The Inadequate Experiments, Sian Webster [whitelam books txt] 📗

large, wooden desk at the front of the room. The school banner was laid over the top of the desk, making it appear to be solid, but if I knew Calliope well enough, it probably wasn’t.

Still, I raised my eyebrows, searching for confirmation. “We’re going to hide under a desk?”

She didn’t even flinch. “Trust me on this one.”

She bent over and flicked up the banner, revealing two three-sided legs holding the desk up. Each leg was large enough to hold two of us; with the banner down, we wouldn’t be seen. No one argued as Calliope ushered us under the desk. Oliver went first, rolling his eyes as he crawled into one corner. I followed quickly, weary of why we were hiding in this particular room. I had a feeling the Scientists and Principal would soon be joining us, and I wanted to be well out of sight by that time.

David crawled into a corner of the leg opposite us with great difficulty as Calliope set the banner back down on the desk, before shifting it slightly and sliding under herself. She stationed herself across from me, pressed against David. She pulled her knees to her chest, waiting. I copied her actions, though I imagined her reasoning was excitement, where mine was sickening fear. If I had my way, I would be anywhere in the world aside from in that room, but I figured what we were about to hear would be important.

We hadn’t been hiding for long when we heard the door open. Immediately, I stiffened, and felt Oliver trail his hand up and down my thigh in an attempt to calm me. He slowly draped his other arm around my shoulders, pulling me close to him. I leant my head on his shoulder, allowing my hair to slip over my face. Hiding from the world, even though I was already hiding.

“Sorry for making you wait, Dr Mangan.” The Principal was saying. “I would’ve been right with you, but a serious fight broke out in the cafeteria last period. I needed to sort that out.”

“Not to worry, Mr Banner. We understand. And fortunately, we’re not in a hurry for once.” The Scientist replied.

Footsteps sounded on the linoleum, and the chair behind the desk we were under was pulled out. I thanked every god under the sun that it was only Mr Banner sitting down. Even then, I still didn’t let myself relax.

“So,” he said casually, even though just by looking at his legs, it was obvious that he was afraid to be talking to the Head of the New York Compound. “What is it you wish to discuss?”

“We understand that Sera Grey attends this school, correct?” Dr Mangan asked.

“Yes, it’s my understanding that she is in eleventh grade and still attends. Just started back at school today after her mother’s death.” The principal replied.

“Are you aware she has a sister?”

I could imagine him nodding. “Her two younger sisters are in eighth grade here, yes. It should be their first day back as well – would you like me to pull the three of them out of class?”

“No, no, that won’t be necessary. We’re not referring to Shaunee and Stacy Grey.” Dr Williams spoke before Dr Mangan could that time. I could almost feel the glare she would have received from the Head Scientist for her interruption.

“We’re referring, in fact, to her twin sister.” Dr Mangan continued.

I raised my head, my eyes wide. My heart thudded in my chest so loud that I was surprised the Scientists couldn’t hear it.

Mr Banner sat up straight in the chair before leaning forwards, two thumps on the table signalling him leaning on his elbows. “Twin sister? Are you quite sure she has one? I’m afraid you might actually be referring to the younger Grey girls.”

“Trust me, Mr Banner, we’re referring to the correct girl.” The Head Scientist snapped.

I interpreted the Principal’s lack of response as a very hesitant nod.

“You see, Clarissa had twins as a result of her disease – I understand you know her story – yet she only kept Sera. Rose, on the other hand was adopted out as a baby.”

“Two sets of twins?” Banner asked incredulously.

“We believe it was a side-effect of the disease.” Dr Williams interjected. “Although it is possible naturally.”

“Yes, thank you Taylor.” Dr Mangan snapped. “Anyway, we have recently located Rose Grey. We proposed to her the idea of being reunited with her twin sister, and she expressed great interest in the idea. We promised her we would secure her a spot here at St Elizabeth’s before she travels here next week. That is why we are here. You see, her foster parents were killed in a fire when she was three, and she has since been living in an orphanage, so she has no parental guardians. We were wondering if we could enrol her as a student here.”

Banner sighed. “With all due respect, Dr Mangan, by law we are only allowed to enrol a student with parent or guardian consent. If you wish for this Rose Grey to be enrolled, you must either find her a foster home or become her guardian yourself.”

If my eyes could have gone any wider, they would have. Instead, I closed my eyes as tight as they could go and collapsed into Oliver’s shoulder once more. His hand gently smoothed down my hair in an attempt to comfort me, yet I was still swallowing back tears. I knew what was coming next.

“Well, she is coming down, as I said, next week.” Dr Mangan repeated. “It will be exceedingly difficult to find a foster family before then, so I believe it would be easier if Taylor and I agree to be her guardian. Would that be acceptable?”

The Principal must have nodded. “See to it that you return with all relevant paperwork, and you can enrol her as soon as you wish.”

I heard the two Scientists rise from the chairs they must have sat down on at some point.

“Thank you very much, Mr Banner, we’ll see you soon.” The Head Scientist said kindly.

“You’re very welcome. Oh – let me walk you two out; the bell is about to ring, and I would hate for you to get trampled by unruly teenagers as you leave.” Banner jumped up from the seat and hurried from the room without tucking it back under the desk.

That was when I finally let myself cry. “Why?” I sobbed. “Why did he give them that idea? Now my twin sister is stuck with the Scientists!”

The four of us were quiet for a long while.

“Calliope,” I mumbled against Oliver’s shoulder. “Calliope, we have to get her out.”

For the first time since I met her, the younger girl didn’t reply when faced with something completely illegal which involved ruining the plans of the Scientists. Perplexed, I pulled myself from Oliver’s shoulder and looked over at her.

Even in the dim light under the table, she looked flustered. Her brows were drawn together, almost a reflection of the perplexity on my own face. Her blue eyes were trained on the floor, but I could tell that the floor was not what the girl was seeing. As a result of the flush on her cheeks, the scar on her neck and arm stood out more than usual, making her look incredibly vulnerable. He eyes were still trained on the floor when she spoke.

“I… I don’t understand…”

Then she was crawling from beneath the table and out of the room before anyone could say a word.

Oliver, David and I sat in a stunned silence for a little while.

“What do you think is wrong?” I asked David hesitantly.

The look in David’s eye was weary. “She now has another person she believes she needs to save.”

Part 1; Impulsivity - 3. A Familiar Presence

 

 The pale grey walls loomed over me, the air around me stifling. The silence of the room was deafening. The waiting drove me insane. Mr Banner had called me to his office, had told me that my twin sister who had been adopted out at birth was now enrolled, and asked if I could take care of her. I had to feign innocence, pretend the news of my sister was a shock. It wasn’t that hard; a week after his meeting with the Scientists, and I still hadn’t completely come to terms with the fact that I would be meeting my sister so soon. He had left soon after, and told me to wait in his office until he returned with his new student.

It had been ten minutes. Surely it doesn’t take that long to get her. I thought to myself.

I don’t know, Sera, he sure loves to dawdle.

I flinched. “Calliope!” I hissed.

At the back of the Principal’s office, the door of a cupboard creaked open, and the younger girl stuck her head out. “Hey.”

“What are you doing here?!” I asked exasperatedly.

She shrugged. “I’m curious about this twin sister of yours.”

“How did you even get in there?” I asked, then I paused. “You know what, I don’t even want to know. Jesus, Calliope! What if you get caught?”

Better keep your voice down then. She said in my head. Behind me, she slowly shut the cupboard door.

I’ll never get used to this. I thought, turning back to the front of the office. Is David there too?

I could almost feel Calliope shaking her head. When he realised out hiding spot was a small-sized cupboard, he opted out. As if anyone would choose math over this.

Believe it or not, some people actually have common sense. I told her.

Meaning some people have zero sense of adventure.

I rolled my eyes. This is getting ridiculous. Where could they even be?

Why don’t you find out? You’re an Untouchable, remember? Go on. See if you can find them.

I sighed, and felt my eyes slide closed. I focused on my energy, feeling it running through my body, the blood flowing through my veins, the thoughts flickering through my mind. I silenced those thoughts, clearing my mind. Then I widened my range. I could hear whispers of thoughts clouding Calliope’s mind at the back of the room. I could sense her energy, her excitement. I pushed further. Outside, there were two Androids manning the main desk at the administration sector. There was a drama class in the drama hall, searching for costumes. There were three or four brave students hanging around a locker, unbeknownst to the fact that a teacher was about to walk around the corner and find them out of class.

Back in the Principal’s office, I heard Calliope; That’s it. Keep going.

My concentration wavered, and I could feel myself slipping backwards, returning to the office. I squeezed my eyes shut tightly,  standing my ground. My range steadied, then continued forward. I could feel David in his math class, his brain hazy. Oliver and Tia were in art, where I should have been, their minds a whirlwind of colour. The radius of my range expanded, and I felt a familiar presence in one of the classrooms, and flinched. Just who was that?

Perplexed, I pushed past the barrier of their mind, trying to decipher the whispered thoughts that clouded their brain. A slight pain appeared in my temple. I scrunched my eyes closed again, forcing my consciousness forward, trying to