Valorie

Prologue

~🖤Thank you so much for reading🖤~

  "How did you get your endowment?" The question tumbled innocently from the sleepy child's lips, paralyzing her mother with uncertainty. She feared this very question from the second the girl said her first words, but she supposed it was only a matter of time.
  "Well... Sometimes bad things happen to people. Really bad things. And it forces us to unlock something deep down inside in order to protect ourselves." Cecilia's voice was quiet and pensive. Her thin, boney fingers, one of them decorated with a tiny, yet beautiful diamond ring, sifted through her young daughter's raven hair.
  "Did something bad happen to you?" She whispered back. She glanced up at her slim face. She'd never forget her mother's face. She had nearly white skin with grey undertones, sunken in, dark eyes and defined cheekbones. Her mother nodded softly. They gazed at each other for a long time in a brooding silence.
  "What was it?" the girl finally asked. For a long time, the woman had no answer. She wasn't sure if she should answer. She had so much chaos brewing in the back of her mind, "Mommy?"
  "When I was a little girl," she paused again, contemplating those horrible memories, "My mother was very... mean to me. She would get mad at me a lot."
  "Why did she get mad?" The girl interrupted.
  "I don't know. Sometimes it wasn't for any good reason at all," She shook her head, staring down at the sheets. Her daughter stared at her with a puzzled look, "I think she was just tired... and... afraid. She was always working. She didn't have anyone else. And she expected a lot from me."
  "And... That's how you got your endowment?" She asked softly. Her little face became more despondent. Cecilia sighed deeply, watching her little girl become worried about her. There were things she didn't want her to know, but she couldn't lie to her either. She wondered for a moment, asking herself if she was a bad mother for the story she was about to tell. On the other hand, she hated the way her own mother used to lie and hide truths from herself, and so she began;
  "One day, when I was about eight or nine... I ran away from home, because my mother had smacked me across the face. I was so hurt, and I was mad, and I just... didn't care about anything at that point. I don't even remember why she did it, all I remember was crying, and yelling, and I packed a little bag of food and clothes and darted out the front door. I didn't go very far, though. The police found me just a few blocks away at this park after a couple of hours. But my mother was so angry. As soon as I was returned to her, she—" She stopped herself again, getting one last glance at her daughter's impatient expression, "s-she um... She locked me up... in a dark closet. For a long time." The little girl's face stretched into horror and shock. She had never heard such an awful thing.
  "H... How long?" She asked with child-like curiosity. Cecilia bit her lip, already feeling like she had said too much. She continued anyway,
  "I dunno... two, maybe three days? I had no idea what time it was. It was like..." She trailed off into thought. It was almost like her mother forgot she had left her there, but that couldn't be right, because she had screamed and begged to be let out for hours.
  "It was like what?" her daughter pressed.
  "It was like... all I could think about was how hungry I was. She didn't give me anything to eat or drink. I remember each minute... It felt like I was trapped in there for weeks... I felt myself getting hungrier and hungrier. My stomach hurt so bad, like it was starting to eat itself from the inside out. I felt so sick, like I was dying. But then... I fell asleep against the wall at one point and when I woke up I... f-felt better." She wrestled with her words, getting physically uncomfortable with each descriptor. It was a difficult story to tell such a young person, but Cecilia always believed it was the right thing to do. After all, it quickly became clear to the little girl what that meant.
  "That's why your endowment is... not eating?" She questioned softly. Her mother nodded once again, not wanting to look her girl in the eyes.
  "It's such a strange power, don't you think? I hoped I'd get something nice like flying, or making plants grow. But, uh... I guess the universe had other plans for me."
  "Do you not like your powers, Mommy?" She asked.
  "Well... I have a lot of bad memories behind them. It also scares your Dad a lot. Sometimes I, um... I used to get kinda sad and wouldn't eat very much. He knows it doesn't hurt me, but he still worries about if I'm gonna be okay. My powers don't really do much for anyone else. Except... maybe make the food bill cheaper?" She laughed nervously, and the little girl cracked a small smile, but it didn't last very long. The concern melted right back into her face.
  "But, you know, a lot of people have bad memories behind their endowment, and they still do great things for the world. Even some of the strangest abilities out there can be very useful. In fact, my mom's endowment was strange. She had the ability to heal people's teeth. Just the teeth, nothing else. It seems like a stupid power when you're a kid, but she made one hell of a detistry career out of it as an adult, and met a lot of people who had similar abilities." She smiled. Her little girl finally softened up her face, and smiled down at the sheets. She cuddled up to her mother's chest once again, and they both took in a deep, thoughtful sigh.
  "What do you think my endowment's going to be?" The girl asked.
  "Let's see. Your dad can make clones of small objects, and your mom has self-sustenance... maybe... You'll be able to clone copious amounts of food and solve world hunger." She predicted, making the girl grin.
  "You really think I can do that?" She smiled.
  "Valorie Brown, whatever your endowment is, it's going to be just as special as you." She told her. The girl sighed and dreamed about all of the possible things she could do. The minutes passed, and the lamp-lit room filled with a sleepy atmosphere. Just as Cecilia thought her daughter was finally drifting to sleep, she whispered another question;
  "Mommy? Have you been sad lately?"
  "Um... no... I..." She looked down at the girl, who's eyes were glued shut, "I haven't been sad, sweetie. Why do you ask?"
"Because you said you use your powers when you're sad." Valorie reminded her, making her mother scoff slightly.
  "No, honey, I'm not sad. I've just been so busy at work. I also tend to use my powers when I get really sucked into things. I might be getting this new promotion soon, a big promotion, and I'm working on this huge project with my work friends, and it's honestly one of the biggest opportunities of my life. I'm just really excited, and exhausted, and I don't have to eat, so sometimes I forget about it entirely." She explained.
  "Oh... that's good. As long as you're not sad, then that's good." Valorie told her. Cecilia felt a deep ache in her chest from her daughter's words. She didn't want to lie to her, and yet she already had. She was stressed out, falling behind, drowning in her mental health and constantly doubting herself, but she was so close to the finish line. She was finally about to get out of that stinky, F-grade laboratory at her crummy school and finally get some real action with the big boys. She was only half of a final draft, and one presentation away from showing the world what she was really made of. Maybe she'd finally be able to move her little family with her to the city, like she'd always dreamed.
  "If it were up to me..." Cecilia began out of nowhere, talking so quietly that you almost couldn't hear her, "I'd create a world that had no endowments at all. Everyone would be boring and powerless, and nobody would be better than anyone else. There wouldn't be so much violence... Or competition, or shame, or societal duties. None of these crazy laws that deprive us of our freedom... Everyone would be equal, and you wouldn't be judged on your amazing abilities. We could live in harmony..." Valorie didn't respond. Her gentle breaths told her mother that she was already fast asleep. She kissed her soft, dark strands of hair.
  "Good night my little songbird."