"I cant believe I forgot you"

Lunatic. That's what her boss had called her when she'd piddled away all of her savings, all she had-really, to afford a ticket to the massive hangar that drifted above the city, the hangar that housed the country's massive airforce, the elite- the best of the best. She'd sold all her unnecessary belongings, saved up for months. She didn't have much to give, since her condition had taken away all of her dreams, she'd built what little she had from the ground up and it was a quaint, if effective lifestyle. She'd put aside eating, made use of things until they fell apart, saved and went without. All of it for the chance to see them. To see the children she'd let grow up without her. They were there.

No regular citizens were allowed there, and she'd at first thought it impossible. She couldn't possibly break laws for the off chance she'd get to meet the children who may not even be there, she couldn't risk a lifetime in jail based on a rumor. But she'd discovered that occasionally tours would be given of the facility to those who could afford it, usually reserved for students and paid for by their educators, but she'd managed to talk them into letting her go on just one. Luckily her reputation from youth had preceded her, her tragic story was well known, and they took pity on her. She didn't need pity- but for this specific situation she'd allow it. She needed it.

So she sat on the small passenger plane that would take her there, twirling a pen in her fingers. She was surrounded by rowdy kids, excited to go on such a great field trip. But what she felt- wasn't really excitement. It was fear, dread. What if she couldn't find them? What if this was all for nothing? What if they didn't remember her or want to see her? What then?

She watched out of the small window as the huge floating airship drew closer, keeping silent despite the chaos around her. Her heart leapt in her chest when she abruptly realized the plane had stopped and landed, all while she was lost in her own mental world. For a moment she couldn't recall why she was here, and the fear rose to a painful roar in her mind. She let out a deep breath to lower her anxiety, standing to her feet she adjusted her clothes anxiously as she hurried off of the plane, her eyes open. Would they even look the same? What if she didn't recognize him.

She wanted to faint. She kept her head only by focusing on the tour guide, an older- obviously tired woman who didn't seem at all to want to spend her day dealing with the nuisance children she'd been stuck with. She was talking about the history of the place, the kids were completely more fascinated by the planes pulling into the facility and wouldn't have heard the woman's droning on if she'd had a megaphone in her hand.

Not that Olivia was in any place to judge, she wasn't paying much attention either. She knew all of this...well, as soon as she heard it, she knew she knew it, but she didn't really remember it that much, it wasn't important enough she'd dedicate much of her mental power to bring it back from her childhood. She might not be listening but the woman's voice helped give her some noise to focus on so she didn't feel like she was mentally drifting away. She brought her eyes around the nearby area, searching desperately for something familiar. She couldn't remember them...lord, she couldn't remember what he own kids looked like... no wonder she wasn't fit to be their mother.

She pushed those thoughts out of her mind. Anxiety- panic, her worst enemies. Her therapists scoldings rang in her mind. Don't let your brain wander, the more worked up you are- the more you'll forget. She took deep, subtle breaths to calm herself as she tried to recall.... Recall their faces, their eyes. Slowly the thoughts filtered back. She didn't know what to look for. She'd heard they were here, but didn't know what jobs they filled or..what they'd wear or..where they'd be.

She felt like she was on rubber stilts, her legs barely cooperated, time seemed to flow in weird ebbs and swirls, one moment slow and dragging, the next it had been fifteen minutes in a blink. "...And this is our head engineer, working here- be quiet so as not to disturb her." the woman's voice cut through her thoughts, if only because she spoke louder to try and get the attention of the kids in order to shut them up so they wouldn't annoy the young woman working on a plane high above them. "You know Irmoye, you should pay more attention to the tour groups, never know which ones your replacement" The pilot jeered where he stood behind her, his arms crossed.

Her breath caught in her throat as she saw them.. her children, A pilot? An engineer? She'd hoped as a kid to be happy just being a copilot or even someone cleaning or refueling the planes- let alone stand so tall in the rankings. She could barely fathom what was in front of her. Tears mixed with panic as she quite abruptly..forgot all she'd planned to say. Was there any right thing to say? What could she say to them? Her bravery had carried her this far.. but now she had none of it, it had run dry and she could barely figure out where she was by the time she swooned and hit the floor, and everything fell black. 

When she came to it felt dreamlike as she stared up at her daughter. Upon her fainting- the nearby kids had cleared the way for the adults to try and help the distraught woman. "Ey there you al'giht?" Irmoye asked- unknowing of course, her mother. She moved the toothpick from one side of her mouth to the other with her tongue as she reached a strong arm to help the older woman sit up. Olivia stared at her, dumbstruck. "Yeh hit yer head or something? Do I got somethin stuck on my face?" her daughter asked her quizzically, reaching up to rub her nose and look at her brother where he stood nearby. "Only thing on your face IS your face." Lionel jeered with a roll of his eyes. Irmoye elbowed him in the knee and he backed off with a yelp. 

Olivia just laughed, not necessarily at her son's poor joke, but a laugh for simple joy at being able to see them again. She couldn't help herself and reached to hug her daughter, "I'm so glad I found you.. so happy you're here.... Oh my god how you've grown-" she sobbed against her disheveled daughter's shoulder. Irmoye was messy with grease and never had been one to care for her appearance and was left just baffled by the woman's behavior "Eh? What are you on about?" she asked her.

Olivia abruptly at her question realized how odd it all seemed, how strange she was behaving. "Oh.. Oh Irmoye I'm sorry.. I'm sorry I didn't want it to go this way.." Irmoye furrowed her brows in confusion. Now that she got to looking at her- the woman in front of her did look pretty familiar...

"Who are you? Why do ye' know my name?" the younger woman asked.

Olivia swallowed back tears as she forced her response

"Because I'm your mother... And I-" She choked back a sob. "..I can't believe I forgot you..."