Severed [She-Ra 2018]

II: Falling

The Horde clone took it as an encouraging sign their guest was sitting up. Her refusal to move or eat had convinced him something was deeply wrong with her, but he was not going to allow Horde Prime's guest to die on his watch. Changing her food rations seemed illogical at the time, yet it appeared to have done some good. She was already more alert.

"You remembered the tiny food," she blurted before he could set the tray down.

Startled to hear her speak, he blinked at her in confusion.

"It is you, isn't it?" She got to her feet, eyes wide. "Hordak."

The name sent a shiver through him. "Names are not permitted for one such as I," he said.

"But you remember me," she insisted. "I know you do. How else would you know I only eat tiny food?" Her eyes widened and she took a step forward. "Do you remember the time I made you soup? Or the time --"

"No," he snapped. "I remember nothing."

She flinched at his tone, and he immediately felt sorry for being so harsh with her. Hunching her shoulders, she pointed at the tray. "Then why did you cut my food that way?" she asked in a small voice.

The clone looked down to stare at the tray. "I... I don't know."

"It's alright," She said, coming several steps closer. "Maybe there's too much to remember right away. You just need time. It's all in there, I'm sure of it."

The clone looked back up at her and was immediately disarmed by her smile. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

She tilted her head. "Like what?"

"What you're doing," he flustered, ears flat. "You're... smiling at me."

Laughing, she put a hand to her face. "I missed you."

"You must be mistaken," he argued, holding out the tray. "We have never spoken before. I am only here to offer you sustenance."

As she looked from him to the food on the tray, her hair rippled as if disturbed by a wind. Instead of accepting the food, she began to rummage through her pockets. "It's ok if you don't remember everything at once," she said quickly, "but maybe this will help. Do you recognize it?"

In her hands, she held a small diamond-shaped crystal with symbols etched on its surface. His eyes widened, and he nearly dropped the tray in shock. That crystal. Where had he seen it before?

He turned to question her for answers, and was further shocked when a name surfaced into his thoughts. "Entrapta?"

At the sound of her name, Entrapta jumped with a sudden burst of energy. "You do remember me, I knew it!"

Still confused and overwhelmed, he searched her face, both hoping and dreading another spark of memory. He was constantly distracted by her hair. The way it moved unsettled him. "Something is not right," he said. "Your hair..."

Entrapta's excitement died instantly. Her eyes widened, her hair grew suddenly limp, and she hunched her shoulders, wilting before his eyes. "They cut it," she murmured.

He winced as a sudden scream echoed through his head. It was her scream, he had no doubts, yet Entrapta had not moved her mouth at all. The room seemed to spin around him. This was not right. He shouldn't be here.

Entrapta had taken another tentative step toward him. He shoved the tray at her, forcing her to catch it or let it fall to the floor. "Take it," he said, his voice strained. "I must go."

He turned away and did not look back. Even when erecting the barrier to her cell, he was careful not to look at her. On the edge of his vision, he could see Entrapta was still standing where he had left her, holding the tray. He knew he had hurt her and that knowledge upset him.