Welcome to Gaia! ::

"Do you wish to return?" asked the dark door before Ursula.

She wanted to refuse, to let the soothing peace swallow her up and keep her away from all that unsettled her about the door.

"Do you wish to return?" it asked again.

This time she questioned her desire to refuse. It was always her way to reconsider even her decisions, to look from the other side, to challenge decisions too easily made. Even the feelings of peace and perfection and bliss couldn't lull away that instinct. And it was a good thing too. Unsettling as the door was, it was her. The trepidation she felt wasn't, in the end.

"We can return," the door which was herself continued. "We can return, but you can still choose. We can return, but not as the same. We have been given this gift, the gift of leaving our pain behind. What part of our burden should we discard?"

There was only one choice Ursula could make, but the alternatives tempted her. The pain wracking her body

It would be so easy to leave behind the arm that performed horrible or menial tasks (she couldn't decide which was worse). Or the legs that kept walking her towards empty goals. Or the head that doubted everything and wore away at her resolve. Or the heart that ached for her loved ones.

It would be so easy to leave behind one or the other. She could even leave everything behind. With a fresh start, she could change things, make things better, right?

Or would she simply make the same mistakes again?

Ultimately, her memories might be a burden, but they were hers. They were her. There were memories worth keeping. Painful as they were, she could learn from them, grow from them. Choosing to leave behind nothing, Ursula stepped toward the door, toward herself.

It was peaceful. He liked peace. But something was nagging at him, and for once it wasn’t Haruka. His weapon’s voice was silent, as though she was sleeping in the same peaceful reverie.

The door, Shiloh thought, turning to face it. Black against the white bliss of nothingness, it stood out tall and foreboding.

“Do you wish to return?"

Shiloh stared at it, unsure of how to answer. He was here already, floating in happiness, why did he need to return? He didn’t need to think of sad things here, or the pain of losing his sister. But staying here felt like cheating.

“Do you wish to return?"

He nodded his head. He had remembered everything for a reason, and to remain here was to squander everything beautiful his life had ever given him, and to disgrace the beautiful memories his sister had left him, no matter how sad. Each memory was significant, even the bad, they had shaped him and they made him know what was important. So he knew what his answer was, and it was yes.

He would return, and return whole, leaving nothing behind.

At this point, all that was left was to wait, and waiting was what Clara did. While she watched the world slowly return to normal, Clara swore she heard a voice calling her name.

She was pretty sure it wasn't some voice in her mind...and the voice sounded ever so familiar. The voice's owner...Clara was sure of it. It belonged to Aldara.

Clara was not sure of the technicalities of communication in the void space that she was in, so she figured she would attempt calling out and seeing what the results were.

"Aldara?"

Peace, was this really what it felt like?

Remi thought, starting once at the door which was before him.

"Do you wish to return?"


Its peaceful here... why did he need to?


"Do you wish to return?"

Unknowingly, just a reaction, he nodded his head. Only his head felt... heavy. Too heavy. Something was wrong with it. Something straining there, leaving him weak. Something felt wrong.

Crying to himself, he gripped his head. The bad thing needed to go. With some effort and a hell of a tug, he pulled the heavy object off his shoulders. He didn't need his head anymore.

Quinn rolled over, almost asleep in the feeling of bliss. The feeling of peace, never again conflict.

It wasn't until something spoke to him that he realized there was a door before him. A door that lead out to wherever it wanted... Oddly the door felt familiar.

Did he want to go?

Did he want to forget?

He was still too young to regret. Anything severe at least. His story was jsut beginning.

So he left nothing behind.

The door was an oddity in the serenity and peace that was all around it. It had been rather nice, floating there and not feeling anything in an emotional sense; no fear, nor pain nor a crisis of her undead heart. Because here it just felt safe, but it also felt lonely and the door for now was her only company. If one could even call it that, could one really be company with themselves?

It had asked her a simple enough question, one the girl could answer without any hesitation. Returning meant seeing everyone again with the memories she had recovered, with the ones she had managed to keep along with her. But returning also meant finding the pain that she held but rarely showed.

But she could rid herself of it, the door offered her. Leave it behind, let it all go or even just a part of it. Tear it off and never look back upon it again. It was tempting in many ways, to let the fear go. To let the pain and burdens go that she had experienced; trying to be his friend with Andrew when there was that looming fear of fire, Molan's need to protect and shelter her from all that was bad, Mia's uncertain looks, not being able to find Amarus or Willow, her friends generally not getting along while she was caught between them. All she had to do was rip it away. Olivia glanced down as a hand gripped the fabric near her chest. It would be easy, but it would be hard. Because even in those bad memories, something good always came out of it. Others were attached to all of them, so losing something of herself would mean losing them. And she had already given away so much.

Olivia couldn't bring herself to do it, she probably never could. Because they were her memories and her burdens and fears. She could live with them, she was always able to push through them even when they hurt so deeply. But they were her's, attached to everyone she cherished. She always found a way to smile.

"I'll be happier this way," the ghoul smiled as she pushed the door open. Olivia left nothing behind.

"Do you want to return?"

It was a simple question, but it packed a rather hefty decision that became almost something that engulfed her, looking at the door as she tried to figure out what she wanted to forget.

but, after a moment, she knew what she had to do.

She left nothing.