[Legacy of a Martyr #2] Liberation from the Masquerades (A Key Keepers novel)

Episode 23: Telepathy with 20 Questions

I was in this room with a fireplace. I thought Alain's mom called it a den... I wished it was cold outside, so we could use it.

I loved fireplaces. Zane and I used to snuggle up together by the one in our house. Mom and Dad joined in too, if it was extra cold outside. Those were some of the times I missed the most.

Marsh and I didn't get to do that very often. If it was extra cold, the rest houses usually crammed as many people as they could in a room. Even though it often meant being with Duke and Ai, we could never enjoy the fireplace if the room had one. We were afraid to, because we never knew when Masquerade would strike again.

He made everything harder than it already was... Marsh and I might've made it easier though since we never tried to face the others... Marsh always thought it was easier not to...

Phoenix came into the room. He still had bedhead. "Have you seen Ain or T?"

I shook my head. "The others might have."

"I guess I'll ask them later. Everyone seems busy."

I couldn't look at him. I couldn't figure out why. "Hey, Phoenix?"

"Yeah?"

My cheeks were so hot they might as well have been on fire. "Are you any good at using your telephone?"

He smiled. "Te-le-pa-thy." He looked at the window. There was nothing to see though cuz the curtains were closed. "Yeah, I think I'm okay at it. T and Ellie taught me to use it before Ain brought us home."

I tilted my head. "How come?"

"I wasn't very good at talking when I was little. They taught me to use telepathy, so it'd be easier for me to tell them what I wanted."

That sounded nice. I didn't like having to draw on people's hands when I couldn't talk. Most people got impatient with me when I did that. That was one of the reasons I avoided using it more as I got older.

"How did she teach it to you?"

"It's kinda fuzzy, cuz it feels like it happened a long time ago, but she made a game out of it. I was little, though, so she had to make it fun. I do remember she started with things I liked."

My mouth hung open. "Things you liked?"

"It still took me a while to learn how to say it, but the first one she taught me to say with telepathy was color."

"Color?"

Phoenix got red. "We didn't really have a whole lot to play with, so T let me draw on the walls."

"Did you ever run out of space in there?"

He shook his head. "Whenever I was about to, the oldest thing I drew disappeared."

"That didn't make you sad?" I asked.

"Nah. It was like this toy I used to have. Plus, it was kinda nice. If I didn't like my drawings, I knew they'd go away."

"What if you really liked them?"

He furrowed his eyebrows. "I don't remember. Ellie probably did something with them."

"Did you have a favorite word when you were little?" I asked.

"Don't remember. If I had to guess, it was probably story. I always loved when T told me stories. She told me a lot of them while we were in there."

I thought Zane did the same with me... They made me feel better when I was scared, and I got scared a lot when I was little...

"Did you want to try using your telepathy with me?" Phoenix's eyes lit up. "I'm sure it could help you do more than talk to Elenita."

I hadn't expected him to ask me that...

"Is there anything you want me to say?" I asked.

"Nope. You can say whatever you want."

What did I want to say? I could say anything I wanted? What should I say?

I wanted to know if he missed how his home was before he met Alain.

"Sometimes." Phoenix smiled. His cheeks got red again. "T probably misses that more than I do. I don't remember much from back then cuz I was so little. Since I wasn't good at talking, it was hard for me to describe, too."

That might have made it harder for him to remember. If he couldn't talk about it, it probably got away from him more than he liked.

"What was it like when you traveled with Marshall?"

I wanted to cry. The first thing I saw when Phoenix asked that was his face. Things weren't as fun as they could've been because we always convinced people to be mean.

"Sorry. That was a bad question, huh?" He grabbed my hands. "We don't have to talk about that anymore."

Another question popped into my head. When did Phoenix get his powers?

"I'd have to ask T about that..." His face went blank for a minute. "Time wasn't really a thing in there, so I dunno when it happened. Being little doesn't help with that, either."

Did he ever wonder why he had powers?

"We can talk about that later."

"Okay..."

"That's enough for today." He went toward the hallway.

Marsh came in a few minutes after that. He looked like he just got out of the shower.

When I got up to give him a hug, I almost fell into a table. Marsh grabbed me before that could happen, though. "Jeez, Lie... You feel okay?"

"My head hurts..."

It felt like someone tied a bandanna too tight around my head.

Marsh nudged my head into his chest. "Let's get you back in bed. You should feel better if you lie down for a little while."

"Okay..."

I felt so much better when Marsh laid me in my bed. I fell asleep once he pulled the covers over me.

***

Poor Lie! Thoughts on her interaction with Eni? Theories? Predictions?

~Shino out!