Off campus, on track (Sean)

[Marnie Sullivan]

It was technically halfway through spring, but at this early hour, there was still a bite of winter in the air. Marnie was well defended against the elements in track pants, sweatshirt, and headband, but her face was flushed pink from a combination of exertion and chill. She had been trying new running routes each morning since arriving at Hammel, with mixed results. Today's route had clearly taken her off campus; less than half an hour into her run, Marnie found herself in an unfamiliar neighborhood full of large, beautiful houses. It was new territory, but it was difficult to feel threatened here. It was too calm; Marnie hadn't seen anyone coming or going except a middle-aged woman in slippers and a dressing gown retrieving a newspaper from her lawn.

It wasn't terribly different from the neighborhood she'd moved out of, Marnie reflected as she trotted along the side of the road. Of course, the house she'd shared in Pilot Ridge with her parents couldn't be more than a few miles from here. The houses in her old neighborhood were smaller, but the trees surrounding them were identical to the ones she was currently jogging past. Her childhood home in the city of Lebanon had been a different story; she had still lived in a fairly quiet suburb, but it was impossible to have a morning run without meeting several strangers and stopping for a car or two. Here she didn't wear headphones while running. The stillness was far more enjoyable this time of day than any music she ever listened to.

Marnie had been hoping that her three-year stay in Pilot Ridge would help her get used to living at Hammel. While out on a run, it did. This place wasn't home quite yet, but every time she ran past the campus pond where she'd studied the year before or recognized the name of a street, it was almost soothing. Sharing living spaces with strangers had made life feel a little chaotic, and every morning that Marnie could get out and away felt like a return to normalcy.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean Neville had many passions; jogging was not among them.

He did not loathe jogging, the way that some might resent exercise. He had even enjoyed it well enough when Griff had lived in Pilot Ridge, and he and the Welshman had gone for light-paced jogs together. However, his preferred exercise methods including swimming, or the calisthenics routine that he and Josh had developed for after supper each night. Still, his partner’s hypertension had underscored the need for lifestyle changes, and the psychiatrist thought it important for him to keep up, not merely to make the changes easier on his partner, but for his own health as well.

He tried to incorporate jogging into his routine, even if he only did it once or twice per week during the good weather months. Josh, also, had incorporated jogging into his lifestyle, but he had found a friend to use as a jogging partner. Sean knew that he was welcome to go with them, and that Josh would not mind if they ran together, but he liked to give his partner the alone time with friends. That kept their relationship healthy.

His pace was such that one might consider it closer to a trot than a jog, but he kept it up as he went through the neighborhoods around his cul-de-sac. He kept his eye on the time, simply so that he did not go too far before he had to turn around and begin his obligations for the day.

However, up ahead he saw a figure approaching, whom he soon identified as one of the students from Hammel. Marnie Sullivan. He increased his pace to catch up with her, and then offered her a smile and a wave. “Do you usually jog this far from campus?” He inquired.

Pilot Ridge was not huge by any metric, neither population nor land-mass area. Still, he did live far enough from campus so as to provide some semblance of privacy.

[Marnie Sullivan]

Marnie returned the jogger's wave and was prepared to pass him by until he got close enough to recognize. Dr. Neville was one of the staff members she'd never had an official class or meeting with, but that didn't matter much. Most students came to know him in one way or another shortly after enrolling at Hammel, even if like Marnie they'd never had a full conversation with him. It occurred to Marnie suddenly that she'd seen his name listed as faculty advisor when she'd signed up to join the activities council.

"I thought I'd try somewhere new today," she answered, slightly breathless from the exercise. Had she underestimated the distance she'd traveled already? She didn't think Hammel was far enough away from the city to be worth remarking upon, but then again, most students probably just ran around the pond or the training field.

Marnie cast around for something to say as they continued down the road. Spotting a teacher in the wild was always a little bit of a foreign experience. And although Dr. Neville wasn't intimidating, exactly - most of her classmates seemed to find him likeable enough and Marnie had never had cause to disagree - she wasn't quite sure how to proceed. Deciding it was more important to avoid an awkward silence, Marnie settled on a boring but polite, "How are you, Doctor Neville?"

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean was a naturally easygoing and mild-mannered individual, one who tended towards friendliness, albeit without the aggressive extroversion of his partner. He drew boundaries for the sake of professionalism and ethics, but he genuinely enjoyed being around most of the students, even the ones who were not among his protégés. Marnie had always struck him as a kind, polite girl, someone who reminded him of himself as a student, in some ways.

Since they were jogging the same route, he saw no reason not to engage her in conversation. She was faster than he was, but his massive stride helped to bridge a bit of the distance, which was good; as a man in his mid-fifties, his knees protested sprint-speeds.

“I’m doing well,” he answered with a smile. “Now that we have the spring thaw, we want to dust off the grill and take advantage of the nicer weather.”

The psychiatrist made no secret of the fact that he was happily coupled. Unlike the Campbells or the Meian family, Josh was an attorney with his own practice, rather than working at Hammel. Still, his partner assisted him with chaperoning events, and the younger man supported Hammel through fundraisers like the bake sale and the car wash; students knew of him.

“And how are you?”

[Marnie Sullivan]

When she realized that they seemed to be heading in the same direction, Marnie slowed her pace a tad. She wasn't exactly breaking the sound barrier to start with, but she didn't want to be too out of breath when she spoke.

"Pretty good," Marnie answered, as she weaved around a trashcan one of the residents had apparently neglected to remove from the sidewalk after trash day. By and large, it was a true answer, rather than a superficial pleasantry. She felt confident in most of her classes. Her dormmate was unusual but they seemed to get along. Her parents had called her last night, with greetings instead of bad news about her grandfather. All in all, it could be worse, but Marnie didn't mention any of these things.

"I signed up for the activity council yesterday," she told him. When Marnie heard herself she realized how goody-two-shoes she sounded - of course Dr. Neville would know that already. At least her face was already too flushed from exercise to properly broadcast her self-consciousness. "Are we doing anything for graduation, or is there an event coming up before that?"

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Inwardly, Sean could not wait until the summer months, when he could go swimming for exercise instead. Swimming, which provided him with the muscular and cardiovascular benefits of jogging without the strain on his joints. Soon enough.

The psychiatrist offered her a gentle smile, which lasted all too briefly before his expression returned to one of exertion. He was no longer a young man. “I’m glad to hear that.” Truly, he was. He wanted the students to have all of the positive experiences that he had had during his years at Hammel, while being spared all of the negative experiences. Realizing that this was idealistic and impossible, he worked to encourage the students and to maximize the positives while minimizing the negatives, even if he could not wholly sublimate the latter in favor of the former.

“I saw,” Sean replied, and his tone and expression both intended to convey that he was glad of that, and did not see her remark as an attempt to curry favor, or as something worthy of embarrassment. “We are always in need of new students on the team, so I hope you enjoy it.”

The Student Activity Council was more work-oriented than some of the other clubs, but the psychiatrist still tried to make it fun for the students. The end results were always fun, even if the planning could be intense. “Our big fundraiser is after graduation, but we are in charge of decorating for the ceremony and senior sendoff.”

[Marnie Sullivan]

So graduation was next after all. It would probably be a good time, Marnie figured. Not anything to be personally excited about; as a junior with incomplete control of her power, she still had a ways to go. Neither could she think of a senior she would especially miss - no, that wasn't quite true. Her dorm are was a year older, although Marnie often forgot. The girl was unusual, to put it kindly, but the two had already struck up a friendship of sorts.

This close to the end of the year, though, it was true that Marnie's own senior year was looking. She wasn't afraid, really. Sometimes she felt completely ready for it. Right now it was more tempting to simply push harder, run faster, distract herself with the movement. With Dr. Neville keeping her company, however, it felt rude to burst ahead like she wanted.

"...Sir, can I ask you something?" Marnie inquired nervously. He was the school psychiatrist, after all, and a patient man besides. "I know we can't graduate if we can't manage our powers well enough, but I was wondering, you know, does that happen a lot? Or do most students graduate on time?"

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Graduation at Hammel tended towards low-key. The school was hardly large, given that it housed some seven-hundred students total, as opposed to per graduating class. They kept some formalities, including the administrative speeches, gowns and mortarboards, and an outdoor ceremony in good weather. They also maintained yearbooks. At the same time, they eschewed many other traditions that had no place at Hammel, including the prom, long and rigorous ceremonies, and the notion of class rankings.

Thankfully, his long stride aided in keeping some semblance of pace, although his face had reddened and the thin sheen of sweat which came from exertion began to appear.

“You don’t have to call me ‘Sir,’” he replied immediately, which was to say that he preferred her not to call him “Sir.” That word held military and authoritarian connotations that he preferred to avoid; his title was enough for the purposes of ethics and professional boundaries. With that out of the way, he could address her question. “Most students graduate on time,” he assured her. While some students, such as Evan Brackett required the additional training time, or some required both additional training time and academic support, most students qualified to graduate after their senior years. He had managed to graduate on time, and his telepathy had been a nightmare when it first manifested.

“Is that curiosity? Or do you have someone in mind?”

[Marnie Sullivan]

"Oh, no I don't. Nothing like that..." Marnie trailed off, reconsidering. It wasn't a fear she had properly discussed with anyone yet. Just the idea of not graduating with her peers, being less capable than them, watching them move on with their lives while she was stuck trying to figure out what they had - it was embarrassing. Under normal circumstances, she might have broached the subject with her parents. But they were miles away and concerned with more important problems. In their stead, Dr. Neville did make a comforting substitute.

"Actually," Marnie corrected herself with a glance at the doctor, "I was just thinking about myself. I mean, it's not like my power's one of the dangerous ones, so I'm sure I'll be fine," she added hurriedly. "Just, you know, sometimes it feels like, I don't know... like I don't know as much as I should."

It wasn't the sort of thing she could really say to someone like, say, her roommate. As much as she wanted to like Ash, she had to admit the girl wasn't the most compassionate listener. But here, it felt good to get it out in the open. A relief.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean nodded sympathetically, listening attentively as Marnie described her concerns. He had been in that position. Countless students had been in that position and admitted similar concerns, although that typically occurred in his office as opposed to in his neighborhood during a jog.

“I know how that can be.” The psychiatrist’s primary power was not dangerous, although it certainly made other people uncomfortable. His secondary power was dangerous, although not acutely life-threatening. Sean used that power primarily in therapeutic settings, and, as a result, a number of people were unaware of it. After all, he described himself as a telepath most of the time, as that was his primary power, the power that had the greatest impact on his day-to-day life.

“However, when it comes time for your final training exam, I’m sure that you’ll find that you know more than you think you know.”

That was how he and countless thousands of children to come through Hammel before and after his graduation had felt. Powers could be daunting, but if one had the requisite control, everything came together during the final training exam.

They reached a stop sign that, while directed at motor vehicles and not people, Sean took as an opportunity to rest. Talking while jogging took more energy and proved more exhausting than jogging alone did. He leaned forward, resting his hands on his knees as he caught his breath.

[Marnie Sullivan]

It was difficult to picture the doctor as having anything less than total control over his power, but then again, Marnie supposed he must have been a kid at some point. At any rate, she found his words reassuring; maybe senior year wouldn't be so bad after all.

"Thank you, sir." Then, realizing her mistake, "Er, sorry - that is, thank you, Doctor." Not the world's biggest slip-up, but she still felt a twinge of embarrassment.

It occurred to Marnie when the man paused at the stop sign that she was probably due to turn back. There was still plenty of time before classes began, but this far out from campus, she knew the last couple of miles were going to be tough.

"I think I'd better get back to school," she told Dr. Neville while he caught his breath. "Thanks for letting me vent, I appreciate it." With a smile and another small wave, Marnie turned and began the trip back to Hammel, feeling considerably lighter than she had a few minutes ago.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean had been told time and again by several students that they found it difficult, if not impossible, to imagine him as a child or as a teenager. Instead, Doctor Neville was supposed to have entered this world as a fully-formed and fully-competent adult, one who was functionally the same as he was in the present. However, once upon a time, he had been as new and unfamiliar with his powers as everyone else. Granted, that had been twice as long, or longer, than most of the students had been alive.

The psychiatrist lifted his head to look over at her, although he remained in his position to catch his breath. Josh was not the only one in need of, and benefitting from, the exercise regimen that they had instituted. He offered her a smile. “You’re welcome, Marnie.” He did not mention the slipup, since she’d corrected herself and they had already covered preferred forms of address.

Before he could offer her a ride back to campus, she had already turned around. As such, he lifted one hand from his knee to wave farewell to her. “Have a safe trip back!” He called to her.

Once he caught his breath, he could turn around and head back to his house.