The first thing that Jackson noticed about Superpower Class was that the room was just as yellow as the other one. Exceedingly yellow. The walls, the various couches, even the glass coffee table in the center of the room had a yellow tint. The second thing that Jackson noticed was the room did not look much like a classroom, but more like an after-school club. That, at least, allayed Jackson's fears a bit. The third thing Jackson noticed was Melanie.
Melanie was lounging on a plush chair, her legs perched over the armrests, intently staring at her phone and definitely not at Jackson. She was wearing a purple dress, which she mindlessly flattened as she didn't stare at Jackson. She looked as if she was lost to the world, and assuredly not trying very hard to not look at Jackson. Jackson was staring at Melanie with a look of disdain that matched her regret. Which is to say, a lot of it.
Ms.Doil, or as she had asked Jackson to call her, Ms.Forrester, cleared her throat, loud enough to make her intentions clear to the other students. There were four of them, including Melanie. They looked towards Ms.Forrester, then to Jackson, then back to Ms.Forrester as she started to speak.
"Class, this is Jackson. He'll be joining us for the rest of the year. Please introduce yourself, Jackson," she said, grabbing Jackson and pulling him further into the room.
"Uh... I'm Jackson... Yeah," he stuttered, unsure of how to proceed.
"Your power and one fun fact about you, if you wouldn't mind," Ms.Forrester prompted, as she made a strange motion with her hand. A podium grew from the ground after she finished her hand motion, forming itself like it was a viscous liquid. After it was done forming, Jackson stepped up to the vestibule.
He gripped the edges of the podium, the yellow stuff hard and smooth, yet warm. "Again, I'm Jackson. I can slow down time. A fun fact?" Jackson recited while racking his brain for something fun. He hated when teachers did this, as finding something that was interesting yet harmless was pretty difficult. Jackson decided to take a risk, telling the class "I've definitely read more books than any other student in the school." It made Jackson sound like a nerdy loner, which helped explain his aversion towards others. And it was also true.
"Thank you Jackson. Take a seat," Ms. Forrester said, gesturing towards an open chair. Jackson moved to sit down, finding the same yellow material that made the podium, in this case, was soft and cushioned. Ms.Forrester took the opportunity to address the rest of the class with "Now, could someone else please introduce themselves? Same format."
"Do we have to go to the podium?" a girl asked.
Ms.Forrester looked back towards the podium, for a moment having forgotten it was there. "No, pardon me, right where you are."
The same girl stood up (for some reason), and said "I'm Selina, Selina Sadie Demarcson. I can teleport, no biggie, it's just a planar power. Don't go asking for free rides, I charge travel fees." After giving her spiel she sat down, but then stood back up again. "Oh yeah, fun fact. I'm deathly allergic to dogs. if you have one, please remove most of the hair from your clothes. Buy a lint roller. Hell, I'll buy you one."
Finally finished, a boy stood up. "I'm Connor. I can fly, and lift heavy things. The boring powers." Jackson wasn't sure what Connor meant by boring, they sure beat a damn library. "And I'm related to a Vera City superhero, but I can't say which." He said. Oh, Jackson thought. This kid. Apparently, Connor told everyone this, but no one could figure out who his dad was. No one had even met the guy. One popular rumor was that Connor's last name, Fleur, was fake. Or the feds had some really good superhero protection programs.
Connor hadn't stood up, so the next student waited for a nod from him before they started. "Yeah, I'm Damien. But you can call me..." he paused for a moment before jumping onto the couch he had been seated on. "The Golden Snake!" He yelled as he whipped on a yellow mask. Jackson audibly gasped, gathering him a strange look from Melanie. Damien beamed, thinking Jackson liked his dramatic display, but in actuality, it was because Jackson recognized "The Golden Snake".
The day before, the student apprehending the criminals, that was Damien. Jackson wanted to tell him he noticed his crime-stopping efforts, but stopped himself. Vera City wasn't a fan of underage crimefighting, and Ms. Forrester might be obligated to say something if she heard of it. Damien squatted, still on the couch, and continued. "I can duplicate things," Damien said, taking his mask off. Holding the mask in both hands, what was once one mask became two. Complete with a puff of smoke, the whole transition was fairly classy. But one thing struck Jackson as odd.
"Aren't you called The Golden Snake?" Jackson asked Damien.
"Yeah," he answered, finally sitting on the couch normally.
"What does that have to do with your power? Or anything, really?"
"THANK YOU!" Selina shouted, standing up again. "IVE BEEN TELLING HIM THIS ALL THE FREAKING TIME!"
Ms. Forrester cut in, waving her hand in a horizontal line. "We will have none of that Selina! You promised to never bring this up again."
Selina raised a finger as if she had noticed some pressing flaw in Ms. Forrester's logic, but instead of voicing her concern she walked away, eventually finding herself at one of the other unoccupied sofas. Jackson cracked a grin at her antics, starting to enjoy himself. This was certainly a bunch of strong personalities.
"We have one more student to go," Ms. Forrester informed, all eyes pivoting to Melanie. She remained in her awkward sitting position for a moment, until after a barely perceivable nod to herself she adjusted her body so she was sitting upright, placing her elbows onto her thighs and leaning slightly towards the rest of the class.
"I'm Melanie Collins. You know that. I have the power to find the perfect decision for any situation. That's not nearly as cool as it sounds, though. So I just, like, ignore it most of the time. You want to know a secret? The Writing Well, that tourist trap fortune teller," she says "fortune teller" as if it was the most inane thing to ever exist, "Well, it gives me the exact same advice my power does. I tell everyone I'm a Mind Palace super, but I might be a Domain..." trailing off, a lurid silence floated upon the monochromatic room. Not even Ms. Forrester spoke, but she was the one to break the quiet by walking over to one of the walls. As she neared it, a door melted from the wall, and Ms.Forrester swiftly entered. For a moment, she disappeared.
"Oh, sorry. I'll be right back." She told them, sticking her head back through the doorway. For an even longer moment, she disappeared.
YOU ARE READING
The Library of Powers
Ciencia FicciónIn the city famous for having an excess of superheroes, Jackson can travel to the place they are created. Afraid someone will use his power for evil, Jackson keeps to himself, hiding his extraordinary abilities. That is, until his high school learn...
