I'm not a victim. I'm the villain. The bad guy that killed millions. Controlled and manipulated thousands. I stained my own hands with blood of innocents. I may have become one of Morgiana's puppets... but that doesn't give me a pass.
Even if she sa...
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I stand up, staring at Lily-flor's finger as the pink flickers out. Even Jackie is surprised.
"You... your powers...?"
"They didn't fully go away," Lily-flor says casually. "I still have a little bit."
"How?" I ask, feeling desperate for answers. If she still has some of her powers, does anyone else?
Lily-flor shrugs. "I don't know. But I do know that my mom shared her powers with three people: you, me, and my dad. They haven't noticed it, but I saw my dad glow one night while he was sleeping. He'd left to go to the restroom outside and came back after washing his hands. He was half-asleep, so I don't think he noticed, but as soon as he hit his pillow, he kind of cuddled with Cressa-la and fell asleep, and there was a faint glow to him for a few seconds, like there's still something left. I don't know if he's done it since, but I knew I wasn't dreaming or imagining it because I snuck away the other night when we were celebrating Tani-mah's birthday on the full moon, and tested it. I was able to get my whole hand to glow."
I'm stuck on the ground, Lily-flor having my full attention. "So... why did you bring up the three of us?"
"Because I think you might have some left, too," she says plainly, as if the answer was obvious. "Because Cressa-la shared her powers with us."
"She took them," I argue. I'm arguing with a child. I could just walk away and write this all off as some crazy dream, but...
The darkness inside me craves the idea of having my powers again.
Lily-flor shakes her head.
I narrow my eyes in response.
"Lily, I—"
"So here's the thing,"Lily-flor says, cutting Jackie off. "My mom's powers couldn't be taken away unless she wanted to give them away. Because she shared her abilities with us, I believe she shared that trait. The three of us, you, me, and my dad, still have powers, at least a little bit, because we didn't completely want to give th3em up. Maybe my dad felt like he was nothing without his powers because he thinks he's weak without them—which he's not, and maybe I didn't want to because I wanted to help more than a girl my age could with anything and everything, and maybe you didn't want to give them up because you're bad and you want to use them for bad things."
My mouth hangs open slightly at her last few words. I tilt my head. "Is that what you think of me?"
Lily-flor smiles guiltily. "Well, you did do a lot of bad things. No one is wholly good, not even Cressa-la or Tamir. Maybe you want to take over the world again."
I scoff with humor. "So why are you telling me this?"
"Because I believe you're trying to be good and you'll try to be the goodest you can be if you get some of your powers back."
