Being short had its advantages.

For one, Taz could walk under certain barriers, like low-hanging branches.

For two, Taz could fold herself up and fit under tiny spaces, like under a table.

She couldn’t think of a three, because being face to chest with everyone over the age of thirteen meant she struggled to see over shoulders to see where she was going, and wishing she had the mental strength to levitate herself just a little to see more than the fiber count in everybody’s shirt.

“Excuse me… ‘scuse me… pardon me… moooooove!” She whined as she tried working her way through the throngs of people blocking her way. Tried, being the operative word; it took her projecting her thoughts out to get people to realize she was there.

Telepathy certainly had its uses; it was certainly more useful than being short. Her desire to move through was met with apologetic emotions or mild annoyance, but it got her desired result either way. Slowly, people parted to let her through without her having to push or raise her voice again.

She felt a question floating through the air, ambient and unrestricted, a question of where somebody went, and a response came from the other side of the room. People were broadcasting their fascination, and Taz couldn’t help but bounce in place; so much psionics around her!

Somebody was looking for the electrokinesis booth? Taz and a few others sent back the knowledge of its location.

Somebody was loudly wondering how to perform hydrokinesis? Taz and a few others gave a number of ideas that Taz latched onto: sponges, pressure, pumps, suction, people had dozens of ideas they shared more clearly than shouting through the din of the crowd.

Through it all, Taz sought a few stray thoughts. It was harder with so many people thinking at once, but some she recognized; the internal voice, the personality, the emotions, the thought patterns, all as significant in identifying somebody as their physical appearance.

It didn’t take long to find the div booth that way.

The divination booth was packed with visitors; not terribly surprising, divination was one of the few disciplines with strong real world applicability, with high-paying careers involved in a very competitive field. People in suits surrounded the divination booth, shaking hands and discussing job opportunities with visitors, while behind the booth, the attendees could sit in chairs to chat with and allow the booth runners to show them the power of their discipline.

One in particular caught Taz’s eye. Madeline was hard to miss, tall and gorgeous as she was, so it was no surprise that she was surrounded by people asking her questions in between bouts of fawning over her beauty. Taz didn’t recognize the bespectacled brunette standing next to her, but Taz pressed on.

She sent a thought that way; nothing special, just a quick flash of a memory, the very first time they’d gone trick or treating together, Madeline dressed as Princess Tiana, Taz as Rapunzel, the both of them bouncing with girlish glee in the back of her mom’s car as they drove down the block.

Instantly, Madeline lost track of the conversation she was having and perked up, looking through the crowd until a flash of blonde caught her attention, and she politely dismissed herself to push through past some strangers until she had Taz in her arms, and both were giggling.

“You know, you really could pull off that costume again with all this.” Madeline grinned, lifting up the multiple feet of hair that hung off of Taz’s head.

“I actually did last year!” Taz snickered, and Madeline’s eyebrows shot upwards.

“Really? I don’t remember that!”

“You were in PJ with your friends for Halloween! Mom helped me get my hair up into that big braid Rapunzel had.”

“Well damnit, girl, I need pictures! Where is Auntie?”

“She and your mom are over at a different booth.”

“I’ll catch her later then. What about you then, enjoying the convention?”

“Yeah! I… yeah!” Taz answered with just a moment’s hesitation, drawing a quick frown out of Madeline as Taz rubbed the back of her head. “I mean, I’m definitely trying to. The booths are great, the presentation was great, I’m just…” She raised a hand and wiggled it in a middling manner, and Madeline hummed.

“You’re stressed out and trying to act extra peppy to hide it?” Madeline offered up, and Taz gave a small, but agreeing cough.

Madeline reached down to pick up Taz’s hands, and holding them tightly, closed her eyes. Taz puttered her lips, but let Madeline’s mind reach out. A bridge formed between them. It was private, guarded against the cloud of psychic resonance naturally filling the hall; other psychics could feel it, but it was like seeing a locked door in a hotel hallway.

Their bridge was so familiar and well-traveled that, even when they hadn’t seen each other in months, it felt like travelling an old footpath from her youth. All of Madeline’s mental nuances were familiar to Taz; every little poke into her mental crevices, knowing where she had permission and where she didn’t, inklings of thoughts that Madeline shared with her renewing the memory of baking with Aunt Zi when they were both young, or the theme song of the cartoon they marathoned one Saturday morning after a sleepover…

The psychic bridge was so much easier to make with somebody she was familiar with; they had grown up developing their psychic powers together, there was no poking or prodding, just… acceptance. Madeline almost had as much access to her mind as Taz did.

{Ah, yeah…} Madeline’s voice was sweet and gentle in her head, {I’ve been worrying about Brain Scythe too, you’re not alone.}

{Robbie thinks I should buy a gun for myself.}

Madeline’s facial expression didn’t change, it was still gentle and sympathetic, but her mind was overflowing with concern. Madeline’s distrust of guns didn’t abate when she perused Taz’s memories of what it was like to shoot at the range, or those little wisps or worry that tinged her thoughts.

{Do you think that’s a good idea? I want you to be safe, but...}

{I don’t know.} Taz admitted, and Madeline’s hand slid onto her shoulder for a gentle squeeze. {A small part of me is hoping mom brought me here because they said PA was safe. If she actually let me go…}

{Then she’d know I was there for you.} Madeline gave a gentle nod.

{Maybe that’d reassure her a little, but you know my mom almost as well as I do; kidnapped psychics statewide, and I don’t know if that’s enough for mom to send me to a place with global attention on it.}

{Aunt Annie’s always been so stubborn, but if this won’t convince her…} Madeline hugged her, and Taz melted into her sister-in-all-but-blood’s embrace. Their bridge was filled with mutual worry, and it wasn’t until a foreign consciousness prodded at them did they break their embrace.

Taz didn’t recognize the mental presence asking to join in, but Madeline granted permission without hesitation.

{Mi amour! Where did you go?} A lovely voice with a curious accent spoke in both of their heads, the thought accompanied by a sterileness that was normal when connecting telepathically with somebody you’ve never met before; two minds carefully guarding themselves against too-deep intrusions from the other.

{I’m not far!} Madeline answered, and turned to raise her hand, waving in the direction of her booth. {Come here.} Madeline ordered, piercing the cloud of resonance to reach its recipient without failure, and a figure immediately started pushing their way towards the sisters.

“Lemme introduce you to Noelle.” Madeline all but sighed, wearing a smile like she was about to make a mistake, then knelt down and pressed her ear up next to Taz’s ear. “Don’t let her get to you.”

“Huh?” Taz blinked in surprise before she was pushed in front of a girl that emerged from the crowd.

An older girl, an… absolutely beautiful girl. Taz paused, and stared.

“Nelly, c’mere! Meet my little sister!” Maddy called out, and the prettiful girl sauntered on over with a sassy wave of her hips, before pausing in front of the two girls. She stared down at Taz with a curious little grin, and a gentle crush of her brows that showed curiosity… and something a little more?

“Well well well,” Noelle leaned down and adjusted her glasses with two fingers, “tu es le fameux Taz! Bonjour et bienvenue, prettiness; mon bien-aimé has told me much about you.” She spoke with a strong accent, and with a slow blink, Taz began to feel her heartbeat accelerate within her chest.

Noelle was about average in height; taller than Taz, shorter than Madeline, her airy, light brown hair in a long, showy braid behind her. Her oval-shaped glasses had dark frames accentuating the bottoms, and her sharp features were accented by a gentle spatter of freckles over her high cheekbones. She wore a slate grey vest over a wine red dress shirt, her fitted pants matching the vest, while her black and white tie was tucked beneath the vest. The green lanyard around her neck marked her as a scion, which was intimidating in its own right.

She was, without any better words to describe her, absolutely gorgeous. The only thing Taz could equate to Noelle was seeing the sunrise on a beach she’d vacationed to years ago; utterly radiant and with a breadth of color that left Taz dazed trying to take it all in.

She was dressed like a man, but it didn’t downplay her femininity in the slightest. If anything, it made her stand out next to the more plain, if still formally dressed, Madeline. The girl had a sly smile she cast around the crowd, and she was not at all afraid to lean closer to Taz and place a few, quick pecks on both of her cheeks, drawing out a sharp gasp that matched the rattling confusion, delight, and curiosity filling her brain.

“Oh, did that shock you? Pardon, Taz! But it is how we greet good friends.” Noelle’s smile was going to kill her. That wasn’t an exaggeration, or so Taz thought; she was so warm in the face she thought it was going to melt right off her skull.

Beside her, Madeline cleared her throat loudly enough to get Noelle’s attention, and the girl straightened right up, smiling with a certain… confidence as she stretched herself and flicked her braid.

“If you’re done trying to seduce my sister…” Madeline said dryly, and Noelle laughed with all the belated haughtiness of somebody who pulled off an excellent prank.

“T’was not hard, mon beau, but I’ll be good.” She grinned, only for Madeline to give her a firm look. Noelle tittered, waving her hand in amusement. “I promise, I promise!”

“‘Cuz that means so very much coming from—”

“IT’S NICE TO MEET YOU!” Taz suddenly shrieked, thrusting her hand into Noelle’s face like she was about to shake her nose, rather than her hand. “I’M TAZ!”

Noelle’s eyes met the hand with tepid shock, and Madeline pinched the bridge of her nose. “Sweet girl, did you forget your inside voice?” Noelle asked, amusement dancing in her eyes as both hands closed around Taz’s to bring it to lower it. “I told you I know who you are.”

“O-oh yeah... “ Taz’s stomach clenched, and she stood, fidgeting in place, before glancing over at Madeline with a lost expression in her eyes. “I-I’m sorry, I’m usually better about meeting people than this!”

“She’s not.” Madeline smirked, drawing an ireful glance from the shorter girl.

“Then let me make it even: my name is Noelle Duplantier;” Noelle bowed low with such elegant grace, Taz could only stare in wonder at how natural she’d made it, “et ma patrie est the beautiful city of Paris!”

“... Texas?” Taz ventured.

Noelle’s proud expression twitched into a strained smile, and Madeline flicked Taz’s ear, drawing a squeak of pain. “No, twerp, the Paris!” Madeline growled, and Taz responded with a swat to Madeline’s broad backside that drew a yelp.

“I’ve only been to one Paris!” Taz whined.

“And you hear the word Paris in a French accent and immediately think of Texas?!”

Taz froze, and turned to Noelle with eyes full of stars. “Oh my god you’re from FRANCE?!”

“Taz!” Madeline barked with shock, then buried her face into her hand. “Oh my god, Taz!”

“What?!”

“How did you not figure out she was French?!” Madeline pleaded as Taz cringed.

“I don’t know, I thought she could have been from somewhere stupid, like Quebec!”

Madeline raised her face out of her hands to say something, her expression utterly crestfallen, staring at Taz like she was an adorable puppy that had peed right next to her training pad.

Then, a pair of arms slowly wrapped around Taz’s head, and Taz made a strangled noise as her face was drawn towards Noelle’s neck, her senses flooded with warmth and the scent of roses as Noelle stroked the back of Taz’s head.

“Madeline, ma belle, this one is yours no longer. She is mine, and I shall teach her everything.”

Taz didn’t see the way Noelle grinned, but she did see Madeline draw herself up, frown, and in a move that would have made Aunt Zi proud, grabbed both girls by the ear and pinched until they were forced apart with squeaks of pain.

Separated, Madeline let them both go, drew in a deep breath, and let it out with almost a growl on her breath. “No.” She said, rubbing her face to calm down. “I had this all planned out, but you—” she pointed at Taz, “—are stupid, and you—” she pointed at Noelle, “—are incorrigible.”

“Ma belle, can you blame me?” Noelle cooed, rubbing herself against Madeline’s arm as the larger girl stiffened and glared. “You bring me a sweet puppy, will I not pet it? You bring a cute kitten, will I not play with it? Your sister is a delight!”

“Thank you…” Taz rubbed her ear with a pout; she wasn’t stupid…

“Your sister is an adorable fool, I must show her how to properly greet a madam such as myself~!” Noelle giggled, and Madeline huffed as Taz’s eye twitched violently.

“Oh I know what you want to show her, and, Noelle…” Madeline’s annoyed expression suddenly melted away, and she turned to face the french girl in full, Noelle’s eyes widening in curiosity, “Nelly, honey, baby,” Madeline set her hands on Noelle’s shoulders, “if I find out Taz has ever been alone in a room with you, your rich-ass daddy’s gunna hafta buy you a new nose; capiche?”

Madeline raised her fist and curled it until a series of pops sounded off right next to Noelle’s ear, and the brunette, with a smile so wide and strained that Taz feared the upper-half of her head might unzip and fall off, simply nodded. “Je comprends, ma belle.”

“Good.” Madeline pat Noelle’s shoulders, then rounded on Taz, her lips crushed together in frustration, and then she pinched the blonde’s cheek, leaving her yelping.

“Ow! Gawd, Maddy, stop!”

“Taz, I love you, so please stop being so… blonde…” Madeline sighed fondly, readjusting Taz’s glasses after they went all askew.

Taz’s pout almost matched Madeline’s in amused frustration. “I dunno about being more responsible, but PA’s certainly made you a lot more mean.”

“Once you get to know Noelle, you’ll understand.” Madeline huffed, then looped an arm around Taz’s neck. “C’mon, you’re here for the booths, right?” Madeline asked, and Taz gave a quick nod. “Well lucky you, I can sneak you up to the front of the line for a divination demonstration.”

“You have a number of scouters who are waiting to talk to you, Madeline.” Noelle said mindfully, a little smirk on her face. “Should I tell them you are shirking their attentions to play favorites?”

“Wouldja please? I get hounded enough on break, they can wait for me to show off to my sister.” Madeline grinned, and Noelle gave a short, quick nod of understanding, and followed the two sisters to the rear of the booths where chairs were set up to face each other, and Noelle stepped aside to interpose herself between some of the suited men and the sisters, giving them the space they needed.

Taz sat down when Madeline gestured to a chair, and Madeline sat across from her, sighing and straightening her vest. “Well you’ve met Noelle, now.” She snickered to herself, and Taz gave a small, short laugh, quietly glancing Noelle’s way and… trying very hard to ignore the way her eyes were constantly drawn to the brunette’s butt.

“She seems like a lot.” Taz mumbled. “Sorry if I embarrassed you.”

“Hell no, girl, I’m just worried you’re embarrassing yourself.” Madeline smirked. “If you weren’t part of my circle, Noelle would have been on you for thinking she was from Texas.”

“Why?” Taz frowned, glancing around a bit. Madeline wasn’t the only person helping run the booth, there were five others sitting in chairs across from visitors, holding their hands with their eyes closed…

“She’s French, Taz, she came all the way from France to attend PA; think about what that means for a moment.” Madeline said, looking Noelle’s way, Taz’s eyes following. “She’s from a big-name family in Paris. Ask her about them sometime, and she’ll tell you all about where she comes from. Girl grew up in the sixteenth arrondissement of Paris; that’s the Paris equivalent of growing up in Paradise Valley, but much older.”

Taz’s head tilted to the left, and then her eyes opened as wide as dinner plates. “Oh god, she’s French and she’s rich.”

“Girl wipes her nose in handkerchiefs more expensive than half my wardrobe.” Madeline sighed. “I’m just warning you ahead of time, I got in good with her because she’s my roommate and we do get along, but there are people in PA who could buy both of our houses out from under us with their pocket change; there are powerful people at PA, and pissing them off is real bad for you.”

Taz twitched in worry at the prospect. She was already worried about one batch of people who may or may not have had bad intentions in mind, she didn’t want to go making enemies out of anyone else…

“I-I’ll be good! And, y’know, less blonde!” Taz flicked her hair with a small, nervous smile, and Madeline rubbed the girl’s knee.

“I know you mean well, Taz.” Madeline smiled at her. “I just want you to practice some common sense, a’ight?”

“A’ight…”

“Good. Now, let’s swing our focus over to the main event, shall we? Do you remember what I told you about divination?” Madeline asked, and Taz gasped! She had to shake her head a bit to clear it of the clouding concerns; it was time for what she was here for!

She sucked in a deep breath and tried to… not inquire in the thought bubble filling the room, relying strictly on what she’d learned! Which was, admittedly, not a lot, and a bit spotty…

“Divination is the psionic discipline of… sight beyond sight.” She answered unsuredly, and Madeline smirked.

“Try again, Lion-O.”

Taz blew a raspberry and tried to think harder, but all that managed to do was scrunch up her face and make her glasses dig into her forehead.

“Divination is… it’s…” She breathed through her nostrils anxiously; she didn’t want to have to ask the thought bubble, but… wait… “It’s… the discipline of studying psychic resonance.”

“And wielding it! Good girl.” Madeline grinned. “And what is psychic resonance?”

Taz ran her hands over her head like she was swatting at flies. “Stray brain waves.”

“Close…”

“Um… um… it’s a form of… energy produced by thinking, right? Even regular ol’ humans can make it.” Taz fidgeted, and Madeline nodded.

“Right! And…?”

“... uh…”

“It builds up…”

“Oh! It builds up because of thinking and sticks around, like radiation, I think? There was that dude in Italy who used old psychic resonance to watch, like, the ghosts of one of Daft Punk’s performances from like a decade ago!”

“Also right! But…?”

“It can’t, like… see everything? The guy just felt the, like, combined emotions of everyone watching it, and could only make out the parts that caused the biggest reactions in the crowd.”

“And lets you see…?”

“Oh! Echoes of what everyone was focused on together! So, he saw the ghosts of Daft Punk’s past.”

“Girl, you retained that a lot better than telekinesis.” Madeline grinned, and Taz wore a look of pride. “It does more though, remember? It’s not just seeing the old, it’s also good at seeing the present, riding into resonance in the form of astral projection.”

“And the better a diviner you are, the better you can see, right? Sorta like watching everybody like a bird....” Taz nodded.

“Sorta kinda; it gives a good picture of everything happening in an area because you can see it from multiple perspectives and opinions.”

“Isn’t that sort of like dividualism…?”

“Sort of, but you aren’t necessarily joining minds together, you’re borrowing the collective senses of stray thoughts via psychic resonance. Oh,” Madeline gave Taz a serious look, “can divination see into the future?”

“No.” Taz answered with a grin. “But practitioners can enter a state of intense focus with the aid of psionic resonance in order to make calculated guesses based on stuff they’ve learned.”

Madeline clasped her hands with a sigh of relief. “So, that covers the boring part.” Madeline said, rubbing her palms together. “Now we get to try the demonstrative part!”

“The fun part!”

“Or the painful part.” Madeline reminded her.

With a small, nervous grin, Taz nodded. The two joined hands again, and Taz followed Madeline’s lead in closing her eyes. Madeline brushed at her thoughts again, and Taz opened her mind up to her, and she felt Madeline’s gentle grasp start pulling her upwards.

{I’m taking you with me as I astrally project.} Madeline’s mental voice echoed soothingly through Taz’s consciousness. {I’ll be taking us into a sort of demi-bridge in the thought bubble. We’ll be able to observe it without getting swallowed up by all the thinking around us. Follow my lead, okay?}

{Okay…} In an instant, Taz felt herself leaving her body, held fast by Madeline’s telepathic connection. She saw flashes of herself from multiple people as she and Madeline willed their personal consciousnesses into the collective consciousness of the convention hall. Certain people were watching them with curiosity in their thoughts, though Taz couldn’t hear them.

She thought that, maybe for a moment, she’d try and reach out, just to see what she felt… and she found herself floating further, Madeline feebly grasping at her as she drifted into the overwhelming presence of the thought bubble.

She weakly struggled to get back to Madeline, or into her own head, but she couldn’t see either. Instead, she saw so much more; too much, in fact! She saw every corner of the event hall, every booth at work, every demonstration of powers, every pamphlet being read. She heard voices, hundreds and hundreds of voices, some more clear and distinct based on the perspective she was filtering through, but that changed quickly and rapidly as other minds buzzed louder with activity and drew her in.

In an instant, she perfectly understood the complexities of electricity. Ohms, wattage, resistance, circuits, and breakers as she psionically joined with a twenty-six year old man from Nova Scotia who was able to precisely determine where in a laptop the electricity flow was disrupted and needed fixing; she felt determined to get through the day and fly back home because her boyfriend was preparing a roast beef for a family gathering the next day!

Then, he stopped thinking so hard, and everything Taz knew in that moment was gone, because now she was a nineteen year-old girl staring at a few tiny, potted parsley sprouts. Her mind was searching the dark, wet soil for nutrients, picking through seemingly hundreds of little blips on her psionic radar before locking in on a few that she recognized, and drew them closer to the wet roots of the plant. She was terrified of killing yet another plant by over-feeding it; her biokinesis grade was on the line, and the extra credit from volunteering here might not have been able to save it!

And like the boy before her, Taz was dismissed when those thoughts relaxed and she was shunted around the room.

This time, however, she wasn’t drawn to a single person or a single strong thought, but a feeling. It was so powerful that it began to color the thought bubble around her as she was tugged mindlessly through it. The whole bubble began to turn a bright, vivid purple, so intense in its panic that Taz tried to find the source.

But, try as she might, she couldn’t see, only able to get pulled along by something familiar. She winced as she felt like her mind was split in two, one pulled along by this purple color, which shrank away as Taz felt herself drawn to a new beacon, a name…

Which wouldn’t have been too interesting, if it weren’t so loud, so clear, and so familiar...

Natasha…

The name resonated terror… Taz’s scrying couldn’t focus on anything else now that the name was reverberating through the thought bubble, and she found herself pulled to its source.

She caught herself before she could join with her mother’s thoughts, but the woman was radiating so much stress as she stood in line at the security booth that it was overwhelming. In this room full of wonder, Anna Cooper stood out like a bruise.

Taz was staring at her from maybe a dozen different perspectives; strangers watching Anna for one reason or another, and Taz found herself wanting to gag as more than a few had ideas swimming with lust or romantic want. Taz pushed those intrusive feelings away and tried to focus on the stone-faced beacon of discomfort in between them all.

She had never dug too deep into her mother’s mind. Anna rejected any attempt at sharing her thoughts and reprimanded Taz harshly for trying to do so more than once. The thought of doing it again made Taz hesitate, but at this moment… Why did her name scare her mom so much?

A gentle tap. That was all, not digging too deep, not intruding on her mother’s privacy, just a touch to feel what she felt…

A bridge formed, so weak and thin that it could snap with nothing more than a blink in Taz’s concentration, and through that bridge came an outpouring of Anna’s emotions.

Rage. Overwhelming rage…. Her mother’s mood was a white-hot flame amidst a moat of pitch black woe and worry. It was vast, unrestrained, and relentless, and it seized Taz’s heart so suddenly that the fun she’d been having before disappeared.

{... Mom…?}

The fury and the woe gave pause, and instead were partially replaced by fret and confusion. She saw her mother’s face slacken in surprise, then she glanced around her, clutching the strap of her purse tightly. Anna’s expression darkened, and then her eyes closed.

Taz briefly saw herself… a memory from her mother of a little girl with bright blonde hair wearing glasses too big for her face, sitting in an eye doctor’s office and grinning foolishly.

Relief. Concern. Fear.

Love.

And then the connection snapped.

Shunted out of her mother’s head, Taz felt herself melting away into the bubble again. She didn’t know what to think of what she’d felt… she knew her mother had a tendency towards complicating things by keeping them to herself, but Taz couldn’t understand all that darkness in her thoughts.

She wanted to try again, and ruminate on it more, but she felt something… different. At the whims of the bubble, she felt a tiny… something in the distance… something calling for her, but then Madeline embraced her, wrapping around her consciousness and pulling her back towards their bodies… but she felt something left behind.

Taz opened her eyes slowly, feeling oddly sore in the neck, and then a quick pat to her cheek roused her to full consciousness, and she stared at Madeline’s concerned face with curiosity.

“... Ugh, that was weird.” Was all Taz said. It felt strangely restricting being back in her own head, alone.

“What in the hell happened?!” Madeline demanded in a low hiss. She glanced around in concern, holding Taz by the head as the blonde stretched her arms out. She felt looser, yet tighter? She could control her body again, but couldn’t just hop into heads anymore. “Taz, I told you to stay with me.”

“Oh, shoot...” Taz frowned, holding her aching head. “I’m sorry, I got… I got distracted.”

“And are you okay?” Madeline frowned, raising one finger in front of Taz’s face, the blonde’s eyes following it as it went left and right. “Do you feel weird? Any lingering thoughts that don’t feel right?”

“... There are a buncha weirdos that wanna do gross stuff to my mom.” Taz grumbled, and Madeline cringed. “There’s also, like… my head feels a bit empty.”

“Damnit girl, I’m trying to show you divination! Don’t get lost in the thought bubble! People go crazy doing that.” Madeline groaned in relief, dragging Taz into a tight hug. Taz relaxed into her sister’s arms, wiggling her fingers and toes to make sure they worked, then nodded.

“Yeah… yeah I didn’t feel everything at once, just whoever was thinking hardest at the time. It was weird.”

“Good, it means you have a good filter.” Madeline sighed, running her fingers through Taz’s scalp, drawing a few ticklish shivers before letting her go.

“Filter?”

“Your ability to keep yourself from getting overstimulated. Y’know, the opposite of Mustafi Syndrome.”

“Right, right.” Taz scratched the back of her head. Getting lost astral projecting wasn’t gunna leave a good impression...

Madeline watched her with gentle eyes, the backs of her knuckles stroking Taz’s face. “You said you feel empty in your head?”

“Yeah… but, now there’s like a tune in it? It’s kinda familiar, but it’s just sorta in-and-out. Hard to concentrate on it right now.” Taz sighed.

Madeline nodded and looked ready to say something until a voice called out her name. Taz leaned back as Madeline glanced towards some of the other booth tenders, and an older woman with heavily sallowed cheeks, big, black-framed glasses, and an airy cloth tightly wrapped around her head bustled over, her many necklaces jingling over her pudgy frame.

“Madeline, is everything okay?” The woman asked, leaning down to look Taz in the eye. “Oh dear, I thought I felt somebody wandering the bubble. Are you alright, missy?” The woman asked with a tinge of an eastern european accent.

“I’m fine, I’m fine. Maddy got me back.” Taz insisted with a small smile, though the woman examined her a few moments longer before straightening up and turning her attention onto Madeline.

“Firm grip, Madeline, remember?” The woman asked, and Madeline gave a small, worried nod.

“I remember. I’m sorry, Mrs. Tarniceriu.”

Taz frowned, and tugged on Mrs. Tarniceriu’s dark dress sleeve, making the woman glance her way. “It wasn’t her fault, I got distracted and let go of her.”

“Oh I’m sure she didn’t mean to, and I’m sure you wanted to join her.” Mrs. Tarniceriu stated, glancing between them both carefully. “But a guide’s job is to keep their passengers on track. Are you sure you’re feeling alright, miss…?”

“Taz.” She answered. “Taz Cooper.”

“Oh!” Mrs. Tarniceriu looked mildly surprised before looking Madeline’s way, then back at Taz, like she was comparing night and day... “This is your sister?”

“That’s her.” Madeline’s eyes challenged her teacher to push her luck asking further questions.

“... I can see the resemblance.” Mrs. Tarniceriu said with a lamed tone of voice, getting a shake of Madeline’s head. “Whatever the case, Taz, let us know if you’re having pervasive, strange thoughts or impulses, or feeling phantom pains of any sort.” She ordered.

Taz nodded. “I will.”

“Good. In the meantime, Madeline, some of our visitors are asking for you; would you come with me?” The squat little woman asked, and with a long-suffering look, Madeline nodded, stood, and groaned.

“Is it more suits?”

“They are men in suits, yes.” Mrs. Tarniceriu made a ‘what can you do?’ sort of face, and Madeline growled.

“Alright, I’ll go butter them up, I guess.” She sounded like she’d rather do anything else, but a beauty like her looked good on cameras, and would look good on any sort of corporate commission as well. “Taz, stick around for like, five minutes, okay? I’ll try to get back to you, but if I can’t, let us know if anything gets weirder, alright?”

Taz gave a nod, and with one last lingering look of concern, Madeline went to attend her boothy duties.

Silently, Taz leaned back in the chair to relax her mind. The lingering pressure of exploring the thought bubble was still threatening to turn into a full on headache, so she needed to relax. Close her eyes, not think too hard on anything for a little bit…

‘One plus one is two… two plus two is four… four plus four is the year I wasted with you~..

That… wasn’t right. Something felt off.

She couldn’t quite explain it… something in her head was… quieter than usual, replaced with that tune.

She stood up with a frown, glancing around slowly, trying to puzzle her way through it. She picked up her guitar case in growing concern that something had gone missing, but a quick look inside showed her sticker-decorated Fender was still there.

“Oh, going so soon?” Noelle got her attention, and wore a fetching smile that made Taz’s confusion ebb away for a moment as she just got lost in that pretty face.

“Oh, yeah, just for a little bit.” Taz blushed, remembering the threat Madeline had made Noelle’s direction, but they were surrounded by people, and Noelle boldly closed the distance between the two of them. She was damningly beautiful, and a small part of Taz wanted to get lost in those pretty brown eyes for a while, but that strange emptiness was demanding her attention with that odd little tune...

“Pauvre bébé, you look spooked.” Noelle tilted her head, watching Taz with a thoughtful look on her face. “Did something happen?”

“Oh, err, I got lost for a minute when Madeline was helping me astral project; I’m fine though, really.” Taz tried to smile. “I’m just looking back at the spring I left behind~...” She sang without really thinking about it, then froze, stock still.

“Ah! Trying to sing for me, chanteuse?” Noelle tittered, glancing down at Taz’s guitar case with curiosity. “Do you intend to play for me as well? I will warn you, I have a weak heart for music~!” She winked, though her cheer faded at Taz’s blank look.

That missing thing… she glanced down at her guitar case and blinked, and she realized… that strange tune wasn’t some foreign thought or idea, it was familiar, just… not quite sounding right. It was the lyrics to a song she was writing in her spare time, the guitar notes accompanying it now more distinct… but why was she thinking about it now?

“Taz?” Noelle asked worriedly, snapping her fingers in front of her face.

Her face scrunched up in thought, and focusing on that feeling, it was more than just her song, it was periodic prods to her mind. That was why the emptiness kept calling to her, somebody was calling to her through that blank spot.

Then, realization struck.

“Mel.” Taz breathed the name out, making Noelle blink.

“Pardon?” She asked, and Taz glanced around, trying to figure out where the song was coming from. “Taz, you are worrying me, and I do not like to worry! Explain yourself.” Noelle ordered impatiently, but Taz shot past her.

“I need to find Mel!” Taz called over her shoulder, and Noelle whirled after her, with a cross look on her face.

“I do not like to be confused either, Taz!” Noelle shouted after her. She was also not going to be the one to take the blame for Taz’s strange behavior...