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Xanadu
3
days after "Victoria"
The
slightly obnoxious honk of a dodo crossed from the garden into
the house. Ariel raised her head just in time to see the small
girl tapping a little insecure over the grass following the silly
bird. Arms in a dove-grey sweater stretched out for keeping
balance and small bare feet digging with tiny pink toes into the
muddy earth, the child appeared very much like the dodo she was
chasing after. Her wide curious eyes glowed in a face filled with
enthusiasm and laughter.
Three
days ago it had been darkened with hurt. Ariel shuddered and
looked down at her hands folded tightly in her lap.
Another
honk told her the dodo had underestimated his chaser's speed.
With concern she watched the little girl hugging the fat,
squirming bird, worried for a moment that the child might get
hurt. She's got nothing to fear, Ariel berated herself.
The bird had stopped squirming. It's black button eyes under the
ridiculous bald head blinked in awkward amazement into the
child's wide green ones shot with violet. Dodo on the other
hand...
Ariel's thoughts
halted. It was so easy to kill with powers like her's when being
careless. Only three days ago, she'd been sure there wasn't
anyone able to kill intentionally with psionics -- besides
the truely mad ones of course -- but then...
Then
she'd touched Victoria's mind.
Victoria,
who had killed -- swift, hard, cold beyond mercy, and totally
sane -- to defend her daughter. The little girl with the fluffy
yet silky red hair who clumsily petted the bewitched
dodo.
...are you sad?... a
childish mind voice whispered in her head inside Ariel's
perfectly maintained shields, radiating compassion and
cheerfulness at the sensation of the soft dodo feathers under her
clumsy fingers.
Ariel started.
Incredible power. |