Fire and Ice

“You bring me here against my will, tie me to this incredibly uncomfortable chair, and now you expect me to help you?” Cressa spat, staring at Gidget with a look of complete bewilderment.

“To be fair, this is the only chair I had.” Gidget shrugged and sat on the floor in front of her, crossing her legs as though she was readying herself for a story time in school. “But what else was I supposed to do?” Gidget threw her hands up, baffled. “You ignored all of my notes, all of my calls, and every single one of my attempts to contact you.”

“Don't you think that maybe I didn't want to talk to you?” Cressa growled, pulling at her restraints. “Your incessant behavior has done nothing but encourage me to avoid you further.”

“Blah blah, fancy words,” Gidget opened and closed her hand in a mocking way, like a mouth flapping, and rolled her eyes. “You knew it would end up this way, so climb down off that high horse and let me talk.”

“I’d hardly say that protesting my capture puts me on a high—”

But before Cressa could finish, Gidget pulled something out of her boot and flicked it at her, a blade sticking into the wall right next to Cressa’s cheek. The blade had grazed her skin, leaving behind the slightest of scrapes. Not even big enough to draw more than one drop of blood.

Cressa let out a gasp, but it wasn't a look of fear that plastered itself on her face. It was one of rage.

“How dare you!” Cressa roared, her eyes beginning to glow blue.

“Don't even think about it, there’s no water in here,” Gidget said, rolling her eyes yet again. “I’m not that stupid.”

“I’ll drown you,” Cressa hissed, the glow in her eyes subsiding at the genuine lack of water in the basement they were in. “The first chance I get I swear I’ll—”

“The next knife I throw will stick in your thigh if you don't shut up,” Gidget said matter-of-factly. “Now are you going to help me, or not?”

Cressa’s mouth clamped shut, but the look of pure hatred remained in her eyes, boring into Gidget as if she could burn her through and through. But she stayed silent, allowing Gidget to speak.

“The Doctor is doing it again,” she began, her tone solemn as she stared off, not meeting Cressa’s eyes.

“Why does that concern us?” Cressa asked, scoffing. “The damage to us is already done.”

“I don't want him hurting other kids,” Gidget said, her brow creasing. “His new subject is only five, three years younger than we were when he took us.”

“I'm not going back to that God forsaken lab,” Cressa said, spitting out the last word like a bad taste in her mouth. “We were stuck there for ten years, and now you want us to just waltz back in? What if we got caught? What if we never escaped again? What if—”

“Okay, okay, I get it,” Gidget said, waving Cressa off. “You really think I brought you all the way here without a plan?”

“What, and imply that you're impulsive?” Cressa screwed her face up in mock surprise, gasping dramatically. “Why, you're the most level headed person I know, sister.”

At this Gidget scoffed, shaking her head. Cressa rolled her eyes, sitting back in her chair. Her blonde hair stuck out of her once neat ponytail in odd angles, each strand telling the story of her resistance to Gidget’s kidnapping. The two were quiet for a moment, the distant sounds of the world outside punctuating the silence.

“I can't do this without you,” Gidget finally said with a sigh. “We're stronger together, even if you don't like it.”

“You command fire itself, Gidget,” Cressa said with a scoff. “You're plenty strong without me.”

“Fire needs water, just like lungs need air, or bellies need food.” Gidget stood, pacing back and forth in front of Cressa. “I can't just burn the place down, I need you to help me keep the kid safe. Or God forbid if he's got more than one test subject locked in there.” Gidget stopped and looked to Cressa, their eyes meeting. “Please, Cress.”

Cressa avoided Gidget's eyes, her forehead creasing. Thoughts of the Doctor's lab flashed through her mind, each memory worse than the last. Tears threatened to rise, her eyes and throat burning, but she pushed the feeling away, shaking her head as if to clear it.

“We haven't seen each other since we broke out of that horrific place,” Cressa began, her voice a bit choked. “Not since you… since you—”

“Don't bring that up,” Gidget interrupted. “It didn't matter then and it doesn't matter now.”

“It was a living breathing person,” Cressa said, the fire in her reignited. Her eyes flew to Gidget's and she yanked roughly on her restraints. “You left him there to die!” She hissed, the tears finally spilling over.

“He didn't want our help.” Gidget threw her hands up, spinning to face Cressa. “He was unsatisfied with his gifts,” She spat, looking disgusted. “He wanted to stay. He wanted more.”

“The Doctor brainwashed him and you know it,” Cressa responded, a sob ripping itself out of her. “He should have gotten out with us, he should have lived.”

“He shouldn't have been greedy,” Gidget snapped. “I offered help and he turned me down, told me ‘it wasn't fair’ that you and I were so ‘powerfully gifted' while he got the scraps.”

“The Doctor fed him lies,” Cressa cried, her teeth bared. 

“The Doctor fed us all lies, and he'll do it again if we don't stop him.” Gidget said, her tone solemn. “I can't take back what happened to your friend, but we can save another boy now.”

Cressa sniffed, tears streaming freely down her face now. Her pale cheeks were red with anger and sorrow. She looked down at the floor, a small sob choking her up. Gidget waited, fidgeting with the handle of the knife strapped to her thigh. She stared at her sister, silently willing her to look up at her. To see that she had no other choice. To see that people's lives were at stake. Children's lives.

Then Cressa straightened, her bloodshot eyes slowly rising to meet Gidget's. She could see the resolve in her sister's gaze, though it was still lined with rage.

“Fine,” Cressa said, her words barely a whisper. “I'll help you.”