Where am I? ...damn, this hurts. I don't remember anything that has happened... in fact, I don't remember anything at all, not even myself. It may sound ridiculous but who am I? I can't seem to recall my name or where I'm from. Why..? What happened..? What's wrong with me..? Your eyes slowly opened, adjusting to the intensity of the sun's rays. Upon your head was a cloth, drenched in cool water. You felt your forehead with the back of your hand, realizing that you had a small fever but it wasn't too warm. You figured that you would be fine. Finding the strength in your sore limbs, you sat upright, the folded cloth dropping from your forehead into your lap.
A blanket had covered you but you pushed it off of your chest quickly enough. You glanced around the area, noticing that you were in a small room of some sort, decorated with wood-- a smooth oak for the walls, for the ceiling, for the floor. It smelled of wilderness as if you were laying in a bed of pine boughs. That was hardly the case though; you were laying on a bamboo mat, fashioned out of narrow strips of bamboo. For a split second, you paused, wondering if you memory would come back if you simply willed it to.
"I see you're awake now." The voice belonged to the old woman you had heard on the beach the last time you were conscious. You turn to lay your eyes upon what you had suspected-- she was very elderly. "Drink this," she said, handing you a small cup of steaming liquid. "It will help you heal." You noticed that her hair was a faded shade of pink and fell in waves at her shoulders. She was a small woman but she seemed to possess a sort of energy which kept her spirits high, despite her age. "Well, how long are you going to stare at me like that?" she snapped, making you realize just what you had been doing.
"I'm sorry..." you replied, finally finding your voice, though it was dry and ragged from disuse. How long had it been since you had last used those vocal chords?
"Well, quit apologizing and drink that tea. You've been out for four days now and you need to recover your strength quickly."
Four days? I've been out for that long? I feel so groggy so I'm not surprised. I may as well have been knocked out for days. You brought the steaming cup to your mouth and took a small sip of the tea, nearly gagging at the strong, foul taste.
The old woman studied your expression with an almost amused look on her face. "It's medicine; what did you expect? If you want to get better, you'd better drink it. No pain, no gain." She crosses her arms. "I guess you're out of the loop-- I found you on the shores of my training ground four days back. You were conscious for a brief moment but not long enough to communicate with me, so I took you in. When you're fully recovered, you're free to go." You remained silent, almost confused at what she was saying. "No need to gape at me like that. Tell me, what's your name?"
Unfortunately, you had issues with that question. You simply shook your head. "I... I don't know."
The elder woman lifted an eyebrow, and her hardened expression intensified. "That doesn't make my job any easier." She knelt down besides you, staring into your eyes as though if she looked hard enough, she could find your name written upon your facade. "Hm. Perhaps a few days of rest will do the trick." She stood up again, walking toward the sliding door. Moments later, she returned with a tray of food, something which you greatly appreciated. From what you gathered, you hadn't had a good meal in days, and your stomach quickly confirmed that for you.
After a small meal of steamed buns and vegetables, you thanked the woman, only to realize that you didn't quite know her name.
"My name is Genkai," she said with a bold expression on her face. It seemed as though she was used to having everyone know and respect her. "This is my estate. I don't usually get visitors up here but I suppose that you're an exception, whoever you are."
You sighed softly. "Thank you for your kindness. I wouldn't be alive if it weren't for you," you said. Mumbling underneath your breath, you added, "What am I to do?"
Genkai obviously heard you. "It's small kindnesses like these that keep humanity alive. You young people seem to forget." She folded her hands behind her back. "Stop sniveling and continue with your life. You won't get anywhere by simply mourning over what has already happened. You may not remember anything but if that's so, then it's time to begin a new life, something which you can remember and mold with your decisions." There was a small smile on her face. "Now let's see how sturdy your feet are."
---
You were guided by Genkai, though you obviously weren't very steady-- your legs were shaking and you were generally very wobbly. It was almost as if you had forgotten how to walk. You learned quickly, however, and you were soon roaming Genkai's estate as though it were your own. Genkai certainly didn't seem to mind. She called you back after about half and hour, making you wonder what she needed you for.
"This is Yukina," Genkai stated, introducing a smiling girl with turquoise hair. She appeared to be rather well-mannered and gracious toward you, saying her hellos eagerly while volunteering herself should you need anything. "Yukina lives in the estate with me-- she is where you meals come from so be grateful." You couldn't say that she was the best cook in the world but food, in general, was amazing when one did not have anything to eat for days. The elder woman looked at Yukina. "This is the girl I found on the shore. She doesn't have any recollection of herself or past events but a few days of rest and food may work wonders. I trust that you'll be willing to help her around?"
"Of course, Genkai," Yukina replied. Her eyes sparkled as she touched your shoulder. She was shorter than you and wore a light blue kimono. "Well, it looks like we will have some time to get to know each other." A smile graced her delicate features. "You're definitely welcome to spend some time with me. I do a few chores for Genkai usually but, for the most part, I have free time to spend doing whatever I please. Come on." She led you around the temple itself, sliding a door open.
You followed, curious about what she had to show you. Once you were ushered inside, you noticed that there was another presence in the room. A large, bird-like creature was nestled warmly upon the floor! You noticed that it had a black mane with ocean-blue feathers. There were hardly any words for your surprise.
"This is Puu. He seems to be getting larger day by day... Genkai says that soon, he might have to stay outside." She walked up to the creature, resting an assuring hand upon his neck. "Wake up, Puu. There's someone who I'd like you to meet."
Puu craned his neck around his body to take a good look at you with his sleepy eyes. He opened his beak to let out a cry, almost like an affectionate gurgle. Then he dropped down into his previous position, asleep once again.
Yukina laughed lightly. "He's been somewhat bored lately so he spends most of his time asleep. I'm sure that when he's more awake, he'll find some time to introduce himself." She led you from the room, saying, "Why don't we go to the beach? It's relaxing there and I'm sure you wouldn't mind from fresh air." With a friendly wave of her hand, she lead you down a huge of trail of stone steps. You were absolutely amazed once when you arrived at the ocean. While there was a small weight of fear in your stomach from your unfortunate experience, you also realized that the sea had a beauty to it.
As the two of you were staring off into the horizon, a voice sounded in the air, "YUKINA!" It belonged to a male, someone whose tones were deep and almost raspy, if that was the correct word. "Yukina! I've been looking all over for you!" The owner of the voice appeared as he raced along the sandy shores toward Yukina. He panted when he approached, waving wildly at the surprised girl. "Genkai said that I might be able to find you at the beach... eheh."
"Well, hello, Kazuma," Yukina laughed, obviously amused at his behavior. "It's certainly nice to see you here." Meanwhile, you wondered if he was always like this.
"Who's this?" the newcomer asked as he turned toward you. "You never told me that you had a pretty friend living on the estate with you." He grinned, introducing himself. "You can call me Kuwabara!" He was quite the... eager type.
You opened you mouth to introduce yourself when you remembered that you couldn't. "I... I'm afraid that I don't have a name," you said. It was true that you might as well not have had one-- if you couldn't remember it, then what was the use in having one at all? You felt frustrated.
Kuwabara tilted his head to the side. "You don't have a name..?"
Fortunately, Yukina intervened and explained the situation. "Genkai found her washed ashore several days ago. She can't seem to remember anything. It's as if she lost her memory entirely." Yukina sighed softly, laying a hand upon your shoulder. "It'll be alright though. We'll figure something out." She smiled and your spirits brightened immediately.
"Yeah!" Kuwabara agreed. "Even I'll help bring your memories back! But right now, let's get the rest of the gang to meet you." He led your small group back to the temple. "No worries! We're all friendly people since Hiei's not with us."
The gang? You didn't know that there were more of them. In fact, you still weren't sure who Kuwabara was-- all you knew was that he was a friend of Genkai and Yukina's. That still didn't explain much though. Now that you've had the time to get settled down, mentally and physically, questions began to appear. Of course, you had things that you wanted to discover about yourself but, more importantly, you had to understand the current situation. As much as Genkai had helped you, you had to be honest. You knew as little about her as you knew about yourself.
Once you returned to the temple, you met everyone else who Kuwabara was talking about. You were introduced to Botan, a strangely chipper woman who welcomed you immediately. There was Yusuke, Genkai's former student, who appeared to be rather rash and stubborn but had a good sense of humor. His girlfriend, Keiko was also visiting Genkai. She seemed to be the ideal type of friend-- caring and very concerned for others. Then there was Suzuru, Kuwabara's older sister. She had a good handle on her brother. You had also met Kurama who appeared to be rather calm and soft-spoken. You thought that they were all interesting people and probably very fun to be around, but meeting others didn't solve your current problems.
Genkai finally introduced you to everyone else. "This is someone who has been staying with me for the past few days. Unfortunately, she can't remember name or any of her past. I don't think that she'll do well wallowing in her misery, however--" Here, she stole a side-ways glance at you. You mentally blushed. "--so I'm going to depend on the rest of you to help her with a new life."
"Well, this is sad," Yusuke said, a bit of sarcasm laced in his voice. He gave a sigh. "I came up here to get some information and, instead, I have to play the part of a psychiatrist."
Kuwabara immediately rushed over, bopping Yusuke on the head with a fist. "Hey! That's no way to talk to a lady, Urameshi!" Yusuke was silenced for the time being as he traded the attack with one of his own.
"Yeah, Yusuke, way to make her feel welcome." Suzuru stood up from her sitting position to come toward you. You were currently situated on the floor, much like everyone else was. "No worries, alright? We all have our problems; what's important is that we find some way to deal with them."
Keiko was the next to speak. "Suzuru's right. Besides, you'll definitely have our help." She gave you a sincere smile. "I'm sure that your memories will come back to you eventually."
"You're in good hands!" It was Botan who popped in. She held her hands together in a clapping position with a grin. "You know, I think what you really need to do is find yourself a new name. It'll give you somewhere to start and create you a new identity.
You didn't want a new identity; you wanted to remember you old one. Whatever the case, you didn't appear to have a choice. These people were nice enough to help you and you didn't want to forsake their kindness for your stubborn behavior. Besides, this was a good opportunity. You simply nodded, "How do I come up with a new name?"
"Oh, that's a lot easier than you think!" Botan replied. She hinted at Keiko and Suzuru to come forward. "We girls can help you with that-- let's come up with several of our favorite names and see if she'll like any of them." The three girls giggled, eager to be the one to find a name that you would like to keep.
Meanwhile, the boys had gathered in the corner of the temple. Yusuke was irritated. "We come up here at Koenma's request and this becomes a lovefest." He involuntarily twitched. "And I thought I told pacifier breath that I wasn't running anymore errands for him. I'm not his stupid detective anymore so why should I?"
"You know, I'm not sure," Kuwabara said. "I mean, you've got a bad temper and you're not that reliable so I don't know what Koenma's thinking." He laughed loudly, only to be smacked in the face with Yusuke's fist.
Kurama, as usual, was quietly contemplating the situation. "He knows that you're not in good standing with Spirit World, Yusuke. It must be a desperate situation-- he wouldn't ask you otherwise."
"Well, if he needs my help that badly then he should have sent me more than a crumpled up piece of paper as an "invitation" to meet me at Genkai's," Yusuke seethed. "Not to mention, he's late too." He crossed his arms, leaning against the wall of the temple.
"You're in no position to complain, idiot." It was Genkai's old voice. "You're the one who came, and dragged all of your friends with you in the process."
"I figured they all needed a break from city life," he mumbled in return, rolling his eyes. "Besides, Kurama and Kuwabara got "invitations" from him too."
"I would assume that Hiei received a letter as well," Kurama added. "But since he is doing well in demon world, then perhaps not."
There was a moment of silence from that group in the corner. Apparently, although no one would admit it, Hiei's snide comments were missed. It had been quite a while since the original detective team had gathered together for whatever reason.
"Bah!" Kuwabara broke the momentary silence. "Who needs him anyway? Shorty's happy patrolling demon world's borders so I doubt that he'd want to make it. Whatever Koenma needs, he wouldn't care. He only acts out of self-interest." Despite his fake animosity, Kuwabara knew that what he had said wasn't true. Hiei was anti-social and made biting remarks sometimes but he wasn't a complete jerk.
Back at the girl's circle, Keiko, Suzuru and Botan had drowned you in a list of names that they liked from all parts of the world-- Natasha, Astrid, Colette, Mei-li, Kumiko, Pamela, etc, etc, etc. Some you had heard of, some you had not. Some you liked, some not so much. Still, none of them seemed to fit you as well as you would have wanted a name to.
As they were questioning the origin of the name "Maicaiah," the temple door opened. In walked a man-- you couldn't determine his age, though he looked to be about his ealy twenties. He wore a blue outfit, accompanied by a red cape which hung from his shoulders. His brown hair was neatly groomed, and to your surprise, there was something in his mouth-- a pacifier.
