Mind & Emotion

[Lana Kane]

“Lovely offer, Lana, I’m sure, but you and I both know you’d find such a position utterly untenable,” He had chuckled at her words, but their was no adorable blush. Damn. She'd have to try harder, if only to get an emotional blush from him. “As for the paperwork...this may be a school for mutants but that does not mean that we are above the law. So, regrettably, paperwork. A wholly boring and tedious process, I’ll admit, but a necessary one in order to keep this place up and running.” Human laws. Lana couldn't help but to recall how the Brotherhood had taught her the difference. Humans obeyed human laws, Mutants obeyed their own laws . . . and according to Magneto, humans had too many rules. While she might not agree with Magneto's war time antics, she figured he was right about some bits.

Xavier put his pen down, “Well then, Lana, are you ready to begin?” Training. "Yeah," She said off offhandedly, before picking up some of the food to take with her wherever they were going. Magneto had trained her outside ad away from everyone else. "So whot you gonna do ta me?" She hoped it wasn't knives. As much as they worked, it had been a trail by fire that she hadn't completely enjoyed. "You got a helmet? Cause he needed one. Or you just gonna shield me out?"

[x]

“Yeah,” Lana agreed, her tone casual. She readied herself as though they were going to leave, and Charles nudged against her mind to see why. Apparently, Erik had seen fit to isolate her from others while he trained her. And he wore that ridiculous helmet, as well. And he—he used knives?! What the hell had Erik been thinking?!

“So whot you gonna do ta me? You got a helmet? Cause he needed one. Or you just gonna shield me out?”

“Lana, I sincerely apologize for what Erik has apparently seen fit to put you through. He’s a rather straightforward sort of person, and apparently incapable of realizing that training mutants with psionic abilities is nothing like training those with more physical abilities.”

Trying to train an empath while wearing that bloody helmet, of all the harebrained, half-baked schemes—no, Charles had no intention of continuing that pattern. He pushed himself back from his desk and around it to the more open area of the office.

“And no, I will not be requiring a helmet, nor will I shield you out,” he said as he made his way from the desk. “Not entirely, at least. I have put in place a few low-level shields around this room, just in case something where to happen. However, I’m sure you’ve sufficient enough control that they won’t be as necessary as caution fears.

“Now,” he said, waving her over to the more open part of the the room, “since our primary goal is to get you into proper shielding, we’ll begin with the basics. How good are you at separating your own emotions from those around you?”

[Lana Kane]

“Lana, I sincerely apologize for what Erik has apparently seen fit to put you through. He’s a rather straightforward sort of person, and apparently incapable of realizing that training mutants with psionic abilities is nothing like training those with more physical abilities.” She remained surprised while sitting there, even when he moved to the other side of the desk. She wasn't too mad at 'Erik' for the knives, even if it wasn't the best. It worked. She had managed not to project her own emotions out when feeling out of control. He gave her that. Taught her that. Still, she wasn't going to counter anything Xavier said right now.

“I have put in place a few low-level shields around this room, just in case something where to happen." What? Lana looked at the walls. How did he put shields around the room? Just how strong was he?! "Kay?" She said to show she was following, even though the shielding idea was odd to her.

He wanted her out there with him, so Lana put down the food and moved to stand before him. “since our primary goal is to get you into proper shielding, we’ll begin with the basics. How good are you at separating your own emotions from those around you?” Tricky. "Depends. When it's one or two, I can manage easy. That dinning hall of yours--ain't gonna happen." Crowds were a weakness. "I can show you!"

Moving forward she reached out to touch his hand, only pausing a second to give him a chance to pull away. Her fingers curled around his thumb, so that she wasn't keeping him there if he pulled away. Then she closed her eyes and shared what she could with him. It all mixed together, what she felt, the little she could get from him, and when she pushed out even the some of the dinning hall. She wasn't just aware of their feelings, she felt them too. With each emotion there was a spike in the chemicals that flushed the body, they filled her too.

Then she pulled in, only thinking about herself, and tuning out the rest. They were still there, on the edges, but her emotions took over more. Pulling back from Xavier and dropping his hand, Lana stood back. "I can tell what I got going on, but they're still there. In the background. I can't turn that off."

[x]

“Depends,” Lana answered. “When it’s one or two, I can manage easy. That dining hall of yours—ain’t gonna happen. I can show you!”

She reached out to him, pausing only to give him a chance to stop her before curling her fingers around his thumb. So, not only was she aware of the emotions of others, but they then became her emotions, as well. Lana had little issue keeping her sense of self when she only had a few minds to contend with—it was the larger gatherings where she had trouble. Well then, that would be something they would have to work on slowly, exposing her larger and larger groups of people until she could manage despite the crowd.

Lana withdrew and Charles reoriented himself.

“I can tell what I got going on, but they’re still there. In the background. I can’t turn that off.”

“And that will be something that will never change, I’m afraid, no matter how good at shielding you become,” Charles said. “I’ve been shielding since I was a child and even I can’t block out everything. There will always be a low hum, a muffled roar, a little like hearing the ocean from a distance.”

It was something one simply became accustomed to, to the point where it was strange for that hum to be gone. 

[Lana Kane]

“And that will be something that will never change, I’m afraid, no matter how good at shielding you become,” Well that sucked. “I’ve been shielding since I was a child and even I can’t block out everything. There will always be a low hum, a muffled roar, a little like hearing the ocean from a distance.” Even that much would be an improvement to what she currently had to deal with. Which was a constant effort to not react to everything she felt--because she felt everything.

"Arn't we the losers of the mutant world." She teased, finding it unfair that they could never turn off their powers while others had something cool they could do. Rolling her shoulders, she looked at him, waiting to find out what he'd get her to do. "You gonna like, think something naughty and make me block it out?" She teased, just to keep the playing feel somewhere that wasn't built on self pity. "Or I can make you feel something naughty." She wiggled her fingers at him in a teasing mockery.

[x]

“Aren’t we the losers of the mutant world,” Lana said. She meant it in a teasing sort of manner, a comment on the fact that their abilities were not something they could ever take a break from.

(In many ways, they were the mutants who couldn't win no matter which side came out victorious; Erik's helmet would give all of his followers clear signals that psionic mutants—telepaths, empaths, anyone like Lana and himself—were not to be trusted. Not that anyone ever trusted a telepath to begin with.)

“You gonna, like, think something naughty and make me block it out? Or I can make you feel something naughty,” she added, wiggling her fingers at him.

He laughed a bit at that. “Before I can expect you to block something out, Lana, I would prefer you have at least a basic grasp on shielding. We’ll focus on setting up your shields today, and then we can go from there.”

Charles shifted in his seat (he should probably talk to Hank and see if anything could be done about the ache caused by being constantly on his bum) and gestured to the chairs.

“If at any point, you’d like to sit down, feel free to do so. Creating a shield tends to be far more draining than actually maintaining it,” he explained. “Now, if you would be so kind as to think back to yesterday, when I put a shield in place around your mind. I tend to describe it as a glass wall, but I have heard of other visualizations employed when others create shields. It all depends on the one who will be maintaining the shield, really.”

For Charles, a glass wall made the most sense. He could still see the world, it wasn’t sound-proof, but it kept out the majority of sound. For Lana, the glass wall metaphor may not be as simple for her to maintain. She might prefer something more akin to a plastic ball or a window, or something else entirely. But if they wanted her to shield successfully, she had to pick her own metaphor.

“Since you will be maintaining the shield,” he continued, “the metaphor you employ must be something that comes naturally to you. So, think back to yesterday’s demonstration. What is the first thing that comes to mind when you think of the shield?”

[Lana Kane]

Clearly she was going to have to step up her game if she wanted to make him blush again. She'd have to think about that later, on how to make him blush. “Before I can expect you to block something out, Lana, I would prefer you have at least a basic grasp on shielding. We’ll focus on setting up your shields today, and then we can go from there.” Right! She could do that! He had told her to sit, so she moved over tot he chair, and hopped into it, folding her legs together at the ankles and leaning forward to rest her elbows on her knees.

“Now, if you would be so kind--" Lana smiled and playfully rolled her eyes at his choice of words. "--as to think back to yesterday, when I put a shield in place around your mind. I tend to describe it as a glass wall, but I have heard of other visualizations employed when others create shields. It all depends on the one who will be maintaining the shield, really.”

“So, think back to yesterday’s demonstration. What is the first thing that comes to mind when you think of the shield?” Ah! Alright. Lana thought back but she could only remember the feeling of it. "I don't know, ya know. It was just like . . . . me. I felt me. I wasn't thinking of glass or anything." She thought another moment, "Relief, and alone at the same time."

Rolling her shoulders, "But yeah, a glass wall works. Lets do that!" She closed her eyes and tried to see it. Or did she think it? Opening them, Lana looked at him. "So like, I can't make a box. Do I try to see it, or just think the words, or what am I doing here?"

[x]

“I don’t know, ya know,” Lana answered. “It was just like...me. I felt me. I wasn’t thinking of glass or anything. Relief, and alone at the same moment.”

Charles nodded as she spoke. It made sense, considering her mutation focused almost exclusively on emotions. Concrete visualizations wouldn’t do her nearly as much good as more abstract ones would. Lana needed her shields to be built to withstand emotions; Charles could employ the illusion of glass because his mutation was more than just emotion. He had the inner workings of the mind to strengthen his walls.

“But yeah,” she continued on, rolling her shoulders, “a glass wall works. Let’s do that!”

She dove headfirst into visualization, even though she really hadn’t much clue as to how she should even begin. After a moment, she opened her eyes and fixed him with a curious look.

“So, like, I can’t make a box. Do I try to see it, or just think the words, or what am I doing here?”

He shifted in his chair again, repositioning himself so that he was resting his elbows on his knees, fingers laced.

“Your mutation deals almost exclusively in emotions, so, rather than focusing on the concrete aspect of a wall or a box, perhaps you should focus more on what you recall from yesterday,” he offered. “The relief, the relative silence, the emotional balance you want to achieve. Use those memories and try to calm your mind, first off.”

A shield was only as good as its sustainability, after all; if Lana couldn’t keep her mind calm—and therefore clear—then there was no shield she could create that would offer her the reprieve she needed.

“If you need, feel free to take a few deep breaths. You don’t need to rush it, either; take as much time as you need to separate yourself from the emotions around you.”

[Lana Kane]

He shifted in his chair, and Lana pointed at him with a big exaggerated grin, as if to say 'hey look at you!'. She really dind't know the details of his injury but she was surprised that he could wiggle. Did that mean he worked . . . down under? She oped he was hearing this. Maybe that would get a blush out of him. Either way, she dropped her hand and went back to thinking on his words. “Your mutation deals almost exclusively in emotions, so, rather than focusing on the concrete aspect of a wall or a box, perhaps you should focus more on what you recall from yesterday,” On the emptiness. That was mildly depressing but if she could try to think more on the serenity of being alone rather then the almost uncomfortable silence then maybe he was on to something.

“The relief, the relative silence, the emotional balance you want to achieve. Use those memories and try to calm your mind, first off.” "Alright," She said , drawing back to sit up right, her legs still folded. Resting her wrist over her knees in an classic meditation pose--because how else was she supposed to sit while channeling the inner silence? "If I am gonna do this then you got ta give me more then background, school teacher. Think of something that brings you strong feels. Something happy. That's easy right?" Not every mutant had happy memories but there was still something everyone had that gave them feels. Being free, using their powers for the first time, a friend, something. Rolling her neck once she readied herself for whatever he might send her way.

[x]

Lana was obviously dead set on getting a reaction out of him, judging by how loudly she was projecting indecent thoughts. Honestly, what good would the knowledge of whether or not he was...fully functional do her, anyway? Granted, there was only about seven or eight years between them, and Lana was certainly lovely enough, but that meant nothing.

“Alright,” she said, sitting up straight and adopting a more traditional meditation pose. “If I am gonna do this, then you gotta give me more then background, school teacher. Think of something that brings you strong feels. Something happy. That’s easy, right?”

Relatively speaking, yes. He had a number of happy memories he could tap into, some happier than others. But if it was strong emotions she was after...then, there were two memories in particular that he could tap into.

He nodded. “Yes, I suppose so.”

With a deep breath, Charles sank back into his first truly happy memory.

He’s not alone. He’s not alone, and the proof is standing three feet away from him. She’s young, probably no more than six or seven, and she’s got a mind as fluid as her form. In other words, she’s absolutely amazing and Charles can barely breathe for all of his excitement.

“You...you’re not...s-scared of me?”

“I always believed I couldn’t be the only one in the world,” he responds, voice a bit breathy as his heart beats wildly in his chest. “The only one who was different. And here you are!”

He shoves out his hand, completely lacking in grace but he can’t quite bring himself to care; it’s all he can do to keep himself from bouncing all over the kitchen and hugging her as tightly as he can.

“Charles Xavier.”

“Raven,” she says, smiling and taking his hand.

“You’re hungry, and alone,” he confirms after they shake. “Take whatever you want; we've got lots of food, you don’t need to steal.”

Raven’s face lights up at the prospect of food. He can’t let her go, can’t let this night end with both of them remaining alone in the world. In that moment, he makes a decision. Raven doesn’t have to leave, they don’t have to be alone anymore.

“In fact,” he states, “you never have to steal again.”

Her smile is huge, her disbelief at the whole situation as obvious as his own. Charles can’t stop grinning. He’s never been so happy, so ecstatic, so pleased with the world.

They raid the kitchen together, each of them eating their fill, trying to muffle their giggles as they both bask in the wonder of having finally found another like them.

Charles focused on the excitement and the disbelief, the pure happiness of not being alone. He let the emotions reach out to her, hoping they’d be strong enough for her. There was only one other memory stronger than that one, and it was a gateway to much more painful emotions.

[Lana Kane]

Alright. She could do this! Just think on what she was feeling. The silence. Work on that! Lana tried to feel it, and tried to make it fill her up. It worked for a few seconds, but when he started to get into his memory, it was harder. Her shoulders tensed, and she fought it. Not wanting to let it take over. It was hard though, because happiness wasn't something she normal even tried to block out. What was the point? Who dind't want to be happy? But she had assumed that if she could block this one, then she could block others.

Her hands lifted to cover her ears, though she knew that wasn't the source of where her powers picked up his emotions, it was just an instinctual and unrealized reaction to trying to keep him out. She felt excitement! The thrill of something. Happiness, the sort born of the first light in a darkness. It was the later that was too strong. Lana laughed softly, unable to keep it from affecting her. But the pushed at it, and tried to keep it out.

Until it became too much effort, and she dropped her hands to look over at him. Reaching up she wiped away a tear she had not even known had fallen. "Damn, school teacher." She teased, still grinning from the emotions. "That was like Christmas. You a father or somethin?" Surely a memory that strong was related to something like that?

[x]

Apparently his first memory of Raven was stronger than he’d thought, as Lana tensed and struggled to keep her first attempt at shielding up. Charles didn’t expect for her to actually succeed—it would have been rather impressive if she’d managed to succeed for very long the first time—but he did find it encouraging that she managed to hold back his own emotions for as long as she had. She lifted her hands to her ears, a subconscious reaction, no doubt. He used to do the same when he was young, trying to shut out the voices in his head before he finally accepted that no matter how hard he tried, his hands were inadequate to blocking out the noise. She laughed, though, softly, the happiness from his memories getting to her. He smiled at that.

“Damn, school teacher,” Lana teased, grinning as she put her hands down. “That was like Christmas. You a father or somethin’?”

He chuckled a bit and shook his head. “No, not exactly. The only children I’m responsible for are the ones enrolled here, at the school.”

Traditional fatherhood had been something he’d always planned for some point in his future: find a nice woman and settle down with a comfortable teaching position at a university, after he’d gotten all he wanted from his career as a student. But then Moira had found him, had taken him on the adventure of a lifetime and now the future he’d envisioned seemed more like an impossibility than an eventuality. There was still his own tangled emotions involving Erik that he had to deal with, not to mention the stress of setting up a school for mutants—what was the likelihood that he’d ever find someone willing to put up with all of that and the wheelchair?

Charles took a deep breath and reined in his emotions. Lana shouldn’t have to deal with his issues; she had no obligation to him aside from continuing work on her mental shields.

“Actually, I was thinking of when I first met Raven—ah, Mystique, I suppose is what she prefers to go by now,” he admitted. “One of the best moments of my life; the first time I knew without a doubt that I wasn’t alone in the world.”

[Lana Kane]

“No, not exactly. The only children I’m responsible for are the ones enrolled here, at the school.” Huh, she had been sure she could pinpoint the emotions that strong, but apparently she was wrong. "Yea, guessin you got your hands full already." Lana picke dup something else from him, a darker emotion that was begin to build as if the memory was bitter sweet. He blocked her before she could get more then that however. “Actually, I was thinking of when I first met Raven—ah, Mystique, I suppose is what she prefers to go by now. One of the best moments of my life; the first time I knew without a doubt that I wasn’t alone in the world.” Ooohhh! That explained the bittersweet part. Cause it had not ended well.

Lana never really had one of those moments, as mutants had been spoken about and rumored. When her parents had hate toward the idea of mutants, she bailed not wanting them to know what she was. "Like I said, Christmas." She muttered taking that in. He got lucky to find someone, she had been on her own for years before she found another. "They talked about you some, ya know, but not much. It wasn't a topic they enjoyed talking about. I got the feeling she missed you, though . . . . and trust me, I know the feeling of missing someone." It was easy to pick up. She wasn't sure if that would help, or hurt more, but she offered it the same.

Lana didn't make a habit of telling everyone what others felt. It wasn't her job and once you started it became expected. People got bitter. However, in this moment she offered it. She wanted him to know in case he didn't already. Perhaps it would ease something. Perhaps it only made it worse.

[x]

“Like I said: Christmas,” she muttered. “They talked about you some, ya know, but not much. It wasn’t a topic they enjoyed talking about.”

Charles internally winced. To be fair, Erik and Raven weren’t a topic he enjoyed discussing, either. He needed to be sufficiently drunk in order to be at all comfortable discussing his wayward sister and his...whatever it was that Erik was to him. Did the term ‘friend’ even still apply? Or was that another thing that died on that godforsaken beach?

“I got the feeling she missed you, though,” Lana added, “and trust me, I know the feeling of missing someone.”

The thought that Raven missed him at all was a little comforting. It eased something in him to think that she missed him as well; goodness knows he missed her terribly. He offered her a half-hearted smile.

“Thank you for that,” he said, genuinely grateful. “How...how was she? When you saw her last?”

He shouldn’t be asking; they were supposed to be training her, not discussing Raven and Erik. And yet, he needed to know. No matter what the circumstances had been, he still loved her deeply; she was his sister in all the ways that truly mattered, and he wanted to be sure that she was happy, or at the very least content. It was all he’d ever really wanted for her: for her to be safe and happy.

[Lana Kane]

“Thank you for that. How...how was she? When you saw her last?”Lana could feel touches of his emotions, but not much. Or perhaps she was just feeling the left over of whatever he had touched her with before keeping her out. Either way, she knew that it had not been easy for him to ask. "It's been a while, ya know, since I parted ways with em." The brotherhood. She'd been one of the crew for almost a year, before Magneto got himself locked up. The last time she had saw his sister had been when Lana was walking away from the breakout. Leaving the group hanging, and Magneto still locked up.

Which might not be the best thing to admit to her brother. "Things were tense." She admitted, "Cause he got locked up and they wanted him out. She was taking a big step forward. I got the feeling she was taking charge. Going to lead them herself." Which might have been fine if Lana had a mind to stay. But she wasn't planning to stay and be his weapon, Magneto might have a mind to use her powers to control the crowd, but she hadn't be willing to be his puppet. Not when she could feel the hate, and fear, and chaos of a battle field. "But that, there was some good times. She was training to be stronger. Fight harder. She was . . . . determined." But at what she didn't know.

[x]

“It’s been a while, ya know, since I parted ways with ‘em,” Lana said.

Charles understood; Erik’s incarceration followed by subsequent attempts to break out—of course Erik would never be one to simply accept captivity—and Lana fleeing a thoroughly toxic environment in terms of her abilities would allow for enough time in between that anything Lana could tell him would be old news, and quite possibly no longer the case.

“Things where tense,” she admitted, “cause he got locked up and they wanted him out. She was taking a big step forward. I got the feeling she was taking charge. Going to lead them herself.”

He allowed himself a bit of a smile at that; Raven had always had the potential of an excellent leader. While he hoped that Raven would prove to be far less militant a leader than Erik in the long run, he would admit that it sounded a lot like she was finally coming into her own.

“But that, there was some good times,” Lana added. “She was training to be stronger. Fight harder. She was...determined.”

“Raven has always been tenacious when she sets her mind to something,” Charles confirmed. “I can’t say I’m at all surprised. Thank you, Lana, and I’m terribly sorry; we should be focusing on your training.”

Not the tangled mess between himself and Raven.  Hindsight offered more insight than it should, and Charles had spent many a moment silently berating himself for the spectacular example of miscommunication that had existed between him and Raven.  Lana was here to learn how to control her mutation and how to be part of the world around her, not to get involved with his own issues.  (And really, he should be better than this, anyway.)

[Lana Kane]

“Raven has always been tenacious when she sets her mind to something,” Lana wasn't sure what tenacious meant but putting a word that wounded like that with a woman like that just seemed to fit, so she just nodded her head in agreement. Big words for women with big personalities. It fit. “Thank you, Lana, and I’m terribly sorry; we should be focusing on your training.” Lana shrugged, not minding the detour. "Don't sweat it, school teacher, if you didn't feel anything then I wouldn't still be sittin here." Emotions were what made them. If he felt nothing toward a woman he had known half (or more) of his life then it would be a sign he wasn't the nice guy he pretended to be.

"If ya want . . . " She paused before offing it, not sure if he would take her up on it. " . . . If you would like, I can take away the bad feelings when you think of her. It wont be forever, but you can have just the happy ones for a while." It would only last while Lana was thinking about it, and in the room. Proximity was needed with her powers.

If he didn't want to, then they could go back to training. If he wanted a moment to just think with no hurt feelings then they could train later. It was up to him and how much he wanted to let her in his head--because that would be the key.

[x]

“Don’t sweat it, school teacher,” Lana replied. “If you didn’t feel anything, then I wouldn’t still be sittin’ here.”

Fair enough, he supposed. It wasn’t exactly what he’d meant, of course, but nevertheless.

“If ya want,” Lana began, pausing a moment, a flicker of uncertainly in her. “If you would like, I can take away the bad feelings when you think of her. It won’t be forever, but you can have just the happy ones for a while.”

He offered her a grateful smile. “Thank you for the offer, my dear, but I’m afraid I must decline.”

It was a tempting offer, to be sure, but it wasn’t something he himself was incapable of. If he were truly so wanting as to absolve himself of any negative connotation to Raven’s memory, then he could enact his own barrier—and make it permanent, too. As tempting as it was, it wasn’t something Charles was going to ask of Lana.

“From your description, it sounds as though Raven is doing what she wanted. As much as I would like for her to come home, I must come to peace with her decision to leave,” he added, swallowing a sigh.

It had been so plain to see on her face that day, her desire to go out and fight for mutant equality (superiority, a traitorous little voice in the darkest recesses of his mind whispered).  He once said he never needed to read her mind to know what she was thinking, but that was the one time he was completely certain of her thoughts.  Raven had made her decision, and Charles had to accept it.

 “Now, would you care to try shielding again, only with a much less powerful memory?”

Charles smiled again, hoping his attempt to deviate from such muddled topics took.

[Lana Kane]

“Thank you for the offer, my dear, but I’m afraid I must decline.” Why was he afraid? Lana frowned at the speech pattern she wasn't familiar with, but then just made a mental note about it and moved on. She'd use that somewhere . . . . and it also gave her something else to think about besides the memories the talk brought up from her, and the little bit of emotion she got from him. The Brotherhood wasn't an easy topic for either of them.

“Now, would you care to try shielding again, only with a much less powerful memory?” Yeah, that might be best. As much as she had assumed that a happy thought would be easy, it had been too strong. She also wasn't sure what type of emotion to ask for, so in this she'd have to trust him. "Maybe I need to think on it a while." She suggested, "Ya know, alone." The way she was figuring it, if she could just practice in her room and block out the background things then perhaps tomorrow she'd be better at this.

Besides, Lana was feeling a bit discouraged with her inability. She was used to be impressive with what she could do. Her failure was annoying her. "What do you say, school teacher? We pick this up tomorrow after you school your tikes?"

[x]

“Maybe I need to think on it a while,” Lana offered. “Ya know, alone.”

Charles understood; he couldn’t be certain of Lana’s exact level of control or her experience with her abilities. (That would require fully entering her mind, and while she might understand, it was better to avoid sinking into another’s mind so completely.) They had gone over the basics of shielding, and Lana might benefit from taking the time to block smaller, less focused emotions.

“What do you say, school teacher? We pick this up tomorrow after you school your tykes?”

He nodded. “Of course. Perhaps take the rest of the afternoon to focus on shielding from less focused emotions? Or even just one particular emotion.”

His own shields were not as strong as they had been before...well, before. Thoughts of Raven or Erik were enough to give bad memories all the strength they needed to break past the walls he’d put in place as a child to keep himself sane. If he was going to be of any assistance to Lana, he needed to take time to strengthen his own shields. There needed to be a bit of detachment between him and his memories—especially where Raven and Erik were concerned.

“Though, you shouldn't be too discouraged by your performance today," Charles said, picking up trace amounts of disappointment.  "You did rather well, I'd say.  Shielding isn't easy, after all, not to mention the potential implications of my telepathy being involved."

He hadn't actually thought about what exactly his own mutation might mean for her training.  Would his emotion be amplified compared to those of non-telepaths?  For him, the minds of mutants and non-mutants were instantly distinguishable: different patterns to their wavelengths, just simply a different feel to how their minds worked.  

“Shall we aim for the same time, as well? Or would you prefer to meet later in the afternoon?”