Free The Pentrals by Crystal Mack Page B

hoping some liquid with help cleanse my offended palette. I drink it just as gracefully as I ate, which is to say, not at all. I tilt the glass back too far, overfilling my mouth. The water spills back out over my lips. I shake my head and make a frustrated sound. It’s a good thing I’m experiencing this embarrassing lack of coordination in private; if other Persons saw Violet eating a meal like this, they would think she was having a seizure or something. I wipe my chin with my sleeve and try again, this time letting the water ease out of the glass slowly. When my mouth is filled with a comfortable amount of water, I swallow it down easier. When it’s not cascading out of my mouth, I find the water does in fact make me feel better. More refreshed. I take a few more gulps to erase the remaining food particles from my teeth. Tomorrow I will seek out better nourishment.
    The rumbling in my stomach has ceased, and I feel ready to focus again.
    “Are you ready for your first session in Shadowing?” I ask Violet.
    “Ready as I’ll ever be.”
    We move to the living room and I push a clear acrylic coffee table out of the way so we have some open space. The floor is a polished white tile, just like in every room of the house, and provides little obstacle for a new Shadow to deal with. Eventually she’ll need to learn how to bend her shape around three dimensional objects, but for now, she only needs to focus on matching her shape to mine in the easiest possible setting.
    “Okay,” I begin, thinking exactly how to start such a daunting process. “Why don’t you come over here Violet, and try to outline my body while I’m standing straight and still.” She glides over the tile, pausing at the tips of my toes before beginning to stretch herself outward. She keeps going, exaggerating my body’s already slender frame to something resembling a fallen broomstick. The proportions are all wrong, her edges too severe and unnatural. The human body, regardless of size and shape, is a beautiful combination of curves and contours, adding up to a silhouette that is nothing less than a work of art. For her first Shadowing attempt, it’s not bad, but Violet will need to learn how to capture those distinct lines.
    Not that my first Shadowing endeavor was much better. I met Violet the day she was born, my essence sent directly to her hospital room by the Class Fours. Even though the circumstances of my Pentral training were erased from memory, I was left with a strong sense of purpose, a determination to do my job and do it well. I was confident I would master my abilities in no time. But I was wrong. I sat on the floor, looking up at this tiny baby squirming in her mother’s arms, and instantly felt completely helpless. She was so small and unpredictable, her pudgy limbs flailing about without warning or reason. The longer I watched, the more it became clear I had a lot to learn. My movements were always a second too late, my reaction time too slow. Luckily, babies are so inherently adorable, no one was paying attention to the dark disaster on the floor.
    So I know this process will take time. I move my body slowly, giving Violet time to catch up and match the new outlines. I try to give her verbal instructions when possible, advising on how to make her extremities more organic and less stiff. It’s good exercise, for both of us. I practice sitting, standing, jumping, spinning: trying to make my motions natural, and not like I just woke up in a human body hours ago. With every run-through, we each get more comfortable in our new arrangements.
    We stay up all night. I am not accustomed to sleeping, and Violet is revved up to try Shadow drills. It’s a lot to ask, perfecting a lifetime of Shadow observation skills in one day, but Violet is an artist, attuned to detecting variance in form. Like me, I think she is finding pleasure in stretching herself creatively, even if it is an unusual medium.
    My heart swells as I watch my Person,