Willkommen (Open)

[Megan Gwynn]

It was cold the day Megan and her father had decided that coming here, to New York, the Xavier Institute would be the best thing for her, and it was a cold day now as she stood in front of the large intimidating building. It was a beautiful old mansion, void of any snow build ups or other signs of true deterioration despite the cold weather. She suspected that the looming mass of grey clouds would change that soon enough. The forecast was for a light snowfall, either steady or in small flurries and living in Minnesota, a place that snow was expected and talked about on a daily basis, she didn't mind.

She had, of course only lived in Minnesota for the past five years, but that was long enough to be used to it. She had come quite prepared for New York living. Numerous sweaters and hoodies like the one she was currently wearing, a jacket, boots. She had her summer clothes too, but they were at the bottom of the bins she had brought everything she was planning to wear in. She didn't think she had packed a lot of stuff, she wasn't that materialistic, but she would admit she had a lot of clothes and although she enjoyed her collection, a part of her was hoping they'd be outgrown. She was fifteen and still just under five feet tall and her dream was that in the next three years she'd grow at least another four inches or so. Dreams were never quite meant to be too realistic.

Turning back to the Ford Escape that had been parked in front of the building almost a full five minutes, she gave her Dad a smile. He was taking the last of the bins out of the back of the SUV before closing the door and looking at her with a forced smile. She couldn't expect him to be perfectly happy with having to leave her there, any good parent would be worried about their fifteen year old daughter moving away so soon. He knew the details of who she was going to be staying with, and that, for him, made the experience more bearable, but not by much.

Giving him a hug before he walked back to the driver's side door and mouthed a goodbye, he got in and drove away. It was how she had asked him to have it be, thankfully he had respected that. Her dad could possibly be the most understanding man in the world. Less than two months ago this life, the life of a mutant had been shoved at her with such force she wasn't prepared. She still wasn't, but her dad had stayed by her side without a hint of discomfort until now. Letting go was hard.

Pulling the hood of her sweatshirt up over her short pink hair, she reached down and grabbed her backpack from the ground. Her wings were pressed down along her back under the hoodie as to conceal them so placing the bag over her shoulders wasn't a problem. Next, picking up her bike helmet and sticking it under her arm, she decided she could come back for the duffle bag and storage bins that held the rest of her clothes and personal things.

Taking a deep breath she walked up the stairs, the building didn't seem like a school, it seemed like a house, and she was just letting herself in? Yup. It was where she was to live now, she'd have to accept the fact that although it seemed awkward at the moment, it was normal. Going for it and opening the door quietly, she looked around inside before stepping in completely. Giving her other possessions one last glance before leaving them outside, she closed the door behind her and looked down at her pocket to forcefully pull out a piece of paper that she had wedged into the small pocket of her jeans.

The beauty of the place was a bit lost on her as she unfolded the piece of paper and caught the key as it fell out. It was roomy and even had a chandelier, but she could explore it a bit more later when her things were safely in her room. Glancing down at the map, it clearly indicated that she'd be upstairs and to the right. "Well.. alright then." she mumbled before folding the paper back up, deciding against trying to get it back in her pocket.

[Rahne Sinclair]

Rahne was running late. It wasn’t often that the organized, driven mutant found herself in this situtation, more the type to arrive early and quietly wait for whatever it was to start. But today she’d gotten distracted and just plumb forgotten she had anywhere else to be. It was all the fault, although she would deny this till the day she died, of a cat.

She hate cats. No, that was a little to scream. She didn’t hate them. She thought they were perfectly acceptable creatures who should be allowed to inhabit their own corners without problem, just so long as their corners didn’t come into contact with her own corners. She just didn’t trust cats. There was just something about them that was suspicious and delightful, she couldn’t quite articulate it but her canine instincts told her it had something to do with their tails.

So when she’d found the uninvited cat nosing about the Xavier grounds, she’d had no choice but the chase it off. Of course she had a choice, but she was in her wolf form at the time and so the choice had been fairly easy to make. Cats bad, chasing fun. The world of the dog was similar and less complicated then that of the humans.

So here she was, racing back to the campus, late and terrified that she was going to be in trouble for it. The Guthrie girls (the pillar of perfectness to which Rahne secretly measured herself and always fell short) would probably not have found lateness to such a dreadful and earth shattering mistake, but to Rahne, it was.

Charging towards the institute, in full wolf form, she tried to work out which path would be quicker, through the back kitchen door or through the sitting room patio door, when she stopped an open window in the foray. While it wasn’t her usual style, the fear of lateness had combined with her short-sighted wolf judgment and she ran for it.

Leaping through the window, in the form of a red shaggy wolf with dark serious eyes and long pointed teeth, she landed on the wood floor inside, leaving a small cluttering of dog shaped footprints as she recaught her balance. The moment she did she shifted form, transforming back into the form of the petite, redheaded mutant girl, wearing a pair of jeans and a black Sarah Lawrence sweatshirt, both of which were damped and caked with mud.

“Oh my god!” She let out a gasp of surprise as she moved to charge up the stairs and found herself face to face with a small, pink hair child holding a bag. The girl was shorter then she was, and had the mix of fear and confusion that always bespoke new student.

“Ya scarred the life out of me!” She drawled in her thick Scottish brogue, with it’s distinct vowels and long rs. “Usually there’s no one in here.”

Glancing down she noticed the muddy foot prints and swore softly under her breath. Reaching down she tugged off her laceless sneakers and carried them in one hand, her clean and white against the floor.

“I’m Rahne, I’m a… sorry if I scared ya. I… didn’t know there was anyone in here.” She was repeating herself. Mental smack to the forehead. She wasn’t good at the whole conversation thing. It seemed so easy while you were watching TV or listening o the Guthries, but then you got into on and everything came out in repeated stops and starts.

“I mean, never mind. Can I give ya hand with anything, bags or something? I’m on my way up to the dorms myself, um, to change, so it wouldn't be, a problem.

[Carter Ghazikhanian]

Carter stormed down the hallway at a brisk pace. The telepath had just emerged from grabbing himself a bite to eat in the kitchen and was on his way to see if he could catch a movie in New York. Of course, that was before he noticed the muddy prints trailing towards the stairs. At that, the young man stopped in his tracks and backpedaled a few steps to gaze at the doorway that led towards the main entrance. The prints themselves weren't anything remarkable, not in Xavier's house, but boredom demanded that he follow up on any potential leads for some fun to be had.

Gazing through the opening, Carter saw the person he only knew as the "wolf-girl" tugging off her shoes. That explained the tracks. He didn't recognize the other figure standing at the foot of the stairs, though he couldn't glimpse enough of the guy's face to be sure. The psi didn't need his powers to tell him that the kid was probably new though. There was a backpack hanging off his shoulder and what appeared to be a helmet cradled in the opposite arm. Fresh meat, er blood had always intrigued him. Xavier's idealism hadn't been hammered into them yet so they were basically human. After a few weeks though, they emerged as some sort of super boyscout, ready to throw their lives away for humanity. It was almost comical. There were always a few standouts of course. That Pyro fellow came to mind. He'd had the sense to run away from this place before but came back the last he heard. Idiot. Then there was the triplets. They were about as heroic as he was, which isn't much. Of course, telepaths could always be depended upon to keep to a higher standard. He guessed it was because few others were possessed of common sense.

Shaking his head slightly, Carter closed the gap between himself and the doorway. He shoved his hands into the pockets of his black denim jeans mid-stride and plastered a half-grin across his face to compliment the smug look that was already there. "Hey kids," he began as he reached the threshold and framed himself in it. Carter directed his attention at the new student, leaning against the doorway to prop himself up. The wood felt cold against his bare arm. It reminded him that he hadn't yet thrown on the dark navy button-up that he still held in his hand. That wasn't important though, they'd have to make do with the black tank-top he already had on. Carter was more focused on the new guy. He'd already decided to entertain himself by trying to figure out how far along this new prospect was. And while he would never directly interfere with Xavier's brainwashing scheme that the staff still faithfully held to, the telepath made it a habit to keep those he liked "better informed" of what they were getting into.

"Is this mess yours?" Obviously, he'd already known the answer upon seeing the wolf-girl but he wasn't about to pass up the opportunity to make her feel more uncomfortable. He had to get his kicks in some way right? What better target than a lesser mutant? Carter grimaced at the thought of being cursed with a physical mutation. He probably would have killed himself. Perhaps he could help the poor girl realize that she was better off reaching the same conclusion. "And here I thought that all the little muties around here were house broken."

Carter left it at that. He didn't want to overplay his hand too much; he was aware that wolf-girl was an X-Man. Still, he couldn't resist addressing a mental comment to the newbie. ~Hi. You must be new. I'm Carter. I see you've already met the family dog. It's been known to bite.~

[Megan Gwynn]

Taking a step back in surprise when a large blur of fur came flying through the window, her helmet clattered to the floor. The wolf didn't seem to be out of place as it caught its balance on the now muddy wooden floor. Was this what the school was like all of the time? Surrounded by people she was taught by the media to hate or fear just being completely open about their mutation? Megan herself had never even knowingly met face to face with another mutant before, other than those that came to invite her here.

There had been an incident at her school earlier that year, when the friend of a friend was outed in the middle of the cafeteria. She had been scared for only a moment, wondering what he was going to do about it in the middle of a school of over 3500 students. He had, eventually just walked out and she never saw him again. Deep down she had felt bad for him, never thinking she'd ever be in his shoes, but the incident opened her eyes to the fact that mutants weren't just on TV.

Now they were everywhere around her. Don't get her wrong, she didn't think bad about any of them, she just wasn't used to this world. A world completely unsheltered and it was a bit surreal to her still.

Standing there now with only her backpack on she blinked a few times as the animal seamlessly changed into a girl not more than a few inches taller than herself and finally noticed her being there. As soon as the other girl spoke though, a smile came across Megan's face. She couldn't exactly place the accent, having a mental road block in place, but she could understand it. She was always a bit more at home talking and socializing. She was just that type of person to make friends easily.

“I’m Rahne, I’m a… sorry if I scared ya. I… didn’t know there was anyone in here.”

"It's alright.. really" she tried to assure the girl. "I probably need a few good scares the first week, eh?" With her own Welsh accent hidden by years of being in America. Taking a deep breath she allowed her body to calm down, or else she might have started off on a ramble of things she ought not be rambling about, like what was on her mind. After her momentary regather she let the smile return to her face. "I'm Megan.." she finally offered her name, picking her helmet back up off the floor before holding her hand out to shake with Rahne with only a little reluctance due to the muddy appearance.

“I mean, never mind. Can I give ya hand with anything, bags or something? I’m on my way up to the dorms myself, um, to change, so it wouldn't be, a problem."

Laughing a little she shook her head. About to make up some excuse as to keep her luggage mud free, she turned to the doorway to see the well built man now leaning against the door frame.

"Is this mess yours?"

For a moment, she thought he was talking to her, the fact that she still had the two bins and a duffle bag outside the door, but as she followed his eyes to the muddy mess.

"And here I thought that all the little muties around here were house broken."

Instinctively she looked to Rahne to see if his words were meant or not. Maybe they were just joking, like good friends do, but she soon realized she wasn't getting that kind of vibe from the two of them. He was just being openly mean to her. Then again, she was probably tough enough to take it and shoot something back? They'd been in this life longer than she had.

Moving her helmet to rest in front of her she placed both hands over it. ~Hi. You must be new. I'm Carter. I see you've already met the family dog. It's been known to bite.~ Instantly her eyes darted around the room before landing back on the guy in the doorway. She tried to hide the shock in them, this thing was 'normal', wasn't it? He was in her head though, or could he just put words in there? She suddenly felt very exposed.

Letting her eyes dart between Rahne and Carter she straightened her posture before giving a nod. She wasn't exactly taking what he was telling her at face value, Rahne seemed like a very nice person, and Megan never judged someone before she knew them. Just like Carter didn't seem nice, she'd give him a chance too. The real question she was asking herself was if every guy in this school was so tall and well... built. The one that had come seen her at her house definitely was. It was quite the contrast to other fifteen and sixteen year olds in high school. Oh yes, maybe she could fit in here quite easily.

[Rahne Sinclair]

Rahne was taken back by the suddenly apparence of Carter Ghazikhanian, as well as his strangely hostile and agressive attitude. While she had grown used to the constant dog references and jokes from the high school students who were supposed to be her peers and friends, this was the first time she’d faced them from one of the adults.

“Um, right.” She said, choking on her words as usual. She wanted to say something back, something that would make him respect her or feel sorry that he’d attacked her or speechless or something. Something bitting and cruel, or maybe witty and clever, or… to be honest, she just wanted to be able to come up with a response that wasn’t Umm. Speaking to strangers wasn’t her best point when they were being nice to her. The best she could get out was um, right. Followed by a: “That’s a little...”

“I mean, I guess I am a little…” She looked down at her muddy sweater and jeans, realizing that the dirt was a little more extensive then she thought. “But that doesn’t mean you have to…”

“Nevermind.” She grabbed the edge of her sweatshirt and pulled it up over her head, careful to turn it inside out as she pulled it off so that the dirt stayed on the inside of the sweatshirt. The teeshirt she had on underneath was considerably cleaner, which made her look a little more presentable. She refocused her attention on the girl, Megan.

The kid seemed nice, but Rahne had noticed the girl’s reluctance to shake her hand or accept her offer of help. She was new at Xavier’s, probably new to being a mutant. She probably thought Rahne was some sort of disgusting, horrid, wild animal, the way Carter had said. She’d get used to Ferals eventually, they all did, but Rahne wished that once in a while someone wouldn’t have to get used to her to stop looking down on her.

“Um, well, there’s other people. Around. They’ll probably send, you know, someone.” Probably one of the Guthrie girls, who would have shown up clean and on time, been charming and delightful, and would have had some clever and brilliant retort to throw back at Carter. “Student’s dorms are, um, up there. There’s an elevator, you know, if you need it. Good luck with the whole school thing.”

Feeling fully embarrassed and ashamed of herself, Rahne took her sweatshirt and her shoes and moved towards the stairs planning on going to the teacher and staff dormitories, where she’d been moved a few months ago. All she wanted to do was to go in her room, take a shower, catch the next bus back to her university, and forget Megan and Carter and everyone else in the school existed.

“Oh.” She stopped to add. “Welcome to Xavier’s.”

[Carter Ghazikhanian]

The new girl - he could finally tell after she turned to stare at him in surprise - seemed to be taken aback by his little telepathic comment. Figures, Carter thought, already beginning to succumb to boredom. The whole encounter was turning into a disappointment. The newbie acted like a scatter-brained mute and wolf-girl... Well, let's just say that he thought wild animals were supposedly harder to break.

The young man was on the verge of disgust; the mutt had already resorted to whimpering. Wasn't this place supposed to be training the little brats to stand up for themselves? Guess that little plan was a failure, not that it wasn't to be expected. After all, just look at who did the teaching. You had the boyscout, the blonde bimbo, the bad dye-job, the circus freak, the palm-reader, the blob, the fleabag, the blue fleabag and the grumpy Canadian. Specter and the weather witch weren't too bad, but they were only two people. So no, the feral's performance wasn't surprising. That didn't make it any less painful to watch though. This time Carter kept his opinion silent. There was no point in saying more; kicking a corpse wasn't any fun at all - it didn't react to you. Instead, he decided to just continue with his earlier plans and forget the little debacle. That's when wolf-girl added her final statement. The young man couldn't resist...

"Welcome to Xavier's indeed, he repeated, noting that she'd retreated towards the stairs. "To think, in just a few short weeks, you can become just like her." Carter knew the remark was unnecessary but the invitation had been too tempting to pass up.

[Megan Gwynn]

Although both of the other people in the room were considerably older than herself, Pixie was starting to get the fact that she was better with words than Rahne was. She honestly liked it that Rahne had seemed to be having a bit of fun, and yes, she didn't want her stuff to get dirty, but other than that she didn't quite care at all about the mud. On a rainy day, Megan would probably look the same after running around outside.. with the appropriate attire.

She was also coming to see that it wasn't just light hearted jokes being passed between friends or colleagues. This Carter seemed as if he were saying these words for the sole purpose of hurting Rahne's feelings, and with her now dejected appearance, Megan could tell that it was working. What could she really do though? Carter wasn't some high school senior picking on her best friend, he seemed at least old enough to be out of college, twenty three or twenty four perhaps. Who was she, a girl that was fifteen to say about it?

"“Student’s dorms are, um, up there. There’s an elevator, you know, if you need it. Good luck with the whole school thing.”

Taking another look at Rahne, this was definitely not how she wanted her first few minutes to take place. Already she had come off as a shallow, probably too innocent little twerp like she had in high school. Didn't moving schools mean you could re-define who you were, change things you didn't like, have a clean slate? Yes and no. This guy could get in her head, maybe he'd know her thought process, know that if she followed through with a new attitude, it'd be a bluff.

With her train of thought suddenly switching to her more passive side, the peace keeper, she wondered if it was really in her best interest to speak her mind or try to say what Rahne couldn't. She could just simply leave this situation and talk with her later, it wouldn't be very hard to ask someone where she roomed.

“Oh. Welcome to Xavier’s.”

Mentally nodding her head as she multi-tasked in her brain, she decided that, out of her options.. this was the best action to take. Adjusting her hold on her helmet she made to follow Rahne as the muddy mess was paused on her way up the stairs. Maybe she could even offer to talk after giving the older girl some time to clean up, learn some of the ins and outs of the school. A 'Thank You' was on the tip of her tongue for the welcome when suddenly Carter's words cut through the room again. No matter what volume he spoke them, they always seemed clear and as bold as if you were shouting to a friend at a party and the music suddenly cut off.

"Welcome to Xavier's indeed. To think, in just a few short weeks, you can become just like her."

Stopping and turning back to look at him, her eyebrows slightly furrowed in an attempt to understand why he would be so outwardly and unjustly mean, she shook her head. "And what's wrong with being anything like her?" Keeping her place on the second step of the staircase, she leaned against the railing and stared at him. She could say she just didn't feel like retracing her steps to confront him, but the truth was the extra hight and distance her position gave her a bit more confidence.

"I mean, sure, it's probably not as much fun as being, well.. Rude, intrusive, cocky and a jerk, but I bet she's a lot less lonely." Giving a nice fake, innocent expression, she smiled at him. High school had not left her uncorrupted. She enjoyed a fair amount of drama and confrontation as the next teenage girl and the fact that Rahne may allow Carter to walk all over her verbally, the 15 year old doubted that she'd allow the same if things got physical. Not that Pixie thought they would, but it was a new environment and it was always safe to be cautious.

[Rahne Sinclair]

"Welcome to Xavier's indeed. To think, in just a few short weeks, you can become just like her."

Rahne couldn’t quite process Carter’s word. It seemed unnecessarily vicious and cruel, like he had tracked her down purely for the purpose of harassing and abusing her. She’d expected it if it was Pyro or one of the more aggressive boys she’d known in school, but she didn’t even know this man. They’d only met before in passing, and she couldn’t even remember what his power was. Yet here he was, lashing out at her as if she’d done something to offend him, as if the very act of her breathing offended him. She just couldn’t process why and wanted to be out of there as quickly as possible.

"And what's wrong with being anything like her?" The girl, Megan, was shouting down from the balcony in a sudden defensive stand. "I mean, sure, it's probably not as much fun as being, well.. Rude, intrusive, cocky and a jerk, but I bet she's a lot less lonely."

Rahne wanted to tell her that, no, actually, she was probably a lot more lonely. As backwards as it seemed, more people were drawn to his outspoken cruelty then her own quiet… whateverness. But she didn’t want to deflate the girl’s moment of defense and power.

“Thanks, but tis okay, you don't have to.” She said, touching the girls arm with her clean hand, making sure to use the bit that had been whipped clean on her sweatshirt. “He’s a friend of the headmasters, they invite him up here ta give us an example of what sort of life we can have if we decide not to follow the X-men. I think they probably do it on purpose, tis a pretty good recruiting tool for the X-men. But, ya best not piss him off anyways, not on your first day.”

She started of a little shaky and hesitant, unused to speaking for so long. But as she spoke she got a little more confident and clearer, even managing to throw a small attempt at humor in the middle, although, as usual, she immediately regretted it once she did.

“Thanks though.”

[Warren Worthington]

Warren knew Carter and Rahne. He knew them well enough to know, of course, that they were completely different animals. It was thus surprising, to hear the sound of their mingled voices. The rarity of the situation caused him to turn back down the hall toward the staircase. At the top of the second floor landing, the Angel began to walk down. He knew it was expected that he would flew down the center and show off, which was exactly why he was walking. Besides, he heard a third voice and didn't want to give the stranger a heart attack.

"I mean, sure, it's probably not as much fun as being, well.. Rude, intrusive, cocky and a jerk, but I bet she's a lot less lonely."

"Oh..I don't know about that." Warren quipped playfully as he joined her near the bottom of the stairs. He knew that Rahne was having a difficult time. He liked her, although he was generally on edge around ferals and the like. Sometimes he couldn't help but think of those old cartoons where the cat would try and eat the little Tweety bird. An involuntary shiver ran down his spine beneath his blue pullover. He offered the others a generally warm smile as he waited for someone to introduce him to the new girl. Impatient, the playboy gave her a more individualistic and direct grin, "I'm sure its been said, but, welcome. I'm Warren. I'm not a mutant, I just like Halloween." He gave the very obvious white wings a little lift to punctuate his words.

[Carter Ghazikhanian]

Because he'd already written her off as being just another of Xavier's future drones, the new kid's spur-of-the-moment tantrum took Carter by surprise. Well at least one of them has some fight in 'em, he mused. The telepath was far from impressed however. She'd have to get a lot more creative than what she was showing now before she would ever gain his admiration. Personally, Carter didn't think the newbie had it in her. That little maneuver with the steps wasn't lost on him. She was obviously self-conscious about her height. Of course, he assumed this about all short people. At any rate, Little Miss Napoleon Complex's tirade left much to be desired. It lacked any sort of impact whatsoever. Did she think she was having some sort of tit-for-tat on the playground? With a mere thought, he could tear her down using her inner-most secrets against her... but what would that prove? - That he could outmaneuver a kid? Besides, that would detract from his fun.

A response had already formed on the tip of his tongue when Carter received his second surprise for the day: wolf-girl actually tried to take a shot at him. The psi found the situation so ludicrous that he couldn't help but break into muffled laughter following the mutt's "spirited retort". Was that all she had to offer? It left him feeling rather disappointed yet again. These two girls weren't even in the minors; they were bush leaguers. Attempting to insult him by saying that he didn't buy into Xavier's propaganda? Heck, that was a compliment as far as he was concerned and the pooch looked more the fool for actually having said it.

After quieting his laughter, the young man struggled to keep a straight face as he prepared to address the "insults" that the pair had lobbed against him. That's when surprise number three showed up, the sound of a familiar voice preceding Warren's overly cheery entrance. Within moments, the winged-wonder had joined them at the bottom of the stairs, acting as if he'd been part of the conversation all along. His response was more than a little late and he'd obviously ignored everything that the wolf-girl had said - not that Carter wouldn't have been guilty of doing the same - but the bastard somehow made it work. The Angel's infectious energy did more to throw him for a loop than either of the girl's comments. Go figure. Carter completely lost track of his thoughts, now focusing instead on his friend's intentionally stupid joke.

"Oh, so that's why you look like a dragqueen in hiding," the psi quipped, this time actually in jest. Nothing but good-will registered on his face as Cater looked over to greet the newcomer. It was remarkable really. Warren had a physical mutation, something that would have normally caused the mutant psychic to look down upon him, yet Carter never once looked at it that way. Maybe it's because he doesn't go around rolling in the mud, he thought, instantly amused yet again.

"Where was I? - Oh, right." With that, the psi's eyes glazed over an off white as a second young man, identical to himself, appeared sitting on the steps just above where the new girl stood. "Like Warren said, I'm never alone," the simulacrum mouthed as Carter forced it to speak. He made damn well sure that the projection's eyes were looking down on the annoying little girl.

[Megan Gwynn]

Pixie almost couldn't believe that Carter was just going to stand there and pretend as if everything she and Rahne had to say was a joke. Sure, she knew that Rahne hadn't exactly given a cheek to the pavement comment and that her own comment wasn't much of an insult, but to laugh at it? The truth of the matter it being even her first hour at the school, she couldn't take it much further unless she wanted to dig herself into a hole.

Any comment she came up with had the potential to sound childish and shallow, maybe a slap with a ruler compared to the lashing she really wanted to deal out. Her comments would also quite honestly sound stupid. She was stupid on the matters of the school and the mutant world. She didn't know anything about Carter, about the type of ability he had, what kind of reputation it would carry with it, or even anything about his background to find cracks in his armor. It was a bit concerning at the moment, but Pixie was sure that within the week she would be more integrated into the mutant community and she'd throw him off guard.

Giving him a glare that was sure to say that he was making quite the opposite of a friend, she turned toward Rahne's touch. It would be a good idea to take the older girl's word for it and trust what experience she had this time.

"Oh..I don't know about that."

Freezing in her place, still only three stairs up, she stared, admittedly a bit more wide-eyed than she had wanted to at the new guy joining them. He, like Carter was obviously well built but didn't need to be lacking sleeves to show it. That and along with the fact he had large white wings she was trying her best not to stare at added to his beauty. She was believing more and more that there would be no boys here like at her high school.

With the direct grin he was giving her, she found herself straightening her posture, the wings on her back, still hidden by her hooded sweatshirt, pressing back as flat as they could go. She tried to smile back without it furthering the blush she hoped to god wasn't visible.

"I'm sure its been said, but, welcome. I'm Warren. I'm not a mutant, I just like Halloween."

She thought of something to say, things she kept in her head, like 'Well it's a pretty good costume' and 'I'm sure they made it every day for you. but although she managed to keep stupid, teen things like that in her head, it also made her forget to say a thank you and her name.

"Oh, so that's why you look like a dragqueen in hiding,"

Turning back to Carter she noticed how this wasn't a comment intentionally mean like what he had said to Rahne, but more like the two were friends. She suddenly hoped Warren was just friends with everyone and didn't have any particular attachment to the guy that could talk in her head. Then again, maybe she was judging Carter too soon and too severely. If this Warren guy could like him, maybe there was something to like.

"Where was I? - Oh, right."

Keeping her eyes on him, she furrowed her eyebrows as his eyes seemed to become cloudy, the white making her wonder what he was up to. Although she probably should have been a bit more cautious than she was with Mutants, wasn't she one of them now? Didn't that make her fit in and not be a target? Still, the action made her a bit nervous. People always feared what they didn't understand.

"Like Warren said, I'm never alone,"

Turning suddenly to look at the replica, her helmet dropped from her hands and clattered down the steps as she gave an involuntary jump. Looking back at the actual Carter before looking to Rahne and Warren, she wanted to make sure they could see it too, that it wasn't just her.

Gritting her teeth and pretending that she hadn't just been.. surprised she glared at the Carter that was above her now. Sure it made her more uncomfortable but that was life, she couldn't expect to look down on all of her opponents when she wasn't even five feet tall.. yet.

"Oh.. so.. you enjoy playing with yourself.. Then, I reckon?" Saying it as if she were trying to figure out a particularly difficult math equation rather than confronting a bully of sorts, her eyes had constantly been directed down at the stairs then back at him before looking somewhere else again, just off to the side.

[Rahne Sinclair]

“OKAY THAT’S ENOUGH!” The forcefulness of Rahne’s words was enough to surprise even herself and she found herself almost jumping at the rush of noise from her mouth. “CARTER, JUST BACK OFF.”

She’d changed into her half-form without even realizing she was doing it, her body taking on the bulky, fierce appearance of a werewolf that loomed over everyone from the top of the stairs. It wasn’t the first time she’d changed forms automatically when feeling threatened or attacked, although it was the first time she’d done it when someone else was being threatened or attacked.

It was all Megan’s fault. Rahne had grown up a school that had already possessed two, dominate, Alpha ferals, both of whom were naturally born to lead, challenge, and fight. This had led Rahne, who was younger and more troubled, to naturally adopted a more subjugated pack member mentality, which that her normal reaction would be to just leave, to retreat from the hostile threat and regroup somewhere safe and protected. She only fought back when she was support by her pack, which a this school was limited to two highly independent ferals who were not the least bit pack oriented and who hadn’t shown a great deal of personal interest in her.

But there was Megan, who was just a puppy in the world of wolves. A confused kid without any support or backup, trying to face off against a hostile and aggressive enemy who clearly wanted to inflict some sort of mental or emotional harm. She was trying to appear bigger and stronger then she was, unsure of herself and her surroundings, and unwilling to back off or show weakness. It was all just too puppy for Rahne’s internal instincts to ignore and she had reacted automatically and without thought or direction.

“For Love’s Sake! Carter, you’re a fucking grown man who’s still hangs around a high school tormenting anyone who’s weaker or less popular then you.” Despite her form she spoke clearly and intellectually, although her anger made her Scottish accent a bit thicker. “You’re not proving that your smarter or better or more adult then any of us. You just come off looking like an asshole. Grow up and find some friends your own age.”

Standing up to Carter in her human form would have been impossible and even in her half-form, her heart was beating so quickly that it seemed to be trembling.

“And before you can say it, I know. I’m a wolf, I’m an animal, and I’m covered in mud. You, and everyone else here, finds me and my kind disgusting, worthless, and useless. It’s not news.” A few deep breaths. “But you know what, I fail to see what picking on me proves. Go pick on Logan or Maria, you know, a feral your own age and size? Going for the weakest and youngest, just makes you look... pathetic.”

With a quick, “later” to Warren, to prove that her anger was solely directed at Carter dispite the winged boys friendship with him, she turned around and walked up the stairs and down the hallway. There wasn’t anything Carter had to say that she cared to listen. Once she’d gotten out of sight she transformed back into her human form, and realized just how hard breathing was right now.

^{(OOC: Unless you call her back or follow her, she’s gone. She’s more of a flight then fight girl and Carter too much for her to take.)}

[John Allerdyce]

Raised voices. Delightful. This place was so insipidly boring that John Allerdyce often thought that he might slip into a coma. Everyone seemed to get along, everyone seemed to like each other, it was just as disgustingly sweet, even more so than when he was a student. The school was boring, lacking the survival of the fittest that the rest of the world needed to weed out the weak and the lame. The pathetic.

Making his way towards the sound of the conflict he fiddled with the lighter that he had gotten from Rogue. He flicked it open and then closed again and again as a nervous tic. Just having it made him feel strong again, and he was looking forward to finding out what the drama was about.

"Oh.. so.. you enjoy playing with yourself.. Then, I reckon?"

He grinned, someone was clever. He liked clever, clever girls even more. He could see them all now, the Angel the spoiled rich kid whose daddy had wanted to cure them like a disease. A new girl, cute. He liked her right away, she was the clever one wasn't she. Good. There was another guy, but John ignored him.

"Funny, I like funny," he said, looking at them but her in particular, "I heard shouting, was Wings telling you about how far up his rear his father had the silver sthingy implanted? Or how we're all a disease?"