Bloody Luxury (Josh)

[Tempero]

Midnight. His favorite- no need to stay inside, surrounded by those revolting, towering, captivating walls that make him feel so caged up, breathless, helpless. No bunches of people around. Oh, Danny loves talking to people, making friends, and all that jazz, but when you have an uncontrolled, weird-ass kind of telepathy, large groups could be problem when you're as friendly as he is.

So this is why the very handsome, white-haired 17 year old boy is in his dark green swimming trunks, and swimming around in the pool. It is supposed to make up for the past exercise sessions he's missed, and it is also fun. There is a problem, however. And Danny's mind gets to it as soon as he gets out of the water and just lays there, on the ground, looking at the sky.

I could as easily die, get kidnapped, or something even worse and no one would notice it. I could drown! And I go off swimming without anyone around! Perhaps it is because I truly, and most sincerely am alone? he thinks. All of a sudden, his fear of being alone manifests its ugly self again, this time in a form of aquaphobia. And he sits up straight as an arrow in a moment, his breathing accelerating, and his heart pumping blood stronger and faster. He scuttles off as far away from the water, but also as close to the beds, as possible. He rolls up, hugging his knees with his hands, and looks at the ground, hoping that someone would come.

After a few seconds, the panic attack is gone, and he is able to think clearly again, even though he is still very uncomfortable with being here alone. People who don't have any problems are the lucky ones! And they envy me! A life without a single unreasonable fear is...is... Danny stops for a moment, trying to think of a word. Then, a phrase comes to mind, a fitting title of a song.

"It's Bloody Luxury!" he says out loud, and then smiles at his own comment.

[Josh Dalton Worthington]

Josh is in the Institute's kitchen, getting a glass of juice. Sometimes when he tries to sleep, people's nightmares keep him up. He catches their fear from whatever's happening to them and it makes it hard to fall asleep.

He hears some splashing from outside, and looks out the window. A boy is swimming this late? Hm... well, I'm not getting to sleep anytime soon.

Josh walks out onto the pool deck and sees the boy sitting on the pool's edge. He suddenly calls out a phrase.

"What's bloody luxury?" Josh can't help but ask. He sits on a chaise lounge and looks over in interest.

[Tempero]

Daniel jumps slightly, startled by the sudden appearance of another student. After a few seconds, which he used to recover, he laughs. "Whoa, you gave quite a scare there!" he says joyfully. Another person here, around, makes him feel allot better, not surrounded by the walls of solitude.

"Oh, never mind that, I was just talking to myself. Problems and stuff, you know. Oh, I'm Danny. I haven't seen you around..." he says, his warm green eyes now watching the other boy, and his whole stature now completely changed- he is no longer cuddled up, but laid back, relaxed. Daniel never liked being alone, and this was the main reason that he is now wondering why did he come here in the first place.

Odd, I usually remember people's faces quite well. How come I haven't seen this guy before? I've been around the school practically 24/7. he thinks, wondering what the guy's powers were as well. Daniel doesn't notice that he's still only in his swimming shorts, as it's not really cold outside.

However, he does notice one thing- he's not the only one up this late at night. "Wait a sec, aren't you supposed to be sleeping?" he asks, and then thinks of the question he just asked- isn't he himself supposed to be sleeping? He chuckles at the observation.

[Josh Dalton Worthington]

Josh scoots over to the edge of the pool and dangles his feet in. "My name's Josh. I've been here for just over 3 years. What about you?"

He's been here for awhile, I think. I've been pretty busy lately - we all have, what with Alcatraz, Alkali. But life goes on, I guess.

>"Wait a sec, aren't you supposed to be sleeping?"

"When people have nightmares, their fear makes it hard for me to fall asleep. I've been staring at the ceiling for an hour, so I came down for some juice." He tilts the cup at Danny, and continues. "I pick up their bad vibes with my telepathy."

"I usually wake up Bobby when I have a telepathic headache and make him play backgammon with me, but he had a long day, so I let him sleep." He leans back on his hands. "What are you doing swimming this late?"

[Tempero]

"Oh, I've been coming and going for a while, but actually got a room about two years ago. I still can't enter it though." Danny replies, and then goes on listening to Josh.

"You're a telepath? Wow, that's great! I have some small amount of telepathy, nothing big. Just to ease up my real power. I think it will get better, though, or at least hope so." he replies, happy that he found someone who has the same gift as he. Or at least part of it.

After the second question, there was a slight pause. Danny wasn't sure what to answer, but then decided. "I missed my daily exercises, I couldn't sleep, and I can't get into my room. My uncle's house is too far away for me to go there tonight. And, besides, he's out of town for the month." he answers, giving several reasons, all of them true.

"So, do you have any other powers?" he asks conversationally, now dipping his own legs into the pool. It was warm both in and out of the water, so there was no risk of getting a cold or anything like it.

[Josh Dalton Worthington]

So he's been here off and on- it makes sense that I haven't seen him that much.

Josh looks over at Danny. "You should talk to Professor Sheppard about telepathy, if you're worried at all. That's what I'm planning on doing... I can't really do much beyond thought projection. Sometimes I can tell if other people are nearby." He takes a sip of his juice.

>"So, do you have any other powers?"

"Oh, yeah. I'm telekinetic." Josh levitates a sphere of water out of the pool, then drops it back in with a splash. "Except I can move all kinds of things. Freya's the hydrokinetic one here. Telekinesis is really my strength, actually. If my telepathy was alll I had, I'd be a sorry excuse for a mutant." He smiles.

[Tempero]

Danny chuckles at the coincidence. "I would say we're pretty much at the same level of telepathy. Although, I don't have such a cool power. Or at least, don't have it without your permission." he says, and then laughs slightly at the thought of how strange that must have sounded.

"I could, though, probably help you about your telepathy. And telekinesis. Although for a small period of time. You see, my other power is somewhat strange. I can boost other people's powers and their control over them. As long as I concentrate on the person, and he or she is no more than 100 meters away, they have a boost to their powers as well as great control over them. The control boost is proportional to my amount of control over my power. Basically, it's just me setting my own mind into the equation of mind over power, usually doubling the control. Sort of weird to explain..." he says, elaborating on the topic.

"I'll be right back!" he says suddenly, and then runs off inside. After about five minutes, he is back with a can of Coke. "Your juice made me thirsty!" he says, laughing. Josh seems like a very nice guy, and Danny feels allot easier around him than most other people. Not that it's hard for him to get along with everyone, some people were just...better.

Once more, for the n-th time, Danny is radiating a feel of friendliness, and his warm, green eyes are supporting this feel whenever one meets them. A smile is on his face constantly, and he is quite relaxed.

[Josh Dalton Worthington]

"So you're some kind of mutant supercharger?" Josh thought about that one for a second. I guess it's not unheard of - Leech could cancel out powers, and Danny can strengthen them.

"Well... I guess you can show me how it works. Will it increase my strength, or my control? How does it work, exactly?" He can't help but ask - ever since that Phoenix business the idea with futzing with either element of someone's powers gave him the creeps.

He takes another drink of his orange juice. Danny seemed friendly enough. And he was a student here. What could it hurt?

[Tempero]

Danny chuckles a bit at Josh's interpretation. "Yeah, you could say that, I think. Well, both, really. Your control over your power would be increased by the amount of my own willpower that I decide to put in, so to about a maximum of doubled. I also tend to amplify the powers I'm working on, but that's not going to raise you up a class on the ranking system, even though you will still notice it. I sort of hope that both my mutagen manipulation and telepathy will improve with time. If you want, I can help you out with any one of your powers, or with both, although the weaker the power, the easier for me to improve it. Odd, but true."

Then, he falls silent for a while, just watching the water in the pool. Yes, he did feel immeasurably better now that there was someone else here with him. "Thanks." he says to Josh suddenly, and then laughs slightly.

"Oh, and I forgot about one thing. If my target allows it, I can duplicate their powers onto myself for a while. So, if you allowed me, I could be telekinetic too for about five minutes after braking contact with you." he adds, trying to cover for the last thing he said. "I guess later on, I will be able to take on others' powers without having their permission, if I learn how to get violent with my telepathy. Not that I would like it though."

[Josh Dalton Worthington]

Josh looks over at Danny. "Sure, why not? I guess you can fiddle with my telepathy - my telekinesis is well-developed, so I doubt I'd see a huge difference. Just.... be careful, alright?" Josh closes his eyes hesitantly. If I wack out and start filleting people, this is soooooo your fault.

"Have you done much Danger Room practice? It's not a particularly offensive power, is it? Unless -" Josh pauses a second. "Can you decrease someone's power levels and control?"

[Tempero]

>>Sure, why not? I guess you can fiddle with my telepathy - my telekinesis is well-developed, so I doubt I'd see a huge difference. Just.... be careful, alright?

Daniel smiles encouragingly. "Don't worry, I aways am. It can't get out of control. If my own power backfires, I'll be the only one hurt, so no need to worry!" he says, although a bit uneasy. There's always that possibility when he is using his power. Last time it happened, Daniel was having migraines for the next week. He shakes his head to expel the negative thoughts.

>>Have you done much Danger Room practice? It's not a particularly offensive power, is it? Unless -" Josh pauses a second. "Can you decrease someone's power levels and control?

"No, I don't think I have ever been in the danger room, considering that I'm rarely here at the institute. My practice is street-wise, but it's good." he responds, and then pauses for a while, thinking. "I think I could do that. I've never tried though. I guess I could do it if i just reversed what I do when I start manipulating. But, then again, I could only do it if the mind wasn't resisting. I don't know how to invade someone's mind." he says, and then shrugs.

"So, are we doing this or not?"

[Josh Dalton Worthington]

"Okay. What do I need to do?" Josh scoots over on the concrete to sit across from Danny.

"As a reference, the most I've been able to do with my telepathy to this point is to communicate mentally with someone. My range appears to be about a mile. Besides that, I can sense where minds that I'm familiar with are at - in that range - only in general, though. Beyond that is uncharted territory." He looks at Danny. "Ready?" He closes his eyes again, setting down the juice.

[Tempero]

Danny turns to face Josh and sighs deeply. "OK, just give me a sec." he closes his eyes and meditates for about half a minute. "OK, ready. Just relax. You'll feel a link between the two of us, but it won't be a telepathic one. Well, at least not mostly. You see, when I manipulate powers, I form two links with the target. The first is a mutation link, where I connect my mind directly with your mutation. The second one is the normal telepathic link. Again, just relax." he says.

After a few seconds, he closes his eyes again and concentrates on Josh. First, just Josh as a mutant. Then, Josh's mutation. He keeps concentrating the mutation. And he finally pinpoints the mutation. A link is formed. Then, another with Josh's mind. <OK, here I go now...> he sends him the message and concentrates even harder.

After a short while, Danny opens his eyes. They are glowing blue. And there is an outline of blue light around Josh. <OK, I can't talk much, but we can communicate like this. I'm boosting your control and power of telepathy. Try seeing if your radius has increased, or if you can pinpoint someone's mind.> he sends the message. His hands are on his knees, and he is sitting in a lotus position. The friendly smile is still on his face, even though his eyes cannot be seen behind the blue glow.

[Josh Dalton Worthington]

Josh has always been slightly hesitant about his telepathy. Telekinesis is extremely straightforward, and concrete - something Josh likes about it. He knows what he can and cannot do. He can lift tons of different objects as easily as another person would blink. Once, he lifted a car - major headache! Then there was that time in the Danger Room with Bobby when he held back the floodwaters of Alkali - sweet! Telepathy, though, is murky. No one really knows what a telepath's limits are.

Danny's powers are somewhat like that time he drank three Red Bulls and then practiced his telekinesis in the backyard - totally awesome! Instead of all that sugar rushing through his bloodstream to jump-start his mental energies, his telepathy seems to unfold and expand before his eyes.

"Oh, god." He goes soaring across the Institute - but his body is still right where he left it. He comes across Bobby, who's sleeping in their room. He skates a mental hand over him, careful not to wake him up. Expanding his sensory sphere, he can feel Ororo, Wolverine, and Kitty. He can tell that Warren's away on business. His bed is empty, and his car is gone. How am I doing this? He can feel a couple students, breaking curfew, in nearby Westchester. But that's way out of my range!

"Danny. This is really, really weird." He opens his eyes. "Kind of like what I would expect if I used my telepathy while high...." He grins.


(OOC - Happy 100m's 1000th post! I just realized this after I posted and added this in.)

[Tempero]

Danny smiles as he feels what Josh is doing, and smiles even more as he sees the boy's expression. Even though his eyes are glowing, he can still see normally.

>>"Danny. This is really, really weird. Kind of like what I would expect if I used my telepathy while high...."

He laughs slightly. <No, it's better. You know what you're doing and you will remember it in the morning. Now just stop for a second. I'll give you the maximum.> he sends the message, and then closes his eyes for a while once more. After a few seconds, he opens them, and they are glowing brighter. <OK, try now. It should be extremely powerful now.>

Wow, I can only imagine how powerful he is right now, since I'm giving it my best to boost just his telepathy. Danny thinks to himself. He has always been slightly envious of people who got the special treatment of his powers. He tried boosting his own telepathy once, but that almost killed him. The only way was if he borrowed the power from his target, and he didn't like doing it. Even though the target would keep their own power, it sort of felt like stealing to Danny.