Simple Talents

Chapter Nine

Ami wanted to see them, all of them, Benjamin, Ria, Sara, even Danny. She had heard along the grapevine of Sara's outburst and removal, had heard of Ria's lack of progress, Danny's heroism and Benjamin's injuries, but she couldn't. She was moping in her room, alone, toying at her necklace, trying to work on her English and French homework simultaneously (being a horrible idea even without her screwed-up life). Eventually giving up, she wrote in her diary for a bit. After about an hour of non-stop writing, she heard a flapping noise, and then a scratching noise, Theonda was in bird form, just settling on the bar outside the window.

"What's up?" Ami undid the latch as she asked and allowed Theonda to enter,

"Oh, nothing... just the announcement of Rannolia's Trial!" Ami was stunned,

"What will they do to her?"

"Some say chores for life, permanent dorm arrest, cleaning toilets, working at the Dirty finger café, some are even thinking exile, or movement to a detainment facility in the Rockies! No one really knows, nothing like this has really happened before, except for last year, and we don't even know what happened to him." Gosh... exile...

"And I would have to say that any of those would be great, especially the last two sound good, though having Rannolia out in the real world would be a tradgedy for humans everywhere... I think they should take her on for a while"

Ami wanted Rannolia to suffer, she had put three of her friends in the hospital, helped one to go insane and disappear, and yet another to be forced into a coma, but the last two seemed almost cruel, exile meant only one thing for kids with talents, T.E.A.R.S., both the labs and physical thing; and a detainment facility, though appropriate, was... well... maybe she did deserve it.

"Maybe the last one, but exile just means a tortured death. No one deserves that... no matter how fucked up or horrible or just... BITCHY they are. I wouldn't want anyone to suffer that, except maybe the people who actually created the damn ass labs in the first place." Ami tried not to cry, remembering the horrors she had faced so long ago.

Theonda was quiet then. Almost everyone knew about the one that got away, little Ami. Not many knew details, but they all knew she escaped. The pink hair and eyes were like her own little lightning bolt on her forehead, the girl who lived.

"Yeah, you're right. I'm sorry." Theonda looked down as she reverted to her human half.

"I know you know it better than anyone else, and it's probably worse than I could ever imagine, I just... she's so... malevolent. She doesn't care for anyone and gets pleasure out of hurting others... knowing all that, I just got carried away. No one deserves exile, cause all that means is the labs, and no one should ever have to experience those." Ami nodded and sank onto Sara's bunk, the one beneath her own. It still had pictures tacked to the wall, a personal calendar, and the Caring Award; the most caring person by the end of the year receives it, and she had still kept it from sixth grade, when she got it. She couldn't believe that a monster like her with her past could ever be given such a high honor.

The ribbon shifted slightly.

"I know. Thanks. I wonder sometimes, if the world knew about us, all of us, and all of the labs and what they do, if they would stand up to help us. They did it for the African Americans, the Jewish, why not us?" She said it sadly. The ribbon was red, with a gold edged heart. She brushed her fingers against it- remembering Sara's tears when she got it, so gracious and humble- and then shifted it back into place.

"You have to think though, all of those rights were rewarded, but only after wars were fought, casualties were taken, and eyes were opened."

"Maybe we need a war..." Ami said grimly, and Theonda paused before sitting beside her.