A One Time Teenage Drama Queen [Sean]

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean did not intend to drill her about training; that had not been his intention in initiating conversation with her in the first place. Rather, he had wanted to check in with her emotionally, given the amount of knowledge he had about her relationship with Lucas and the subsequent breakup, despite never having been consulted either by her or by Lucas about it.

However, both as a member of the Hammel administration, and as a psychic with memories of his own training and the struggle he had had, he could not turn a blind eye when he learned that a student’s training had lagged behind. Particularly not with a power like hers, one that took a mental toll and required intensive training to control.

As for how his powers influenced his knowledge base, he could no more apologize for that than he could apologize for being taller than most people. To the best of his ability, he tried to provide students with the illusion of privacy, when he could not provide actual privacy, but he did not go further than that.

He nodded along as she continued to explain her self-training regimen. “Better is always a good place to be,” he replied, although he remained concerned. She needed someone to assist her and guide her; stumbling alone went counter to the entire purpose of Hammel as an institution.

“Memory and sensory-based powers are some of the hardest to control,” he remarked, not with the knowledge that came from being a trainer and working with others, but rather from personal experience. “Often it’s a matter of being good enough rather than have full control.”

[Karalie Heise]

Karalie didn't know Dr. Neville well enough to know what he was thinking.  He nodded along with her but that didn't mean anything.  She could get detention for all she knew, or be instructed to go for extra training in order to obtain control faster.  Who knew if she would ever even have control.  No one could know that, though she assumed others with her ability had gained it.  Hell, her roommate probably had more control than she did.  She watched Penelope touch plenty of things in the past, but she also didn't know how her abilities worked, also she was rigid enough to devote hours to training where Karalie would rather focus on other things, afraid of her own ability.  

She somehow found relief in knowing hers was one of the more difficult to control.  It made her feel less alone though she knew no one else who struggled quite like she did.  She was sure they existed, though.  "Wha'd'ya mean good enough?" She asked.  It sounded like she shouldn't expect to ever have full control, which of course she didn't because she was eighteen, but lord it sounded like he was agreeing!  

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Not wanting her to get the wrong impression, the psychiatrist lifted his hand slightly, a gesture to demonstrate that he needed her to listen. He waited until he had her attention before he explained, “I’m not a trainer – in fact, I have nothing to do with the training program whatsoever , and so you should take what I say with a grain of salt.”

Specifically, Karalie was not a telepath. He could not speak from personal experience with discussing her powers, even if he felt kinship due to their shared memory-based powers. Practically speaking, retrocognition bore little resemblance to memory manipulation, in terms of how they functioned, and so he could offer little advice there. Apart from recommending a brand of painkiller – Excedrin had always served him well – he had no authority and little sway.

Still, he did sympathize. And he intended to inquire into her training situation at the next staff meeting to make sure that she received the necessary attention.

He continued, “With that said, not every power is as easy to control as super strength, or some of the kinetic abilities. Especially for mental powers, our goals are practical: be able to function for the rest of our lives and have good control, perhaps 90-95% control instead of 100%, which is sometimes an unattainable ideal.” Looking her in the eyes, he turned around the question she had asked him earlier while explaining her powers and training course, “Does that make sense?”

[Karalie Heise]

She was surprised to hear that he had little to with the training program.  It seemed like something he would, or at least should have his hand in, but at the moment she was grateful for it.  That didn't mean he wouldn't pass her information on to someone who did have some amount of authority, but for now she was safe.  She would have through Christmas break to work things out, maybe a bit longer if she was lucky.

Karalie listened carefully as he went on to explain what he'd meant, which made sense.  Having almost complete control was good enough, but even that seemed difficult for her.  She wasn't even sure she'd reached 50%.  How was she expected to hit 90% by the end of the year? Or was she? She didn't know and she was afraid to find out.  Still it was knowledge worth knowing.

"Yes'sir." She drawled politely, tucking a stray hair behind her ear.  "But.. do I need tuh be at ninety percent by graduation in order tuh leave Pilot Ridge?"  She could kiss Ole Miss goodbye if that was the case.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Sean continued to make eye contact with her, waiting for her to absorb what he had to say and to process it on her own. This might not have been the conversation he had initiated, but it was one that she needed to have, either with him or with another member of the administration. Better to have it now, rather than to have a surprise in spring term when she found a hold on her file.

“That’s for your trainer to determine.” The psychiatrist needed her to understand that he had no authority in this area whatsoever. Her trainer made the final assessment, subject to review by the Headmistress. While Sean wore many hats and had his fingers in many pots, training had never been within his purview.

“If your trainer or the other administration doesn’t think that you have enough control, then you’ll have to stay in the area.” That had happened to several students in the past, although it was less than common. Most students graduated on time. The ones who required additional power training enrolled at one of the local colleges. Some transferred once they could leave Hammel, while others chose to pursue their degrees in Vermont. Occasionally, a student who required additional training did not enroll in college and so they worked or otherwise remained in town while attending their power classes.

[Karalie Heise]

Needless to say Karalie didn't like the answer's he was giving.  She wasn't angry with him so much as the situation, but he had certainly put her in a worse mood than she already was in.  Karalie made no secret of her distaste for the brutal winters Vermont had to offer and she was looking forward to a less harsh climate.  Looks like those dreams were dashed, and quickly.  Just one more thing to add on the ever growing list of things to hate.


Part of Karalie wanted to challenge the telepath.  What if she didn't stay? What would happen if she up and left without permission? Could they detain her? Force her to stay until they decided she was able to face society?  She wasn't the type to rebel like that, so it wouldn't matter either way.  She'd stay if she had to because she was obedient.  If this was the path the Lord had set her on, she would need to follow it.

"Fine." It was said with a stoic face.  No sense wearing her heart on her sleeve when there was nothing she could hide from the company she was currently keeping.  She hoped the local university would accept her..  Truth be told she didn't feel much like talking about any of this anymore.  She wanted to just sit in her own misery, hating her ability like she always did. Maybe she should date someone with the power to suppress metas.  Now that would be something.

[Dr. Sean Neville]

Worsening her mood had not been Sean’s intention when he had engaged her in conversation. Instead, he had intended to open the door to discussing her relationship with Lucas, as well as checking in with her, considering the warning signs that Marnie had provided him about Lucas’s potentially abusive tendencies.

He could consider that mission half-accomplished, since he had confirmation of their breakup, and, due to telepathy, knew far more than that. Karalie appeared relatively unscatched in terms of psychological trauma, although she was, understandably, upset about the entire situation.

Unwittingly, he had stumbled upon her training problems in the midst of all of this. He intended on addressing that through proper channels, which would include looking up her trainer and then letting Yvette know prior to the next staff meeting, rather than arranging a meeting himself. Karalie was not one of his patients or his protégés, and he did not require telepathy to know that intervening at that level would do more harm than good.

Truth told, he couldn’t blame her for wanting to leave, but he could do nothing about that aside from offering support that she had otherwise rebuffed. He could tell that she wanted time to herself, and, as ineffective as the conversation might otherwise have been, he could provide that much. As it was, he had overstayed his welcome.

Pushing himself to his feet with a small cracking sound from his back, he said, “As ominous as this might sound, I wouldn’t recommend running. You wouldn’t get very far, and then you’d spend the next semester on restriction. It isn’t worth it.”

With that, he headed for the exit, to return the student lounge to the students once more. Before he left, he added, “I meant what I said about my door always being open.”