by W. J. May
Great. Now I’m talked about internationally. “How come I haven’t been taught any of this?”
“You will. Most of the politics are taught during your senior year. The years prior are spent on preparing for your sixteenth birthday.”
“Ohhh…” She sighed, tired of worrying about what she did not know. Most kids in the tatù community started learning about their special place in the world and what their future might hold at a young age, around eleven or twelve. They had a parent sit them down and answer their questions; they had years at Guilder to prepare for their powers. She had not had any of that. She had been unceremoniously thrust into this world the previous year. The constant reminders that she had a lot of catching up to do weighed on her more than she let on. Right now, it was the last thing she wanted to think about. “Do you want to head downstairs? Give me a few minutes to change my clothes and freshen up?” She had just spent ten hours on a plane, a car ride, sweating over what Carter told them, and then the scare with Maria. Quite the first day on my return to Guilder.
Devon bent down to gently run his lips and nose along her neck. “You look and smell awesome. I’m glad you’re back. I’ll go find Julian and meet you in front of Aumbry House in, say, twenty minutes?” He disappeared down the hall, giving her the space she needed. Silly boy…only twenty minutes?
Thirty minutes later, Rae ran down the black and white marble stairs and out the front doors. Devon sat on the steps chatting with Julian. She paused by the door and smiled as she watched the two of them. Julian seemed to have gotten lean the same way Devon had.
He jumped up when he saw her and released a low whistle as he spread his arms wide. “You look awesome. A tan and New York have done you good.”
“How was your summer?” Rae hugged him tight. He had kept his dark hair long and still had a mystical appeal about him, like an artist who had already discovered himself. The difference in his face came from his eyes; they held a mischievous glint that hadn’t been there the last time she had seen him.
“Awesome. I mean, Dev’s my best bud and all, but hanging out with him the entire summer at the PC Academy made it drag a tad.” He sidestepped the playful swing Devon sent his way. “I’ve been asked to do some freelance work for the Privy Council.”
Devon chuckled. “I’m not sure if they want your talent or your artwork.” Though he was still learning how to use his tatù, Julian had the ability to draw pictures of future events.
Rae laughed. “Maybe they own an art gallery and are putting your pieces up under an assumed name, making millions.” She smiled, happy to see Julian again. Another Privy Council worker? Devon and Julian are so young! Sounds like the secret squirrels are in dire need of new recruits.
“You two are real comedians.” Julian shook his head. “So, how’d you survive without him?” He nodded towards Devon. Julian was the only person who knew of their relationship; the only one they had trusted with the knowledge. Although considering his gift, it might have been impossible to hide it from him.
“Just fine, goof.” She rolled her eyes pretending to be all ticked off and also wondering if Julian knew Devon had barely contacted her over the holidays. He must…if they worked together.
Devon stepped over and put his arm around Rae, pausing there a moment longer than a friend would. “Julian, you still up for some training tonight? I got the security password for the Oratory.”
“Hell yeah, but wouldn’t you rather hang out with Rae tonight?” Julian grinned as he stared at the two of them. Rae resisted the urge to send a gust of wind in his direction and knock him, and his silly smirk, off his feet.
“I bet Rae’d be interested in coming along with us,” Devon said.
Me? “Train?” Forgetting about knocking Julian over, she turned so she could see them both at the same time. They had better not be joking. “Does this involve combat with our powers? I’m up for that!” She bounced on the balls of her feet, and then crouched down into a fighting position. “I’m ready. Let’s try it now.”
Julian snorted, pretending to take on a defensive position, and shifting his feet apart. “I’m in, as well, but I think I’ll wait ‘til tonight.” He walked down the steps, calling over his shoulder, “Plus, who would want to miss watching Devon get his butt kicked by a girl?”
“I got a feeling Rae’s gonna kick yours first.” The corners of Devon’s mouth twitched. “I think we’ve got a couple of minutes now. If you’d like her to wipe the floor with you.”
Julian turned around and took a step back towards them. “I’d hate to beat a girl in public, but if you’re up for the challenge…”
Flicking her fingers, Rae sent a burst of wind that had Julian stumbling backwards, fighting to catch his balance.
Devon put his hands up between them. “Let’s save it for later then, shall we?” His attempt to keep a straight face broke when he winked at Rae.
Hours later, Rae whispered to Devon and Julian as the three headed to the Oratory after dinner. “So, do you guys train every night?”
“Why are you whispering? There’s no one about.” Julian tied his hair into a ponytail.
“Sorry. It just seems like I should,” Rae continued, still whispering.
“We don’t get to spar every day now, but it’s fun.” Devon opened the door to the Oratory.
He headed across the large room to switch on the lights, but Rae decided to save him the trouble. She summoned Molly’s tatù and flicked her index finger. The room flooded with brightness. Devon paused mid-stride.
Julian chuckled. “You may be able to see in the dark, Dev, but she’s got you beat.” Devon’s fennec fox tatù gave him speed and agility, excellent night vision and an incredible jumping talent to boot.
“She’s got both of us beat, Juls.” Devon winked at her.
“Sorry, just trying to help.” Rae blushed, glad Devon didn’t care if her tatù was more powerful than his.
“Wait till you see the gadgets we get to use.” Julian nudged Rae before walking to the center of the room to face Devon. He stopped about ten paces away from him.
“Why don’t you have a seat by the wall, Rae? Nothing should go flying, but you never know.” Devon’s eyes and body were focused on Julian.
She walked over to the wall. Using the old headmaster Lanford’s tatù of levitation, she effortlessly sat in midair. She swung her feet, enjoying the feeling of sitting weightless. It never got boring, this tatù life.
She crossed her ankles and clasped her hands together. Fascinated to be watching the boys for the first time, she could not wait to see Devon in action. It seems incredibly heroic and so romantic at the same time.
Devon and Julian each dropped into a crouch and began circling each other. Julian took a step towards Devon, who countered.
Devon quickly faked to the right and shifted left. Julian reacted as if he knew exactly where Devon was going to go, and they collided. A split second later, Devon jumped over the top of Julian and pinned his arms behind his back. The boys separated and repeated the drill several more times.
Enthralled, Rae watched. Julian’s learned something new with his tatù. It looked like he didn’t need to draw everything anymore, and where future events used to appear at random, he could predict moves before they occurred. Like he can pre-read Devon’s moves.
Then they switched to a new exercise. Julian grabbed two long sticks. They reminded Rae of light sabers from Star Wars. The two boys danced around the room battling back and forth. Devon struck a marked hit on Julian. Instead of gloating, he explained to Julian how he beat his defenses.
“I’ve been thinking about how to get around your ability to predict my moves. I figured if I considered a number of possibilities at once, but followed my gut instinct, it might confuse you.”
Devon crouched again, pointed to Julian’s knees and beckoned. Julian moved, protecting his legs. They danced, fighting and shouting as they crashed around the room. Julian jumped when Devon scored a marked hit on his heart.
> “How’d you do that?” Julian rubbed his chest.
Devon wiped the sweat dripping from his brow. “I wanted you to think about covering your right side. I kept thinking the same thing but let my instinct aim for your heart.”
“It worked. My vision went blank when your brain wasn’t telling your body what to do. Great tactic and one I’m definitely going to need to be aware of.” Julian wiped the sweat from his forehead with the back of his hand and grabbed his water bottle off the floor. “I need to focus on how to get around it.”
“Hey, Rae. Do you want to try this with Julian?”
Rae jumped off her invisible chair. “Sure.” She ran to Devon’s spot and grabbed his saber. Watching the guys for the past forty minutes had given her a good idea of how to mimic their actions and she was dying to try.
“Take it easy on her,” Devon warned.
Julian almost spurted his water out, just managing to swallow it. “You saying that because she’s a girl, or because it’s her first time?”
“Because if you hurt her, I’ll have to kill you.” Rae sensed some seriousness behind Devon’s joking manner.
Cute…but come on, it’s me. “I’ll be fine. These sticks don’t have points on them, and if Julian somehow manages to hurt me, I can heal myself with Charlie’s healing tatù..” She stuck her tongue out at Devon and then pointed the saber at Julian. “Just remember, I can’t use the healing tatù to fix you.”
“Alrighty, sweet-cakes. Your move.” Julian crouched into his ready position.
Hmmm… seems I need a more casual approach. She stood straight, facing right, stick swinging slightly in her hand. She waited for Julian, focusing her thoughts on him coming towards her and nothing else.
He relaxed and stood up. “Hey, are we gonna spa--”
At that exact moment, Rae levitated and flew over to him. She tapped his stick out of his hand. “Gotchya.”
Julian blinked, stared stunned at her and then at his stick. Devon laughed.
“Shall we try that again?” Rae asked sweetly, patting him on the shoulder before walking back to her spot.
“Sneaky little git,” Julian mumbled, picking his stick up and standing in the ready position.
Rae focused on his tatù. She began to understand what he had learned over the summer. She mimicked him, realizing he was doing the same.
“Hey! You can’t copy my tatù. We’ll spend the next ten minutes having you think about me thinking about you, concentrating on me while I concentrate on you. We’ll be running circles all night.”
Leaning against the wall, Devon rubbed his temples. “I’m already chasing circles in my head with what you just said.”
Devon’s interruption cut into Rae’s concentration, and she lost focus on Julian’s train of thought. He must have realized the gap because he came charging towards her. As he aimed to touch her shoulder, she easily leaned back away from his reach. He swung the stick down and she dropped to a lying position, levitating slightly above the ground. Whipping herself around into an upright position, she touched Julian’s back before he could turn to face her.
“That’s two for Rae.” Devon tried coughing to cover his laugh.
“She’s good,” Julian muttered. “Better than you.”
Devon stepped forward with a smirk that showed off the cute dimple Rae loved.
Unable to resist, she levitated over and kissed it. “Sorry, but I gotta sneak those in when I can.”
“You’d better get them in now. After you beat him and his pride to a pulp, he’s not going to let you.” Julian snickered, a twinkle in his eye. “Hey, Dev, why not have a go with the freeze-Tasers?”
“The what?” Rae’s eyebrows shot up. That sounds cool! Bring it on! She threw the stick aside and squinted to see what Julian tossed to Devon.
“These. Are. Awesome.” Devon held it out so she could see.
“It looks like a cordless razor.”
“Yeah, but when you hit the button and touch someone’s skin, it freezes them.”
“Like the game kids play--freeze tag?” Rae could not imagine how they worked or who in the world had invented them.
“Yeah, that’s the idea. It immobilizes you for about sixty seconds. I can zap Juls to show you.” Devon leapt in front of Julian.
“Hey!” Julian shouted, moving out of Devon’s reach.
Taking a taser, Rae stepped back to her position in the middle of the room. Devon stood about ten feet away, facing her. She squinted as she concentrated on his movements but could not seem to find a pattern to his actions. His tatù gave him agility, but his brain worked even faster. He had her tagged within thirty seconds.
“Whoah! You got me…I can’t move.” Rae struggled to move her arms. She screamed at her brain to tell her legs to run. It immobilized everything but her brain, and obviously her heart and whatever else she needed to breathe and stay alive. After getting over the initial panic, she relaxed. “Wow, this is really cool. I’m stuck!” She paused when a thought struck her. “I’m not going to fall over on my face, am I?”
“No, the freezing will wear off in twenty seconds.” Devon stared at his watch, slowly stepping backwards.
Rae counted in her head. One moment there was nothing and then, bam! Everything returned like it had never left. She lurched forward, not sure if her legs might still be frozen. She chuckled when she realized she was walking around with locked knees. Forcing them to act normal, she returned to her spot.
They tried several more goes, Devon freezing her again and again, until she started to see a pattern in his movements. He went on gut instinct but started to get careless and stepped too close. Rae finally froze him before he got his hand around to touch her.
“Got you.” She danced and taunted him as he stood frozen.
The moment the freezing lifted, he lurched forward. However, she anticipated his action and easily sidestepped his reach. She did a full turn and sensed Devon’s taser by her shoulder. She dropped, floating with her face towards the floor. She mimicked Julian’s power to see Devon’s thoughts. She hovered momentarily, sensing Devon staring at the tatù on her back. Her shirt had shifted, and it must have distracted him. Giggling, she took advantage of the opportunity and rolled over to tap him on the leg.
“Got you again.” She jumped up and did a victory dance close in front of him.
“Great shot.” Julian clapped. “Nice move to end on, in my opinion.”
“Sorry. I got preoccupied for a moment.” Devon winked at Rae. “Let’s call it a night. Rae’s gonna need her sleep. Chatter-bug Molly arrives tomorrow.” He leaned in and placed a long, soft kiss on her lips. “Good shot,” he whispered.
They jumped apart when the Oratory’s door slammed opened.
Chapter 4
Catching Up with Molly
“Good evening. How’s training?” Carter acted oblivious to the kiss he might have just seen. “Learn anything interesting, Rae?”
Devon cleared his throat. “Very good, sir. Seems Rae’s a--a quick learner.” He sounded as nervous as Rae felt.
“A sneaky little bugger, too.” Julian elbowed her in the ribs.
She just stood there, unsure if the sudden sweat came from the workout or Carter’s unexpected arrival.
“We were just about to head back to the dorms.” Devon nodded at Rae. “Someone’s got curfew. Thanks for letting us use the Oratory.” Devon grabbed their equipment, shoved it into the bag he had carried in earlier, and headed towards the front doors.
Julian and Rae followed close behind. Near the exit, Rae glanced over her shoulder; paranoid that Carter might have caught them playing tongue-hockey.
“Yes… Any time,” he replied distractedly. Carter pressed his lips in a thin line and stared at a spot on the floor while fidgeting with change or keys in his pocket.
Shrugging at one another, the three of them headed out into the evening.
“That was weird,” Julian said.
“He’s probably worried about the start of the
new term.” Devon didn’t sound convinced.
“Hmmm—” Rae murmured. He’s probably more distracted with the bad news he gave us earlier than anything else. She closed her eyes, enjoying the slight breeze as it evaporated the sweat on her neck. She didn’t realize how exhausted her body was until they arrived outside Aumbry House. She stifled a yawn, not wanting to say good night to Devon.
“You look shattered,” Julian said.
“Thanks.” She didn’t try to hide the sarcasm. “I really appreciate–”
“You do look tired.” Devon brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, his hand cool against her skin. “Why don’t you head up, and I’ll see you tomorrow. It’s, like, three in the morning in New York now.”
She gave in. “It does feel like it’s been a pretty long day. Can I watch you guys train again? I had fun.”
“Sure, but Julian and I need to come up with some new challenges for you.” Devon laughed. “What you figured out in one night, took us almost a month to learn.”
Madame Elpis came prancing up the walk towards the front doors of Aumbry House and stopped on the concrete steps. “Good evening, gentlemen. Hello, Ms. Kerrigan.” She spoke in a singsong voice. “Are you heading out? Remember curfew is eleven o’clock.”
“Actually, I’m coming in.” Rae turned back to Julian and Devon while Madame Elpis tapped her foot to an imaginary rhythm. She obviously planned to wait for Rae.
“Goodnight.” Devon winked at her.
“‘Night.” Rae stepped inside and moved slowly towards the marble steps. She had forgotten how long the staircase was. Too tired to argue with herself, she began climbing. She paused on the first floor, wishing her room was still here. Slapping her forehead, she realized how much easier things would be if she used one of the powers she had mimicked. I must be exhausted. I should have done it automatically. She rounded the stairwell to the second floor, and concentrated on using the cheetah tatù from a former student to race up the steps. She headed to her room, stopping for a quick trip to the bathroom. When she finally crawled into bed, she thought it had never felt so good. Just before falling asleep, she slapped her forehead. “I forgot to check in on Maria.” Her friend’s tatù let her converse through thought. Rae decided to send her a message. Maria. It’s me, Rae. How are you feeling?