"If it helps - and this is probably not the reading you'll be into - but we've got papers here by Charles Xavier, Henry McCoy, and others on mutations, causes, effects, that sort of thing. It might help you to check those out." Although it was good that Ilya's mutation wasn't scary. These were things that people at the Institute were well-versed in, after all.

"Yeah, that's the complaint I tend to hear from most telepaths," Topher said. "But the staff here is great. Between Rachel and Ms. Frost and the others, they'll have you seamlessly using your gifts in no time." He shrugged. "And, if you never need someone to practice against or whatever - telekinetically toss stuff - I mean. I've been around that stuff forever. I can be your telekinetic punching bag or whatever, y'know?"

It'd also give Topher an excuse to work out his excess negative energy so that the evil psychic entity inside Topher wasn't released again.