Ah, the sun had set, and night had settled over the city. Ty had left the apartment for a usual night on the town, which usually consisted of doing something less than legal, something out-of-the-ordinary happening, and he'd go home and have a story to share with Tses. Good times. Though tonight he just hoped to get a little rush off of a crime or two, then go home. No cops, no intrusions, nothing unforeseen happening, no story to write the girlfriend about.
This area of town was secluded enough, with maybe one or two passers-by in the area, one of which Ty's shoulder brushed against before discretely pocketing the man's wallet. Once the area was clear, he saw a car parked outside of a pitch-black building. Nothing special, just your basic four-door-sedan. But a joyride was a joyride. Keyword there being joy.
Walking over to the little grey car, he tried the door. No alarm, but it was locked. No keypad either. Chuckling, Ty went on to go about breaking into the car the "old-fashioned way," then crawled inside, surveying his surroundings and quickly getting to work on attempting to hotwire.

Masque left the Mansion feeling relaxed and genuinely positive about life.  It was after dark although not so late that it would be considered unseemly to be out on the street alone.  Not that being out on the street alone in the early hours of the morning was entirely unusual for him nor something he was especially concerned about.  He was a mutant and a visible one at that, with a recent past involving selling his art on the street and being one step up from homeless.  Still, it was good to go out without a worry for once.

As Masque wandered, he didn't especially have any particular destination in mind and was content to simply enjoy the early spring night air.  As he usually did when entering the world at large, he did his best to alter his skin to as close to human as possible.  Which, at a casual glance, was not so far off.  It was when he got into close conversation with people that problems arose.  Well, conversation wasn't quite the right term given that he was mute; but it was close observation that always gave him away.  

Masque was in a quiet neighborhood with few people around.  Turning a corner, he almost didn't believe what his eyes beheld, especially in the area of town he was presently in.  Was that someone trying to break into a car?  Yes, yes it appeared that it was.  More importantly, did that mean he was obligated to try and stop said person from breaking into said car?  Maybe.

Masque ran up to the criminal stranger, not bothering to try and move quietly.  The problem with being mute was that it wasn't always easy to get the attention of someone who wasn't looking directly at him.  Maybe he should start carrying a bell.  Once close enough, Masque stomped on a nearby metal crate in order to ensure that he got the would-be theif's attention.

Ty bit his bottom lip as his gloved hands expertly darted over the wires, knowing exactly which ones to connect where and get this baby go--THUNK!

Ty heard a loud clang, which startled him, nearly sending his head through the bottom of the dashboard. Or at least the steering wheel. After the sound of impact, one could distinctly hear the sound of foul language, though muttered, filling the air.

Turning to see someone looking at him, he blinked, turning pink. "Oh, I was looking for my--wait...this isn't my car. I parked mine on the other side..." he lied, maybe the guy would buy it.

Foul language was all the proof Masque needed that he had startled the would be thief.  Good.  Served him right for trying to take something that clearly wasn't his.  Even in his most desperate years Masque had never degenerated into thieving and mugging.  Well, maybe a couple of times but only after he had been attacked without provocation and he was forced to defend himself against miscreants.  But it wasn't really immoral to take the cash from your would be attackers once they were immobilized when you needed it to survive another night, was it?  No, no it was not.

"Oh, I was looking for my--wait...this isn't my car. I parked mine on the other side..."

Masque gave the man a very dubious look, expression clearly saying 'I don't believe you for a moment'.  What, did the man think he was an idiot?  Its not as if he could really be doing anything other than exactly what it looked like he was doing, was it?  Of course, getting across the fact that he knew what was going on when one was mute without punching the criminal was a little more difficult.

Continuing to stare accusatorily at the man, Masque lifted a white chalky hand and the word STOP appeared in solid black letters.  Hopefully it was light enough for the word to be seen.  Hopefully the criminal didn't have a gun.  Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all.

Ty backed up when a word appeared on the man's hand. So this guy was a mutant too, great. What was it and random people walking up on Ty's antics lately?

"Look," he whispered, "Maybe I was about to...yeah. But I always give 'em back. I do it for the rush it brings, that overflow of adrenaline. I don't expect you to understand, but realize, if I don't get this one, I'm gonna end up finding another one anyway."

His blue eyes remained focused, unwavering.

No gun appeared out of the stranger's pocket and pointed at him ready to shoot.  That was a good thing.  Nor did he panic and run upon seeing the proof that Masque was a mutant and he wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not.  That was probably his cue to go and punch the guy right in the face thus stopping his shady activities and being the hero for once.  For inexplicable reasons, however, he made no move forward.

"Look, Maybe I was about to...yeah. But I always give 'em back. I do it for the rush it brings, that overflow of adrenaline. I don't expect you to understand, but realize, if I don't get this one, I'm gonna end up finding another one anyway."

The word on his hand changed to the word 'why?'  Genuine curiosity in the question.  Masque hadn't ever thought about stealing and then giving back what one stole and the very idea was bizarrely...intriguing?  Was that the right word?  And if it was, what kind of person did that make him?  Once again he thought back to just running up and punching the man in the face and once again he didn't move one step closer.

Ty shrugged, reading the man's hand. "Well, I started stealing a few years ago, because I had to. Then, things got better and I didn't need to anymore, but...I couldn't stop. Like it's a part of me now. And the rush that comes with it...I'm addicted to it. Like I said...I don't expect you to understand. It's complicated." He sighed, leaning back against the car. Well, this was...interesting.

Complicated.  It sounded complicated.  Masque knew a little something about things being complicated although he couldn't say he'd ever been in this sort of situation before.  Involuntarily, as so often happened when he wasn't paying attention and his mind was elsewhere, the patterns on his skin started to change.  They took on blue and purple hues as he took a step forward.

Almost in spite of himself, Masque found himself curious.  Probably far more curious than he should be, given the nature of such activities.  'How do you do it?' Yes, he had probably just damned himself to who or whatever was out there to judge the moral character of a person.  He wasn't getting involved, not really.  It wasn't like he was offering to help or anything.  No, he was just curious.  That was all.  Really.

Ty braced himself, preparing for the worst as the guy changed colors and stepped forward. Then he blinked. Did this guy really just ask how he did it? Was this some sort of a trick? Or was the guy just confused?

"Uh...let's just say it's not something I learned overnight," he answered, eyes looking around. "So...weren't you trying to stop me? I mean...why the sudden interest?" He asked as politely as he could, attempting to cover all bases in case this was a trap.

"So...weren't you trying to stop me? I mean...why the sudden interest?"

Now there was the question of the day.  Why the sudden interest?  Masque couldn't even quite answer that question himself.  Even when he had been on the streets had had always been good, always tried to do the right thing.  He never took advantage of anyone, never attacked anyone without provocation and even stopped the odd crime here and there committed by his fellow street person.  So why the sudden interest.  He shrugged.

Realizing that a shrug was probably not a sufficient answer, especially if he actually wanted his curiosity satisfied, which he was pretty sure he did, he tried again to come up with something.  'I've never met someone who stole cars and returned them when they were done.  I never even thought it happened.  I guess I'm realizing that maybe I need something more exciting in my life.'  The words that appeared and then faded were at least clear and bold even if the patterns on his skin continued to fluctuate as he worked through his own confusion regarding his previously unconscious interest.  Because that had to be what was happening, right?  Its not like such interest could actually appear out of thin air.

Ty chuckled. "I was taught never to keep the cars I steal, because that can and will be a headache to cover up. And...well I can't bring myself to dispose of them. That'd just be a waste. So, I take 'em for a spin, then put 'em back."

He gave a light shrug, still somewhat wary of this guy. What if it was a trap? This guy could very well be trying to get him off guard in order to bust him. Maybe hit him over the head and call the cops or something. Who knew?