It was a Saturday, and there was no class. CS had no class, because he had scheduled it for a Saturday. Things can be done that are not school-related on a Saturday. He could have scheduled it on a Friday, so she would have been able to cite it as a reason that she could skip class. He could have given her no class, but he had not. This, Sam had no class. And she had… had class. For this, she had yet to forgive the man. Still, the trainee test had importance. So she had not skipped it like some sort of skippable class.

Lenna was dressed in workout clothing of assorted colors and hues. Orange yoga pants, blue sneakers, red and white striped socks, and a rainbow-striped top. No weapons had been brought, except for her mind. She thought if she had been told to use her mind, she would have brought as many weapons as could feasibly be attached to her person, but… that would not have been a good test of her mutation. She had humored the request.

She was on time to the danger room, and maybe even a little early. Lenna entered to see what test lay before her, to achieve the title of “trainee.” Titles are just words, but words have importance. And this one would give her more reason to assist the X-men in the field. So… yes.

Sweat dripped down his forehead, just finishing warming up or cooling down himself. Sam didn’t sleep the night before, not because he was excited but because there was another fire in the city and he was too amped up to be able to sleep. He could sleep later, it was Saturday after all.

”You made it. Good.” he nodded his head not bothering to look at the clock that ticked above him. His close were slightly charred and some soot still covered exposed limbs and his face, ”Was wondering if I had to come find you.” Sam said joking. Lenna wouldn’t have skipped. At least that was the feeling he got from her. She was a kid still but one Sam had come to rely on in the past. Like when it came to rescuing Aura.

”You ready?” he asked smirking his lone eye tracing over her, ”No weapons? Good.” she had listened to his request but wouldn’t be surprised if she had snuck one or two in.

”Glad you took me up on my offer to join the team pending the results of this session.” lied Sam. She'd have to mess up royally to make him question her trainee status. She was already more skilled than most of her trainee teammates so much so Sam was willing to take her on a covert mission. One he still hasn’t brought up to anyone other than Shin.

”Any concerns before we start?”

Her eyes, they rolled, at his comments. Come find her? He knew, and she knew, he would not have had to do any such thing. Which, she realized with a hint of self aware embarrassment, had been the joke in its entirety. She smiled in an attempt to cover it up. It came off entirely like a ticked off teen who realized they had been foolish, caught in the act. Trying to laugh it off.

She nodded at his question of readiness. ”No weapons, except for my mind.” She confirmed. And her fists, elbows, knees, feet… those did not count though, yes?

>> ”Glad you took me up on my offer to join the team pending the results of this session.” Sam said.

Lenna imagined a scene from one of the Godfather films, about an offer someone couldn’t refuse. ”How could I refuse?” She confirmed.

Titles meant status meant never having to make explanations for why you were in places one really has no reason to be.

Did she have any questions?

”Are you planning to put me in entirely non-violent situations to test my amazing interpersonal skills.” She did the “air quotes” around the words “interpersonal” and “skills.” What skills?

”The thought did cross my mind to set it up for a session I run with the other trainees but no. I have seen you firsthand in the field, I’ve seen what you are capable of and what you need to refine and perfect.” Sam said honestly.

”You are more skilled in hand to hand than most of the others on the team, but that isn’t what gives you a spot. It's wanting to make the world a safer place for us, mutants.” he paused and turned his neck slightly to give it a crack before continuing. ”And by doing so we help show that we aren’t something to be feared. We want people to be happy when they see us.” he said with a smirk.

They were both deadly, years of practice on both ends. That didn't make an X-man though. The X-men didn’t kill. Something Sam still struggled with. Maybe his true purpose on the team was to train those who could follow through with that thought process.

”So... smile because you are about to find yourself stopping a hostage situation.” Sam said looking up, ”Danger Room, Session frozen mirror 15.”

The room hummed to life, cars started forming in the streets followed by a number of marked officer vehicles. People started to litter the street none of them moving yet as the program hadn’t started. They surrounded a bank, one of the larger ones in the city. A clear line behind them to keep out pedestrians. This was based off a real scenario that he and Maya had run into a few years ago. Filled with one too many, ‘Hold up’ moments.

A voice boomed to life before them as the officers started to move and take cover behind their vehicles all drawing their guns and pointing at the front of the bank as someone exited the building. Their hands were cuffed behind them as they stumbled out for a moment attached to a rope behind them.

“Earlier than expected. By my count thirty seconds earlier well done. This is how it will play out...” the hostage shouted obviously terrified. Sam folded his arms and looked to Lenna to take lead.

Lenna smiled. Through clenched teeth. He was not supposed to take her joke, and make to run away with it.

Yes. It made sense. It all made sense. He had seen her at her worst. Now he needed to see her at her best. Which meant pinpoint accuracy. Carefully made decisions. Lethal logic. And… managing a hostage situation. Which left a bad taste in her mouth.

A bank was the location. There were police, and they had cordoned off the area to keep out random passerby. How, then, was she to enter the scene? Tell them “let me through, I am an X-man?” No. As she had learned through various forms of social media, all cops are bastards. They would not help. They would get in her way. They would assume the worst about her, and make her job even harder. What she needed to do was help them without them knowing she was helping at all.

A positive side effect of subtle aid is that the hostage taker likely feels less threatened. When it is merely police presence, rather than super human interference, the whole scenario is more mundane. Simpler. There is only the problem of police to handle. Will they attack, will they do nothing… somewhere in the middle? There are less moving pieces. Less variables, than when a super hero with an unknown power is on the scene.

What was the range on her power again? Positioned as she was, behind the police cordon with the rest of the pedestrians, this was one of many relevant questions to be asked. Another was the identity of the villain. Power set? Threat to the hostage? Amount of police presence? Was a police officer there who would jeopardize everything?

As the session started, Lenna watched and worked to answer those questions and more. She was silent, lips drawn into a thin line.

A person, cuffed, on a leash.

Sam crossed his arms across his chest and waited. Lenna crossed her arms across her chest and waited.

She looked at him. Both of them, surrounded by the crowd. On the outside. ”More data is required. I wish to only move when it counts.”

Her power would be invisible. And she could affect things in so many ways. Something shifted just the right amount, something sent to fly at an in opportune time. So much she could do! But not on incomplete information! Chess players do not simply react. They are familiar with all the options available to them and their opponents, the various ways those options might be employed… they plan, often several moves in advance. The hostage taker needed to take the lead.

>>>”More data is required. I wish to only move when it counts.”

The icemancer chuckled. She was experienced in battle. That was his first thought as well. Years of training drilled into him at such a young age. It often felt like he was going against his very own nature jumping into fights and rescue operations now.

”Is it?” Sam asked curiously. ”We already know enough to find a better vantage point. We can’t do much here on the outside. The police and hostage takers will be at a stand off until one side concedes enough to get the other to move.” Sam watched as the police ran from behind one vehicle to another all keeping their eyes on the entrance to the building.

”We know that there is at least one hostage. They could have ran when they were outside, the rope would have been easy enough to handle but they way they looked... leads me to believe that there is someone they can’t run away from. Meaning multiple hostages.” he said simply, ”We also know standard practice is to block off all entrances and exits but we don’t really need those do we.” he said looking to the side of the building.

There was an window cleaning platform suspended ten floors up. It was the point of entrance he and Mirror took to enter the building last time. There was also a fire escape.

”This is different than the missions we are used to, the longer we take the more likely someone is injured.”

Could not do anything from outside? Yes, they could. She did not refute his statement though, as it was his scenario in which she was present. He had created it, therefore… he probably knew the important details better than she.

It was true, there was a standoff though. If only the idiot hostage taker would bumble out into the open where she could— she clenched her fist. Oh well.

”Fine,” Lenna agreed.

She listened to his summation. Looked him dead in the eyes. ”You know, you are giving me far too much information for someone who created the situation. Please, let me figure this out on my own. No spoilers!” She rattled off, Colombian accent thick.

Hopefully, he did not think she could levitate upwards. Maybe slow descent, but upwards? Not currently. Not to the extent of ten floors upwards. Her telekinesis was far more limited. At least, for the moment.

Fire escape, it is.

”Stay here. Watch the entrance. I will contact you mentally if I need your help,” Lenna stated briskly. She started walking up the fire escape.

Of course, she had no capability for mental communication. She had lied to Sam. For this mission, she wished to avoid spoilers or coddling. It had bothered her that the last mission she had been on had needed to be a team affair. She was perfectly capable of doing things for herself. She was far older than when she had first De-aged.

The ascent took several minutes, but she hurried. Otherwise, it would have taken longer. Along the way, she snatched a broken piece of rock that had once been part of the building. She grabbed that off the ground floor level, and brought it all the way up to a locked door on the third. Then, she raised the rock and prepared to attempt to break the glass of the door with the rock. A thought causes her to cease, moments from impact. Her brow furrowed.

Lenna focused on the space on the other side of the door, and made a bubble of telekinetic force around the push bar. Pulled towards her. The door opened, and she went in.

Quietly, she went down the stairwell until she was by the door near the ground floor area where the hostage situation was taking place. She peeked through the window, careful not to be seen. Watched for a moment, to understand the full situation.

She shouldn’t be a trainee. She was overqualified for the position. She was just young. Sam raised a hand up apologetically and chuckled. ”Forgot who I was talking to, carry on.”

It was a training session but also an trainee interview. He was there to observe and protect if something went aggressively wrong. She didn’t want his help. Fair enough. ”Yes ma’am.” he said taking the order knowing full well the standoff would continue until someone was spotted inside.

Giving her a wave he leaned on the nearest cruiser, his eye focused on Lenna as she went up the fire escape and into the building. ”Give me a visual on Lenna” Sam said it loud for the danger room to hear and process. A small screen appeared in front of the icemaner as he watched everything that Lenna was doing.

There was one man, and a room full of people. The man had a heavy rifle. He was wearing a dark ski mask. He was tall, about 6’5”, maybe 6’7”. Muscular build. On his chest, he wore a dark Kevlar vest. Underneath that, he wore camouflage pattern military fatigues. All colors seemed differing shades of orange to her, but they were probably browns and blacks.

What was he there for? Money? Negotiating for something? Why would a man dressed like he was ready for war attempt to capture all these hostages, and put himself in a situation where he could definitely lose his life? What WAS the goal?

Wait.

He moved to one side, and she saw a second person sitting in a padded office chair behind him. The man had a goatee style of facial hair, a pointed mustache, and short, dark hair. Seated, Lenna could not ascertain his true height. He wore a dark newsboy style cap and dark slacks. A heavy overcoat. He moved one hand, casually twitching it like conducting a fake orchestra. The big paramilitary dressed man with the rifle twirled in a pirouette.

The rifle man was not in bodily control, he was under sway. Another hostage was crying as she joined him in the dance.

The goatee man spun in his chair, and hummed a few bars of a ballet
Lenna did a quick headcount. 9 people, on the ground, legs crossed, unrestrained. One man with gun, one woman, dancing. The man in the chair. He was the boss.

Options. She rapidly went through options in her head.

Use power. Take gun. Goatee sees. Problems.

No good.

Use power. Raise heavy item. Drop heavy item. Man dies.

No good.

She ran through that last one twice more, changing the end. He saw. Problems. People controlled. Object missed, or failed to knock him out. Problems. People controlled.

Final run. If he was knocked out, it was possible that the gunner would turn on her and apply force. Could hurt people in the attempt. Thus, no good.

Last ditch effort: if she created a distraction to lure rifle out… no. Unpredictable. Too dangerous. Men who makes others dance to their whims are capricious. They need to have their ego manipulated so that they feel in control. She had to make him feel he had the upper hand, and let him lead himself down the oath of his own destruction. Lenna took a moment to study the rifle closely.

On her communications she said— she had no comm device. Her hand lowered from her ear. She carefully snuck away from the door, and spoke audibly to the ceiling. “Sam, if you are listening. I am doing something. Do not interfere. It is a risk.”

Lenna returned to the doorway, and arms raised, entered the room slowly.

“I am unarmed and come to you willingly,” she announced.

The dancing stopped. Goatee flicked a hand, and snapped. Rifle aimed at her and watched, like a bird of prey.

“Who are you?” The goatee asked slowly.

“A negotiator,” she said, accent thick. “Eliana.”

“Tiresome,” the man drawled. “Probably an X. But not him. And the timing had been going so well. Even a little bit early.” He sighed and he pouted. “Leave it to him to change things on the fly.”

“Him? Who?”

“Cold Steel,” Goatee mourned. “Oh well. It cannot be helped, then. I simply must send him a message. I won’t accept any substitutes. Now, approach…”

He gestured with a finger, and she approached. Willingly, but not of her own will. Her feet moved to the beat of his hand drumming his knee.

He gestured for rifle to get into position behind her. She felt the rifle press against the back of her head.

She was still in control of her mind. Usually, visual contact was needed to manipulate objects or people. It was required she see it… except in cases where intimate contact was established, such as having a knife behind your back. Or…

There really is not anything more intimate than a gun pressed against your head. The proximity to life, death, the level of control felt and exhibited by the Other. How the person at their mercy responds. Truths revealed, on all sides. How did Lenna react?

She breathed in, a little. Her lungs expanded, chest rose. And she focused.

“Kill her.” Goatee sighed a happy little sigh.

Her chest fell as she breathed out. And things happened rapidly.

Rifle put his finger on the trigger. Discipline ingrained in any competent soldier or daydream believer had kept the finger clear., until that point. It cost him. He tried to pull the trigger. An invisible bubble of telekinetic force placed between the trigger and where he was pulling kept it from moving in the way that he wished. Lenna knew this gun, had used one many times, and had studied his firearm prior to this attempt. She knew how it felt pressed against her, and understood its dimensions. Including length. She knew where the gun was, intimately. She had placed the bubble in the exact right spot.

Before he could react by exerting more force, a second bubble appeared around the first. She was in goatees control and could not move her body. But she could fling the rifle back up into the gun-mans face with her mind.

Rifle reeled back as the rifle connected, and a moment later, Lenna mentally willed the rifle forward into her sight line. The gunner followed this course, pulled along behind in the rifle’s wake by a strap. He was big, but she was tugging with 250-290 lbs of lifting strength. She could have physically pulled a reeling opponent bodily, using weight and leverage to assist. She could PSYCHICALLY do so, as well. The bubble protecting the trigger maintained its previous strength. He was still squeezing, the last command given. She was dividing between two things. As they moved into her vision, she saw them as orange spheres.

The rest of the room was in full living color. Goatee had a purple newsboy cap. Some boy had tried to get her to play a fighting game. “Ultra fight Siblings,” or something like that. He reminded her of some item the boy had utilized, which summoned a weird looking man with a tennis racket. She had been told his hat was purple, when she had asked. He had seemed greasy, much like the boy in question vaguely hoping to win her attentions. What had his name been again? It came to her as she released the first bubble on the gun she had just aimed, and rifle-man shot Waluigi in the knee.

Lenna had weighed the price of this against the costs, if the man were allowed to hurt people. A shot to the knee is immediate incapacitation. The threat of death was actually quite low. The damage would be done in a location with no vitals, though bone shards or the power of the rifle itself could potentially cause damage. A ruptured femoral artery, maybe. The true danger was blood loss. She had aimed for a “through shot”, piercing the knee from several feet away. Far closer than one usually gets.

The recovery time of a full knee cap replacement with bolts and titanium plates would likely take a full 12 months, and after that he would be inhibited his entire life. Which meant he would be less likely to hurt people in hostage situations again. As opposed to him hurting everyone present, presently. She had weighed the things. There were police outside, and medical personnel standing by. He would be fine.

He would be fine, she insisted. But he certainly would not be able to focus on controlling anyone in the next few minutes.

Lenna moved, released from the body bind. She quickly knocked the military wannabe down and hit him in the head with the ground, hard. Twice. Down, in seconds.

“Everyone please calmly walk outside. Tell the first police officer you see that a man has been shot critically by his friend in a disagreement. He needs immediate medical assistance. The second man has a concussion. Lover’s quarrel. I was never here.”

That had been said, then she had left. A minute or so later, Lenna slipped back through the crowd to Sam.

“Will that do?” Lenna clasped her hands behind her back.

This wasn’t the typical scenario for a potential trainee, but then again Lenna wasn’t the typical trainee. She had field experience. It was all the more clear to Sam as he watched her study the situation before making a move. Showed she was smart and cautious. Good, they needed more of that.

”Danger, record the session.” he said to the computer as he chuckled when she gave herself up. That he wasn’t expecting. With her power set she could have moved around the room and taken out the main threat. Then figured things out from there. ”Gawain, isn’t going to believe this.”

He didn’t move as requested. The session would have stopped before she was killed, not to mention if it looked like a bad situation he could just pause the session and risk the wrath of the telekinetic. Gun to the back of the head, for any other potential trainee dangerous. Lenna...

Sam watched it play out.

”No $*^t” smiling smugly as she dispatched both Private Dancer and the shooter quickly and efficiently. The team wouldn’t believe it.

A few minutes passed and Lenna made her way back out to him. The screen was gone now, he waved it away after she left the building. ”Yeah, think that will do. Nice work.” he said shaking his head with a chuckle.

”If it was anyone else I would have yelled at them for throwing themselves into the line of fire so quickly but... I think that’s where you like to be.” they had way too much in common from what Sam could gather.

”You’re more experienced than most of the trainees we got now. Spot on the teams is yours if you want it.”

Sam approved. A small, pleased smile found its way upon Lenna’s face. If it had not done, she would have been frustrated. Many things could have contributed to that. Too violent, maybe. Too bold? Overconfidence could have been her weak point, or else a lack of teamwork. She had kept cold steel away. But none of these things had caused him to doubt her performance. He had even complimented the performance.

She nodded and said ‘thanks.’ Then, he confirmed one of her thoughts.

>> ”If it was anyone else I would have yelled at them for throwing themselves into the line of fire so quickly but... I think that’s where you like to be.”

She kept quiet, and let him finish.

>>
”You’re more experienced than most of the trainees we got now. Spot on the teams is yours if you want it.”

”I wished to keep collateral low. They may have used hostages if I had not let them think they had won. Decisive action, quick, close enough they could not easily react. Using Waluigi’s ego against him.” She explained. ”But yes, I am happy to join the team!” She smiled. Conspiratorially, she added: ”Between me and you, maybe next time do not use Waluigi as the bad guy image. He is very silly. I felt like next, I would be shooting an Italian plumber in the leg. Or an egg-throwing dinosaur, that is green.”

Lenna smirked, amused at her own joke.

She was... gifted. The same way Sam was in the field. Training for most of your life would do that to you. A subject he hoped would come up more next time they both had the time for it. Now probably wasn’t one of those times. ”Waluigi?” Sam asked when the name she had given Private Dancer. He didn’t correct her though. She earned to call him whatever she wanted. There was no casualties.

”Well you did it. And this was based off an actual rescue Mirror and I did a few years back. I didn’t change anything about him. He’s... dangerous. Might seem over the top but he’s got a list offenses a mile long. Likes to torture people for his own amusement. In fact any time he tried to rob a place it was only for attention. In fact I wouldn’t put half of our teammates against him. Too dangerous.” he said in all honesty.

”Good! I’ll inform the others! Javi will be in contact with you at some point to get you fitted for a suit, I’ll also be asking you a little more about your history when you got time. You don't’ have to tell me everything. Just a ‘get to know my new teammate’ conversation.” he said curious about her past. Maybe she knew more about his than she let on.

He did not know Waluigi?

”Some character from a game. Looks like him,” she supplied.

He was a real person, it had really happened, Sam was really aware of the danger the man presented. He would not have thrown just anyone up against the man who was not a cartoon. Lenna felt flattened. Not flattered. Run over by a steamroller. Crushed. The flattered feeling came after. But first, she dealt with having misnamed an Enemy from Sam’s past. Someone he respected enough to avoid pairing off against mostly everyone. Mostly Everyone, but not her. What a nice thought that was. She should feel touched, not rolled over.

She blushed a little. ”Thanks.”

Then he went “oh good! I’ll tell the tailor! We will get you suited up,” to paraphrase. And her mind went “suit, costume? Oh no.”

History, she could do. She thought they had already shared that, but what she knew, she could share. And what she did not know, she could put on a cork board for him, with the strings simply placed by pins everywhere!

”History, I can do. Coffee some time. Will need a lot. It is a lot. Costume? Be sure to request a mini skirt so when I levitate, bad guys see my ass. Wait. No, the other thing. Opposite. Pants, Sam. No mini skirt.” She said gravely. She pointed one finger for emphasis. It was a dangerous finger. ”As plain as clothes can come. Why be flashy, when I can blend in?”

This was the same person who wore a domino mask and black face grease and black on black with hoodie and pants to try and intimidate thugs to help rescue a friend. Perhaps, a lesson had been learned.

”Ah.” he tried to get into video games at one point. Took too much of his time and energy, meaning the focus was pulled from other aspects of life. Ones he deemed more important. ”Good to know where he got the color scheme though. Couldn’t understand it.” Sam said smirking.

”Sounds good. Coffee it is.” he knew a little bit of the history but more information, any possibility that someone could come back from her past to haunt her or the rest of the team... Sam wanted to be ready for it. Prepared. He wasn’t going to get caught vulnerable like when Amanda attacked the team using the himself as a conduit. The team had a right to be ready.

”We haven’t done miniskirts in years. For good reason.” he said as Lenna the student talked about her rear. Coughing and clearing his throat, ”They aren’t practical and yeah, we do lowkey suits and more flashy ones. Depends on the mission. We also fit you for cold gear as well. Been a while since we went to the artic.” he said in all honesty. Antartica however... that was a pretty recent one for Sam.

”Sometimes, people need to see us in action. Know that someone is there to help them. Give them hope when they want to give up.”