They find her huddled around the boy trying to shield his eyes from the bodies.
It hurts to look at them and she does not want the boy to hurt anymore. She heard his pain. She came to stop it. She did not mean to stop it like that.
The floorboard creaks under the woman’s steady steps, causes her to wrap herself even tighter around the boy. Too tight, he huffs and creaks under her too strong grip and she lets him go when he cries out in fear. She looks back at the woman expecting that same fear, but there is only warmth in her eyes.
“Hello,” she says, soft yet firm, “my name is Lena, and you’re both safe now.”
And for some reason she believes her.
Lena takes her somewhere warm with bright colors and soft bedding. She gives her books (so many books) on people and science and endless possibilities.
Lena gives her names that are not names. She calls her my guest, my friend, my temporary roommate. Every not-name is said with pleasure in her voice, with the smallest of smiles twitching on her lips. She likes the way Lena talks to her. It’s softer than the men from before. It feels good wrapped around her ears.
She does not like the way Lena talks about her with others. They speak low but she can always hear them. Even when they are miles away from this place Lena keeps her, she hears. She is always tuned in to Lena’s sounds. Their words are always so heavy and sad, they talk like she is a stray animal kicked too many times. The others say they must tell someone, tell Supergirl whoever that may be. But Lena insists that they keep her for now, says they will protect her.
But she is strong. It is she who will protect Lena.
-
Lena tells her she must be named. That they cannot keep referring to her by silly nicknames. She wants to take Lena’s name, but that is not how this is done. She must have her own identity, Lena says, and she suggests dozens of names before saying Linda. And she doesn’t care much either way, but Lena’s eyes shine bright when she explains that Linda is Spanish for beautiful. Every time she speaks that name to her she will call her beautiful.
So she agrees. She will be Linda for Lena, she will be anything.
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