The Edge

Forget Me Not

Maeli's POV:

I blankly looked at him as he lowered his head. His hair fell to the sides of his face, framing it in the gentlest way. When I looked around the room, a wave of familiarity washed over me. I felt like I had seen it before, but my memory failed me. It was like a sweet dream you try to remember just moments after awaking. 

"W-what do you mean? I'm pretty sure I would have remembered you if I had met you before." Raela leaned against the doorway, her arms crossed and a hint of guilt in her eyes. He lifted his gaze, and for a moment, his eyes held an unguarded depth, as if they were windows into a past I couldn't quite grasp. 

"It was a long time ago," he said quietly, "and under circumstances that were. . . different." A knot formed in my stomach. 

"Different how?" He hesitated, running a hand through his hair as if searching for the right words. 

"It's just. . . this forest, it has a way of drawing people in, even if they don't realize it at first. You have been here before, Maeli." I shook my head, frustration bubbling to the surface.

 "That doesn't make any sense. I would remember something like this."

"Sometimes, our memories are buried deeper than we think," he replied, his voice barely above a whisper. 

"This room, this atmosphere. It's familiar to you, isn't it? The colors, the light? It's like you've walked through this moment in time before."

"Are you sure this is such a good idea?" Raela tugged on Killian's shoulder; concern carved into her face.

"It's too late now. We have to tell her." A sigh escaped his lips, and he clasped his hands together, resting them on his knees. I sat up in bed, urgently waiting for him to continue. 

"You needed to forget what happened. You needed to forget us. We couldn't have you coming back. So, I had Raela take your memories." My eyes widened. Anger began to consume me. 

"You did what?! How is that even possible? I thought she was a healer?"

"I'm no healer. My true ability allows me to alter the timeline of anything that has happened to someone's body, including their mind." My body began to tremble, rage filled my heart at the thought of them controlling what memories I was allowed to keep or toss out.

"So, in other words, we reversed your memories to before you met us." My eyes darkened, my fists clenching the edge of the blanket that covered me. 

"Give them back. . ." My whispered voice shook.

"Give them back to me! How dare you take something like that from me without giving me a choice in the matter!" Raela stomped forward; a hint of misery encased in her eyes. 

"You think we had a choice? We cared deeply for you, protected you! We wanted to keep you safe! Killian was devastated over it! All he wanted was to make sure you lived a good, happy life! Do not blame him for making the difficult choices that had to be made!" I turned my attention to Killian, his head buried in the palms of his hands, fingers weaving through his black hair. I could tell this whole conversation was hard and painful for him. I softened and placed my hand on his knee, trying my best to comfort him. 

"Just do it. Give them back to her." 

"What? Killian, it's not a good idea." 

"Just do it!" Raela clenched her jaw which kept herself from saying anything more. She escorted me to the table nearby. Killian followed, sitting next to me, making sure my weakened body made the short journey to the chair. Raela approached as well, sitting across from me.