Eventually, I found Erik and he explained to me how he controls metals. He uses emotions; pain, anger, grief and the need to get revenge. Though I would preferably use another method of control, it was good enough, and so soon enough, I started training. But not just with Charles, I trained with everyone; Erik, Hank, Raven, Sean and most of all, Alex.

Since that night in the kitchen, Alex and I continued to meet almost every night at the same time in the same place. Unlike the first night, we didn't just talk about our mutual feelings for each other, we spoke about everything; family, friends (which I didn't have much to say about), our abilities, and most of all, how our days went. Both mine and his training went almost perfectly. Everyday we would be making progress, although I still haven't been able to control water.

After a long afternoon of training both in and out of the pool, I finish up in the shower and enter my room, only to find a sad-looking Raven sprawled out on my bed. As I close the door behind me, making a loud click, her head shoots up, but she doesn't smile like usual.

"Raven?" I say furrowing my eyebrows. "Are you okay? You look sad."

"I am sad," she says. For a moment we stay there on my bed in utter silence, until I decide to ask what was wrong.

"Everything," she says with a sob, "do you think I'm pretty? Be honest." And she sits up onto my bed, looking me in the eyes.

"Raven, why would you even ask that? You're one of the prettiest girls I've met, honestly," I say and she snorts.

"Yeah well you haven't exactly met many girls, have you?" she asks, rhetorically. I smile and shrug my shoulders, a little offended. I look down at my lap and so does Raven, and once again, we are silent.

"Now do you think I'm pretty," she says and I look up at her. At first, I don't think it is her; she has blue, scaly skin, yellow eyes and bright orange hair. But when I get a closer look at her, I notice she still has the same features. She has the same contoured nose, thick lips and skinny neck. But she still looks just as gorgeous as before, this time she's just in her true form.

"Raven, I told you, you're one of the prettiest girls I've met. Nothing will change it, not blue skin or orange hair," I say and smile at her. She looks at me for a moment as if thinking about what to say, before she leaps forward and wraps her arms around me.

"You're my best friend, Amelia, and I don't think anyone appreciates me like you do. Not even Charles."

"Raven, that makes me feel so special but I know Charles appreciates you more than anyone else. What makes you say that? You've known him for years," I say, and when she pulls back, I notice tears welling up in her yellow eyes. She shakes her head and they come rolling down her face.

"I walked into Charles' room like this and he told me to put some clothes on," Raven says. "I mean, I get that I was technically naked but he's seen me like that before. He saw me like that the first time we ever met and he wasn't scared."

I open my mouth to say something when I hear a knock on the door. A second later, I see Erik standing in the doorway.

"Am, can you please. . . am I interrupting something?"

"Yeah, sorr-"

"No, that's fine, I was leaving," Raven cuts me off, standing up and rushing out of the room before Erik and I could say a word. I expect she was embarrassed, being seen by Erik in her true, but very beautiful, form. Erik looks at me for a moment with a raised brow, to which I shake my head at.

"I was wondering if you wanted to try practicing your ability to move water. I came up with an idea."

"Of course, let me get changed into my bathing suit, I'll just be a moment."

"No, no, you won't be needing your bathing suit today. You won't even be needing to enter the pool," Erik says with a mischievous smile, to which it was my turn to raise my brow at.

"O-kay?" I say, standing up from my bed and following him out the door. We make our way downstairs into the kitchen, and for some reason, Erik stops. I stand there for a few moments, unsure as to why we were in the kitchen, until I noticed a small glass of water, sitting in the middle of the island counter top. Sitting around the counter was Hank, Charles and now, Erik.

"Amelia, as you might have realised, our training has been quite unsuccessful when it comes to controlling water. Hank and I seem to believe that because the pool is filled with quite a lot of water, it is hard for you to control all of it at once. However, if you were to try just a little amount, we think it should work for you. Give it a try," Charles says, so quickly, I wasn't sure I understood a word. After a moment of processing, I test out his theory. I glue my eyes to the glass of water and try to control it as if I were controlling my own limb. For a moment, I swore it moved slightly but I had imagined it, just as I had many other times.

I continued to stare until it became very awkward. Nobody in the room said a word whilst I stood there and I could feel all eyes on me. To break the awkward tension, I sigh loudly.

"Take your time, Amelia, it takes a lot of patience to master an ability," Hank says, and almost rudely, I reply.

"Well I'm not exactly mastering anything. I haven't even learnt learnt the damn thing." I sit down beside the three men with my head in my hands. I then feel a comforting pat on my back, which I assume is Charles, trying to make me feel better.

"You'll learn soon enough, I can promise you that," he says and my head shoots up.

"I know, but it's just so frustrating. I feel like no matter what I try, nothing works. I just wish that. . ." before I could finish the sentence, I stop myself. For a moment, I wished that I was normal. I missed my family, I missed going to school, I missed my home and I missed being able to leave my home. I wished that I was not a mutant, and that scared me. This is who I am, no matter how hard I try to reject this part of me, it is who I am. I shouldn't be ashamed to have a tail or even scared for people to see it. This is me and it does take time to find yourself; to find your power.

Without a word, I stand up suddenly and begin to leave the room, before turning back around and taking the glass of water to with me to my bedroom. When I arrive, I place the glass on my bedside table and get to work. Staring at the glass once more, I try to control it with my hand this time. Embarrassingly, it doesn't work and I blush for the millionth time since I arrived at the mansion. I begin to try multiple different methods. Like Erik had suggested, I choose to try emotions.

I thought of the day I found out I had a tail, and how devastated I was; I thought of my grandmother, and the day that she passed away; I thought about my months in the lab, and how tiring it was; and last of all, I thought of Sebastian Shaw. Unfortunately, none of these thoughts seem to cause movement within the glass of water. Before I grab the glass and throw it out of the window, a thought pops into my head. It was one of the nights Alex and I had spent in the kitchen.

We were sat at the small breakfast table, and we were talking. We weren't talking about anything important, we were laughing about something that Erik had said that day. While we laughed together, I noticed a certain look in his eyes, a look I had never seen before. I wasn't sure if it was because I hadn't spoken to many people before, or because nobody look at anyone like that, but I liked it. It wasn't a look of love or lust, it was a look of happiness and appreciation. For the first time in my life, I felt appreciated.

Suddenly, my thoughts get interrupted by the opening of my bedroom door, which startles me. I drop the full glass of water onto the floor, hearing a loud smash echo throughout the hall, and I turn around, only to come face to face with the boy who had invaded my thoughts only moments before. As I make eye contact with him, I notice his mouth gape open and he rushes towards me, making sure that I am okay. Alex kneels onto the ground to pick up the shards of glass, when he suddenly stands up and takes a few steps back. I look at him strangely and he points to something behind me. When I turn around, I see a ball of clear liquid, floating mid-air.

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