Prompt 6 [next is Prompt 8]
Added 2025-01-13 00:19:24 +0000 UTCIt is true that some mutants develop their supernatural powers later in life. Such was the case for Lorainne who, on her 92nd birthday, discovered that she had the ability to wash away the regrets of any living creature.
She discovered this power when her granddaughter [Lori] had accidently knocked over a vase that was a family heirloom. It was an original dating all the way back to the Wei dynasty depicting one of Lord Cao Cao's many victories. Lori was inconsolable. She couldn't stop crying. Lorainne gave her tiny hand a squeeze and in an instant was able to purge Lori of all regret. She didn't feel guilty in the slightest. She still doesn't 4 years later.
Lorainne is 96 now and hopes to see 97 but it doesn't seem very likely. She never used this unique trait again nor will she. The benefits of gaining such an awesome ability so late in life is that your power rarely exceeds your wisdom. She knows a world where no one has regrets is a world devoid of responsibility. She feels plenty special being a grandma.
[next is Prompt 8]
Comments
It is true that some mutants develop their supernatural powers later in life. Such was the case for Lorraine who, on her 92nd birthday, discovered that she had the ability to time travel. The first time it happened; she had barely noticed. She simply woke up on the same day twice. Her routine varied only slightly day to day, and it wasn’t until the toast burnt two days in a row that the thought occurred to her that something might be off. Lorraine took her toast quite seriously, with a good deal of butter and cinnamon sugar. Years ago, she was given a state-of-the-art toaster that always delivered perfect golden slices no matter the type of bread. Burning toast was an anomaly but burning it twice in as many days was inconceivable, and the only possible solution was that the day had repeated itself. That evening, after an otherwise unremarkable Tuesday, Lorraine lay in bed and pondered a day when she and her husband had just settled in the condo she still lived in. She fell asleep picturing how excited she had been to live in the new (more walkable) neighborhood and to not have so many rooms to keep tidy now that the kids were grown and all just before her 65th birthday. When Lorraine awoke, everything seemed the same and in her sleepiness, she had all but forgotten any notion of time travel. But when she shuffled toward the kitchen, the smell of bacon, which she never ate, caught her attention. She was pleasantly surprised when she rounded the corner to see David sitting at the kitchen island with his tablet, drinking coffee and reading the news over a full breakfast spread. Eggs and bacon for him, cinnamon toast for her. He kissed her forehead then prepared her coffee as he laid out the plan for the day: the bookstore, the aquarium, that little café they would come to adore. The day passed just as she’d remembered it and ended with them making love and falling asleep in each other’s arms. She woke up triumphant, it had worked! As she was buttering her toast and considering the limits of her newfound abilities, a knock at the door startled her. It was her eldest daughter Cheryl, though Lorraine was sure she wasn’t due to visit for another week. Of course, Cheryl didn’t believe her as Lorraine explained her newfound abilities over breakfast. How could she? Lorraine knew how it sounded, having a walkabout with a husband who died six years ago. “What a lovely dream” Cheryl smiled and patted her mother’s hand. Unbothered, Lorraine changed the subject by inquiring about her grandkids. Maybe Cheryl would understand if she could develop her powers enough to take someone back with her, could it work like that? In the days that followed Lorraine visited her own wedding, the day she’d met Dave, her solo trip to Spain, her best friend’s 10th birthday. Further and further back until she had all but exhausted her own memories. Soon Lorraine started visiting places and times she had never seen like the Scottish Highlands, ancient Egypt, and the gardens of Babylon. She sharpened her skills till she could go anywhere and anytime she wanted, though it did take some energy to accomplish. One day she found herself quite tired, and rested rather than going on adventures. She happily considered all the places she’d been, all the people she’d met and wracked her brain trying to think up something new to see. As she fell asleep, she thought about how the universe was created, the very beginning of time itself. She opened her eyes to find herself in a void, weightless and directionless in an empty space. Suddenly an explosion of light shot like a firework across the darkness, then several more. Swirls of colors painted the space around her as galaxies came into being. Lorraine marveled as the universe wrapped itself around her, the intricate connections of time and space becoming clearer with every star and planet. Lorraine spent what felt like a lifetime, but paradoxically no time at all, floating through the vast colorful expanse until she came upon a black hole. “Well, I’ve never seen one of those before” she smiled to herself, as it pulled her toward her next adventure.
Victoria
2025-01-13 15:49:26 +0000 UTCI feel like that is actually such a perfect super power to get later in life. Imagine all the oldies they would be able to help. Just wash away their regrets and live out the end of their days content. You’d also have the perspective to appreciate it more than a more youthful person, washing away the regrets of a night out on the piss. 😂
LozC
2025-01-13 07:06:54 +0000 UTC
