![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
x-scion.livejournal.com posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
xp_logsJulian sits down for a meeting with his TK tutor, Mister Morrow...er...Nathan.
Nathan leaned forward and set his cup down on the coffee table, rubbing at his still-bruised jaw as he leaned back in his chair. He'd picked one of the less-formal sitting rooms on the main floor for this first meeting, and had shown up a few minutes early to think about how he was going to approach this. It had been a good long while since he'd worked with a male telekinetic, let alone a young one. A long, long time... and Tim was a handful. Of course, this wasn't Mistra; the same imperatives were not at work here, and he could set a gentler pace, one that was more responsive to whatever specific needs this Julian had.
Still. This is going to take some careful thinking.
Julian glanced at the watch on his wrist, he still had a few minutes until his meeting with Mister Morrow. Breakfast had been light and back home he would have headed to the student commons for a quick snack and an energy drink- the distinct lack of Red Bull was causing him a bit of a system shock- but he didn’t know if that was allowed here and he had found that apple on his desk. He was wondering about the apple, specifically who had left it there, as he walked into the sitting room. He lowered slowly approached the older and, from the looks of it, bruised man- not entirely impressed with what he saw. He puffed himself up a bit though, since his tutor was- if nothing else- built like a Mac truck. His own lithe stature didn’t seem to stack up as he tried to make himself appear bigger in his black track pants and gray hoodie.
Cool gray eyes met his, assessing, and then Nathan gave him a slight smile. "Hello, Julian. I'd be Mr. Morrow, but you can call me Nathan - I'm not much for the formalities. Also," he said, figuring that this was as good a way as any to make certain things clear, "apologies for looking like someone's punching bag. I realize the bruises don't make for a good first impression, but I just got back from a rather...energetic trip to Africa." All right, let's see if you pick up on the fact that I just read your mind... A test of mental agility, so to speak.
Julian took a seat across from Nathan, “Oh, don’t worry about it. Must have been some safari.” He dropped his book bag to the right of the chair and settled in, Nathan’s casual nature relaxing him a bit. “So, um, Nathan, how does this work?”
Ah, well. He'd have to be more direct. "Well, we're not starting today," Nathan said, easily enough. "We need to get to know each other a little more before we start slinging power around. Telekinesis being a mental ability, it's rather inextricably linked to your mental state. I need to understand yours better."
“Oh,” Julian said, a little disappointed. He’d been very eager to start learning how to better to control his abilties- or he was at least looking forward to breaking something. “Well, what sort of things do you need to know…I mean, didn’t they give you access to my ‘file’ or whatever?”
"What your parents were able to tell us about your abilities is one thing. What your experience is, is definitely another," Nathan said, and glanced at his coffee. He hadn't really needed it anyway. The liquid flowed up and out of the cup in a thin, perfectly controlled thread, wrapping around and back upon itself in a flawless spiral pattern. He continued the exercise, looking back to meet Julian's eyes. "When we actually start training, most of the first few sessions will be devoted to figure out baselines - how much you can lift, how many different things you can lift. Weight minimums and maximums. How long you can sustain telekinetic effort without undue stress."
Julian’s eyes widened in awe as the coffee swirled through the air, it took him a moment before he was once again able to form words. “Oh,” he began, “well, my parents never really tried to understand my abilities…they just sort of….” His mind drifted off to the first time his parents were ashamed of him; grounding him just after his abilities manifested. “They never really tried to understand,” he paused to collect his thoughts. “What did they tell you?”
"They talked about 'incidents'," Nathan said, keeping the edge of disgust out of his voice at the images Julian was projecting. Some parents needed a good sharp smack upside the head. Possibly several. "Which is usually a euphemism for large things getting broken."
Julian ticked down a mental list of things that he’d accidentally destroyed in the last four years. Most recently had been the police officer’s arms, before that a string of priceless works of art and that custom built replica Tucker that the neighbors had purchased. “Yeah, that sounds like them, and…um…it’s also, um, kinda…accurate.” Julian shifted uncomfortably in the otherwise comfortable chairs. “I mean, kinda,” his cheeks flushed slightly.
"Growing pains," Nathan said, almost briskly. "They can be overcome. You lucked out in the genetic lottery, Julian - you've wound up with one of the versatile, maybe even one of the most envied mutations available. And it didn't even come paired with telepathy," Nathan went on with a brief twist of his mouth that might have passed for a smile. #Count yourself lucky.#
Julian blinked, “Did you just…? Ah, I see, telepathy.” ‘You can hear me when I think then? Useful.’ A series of fantasies he’d developed about several of the mansions residents flashed to the forefront of his mind, involuntarily, and he did his best to push them away. “So, uh, yeah. It’s not like I don’t want my powers- I love them! I just have a tendency to…break things?” He sighed deeply, not sure if it was safe to think openly in front of a teacher.
"I won't read your mind deliberately," Nathan said. "You do tend to project - it's not uncommon, in someone of your age. I'm likely to catch stray thoughts, but I won't be challenging you on them. I just didn't think it was fair to go forward with this unless you knew that." He smiled slightly, the coffee flowing back down into the cup without spilling a drop. "If it's any consolation, the sort of mental discipline you'll be learning with your TK will help with that. After a while, you won't project as much. Fringe benefit."
Julian blushed a little more at a particularly private thought, but forced it back down. “Um, yeah, that’s good.” He needed a change in subject and fast, “So what kind of training can I expect then? Lifting rocks, carrying you around in a backpack in a swamp somewhere?” He realized that Mr. Marrow…Nathan, maybe hadn’t seen the movie, it would sound like quite the odd statement if he hadn’t.
"There may be rocks," Nathan said tranquilly. "There's likely to be pennies, as well. Heavy lifting is one thing - the trick is the fine control. That's what requires the most development."
“I can lift heavy stuff no problem,” Julian puffed up a bit again, “back home I was ‘benching,’ like, five-hundred pounds with my powers and could go at that for a half hour or so- before I got tired I mean.” He paused, remembering the basketball he’d try to throw a few years back, from one end of the court to the other. “But…I guess I see what you mean, I tried to sink this shot once, just after my powers started up…clear across the hardwood, ya know? But, the ball popped in my hands, didn’t really want to try and do something like that again.”
"The world becomes a very fragile thing, when you have our particular gift," Nathan said, eyes narrowing slightly as he leaned forward in his chair. "Be honest with me - are you afraid of doing damage?"
Julian thought about the question for a moment before replying, “No. I mean, I hate breaking things when I don’t mean to- but there’s situations where something needs to get broken. I don’t mean that I’m going to run around, destroying things whenever I can, but if someone or something needs to be stopped, then yeah, I’ll do it.” Julian wondered if that answer would get him kicked out of school.
Ah. Oh, world - you do like to make things interesting. Nathan tilted his head, regarding the boy. "A little fear is not such a bad thing," he said. "In fact, it can be healthy. But, we work with what we have."
“Yeah, I guess it is, but…I mean, I’ve been afraid to be who I am for a long time…I mean, a LONG time. Ever since I was born, my parents…” Julian wondered for a moment if Mr. Marrow wasn’t using a bit of telepathic prodding to get him to talk about these things, he’d certainly not done so before. “Um, well, my parents told me to not use my powers, that they were something to be ashamed of. I couldn’t live in fear like that anymore.” He signed and slumped in his chair a bit, “I’m not saying I’m going to run off like I did back home and try to play super hero,” like you do he added to himself, “I’m just saying I recognize the need for it.”
"I think I need to introduce you to my daughter." Nathan smiled slightly, before Julian could react. "She's three, and has my mutation - she's had it since she was in the womb, actually. I think," he went on, "her example could be instructive. You shouldn't be afraid of who you are, but neither should you fast-forward to using it For A Purpose." The capitalization was almost audible. "How about you and I work on getting you comfortable and confident in who and what you are? What you do at that point will be up to you. Although," and his smile turned crooked, "apparently you've already heard that there are some options here you don't find at your average boarding school."
Julian flushes slightly, he was being compared to a three-year-old. “Yeah, I have heard about the Super Friends camping out in the basement. I owe Karolina an apology over that actually.” Julian sighed, “I’m sorry.”
Nathan shrugged. "For what?" he said easily. "Again - not your average boarding school. And you're here for much more than your standard education. There's not much you can say or do to offend me," he said, then laughed softly, "with a few notable exceptions. I'll make you a list."
“I’d appreciate that,” Julian replied, only half joking. He felt as though he was already letting people down again, and Mr. Marrow…no, Nathan, had been fairly kind and understanding thus far. “So...when did you get your powers?”
"Not as early as my daughter," Nathan said after a moment's thought. No, first conversations weren't the time to share his particular backstory. "I had some particularly... strict early training. Hopefully I can take what's good from it and pass it on to you, without sharing the drawbacks."
“I look forward to it then,” Julian said, glancing at his watch, “um, I need to head to my next class. Is there anything else you need?” He put a hand on his bag, getting ready to leave.
Nathan shook his head. "I'll be in touch with you about our first session," he said. "My schedule is a bit erratic, so it may be a couple of days. But I will aim for sooner, rather than later."
“Thanks, Mist…uh…Nathan,” he grabbed his bag and started toward the exit. He felt a bit uneasy about powers training, but if nothing else, it’d be interesting. Despite the fact he was a little afraid, he was ready to get things under control and to start being able to do the things he’d read about. If nothing else, Julian felt glad, for the first time since he left LA, to be in New York.
Nathan leaned forward and set his cup down on the coffee table, rubbing at his still-bruised jaw as he leaned back in his chair. He'd picked one of the less-formal sitting rooms on the main floor for this first meeting, and had shown up a few minutes early to think about how he was going to approach this. It had been a good long while since he'd worked with a male telekinetic, let alone a young one. A long, long time... and Tim was a handful. Of course, this wasn't Mistra; the same imperatives were not at work here, and he could set a gentler pace, one that was more responsive to whatever specific needs this Julian had.
Still. This is going to take some careful thinking.
Julian glanced at the watch on his wrist, he still had a few minutes until his meeting with Mister Morrow. Breakfast had been light and back home he would have headed to the student commons for a quick snack and an energy drink- the distinct lack of Red Bull was causing him a bit of a system shock- but he didn’t know if that was allowed here and he had found that apple on his desk. He was wondering about the apple, specifically who had left it there, as he walked into the sitting room. He lowered slowly approached the older and, from the looks of it, bruised man- not entirely impressed with what he saw. He puffed himself up a bit though, since his tutor was- if nothing else- built like a Mac truck. His own lithe stature didn’t seem to stack up as he tried to make himself appear bigger in his black track pants and gray hoodie.
Cool gray eyes met his, assessing, and then Nathan gave him a slight smile. "Hello, Julian. I'd be Mr. Morrow, but you can call me Nathan - I'm not much for the formalities. Also," he said, figuring that this was as good a way as any to make certain things clear, "apologies for looking like someone's punching bag. I realize the bruises don't make for a good first impression, but I just got back from a rather...energetic trip to Africa." All right, let's see if you pick up on the fact that I just read your mind... A test of mental agility, so to speak.
Julian took a seat across from Nathan, “Oh, don’t worry about it. Must have been some safari.” He dropped his book bag to the right of the chair and settled in, Nathan’s casual nature relaxing him a bit. “So, um, Nathan, how does this work?”
Ah, well. He'd have to be more direct. "Well, we're not starting today," Nathan said, easily enough. "We need to get to know each other a little more before we start slinging power around. Telekinesis being a mental ability, it's rather inextricably linked to your mental state. I need to understand yours better."
“Oh,” Julian said, a little disappointed. He’d been very eager to start learning how to better to control his abilties- or he was at least looking forward to breaking something. “Well, what sort of things do you need to know…I mean, didn’t they give you access to my ‘file’ or whatever?”
"What your parents were able to tell us about your abilities is one thing. What your experience is, is definitely another," Nathan said, and glanced at his coffee. He hadn't really needed it anyway. The liquid flowed up and out of the cup in a thin, perfectly controlled thread, wrapping around and back upon itself in a flawless spiral pattern. He continued the exercise, looking back to meet Julian's eyes. "When we actually start training, most of the first few sessions will be devoted to figure out baselines - how much you can lift, how many different things you can lift. Weight minimums and maximums. How long you can sustain telekinetic effort without undue stress."
Julian’s eyes widened in awe as the coffee swirled through the air, it took him a moment before he was once again able to form words. “Oh,” he began, “well, my parents never really tried to understand my abilities…they just sort of….” His mind drifted off to the first time his parents were ashamed of him; grounding him just after his abilities manifested. “They never really tried to understand,” he paused to collect his thoughts. “What did they tell you?”
"They talked about 'incidents'," Nathan said, keeping the edge of disgust out of his voice at the images Julian was projecting. Some parents needed a good sharp smack upside the head. Possibly several. "Which is usually a euphemism for large things getting broken."
Julian ticked down a mental list of things that he’d accidentally destroyed in the last four years. Most recently had been the police officer’s arms, before that a string of priceless works of art and that custom built replica Tucker that the neighbors had purchased. “Yeah, that sounds like them, and…um…it’s also, um, kinda…accurate.” Julian shifted uncomfortably in the otherwise comfortable chairs. “I mean, kinda,” his cheeks flushed slightly.
"Growing pains," Nathan said, almost briskly. "They can be overcome. You lucked out in the genetic lottery, Julian - you've wound up with one of the versatile, maybe even one of the most envied mutations available. And it didn't even come paired with telepathy," Nathan went on with a brief twist of his mouth that might have passed for a smile. #Count yourself lucky.#
Julian blinked, “Did you just…? Ah, I see, telepathy.” ‘You can hear me when I think then? Useful.’ A series of fantasies he’d developed about several of the mansions residents flashed to the forefront of his mind, involuntarily, and he did his best to push them away. “So, uh, yeah. It’s not like I don’t want my powers- I love them! I just have a tendency to…break things?” He sighed deeply, not sure if it was safe to think openly in front of a teacher.
"I won't read your mind deliberately," Nathan said. "You do tend to project - it's not uncommon, in someone of your age. I'm likely to catch stray thoughts, but I won't be challenging you on them. I just didn't think it was fair to go forward with this unless you knew that." He smiled slightly, the coffee flowing back down into the cup without spilling a drop. "If it's any consolation, the sort of mental discipline you'll be learning with your TK will help with that. After a while, you won't project as much. Fringe benefit."
Julian blushed a little more at a particularly private thought, but forced it back down. “Um, yeah, that’s good.” He needed a change in subject and fast, “So what kind of training can I expect then? Lifting rocks, carrying you around in a backpack in a swamp somewhere?” He realized that Mr. Marrow…Nathan, maybe hadn’t seen the movie, it would sound like quite the odd statement if he hadn’t.
"There may be rocks," Nathan said tranquilly. "There's likely to be pennies, as well. Heavy lifting is one thing - the trick is the fine control. That's what requires the most development."
“I can lift heavy stuff no problem,” Julian puffed up a bit again, “back home I was ‘benching,’ like, five-hundred pounds with my powers and could go at that for a half hour or so- before I got tired I mean.” He paused, remembering the basketball he’d try to throw a few years back, from one end of the court to the other. “But…I guess I see what you mean, I tried to sink this shot once, just after my powers started up…clear across the hardwood, ya know? But, the ball popped in my hands, didn’t really want to try and do something like that again.”
"The world becomes a very fragile thing, when you have our particular gift," Nathan said, eyes narrowing slightly as he leaned forward in his chair. "Be honest with me - are you afraid of doing damage?"
Julian thought about the question for a moment before replying, “No. I mean, I hate breaking things when I don’t mean to- but there’s situations where something needs to get broken. I don’t mean that I’m going to run around, destroying things whenever I can, but if someone or something needs to be stopped, then yeah, I’ll do it.” Julian wondered if that answer would get him kicked out of school.
Ah. Oh, world - you do like to make things interesting. Nathan tilted his head, regarding the boy. "A little fear is not such a bad thing," he said. "In fact, it can be healthy. But, we work with what we have."
“Yeah, I guess it is, but…I mean, I’ve been afraid to be who I am for a long time…I mean, a LONG time. Ever since I was born, my parents…” Julian wondered for a moment if Mr. Marrow wasn’t using a bit of telepathic prodding to get him to talk about these things, he’d certainly not done so before. “Um, well, my parents told me to not use my powers, that they were something to be ashamed of. I couldn’t live in fear like that anymore.” He signed and slumped in his chair a bit, “I’m not saying I’m going to run off like I did back home and try to play super hero,” like you do he added to himself, “I’m just saying I recognize the need for it.”
"I think I need to introduce you to my daughter." Nathan smiled slightly, before Julian could react. "She's three, and has my mutation - she's had it since she was in the womb, actually. I think," he went on, "her example could be instructive. You shouldn't be afraid of who you are, but neither should you fast-forward to using it For A Purpose." The capitalization was almost audible. "How about you and I work on getting you comfortable and confident in who and what you are? What you do at that point will be up to you. Although," and his smile turned crooked, "apparently you've already heard that there are some options here you don't find at your average boarding school."
Julian flushes slightly, he was being compared to a three-year-old. “Yeah, I have heard about the Super Friends camping out in the basement. I owe Karolina an apology over that actually.” Julian sighed, “I’m sorry.”
Nathan shrugged. "For what?" he said easily. "Again - not your average boarding school. And you're here for much more than your standard education. There's not much you can say or do to offend me," he said, then laughed softly, "with a few notable exceptions. I'll make you a list."
“I’d appreciate that,” Julian replied, only half joking. He felt as though he was already letting people down again, and Mr. Marrow…no, Nathan, had been fairly kind and understanding thus far. “So...when did you get your powers?”
"Not as early as my daughter," Nathan said after a moment's thought. No, first conversations weren't the time to share his particular backstory. "I had some particularly... strict early training. Hopefully I can take what's good from it and pass it on to you, without sharing the drawbacks."
“I look forward to it then,” Julian said, glancing at his watch, “um, I need to head to my next class. Is there anything else you need?” He put a hand on his bag, getting ready to leave.
Nathan shook his head. "I'll be in touch with you about our first session," he said. "My schedule is a bit erratic, so it may be a couple of days. But I will aim for sooner, rather than later."
“Thanks, Mist…uh…Nathan,” he grabbed his bag and started toward the exit. He felt a bit uneasy about powers training, but if nothing else, it’d be interesting. Despite the fact he was a little afraid, he was ready to get things under control and to start being able to do the things he’d read about. If nothing else, Julian felt glad, for the first time since he left LA, to be in New York.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}