Embody by Jamie Magee Page B

It’s easy to do; Drake does it all the
time.”
    I felt the air leave me and my stomach fall
to the ground. Landen felt my fear and reached over to pull my
chair closer to him. Preston had never said Drake’s name around us;
we simply tried to forget that they were brothers.
    “That’s how he did what he did,” Brady said,
referring to when Drake had thrown Livingston against the wall
without even touching him. We had thought he’d used the power of
the star...I guess we were wrong.
    Landen stood quickly. “Let’s go home,” he
said, reaching over to pick up Libby. I reached for Preston’s hand
and gave Rose a weary look. She smiled, but I could feel her
concern. It was becoming clear that the path before us was broader
than we’d ever imagined. For the first time, I was afraid of what I
was capable of, of what purpose our new insights would have. Landen
reached for my hand, and with his touch I felt a peace course
through me. He was so strong; it amazed me how easily he could put
the emotions of others before himself.
    “Preston, what color is Drake?” Brady asked
when we stepped into the passage.
    Landen looked back, interested in Preston’s
answer.
    “Everyone at my old house was either gray or
black,” Preston answered, a little sad.
    “Everyone?” Rose questioned, thinking of
Beth.
    “Well, Mommy’s would change when Daddy came
to see her, but besides that, there was no color,” Preston
said.
    Brady reached down, picked Preston up, and
carried him the rest of the way home.
    When we stepped through the passage to our
home, we saw Marc leaning against our jeep. Landen looked back at
Brady, telling him to keep quiet; he wasn’t ready to tell Marc what
he could do.
    I could feel Marc’s jealously; he was trying
to hide it. “I woke up this morning, and everyone was gone,” he
said, raising his hands and smiling.
    Brady sat Preston down and let him run to
Marc.
    Marc looked at Brady. “So, they have you
mediating and stepping into other people’s bodies, too?” he
said.
    Brady looked at Landen. “Stepping into
bodies?” he repeated in shock.
    Preston and Libby belted into laughter.
    “I haven’t stepped into anyone - yet,”
Landen said, winking at me. I knew he wanted to try it; frankly,
the thought of it scared me.
    “Look man,” Brady said, drawing an invisible
box around him. “I don’t care what line connects us, you are not
stepping in here - this is my own personal Brady space,” he said,
trying to lighten the mood.
    “I’ll show you how,” Preston said to
Marc.
    Marc smiled a crooked smile. “Why don’t we
do something simpler, like playing ball or fishing?” he said
cautiously. Preston nodded.
    “Come, Libby. We’ll find some girl things to
do,” Rose said, reaching for her.
    Landen was still holding her tightly; it was
like he was afraid she would get hurt if he let her go. He kissed
her cheek, then Libby wrapped her arms around his neck and
whispered, “I was only trying to teach you; you wouldn’t have
believed me if I told you.”
    “Next time, try telling me first,” Landen
said, smiling a little and hugging her tighter before he sat her
down. Preston climbed into Marc’s jeep, and Rose and Libby walked
off through the field.
    “So...um...I say we go to your house and see
if you’re strong enough to throw me,” Brady said, looking at
Landen. We both looked at him like he was crazy. “Hey, that may
come in handy - it sure would have last time,” he said, climbing
into the back of Landen’s jeep.
    Landen reached back, wrapped his arm around
me, and kissed the top of my head, then he led me to my side of the
jeep and opened the door for me to climb in.
    Back at our house, we walked to the side
yard, away from the view of any other houses. “Alright, let’s see
what you got,” Brady said with a boyish grin as he stood a few feet
away from Landen.
    Landen took a deep breath and reached out
for Brady’s energy; his hand moved trough it as if it were