Day One: Introductions

[Rogue 4]

Natalie bit down on her lip, shuddering at the thought of that creepy guy. "He told me...that he was part of some FBI division that's tasked with keeping track of mutants..." She met Lance's gaze, fearfully. "He knocked those coffee pots down, which is why he left the cash on the counter for you. And" Sher looked over her shoulder and out at the beach in paranoia "...he used his ability on me."

[Vergere 1]

Kelly actually sat up at that, now quite interested.

Lance rolled his eyes, and nudged Kelly. "I knew it! I knew it! It was like you were in the room!"

Kelly slowly turned enough to glare at Lance coolly before looking back at Natalie. Soothingly, "Shh... It's okay Nat. Breathe. No one can hear us." She reached out to hold her friend's hand reassuringly. Just as gently as she had been, "Are you okay, Natalie?" She made her friend look her in the eyes.

[Rogue 4]

Natalie let her friend's hand ground her back to reality. She knew she couldn't lie to Kelly. "It scared me. A lot...I mean with Ma---on the beach before, it was like...I didn't know my friend. Like he had this whole dark side to himself that he wouldn't have shown to me if it wasn't life or death. But...I knew somewhere in this thick skull of mine that he wouldn't hurt me."

She inhaled. "But that guy. I wasn't sure. He had some sort of power over me. I tried to move away from him and it was like my whole body got heavy and I fell back into the chair. Like I was paralyzed and couldn't move."

Edited May 6, 2008 by Rogue

[Vergere 1]

Kelly looked back over at Lance, not sure what to do or say right now, for the first time in a long while looking uncertain.

Lance just shrugged, not going to pressure her one way or another.

Kelly looked back at Natalie. She spoke gently, "Natalie, not all mutants are bad or are out to hurt you. I mean I know nothing about this guy that came to see you, but your ... friend ... I'm sure had no intention of hurting you. He was your friend before you knew he was a mutant, why would knowing now change anything?"

Edited May 6, 2008 by Tyche

[Rogue 4]

"I..I know, it shouldn't." Natalie groaned. "But I immediatly got this picture in my head of all those mutants, and the temples that the air force couldn't even hit last year that that one mutant made...and I freaked out. I watched him turn from a dolphin to a human again. Do you have any idea how weird that is?"

She sighed in defeat, resting her forehead against Kelly's shoulder. "I totally blew it with him, didn't I? He's going to hate me now. I'd hate me if I was him."

[Vergere 1]

"Why would he hate you?" She wrapped an arm around Natalie's shoulder, giving her a slight hug. "However, there's one point that you're conveniently not explaining right now..." She shifted slightly so she could see the younger girl's face. "Isn't there..." It isn't accusing, but it also isn't a question...it's more of a statement that Kelly wanted further explained.

[Rogue 4]

Natalie wished she could avoid her gaze. She looked instead to Lance. "He was there to warn me about trying to tell Lance...not that that's really stopped me anyway...he said that if I told the media it would just cause problems and said a lot of political stuff that I half-understood."

[Drake 53]

Sam was tired of this chase. He reached out with his power and dropped the mutant to the roof, holding her there. He slowed down, taking his time walking over to the downed thief.

"Well, well," he said. "You gave me quite a chase." Sam picked up the fallen PDA, lying next to the mutant. "And who might you be? You must be new to the area since I haven't seen you in any of the local files."

[Vergere 1]

Lance shrugged, "Yes, that would cause some unwanted publicity."

Kelly spoke softly in Natalie's ear, just loud enough for Natalie to hear her, "He said you were a mutant, didn't he, Natalie?"

Her voice held no hostility, no scorn, just a simple questioning tone.

[Rogue 4]

"Who I am is none of your concern." She replied in a pitch much higher than her normal one. She knew that he had no idea who she was. The local files wouldn't have Raven Darkholme in them, that was certain. She would probably be higher on the most wanted list though. So instead she played it cool, pretending to be a scared kid. "Just take the PDA! Geeze! I didn't know you were a mutant too!"

***

Natalie bit her lip hard, nodding slowly. "He gave me a card...a list of places that I could go for help. But I told him that that was impossible..."

Edited May 6, 2008 by Rogue

[Vergere 1]

Kelly spoke gently to Natalie, but loud enough for Lance to hear as well. "Why is that impossible, Natalie? Do you have things happen to you that just seem... unusual or out of the ordinary for normal people? Things randomly happening in general that you can't explain rationally?"

Lance was reassuring as well, "Natalie, I promise you... neither of us are going to give you away, or scorn you, or think poorly of you..." He looked pointedly at Kelly who just delivered another cool glare in his direction.

[Rogue 4]

She looked to Lance and Kelly, before sighing and closing her eyes, trying to figure something out in her head. "I don't know...this weekend in Hawaii, when I was surfing against Masters for the Oahu title...God, I feel weird talking about this. All of a sudden it was like I could hear everything everyone was saying in the crowd about me. That I'm good, but I'm no Alex Masters, that I probably had five years of surfing in me and would never go pro. And...I fell, and I lost the competition because of it. Afterwards I thought I was just being paranoid."

"Ever since though...it's like sometimes i can hear things. Noises, conversations...I can't really control it and I thought my hearing was just going crazy...but Marcus caught me with one before, and then this guy's trying to tell me that I have advanced auditory whatever...I don't care what it is. I just want it, the flashes, and the headaches to go away."

[Andy 60]

Danny put his phone away and glanced over to where Natalie, Kelly, and Lance were. They looked like they were still busy, so he he went and bought a drink.

[Vergere 1]

Kelly looked over at Lance as Natalie talked, a sad look crossing her face. She hugged Natalie tighter, and listened to everything she had to say. She waited for a minute after Natalie was done talking to see if she was going to say anything else. When she realized that wasn't going to happen, she spoke gently to her friend again, "Natalie... I know it's hard, but... it's a gift. You can't get rid of it, so is there any way you can try and accept it? Use it?"

Lance spoke just as reassuringly and supportively, "Natalie, I know this probably isn't the reaction you expected from us. But we think it's cool... well, I do at least. I'd definately be careful who you told, but hey, we won't tell."

[Drake 53]

"Maybe not but you certainly knew what was on this PDA," Sam said, looking through the files.

He took a chip from his pocket and pressed a small button on it. A tiny needle ejected from the end of the chip. He reached down and pricked the needle into the back of the mutant's neck, drawing a small amount of blood into the chip. Sam then retracted the needle and put the chip into the PDA.

After a few seconds of working, he said, "Hmm. Interesting. Raven Darkholme. Also known as Leni Zauber. Also known as Valerie Cooper...Mallory Brickman, Holt Adler...Surge, Foxx. Most commonly known as Mystique. Being a Horseman of Apocalypse sure hasn't changed your outlook on life, now has it? SHIELD had suspected you were in the state. Just what are you doing here, exactly?" He looked at his PDA. "Oh wait, let me guess. You're recruiting again."

He tapped a series of commands into the device then set it on the roof. A few seconds later, there was a popping noise and a puff of smoke rose from the PDA.

"Couldn't have your little virus program steal all my secrets, now could I?"

[Rogue 4]

Mystique smirked, allowing herself to shapeshift into her normal form. Her skin turned blue, her hair turning a vibrant shade of red. Yellow eyes looked up at him, part amused, part mischievous. Her voice became much deeper, resonating. "I do love a man who knows what he's getting into. Tell me, does the mug shot do me justice?"

She tried to sit up to no avail. "What do you say you end the magic tricks so you and I can work this out in a mutually beneficial manner?"

***

She looked over to Lance. "Thank you...I mean, I know how understanding you guys are...it's just...it's scary. I don't even know what's going on with myself anymore. Maybe I'm right and I'm not a mutant...or maybe they are and my whole world turns upside down."

Edited May 6, 2008 by Rogue

[Vergere 1]

Lance sighed softly. "Kelly..."

Kelly didn't answer immediately. Murmuring, "Natalie... I know it's scary. I know it is. And it's even harder when you have no control over it..." She glanced at Lance again, then sighed softly. Looking back at Natalie, "Nat... if I tell you something, show you something, you promise you'll try not to freak out? I don't want you more scared than you already are... and you have every right to be scared. You've trusted us this far... you willing to trust us a bit more?"

[Rogue 4]

Natalie thought about it for a long moment, running her hands back to tame her drying blond locks. "I trust you guys, more than I trust anybody. I can't promise I won't be scared...but I can promise you that whatever happens we'll still be friends." She should have told Mark that. Now he was off...God knows where, feeling betrayed by her after he'd just saved her life. "Nothing will change that."

[Drake 53]

Sam shook his head. "Your Brotherhood works for the betterment of mutants and mutants alone. SHEILD works for the betterment of everybody. You seek to use your powers to subjugate humans. SHEILD seeks to use our powers to protect those who can't protect themselves. So tell me just what exactly you can do that would be beneficial for me?"

[Rogue 4]

She smirked, her skin tone changing to a rich brown and then to a milky color, her body remaining as bare as it had been previously. "That depends on whether you like dark or light." Her hair color changed as she spoke. "Blond, or brunette." With a hint of amusement she asked, "Or is a fiery red head more your type?"

[Vergere 1]

Kelly motioned to Lance, who then got up and lowered the rolled-up walls of the Cove so that people couldn't just look inside. "Natalie, I'd never ask you to not be afraid or scared... I just ask that you try not to. That's all."

Kelly stood up as Lance sat down, Lance hugging Natalie close like he would to a sister, gentle and reassuring.

Kelly glanced at the pair again, and prayed to whatever god was out there that her friend wouldn't be terrified. She smiled slightly, "I promise, I won't hurt you." She stood away from the other tables and chairs in an open area of the building. She took a deep breath, and her eyes turned from green to blue as the dead-still air of the building began to move around as if a storm was coming in from the outside. Kelly's hair was being blown around in the breeze, and she rose from the ground, literally suspended in mid-air. She spoke quietly, but somehow, even without her superior hearing, Natalie could hear her. "See Nat? I'm a mutant, too." Her eyes changed back to green and she dropped to the floor in a practiced motion. "I've just had longer to get used to it, and I've had amazing support as I was learning what I actually had." She didn't walk back to Natalie, however, not wanting to have her freak out any more if she was uncomfortable.

[Rogue 4]

Natalie seemed a little weary, as the wind settled down and her hair stopped blowing with it. She was glad that Lance was there to keep her steady and calm. She closed her eyes for a long moment before opening them and looking to her. "How long have you known?"

[Vergere 1]

Lance just rubbed her arms gently, a silent reassurance that everything was okay and that he was there for her.

Kelly shrugged, and wouldn't exactly look at Natalie. "When I was about twelve. I really wanted to go surfing, but there were no good waves... then I realized I could manipulate the air just enough to get some good waves going so I could surf... and, well, I've been curious about my limits ever since." She hesitantly looked up at Natalie, as she had been staring at the ground.

Edited May 6, 2008 by Tyche

[Drake 53]

"I don't discriminate," said Sam with a smile. "But the blue scales are a turn-off."

He drew his firearm and pointed it at her. "White, yellow, black, blue, clothed or not. I don't care. I'm taking you in either way."

[Rogue 4]

"So, that's a secret you've had to keep your whole life..." There was sympathy in Natalie's eyes. She nudged Lance gently with an elbow. "And how long have you known?" She looked back to her friend. "Geeze, this whole time I'm talking about all this, and you're..."

***

Mystique changed her appearance to that of the most innocent person she could think of, and emerged looking like the twin of Kitty Pryde. "Hey now, you wouldn't shoot a child, would you?"