Chad let out a breath he didn't realize he’d been keeping, his gloved hand pocketing a stolen five dollar bill, adding to the two bucks he already had. In the dense crowd making its way to-and-fro along the slushy sidewalk, no one had seen anything – not even his victim, a rigid businesswoman too busy barking out orders on her cell phone. Besides, Chad was good at what he did, taking only what he absolutely needed and not a penny more.

By the looks of her designer purse and the three Calvin Klein bags balanced on one arm, she wouldn't notice a few missing dollars.

He continued walking, blending into the crowd of Christmas shoppers, his hood over his head in an attempt to keep attention off his peculiar hue.

All around him, the city was radiating with holiday cheer. Lights, decorations, over-sized Santa Clauses – like just then, in front of a small toy store, Chad had to maneuver around the jolly old man clad in red and white, its mechanical arm waving back and forth to every passerby.

Chad merely watched it unfold. He’d never really had a chance to celebrate Christmas before, not really. Growing up in foster homes with many other children, it was usually just another day of the year… Come to think of it, there was this one year, when he was six or seven, when there had been present under the Christmas tree. His foster parents had bought each of them a small toy – the plastic action figure wasn’t worth much, but Chad had spent hours playing with that thing… imagining himself in another world, in another body, in another life… until one of his foster brothers broke it a few months later.

Now, at nineteen and a half years old, all Chad really wanted was a warm place to rest his head at night, and the idea that perhaps he wouldn't have to steal or rummage through dumpsters for his next meal. He wanted a home.

People could dream, right? But that’s just it – as far as Chad was concerned, they were just that: dreams. The only concrete thing in his life right now was that seven dollars in his coat pocket and the painful pleas of a stomach that hadn't seen food in almost two days.

What would it be? Italian? Indian? Mexican? Briefly, he looked around. There was a coffee shop across the street from his current position, looking quite small between a large pizzeria and a Deli. Although perhaps squished between two larger businesses, it looked quaint and welcoming – always one to root for the underdog, Chad made a beeline for it.

Once out of the mid-December cold, Chad rubbed his hands together. It really was a nice place, with an indie decor and Christmas tunes playing in the background. After rubbing his large boots against the mat at the entrance, the mutant settled into the line. It wasn't too long, although it did give him ample time to scan the menu overhead.

He could already feel curious eyes on him.

He breathed in, and then exhaled heavily.

It was his turn.

The pretty blonde waitress, no older than sixteen or seventeen, stared at him for a few seconds, her mouth slightly gaping. Chad cleared his throat. She blinked, smiling apologetically. "I’ll have uh… a coffee, just black’s fine, and… the Tuscan chicken Panini looks good." He dug in his pocket for the stolen money, only to swear under his breath, realizing he was two dimes short. "Actually, just the sandwich will do." he said, handing her the money and giving a dismissive wave when she made a note to give him his change. "Keep it."

His pockets now empty, he took his sandwich from a second barista and turned towards the many tables spread out around the small space, most of them already occupied.

People were watching him. Some were whispering. A child, no more than three or four years old, was pointing. Chad clutched his sandwich with one hand while the other, fingers webbed, instinctively reached for his hood, pulling it over his head.

H just wanted to eat his damn sandwich in peace.

He didn't make it to a table, instead doubling back towards the exit. He didn't stop walking for a good ten minutes, making his way north towards a park he’d scouted out a few days earlier. There was a small pond; ducks probably called it home during the summer season, while New Yorkers used it as a skating rink during the winter months.

He found a comfy-looking snow bank a few feet from the ice, partially hidden from view by a nearby tree. He sat down, watching as a young woman coaxed a man – her boyfriend or husband, by the looks of it – onto the ice, laughing hysterically as he clung to her, as if for dear life.

Chad bit into his sandwich, relishing in the warmth and enjoying the taste on his tongue. "Damn two dimes."he said aloud, the words muffled by the food still in his mouth.

It was cold outside, but Evelyn couldn't bring herself to catch a ride home to the mansion yet. After half a day at work she was tired, but with no plans for the evening, the remaining daylight was tempting. During the colder months walks in the park were part magical, part frigid, but with the right jacket and boots she wasn't too bothered by the air. Her nose would regain it's warmth later, and her hands were content being shoved in her pockets. At least it wasn't snowing. It was easier to stay toasty when you weren't picking snowflakes out of your hair.

Few people seemed to really share her sense of adventure today, though. The park had the usual dog walkers and joggers, but the puffs of breath against the air deterred many from taking a casual stroll. The echoes lazily studied their surroundings, noting regulars, studying strangers. For awhile there was nothing really notable... At least, that was until they honed in on a figure in the distance.

He was seated on a snowbank, posture somewhat defensive, huddled over his food. As she drew closer it was evident he was enjoying the meal, but there was something else there. [Cold.] Well that wasn't news. [Guarded.] Again, nothing too interesting. He didn't seem particularly well dressed for the weather, and the hood over his head obscured his face. Each fact was noted, analyzed, pieced together. She was a few steps closer, now unintentionally focused on the figure. Young, guarded...eating hungrily, not too well dressed...

As she turned the corner she got a better glance at him and the echoes guesses were confirmed. Young mutant. She slowed and casually sat on the snowbank not too far away.

"I've never been in that deli, but I heard they make a good panini. Does it live up to the hype?" She said politely as she plopped down and stretched her legs out in front of her. She kept her gaze forward on the ice skaters, but the echoes were still studying him closely.

Food. Glorious, glorious food...

Had he been in any other circumstance as this one, Chad would have settled on enjoying this delicacy, but given the fact he hadn't eaten anything decent in almost four days, he was wolfing the sandwich down like nobody's business.

He slowed down his chewing when the girl plopped down next to him, his shoulders tensing up and his feet pressing against the hardened snow, as if ready to make a quick getaway at a moment's notice.

He turned his head just enough to see her face, vigilance written all across his. "That it does," he told her simply, orange eyes fixed on what remained of his dinner, and then on the skaters ahead, completely lost in each other; smiling, laughing... unaware of anything but one another.

There was a smirk playing on the blue mutant's lips, if only for a few short seconds.

He looked back to the stranger then, discretely assessing her. She was pretty, with pale skin, cheeks and nose made red by the frigid weather, and light blonde hair. She didn't seem threatening at all, considering he was bigger than she was and an entire foot taller. Even so, Chad wasn't one to judge a book by its cover.

If the man had learned anything after being on the streets for four years, it was that most people didn't just come up to strangers and sit down.

It wasn't as if he was the most approachable guy in the world either, all blue and whatnot. He was probably a sight for sore eyes – his hair was somewhat longer than he preferred it and the dark teal blue stubble on jaw and cheeks suggested he hadn't shaved in a week or two. Technically speaking, it had been four, but his skin was thicker than the average human's, so facial hair took longer to appear.

He was a homeless person; scratch that, a homeless mutant. If one stuck to stereotypes, by definition he was supposed to be shady and dangerous. Pretty blonde girls didn't just approach shady and dangerous unless they had ulterior motives.

Pretty blonde girls didn't just approach shady and dangerous looking mutants, unless of course that girl was Evelyn, who had a rather obnoxious habit of getting to know dangerous mutants. She could see the body language of the stranger change as she spoke, echoes noting the snow, the shoulders, the readiness to run. She kept her gaze forward though, trying not to intimidate him. Even though she was cold she tried to keep her own body language open. She was with the x-men now. That whole, helping people, doing good stuff thing went with the territory, right? She wasn't just being nosy this time...

"Most people eat indoors in this weather though, unless they're trying to enjoy the open air. You don't seem to be enjoying it so much though..." She glanced over, eyes holding a more gray hue as she let the echoes do their own assessment, then glanced back at the skaters.

"People can be judgmental, but I've lived in this city for awhile, and sometimes the best way to get by is to just own your mutation. Don't be scared of it. There are enough of us in New York you'd fight more people standing up for you than going after you. Just saying." She dropped the 'us' into the statement intentionally, letting it linger, letting him wonder. She certainly didn't look like a mutant in obvious was like he did, but enough time around her and it'd become more clear how much she acted like one. First guess was almost always reserved for telepathy, but a telepath would know more about where he'd been, what he was doing here, and how he managed to get the food.

Well, how he managed to get the food might be easy enough to guess.

"I'd be careful though if you're into picking-pockets or stuff like that to get by... Considering there are shelters for mutants around here that are more than happy to feed someone, stealing is generally discouraged...." She chuckled slightly as the man fell on his butt, dragging his girlfriend with him.

Fortunately for this pretty blonde girl, Chad really wasn't as shady and as dangerous as he appeared to be. He was actually quite harmless, unless of course he felt the need to defend himself.

He didn't say anything when she spoke, merely listening, eyes kept in front of him. Did she think she knew him? Who he was? How he felt? What he was going through? What made her believe he wasn't owning up to his mutation? She was a stranger – just some girl. What gave her the right to come up to him and act like she knew everything?

He looked at her just then, orange eyes looking almost as though they were burning. She'd hit a nerve. "Are you the spokesperson for troubled mutants, or something?" he asked her crudely. "Just 'cause I look the way I do, and opt to eat outside, you automatically assume I'm not... owning up to my mutation?" He scoffed, plopping the remainder of his sandwich into his mouth.

He decided to ignore the fact that she'd just called him out on being a thief. So maybe there were more... legal means of survival, but those means usually entailed trusting people.

Fishing for information ran the risk of jabbing nerves from time to time. This seemed to be one of those times. Evelyn glanced over, the echoes noting the irritation in his eyes, and she sighed and pushed her hair from her face. "I'm just saying what I see. Body language says a lot about someone... Body curled inward, shoulders hunched, hood over your face... There are differences between being cold and being defensive, and people catch onto that. You know how they say dogs can smell fear? Sometimes I think people can do the same."

She glanced at the ice skaters, and back around towards the path. There wasn't much traffic this direction, and no one was really paying attention to them. The sai she carried pressed against her back slightly, metal warm where it had been pressed against her shirt, sapping heat through it from her skin. At least if something went wrong she had them on hand, but if the echoes were right, there wasn't a need. He seemed young, maybe a little defensive, but not hostile.

The echoes noted the scales, the color of his skin. Her guess was aquatic, not reptilian though. She couldn't see any gills, but that didn't mean he didn't have any. The echoes caught sight of the webbing on his hands though once the sandwich was gone and the slightly sharp teeth when he spoke, making her more certain in her assumption.

By then, he'd figured she was probably a mutant. She wasn't the first mutant he'd ever met, but she was definitely one of very few. Mutant or not however, she was really starting to get on his nerves.

She was pushy and astute, and yet Chad couldn't bring himself to up and walk away; the thing is, she was still the only company he'd had in... a damn long time.

"Maybe dogs can smell fear, but that doesn't mean they run towards it." he said with a shrug, resting his elbows onto his knees, allowing his gaze a few seconds to scan her face. She looked genuine in her desire to help him, which was really freaking him out.

"You know, I really don't make for good company..." he told her.

Evelyn shrugged, he had a decent point. Although the echoes were debating at this point whether he was referring to her, or to dogs, or to people in general. Maybe a bit of both. She brushed she snow from her jacket and laughed slightly at his remark.

"Trust me, I'm not exactly much for company myself. I've never been the customer service sort of person, that's why work usually lets me just work in the back. I don't really make the best first impressions." She gave a rueful smile and looked back at the frozen ice. "But I see things, I comment on them. Figure people may be mad at me in the moment but appreciate it in the long run. Or, something like that." She put her hands back in her pockets, the cold snow starting to sting against her fingers. Her jacket wasn't waterproof either. She could feel the cold under her butt starting to sink into the wool jacket.

"If you ever need a place to crash though, I'm serious, there are places around here that don't mind mutants. I'm sort of partial to the mansion myself, but to each their own. Think of it less as a nosy interrogation by a stranger, and more of an awkward welcome to the city and a flyer to the nearby attractions." She really needed to work on her pitch. If she wanted to stay an x-men she needed to avoid driving mutants away...The echoes kept buzzing though and with their endless chatter it was like letting a mob of socially awkward nerds give you social advice.

Chad listened to her speak. For a fleeting second he actually contemplated the suggestion, but as stubborn as he was, he merely dismissed it. "You're talking about the Xavier's School?" he asked, although the question came off more as a statement.

He'd heard of the place a handful of times over the years, although he'd never felt any need to check it out himself. Chad and schools didn't really mesh well – he'd never even finished ninth grade. "From what I've seen on the News, you guys get wrapped up in messy situations more times than not." he commented offhandedly.

At least some of the hostility seemed to be fading, but Evelyn could hear the doubt and stubbornness in the kids voice. Well, he wasn't the first mutant she'd met that wasn't too keen on living at a place with free food, as odd as it sounded. Considering one of her friends was a sewer monster, she had heard better reasons though. Well, heard reasons. She wasn't really sure what this kid's reasons were for avoiding it.

"There's two places, actually. Xavier's school is more my style, but heck, even the Sanctuary takes in mutants. There a little over the top for me, but I've met a few decent people who live there." She shrugged. Allison wasn't so bad, although Mirror and her had their differences.

"The school itself is really safe, it's more the x-men that end up getting in messy situations... And that's sort of a personal choice to join, really. Heck, I got into enough sticky situations before I lived there though. Ever seen what happens when Sesame Street monsters attack central part?" She laughed slightly at the memory. In hindsight that whole fiasco was much more amusing. Plus, it had introduced her to Mirror, even if they hadn't dated right away.

Chad couldn't say he'd heard anything about The Sanctuary. He figured it was some sort of homeless shelter for mutants, if the name was any indication.

He appreciated her actually giving a damn about him — at least enough of a damn to take it upon herself to talk to him about this place she called home. To be honest though, Chad had to wonder just how safe it really was. If people like Blondie here went around telling every single mutant they bumped into about it, chances were some... more radical types could join ranks and raise a little hell.

"Well, uh, thanks for the suggestion..." he said in an attempt be polite, realizing he was probably acting like a real asshole. "I might check this place of yours out, one of these days..." He'd leave it at that; he didn't want to make any promise he wasn't sure he'd be able to keep, yet at the same time he kind of really wanted her to shut up about the X-Mansion.

He was doing just fine on his own, thanks.

"...Ever seen what happens when Sesame Street monsters attack central part?"

She had a nice laugh; it felt good to hear it. He gave a short, lopsided grin. "Can't say I have, no. I'm sure it wasn't nearly as kid-friendly as it is on TV." he replied, surprising himself by actually chuckling.

>>"I might check this place of yours out, one of these days..."

Evelyn gave a shrug. She wasn't going to push him into it. Heck, some days she didn't really want to be there herself. All the mutants in one place made it hard to maintain sanity sometimes, and if he was anywhere near as socially awkward as she was, that was challenging. He lightened up slightly when she talked about the monster in the park, and she rolled her eyes, snorting in an unladylike manner with a laugh.

"Definately not kid friendly. The cookies the Cookie Monster spat up cut holes in the trees I'm pretty sure the park still hasn't recovered from, and Big Bird's feather stabbed me through the shoulder. My mutation has never really been offensive in a battle situation, so I was pretty lucky a few other mutants came to help. Weird things like that seem to happen all the time around here though." She mentally listed all the chaos she'd dealt with, including the firey mutant that broke into the convenience store the other day.

"I remember the days when the biggest worries in a city were getting mugged. Now I'm not surprised if someone busts through the wall of my work... Few weeks back someone made all the paintings come to life. Guess that's what happens in a city that's a mutant hub though." Another shrug. It was just a fact to her. Compared to most mutants, she was still pretty normal. She wasn't sure if she felt happy or bummed about that though.

The idea of living in a place with so many people — so many mutants — made him feel uneasy. He wasn't particularly enthused about the idea of waking up to a bunch of rowdy kids fighting for the bathroom, or being pestered with all sorts of questions he had to intention of answering. He'd lived that way for fifteen years while in the system, and it had never ended well for him. No matter how many foster kids he shared a house with, he'd always felt more alone than ever back then...

"Was it all some kind of reality warping thing or something?" he asked once Blondie finished with her tale, that dorky grin of his once again finding itself on his face. Somebody had to be pretty goddamn twisted to be behind such a thing. Sesame Street monsters terrorizing New York...

She seemed so calm and collected as she spoke, though, which was freaking hilarious. He'd spent years traveling across the northern part of the east coast, finding himself in his home state of New Hampshire, or Massachusetts... Connecticut... even spending some time in Vermont and Maine, but he'd never come across anything too out of the ordinary. Well, besides himself. He was pretty damn far from ordinary... "So does that mean I should keep a watchful eye for giant Santa Clauses terrorizing Times Square?" he wondered jokingly.

Evelyn considered his questions and shifted in the snow where she was sitting. "It was more of a dream manifestation I think... When the kid woke up they went away. I didn't really get a lot of their power details. That was before I really even knew who the x-men were, just that they were there to stop the cookie monster from mowing me down with cookies..."

At the mention of a giant Santa Evelyn laughed, but she nervously pushed her hair from her face as she did. "Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if that happened. I'm telling you, New York has some crazy stuff happening. While things can get intense in the moment, it's nice to be able to look back and laugh. I learn to just go with the flow. Thinking about it too much is just painful." Especially for her. The echoes already analyzed too much as it was.

Some form of dream manifestation, huh? Now that was some freaky business. Chad thought about it for a few instances, deciding then that he was really glad he didn't have that power, considering he'd probably wreck even more havoc on the city — stuff far worse than... Sesame Street monsters. His mind wasn't always a very pretty place, especially his subconscious.

"Yeah, I get what you mean." he said thoughtfully; a lot of his memories weren't very pleasant ones; he'd long since found that it was easier to just... not think about them, push it all away to the very depths of his mind. It was usually the way he dealt with things, by pushing them away. Mind you, that wasn't exactly dealing with it, but it worked... until it didn't.

When that happened, well, there was always beer. Well, when he could get his hands on some, anyway. Not an easy feat. "So uh, if you don't mind me asking, what is it that you do, exactly?" he asked after a few seconds. He still had no clue. "Your powers, I mean." he added.