with his head full of wheels, who's at home with electricity and
wires," the old woman went on. "We've had them before, but never allowed
them to dominate us. My own husband was such a man, but he was only
allowed to make token gestures, such as having the power lines put in.
He never understood how they worked." She lowered her voice to a
whisper, "Your Sam understands. I've heard him talk to the water pump."

"That's why you're afraid of him," Simone said. "Not because I'm weak,
and he might take something away from me, but because he's strong, and
he might give us something. Then everything would change, and you're
afraid of that. Nina might be our change." She pointed toward the
garden.

* * * * *

Following the white line of her granddaughter's finger, Cecily looked
out into the garden and saw Nina turn toward them as though she knew
they were angry. The child pointed with one finger directly at them in
the house. There was a sharp crackle, and something of a brilliant and
vibrating blue leaped between the out-stretched fingers of mother and
daughter, and flew up like a bird to the power lines above.

"Mommy," Nina called.

Simone's heart nearly broke with wonder and fright. Her grandmother
contemptuously passed through the kitchen door and emerged on the step
outside, but Simone opened the door and left it open behind her. "What
was that?" she asked Nina. "Was it a bluebird?"

"Don't be silly," Nina said. She picked up the pie plate and brought it
toward them. Cecily's face was white and translucent, one hand went to
her throat as the child approached.

Brimfull of crackling blue fire with a fluctuating heart of yellow, the
pie plate came toward them, held between Nina's small, dusty hands. Nina
grinned at them. "I stole it out of the wires," she said.

Simone thought she would faint with a mixture of joy and fear. "Put it
back," she whispered. "Please put it back."

"Oh Mommy," Nina said, beginning to whine. "Not now. Not right away. I
just got it. I've done it lots of times." The pie plate crackled and
hissed in the steady, small hands.

Simone could feel the old woman's shocked silence behind her. "You
mustn't carry it in a pie plate, it's dangerous," Simone said to her
child, but she could see Nina was in no danger. "How often have you done
this?" She could feel her skirt and her hair billow with electricity.

"Lots of times. You don't like it, do you?" She became tea