Rainfall Chronicles: Amelia Reinhart

Chapter 3: My Emerging Power

Amelia: Chapter 3 — My Emerging Power

I say all that, but where do I even begin?

It's not like I have a myriad of interesting talents or quirks. I'm just a runaway, whose life has absolutely no worth in the grand scheme of things.

Well... actually, that's not true.

I mean, the "no worth" part is fairly true enough, but saying that I don't have any intriguing abilities is a lie.

Aside from being somewhat intelligent for my age, I have... a fascinating power, to say the least.

I have no clue how this happened. I don't know if I'm some sort of monster or if this has anything to do with my past, but all I remember is that I've been able to do this for as long as I can remember.

To put it bluntly... I can control water.

...Um, ahahaha...

I made it sound cooler than it seems, huh? Well, I say "control," but it's more like... I can slightly move water without having to touch it.

No, I can't do anything fancy, or do any impressive party tricks. All I've been really able to do is make water ripple sometimes. I can make it ripple fairly aggressively, even, if I try hard enough!

When I put it like that though, it's more of a fun little thing to do when you're bored rather than a "power." Sometimes, I get a glass of water, and I just watch the water bounce up and down.

Now that I'm saying this out loud, though, it feels really depressing that I do this of all things to keep myself entertained.

See, where I'm from, it rains pretty much all the time, so what I do is: I sneak out the window from my room, carefully climb down a waterspout, and run around outside to play.

Remember how I said how freeing it was to see airplanes soaring from above? Well, I feel a sort of similar emotion whenever it starts raining outside. All of the blaring noises of the city are drowned out by the reverberating sounds of the rain echoing all around me.

It's almost like I feel more at home whenever I'm surrounded by rain.

It's a very minuscule effect, but, wherever I run around, the raindrops start repelling off of my body. Well, at least a few of them. I still become soaking wet, but it's really fun watching the droplets bounce off me like that.

Most people tend to hate whenever it rains, but, honestly?— I love it when it does. Gives me something to do with my mundane life. 

However— even though I usually just run around for fun— there was this one... peculiar time.

It must've been four years ago, but the memory of that day is still so fresh and vivid in my mind.

Let's just say that the events of that day, and the days to come after would forever alter my story.

It was almost a normal day. I was alone at the house for the day which got me in a good mood, so you could probably tell how excited I was to see the rainclouds starting to form outside.

I got ready, and quickly ran outside once I started hearing the sky rumble. I was patiently waiting outside, looking up at the sky, observing how the rainclouds began to form directly above my head.

It might have just been my imagination, but I swear I could see the rainclouds begin to condense where I was standing. It kind of looked something like... an eye. My smile quickly went away after I saw the clouds... staring at me. Instead of the usual ecstasy I feel when seeing these clouds, I felt... strange inside. Like something inside me was bubbling up, but I just couldn't tell what.

My thoughts quickly went away after I saw the water start falling down, but what was strange to me was that the rain just came crashing down instantaneously. It's almost like it defied the laws of physics... to get closer to me. It was only for a brief moment, but the rain around me looked as if it was falling faster than the rain in the far distance.

I extend my arm out, and the water began... jumping? It started rapidly shooting forward in the direction I extended my arm. I was shocked, confused at the sight. My instincts kicked in, and I took a step back, but then... the rain behind me started pushing me back...?

I don't know; it sounds just as crazy to you than it does to me. I felt that there was more water than usual hitting my back, and I was practically sinking into the rainwater. I quickly retraced my step, and jumped forward after feeling the rain, and... the water stopped for a split second.

I look back where the water initially shot, and I saw it... there were multiple puddles forming something looking like a pathway. My confusion quickly turned into curiosity. Was this some hidden facet of my water powers? It's almost like I was a superhero finally learning how to properly contain and wield my power.

I witnessed the water repel off of me in a specific direction. I was thinking to myself that there was no way this was some bizarre coincidence. I look back up into the sky where I saw the clouds forming, and I saw the "eye." My eyes quickly widened after I saw the eye look at me with... anger? Is that the word?

Well, whatever the word was, it didn't stop the raindrops from hitting me in my wide-opened eyes. After groaning that my eyes were now irritated, I was forced to look back down. I saw that the water path started becoming more coherent.

I looked at it in awe, then I finally realized something. I realized that the rain was trying to tell me something. It was telling me to go the way it wanted me to go.

Was I going insane? I probably was, and probably still am. Nevertheless, I decided to proceed. I started walking into the direction where the rain pushed me, and I realized that the winds started blowing me into certain directions. I seems that nature itself was guiding me towards my destination.

As I walked, the water started repelling to my left. I heeded the rain's instructions and I turned directions. The rain then started impelling me into the right direction. Out of curiosity, I decided to look back from where I came. Some part of me inside felt extremely uncomfortable that I was taking directions from the rain.

But, suddenly, as I turned my head, a large bolt of lightning struck a car nearby. My heart rate skyrocketed. I've never seen or heard thunder that close. As the ringing in my ears and the blinding flash in my eyes began to disappear, all I could hear was the blaring noise of the car alarm. It wasn't damaged, but, even then, I could hear my heart pump through the sound of the rainfall.

It had to be a coincidence. I've never believed in the supernatural; there had to be some kind of scientific explanation. 

I tremble.

I slowly look back up into the eye above me. It was just a cloud. It was just a stupid raincloud... so why did I feel so goddamn guilty when I saw it looking down on me like that?!

I could turn around right now. I could turn around, and absolutely nothing would happen to me. All of what just happened was a coincidence, an extremely coincidental coincidence...

But I didn't want to take that chance for some reason...

I just continued to walk where the rain wanted me to go.

Reluctantly, I walk. I slowly walk behind our house. I was tempted to just run in back home since it was right there, but I pressed on.

As I cleared the alleyway, I saw it: the sight of the forest behind our neighborhood.

I never thought much of that forest. There were always the local kids telling scary stories to each other that I would overhear. Something about a giant tree beast or something that abducts children?

I never believed it. I was more into logic— reality. Scary stories are immature...

But as I remembered all the rumors about this place, and seeing how the rain was leading me into the woods...

Safe to say, confusion turned into curiosity, which eventually transformed into, well...

Fear.