Neena sat in the Office, sorting mail for the various students, teachers and other residents. It didn't take her long, and she made a mental note how many envelopes or packages went to who.

One of the envelopes caught her eye. Although addressed to Marcus Ravenous, one of the newer students, she recognized Professor Xavier's handwriting on the outside.

P.S. Once a week I shall be sending the boy some spending money through unmarked mail. I ask that you see he receives this money with out learning of it's sender.

<"What are you up to, Mr. X?"> she thought to herself. She blinked, and scanned the contents of the letter, without guilt. There was no letter inside, just a small some of money. Neena bit her lip. It wasn't that she didn't trust her old teacher's methods, but her curiosity raged inside like a whirlpool.

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An hour later, Neena knocked on Marcus's door, as the final delivery.

"Marcus? Got some mail for ya. You in there?"

Specter had just finished his daily workout, and was in his room getting ready to hit the showers. It had been a week sense he moved into the mansion with out much to talk about. He was actually starting to get use to the place. Despite his almost nightly nightmares he was getting use to calling this place home. Even his lost past had stopped being at the forefront over every waking thought. As Specter pulled out his wallet he apsent mindedly flipped it open. Almost empty, even with his room and board being paid for living in New York wasn't cheap. Specter wondered what he was going to do. It wasn't like he could just go out and get a reagular job. For one he didn't have a work visa. For that matter he didn't even know if he was legal. Maybe he could talk to Neena about working around the school, or prehapse Tarin could use another hand around his shop. Just then a knock came at his door, and he heard Neena's voice. Mail; who would be sending Specter mail? Throwing his wallet on the nightstand and throwing on a shirt he went to open the door.

She heard footsteps headed her way, and the door swung open fairly quickly. She smiled at the young man, and held out the envelope.

"Delivery for Mister Ravenous," she joked. "Hope its something special."

He seemed confused, so she leaned on the doorway in case he had any questions. Not that she could answer them, truthfully.

"Ms. Jenkins; funny I was just thinking about you." Specter took the envelope that Neena was holding for him and looked it over. Well there was his name, but no return address. What was going on here? Opening the envelope Specter saw that it was full of money. Still puzzled he took out the cash and started to count it. It was the same amount, in the same denomanations, that he had found in his wallet when he first arraived. "What is going on here? Ms. Jenkins what is this? Who would be sending me money?" Specter walked back to his bed to pick up a towel, and wipe some sweat that was beading on his head. Then walked back and handed the money to Neena. "I can not except this. I was just thinking about what I would do for money, but I have done nothing to earn it."

"Ms. Jenkins; funny I was just thinking about you."

Neena winced slightly at the formal address.

She watched his reaction to the anonymous delivery. Had she been in his situation, she would have immediately been suspicious. Judging from his response, they had that reaction in common.

"What is going on here? Ms. Jenkins what is this? Who would be sending me money?" She noticed his unease, even without the perspiration. He returned to the doorway, holding the envelope back toward her. "I can not except this. I was just thinking about what I would do for money, but I have done nothing to earn it."

"Please, kiddo. Neena's fine. Ms. makes me feel old." She smiled to show she wasn't offended, then held up her hands, denying the monetary return.

"Honestly, kiddo, I have no clue. I'm just the delivery gal. It came in with the regular mail. Not that I blame you for being suspicious. I would be, too. But if it makes you uneasy, just don't spend it." She did pluck one bill out of the lot, and gave it a close look.

"Well, I'm not exactly an expert, but it doesn't look counterfeit." She shrugged, and handed it back. "Then again, its been a few years since I've dealt with money laundering."

She considered his last statement. Some of the kids recieved allowances and gifts from their families, while some of the younger crowd earned allowances from doing chores and running errands for the teachers. A youth Marcus's age, however, likely would find such things a bit demeaning.

"Have you considered looking for a job?" That suggestion seemed more dignified for an older teen.

"If we are associating names with age do you not believe 'kiddo' to be rather childish?" Specter wasn't sure what to think about Neena's comment to money laundrying. It had to be a joke, right? None the less he took back the money unsure what he should do about it. Then Neena mentioned getting a job. Just what he was thinking about when she had knocked. "Yes, of course I have thought about finding work. However you know as well as I that is easier said than done. If being a mutant was not bad enough at the moment what would I say when they asked about my history?" Specter turned and started pacing his room. He sat the envelop of money beside his wallet while he thought about what to do. "What if I worked here? A place this big must have something I can do to earn this money." Specter continued to pace until a though came to him. Turning he looked Neena right in the eyes showing he wanted her to answer honestly. "Who are the X-men?" He knew this question was off topic, but this was the first chance he had to ask sense he had read about them in the libary.

"If we are associating names with age do you not believe 'kiddo' to be rather childish?"

Neena tilted her head, a thoughtful expression on her face. "Hmm. Never thought of that...."

"Yes, of course I have thought about finding work. However you know as well as I that is easier said than done. If being a mutant was not bad enough at the moment what would I say when they asked about my history?"

She nodded. "True. True." As he began to pace, she sighed and pushed her glasses into her hair. Marcus radiated frustration like an electric blanket radiates heat.

"What if I worked here? A place this big must have something I can do to earn this money."

Neena thought about that. He wasn't the only to ask, so she began going over possible ideas in her head. Before she could answer, however, he popped another question at her. "Who are the X-men?"

"They are mutants who believe in mutant human equality, and try to steady that balance. Why?"

Specter shock his head as he tried to clear his thoughts. He had been taken back by how easily Neena had answered his question about the X-men. It wasn't that he thought she wouldn't answer him. He just didn't expect her to answer it so quickly. "I've been spending alot of my free time in the libary looking up diffrent things that might help restore my memory. You know stuff like, the school's hystory, resent news stories, information about other mutants, that sort of thing. Nothing helped, but I kept coming across the name X-men over and over again. I tried to find out more about the group through old news reports. Of course that was not much help. What little I could gather was that they seemed to be a type of mutant combat group. I figured they must be privetly founded, or I would have found more information on them, like you would find about the military. Do they really believe humans and mutants can live together in peace? That seems a rather foolish idealisim to me. The best we can hope for is an uneasy truce excepting that we share the same planet. After all history has proven time and again that there will always be people afried of something diffrent than themselves."

Her reply seemed to have taken the youth off guard. He shook his head before replying.

"I've been spending alot of my free time in the libary looking up diffrent things that might help restore my memory. You know stuff like, the school's hystory, resent news stories, information about other mutants, that sort of thing."

Neena nodded, pleased to hear he was researching a wide spectrum of information, instead of going by word of mouth.

"Nothing helped, but I kept coming across the name X-men over and over again. I tried to find out more about the group through old news reports. Of course that was not much help. What little I could gather was that they seemed to be a type of mutant combat group. I figured they must be privetly founded, or I would have found more information on them, like you would find about the military."

"That sounds about right." She toyed with the decision to explain things a bit more to him.

"Do they really believe humans and mutants can live together in peace? That seems a rather foolish idealisim to me."

She cocked her head. "Oh? Why so?"

"The best we can hope for is an uneasy truce excepting that we share the same planet. After all history has proven time and again that there will always be people afried of something diffrent than themselves."

"That's very true. And I'm sure the Xmen realize that, as do many mutants around the world. But even an uneasy truce beats an all out war." She shifted a bit, to leaning on the other side of the doorway.

"Racism likely will never be wiped from the planet either. But wouldn't you say that it is less of a problem now then a century ago? Dislike of mutants is just another form of racism, to be fought against like any other."

Specter nodded as he listened to Neena's explination about racisam. He rather appreciated her level headedness. She wasn't an idealiest who thought that the world could be all peaches and cream. She also believed in fighting for what you believed in, a trait Specter held high. It seemed each time he spoke with this woman he gained more and more respect for her. For Specter this was saying something. It wasn't like him to conceder somebody a friend, but if he had to choose somebody to fight beside she was quickly topping the list. "I could actually use a good fight myself. I feel like my powers are being waisted on punching bags, and hunks of wood. Anyhow I believe we have gotten off topic. I believe I was asking if there might be some way I could actually earn that money you have given me." Specter shifted his weight to his other foot. Then thought better of standing all together begain to leveitate a few inches off the floor. It felt good to know that gravity didn't have to effect him if he didn't want it to. Plus anything Specter could do to keep his skills honed was worth it.

"I could actually use a good fight myself. I feel like my powers are being waisted on punching bags, and hunks of wood."

Neena refrained from commenting on that statement. Lack of direction was a problem that plagued young mutants faced. Puberty presented its own set of challenges, the least of which included clumsiness and emotional rollercoasters. Add in a mutation or two, or even three? And on top of that, throw in Marcus's lack of memory? Yeah. Kind of like..... wrestling a polar bear. Blindfolded.

"Anyhow I believe we have gotten off topic. I believe I was asking if there might be some way I could actually earn that money you have given me."

She watched him levitate off of the floor. "Wish I could do that with the computers. On the edge of a cliff...." She snorted. Then she reached up and scratched her head thoughfully.

"Well.... I don't know about a permanent job. But how good are you with power tools? This place constantly needs maintenance. Especially after training some of the younger crowd. Or maybe we could use another gardener...." She began chewing on her pinkie nail as she continued to wrack her brain.

A handyman, that really wasn't what Specter had been expecting. He wanted to use his powers, maybe even help the other students learn to use theirs. Specter knew he didn't want to be a gardener, and he wasn't even sure if he knew how to build anything. There had to be something else. If he could only show Neena that he wasn't just some adolesant punk who only wanted to pick a fight. "Gardening is not really my thing, and I can honestly say I have no knowelage of ever using power tools. Is there nothing I can do that would involve using my powers? I believe there is a reason I can do what I do, but how will I ever figure out what that is if I can not develop them to their fullest. This school helps to train mutants does it not? I spend every day training maybe that is where I can help out? I am not just some child. I want a chance to be able to prove myself."

"Gardening is not really my thing, and I can honestly say I have no knowelage of ever using power tools."

"Hm, bummer." That was more of a reflex reply actually; the suggestion had been random anyway, so she wasn't disappointed or anything.

"Is there nothing I can do that would involve using my powers? I believe there is a reason I can do what I do, but how will I ever figure out what that is if I can not develop them to their fullest. This school helps to train mutants does it not? I spend every day training maybe that is where I can help out?"

Neena considered that for a moment. She held control classes with the younger students, and smaller sessions with some of the older students or those with more dangerous mutations. Often the majority of her role included playing the moving target which, after a while, could prove tiring. Maybe having an assistant would be a good idea.

She shuffled back in her memories of the mutations filed for Marcus. Telekinesis and a withering energy blast. The telekinesis could be useful in a number of ways. The ecto blast, on the other hand? She'd have to think on that one for a bit....

"I am not just some child. I want a chance to be able to prove myself."

Neena smiled kindly. At seventeen, he was hardly an adult either, at least agewise. Though she knew quite a few four and fifteen year olds that put forty-plus year olds to shame. But perhaps putting his mutation to work would help jump start his lost memories a bit.

"Wellll.... Control classes do kind of wear me out sometimes. Playing the moving target constantly can get old after awhile...." She made a show of sounding hesitant, to judge his reaction.

Specter waited for Neena to reply. He half expected her to laugh at him, and make some lame baby joke. Instead she had taken him seirously, even mentioning that she was the teacher who taught mutation control. Specter thought the job sounded perfect. Not only would be beable to earn the money she had given him, but he would be able to test himself agenst other mutants. "That sounds perfect however I must warn you now I will not go easy on anyone. I feel the only way to better yourself is to face strong oppenates. I can control the ecto blast with my telekintics so nobody will be seriously hurt. Plus my powers work if the person is in need of a none human target. I will be glad to assiste you in these class." Specter couldn't wait to get started. He was finally going to be able to fight agenst something other than a punching bag.

Marcus immediately brightened at her suggestion, and began speaking quickly.

"That sounds perfect however I must warn you now I will not go easy on anyone. I feel the only way to better yourself is to face strong oppenates. I can control the ecto blast with my telekintics so nobody will be seriously hurt. Plus my powers work if the person is in need of a none human target. I will be glad to assiste you in these class."

Neena laughed softly. "Glad to hear it, and I don't go easy on anyone either. But let's set one thing straight, m'friend. Whatever you earn from me or the school is on top of that." She pointed to the envelope of currency. "That didn't come from me or the school, as near as I can tell, so you're on your own how to handle that."

Technically, it was the truth; that money hadn't come from this school, and she was simply the deliverygirl.

"And before I let you loose on the others, I need to spend a bit of time with you, one on one, to see your mutation in action, first." She held out her hand. "Deal?"