~Strangeness of Power~

[Valerie]

“So, you mean to say….you showed a cool act for the first time and we weren’t there to witness it,” Sarah said petulantly. I felt the corners of my lips tip upwards. Kenneth scoffed before asking, “How are you feeling?” And yet again my traitorous heart skipped a beat. It was so…him. He knew me like the back of his hand and maybe because we have been friends since we were barely crawling, we had that special bond. I didn’t immediately answer, as I tried to push back the lump in my throat. 

“I am…fine, just surprised,” I finally replied airily. It was easier over the call because if he had been in front of me, he would know immediately that I was anything but. 

“Okay. So how did Elias react?” Sarah, ever the tension dispeller, interjected. 

“He was astonished,” I replied, turning my palm upward. The small cuts had long disappeared leaving the skin smooth and rejuvenated. I leaned against the headboard, contemplating whether to tell them about the voice but listening to Sarah’s rambling, I decided against it. 

Soon we were speaking of another topic, Kenneth entertaining us with his dry humour and us girls giggling at it. It felt nice…

Although it has been barely a week, I somehow missed them. Xyan had called once, but we texted now and then while Irene and Naomi spoke to me in our small group chat. So, it wasn’t like I wasn’t in touch with them. 

After the manifestation, I had hardly spoken to anyone, neither mom nor Maia. I don’t know if Elias had said anything to her, but mom didn’t ask me anything at dinner. 

Sarah had launched into yet another monologue, pulling me out of my thoughts when a constant beeping in the phone made me aware that someone else was calling. I momentarily moved the phone away from my ear and looked at the incoming call. Dad. 

“Guys gotta go. Dad is calling.” 

We murmured our goodbyes, while Sarah was already planning when we should chat again. 

A smile crept on my face as I dialled his number. The one person whom I hadn’t spoken to was dad. He was busy with a conference. Uncle Drake and Gray were supposed to be returning tomorrow. 

“So, you finally had time to call your daughter?” I asked teasingly, only to hear him chuckle. 

“What can I say? Your dad is very popular,” he retorted. I rolled my eyes. “Yes, and mom is more popular than you.” 

We both agreed on that. Despite having no knowledge of the Supernatural world, she shot to popularity quickly. I don’t know why she didn’t accompany dad. 

“Anyway, will you visit Crescentville? Meet your other daughter?” Despite my attempt at putting across the question lightly, the tone came out sharper than I intended. I heard him sigh and braced myself for another “Val, she is your sister.” But that didn’t come. Instead, he hummed. “I am tagging along with your uncles. I missed you all.” I grimaced silently. Diplomatic as always. 

After another brief conversation, I ended the call and tossed it aside. I lay down and closed my eyes even though I knew I was too jittery to sleep. 

~~~~~

In the middle of the night or sometime just before dawn, I woke up. Damn my habit of needing to pee at ungodly hours. I stumbled out of the bed and made a beeline for the washroom. An empty bladder follows the need to gulp down water. But unfortunately, my bottle was empty. I groaned. By the time I would come back, I was certain I wouldn't be sleepy anymore. 

I took the bottle and left the room, trudging my way downstairs to the kitchen. The house was deadly silent. After filling the bottle, I walked out of the kitchen. I was about to go upstairs when I heard voices, suppressed but nearby. I tried to identify the direction and realized it was coming from the backyard. The kitchen overlooked this huge backyard so I tiptoed towards it and crouched behind the sink counter. From here I could identify the speakers. Elias and my mother. 

“She…she made the glass break?” I could hear the disbelief and a hint of fear in her tone. Why was she scared? 

“She also heard a…voice,” Elias disclosed and silently cursed my no-brain-to-mouth filter for divulging this to him. Of course, he would report this to mom as well. And predictably she gasped. “What?” 

“Do you think, like me…she also…?” Mom sounded wary. 

“No…it’s probably her wolf,” Elias replied firmly. I gaped at the answer. What? 

“But she is already 18,” mom literally voiced what I would have said. 

“I don’t know, Erica. Her powers appeared strange to me.” Now, this piqued my curiosity. 

“I have seen you controlling the aether, but hers is just….I cannot explain how she created a disturbance in the water which was enough to shatter the glass and then she told me about the…voice.” 

I sat back on my haunches, slightly worried. What did he mean? At first, I was frustrated that I couldn’t manifest my control and now this. 

My mother replied, “Let’s keep researching. I don’t want her to get hurt in any way.” I rolled my eyes. 

“Let’s see…I told her to manifest the control in the next class. If the similar thing repeats then we need to talk to her and guide her.” 

I carefully stood back up and tiptoed out of the kitchen and once I had climbed the first flight of steps, I bounded my way up the rest. When I lay back down on the bed, I was wide awake. 

~~~~~

“Woah, what has you venting your anger on the poor pebbles?” Maia spotted me sitting on the bench under a magnolia tree, far from the usual hubbub of the pack. I straightened my legs and stared at the white outline of my sneakers now marred with dirt. She came to sit beside me and the crinkling of plastic bags was a telltale sign as to who had sent her. 

“I am angry at myself,” I grumbled. 

“Yeah? And why is that?” She handed me a bagel sandwich. I didn;’t refuse because I was hungry anyway. 

“I failed to manifest my control in class. Like…I couldn’t even make a single drop of water move,” I said, taking a bite from the sandwich. 

“You are learning. It happens,” she replied. I gave her a sidelong glance. Maia took a dainty sip from her boba tea and shrugged. 

“You know it’s like, my control has its own mind. When I want to show it won’t just manifest and when I am alone, boom, I am almost a pro at it.” My words came out muffled around the piece of chicken that I was currently in my mouth. 

“Eat then talk or vice versa,” Maia said pointedly. 

“Mom sent you, didn’t she?” I swallowed the food and asked. She looked away. I gave her a knowing look. 

“Fine. Yes she did,” she relented.

“But that’s not the only reason I'm here.” I finished the sandwich and opened another box that contained cheesecake. Damn, my mom knew how to cheer me up with food. 

“What’s the other reason?” I didn’t take my eyes off the delicacy. 

“Did you enlist your name for the Medeis Challenge?” I looked at her so fast that I was sure I heard a creaking sound. My neck was fine, though. “What?” 

She frowned. “I heard aunt Erica and Elias having a heated discussion over it. They don’t believe that you were bold enough to put your name on the list, but I was wondering…since, you know…”

“Since I was mad that Viola gets to go but I don’t.” I completed her sentence. She shrugged elegantly, flipping her red hair back. I should be offended that she thought I would stoop low enough to do that, but I couldn’t blame her. The fit I threw a few days ago and then mentioned the challenge was enough to make people suspicious. My dislike or my strained relationship with Viola wasn’t a secret to anyone in my family, especially my cousins. However, all I felt was trepidation and excitement. Someone had enlisted my name? 

I shoved the cheesecake in her hands and said, “Don’t expect me to share food in the future. This was a one-time thing.”  And with that, I was running towards the packhouse.