Radiance: Post-Credits

Use your inside voice.

Welcome to The Story Scrapbook, a fiction newsletter by E.B. Howard. If you’re new in town, check out my Fiction Directory for navigation.

Radiance is a hopeful fiction serial about one of Earth’s darker timelines. It takes place around 2014 in a world where atypical abilities have become increasingly common, with the storyline following a group of minor-league superheroes based in Washington, DC. Our protagonist is Lady Radiance, former teen sensation, aka Christabel Jones, professional ray of sunshine—or, at least, she's trying her best.

Previously, Christa mentioned that she’s been babysitting for her colleague Clarevoyante…

<Mid-Credits || Directory || To Main Directory>

Christa opened her apartment door and beamed down at the little blonde toddler bouncing on her toes in the hallway. “Hi, Mary Grace!”

“Hi, Mikzbeeww!” Mary Grace said brightly. Or…something like that. Mary Grace—just three—hardly ever spoke, and it showed on the rare occasion that she tried. Christa leaned out and glanced down the hall for the interpreter, but Clare’s older daughter wasn’t there. Their dad, Keith, waved to her as he made his way more leisurely from the elevator.

She waved back and then crouched down in hopes of hearing her more clearly. “Mary Grace, is Ellie coming today?”

“Ewwie go dotta,” the child said knowingly. “Huh skewww.”

“Ellie went to the, uh, doctor…because…skewed?”

“Skeeeewww.”

She tried not to frown too obviously in confusion. “Skew…er? Did she hurt herself?”

“Noooo! Miz Kizbeww! Skew-uww.”

“School, Mary Grace,” Keith said above them. “Good morning, Christabel. Did Clare not tell you? With Ellie starting kindergarten, the school wants her to get signed off as harmless. She’ll have her back to you tomorrow.”

Christa straightened up. “Really? That seems kind of young for screening, even if…” She had her own opinions on the wisdom of treating primary-schoolers as a threat by default, but Mary Grace was standing right there all impressionably. “Mm…I’m sure she’ll do fine.”

“Ewwie dew nun,” Mary Grace said, stamping a foot. “I say huh.”

She looked helplessly at Keith, who shook his head. “Your guess is as good as mine,” he said. “The pediatrician said it’s normal, but I don’t think Ellie talking for her can help. I thought by now she would have grown out of pretending she knows what the baby said.”

“Oh!” Christa said. “How is the baby doing? The next baby, I mean.”

Keith cracked a smile as he pushed his glasses up. “Very well, thanks. He looks great. Clare might even make it to her due date this time.”

“October, right?” She held up two crossed fingers. “I hope it’ll go well. Aren’t you excited to have a little brother, Mary Grace?”

Mary Grace was looking up at her silently, eyes narrowed intently, crossing her arms.

“Aw, sweetie.” Christa held out her hand to her with a smile. “Come on. We’ll have a fun day, just you and me.”

<No fun. You can’t hear me,> came a high-pitched, angry voice intruding on her mind.

Christa and Keith looked at each other with a kind of dull shock. She supposed that must have hit him, too.

Mary Grace gasped aloud. <You can hear me? I can say you all the things now! Miss Christabel, last time Ellie sayed wrong even though her knowed what I sayed her. I don’t wanna be a unicorn, I wanna be a kitty-cat princess too!>

“You, um…okay. You can be a kitty-cat princess today, Mary Grace,” she said.

Mary Grace squealed in delight while Keith took a slow breath, crossed himself, and let it out again. “All right. Well. You two have fun, and I will call Clare and let her know she took the wrong kid to get checked out…”

Fin.

…for now.

<Mid-Credits || Directory || To Main Directory>

The Story Scrapbook will return after Independence Day with all the emotional heft and cliff-hanging anxiety that you would expect from my attempts at creating ‘casual summer reading’. I’ll be posting mini-installments of a new serial on Mondays, and short stories every few Thursdays through the beginning of autumn. See you in July!