Sprite

Yawning widely, Norah sat up in bed, unable to sleep any longer in the oppressive heat. Today, Grandfather had promised her he would take her to the factory. In the month that Norah had been in Datro, she had seen little of the city. Instead, her grandfather had invited various prominent families to dinner so that they could meet her. These were the people who mattered in Datro. This is what Grandfather had taken her away from her home in the country to experience. She grimaced, rubbing her eyes with one hand. Old men, mostly. And their stuffy wives, who clucked at her disapprovingly for not having proper manners. But it was hard to appear interested when all they talked about was business, or the difficulties of getting raw materials, or gossiped about people she had never even heard of.

She slid her legs over the edge of the bed and walked to the window. In the faint dawn light she could just make out the ribbon of river beyond the squat, dirty buildings that made up most of Datro. She sighed. The river was a dream she could never realize. She couldn’t even have a decent bath.

As if on cue, Emma, Grandfather’s housekeeper and Norah’s own personal trial, opened her bedroom door without knocking and bustled in, her arms full of clean linens and wash cloths. “Good, you’re up,” she said briskly, giving Norah a once-over with her eyes before plopping her laundry on the bed. “I’ve left you a bucket of water in the washroom. Go get ready and go down to breakfast. Your grandfather leaves promptly at eight.”

At the beginning, Emma had tried to mother her. She laid out all of Norah’s clothes, and expected to give her baths as if she were a small child. Norah had balked at the bathing, insisting she was too modest, and too old, to need a nanny. Grandfather had concurred, thankfully, and Norah was allowed to bathe in private. So Norah would draw a bath herself, or more commonly, wash in the small sink in the washroom, with the door safely locked behind her. Norah used her private time to check and cut away any excess skin each morning before anyone else had a chance to notice it. Doing so wasn’t strictly necessary; unless Norah immersed herself in water, the webbing was hardly apparent.

So Norah did without baths, as much as possible, which, in this heat, was not easy. At least, at home, the woods offered welcome shade. She bit her lips, thinking of her last trip with her father, when he had taken her to the lake to swim. It was her first and last time, and it set up a longing so powerful in her heart that she almost wished he had never brought her there. If she had never known what it was like to swim in the cool water, then she wouldn’t miss it so much. Reluctantly, she turned away from the window and her view of the distant river.

She dressed swiftly after washing, and gave over her nightgown to Emma to wash. The older woman tugged a little at Norah’s dress. “We have to get you some new clothes,” she murmured, patting the shoulders where they pulled a little. “You’ve grown since you’ve been here. I’ll talk to your grandfather.” She frowned at Norah’s two braids, which she wore behind her ears. “Let me pin those up for you,” she offered. “It will be cooler.”

Norah shook her head. Mama had warned her not to change her hairstyle, as it hid any marks from the razor when she cut away the webbing along her neck. “That’s all right, I’m used to it this way,” she said. Lately, she had noticed faint lines directly behind her ears, flush with her skin. There wasn’t anything for her to cut away, and it wasn’t obvious to the eye, but she could feel it if she ran her fingers over the skin there. The braids effectively covered the entire area so none of it was visible.

“Don’t be silly.” Emma stood behind her and took the two ends of her braids, wrapping them around her head. Norah held her breath, waiting for the woman to notice something unusual, but she didn’t. She pinned the braids into place. “There, that’s much better.”

Norah looked into the mirror Emma held up for her. The braids still covered the skin behind her ears, and it was cooler. “Thank you,” she said, smiling.

After breakfast, she walked with her grandfather to the factory down the street. She was excited, and hoped to glimpse some of the mutants she had seen briefly on her first few days in Datro.

Her grandfather brought her to his office, which overlooked the factory from the top level. She could watch what was going on far below through a grimy window. Like last time, she saw children she assumed were mutants scurrying across the floor. If she was hot, they must be sweltering down there. “Grandfather, why do you hire mutants?”

Her grandfather looked up from his desk in surprise. “It’s for their own good,” he said, as if he’d said such words many times before. “I give them a purpose in their lives, take care of them.”

“Can I meet one?”

“Why?” Her grandfather seemed puzzled.

Norah shrugged. “I never met one before. Didn’t you say I should get to know how things work in the city?”

“All right. Wait here.” Her grandfather left Norah in the office and briefly spoke to a supervisor on the main floor. Norah watched through the window. There was a flurry of activity down below, and then one of the smaller forms was separated from the others and herded up the stairs towards the office. Norah quickly sat down beside the desk, her hands demurely in her lap, but her heart was pounding wildly. Would this mutant child recognize her for what she was? Would he give away her secret?

The boy who was ushered in glowered at her angrily before lowering his eyes, as her grandfather stepped around him and took his seat behind his desk. Norah gazed at him, trying to figure out what was wrong with him. He looked normal to her, a few years older, skinny, dirty, and very, very angry. “What’s your name, boy?” her grandfather asked.

The boy looked up. “Will,” he said shortly.

“Well, Will,” her grandfather smiled, as if he had made a joke, “this is my granddaughter, Norah. She’s going to own this factory one day, so you’ll be working for her, if you live that long. She wanted to meet you, ask you a few questions. You will answer her politely.” He folded his hands and leaned back.

“Meet me?” Will’s eyes flashed to Norah. “Or would any of us do?”

“Will is older than our usual workers,” her grandfather explained. “He only recently started here. You’ll have to excuse his rudeness.” He glared at the boy in front of him.

Norah’s eyes had widened as her grandfather spoke to the boy. “Do you like working at the factory?” she asked. She really wanted to ask him what his mutation was, but figured that would be very impolite.

“It beats the alternative,” Will replied. He met her eyes with anger smoldering in his own.

Norah let that go, not understanding his comment. “What did you do before you came here?” she asked instead. Grandfather had said he was relatively new. “Did you go to school?”

The boy gave her a puzzled look. “No, I took care of my mother. She died. They—I came here.” He looked at the floor. “Can I go back to work now?”

“What’s your flaw?” Norah blurted, then turned red in embarrassment.

Her grandfather motioned for the boy to come closer, which he reluctantly did. “Mutants are not allowed to hide their flaws,” he said in an aside to Norah, as he raised the boy’s shirt. “This one is new, and apparently he’d been hiding for a long time. He used to shave it off, but it’s growing out now. He won’t be able to hide what he is anymore.”

He had dark brown hair growing in uneven tufts from his chest to his stomach. It lightened as it traveled up his neck, and was hardly noticeable on his face. She couldn’t see his arms and legs, since they were covered by his clothes, but maybe that was to hide the hair. He must be miserable in this heat!

“I’m sorry!” Norah gasped, fingers flying to her face. “I didn’t mean—is that it?”

“Is that it? What more did you want to see?” Will sneered, yanking his shirt down and stepping back. “Isn’t that enough?” He wheeled on his heel and stomped towards the door, where he paused, asking, “Am I dismissed?” without turning around.

“Go.” Allen Avery waved the boy away. He looked at Norah. “Satisfied? They’re all like that, rude little brats. I should have him beaten for his impertinence, but he’s stronger than most of the mutants we get around here. We got him older, but still fresh. I’ll get a better use of him out on the floor than if I try to discipline him for his foul mouth.”

Norah was horrified. “Please don’t punish him because of me,” she said. “I shouldn’t have asked him about his mutation.”

“Of course you should have. Mutants are not allowed to disguise their flaws. That’s the law, punishable by death. He knows better.”

“I think I want to go home now,” Norah said in a small voice.

As they walked through the factory on their way out, Norah felt dozens of eyes on her. She looked up briefly, to find Will was watching her from his place in the line. Grandfather had been right, Will was one of the bigger kids. She made herself look at the other mutants as she walked past. The ones with obvious differences were easy to spot. She tried to find one with hands like hers, but she didn’t see anything like that. If Grandfather found out about her webbing, would she be obligated by law to let it grow without cutting it off? Would she have to work in the factory instead of one day owning it, if her grandfather found out she was a mutant, too? Norah felt sick to her stomach.