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Lilynne flitted through the trees in her small pixie form. Her brow was wrinkled softly with worry, her olive green eyes searching the park for her boyfriend. They hadn't been dating for very long, but in that short amount of time they had grown close - and LiLi had developed an attachment for both the elf and his son. When Niko had called her at Thali's to say that they "needed to talk", she immediately knew that something was wrong.

Just what that something was, however, remained unknown to the pixie - and it was eating at her. The fact that she'd decided to fly instead of poof straight to him didn't help either, it just gave her more time to worry. Once she finally arrived she grew to her elf size, though she was still very petite in comparison to actual elves. Her shimmery golden wings glinted in the sunlight, but couldn't quite draw away the anxious that took over her features when she spotted Niko. He looked absolutely miserable. Quickly, she stepped over to stand before him, studying his expression worriedly.

"Niko, what's wrong?"

LiLi blinked in surprise when the elf suddenly embraced her, but pushed her away just as swiftly. What was going on? She watched him with a startled look, listening attentively to everything he had to say. At his initial words, her heartbeat hastened, her brow wrinkling and eyes drooping slightly into a sad expression.

Then one phrase stuck in her mind and repeated itself on a loop, almost drowning out the rest of what he was saying. ...don't want to remember... She had heard the same words before, spoken by her friend Jasmine. "Sometimes I don't want to be the only one who remembers," she'd said, speaking of the tragedy that had befallen her and her elder sister. Jas was the only one who remembered because Drysdan had tried to erase both their memories, but Jas was too affected by the event to forget.

Now Niko was too affected, too broken by his loss. By the time he kissed her, she was already smiling despite the situation. She knew how to help! As soon as he had finished speaking, she took his hand and smiled up at him brightly. "I have an idea," she said softly, an almost mischievous tone to her voice. How clever she was to have thought of this! Before he could reply she quickly transported them both to Jasmine's tree. "She can help with the memories." It didn't occur to her that it might seem to Niko like she was talking about the tree.

The pixie turned to look at Niko and quickly wrapped her arms about him in a warm hug. "Don't worry," she said softly, "we can work this out. I'm not going to leave you and Demy."

"Not the tree, the Dryad," LiLi corrected gently. Her normally cheerful, light-hearted tone was replaced with one slower and quieter. It wasn't too common for the pixie to act completely serious - but this was one of those rare times when it was necessary. Absolutely necessary.

"This is Jasmine's tree," she said, her face brightening as she said her friend's name. She and the Dryad had known each other for quite some time; and despite the fact that Nia was the closest LiLi had to a mother, she and Jas were like sisters.

"I promise," she reassured him, slightly bothered that he had flinched at the hug. He must be really upset....

Just when the pixie began to worry that Jas might not be in her tree, the Dryad appeared. Despite the fact that she was one of the oldest Dryads in the forest, she appeared to be in her mid teens. She studied the elf with a curious look, standing at a short distance from the pair. After a moment she spoke up, giving them a knowing smile.

"You are Niko?"

LiLi nodded in reply to Niko's question. Yes, Dryads. Who else did Niko expect her to befriend in the forest? The Nymphs were the only ones there aside from Drysdan and a few trouble-making spirits.

When he suddenly jumped at Jasmine's appearance, she put a hand on his arm lightly to reassure him. Then he relaxed and she smiled softly. No one could really be intimidated by Jasmine; she was too childlike. Then again, so was LiLi. Maybe that was why they were so close.

Jasmine blinked at the elf, giving him a bright smile in response to his question. "You are LiLi's. I could tell. She speaks often of you. And yes.....I can help."

LiLi blinked repeatedly, perplexed by Niko's surprised look. Did he expect her not to talk about him? ..... Was she not supposed to? Everyone in the forest knew that while the pixie was incredibly kind, she was equally talkative. Not to say that she gossiped - at least not in a malevolent sort of way. If you needed good news spread across the forest fast, LiLi was your girl.

The young Dryad could tell, even without looking at her friend, that she was surprised and slightly hurt by Niko's disbelief. Her soft, serene smile stayed on her features as she nodded in reply to the elf's final questions. When it came time for her to explain just how she was able to help, she took a few small steps closer and softened her voice - this was something Drysdan shouldn't find out about. "I can take the memories."

Jas instructed the young elf to sit, explaining that since there were so many memories it would take longer for her to extract them. She also knew she had to be careful not to erase his memories of his son, Demyx. LiLi spoke of the little blonde almost as often as she did his father. It would be more than tragic for her to accidentally erase him. The Dryad would never forgive herself.

Once Niko was seated comfortably she placed her fingertips lightly on his temples. The placement wasn't necessary, but helped her concentration while sifting through the whirl of memories. First, she sent soft, relaxing energy into the elf so that he would doze lightly and not panic at the strange invasive feeling of having her sift through his thoughts. Then she gradually sifted through all the memories involving the elf's ex. Some of the memories made her frown, others made the task almost painful to perform - but she kept telling herself that it was better than the alternative.

When she was finished she felt drained - like she'd been forced to sit in the corner of a room and watch events unfold for one, possibly two years, unable to look away or rest her eyes; but it was worth it. Every sight, sound, feel, smell of Trish was gone from Niko's mind. He would remember coming to Jas for help, but not what he needed help with. Before she broke contact, she double-checked that all his memories of Demyx were still intact, with a weird blank in the place of his former fiancé.

Trembling slightly, the Dryad pulled her hands away from the elf's dark hair and gave him a small smile. "You can open your eyes now, Niko," she said quietly, wary of startling him. Then she nodded to LiLi, who had been holding Niko's hand the entire time. The sprite smiled brightly and hugged the elf, relieved.

LiLi seemed almost to glow when the elf threw his arms around her. Her wings fluttered behind her as she returned his embrace, her smile so wide that it left dimples in her cheeks. The pixie couldn't possibly be any happier. When she answered, her voice was an excited squeak. "Yes! Of course, yes!"

She was so caught up in the moment that it completely escaped her mind to thank her Dryad friend, who was quietly sneaking away.

Jas's steps were somewhat shaky as she headed for her tree. She needed to lay down before she fell over, but the couple's apparent happiness was well worth it. As she went to phase into her tree, she suddenly realized that she would probably need to sleep a long time to recover from the memory wipe. That meant she needed to ask Theo to take care of the baby rabbits she'd found the day before. She quickly used the last little spurt of energy she could muster to phase to her fae.