The mansion truely was a wondrous place, even before 6 am. She had seen so many strange and fascinating Mutants wondering around the halls and the grounds. Luna had limited contact with Mutants before coming to the Mutant mansion. Most seemed ok and just marked her as new as she saw some of the more mind boggling ones and others that made her question what nature was trying to do and she was happier her power was controllable for the most part.

Luna walked the grounds of what would serve as her new home for awhile. She sniffed the air every so often, and her ears twitched at every sound on their own accord. Habits she had picked up since her Mutation and to compensate for her eyes. Contacts relieved some of the issue but could not compensate fully for her level of sight loss. She had been given glasses but hated those as they very much resembled the stereotype nerd glasses seen an old 90s movies. She also wore a loose dress with a hole cut in the back for her tail. The tail limited her somewhat as not all clothing would accommodate her black and white tail.

Her small claws ran through her black and white fur in nervous habit as she looked and watched those on the Mansion grounds without trying to look to interested in them. She was shy and had trouble approaching people first despite having interest in what some of them were doing or the flashes of conversation she overheard. She was tempted to go closer but her nervousness won out on her.

Instead she grabbed her tail, holding it as she sat to make sure she did not sit on it. Doing so had proven quite painful in the past and so she made sure to avoid it. Her paws pulled out a portable gamestation and began playing Gatchamon. She always tossed her started in favor of Damporeon, Sparkeon, Blazeon, braineon, Shadeon, Planteon, Frosteon and Fairyeon, switching between them as she played the game. the only ones she really disliked were the skunk based ones as they hit much to close to home.

"Angua!"

The large Irish wolfhoud came loping around the corner of the building, tongue lolling as she enjoyed being out in the fresh air of the Mansion grounds. For once, Maya had a moment to take her dog for a walk. Just around the building and the gardens, with some fetch and jogging and general doggie playtime. Right now she followed behind Angua, rounding the corner just in time to see the large hound pull up short, with her ears and tail perked, and sniff cautiously in the direction of a young girl.

"Angua! Sit!"

Most kids at the Mansion knew the wolfhound was a sweetheart, but her sheer size tended to scare the newbies, especially if they were young, or had a reason to fear dogs. Angua was well trained enough to obey, sitting a few steps away from the furry girl. Maya caught up, putting a hand on Angua's collar, and looking at the girl.

She did not seem familiar. New student? Entirely possible. Maya had been swamped with other stuff.

"Hey there! Don't worry, she's very friendly..."

She smelled and heard the dog long before she could see him. As the dog bound close and before she saw Maya, she dropped her gamestation, stood and grabbed her tail, aiming it in front of her, the tip stiffening. The Dog however pulled up short and she saw the woman who Luna assumed was her owner coming into view. The woman calling the dogs name confirmed it and the dog proved he was smart and obeyed the sit command.

She was suddenly quite glad she did not spray this woman's dog, as she knew that could be a poor first impression and she knew a bath for this pup had to be time consuming and a lot of tomato juice. Still she made no move toward the dog.

She looked a bit embarrassed as she let her tail out of her own furry clawed hands. "Hello, um" she searched her mind for the words, her ears twitching as she did so. "Im Luna, i had no idea dogs got that big. Um not that theirs anything wrong with that! How is she, i mean.. " she took a breath and tried to clam herself. "What's your name?" she asked conquering her nervousness mentally, even as she she ran her claws through the fur on her hands. "Just got here a few days ago" she said looking from the dog to Maya as she bent down to pick up her gamestation, more so the large puppy would not step on it.

Upon closer inspection, the girl resembled a skunk. The tail definitely looked like a skunk tail. Angua sniffed the air cautiously again, and did not seem very intent on going closer. Which was just as well, because the girl seemed a bit hesitant about the dog.

>>"Hello, um. Im Luna, i had no idea dogs got that big. Um not that theirs anything wrong with that! How is she, i mean.. "

"It's okay" Maya grinned "Nice to meet you, Luna. Pretty name. This here is Angua. She is not going to hurt you."

>>"What's your name? Just got here a few days ago"

"My name is Maya. Some people call me Mirror." Maya let Angua lie down in the shade of some bushes and she walked closer to the girl "Welcome to Xavier's. How do you like the school so far?"

She sniffed the air again and actively tried to control the twitches in her ear as they tried to focus on the sounds around them as well as Maya. "Thank you. She seems nice. she said shyly shifting her look to the dog. Luna had never been good at making actual eye contact and so she tried to avoid it subtly, though she was far more obvious then she thought.

That was a name she had never heard before and people calling her Mirror was interesting as well and made her wonder why. She assumed given the school it meant she was a mutant but the idea of a mirror based power was something she had trouble wrapping her mind around past thinking off the silly tales of saying some name in a mirror 3 times and someone jumping out and killing you. "Mirror?" she said the question leaving her lips before she thought much about it. Mentally she scolding herself for not being more tactful. Though she was quite curious. What code name could she herself ever have other then That Skunk girl.

"Thanks um It's nice. she said searching for the words. "My therapist recommended it" she said looking embarrassed a moment before realizing that she may have implied it was the only reason she was here or be an insult to someone living here. "Sorry sorry, i mean he felt it might help to be around other Mutants. I um..." she said as an involuntary shudder passing thrue her body. She felt she had stuck her foot to deep not to continue. "Their was an Anti mutant attack at my school a few years back. I know it's wrong but they terrify me" she admitted. She did not hate humans and knew not all were like those terrorists, but it had still made it hard for her to interact with those she knew for a fact were Human.

>>"Thank you. She seems nice."

The girl seemed shy. She was young, younger than many students when they got to the Mansion, and looked a little hesitant about making friends. There was nothing really strange about that. Being at a school full of mutants older than you was not an easy situation to get into.

>>"Mirror?"

Maya nodded with a smile. "My powers." She'd explain later. That, and the gender shifting too. For now, she wanted to make sure the new kid was not feeling too overwhelmed.

>>"Thanks um It's nice. My therapist recommended it... Sorry sorry, i mean he felt it might help to be around other Mutants. I um... Their was an Anti mutant attack at my school a few years back. I know it's wrong but they terrify me"

"Oh it's not wrong at all." Maya sighed, walking closer to lean against the wall next to the girl. She was fascinating, with the twitching ears and the fluffy tail. Who would want to hurt her?...

A lot of people, that's who.

"I'm sorry you had to go through that. I hope you'll feel safe here."

Mirror seemed nice enough, though how it could be her power, she was unsure. She mentally pictured somebody who could alter your reflection in a mirror. It could also be like the fairy tale where the evil lady asked who was the fairest.

She was comforting as well and Luna wondered if this was something she had seen a lot. With all the mutants here some of their stories might of been like her she thought. She was surprised however when the woman told her the fear she had developed of humans from the anti-mutant attack was not wrong. It took her a second thinking Mirror might have been referring to the anti-mutant terrorists themselves. "My friend said a woman sheathed in pink light saved her but just cried if i asked any more, i was knocked out before i saw anything like that though" she said. All her parents had ever said was when you were older, the looks of discomfort on their faces however told Luna whatever it was, was not good.

"It's really beautiful here, some of the things ive seen have been cool" she said a little excitement showing through in her voice and thinking of the different mutant powers she had seen over the past few days. "I Like it better since theirs a dog, they tend to mind me a bit more then i mind them" she went on, glancing back at the dog. "Is school here anything like public school?" she asked curiously knowing she had to go to class at the mansion. They had decided to give her a few days to adjust however.

>>"My friend said a woman sheathed in pink light saved her but just cried if i asked any more, i was knocked out before i saw anything like that though"

Maya's smile froze. No way... Actually, yes way, that totally sounded like something Aura would do if she needed to. Or even if she didn't need to. Or whenever she got bored. Honestly, the kids got lucky. Anti-mutant terrorists vs Aura was never a fair fight. And she didn't really feel sorry for them, even though she was about equally scared of ura herself.

>>"It's really beautiful here, some of the things ive seen have been cool. I Like it better since theirs a dog, they tend to mind me a bit more then i mind them"

Maya glanced over at Angua, who found herself a shady spot to lie down. She seemed hesitant about approaching the girl, as if she had been a real skunk.

>>"Is school here anything like public school?"

"Not sure" Maya shrugged "Never went to public school. I guess we have more funding?" she chuckled "So... is that what you do? You are... a skunk shifter?"

She caught the reaction Mirror had to her story but assumed it more due her friends plight then anything else. She was going to ask about having more funding but then realized it had to be hard to run a school like this without a lot of funding. The damage the students could cause was likely up there. She herself was pretty harmless but she had seen much more powerful mutants around here and on tv.

"I only have this form and i can spray a target. I'm pretty accurate but well, i don't think i should demonstrate that" she said, one of her paw like hands, making it threw her fur again. She did not mind the smell herself, an effect of her power maybe? However most others had a pretty normal reaction and the scent carried. "My eyes got weaker but my hearing and smell got better" she added hoping it made her power seem slightly better at least to Mirror. Luna had always felt she got the short end of the mutant power lottery. "I also have the power to make shampoo and conditioner vanish and look stunning in a medium size flea collar" she said the last part being sarcasm. She had yet to get fleas but she figured it was possible.

"So what do you do here? Are you a teacher? or Just here to make sure no one umm teleport the place to the moon? " she asked regretting the second question and feeling she likly should have thought it threw. For all she knew Mirror could have been campus security.

Skunks were underrated, as far as Mirror was concerned. They were darn cute, but also clever, and quite tough. There were a lot worse animals to shift into. Still, they were probably a big target for bullying, too.

>>"I only have this form and i can spray a target. I'm pretty accurate but well, i don't think i should demonstrate that"

"Probably not" Maya chuckled, glancing at Angua. The dog had had some bad experiences with wildlife before. "Impressive, though."

>>"My eyes got weaker but my hearing and smell got better. I also have the power to make shampoo and conditioner vanish and look stunning in a medium size flea collar"

Maya chuckled again. She understood the joke, but she also liked that the girl was not trying to sugarcoat her powers. That was always an important step. She wondered if the girl knew she was pretty, though. Any teenage girl needed to hear that often, especially when they were mutants. People liked to kick those who looked different.

>>"So what do you do here? Are you a teacher? or Just here to make sure no one umm teleport the place to the moon? "

"Well... kind of a teacher" Maya admitted "I help students train with their powers, so they can use them safely. I also do administration work, and student greeting... oh, and I'm on the X team."

She perked up at her power being called impressive. While not the first time Luna had been told that, it had been rare and Mirror seemed more sincere then others who had said so. Angua still kept his distance and she wondered if the dog got use to her, if it would try and be friendly with actual skunks. Prolbely not something to test out but she had been curious. Part of her did wonder if Mirror told everyone who came through the gates their power was impressive, as it's not she seemed the type to just say your power was low tier. Take the compliment she told herself, beating back the internal voices in her head.

The thought of a power being dangerous was one she knew off but not one that effected her really so she had often just swept it under the rug in her mind. Mirrors words however brought to her mind. Sure she was a skunk human thing but as far as she could tell their was not any real way that could hurt her or hurt other long term. The mention of the X team was interesting, she had seen them on the news a bit here and there and knew though. She may not of recognized mirror herself but if true and had no reason to doubt the nice woman"Seems like a lot to do. So you stop bad people then? That sounds exciting and fun" she said thinking what it would be like to be a super hero. Perhaps she could prevent issues like what had effected her.

She did not really understand how much she took her own powers ease of control for granted next to those who struggled. She had to work on not spraying things when she was startled but other then that their was not much that could go wrong. Danger and control however were related when thought about it.

"I want to help others some day, make sure what happened to me does not happen to others, kinda thing, but i really don't think i would do well vs a gun but i could be like the smelly avenger" she said not really knowing how her power could be useful in that goal.

"You ever wonder why we get the mutations we get? Like what in nature decided i needed to be a skunk, instead of getting a cool power, like teleportation or super strength or flight? or why some are visible?" she said not wanting to openly admit she would rather have one of the cool powers.

"Why do so many people bear hatred for us?" she asked having been trying to work up to this question. She did want to help people but she was also more then a little scared around humans or those who she did not know were mutants. She eventually got use to certain humans, but it was hard and more of a case by case basis, which she wanted to overcome.

>>"Seems like a lot to do. So you stop bad people then? That sounds exciting and fun"

"More exiting than fun" Maya admitted with a smile "But it has its moments."

Bragging about being an X-man was usually bad form; especially in front of teenagers, who were easily riled up and already excited about people they saw as superheroes. Living in close proximity with the X-team, Mansion students sometimes got ideas about going out to fight bad guys without training. Maya did not want to make that sound too appealing.

>>"I want to help others some day, make sure what happened to me does not happen to others, kinda thing, but i really don't think i would do well vs a gun but i could be like the smelly avenger"

"There are a lot of ways to help" Maya chuckled at the joke "Beating up bad guys is not all we do. And you have time to figure it out."

>>"You ever wonder why we get the mutations we get? Like what in nature decided i needed to be a skunk, instead of getting a cool power, like teleportation or super strength or flight? or why some are visible?... Why do so many people bear hatred for us?"

Maya sighed, taking a seat next to Luna. Those were the heavy questions every mutant kid (and adult) struggled with, most of them all their life. There were no easy answers to any of them.

"You know, in my experience... eventually everyone finds something that connects them to their powers. Even if they seem random, or annoying, or out of control... there is always something in them that is you, and no one else. Sometimes... it just takes a lot of effort to find it." she admitted. "That's what I help students with. As for hatred... that's harder to deal with. The X-men try to keep mutants safe. But making people accept us... that is gonna be a longer project."

She knew their was more to it of course, but she could not deny to herself the awesomeness that perfected, confident and powerful look. As a kid she had always hoped if she was a mutant she would get something strong she could use. Skunk girl had not really entered the list. She knew how her power could defend herself but it was hard to see how she could rescue anyone and be the hero the woman in front of seemed to be.

She regretted the question as she said it and and saw Maya sigh and take a seat. It was never good when adults did that. Luna quickly took a seat as well sweeping her tail into her arm as she did, as not to sit on on it.

Something that connected her with her powers? It was hard to imagine how she was connected with hers other then being what everyone saw. Maybe it was because she had always been a bit of a loner? Maybe she needed to find it to feel truly comfortable with herself. "It's hard to imagine a connection but i had no idea their was something like that she said thinking a bit further into the idea. Maybe it was like a game where an event would eventually tell her but that seemed to unlikely.

"I thought that might be the case but i did have some hope. I mean if we were close i suppose we would not need places like this? Though i Suppose this is good for power control. she said starting to ramble a bit. "I mean I guess i just did not expect getting a power to be so life changing. Was it tough for you, to learn you were a mutant?" she asked curiously. She still had issues accepting her power as a good thing.

Mirror was not the person to tell mutant kids that everything happened for a reason, and that their powers were a gift with no downsides at all, or something they deserved. No. Some powers legit sucked. Some were weird, and some made it impossible to get a date. But even so, if one worked hard on getting to know themselves and their powers, they could make the best of even a bad situation. And some looked worse from the inside. 'Skunk girl,' for example, was kind of cute. It would take time for her to see that, but Mirror hoped eventually she would.

>>"It's hard to imagine a connection but i had no idea their was something like that... I thought that might be the case but i did have some hope. I mean if we were close i suppose we would not need places like this? Though i Suppose this is good for power control.

"It's a school" Maya nodded "A lot more than just a safe space for powers. Nut it's that too."

>>"I mean I guess i just did not expect getting a power to be so life changing. Was it tough for you, to learn you were a mutant?"

Maya smiled a little. "Yes and no. I was born with an active mutation, and my mom's a mutant, so... that part was natural. But my powers did make a bit of a mess every once in a while. Especially the gender shifting part... I think I'm still getting used to that. There are more words for it now than I knew when I was growing up."

School was one thing Luna had never cared for Much she often did the minimum to pass and she was trying to this time as well. She had always been far more consumed by her imagination, books and games. The fact she had been home school for the last two years and in a coma before that meant she was roughly a year behind kids her age.

She considered Mirror's words curiously. Having a parent as a mutant seemed like a great thing. It seemed perfect and she considered asking if Mirrors mom shared her powers. Mirror however then mentioned something that gave Luna Questions. Luna's parents had been human and had no idea how to deal with a Mutant child though they had tried. "Well i feel safe here, even school's not so bad here. It's outside those gates that scares me" she said glancing at the semi distant front gates.

"Gender shifting? You mean Like being Transgender? Or the young kid Alex from class? The pronoun thing is still rough for me" she asked curiously trying to draw comparisons to what she knew. Mentally kicking herself for it after she considered that Mirror said it had to do with her power. She could certainly see how that might make a mess "I mean well I know their not the same thing as your is power based" she tried to amend quickly.