Though she seemed embarrassed, Lee stool responded to her gently, a small smile on her face. ”You never know. It's amazing what happens, what starts to feel normal, when you find the right person. Plus, it could always be worse. You could feel that you're not even able to touch someone long enough to be able to have sex.”

It looked like she was considering her question about the glasses and ear plugs, so when she answered Lee nodded. ”I'll have to go buy some ear plugs, then, so we have them ready. That way I'll have them for when you're ready to start training.”

She nodded, biting her lip as the talk continued. It was sort of weird, talking about this kind of thing with her 'aunt,' but...it was helping, and she seemed to know what she was talking about. Though from the sound of it, she wasn't talking about Blaine, here. "That's true, I guess...I mean, it's a good thing that doesn't result in my powers...going nova, I guess you'd say."

Then, she pondered over the earplug and sunglasses idea. "That would work for training, but it's usually so sudden, you'd have no time to get ready, unless I have some kind of tell I don't know about," she mused, thinking for a second. "I guess the main rule would have to be, don't piss me off?" she joked with a slight giggle.

”Skye, that's why you're going to practice and train,” Lee said softly with a slight shake off her head. ”So you don't, what did you call it? Go nova suddenly. But if posting you off is the most reliable way to get you to go nova, you may start to hate me.”

Lee finished speaking with a shrug before turning back to the TV screen. Not that she was interested in what was on there now, but she figured it would give Skye a chance to think.

"You want me to go nova?" she asked, blinking a little. "That'll piss off everyone in the apartment complex, the cops might be called...someone may shoot..." she was mostly joking, however there was a hint of fear there.

After a moment, she got up, rooting through her VHS collection as she pulled out another tape, replacing the one in the VCR with this one, and then hit play. This arena was far different from the one in the first tape; it was bigger, more packed out. And it was shown on a sports channel, albeit at odd hours, since this was still not a pro bout.

However, Blaine stepped out, still young and even more confident than he had been in his last. Once the bell rang, this fight was back and forth, as if the two men knew each other. Round one ended, then round two. And then, round three. The two men did a good job going back and forth, and the opponent even took Blaine down a few times, but had trouble keeping him there. Finally, the guy had Blaine taken down and locked in a kimura lock.

"I recommend looking away..." Skye murmured, still focusing on the screen, but still wincing a little as there was an audible snap. Everyone was shocked, but Blaine got out of the hold without even flinching, and then about thirty seconds later, scored a knockout kick that leveled the guy to the mat.

However, this time the commentary was not praising of him, but Blaine still held his broken arm high in victory."And that was the day he was blacklisted...I was five the first time I saw this. The last time I saw him..." she murmured, then looked over at Lee.

"Why are humans like that? Blackballing us just because we're different?" she asked, her hair turning blue.

Hearing Skye's shocked question, Lee looked back at her. ”Well yeah,” Lee said, her tone sounding as though it should be obvious. ”How do you expect to be able to control it if you don't even really know what it feels like? But of course we're not going to do it here. When you're ready to start, I know a place we can go.”

But then Skye was up. And apparently putting another tape in the machine. Another of Blaine's fights, though this one looked more recent, much more important. So Lee sat and watched. Skye had been right, Blaine was impressive fighting, and though she had already known that, it was something else watching him like this.

Then in the third round, Skye mentioned that she may want to look away while Blaine was in an arm lock. Lee frowned. Did that mean that…

The crack that could be heard even over the tape answered that question as Lee watched as Blaine's arm was snapped. Lee blinked. That was more than just a break like she had been told, but that didn't stop Blaine from getting out of the hold, and in Lee's than a minute knocking out his opponent as blood from his arm dropped to the mat.

The frown still on her face, Lee liked over at Skye when she heard the younger woman speak. ”Because they're scared,” she replied. ”Or because they feel inferior and think that by oppressing us, they'll feel better. Or just because they're bigots and we're the target of the day.

“He didn't tell me that it was that bad,” Lee continued, her voice calm yet quiet, almost a little sad, as she turned her eyes back to the TV.

"True..." she murmured, slumping on the couch a little. "I just don't like how it makes me feel after, or everyone in the room, for that matter. But...I guess I do need to get a handle on it." She smiled lightly. She cringed a little as the arm broke, even though she'd seen it so much she was almost desensitized to it.

She bit her lip a little, nodding. "It's just not fair....he could have lived his dream if not for them....and there. That guy that broke his arm? He actually made it. He had a title reign, but it wasn't much. Had a big retirement match....I think it was last week. Even though Uncle Blaine was a better fighter then than that guy could ever dream of being..." As she spoke, her hair turned red, the pulsing light picking up speed as the room glowed a deep red.

Lee nodded as she listened to Skye. ”All the more reason for you to learn how to control it,” Lee said. ”If you can control it, you can stop it from happening. Or, potentially use it some time you need to that you can’t right now.”

As Skye continued speaking, though, she sounded like she was getting more and more upset. And her hair, and the corresponding light, changed to red. Lee’s head tilted slightly as she looked over. Did the different colours mean something, Lee wondered. She’d seen Skye with purple hair a lot since the girl had gotten there, and she had been nervous a lot about coming to a new place, about seeing her uncle for the first time in so long and meeting Lee. And now that she sounded angry about Blaine missing his chance to be a pro-fighter, her hair turned red.

”No, it’s not fair,” Lee agreed, and it really wasn’t. Blaine shouldn’t have had to lose everything like that simply because he was a mutant. ”But life’s not fair. If it were, my parents wouldn’t have pulled me out of school, practically locking me in the house, and your mother wouldn’t have abused you.”

Lee was about to continue, telling Skye that if Blaine had made it, she wouldn’t be there, Lee never would have met Blaine, and they wouldn’t be having this conversation. But before the words left her mouth, Lee had another thought. Skye seemed to be getting rather agitated about this, and she’d said that she’d gone nova before with extreme emotions…

And from what Skye had said, it wasn’t dangerous, just disorienting and annoying.

”Is that why he didn’t want to watch the fight...I thought it was weird,” Lee said, starting to poke at Skye slightly, seeing if she could make the woman more angry. It wasn’t the nicest, but at least at this point, it was the best idea Lee had to help Skye learn to control it. ”He normally has one on when I get here after work. But he was a little upset. It must have been because of that fight.

“Though, I didn’t think the other guy was that bad,” Lee continued prodding the other woman. ”And with him going pro, he would have had a lot more time to train than your uncle could manage.”

"When would I need to blind or deafen somebody?" she asked, quirking a brow. It made no sense to him, honestly.

"But no one deserves it. Not me, not you....nobody...especially over something we can't even determine." Her breath sharpened as she spoke, especially as Lee went on to...defend Blaine's opponent?!? The guy that broke his arm?!?

The red light began to gradually pulse faster as she looked up, eyes flashing. "Not that bad?!? Look," she rewound it again, then paused right at the arm break. "Right there. His form is wrong. He has his body placed to more easily snap the arm! And he's not that bad! He stole Uncle Blaine's career!" Then, she spoke about training, and how Blaine wouldn't have had as much training time...

The light pulsed faster still as she clenched her teeth with rage. And then....

BANG! Simultaneously, there was a flash of blinding white light, and a sound like a gunshot. Skye leaned against the couch, her ears ringing and her face pale. Her hands were shaking slightly.

"You....why did you..." she breathed, her hair now turning slightly blue. She wasn't even sure if she'd be heard right now. Skye laid her head on the arm of the couch, drawing her knees to her chest.

When would she need to? Wow, Skye was more innocent than she had thought. Lee was both happy and and worried about this fact. Being a mutant, in New York City no less, not realizing that she might need to blind or deafen someone at some point was definitely worrying to Lee.

But that was a different problem than what Lee was working on at that moment.

Lee had to agree that no one deserved how mutants were treated simply for the fact of how they were born. But then Skye heard her other words, and Lee was sure she was getting closer to her goal. Skye sure looked like she was getting more worked up, more upset. And the red light was growing brighter, flashing faster. Even though she hadn’t seen or heard from her uncle for most of her life, apparently he, and this fight, were very emotional things for Skye.

And then it happened. Everything went bright white and Lee couldn’t see anything at the same time that it sounded like a gun went off beside her. Ok, maybe she should have waited, Lee realized as her ears rang. Closing her eyes, she rubbed them, hoping that would help her be able to see properly again soon.

But she didn't let that stop her from starting to talk, to ask Skye questions. ”Ok, forget about everything I just said to you,” Lee said, not entirely sure about her volume level since she couldn’t hear herself properly at the moment. ”Think about how that felt. What did you feel like just before it happened? When it came out? What you feel like now?”

Forget? Skye's face dropped, realizing the poking, the words....it was to get her power to activate. But she was honestly too tired to be mad again, as her hands flickered with blue light again, feeling somewhat sad. Used, even. But at the same time, she understood that Lee was just trying to help her get a grip on it, so it wasn't as bad.

"Well...I was angry that time..." she murmured. "When it happened...that anger just sort of....exploded, I guess. And now...I'm tired. Little light headed..." she said, curling up a little tighter. "That kinda takes a lot out of me."

Lee was starting to be able to hear the TV again, though her ears were still ringing uncomfortably. Opening her eyes, she noticed that she still wasn’t able to see clearly, so she just let her head fall back against the couch and let her eyes close again. No sense straining her eyes even more at the moment.

But at least she was able to hear enough to get what Skye said about how she felt. A lot of it sounded similar to how her own blast felt, the energy pushing outward, feeling tired after.

Lee nodded. ”Did you feel anything other than the anger?” she asked, still not looking over at Skye because of her eyes. ”Your pulse racing? An aura like with a migraine? A weird energy, either inside or around you?” Lee really wasn’t sure what it could be, she wasn’t the one with these powers, she had no idea what it was they were looking for as a signal. But Lee could ask questions and maybe that would help Skye think, realize what it was she was feeling.

"I think my pulse sped up, but....aside from that, it was just the anger..." she murmured, the light ringing in her ears dying down, finally. "I just know I felt angry, then it got worse, and then I'm too tired to stay angry. And...I'm a little sad. Heartbroken, maybe. I don't know...it happens just as suddenly for me as it does for you," she explained.

"Though, for some reason, the light doesn't affect me so much. Maybe because it's mine, or something." She shrugged, then looked over at Lee. "You gonna be okay? The effects should wear off pretty soon. It's different for different people, but it rarely lasts more than a minute or two," she said, gently moving to place her hand on Lee's shoulder. "That much, I can tell you. Luckily it's not fatal or permanent or anything, right?" She smiled a little.

Lee nodded as she heard what Skye said about what she felt. She hadn’t been expecting Lee to do that, and she had just exploded. Maybe the next time she’d be able to pay attention to things better, closer, and hopefully Skye would catch something.

But then she said that she was sad, heartbroken, and Lee looked over at Skye with a frown, even though she was still seeing spots and having some trouble focusing her eyes. ”I was only trying to provoke you, I don’t actually think any of that,” Lee told Skye. ”Though, if Blaine had made it, and become a pro fighter, I never would have met him. Sometimes bad things that happen to you can lead you to a better life.”

Lee shrugged. She wasn’t sure how else to explain it, at least not without going into a lot more details. Details that were not important at that moment. The main concern at the moment was Skye’s powers, not how Blaine being blacklisted all those years ago.

But Lee waved off Skye’s concern. ”Yeah, I’m sure I’ll be good soon,” Lee said, though she closed her eyes again. ”I’ve survived much worse than this. The spots in front of my eyes are just making it hard to focus, but it’s nothing to worry about.”

Then Lee laughed slightly. ”I gathered that with what you said about it earlier. If I thought it might actually be dangerous, I never would have provoked you like that. This,” Lee paused, rubbing her ears hoping it would get rid of the ringing in her ears that, while it had lessened, was still there. ”This is just annoying.”

She paused a moment, thinking. "True. And I probably wouldn't have had a place to go..." she murmured, then looked up at her. "You're really happy with Uncle Blaine. I like how you two compliment each other, actually. It's sweet. If it took him not being a fighter for you to find him, and for me to be here....then I think I'm happy with that," she added with a soft smile, her hair turning orange as her smile grew wider.

"Yeah, that tends to happen to people. All you can do is wait it out. Maybe it's good I won't be blowing a hole in the wall or anything. Especially not in my younger years. I mean...I don't let a lot get to me anymore. So I guess that's one good thing my power did, huh? I'm a little less sensitive, at least in the extreme sense."

Though her eyes were still closed, Lee smiled when she heard Skye’s words. It was a small smile, but it was happy. ”I really am,” Lee said softly, the smile not going anywhere. ”Happier than I thought I would be again, to be honest. And, I think, I hope, Blaine feels the same.”

Then Lee opened her eyes and looked over at Skye again. At least it was getting easier to focus, though Lee was starting to notice a pressure behind her eyes, like she was getting a headache. ”But don’t fool yourself, I think he’s always going to be a fighter,” Lee said with a smile over at Skye. ”It wouldn’t surprise me if he’s still trying to train when he’s 80. It’s a part of him.”

And, as she thought about that, Lee’s smile widened a fraction. It probably was true, he probably would be trying to train. And Lee was ok with that, it was part of who Blaine was.

Lee nodded as Skye explained that she had become less sensitive as she’d grown older. ”Just don’t go too far with that,” Lee warned. ”Don’t cut yourself off emotionally just so you don’t go nova. Believe me, it’s not a good alternative.”