Circuit

Infinite amounts of years have gone by since Antauri and Chiro passed. It is a senseless hyperbole, I realize, but the heart is always out of sync with the mind.

Years ago, while on my knees in bitter resentment, I came to the conclusion that a family unit is akin to a circuit. Yes, I realize our spaced quarters and similar simian appearances don't make us blood-related, but I digress. To create a light, or a spark, a circuit that electrical charges course through must remain closed and secured; if not, the circuit is considered open. It will not function.

Shouldn't this be undoubtedly true? We may have lost Mandarin, but we were always aware of his location, and no matter how pessimistic I was, my heart was glad for his survival and I hoped that he would return to us. But, after watching a young boy being ripped internally by his own grief...To watch him lose control of his mind, shouldn't it ring true that we are defective? Or, as Sprx elegantly recited it, jinxed?

Please excuse me, I have been reticent lately and Otto has been leaving notes on the lab's door. He is quite frustrated at my behavior.

I cannot say I've seen it all; I cannot envision abstract words such as love and hate with my own opticals, but they have physical forms.

Who would suspect that I, the scientist, would ponder in his own domain, while his family is recovering?

Perhaps I am the stupid monkey.

We have rebuilt in our own ways; we function without being complete. We have charted a new course.

I have receded my former judgement. I was incorrect; Mr. Brainstrain made a flawed statement.

I can almost hear Sprx's laughter, and it is a sound we've all yearned to hear in these dark times. He is a strong leader, and our departed teammates would be proud.

My brain tells me that I shouldn't welcome laughter at my own flaws. However, my heart says differently.