form of having Fiona play fetcher to his finding, or having to rely on Nathan for protection from Royce.
“ Rule number three, once everyone has their controls for the connection in place, you will always knock before proceeding into someone else’s space. You will only be permitted to push though without knocking if there is an emergency. The Directives outline what qualifies as an emergency. Your Teller will brief you on that. We know that this may seem difficult to believe, but we understand your need for privacy, and that need will be respected. All of these rules will apply to the Tellers just as they apply to everyone else,” the Tellers continued.
The connection had now become uncomfortably quiet, and Sam could not help but wonder who had really organized all of this and why, especially if the Tellers had to live by the same rules as everyone else did. Who would steal away their normalcy and throw them into this bizarre, adult-less chaos, and why?
“ And we feel it important to let you know that the laws of the island still apply. Just because the minders and the teachers are gone, doesn’t mean that you can behave however you choose. Those laws will be enforced,” the Tellers affirmed. They did not explain how, or by whom, but the children trusted enough in the truth of the connection that they did not doubt them.
“ Your Tellers will now return to you. They will provide you with the basics on how to develop the tools that you will need to deal with the connection, and after you feel sufficiently prepared, you may fetch the keys and directions to your family-house and make your way there. When we are satisfied that you have the proper controls in place, other changes will come. Until then, play the part of your designated role within your talent group, practice your controls, and try to live harmoniously with the other members of your house-family. Make your gifts and the connection work for you. If you want more information then that is the first step that you must take.” That seemed to bring an end to their commands as a group.
Sam felt a rush of relief as he saw the Tellers begin to disperse, and then caught sight of Francis returning to them through the crowd. For some reason, he felt as though the blond boy were his only real link between the present and the past.
Francis led the five of them to a quieter spot at the back of the hall, and then proceeded to show them the basics of blocking others out of their thoughts – all of them but Royce, that is. The black haired boy watched them impatiently, wearing a disgruntled expression as he paced and fidgeted. More than once Sam turned to find Royce’s eyes glued to him with an intensity and a bitterness that Sam just could not comprehend. It was distracting, and made a difficult task even more difficult.
By the end of Francis’s little introductory session, Sam could manage walls that were as effective as tissue paper, when they would stay up at all, and the others were not faring any better. He could see why after two years of practice, with his more limited strength, Francis had only succeeded in reinforcing his walls to the equivalent of mental pressboard. It was going to take a lot of practice – a proper investment of time and effort. On the other hand, Sam suspected that the newly Connected would have more incentive than the Tellers had to put up their walls. If Sam had it figured correctly, with only fifty fairly weak Tellers making up the connection to begin with, all of whom having at least an inkling of what was going on, it would not have been nearly as noisy in their heads as it currently was in his. He figured if he could concentrate more than he was able to at the moment, it would have made things a lot easier.
“ That’s all that I can show you for now,” Francis insisted. “ It’s up to you to practice, and work at developing them more so that they really work. Once you can effectively block out the others, then I’ll show
“ Rule number three, once everyone has their controls for the connection in place, you will always knock before proceeding into someone else’s space. You will only be permitted to push though without knocking if there is an emergency. The Directives outline what qualifies as an emergency. Your Teller will brief you on that. We know that this may seem difficult to believe, but we understand your need for privacy, and that need will be respected. All of these rules will apply to the Tellers just as they apply to everyone else,” the Tellers continued.
The connection had now become uncomfortably quiet, and Sam could not help but wonder who had really organized all of this and why, especially if the Tellers had to live by the same rules as everyone else did. Who would steal away their normalcy and throw them into this bizarre, adult-less chaos, and why?
“ And we feel it important to let you know that the laws of the island still apply. Just because the minders and the teachers are gone, doesn’t mean that you can behave however you choose. Those laws will be enforced,” the Tellers affirmed. They did not explain how, or by whom, but the children trusted enough in the truth of the connection that they did not doubt them.
“ Your Tellers will now return to you. They will provide you with the basics on how to develop the tools that you will need to deal with the connection, and after you feel sufficiently prepared, you may fetch the keys and directions to your family-house and make your way there. When we are satisfied that you have the proper controls in place, other changes will come. Until then, play the part of your designated role within your talent group, practice your controls, and try to live harmoniously with the other members of your house-family. Make your gifts and the connection work for you. If you want more information then that is the first step that you must take.” That seemed to bring an end to their commands as a group.
Sam felt a rush of relief as he saw the Tellers begin to disperse, and then caught sight of Francis returning to them through the crowd. For some reason, he felt as though the blond boy were his only real link between the present and the past.
Francis led the five of them to a quieter spot at the back of the hall, and then proceeded to show them the basics of blocking others out of their thoughts – all of them but Royce, that is. The black haired boy watched them impatiently, wearing a disgruntled expression as he paced and fidgeted. More than once Sam turned to find Royce’s eyes glued to him with an intensity and a bitterness that Sam just could not comprehend. It was distracting, and made a difficult task even more difficult.
By the end of Francis’s little introductory session, Sam could manage walls that were as effective as tissue paper, when they would stay up at all, and the others were not faring any better. He could see why after two years of practice, with his more limited strength, Francis had only succeeded in reinforcing his walls to the equivalent of mental pressboard. It was going to take a lot of practice – a proper investment of time and effort. On the other hand, Sam suspected that the newly Connected would have more incentive than the Tellers had to put up their walls. If Sam had it figured correctly, with only fifty fairly weak Tellers making up the connection to begin with, all of whom having at least an inkling of what was going on, it would not have been nearly as noisy in their heads as it currently was in his. He figured if he could concentrate more than he was able to at the moment, it would have made things a lot easier.
“ That’s all that I can show you for now,” Francis insisted. “ It’s up to you to practice, and work at developing them more so that they really work. Once you can effectively block out the others, then I’ll show
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