050 - Farewell Blues

[jammin_with_ed]

[Edward's laying on the grass outside, goggles haphazardly shoved up on her head. Her computer all but forgotten at her feet. She saw the nameplate gone earlier today. She'd figured as much since she hadn't seen him around for a little while but it didn't make it hurt any less.

She sighs, watching the clouds drift by and thinking of her friend.]

Jet's gone... Ein's gone... Why is Disa-Disa sending Edward's friends home?

Comments

[jammin_with_ed]

Look into Edward's mind? How?

[cricketycricket]

Didn't I ever tell you? [he smiles and reaches out to tap her forehead] We Time Lords are a bit on the psychic side. I could see if I could find the holes in your memory.

[jammin_with_ed]

[Her eyes get wide and she stares at him.] Psychic? [She nods] okay. Edward's curious. Cuuuuuurious!

[cricketycricket]

Alright. [he sits up, cross-legged, and smiles] Doesn't hurt a bit. I don't even have to touch you, if you'd rather - though it helps. Especially since - unless you've been keeping it a very careful secret all this time - you're not psychic, yourself.

[jammin_with_ed]

[She sits up, folding her long limbs to mirror his position. She makes a face, giggling]

Nooooo. Edward's not psyyyyychy psychic.

[cricketycricket]

Well, then. [he smiles, bolstered by her reaction. he's always wary about dipping into humans' minds, since comparatively, in a lot of ways, they're far more fragile. it's easier if they're actively willing and curious, somehow]

Why don't we start with you giving me your hands.

[jammin_with_ed]

[She nods, holding out her hands. Willing and curious? Edward is both of those and more as she intently watches the Doctor, waiting to see what would happen next.]

Okay.

[cricketycricket]

[he reaches out and gently takes her hands in his, nodding slightly] Good. Now, close your eyes ... and just relax. Don't even try to think about anything in particular. Think about ... whatever you like, really. [his own voice trails off softly, as he closes his eyes, too]

Sort of like daydreaming ...

[jammin_with_ed]

[She just nods and closes her eyes. Her mind drifts but it mostly bounces around the fact that she's immensely curious about what he's doing]

[cricketycricket]

[he'd be a little disappointed if she wasn't, honestly - that sort of curiosity is exactly what makes him so fond of her. he puts his own feelings aside - though she'll likely get a glimpse at them before he does - and starts to make his way though her mind. it's hard to know exactly where to start looking for a loss, for sure, but there are ways to begin, certain paths that will always lead to something useful. he speaks, softly, just loud enough to be heard]

What are some of your best memories, Edward...?

[jammin_with_ed]

Meeting Empu [Her thoughts flash to an image of a satellite carving pictures in the surface of the Earth] And going on Bebop and meeting Ein and Spike and Jet and Faye-Faye! [Her mind drifts to the ship and the crew within. The ship may look like a falling apart hulk of metal scraps but she adores it and it's as close to a real home as she's ever really had.]

[cricketycricket]

[as close to a -- hmm. he senses her ties with Spike and Jet and Ein and Faye, and realizes they're close, like family - he's floating around the thought, he's almost at it -- but he's too close to her own stream of consciousness to make the leap. he takes a step back, mentally, to appreciate the ship itself, and the thought of how impressive Empu's AI must have been --- and then, once he feels a bit more connected to his own mind, he goes back to those earlier thoughts. the connectivity, and -- yes. yes, there it is, there's the next question he wants.]

And your family ...? What of them?

[jammin_with_ed]

Family?

[She frowns. Why would he ask that?] Edward never knew Edward's mother-person. Edward was alone for a long long time.

[It's like moving backwards in time. Before the Bebop she traveled around the desert countryside staying in broken down buildings until they were destroyed by rock showers. Years before that she'd found her way into an orphanage run by a nun, but she only stayed there a short while before wandering off again. She has fond memories of that orphanage... mostly related to the food and playing with the other kids. Before that was more traveling. Before age 7 the memories seem to jump around erratically with large gaps and holes throughout She skims through them without really focusing on anything.]

[cricketycricket]

[those gaps and holes ... either she simply can't remember due to youth, or they're her loss. it's hard for him to tell, at this point. the orphanage, though, that makes him think:]

And your father? I'm sorry if it's a hard subject, but ... what happened to him?

[jammin_with_ed]

Edward's... father?

[She tries to think about him but any time a memory rises it slips away. The gaps are more evident - now including even the reason she left the Bebop. Amidst all of the gaps is a name: Francoise. There are glimpses of the rock showers peppering Earth and the craters they leave behind. A gift for her from the nun at the orphanage... but not what it contained. Bits and pieces each missing one key factor that ties them all together]

[cricketycricket]

Yes ... [and as much as he might try to gently coax any of those memories out of hiding, to see if they're simply repressed ... they're not there. which is even worse. he sighs, quietly, at each black hole he identifies in her memory]

... I think I may have solved it, Edward.

[jammin_with_ed]

[She opens her eyes, blinking curiously at him]

You have?

[cricketycricket]

[he sighs softly as he carefully withdraws from her mind, his words heavy and slow]

Yes, but ... you're not going to like it.

[jammin_with_ed]

[She blinks, watching him] Edward isn't?

[cricketycricket]

No. [he sighs. there's no kind way to say this, nor any easy way. he doesn't want to be blunt, but really, he has no choice]

I'm afraid you've forgotten your father, Edward.

[jammin_with_ed]

Edward's... father?

[She frowns, confused]

[cricketycricket]

Yes ... [he keeps his voice even and quiet, but sympathetic, even as he explains] When I looked into your memories ... at all the places it seemed like he should be ... I couldn't pick up on anything. It's the same sensation I get when I try to remember what happened right before I regenerated.

[jammin_with_ed]

[She frowns, thinking. She scrunches up her face as she tries to think. She HAD a father person didn't she? She had to. Now that she's actively trying to think about him she realizes she can't..... And she can't quite remember why she even left the Bebop.]

[cricketycricket]

[he's quiet for a long moment, giving her time with her thoughts]

... I'm sorry, Edward.

[jammin_with_ed]

[Surprisingly she seems okay with this after the initial 'huh.' When she smiles it's small but genuine]

Edward was alone for a long time. Bebop and everyone at Disa-Disa is Edward's family.