Shaper of Things (IC)

[Electra]

"Stop!" Stesha told him firmly. "You can't just make it disappear because you broke it. Maybe you can do that with a television or a bookshelf or whatever inanimate object you're making, but if you want to work with live things, you have to respect them. Even if you're just going to pluck a flower or send a vine out to get cut down, you have to remember what you're doing. That's important working with plants, and far more important as you start working with more intelligent things."

Vines began to crawl out of the ground, scooping up the chunk of tree and lifting it back into place where it had been growing. The vines wrapped tightly around the trunk, holding the lost piece in place like a fresh graft while Stesha rested her hand on the tree. In a few moments, it was whole again and healed, the vines relaxing and becoming quiescent. "Most of the time, what's broken can be fixed. But it's better not to break it in the first place."

[Avenger Assembled]

"I didn't mean to break it." Mark folded his arms, almost burying his hands inside his armpits, but he didn't look angry or resentful, at least not at Stesha. "I'm sorry." He sighed softly, then glanced at his watch. "I'm sorry," he said apologetically when he caught her looking at him. "In half an hour I have to call my mom and let her know where I am. My...my dad left recently, and she's been keeping really close tabs on me."

[Electra]

"That's all right," Fleur told him, compassion edging her voice. "I'm here to help you, for as long as you can stay. We all have other obligations in our lives, right?" She checked her own watch. "Do you need a lift home? I can drop you off and it will only take a second. I think you've made a good start today, but the big thing you need to do, the studying, is going to take a lot longer than one practice in the park. I'm sure Dark Star and the other teachers at Claremont can help you with that."

[Avenger Assembled]

"Okay, that'd be good. Mom'll be happy if I'm home early." He smiled faintly, though it didn't seem like he really meant it. "You've been really nice to me, Fleur. Thank you so much. It really means a lot to be away from school and home, and just doing something worthwhile. It's the first time I've been able to do that since everything went to Hell." He reached down and lightly patted the flowers he'd helped grow. "Maybe I'll take my mom here this weekend. She could use a chance to get out of the house."

[Electra]

Stesha put a friendly hand on his shoulder. He looked like he could use a hug, but she suspected a hug coming from a strange adult woman would be more awkward than reassuring. Poor kid looked like he didn't have a friend in the world. "You've got my number, anytime you'd like another lesson or just need to talk, you feel free to give me a call, all right? Now where do you live?"

[Avenger Assembled]

Mark told her, and Stesha's teleporting got them out to a quiet, peaceful suburban neighborhood that looked like a little slice of Americana heaven. Mark's house was one of the quietest of all, its curtains drawn and the lawn looking slightly unkempt. They weren't on that lawn proper, instead in the back of a vacant house adjoining, with a tree complete with tire swing nearby. "Well, this is my place. Thanks again," said Mark, sighing softly as he studied his home. "I really appreciate this."

[Electra]

"It was a pleasure," Stesha told him. "You know, you could try one bigger thing, if you're still up for it tonight. That grass could be made shorter and more even without hurting it, don't you think? Why don't you try it, and then we'll call it a night. If anything happens, I'll help you fix it before I go." Even from the outside, the house looked oddly sad, like it felt the emotions of its occupants and reflected them outward in the shadows under its eaves and the blankness of the curtained windows.

[Avenger Assembled]

"The grass was never that high before," murmured Mark, concentrating on the lawn carefully. An odd thing happened as he did so; those black, spiraling ink dots of his came spinning out and swept across the lawn, cutting so closely that a faint puff of newly fallen grass fell as his power faded and the lawn was left cut shiny and new, so smooth it looked like a machine had done. It didn't do much to make the house smile, but it did make Mark smile a little. "Maybe my mom will be happier now," he said, almost to himself. "Thank you, Fleur."

[Electra]

"Nicely done!" she told him with sincere enthusiasm, patting his shoulder. "You're getting better already. You know the grass, you know what it looks like mowed and how short you can mow it without hurting it, so it's easier to do it right, you see? Just take it slow and keep learning. You're going to be just fine," she promised. "And remember, call if you need anything. I never sleep."