Harris Institute for Gifted Students Episode 3: Lightning

Harris Institute for Gifted Students by Pineapple | Content warnings

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It hadn’t even been that long—just under two weeks—but it felt like months since Sofia had actually seen her roommate. The semester had just started, and Vanessa was pouring herself into extra hours with her instructor. When she wasn’t practicing, she was on the field playing baseball.

Sofia sent a text every couple days to check in, but it was usually met with a half-assed “I’m busy,” or “Maybe next time?” so Sofia was tempted to stop trying.

She wondered if it had to do with the rogue ball that night classes started. The idea that Vanessa—sweet, optimistic, can’t-take-emotions-seriously Vanessa—was feeling guilty left a bad taste in Sofia’s mouth. She let herself ruminate on it for just a short minute before peeling herself out of the comfort of her bed and changing into some jeans and a tee. After debating whether or not she needed a jacket, Sofia decided on just wearing her uniform blazer and took off.

Polka Zhang was Vanessa’s instructor and had been since she started there. Unlike Sofia, Vanessa was a fighter. She’d been training since her first year, honing her skills and learning combat basics. She and Mickey were lucky, as their instructor had powers that closely resembled theirs. The twins, Sugi and Sumire, seemed to have won the lottery on that as well. Others just got as close a match as they could find. Sometimes students were even sent to other schools if there was someone elsewhere that might be able to mentor them better.

Vanessa explained it one time. The staff here were true masters, so they could extend knowledge of themselves to others, but they were only human, after all. Vanessa suspected that’s why Ms. Fatima hadn’t exactly been able to help with the bubble thoughts. Similarly, nobody had powers exactly like Ben, which is why he worked with Ms. Hera and attended lectures from the classical mages.

It was easy for Sofia to forget that being gifted wasn’t common when everyone that surrounded her was.

But when Sofia caught sight of Vanessa and Mickey on the field, it was easy to see what any person would see.

Vanessa’s form was perfect. Not that Sofia knew much about baseball or her powers but—she was powerful, graceful when she threw. Light erupted from her hands and it flew right into the wooden 3-by-3 target square. There were burn marks in all the places she’d hit. Vanessa huffed, dissatisfied with her performance like every other sportsman Sofia had ever seen. Vanessa wound up again with Olympic level concentration.

Mickey was next to her, shooting at a sandbag with a bullseye instead of a pitching target. She was taller, more slender, but no less beautiful. She leaned back as she drew an invisible bow, her brow furrowing as she aimed a yellow energy arrow. She released, her hair flying, caught in the magic like it was simply blowing in the wind. Unlike Vanessa’s blunt strength, Mickey’s was directed and precise. A bullseye every time.

Neither of them noticed as Sofia sidled up to Coach Zhang. She didn’t like “Ms.” or, on the few occasions someone tried, “Mr.” She told everyone to call her “Coach” and seemed content enough with that.

She had her dark, slick hair pulled back into a low ponytail, bangs held back underneath a simple cap. Her eyes were sharp, analytical as she watched the students. “Good, Mickey,” she said, her arms crossed, one hand on her chin. “Try to work on the strength of the arrow. Don’t just aim for the center. I want you to go straight through it. Envision shooting what’s behind it.”

Vanessa threw another ball of light. It knocked the edge of the wood, charring it before fading into nothing.

Mickey shot again, and groaned when she hit the same spot. “It’s too thick,” she whined. “I can’t get through.”

Coach Zhang shook her head. “You’re not normally one to complain,” she noted. “You usually like a challenge. What’s going on with you?”

“I…” Mickey snapped her mouth shut, bringing her arms up unconsciously to cover herself. “Nothing. It’s fine.”

“Focus,” Coach said firmly, gently, slowly. “Try again.”

Mickey huffed, straightening her back and taking aim.

Before she could shoot, there was a crack like thunder.

Mickey’s arrow dissolved, falling apart like broken glass as she looked to her side at Vanessa.

Vanessa had thrown a ball, but it wasn’t like before. This one was blue. Sporadic, unpredictable. When she threw it, it made that sound and shot out of her hand like lightning. It struck like it, too—in place of the target was a smoking pile of ash.

Coach Zhang’s hand fell from her chin, her eyes wide.

“Vanessa?” Mickey began, her voice cautious.

Vanessa was breathing hard. She stood up slowly from her follow-through.

“Vanessa,” Coach Zhang began, her voice stern and clipped.

“I know,” Vanessa sniped back. She turned around, ready to say something by the look of it. Her face fell into a defiant pout when she saw Sofia. “I didn’t mean to.”

Coach sighed shortly, pressing her lips together tight. She quickly made a decision. “Alright, take a walk,” she said, gesturing to the track.

Vanessa didn’t protest, didn’t even look like she wanted to. She took off running parallel to where they’d been shooting, a roughly lined trail that was used for cardio and endurance training.

“Coach,” Mickey said timidly. When Coach Zhang and Sofia turned back to look at her, Mickey was wringing her fingers, watching Vanessa. “It wasn’t the first time she’s done that.”

Coach Zhang tilted her head. “Explain.”

“The other day—like, two weeks ago?—she hit Sofie with a rogue ball,” she said. Her eyes strayed from Vanessa’s retreating form to Sofia and then back again. A pang of guilt started to grow in Sofia’s stomach. “Luckily, it wasn’t as strong as that one seemed to be…”

“She grows fast,” Coach Zhang murmured, drawing her hand up to her chin again. “She adapts well, but she’s gotta get it under control.”

Mickey started fiddling with her hair, splitting her ends. “I’m worried about her,” she said. “What if she hurts someone on accident? What if something happens here and we need her and…”

Coach Zhang turned her almond eyes on Mickey. They were sharp, perceptive underneath the rim of her hat.

“I need to talk to her,” Mickey said, dropping her hair.

“No, you need to talk to me,” Coach Zhang said. “Vanessa works through it best on her own when she’s moving. Tell me what you meant just now.”

Mickey stopped at the command, clearly torn.

“I got it,” Sofia said, raising a hand, happy to volunteer. She wanted to escape this conversation and the way Mickey was talking about Vanessa. She didn’t want to feel like she was gossiping behind Vanessa’s back. Plus, Mickey was worried about something, her eyes far off in a way that made Sofia think it wasn’t just about Vanessa and Coach Zhang seemed to pick up on that, too. “I’ll go.”

The coach shot Sofia a look that seemed permissive and grateful, and Sofia took off to meet Vanessa at the far end of the field where she was currently doing jumping jacks.

“Does that really work?” Sofia shouted when she was a few feet away.

Vanessa stopped and turned to her. She rolled her eyes, and all at once Sofia felt like everything would be okay. This was a gesture she was familiar with, this expression was Vanessa as Sofia knew her. “What are you talking about, Sof?”

Sofia grinned, happy to have caught her with her defenses down. “Exercising to feel better,” she clarified. “Does it work?”

Vanessa shrugged. “Works for me.”

“I think I’d rather just stew in it.”

“Does that work?” Vanessa asked. She started rolling out her ankles and wrists, cooling down from her exercises. Moving still, but slowing.

“I don’t think so,” Sofia said. “But I’m not really a sporty kind of person like you are, either.”

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Well, throwing around explosive ball lightning isn’t exactly productive.”

Vanessa sighed, putting her hands on her hips. “Look. Why don’t you go talk to Mickey?” She started digging her toes into the loose gravel and dirt they were standing on. “Clearly she’s got something on her mind and won’t spill. Seems like she’s the one who’s ready to burst. Not me. Even with all that, she’s still the perfect shot, huh?”

Sofia’s brain was churning. Something was wrong, not just with Mickey, and Sofia knew it. “You think Mickey’s a perfect shot?” Sofia asked, and it felt like poking a bear.

“She’s a perfect everything,” Vanessa answered flatly.

“Is that what you’re upset about?”

Vanessa rubbed her brow like she was extremely put out, like Sofia was a younger sibling who couldn’t take a hint.

“Do you think you aren’t perfect?”

“I know I’m not,” Vanessa sighed. She wasn’t angry, just… tired, maybe. “I know Mickey isn’t either; you don’t have to tell me. I’ve known her since we started here. We’ve always been trained together with Coach.”

Sofia could feel Vanessa’s emotions starting to bubble over, like heat radiating off her sweaty body. Almost envy but not quite. Admiration. A little bit of love. All of it swirling in conflict as Vanessa tried to sort it out.

She was biting her lips when Sofia looked at her. “I hate her a little bit,” Vanessa said, soft, like a confession. “It’s stupid. I’m over it. Let’s go back.”

Sofia stepped in front of Vanessa to keep her from returning. She took Vanessa’s face in her hands, and Sofia could feel the hurricane in Vanessa come to a stop.

“You don’t hate her,” Sofia said. She knew it to be true because she could feel it, even without trying. She knew Vanessa. She would have known all of this sooner, if Vanessa hadn’t been avoiding her. “You’re jealous of her. Of what Coach Zhang was saying. And…”

Sofia squinted into Vanessa’s eyes. Vanessa tried to move, but Sofia held fast, held gently.

“And you wish she would come to you,” she finished. “Don’t you?”

Vanessa wrenched Sofia’s arms away.

“Vanessa? You’re worried about her, aren’t you?”

Vanessa’s eyes fell to the ground. “You know she’s been lying since that night of the earthquake, don’t you?” she asked. “Mickey was my first close friend here, but… She has so many people around her now. What does it matter, as long as she has someone looking out for her?”

“It’s not you.”

“That doesn’t matter.” Vanessa started walking back to where Coach Zhang and Mickey were standing, talking. It looked like their conversation had gotten considerably lighter than when Sofia had left.

“No, you don’t understand,” Sofia said. “It’s not you. Did you see what you did to that target?”

She scoffed. “Don’t remind me.”

“Vanessa, stop.” Sofia grabbed a hold of Vanessa’s arm. “You obliterated it. How many other people do you think could do that?”

“Greyson could,” she answered easily.

“And has he been practicing his accuracy? His control like you have?”

Vanessa tossed her arms up. “I don’t know, Sof. What has he got to do with me?”

“I’m saying your power is versatile. Coach said you were adaptive.”

“Be nice if she could say that to my face,” Vanessa muttered.

Nothing was coming out right. Sofia heaved a sigh and tried again. “What I’m saying is you have strengths nobody else has. You’ve got this power and you’re learning something new about it right now. But it’s not just that. Look around you—you scraped together a team to play baseball just for fun. Everyone here already does athletics, and you got people to sign up for even more? You think just anyone could do that?”

Vanessa snapped her head to look at her funny. “What?”

“Maybe you aren’t as mysterious and lonely as you think you are, huh.”

Vanessa barked out a laugh. “Shut up.”

Coach Zhang waved Vanessa back when she was close enough. “Feel better?”

Vanessa rolled her shoulders out. “Yeah, Coach. Sorry I lost my head.”

“No,” she said. “It’s my fault. I realized your powers are different from what I thought.”

“What…?” Vanessa was looking quickly between Coach Zhang and Mickey, trying to figure out what the trick was.

“I thought you’re long range like Mickey,” she explained, gesturing to the sandbag target. “I was wrong. You like baseball, so I let it be baseball. Balls come in big and small, so we’ll work on big and small.”

“What do you mean?”

“I played marbles when I was a kid. We’ll start with that for accuracy. Work on the power with what you did before.” Coach Zhang nodded to herself. “Every team needs a mid-range fighter. You’ll be indispensable.”

Vanessa squinted at Coach Zhang, the hurricane in her starting to swell up again.

“You could go on your own when you graduate, but I don’t think you want to,” Coach continued. “It’s up to you, but… I think you could lead. You’re a captain, right? Not just in sports, but here, too. You could lead.”

Sofia elbowed Vanessa, grinning. Vanessa felt calm and quiet inside where their skin touched, like she was in the eye of the storm. Vanessa looked over at Mickey, and Mickey smiled, hiding her wringing fingers behind her back. Vanessa nodded at her and then turned back to Coach Zhang.

“Okay,” she said. “Teach me to lead.”