We had waited until the tide was mostly out before descending from the sea fort. We couldn''t afford to wait for the tide to go out fully, since it would more than likely be broad daylight by that time. The tide was out enough that we were able to submerge ourselves into the sea water up to our chests. I had also returned to my larger self in order to make my clothes fit better again.


    We both bobbed back to shore holding our shoes above our heads. Xandra had placed several of her make up items and a small black purse in one of her converse shoes to avoid them getting wet. I had also taken my boots off, and had put my mobile phone, the wire, and the two hundred pounds in notes into one of the boots to keep them dry.


    When we reached the shore we hurried across the pebbly beach and, still barefoot, up the concrete arch which led to the low stone wall. We both climbed over the wall and hurried along the main road until we came to Putsley Bay''s Charity Shop; the biggest of several charity shops along the same street.


    I didn''t like the idea of stealing, but given our circumstances stealing from a charity shop seemed like the least worst way to get some much needed supplies.


    I''ll leave some money behind, I told myself, so it won''t be stealing-stealing.


    Xandra and I heightened our hearing and vision to scope out the surrounding area. As far as either of us could tell there were no people living above the charity shop. The shop bordered a cafe on one side, and a real estate agency office on the other; both of which were empty and likely would stay that way for a while longer given it was a Sunday morning.


    Once we were at the back of the charity shop we both took a minute to use the bulbing power to warm ourselves up; steam rose from our bodies and the sodden wetness which had clung to our clothes was greatly steamed away.


    Man I love this power, I thought.


    Sure, I thought, having the power has completely upended my life and caused me to become a fugitive on the run, but credit where it''s due, the power is cool.


    We took the items out of our shoes, pocketed them, and then put our shoes back on.


    I watched as Xandra approached the charity shop''s back door. The handle gave a little but the door held firm.


    Xandra looked back at me with a cheeky look and then raised her left hand. Her fingernails grew to sharp and very shiny points.


    "No way," I muttered, somewhat in disbelief.


    Not because she had grown her nails out, but because she was using them in a way I had only seen in cartoons and movies.


    Slowly Xandra clawed her nail in a circle on the glass door. The sound was much louder than I imagined she anticipated but I could tell that the combination of the strength she put into her arm and the sharpness of her nail was, surprisingly, up to the task of doing exactly what she needed it to do.


    "Wait," I mumbled, stepping forward to try and stop Xandra but it was too late.


    She hadn''t anticipated the glass falling through the other side of the door. The circle of glass fell and smashed to pieces with a painfully loud crash.


    Xandra looked back at me with a mock-guilty expression.


    I strained my hearing as much as I could to see whether anyone in our surroundings had noticed the sudden noise.


    The lapping of the waves, the relentless cries from the seagulls, distant cars driving, the hum of the nearby streetlight pouring out its thick white light in the inky blue dark; the sound of a kettle boiling in a house five doors down, the-


    "-BURGESS?" whispered Xandra, her voice booming in my ears.


    "Hold on," I whispered, trying to ignore the sound of my own voice booming inside my head.


    More lapping waves, more seagull cries, more distant cars, the continued hum of the nearby streetlight and the kettle which was near to boiling over; the sounds happening at once but each made distinct depending on which I strained to listen to more.


    I reduced my heightened hearing and sighed.


    "I think we''re clear," I said.


    "Cool," said Xandra.


    She put her hand through the hole she had made and unlocked the door from the inside. Carefully she removed her arm and then she let herself in. I followed close behind, my boots crunching on the broken glass on the way in.


    The musty smell of the charity shop met my nose immediately. The donated shoes, and clothes, and all sorts of old knick-knacks such as board games and ornaments and old canvas paintings all contributed to the old smell.


    "We have to be quick," I said, "In and out, remember?"


    Xandra gave me a thumbs up and set to work gathering supplies.


    Xandra made a beeline to a section with rucksacks and took a black one which had the image of a cat on it with its mouth stitched shut. She then began to stuff different items into the rucksack including a knife and a fork, a travel flask, and a small tupperware box.


    A quick look at the remaining rucksacks provided three options; a simple dark red rucksack, a sporty blue one with a white stripe and, finally, a rather unique looking rucksack which looked like a frog, with its arms and legs acting as straps.


    I hesitated on which to pick before letting whimsy take over. Of course I picked the frog rucksack. In combination with the fox hat I knew I would look plain silly, but I really didn''t care and decided I wanted to have a little bit of fun for a change. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    I copied Xandra''s idea of taking cutlery, a flask, and plastic tupperware.


    Xandra hurried behind the shop counter and found a large carry bag for herself and also chucked one over to me, which I caught.


    She then went to the women''s clothing section and got to work picking out several shirts and other clothing items that were to her taste and needs.


    I moved over to the men''s clothing section and picked out a large black puffy jacket that reminded me a little of the gray one I had given up before; the inside lining was a stark orange which matched the colour of the fox hat close enough. I set the frog rucksack and the items stuffed inside its ''mouth'' onto the floor and then put the black coat on over my green flannel shirt.


    "We should both get changed," I said, "Or we''re going to stink of sea water."


    "Yeah," muttered Xandra, too enthralled by all the clothes at her fingertips to pay me much notice.


    I stuffed several shirts, some long-sleeved, some short, as well as two sets of jeans into the carry bag. I also picked out an old pair of gray shoes that would fit on my feet at a normal size.


    Xandra disappeared into the nearby changing room and returned shortly after wearing similar all-black clothes like before, with the sea-soaked ones abandoned to the changing room. The sleeves of the new black fleece she wore bunched up a lot at the elbows, making her arms and hands look a little small in comparison.


    I met Xandra''s gaze as she stood with her hands to her hips and, after an awkward pause, gave her a thumbs up. She gave me a thumbs up back and I moved into the changing room to get out of my damp clothes.


    After returning to my normal size again, I changed into a long-sleeved gray shirt and into simple blue denim. Once changed, it felt good to be back into clothes that fit my regular size; though I had made sure to stuff a couple larger clothing items into the carry bag should I want to be the larger, bigger and stronger me again. I put the damp clothes Donald and Sienna had given me into the carry bag as well inside of a plastic bag, rather than leave them behind.


    I made sure to listen out for any sign that someone outside of the charity shop was approaching. To my relief the same constant sounds continued outside, with just a little more distant car noises; there was however an impending sense of life to the quiet of the Putsley Bay Coast; the way a kettle grumbles as a sign it will eventually reach full boil.


    Whilst in the changing room I took stock of my reflection. Though clearly still under a good deal of stress, my eyes no longer had the same shellshocked look they had before. I looked like a real idiot wearing the fox hat and frog rucksack, but both items were, in some small way, a way for me to pretend that all the troubles in my life weren''t really as serious as they seemed.


    My hair had gotten quite scruffy and was in need of a cut, and the stubble on my chin and upper lip would need a shave soon.


    It came almost as a shock to see that, despite all the things I could now do, and all the things I had been through, that I was still the same me in the mirror. Just a fresh-faced eighteen year old that looked closer to sixteen if you didn''t know.


    I forced myself to look away from the mirror and exited the changing room. Xandra was standing at the book section of the store seeing what was on offer.


    "We''ve got to go," I whispered.


    "Give me a sec''," said Xandra, "There won''t be much to do when we''re hiding out."


    It was then I remembered how I used my power to gain a vast amount of medical knowledge within a few hours. I still wasn''t sure to what extent I had been able to retain that knowledge, since the strange inner voice that had told me about Sienna and Donald''s medical conditions had, thankfully, stopped shortly after it started.


    A question rang loud and clear in my head: what would I want to learn?


    For the first time since I gained my power a different kind of giddy excitement took hold of me. The possibilities of what I could learn were as vast as all of human knowledge itself. The answer came to me loud and clear.


    With the answer at the forefront of my thoughts I hurried over to the book section and joined Xandra''s side. In her arms were a bunch of books; a book of classic fairy tales, a thin book called Tales of Enlightenment, a book called How to Draw Using Your Whole Brain, as well as two manga volumes for a show titled Predatory Relock: Rebirth.


    "Did you know you can use the power to learn how to do stuff?" I said.


    "What do you mean?" she said.


    She did a double-take because she could see the enthusiasm clear on my face.


    I scanned the bookshelf and did my best to ignore all the fantasy and sci-fi novels on offer, since that would have been what caught my eye before. There were a range of comic books which, though probably apt for my situation, probably weren''t going to give the most useful information to use my learning power on.


    The more I searched, the more it seemed I wasn''t going to be content with the books that were available.


    Books are good, I thought, but not for what I really want to learn.


    I turned away from the bookshelf and then caught sight of something that stood out like treasure among the sea of donated junk.


    A portable DVD player with a screen attachment. I hurried over to it and found, much to my excitement, that there came with the portable player a remote and a charging cable.


    "Yes!" I thought, turning to Xandra, "Look!"


    I held it up for her to see. Xandra''s eyes widened with excitement too.


    "Good idea!" she whisper-shouted.


    She stuffed the books she had taken into her carry bag, which was close to being filled to the brim. Then, together, Xandra and I lay waste to the DVDs on offer, taking all of the DVDs we wanted out of the cases, only taking the discs since they would be easier to carry that way. We had about thirty discs each but the time we had taken all the ones that had caught our eye.


    We had lingered long enough. It was time to go.


    I put a one hundred pound note on the counter top.


    "What are you doing?" said Xandra in a confused tone.


    "Is it not enough?" I said.


    "That''s plenty!" said Xandra, "This is a charity shop, not a bank!"


    "I know," I said, "But we did break the glass. That''ll need to be repaired."


    "Then a hundred will cover it," said Xandra.


    She didn''t wait for a response. After listening out for any possible passersby she headed out of the charity shop, lugging her stuffed rucksack and carry bag with her.


    I considered leaving the second one hundred pound note, but decided against it. One hundred pounds likely wasn''t going to be enough to fix the door, but I frankly didn''t care that much whether it got fixed or not. I could certainly live with myself for having been a part of a charity shop break-in given our circumstances.


    Xandra was waiting outside for me. I stepped to her side, finding myself just a little above her eye level at my regular height, wearing the gray trainers I had taken from the charity shop.


    Xandra looked down at my carry bag and saw one of the DVDs I had taken.


    "Oh?" she said, her gaze curious and a little amused, "You like kung fu movies?"


    "Oh yeah," I said, gesturing down to the DVD which showed the title of the movie: School of The One Thousand Sorrow Fist; beside it in a fighting stance was legendary Chinese actor Sonny Yen.Learning medical knowledge was cool. Learning Kung Fu was necessary.