They Don't Bite... Do They? [Trapper+Cat]

[Mitya Makarov]

It really was ridiculous, and he knew it. After many long years working in the military, after all of his experience training meta-humans in Russia, Mitya Makarov was nervous. Heart racing, palm sweating, accent-thickening sort of nervous. And he was fairly sure everyone around him could tell. The way some of them stared or turned to whisper to their friend as soon as they got close to him. It was enough to make him wish he had super hearing instead of telekinesis. Then again, did he really want to know what they were saying? What if they weren’t talking about him after all and he was just being paranoid? That was the most likely explanation, but it was the one he was least inclined to believe at that point in time. Although, he did keep reminding himself that he was very new to the place, and people were probably only showing mild interest in a new face. Interest that would wear off very quickly indeed. Looking away from the lone stranger coming closer to him in the hallway, he attempted to flatten his unruly, lengthening hair, wishing that moment would come soon.

He hadn't been in Pilot Ridge for very long at all, maybe a week or so. If memory served him correctly. He could even have sworn that he was still jetlagged, and if asked, he had already decided that was the excuse he was giving. Even so, he had already moved to another teaching site once before. It really didn’t make sense that he was so worried about meeting new people. He had trained students in both Russia and Switzerland; why should this place have been any different? Other than the new faces and names he was going to have to memorise.

Get a grip, Mitya; they're children, he scorned himself, looking through an open door at another trainer trying to help a pyrokinetic girl, who promptly set a desk alight. Well, if nothing else, it was nice to know that the students worldwide had the same sorts of issues. The next room down was where he was to meet his students, and upon reaching the door he quickly wiped imaginary excess sweat onto his suit before turning the handle and making his way inside. No-one here yet. That was a plus. At least he had some time to compose himself, even if he didn’t know exactly how much.

[Trapper Petano]

Finding herself in a classroom would not be a problem her studies at the new school were much like her old with the occasional accident by a student to zealous to try their power in front of someone to show off only to distract the class or what not. However this class, would be different, it was one to help her “control” her ability that ‘power’ she found so hard to even put words too.

She stared out with the window her eyes half way closed squinting to keep some of the bright light out as her head continued to plague her with pain even with Advil on board. Her hands on her temples when someone else came into the room another girl she had not met before.
Trapper turned to greet the new face forcing a smile “I’m Trapper, Trapper Petano” she extended a slightly shaking hand that she hopped the other person wouldn’t notice.

To be honest Trapper was sitting there scared sh*tless and when the door opened and a man walked in Trapper pulled her hand back and sat up not knowing what to except from this teacher.

What would he ask her to do? Would she be able to control this ability? Or was she doomed to have it plague her the rest of her life? Questions that hung on what this teacher could or could not do for Trapper.

[Catherine Novella]

Cat was a bit surprised when she got told that she was being assigned a trainer and they were to meet. She had just naturally thought that she was forgotten. It was not as if her power was really harmful to anyone and it could not really cause any harm. She figured she was one of the lower risk students and Hammel had other, more dangerous students to deal with.

So when the day came that she was supposed to meet her trainer cat was a bit anxious. She was not quite sure how this was going to go seeing as she was pretty sure her power was going to be hard to train. She had gotten dressed very plainly today as she was not quite sure what was going to be going on. Basically she dressed in jeans, a blue shirt that hung loose and a pair of blue sneakers. Cat was prepared for anything really.

Cat had waked in about fifteen minutes early. She had specifically gotten up earlier then normal because she really didn’t know her way around the school well. Apparently she had gotten up a bit to early. Pulling out a book from her bag Cat began to read ignoring the time. In truth she was more then a bit nervous. She really did want to learn how to control her power. And most of the time she avoided using it if she could.

Cat looked up as someone entered the room. They were not someone Cat was familiar with. Were they here to train also? She stood up and smiled at the girl.”I’m Catherine Novella, pleased to meet you.” With that Cat shook hands with the girl who identified herself as Trapper.

When the door opened and the trainer came in Cat was a bit hesitant but she kept her eyes hidden and made sure to keep her thoughts to herself. She wanted to know how the trainer would react to her power. Cat herself knew it was a bit unusual. But Cat was Cat if the trainer could not deal then she would have to get a new trainer. She really did want to be on good relations with this one though.

[Mitya Makarov]

It wasn't until another trainer appeared next to him that Mitya realised he had completely mixed up the room numbers. Well. He was off to a very good start, that was sure. Quickly apologising in his ever thickening accent, making as little eye contact as possible, he rushed out of the training room and looked for the right one this time, cursing softly under his breath. And secretly hoping no-one in the vicinity spoke enough Russian to decipher the colourful and creative vulgarities he was muttering.

It was, of course, still stupid of him to be nervous. The problem was, however, that he still didn't quite know how he wanted the children to see him. Should he be strict? Should he be lenient? All he knew how to do was bark orders, really. He'd never truly adopted a training style of his own. So it made sense for him to be worried. He just didn't think he should have been quite as worried as he was. Could children tell when their teachers were nervous? The teenaged ones seemed to have that uncanny ability. It never made things easy. What was that thing he'd heard people say before? 'Kids can be so cruel', a cliché like that. Mitya allowed himself the smallest of wry smiles. Yeah, that was true. But, to his own credit, he never let a student's behaviour be disruptive for very long.

Coming to what he hoped was the correct door this time, he took another deep, cleansing breath and turned the handle. Amazingly, it seemed to work. No longer shivering - or at least, not shivering as much as before - he entered the room, apparently startling the two young girls he was set to train that day. Though he still wasn't quite sure what training style he was going to go for today, he was pretty certain he didn't want to start off by intimidating them. Plucking a paper from his pocket - for he did not have the foresight to bring clipboards or folders - he took a look at his roster.

"Trapper Petano? Catherine Novella?" he asked in an attempt to confirm that he was, in fact, in the correct room this time and that he hadn't again walked in on someone else's trainees. "Mitya Makarov. I'm a new trainer here. Could you state your powers for me?" After a moment's thought, he brought a pen out, so that he could make sure he had their powers doubly confirmed. At the very least.

[Trapper Petano]

"Trapper Petano? Catherine Novella?" The man that walked thru the door asked. Trapper looked at the other girl and back to the teacher, simply nodded her head while nearly holding her breath before letting out a controlled sigh. Her blue eyes watched him very closely as he said his name.
"Mitya Makarov. I'm a new trainer here. Could you state your powers for me?" his voice calm with clearly an accent.

Trapper looked down ‘powers’ there was that word again, while she thought it was neat to hear animals talk it still made her feel different, too different.

She could remember that first time that she heard an animal talk to her, her sisters Psalms seeing eye dog Foxx, it was her fifteen birthday, when the dog asked her to go out. Since then it seemed like she could hear each cat, dog and other family pets of the neighborhood. Trapper knew no one would believe her, she was even hospitalized by the family doctor.
So how could this be a power when all it seemed like was a curse?

Trapper slowly looked to the other girl and then back to the teacher “I can hear animals” she said almost at a whisper, her hands shaking under her.

[Catherine Novella]

Cat watched as the man came into the room. She looked down at her watch. He was a bit late but that was ok. He first impression of him was that he was tall. Very tall. At least… tall for her. She was so short everyone else seemed overly tall. Cat smiled a bit as he started talking with a slight accent. Cat paid attention when he started talking. The other girl was quicker to respond and Cat let her finish talking before she started. It was only polite to do so.

When the trainer asked if the two really were the two Cat nodded. “I am Catherine Novella, but you can call me Cat if you wish.” Cat smiled as the man spoke. He was not too daunting. For that she was glad. Cat had heard about trainers that were very harsh to their students. She was most glad that she did not have one of those, at least she hoped she didn’t.

Cat listened intently when he spoke his name and asked about her and Trapper’s powers. Cat was glad that she was not the only one that was nervous as she saw Trapper become a little stiff. She smiled slightly as trapper said that she could communicate with animals. At personally thought that power was much better then hers. That, and it was much more interesting. As Cat waited for Trapper to finish talking she was aware of the fact that her power would probably confuse the trainer. Heck it confused her even.

“The recruiter told me it was Creation Psychometry. Umm long story short, I can tell what someone is thinking or feeling when they write something down. I have to read what they write of course. Grammar and the length of the writing affects how easy my power comes to me.” Feeling her explanation was done Cat grew silent again waiting for the inevitable onslaught of questions that were bound to come. They always did.