Marilyn was tense with anticipation. In just fifteen short minutes she would be 18. The age when a young person with magical ancestry came into a "magical maturity" of sorts. She knew everyone in her bloodline had gained a special ability. Perhaps she would have premonitions like her elder sister, Crystal? Or maybe she was more suited for the power of flight like her cousin, Toby. Her father could control the weather. Her mother (though from a different magical heritage) had the hypnotizing voice of the sirens she descended from. As Marilyn mused on the powers of her relatives and the possibilities of what she might acquire, a horrible thought occurred to her- "What if I don't get a power?!"

She could see it now. Her family’s pitying expressions. The pointing and staring of the nieces and nephews a few years down the road. Her friends, going off to have grand adventures in a few months-without her! "Oh, please, PLEASE! Let me have an ability." She glanced at the large grandfather clock of her foyer. 2 minutes left. She wasn't feeling any different yet. Oh goodness! Shouldn't she have noticed something yet? One minute. Just one minute left. One minute that would seal her fate. Would she be a mundane human or have a great destiny ahead of her like her friends and family? The clock struck midnight and Marilyn's world went black.



She awoke in her bed, conscious of the rays of sunlight streaming through the curtains. "Well, something certainly happened", Marilyn thought. She got out of bed, or at least attempted to. The sheets were sticking to her! Not in the usual way of the sheets wrapping around her legs and arms, but as in they were clinging to her as a sock clings to a dryer. It took her a few minutes to unstick herself from the sheets, and she went over to her vanity. What she saw made her scream in shock.


Her golden blonde hair which usually fell on perfectly smooth, shiny, soft ringlets was wild and crazy- as if she had stuck her finger in an electrical socket. Also, her emerald green eyes had taken on a tint of silver that seemed to spark. She also had a strange feeling in her right hand; sort of a tingle, sort of as if something was trying to come out. She flexed all of her fingers except her pointer, and a jolt of electricity shot out of that finger just as her sister ran into the room.

"You're an electrokinetic, nice!" Crystal exclaimed.

Marilyn, nodded in shock. That would explain the hair and the eyes and the static cling. Not to mention the electricity pulsing through her body. She looked back into the mirror. Hmm, it seemed as if letting out some of the electricity calmed her hair down towards normal.

"I wonder," she whispered as she flexed her fingers again and released a few volts, "it works!"
Her hair was back to normal, for the moment. Her eyes also seemed to lose some of the silver as she expelled the electricity and turned back to green.


Yes, as long as she dispelled the electricity from her body regularly, she would look as she had before. Marilyn was glad for that. She was rather vain about her looks. The last thing she needed was for her hair to be frizzy all the time. After a few more minutes of trying out her new powers, Marilyn dressed in her new jeans and scoop neck tank top then headed downstairs for breakfast with her family.





The first thing the new electrokinetic noticed upon her descent down the stairs and into the foyer was the grandfather clock- or what was left of it that is. Scorch marks had ravaged the once beautiful family heirloom. It appeared that Marilyn had lost control of her powers upon her black out. As she walked through the rest of the foyer she noticed that the lights in the room had blown a fuse, the bulbs all turning to a burnt black color. Marilyn didn’t know whether to be embarrassed at the destruction she had caused or proud of the amount of power she seemed to possess. As she opened the door to the kitchen, she was greeted by a loud, “Happy birthday. Marilyn!”

There were her family and friends. Cousin Toby was back from his adventures in China (studying levitation techniques with the monks) and standing next to her mother. Her father was lighting candles on a cake for Marilyn. Crystal was standing next to Marilyn’s two best friends, Amara and Rhiannon. Amara was descended from a clan of witches and possessed the power of spellcrafting. Rhiannon could communicate with animals. Amara and Rhiannon would be traveling the world with Marilyn come the summer, only a few months away. They would do what most people with abilities did upon coming of age and use their powers to help people in other countries.

The girls had planned this since they were 12. First they would go to Africa, then onto Thailand and India. They would do the best they could to help others and learn about themselves in the process. Rhiannon had turned 18 the past fall, Amara in the winter. Both of them had gained easy control over their abilities. Marilyn would need to focus all her energy into training before the summer. After all, she didn’t want to do more harm then good.





The next three months were spent in training for Marilyn. She learned how to use her powers expertly with the help of a training manual she had found in her family’s library. “A Guide to Electrokinesis” the book had proudly exclaimed. The young electrokinetic could charge electronics, repair wires and lights, fix electrical signals, and of course send high voltage blasts of electricity from her body. She could also absorb electricity, but didn’t like to as it messed up her hair. She was still something of a diva. Finally the day came where she was to leave for Africa with her friends.





Marilyn looked at the impoverished village before her in shock. The people were all dirty, their hair in knots. They were lucky to have what clothes they did and didn’t mind if they were ripped or not. While Marilyn was all consumed in her phone and laptop, these people didn’t even have air conditioning or lighting. She turned to the man in charge and asked very solemnly, “What do you need me to do?”

He set her to work on generating enough electricity that the village would have some basic amenities such as the aforementioned air conditioning and lighting. Marilyn barely cared that her hair turned frizzy and her eyes were silver as she did this. Amara set to work on healing spells, food spells, and whatever else the village needed. Rhiannon helped to control the village animals and learn where the best places were for the village people to hunt. The experience was humbling and taught the girls to be grateful for what they had.





When the time came for the girls to leave the village, they didn’t want to leave. They felt good helping these people who needed it. They had made sure the village had enough food and water to go around, healthy and happy livestock, lights, air conditioning and even a few computers and telephones. Marilyn no longer bothered with the state of her hair; she simply threw it up into a ponytail. All of the girls preferred comfortable, practical clothes. They barely ever checked their phones or email. Marilyn found it hard to believe she had ever cared about such trivial things. The girls had posed for a picture with their village friends, and it was hanging proudly in the volunteer office. Looking at the photograph, one was instantly drawn to Marilyn’s silver eyes radiating happiness and pride.