Many of the characters within this story, and the universe they inhabit, are the intellectual property of Jason Katims Productions.

Roswell: Re-Imagined

Written by Horatio Jaxx

Chapter 18: The Long Talk

"Okay, Liz, talk to me," Maria instructed a second after closing the door to the bedroom. "What was that about today?"

Maria was visiting with Liz at her home. It was the evening after their encounter with Max, Michael and Isabel in the school parking lot earlier that day. Maria had been looking forward to this chance to question Liz about that event, and Liz was hoping that she had dismissed the whole episode from her thoughts by then.

"Maria, we're supposed to be studying," Liz countered with a look of annoyance.

"No way, Liz," Maria responded with a grin and a shake of her head. "Don't even try that with me. I want to know what the hell went down today," she insisted while climbing on to Liz's bed and folding her legs beneath her.

Liz was seated atop her bed as well, with a book open in front of her. She gave Maria a look of reluctance for two seconds and then closed the book.

"Okay, Maria," Liz began in a slightly exasperated tone. "But you have to promise never to talk about this to anyone."

"Oh, that again," Maria reacted with an exaggerated look of bewilderment. "I told you I wouldn't."

"This is serious," Liz stressed. "You have to promise me."

"Okay, okay," Maria responded with an exaggerated display resignation. "I promise I will never speak of anything you tell me now or told me in the past about Max Evans, or Isabel and what's his name to another living soul. Are you happy now?"

Liz gave Maria a long suspicious stare. This was not because she did not trust her. Liz had every confidence that Maria would keep her word. Liz's biggest concern here was for Maria's safety. She did not know where this situation was going or how things would end up. Liz spent half the day wondering if it would be best to let Maria continue thinking that this was all just some delusion she was experiencing, but her fear with that was that Maria would think nothing of telling others if she thought little of it. In the end Liz concluded that Maria had to be brought in on the secret and sworn to keep it.

"They're not like us," Liz began almost at a whisper.

Maria knew exactly who Liz was talking about and thought nothing about commenting on her declaration. She just continued to look at Liz with a so what stare.

"They're not from around here," Liz added.

Maria was not comprehending the significance of the information she was hearing. Impatient for the big secret, she decided to try and move things along with a comment.

"Half the people in Roswell are from somewhere else," Maria remarked with a shrug. "So what?"

"They don't even believe that they're from this planet," Liz stressed at a whisper.

"You've got to be kidding, Liz," Maria responded at almost a laugh. "Did they tell you this?"

"No," Liz reacted sharply. "It was in Max's mind."

Maria shook her head at this as a smile spread across her face. She then reached out with both hands and grabbed Liz by the shoulders before voicing her response.

"Liz, I know you think Max was in your head," Maria began in a tone full of concern. "But it was a delusion. You were shot. You lost a lot of blood and you nearly died. It was just your mind playing tricks on you."

Liz began shaking her head no before Maria finished. She then jumped in behind Maria's contention with a correction to something she said.

"I'm not talking about when I was shot," Liz asserted with a glare. "This happened three weeks ago when I confronted Max at school."

"I don't understand, Liz," Maria professed as she leaned back and gave her a confused look.

"When I went back to school on the first day," Liz explained with a hint of excitement. "I confronted Max and I told him that I wanted to know what he did to me."

"So, he just told you all of this," Maria questioned more than stated.

"No," Liz emphasized at nearly a whisper. "At first he denied everything. But when I threatened to tell someone else, he confessed. And that's when he merged our minds."

"Merged your minds?" Maria questioned skeptically.

"That's what they call it," Liz explained with a wide-eyed expression.

"So, you merged minds with him when you were shot, and then again at the school three weeks ago," Maria asked again in a skeptical tone.

"Yes," Liz stressed with an excited expression.

Maria was still skeptical about what she was hearing, and she paused to give Liz a concerned look.

"Have you spoken to someone about this?" Maria asked gently. "I mean someone like your parents or maybe even your doctor."

"No," Liz retaliated brusquely. "And neither can you."

"Okay," Maria responded defensively. "But this doesn't sound like you, Liz. Do you hear what you're saying?"

"I know how it sounds, Maria," Liz confirmed with an excited expression. "But it's true. They're different from everyone else on the planet. They can do things with their minds that no normal human can do."

Maria gave Liz a confused look as she studied her for signs of delirium. She saw no evidence of this and began considering for the first time that Liz might be telling the truth despite how impossible that sounded to her.

"So, this is the secret that … Max, Isabel and Michael didn't want me talking about," Maria whispered at Liz with a mixture of curiosity and worry in her stare.

"Yes," Liz insisted softly.

Liz paused to study Maria for signs she was beginning to believe what she was saying. Once she saw that Maria was beginning to give her the benefit of the doubt, she quickly spoke again with a new argument to support her claim.

"Why do you think Dr. Whitesell has been trying for weeks to get me into his clinic for tests?" Liz questioned with vehemence. "He wants to know how I survived. He's the one who says I should have died on the floor downstairs," Liz harangued with an intense stare. "That … was … Max," she declared one word at a time.

Maria went wide-eyed with belief. It all sounded too impossible to believe, but she knew her friend. She knew that Liz was far more sensible and pragmatic than she. Everything about the way she was telling her these things told Maria that Liz was speaking the truth. She sat straight up and disengaged her hands from Liz's. She continued to study Liz with a look of shock as her mind grappled with the enormity of what she was suggesting.

"I felt him in my mind, Maria," Liz continued in a less strident delivery. "I felt him keeping me alive … forcing my body to heal itself," she concluded with an amazed shake of her head.

Liz began to stare at the empty space between her and Maria as she pondered the memory of what happened that day. After a few seconds of thought, she spoke again.

"He saved me," Liz finished with a soft expression. "He saved my life."

"Oh my God," Maria responded an instant behind. "You're telling me the truth?"

"Yes, Maria," Liz replied softly but firmly. "That's what I've been trying to tell you. It wasn't delirium. It was real."

Maria pushed herself off the bed and stood up in a nervous panic.

"They're aliens?" Maria questioned loudly with a shock expression.

Liz was concerned about the volume of Maria's inquiry and responded accordingly.

"They don't know," Liz corrected at close to a whisper. "Max feels different. He feels like he doesn't belong here."

"Just the three of them," Maria questioned in a softer voice? "What about their parents?"

"They're adopted," Liz reported quickly.

"Max and Isabel too?" Maria questioned with a stunned expression. "I mean, I heard the delinquent was some kind of foster child or something. But I didn't know that about Max and Isabel."

"Yes," Liz responded excitedly. "And they're all having the same dreams."

"Wait," Maria reacted quickly "How do you know about their dreams?"

"I was in his head, Maria," Liz stressed softly. "They have memories of lights and machines, and they think that there's something in the desert whispering to them in their thoughts."

Maria was still hung up on the idea that Liz was in Max's head, or vice versa.

"You were in his mind?" Maria questioned suspiciously. "How do you know he didn't do something to you … brainwash you, or program you, or whatever they do?"

"He's not like that," Liz gently denied.

"But you wouldn't know if he was," Maria contradicted. "I mean that's what he'd want you to think."

Liz understood Maria's concerns and had gone through them herself. She pondered Maria's query for a couple of seconds and then confessed her own thoughts on the matter.

"I won't deny that they can do things and that I've had my worries about that. But I know what they can do, and I think I would know if they did it to me."

"What does that mean?" Maria questioned with an incredulous look.

"They can't be in anyone's mind all the time," Liz began to explain with an earnest expression. "And when they start doing things in people's heads it creates conflicts and memory lapses."

"So," Maria questioned with an amazed look.

"I don't have any of these," Liz insisted. "Besides, if he had tampered with my mind, the first thing he would have done was make me forget."

Maria was not sold by this and became slightly more startled by the fact that Liz was.

"Liz, I know you think you know Max, but you don't," Maria lectured vehemently. "If he's an alien, then there's no telling how much different he is from us. As far as we know, he could have green blood."

"They don't have green blood," Liz countered with a smile. "They're like us, biologically."

"And you know this how?" Maria asked an instant behind.

"Because that was in Max's mind," Liz explained with a hint of a smile.

Maria's concern was not dissuaded by this. She felt it was even more important to convince Liz of the magnitude of this situation.

"I don't believe you, Liz," Maria began with a shocked expression. "You're telling me that there are aliens attending our school and that we should keep it a secret."

"Yes," Liz emphasized.

"Haven't you asked yourself, why are they here?" Maria questioned with a hint of incredulity.

"They don't know why they're here," Liz responded back definitively. "There's a rock formation somewhere in the desert that's important to them. They feel that they have to find it. That's all that they know."

"Liz, I really think we should tell someone about this," Maria countered with a serious tone of expression.

"No, Maria," Liz insisted with an alarmed look. "We can't do that. They're terrified of being discovered, locked up, examined and dissected."

"What if there are more of them?" Maria challenged. "Shouldn't someone else, someone in a position of authority, know about this?"

"They're not here to hurt anyone," Liz insisted.

"Well, maybe they're not," Maria countered apprehensively. "But you don't know about the others."

"There aren't any others," Liz insisted with finality. "It's just Max, Isabel and Michael."

Liz reached out and grabbed Maria by the shoulders. She looked her in the eyes with a stern expression and stressed her next remark with all the passion she could muster.

"We can't tell anyone about them, Maria. Please!"

Several seconds later, Maria relented and softly responded with, "okay."