in the future. There were all sorts of powers that people had back in those days, some that we aren’t even aware of as their lines have died out completely.”
“Lines?”
“Abilities are, well, for lack of a better word, genetic. Holders have the same ability that their ancestors had. Ryland will read minds because that is what Jocelyn does, just like I can cast because that’s the power someone had back down the line in my family.”
“What about me? Jocelyn’s my father, why don’t I do anything?”
“Well, first off you’re a girl. Abilities in women have always been few and far between. Even in the ancient times Holders were almost always men.”
“Why?” I know it was stupid to be offended by something no one had any control over, but I kind of was.
He smiled at my tone. “We don’t know; that’s just the way it’s always been. Now that’s not to say it never happens, but even when it does, the women are never as powerful as the men. Sorry, wasn’t my call,” he said, with a grin. “But it’s not just gender; inheriting an ability is never a sure thing. Just because a man is a Holder, that doesn’t mean that all his kids will inherit the trait, just like all his kids may not inherit his hair color.”
He paused, giving me a minute to collect my thoughts before going on, though oddly enough I didn’t really need to. Just like during our first conversation in my room I was amazed at how normal all this sounded. I wasn’t weirded out, or scared, or… anything. Ironically enough, my lack of fear was actually starting to scare me a little bit. But before I could think too much about that, something else crossed my mind. “Wait, you said that someone else had been a Holder ‘back down the line’ in your family. Wouldn’t it have been your father?”
“Well, no, not necessarily. It doesn’t always work that way anymore. In the beginning, all the Holders were in Ireland, kept contained by the limits of the island itself. However, over time, they began to slowly spread out, traveling to new lands and settling all over the world. As they started to build lives elsewhere and have families with people of other nations, the race began to slowly die out. Nowadays, most of the people who are ‘Holders’,” he made air quotes, “have an ability that is so washed out and diluted that they aren’t even aware they have it. Someone who long ago would have had the ability to control minds is now no more than a person who seems to always be able to talk their way out of trouble. Someone who should have the ability to heal is now only a particularly gifted doctor. But every now and again the Holder trait will flare for some reason, and someone will end up with a power as strong as his ancestors would have had.”
“Like you?”
“Like me,” he said. “And Ryland, and Taron, as well as others you’ll meet at St Brigid’s.”
I opened my mouth to speak but closed it again, lost in thought.
“Are you all right?” Alex asked after a minute or two of silence, a worried look in his eyes. “Because we can stop for now if you want.”
“No, I’m fine… actually that’s what’s weird. I shouldn’t be fine. Why am I fine?” I asked foolishly, as if he should have an answer.
“Actually I’ve been trying to figure that one out myself. But I suppose if I had to guess, I’d say it’s because it’s in your blood. You did graduate two years early.”
“What’s that got to do with anything?”
“Those in a Holder line are usually advanced or gifted in one aspect or another. Maybe your intelligence and ability to learn quickly is due to a little bit of Holder in your blood.”
“Wait, seriously?”
“Makes sense, and I’ve seen it before.”
“So, that’s why you said my graduating early was interesting?”
He nodded.
“Well that’s just… lame! Ryland gets to read minds, and that’s all I get?”
“Better than nothing,” he said, trying not to laugh. “And who knows, maybe somewhere deep down you’ve always known that Ryland was different in some special way. That you both were.”
I had always known, about Ryland anyway. People had been trying for years to convince me that Ryland was crazy but somehow I’ve always known that couldn’t be true. Maybe Alex was right. Maybe it was in my blood.
“So how about Captain Fun-Times over there? What’s he do?” I