“When they first brought me here, it was the first time in I think a few weeks I wasn’t crippled by headaches from the moment I woke up.”

Sofia didn’t stop squatting as she talked, staring at the TV screen while she held a big fancy hoop that somehow assisted in her exercise.

“I felt like a person again, like I was able to function, talk, think, move around without being constantly in pain. I know it might be hard to imagine, but hurting, day in and day out, I think it takes a bit of your humanity from you.”

Melodica watched Sofia bend, flex, and stretch her small body, laying back on the couch with a frown.

“I was brought here to find out what was wrong with me, and I had so much energy when I finally felt okay. But I couldn’t go very far, I couldn’t really go talk to people, I couldn’t wander out of the hospital or off campus; then the experiments started.”

She straightened up and wiped some sweat off her brow, and gave Melodica a look of honest sympathy.

“When you go back to feeling normal, you start to realize when other things feel wrong. Like when I’m just being given drugs or treatments because ‘what more do I have to lose?’ Most people here are trying their hardest, but some people I feel like I’m just…”

“‘What if I’m the one to fix her?’” Melodica offered up, and Sofia gave a nod before clicking some buttons on the hoop, moving onto the next stage of exercise.

“I think the difference between you and me, though, is that you’re special because of what you are, I’m special because of what’s wrong with me.” Sofia tapped the ugly scar on her head.

Melodica blinked, and made a loud swallowing sound. “R-right, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to—”

“Calm down, Rena, I’m just saying.” Sofia tried to give Melodica a little smile, walking over on sore legs to plop down next to her. “But I get it. I have people who really do want to see me healthy for good reasons. And I wanna know more about what you are and stuff too, but, like… ‘cuz I care about you.”

“Gracias…” Melodica sighed, leaning on the couch arm with a groan, closing her eyes but still so perfectly aware of what was going on around her thanks to the abundance of resonance around. “Do you think we’d be friends if you weren’t trapped down here?”

Sofia shot Melodica a look. “Girl, you’re a freagin’ mermaid. My inner chica would kick my ass if I didn’t make friends with you.”

Melodica snorted, and gave a sad giggle.

“Mel, for real though? There’s crappy people in the world, maybe some of ‘em will get assigned to you. They’ll figure you out and then go brag about how their name is on a paper with all your stats.” Sofia put on a bigger smile. “But maybe they’ll figure you out and you’ll go on with your life knowing that stuff.”

“I guess.” Melodica mumbled. “Just wish Taz wasn’t all gung-ho about letting these people study me. I just wanna live… normally for a bit.” She glanced off at one of Sofia’s boy posters and groaned. “Whatever the hell that is. I don’t even remember what normal is at this point.”

“Welp, figure it out, and make sure coming here’s a part of it, because you are legit the only friend I have that’s my age these days.” Sofia turned her attention back to her exercise game as Melodica laid across her couch and watched.

She eventually shut her eyes and sent a tendril back the resonance surrounding PA, stretching out far and wide as she followed her tether back to Taz, and simply checked in on her.

What was she doing out in PJ, though?

… Oh.

Oh.

Oh no.

With a pair of burgers and a basket of fries destroyed, Taz hung onto Madeline as she led the way back to campus.

Getting out today had been a good idea. Knowing she was missing a day of class only two weeks in made her squirm uncomfortably, but she couldn’t imagine sitting in telekinesis – or biokinesis – with her aunt and her sister on her mind.

Madeline seemed a bit pumped up too. They sang, they drank, they ate, they even stopped into a pharmacy to check out some magazines and grab some tea.

The two walked up to PA’s main gate, their walk slowing as they spotted an additional person inside the gatehouse. They were expecting the big, plump ESP guy with the big mustache and big bald spot, but the other man…

“It’s Mr. Walsh.” Madeline said, staring at the devilishly good looking man as he chatted with the gate guard.

“The head of the ESP, right?” Taz asked, remembering his speech from the convention last year, as well as the interview she’d gone through after the whole… incident.

“Mhmm. So good behavior, Tazzy.” Madeline pinched her elbow, getting a whine in return.

Aiden and the gateguard glanced up from the guard’s console to meet the two young ladies, and Aiden’s face broke out into a lopsided grin.

“Well well, if it isn’t one Maddy Cole, and–” he glanced down at Taz, his expression changing to one of surprise, “and Taz Cooper! Welcome back to campus.”

“Thanks Mr. Walsh.” Taz nodded.

“How’s business around campus, Aiden?” Madeline asked, Taz blinking at the familiarity in her tone.

“Stable, thankfully; PA’s going to be under a lot of eyes these days… John, you got their IDs?”

“Yessir.” John scooched over and took the two’s student IDs to scan.

Aiden went on. “So what about you Maddy, how’re you feeling? I’ve, well…” Aiden winced. “I’d heard about what happened with your mom…”

Madeline’s expression and mood both deflated with a long breath out of her nostrils, but she gave a half-assed nod and frowned. “I’m doing okay, I think. Taz and I were just trying to distract ourselves. I think I’m gonna just stay in and watch some TV until I stop feeling so twisted up in my head.”

“Not a bad idea, can’t really do any school learning with that fresh on your mind.” Aiden clasped his hands together. “But, your mom’s a tough lady, she’ll come outta this just fine.”

“That’s what I’m hoping for…”

“Any word on damages?” Aiden asked tentatively. “Not out of morbid curiosity or anything…”

“No, no, it’s fine, I asked the same thing.” Madeline shrugged her shoulders. “Her right shoulder might be weakened for the rest of her life, one bullet damaged her rotator cuff. Another hit her hip, but didn’t hit anything vital. The third, ugh, broke a rib and might have cause some lung damage.”

“Might have?”

“They were scarce on the details, but dad said they were pretty confident it wouldn’t be anything permanent.”

Taz added in: “Like there’s a black spot on her x-ray they’re looking into, but it might just be an error!”

“Well here’s hoping that’s all it is.” Aiden bobbed his head. “Alright, both of you can head on in, but…” His eyes slid from Madeline to Taz. “You mind if we have a quick chat, miss Cooper?”

Taz straightened up in worry, glancing up at Madeline who just gave her a nod.

“‘Course you can, Aiden! Taz, if you broke the law, I have the authority to ground you~!” Madeline sang, shaking her little sister until she squeaked.

“No you don’t! I didn’t break any rules!”

Madeline laughed, and walked up to the side gate, but stood off to the side and watched Taz.

Looking at Aiden as he stepped out of the gatehouse, Taz kind of thought he was like Patriot if he was an adult: broad, strong masculine features, every bit a stereotypical man in look and how he carried himself. Good looking, but he didn’t make her tongue dry like Noelle did.

Like most everyone in the entire goddamned world, Aiden was taller than her, but the broadness of his barrel-like chest only compounded on how teeny-tiny she felt.

“So,” Aiden began with a friendly expression, “have you started working with Dr. Dewitt?”

Taz raised her eyebrows in surprise. “Oh, um, only just started figuring what we’re gunna do, so not really, but yes?”

“Good! I’ve never seen anybody capable of easing Mustafi Syndrome before, much less whatever you were doing with that tulpa of yours.” He waved his hand with a small grin. “That sort of ability, once trained, could be really useful for the ESP, much less the whole psychic community.”

“Yeah, I mean…” Taz paused, thinkinking about it for a few moments. “Like, I can definitely see how it’s useful! I mean, just as it is, it can help people deal with burnout, which is nice.”

“Oh certainly, but you have to think about the deeper implications of what it could mean.” Aiden crossed his arms, looking off in the distance wistfully. “Taz, have you ever heard of the Greater Gestalt Theory?”

Taz’s eyes rolled up as she tried to think, but ultimately had to acquiesce with a shake of her head.

“There was an early 60’s psientist by the name of Gerald Whittaker who studied psionic resonance back when we still knew it as ‘psychic energy.’ He theorized that psychic minds have the potential to break down the barrier of individuality and come together as a singular…” He twiddled his fingers as he sought the word: “entity, let’s say.”

“And what does that mean?” Taz asked.

“Basically? Imagine how powerful one psychic at the top of their game is; now imagine two psychics at the top of their game concentrating on the same psionics, with the same level of intensity, with the same goal in mind.” He began to pace back and forth in front of her like so many other teachers when they started theorizing out loud. “It’s impossible to measure the exact limits of a psychic mind; I mean, if we believe the Brain Scythe was just one person, they’d be powerful beyond even PA’s best psychics, but there are theories that maybe the Brain Scythe was multiple people who, using dividualism, operated in perfect sync.”

Taz wore a pensive look, and frowned deeply. “Sort of like today’s Brain Scythe.”

“Exactly. Anyways, getting back on topic,” he waved his hand, “imagine that sort of power being used for good. We don’t know the upper-limits of psychic ability because, if the Greater Gestalt Theory is true, the only limit could be the number of contributing minds, and who knows what a dozen psychics could do if they all focused together… or even fifty, or a-hundred.”

“That sounds cool and all, but what does my music have to do with the theory?” Taz asked, brow scrunched together.

“We don’t know yet, and that’s why it’s exciting.” Aiden smiled, hands on his hips. “Zhou Ping subscribed to the Greater Gestalt Theory, it was part of why he put so much effort into exploring dividualism. He believes that it, if true, could affect more than just psychics, but if enough normal human minds were joined in with dividualism, we could create a stronger, more unified race capable of solving anything with thinking power. No more war, no more nations, just a singular race.”

Taz tilted her head, and nodded. “That sounds… like something from a movie.”

“Well, the documentary The Blinded Ape was all about the theory.” Aiden rolled his shoulders.

“I think I saw that when I was really young…” Taz tried to remember, but shrugged. “But you think my weird music powers will somehow lead to that sorta thing…? I mean, nice as it sounds in theory, my mom always said you can’t just force people to stop being, y’know, bad and stuff…”

“Sometimes you don’t have a choice.” Aiden sighed. “I mean that’s why prisons exist.”

“I guess…”

“Speaking of your mom…” Aiden’s tone went from thoughtful to amorous in just four words, and Taz suddenly wanted to bolt from the conversation. “Would you happen to have any advice on how I might get on her good side?”

“Whhhyyyyy?”

“No reason!” He grinned, and Taz suspected he was lying.

“Ugh…” This was far from the first time a man had approached her to ask what to say to her mother. “She likes French and Italian food, her favorite song is Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls, and she likes romance movies and novels. She’s super hard to impress and I’ve never known anyone able to come back from a bad first impression with her, so…” She shrugged helplessly at him. “That’s all I’m gunna say.”

“And that’s plenty!” Aiden quickly bobbed his head. “Thanks, little lady, I won’t let your wisdom go to waste.”

“Whatever.” Taz groaned. “Um, you mind if I go now? Maddy and I were gunna—”

“Oh right right, go on ahead.” Aiden gave her a nod. “Thanks for the help, Taz, I hope you’ll consider how important those powers of yours might be one day.”

“I will!” Taz said as she sprinted towards her sister with a relieved sigh, waving to the man one last time before she escaped.

The sunflowers still stood tall, and as far as Taz could tell, untouched.

She wrapped her fingers around the tallest, largest one’s neck and drew it down carefully to not snap the stem, staring into the big, yellow face of the flower, and sticking her nose in to smell.

It was sweet, floral, and very gentle. It may have just been because her aunt was on her mind, but all Taz could think about was how it reminded her of Zi: big and strong, but so wonderful and lovely. She couldn’t help but remember what it felt like to be crushed in her aunt’s arms.

Part of her was firmly aware she’d be able to get a hug like that again, and hopefully sooner than later, but there was that small, glum part that whimpered ‘what if?’ like somehow one of the bullets had hidden in her heart.

Her mom referred to it as a ‘worry spiral.’

“You ask yourself ‘what if?’ and then you make up problems in your head, and then you’re more stressed out than before. If you overthink it, you’re going to shorten your life worrying about things that aren’t going to happen.”

It was pretty solid advice coming from a woman who hid a gun in her room.

But, staring at the sunflower made Taz think of other things as well…

Madeline watched her with a curious little smile, though she eventually put on a frown to match Taz’s as the little blonde’s mood sank.

Conscious of the people around them, Madeline gently prodded Taz’s mind, and a bridge full of familiarity formed without question. {What’s on your mind, Taz?}

Taz pet the sunflower head for a moment, the bridge filled with a sense of melancholy and uncertainty, and let the flower go before answering. {Maddy, do you…} She hesitated for a moment, but a curious prod from her sister made her continue. {Do you believe in God?}

Curiosity was joined by confusion. {Where in the world did this come from?}

{I’m just curious… well, not just curious. Like there’s something else, but…}

{I think–} Madeline interrupted, {–I don’t know enough to say for sure. Mom obviously believes in Him, I’ll admit I prayed this morning for her, but at the same time I feel kind of… wishy-washy on the guy. I hope he’s as good as everyone says he is if he exists, but I’m not holding my breath for proof he does in my lifetime.}

Taz gave the mental-form of a nod, just a brief bit of acknowledgement, and sighed. {I already know the answer, but say God exists: do you think our psychic powers are, like, Satanic?}

{Absolutely not.} Madeline’s brow scrunched. {Taz, what’s going on? You’ve never talked about psychic powers being evil before.}

{There’s a girl in my grade here named Theresa. Theresa St. Claire.}

{Oh god, don’t tell me you’re letting a St. Claire fill your head with their shit.} Madeline turned her nose up. {I’ve heard of her, and you shouldn’t be talking to her. I don’t know how she ended up here, but people like that are poisonous.}

{Thing is, I don’t think she is.} Taz gave Madeline a small shrug. Her sister’s confusion only grew, so Taz sighed. {I’ve been talking to her. I didn’t know who the St. Claires were at first, so I tried approaching her, and, like… I dunno, she doesn’t seem crazy. She seems scared, and homesick, and really sad. I just want to help her.}

Madeline’s thoughts were intangible for a moment, just a mish-mash of concern and aggravation, but with a deep breath, she shook her head. {I don’t think you should get mixed in with her business, Taz. How much do you know about the St. Claires?}

Taz shared what Fatima showed her, and Madeline gave a small, anxious nod.

{These people would lynch you if they had the chance, Taz. Maybe slower than they’d lynch me, but they aren’t sane people. They’re a pack of hillbillies who think they’re better than everyone else, with a special hatred for psychics.}

{Right, so, what did they do to the evolink born in their community?} Taz asked.

At that, Madeline had no response other than a pair of wide eyes and a sudden influx of worry and shame.

{It’s all I can think about. I mean, if they hate psychics, why is she here? PA’s a place to learn control, and history and stuff; they wouldn’t send her here by herself unless… well… if they didn’t…}

{The alternative would be worse.}

Taz and Madeline both looked up in surprise as Melodica walked up the footpath to meet them with a little frown on her face, still in her schoolgirl uniform, her heels clicking against the stone with each step.

“Mel!” Taz said with a smile.

{There you are, Mel, we have so much to talk about.} Madeline frowned; seeing Mel like this was still weird for her, but she had to admit, she wore it well…

{I’m already caught up, so—} Mel froze up as Taz threw her arms around her shoulders. If she had a heartbeat, it would have stopped as, once again, she was flooded with Taz’s comfort and warmth. {T-Taz, oh my god…}

“How was your thingy?” Taz asked, pulling back from the hug to give her tulpa a smile.

{I—um.} Melodica felt stiff again. She didn’t feel as emotionally tied up as she was during the weekend, but Taz’s cuddliness still shocked her now that it was… physical. “I-it was great…” She answered, her face unmoving as she tried to unpack the overwhelming emotions so she could put on a blush and a small, ashamed smile. “But… I mean… ugh, hold on, this is weird for me.”

Tentatively, she pulled away from Taz and slowly walked up to Madeline, and with a redness filling her cheeks, opened her arms up. Madeline could only stare in surprise at the invitation, and it took her a few seconds to step in and lean down, hugging that small part of her little sister that was making less and less sense by the day. The lack of texture, overall weight, and warmth to her was disconcerting, but hearing Melodica breathe was sort of… calming.

“Maddy, I—I’m really sorry I wasn’t there for you earlier.” Melodica whimpered a little bit. “I’m really glad she’s… probably going to be okay.”

“Yeah… yeah, I’m glad too.” Madeline squeezed the mannequin-feeling figure, and did her best to ignore the uncanniness of it all. “Where have you been, by the way? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you apart from Taz.”

“You haven’t.” Melodica confirmed with a small frown.

“But it’s okay!” Taz settled a hand on Melodica’s shoulder, wincing a bit at the burn in her head. “As long as she’s fine.”

Melodica groaned, pulling away from Madeline this time to swat at Taz’s hand. “Goddamnit Taz, can you stop acting so understanding? It’s weird and it makes me feel guilty.”

“Then it’s working.”

“Oh fffffffff-udge you.” Melodica pouted heavily, crossing her arms tightly over her chest. “You’ll make mom and Aunt Zi so proud.”

Taz gave an embarrassed grin, while Madeline laughed. “She’s not wrong, Taz. That said, what are you up to?” She asked Melodica, and the girl’s stance stiffened.

“It’s… I’ll tell you guys about it later. Right now, I’m still just… we should worry about auntie.”

Though Madeline didn’t seem satisfied with the deflection, she ultimately turned towards Taz. “Alright. So, you’re worried about Theresa. I mean, she can’t be all that awful if you’re worrying your little head off about her, so what do you want to do about her?”

“Well, I mean, I’d love to just…” Taz’s smile turned to a labored frown, and she scratched the back of her head. “I’d love to show her psychic powers aren’t evil, but I don’t know how to do that.”

“Should we really be worrying about Theresa right now with auntie being…?” Melodica asked in a soft voice.

It took Madeline a moment to gather herself, but she gave a little nod. “Mom said that if something outside of your control is stressing you out, try and help where you can.” She held her hands up in defeat, however. “I dunno what we can do to help a St. Claire, I dunno how much I care to, but Taz, you seem to care, and I trust your gut.”

“Maddy,” Melodica spoke up in a dry tone, “I live in her head, her gut’s as dumb as the rest of her.”

“Oh, hush!” Taz harrumphed. “Look, I think…” Taz drifted off for a moment, looking back up at the sunflowers. “I think I know where to start. Just… Maddy, I might need your help with telekinesis. And a plastic bag.”

With a blink, Madeline nodded.