't feel like it was true.

Shaking his head, Valt confirmed Shu's suspicions. "No, your first memory is an existential crisis in a bundle and then some. I, um, I'm pretty sure that over there is when we first met," the blue shadow explained with a dash of embarrassment. "I figured that was a little bit easier to swallow.

"Besides, it doesn't really matter where we start, and we don't have to go find all of your memories. You know how you may not immediately remember a story someone starts telling, but then it comes back? It's like that. One memory will probably trigger another, and then another."

"A domino effect," Shu summarized. He got a nod from his boyfriend letting him know he'd hit the nail on the head. Now that the white-haired blader was fairly certain he understood - as much as he was going to - he turned back to the spot Valt had been pointing. "Let's get going then."

* * *

When Shu reached the spot Valt had been pointing out, he immediately knew that there was something special. It just felt that way. Light and heavy. Like tasting a well made mousse. Except he was tasting it in his chest. Feeling it. Closing his eyes, Shu let the memory that this place invoked wash over him.

How Mind's telepathy had sacred Fire out of his wits. The way the asteroid had felt underneath his feet. Hard and smooth and as cool as anything could have been. Him not being able to pronounce telepathy, and freaking out that Mind had discovered how forgetful light was. How Fire had definitely not used his wings to make himself look bigger when he got spooked. All of it. Every single beautiful and messed and glorious moment of meeting the man who would one day become the love of his lives.

A smile broke out on Shu's face. Everything was beginning to come together. He could feel himself trying to push at the barrier in his brain. He could feel it weakening. What had happened next? What had happened after he and Mind had parted ways? It was blurry. But he was starting to get an idea. Starting to remember a glowing white orb that he'd called home.

Turning around, Shu faced Valt. It wasn't like he'd suddenly remembered everything. It wasn't like all of the sudden, he understood everything about his life. But that feeling of Deja Vu he'd had throughout his whole life had changed. It felt less like a ghost of a dream. And more like the familiarity when you go back to your old school. Awash with the memories of everything