The Elements

[Gifted]

"I came to pay my respects to Father Edwards, and then Caleb was supposed to pick me up! But I think he forgot." Lucy answered.

[Raven]

Kenny smiled. "Alright, let's bring you over to my house, and we can call your parents. Come on, Matty." He would never leave Matt alone in the church, not if you paid him.
However, he didn't have to. Just then, the door opened, and Caleb Pensieve breathed deeply. "Thank goodness! I'm sorry I took so long," he said sheepishly.

[Gifted]

"Caleb!" Lucy cried joyfully, running over and hugging him. "Oh, you'll never guess what I found out today!"

[Raven]

Caleb hugged his sister tightly. "What?" he questioned.

[Gifted]

"We're not the only ones with magic! Father Edwards had it too, and Father Clark has it! And he said there are a bunch more!"

[Raven]

Caleb glanced at Kenny. "Really? So what do you do?"
Kenny smiled. "A couple things. Mostly, I can move things with my mind." Caleb didn't take his eyes off him, so Kenny once again made one of the candles float around.
Then Caleb glanced at Lucy. "Luce, how'd you find that out, anyway?"

[Gifted]

"UUm... well, I... they walked in when I was playing with lights." Lucy admitted sheepishly. "Just... I know you haven't been here much, but ever since Father Edwards died the church has been dark and Father Clark said they were having troubles with the lights, so I wanted to see if I could fix it... but there never were any lights, Father Edwards had the same power I do and he lit the church up himself. I figured out where he put his lights right when they walked in." She quickly turned her lights out, returning the church to it's usual darkened state.

[Raven]

Caleb could physically feel the difference. "You have to be more careful," he chided her gently. "What if someone who didn't understand walked in on that?"

[Gifted]

"I thought I'd eventually find light fixtures!" Lucy insisted. "If someone walked in and they were lit I'd just say I got them to start working again! It's a random electrical glitch or something, I dunno!"

[Raven]

"Because a twelve-year-old girl could fix it where Father Clark couldn't?" Caleb asked, sighing. "Just promise you'll be more careful, we can't let people find out about this."

[Gifted]

She nodded. "Okay, Ill be more careful." She agreed.

[Raven]

"You're welcome to practice at my house any time. If anyone asks, we'll say we're discussing our faith."

[Gifted]

"Yeah, Caleb's been skipping church so much lately he needs the extra help." Lucy giggled.

[Raven]

Caleb rolled his eyes. "You sound like Mom," he muttered. "Thank you, but I think we have to go home now." It wasn't so much that he didn't like the ideals Father Clark and Father Edwards had taught - they were good things to do, taught by very good people. In fact, it was kind of the opposite. His church was one shining beacon, but every other church, and many of the people he knew who claimed to be religious just... weren't. Caleb was very proud of his church. He was glad that, if his family was going to one, it was this one. But he couldn't help wondering how God could let so many people do bad things in his name, and let people claim that He justified them?

It had started with his friends, the same friends he'd had all his childhood. Most of them had been from his church before this one, all upstanding Christian children... until suddenly they weren't anymore. Really, the signs had been there from the beginning. They almost exclusively referred to Father Clark and Father Edwards as 'the gay preachers', even once asking Caleb why his parents had moved him to 'gay church'. But there were other things as well. All their technicalities for how they weren't really breaking the rules, because things weren't lined out for them in explicit detail. Caleb had still put up with it for a while, but then he started cutting back on going to church, his faith uncertain. Some of his friends mentioned it, asking if he'd finally realized that gay church wasn't getting him into heaven. He'd snapped, and he hadn't talked to them since. His parents didn't know that, even though it had been more than four months since it happened. He was questioning everything he knew, and there was no one he really felt comfortable talking to, because they were all biased. But at least he had plenty of free time to practice with his super power... even if it was a little more villain-y.

[Gifted]

"Okay." Lucy agreed. "Bye, Father Clark! See you again on Sunday!" She waved and her hand glowed momentarily as she left the room.
As soon as there was no one around to see him, Matt broke down. He hugged Kenny tightly, and though he didn't make a sound, Kenny could feel Matt's tears dampen the fabric.

I know the gutter, and I know the stink of the streets,
A tall black-haired girl walked in a mailwoman's uniform with a bag under her arm down the road from house to house.
Kicked like a dog, I have spat out the bile, of defeat.
Her headphones blaring in her ears, at nearly every house she simply dropped some mail and a newspaper at the front door and moved on, without so much as a blink of her eyes at the occupants inside.
All you beauties who towered atop of me, you who gave me the smack of your rod,
But there was one house she came up to now that she never just left.
Now I give you the gutter, I give you the judgement of God.
She hit pause on her phone as she approached the house covered in flowers. Sitting on the porch was the hermit who lived here, sipping tea and smiling from the wicker chair. The man never stepped off his porch except to donate the copious amounts of food he grew and very rarely to go to the grocery store. But she found him pleasant company and always took time out of her day to speak to him. He must be so lonely cooped up in here. "Hello Fredrick." She smiled as the joined him on the porch, handing him his newspaper.