One Step at a Time (Jay)

[Jayden "Jay" Hersch]

Jay let himself drift, falling into the familiar pattern of breathing that he had slowly gotten used to after several months of physical and mental therapy. The sound of his student across from him gently doing the same only lulled him into a deeper trance, and it was with regret that he pulled himself out of his depth of relaxation to open his eyes and watch her for another few moments.

"Alright, you can stop," he spoke softly, rolling out his shoulders a bit. He smiled warmly at her. "How do you feel? Any better, even just a little?" She probably wouldn't notice a big change at first - it was something that took time. "This is something you can do when you feel yourself start to panic. I can't guarantee that it will stop an anxiety attack from happening, but by focusing on filling your body with air and replenishing the oxygen in your blood you should at least be able to calm yourself somewhat."

But enough about breathing for now. He gave her a small grin. "We'll focus on breathing for longer each session; I know it can be a bit dull, even if it is helpful." He stood gracefully, making an impromptu spin on his yoga mat. "Something else that helps me get my mind off of things is dancing. Would you be interested in incorporating that into our sessions?"

[Amanda Joy "AJ" Lane]

"Okay," AJ said with a nod, opening her eyes which she'd closed instinctively to look at him once more. "I think...it helped." She was being honest. She knew if she didn't, she wouldn't get anything out of this training. "It helped me shift my focus," she agreed. Which was true. Each breath of air had filled her lungs with hope.

"Honestly, I'm willing to try anything if it will help me." She didn't want him to think she was a total wreck, but she also wanted him to know how serious she was taking this. "Dancing?" she asked with the raise of an eyebrow as he got to his feet. Sure, she wasn't ridiculously clumsy, but he'd attended dance school! His approach was interesting to say the least, using things to help center her mind elsewhere. But she wasn't sure how it would help her with her power.

[Jayden "Jay" Hersch]

Jay nodded approvingly, assuming AJ was being honest. From what he could gather from her thus far, she was much too determined to get control of her ability to keep anything from him that might hinder her progress. "I'd suggest taking some time even on off-training days to just find a quiet, calm place and practice deep breathing," he told her. "That's what I do; it does help me." He smiled again. "I'm glad that you seem to be benefiting from it already, though; that's a good sign."

"Excellent!" he praised. "An open mind is the best tool to have in harnessing your ability." Jay smiled at her reaction to his question, bobbing his head as he rolled onto the balls of his feet. "Exercise is great to relieve stress. I want to get you at least a little tired out before we focus on trying to work your abilities; that way, we'll hopefully have more success when I ask you to try to use your pheromones." He didn't know if this would be successful, but he liked to think it would be. He grinned brightly. "What do you say?"

[Amanda Joy "AJ" Lane]

"Yeah, that's a good idea. It helps so I think I'll be doing that anyway just to calm myself down. I've...I've manipulated a lot of people on accident. I don't want it to happen anymore and I get very nervous around others," AJ admitted. Yes, she was shy and her voice was soft, just audible, but she knew she needed to tell him things in order to get the help she needed.

Asking her to use her pheromones? Now that freaked her out. She wasn't even sure how to really use them, it was confusing, but she took a deep breath and nodded at Jay. "Yeah, that makes sense." She got to her feet as well.

[Jayden "Jay" Hersch]

Jay continued to make understanding gestures as AJ explained her problems with her ability. "Just remember - you're not doing it out of meanness, or trying to manipulate others. It's an involuntary act that we're working to control, and I'm confident that it won't take too long before you'll see results." He was just glad she wasn't the kind to purposefully use her ability on others; that would be much, much harder to tame.

He smiled brightly. "Alright then, let's just have a bit of fun with this," he told her. Jay spent the next quarter of an hour or so going through various routines, working to get AJ's body pumping with good-mood boosting endorphins that would hopefully make controlling her ability easier. Nothing too strenuous, but hopefully making her also laugh with his rather silly antics when it came to his biggest passion - dance. "Alright, how do you feel?" he asked. "Ready to try to tackle a bit of pheromones?"