A/N: Thank you to both my English teacher and StrangePhenomenon for renewing my impetus for writing. Hopefully I will have enough time to continue writing for pleasure in the future, though I make no promises.
Disclaimer: I did not write this story for profit, and make no claims of owning the characters and some of the ideas involved in this story.
Nita lowered her head as she sunk to the floor sobbing, desperately covering her ears to try and block out the voices, those voices which invaded her every waking moment. She knew it would make no difference, but she tried anyway; she would do anything to try and regain the sanctuary of her mind. She had never guessed her wizardry would lead her to this. She had always know that she and Kit were a special partnership, getting harder assignments then most wizards, but neither of them had realized what they were being prepared for. Only 7 years ago they had still seemed like such an unlikely pair, with Kit specializing in technology and her with green wizardry, which had been slowly developing into a much rarer gift. Nita ruefully grinned; there were good reasons why strong prophetic wizardry was not all that common.
She didn't know how long she sat on the floor of her apartment, but she was shaken out of her catatonic state when she heard a key being turned and her door opening.
"Hay Neets, I've… oh no." Nita heard Kit's footsteps momentarily stop, than he rushed to her side, quickly wrapping her in his arms. The voices became a dim background noise, a quiet buzzing that was quietly annoying rather than completely overpowering. Instead she could 'hear' Kit's concern for her, and the pain he felt at seeing her so crippled. "Has it been very bad today? I'm so sorry I wasn't here earlier, my boss held me late then I got caught in traffic."
"Not your fault." She managed to croak out, her voice rough from crying. "I just feel so… trapped, imprisoned inside my own mind." Her thoughts jumped frantically inside her head, at which she felt Kit's concern grow even more. Her emotions scattered by a month of psychological torture, Nita desperately cried out, "Why did I get this power? Why me?"
At this Kit paused, and Nita could feel him shaping his thoughts, making sure he knew exactly what his consolations were going to be before he opened his mouth. Kit had always been so analytical. "Nita," he started, "could you imagine anyone else handling this? You already had the magical tendencies to hear people's minds, and though we both communicated mentally with each other, you were always much better at it then I. Then when our powers matured, you became the ideal choice to carry this burden. But even beyond your powers, you've always been empathetic to the feelings of others, even if you had never met them before. It's been so hard for you these past few weeks, though it must get better. At the very least we know it can't get any worse than it is now."
Nita knew this was a rational argument, but she wasn't feeling very rational at the moment. All she felt was anger and resentment, all of it directed towards the Powers That Be. She had opened her mind to the thoughts of all people, in order to help victims of rape, abuse, and psychological trauma to cope with their mental injuries. But as in all things connected to wizardry, there was a price to be paid, and she now heard the thoughts of any passerby. Her mind, the only place that she could truly call her own, had been invaded. When she took on her new responsibilities, she had never expected to feel so violated with the loss of her mind. She couldn't put together a single though without feeling a conglomerate of emotions that were not her own. But the farthest reaching effect was one that neither she nor Kit had expected.
When she touched someone, or was touched by someone, their thoughts became as clear to her as her own. While regular thoughts only disrupted her focus, the thoughts of one who was touching her completely dominated her conscience, sometimes even overpowering her own ideas. The only reason she could focus so well now was because of Kit, who had learned how to clear his mind so he could give her the greatest gift of all; freedom of thought. She would be forever indebted to him for all he had done to help her.
Nita? Kit quietly thought, with a question in his tone. Are you going to be ok?
"As long as you're here I will be," She responded, as she leaned deeper into his embrace, "As long as you're here."