Save me

Say My Name

The door closes behind Asha. Crystal doesn't move. For a moment, neither do I. She just stands there, staring at me like she's looking at a stranger.
Like I'm nothing.
Like everything we were never happened.

The restraints dig into my skin as I try to shift. The bungee cords pull tighter immediately. Asha had thought this through. My wrists are stretched above my head, connected to the ceiling. My legs are anchored to the floor, and more cords wrap around my waist, connected to the walls on either side of me. Every direction I try to move only tightens the hold.

No running. No fighting. No Pietro Maximoff.
Just me. And Crystal.

On the table between us are three things. A glass of water. A rock. A smoking match.

My stomach drops. She knows what this is. She remembers.

"Crystal." Nothing. She walks closer. Slowly. Like she's following instructions.

"Get him out." Her voice is empty. I swallow.

"Okay. Not exactly the reunion I was hoping for." No reaction. She reaches for the match. "Crystal, don't." Her fingers pause. Only for a second. But I see it. Asha didn't erase her. She buried her. "Look at me."

"I have been instructed."

"Yeah, I figured that part out."

She looks at me. Cold. Distant. Not my Crystal. Not the girl who laughed at me when I told her my real name. Not the girl who smiled when I told her she was beautiful.

So I start talking. Because if there's one thing I can do other then move fast, it's talk. And if theirs one thing I know about Crystal, it's that she listens. Even when she pretends she doesn't.

"Do you remember your first day of school?" No response. "You were terrified." Her expression flickers. "You thought everyone in the hallway was staring at you because you cried." A tiny movement. A breath. "You said you didn't want to ruin anything." Her eyes shift slightly. "You thought you had to hide away in your room because you were scared people wouldn't accept you." The match lowers. "I told you nobody cared." A pause. "I was right." Her face tightens. "You remember lunch under the tree?" Nothing. "Come on, Crystal." I smile weakly. "You made Storm's little tornado look like nothing." Her eyebrows pull together. "You were so amazed. You kept saying you'd never seen anyone else's powers before." The room feels quieter. "You asked her if she could control the weather."

A whisper. "Storm." My heart jumps. She remembers.

"Yes." I keep going. "And then you showed us what you could do." Her eyes move to the glass. "You made water float into Kurt's cup." A tiny tear slips down her face. "You grew that little flower." Her breathing changes. "You were so proud of yourself... I was so proud of you."

She closes her eyes. For a moment, I see her.
The real her. The girl who had no idea she was allowed to be happy.

"You said it felt good being appreciated for what you could do." The match falls from her fingers.
It hits the floor. The flame goes out.

"Stop." Her voice cracks. I freeze.

"Why?"

"Because I remember." My chest tightens.

"Good."

"No." She shakes her head. "No, I don't want to."

I look at her. "I know." She looks confused. "Because remembering means you have to remember everything." Silence.

I see her start to remember the last time she did this test. All the people she killed. But I don't let her stay there. Not again.

"Remember something else." She looks at me.
"The lake." Her expression changes. "Our place."