Manipulation

I learned as a child that I could easily manipulate people and situations in my favour. When I told my mom what I could do, she asked me never to reveal my secret to anyone, and to use my powers only for good. Mom made me promise to use my powers sparingly to avoid unnecessary attention; I kept that promise as I grew up. I sometimes manipulated the rich into providing homeless people all the financial aid they needed to get back on their feet; other times, I’d alter people’s minds so that they could get through addiction and other self-destructive behaviour.

In time, my hometown became well-known for its peaceful environment. Homelessness was obsolete, and even crime rates were near zero. I felt blessed that my gift had such an impact on those around me, and that I was able to help shape my hometown into what it was. I made it a point not to use my powers for personal gain in most situations, but every now and then, I would use it to tweak my scores for projects and exams whenever I was lagging behind. This, however, did not work with my newest lecturer, Ms. J.

To my surprise, Ms. J gave me a C for a project. When I turned to her as she was walking away from me, she communicated with me without even looking back. “You’re more talented than this, Anne. Do better.” Her words echoed in my mind.

I froze where I sat. “You… You’re like me?”

“A lot, yes. I assume your mom never told you about me, but we knew each other long ago. I’d like to meet her again; I haven’t been able to find her since her parents died.”

Mom had very few friends and family from her past that she still kept contact with. There were only a handful of people whom I had ever met, so it was not surprising to learn that there was someone who wanted to see her. They hadn’t met in two decades.

That evening, I took Ms. J to Mom’s place, but the second they made eye contact, Mom grabbed my hand and pulled me inside. She tried to lock the door, but Ms. J ripped it from its hinges and flung it across the room.

“Hi, Abby. It took so long to hunt you down,” Ms. J said, her face twisting into a sinister form I had never seen before, transforming into a being far from human.

“You won’t take my daughter from me as well, demon!” Mom stretched out her hand, and from it sprang lightning that blitzed across the room to strike Ms. J. “You’re both mine now,” Ms. J said as she repelled the lightning, shifting its path to move around her as she leapt at us.

Mom stepped forward, pushing the demon back, but the demon still pressed on, advancing one step at a time. I joined her, using every ounce of power I had to use my abilities in ways I had never used them before. Mom and I attacked her body and mind in unison, giving the demon no room to counter both at the same time. Mom managed to sink the ground beneath the demon, driving it into a dark abyss.

Once the demon had vanished into the shadows, Mom sealed the portal and returned our house to its original state. I stood there trying to grasp what had just transpired when she walked up to me and held my hands. “I’m so sorry I kept all this from you… I thought I was protecting you.” We sat down on the sofa, and Mom revealed to me the secrets of our magic and ancestry.