ira darling fights fire with fire (flameproof) wrote in powerton, @ 2011-02-28 14:51:00 |
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That morning, with the sun finally out and shining, Ira was headed for the woods that skirted the Powerton campus to play with fire. What he could do was never a secret. He wasn't ashamed of it, not anymore, not like the other rejects that kicked around the school with their heads down. But in Power Training classes he always held back just a little. Just enough so that no one ever knew what he was capable of when he really grit his teeth and put his mind to something. He never wanted anyone to see him struggling. Hated being seen as weak or not totally in control. Besides, it was never a good idea for a man to let everyone know all his tricks.
The barely thawed snow beneath his boots made him uneasy as he pushed onward, trying to find a familiar clearing. It didn't matter how many layers he pulled on: he could always feel the cold rising up around him like a giant suffocating fist. Fuck this weather, he thought angrily. The first chance he got he was racing toward Chile or Egypt or something, somewhere too insufferably dry and hot for most people around these parts. Teeth chattering, he squinted over his shoulder and then up at the too bright patches of sky with a considering look. This was a good enough distance from the school. With an inward shrug, he spun on his heel, one finger pointed out, and picked the first tree he stopped at. The furrow in his brow smoothed out as his eyes took on a blank, distant stare. Suddenly, the tree burst into crackling flames. He tilted his head like a curious dog and frowned at it. A quiet whoosh and the tendrils of fire abruptly died down, dark smoke from the damp leaves and bark wafting overhead in the wind.