Drabble 62: Real or Not Real?

"You are our greatest weapon." The booming voice told her. "You were born for this."

She remembered training vigorously and intensely, being prepared for the transformation process that would take place inside the stone.

"When you emerge." The voice said, "remember your purpose. You were born for this!"

Jemma woke up and stared at the ceiling, disoriented. She didn't know that voice, did she? What purpose was it talking about?

But she remembered the training, the feel of it and the strain. It felt real. Maybe it was real, and everything else was made up. Yes. The voice had told her the truth, she was sure of it.

But as she started to get up she saw the man by her bed, and her conviction faded.

Fitz noticed her move and looked at her. "You okay, Jem?"

Different memories rushed at her, images of her and this man working in a lab, side by side. Which ones were real? Did she have a past with Fitz, or training with the blue people?

"You're safe." He said. "We got you out of the stone."

The stone. No matter which story was true, that was the common factor. It had imprisoned her inside it for some time before Fitz had broken her out of it. During that time her memories had been played with. Jemma's identity became blurred, and she was unable to determine what was real and what was fabricated.

She was disoriented during the day, but no matter what progress she made, as soon as night came she fell apart again. She had terrible nightmares from her time in the stone, and always woke up feeling manipulated and trapped.

She had taken to playing a game with Fitz, when she felt most doubtful. He helped her sort out what was real and what wasn't, except when she didn't trust him.

"Fitz." She said. "We work together."

"Yes."

"We went to the Academy."

"True."

She paused. "I was trained to go into the stone."

"No, definitely not. It pulled you in."

So the past she remembered with Fitz in it was the real one.

How was the other story so real to her? She could picture an entire life for herself without difficulty, recall details with perfect ease. She thought she could feel the traces of that life too, memory muscles and thought patterns used while she was in the stone.

She couldn't tell him that though. They had just let her out of the medical center. If she told them how torn she really felt…

"We're on Coulson's team." She said.

"True."

"Skye is an Inhuman."

"Real."

"We… we capture Inhumans."

"Not real. We help protect them."

Jemma lay back down on the bed, looking at the ceiling again. She needed to force that other storyline away, to forget about it. She needed to be herself again.

Fitz looked at Jemma and saw the blankness in her eyes as she stared at the ceiling. When they'd first gotten her out of the stone she had been empty; all she'd felt was pain, and fear as she relived her imprisonment. Now she was getting better, but she was extremely confused. Fitz didn't know what she had gone through in the rock, but something had played with her mind, her memories.

She kept asking him what was real and what wasn't, and even as he saw progress she would ask another question that made his heart constrict, it was so untrue. And she really believed it. Until he told her something was false, she believed whichever version of events she was questioning him about.

It was a cycle she couldn't seem to get out of. By the end of the day she would be sure of herself, clearly remembering her real life. But in the morning, after a night plagued by horrible nightmares, she had no idea which life was the real one.

The false one seemed rooted in her; she couldn't shake it.

When she fell asleep again he left the room, going to see Coulson. He explained what was happening. "What do I do?" he asked.

"Are you sure she doesn't just need time?"

"Nothing's changed yet."

"For now just keep doing what you're doing. Reassure her about what's real, settle her back into life. If nothing changes we'll look into it again."

"Okay."

When Jemma first woke up the next morning, it took a moment for her terror to fade. She wasn't in the stone anymore. She was free, able to move wherever she pleased. No more gentle persuasions and physical restraints. No, now her only struggle was figuring out which history was truly hers.

But the more she thought about it, the more she wondered why both seemed so real. There was no proof for the alien version of events. There was abundant evidence for the human version; the most persuasive and reliable piece was Leo Fitz, always by her side, ready to help.

She realized that after her initial moment of doubt, and struggled to push the alien story out of her mind. Even if it had been imprinted on her, she would be able to tell it was fabricated.

So she ran through her usual list of facts and questions with Fitz, starting with the most basic and getting more complex.

My name is Jemma Simmons. I am trained in biochemistry. I work with you, Fitz, on a team run by S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Coulson. Skye is an Inhuman.

Here is where the other history started pulling her attention; she wanted to believe she had been trained to hunt Inhumans. But she forced all those facts to the back of her mind. The struggle actually tired her, but she didn't ask any of the burning questions inside her.

"We made plans to go to dinner, and then I tried to close the door of the stone's container. The stone liquefied and sucked me inside."

He looked at her and nodded. "Real."

"It kept me inside it and tried to mold me, but you got me out before it finished. That's why I'm so confused."

"True."

He waited, and she could tell he was wondering if she would have any non-real things to ask about. But she didn't say anything. She had her story straight.

"Are you… less confused now?" he asked after a few minutes.

"There's still some uncertainty, but it's getting clearer." A vague response, but accurate nonetheless. He didn't need to know how much she was struggling. That would make it more real.

"I'm so glad." He said. And he looked it, a smile on his face.

Their game was simple, but Jemma knew it had been effective. Real or not real. Fitz had been her guide in the game, and now, though she wasn't near back to normal, he would be her guide as she found her old life again.

Her real life.

A/N: Hey guys! I hope you liked this drabble! I thought of it myself.

I can't believe it! We hit 50,000 views, and 50 favorites! All this support is fantastic! Keep it up!

I won't be able to update for about a week (family vacation starting tomorrow!), but then I'm back and taking new requests and writing the ones I have. Thanks!