The call with my brother had been brief.


    At first the call was picked up by a Polish girl who sounded as if answering the phone was a great chore.


    "Yes, who this?" she had said.


    "Hi," I said, forcing the word out, "Is this Rarity? The perfume store?"


    "Yes, what is it you want?" said the girl.


    "I''m calling to speak with Gary O''Bannon, is he working today?"


    "Yes, he is out front at moment. You want me to get?"


    "Yes, please, thank you."


    After a delay there came a scratching sound on the other end of the line.


    "Hello?" said a very familiar voice.


    "Gary! It''s me!" I had said, "How are you?"


    There was silence on the other end of the line. Then, in a cautious voice my brother had said, "Burgess? Where are you?"


    "I''m safe," I had said, avoiding the question a little, "I''m not at the facility anymore."


    "What?" Gary spat, "Why?"


    There was something accusing about his tone that didn''t sit right with me. But this was my brother after all. We''d always been like oil and water, or two opposing magnet ends.


    "It wasn''t a good place," I had said, "I had to leave."


    "They let you go?" said Gary.


    "No," I had said, "I escaped."


    "You ran off?!" Gary had snapped, "What are you playing at?"


    "Gary," I had said, "I''m calling to let you know I''m okay."


    After another long pause where I thought Gary might have hung up, he then said, "Okay, I can''t talk at work. I''ve got your number. I''ll call you back when I''ve finished work, okay?"


    "Okay," I had said, "Could you give me Mum''s number so I can tell her I''m okay?"


    "We can worry about that later," said Gary, "Just stay by your phone and be ready for a call later. I''ve got to go."


    And just like that Gary had hung up.


    Since then Xandra and I had left the Shepperton Rugby Clubhouse and headed off towards the old underground World War II bunker she knew as the next abandoned spot we could stay for a while. It didn''t help matters that it rained something fierce as soon as we set off, and hadn''t stopped at all despite us both running and stopping at intervals over the course of three hours.


    The rain made it much harder to use our senses to avoid trouble ahead of time. The abundance of houses and small towns in our way proved another obstacle; since we had to avoid main roads and had to jump over fences and hurry down alleys, on top of the usual forests and farms.


    The only upside was how difficult it would be for anyone to see us given how utterly unpleasant it was to be outside.


    After the third hour of the rain not relenting in the slightest we both agreed to stop for the day.


    The best shelter we could find under the bleak circumstances was an abandoned tractor which had long since been deprived of its wheels.


    Xandra handed over her carry bags and then climbed up the side of the tractor. After a hard yank from Xandra the rusted door opened for what was likely the first time in a very long time.


    "Quick pass ''em up," said Xandra, looking like a soaked cat as she reached down to take the carry bags from me. Once she had all of our bags stuffed behind the tractor''s driving seat it was my turn to climb inside.


    Crank!


    With the door closed Xandra and I were forced to share a seat inside the tractor.


    We both shivered against the cold.


    "M-mind if I w-warm the inside u-up?" I stuttered.


    "You don''t h-have to a-ask," Xandra stuttered back.


    I bulbed up as gently as I could manage and turned the water all over me to vapor.


    The water which drenched my clothes and coat started to steam up too. The thick dark clouds and the pummeling rain beyond the tractor window was quickly covered up with steam.


    Without meaning to, I had made the already dark interior of the track that much more so. I bulbed up my right hand to create some more warmth and light for the both of us.


    Xandra followed my lead, bulbing up too, adding yet more steam to the windows. For a good few moments we couldn''t even see each other.


    Soon after the steam settled and we were both relieved to be out of the rain and someplace somewhat warm.


    "I really hate this," said Xandra, "I wish I was home."


    I nodded in agreement.


    We both sat in silence for a while longer.


    "You''re not going to ask me how the call went?" I said.


    Xandra looked at me from the corner of her eyes and smiled.


    "I already know," she said.


    She pointed to her ear. "I snooped," she said.


    "Really?" I said.


    "Sorry," she said, "You can never be too careful."


    "You don''t trust me?" I said.


    "I trust you enough," she said, "But we can''t afford to trust people anymore. That''s how you get caught."


    "That''s a very positive outlook," I mumbled, "Very positive."


    A flash outside the window lit up the field around us for an instant.


    "One elephant," said Xandra, counting, "Two elephant, three elephant, four-"


    At four a sudden thunderous boom filled the sky. We both flinched and smiled nervously.


    "Maybe sitting in a metal tractor''s not the best idea," I mumbled.


    "You want to get out?" said Xandra, giggling, "You first."


    "Nah," I said, "I''ll take my chances."


    "You should throw away your phone," said Xandra. She sounded as if she had been wanting to say this for a while and had only just found the nerve to say it.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    Instead of giving an immediate response I considered why she might think it to be a good idea.


    "So," I said, "You think my brother will call the Pied Peepers or something?"


    "He might," said Xandra.


    "He''s a bit of a git," I said, "But he''s not that much of a git."


    Xandra sniffled and wiped some remaining water droplets from the end of her nose. She fixed me with another look and said, "So, he''s never betrayed you before?"


    I considered the question.


    "I mean, there was one time he took my debit card and took twenty pounds out of my bank account," I said, "Only reason I caught him was because it showed up on my bank statement."


    Xandra''s eyes widened a little. Given how big they already were, that was saying something.


    She really did have nice eyes. In a way it was hard to tell what it was she was thinking at any given moment, and that must have been something I liked about her.


    "You know," said Xandra, "It would be nice if you were just a little bit more considerate of me as well."


    "What do you mean?" I said.


    "I mean," said Xandra, shifting uneasily as she spoke, "If we''re in this together then you taking risks like this affects me too. Just because he''s your family doesn''t mean you should automatically trust him."


    Maybe it''s none of your business, I thought, bitterly. But I held my tongue.


    I remembered Xandra saying something about her Aunt and Uncle, and how she had made a mistake there.


    Another flash of lightning filled the sky.


    "One elephant," I said.


    "Two elephants," said Xandra.


    "Three elephants," we said together.


    "Four–"


    Again, at four, the boom of the thunder followed. We both took a nervous delight in the sound.


    I looked out the window and pretended to care about the spiderweb crack in the tractor window glass.


    "So," I said, "You''ve been betrayed by your family?"


    Xandra shook her head and let out a theatrical sigh.


    "Ooh," she groaned, running her fingers through her wet hair, "You''re really not subtle."


    I smiled and winced, feeling caught out.


    "Yeah," I said, "Guess not."


    Xandra brought her shoes up onto the seat and sat with her back against the door on her side. After a look from her I felt obliged to do the same, mirroring the way she was sitting on my side.


    "If you really want to know I''ll tell you," she said, "But only so I can manipulate you into doing what I want, okay?"


    "Manipulate me?" I said, incredulously.


    "Yeah," she said, "I think it''d be smarter to throw your phone away, and my, what''s the word for it; my, you know, my backstory, will illustrate my point."


    "Illustrate, right, right," I said, "Like drawing, because that''s your thing."


    Xandra looked at me with half-lidded eyes and hugged herself for warmth.


    "Okay, sorry," I mumbled, "Over to you."


    Xandra nodded.


    "So," she said, "I was on the run for two weeks. I was doing pretty good but I got sick of this sort of thing."


    She gestured around the shabby confines of the tractor. The cobweb attached to the review mirror helped her point.


    "I decided to visit my Aunt and Uncle. They were always nice to me and I figured they would at least be okay with me staying in a guest room. I visited them like twice a year with my parents and I got on really well with my cousin, Ally."


    I wiped off some stray water droplets that had streaked down from my wet fox hat and hair and continued to listen attentively.


    "There''s not much to it," said Xandra, "I turned up at their house and asked if I could stay. They were really nice about it and said, ''sure, no problem, come on in''."


    "I told them about how my parents wanted me to get evacuated and my Aunt and Uncle agreed that it wasn''t a good idea. It was a huge relief because they were willing to have me stay in their guest room. They said I could stay as long as I needed and they weren''t going to tell my parents I was with them."


    "Did they go back on that?" I said.


    "No," said Xandra, "They were cool about the whole thing. It was little Ally that caused the problem."


    "Ally''s only twelve but she''s smart for her age. She does well in school. She''s kind of a little genius actually. And she knows it."


    Xandra squirmed in her seat a bit at the recollection of what happened.


    "The whole time I stayed with them I did my best not to do anything weird. You know, with the powers. I stopped talking to Regina because then they would think I was crazy too, But they could tell something was weird about me – obviously."


    "Obviously?" I said, a tad confused.


    Xandra pointed to her eyes.


    "Oh," I said, "They weren''t always so…expressive?"


    Xandra shook her head.


    "Nope," she said, "In fact they got bigger whilst I was staying with them. It really freaked them out. Freaked me out too, though I think they''re kind of awesome."


    "They''re…" I began.


    I didn''t know what to say next however. Cool? Uncanny? Weird? Pretty?


    "Unique," I said.


    Xandra gave my knee a tap with her shoe, "Thanks," she said, in a small voice.


    Phew, I thought, that was a close one.


    "I don''t really know how to describe what I was feeling at the time," said Xandra, "Other than I could feel the power, whatever it really is, growing inside me."


    "Wait," I said, "Were you doing something to make it grow?"


    Xandra shook her head.


    "No," she said, "That''s the thing. I wasn''t using my powers at all. I had gotten used to using them for the first two weeks I was on the run, but I stopped as soon as my Aunt and Uncle let me stay with them. Maybe just using the power had sort of kickstarted it growing inside me, or maybe not. It''s not as if it comes with an instruction manual."


    "That would be useful," I said, "Maybe a bit boring though."


    "I had this theory, by the way, not to interrupt your story," I said, "But I had this theory that it was the Peepers bringing us all to the facility that had made our powers grow so fast. I really don''t think they planned for us to grow into our powers as fast as we did. If anything I think their plan to control us was supposed to last years. So I don''t get how your power was growing without you being around anyone else."


    Xandra shrugged, "Maybe it''s got nothing to do with being around others. Maybe it just grows on its own."


    "Equally though?" I said.


    I reminded Xandra about how the Peepers had carried out an experiment that showed several of the teenagers at the facility bulbing up at the same time. At their maximum heat they had managed to be exactly equal in their output.


    "Why would that be?" I said.


    "Maybe the power grows at the same rate in everyone," said Xandra.


    "Sorry," I said, "What happened with your family?"


    Xandra searched her lap for where to go next with her explanation.


    "I got bored," said Xandra, "Actually, if you want to know, I started talking to Regina again."


    "I wanted to see what I could do with the power because, like, who wouldn''t? It''s just like in an anime. What loser wouldn''t try and experiment with their powers a bit?"


    "True," I said.


    I made myself remember back to when I had first coiled up at the Wedder Gorge facility, taking a touch of pride in the fact I had been one of the first (that I knew of at least) to figure out how to do it.


    "I got really good at doing gymnastics," said Xandra, "All indoors though. One time when I was doing handstands on top of a high-backed chair Ally walked into my room and caught me doing it."


    "Oh," I said, "Did she freak out?"


    "Nope," said Xandra, "She loved it. She wanted to see more. I was feeling pretty good about what I could do. I wanted to share the excitement with someone. So for a few days I tried different things out with the power and Ally loved watching me get better. You know, stuff like changing my hair, growing out my nails, making myself a bit taller or shorter. Between Ally and Regina cheering me on I just got caught up in it."


    "So," said Xandra, "One evening Ally comes up to me and she asks me to share my power with her."


    I narrowed my eyes, "She said what?"


    "Yeah," said Xandra, "She wanted to do what I could do. Like, really badly. Obviously I told her I didn''t even know if I could share the power with her. But I also didn''t want to try. Giving this kind of power to anyone, let alone a twelve year old, especially a precocious twelve year old, sounded like a really bad idea."


    "Ah," I said, "So she didn''t take you saying no too well?"


    Xandra chewed her lip, wincing at the memory.


    "Yeah," she said, "The thing is, after enough times of her asking I gave in. I thought, what the heck. If she really wants the power that bad then I''ll see if I can give her a bit of it. So I held her hand and tried to imagine some of the power in me pouring into her."


    "Oh no," I said, "Did she explode?"


    "No," said Xandra, giving me a playful kick, "Nothing happened."


    "Oh," I said, "Well, that''s a relief."


    "Yeah," said Xandra, "But Ally freaked. She thought I wasn''t trying to give her the power. She was convinced I could do it but wasn''t, or I wasn''t trying hard enough. So she tried blackmailing me."


    "No," I said, shocked.


    "Yep," said Xandra, "She said she would call the Peepers and tell them where I was if I didn''t share my power with her. What could I do? No amount of trying to talk her down worked."


    "So she called them?" I said, in a whisper, as if listening to the end of a scary ghost story.


    "Well," said Xandra, "I didn''t know what else to do so I turned to my Aunt and Uncle for help. I told them what Ally was threatening to do. They seemed understanding, at first."


    The silence that hung in the air said there was a but to all this.


    "But," said Xandra, finally, "Her parents agreed with her. After thinking about it, and arguing about it, they decided that they wanted their daughter to have powers. She was already such a smart girl that her future could only be made better by her having powers too. So, they gave me an ultimatum. Give Ally powers or go."


    "Did you try again?" I said.


    "No," said Xandra, "By that point I''d had enough. Why the heck would I try and negotiate with people trying to force me to do something like that? They''re supposed to be–"


    Xandra became choked up with tears. She didn''t finish her story. Instead she hugged herself for more warmth.


    Another flash filled the sky and three elephants later the sound of thunder followed.


    "That''s awful," I said, "I''m sorry you had to put up with that from your family."


    Xandra nodded, wiping tears from her eyes. She hadn''t yet reapplied her make-up so there weren''t any mascara stains at least.


    "So believe me, B," she said, "You''re better off throwing away your phone. You can get in touch with them again later. At least now they know you''re alive."


    "What about their numbers?" I said.


    "Just write them down, or memorise them," said Xandra, "You memorised a bunch of medical knowledge. I''m sure you can remember two phone numbers."


    "Yeah," I said, "Good point."


    "So," said Xandra, "Are you going to do things my way this time?"


    I took my phone out of my pocket.


    Was I going to do things her way? The last time I did things my way, things had gone pretty badly. I squeezed the phone, feeling the plastic crack just a little under my grip.