He picked good imagery to get his point across, and Evelyn couldn't help nodding in agreement. He was bouncing off the affection he knew she had for art, and it made things a little clearer for her. But she still doubted it would make the actual experiment go any smoother.

Especially when the echoes started analyzing his actions and....

"Wait, what was on your m-" She scrambled somewhat sloppily to the side to avoid the punch at the last moment. It was somewhat of a blind dodge sideways, and she swatted at his hand slightly as she ducked. "Not even a go? What sort of gentleman behavior is that?" She said somewhat accusingly, then watching his facial expressions made the echoes flicker slightly in confusion.

She wondered if she should have rethought accepting his offer to come over. This seemed destined to damage her, or embarrass her. She wasn't sure which was worse. She took a few steps backwards, trying to by the echoes time to regroup and refocus. It was hard to keep any of her attention on what he was doing when they seemed to be trying to figure out what he was thinking.

It didn't come as a surprise to him that Evelyn managed to dodge his strike; it had been half-hearted with the intention of testing her reaction time. Still, even though the dodge was sloppy, the fact that she attempted a counter-attack after came as a welcome surprise. Even if it was a failed attempt to swat at his hand. It showed she at least had the courage to try something like that.

He didn't answer her, not right away. Instead, Kyle simply moved from one attack to the other. With a bit of fancy footwork, Kyle pivoted off his leading foot, spinning his body around and bringing his fist in again at her shoulder. Whether it hit or not was irrelevant; Kyle fell into a pattern of short and quick strikes, designed for speed rather than power. None of the blows were serious, not yet, but Evelyn would still have to be on her toes to handle them.

Only then did he start speaking, even as he flooded his mind with more images of her and, as a twist, of himself making a move to kiss her upon cheek, hand, nose. Under that all was which arm would strike next, where it intended to go, how hard he was to hit. His actions buried within the school, hidden from sight unless she looked hard enough.

"In a fight, there is not such thing. Now focus...find the echo of my actions and draw it out. I'm only going to get faster and hit harder as time drags on.

Think; how do I control my power to form only the smallest bolts at times, but full beams of energy at others? I have to control it, focus how much I need and then only allow that much out. The same principle applies to your own; find what you need and then only allow it to dominate your mind."

He wasn't a teacher but experience had taught him a lot. He knew Evelyn could do this. She just needed to believe it herself.

Forte was serious about this experiment, it seemed, and his movements were precise and took effort for the echoes to predict. By the time she registered what he was doing, he was already there, and she was scrambling out of the way far more than gracefully evading him. One hit was a miss, the next she deflected somewhat, but then she started picking up other feedback.

Control, focus, find what you need, allow only that to dominate your mind... She repeated in her thoughts, paraphrasing and trying to process the advice being said. She tried to listen to the echoes, hone them in on what was important. But it only halfway worked. The echoes were distracted by his face, his expressions. They were picking up not necessarily WHAT he was thinking, but the general tone of what was there. "What are you--"

FWAP.

She dodged right into his hand. The contact stung her nose and she stumbled backwards, yelping slightly and putting a hand to her face. She backpedaled a few steps, squinting and somewhat glaring at him now. "Cheater."

This time, when his blow made contact with her face, Kyle did stop his attack, if only for a moment. While it was true that he was pulling his punches a slight bit to avoid causing any serious damage, the blows themselves would still sting a fair bit if allowed to connect fully. More so if Evelyn happened to dodge into one before Kyle could reduce the force...which, as it happened, she did.

Pausing, Kyle studied her calmly. The blow had been harder than it should have been, what with her moving into it, but there wasn't any serious damage as far as he could tell. He hadn't broken it, nor did it seem to be bleeding. Stepping towards her, he calmly lifted a hand to the one on her nose and moved it aside, just to be sure. He was. Lowering his hand, Kyle stepped back and entered lesson mode.

"You were dodging well there, for a spell. But I'll be honest about one thing Evelyn; there is no such thing as cheating in this world. Stories of honest fights, fair sided tilts...are of the past. People do now what they have to survive. If you plan to train in self-defense, you have to know that everything and anything is fair during combat."

Sighing, Kyle idly rolled little bolts of energy between his fingers, showing them to Evelyn before flicking them harmlessly into the pool. Each shot made ripples where it contacted the water, creating waves as ripples met ripples. "Your echoes are a power that can and will make a difference in a fight Evelyn, just as much as they do in your everyday life. They could be all that stands between the light of life or the cold of death. For you or for those you care about." His tone was firm, yet deceivingly neutral, keeping the surge of pain and memories that came from his mind at bay as she spoke.

"And to make that happen, I have to fight unfair. Now...you're as clever as you are stunning. Tell me; what am I doing while I'm striking at you? What do your echoes tell you?"

Unlike most people Evelyn seemed to hang around lately, Forte didn't seem all too distressed at her getting injured. Not that her nose took any lasting damage, but his response was filled with advice and the echoes didn't pick up a high level of concern as he lifted her hand and checked to make sure she wasn't permanently broken. No blood, probably a good thing. She still was not looking forward to the future playbacks of this. Injuries were the worst sort of memories. "You seem to put a lot of faith into what my echoes can pick up... they aren't exactly full proof...or...completely useful..."

Then he asked what the echoes had started picking up on. Evelyn's cheeked colored and she shook her head. "They....you're thinking...things.... I don't know exactly what but...this is so many types of awkward can't we just go back to the experiment?" She flushed. She felt like it was painful evident even for someone without echoes how awkward she was with situations like these. She rubbed her nose once more then let her hands drift back down to her side.

The echoes flickered towards the pool and watched the way the ripples interacted. They studied the energy content of his powers, and took more notes. Initially, many of these facts mattered little. But in the long run they could be useful perhaps.

"I'm not putting any faith into your echoes, not completely. I'm putting my faith in you. I believe you'll be able to pull out the potential of your power; you just need a push in the right direction."

Kyle's smile grew just a little as his question brought color to Evelyn's cheeks once again. It might have been a mite bit childish, but Kyle found making Evelyn flush to be an amusing endeavor. It had nothing to do with the fact that it made her look far cuter to him, not in the slightest. And it most certainly didn't make him want to do it more, no sir it didn't. Shrugging his shoulders as a half-chuckle escaped him, Kyle's body shifted slightly to answer her request.

"Heh...why not hazard a guess Evelyn? If you can identify what I'm possibly thinking, then just maybe you can peer back that layer to the truth beneath. Try and discover the answer...because here I come again."

No sooner had her hands reached her side did Kyle spring again, moving with that purpose and speed he'd been showing before, his body over his mind guiding his strikes towards her. As before, his actions were slowed and controlled, aiming to keep her on her toes while avoiding doing any serious damage, to give her time to try and find the answer she needed to counter him. And just like before, he clouded his thoughts with her, hiding his actions beneath that terrible wall.

The mental images of making plays to kiss her had worked to stutter her before, so he employed them again in his mind. But there was an added twist...he spoke while he fought. "Focus Evelyn..blot out the echoes that have no meaning to protecting yourself." An idea came to him then and he moved suddenly to employ it. "Seek the masterpiece of art amongst all the fakes and wannabes...find the one that speaks to you from the heart." He timed his words with possibly the first real attack he'd given in this fight.

A solid, closed fist towards her hip. It would hurt like mad if it hit, but it wouldn't be too serious. If she managed to foresee it coming, that is.

As the stinging gradually faded from her nose, Evelyn allowed herself to listen to what was being said. Part of her felt a little bit flattered, part of her felt a little challenged by his words. It was almost like he was pointing out she had more potential, but if she did than there was almost an underlying accusation she wasn't trying to reach it. Then again, the echoes weren't reading that... SHE was trying to read that. It was one of the rare moments when she and her powers deviated as they tried to assess a situation. Her own emotions were conflicting with the analytically feedback from her powers.

"I just don't really know how much potential my powers have..." She muttered under her breathe, pushing her hair from her face and trying to focus again. He wasn't going to just let it go, and the echoes started jabbering about his thoughts.

[Romantically interested.] The echoes were blunt, their assessments said with a certainty that was hard to tune out. She steered them back towards his actions and away from his facial expressions, but it was difficult, and she barely sidestepped to avoid his blow towards her side. She swatted at his hand again and stuck out her tongue.

"It's easy to identify a truth when it's among counterfeits, but the situation we face is something different. The information presented is all intended to be useful in it's own way. It's keying in on what's important to me now." Therein lied the problem. Part of her was curious what he was thinking, and curiosity put her in dangerous situations before. She had to push aside her curiosity this time.

Kyle had to do his best to stop from grinning widly as Evelyn barely managed to dart out of the way of his blow, his fist meeting with empty air as the girl stepped away from him. It had been a close call. His fist had literally been inches from her skin when she suddenly shifted out of the way of his blow, swatting his hand away before giving him the tongue of "missed me". Had Kyle been serious, he would have changed his blow then to a backhand or an elbow. Instead, he merely stepped past her and spun round to face her again.

Letting a small smile crease the corners of his mouth, he relaxed his stance carefully, letting Evelyn speak her mind before returning the favor. "You powers have plenty of potential...if you were able to do what you did now to avoid my blow on demand, you would be invaluable. You could pick out the man with the gun about to fire, the woman with the knife about to go postal, the hidden soldier amongst thousands of faces. Anyone in trouble or combat would love to have you at their side."

Her explanation of her problem made Kyle smile just a little more. If what she said was true, then it meant she was curious about what he was thinking, not her echoes. It was confusing her echoes enough that she couldn't see what he was doing but it also meant she was picking up what he was thinking then. Interesting. Folding his arms across his chest, Kyle continued.

"Then the answer is rather simple, no? You must put aside your personal desire when you have to. Its harder and easier than it sounds. In any case, you managed to dodge a blow intended to harm. That's a good start. It means you're capable of it...now, tell me...what was I thinking and why do you think I used it to shield my actions from you?"

Evelyn didn't think her powers could ever be that impressive, but she listened and let Forte have his say. She still felt that the echoes were as distracting as they were useful. Sometimes they helped her dodge faster and react better. Sometimes they just embarrassed her.

Like now. His question made her squirm slightly, crossing her own arms across her chest, more as a defensive action than for comfort though. "I...you were...I don't know why you even had an interest in me in the first place." She blurted out in a rush, face gradually gaining more scarlet. She fidgeted and backed up a few steps, eyes darting to the side. "I'm not good with dealing with people, especially when they flirt, and then your thinking things that seem like they might be in that nature and ugh this is stupid."

The echoes were scrambled by her emotions now. It was a good thing he wasn't attacking quite yet or she would get busted in the nose again and that would seriously damper the conversation. She had a feeling he was amused by this though. She was somewhat irked at him for being so amused by her flustered nature.

In the past, Kyle knew he'd had issues with constraint. Recent events and the months that followed had given him time to change that, to become someone better in control of his own actions and behavior. It had made him a much different person in some ways, yet still himself at the core.

It didn't stop him from almost gaping at her question, nor did it quell the smile and laugh that followed. It wasn't a long laugh or a mocking one, but it was a lot more than he'd given her in terms of general amusement. "You don't know why I would show interest? The better question would have been how could I not?

There are many reasons; you're determined, smart, brave to the point of stupidity when it comes to things that matter to you. Let's not forget that you're stunning as well. I could go on, but I believe you get the point." Shaking his head, Kyle rolled his neck, cracking the bone before opting to answer her second thought."Yes, I gathered that, hence my choice of thoughts. Cause I knew it would distract you. Which is what you must learn to put aside."

He could see that the current topic was making her uneasy, so Kyle shifted the conversation to one that might work better. "In any case, you managed it, if even a little. So let's try something else." He darted in suddenly, moving so that he was almost touching her face with his before stopping, a grin across his features. "You try attacking me and predicting how I'll dodge. If you've got the spine for it." To further irk her into trying hopefully, Kyle shoved her back too, with just enough force to startle and sting, but not harm badly.

Enough to make her angry enough to try. Hopefully.

The string of words from Forte's mouth made Evelyn's face color further. She felt much younger than she was suddenly, a school girl embarrassed by his compliments. The echoes made it impossible to doubt how genuine he was being, but her own mind had trouble understanding it. She didn't feel brave, or stunning. Smart, ok, she could get that, but without her mutation she doubted that much would have been possible. She shuffled, listening to the lesson behind the meanings though. Her own reactions were a weakness right now. If someone could embarrass her into loosing a fight, she needed to learn to overcome that.

He moved, and she flinched back slightly, then stumbled back from the shove. She lacked the self-defense training to stand properly still, but his challenged irked her just enough she swung her elbow out, aiming for his side. Figuring he would have to side step to avoid it, she brought her leg again in quick succession in a sweeping motion towards his shins. It wasn't particularity powerful, but she was quick thanks to her size. The echoes flickered back, watching for movement in his muscles that could signal what he would do next.

Kyle all but smiled when he saw Evelyn's response to his actions. Though she was not showing it much, he could tell from the slight contours of her face that his words had struck a cord. And that was what he'd been hoping for; galling her into action. He, of course, had been ready from the moment he'd shoved her, slipping into a loose stance that showed little but could shift into much. It was his preferred stance for testing...it let him be unpredictable.

Which is what he was when he responded to Evelyn's attacks. Her elbow was a good move, one he countered by stepping a couple of steps back and redirecting the elbow with a shove of his hand. The sweep was a good follow-up and had he stuck to his words, he would have either jumped or dodged back to avoid it. He did neither. Instead, he braced himself by squatting slightly, taking the sweep full on into the meat of his leg. It stung a bit but he'd long learned to push such pain aside.

Kyle gave her no chance to recover from the move; he darted forward again and gave her another quick shove to the chest before establishing the distance between them, smiling. "I forgot to mention; choose your moves wisely. If you give me an opening, I will exploit it. Again."

The attacks didn't have quite the results Evelyn had been hoping for. The elbow was easily deflected and the kick just ended up making her leg sting on contact. Off balanced, the shove nearly sent her to her butt, but bending her legs just enough and jerking her foot backwards caught her balance just in time to recover. From a lower center of gravity she pivoted, and aimed her shoulder at his stomach. Still irritated and feeling less friendly, she aimed her elbow even lower. She was pretty sure she wouldn't succeed in hitting him, but it would get a point across.

"It isn't...fair trying to fight you." She grumbled, sending a knee towards the inside of his leg. Jensen had at least taught her a few pressure points, so that was fair game....if she could hit it. Executing any fighting at this point felt like a kid just mimicking a karate movie. She had the memories, but none of the practice to really follow through.

Good mused Kyle silently to himself. She's finally catching on. His counter blow had caught her completely unaware, and coupled with her awkward stance, had almost put her squarely on her behind. Whether by dumb luck or some semblance of skill, Evelyn managed to find her footing rather than give the ground a kiss from her behind. It was a good recovery, especially since Kyle was not pressing his attack.

Rather than speak at first, however, Evelyn suddenly lunged again, dropping her shoulder for an apparent shoulder tackle. Kyle was just about to brace for it when he noticed just how low her elbow had dropped. A grin slid across his features as his arms came up, bracing his own stance before sidestepping her charge. Using his arms, he aimed to give her a hard push that would use her own momentum against her, aiming to sending her stumbling again...just as he gave her a smack on the behind at the same time.

His actions would no doubt surprise, embarrass and anger her, but that was expected. Humility was a good teacher and as Kyle was showing her, hard knocks got the lesson across much more definitively. "Life rarely is fair...and fights even less so. If you want to learn how to survive a fight, one can't hold your hand to do it. Again."

Sidestepping felt like foul play again, but that didn't even begin to describe her emotions when she stumbled and was --

"Hey!!!" Her squeak was a mixture of anger, surprise and embarrassment. The blush she thought she finally rid herself of returned, coupled with a mixture of stammering and backpedaling away. "You can't....you didn't...." The echoes were completely scrambled by her emotion, her face burning with the heat of her embarrassment, and she shook her head, backing up. "I wish I could really hit you right now." She snapped, a sulking tone in her voice.

This was something she never wanted anyone to find evidence of...ever.... There was so many levels of awkward. She couldn't even think straight.

"Jerk." Yup. That pretty much summed up her thinking.