“Ok.” Austin breathed. “Let it in.” He said. He shifted his footing beneath him, and closed his eyes tight. Only hours before had he before been successful in reversing his chronic daytime nightmare, and here he found himself trying to put himself back in that same situation for the sake of learning.

Nothing happened. “Small.” He mumbled. “Shrink. Become smaller.” As if saying the word would will it into action. He felt no energy rise in him, and he knew he was unsuccessful. He opened his eyes and exhaled loudly in frustration. The world was no bigger to him than it was before. Dejected, he made his way down the pathway on the mansion grounds to the bench a few yards away and sat. He leaned back, gripping his face in his hands and groaning in his frustration.

He breathed inaudibly for a long time, feeling the gentle breeze tickle the hair in between his fingers on his head. It was a beautiful day, and he could hear through the distance a good number of students were outside on the grounds. Most were younger than him, and played games in the sunlight, burning off all of their childhood energy. A handful of kids looked a bit older than him, and mostly kept to talking in the shade. Austin kept away from all of them, wanting to be alone to practice honing his power, but he wasn’t any closer than when he first started.

“Why does my mutation hate me?” He asked the silence.

"- the beauty of it! I have plenty of bodies so, you know, you could just borrow one."

"But, they're conscious? I mean, they're not just bodies so... And what would happen if I was... inside... when..." Yeeeah. Probably best not to test that theory. "I appreciate the thought, Headmaster. I do." But her tone made it clear that her answer was a scared-to-even-try sort of no.

"Well, if you change your mind, let me know!"

Awkward laughter. Even more awkward farewell. Maya let herself dissolve into a nebulous cloud and scooted toward a part of the grounds that seemed at first unoccupied. That is, until someone asked asked about his mutation.

"Well." Was that question for her? "What have you done for your mutation lately?"

Maya lazily swept a breeze through the area trying to find the origin of the words. Her spatial vision was better in smaller, defined spaces, and even better when she could increase atmospheric pressure. Since she didn't recognize the voice, she didn't want the speaker to think she was trying to strangle him, though, so she went with the gentle breeze approach.

"Besides, mutations aren't something separate from yourself. Saying that your mutation hates you is like saying... well, like saying you hate you." A suspiciously singular, fluffy white cloud drifted between Austin and the sun.

“Why does my mutation hate me?” He asked the silence.

“Well, what have you done for your mutation lately?” A woman’s voice answered him. Austin sat up, startled. Glanced around him for the woman who had spoken, but he was alone. Seeing no one around him, he glanced upward suspiciously. He repeated this process a couple of times before finally answering timidly.

“Uh…God?” He ventured. No response. Wait, he was at a school for mutants. It could easily be the voice of some invisible whackadoodle wandering the paths closer to the property’s edge.

“Besides,” the voice continued, “mutations aren’t something separate for yourself. Saying that your mutation hates you is like saying…well, like saying you hate you.” As the voice finished a single, perfect white cloud in an otherwise cloudless sky drifted in front of the sun.

“Then why can’t I make my mutation work when I want it to? And not when I don’t?” Austin responded, feeling foolish for talking to this no one. “I’m not trying to suppress it anymore, but even though I want to shift now I can’t seem to make it turn on…or…whatever.” He faded off to a mumble at the end. He waited for an answer. “If anyone is actually there can you show yourself? I feel kinda weird just talking to myself.” He asked innocently, hoping for a response to prove there was a sneaky invisa-mutant lurking around, and that he wasn’t going insane.

> “Uh…God?”

She snorted. Or, well, it was more like Maya put serious effort into not laughing and couldn't stymie the force of laughter. The elemental had to give herself a moment to compose herself. The last thing she wanted was for the kid to think she was making fun of him when he so clearly was having issues. He bumbled through an explanation in the meantime.

> “I’m not trying to suppress it anymore..."

"Ah." He was a kid who'd tried to hide? "I guess I've heard that mutations are like muscles?" Maya!cloud rolled over herself. "But, I'm also guessing that you've been trying to 'work out' your powers." Which would explain the awkward straining sounds from earlier...

> “...I feel kinda weird just talking to myself."

"Psh. You're not talking to yourself. Or God." And now it was time to flex her mutation. The cloud condensed and stretched until Maya had shape. She packed herself together, drifting toward the ground as she took on weight and opacity, until finally she made landfall.

"I didn't mean to pry. Sorry. You just seemed a bit frustrated." Maya ducked her head by way of greeting. "I'm Maya, but most people around here know me as Ghost the X-man."

“I’m not trying to suppress it anymore, but even though I want to shift now I can’t seem to make it turn on…or…whatever.” He faded off.

“Ah.” The voice responded, as if everything was suddenly made clear to her. “I guess I’ve heard that mutations are like muscles?” Maya cloud rolled over herself. “But I’m also guessing that you’ve been trying to ‘work out’ your powers.” She said, more telling than asking him.

“Well, right now I’m just trying to figure out how to use them, let alone work them out.” He waited for a response, but before one came he decided to speak up once again. “If anyone is actually there can you show yourself? I feel kinda weird just talking to myself.”

“Psh. You’re not talking to yourself. Or God.” The voice said humorously. Austin felt something in the air change. He glanced up in confusion, noticing the only cloud in the sky acting…well…not cloud-like. At first it just appeared as if the wind was whipping the cloud into a new shape as it stretched out, but then it began to condense and morph until a woman with two braids in her shaggy white hair floated above him. With ease, she drifted toward the ground until she finally landed effortlessly.

“I didn’t mean to pry. Sorry. You just seemed a bit frustrated.” She ducked her head in greeting. “I’m Maya, but most people around here know me as Ghost the X-man.”

Admittedly, between Maya descending from the heavens in what was easily the most glamorous appearance he’s ever witnessed and her introduction, Austin was taken a bit aback. He shot up, extending a hand. “Wow. Uh, nice to meet you Maya, er…I mean Ghost.” Smooth, kid. “I’m Austin. I just got in here.” He shook his head to snap back to the subject at hand. “You’re right, by the way. I was getting a little frustrated.” He exhaled deeply and looked to her hopefully. “You wouldn’t happen to have any tips? Would you?”

She smiled but did not take his hand. Maya was still firming up, still trying to keep looking solid when it was far easier to be a fluffy little cloud. There was no point in complicating things by risking fusion. Maya'd learned her lesson after trying too hard to impress another new kid...

"Uhm. Tips? Let me see." She folded her arms and tapped her lips with a finger as she thought. "When I was a kid, it was all about hiding. It was far less acceptable, you know? But at the same time, I don't think I ever just shut my abilities down." She added a pace or two to jog the brain.

"Do you have any sensory abilities? Any part of your power that you can't turn off?" He looked so very... normal. Unless his skin was green or something? She wasn't quite solid enough to see colors today. He could be green. Things might get embarrassing if he was green and that was the obvious part of how he couldn't help but be a mutant.