It didn't feel the same, but it did at least smell the same— slightly stale, industrial carpet combined with new upholstery and paint. The Sanctuary was always renovating. Sorta came with the territory when you let mutants be mutants. Or when mutants were left unattended like these poor saps.

"Lisa."

The blonde acknowledged the secretary on her way through. Totally no big deal. She definitely did not warrant the slightly ajar mouth.

"Just popping in to borrow the practice room."

Seriously. It wasn't as if she was here to ruin someone's day. Lori was here to practice where she knew the audience would be less and the time slots were more flexible. She'd even dressed for success in her shorts, sports bra, and trainers. The pony tail was high up her scalp, a true indication of her intended work ethic.

Lori hefted her bag and let herself downstairs without so much as a second glance at her old office. Pah. Who needed that kind of responsibility? The air smelled dusty which was, frankly, perfect. If time had forgotten this place, that made it all the better. She used her key and nudged open the metal training room door with her hip.

"Lights on." It took a second, but the room obliged. The voice controls were the absolute best part about this place. She didn't have to ruin a console screen or anything. All she had to do was dump her bag and get started.

She rubbed her hands together and held a hand out to the metallic wall panels. There were plenty of things she could break back there. Instead, she tried to polarize one of the panels. It took some tinkering until she hit on the opposite of her internal field's polarization, like fiddling with an analog radio dial, but when she hit on it the effect was immediate. Her sneakers screeched out their protest as she was flung backwards.

Oh. Shit.

"Generate fall mats!"

Devon pushed open the training room door, his eyes black as pitch as his hair danced over his brow from the winds dancing around him. He heard a strange screeching sound and then a call for floor mats. Of course, the only problem being the Training Room had been deactivated for all but him. Lights were simply standard down here.

Lisa had kindly seen to that. She'd also notified him there was a former Order member heading downstairs so he'd likely want to go check that out. Thanks Lisa. Yes, he'd like to check that out. Time to change the locks.

His immediate reaction to the image of the woman sailing backwards through the air wasn't to call for mats. Instead he tossed his arm out and made a cupping motion with his hand. A gust of wind rose at the opposite side of the room and scooped up the petite, though toned, woman to quickly counterbalance her movement. His other hand cast its somatic component to kick up a bit more wind beneath her in an attempt to cradle the shift in her landing. He didn't need the gestures, but they always helped with concentration.

Tempest inhaled deeply as the humidity in the room was quickly rising. He inclined his chin but smiled faintly, "I'm sorry. Are you alright? I'm Devon. I'm afraid these levels are out of order. Much is actually currently disabled but perhaps I can assist you?" He made sure to sneak in that comment about 'order' to see if that struck up any thoughts. There were clearly others who knew of the place so he would be diplomatic, if cautious.

Wind allowed Lori to reach a hand down to the ground and get her palm on the ground which further slowed her momentum. But, since the windbag at the door was expecting absolute ineptitude, he'd started to blow the other way. The result was some kind of hip-hop move where her legs went up over her head and Lori was glad she was both wearing shorts and still as flexible as she was. Her sneakers hit the ground hard, but that was better than landing on her back which was where she had been originally headed. The blond pushed herself up with her hands until she was quite pleasantly on her feet with only most of her ponytail in her face.

She spit her own hair out with a puh and eyed the guy at the door as he introduced himself.

Out of order? Cute. "That explains the lack of crash mats." And would make her attempts at practice that much more bruise-inducing. Wouldn't be the first time. Or the last. "Yeah. It's not that big of a deal. I can do without." Lori did, however reach out toward her bag and use the contents to slide it toward herself. It went from zero to rocket ship with one tug which was why she only tugged once, for a short amount of time.

Lori hopped to avoid the sliding bag, but at least now it was closer to her than to Devon.

"I don't know how much you can help." He seemed pretty darn young. And it wasn't like wind was all that helpful. "Thanks though. I just don't want to hurt anybody."

The man's head canted to one side like an intrigue, possibly confused beagle.

Didn't want to hurt anybody. That was an important distinction.

"Then I'd be all the more happier to help you," Devon said in a softer tone, his head straightening. "I'm assuming you were once part of the group that trained here. From what I've heard, it's good they're disbanded, but that doesn't mean you can't come here. We're trying to make Sanctuary and actual sanctuary."

"I, on the other hand, also care about mutants. Not only do they deserve a place to be themselves and live, but learning about themselves and their abilities is an import part of self-actualization," Devon laughed. "Or in other terms, it's good to know your abilities and not hurt anybody."

He glanced at her bag and then seemed to look not only at her, but through her. It was perhaps hard to tell considering his eyes were solid black, but there was a distinct amount of staring now and a lack of blinking. "Based on what I can see in the air, you've got a distinct electrostatic pattern around you. That's very interesting," he nodded slowly. "And based on what I heard, there's more to the atmospheric electricity you can affect than that."

As he spread out his arms, he fidgeted with his fingers. The warmth and rising moisture in the air would make a number of patterns possible now. "I'm atmokinetic. I can control the weather and that includes lightning," he said, right hand forming a fist as electrical sparks gathered around it. "Did you know lightning actually, usually starts at the ground? But please, what's your name? I think I can help you."

Aww. Wasn't he precious? Lori tried to stay in the realm of amused without crossing straight into condescension. He was just so... more happier.

"No need to dance around the subject," you cute widdle, earnest boy scout, "the Order was here. But I doubt very many of them practiced." She sure a **** didn't. Not enough, anyway. Lori regretted that decision now.

But this guy? He Cared about mutants. Probably with a capital C.

She sighed. The Sanctuary, it seemed, was moving on. "I stupidly thought that being a part of a mutant family meant that I'd get better at being one." In truth, she'd spent more of her life trying not to use her power. But they could leave the touchy-feelies for later. After he did the whole mutant-once over.

> "Based on what I can see in the air, you've got a distinct electrostatic pattern around you."

"Yuuup." She made sure to pop the 'p' on her admission. "But I don't do atmospheric electricity. I can't convert between current and vol-" He did something with his fingers and pop-sizzle: there was lightning. "-tage." She finished lamely, clearly shown up already.

This guy. Lori looked him up and down while amusement spread across her face. Maybe he could do something after all.

It was just a few steps between them and despite the short legs, she took long strides to get there. Lori took his lightning hand into her own for a hand shake. She could at least do that. "Lori Faust."

>> "No need to dance around the subject," you cute widdle, earnest boy scout, "the Order was here. But I doubt very many of them practiced."

"Well, at least a few did, maybe not together but at least a little," Devon nodded.

>> "I stupidly thought that being a part of a mutant family meant that I'd get better at being one."

"Unfortunately for many, not all family's are nurturing, even a mutant one. That's why Sanctuary exists, hopefully one we can increasingly make a haven for others," he smiled gently as he explained. "Also it allows for food fights and lots of gaming, practicing, and sometimes fighting," he laughed.

He impressed her it appeared with his electrical show, or at least she understood now he knew something about whatever she could do. Maybe he could help after all, he hoped and she seemed to accept that. As she came over, Devon's eyes reverted to their azure blue as the darkness vanished.

They took each other's hand and the charge between them popped, getting a large grin out of Devon. And that name? "Nice to meet you, Lori. I think I've seen your name around here," he nodded slowly. "Welcome back."

An eyebrow quirked in question, "Mind if ask why you left then while you tell me about your capabilities?"

Did she mind if he asked her two questions and expected her to answer them simultaneously?

"Of course I mind. That means I'll get to ask you two questions that you'll answer simultaneously as soon as I'm finished." Lori drew his hand up between them and then let go so that his hand was in front of her, primed and ready to watch.

"Do the, uh—" Lori wiggled her fingers in an imitation of what shit, she'd already forgotten his name had just done. Had he told her his name? Irrelevant. "Do the thing. You know." It was ridiculous. She was practically tripping over herself to see it again. Electricity. Outside of the body. Could he choose where to point it? The best she'd ever managed was static electricity and tiny arcs between her teeth.

"I left because nobody ever listens here. As for powers, I suck in electricity. And I have a kid. I also produce all kinds of magnetism. And it'd be beyond stupid to raise a child in these walls with these—" Her eyes flicked up toward Mr. Pop-crack-and-sizzle as she corrected herself. "—those people."

She returned her attention to his hand.

>> "Of course I mind. That means I'll get to ask you two questions that you'll answer simultaneously as soon as I'm finished."

Devon laughed, “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize we were trading them off one at a time. But if you want tit for tat that’s just fine.” She took his hand and he felt something there. It was a clear charge beyond the field he saw around her and now his hand. She let go and stepped back.

>> "Do the thing. You know."

“Yeah, Varrick,” Devon chuckled. It didn’t matter if she got the reference; sometimes jokes were for yourself. “You got it.” She seemed excited to train and honestly, it was refreshing. Too many were either eager to get out and possibly blow something up or hide. Thankfully there were some here like Juliette, Ghost, some members of Sanctuary, and now Lori.

Lori explained her position on Sanctuary and the Order. No one ever listens? Well he’d been told he listened too much, but he talked plenty too. Psychologist problem? Seemed so. He gave her a quick nod, “I gotcha. Well the Order isn’t here anymore. I think they understand that’s for the best and really, that’s partly because of the kids. I like providing a safe home for many, especially those looking to get their powers under control and train…”

He stopped, noting her eyes on his hand. “Ah, yes, sorry-“ he grinned as his eyes darkened to pitch. A breeze swept around the room as he lifted his other hand toward the ceiling of the training room. Thunder rocked the room as lightning forked from top to bottom along his raised arm and then sparks cracked around the outstretched hand.

A coruscating bolt of electricity roared outward directly at the electromagnet. Of course, Devon continued even as he fired, “Your magnetic abilities aren’t surprising either then considering what I can see generated around you. Is it stronger the more electrical charge you’ve gathered?”

> "...especially those looking to get their powers under control and train…”

Lori flicked her eyes up from his hand with one message clearly contained within: you talk too much.

> "Ah, yes, sorry-"

That was more like it.

And then quite suddenly it was very much not at all like it. This was NOT "the thing" she had been promised.

A breeze. Dammit all, he was a storm-mancer. She should have specified.

"No. Wai-" Too late. The hair on her arms stood on end and she jumped at the boom of thunder. Her heart rate spiked. He didn't get it. She opened her mouth to make it stop, but light flashed again. This time it arced down from what he'd conjured. Down to his hand and down to her.

In the span between heartbeats she was transported back in time to a memory of a grimy trailer and near-constant shouting matches. The TV volume could only go so high. They hadn't always lived there. They weren't always so unhappy. The only thing that was the same were the storms.

It felt like she'd inhaled it. She opened her mouth to shout at him and instead she'd gulped down a hefty dose of electricity.

It was heady stuff.

The boom of thunder came after, but she managed not to jump too bad. Her eyes dilated despite the flash and Lori widened her stance at the same time that she wrapped her arms around her middle. She had too much power now. So much that she could feel the panels on the walls, the pipes, and the things in her bag she'd brought for practice.

"That was a mistake." Little sparks bounced between her teeth. "We've probably just fried the delicate circuitry of your phone." Lori gave the hunk of magnetized metal in his pocket a little tug. Only, she didn't do delicate very well and she was full to bursting with power. He'd be lucky to keep his feet.

Lori started to protest and Devon quirked a brow in question at her. Too much? If she drank electricity this shouldn’t be a problem but perhaps she knew her batteries were already pretty full. It might be like Firefly who’d spill out with light. He wondered what would spill out of Lori: random magnetic waves?

Well too late now. Time to find out.

She drank it in, almost literally, and steadied herself on her feet taking a rather wide but grounding stance. It wasn’t any sort of appropriate fighting stance, but it was suggestive of a depressed, defending posture.

>> "That was a mistake." Little sparks bounced between her teeth.

“Yeah, I’m sorry, I thought you wanted-“

>> "We've probably just fried the delicate circuitry of your phone."

Devon wasn’t so sure of that but then suddenly he was pitching forward and a barrage of gusts rushed up to meet him. He tumbled and then rolled up to near floating before flinging back, his head struggling to catch up with the rest of him after the jerking motion.

Tempest held out both hands defensively as he retook his stance, though the swirling breezes around him remained. “Wow there, I guess too much power does mean random magnetic waves or at least a stronger pull,” he nodded approvingly. He blinked a heavy brow over his empty black eyes. He could see floating pieces of color around the periphery of his view, but he could also see a well of power thrumming around Lori.

Tempest, relatively unphased by it all, shrugged a shoulder, “But no big deal, it’s just a phone.” He blinked again, “How do you feel? Sorry that was too much. But hey, looks like we can charge you up quick for practice.”

He jerked forward and then his own power treated him to the ragdoll treatment she'd gotten earlier. Well, that was satisfying to watch. She wasn't the only one without pin-point control.

Lori hunched her shoulders and gripped herself tighter. "Not random, but it is always on. That means no computers, no cell phones, no TV, and no credit cards within a certain radius." She could easily tick down the entire list, but those were the major points. Magnetism could ruin a lot of what made modern society so very convenient.

"The more raw power I have—" the more she felt justified in ripping down bridges, throwing cars, and maniacal laughter. Lori closed her eyes and huddled tighter to fight the urge. She was working hard to put those kinds of impulsive days behind her. "—it's harder, obviously. I don't have much control to start with. It's on or off and right now it's very, very on."

She ran through some options to drain her excess safely. If she drained too much and she got sad, weepy, or depressed, not to mention the crushing exhaustion. There was nothing she wanted to risk trying before she got some practice in.

"Can you take it? Or can you only dish it out?" It wasn't like the situation was dire. Lori could still joke. "If not, I'll go ahead and try what I was going to before you came along." Just... with a little more oomph.

>>"Not random, but it is always on. That means no computers, no cell phones, no TV, and no credit cards within a certain radius."

That was not a life Tempest wanted. Despite the myriad uses he could think for her abilities, disrupting basic technology was not one that he thought entertaining. She was like a wizard from the Dresden files, jinxing all the electronics when she came by. How was it he kept it in? A circle to hold the magical power in. Hm.

Devon, meanwhile, nodded as she described the dangers of raw power. She was holding back; he saw it in her body language. Still, he nodded again to show he was with her. On or off, very on. The nod became a slow one and he frowned slightly. That was a hard way to live.

>> "Can you take it? Or can you only dish it out?"

Was it International Women’s Day already? Devon grinned but said nothing of the internalized joke.

>> "If not, I'll go ahead and try what I was going to before you came along."

Before he could start to suggest something for containing her ability she was ready to roll forward. Maybe she needed to blow off some steam too? Maybe it was less about the power and more about getting some stress out. Oh Devon had been there many times. This was someone else to take out to Montauk.

“I was going to suggest something but… If you amplify the voltage, I’ll have to deflect but if it’s just what I shot out I’d be fine,” he explained, eyes remaining dark. She was obviously wired now and he was staying on his toes this time, “Considering your magnetic ability, you could probably disrupt my own resistant field so it might be better to start out small if we’re testing you against me. However, I’m open to trying if you are.”

>“I was going to suggest something but… If you amplify the voltage, I’ll have to deflect but if it’s just what I shot out I’d be fine,”

Lori took a moment to take a deep breath and made herself release her tight grip. She often imagined her power as a spot of light somewhere in her core while her control was like a fist squeezing down tight. That often translated to actual, physical squeezing. Not that it helped. She could squeeze all she wanted, the light would still leak out between her fingers.

"No, by all means, share with the class because I don't convert between voltage and current. I won't be throwing any power at you. And since your option is to deflect, my way would just end up with you dead. Which is..." Her head tipped side to side as if she were debating the merits of said death. Finally she cleared her throat and got back on track. "That's not the point of this exercise." She already knew how to do that.

Lori stretched her arms up and readjusted the height of her ponytail in order to get herself back on track. A little indication from her head brought her bag zipping back toward her position, this time her foot stopped the projectile with the ease and familiarity of a soccer player. She felt the jolt of it all the way up her body through her bones. Ow. The sudden stop made the contents of her bag sound a deep metallic thunk throughout the room.

Dead didn’t sound like a good way to train. However it sounded like her plan for the day had been something different than target practice anyway. Granted she did it like she was debating the worth of his life, which was disconcerting. He recognized a similarity to his head canting though. Was that why people gave him a look when he did that? Geez, you seemed crazy. Devon’s eyes widened as an eyebrow quirked up.

>> "That's not the point of this exercise."

Good.

With a gesture of her head the bag flew to her and she kick caught it. Was she planning to bounce it back and forth, dropping and flinging it back like one of those bouncy balloon toys? Devon’s quirked brow remained there as the metalline structures within created their own resonance in the room.

“I was going to suggest that with the right practice and some charged metal objects, you might be able to find an equilibrium within the electromagnetic field you make,” Devon explained. “It might not be enough for you to carry a cell phone without some more intense practice, but maybe you could even use a computer for a short time. Sort of like making a containment field. It’s that delicate balance that separates the edge of the storm from other atmospheric systems in play. Think of the earth’s magnetic poles in a way.”

Tempest gestured to his eyes, pitch as they were. “I can see such phenomena so I might be able to help you recognize it against how you feel. Again, might take some practice but…” Devon shrugged. “All good things do.”

The breeze in the room had died as had the charge to the air he had caused. Tempest didn’t want to interfere with this woman’s practice, let alone get her too riled up. Instead, his thoughts remained on the slight shift of wind around him in case of quick movements.

“Finding a way to get two magnetic objects to hover at points on either side of you might be a first step? Was that why you brought those?” He gestured at the bag.

Lori dug into her bag while Rainman spoke.

"Equilibrium sounds nice and all, but the best I've been able to manage is static wicking and that just looks stupid." Or intimidating, as a former secretary had advised. She'd worn dumb antenna-like spikes on her clothes for press conferences to keep her image get distorted by the recording equipment. It hadn't hurt at the time that spikes conveyed a sympathetic message to what she'd been saying.

From the bag Lori pulled three disk weights, the heaviest she'd risk considering her gym bag strap, and she began placing them in a triangle. She glanced at the weatherman and adjusted so nothing was pointed at him directly. She also pulled out a washer and a couple large, solid metal bracelets.

> “I can see such phenomena..."

Lori had briefly closed her eyes, trying to calibrate herself and feel the center point between the items she'd placed on the ground, but she snapped to attention at that statement.

"You can see magnetism?" How f*&#ing unfair was that? He wasn't even a magnetic dude. The rest of his statement she waved off. "Well if you can see it, then you should be able to figure out why this shi—uh—stuff's not going to hover anywhere."

Magnetic forces allowed her very few options: attract or repel.

"Maybe one at a time, if I managed to make my field really lopsided..." She felt out her best guess at the center point between the weights and put down a washer. "Or maybe here..." Lori put her hand on her solar plexus, where she felt that ball of light that she tried so hard to squeeze and shut down. Had she ever tried to levitate something right at the center of the field she generated? Did that even make physics sense? "Tell me, Legolas. What do your elf eyes see?"

Ultimately, Lori decided to discard the bracelets. She placed them a safe distance away and against a wall before she went back to her little construction. "I'm going to try to levitate." She pointed down at the washer. "Push off this." She pointed to the three weights. "Stabilise with those." And a sigh. "I wasn't expecting an audience."