Restore Me

Warner is greeting three other children of supreme commanders—twins Nicolás and Valentina from South America and Stephan Feruzi Omondi from Africa—when Juliette enters. He marvels at her bold new look. Lena joins them, leading Warner to note the many differences between the two women. Juliette rebuffs Lena’s efforts to upset her about her breakup with Warner.

Lena makes anti-trans comments about Valentina, who is a trans woman. Nicolás defends his sister, and Valentina insults Lena. Warner encourages Valentina to ignore Lena, framing Lina as ignorant. Nicolás teases Juliette about not speaking Spanish. Juliette observes that The Reestablishment supposedly wanted to craft “a single, universal language” (285). Juliette is impressed with the visitors’ cosmopolitanism, but when Nicolás frames her as one of their group, she asks to speak with Warner, Kenji, and Castle alone.

In an excerpt from her journal, written on her second day in the asylum, Juliette struggles with being isolated and abandoned.

In the narrative present, Juliette leads her allies to a private place to speak. Warner compliments her hair, but Juliette, determined to put space between them, demands to know about Lena. He apologizes for not speaking sooner, claiming his relationship with Lena was born “of convenience and basic companionship” and “meant nothing” (291).

Juliette is not comforted by his assertion that their connection was “purely physical.” He cites the novelty of an emotionally intimate relationship as the reason he was not more forthcoming. His insistence that he was waiting for a good time to reveal things, to protect her, causes her anger to abate slightly. He kisses her, which affects her emotionally, but she pushes him away.

Castle commiserates with an angry Warner, who blames the older man for urging him to tell Juliette the truth. Castle insists that he cares about Warner’s happiness, emphasizing the significant responsibility that Warner has been asked to adopt despite his youth. Castle compares Warner and Kenji to his late sons. Nazeera approaches, requesting they speak urgently.

In an excerpt from her journals, Juliette recalls her mother, whom she now knows to be her adoptive mother assigned by The Reestablishment. She writes how the woman cruelly screamed at her “for being the abomination she was forced to raise” (300). She remembers her mother holding her hand in fire “just to see if it would burn” on Juliette’s sixth birthday (300).

In the narrative present, Kenji comes to Juliette’s door. She sends him away, blaming him for keeping secrets as well. He insists that he didn’t know about her past; Juliette believes him. They embrace. Juliette explains what Nazeera told her about The Reestablishment’s plans; however, instead of being worried, Kenji is pleased that Nazeera is “one of the good guys” (303). She impresses urgency upon him and plans to kill anyone coming to attack them.

Warner frets about Nazeera’s warning as the symposium begins. He stands behind Juliette with her allies, showing his support. When Juliette begins denouncing The Reestablishment, the assembled guests grow restless. Someone shoots her, but her powers protect her. Juliette screams in the chaos, and the force of this power kills all 554 sector representatives and their guests.

An excerpt from Juliette’s journal reads, in its entirety, “I started screaming today” (311).

In another excerpt, Juliette reflects in her journals about how she screamed in response to various abuses and writes that “Your actions / are / the / only / traces / you leave / behind” (312).

In a third excerpt, Juliette’s isolation leads her to wonder if she is being observed or if she has already died and does not know it.

In a fourth excerpt, Juliette thinks of the cruel things her parents screamed at her and laments her failed efforts “to fix what [she’d] ruined, […] to be what they wanted” (314).

In a fifth excerpt, Juliette asks if she is “insane yet.”

In the narrative present, Juliette suddenly realizes that she has murdered hundreds of people. She screams for her pain to stop, reeling from what happened. Kenji urges her to leave. She hears an explosion and realizes that Kenji is now injured, as is Warner. They are both being apprehended. Several of her Omega Point allies are dead. Juliette’s powers are extinguished, and a woman in front of Juliette introduces herself as Oceania’s supreme commander and implies that she is Juliette’s mother.

Several pages are filled with “…” This makes up the entirety of this chapter.

In an excerpt from her journals, Juliette recalls a cruel classmate suggesting that Juliette die by suicide. She claims she continued to live out of “stupid hope.”

In the narrative present, Juliette wakes in a room that is half decorated entirely in pink, and half decorated entirely in purple, as if “divided by an imaginary line” (324). She is cuffed with electric restraints that subdue her powers. She looks to the window and sees a beautiful vista. She finds a stack of letters sent to an address in New Zealand, which causes her to recall the Oceania commander.

A brief note from Warner’s father reports that he has “found her a suitable family” and that “she and Emmaline have had their memories expunged” (326). She finds a picture of two girls; a note on the back indicates that this was taken to celebrate “Ella’s first day of school” (326). Another photo shows the two girls, Ella and Emmaline, with Nazeera. One shows Warner with Ella. The Oceania commander enters the room, smiling, and addresses Juliette as Ella. Juliette faints.