Ah, the wonderful feeling of being on his way home.

Granted, he loved visiting his parents who owned a simple home around the outskirts of New York City, but he could not compare it to going to his own home after a week of visiting them. It was so much more quiet where he lived, even with the military post being only fifty miles away. Picturing his house he frowned slightly at the sight before him... his normal route home was beginning to undergo construction, and he would have to take a detour... THROUGH the city. With a sigh, he began to weave into the hustle and bustle of the traffic, when something pinged off his passive senses that didn't make any sense at all.

Either his mutation was beginning to develop quirks, or there was a mechanical wonder nearby.

Curious, his 68 Impala growled closer to what he was sensing until he came to a set of gates... and his curiousity grew stronger by the minute. Putting the vehicle in park across the street from the large black iron gates, he turned the key to silence his beloved 'Baby' as he called her, and focused, trying to hone in on what he was sensing. From the gate, which he could tell was mechanically controlled, it was still a distance, so he couldn't tell for certain, but he was almost positive that he was detecting military grade... or higher... vehicles in the facinity.

"Well that can't be right..." he muttered to himself. He looked back over to the gate, his hazel eyes locking onto the sign put into the stone of the support pillar near the metal. Xavier's Institute for Gifted Youngsters. Didn't sound like a military weapons development location, especially within the city of New York, but why was his senses going crazy? He positively identified that one of the vehicles was made for flight, but it didn't match anything he had ever encountered before. The engine alone put the F-22's he and felt on that last tour through the Air Force base he had last year seem like they belonged in a lawn mower. Curiousity mounting, he thought about a way to approach and get a closer look. He ran a hand over his head, feeling the pricks of the extremely short hair in his palm and allowing it to itch the scratch that nestled there.

If it was a military site, he was sure that by now he would be getting a couple of guys in black suits telling him to move along any second now... but when none of them showed up outside his glossy black Impala, he continued to sit, and wait. Eventually, he would muster an excuse to approach the gate and ask permission to enter... but he had to come up with something truthful. Lying didn't bode well with him, at all, ever... and the idea of just walking up and saying 'Mind if I have a look at that jet you got stashed in your back yard' didn't sit well with him.

Curious... he continued to sit and wait, and then became aware of something else... He had been so focused on the jet or plane or Transformer or whatever it was that he hadn't realized that there were some small gears moving. Looking towards the sensation, he locked onto what looked like a security camera.

Well isn't that just peachy. Now I look like a stalker or something, he thought.

He felt the zoom lense gear grind, likely zooming in on his face, and knowing he was caught, rendered a simple 'You Got Me' wave, and prepared to start his car and leave.

Mariusz glided almost lazily over the Mansion grounds, bow in his hands and a quiver of arrows at his hip. Earlier in the morning, before lunch, he had placed several targets for archery practice around the Mansion's property. Sure, it was possible to practice indoors and inside the confines of the Danger Room but there was still a need to get in outdoor and long range practice where there was a need to adjust for the elements. That was what led to the winged Czech being out and about the property armed, soaring rather lazily about a quarter of a mile up in the air.

Looking around the property Mariusz picked out one of the targets he had placed and nocked an arrow. Drawing the bowstring back to his cheek Mariusz sighted on the target, some distance away though he could see it just fine. Satisfied with his aim the winged mutant released the bowstring, his keen eyesight easily followed the path of the arrow as it sped towards the target and struck the bulls eye circle on the stationary target. It was not a perfect bulls eye, but he was still satisfied with the shot. Turning his head in every direction Mariusz spotted an older looking car sitting just beyond the front gates, it had been sitting there for awhile. Might be something, might be nothing, all the same Mariusz decided it was worth checking out.

Going into a short dive Mariusz took the chance to sling his bow over his back and then opened his wings to stop his descent. With a few more flaps of his wings he had passed over the outer wall and was hovering almost silently over the vehicle. Tucking his wings again he dropped down, then opened his wings and stopped his downward momentum and alighted next to the vehicle. Furling his wings, Mariusz tapped with his knuckles on the car's driver's side window. "Ahoj," he greeted the man in the driver's seat in Czech through the window, "is there something I can help you with," he asked, switching to English and speaking in a slight British accent.

Now… if Jacob had turned on his car a moment earlier, he wouldn’t have heard anything… but he could hear the rush of air through the open car window but didn’t feel a breeze, just before the young mutant landed. The only thing he could do about it was turn his head in time to see him land and say some greeting in a language he didn’t recognize. The tone was friendly enough though, so he didn’t bother with wondering what the word meant in a more literal standpoint, and just assumed was something like ‘hello’.

Then he asked if there was something he could help him with, and he suddenly felt very trapped.

Still, none of this transpired on his face. He gave the young man a once-over, due to his obvious physical mutation and the unexpectedness of his arrival, and replied in kind. “I was passing through and curious as to what this place is,” he said honestly… He didn’t have to include the fact that his senses were going crazy about the different mechanical wonders he could sense on the premises, and the truth was that he simply wanted to touch them… get to know them… maybe take them apart. His mechanic’s blood and engineers mind were racing to think of logical reasons for him to allow Jacob access, but he was still drawing blanks.

But another question arose, more out of thought that the young man looked awfully healthy as someone who would have been targeted for various hate crimes extremely quickly. “Do you live here?” It had only been a mere moment since his last statement, and his voice, while deep and it’s tone usually used to having authority of some kind, was relatively gentle. No need to scare to poor guy off for no reason… but he was also forgetting his manners. He had noticed the Bow and Arrows, but at this range, if he had wanted to hurt Jacob, he should have kept flying.

Opening his door after ensuring he wasn’t going to hit the young man, he stood to his full 6’ 3” height and held out a hand to shake the young man’s. “I apologize, I haven’t even introduced myself and I am already asking you things. I’m Jacob.”

Turning the key to lock up the Greenhouse for the night, Regan stretched out her neck from spending the last few hours repotting plants that had been left unattended for slightly too long and the roots were getting damaged badly. She turned and started heading down the path towards the mansion to get cleaned up when her heightened hearing heard a snapping sound and then a thud. Looking up she noticed that Mariusz was flying around doing some archery on the grounds.

She watched him for a bit as he flew around gracefully in the air. “That must be a nice power.” She said quietly to herself. Regan was just about to stop watching and head inside when she noticed him shift direction and head for the front gate. Her eyes followed him easily to his destination; he was now standing by a black car out front. They were slightly out of rage of her feline hearing to hear clearly, so she thought she’d go and investigate in case Mariusz needed a hand.

Regan got down on all fours and started to quickly run across the lawn towards the gate, her long tail extended to keep her balance as she ran. As she approached the gate, she leapt off of the grass and landed on the Iron Gate; pulling her body up to she could perch between the gaps at the top. She perched there in a squatting position with her clawed hands on the gate by her combat boots. Her long tail twitched to keep her balance.

The white tigress with green stripes and vibrant red hair looked over at Mariusz with her emerald eyes and gave him a nod. “Hey is everything alright over there? Who is this?” Regan looked at the other man who had stepped out of the car. He was even taller than Mariusz; she was starting to feel like a pipsqueak around the adult males of the mansion, which wasn’t really a bad thing.

OOC: Colt's in TEAL, Shammikittykins is in GREEN, and as always Talon is in SILVER

"I was passing through and curious as to what this place is.”

"You have found your way to Xavier's School for the Gifted," Mariusz said in answer to the question posed by Jacob. "It is a place where mutants can come to escape some of the prejudices that they might otherwise find in normal society while also obtaining an education. It also provides a safe haven for those with special abilities to be able to learn to harness and control those abilities so as not to be a danger to the rest of society," the feathered mutant concluded, omitting a few details that he had learned in the time he had been in the Mansion. No need to go spouting off about the Danger Room and things of that sort, this man might think he was insane if he started talking about such subjects.

“Do you live here?”[/color]

"I am a relatively new resident, ano," Mariusz replied, ruffling the feathers on his wings a little bit, "I am relatively new to the country as well. I am from Harrachov in the Czech Republic along the boarder with Poland. It is up in the Krkonose Mountains. My father is the new Czech Ambassador to the United States," Mariusz continued answering the question, prattling on a bit. Of course, the easiest subject to discuss was always one's self. "He heard about this place and passed it on to me, so I found my way here and am in the process of becoming a teacher at the school."

“I apologize, I haven’t even introduced myself and I am already asking you things. I’m Jacob.”

Across the road Mariusz saw Regan leap up and perch herself above the Mansion's entry gate. He was certain she was watching the proceedings and eavesdropping a bit with her powers. "A pleasure," Mariusz replied, taking the offered and in a firm grasp and shaking it. "I am Mariusz Kasparek." He offered a slight bow after giving his name, but before he could say anything else Regan spoke up from her perch over the gate.

“Hey is everything alright over here? Who is this?”[/color]

"We are fine Regan, join us if you like," Mariusz called across the street to her. "This is Jacob, he is curious about the Mansion." The Czech mutant turned his attention back to the man in front of him. "So, were you stopping out of mere curiosity or was your interest in Xavier's of the more than passing variety," Mariusz asked, leaving unspoken the implied question of whether or not Jacob was a mutant like he and Regan were.

He restated the name, and while Jacob wanted to point out that he already knew that based on the plaque embedded into the stone behind him, he refrained, knowing all too well that if it was something he should know about, the young man would further explain himself. And he did, explaining how it was a safe-haven for mutants. Interesting… the place called Sanctuary was as well, but he wouldn’t go into that either, not until he got a fair assessment of what was happening here. He devoted his mouth to stay closed and his ears to stay open.

But so far, he liked the sound of this place.

He spoke a bit of his own background, and oddly, Jacob knew where the man was talking about… familiar with the Geography of the area. He also had some political background, which was interesting as well. Things truly began to take a more interesting turn when another mutant joined the fray in the form of a Tigress with green stripes. A very interesting mutation, and the fleeting image of the cat trying to pounce on the bird popped into his mind briefly, a Sylvester and Tweety moment, but he quickly dismissed the thought, as it was not being helpful. The young man assured the woman balanced on the gate that he was not here to cause harm, and Jacob finally decided things were safe enough to talk a little more openly.

But, first things first, Jacob moved towards the gate, away from his car, and offered his hand in greeting. His grip was firm but not crushing, a practice he had perfected. Regardless if she shook or not, he decided to go ahead and come clean, in a sense. “Good to meet you Regan.” he said simply.

Suddenly, his car, which was about 10 feet away at this point, roared to life, it’s engine thundering under the hood, causing the vehicle to tilt sharply because of the torque, regardless of the fact that it was in neutral. “I’m a mutant too, who can manipulate mechanics… and I can sense that beast of a plane that is stashed somewhere over there,” he said looked past the gate, “and as a master mechanic… it’s almost like dangling a cigarette in front of a habitual smoker.” Once he finished his explanation, he keyed the ignition off on his car, letting it resume it’s previous silence, and looked to them both for a reaction.

Regan hopped down off of the gate and landed gracefully on all fours with barely a sound. Standing straight up, she was just shy of 5’6”. She was wearing a dark forest green tank top and a pair of faded blue jeans. Dusting her furry hands off on her jeans, she took Jacob’s hand and shook it firmly looking up at him with her emerald eyes. “Tis a pleasure.” Her Irish tones were soft and kind.

Jumping as the car suddenly roared to life, Regan let out a slight hiss and all the fur on her tail fluffed up. Looking at Jacob when he explained that he was a mutant as well, she quirked a brow and tilted her head to the side, her hooped earrings clinked against the studs in her feline ears as she did. “A little warning would have been nice.” She grumbled and took her tail into her clawed hands to try and smooth out the fur. Her eyes widened when he mentioned the plane. “We have a plane? Where on god’s green earth do we have place for a plane?”

Regan was completely puzzled as to where there would be a plane on the grounds; there was no hanger or runways, just green grass, the pool and the other various things that were all over the grounds, but no runway. Regan looked at Mariusz with wide green eyes, “Did you know about the plane?”

Mariusz watched as Colt crossed the street to properly greet Regan, standing in a relaxed nonchalant way. It was pretty obvious to him that, for the moment anyway, Jacob did not pose any kind of real threat to himself, Regan, or the Mansion. The big man had just extended his hand to the feline woman and greeted her when his vehicle suddenly roared to life. In the blink of an eye Mariusz had the bow off of his shoulder with an arrow nocked and drawn as he backed slowly away from the vehicle. He relaxed a bit and released the draw on the bowstring though he kept the arrow nocked for the time being.

"I am even newer to the Mansion than you are Regan, and I do not know anything about an aircraft on the premises," he answered, his eyes narrowing slightly in the direction of Jacob as he crossed the street behind the Impala as its engine shut off, moving to rejoin the group. "Is that your idea of a joke," he continued, rejoining the group. "Americans," he finished in a somewhat disgusted tone.

Jacob noticed the Irish accent, and wondered if the grounds were exclusive to mutants that weren’t from America… but dismissed the thought, as it could easily be coincidence. After his little stunt, however, Regan hissed and fuzzed up in a typical housecat fashion, and Mariusz drew his bow, preparing to try to take out his car with it and backed away slowly. Once it registered with both of them, they relaxed a bit, but didn’t fully appreciate the small joke. “I apologize… I didn’t mean to startle you that much… just give you a demonstration.”

Then the bit of information about the aircraft startled them both and confused them… and it was a simple idea. They hadn’t been told about it. “Well… I hope I didn’t just loose a big secret… but yes, there is a highly advanced aircraft here… as well as something I can’t identify. A large room of some sort. But before I go spilling the beans on everything, perhaps we should speak to someone who has knowledge of these things?

Using his ability, the gates swung open, and his car started, normally this time, behind them and began to follow them as Jacob prepared to walk onto the grounds with them. Turning, he addressed his car with the fondness of a pet. “No more scaring people for you…” he said to the Impala. Turning back towards his hosts, he waited for their decision.

Finishing smoothing out the last of her fur on her tail, Regan smiled and let out a little chuckle to Jacob’s apology, “That’s alright; I just wasn’t expecting your car to roar louder than I do. That’s quite a power you’ve got there Jacob.”

Regan had no idea what Jacob was referring to, and she was very puzzled. She looked at Mariusz for answers, but she knew just as well he had none to give her. “I’m not sure what you are talking about Jacob, but I’m sure someone in the mansion would know, but I can’t guarantee that you will get answers. Given that it is not common knowledge, it must be something that is meant to be kept secret.”

Watching as the gates opened and the car hummed to life again, Regan looked up at Mariusz for a moment before looking up at Jacob once again. “Well the mansion is a safe haven for all mutants Jacob, but I don’t suggest that you come in just to go sniffing around for things that are not meant to be seen. If you can contain your curiosity until the right person can speak with you, then I see no problems with you coming inside.” She looked over at Marisz for some support on this position, they were both so new to the mansion, she didn’t want them to get kicked out for aiding on exposing important secretes to a stranger.

“I apologize… I didn’t mean to startle you that much… just give you a demonstration.”[/i]

"It is alright," Mariusz said after Regan had responded, eyes still slightly narrowed at the newcomer. Since there no longer seemed to be any possibility of an immediate threat the feathered man took his arrow from the bowstring and replaced it in the hip quiver before slinging the bow over his shoulder again. There was no need to go about armed since, at the moment, there was no longer anything to indicate there was any danger.

“Well… I hope I didn’t just loose a big secret… but yes, there is a highly advanced aircraft here… as well as something I can’t identify. A large room of some sort. But before I go spilling the beans on everything, perhaps we should speak to someone who has knowledge of these things?

“I’m not sure what you are talking about Jacob, but I’m sure someone in the mansion would know, but I can’t guarantee that you will get answers. Given that it is not common knowledge, it must be something that is meant to be kept secret.”

"I also do not know anything about any secret aircraft," Mariusz said, repeating what he had said a moment earlier as the gates to the Mansion's property opened. He followed along with the group through the gates as the Impala started up and followed them all through the gate seemingly of its own volition. No doubt another display of Jacob's powers. "In truth, other than for very long flights, I do not much need an airplane."

“Well the mansion is a safe haven for all mutants Jacob, but I don’t suggest that you come in just to go sniffing around for things that are not meant to be seen. If you can contain your curiosity until the right person can speak with you, then I see no problems with you coming inside.”

"Yes, as Regan has explained, the Mansion is a mutant haven. It is also a school where those like us may be educated and also learn to use their powers in a safe manner that will not endanger themselves or others," Mariusz said, adding on to what Regan had said. "It should be a relatively simple matter to, at least, show you the public areas of the Mansion and track down someone in the admittance office that can answer your questions or direct you to someone else who can," he continued as they made their way gradually up the Mansion's driveway in the direction of the main entrance.

Jacob couldn’t help but smile at the feline’s comment. “Yes… Baby certainly has a bit of a growl,” he said with a bit of pride in his voice. It was the engine he built, after all, so anything to do with that part specifically was something that he took close to the heart. She then continued to explain that they were not able to give him any definite answers, or even the possibility of them, which he understood. He turned and regarded Mariusz specifically this time. “I understand. If some of the residents don’t even know of it, then ‘Mum’ is the word. How is it to be utterly free? Laugh at gravity?” It was an icebreaker, but he legitimately wanted to know.

He then addressed Regan once more. “I understand completely, and I promise to be on my best behavior. The Army taught me internal self control that rivals most… I will keep my composure, I assure you. Still, thank you both for greeting me and allowing me to visit the compound.” That said, they walked up the pavement towards the mansion, and he couldn’t help but wonder. “OK, so who won the lottery and bought this place? Wow.” Everything here looked like it had cost a fortune just to design, let alone create and place here, and considering it was a mutant haven, he imagined that there was ample time where something broke and had to be repaired. Compared to his shop, this place was out of a comic book.

Regan walked just slightly in front of the two large men. She was small but she was swift. Her overly long tail curled at the end so as not to drag on the ground, as she walked it swayed slightly from side to side. She spoke over her shoulder to Jacob, “Well I appreciate you understanding the situation. We can gladly show you around the public areas, as Mariusz had said.” She smiled at Mariusz over her other shoulder.

The mansion was such an amazing site to view. It was a massive building and the opulence of it was something to be behold. Regan was getting quite excited for spring when she could fill the flower beds with flowers and shrubs and make the mansion look like a castle from a magazine. There was always something to do around the ground, and the warmer weather would give her even more to do outdoors. “It is quite beautiful isn’t it? When I’m done with it this spring, it will look even better!”

She purred softly at the thought of all the beautiful flowers, and skipped for a few steps before looking back over her shoulder towards Jacob again, “So you are a mechanic you said right? That must be fun! I would have one heck of a time trying to get all of that grease and oil out of my fur! Maybe I can watch you take something apart sometime?” She smiled softly at him, “If you decide to stay here that is. I always love to learn about new things.”

"“OK, so who won the lottery and bought this place? Wow.”[/i]

"In truth I am not entirely sure who owns the Mansion and the grounds," Mariusz said, adding a slight shrug of his shoulders as he answered the question. "Learning the history of this place is on my list of things to get accomplished, if for no other reason than simple curiosity and a love of history." The three of them continued up the driveway, coming closer and closer to the main entrance and Regan moved so she was a little bit out in front of Mariusz and Jacob.

“So you are a mechanic you said right? That must be fun! I would have one heck of a time trying to get all of that grease and oil out of my fur! Maybe I can watch you take something apart sometime? If you decide to stay here that is. I always love to learn about new things.”

Mariusz nodded his head in agreement, in truth the winged mutant had no real desire to learn about the inner workings of things mechanical nor did he have much of a desire to learn about things that grew. If Jacob and Regan were interested in such things that was fine, but they were not entirely Mariusz's cup of tea. Still, something Jacob had said had caught the attention of the Czech mutant.

"You mentioned having served in the Army, ano," he asked, turning his head slightly so he could better look at the taller man. "I believe they provide instruction in hand-to-hand combat, a somewhat unique form if I remember correctly. If you choose to stay here I would very much like to learn such skills, provided you were willing to provide the instruction, of course."

Jacob paid attention to the young man first, walking beside him while the car growled idly behind them, keeping pace as they walked. He nodded thoughtfully, “History is one of my favorite subjects. I am actually the descendant of the Roman General Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo, and have done extensive studies into it. Military History is my favorite, admittedly, although being a military brat and descendent of a general, I may be biased.”

Jacob then listened intently to the young woman gush about the appearance of the grounds, and quickly pieced things together about what she was talking about. “So you are responsible for the green décor, I take it. My thumb is about as far from green as it gets, but I can certainly appreciate the beauty of it… I will make it a point to visit during the spring and see what you have done, if I am not already here.” He then listened to the pair of requests from them both, and nodded with a gentle smile.

“I am always willing to teach someone how to take care of their vehicle. And as far as combatives, I was a Level Three instructor in the Army, and attended numerous competitions. I would have to adapt some to incorporate your wings, but I’m sure most of the moves will still be very much the same.” They had reached the front door now, and Jacob turned towards his car. “Sit.” he said, and the gears shifted into park. “Stay.” and it turned off. He chuckled a bit at his own humor, and turned towards his hosts who were likely ready to lead him into the mansion.