(OOC: Time setting is the day after the Rescue)

Neena made her way confidently through the hallways toward the Canteen. Unlike most of the refugees and residents, Neena's eyes guided her effortlessly through the maze. She saw through most of the walls and rooms fairly easily. Those that were shielded from her vision did evoke a sense of curiosity, but not enough to explore just yet. At the moment, her stomach took priority.

In a side effect she could only attribute to the lack of nutrition in the Camps, Neena's stomach had turned into a bottomless pit. She'd eaten a mere two hours earlier, yet she felt famished. She'd lost quite a bit of weight over the months of imprisonment. Two plates piled high with every starchy food available, and a trip back for a third piled with beef in various forms bore testament to her hunger.

Having grown up as a cattle rancher, and to a family considered rich in her village, beef was her food of choice. And milk. She'd long ago realized the dangers of drinking blood in with her milk, despite the traditions of her people, but she still missed it. Normal milk just didn't have the same tang. Ah well.... Maybe she could track down that gourmet candy shop later and pick up some chocolate-covered grasshoppers. Or maybe cockroaches. They had more protein.

She picked a table, spread out her fare like a buffet, took her fork and began to dig in voraciously.

Maya opened her eyes to an unfamiliar ceiling. She was vaguely aware of something itching under her nose, and reaching up to scratch it meant that she was introduced to various tubes and plastic things. She sat up very slowly and quietly. It was an infirmary. There were no windows that she saw, but her internal clock told her that it was not even the same day. She must've fallen asleep on the way over.

A nurse moved about the room checking this tube or that chart. She turned toward Maya and jumped with a soft gasp. "Oh me oh my. I'm sorry, dear - you scared me... Quiet as a ghost, you are." She scuttled over to Maya and her chart.

Maya felt the corners of her mouth turn up a smidgen. This lady was easy to like. No wonder she had become a nurse. "Can you...?" her throat was dry as chalk, but she motioned to the tubes. The woman checked her chart, eyeballed Maya, then referred to the chart again.

"You'll need to go eat something immediately. Think you can handle that?"

Maya nodded obediently. She watched curiously as the nurse unhooked things properly. She was clean- she hadn't expected that -and there were large band-aids on her knees and elbows. She had come out rather well out of this whole ordeal. After she was finished unhooking Maya, the woman went to a cabinet full of what looked like donation clothes. Maya slid to the edge of her gurney, letting her legs dangle off the edge. Nurse-lady laid the clothes on the edge of her bed and pulled the curtain to block the bed from view of the unconscious mutants in the room.

"Those should fit." She called from the other side of the curtain. "I'll be outside finding you an escort to the canteen... these halls can be tricky and you, my girl, need to eat."

Maya heard a door close. She poked at the garments. It was better than putting the prison garb back on, but Maya had her doubts. After dressing, Maya timidly poked her head out of the only door in the dim room. The woman was waiting for her.

"Ah, nicely done. This young gentleman will escort you to the canteen. Make sure you eat right away..." She checked the chart for a name, but had no luck and simply had to end with, "young lady." She gave her a stern look and Maya nodded.

"Doctors orders." She agreed scratchily and was lead away.

After so many twists and turns, Maya didn't think she could ever find her way back to the infirmary. Her escort was not overly chatty and for that she was grateful - her throat made her sound like a frog. She was dropped off at a chef's station with extra band-aids and strict instructions to eat. She wasn't stupid. Maya stuffed the extra bandages in her shorts pocket and bargained with the chef. It seemed that he was used to taking large orders and once Maya started - everything sounded good.

She ended up ordering 3 eggs over easy, 2 toast triangles, a bagel with marmalade and cream cheese, green grapes, and some gloriously piping hot earl grey tea- black. She was digging the breakfast for... she looked out the nearest window... lunch? she guessed. It didn't really matter. She was free and she had food. The chef piled everything on a single tray and slid it toward Maya. She grabbed it with shaking hands and went to find a seat. At first she headed for an empty table, but a certain someone caught her eye.

'Look for a black, freaky-eyed lady named Neena.' She remembered Doug telling her. There was only one person she had seen so far that met at least 2 of those requirements and so Maya mustered her courage and sloshed in Neena's direction.

Maya stopped a few paces from Neena's table, "May I sit here?" Even if the woman did not turn out to be Neena, Maya supposed getting to know someone- anyone would be a bonus.

Neena couldn't decide what to start eating first, so she did the next best thing; she combined several items into one. Lifting the bun of a hamburger, she slathered one side with mashed potatoes, then added a spoonful of chili con carne on top. After a pause for though, she also added in some noodles from her spaghetti. However, as she replaced the bun and took a bite, the noodles voted it being too crowded, and slid out.

<"Well, it was worth a shot."> She chewed thoughtfully.

"May I sit here?"

Neena glanced up over the top of her glasses at the person behind the question. She intended to say, 'Hmm? Sure.' But it came out more.... "Mmm? Sluuw." Not nearly as understandable, so she added a hand wave toward the nearest chair.

She tried to finish her mouthful gracefully, and remember her table manners.

"Sorry. Appetite's a bit out of control these day." She chuckled, and took a much smaller bite this time. "Name's Neena," she added after swallowing.

She was glad for a welcome... err.. that was a welcome wasn't it? Maya sat down only after Neena gestured to the seat. She watched the woman start to regain some manners now that she knew other people were in the room.

"Sorry. Appetite's a bit out of control these days." She chuckled, and took a much smaller bite this time. "Name's Neena," she added after swallowing.

"Ghost." Maya supplied. It was silly, but she still wasn't used to just giving out her name. Everyone here was so friendly - it was certainly a change from the outside world. Maya popped a grape into her mouth. Neena's "sandwich" (if one could call it that) was unappetizing to say the least, but Maya was under strict orders to eat.

"Oh!" She felt silly having completely forgotten her own manners, "It's nice to meet you, Neena." Maya dipped her head out of habit and reached for her tea with her trembling hands. Most of the tea that hadn't already sloshed out while she she was walking over, now jumped in the cup while she sipped. Even though Maya looked as American as apple pie (except for the white hair), her slight accent made it apparent that she had lived elsewhere recently. "Doug... he errr... he told me that I should look out for a... uhm... you."

She was a bit nervous. This was the first time in a long time for her to have a civilized conversation where people weren't shooting or threatening or worse. She gulped down the tea. Its warmth made her realize how cold she felt.

"Sorry." She felt the need to apologize - her people skills were a bit rusty. "I've been in isolation."

"Ghost? That's an interesting name. You look solid enough to me." She smiled.

"It's nice to meet you, Neena. Doug... he errr... he told me that I should look out for a... uhm... you."

Neena perked up a bit. "Oh good! I was wondering if he made it out okay. I didn't see him in the Infirmary. I need to look him up and thank him. It was nice to have an inside man. You wouldn't happen to know how to get ahold of him, would you?"

Abruptly she paused, and chuckled. "Eh, sorry. Didn't mean to jabberjaw."

"Sorry. I've been in isolation."

Neena grimaced dramatically. "Ugh. Glad to be out of that place m'self. No need to apologize."

She finished off her creation, then set about clearing the rest of her food at a normal pace. She'd forgotten that people didn't share her eccentricities when it came to food, and that it wasn't polite to force them. It didn't help that she didn't fathom embarrassment.

"So Doug pointed you my way? What can I help you with?"

Neena grimaced dramatically. "Ugh. Glad to be out of that place m'self. No need to apologize.
...So Doug pointed you my way? What can I help you with?"

Maya was silent for a bit, taking in the flood of words Neena had sent her way. "I don't know how to get a hold of Doug." She took the last bit of tea in a singe gulp. "We sort-of split ways at the end. He didn't want to be mistaken for the enemy." Her voice was much less scratchy, and despite Neena's plate she was feeling rather ravenous herself. She poked the yolks of her eggs and started soaking up the yellow stuff with her toast. "He..." She munched toast. "I guess he sent me your way because I'm rather homeless."

She pulled at her shirt which looked clean but used that featured a purple hippo and the words Happy Hippo. "This isn't even mine - I don't think I own a thing in this world anymore." She didn't sounds sad about that... just displaced. She didn't belong anywhere right now.

"I don't know how to get a hold of Doug. We sort-of split ways at the end. He didn't want to be mistaken for the enemy."

"Hm. Makes sense. Too bad though...." Neena shrugged, and continued eating.

"He... I guess he sent me your way because I'm rather homeless. This isn't even mine - I don't think I own a thing in this world anymore."

She glanced down at her own borrowed clothes. She wondered if any of her wardrobe was still usable back at the Mansion.

"Homeless, eh? Can't have that." She munched for a moment, then continued. "Well, I can't exactly guarantee our home is still standing. Last time I saw it, the walls looked like swiss cheese. But your welcome to share the roof. Did Doug tell you where I live?"

After another pause, she asked, "Apologies for being nosy, but how old are you kiddo?"

"Homeless, eh? Can't have that." Neena munched for a moment, then continued. "Well, I can't exactly guarantee our home is still standing. Last time I saw it, the walls looked like swiss cheese. But your welcome to share the roof. Did Doug tell you where I live?"

"Doug didn't tell me much." She was now speaking only between shovels of the last bits of her eggs and toast. "As long as we can find a roof, I'm game."

After a pause, Neena asked, "Apologies for being nosy, but how old are you kiddo?"

Maya stopped with the bagel half way in her mouth, having not bitten down yet she extracted the untouched baked good and answered, "Should be 19 by now, though I'm not sure what month it even is." She chomped her bagel coolly. No use crying over missed birthdays.

"So where do you live anyway?" She hadn't really thought about what she was signing up for until now.

"Should be 19 by now, though I'm not sure what month it even is."

Neena nodded and smiled. "Cool. Fun age, from what I remember. Not an adult yet, but definitely not a kid. Best time to have fun."

"So where do you live anyway?"

"Xavier's Institute for Gifted Youngsters. Otherwise known as mutants. Though we do offer a bed to anyone looking for a place to crash for a bit. At least, we used to." She wrinkled her nose. "The Stalker bots pegged us for a raid, and tore the place up pretty badly. It's going to take some serious elbow grease to fix it up." Then she shrugged, and smiled again. "But, it is a roof, and we'd be glad to have you."

Finally her appetite seemed to be slowing down, and she leaned back in her chair. After a short pause, she asked another question. "I do need to a bit nosier, since there are going to be others living there too. What kind of mutation do you have? Anything super dangerous?"

Although whether or not Ghost's mutation was dangerous wouldn't make a difference to Neena, nor would it keep her from being allowed at the school, it might make a difference about procedure.

Stalker bots? Maya instantly thought of the bits and pieces of robot that she had seen (and tripped over) on her way to the hole in the fence around the camp. She hadn't actually seen an operational unit, but then again she hadn't been looking anywhere besides what was right in front of her.

After a short pause, Neena asked another question. "I do need to a bit nosier, since there are going to be others living there too. What kind of mutation do you have? Anything super dangerous?"

Maya blinked. Dangerous? Her? She nearly laughed. She couldn't stop the corners of her mouth from turning up. "I'm not dangerous at all," She replied in all seriousness. "I never even... I mean, I saw at the... but I didn't..." She popped the last bit of cream cheese covered bagel in her mouth to keep herself from blabbering and chewed thoroughly before continuing.

"I'm an air elemental... I use wind."

"I'm not dangerous at all. I never even... I mean, I saw at the... but I didn't... I'm an air elemental... I use wind."

Neena tilted her head. Ghost seemed awfully uneasy. Or maybe just shy.

"Air elemental? Nice. Just air, or are we talking weather in general?" She grinned. "Can you fly?" Neena would love to be able to fly.

"Just air." She wasn't entirely comfortable talking like this. It was too much like breaking the rules somehow.

"No flying... more like floating. If I tried to fly when I'm solid it'd be pure turbulence." She rather felt like becoming incorporeal now. Neena's eyes felt like they could see through her anyway. She shifted in her chair and played with the few grapes she had deemed inedible.

"Do you...? I mean, you are..." Why couldn't she ever just say what she wanted to say? She settled for a simpler approach. "What's it like? At the gifted institute for mutants?"

"Just air. No flying... more like floating. If I tried to fly when I'm solid it'd be pure turbulence."

<"Definitely uncomfortable. She must be used to keeping her mutation hidden,"> Neena thought to herself. Understandable.

"Do you...? I mean, you are... What's it like? At the gifted institute for mutants?"

Good, a subject change seemed appropriate right now. Neena smiled.

"Actually, we're kind of like a boarding school, except not so strict. We offer schooling, up to graduation level, as well as a variety of extra curricular activities. But most of the kids are sent to use, or come to us, to learn how to control their mutations. Professor Xavier has always felt that humans and mutants should learn to live together, as equals. But, as this Registration mess proves, most humans are afraid of us, and what we are capable of. So, it's our job at the Institute to help mutants learn control and, hopefully, cut down on some of the fear of others." She paused to take a drink, then continued.

"There's a special room at the school that we use to help the students learn control, without putting themselves or others in danger. That's my classroom, actually." She grinned. "I guess they figure its the best place for me, since I'm not afraid of anything. Nothing the students do, on purpose or by accident, fazes me.

"Of course, you don't have to register as a student. Like I said, if you're just looking for a place to crash for a bit, that's fine too."

"Wait... all the way through university level?" She had missed a semester in the camps, and it was clear that college was on her mind. "I was supposed to go to NYU, but now I don't think they ever actually enrolled me. It's too late to start there this year, but... maybe I could transfer credits or something." if at all.

School was something she could understand, something she could talk about with conviction and fervor. She smiled, though it didn't reach her eyes. College was normal and it was the only thing she knew to do with herself now.

"So you're a teacher." Doug was a smart man - or lucky. "A teacher unafraid of danger." If she thought about it, it seemed like that may be the only logical mentality for a teacher of mutants. No fear. "Is that your... " it seemed rude to call it a mutation. "gift?"

"Wait... all the way through university level? I was supposed to go to NYU, but now I don't think they ever actually enrolled me. It's too late to start there this year, but... maybe I could transfer credits or something."

Neena considered that. "Well, we only have teacher to high school. But I think we can probably work out something online." The she wrinkled her nose a bit. "I'll have to get one of the other teachers to help you with that part though. Tech and I don't get along very well. But I'm pretty sure something can be arranged."

"So you're a teacher. A teacher unafraid of danger. Is that your... gift?"

"Gift? Hmm. Well, I don't know if 'gift' is the right word." She contemplated that for a moment. "Yes, it is part of my mutation. Apparently fear is out of my range of emotions." She sighed. "Actually makes life kind of boring. But you get used to it."

Perhaps talking about her own mutation would help Ghost open up a bit. "The other part is why I wear these," she pointed to her sunglasses. "My vision is super sensitive, in more than one way. It makes for a great advantage when playing hide and seek." She laughed lightly.

Then paused, and asked, "You're used to hiding, aren't you?" Her smile was kind, and she hoped that the question didn't come across as judgmental.