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After waking up on the sidewalk of a city that is decidedly not America, naturally, Fizz has a few concerns. The first being, "How the heck did I get here?"
And while that seems like a perfectly normal concern, and the obvious response to that would be freaking out and frantically running around from person to person, asking if any of them know how she got here; the citizens of Japan seem to think otherwise.
After several attempts at yelling into the crowd for help, Fizz took a small break. She makes her way over to a random building, sliding down the wall and bringing her knees to her chest. She sighs heavily, energy thrumming through her body. She closes her eyes, thrumming her hands on her knees. Come on, Fizz, she thinks, not now. She breathes deeply, willing her body not to shake. She clenches her hands. Come on, calm down, she tells herself. I’m gonna figure something out, it's fine. I'm okay. I'm gonna be fine. it's fine, it's fine. you're in… She takes a moment to survey the area. You're in Musutafu. You can work with that. City of Heroes or something, right? It’s okay, it’s fine, you’ll find a way home- you’ll get home- but do you want to? What if there’s-
“Miss? Are you alright?” A voice calls, and Fizz’s head snaps up. She takes in the man hovering above her. He’s a short man, barely taller than Fizz from her spot on the ground. He’s wearing a white lab coat, a gray shirt underneath, with a stethoscope hanging from his neck. “Miss?” He tries, snapping her out of her analysis.
She blinks, staring up at his gray eyes. “I’m…” She starts, picking at the skin on her fingers. “No, I- uh. I don’t know how I got here.” The man pauses, giving her a once-over. “You don’t know how you got here?” He repeats, eyebrows furrowed. Fizz shakes her head slowly. “I know it sounds crazy,” She rushes out, cheeks burning. “I just- I woke up about thirty minutes ago. I’m- I’m from America.” The man’s eyes widen. “America?” He questions. “Kid, that’s across the ocean from here.”
Fizz frowns, finding her shoes very interesting, suddenly. “Yeah.” She mutters. There’s a slight pause, and then a hand is shoved in her face. She looks up to see the man looking down at her, a (maybe?) reassuring smile on his face. Fizz thinks that the man is not very good at being reassuring. His smile is strained, it doesn’t quite reach his eyes, and he honestly looks more afraid than anything.
She sighs, tentatively taking his hand. He pulls her up from the ground, and suddenly, she’s looking down at him. “What’s your name, kid?” He questions. She searches his eyes, every bone in her body telling her to run. “I’m Fizz.” She replies. He nods, smile twisting in a way that she cannot describe. “Nice to meet you, Fizz.” He purrs, “I am Dr. Tsubasa. Why don’t you come with me,” his grip tightens, and she realizes he never released her hand. “And maybe, we can figure something out, hm?”
She grimaces, shivers racking her body. Surveying her surroundings, she realizes that fighting back would do no good. There aren’t any alleyways she can see; even if there were, the street is way too crowded to get anywhere. And if her recent experience is how she’ll be treated when she’s in genuine danger, she doesn’t like the odds. She takes in a shaky breath, nodding slowly at Dr. Tsubasa. “O… Okay.”
☆
Dr. Tsubasa’s grip never truly let up. Even through the twenty-minute walk, the old man’s grip never wavered even slightly. Fizz was starting to become concerned for her blood circulation. Her wrist was definitely going to be left with a bruise. She hangs her head low as she follows behind the man. She tries her best not to trip over her feet, step on his shoes, all that jazz, just in case he gets angry at her.
Suddenly, the doctor halts in his tracks. Fizz lets out a small grunt, colliding with his back. She manages to stay upright, looking at the man questioningly. “Well,” he starts, turning to her with a crazed smile. “We have arrived, kid.” She pauses, looking up at the building. It seems to be a worn-down warehouse. Fizz turns to look at the elder. He’s holding the door open for her, smile still completely intact.
She lets out a slow breath, praying that her legs stop shaking. “Go on in, Fizz.” He says. She looks at him for a long moment, before trudging slowly into the building. The door slams behind her, Dr. Tsubasa filling the space beside her. She shudders, taking in the place. There’s some rubble, presumably because of how old the building is. If you don’t look very closely, it looks like a regular, abandoned warehouse. However, when Fizz turns her gaze to the corner, her breath hitches.
In the far corner of the room are two rows of test tubs. Floating around inside of them are- or, at least, all she can see. Fizz can’t see through the water, only above it.- brains. She shivers, curling her arms around herself. A fast rush of cold runs through her. She blinks rapidly, taking a small step back. Holy fuck. She grasps at her chest, trying to even out her breathing, but it’s not working. She can’t breathe, the air isn’t going through her lungs, she can’t breathe, she can’t breathe, she can’t breathe, she can’t breathe -
She stumbles, reaching out her arms for something to steady herself with. Her breaths fill and leave her lungs rapidly, leaving her gasping for air. Her hand hits something, and she latches onto it. She grips it harshly with her hand, grounding herself with the pressure, and-
There’s a pinching sensation in her arm. She turns her head up slowly, looking at the doctor- who she, apparently, had been latched onto- and she blinks blearily. She squints, staring at her arm in confusion. “Wh’s in ‘m ‘rm?” she mutters, before promptly blacking out.