It Gives You Wiiiiiiings!

"So what are your powers?" Alice asked me as we walked.

"Uh, I dunno. I can make ice, and--" I stopped, trying to make a dramatic pause, "I can fly."

"Sweet! That's gotta be awesome. You could make it hail even! Just fly up high and start making chunks of ice." She turned left, and I followed.

"What about you? What can you do?" Alice's smile disappeared suddenly.

"It's not a very good power. It's . . . weird. I don't know how to explain it. Later." Alice didn't say anything for a few more minutes, until we got to class.

"Alice!" Mr. Hank said cheerfully as we walked in. "Oh, and Emma too! You're just on time!" He beamed at us, and I saw that Alice was smiling again. "Alice, why don't you help introduce Emma to the rest of the class?" Alice looked like there was nothing more she'd rather do.

"Yes, sir!" she said. "Okay, everyone, this is Emma. Today's her fist day here, and she can fly." I felt my face redden, though Alice didn't seem to notice. She looked as if she was about to explode with joy. "Emma, that's Steve," she pointed to a large guy with spiky, blond hair. "He can melt stuff. And that's Mittens," she pointed to a dark-haired girl in the corner who happened to have mittens on. "She wears mittens because she's kind of poisonous. And over there is Toby," Alice nodded to a small boy who looked like a mouse. "I don't really know what his power is. And Edie doesn't always show up."

"Thank you, Alice, and welcome, Emma!" Mr. Hank said. "Since we have a new student today, I want the rest of you to work with you partner while I assess her ability. Alison, will work with Steve since Edie isn't here again?" Alice nodded and joined Steve in one end of the room. Toby and Mittens took to another part of the room and the too pairs began practicing using their powers. "Okay, Emma. Alice said you can fly?"

"Er, yeah," I muttered. I really hoped he wouldn't ask me to do anything. I didn't really know how to use my powers very well, especially not flying.

"Anything else?"

"Uh, I can sorta freeze stuff."

"Okay, why don't we start with flying? Let's see how well you can fly." I couldn't think of anything to say, so I shut my eyes tightly. "Sorry, I can't fly"? No, I could. I just . . . didn't know how. Well, no, I knew how. When I was so happy, I felt like I could just fly, I really could fly. All I had to do was be happy, and my body would do it on its own. I was no where near that extreme happiness. If anything, I was starting to panic. "Go on, now, Emma. Fly." How was I supposed to fly with so much pressure? I was getting extremely nervous and tense. C'mon, Emma! Fly! I tried to focus, but I couldn't. "Emma?" Mr. Hank's persistence wasn't helping. Couldn't he see that?

"Um, E-Emma?" Alice's voice came from my left. Her voice was shaking, which scared me. I suddenly felt the urge to protect her. Whoever was making her scared would have me to answer to. Alice had gone out of her way to make me feel welcome and-- I felt hands grab my shoulders suddenly, and I opened my eyes suddenly. Alice was looking at me as if I had just blown up or something. "Emma? You o-okay?"

"What? Yeah. Fine."

"You s-sure? I th-think you just f-froze everyth-thing." I realised Alice's voice wasn't shaking out of fear, but cold. I looked around the room, and saw a thin layer of ice coating everything. Then I looked at the ground. My feet were frozen to the ground and very smooth ice surrounded me. Which explained why Alice was still gripping my shoulders. She was using me to keep from slipping and possibly breaking something.

"Sorry. Hold on. Here." I reached out and and put my hands under Alice's arms, helping keep her steady. Relax! I told myself. I forced my mind to focus on good memories. I remembered how Alice had shown me and Luna to the dining hall, ate breakfast with us, and, in general, had just been exceptionally kind without anyone telling her or anything to get out of it than friends. Yes, that was a good memory, and here she was again, daring to tread across the dangerous surface, to make sure I was okay.

I wasn't aware of my surroundings anymore, which was why I hadn't felt my body pull Alice closer to me, or her arms around me in a hug, or the rush of air as I flew again. Not until I heard Alice's soft laugh in my ear at least.

"You're flying, Emma," she said, her voice practically ringing like wind chimes. A ripple of shock shot through me, and gravity took over. Alice didn't tighten her grip, flinch, or react to falling at all. She believes in me, the thought rang out strong and clear, and gravity lost the battle just in time. I heard someone start clapping.

"Yeah, Emma!" a small voice cheered. I could see the mousy little boy jumping up and down, cheering for me. Toby. Steve, the blonde guy, was pumping his fist into the air. Mittens smiled at me, something, as I would learn later, that was very rare.

"Excellent!" Mr. Hank's gruff voice boomed. I knew I was smiling even bigger than anyone else in that room, even Alice, who seemed to have a smile engraved on her face eternally. Carefully, I let gravity pull Alice and I downward until our feet touched the ground. She let go of me, stepped back, and smiled. I couldn't help smiling back. I was going to love it here.