Microstory 170: Cleveland Montana

This is an experimental Bellevue Profile microstory. The introduction can be found in Microstory 101. More to follow.

Each anomaly grew up in a different scenario. Some parents knew of their children’s abilities, and feared or hated them for it. Others were completely clueless. But there were some anomalies who experienced happy childhoods and the full support of their family. One such family was that of Cleveland Montana. His were loving and devoted parents who made sure their one son had everything he needed.  They once asked him to clean his room. After he was finished, he asked for more things to clean, and so his parents continued to give him tasks. He would run back in a matter of seconds after each assignment, and so they assumed he was playing some kind of game with them. When he didn’t return from his latest project, they went upstairs and found him in the hall, playing with dolls he had found in a box in the attic. Wanting to know what other family heirlooms had been left there, the two of them climbed up and found the attic to be spotless. There was no sign of cleaning; just of being clean. When they asked him how that had happened, he shrugged his shoulders and said that he just used his purple mist. They pressed the subject, and so he demonstrated for them. A purplish-blue mist came out of his fingertips and spread throughout the hallway. The mist disappeared in a flash, leaving the baseboards and table completely dust free. Mr. Montana and Mrs. Thompsett simply smiled and embraced their child. They encouraged him to practice and learn about his ability, but to take care with it, and not reveal his secret to anyone he didn’t trust. They also helped foster a sense of pride in his community, and a desire to make the world a better place. Years later, he contact the man from his region who had run for president in 1980 but failed. Cleveland became one of Senator Carlton’s most precious confidant, along with the senator’s private physician. The three of them formulated plans for him to run again in the 1995 race. When it was the right time, Cleveland finally joined Bellevue, and later acted as the logical liaison between the organization and the Usonian government. Without his cool head, likable personality, and eloquence, Bellevue probably would have fallen quickly after revealing itself to the world.