Well, today's the day. Derek's first official day at The Mansion. Just hours before he was stepping out of the yellow taxi and slowly walking up the brick steps to the main entrance of the immense building.  Everything seemed to go by at a breakneck pace, but for some reason, Derek was okay with that. This was all exciting and nerve-racking at the same time!

Unfortunately for Derek, he was lost again. He was trying to meet up with one of the professors at the school in hopes of having someone to possibly mentor him. The new mutant's face was stuck in a map he was given yesterday and didn't see where he was going.

"Hmmph!" Derek ran into the side of a girl that was shorter than him. He accidently dropped his map and started to stammer. "I-I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to bump into you! I wasn't seeing where I was going." He immediately squatted down to grab the map from the ground and stood up. "I'm sorry again." He bit his lip nervously and tried to smile.  God, he messed up already.

Could this day get any worse?

Please don’t answer that. Allegra was in no mood for ‘any worse.’

Her first class had been...well…interesting. ‘Interesting’ is, of course, a synonym for ‘from hell.’ Allegra had stepped up to try to motivate her fellow students and she probably did was alienate herself. There was a reason that Allegra preferred to step back and let other people take the lead. Her  head was now awash with all the insults and gossip everyone must be spreading about her.

Oh, and it was possible that one of them might want to eat her but that’s not nearly as bad as having the whole school talking about you.

Well, first thing on the list was to see if she could drop that class and perhaps make sense of her schedule. The headmaster had apparently signed her up for just about every class the school offered and most of them were scheduled at the exact same time.

More importantly, Allegra’s room was way too small and she needed to see if she could be transferred to a larger one where her clothes and shoes would have room to breathe.

Allegra was told she needed to talk to Gemma Taylor, the school counselor. Right now Ms. Taylor was busy helping a student with getting a GED but Allegra was welcome to wait. It was rather comforting to learn people here did normal things like try to further their education. There weren't all undead zombie girls.

Just then a young woman who looked half human/half praying mantis walked into the office snapping her giant claws. The insectoid mutant explained to the receptionist that she had just given birth to 50 intelligent grubs and she was wondering if it would possible to enroll them all in the school. Like Allegra, the woman was told that she would have to wait to see Ms. Taylor. The mutant mantis woman nodded and perched on top of a chair next to Allegra.

Allegra had a fear of bugs. No, scratch that. It was a state of pure freaking terror. Allegra once saw a two inch long cockroach and thought she was going to die on the spot. Needless to say, the roach was a cuddly little bunny compared to this woman. No one saw Allegra bolt out the door. They just heard her piercing screams echoing through the hallway.

Again, how could this day get any worse?

Allegra decided to just hole away in her munchkin-sized room, maybe draw up a bubble bath and repeat ‘there’s no place like home’ over and over again.

She then realized she left all her stuff in Ms. Taylor’s office. Well, there was no way she was going back there. Maybe she could just go to the kitchen and nervously binge eat. If there was ever a good excuse, this was it. Besides, she didn’t eat anything from Home Ec class and she was pretty hungry.

After more circling around aimlessly, Allegra finally found the kitchen. Time for some nice comfort food. The more fattening the better. She danced in to devour some empty calories when she spied…...um, she wasn’t quite sure. The plant from Little Shop of Horrors, perhaps? Okay, not that bad. It (she) looked sort of like a cute girl with pretty flowers and red hypodermic needles. And what was she rubbing off her taloned hands? Was that…. Blood?

More running. More screaming.

Though, come to think of it, that might have been ketchup.

Allegra was now running down the hall like one of those people in a horror movie who you just know is going to die any second. You know that scene when the heroine turns the corner and sees what looks like a……

‘Gargoyle’ was the word Allegra was grasping for but ‘Succubus Demon of Doom’ was the first thing that came to mind. The hellspawn-looking thing with the bat wings and horns could easily have been Beelzebub’s cousin. And there the gargoyle was, just walking casually with her clawed fingertips lightly scraping the wall as she went. She was probably on her way to scrape a blackboard with those claws and torture students for all eternity. Allegra certainly wasn’t going to stick around for that.

Allegra spun around and ran in the other direction, much like that character from a horror movie. Any second now, unspeakable evil would descend upon her and...

CRASH!

Allegra found herself face to face with a decidedly un-monstrous young man. Kind of cute, actually. Allegra considered herself a fairly good judge of people and, whether that was true or not, he seemed to radiate warmth and caring. Oh, and he wasn’t a zombie, giant bug, demon or killer plant. At least as far as Allegra could tell.

“Oh my god, I’m sorry,” she said to Derek. “No, it wasn’t your fault. I’m pretty sure I was the one not looking where she was going. There’s a reason why there’s rules against running in the hallways, I guess.”

Allegra bent down and swooped up Derek’s map before he was able to grab it and handed it to him. “I hate to tell you this, but that map is worthless. I got here yesterday and I’ve decided that just walking around aimlessly gets me to where I don’t want to go even faster. You don’t need the map for that. And believe it or not, this place actually has a hedge maze. I guess that’s for when you want to run around in circles for fun.”

Allegra laughed weakly. When she met new people she either babbled endlessly or snapped shut. Her nervousness at meeting someone new fueled with her recent terror meant she was going with babbling today.

“Are you new here?” she asked. “My name’s Allegra. Second day. Already missing all my friends and freaking out. And talking way too much. But I’m really glad to meet a friendly face and I’m really sorry for bumping into you like that. So, how do you like it here so far?”

Hopefully this day would be looking up.

Derek laughed nervously. "Well, that's great," he rolled his eyes with a smile on his face before folding the map up. The eye roll was a bit flamboyant, but he hoped that she wouldn't notice. Apparently there was no use for the map anymore so he put it away. The twenty year old mutant then stuffed it into his back pocket so that his hands were free. The girl standing in front of him looked nice enough. Why not engage in conversation?

"No, no you're fine! I wasn't lookin' where I was goin'. Sorry." Derek shook his head and laughed a bit. "Uh, I'm very new here. I just came in from North Carolina yesterday so today's my first official day at The Mansion. It's really nice here in my opinion. Very... diverse." Derek smiled more. "I'm Derek by the way. Derek Menes." He offered the girl a handshake. "What's your name?" Derek asked politely. His southern accent sprinkled across his words like fresh dew at dawn. It wasn't too noticeable, but gave people a hint that he was from the south.

"Nice to meet you, Derek," Allegra said. She smiled at his southern accent. It was just light enough to sound Southern gentleman as opposed to hick. "I'm Allegra. It's comforting not being the only new person here."

Diverse? Yeah, that was a nice way of putting it. Zombies and bugs and gargoyles. Oh my!

"I've never actually met a mutant before so this place has kind of been a shock for me," Allegra said. She wanted to be as upfront as possible without sounding like a mutant hater. Allegra didn't really hate anyone. There were just some people that scared the hell out of her and she had met a lot of them here so far.

"I've been to North Carolina once when I was a little girl. Place called Nags Head. I loved it. I hung out at the beach all day which is pretty much when I do back home in L.A. I think I'm gonna have a really hard time adjusting to New York winters. So are you excited to be here?"

Allegra figured it was best she ask first and get an idea how Derek felt. Allegra didn't want to rant and rage about how miserable she was so far if it turned out Derek was excited about getting the chance to be among all these 'diverse' mutants.

"Likewise," Derek was more than relieved to find out that Allegra, which was such a gorgeous name, that she too was brand spanking new to The Mansion and the world of mutants. "It's also comfortin' not to be alone in a strange place."

The twenty year old mutant nodded his head. "Yeah, that's true. Some mutants here barely look human." He paused. "Which is fine with me. It's gonna take a while to get used to." He shrugged his shoulders with a toothy smile on his face. Derek had seem a couple of strange looking mutants, but no one that frightened the Hell out of him. Well, not yet anyway. The week was still new.

"Oh, really? I don't think I've been to Nags Head yet. I've been to Wilmington, Beaufort, and Morehead city, but not Nags Head." Derek grinned more. "You're from L.A?! That's so cool! I've always wanted to go California, but never had the chance to." When Allegra mentioned the New York winters, Derek shivered. "Jesus Christ, I'm gonna freeze up here." He rubbed the back of his neck with his right hand. "And yeah, I'm pretty excited to be here. Excited to finally get away from home and...out of the south." He's smile wavered, but not by much. "A place where I can be who I want to be and hopefully get a handle on my powers. What about you? How are you fairin' bein' here?"

"Some mutants barely look human." Allegra had to remember that because in her mind, some of them barely were human. They just seemed like dangerous monsters and Allegra had to remind herself that some of them might not be much different than her. But she was going to remember that at a safe distance.

"Yeah, it's certainly different here," she nodded. "You're right, it's going to take some getting used to." Were bat wings and pitch black zombie eyes going to now be Allegra's new normal? Why couldn't she just be back home with her friends.

"So what is like where you are from ?" Allegra asked. "Are you near the beach? I'm actually from Beverly Hills, but sometimes I tell people L.A. so that don't think I'm all snooty or something. I'm 100% non-snooty. I promise you.  If you ever want to visit Cali,you've got a place to stay and I'm a great tour guide."

She reached in her purse for her phone then remembered she had left it in the guidance counselor's office. Her hands were now shaking like an addict who hadn't had their fix in weeks. Allegra's phone was her lifeline and she couldn't believe she left it back where that giant bug thing was. She didn't know if she could summon the courage to go back and get it.

"When I get my phone, I'll show you pictures of back home. I miss it so much." The sadness in her voice was a bit too obvious so she tried to pour on the cheer. Derek seemed excited to be here and she didn't want to bring him down.

"But I love exploring new places and even though I've visited NYC as a tourist, it'll be fun to live here. I'm just a little homesick. So, it sounds like this is gonna be a great adventure for you. Um, so how are you doing with that whole 'getting a handle on your powers' thing. Until last week, I didn't even know I had powers. So I figured this was the best place for me."

Her voice sounded like someone who had been shipped to a leper colony so she tried to smile and bring out her inner cheerleader again. "I'm looking forward to it," she said more to convince herself than Derek. "I really am."

Derek raised his eyebrows when Allegra told him that she was from Beverly Hills. Of course being an American, he heard of that luxurious place. All he could imagine was large, Spanish styled homes on hills and closets the size of mini department stores. "Well, thank you for the offer! I might take you up on it." Derek beamed. "And trust me, you don't seem snooty at all." And he meant that. "As for me? Raleigh is closer to the east coast. It's really nice there, though I'm more than happy to be here in New York." There was other things he wanted to tell Allegra about back home, but that would be too heavy for a first meeting. Instead, he decided to keep it to himself.

When he heard the sadness in Allegra's voice, his heart cracked a bit. Derek didn't want her to be sad. "Aw, well, I'm sure your family misses you too." He tried to comfort her with his words. "Plus, think about it this way, the next time you'll see them, it'll be even more sweeter." The mutant gave her a kind smile.

Derek listened to her speak. She still sounded so sad. Maybe if he baked her a batch of cookies, she'd fee better. It was worth a shot. "Yeah, I know how you feel. I discovered I had powers when I was sixteen. Scared the hell out of me." Derek chuckled a bit. "But I didn't think I needed to be here. That, and I couldn't come to turns with," he took a breath, "telling my parents that I was even more...strange." He let out the carbon dioxide build up in his lungs and started to breathe regularly again.

"...Are you sure? You don't sound very convinced." Derek slowly tilted his head to the side. "...Do you want to sit down and talk about it if you want? I'm a good listener."

“Thank you,” Allegra said when Derek told her she didn’t seem snooty. Sometimes Allegra pretended to be stuck up. It was an act she could play very well but it was only to keep people she didn’t trust away. When she warmed up to someone, she wanted them to see her as she truly was.

“Never been to Raleigh but that’s the capitol, right?” she asked. She wondered how she had picked up that piece of information. She might have been awake in class the day that was covered. “So what’s there to do there? Like if I were to come to visit for just one day, what would you recommend?” Allegra enjoyed traveling, even if it was just in her imagination.

“So, do you miss home?” she asked. “Your family and friends and stuff? Do you have anyone special back home?” Allegra’s hand curled as though she were gripping the phone she didn’t have. She was cursing herself for leaving it behind. Allegra tilted her head away so Derek couldn’t see how upset she looked. She was thinking about all the texts and posts she was missing from her friends back home. Even when she was engrossed in conversation with someone, she’d still multitask to keep up with everyone.

“So, what was it like to discover your powers? What are they, if I may ask?” Allegra had snuck into a few college parties where ‘what’s your major’ was a pretty standard icebreaker. She wondered if this was the same about asking about mutants’ powers or if that was a taboo subject. Though if Derek’s experience discovering his powers was half as traumatic as Allegra’s, she was regretting putting him on the spot by asking him.

“So you and your parents don’t get along? If you don’t mind me asking.” It seemed like a very emotionally charged subject for him. “I’m sorry and I can kind of relate. If it means anything, I don’t think you’re strange at all. You’re sweet.”

“Yes, please. Let’s sit down,” she said. She looked out the double glass doors to a path that led to a tiny little park area surrounded by trees and covered in a kaleidoscope of bright flowers. Whoever the gardener was around here, they sure knew what they were doing. Allegra made a note to herself not to drop her botany class.

She sat on a park bench shaded under one of the larger trees. “I don’t really get along with my mom at all,” she said. “Growing up, I was pretty much ignored. My mom gave my older sister all the attention. It used to make me so mad. Sometimes I’d actually wish my sister would die. Well, a few years ago, she did and I miss her every single day. My mom started paying attention to me but most of the time she just tells me how much better, smarter and prettier my sister was and what a big disappointment I turned out to be.”

Allegra breathed the outdoor air deeply before continuing. “Mom would say the only good thing about me was that at least I wasn’t a mutant. Well, guess what. I failed in that too. I'm officially a freak now. So I’ve left my home and all my friends to come here and live with people that are probably going to give me nightmares. Not you, of course. And yeah, I know how bad I sound saying stuff like that. I’m certainly not a mutant hater or anything. I cried after they bombed that mutant shelter in Odessa last year. But I didn’t want this to be my life. I don’t want to be labeled a mutant and I don’t want for this place to be my only option. I want my life back.”

She wiped a tear away. “You are a great listener. Thank you. I didn’t mean to go on and on like that. I hope you don’t think I’m an awful person now.”

Derek grinned. "Well, uh, it's really nice there. A big city so there's lots to do. A nice nightlife and places to shop, eat, do all kinds of fun things." The two mutants would be there all day if Derek listed everything one could do in Raleigh. "Oh! The Crabtree Mall there is really, really nice. That's where I usually hang out at." Derek scratched the top of his head.

When Allegra asked if he got along with his parents, Derek honestly had to think about it. He didn't really know how to answer the question other than say, "I mean, it's a pretty normal relationship. I don't tell them everything because I know that wouldn't be smart of me to do." And for other reasons. "But I do miss my friends. As for someone 'special'?" Derek had to chuckle. He slowly shook his head and sighed. "Yeah, right. I'd never...no." That was one thing he hated about himself and that was his self confidence. "And thank you. You're really nice too. And very pretty." He added with a chuckle.

Derek was relieved when Allegra changed the subject to powers. That was something he could talk about and not feel bad himself. "Uh, the first time I realized I had powers was when I was volunteering at the local animal shelter. One of the dogs -- an aggressive one-- got loose and started charging toward me. For some reason when I told him to stop...he did." He paused. "It was weird like...my gut churned and everything." Derek clicked his tongue. "That's when I found out that I could...influence animals. Like, control them in a way. And...I can also, like, uh...understand them? It's hard to explain." Derek cleared his throat. "What about you? What can you do?"

Derek nodded his head and followed Allegra out of the Mansion and to the garden. It was absolutely beautiful outside with butterflies, bumble bees, and other insects buzzing about. From what he could gather, most of them were feeding on the nectar. Once they sat down, Derek angled his body toward Allegra so that she knew that she had his undivided attention.

As the beautiful young lady talked, Derek felt his heart go out to her. He was such an emphatic person that it almost felt like he was the one being told these things. Derek reached out and took her hands in his and smiled. "I am so, sorry you had to experience that growing up. You have nothing to be ashamed of okay? I know how generic that sounds, but it's true. And you're not an awful person. Not at all." Derek sniffed, "... Sometimes I feel like my parents would say that to me if they found out that I'm a mutant and...gay." He took a breath. "You're a wonderful young lady, Allegra, who just happened to be mutant not a wonderful, mutant young lady. You understand?" His voice was comforting and unknown to him, butterflies started to land on his shoulders and on top of his head.

“Well, I’m a huge fan of nightlife, shopping eating and fun things,” Allegra smiled. “A double big fan of shopping so I’d love to check out the Crabtree Mall. It totally sucks that there is no room for all my clothes in the tiny little dorm room they gave me. I was going to ask the guidance counselor for a bigger room but she was busy.” This certainly lent credence to Derek’s theory that the closets in Beverly Hills were the size of mini department stores. Allegra’s came pretty close.

“I honestly tell my mom as little as possible which doesn’t work that well since she’ll keep prying until she gets it out of me,” Allegra said. “So annoying.”

Allegra blushed when Derek told her she was pretty. “You know you’re pretty nice yourself. Hot, actually if you don’t mind me saying.” She blushed even more. Allegra could be very outgoing but she was very shy around boys. She never had a boyfriend in all her 15 years and the only date she went on was a complete disaster. But she could see herself with someone like Derek.

“So you can talk to animals?” she asked. “Wow. What a cool power. Does each animal breed speak their own languages? And do ‘Meow’ or ‘Woof’ mean something? Do animals understand English? How many pets do you have? I can’t wait for you to meet my dogs. I’ve got a Shih Tzu and a Brussels Griffon. They’ll be moving in with me in a week when I get all settled. I miss them so much. Here, let me show you a picture.”

Allegra then remembered she didn’t have her phone. She wasn’t sure how much longer she could survive without it, but she wasn’t going to take any chances running into that creepy bug woman. “I really need to get my phone back,” she lamented.

Derek then asked what she could do and she sighed. “Well, I sent in my blood sample to the school before coming here so they could analyze it. Apparently I’m a mutant DNA manipulator. Basically it means that I can give mutants even more mutant powers.”

She thought about the time she used her powers without meaning to and frowned. She didn't want anything like that to happen ever again. “Don’t worry. It’s not contagious or anything. I think it’s actually pretty worthless. I mean, your power is cool. You can get a job as a dog trainer or one of those people that makes dolphins do tricks. I just make freaks even freakier. I’m sure I’ll be very popular at parties.”

Derek then took Allegra’s hands and her heart beat faster. Literally. She was excited and nervous and for a second actually she even forgot about her phone. Derek told her she was pretty and assured her that she had nothing to be ashamed of. Allegra bit her lip and shivered a bit. It was so beautiful out here and there was a guy that was interested in her saying all the right things. She couldn’t believe this was happening to her. He was going to ask her out, wasn’t he? Oh my god! Stay calm!

"... Sometimes I feel like my parents would say that to me if they found out that I'm a mutant and...gay."

“Gay?” Allegra asked. So much for that fantasy. She couldn’t hide the look of disappointment on her face.

“I mean, that’s cool,” Allegra interjected. She was wondering if Derek now thought she was a homophobe too. That was the furthest from the truth and she didn’t want him to get the wrong idea even if it meant admitted she was attracted to him.

“No, it’s all cool. Honestly!” Allegra said nervously. “I’m totally okay with that. It’s just that…. Well, I came real close to asking you out. Maybe, not real close because I’m kind of a wimp and I would have chickened out. But other than my selfish personal reasons for being upset that you don’t like girls, I have no problem with you being gay. My god, it’s hard to believe anyone would. I’ve got gay friends and trans friends and all kinds. I honestly don’t even think any different about it. But I guess some people do, huh? I’m really sorry. Even my mom wouldn’t care but I’m sorry that maybe your folks might. How do you think they would react if you did come out? As gay, I mean. Not as a mutant.”

Allegra wondered for a second why one was okay with her and not the other. She’d never in a million years use a homophobic or racial slur but plenty of times in the past she had joked about freaks and muties. It was hard to think about because Allegra considered herself an accepting and good person. It was true that she had an issue with mutants, though, even though she was one.

The bugs then started buzzing around Allegra and Derek. “Ewwwww! Go away! Go away!” Allegra screamed as she batted the flying specks away from her. She then noticed the butterflies lighting on Derek’s shoulder and head.

Butterflies were awesome. They were pretty and Allegra liked them. She didn’t consider them bugs much like she didn’t really consider herself or Derek mutants.

“Wait, can you talk to the butterflies too?” she asked. “I think they like you.”

The African American mutant chuckled. "For a bigger closet? Huh," Derek thought. He didn't know whether or not the Mansion's guidance counselor would make that accommodation, but for Allegra's sake he wished they would. "Well, maybe they'll give you some extra storage place? Like, ah, plastic bins to put your shoes in?" Derek grinned. "More than likely you'll get somethin'."

"That's how moms usually are. They want to know everything you're doing." Derek sighed. "They mean well, but you're right. It can get really annoying."

Derek smiled widely at the returned compliment. "Aw, thanks. I try." He shifted in his seat some to get more comfortable.

When Allegra started to ask him questions about his powers, Derek couldn't help himself but laugh. It was nice o find someone who was interested in not only who he was, but what he could do. "Alright, alright. Let's see," Derek thought a for a moment. "It's hard to explain, but I read more so their body language and how they think? It's not really words." He laughed again. "And I'm not completely sure if they can understand English or not. I'll have to ask them" Derek playfully said. "Oh, really? That's so cool! I didn't have any pets growing up which is probably while I love being at the shelter so much."

Derek's eyes widened when Allegra told him what her powers were. "Really? So you're like a gene designer." He gasped. "Designer could be your, like codename." Derek paused. "Do you have one? A codename yet? I'm assuming no since you're new here like me."

"Hey, I think that's a really cool power! Do they know how to use the powers they get?" Derek asked. He was curious about what the extend of her powers were.

When Derek heard the disappointment in her voice, he was taken aback of bit. He didn't know where it had come from until she spoke. "Oh? I'm so, sorry if you thought that...oh damn." Derek could really slap himself across the face right now. "I'm sorry if I sent you the wrong message." He bit his lip nervously. He'd have to make it up to her one way or another. When Allegra asked the question about whether he'd come out to his parents or not, Derek shook his head. "What? No. God, no. That's not happening anytime soon."

Derek chuckled when he witnessed the reaction from Allegra when the insects started to gather around. "Hey, they're harmless, I promise." He smiled and looked at the butterflies on his shoulder and grinned. "Yeah, I can communicate with them. It's like I'm an animal magnet too. It's weird, but in a good way."

"Plastic bins for all my shoes?" Allegra asked. "I'm gonna need a lot of bins. I can't believe people actually live in tiny rooms like this. They must not have a lot of shoes."

Allegra sighed. "I don't know if my mom means well. She's trying to recapture her glory days and she's using me to do it.  I'm a poor substitute. My sister was beautiful and fun and I'm just...." Allegra's voice trailed off and she replayed all her mom's insults in her head.

"So what's animal body language? I mean, I know some. Like if a dog hold her head up and her tail is down and her mouth is open slightly, then she's happy and relaxed. But it sounds like you are able to understand a whole lot more than that. I really can't wait for you to meet my babies. I mean my dogs, of course. There's so many things I've wanted to tell them. Like why do they always bark when I sing? You don't think they hate my singing, do you?"

"You know, maybe we should find a nearby shelter and volunteer. I think that would be a lot of fun, especially with your powers."

Derek asked Allegra if she had a code name. "Yeah, they gave me one. Catalyst." She had been meaning to look up what that word meant. She remembered it from Chemistry class but that was about it. If only she had her phone with her, she could look it up.

"Designer? I love it!" Allegra exclaimed. "You know, I actually want to be a fashion designer. I'm good with art and I love fashion so I think it would be a perfect fit for me and that's a perfect code name. Thank you. It's so much better than some word I have no idea what it means."

"Anyway, I'm gonna find out more about my powers when I go for a full exam with this guy named DocProf or ProfDoc or SneezyBashfulGrumpyDoc. But from what they can tell, they know how to use the powers they get, but I can't really control what the powers are going to be. I only used it once and, well, it was kinda scary."

Allegra was hurt that Derek didn't like her 'in that way' but she didn't blame him. "It's not your fault," she said. "It's mine. I really don't have a lot of experience with guys so it was just me being stupid. Oh, and you being naturally charming. The guy that scoops you up is gonna be one lucky boy. And I won't tell anyone that you're gay if you don't want me to. Where I'm from, it isn't even an issue but I guess I'm kind of sheltered in Beverly Hills. I know that's not the same everywhere. I just don't get it. You can't help who you like. I don't understand why people make a big deal about it but I guess I'm preaching to the choir, huh?"

"Anyway, I know you don't like 'like' me, but I hope we can be friends. I'm really enjoying talking to you and you might not know it but you've really helped me a lot. I've really be stressed and lonely since I got here and it just feels good to connect with someone."

"Maybe they're harmless but I HATE bugs!" Allegra cried. "Some people are scared of clowns which makes no sense because they're  just normal people in a suit. I'm scared of bugs because they look like scary aliens and they can crawl in your nose and... GET OFF ME!" She shook her arm and the insect that was crawling up it took flight.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to shout. Some people say I can be a drama queen sometimes. Oh, and I am really scared of spiders who some people say aren't bugs. And roaches are the worst." She smiled as she held out her finger hoping one of the butterflies would decide to fly on it. "So now you know my deepest darkest fear. Your turn."

Derek chuckled at that. "Yeah. How many pairs of shoes do you have?" He asked curiously. He assumed that she had at least twenty pair at the most.

"...Was? Did something happen to your sister?" Derek asked cautiously. He didn't want Allegra to feel any worse than what he felt like she was. Hopefully the usage of past tense just meant that her sister was now the only child that was still with their mother than her being deceased. "And you're just wonderful." He finished the sentence for her with a warm and inviting grin. "And don't let anyone tell you differently, okay?"

When Derek was questioned about reading body language of animals, he had to think. He'd never actually took the time to sit down and actually actively read an animal. It just came naturally to me. "Um, well, it's hard to say, but it varies from animal to animal. However, your dogs probably bark because you're making noises." Derek would have to see the animal himself in order to come to a census.

The mutant smiled widely when Allegra was pleased with the new codename he gave him. "Oh, you're welcome! I didn't know that you wanted to be a fashion designer! That's really cool. So the codename does fit." Derek chuckled and leaned back in his seat. "Finding out more about yourself will be helpful in a lot of ways especially when it comes to mutant powers. Hopefully I'll be able to do the same thing and see how far my potential goes."

Derek smiled kindly at Allegra. "Aw, thanks. It means a lot. You'll find someone too. Don't let this little incident let you down okay? You're in a new environment with new opportunities." Derek grinned. "Yeah, you are preaching to the choir about that. I guess it depends where you grow up. With me bein' raised in the south, you're not supposed to be certain things, so," he shrugged his shouolders. "I dunno."

"Of course we can be friends!" Derek smiled widely. "I can never have enough friends so, sure. I'm glad that I was able to help you. I'm a good person to vent to."

Derek stifled a laugh when Allegra started to freak out when a insect started to climb on her. "No, no, you're fine. I can see you being a drama queen, though." Derek chuckled some. "Being afraid of bugs, though, if you've had a bad experience with them can cause you to sort of hate them so that's understandable." When the other mutant told him that it was his turn to tell a deep dark fear of his.

"Uh, I'm afraid of...not being good enough." He answered, nodding his head. "That's basically it."

Derek asked Allegra how many pairs of shoes she had. “I’m not really sure,” she answered truthfully. “If I see a pair I fall in love with, I just buy them. I’ve got a shoe closet back home. I only have one closet here and it's even smaller than my shoe closet. Somehow I have to fit everything I own into it. It’s just not going to work.”

“My sister, Angelique…..she’s gone. She just died one night in her sleep. Peacefully,” Allegra said though her tone showed she didn’t believe that. “I miss her so much. My mom gets drunk a lot and when she does she always reminds me that I should have been the one that died. She’s probably right. Angelique was incredible.”

Derek assured Allegra that she was wonderful and that made her smile. “Thank you. I’m really trying to work on feeling better about myself. Maybe this can be a new beginning for me. How did you say it? This could be a place where you can be who you want to be. Maybe this place can be like that for me too. You’re certainly helping me with that, so thank you.”

“My friends say that the dogs bark because they hate my singing,” Allegra laughed. “Hey, do you think you could teach me how to read animal body language better or is it just something you can do because of your powers?”

“I love the code name,” Allegra said. “Yeah, I’ve always wanted to be a fashion designer since I was little. Angelique modeled and I got to meet Betsey Johnson once and she was so cool and gave me some tips. I told the counselor here that I definitely want to keep my art class so I’m gonna ask my art teacher, Mr. Holloway, about it. My mom pushed me into going into acting and modeling like my sister, but I really think fashion design is what I want to do. Maybe it’s for the best that I’m here. I can start to be myself instead of a clone of my sister.”

“So what do you want to do?” Allegra asked. “Did you want to do something with animals? You seem to really like them and you’ve obviously got a talent for it.”

Derek tried to let her down easy when she admitted she had a crush on him. “You know, I’m 15 and I’ve never had a boyfriend in my entire life,” Allegra admitted. “Some of my friends have dated a bunch of times and Angelique had a steady boyfriend when she was 13. I wonder if I’m too old to ever find someone. My mom says I’m fat and ugly. I’ll probably die an old maid.”

“I guess I’m sheltered where I grew up,” Allegra said. “No one thinks twice if someone is gay or straight or both or neither. I’ve always thought the whole world was like that even though deep down I know it’s not. I’m sorry you grew up somewhere that they tell you that you can’t be who you are. I hope this place is gonna be a new beginning for you. For both of us. I know I’ve found a great friend today so things are really looking up.”

“Hey, I am so not a drama queen!” Allegra laughed as she batted away the insects. “Okay, maybe I am. Just a little.” She was glad Derek was able to call her out on stuff just like her best friends were. He was real and that was comforting. “I’m never gonna like bugs though. If you can talk to them, ask them why they’re so gross and creepy. And why they think it’s okay to just crawl on people without asking. Ick!”

Derek admitted he was afraid of not being good enough. “Why would you think that?” Allegra asked. “You’re incredible. Afraid of not being good enough is pretty much me and my entire life. Every second I think about what I’m doing wrong or how I look or what people are thinking about me. Is that how it’s like for you too? I hope not.”

Derek blinked and looked over at Allegra, then at the graden itself. "Oh, God. You do have a lot of shoes. Maybe you can get somebody who can shrink things to do that to your shoes?" It was a suggestion. There had to be someone who could do that on or around the Mansion.

"I am...so sorry about your sister, Allegra." Derek placed his hand over his heart. It was true, her sister had died. At least it was peaceful in her sleep. Though, at her age, that didn't make much sense, but neither did Derek having conversations with birds or dogs. "That still doesn't warrant your mother calling you all of those things."

"Uh, I'm not sure if I can teach it to you, but I can give you pointers." The African-American mutant looked at Allegra with a grin. "For dogs it's easier to notice because they're so...extroversive." Derek grinned.

Derek listened to Allegra talk about her life and how she wanted to become a fashion designer, but was pushed in another direction by her mother. It was honestly interesting to hear. "I'd be a great fashion designer, I know it. As for me, I want to become a veterinarian. I really love animals so I think it would be a perfect fit for me."

"Oh, see, I'm twenty so it wouldn't work out anyway." Derek shrugged his shoulders. "But you shouldn't rush into a relationship. Trust me, one will come along when you least expect it." And that was his advice to her. "Trust me, you're a beautiful young lady."

"Yeah, it's pretty rough, but this place, like you said, is meant for second chances so I'm completely down for reinvention and defining who I am and not having someone else tell me who I am."

Derek laughed, shaking his head. "I'll take sure to ask them that too at our next counsel meeting." He joked playfully.

He ran his fingers through his short cut hair and sighed. "Just...not being good enough. Y'know, I'm...black, gay, and a mutant. People already have their assumptions about me and sometimes it weighs me." Derek shrugged his shoulders. "I dunno. It's something that I have to work on."