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Upset and afraid. Well that was something Natalie wasn't willing to duplicate in order to get results. Fear was not a motivation tactic to her, so her lips pursed as she gave it a few moments to think. Slowly, she brought herself up to her feet, Oz shifting out of the way so she could move.
"Alright then, why don't we start with you standing in the shadow and focusing on blending into it."
He let go of Jodie, albeit hesitantly. Rowan stood up and walked to stand in the center of a shadow. He took a breath, and focused his mind. trying to blend in. Trying, but not with results. But that was okay right? It would take practice right? He just practiced and practiced. Focusing and focusing on becoming invisible, trying to recreate the shadow invisibility trick... he was invisible... nobody could see him, nobody wanted to see him, and he didn't want to be seen. A small flicker of the shadow at his feet, he felt its pull, but not much else happened.
Dark eyes watched the boy to try and catch any change. Half the battle was determining the extent of what he could do - and how exactly his powers worked. Recruiters could only do so much in term of the finer details. Teaching someone to control powers would only be so helpful if they knew exactly what they were getting into. So when she caught sight of a little hint of what appeared to be smoke around his feet.
He wasn't invisible, but it was something as a start. "Good. Look at that." Even if it went as quickly as it came, the trainer smiled over at him. "Would you prefer it if I wasn't watching?"
He tried several more times, with the same result, only lasting a little longer than the last. It was progression at least. But it'd take a little more time and a little more practice, it was draining on his energy after all. He stopped after what seemed to be the tenth attempt and sat down for a moment to take a break, feeling a little tired after that. "P-perhaps it would be b-better if you weren't l-looking... but I need to rest for a moment..."
Each power had its own side effects, and Rowan's appeared to be physically taxing on him. She could see it in his posture, and Jodie could smell it in the air around them. When he sat down, Natalie went over to her own backpack, pulling out a couple of shaker bottles and a paper bag. Returning to him, she pressed a knee into the floor, extending the bottle out to him. "Hope you like smoothies." The thick, brownish liquid sloshed in the container. "It's full of protein. You should drink some." She opened her own bottle, taking a sip of it.
Rowan took the offered bottle with a smile. "Thanks. I like smoothies." He nodded at miss Arazi. He took a sip of it. So first day wasn't so bad so far. He liked his trainer, and honestly wouldn't ask for anyone else. "Miss Arazi? A-Are you gonna be my trainer for the rest of my time here?" He looked at her with his bright blue eyes. "I hope so... Because I like you, I feel comfortable with you, and Jodie and Oz, can't forget them." He smiled warmly at the two dogs.
Natalie was a huge fan of natural smoothies; packed with bananas, nuts, and other organic foods to create something that was both sweet and healthy. She smiled when he took the bottle, placing her own on the floor after having taken a sip. She unrolled the top of the paper bag, pulling out another home made treat - granola bars. She extended one out to him. It was important to keep energy up; using abilities could often be draining - and it showed on him.
"I sure hope so." Nat knew there was no way to be sure about the fact. There was always the possibility a trainer specializing in abilities like his could come along, or her own life would take an unexpected turn away from Bellefonte, despite her current plans to stay. "But for now we'll be here with you."
Biting into the granola bar, she stood up, rolling her shoulders to stretch a little. "Once you're ready, we can try again. But take your time."
Natalie had handed him a granola bar as well. He took it with a smile and thanks. She was looking after him, that was great.After he had finished eating and drinking, he but the rubbish in the bin in the corner of the room, and the bottle on the table that was in there. He rolled out his muscles, shaking off the stiffness and took a breath. "Perhaps...perhaps if you look over there." Rowan pointed to the corner of the room. "And I try to turn invisible somewhere out of your line of sight?" Rowan suggested. There were plenty of shadows he could use. There was no difference in causing them to smoke around him and manipulating them on a wall right? Yes, he had failed just before, but he figured the should be no difference in wrapping them around him and warping their shapes on a surface.
Natalie made a mental note of the way Rowan liked to speak - he offered suggestion to confirm the idea she gave to look away. Perhaps it was the way he liked to break it down, but there felt like a sense of longing for control. To call the shots despite being so shy. The corner of her mouth lifted upwards as she nodded, finding her way towards the opposing wall, dogs following. Her gaze directed down at her phone, but lingered away long enough to catch Jodie looking towards Rowan.
"Stop that, you." Nat whispered playfully to her, and the dog's head turned towards her, and then looked to the wall away as well.
He waited for her and the dogs to turn away. Then he lightly stepped into the corner away from where she could see. He took a deep breath and focused. He focused on manipulating the shadows, and he focused on turning invisible. A smokey effect at his feet. A little stronger than before. But easier. He was getting somewhere, that was always a good sign. He tried again. The effect made it around his ankles. That's a little better. He was getting there, but still not enough to replicate the turning invisible thing. He kept trying though. Getting slightly better with each attempt, but he had to stop again. He stepped away from the corner, and grabbed the smoothie bottle he had been given before and took a mouthful before looking at his trainer. "S-slightly better. The effect is at my ankles now." He smiled slightly. He would get there, he knew. It would just take time. Time and practice.
Without her eyes on the boy, she had no real way to see progress, but she had to believe that he would preform better without an audience. To suppress any desire to look, Nat looked through her latest texts with Clarke. She wondered if it would to be too soon to invite her over for another dinner. Or maybe go as far as going out somewhere for a meal. Her thumbs pressed to the screen, typing out a message but hovering a little longer over the send button. In the end, she decided against it.
When prompted, she turned, placing her phone in her pocket and offering Rowan a smile. "That's good. It's progress." Her hands clapped together lightly, taking steps towards him. "I believe that should be enough for today. We don't want to exhaust you out."
He nodded. "Alright." He smiled slightly. He wanted to improve, and he knew time and patience, but he still wished he'd have done better than that. But he was happy that Miss Arazi was his teacher. She was nice and patient and the dogs too. So as long as they believed in him, he believed in himself. He gathered his things and returned the now empty smoothie bottle she had given him earlier that session. He headed to the door, ready to leave, pausing a moment before turning back and walking over to Jodie to give her a hug and ruffle her fur, then gave Miss Arazi a hug too. As awkward as it may have been, that was to let them know he appreciated the help and that he trusted and liked them, not only that, it also meant a small, tiny, step to improving his nerves as well. After that he left the training rooms and made his way to his next destination.
A hug to both Jodie and herself had the trainer smiling warmly. Overall, she could say it was a successful day overall. Though she had been nervous, it went far better than she could have expected. As Rowan left the room, she gave a small wave goodbye before packing up her things. With her dogs at her side, she flipped the lights and closed the door behind her, heading off for the afternoon.
