Re: Chapter 4-B: Moving In
Michael didn't respond right away, working on packing a few boxes up with a few things that he would end up looking at for a little longer than others. Finally he spoke again when he pulled a photo album out and started flipping through it, still packing other things, but looking mostly at the pictures.
"Lucy, ah where to start," he said with a small smile. "Well we first met at a martial arts dojo. I had been looking to learn something new and it was near campus, so I decided to check it out. Lucy was the assistant instructor there, helping with the judo instructions and teaching the aikido classes herself. I don't really know how we started talking, but after one class we did and just sort of clicked. We would train together a lot, though I never actually ended up as a victor. Any time I thought I had her pinned, she'd slip right out and have me in some strange way and the match was over." Michael chuckled at this, remembering some funny times.
"The crazy time came when my powers went a bit haywire. I hadn't ported in years, not needing it and trying not to think about it, since at the time I thought it made me a freak and just didn't want to think about it. She came over one evening after her class, worried since I hadn't been there, and I never missed a class, at least without letting her know. Anyway, my powers had gotten out of control. I could move without porting. Not very far, but over and over again, and most of you have seen what happens when I do that repeatedly. Not a pretty sight by any means. She came in and found me laying on the floor, a complete mess and barely conscious. She started speaking, though not to me, just out loud. I'm still not sure what she was saying, but listening to it calmed me. She told me later on it was her mantra, something she said to herself whenever she needed to calm down," he looked at the beads around his wrist, his own mantra beads. "I came up with my own and it helps. There are times still, if I go to long without using my powers, that I need to use them. As long as I focus though, calm myself, I can do it without hurting myself. Takes longer to do, but is safe. Without Lucy, I'm not sure if I'd have made it through that night."