Self-Confidence

 
The next day, Fiona said goodbye to her mother and father as usual before they left for work, and as she was tying her shoes, she wondered how small an object she could move with her Ability. She looked at one of the laces, and thought it would be a good test. She focussed her mana on it, and tried to move it, but felt and saw both laces move. Fiona focussed tighter on one of the laces, and successfully moved it slightly with her Ability. Her concentration was broken by the need to get out to the end of her driveway to catch the bus, but she vividly remembered the feeling of satisfaction she got by passing her own test, even until lunch hour at school.

As she was walking toward the cafeteria with her friends, she saw Kyle berating a smaller kid near one of the doors. For a moment, she was happy that it wasn't her this time, but she quickly put that thought away. People were standing around, but everyone was focussed on the argument. Usually Kyle's attention span for bullying wasn't long enough to attract onlookers, Fiona thought in amusement. She distracted Kyle and the onlookers.

“Hey, what do you think you're doing!” Fiona yelled. Kyle looked over to her and did a double take as he realized that not only was Fiona speaking up, she was doing it on someone else's behalf. Now that she had everyone's attention, she deftly started to untie Kyle's shoelaces, as she had practiced earlier. He took an almost imperceptible moment to regain his composure, oblivious to what was really going on down below.

“What's it to you?”

“Don't you think he's had enough?”

“Mind your own business!”

“Pick on someone your own size!”

“Who, like, you?”

He lunged at Fiona to try to scare her away, but tripped over his own shoelaces, since Fiona was still holding them with her Ability and hadn't had time to let them go. There was a huge uproar of laughter, then the smaller boy darted into the cafeteria. Kyle, now speechless, tied his shoelaces, and stomped off, thoroughly embarrassed. She felt a jolt of satisfaction.

“That was lucky,” her friend Mary said.

“He had it coming to him. Besides, if he had of made it over to me, I would've kicked his ass anyway.”

“Where did all that self-confidence come from? You've never stood up for anyone that I can remember. Sometimes not even yourself.”

“I've been reading a...self-help book.”, she covered quickly. That's not even far from the truth, she thought.

“So that's why you haven't been out of the house lately.”

“Yeah.”

“The author of your self-help book needs to write more about socializing with peers.”

“OK, ok, I get the hint. How about we go to the Palasad tomorrow night?”

“Sure.”

***

After she got home from school, and had just finished walking up the stairs, she heard a knock at the door. As she walked back down the stairs, she wondered who it could be...but her train of thought was derailed as the full force of another mana field caught her by complete surprise. Why is he...Oh my God I've used my Ability in a public place, oh shit I'm going to lose the book. As she opened the door she expected to see anger and resentment for trusting her on his face, but all she saw was a bright smile.

“Hi, come in.” She said lamely.

“I was impressed with how you handled that incident at school.”

“You...were?”

“Yeah, I would've done the same thing.”

“Really? But what about using my Ability in a public place?”

“I admit it was gutsy, and if anyone found out...that would have been...a very unfortunate turn of events, but you distracted them pretty well. Protecting the innocent, which is exactly the reason we exist, is what you did today. Doing it with your Ability without anyone knowing takes talent and skill. Today, you showed me you have both.”

“Oh.”, was all she could manage for a moment, and then asked, a little indignatly, “How did you know?”

“I keep a close eye on you. It's part of my...job.”

“You're watching my every move, just waiting for me to screw up!”

“No, that's not quite true. Yes, I'm responsible if you make a mistake. But it's partly for your protection as well. We can't afford to lose you, we can't afford to lose anyone as a member, really, but that doesn't mean you get carte blanche. Everyone needs to abide by the rules. You let your emotions guide your actions today, and sometimes that's exactly what you need to do. But when you think about using the Ability in public, you better use your head too, and make sure no one finds out. All I'm suggesting is that you remember to use restraint. I'm watching what you do to make sure you live up to our high standards, since I know you're capable of achieving them. You know how I mentioned you made a new record with the tome, and the previous record was five days?”

“Yeah?”

“That was my record. But don't worry, I don't hold a grudge.” He smiled, and just as before he seemed to become the blue fog that surrounded him, and he was gone.

Damn, she thought. I forgot to ask for his name. Although, he probably wouldn't have told me anyway. Fiona locked the door, and went back to her room to study the book further. She still had an hour before her mom was due back home.

 
First Steps: Chapter Five: Just Chillin'
 
In the last chapter, you learned how to convert mana into heat. In this chapter, you will learn how to convert heat into mana. Cold is the absence of heat. When you convert heat into mana, it will make the focussed object cold, and you will have added its energy to your mana field. Performing this transformation is exactly the opposite of the last chapter, so use that fact to your advantage.

When you turn the page, this book will use its power to convert some of its heat energy into mana. That mana will be formed near this book, and will become part of your own mana field. You don't need to concentrate on how much mana you get, because it will only be a small amount. Concentrate on the transformation taking place, and remember it.

 
She turned the page, but kept her hand on the book. It felt as if it were an extension of herself, and it started to cool down slightly. Words formed on the page.

 
Now, perform the transformation yourself.

 
She focussed her mana on the book, and remembered how she heated it up in the last chapter. The book started to warm up. Now she imagined pulling some of the heat out of the book, and adding the energy to her body. Nothing happened. With the confidence she had learned in the previous chapters, she tried again, with more effort, but still, nothing happened. She focussed her mana tighter on just a small part of the book, near her hand, and tried with a lot of effort. Nothing happened. “What am I doing wrong?”, she whimpered aloud.

She remembered that the boy had told her not to signal him unless she couldn't figure out a chapter in a week. It made it even harder on her that she had just seen him. A week? Surely he couldn't have meant a whole week. I'll try for a few more days. I'll get it, she resolved. Unable to continue for now, she started her homework.

That night she was sitting at the supper table with her mom and dad as usual.

“Could I have the car tomorrow night? A bunch of friends and I are going to the Palasad.”

Her mother and father looked at each other for a moment, and her mother said, ”Don't they serve alcohol there?”

“Only after 9 o'clock. Then you need to get an arm-band. But don't make me come home at 9. It's just getting interesting by then. Besides, all my friends and I are under-age, how am I going to get a drink?”

Her mother thought about this for a moment, but she didn't really need to. Fiona had used this argument before, and already knew the answer before she opened her mouth.

“So you meet a cute guy who gives you a drink.” She quickly added, ”That's even worse with all those 'date-rape' drugs around. You can never tell.”

“Mom, I'm old enough to take care of myself. Besides, I'd be driving home, and I know better than to drive drunk. Especially under-age.”

Her mother and father shared a long look, and her mother relented.

“Alright, I suppose you deserve a break after studying so hard for the past few days. Be back by 11 o'clock.”

“Thanks! No problem.”

“And if you have any alcohol...”

“I won't have any alcohol,” she emphasized.