Elizabeth stood on the sidewalk, staring mainly at the vast fortress in front of her. The Xavier Sister School for Gifted Youngsters. Home for mutants from far and wide, a place of education, protection, love, and hope. A wan smile cut through Liz’ nerves as the sight of the estate began dredging up so many memories and feelings in her.

Fighting a monster made of bread. Late night breakfasts with her roommate. Paper wad warfare in the library. A dance in the Danger Room.

Carrick.

The smile grew more genuine, if tinged with a bit of sorrow. There had been so many important and life-changing things happen to her at this place that she didn’t really know how she felt.

So she allowed herself to feel everything.

Liz stepped through the gates and onto the grounds for the first time in years. It felt the same, like she had never left, even although she knew so many things had changed. Yet just like the first time she walked this path, the grass was still green, there were still kids hanging out on the grounds, occasionally displaying mutant gifts, and the building was still there. Majestic and wonderful.

And to complete her return, Liz relaxed those barriers in her mind, those mental dams that surrounded her, holding off the wild emotions of the animals around her. And a wave of happiness, joy, contentment, peace and so many indescribable feelings filled her, washing away the last of her nerves.

Because Liz wasn’t here just to visit. She was here for a job interview.

When last the animal empath had left the X-Mansion, she had headed off to college. She picked up degrees in biology and education and soon after graduation, got a job as a high school science teacher. And it had been wonderful, exhausting, fulfilling, torture, and amazing. But something had always been missing.

And then she had heard of openings at the mansion. She had immediately submitted her resume and application and had been overjoyed to get a call asking her to come in for an interview.

And so here she was.

Liz made her way into the mansion and through it’s old, memory-laden halls until she found herself outside the door of the office of Mrs. Gemma Taylor-Cervantes, the school counselor. Liz ran a hand down her modest button-up shirt and complementary skirt, shuffled her folder into her other arm, and took a deep breath. This was it. Time for the interview.

Liz knocked on the door.

The Mansion was always in need of more faculty. Gemma had been keeping an eye on the roster, but with the amount of coming and going that was understandable in a mutant school, it was rare to have all the positions filled, especially with people who could be trusted to stick around for a long time and be good with the students in and outside of the classroom. Right now, they were short one science teacher. Gemma handled most of the applications; she was familiar with the students' needs and academics better than anyone at the school. And she was good with people.

"Come on in!" Gemma called at the knock, and smiled. The young woman coming in from an interview was not a stranger. She had been a Mansion student, and now she was back, applying for a position. Gemma remembered her from years before, although they did not have interactions more than the usual between (good) student and guidance counselor. Still, it was good to see someone go off to start a career and return to the school to give back.

"Hello Liz" Gemma smiled, offering a hand. She had grown up into an elegant young woman, although she seemed a bit nervous about the interview. "It is wonderful to see you again. Please, take a seat. Tea? Coffee?"

Liz opened the door at the hail and stepped into the office. She closed the door around her and treated the woman with a smile. It felt weird, but in a heartfelt way. The counselor was someone she’d seen around all the time of course and Liz had certainly heard a lot of things about her, but they didn’t really have much of a direct relationship. And that just added a whole extra dimension to the feelings inside of her.

And many of those feelings abated as she neared the woman and gently (yet firmly) shook her hand. It was the woman’s power, a nullifying field. Within it, Liz lost her connection to the emotional menagerie of the school. It was just her now. Oh boy.

“Hello Ms. Taylor,” Liz said as she pulled her hand away. Then she blushed a bit. “That is, I mean Mrs. Taylor-Cervantes. Congratulations, by the way.” There, that was also strange, just one more way people changed even if they were still mostly the same.

“Tea is fine. Whatever kind you have,” Liz said, sitting down and unconsciously pulling the hem of her skirt to ensure it covered her knees. “I must confess, it feels so strange so be here again,” she ventured. “But in a good way. So much is different and new, yet so much still looks and feels the same.” She smiled, as much to hide her nerves as to convey professionalism and sincerity and a happy life and--Liz didn’t really know what she was trying to convey. There was so much to work through and she was just hoping she didn’t come off as strained, fake, or creepy.

Liz stepped into her field, and Gemma could se a fleeting moment of change in her expression as she lost contact with her powers. Still, she didn't move back from her aura. Gemma would not have been offended if she did, but the young woman seemed to handle herself without her powers fine. That was important to know.

>>“Hello Ms. Taylor... That is, I mean Mrs. Taylor-Cervantes. Congratulations, by the way.”

"Thank you" Gemma smiled, walking over to the small side table. When Liz asked for tea, she turned on the hot water kettle, and handed her the box of tea filters to choose from.

>>“I must confess, it feels so strange so be here again. But in a good way. So much is different and new, yet so much still looks and feels the same.”

"It is strange, isn't it?" Gemma chuckled "Going back to your school as an adult?... It's been a while, hasn't it. How have you been?"

Liz set her folder on her lap as she selected a packet of green tea from the offered box. She handed the selection and the box back to the older woman. This wasn’t what she was expecting from an interview. She figured it would be more “Why do you want to teach here?” and less “I am interested in you as a person.” But then again, Mrs. Taylor-Cervantes was a counselor. People were her thing. They weren’t total strangers either. And this was a school for mutants. Honestly, why should anything be normal? Or maybe this was how most school interviews were and her last job had just been impersonal.

But Liz still welcomed the chit-chat. It helped her deal with the nerves. See? Her hands weren’t even shaking and there was only a faint bouncing going on with one of her feet.

“It’s such a feeling of jamais vu,” Liz said. “It’s all familiar, yet at the same time there’s so much that’s new.” Liz smiled. “But I guess anyone who graduates feels that way when they return to their alma mater.”

“I’ve been well,” Liz said after a moment’s thought. “It did me good to spend time away this time. I had to face a lot of things about myself that I didn’t like. Several demons to fight.” She shot a quick look at the counselor. “Not literal demons, mind you.” Heh, I wouldn’t have needed to clarify that at my old school, Liz thought wryly.

“That’s part of why I applied for the science teacher opportunity,” she continued. “When I left, I left some things here unfinished. Interpersonal issues, but also internal things.” She placed her fingers to her heart. “It’s as much wanting to prove to myself that I’ve changed as it is giving back to the school and helping this new generation of students.”

Gemma liked to put people at ease, especially in situations like a job interview. She knew things about this young woman, but things in her file were very different from a face to face conversation. And it would not do either of them any good if she was having stage fright the entire time. Warm beverages did wonders in situations like this, so they started with tea, and she could see Liz relax.

>>“It’s such a feeling of jamais vu. It’s all familiar, yet at the same time there’s so much that’s new... But I guess anyone who graduates feels that way when they return to their alma mater.”

"That's true" Gemma smiled, taking a seat with her own cup of tea. Mutant schools were special in a lot of ways, but not in this one.

>>“I’ve been well. It did me good to spend time away this time. I had to face a lot of things about myself that I didn’t like. Several demons to fight... Not literal demons, mind you.”

"I am glad to hear that." Gemma chuckled. Literal demons, indeed. They had had some of those over the years, although the angel had definitely been more annoying. She liked how Liz owned up to fighting her own battles. Everyone did. Gemma was suspicious people who claimed everything was fine all the time.

>>“That’s part of why I applied for the science teacher opportunity. When I left, I left some things here unfinished. Interpersonal issues, but also internal things. It’s as much wanting to prove to myself that I’ve changed as it is giving back to the school and helping this new generation of students.”

Their small talk led naturally into the job talk. Gemma nodded, tilting her head as she watched the young woman's gestures. She seemed genuine in what she was saying.

"I see. I appreciate you reaching out and applying for the job. Former students who return to teach are very important to a place like this... you would be representing much more than just education. Students would be looking up to you for a sense of having a future, for possibilities... Many of them never had that before they come here." Gemma looked at Liz, tilting her head curiously "You said you have some unfinished things, things you might still be working on. Do you think you could do both at the same time?"

Liz masked her expression momentarily with a sip of her tea. Fortunately the heat on her tongue was sufficient to take away some of the uncontrollable smile that tried creeping up on her. What Gemma was saying about being a role model was right on the nose and one of the reasons Liz had returned. But it felt so egotistical to say that out loud. And it was a war in her own self to even admit that privately, but she had fought a lot of things to get where she was and if she could be a guide to even one child, it was worth it.

“Exactly,” Liz nodded, suppressing as much of the blush as she could. There was no chance of siphoning some animal’s mood to alter her own, not within Gemma’s close proximity. “I had several friends here that seemed resigned to always having the short end of the stick. Too many felt that they couldn’t amount to much because their mutation kept causing trouble or made them a target for much worse.”

Liz smiled wryly. “I also think it’s important for students to see examples of other ways to have normal livelihoods that don’t revolve around criminal justice or peacekeeping,” she said. “Every student is so unique and not just because of their genetics. I want to help them find their own place in the world, not just accept pre-established roles or settle for what others choose for them.”

Liz blew softly on her tea and took another sip. She shook her head. “There won’t be any conflicts with any teaching duties or anything like that,” she said. “Nothing dangerous either, like dealing with the mob or whatever.” She chuckled briefly. “No, there are just some old friends and acquaintances I lost track of after I left and...I just want to reconnect with them. Bit of a reunion kind of thing.”

There was more to it than just that, but Liz felt the job interview wasn’t the place to engage in a heart to heart or girl talk, especially when she wasn’t really that close to Gemma.

“And on the note of reconnecting,” Liz continued after a moment. “I understand that there’s been a swath of...what is it....de-aging that’s impacted a number of mutants in the community? Has that impacted the school much?” Because that could completely mess plans and things up in ways Liz could barely begin to predict.

Gemma noted the blush on Liz's face as they talked about alumni teachers being role models to the net generation. It was something that came with a lot of responsibility, but also something that made one feel great about their place in the world. Liz did not seem like a person who would place that above all other parts of her work, but the blush was a good sign that she was aware of it.

“Exactly. I had several friends here that seemed resigned to always having the short end of the stick. Too many felt that they couldn’t amount to much because their mutation kept causing trouble or made them a target for much worse.”

"That is not uncommon among students of any disadvantaged background" Gemma nodded, sipping her tea. Mere survival could only take one so far. Liz has gone beyond that and returned to give back. She would know.

“I also think it’s important for students to see examples of other ways to have normal livelihoods that don’t revolve around criminal justice or peacekeeping. Every student is so unique and not just because of their genetics. I want to help them find their own place in the world, not just accept pre-established roles or settle for what others choose for them.”

Gemma chuckled. She wondered what one of the X-men would say if they heard Liz's words. Because she was right. Many teens came to the Mansion with so much resentment, the vigilante route was an obvious choice for them before they even considered any other. Even though, mutations aside, they had a whole lot of other skills no one ever bothered to cultivate. Gemma, being an adapted, saw more of those than others. "You are right about that one."

Now she just had to ask if Liz would be able to handle her own personal development and her teaching work together.

“There won’t be any conflicts with any teaching duties or anything like that. Nothing dangerous either, like dealing with the mob or whatever. No, there are just some old friends and acquaintances I lost track of after I left and...I just want to reconnect with them. Bit of a reunion kind of thing.”

Gemma nodded. Personal things. Who didn't have lost and found relationships like that in their past? She seemed like a capable young woman, not someone who would bring much drama to the Mansion's door.

“And on the note of reconnecting... I understand that there’s been a swath of...what is it....de-aging that’s impacted a number of mutants in the community? Has that impacted the school much?”

Gemma winced. It was still a delicate subject with her, given that Jorge still lived as a young man, even though the truth came out between them. She bit her lips, looking away for a moment before she got a handle on her emotions.

"Yes. The Mansion has been affected. Some faculty, some returning students... Some have re-aged since, but others are... showing no sign of it. I try to keep track, but... I can't guarantee everyone is as you have last seen them. Or rather, maybe exactly the same..."

The spontaneous age-reversal was something that had definitely hit the news and even Liz had heard about it, but she had dismissed it mainly as fake news or tabloid clickbait. She was also still going through her break-up with Steve which, while an amicable parting, had still absorbed much of her attention. But now it was a reality and she was just beginning to understand how much she didn’t know about the situation.

Elizabeth’s face showed her mild shock and awe. She saw something on Gemma’s face as well, but she couldn’t decipher it before the other woman mastered herself. But it seemed that the de-aging had heavily hit the community.

“My word,” Liz breathed, grasping her cup firmly between her hands, welcoming the heat. She stared at Gemma for an earnest moment before staring off to the side. “I hadn’t realized….” she trailed off. Her eyebrows furrowed. “That certainly makes things more complicated.” That was perhaps the understatement of the year.

She refocused her attention on Gemma.“It seems the students are going to need as many role models as possible then, especially since so many….aren’t what they used to be. Or will be,” Liz said. Her leg was no longer shaking or bouncing. In fact, all of her nerves seemed to be stilled. “I imagine any adults who now find themselves school-aged will still need to make up their education, even if they still technically have degrees. Classes might be a bit tricky if students re-age to their older selves, but as long as they regain their memories there wouldn’t be a problem, right?”

Liz wasn’t thinking about those other people she’d need to reach out to. Nope. She walled them and a gryphon boy off in her thoughts. Focus on the kids and those who are now kids. She’d deal with the other...repercussions...later. After the interview. Liz took another drink of her tea and momentarily closed her eyes. She sat the tea down.

“It seems academically speaking, not too much will be affected, regarding classroom procedures and such,” she began. “But correct me if I’m wrong. The larger challenges will be the social aspects of de-aged students, since this will naturally disrupt prior relationships.” Liz cocked her head, parrot-like. “Is on-campus lodging still an option for teachers? I imagine that would go a long way to supporting the children even outside of the classroom.”

Gemma gave Liz a moment to absorb the news. If she didn't know how serious the de-aging wave had been, it was probably a shock to her.

>>"My word... I hadn’t realized… That certainly makes things more complicated.”

Gemma nodded, keeping her own feelings to herself. Complicated was one way of putting it. Being married to a man who didn't remember her and hurting his feelings in the process while raising the twins alone was another way to describe it. But this interview was not about her.

>>“It seems the students are going to need as many role models as possible then, especially since so many….aren’t what they used to be. Or will be. I imagine any adults who now find themselves school-aged will still need to make up their education, even if they still technically have degrees. Classes might be a bit tricky if students re-age to their older selves, but as long as they regain their memories there wouldn’t be a problem, right?”

"This is how we are operating now, yes" Gemma nodded again. "Anyone school aged who stays here gets to go to class like they... used to. It sets a schedule and some smaller goals for them."

If they did the subjects twice, and remembered later... there was really not much downside to that.

>>“It seems academically speaking, not too much will be affected, regarding classroom procedures and such. But correct me if I’m wrong. The larger challenges will be the social aspects of de-aged students, since this will naturally disrupt prior relationships.”

Oh, it did.

"It does. Especially because some students de-aged to a point before they had arrived at Xavier's. Some of them are... wilder than when we knew them."

>>"Is on-campus lodging still an option for teachers? I imagine that would go a long way to supporting the children even outside of the classroom.”

"Yes, that is still an option. Are you thinking of moving back in?"

Okay, so classes seemed rather modular, in the fact that kids took them if they needed too / were at the right age to be taking them, even if it was their second time around, so to speak. Liz frowned in concentration. That sounded good to her, so far. Consistency was important and if she’d learned anything from teaching children and training animals, it was repetition and consistency.

Liz reflexively reached out to the sea of emotions that typically surrounded her, only to catch herself when she remembered Gemma’s aura. Right then. All the emotions were hers and hers alone. And it appeared that Gemma might be having some emotions of her own to deal with, but Liz couldn’t decipher what the counselor was feeling. The woman covered or hid them too well.

Liz nodded at Gemma’s question. “It is a consideration. There are natural trade offs, to be sure,” she said. “But I think it might be a good fit. It would enable me to be available beyond school hours, especially if some of the kids are...wilder.” The Lord only knew some of the events she herself had witnessed as a student. Good grief, all the stories…

She smiled wryly. “At the very least, I could be an additional pair of hands to help clean up messes.”

If they had another faculty on site, someone who knew the Mansion well, and had a good relationship with the students, it would definitely be a plus, Gemma knew that. Xavier's had a tendency to have the unexpected happen with alarming regularity, and every time it did, be it de-aged teachers, guinea pig invasion, or burning angels, having one more adults on deck could prove invaluable. And Liz had lived here before. She knew what she was signing up for.

"We have some faculty rooms available" she nodded, shuffling around in her desk drawer "And a separate employment package for faculty that wants to live in the Mansion. It includes food, for example... And you are right, the more competent adults we have around all the time the better." she finally fished out the relevant folder and handed it to Liz "However, I want to warn you, we also have some policies for scheduling your availability. We don't want any of our faculty to burn themselves out, even with the best of intentions..."

Liz leaned forward to accept the folder Gemma was handing to her. She set her tea down on the edge of the desk as she did so. Sitting back against her chair again, Elizabeth began looking through the folder as Gemma outlined its contents. The blonde nodded along. “It sounds pretty fair so far,” she said. “Something of extra duties, but also additional compensation and further parameters to keep the duties from escalating too much.” The not needing to pay New York rent was a definite plus.

Liz left the file open on her lap. “All in all, the job sounds very good,” she said. “It feels like a challenge, but in a good way - I’m looking forward to helping out the kids in whatever way they need.” She smiled firmly. She was probably going to regret those words the next time a student summoned a volcano or unleashed an extra-dimensional miasma on the mansion, but she figured there’d be at least a month or two of relative calm in between those events. Besides, didn’t the X-Men still base themselves out of the mansion?

She closed the file. “So where do we go from here? What are the next steps?” she said. Then her eyes bugged out a bit as she caught herself. “Uh, I mean, do you have other questions for me? Or need to ask me anything?” she stuttered and rambled. Oh good grief, get ahold of yourself, girl! She instinctively reached out to calm herself with an animal and again fell short. “I apologize for getting ahead of myself.” And kinda taking over the interview. Cue the awkward smile.

It was not unusual for faculty to move into the Mansion, for lack of other options, for dedication, or for safety reasons. Gemma had prepared, with the approval of the school committee, an employment package for these cases, since the circumstances at a mutant school were... all but usual. This was the file she handed to Liz now. She knew it would come in handy sooner or later.

>>“It sounds pretty fair so far. Something of extra duties, but also additional compensation and further parameters to keep the duties from escalating too much... All in all, the job sounds very good. It feels like a challenge, but in a good way - I’m looking forward to helping out the kids in whatever way they need.”

"I am glad to hear that" Gemma nodded with a smile "Feel free to look that over in your free time, and let me know if you have any questions or concerns. Every employment situation is a little bit unique..."

>>“So where do we go from here? What are the next steps?... Uh, I mean, do you have other questions for me? Or need to ask me anything?... I apologize for getting ahead of myself."

Gemma chuckled as Liz realized she'd gotten carried away, and promptly apologized for it. Even without her powers, the young woman had a lot of empathy. "No need to apologize. I think we both know we are going to hire you, at least for a test period. Three months, usually, so you can make sure this is really the job you want, and we can figure out how to make it all work. Do you have a previous place of employment where you have to give notice? When were you thinking of moving in?"

“Thank you,” Liz said as she accepted the folder. She settled it on top of the folder she’d brought with her and idly opened it to skim its contents. There were a lot of different parts to it and Liz realized she’d have a lot of reading to do, and possibly many questions. Her previous school had done nothing like this, that’s for sure. She closed the folder before she could get engrossed in it.

“I have a feeling I am going to have a lot of questions,” she said, looking up at the other woman. “I’ll be sure to make a list though, so you get them all at once instead of a dozen or so phone calls and emails.”

But Liz smiled deeply and many of her nerves settled as Gemma chuckled. Even if it wasn’t official like a signed contract, knowing that Gemma was pretty certain Liz was going to get hired was a major load off Elizabeth’s shoulders. She even blushed; she knew she was qualified, but at the same time the weirdness of returning to your roots had thrown her, even as nice and caring as Gemma was. This was by far the most casual and non-stressful job interview she’d ever had, and certainly the first she’d had to handle without any external emotional support.

But it seemed the hard part was over. “That is more than acceptable,” Liz said, letting out some of her relief. A semester or so trial period was a bit odd, but mutants were all about adapting. But Liz knew she could do it. “I’ll need to inform my current school district that I’m changing locations and will be stepping down, but it’s early enough that there shouldn’t be any complications. Otherwise, I’ll be ready to move in about a week.”

She smiled again. “I’m really excited for this. I’m looking forward to what all’s going to happen.”