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pulled her close and crushed his mouth against hers — taking her completely by surprise.  
    Her first instinct was to curse him and run away, but that would defeat the purpose of the experiment. She wanted to know what Chastity would do on its own.  
    Her second instinct, the one she obeyed, was to kiss him back. He tasted like spearmint and honey. Magic pulsed out of her without warning.  
    The boy jerked his head up and shoved her away from his body. He pushed his hair off his forehead with both hands and gaped at her. “What the hell?”
      Tears pricked the back of Channie’s eyelids. This was not how she’d imagined her first kiss. She knew it was selfish to focus on her own disappointment when the poor boy was so obviously confused and frightened — but how could she reassure him with Chastity’s magic buzzing like a swarm of hornets and the stench of burn onions stinging her eyes?
    Channie blinked in an effort to hide her tears, but they leaked out of the corner of her eyes and slid down her cheeks.
    The boy opened his mouth as if to speak, but then slammed it shut and shook his head. He held his elbows close to his body, lifted his hands, palms up and shrugged his shoulders as he backed away from her. He leaned over, grabbed a bicycle off the ground then raced away, disappearing into the shadows before Channie could apologize.  
    ~***~
    Channie couldn’t believe how deeply the boy’s rejection wounded her. She kept herself under control until she climbed back onto the roof, then gave in to her tears.
    Her bedroom window slid open with a gritty squeak. Channie whirled around and was instantly blinded by a shaft of light. She would have tumbled off the roof if Abby hadn’t grabbed her arm.
    “Good grief, Channie, what the hell are you doing out there in the dead of night?”
    “None of your damn business!” Channie jerked her arm out of Abby's clutches, climbed inside and shut the window. “What are you doing in my room?”
    “I came to see if you were okay. How are you adjusting to your new power-name?”
    “Get that damn flashlight out of my face.” Channie wasn’t usually so short tempered. Was this just another manifestation of her new name?
    Abby redirected the beam to the floor and sat down on Channie’s bedroll. “What Momma and Daddy did to you was dangerous. I was just worried, that’s all.”
    It was risky to confide in Abby, but who else was she going to talk to? Channie grabbed an extra blanket out of the closet and tucked it into the crack between the bottom of her bedroom door and the carpet then turned on the ceiling light. For some reason, the small act of rebellion against Daddy’s orders made her feel better. “What Momma and Daddy did to me was wrong, but what makes you think it’s dangerous?” Channie already knew her name was dangerous, but she wanted to find out what Abby knew about it. Maybe Momma and Daddy had let something slip in front of her.
    “I’m afraid it’s going to change you.”
    “Probably.” Channie already felt like a different person. “It’s nothing like Enchantment. It’s all prickly, like a curse. It even smells like one. And it’s hard to control.”
    “So, it’s fully active now?”
      Channie crossed her ankles and sat down in front of Abby, resting her elbows on her knees. She lowered her voice and said, “I thought I better test it before I went to school tomorrow.”
    “And?”
    Channie leaned closer. “I kissed a boy in the park and Chastity’s power-well sort of exploded on him.”  
    Abby's eyes widened. “Is he okay?”
    “I think so. But, he took off before I got a chance to scan him.”
    Abby smiled and said, “Did you enjoy kissing him?”
    Channie grinned in spite of herself. “I would have enjoyed it a lot more if it hadn’t of scared the living daylights out of him.”  
    Abby giggled then slapped her hands over her mouth.  
    Channie held her breath until she was certain Momma and Daddy were still asleep.