Good Grief (TMR fic)

Chapter 1

(the only issue with this song is that the lyrics aren't in English so you can't enjoy the bits about running and mazes without reading the subtitles~) 

I'm falling as I wake up. Tumbling through the air, trying to catch myself on something, anything. But everything I grasp turns to vapor.

Everything except... Finally I catch hold of something that doesn't fade. I am Ash.

My name is Ash, and I am not falling.

If anything I'm rising, the ground underneath me groaning as it lifts higher into the air. Ground? No, it's not the ground. It's a smooth, metal surface.

Why did I think I was falling? My eyes are open, but I'm surrounded by darkness. Then I understand.

I have no idea who I am or how I got here. I was falling because everything I should remember has been stripped away from me somehow. I have nothing concrete in my head beyond my name. Ash. Who gave it to me? Do I even have parents? And why is it still completely dark in here?

Clumsily I push myself to my feet. Someone's breath hitches at the sound, and I freeze.

I'm not alone. I clench my hands into fists, preparing to defend myself if necessary. I really hate the darkness. My skin crawls with the sensation of being trapped, cornered.

Maybe I'm not trapped, though. I reach out until I touch a wall. It's the same smooth metal as the floor, and I begin to slowly follow along it until it meets a corner.

"Who's there?" a boy's voice asks, harsh but panicked. I don't answer, merely start following the new wall that unfortunately leads towards whoever is with me.

When I find the next corner, it's starting to sink in. We're trapped in a small box, rather like an elevator. Hopefully there's a door...

I accidentally kick the leg of my companion, who is apparently still sitting on the floor. He scrambles to his feet with a desperate movement, and we stand in the dark for a minute, assessing.

Finally, I speak. "You don't remember anything, either?" My voice surprises me. I'm not surprised that I'm a girl, but the tone is more intense than I would have guessed. There's no weakness in the sound, and the fear that is rising due to our trapped situation is controlled, measured.

"No. Just my name." He sounds less frightened, now. "I'm Thomas."

"Ash," I answer, continuing to feel along the walls. Another two corners reveal that I'm right, and we're in a small enclosed space. The revelation isn't pleasant, and I sit down to breathe easier.

"Are you okay?" Thomas sounds concerned.

"Let's just say tight, dark spaces are apparently not my favorite."

"Oh. Where do you think we're going?"

"Hmm. Let me think back to the last time I remember being on a death-elevator. Oh, yeah, I lost my memories."

He chuckles at my sarcasm, and I feel him sitting down next to me, his closest arm and leg brushing against mine.

"Sorry. That was a stupid question. Why did you have to call it a death-elevator, though? That's not very optimistic."

I give him a confused look, even though I know he can't see me. "You're trying to be optimistic? You must be unbearably cheerful."

"Maybe." His voice is thoughtful. "I don't know who I am."

Silence falls between us, and we wait. Our death-elevator creaks as it goes ever higher, leading us to our unknown destination.

Finally, it grinds to a halt. Thomas and I tense up in sync, ready for whatever comes next. A seam of blinding light splits the darkness above us, and I flinch back from the sudden flood of brightness.