*This is the earliest record of Reiko?s lessons with Toby. Kept in a journal that is currently locked away in a location known only to the Terran native, its existence isn?t as known as the journal that the woman keeps on her desk or on her bed. Particularly private thoughts are shared with Toby that Reiko would rather not leave their sessions, so anybody who should come across this for any reason is asked not to include this in their storylines of any sorts.

Tracking?locating?there she is!

A bird has flown inside of the Inn, taking advantage of the front door being left open by one of the patrons as they entered with it. Their presence to each other was unknown, as was the purpose for the former?s entrance. Although it?s actually mechanical and contains far more than what meets the eye, it looks real enough by sight. What gives it away almost immediately are the sounds of the soft metallic flaps of its wings and the electronic-sounding chirps. This bird has come for Reiko, and it wasn?t going anywhere until it had what it was sent here to retrieve.

Really, why did this woman have to be so stubborn? It?s as if she hadn?t heard it chirping right at her, at least not for?too long! These particular chirps, all of which came from the same bird who followed her outside to the back alley behind the Inn, had distinct similarities to the notes that Toby?s played on the piano in the past. He?s a friendly bartender and easy-going guy who jokes around and plays the piano; at least, that?s how he came across to the woman that crept over to the back of Levi?s pickup truck. After awhile, the bird has decided that it?s had enough of her antics. Flying over, it started to peck at her head with its beak just as Andu came running out. That was the end of Reiko?s attempt to ambush and possibly murder Levi Clark.

A slightly ill-faced Reiko meandered from the Inn then, having followed that damn annoying bird with a bottle of wine in her hand. She had snatched it from the counter, what with it being unopened (and now unpaid for), and helped herself to the first sip just before approaching the vehicle cautiously. She suddenly found out the effects that medicine had when she felt this really strong urge to vomit that wine back up?ew! She sat in the back seat of the vehicle once she had opened the door.

"Stupid to ask now?but what?s with you and that annoying bird?" Reiko hadn?t been able to make out the face right away in the darkness, and certainly not the back of the head.

"It?s a prototype security drone I built for where I live. It?s designed to patrol, identify, and reconnoiter." As if on cue, Toby would then follow that up with, "And record, did I mention that part?"

She shook her head no. "Honestly, I?m having a bit of trouble right now. Ugh?" Leaning forward, she held her head with both hands by the sides. "?take a sip of wine, and suddenly I feel like I?ve got another hangover. Bloody Hell." What exactly had happened to that wine, anyways? Reiko had dropped it outside of the vehicle that she now found herself regretting that one sip of wine in, only minus the upchucking.

Her regret didn?t take much away from her ability to pay attention. At least, not from the listening aspect of it. "Yeah. You?ve had a busy night," was said so casually, "I?ve been waiting while you were hell-raising. I thought about lecturing you, but, y?know. Not my style. Besides, I always find that object lessons stick better than words. Don?t you?" Toby said these things conversationally, as he then took the shuttle practically vertical at what could best be described as blistering sped. Coincidentally, the backseat of the shuttle was scotch-guarded ? he did have kids, after all.

"Much appreciated." Thankfully, the woman had bottles of fresh water and blueberry-pomegranate juice in her backpack. Looking up would be a horrible idea right now, particularly if she didn?t want to see another gross effect of the medicine and wine?some medicine! More like a pill from Hell! "Like the one I?m apparently learning now? Sure?" She shut her eyes.

Toby nodded. "It?s somewhere between 'don?t look for trouble' and 'don?t keep your ride waiting.'" Great. "Along with 'keep to high altitude when flying over the primitive side of town, they get spooked by spacecraft.'" He leveled out somewhere around three thousand feet and headed roughly northwest.

What about avenging the cause of a suicide attempt? she wanted to ask. Instead, Reiko kept her mouth shut. Dare she look up? In a minute, perhaps. The worst of the effect seemed to start to pass, so the woman opened her eyes and peered up some. Then her head raised just enough for her to look to her right. Where were all of the buildings at? Was this even Rhy?din the city anymore? Below, if Reiko chanced to look out the shuttle craft's windows, the city gave way to farms and various villages, and then to no civilization at all ? just lots and lots of trees. "I?d say we?re not in Kansas anymore, but it looks like we?re going back to Kansas?where are we going, Toby?" Reiko asked, looking away from the window. She rubbed her temples.

"North." But that maddeningly vague response was followed up a few moments later. "The Glen isn?t really safe anymore, not with all the nut-jobs and firebugs running around. So, I?m relocating the lessons for the moment to someplace more protected."

"Yeah?so I?ve heard." The arsonists and maniacs were getting out of hand, in her opinion. Reiko may not have every card in her deck, but she at least admitted to it and tried to find those missing cards. How was that working out for her? Well?considering her earlier attempt to ambush and slowly end Levi?s life with as much pain as possible, one could answer with, 'full of bumps.' She was off on her thought train, not immediately realising that the trip was much longer than the one from Star?s End Spaceport to the RTS headquarters. Considering the speed at which the shuttle flew, they had to be ungodly far north, probably a day or more by ground vehicle.

The now-empty bottle sat in front of the woman now, the challenge catching her interest. Make it stand? "How on Ea-Rhy?din..?" Reiko mumbled very quietly. She didn?t want to distract the young girl from her seemingly impossible attempt. Seeing the look on her face pretty much matched the thought on Reiko?s mind: impossible! Only a sorcerer could do that! she thought.

At first, the leaf quivered?it lay still. Toby was very quiet well as he spoke, for Reiko?s ears alone. "My daughter is gifted. Watch." Again, the leaf quivered?it almost rolled over. Then it went still. There was no breeze to detect.

! Now that had her complete attention! Reiko was watching very carefully without even budging. Other than the necessary breathing, the woman wasn?t moving. The thing was moving by itself! What was she seeing, here? Reiko?s eyes started to narrow some. Was she watching sorcery in action?

Toby spoke once more, quietly still, as the leaf kept twitching. "It?s about control. About will." The leaf started to rise?and then quivering violently in the grip of some unseen force, the stress was too much, and it was torn to pieces. Maurin?s face crumpled in frustration and disappointment; Toby gently patted her shoulder. "Take a break?relax. We?ll try again in a few."

Well, now Reiko?s head was tilted curiosity. Control, huh. "What did I just watch..?" she couldn?t help asking. Yes, Reiko was an admitted idiot to?well, whatever this "gift" of Maurin?s was.

As Maurin took a drink from her own water bottle and tried not to look sulky, Toby spoke quietly to Reiko. "Mind over matter. We realized, to some surprise, when she was just a year old and her toys would float out of her crib. The question is teaching her control. To keep her from being a danger to herself, and to others. The principles apply to you too, just not the cause." He was watching her closely, to gauge her reaction to this.

What Toby would see from Reiko was a raised eyebrow and her arms folded in front of her. "Mind over matter?like sorcery, in other words?" she said first. Then she arched that raised eyebrow. "?what are you trying to say, here?"

"No," simply said at first, "Sorcery, what you?d call magic, is something else." His hands were folded in front of him, as if assuming a teacher?s mode. It was here that the explanations began in order to try helping Reiko understand: Magic is a real thing. It?s a force, an energy that exists in the world around us. There are those who have a gift with it, the ability to manipulate magic, to control it and use it to do things. "Ree is not magically gifted. We know this for sure; her godfather is a sorcerer and confirmed it. What Ree can do is different ? it?s within her. Mind over matter." He tilted his head at Reiko. "There?s a word from your world, my wife told me. Telekinesis. It?s?well, more limited. It is literally as I said it, mind over matter. Where magic is nearly limitless in what it can do. Understand, I?m only reciting what?s basically a child?s textbook description of magic. I don?t really understand it?I can?t. I have absolutely no gift for it either. I can only repeat what others tell me about it. Technology has always been my thing, so that?s a whole different world."

Reiko put up her hands some. Toby had lost her some time ago. "Whoa?let?s slow this down some." Okay, a lot. "]Where I was born, all of those words were apparently used to describe who knows what. Where I actually grew up, all of that got classified as sorcery?people are very spiritual on those islands in different ways from what I?m used to, and it drives me crazy." Why? Because the sorcery just looked weird is all. Unnatural. "I?m starting to understand technology better?but this? All of this, no offence to your daughter, is weird." Reiko was really biting her tongue with the word filters.

To this, the man was nodding. "Of course it?s weird. My wife said the exact same thing when she came here from your world. Rhy?din is built on weird. You hang out regularly with a ten foot?um?whatever Andu is?and a dragon." A wry smile was formed then. Why did Reiko hang out with Andu and Icer regularly? They had been among the first to welcome her to this world years ago, she had admitted then. She?s seen them before and their likeness in books as a kid. "Right now, Ree is learning to focus on a single thing?a leaf?and make it dance. It?s her first step towards learning control. In time?she will be able to do much more."

And, she knew that this was nothing like Terra in terms of inhabitants or anything like that. "?there?s weird, and then there?s Weird."

Another nod followed. "And for good or ill, you?re seeing it up close. If nothing else, you need to know these things exist, to prepare yourself." First, there was a pause. Then, he spoke one word. "Watch." He stood up slowly, brushing leaves off his cargo pants.

Maurin ceased feigning any interest in her water bottle, watching him. She knew what was coming and loved to watch it; she moved over to sit down next to Reiko for a good vantage point. As there was no wind tonight, it was easy to hear the soft crunch of leaves under Toby?s boots as he walked away from them, towards the clearing proper. Around them, and stretched for hundreds of yards to the west, the clearing was carpeted with fallen leaves from the trees that bordered it. Toby stood motionless for a while, looking off to the side.

Mind over matter? That?s what Reiko had just watched?

"G'wan home. It?s your bedtime, and Mama?s gonna be waiting," Toby nudged Maurin. She grumbled, but gave him a hug good night and even gave Reiko one (which was returned quickly and politely) before she darted off through the newly fallen leaves towards the cabin.

Reiko looked back to Toby once Maurin was inside and asked quietly, "You mean to tell me that you did that all by yourself?with just your mind?"

"Yes," he answered simply, "it all started with one leaf, a long time ago. My teacher handed it to me, and told me to make it stand on end. That?s how I learned precision, subtlety. Control. The same lesson I?m teaching my daughter. You asked me once just what made me qualified to teach anyone about mental discipline. Your guardian asked nearly the same thing." Toby quietly added, "There is your answer."

Oh boy?that was the answer to her question. Her guardian, being a native of the islands where the majority of her childhood was spent, wasn?t nearly this open. It was confusing to the woman now, but it was very slowly starting to make sense. Sort of, anyways. "And you?re saying that willpower enables you to move things with your mind, like what you did with those leaves?" Reiko asked confusedly, pointing to a random area of leaves.

"Yes." This was said slowly. "It?s not only willpower?but if you have no strength of will, you cannot do what I did. With strength of will?many things are possible. But that alone isn?t enough. It?s easy to hurl things. That?s raw force. That?s nothing." Toby toyed with the cap of his water bottle. "The precision?the subtlety to make each leaf dance exactly where I wanted it?to know where they were all going, to know where they?d end up?that?s the real key. There is so much more to it. But I think you might feel more at ease if I just stick to this for now, yea? I reckoned it was time you got a glimpse of what?s out there besides people with swords and guns."

Reiko nodded. Get anymore in-depth, and her head just might explode. Right now, she was trying to digest everything else! "And conventional weapons in general, apparently?"

Digesting everything else would be, for the moment, halted with Toby clearing his throat. "I am what you would call a psion. Some people argue that it?s just another form of magic; I don?t. Psions, in a nutshell, are the arts of the mind, of which you?ve now seen one. Telekinesis. Mind over matter." He elaborated further with his own struggles, a terrible struggle to gain the kind of control he has now. He had sought out any and every kind of mental discipline trick and meditation form one could imagine. "I learned a lot about myself in the process, and while I?m not going to be teaching you how to make a leaf stand on end?I feel confident as I did before, that I can teach you self-control, the kind you need."

Even after all of that, upon hearing the words "psion" and "telekinesis," Reiko for some reason thought of sorcery. She apparently had to disassociate those words from one another but, another time. When she had more time in the day to think, anyways. Right now, it?s gone back to self-control. Basically, what she?s just witnessed with those leaves. "What do you have in mind, then?" Reiko dared to ask.

"Just what we?ve been doing. Meditation. Exercises. And as you see fit, talking it out." Like now, as they were doing. "You need to master yourself. Master your passions. Master your impulses. You already know this, but now it?s time to put up or shut up, as they say." Toby paused to take a sip of his water. He then continued. "Do you remember what I told you, about finding good reasons not to drink? Do you understand a little better why I don?t drink, now?"

"Yes, I do." Her more recent dances with alcohol were reason enough; the others were bonuses. Reiko hasn?t touched the bottle that Toby had given to her earlier, having only drank that one bottle of water that she?d brought with her. "That medicine you suggested?it?s the Pill from Hell if one sip of cheap wine made me gag." A look of disgust at the earlier tiff complemented the woman?s wording quite appropriately.

"Oh yeah. I also showed you this for another reason." He remained quiet in volume as he spoke. Reiko assumed this was to keep from waking young ears, if that was why. "I told you that the bird I sent was a prototype, designed to patrol and record. So you know I saw what went on in there tonight, right?" That was enough to shut Reiko up completely. If she was capable of going any paler than the white that she was already, then there was no doubt that she would be discovering the newest shade of white. Fifty Shades of White, maybe?

There was another very long pause here. During this pause, Reiko thought about those hints. She?d so willingly revealed to him the one secret that she hasn?t even shared with anybody else yet. One would think that maybe Andu would know, but no. She hadn?t even showed him. Her guardian knew, but that?s because he had to raise her sleeves countless times for basic check-ups and discovered the tattoo by accident. He?d also learnt first-hand what could happen if it was touched at all. "Much appreciated." She would be pissed if confidence was broken! Reiko didn?t trust anybody easily, let alone further than she could throw a piano, and she had taken a big gamble by opening up. "Hm?" She took another bottle of sealed water from her backpack and started to drink slowly.

"If it will help you trust me?if it will help you understand that I can empathize?I want you to think about what kind of terrible things someone with these gifts can do. I promise you this, I can empathize. And if I could learn to forgive myself and change, to become the person talking to you right now? Then I have hope for anyone."

When he had finished, he took a long sip of water. Or, she thought that Toby had finished.

Apparently not. "One request," he started again, "it?s not exactly a secret what I am. I?ve had to use it now and again, though it?s not too many people who actually know. I?d like to keep it that way." Just like that, Reiko?s current train of thought was derailed. From her own secret to Toby?s request, it was quite the switch. "Most people just know me as the friendly guy who tends bar and plays the piano, and jokes around. I?d rather not be known for what else I am unless I have no other choice."

Reiko blinked. That was it? Why would she even want to divulge something that she was still trying to make sense of, let alone something that wasn?t her place to share with others to begin with? "I?d like to not have anymore than necessary know about my own that I?ve shared with you, so let?s call it even and make a deal." Hell, she?ll shake hands on it if she must.

"I think that?s fair." It was deliberate, of course. By giving her a secret to hold, so to speak, Toby had evened the playing field. Now he was equally beholden as she was in that sense. It was a little fairer.

"Thank you," she said simply. Then, with no other words, she took a huge swig of the water. That was out of relief.

"I am going to set your homework, of course." He looked around at the leaves everywhere. "I want you to spend an hour each day with those meditation exercises I?ve been teaching you. Do you have someplace you can do them that?s isolated, with no distractions?"

The woman started to mull through her mind, racking at the possibilities. Her bedroom? Nope. Chewy was there, and Gaia altogether was distracting. The Inn? Hell no! That place was never empty; besides, it was too full of temptations?temptations were amongst the worst of distractions. Her mind continued to rack through until one more came to her mind: Lair. Specifically Dragontopia. Reiko?s been spending the last two days there to recover from the previous events. It was completely distraction-free.

"I do," she answered at last.

Toby still pretended not to notice, to spare her the further embarrassment of having it pointed out. "You?ve already figured it out, but this is where I live. There are no neighbors, not for hundreds upon hundreds of miles. This is so far north, it?s probably technically beyond anything we?d still call Rhy?din." Yes, she?s figured it out early on. The clearing itself was pretty huge, several football fields in length and width. The only major features were the cabin on a small hill rise, which looked down upon a silvery lake. It emptied out into a river which disappeared into the forest on the clearing?s east end. There was a second, larger hill just west of the lake, on which a nearly-completed house sat. The rest of it was just open space and grass, surrounded on all side by the forest. Venture north of where they were, eventually, and they would get to the foothills, and then the mountains.

"Beyond that, I?ve never gone, but it?s pretty cold up there. The entire land that I own is somewhere in the neighborhood of six hundred acres. Almost the entirety of that is forest; I?ve left it the way it was when I acquired it. Just the cabin, and the house we?re building beyond it, and a pool house and dock down at the lake." For one family though, that sure was a lot of land to own! It was bigger than the village that she had grown up in on the Islands, that?s for sure. She was fortunate if she was in one that was a quarter the size, never mind half. Wanderers likely got very lost, very quickly, without a map?or with a very crappy one.

Thinking about that with a slightly amusing visual of someone being chased back into civilization by bears, Reiko started to wipe at her tears, looking up once more to show that she indeed was paying attention. Besides, Toby was still telling her about the land of his that they were on. "I?ve been slowly adding onto the borders of it overtime. I like my privacy?there?s technically a road." He gestured to a well-worn path that led from the cabin?s hill rise, south into the trees where they opened up. "Eventually it does join up with one of the trail roads heading south, and will eventually reach Rhy?din City. But it?s a long-arse trip. I like it that way." Who didn?t like their privacy? Frankly, the woman might have been a bit concerned if she had been told of the complete lack of security beyond Toby?s vast-sized property.

"I bought this land about nine years ago. I was single then." He was musing. Reiko?s eyes shifted at the mention of his previous status, but she wasn?t going to succumb to the urge to ask. She instead let him talk. "Built the cabin. It was my?I guess you?d call it a sanctuary. Retreat." Just the way he said that left a lot of meaning unspoken about just what it was a retreat from. "After the fourth kid, we kind of figured the cabin was a wee bit too small, though." He elaborated on the plans for the new house, which had started after Selene was born. Keith?s birth added to the importance. The borders? Those were well-protected, courtesy of Kairee ? Toby?s teacher ? helping with magical wards.

"I put my own technological defenses and barriers up as well. That bird? It?s part of my next phase. I plan to eventually build a whole fleet?er, flock, of them to roam the woods, keep an eye on things, gather information, locate intruders, and so forth?while blending in. Less obtrusive than flying droids would be."

Those birds. Reiko made a face at that. "Yeah, thanks for the invasion of my privacy?"

"Well, you were supposed to come right out. We?d agreed on a time, you know," Toby said with a droll, "Next time, I?ll come in myself." He flashed a cheery smile at this.

"Damnit, Toby..!" Reiko had stopped crying by now. The slight shift in her expression feigned a lack of amusement in a sarcastic sense. "?not my fault a certain individual showed up."

At this point, the lesson was over. Because of the vast distance from their current location to Gaia, Toby gave Reiko a ride back in the same vehicle that he had picked her up in once they had finally finished talking. This time, there would be no complaints of needing a barf bag. Why? Not only has Reiko recovered from the one sip of alcohol she had taken back at the Inn earlier, she was far too tired to really say or do anything more. Needless to say, the ride back was quite peaceful as the Terran native ended up sleeping the entire way. Her next lesson? Well, things may or may not get a bit more interesting?

"So, let make sure I have this right," Toby started, mildly, "You overdid it on sugar and caffeine, and cussed out Ethan?who is probably the mildest guy I?ve known in a long time. When Andu, who is the guy you?re supposed to be listening to, tells you to take responsibility for your diet and sugar intake?which caused the incident?you respond my throwing a tantrum, going on a hunger strike, and losing your temper. Along with it, you thought you?d put on a big display for someone of your gifts. And, by doing so, you skip the very exercises that will help you master the self-control you are lacking so badly." Perhaps the most frightening of this moment was how even the tone of the man?s voice was. "Did I miss anything?"

Reiko blanched. Why did she get the feeling that something was about to go down tonight? Like she needed to get into anymore trouble than she as in already, but she wasn?t supposed to really hide anything. So, best to confess sooner than later. "Governor witnessed me apparently making an utter idiot of myself with the demonstration?but I thought I?d be able to keep it under control with just moving two napkins! I didn?t expect my feelings for Bond to change that!"

He whirled on her so fast, he was nearly a blur. "I lost control the first time over a girl. I caused so much damage that I left the Inn in a wrecked state, and if anyone else had been in there, I probably would have hurt them very, very badly. So let me make it absolutely crystal clear. Yes. Emotion changes everything; it sends it out of control, it fuels it. But more than that, it takes away the control. Showing off does not help, but I?m not just talking about that anymore. Andu made a reasonable request. You know it as well as I do, because it?s a step to help you control your situation. By taking responsibility for your diet, you assume the responsibility for what you do. And that?s where we seem to have a difference of opinion." Toby stared. "Responsibility."

If hearts could jump, then her heart would have just done a leap with the speed that Toby had just moved to face her. This left Reiko silent and very unwilling to move, her breath catching. Responsibility was something that the woman was still very much a child in. "?" No words came to her just then as she sat quietly and tried to ignore her heart beating a little faster.

But, Toby wasn?t quite finished yet. "Let?s talk about responsibility. I have taken responsibility for you now, as a teacher. But, it?s time you started to take responsibility too. This? This was a fit. I would expect this from one of my kids. So you refused to do what Andu asked?fine. What happens if I ask you to do it?" He continued to stare as he waited for Reiko to answer.

"?" It had clearly been a fit, for sure. Being compared to one of Toby?s kids? That didn?t sit well with Reiko, but she swallowing gulps and more than nervous as her eyes slowly widened again. Her voice was very quiet, maybe just above a whisper, as she mustered an, "I do it, no questions asked," as an answer.

"I have appealed to your better nature. I?ve appealed to your common sense. I have a few other things to try now. Let?s start with the nicer one. You are military. Retired, perhaps, but you never stop being it, I?m told. So in a military context, what would I be to you?"

Oh?shyte. There was no other way to phrase that particular thought flooding her mind. This was the nicer method? Compared to the methods she?s witnessed being handed down to comrades being court-marshalled, this was incredibly nice. "Affirmative. Once a member of the military, you die with that honour if you don?t screw yourself over into a dishonourable discharge of any sort." So, to answer his other question? "My commanding officer?"

Thank the fates for the technicalities being spared here. Reiko really didn?t want to go into the differences in the order of ranks between branches. Such could be easily recalled in an instant; now wasn?t a time when she wished to do so. "For now, let?s assume his authority is on a different branch from mine." Feck. "But if he asks you to do something, and it?s not horribly unreasonable, then I?m asking you right now to do it. He and I have one thing in common, Reiko. We give a crap. If we didn?t, we wouldn?t be doing this for you. Or to you, if you like. But you?re going to start helping us, not fighting us. No more demonstrations. The leaf?that?s it. Until you can master yourself, you cannot master your gifts. Until you master your gifts, you don?t need to be flaunting them. Now. I realise that the only authority I have over you is what you ceded to me. I also know that in Rhy?din, might has always made right. So if you want to go against what we?re doing here?" He was deceptively quiet now, "?then you had better be able to be stronger than me. Are you?"

Reiko?s eyes were still wide, an indication of her current state. It was still in the oh shyte mode. Dare she tell Toby that she sometimes questioned whether Andu truly gave a crap or not? Not right now, for sure! She kept her mouth shut when not being directed to response, which had to be the smartest thing she?s done thus far. At the moment, though the thought hasn?t crossed her mind about nor the realisation yet made, Toby was actually the only person that Reiko seemed to listen to without question lately. That wasn?t the question, though. It was a question of her strength in comparison to his.

"Negative," she answered.

"No, you?re not," he said quietly, "and you never will be until you can master yourself. Discipline your mind. So now, I?m going to give you two things. First, a challenge. I want to see if you?re capable of being a better student than my six-year old daughter."

When Reiko let slip the word, "What?" Toby raised an eyebrow. Better than his daughter? Was she not human? But wait?this wasn?t Terra, where every generation of six-year olds became more spoilt and seemed to behave worse every year.

"Maurin does not throw a fit, scream at people, cause havoc, or disrespect her teacher. Time for you to ante up and do the same."

Reiko bit her lip. "Just how is this supposed to happen?" she had to ask.

"Well, you can start by not doing most of what you just told me you did this weekend. Consider this a ?What Not to Do? list." What a list that was! Looking up and away from Toby at last, now having something to focus on, Reiko started to count on her left hand. In addition to staying away from alcohol, she now had to limit her consumption of sugar and caffeine. That meant putting the cap on those pastries, hot chocolate, and coffee. Limit that, no more demonstrations, no more shouting at people ? who she now owed Ethan an apology, as well as Andu at some point?when she actually wanted to look at him again ? no more hunger strikes (especially after fainting last night), no more threatening to set things on fire (such as that journal, but she didn?t have to write in it now that her hunger strike had successfully changed Andu?s mind about that)?she probably shouldn?t show anyone the gun magazine that she?s been looking at. Damnit! She ran out of fingers on her hand to count the ?do not do? items on! That wasn?t good?what next? No more slamming doors?

"Affirmative?" She looked back down at Toby once she was done counting, having gone onto her right hand. Above all, she noticed that Toby?s voice had never raised. It was almost eery how calm he was.

"Mind over matter, taken to its logical extreme," he said bluntly, "you have a good imagination. Imagine the kind of horror I could cause with that ability. Forget throwing things around, when you can unmake them in place. Imagine what I could do to people. That is why I preach control. Why I am pushing you to grow up and wake up. Because I know quite well, what it can lead to." His tone was unyielding. "You should be much more afraid than you are. Of me, of yourself. Only then can you make the change in yourself." He turned and walked, pacing once again.

Forgetting about what he had just done to that ?butterfly? would be nice! Ha that been a real butterfly that the man had done that to, Reiko wasn?t sure that she would be able to refrain from either crying from devastation or wanting to push Toby to the ground in lividity. She didn?t want to think about what he could do to people! Yet the image came to her mind, and she turned her head away for fear of vomiting. Yes, the visual of blood and a disintegrated body had that effect on her. Thus her not following Toby?s pace with her eyes this time.

Without looking at her, he asked lowly, "Horrified?" He didn?t have to be to make that assumption.

What do you think? she wanted to tell him as she finally did get sick from the visual that she quickly tried to vanish from her mind. Always the same reaction, even in the military. The difference was, you don?t let that reaction show there like she did here. "Af?firmative."

"I think you should be horrified. I think you should be even more horrified than you are, because you haven?t yet asked me the obvious question. Have I ever done that to someone?" Having paused for the moment, he resumed pacing. Meanwhile, Reiko froze completely. She?d been wanting to avoid asking that question, but of course now she wanted to ask. She didn?t have to now! "The answer is no. I?ve never used telekinesis to take a life. The worst I?ve ever done is throw someone to the side in self-defence." An amendment was made to that. "Well. Not a human life. I may have killed a few?spiders."

On any other day, had she not have gotten herself into so much "trouble" (or Trouble, perception depending on the individual), Reiko would make a remark about apologising if she?s ever pissed Toby off. Nope! Not now. She shuddered at the thought of spiders being killed, now that she was done vomiting. Looking around now for one of the napkins that she had sent flying earlier, of which there might only be one left now, she needed something to wipe her mouth with. And maybe some water, too. Not seeing a napkin close enough for her to reach, and frankly a bit scared to think about using her telekinesis to summon one now, Reiko was forced to use the edge of one of her sleeves to wipe at her mouth. She didn?t need any vomit-flavoured lip balm. No thanks.

After a long pause, "Now I double down. I?ve hinted to you that I understand what it is to have done something terrible. I wasn?t joking. I don?t have to tell you that there are worse things than pain and death?let me rephrase that. Physical pain. So you have to be asking yourself, what could I do that is worse than what you just saw?"

Her head raised as she finally shifted into a more proper sitting position once more, her eyes making contact with Toby to show that he hasn?t lost her attention. Kind of really hard to now! "More like?do I really want to know?"

"No, I don?t think that you do," was the sober answer, "I told you all this, and showed you this, for two reasons, Reiko. One, so that you have a new appreciation for just how important control is. Two, I?ve come to the conclusion that you needed a good scare to show you I mean business." Well, the scare worked! "The next time you have the urge to throw a fit at those of us who give a damn, or to stage a hunger strike over something irrational, or to go off on someone for no reason?I want you to remember tonight." He softened. "And I want you to think about what I would be like if I really did get angry. Now, come here." How long the scare would work was up to her, but the attempted demonstrations would surely be no longer. She remained silent, having barely spoken at all tonight. Pink eyes were slightly wide. She didn?t want to think about what Toby would be like if he was to truly get mad! Though she did slowly rise to her feet and walk over to Toby when told to, not saying a word still. "Do we have an understanding?" he asked quietly.

"Y-Yes, Toby." For the first time ever since the end of the war, Reiko didn?t answer with an affirmative or a negative.

"I don?t like to get involved in people?s affairs. Please don?t make me regret my choice to do so now. I?d like to think that I will help you the way someone once helped me. Which is how I went from the very worst version of myself, to someone who is at peace with himself and building a life here."

He really was going out of his way for her?after screwing up so many times already, this had better be a wake-up call for Reiko to get her shyte together and keep it together. "Yes?" she said. And, she lowered her head and covered her face with her hands. Nobody had ever really given her a second chance before except for Shourim.

"Next time, I?m going to get serious. So, let?s not have a next time." He raised an eyebrow. No, let?s not have a next time. Her head nodded very quickly in agreement. " Now, I think it?s time for you to get to bed. I say this because I know it?s time for me to do so, and if I?m tired, you?ve gotta be."

After that? It would be a total surprise if she was even able to sleep a wink. "Ah, sure?" Was she kidding? She wasn?t going to skip her exercises a second time just because she had a lesson tonight! "?I mean, after my exercises!" Reiko added very quickly.

That made him smile. After exchanging the goodnight wishes, Reiko tuned to retrieve her parka and matching outdoor attire from the nearby chair that she had dropped them on. She was careful to dodge the area of the floor that would need to be cleaned up.

"Whassat?" Toby asked, looking at it. Ethan too peered at the stone for a moment.

"Well...it's..." What exactly was it, other than sorcery, according to Rachael. She glanced down at it. "I don't know if it has a name, but a mage was trying to heal my migraine that came on last night." The cause of it, she wouldn't disclose. "This stone represents all of my pain...or my ability to feel it, anyways. Physically. Don't touch it, whatever you do!"

"How come?" Toby asked. Mayflower let out a long and low mewl, terrified, before flattening on the bar with a shiver.

Reiko shook her head. "If it's supposed to represent my ability to experience physical pain, then I'd like to believe that anyone else who touches it would then absorb it and experience the pain I deal with daily." She quickly wrapped it back up. "Mayflower's right to shiver..." As Rosie and Wander lapped at their eggynog with gusto, Mayflower looked at the saucer before she took a tiny lap at it.

"You oughta shrink-wrap it,".Toby told Reiko with a nod.

Andu gave Mayflower a raised eyebrow. "Is there something wrong, Mayflower?"

"Bad bad hurts but gone now," Mayflower answered.

Reiko looked down at the silk-wrapped stone once more, and she returned it to her pocket. "Shrink-wrap...it's wrapped in silk. Why should I shrink-wrap the one thing that holds my ability to feel physical pain?" She was massively confused, she must note.

"So no one else can touch it directly," Toby answered, nodding again. Leaning against the bar rail, Toby retrieved a silver sphere from his pocket and tossed it up to catch again.

Ah, Reiko's spaced out for some time after that. She last heard Toby suggesting that she wrap the stone in shrink-wrap for others' safety, but then it all went fuzzy from there until now. She found herself staring down at the floor instead. "..." Wait, Ethan was already leaving? "Shyte. Missed it..." Reiko shook her head before waving to Ethan. "...goodnight, Ethan!" Reiko said. She rubbed her eyes gently whilst icy eyes belonging to a dragoness who had arrived a short time ago followed Toby's sphere. It was shiny!

Smack! That should have hurt, the hard impact of her hands landing on top of her head. The lack of a reaction to any pain may or may not concern anybody watching. The only reaction Reiko gave was to her missing. Again. Now it was on the back of one of her hands! "You're just...fudging...with me at this point, aren't you?" she asked, feeling it roll off of her hand and down her arm. Yes, she was watching her language in front of her nieces. Honestly, what the Hell? The silver ball rolled down Reiko's arm, then back up and down to her backside where it glinted quite ostentatiously. Reiko could feel it sitting there, and Toby just sat there whistling. Icer eyed Reiko from her perch. This could be dangerous!

"Careful, Rosie," Andu cautioned, "that thing looks big enough to take you for a ride." As he said this, Icer lowered down into a haunch wiggle. Then the little dragon sprung! Ball!

Rosie let out a little cry. "Auntie Reiko's kitten in the middle now!" she exclaimed. The sphere wasn't going anywhere, but if Reiko tried...it would surely move!

Watching Icer, her eyes widened. "Ohhhhh no...no no no no...Toby!" The woman was stuck! Shutting her eyes, she braced herself for impact by positioning herself and decided to focus on that damned shiny! Maybe she could move it away with her mind!

"Run, Forrest, run!" he called out. Three pairs of pawhands covered their eyes at the anticipated collision of Icer versus Reiko, and Andu winced as he saw Icer going for the shiny ball on Reiko. The dragoness might be back-winging, but still!

"Run? A little late for-OOF!" There went the collision! Dragon met human of average height, with human going down towards the ground. One time to not feel pain? That was now! She was suddenly glad for the inability as she crashed to the ground with the hippo-sized dragon apparently landing on top of her. "All this for a shiny..." Reiko said from the floor.

And there went the ball, rolling away from the tangled pile of folk.

A soft kiss was landed on top of the pink-loving kitten's head as Reiko gently held her. She listened as the items were ticked off, and she lowered her head. "In other words...another failure times three." Yeah, Reiko was starting to get used to that. She stood slowly, rubbing one eye, and placed Rosie back onto the bar top before she reached to gently pick up Mayflower. She's not had the chance to give them all their gentle kisses yet tonight. "Just when I thought I was getting better!" Woosh! One napkin escaped from the dispenser and landed to Reiko's right whilst Mayflower purred.

"Learning stuff's hard," Rosie said.

"We have lessons every day," Wander added.

"Ehh." Toby gave an offhand wave. "It's a marathon, little steps. Trust me, you don't get better at this fast. If you think you are, it's an illusion."

The woman sighed. Rosie was right. Learning stuff was sometimes hard, and this was one of them. After softly kissing the top of Mayflower's head, she put her back down and picked up Wander to do the same thing. Wander purred when given attention. "I don't have lessons daily, just...a bunch of exercises. One of which is a new one nobody really added...I've started to chase a cat around the city two days ago." She looked to Toby. "That wouldn't be your doing, would it?" Then she looked to Andu. "Or yours, Big Brother?"

Toby blinked first. Then he snickered. "I don't recall telling you to go chase a cat, no," was his answer.

"Nope. Not me. But if it is a cat, One of the Katz or Kendra." Another negative.

"Was the cat in a truck?" Rosie asked.

The woman blinked. "It's black and white, but doesn't look like any of the Katz I've met...and it led me all around the city. No truck, though. It was alone and led me through a maze, and then another several kilometres...and back here, where I nearly passed out from exhaustion for hours!" After giving Wander her soft kiss, she put the kitten back down with a soft petting. "Whoever's idea it is? Genius..." Where did Reiko's bottle of water go..? She couldn't find it anywhere.

"I think that one's all you," Toby said.

*With that, the impromptu "lesson" dissolved into a casual conversation about a black and white cat that Reiko had recently started to chase around the city. Though without any reason in particular, the cat seemed to enjoy being followed around by the human. She still has yet to learn of the reason for this cat wanting her to follow it around the city, but it does like to sit a couple of blocks away from the Palazzo Estate and wait for her. In the meanwhile, Mayflower, Rosie, and Wander told Reiko and those still present at the Inn about a song that their grandmother Rachael sang to them...about a male yellow tabby cat who had "borrowed" various vehicles.

When Reiko spotted the bottle of Jameson on the scarred wooden bar top after a brief reminder that pain was part of being human (she had yet to reabsorb the stone into her), and was ultimately denied even a tiny sip of the alcohol, she recalled her sobriety. At this point, she's only been sober for three months. Much support and Antabuse has helped her with this, as well as plenty to do in order to make the temptation to drink difficult. As a reward for her progress with maintaining sobriety thus far, Toby has promised Reiko cookies from his wife. Little mishap stemming from the flashback to her abusive parents aside, the late hour and a few ginger cookies enjoyed brought an end to the night of "comedy of errors."

To say that Toby was angry could be considered an understatement. Pissed-off and fed up were perhaps more accurate; he was having a hard time trying to stay still as it was. Seeing Reiko, he took a moment to shut his eyes. Then he opened them and asked, in a pitch too low for anyone who might be present to hear at first, "Do you remember the warning that I gave you about misusing your gifts? Abusing them for your own purpose instead of listening to someone who actually gives a damn about you, do you remember that at all?"

Reiko couldn't answer. Not right away, anyways. Dare she nod her head or to even speak? Her voice seemed to become caught in her throat as she debated this. Azalean pink eyes froze in place as eye contact was made with the man she so dearly respected and looked up to as her teacher...what a joke that seemed to be now. Had she really held such a high amount of respect for the man, they probably wouldn't even be here in the first place. Not under these circumstances, anyways.

"Yes," she finally answered, her voice no louder than a whisper.

Had she answered with the opposite, there would have been more to ream the woman out over. Instead, she had been smart enough to answer honestly. Perhaps that was the redeeming factor for her. Honesty. Sincerity. Those two were never sacrifised when it came to the woman...

...but she was still very much in deep shyte with Toby.

"There is only so much that someone can do to help someone. When I took you on as my student, it was because I saw a reflection of myself from the past in you. Someone who was on a path to destruction and would only continue to venture down that path unless someone intervened. What I did for you, someone else once did for me. Only now, you have time and again refused not only to listen to me, but to those who care enough to give a crap about you." This entire time, his voice never raised in volume. Nor did it decrease any. It maintained a constant volume the entire time that he spoke. "You made a fool out of me yet again. You made me look absolutely stupid, and for that reason, I can only deem myself a failure as your teacher."

Out came his silver sphere. Toby held it in his hand, only for it to float above the open hand soon after. Reiko's eyes were wider than platters at this point. She found herself standing, absolutely frozen in place where she stood, as if her feet were cement blocks. The woman wasn't just afraid now. She was petrified. The silver sphere floating above Toby's hand? It only multiplied her level of fear.

"You recall what I told you about what would happen if there was a next time." It wasn't a matter of asking. An answer wasn't exactly required, although it kind of was as well. Reiko nodded anyways, her terrified eyes still not moving away from him. Things would get serious if there was a next time; there was a next time. It was now.

*The one who voted "No" in my newest poll has their wish...sort of. This isn't a lesson, but don't get your hopes up about anything being permanent. -nyah-

Today was looking to be a day of optimism. Pleasantries were abounding with a festive spirit that was contagious. A cake has been brought out, but why so? As it turned out, tonight?s bartender was celebrating another year of her life. How wonderful was that! Such a happy occasion just had to call for a happy entrance. Happy, as well as special. Special, and unique. Unique was exactly what was in store for Murelle Greymantle, only she and the rest of the Inn?s occupants just didn?t know it yet.

After dropping down from the rafters and letting multi-coloured confetti snow down upon the Inn?s bar section to announce her arrival, Reiko has settled herself in with some cake and ice cream. Two of her feline relatives, Butch and Wander, were recovering from their misadventures of eating Pepper?s specially-cultivated ghost peppers when she watched a rather interesting sight develop on the scarred wooden bar top in front of her. It was a birthday gift to Murelle from Toby and his family, an eagle?s feather made entirely out of fragments of chocolate. An impressed Reiko hoped to pull off such a feat someday.

"Someday, you will." Was it any surprise to anybody that she was now flashing a little bit of a smirk as her eyes seemed to light up with traces of hope within them? She wanted her chance to show what she?s been up to, and now seemed like the perfect time to do so. Suddenly, she was plucking daisies from the tops of David?s and Andu?s heads. Six of them sat in the palms of her cupped hands. She had summoned them with telepathy somehow. Both Toby and Murelle had pansies sitting on top of their heads and, after several minutes of tuning out Daved before the walking brooder left the Inn towards the end of Murelle?s birthday celebration, Reiko was able to get the fedora-wearing man?s attention for a somewhat private conversation. Thus the following transpired in the comforts of one of the Inn?s booths:

Right. The floor was hers. First, a long sip was taken from the bottle of cold water. A whispered sigh parted Reiko as she tried to not stumble on her words before they even converted from her thoughts. "Ah...well, first. Thank you, Toby, for giving me as many chances as you've given. As a friend, person, and...as my teacher, when I was your student." Was, the operative word. "And...I'm sorry. Not just for failing you, but for causing you to fail me. I...I've had a lot of time to think about. Everything, really." So much for sounding like her typical confident self. If she had to describe herself in one word, then floundering would be that word.

There was a lull as the woman paused. Not only did she pause to give Toby a chance to speak if he had something to say, which was nothing but a nod given as he listened, she needed another drink of water. When that was taken, she had collected herself just enough to continue. Azalean pink eyes managed to seek eye contact with who she spoke to as her fingers met around the water bottle. "It was either I continue to feck up whilst trying to feel sorry for myself after all of my screw-ups, or I do something to reverse that disturbing trend before I really get myself killed." Reiko pointed her thumb to her chest. "I chose to try my hardest to do the right thing with the motivation that I can prove myself deserving or a second chance...or at least being worthy of the right to make such a request." She drew in a breath. As she exhaled, she said, "I've been facing my demons and winning against them. How else will I master myself if I'm losing to my worst enemy in that fashion?"

"Not too far off the point that was being hammered into your skull quite a lot prior to everything going pear-shaped," he observed drily.

Speaking of self-control...the woman pointed subtly at the pansies that sat on top of Toby's head. "Ah...what about your personal garden?" Reiko finally asked. "Self-control, common sense, respect, or none of the above?" She could make said flowers disappear if asked.

He gave a droll look. "You're fully aware I could have removed them in three seconds flat. Do you know why I didn't?"

Good question. Actually, that was what Reiko herself wanted to know. "Okay, I'll bite. Why not?" She finally took another sip of her water from the bottle in front of her, blinking a couple of times.

"Because I have a sense of humor." He took a sip. "And it was funny. Of course, there's something to be said for knowing when a joke's hit its expiration date."

"Ah..." Well, she hasn't made anymore flowers stand on anyone's heads since her display on Toby and Murelle. "...and knowing who not to do it to, as well as when not to." Her elbows came to rest on the table in front of her. "As well as how much I can take before I start exhausting myself...which means I'm gonna have to make the pansies on your head disappear." Reiko had to, or else she would exhaust herself too soon. "Don't move for a moment." Trusting that Toby wouldn't make any sudden movements, Reiko focused on the little garden of pansies that stood on top of the other's head. Then, with just enough concentration, said flowers vanished without a trace of their existence being left behind. "There..you are no longer a walking floral garden," she said. Toby was now free to move again whenever he wanted to.

He formed a serene smile. "Just be mindful of how often you do that. Some may not find it as funny. Or may decide to try something 'funny' on you in return," he reminded her.

"I don't think you'll - I mean, I'll - have to worry about doing anymore of that in public. That was just a one-time thing because of it being Murelle's birthday." Reiko sipped at her water. "Back in my room is a little wooden bed of sorts that I made to practise that on...when it's not exhausting me of my energy." She pulled out her phone and flipped it open, trying to quickly navigate to the photo gallery. Multiple photos of new extensions to her telepathy and telekinesis, all practised in the privacy of her bedroom, were documented. Reiko had asked for one of the others to do the picture-taking for her. Different photos of little gardens were on display. Reiko showed her phone to Toby. Well, the photos anyways.

His eyes flickered through them, as he was rather a fast reader. "What are you doing to practice control of yourself?" he asked.

As if she had been waiting for this question to come, Reiko didn't bother to wait for her phone to be handed back to her. Her right hand reached into the medium-sized black shoulder bag that she carried on her, as her birthday gift for Murelle had been carried within until earlier, and she gently withdrew her hand. In her right hand was the leaf that had been given to her several months ago. Ever since said leaf had been repaired once (saved from being utterly destroyed, that is), Reiko had been taking especially good care of it. "When I wake up, between my meals, before I go to bed, and whenever I'm not having a good day, I take this out and focus on making it stand on one end," was her offered explanation, "when I'm having an especially difficult day, I have to ground myself completely. Otherwise, I risk destroying this a second time...and I'd rather not do that." It was safe to say that this leaf had become quite special with a significant meaning to Reiko.

Toby smiled slightly upon hearing this. "There might be hope for you yet." He slowly rose. "I'll be watching." Reaching down and taking the water bottle with him, he smiled and walked out without another word.

Hearing this brought a slight increase to the amount of hope that Reiko was feeling. She had been waiting for a "but" to follow the smile and optimism. Toby would be watching? That might have been it right there. Alas, this was the opportunity that she's been waiting for. Although there was no definite answer for or against the purpose of tonight's conversation, the ball had been given back to her. Now was her opportunity to show that she meant what all she had said. Taking Toby's parting words and smile as his way of saying farewell (for now), Reiko remained in the booth for another several moments to digest the exchange before eventually calling it a night as well.