What had
just happened? If felt like she'd been sucked right out of her
clothes. He was obviously an Avatar and a surprised and unwilling Avatar,
at that, considering how fast he'd pushed her back out.
She'd never before considered the problems that Avatars had -- given her
situation, she tended to give more weight to spirit-rights. Was that even
a real movement? If anyone cared about that sort of thing, Whateley would
be the place for it.
Clearly, she needed to work a little harder at embedding herself inside the
material of her costume. Mongoose had shown her that he couldn't reach
her when she was embedded inside a piece of material. Had she let some of
her naked spirit out? But then, Mongoose had been an Avatar-3.
Tansy had only been an AV-1, probably. This guy might have been stronger
than that. And the way he'd pulled her in had been different, too.
It had only been an instant, so she didn't have enough time to spot all the
differences but, for a moment, it had been like she'd actually been in contact
with his mind.
Being honest with herself, that term wasn't intimate enough. Mind-to-mind
contact made everything sound so sterile and pristine. This had been like
she'd touched his spirit -- his soul. She'd caught a spike of fear from
him and a yawning chasm of loneliness. She'd had a glimpse of a car
spinning and crumpling, as seen from the inside. And for some reason,
there was a kitten.
The jumbled images made no sense. She wondered if he'd gotten images from
her? She desperately hoped he hadn't. She had some very big secrets
to protect.
She moved back to her locker and realized with alarm that something was very
wrong.
Every time she cast herself, she attached her spirit-self to pieces of matter
-- her costume, her "locker" box, her schoolbooks. She could
always "drop" an item, so that it was no longer in her telekinetic
grip, but she couldn't add anything to the mass of herself, not unless she was
re-charged into that item. She could pick up a new book with her gloves,
but she couldn't *be* the book, have her spirit inside it, and telekinetically
control it.
And that's why there was something wrong. After her accidental contact
with that strange avatar, she still inhabited her costume, but she'd
"dropped" contact with her biology book. Even worse, she'd
added contact with many pieces of dirt and grit from the floor where she'd
fallen. It was just a few specs of sand, but it shouldn't be
possible! Not unless...
At their locker, Jade asked, "Charge?" speaking in their typically
abbreviated shorthand.
"Neither," Jinn reluctantly decided. "I just had one of
those weird Whateley moments. Bumped into an Avatar, accidentally.
He - he sucked me right out of my costume. I don't *think* I was
exposed."
She watched her physical self glowing pale yellow in fear.
"But-"
"Exactly," Jinn agreed. "I think he *RE*-cast me back
out." She explained about the added dirt and grit.
"Who is this guy?" Jade asked, suspiciously. Jinn knew exactly
what she was thinking. Hadn't they already dealt with enough, this month?
"And we've got me and Jann-sensei - don't want to bump in the
hallway."
"He's in two of our classes," Jinn warned. "English and
algebra. Your height, about eleven years old, shy and withdrawn."
"Oh, him. The kid with the bubble?"
The only thing they'd really noticed about the boy was the way everyone avoided
contact with him. Even during the between-classes rush, it was like the
guy was surrounded by his own personal force-field. Now she was starting
to understand why. Did other people have this same reaction to him?
"Might not be an Avatar," Jade mused, sharing Jinn's thought.
"True."
"Plan?" Jade asked.
"I'll take the back of class," Jinn decided. "Everything
but my clothes locked in the locker. If I suddenly pop, you can collect
our stuff after class. I want to see how long I last."
Jade nodded. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do."
They smiled at each other then split for their separate classes.
-----------------------------
Instinct
clamored for James to keep running, never stop running. He had absorbed a
spirit and there was no way that she did not know that he was an Avatar. He
looked over his shoulder worriedly to make certain the spirit was not following
him to exact revenge.
Class,
however, would wait on no concerns or mistakes. He ran through the lessening
stream of students as most had already reached their destination. He managed to
get into class just before the teacher locked the door as was her habit. No
late students to HER classes.
Settled
into his nook for Mrs. Reynolds’ pre-lunch Civics class, he was running on
autopilot. His mind was miles away or, more accurately, fifteen minutes away.
How could he have been that careless? He had wanted to watch her and imagine
himself in her place but he knew better.
That
momentary lapse of reason left him in an awkward situation now. He looked
around at the other kids, wondering how long it would take for word
of the
incident in the hall to spread. He reflexively looked down as he noticed
two girls
in the row in front of him look over their shoulders while whispering to each
other.
Turning
down the volume on the ocean sounds queued up right now, he closed his eyes to
better focus on the quiet whispering between the two brunettes.
“Did you
hear, that freaky girl from Poe spazzed out in the hall. Some kid ran into her
and she ended up flatter than Jello.”
“Oh yeah…
you think it was the little weirdo back there?”
“Dunno. Maybe.
They just said some little kid, though. Too bad about her getting back up
almost as soon as the kid ran for it.”
James
breathed a sigh of relief at the news that his misadventure had not killed the
spirit but… that meant that she was still there. It meant that she still knew
about him. The images he had gotten from her seemed to make no sense. He had
been with her, watching as Jade received a hormone shot in a white office, a
short lived image of the video Miss Devlin showed the second day of class… the
worst, an image of Bloodwolf pinned helpless to a tree.
That last
image and all the confusing colors occupied his attention, drowning out the
soothing music and even Mrs. Reynold’s voice. What did it mean? He had heard
about the beat up werewolf, of course, EVERYONE had heard about that this last
week but did that mean the spirit had done it? Was she some sort of vengeance
demon?
He felt
himself slipping into a meditative daze as he began to ponder the ramifications
of what had happened. He had not harmed her, at least he did not think he
harmed her. If anything, she was as much to blame as he was although he doubted
she would appreciate that view.
Setting
that aside, he began to dissect each of the images in turn. Jade in a medical
office of some sort. There had been a recognition of hormones as she covered
herself in one of those little gowns. She looked so sweet and yet so
vulnerable. The wide eyes and satisfaction as she received the shot shook James
at the mirror. She wanted to be a boy as badly as he wanted to be a girl.
James
looked up quickly with a blush quite apparent at that thought but nobody seemed
to be looking his way. He once more stared down at the laptop screen before
him. That second image was as disturbing in its own way. Jinn was a lot older,
why would she be in the same level English as Jade? He could not swear but he thought
he had seen himself, as well, and he knew she was not in HIS class. Could she
have read those thoughts from her sister?
He
shifted in his seat as the thought of a telepathic spirit unsettled him. Even
if he had wanted to hang onto her, he could not be certain that the spirit
would not have been able to contact someone. That would have been even more of
a disaster.
He would
have to find some way to make amends. If he could not convince the spirit to
silence, he… he just had to be able to convince her. His head nodded slowly.His
fingers slowed upon the keyboard, their rote repetition of the teacher’s words
coming to a close with the sound of the bell and his decision.
Shaking
himself from his light trance as the last of the other students left the class,
James slid gracefully from his chair and secured his backpack, fussing with it
as he slid the laptop back in by virtue of habit, before leaving.
Unnoticed
as he departed, Mrs. Reynolds was watching him with a concerned expression on
her kindly features. It was always difficult on students forced into Whateley
too young and she had seen all too many of those this year. She had another his
age after lunch, as well.
* *
*
They
continued meeting each hour at the lockers. Finally, during Chinese class,
Jinn suddenly evaporated. In the middle of a word processing drill, Jade
sat up in surprise.
She was deeply relieved to be back together. During the last hour, she'd
begun to worry that maybe somehow, he'd permanently split them apart or some
such thing. Being able to become multiple people was wonderful, just so
long as she was able to gather all of her back together again afterward.
She still suffered from nightmares about the whole Tansy affair. Some of
the others didn't get it. They didn't understand that all of her - Jade,
Jinn, Jann-sensei, Jeanie - they were all her. And even if she split up
temporarily, she HAD to get back together again afterward. The thought of
permanently losing part of herself was just… terrifying.
But her memories as Jinn were wonderfully back where they belonged. Jade
pressed a finger to her temple, in the private signal for Jann-sensei to
"touch" her and connect up telepathically. Together, then, the
two of them reviewed the incident where this super-avatar boy had sucked her
in.
She sympathized with the kid. She was always the youngest and smallest in
every class. This boy looked like he was in the same boat and he had a
really vulnerable look to him. Somehow, he'd charged her up so that she
lasted for almost three hours longer than she should have! And on top of
that, he might be able to penetrate her anti-avatar defenses.
She had to meet him again, but it had to be safe.
There was no way she was going near him in her physical body. But did she
dare approach him as Jinn? She felt confident enough to deal with the Tansys
of the world. Even if she did get sucked in, she thought she knew enough
that she'd be able to force them to let her go. Even if worse came to
worst, she could get Fey to tug on her thread (or however the elf-girl saw it)
and pull her free.
This super-avatar kid might be something else. She'd seen a glimpse of
his soul. What would a prolonged contact do? And she had to find
out whether he'd learned any of HER secrets.
Linked to Jann like this, she was learning to think things through more
quickly. She split ideas into alternate possibilities, and each of her
explored one avenue, joining back together at the end of the thought.
The least risk was to see him as Jinn. It was a "been there, done
that" thing. They had some idea of the dangers involved. But,
just in case, Jamie would follow along as the unseen spy. She would hover
near the ceiling, about ten feet away (close enough to hear most of the
conversation, close enough to see what happened, but far enough to be
safe). And if anything went wrong, Jamie could instantly blip back.
Jade would be waiting, in the center of Poe. If there was bad news, she'd
have help close by.
Now she just had to figure out where and when.
-----------------------------
He
remained feeling uneasy, almost sick to his stomach for the duration of the
lunch he spent hiding in Administration and transferring old records onto the
backup servers.
Hacking
Theory did not turn out to be any better and he finally quietly IM’d Mr. Babage
and secured permission to go to the bathroom partway into the second hour.
James
quickly got up and left without acknowledging the questioning glance that
Greasy sent his way as he skirted widely around him.
Once in
the bathroom, he sank into one of the stalls and sat, eyes closed, for a long
time before he heard the door open and he quieted his sniffling.
He raised
his feet, drawing his knees up against his chest and wrapping his arms around
his legs as the person who had entered began to speak to a companion. One
seemed a bit older, his voice rougher and more confident.
The older
boy nodded and explained in a voice barely louder than a whisper, “Yeah, they
are related or something. They are always meeting up in the halls between
classes. I think the Alphas might have been trying to hit her somehow but she
seemed fine by the time I could see.”
James
drew in, keeping still as he realized they might be talking about his earlier
encounter. The higher pitched voice confirmed it.
“Really,
the ALPHAS? Why would they bother with her?”
“Remember
that fight in front of Crystal Hall on the third? That was them, both of them.
The older one had on this spooky costume and took out Icer and the little one,
get this, /shot/ Tansy Walcutt. Do you know how many people would have wanted
to pull that trigger?”
“Oh yeah!
It was definitely them then? How cool. You’re right, though, the Alphas were
probably behind this. You know they are going to get back at her.”
“Some
people are saying they already tried. I mean, come on, you don’t think all
those beat up Ultra-Violents last weekend were an accident, do you? Especially Bloodwolf
and that writing burnt into him. ‘I attack little girls’? I wonder which of
them did that.”
“No clue,
he probably tried to attack the little one, though. Any idea how it all
started?”
The door
creaked open once more, closing on the parting words, “They were all but
shouting it. Tansy is an Avatar and took a nibble on the Ghost-girl…”
James
began to rock in his hidden observation post, his imagination quite vivid
enough to point a dismal picture of how those Poe girls would respond to his
own attempt to emulate Tansy.
* * *
Jinn
dressed as a normal girl. She wore her cosmetic skin, and wore a black
halter and miniskirt. It was a bit over the top - the clothes were more
appropriate for nightclub wear (if she ever got a chance at that). She
was more concerned with the cost. The outfit was drastically cheaper than
her school uniform. And while the weather had turned too cool for most
girls to wear anything like this, temperature wasn't something she felt.
Add to that the fact that it was a very feminine outfit that let her strut a
bit, and it made her look very seventeen (as compared to the boy's eleven), and
she thought she was ready.
She left everything else behind - the locker, the metal arms, everything.
If she needed to bug out, she'd be abandoning everything she took into this
meeting.
They'd spotted the boy after class heading out toward the edge of campus,
toward the woods. She'd sent Jamie as a grain-of-sand remote spy.
Every ten minutes, she popped back, reporting, then got recharged and flew at
top speed out to find him again. She didn't get too close, she stayed
about two hundred yards back; he was just at the edge of her visual
range. The boy was just sitting at the edge of the woods, fiddling with
something on the ground.
She finally decided that he liked his private time.
Jade gathered all of herselves together again, then charged Jinn into the
skimpy outfit. Time to do it!
-----------------------------
James
trudged out of the electronics class, not even paying attention enough to Scott
to worry over the unease he always felt around him. Too many other problems
were on his mind today.
As soon
as he reached the line of trees, he could feel her approach and he sank down
upon the ground. It did not matter that he was only just within the edge and
might be seen, not right at this moment. He needed to be with her in more than
spirit and she was here, her russet and black paws padding silently upon the
leaves as she met him with a comforting mew.
Whiskers
hopped into his lap and sprawled across one of his arms, a contented purr
arising from her tiny chest as she lapped gently at the back of his hand. The
warmth of contact settled his nerves and eventually even brought a nervous
smile to his lips.
The two
of them stayed like that for quite a long time, the rhythm of the flow between
them slowing in urgency as James relaxed and accepted, as always, that it would
be alright.
He shook
off a sudden frisson of unease, bringing his hand up to rub at the arm the
kitten was sprawled over. The sparse, fine blonde down almost felt like it was
standing on end.
James
blinked as Whiskers gave his hand a bat and then perked her ears. He sighed and
let his head hang as she turned and headed deeper into the woods once more.
Playtime was over.
* * *
The quiet
voice came from behind him, breaking the uneasy suspense he had been feeling at
something. “I know what you were thinking when you fell into me.”
He turned
slowly, hesitantly. She was standing there in the darkness. It was the older
sister, unfortunately, the one that had really grown up recently, the one that
was no more than some sort of spirit. His curiousity arose for a moment at the
skimpy outfit that emphasized her attributes at the expense of making her
chilled if she were flesh but the worry over what she might do or say fought
against that quite successfully, “Yes.”
Both
feared what the other might know or say. The moment stretched longer until Jinn
took pity on him. The voice of the young woman once more broke the weighty
silence, “We need to talk.”
James
nodded slowly and his voice was unsteady as he repeated himself, “Yes.” He
moved forward into the scant light of the overhead light from the nearby path,
a brief flash of iridescence scattering from forearm and eyes. He drew a breath
and then closed his eyes as he began to speak, voice heavy, “I did not mean to
do that, especially not after what they are saying. Tansy, the Alphas?”
Jinn did
not exactly relax but neither did she move away at his approach. Her voice was
reassuring as she answered his semi-apology, “I know. Otherwise, we would not
be talking.” The implicit threat hung in the air.
He
flinched a bit and sounded skittish, hands held stiffly at his side, “I guess I
kind of deserve that. What… did you see? What did you tell her?” He could not
ask her if Jinn had told Jade everything, what she had thought as well as what
he had thought.
“What did
you see?” She seemed unwilling to commit to anything, as much so as he himself
was.
He blew
out a deep breath and his stomach seemed tied in knots. His emotions might be
hidden behind gleaming ultraviolet walls to Jinn’s sight but his face and
stance were far simpler instruments to read, “Just… please?” He turned his head
away and streaked blond and brown hair was pulled from behind his shoulder to
half cover his face.
Jinn knew
that she had to talk to him if he would not talk to her. One of them had to
start this otherwise neither of them would ever feel comfortable. She finally
offered, “I know that you were watching her, that you were… feeling something.
And I know that having me merge with you was the last thing you would have
wanted.”
He
stiffened as the dancing he had somehow hoped would never cease abruptly did
so, “Yes… I… no one can know that I am an Avatar. Please, do not tell anyone!”
His voice broke with emotion as he turned back, eyes revealed once more as they
sought her own, pleading.
There was
a faint ‘meow’ and both of them turned to see a small tortoiseshell kitten
advancing from the forest. For the briefest of moment, Jinn thought she saw
something like an intense banana yellow… echo from the cat and she narrowed her
focus. She looked back to find James’ eyes were once more seeking hers out
between worried glances to the kitten padding towards him.
He knelt
down and the kitten nestled into one of his arms as he brought it to his chest
in a protective manner before he whispered. “Please… I will do anything, I just
can not…” He fell silent as his chin fell to his chest.
There was
something odd about James and the cat. A faint echo was the best way she could
find to describe it but there might be some kind of bond between the two of
them.
He
continued on in a whisper, “I will not tell anyone but if you do, they might
take her away. I… I would get old…” James’ voice wavered and Jinn needed no ESP
to tell something else was troubling him. His lies were written clearly enough
on his face for even a blind girl to see.
Jinn
looked over her shoulder for a moment and turned back with a shrug, “Look,
relax. I know you didn’t mean for anything to happen but it did. Now, you’re in
my sister’s morning classes, right? Miss Devlin’s English and Mrs. Bel’s
Algebra?”
The boy
nodded, still a bit rattled and replied after clearing his throat, “Yes, that
is me. I… I am James.”
The older
girl nodded, “I do not think I have seen you before but she tells me
everything. We both tell each other everything. My name’s Jinn.”
James
flinched a bit at the reminder of his own concern, fingers stilling upon the
kitten, “…oh. Do you have to, though?”
“Yes, I
have to. She knows my secrets, all of them. I could not keep something like this,
that could affect us so much, from her.”
He winced
but conceded the point, if only to himself. James continued with a brief sigh,
“I suppose. But she will not tell anyone else, will she. Or you? I promise I
will stay away from you or whatever.”
Jinn eyed
him a bit at that, “You do not have to do that, it was an accident. Just…”
James
shrugged, looking down again as he finished her answer, “…don’t stumble into
you again? I… I did see some things, though.”
Her voice
seemed a bit guarded as she asked, “What did you see?”
James
looked up and took a step toward Jinn and his free hand raised in a halting
motion. Hazel eyes gleamed with crystalline light as he lowered his hand to his
side once more. As he spoke, his voice was shivering, “You look like her. She
is so beautiful. Why would she... ahh… want that? Why would she want this?”
Jinn
thought she saw something in those eyes amidst the confusion apparent in his
manner as he gestured to himself. She could not be certain of what it was, his
emotions were cut off from her. Maybe Jade might see something more. But, for
now, it seemed her secret was safe. “You saw Jade having a hormone shot, then? Anything
else?”
He shook
his head and cocked it to one side as curiousity crept into his voice, “We were
not in contact that long… is there something else you are concerned I might
have seen?”
She
grimaced and shook her head quickly, “Don’t try to fish for more info. You
already know more than you should. If you tell anyone about that, Jade...” She
trailed off, shrugging. The consequences of such stories remained unsaid but
neither of them doubted or failed to understand them.
James
smiled a bit sheepishly as he shrugged again, “Sorry, could not help wondering.
Just that and…. A couple of other things, nothing major.” The uneasiness in his
voice and the somewhat frightened flick of his eyes betrayed his deception once
more, however.
Jinn
shook her head and stated firmly, nodding to Whiskers, “No, tell me. Look, I
saw something… something about a truck? And I saw her, or at least a kitten. I
know you are scared but we have to trust each other now.”
He looked
down at the kitten nestled contentedly in the crook of his arm and raised his
glance to meet hers. At least, he would have met hers if his eyes had not
shuttered close, long lashes twitching as he whispered, “You know about the
shot. I saw…. I saw what you did to the UltraViolents. When you pinned BloodWolf
to the tree?”
She shook
her head, wincing. That was obviously not an image to encourage trust, “There
were reasons for that, you know. Is that all?”
He shook
his head, “Just one more thing. Something about Miss Devlin’s class but… you
saw me. And I know you are not in my class. How?”
Jinn
smiled, “Do not worry about it. Jade and I have a way to share our thoughts.”
James
nodded slowly, shrugging, “That was it, though, I swear.” He still seemed
skittish over the whole thing, especially the sharing of memories.
She
thought for a second and then said, “Okay, we both know a few secrets but
nothing too damaging. Relax, James, I do not really blame you, I am just upset
because of what happened with Tansy.”
He
puzzled over ‘damaging’ a bit but shrugged it off, “Thanks. I really am sorry…”
Jinn cut
him off, “I know but stop apologizing. We have gotten that over with, alright?”
James
bobbed his head and smiled tentatively, “Okay. Thank you. But.. I think I need
to get back to my dorm… err, cottage now.” He knelt gracefully, legs together,
releasing the kitten and smiling as she jumped from his arm to bounce off the
knees planted into the forest soil with a cheery chirp. She obviously had no
qualms over the situation.
The
spirit looked down at the kneeling boy and smiled once more, “Alright. But
remember that you could really hurt m… my sister if you talk about some of
that. Do not do that.”
It was
difficult to determine if the last was a plea or an instruction but James
nodded anyway, “I will not.” He waited there for awhile, glance twitching to
the retreating red and black blotched form weaving into the trees as Jinn
turned and left.