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The wave of anger could have knocked Jacen over. Penance was bitter about the loss to Sonya, but that was to be expected. You don't take a year off and expect to roar like a lion straight out of the gate.

".............." Jacen had nothing to say. No one else did either, it seemed. When he peered down, he noticed that Penance had left the Danger Room with someone in tow. "...That girl doesn't let well enough alone...."

"Let her be," Emma said calmly to Jacen as he debated on what to do. Alot of him wanted to go talk with her, but the other, nagging feeling in his mind told him to stay away.

"You're right. I should....," Jacen said as he turned around to face Emma. "Tell me. Is this all part of the process?"

"What do you mean?"

"This. Us being individually humiliated. Not that even I didn't see this happening. Sonya's gotten alot stronger in the past year," Jacen said, "I...I just don't think it's fair that it seems you have to humiliate us..."

"Dear," Emma said with a wry grin, "It's all a part of making you as individuals stronger."

"And do you think it'll work?"

"It seems to have worked for you," she replied.

Jacen disregarded that and headed out of the control room. He had enough. He had enough of the dealing with an arrogant headmistress. He had enough of just sitting down. He wanted to expend some energy again, and get out some aggression. But mostly, he wanted this day to be officially over already. And it was only 11:30 in the morning. "Later," he said to himself as he hit one of the hidden elevators that lead to the upper most levels. Actually, it was one he had earmarked as the one closest to his room. And after changing out of his uniform into a pair of black slacks, his nearly trademarked boots, and a collared blue and black shirt, he made his way back to said elevator to head back to the sublevels. His 'internship' with Mr. McCoy started today, and he wanted to at least look somewhat professional.

Regina paused in her "job" of working with Logan as she sensed the anger coming from Penny's room.

"What the hell are we doing down the girl's dormitories anyway MR Logan?" she asked, suspicious.

"I do my rounds kid. Not all the students are in my class, so I'm makin sure they're even here." he answered, growling. "You got someone you need to check on?"

"She'll be fine but yeah, I want to talk to her." Regina answered, seeing Cathy in the doorway of Penny's room. "She probably doesn't even want to talk, but something's bothering her and she's got to get it out. Not let it stew."

"Fine." Logan shrugged. "Just be back at the class room at 3 o'clock. If I'm there."

"You better be." she retorted, going knocking on the doorframe of Penny's room. "Hey girls."

Before going to her class, Gen slipped back into the infirmary to see how Tetsuo as doing. She still worried about him and wondered if he was okay or not...

She already had that feeling where she wanted to run from her problems. At the moment, she felt like she was being smothered. It wasn't Regina or Cathy's fault, how were they to know? She needed out.

"Guys, I just need to be myself," She said and had to escape the room, "Please."

It wasn't anything personal. She just needed to flee at the moment. Leaving her room, she took the back stairs where most people weren't down to the sub basement. There were a few students in there but nobody she particularly knew or cared about. Towards the back end of the room was a larger studio where different classes were run. One included target practice.

Picking up a ball that was in one of the closests, she hurled it at each target to release some of her anger. To try to work it out. Penance didn't vent through words. She had to vent through action. She hit every target precisely and each time seemed to releive a bit of stress that was building in her muscles... never ending anger and resentment.

"This isn't the Evelyn Chayse I know," A familiar gruff voice said from the door. Penance knew who it was the minute his Canuck foot walked within ten feet of the door.

"I said I didn't want to be bothered," Penance hit another target with a growl, "You were close enough down the hall to hear me."

Logan walked in blatantly ignoring her request. He had known her long enough to know better. This girl had been under his personal wing at the Institute for six years, "The girl I know and taught doesn't dwell. She lives today as today and doesn't look at yesterday or tomorrow."

"Well that girl didn't have a ******** psychopath steal her body for a year and completely destroy parts of her life," Penance hit another target and was virtually screaming at Logan out of her own frustration.

Logan ignored it. He knew better, "She didn't destroy your life. You're the same kid with the same abilities. She's just getting into your head and making you forget. You don't have her deeds on you. What did you tell Jacen when he came back from being Rage? What did you tell the other Ahab survivors?

Penance stopped what she was doing and the ball bounced by her. Logan picked it up as it came his way. Penance knew exactly what she had said, "I told him I knew Rage wasn't him... that whatever had happened wasn't their faults, it was on Ahab's head... they're still the same people."

"If I know one thing to be true of you, kid, it's that you're not a liar. If you don't start believing what you said to them, then you are. Do you still believe that Jacen is not resposible for Rage?"

"Yes," Penance said stiffly knowing Logan's logic to be true. If she didn't believe her own advice and what she said to Jacen that summer, then she was a liar... and that she wasn't.

"The believe that Jade was a seperate entity than you."

"You don't understand," Penance dumbly said as Logan rummaged in the closet for something.

"Don't I?" He asked, "Did you forget the story about my claws?" He threw a sword towards Penance which she caught, "Let's go."

"Logan, I don't feel like doing this right now," Penance sighed.

"What's the first thing I taught you? Why do you always know who's around? Why did you hone your senses to be more of a tracker than mine?"

Penance moved the blade in her hands testing its weight. Strategies were already building her mind mind as she held it. This fight was happening whether she wanted it or not, "Always be prepared. Always be ready."

"Now let's go."

And that was how it started.

------------------

Porter had sent out a notice to all of his students. Meet me in the weight room at 03:30 PM, we are going to start our training there. Tomorrow we will be in the danger room. When he came into the room, he saw Bobby Drake and Sam Guthrie watching somebody in the studio room. By the voices he knew who was in there.

"How long they been going at this?" Porter asked one of them. By the sweat that had formed on their clothes, he could see it had been awhile.

"About an hour," One of them answered.

Kidd was frozen in the spot. she stared at the boy she'd just frozen, she was in trouble. her hands didn't move from there spot. suddenly she saw the boy from the bar, Morgan, appear. he was beating up all of the punks single handed. it was all a bluer to Kidd she was mesmerised by the block of ice on the ground in front of her.
"Oh, no." Kidd said to herself. She ran he hand throw her icy hair. She had to help this kid or he'd die. She looked up at the sound of Morgan dropping the last two Punks. He walked over, his blue eyes and white hair were glowing in the darkness of the ally
"are you okay?" he said to Kidd.
She looked up, panic in her eyes.
"I-I-I think i killed him....." Kidd and Morgan both looked down on the body. Kidd's mind was racing. She just froze a human. She'd done that to fish before but never a person, ever if they were trying to hurt her. "Or, w-w-will he be okay?" she asked the blue eyed boy.

Kidd stood there for a moment as Morgan walked away, she glanced down at the quivering boy. he looked at her with fear and anger, she didn't like it. she looked away and ran after Morgan
"Morgan! wait up" showed Kidd running after her saviour. she cot up with him, she jogged alone side him as his stride were a lot longer and faster than hers. "I-I'm sorry... you shouldn't have to save me like that." she looked down she hand buried deep in her pockets. she was apologising to this boy, but why? she felt guilty about him, HAVING to save her. she was a mutant just like him, why did she need saving. " Morgan, where'd you lean to fight?" she raised her grays eyes, they met his blue.

Kidd was muzzled at this request
"why? what do you mean don't be like you?" she was flabbergasted, why not be like him, he was so together." your so, composed and cool. you can defend your self, and you seem to have a perfect handle on your powers!" she found he self rasing her voice unknowingly. she took a breath and calmed down." look at me" she held out a lock of her long hair that was covered in chunks of ice and snow." I can stop my powers from happening...." she sighed and looked at her feet." Your something I strive to be, so why shouldn't i be like you?"

Leaving his room, dressed in an undershirt and lose fitting pants, Kris stifles a yawn as he heads down the stairs. As he prepares to exit the door, he hears someone call his name.
Turning, he beholds Scott Summers. They hadn't talked since he had left his office to complete the 'sentinel training program.' Now that he had passed it, he was probably going to start telling him that, as an X-man ,he had responsiblities. He was wrong, Scott only gave congradulations which Kris took modestly before excusing himself and walking outside.
Wandering, he wanders around the mansion to it's back stopping a few feet infront of the sea cliff. "......" Taking a breath of sea air, he begins a wu shu routine, form with a basic sword of gel, moving through the rotinues slowly, purposefully, naturally. As he moves through the routine, his mind empties plesantly, till all he feels is the movemnt of his body, a freeness from the constraints of the mind.
His routines intenify, sweat forming on his body, first lightly, then increasing until, a half hour later, his body, drenced in sweat, he stops, breathing deeply. Opening his eyes, he stares at the sea again. These rotinues were not nessisary, but he enjoyed the practice, and it made him calmer and wiser in everything else he did. "A trained mind equals a trained body," he thinks as he walks back around the mansion, entereing and returning to his room, stripping off his clothes as he enters a nice shower.