When Lightning Burns [COMPLETED]

Chapter 1: Dance, Dance, Dance

"Well, look who's here."

Julie brushed back a lock of red hair, stopped her lace work on her shoes, and looked up at the owner of the feet stopped in front of her on the high gloss wood floor. She gaped at the girl's face. She couldn't believe it. "Rose?"

"Yeah." Rose raised a dark eyebrow, blond ponytail bobbing. "Looks like we're here together. Again. Just like Atlanta."

The mirrors behind her reflected back an infinite amount of ponytail bobbing. The eyes of all the other girls in the class were on them, since no one else was talking above a whisper. The tall buildings of New York reflected behind them all. The Academy and the city left all of them in awe. Except Rose apparently.

Julie's enthusiasm for her first day at the Academy grew cold.

Rose had been her best friend at the dance studio where they'd grown up together. Well, until about two years ago, when she'd started making Julie's life hard—right about the same time Julie's dancing had improved. And she started beating out Rose for solos. She knew now that it had been the result of her powers coming out, her practice with them, and not being stifled. Before that, it had always felt like something was stuck, holding her back.

But she hadn't expected Rose to be here. She hadn't thought her old friend was good enough for the Academy. That wasn't being mean—it was just being honest.

Rose preened. She did a little pirouette in her sleek, black leotard—not the plain one they were supposed to have but one with a little sparkle here and there. Julie wondered what the teachers would think about that.

"Well...I guess it's good to see you again," Julie managed to choke out. She was sure she didn't look happy. She couldn't control the frown on her face.

The other girl rolled her eyes, mouth hardening. "Yeah. Maybe. We'll see. Why did you disappear anyway? No one knew what happened. All of a sudden you were out of all our classes and your school. Nervous breakdown?"

Those words sent a hush over the room. Julie couldn't see the eyes of the class on them, but she felt them. She slid her gaze to the two girls standing next to Rose. They both smirked. She thought the Fey were bad, but they had nothing on dance class rivalries.

For a moment she felt like telling Rose the truth just to shock the hell out of her.

Well, Rose, it turns out that my family is not quite human. We're Fey. And Jamie needed to go to a place called Seelie Island to gain control of his mind powers because he can kill people with a thought. And it turns out that I have them too, though no one knew at first. Which made my first months there freaking miserable and has given me a pretty big chip on the shoulder. So keep on ticking me off and see if you like getting zapped by the lightning that shoots out of my fingers. In fact, let me just show you.

Julie suppressed a smile as her fingertips warmed. She wouldn't do it...but it was just so tempting.

Instead she said, "We had to move for Jamie's treatment."

She couldn't believe she had to lie about this. But at least it was to Rose. It still didn't prevent the words from sticking in her throat. Technically though, her brother Jamie was sick and needed help. He might actually die if he couldn't get his powers under control. But she would sound insane trying to explain that to anyone here.

Rose's gaze softened slightly, a glimmer of her old friend there. "What happened?"

"Cancer." Julie looked down again, eyes wide. She heard whispers around the room. Her face turned red. She didn't want to lie. But lying was going to be a new thing if she wanted to survive out here in the human world.