A month had passed. A month since the teleportation, since Anna's death, since Harper's disappearance. A month since Chloe and Becca had become my friends, and a month of hiding my nascent powers from everyone, including Jude and Ryker. Yes, you read that right. Powers.
I possessed about five of them: Teleportation, a subset of Chrono Resonance; Aether Manipulation; Karmic Balance; Luminous Avatar; Soul Weaving; and Terraverde. Terraverde involved controlling the ancient power of the land, Soul Weaving manipulated souls and created surreal illusions, while Aether Manipulation allowed for energy projection, enhanced senses, and more. I still didn't fully understand how the others worked.
It had been difficult, hiding my growing abilities and juggling classes with Jude, Ryker, and Alan. Most, if not all, of the other classes were specialized, focusing on harnessing powers, theoretical concepts, and historical figures who had used their abilities for good.
I pushed open the door to my next class. It wasn't a traditional class, more like a gathering where we sat, talked, practiced, and that was it. We didn't have a teacher. I walked towards my usual spot in the back, joining Lyra, Kae, Aria, and Zephyr. I ruffled Zeph's sandy-blond hair as I sat on the desk in the corner.
"Hey," I said, tossing my bag to Aria. She'd asked for some of my candies yesterday.
"They're in there," she grinned as she dug into my bag, pulling out several candies and handing them to everyone except Zeph. I chuckled to myself. Teenage love. Aria had short pink hair, chocolate orbs, and porcelain skin. A small black heart adorned her right cheek, just below her eyes, and I wasn't sure if it was a tattoo or a birthmark. I'd never asked. Zeph, on the other hand, had a small physique, bright hazel eyes, and a mischievous grin that suited his ability to control the winds and create powerful gusts. There was a time he'd removed a teacher's wig.
Lyra, Aria's twin, was quite the opposite of her sister. She had short black hair, piercing emerald green eyes, and a tattoo of a butterfly with one wing fading away on her forearm. Her ability was a sonic scream that allowed her to move objects or people away.
"So..." Aria said, popping another lollipop into her mouth.
Gosh, what have I done? May this girl not have a toothache later. I thought to myself.
"I figured out something cool I can do with my power," Kae began. "Want to see?"
"Yeah, sure," we replied.
"Okay. Watch this!"
Kae pointed to her shadow and told us to observe it closely. She created multiple replicas of herself, which in turn created multiple shadows. Then, in a way I didn't understand, she made all the replicas disappear but retained a shadow that wasn't hers. The shadow began to move, creeping ever so slowly, almost imperceptible if you didn't stare hard and long enough. Eventually, the shadow raised a fist and pounded it on the nearby desk, causing it to fall apart. Then, the shadow formed a heart with its hands before disappearing.
"Wow. Just wow," I said, and the others echoed my sentiments, causing Kae to awkwardly rub her neck and run a free hand through her black pixie cut. She explained to us how she'd just thought of trying something extreme and voila! We spent the last few minutes practicing our powers. I sat on my desk, legs crossed, as I held Aria's palm.
Closing my eyes, I began to see a mental image of Aria's body, but I didn't need that. I needed her inner self. I pursed my lips and slowly began to create the illusion of candy. Opening my eyes, I saw Aria bring it up to her mouth, unsure, but as soon as it touched her lips, it disappeared.
I smiled, genuinely smiled in self-pride and satisfaction. I did it. I got it.
I was deafened by Aria's squeal of excitement as she hugged me tightly.
"Awww, baby girl, I knew you could do this," she said.
And that's pretty much how the 'class' ended. Showing off our powers to each other and developing them.
"""
Third Person's POV
Mandy rested her head on Vance's lap as he massaged her scalp.
"Babe," Mandy began, remembering what had happened earlier. "On my way to church, I saw this young girl on the streets. She looked so young, ten years at most."
"Uh-huh," Vance hummed, indicating he was still listening after her pause.
"I just felt pity for her. When I approached her, the story she told me didn't help either. She was taken away from the only people she grew up with to know and love, but this guy promised her a lot of things and left her here instead. According to her, she's been on the streets for the last month. Begging, feeding on scraps, and doing menial jobs."
"Indeed, some young children are struggling," Vance replied. "Tell me you did something to help."
"Don't you trust me?" Mandy replied. "I gave her a few bucks then suggested she go to the orphanage."
"But?"
Mandy let out a sigh. Not just because Vance knew her sentence was still not completed, but the words that had to leave her lips.
"She's actually in an orphanage. A useless one at that. Children ages ten to fifteen are only fed one spoon of soup per day. If they need more, they have to trade and beg. Make a living for themselves."
"That's child abuse. Let's sue them," Vance proposed. "Why would they make the poor kids do that?"
"Exactly what you said, love. Poor kids, they rely on the orphanage and if they need a roof over their head, they gotta do what they have to do."
Vance let out a huff. "That's so wrong. I-"
He was cut off when he realized Mandy was stiff, in the same position for so long.
"Hun, you good?" Vance asked, concern etched in his features when she didn't reply.
"Amanda?" He called out, shaking her even harder this time.
"Woah! What's the stress, babe?"
"Gosh, you scared me. Are you okay?"
"Yeah. Can we adopt her?" Mandy eventually asked the question that got Vance's head spinning.
...
Three weeks had gone by since Mandy asked Vance that question. The question that made him realize he married a sweet jewel. Even if the marriage was just signing the certificate and not a ceremony, he felt like the luckiest man alive to have this beauty, this angel all to himself and the three kids. And that's right. They did adopt the kid and...
"Hey Dad, hi Mandy," Jo replied, picking up the Facetime.
"Hey honey. You good over there?"
"Never felt better. Everything's going pretty well."
"Well, we thank God," Vance replied.
"Yeah... God," Jo replied lowly as she scratched her neck.
"Little J," Vance said as he put a grape in his mouth. "We have some news for you."
"Oh really?"
"Yeah." Vance replied. "You wanna the honors or..."
"Sure," Mandy responded. "Well Jo, you have a sister now."
"OMG!! You're pregnant!" Jo screamed into the phone while Mandy chuckled.
"We adopted." Vance chirped in.
"Anya, come say hello to your sister," Mandy called then whispered to Jo. "She's somewhat shy. Be nice."
"Hey," Jo said as she saw the frame of a girl between her parents.
"It's fine, love," Mandy said as she rubbed the girl's hair. "Say hello to your sis."
"Hey, I'm Juno. What's your name?" The girl was quiet, so Jo decided to try again.
"I'm Jo and I like music. What about you?" Once again, the girl just stared at her, and when Jo was just about to wonder if the girl recognized her too, she heard the girl's voice in barely a whisper.
"You're so beautiful."
Juno stiffened as she heard the girl's words. That was... unexpected.
"Well thank you, sis. You're just as gorgeous." The little girl blushed pink, and after a somewhat awkward conversation, they ended the call, leaving Juno with just one thought.
Harper...