Chapter 7

It had been an interesting week. Saric had decided that if he never saw another snowflake, it would be too soon, but the town had really come together to dig itself free. While school was expected to be out for a few more days, things had progressed to the point where at least most of the residential areas had thin paths carved out of the snow. As the townsfolk gradually came in to contact with one another again, news and rumors began flying between them. Saric tended to disregard most of what he heard, as the two were often difficult to distinguish between at this point.

Still, though the week had been exhausting, it had not been without its entertainments. Five days in to the work, things had progressed sufficiently that Elaine could return home, albeit with difficulty. Saric had insisted upon escorting her to her front door. After spending so much uninterrupted time in her company, Saric was certain that the more he knew about her, the more fascinating, and, in some ways, mysterious, she would become. How could anyone be that alive? She had explained her seemingly boundless store of energy (and the absolutely huge appetite that went with it. Saric still couldn't believe how easily she had trounced him in an eating contest), but just as fascinating as her energy was the fact that she seemed at times perfectly content to curl up with a good book, barely moving except to turn the pages, for hours on end. Still, if she was a mystery, she was one he would enjoy occupying his mind with.

More troubling was the news of what had happened with Dennis and Kentaro. That one bit of news, Saric hadn't ignored, for he had seen the two flying in, headed towards the hospital. He hadn't had time to find out many of the details, but as soon as the way was cleared, he intended to visit his friends and find out what had occurred. In the meantime, there was still plenty of snow to shovel, though Djoser had been right about how much the heat-based Gifts had sped the process up. If Sparkweaver had been up to plow duty, the entire city would be cleared by now, but no one was entirely certain what had happened with Sparkweaver, aside from the fact that he was still providing the town with power.

"Hey, daydreamer, pass me a pot, would ya?" the voice came from an impossibly huge man. Saric recognized Elaine immediately, for it was exactly the same form she had taken earlier in the week to ease the burden of shoveling snow. The pot comment had referred to the fact that no one in town seemed to have enough snow shovels, and most of the citizenry were making do with ovenware of various types.

"Sure thing, not-so-gorgeous!" Saric laughed, "But what are you doing back here? Getting you home was quite a task."

"You'd be amazed what a couple of days can do to the travel conditions. That, and my uncle's got a flamethrower style Gift."

"Must be nice, having relatives with the right Gift at the right time."

"It has its advantages. So, we going to stand around here talking all day, or are you going to get me that pot?"

Saric laughed and made his way back to his house, returning with a large wok.

"So," Elaine began as she began hurling snow out of the way as though it were cotton, "have you seen Dennis or Kentaro since the blizzard?"

"Very, very briefly. Dennis was carrying Kentaro. The two were headed in the direction of the hospital."

"What?!"

"They were too far away to make out much in the way of details, I'm sorry to say."

"Under normal circumstances, I'd be going there every day for community service."

"I've wanted to visit them, but last I checked, the way hadn't been cleared to the hospital from this part of town."

"I'm happy to tell you that you were misinformed. The way is clear, if damnably roundabout. I haven't actually visited the hospital, but I'm sure it can be reached if you're willing to make the trek."

"In that case, would you be so kind as to lead the way?"

"Certainly, Saric. Let's just return these kitchen implements. Your parents would hardly approve if we left them out here in the snow."

Dennis looked up from his reclined position at his hospital bed, startled by the appearance of what seemed to be a guest. And a most unexpected guest she was, at that.

"Professor Taggert? Not that I mind seeing you, but what are you doing here? Were my scores on that last quiz in history so bad that you felt the need to seek me out regarding them?"

"Actually, Dennis, meeting you here is something of a coincidence," Mrs. Taggert said with a soft chuckle, "I'm here on orders from Sparkweaver to do what little I can for another ward of the hospital. I found out about your condition entirely by accident, but I can invoke my Gift on more than one person at a time. I won't be able to heal your leg in an instant, but I can speed up the process. There is one thing I'm going to have to insist on, however. I'll be healing you and another person at the same time. Do me a very great favor and do not initiate conversation with her. She's been through a lot, and if she wishes to speak of it, I'd prefer it to be of her own will."

"I understand."

"Good, in that case, I'll have them move you to some place where I can access the both of you."

Dennis found himself working hard not to stare at the girl Mrs. Taggert had mentioned. Truly, there was a large part of him that didn't want to look, but, like a driver compelled to look at a wreck, there was something in him that was drawn to look.

The girl bore much resemblance to a wreck, actually. Her left arm was in a cast, and what he could see of her face revealed not a square inch of it to be without bruising. Mrs. Taggert gave the girl a look of sympathy, and then extended a hand to each of them. Soft warmth spread out from her hand, soothing Dennis and easing his pains. The girl seemed to relax to the touch of it as well. Finally, after about fifteen minutes of silence, she spoke. She sounded very weary.

"Thank you, ma'am, but I don't deserve this."

"I'm afraid I'd have to disagree with you there," Mrs. Taggert said, a soft smile in her eyes, "In fact, I can't recall ever having met someone more deserving."

"Please, ma'am, just leave me alone. If you people would stop interfering, maybe I could die in peace. I think I'd like that."

"You're not going to die, Tara. Our medicine may not be as advanced as it was in the pre-Genesis times, but we'll see you fixed up."

"I really wish you wouldn't. I deserve this. Everything that happened was my fault."

Mrs. Taggert started to say something, but it was clear that Tara had fallen back into a fitful doze. Sighing, she refocused her energies and tried to nudge her Gift into giving just a little bit more healing.

A nurse entered the room approximately an hour later. Tara was still asleep, and Dennis himself had been in the process of nodding off. The arrival of the nurse brought him back to the waking world.

"You'll be reporting back to Sparkweaver when you're done here, correct, Mrs. Taggert?" the nurse asked quietly.

"Yes. He wants to be kept informed."

"Really, to think that one girl could-

"Here and now is neither the time nor the place to discuss that," Mrs. Taggert said, shooting a glance at Dennis, "It'll come out soon enough. Let's at least try to make sure the public gets the whole story, not some mangled rumor."

"Oh, right. At any rate, they told me to tell you that her father is going to live."

Tara jerked upright, her face suddenly transformed to a half feral mask. As swift as the striking of a serpent, her arm shot out, and her hand grasped Mrs. Taggert's own arm. The nurse took one look at the situation and bolted, calling for a doctor.

Dennis rose as best he was able to a sitting position, but before he could say anything, Mrs. Taggert gasped, and a silvery aura seemed to surround her. In her eyes, Dennis observed neither of fear or pain, but... clarity? Tara collapsed back in to the bed, but the silvery aura remained.

"Mrs. Taggert? Are you alright?" Dennis asked, finding his voice at last.

"Never better, Dennis. I can honestly say that I have never been better."

"Saric! It is good to see you again! Who is your titanic friend?" Kentaro asked, sitting up in his bed.

Elaine shimmered back in to her natural form.

"Ah, that explains that."

"I saw you and Dennis flying in, but the snow outside is piled high enough to make getting here something of a trick," Saric explained, "Elaine showed me the way here through the maze of half-shoveled streets. What happened?"

"As I understand it, Dennis was just finishing his aerial patrol when the blizzard came up. He said he was taking a bit longer than he normally would, due to his enjoyment of flying. When that storm came out of nowhere, the winds caught him unprepared. It was all he could do to stay in the air. I saw what was happening and followed him from the ground. The wind tossed him at the cliffs, which he sort of managed to clear via heroic efforts to gain altitude."

"Sort of managed to clear?"

"He hit his legs on the upper rim. Broke one, bruised the other. I got this way," Kentaro indicated his own fading bruises, "by climbing the cliff to go after him. When I finally got to the top, I was exhausted, bruised and cut in more places than I cared to think of. I did my best to suppress the discomfort, and the two of us made it into the shelter of the forest. We were extremely lucky in finding a large quantity of wood that was dry enough to use to start a fire, but Dennis had taxed his wings terribly and needed a few days to recover. I kept us fed by invoking my Gift and chasing down small game. Which, I must say, did not notably improve my own condition. When we arrived, it was my intention to depart immediately, but the hospital asked me to stay a few days and recover."

"It sounds like you've both been through quite an ordeal," Elaine sympathized, "will you be alright? We asked after both of you, but apparently Dennis isn't up to receiving visitors right now."

"As my mother would say in her favorite phrase from your entire culture, 'that which does not kill us makes us stronger.'"

"Speaking of parents, do your parents know what happened to you two?" Saric asked.

"I was assured by the hospital staff that the news had been relayed to them, with some help provided by a pair of snow shoes."

"Now why didn't I think of snow shoes?" Elaine murmured, "They certainly would have made getting around town less of a labyrinthine challenge."

"You two really should visit Dennis, when he is up to it. Much though I appreciate your concern, he deserves the greater share of it."

"I'd like to look in on him now," Saric commented, "not necessarily stay or anything; if he's asleep, I don't want to wake him. I just want to see him with my own eyes."

"I think I know how we can arrange that. If I change form into a nurse, I can go pretty much anywhere I want to. I'll find out where they're keeping him, and then we can sneak in. Well, you can sneak in, rather. I'll walk in openly. That way, if something goes wrong, I'll still be able to fill you in."

"That sounds like a plan. While we're out there, do you need anything, Kentaro? We could bring you back something from the cafeteria."

"Thank you, but I will be fine. I intend to go home tomorrow."

"Well then, I guess we'll see you at school."

"Give Dennis my best. I have not seen him since we entered this place."

"Will do."

Elaine smiled. The right form could do just about anything, when it came to gathering information. While the form she currently wore was not of a style to her personal liking, it served her purposes. Elaine favored extremes in her forms: extreme strength, extreme good looks, and extreme outfits. But it was as plain as the nose on her assumed face that the key to learning anything was just the opposite. Elaine's form had actually mimicked that of one of the nurses who worked at the hospital, but the nurse in question had been chosen for being the most bland, unexciting, forgettable creature on staff.

After getting the information, Elaine had returned to Kentaro's room, where Saric could wait without attracting notice, and passed the news to him. Dennis had apparently been temporarily transferred to room 302, though it was expected he would be transferred back to his initial room, 351, within an hour. The plan was that Elaine would go to see Dennis immediately, and Saric would slip in to room 351 after he had been moved back, when the bustle of people would hopefully be minimized.

Elaine had taken the elevator to the third floor, and now stood before the door to room 302. Before entering, she reminded herself of advice Cameron had given her. "The most important trick to acting isn't how you look, it's how you behave. Betray your part, and it won't matter what you look like, people will know something is wrong. Do it right, and they're more likely to overlook small flaws in the costume." There was probably a reason that Dennis had been transferred. A reason meant there would quite possibly be other people in the room. Those other people had to believe the façade, or there would be a lengthy explanation at the very least, and quite possibly a lot of trouble.

Elaine braced herself and opened the door, scanning the room briefly as she did so. Two cots occupied the room, with a woman standing between them, touching both occupants. The woman's back was to Elaine, and it was, Elaine decided, probably just a trick of the light, but she looked like she had was illuminated by the faintest of silvery auras. Elaine gave the woman no more than a passing glance, however, as her eyes automatically examined the contents of the beds. In one of them, Dennis was lying at an extremely awkward looking angle, apparently trying to keep from jamming his wings, while at the same time keeping his injured leg elevated. Elaine doubted he would be able to sleep like that without the assistance of medication, and, indeed, his eyes were wide open.

The other bed contained a girl, who looked as though she might be rather uncomfortable as well if she were awake. She looked to be a bit younger than Elaine, and rather pretty, but there was evidence that she had been very badly bruised, though the bruises looked old and faded. Her slumber was fitful, as though she were having trouble with nightmares.

As Elaine completed her observations, the woman turned around, and Elaine was forced to swallow what would normally have been a reaction of startled recognition.

"Ah, nurse, your timing is excellent," Mrs. Taggert said, her voice practically dripping with exhaustion, "I'm afraid I overextended myself a bit today, and I hadn't been looking especially forward to moving Dennis back to his room. Would you see to it? I still have to report to Sparkweaver before I can go home and get some sleep."

"Certainly. Will you be requiring anything else?" Elaine asked, slipping in to her part.

"No, thank you, not unless you've got a pill on you to give me a bit more energy for the evening"

"I'm afraid we just ran out of those, but we've put in an order for them, and should have more just as soon as the order form gets to the pearly gates."

Mrs. Taggert laughed dutifully and made her way out the door, wishing Dennis a good evening, and promising to be back tomorrow. Once she had left, Elaine smiled at Dennis.

"So, how are you feeling?"

"Much better, actually. That girl, Tara, I think her name was," Dennis gestured towards the other bed, "seems to have somehow enhanced the potency of Mrs. Taggert's healing. A couple more days of that, and I'll be good as new."

"I'm glad to hear that. You had a couple of well-wishers earlier, by the way."

"Oh?"

"Yes, a boy and girl about your age. They were told you weren't up to receiving company. The girl seemed quite put out about that. Even said something about getting in to see you, regulations or no."

Dennis laughed, "That sounds like Elaine. She's never been much of a one to let little things like rules stand in her way."

Elaine shimmered back into her true form, "No, as a matter of fact, she hasn't," she said, grinning.

"Elaine! I should have known. It's good to see you again. How are you? And where is Saric? I presume you were talking about him."

"I'm fine, if a bit weary. I almost think you got lucky getting your leg broken by the storm. The rest of the town has been spending time shoveling snow. Saric is keeping an eye on your other room, planning to sneak in once you're back there. We didn't want to risk having to explain what he was doing."

"Well then, I guess we shouldn't keep him waiting. This thing has wheels on it, so you shouldn't have any problems rolling me back to my room, 'nurse'."

"Please, wait."

Both Dennis and Elaine looked, startled, to the other cot. Tara was struggling to sit up and face Dennis.

"The storm caused you to break your leg?" she asked.

"Yeah. I was just finishing up my community service as an aerial scout when it came up out of nowhere. The wind was like nothing I've ever seen before. It tossed me around like I weighed no more than a leaf. Eventually, it sent me towards the cliffs. I consider myself lucky to have gotten away with a mere broken leg, actually."

Tara sighed bitterly, "My father was right."

Dennis looked at her, confused, "I beg your pardon?"

"He said I was evil. I caused that storm. My father was horribly injured, because of me. The entire town shut down, because of me. Mr. Sparkweaver took a nasty cut, because of me. You broke your leg, because of me."

"Did you intentionally cause the storm?"

"No. I lost control."

"Then I don't see how it was your fault."

"Because I shouldn't have lost control. You said it yourself; you were lucky to have suffered nothing worse than a broken leg. My loss of control could have killed you."

"Did the storm cause your injuries?" Elaine asked.

"No. I lost control because my dad was thrashing me."

"That bastard!" Dennis spat.

"I deserved it. I'm a lousy daughter and a miserable excuse for a human being. I was furious with him at the time, but I guess that's just more evidence in his favor."

"I don't care what you did, you didn't deserve that." Dennis asked, pointing to Tara's cast.

"You haven't seen what I did to my dad. I pinned him to the wall on a spear of ice. I deserve that and more."

"You defended yourself from being assaulted, so you deserved to be assaulted?"

"You don't understand."

"No, I suppose I don't."

"Your friend is waiting for you. You should probably get going. I'm sorry for breaking your leg."

"I still don't think it was your fault, but whether it was or not, I forgive you."

A tiny smile played briefly across Tara's face, but it was gone almost before it began. Sighing, she made shooing motions, urging Dennis to go ahead and leave.

"Mrs. Taggert said she'd be back tomorrow," Dennis said, "I guess I'll see you again then."

"Yeah, I suppose so."

Elaine shimmered back into her nurse guise, removed the wheel locks from Dennis' cot, and began to roll him back to his original room, where Saric was waiting.

"Well, that was pointless," Saric sighed.

"What was pointless?" Dennis asked.

"Going to all the trouble to sneak in here. Elaine made it easier than I expected."

"Well, at least we were prepared for the worst," Elaine said with a smile.

"So, how are you feeling, Dennis?"

"I've been better, but I'm farther along towards being healed than I expected, thanks to Mrs. Taggert. Truth to tell, I'm more concerned about Tara."

"You two told me about her, but I'm not sure what we can do to help."

"Well, a little charisma could go a long way."

"Yeah, but Gift or no Gift, I can't give her any kind of counseling while she's still in a hospital bed. Officially, neither Elaine nor I even know she exists, and I get the feeling the powers that be would prefer it if knowledge of who she is and what she did remain more or less on a need to know basis, at least until the rest of the town has had a chance to get all that snow she hurled at us out of the streets."

"Then why do I know about her? Why was I brought into the same room with her?"

"Maybe so she has someone to talk to? Mrs. Taggert is a very nice person, but she's still an adult, and that might be intimidating. You, on the other hand, are not only around her age, but also barely able to get around indoors on that leg. You're not threatening."

"I don't know..."

"It can't be good for her to sit there without an outlet," Elaine added, "She's got no self-esteem, and she blames herself for far too much. That kind of thing could create a vicious circle."

"It's a pity," Dennis said, "She seems like a nice girl underneath all of it."

"Well, do what you can, and I wish a speedy recovery to the both of you, but we'd best be getting back home."

"I'll do my best, Saric," Dennis promised, "I imagine I'll see you once school reopens. Certainly, if Tara does that enhancement bit with Mrs. Taggert again, I will."

"She did what?"

"I don't really understand it either, Sparkweaver," Amelia Taggert sighed, "but when she touched me, it was like she had taken ten years off my age, and amplified my Gift greatly, in the bargain."

"I don't understand how that connects to making projectiles out of ice, or causing blizzards. I've never heard of someone getting two Gifts, with the quasi-exception of that young shape-shifter William Cameron told me about. But at least with her, there's an explanation."

"She also seems very depressed, which is not unexpected, considering what she's been through."

"And she's not overly likely to have her spirits lifted by the coming days," Sparkweaver began ticking off items, "Let's see. We've got her father's trial, at which she'll have to testify, her presumed placement in some kind of foster care, and the fact that I want her transferred to seventh grade, leaving the school she knows behind, where we have a full-fledged Gift trainer who can stop her if she gets out of control, as well as hopefully helping to unravel this mystery that her Gift seems to be turning into. Have I missed anything?"

"It's a tricky situation. She doesn't really want me to heal her. I've brought in one of my most empathic students on the pretext of healing his broken leg, in the hopes that maybe she'll open up a bit to him."

"When do you think she'll be readier to testify? I'd prefer to get a case worker to testify on her behalf, but things being as they are..."

"You might do better to find a former child protective services worker, despite that. She didn't speak to me much, but from what I saw, that girl is going to need a lot of therapy before she's ready for a courtroom."

"Nothing is ever easy. Still, we're going to have to have her placed in foster care in quite short order. She certainly can't go home after she leaves the hospital. Even if I were insane enough to trust her father, who, for that matter, is likely to be spending a lot more time in the hospital than she will, there's nothing for her to go home to. That storm sent a good portion of her home well on its way to Oz."

"Do we even have a foster care system established?"

"It's been on my to do list, along with re-establishing every other important governmental system that fell apart with Genesis. Apparently, it just got moved to the top of the list."

"If she does open up to my other student, she may form quite an impressive bond with him. Perhaps you should talk with his parents about the possibility of taking her in, at least for the moment. I have their address with me."

"Madam, if you weren't so well-intentioned, I'd accuse you of being a meddler," Sparkweaver said, smiling to soften the impact of his words, "Very well then, give me the information. I'll send a courier to invite them over. I'd go to see them myself, but..." Sparkweaver gestured at his right leg."

"I'd offer to give you some healing for that, but truth to tell, I'm exhausted," Mrs. Taggert reached into her pocket, taking out a small piece of paper, "Here it is. I'd like to get home and get some sleep. Tomorrow is going to be a very long day. By your leave?"

Sparkweaver took the paper from her and nodded somewhat absently, his mind already preoccupied with the upcoming events.

It was Wednesday, and Dennis was going just a bit stir crazy. School was scheduled to reopen the following Monday, December 5^th, but the snow shoveling was mostly done. Sparkweaver was up and about again, and had finished off the last remnants of snow in the streets himself. Dennis had heard that at least a hundred people had gathered around to watch as he blasted the last street clean. The combination of the spectacle of his using lightning to do it and the emotional freedom provided by knowing that at last, transportation was back to normal in Arrowhead has sparked an impromptu party.

Dennis had briefly wondered why the schools were staying closed if the snow was gone, but Mrs. Taggert had been glad to explain. Apparently, just about everyone who could pick up a pot had been out there shoveling from dawn to dusk, and the town needed a few days to recuperate. Dennis himself was very nearly completely healed, thanks to Mrs. Taggert, but he had been ordered to stay at least until Thursday morning.

Glancing at Tara, Dennis knew that it wasn't because of his leg that they were keeping him here. She had been reluctant to repeat her enhancement for Mrs. Taggert on Monday, but the reluctance had decreased on Tuesday, and today, it seemed like it had been mainly for show. That first hint of a smile she had given him had been a crack in her armor, and Dennis was doing his best to widen that crack. It might have been easier for him to do so if she hadn't done her enhancement, though, as it seemed to exhaust her, causing her to fall asleep for a few hours after each use.

She was not asleep now, however.

"So, what's seventh grade like? Apparently, I'm going to be skipped up to it as soon as I'm up to going back to school, so I suppose I should be prepared as best as I can."

"Well, Mrs. Taggert, here, is our history teacher. She's been taking us backwards from the present, giving us a guided tour of Genesis and the events that lead up to it. She's a pretty good example of the kind of teacher we usually see there. For the most part, you'll see teachers who know their subject and want students to have fun learning it. There are a few things I should warn you about, though," Dennis looked at Mrs. Taggert, rather wishing he could have given the list of problems without her standing over the two of them, but honestly, Tara deserved warning about Roe, at the very least. Still, that was the sort of thing it was best to lead up to gradually.

"First, you may end up in a martial arts class taught by a fellow student. Don't be too surprised by that. He's been training practically since birth, and both of his parents also teach martial arts at the school.

If you get Mr. James as an English teacher, consider yourself both blessed and cursed, simultaneously. He'll test the limits of your knowledge, and then give you something that ends up being a very difficult project, no matter how much you know. He's very focused on the individual, but don't expect any slack from him.

Our Gift Development coach is Mr. Cameron. He'll teach you the limits of your Gift, and then show you how to go beyond them. He's strict, but he's always got good advice if you're willing to listen."

"Gift Development? Just great. My Gift caused that blizzard, remember? Do they really want to make me even more of a walking catastrophe?"

"A lot of what he teaches is control. You said the blizzard happened because you lost control, right? That wasn't your fault, and he can help you make sure it doesn't happen again."

"And what's he going to do if I do lose it again? Last time, even losing consciousness didn't stop the thing."

"His Gift is suppression. He was probably out there when Sparkweaver found you."

"Speaking of Sparkweaver," Mrs. Taggert interjected, startling both of them, "You'll be glad to know, Tara, that he's fully recovered. And he doesn't blame you, either. In fact, he said he would have likely done the same thing you did in a similar situation."

Tara shrugged, and then motioned for Dennis to continue.

"The only teacher I really have to warn you about is the math teacher, Mr. Roe. Mr. Wentworth, the superintendent, pretty much neutered him, but even if he can't make your entire life miserable, he can certainly succeed at ruining an hour out of your day. The best advice I can give you is to stay quiet and hope he doesn't notice you."

If Mrs. Taggert felt offended by Dennis' description of one of her fellow teachers, she didn't show it.

Tara still seemed depressed, but she continued asking questions. Dennis answered as best he could, slipping reassurance in whenever possible. Mrs. Taggert occasionally contributed to the discussion, but for the most part, she simply focused on her healing, Tara's silver aura glowing around her.