Coffee was great. I mean really, really great. Everything about coffee was about the best things in the world, except for the taste. Pix loved coffee, but when she drank it, she had to add a bunch of sugar, cinnamon, Carmel, milk, marshmallows, and chocolate, to improve it’s bland, bitter taste. Not that she was complaining, because the abundance of sugar improved the Buzz she felt in her body, when ever she drank that wonderful beverage.

The sun was setting on the other side of the tall buildings. So tall shadows stretched across the ground and beams of light streaked the sides of opposite facing brick walls. Moms and Dads were gathering their children to head home, as a group of men in long brown dirty coats looked for a place to settle for the night. Last time Pix had been here, she had run into a talking white rabbit.

Pix was sitting on a bench, with a large, card board coffee cup cradled between her hands. She shifted the cup so that she could dip a finger into the whipped cream that had been melting over the tip of her glass. Mmmm… whip cream was another must for coffee. Licking her finger tips clean, Pix’s green eyes flicked right and left, looking for something interesting to do.

It was getting close to dark now and Streak, looking human once again, was going for a run. This run was shorter than Streak was used to because he was still healing from the break out at the camps. He slowed down to catch his breath for a minute. Clutching his side he moved over to the side of the grass where he wasn't in anyones way. He looked up and saw parents gathering their kids and the homeless looking for a place to get comfortable. He envied the kids with the parents most of all because his parents had kicked him out of their home.

As he rested he looked around. His silver eyes reflecting in the sun. He looked over at one bench and saw a young girl sitting there. She was skinny and looked very young, yet oddly familiar. Just then the sun caught her just right and Streak saw what looked like shapes and pictures seemingly appearing out of nowhere. The sun was right behind the girl now and Streak decided to walk over to her.

He walked over to her and looked into her green eyes and remembered her almost instantly. She was the bug girl from the camp breakout. She helped him try to calm Emerald down and she helped get him to the evacuation point, no matter how stubborn he was. "How's it goin' gal? Mind if I sit down?" Streak said to her and didn't wait for an answer. He immediately sat down and asked her a few more questions. "What've you been up to since the break out?" He knew she didn't recognize him but considering he knew that she was at the break out was a good indicator that she might remember him.

Petunia’s gaze shifted up to the figure that was approaching her. But he wasn’t as interesting as a four year old with a lower lip that poked out and quivered as mom gathered him up, and he tried desperately to drag mom back to the swings. Parents. They always held you back from what you wanted to do. Of course not Petunia’s parents. Pix had made sure of that.

The exercise fanatic’s closing proximaty drew her attention back to him as the pouting kid was finally walking with his arms crossed right behind his mother. Pix dipped her finger back into the whipped cream and licked it off.

"How's it goin' gal? Mind if I sit down?"

Was he kidding? If pix had wanted company she would simply have it. She would have dragged her brother from his room, and signed all his paper work to let his have a day out. She wouldn’t be talking to strangers, Though his voice did sound familiar, and that is what kept Pix from slipping a scorpion on the seat of the bench just before he sat down next to Petunia. “It’s goin’.” Petunia replied with a one shoulder shrug.

"What've you been up to since the break out?"

He was at the break out? Well that would explain the way he moved. He looked like something about him wasn’t as comfortable as he could be. “flee circuses. You?”

“flee circuses. You?” the bug girl replied to Streak. He smiled at her comment. "After the doctors at the Lab fixed me up I went to the mansion and have been helping fix the place up." Streak told her.

After a slight pause He told her "I want to thank you for your help back there with Emerald. You really helped out, especially when I was weak and wasn't quite sure what what to say." Streak admitted to her.

"You obviously don't know me. I'm Streak." He covered his body in silver. He held out a hand for her to shake. "What about you? All I know about you is that you control big bugs. What's your name?" He was a little eager to catch up with what she had been doing and find more out about her. She was definitely a different type of mutant than he has ever met. The only people he had met were basically the x-men, good mutants who wanted to help mutants and humans coexist.

"After the doctors at the Lab fixed me up I went to the mansion and have been helping fix the place up."

Pix sighed, resisting the urge to shake her head. Ok so this was a working type mutant, guy, who apparently liked the do gooder side. Pix couldn’t see the good points to being so… … … good.

"I want to thank you for your help back there with Emerald. You really helped out, especially when I was weak and wasn't quite sure what what to say."

Petunia shrugged. “to be honest, it probably won’t happen again.” Pix didn’t help people unless she saw things to gain. The resistence had provided extra protection and information. Pix had agreed to go in, in return for that and she helped Emerald and Streak because they perked her curiosity. They were lucky that way.

"You obviously don't know me. I'm Streak."

She took his hand and returned the shake. Sure to protectively shift her coffee to the other hand. “That explains why I recognize your voice. Petunia Gardener.” Petunia replied to Streak. That’s right. She had a flowery name. “Or just call me Pix.”

“to be honest, it probably won’t happen again.” Pix told Streak. So, she's obviously not a team player type of gal. Streak thought. Streak shook her hand and introduced herself to him finally. “That explains why I recognize your voice. Petunia Gardener.” “Or just call me Pix.

"Pix. Nice to meet you." Streak shook her hand and then let it go. He then changed back to normal so that he wouldn't attract more attention than he would like, especially since the camps people weren't exactly still nice with mutants.

He noticed that she shifted her coffee so that it was protected from him. "Don't worry," Streak smiled, "I don't drink coffee. It's to bitter for me." He relaxed back onto the park bench and asked her, "So, are you just planning on living here in the area or are you going to join like the x-men or the order or something?" She didn't sound like the teamwork type, but anything was worth asking since he didn't know anything about her. "What do you like to do?" Streak asked wondering if she had anything planned.

Petunia shrigged. “nice to meet your acquaintance as well.”

"Don't worry, I don't drink coffee. It's to bitter for me."

Petunia smirked at Streak let the last part of that silvery stuff disappear so that he looked bring. “That’s exactly what someone who wanted to steal my coffee for themselves would say.” She said between scooping up the rest of the whipped cream off of the tip with her finger. “How can you not like coffee. The bitterness disappears with cinnamon, and you don’t get it at all if you buy the expensive stuff.” Pix smirked. “What are you, one of those health nut peoples?”

, "So, are you just planning on living here in the area or are you going to join like the x-men or the order or something? What do you like to do?"

“Normally I don’t like talking to health nuts who are anti coffee.” The smirk was still on Petunia’s face. Even if she was serious she sounded light hearted. “If I’m ment to join a group then it will happen. I’ll figure out my own fun on the way.”

“That’s exactly what someone who wanted to steal my coffee for themselves would say.” Streak smirked at her comment about stealing the coffee. Well she does have a light side Streak thought.

“How can you not like coffee. The bitterness disappears with cinnamon, and you don’t get it at all if you buy the expensive stuff.” Pix smirked. “What are you, one of those health nut peoples?”

"No, I'm not a health nut. Even though I do like eating healthy food. But that's beside the point." Streak said, then continued, "Even when I buy the expensive stuff the taste never tastes that great. It just seems to get old after a while and I can never finish 'em." Streak finished.

“Normally I don’t like talking to health nuts who are anti coffee.” “If I’m ment to join a group then it will happen. I’ll figure out my own fun on the way.”

"That's pretty cool. So, it seems like everything is up in the air for ya." Streak said. He was a little hesitant to ask her questions because he didn't know if she liked to talk or if she prefered to sit in silence and enjoy the silence.

"That's pretty cool. So, it seems like everything is up in the air for ya."

“That’s the way I always play it.” Pix’s dangling earrings wiggled as she nodded her head. Ok so Streak had asked a lot of questions and Pix had been nice enough to provide nice, lovely, polite answers. It was time for some return information.

“What about yourself?” Petunia tilted her head. “What have you been up to since the break out other than healing?”

“What about yourself?” “What have you been up to since the break out other than healing?”

"After I decided to rest." He smiled remembering her comment back at the labs, "I went back to the mansion since that was where I was staying before the camps. It's also where most of my friends are and I know most were worried about me 'cause I was worried about them once the breakout started." He looked out over the water and saw a few more homeless people bedding down and a few animals still out on the water. It was a nice night, or as nice a night as you could get in New York with all the smog.

"The mansion is the only place I have to go. Even though I'm old enough to work I really don't know what I would like to do for the rest of my life. The scars and everything raise suspicion and I don't trust humans anymore. I figured that if I was at the mansion I might figure something out. So I went back after I got out of the labs and have been helping to fix it up since the stalkers and the humans practically demolished it during their raid." Streak finished and waited for her to ask any questions she wanted. He didn't really have any problem discussing things with people.

Petunia’s lips pursed together as the Streak went on. “I suppose friends are good.” For most people. Again Pix thought back about how close her brother had once been to her. How close she had been to him until he started attacking her in sick game of sibling rivalry.

“You’re not the only one who doesn’t trust the norms.” Petunia talked with a lower voice despite her short child like height. Almost a grumble. “You’ve only got scars to explain, not wings fur, of tentacles growing out from the middle of your forehead. Companied to many, your coffee cup is still half full, even if you don’t drink coffee.” No Pix would not get off of that subject. Why wouldn’t someone not like coffee? His mutation just must have changed his taste buds. Yeah that had to be it.

“I work at the zoo.” Petunia smirked. “The kiddies there are entirely too entertaining for me.” A smile spread across the smaller mutant’s face, creasing her cheeks. “and they think roaches are scary. You’d be surprised how fast one roaches can clear a room and one snake gets crowded with children and sticky hands.”

“You’re not the only one who doesn’t trust the norms.”
“You’ve only got scars to explain, not wings fur, of tentacles growing out from the middle of your forehead. Companied to many, your coffee cup is still half full, even if you don’t drink coffee.”

"You're right. I know I'm not the only one who doesn't trust humans. I doubt there's a single mutant around anymore who does after what they did." Streak said looking around with an angry expression. He turned back to Pix and smiled at her comment about coffee.

“I work at the zoo.” Petunia smirked. “The kiddies there are entirely too entertaining for me.”
“and they think roaches are scary. You’d be surprised how fast one roaches can clear a room and one snake gets crowded with children and sticky hands.”

After listening to what Pix had to say then said, "I like the zoo. It really is weird how kids are freaked out about insects but they find poisonous animals so interesting. I don't really understand kids logic behind it, but it entertains them." Streak said.

Pix’s smile widened even more at the thought of zoo entertainment. Making the creases in her cheeks grow even deeper. “I could provide us with some entertainment here and how.” There was something evil in her eye as she spoke.

She casually lifted the paom of her hand and a large bird spider sprouted from under her skin. Coming into the open air legs first, then wiggling and the head appeared, with the thick body following. It shook it’s self free and Pix’s skin snapped back to it’s normal state. The spider scurried down her arm, hopped to her leg, then hopped to the ground where it began scurrying after a four year old who was still protesting about having to leave the play ground.

The spider was the size of a dinner plate when it spread it’s legs. It’s upper body dipped down and it’s abdomin stuck in the air waving like a puppies tail just out of the child’s reach.

“Mommy, Mommy look.”

“Honey we’re in a hurry and I don’t have time to-“ Mommy looked anyways….

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

“I could provide us with some entertainment here and how.” Streak watched what she was doing. It was an interesting sight to see a spider crawl out of a persons arm. Especially a girl, whose arm was very thin like a child's.

He recoiled a little at the bug coming out and then went back to his normal spot like nothing had happened. Streak was amazed at how she controlled the spider and made it go towards the little boy who didn't want to leave the park yet. "That's a really big spider." Streak said to her. Then he realized where she was sending it. It was headed right at the mom and her kid.

“Mommy, Mommy look.”

“Honey we’re in a hurry and I don’t have time to-“ Mommy looked anyways….

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

"You have a weird sense of entertainment." Streak said looking over at her. "That's pretty evil if you ask me." After he said that his phone started buzzing. Who could be texting me at this time of day? It was someone from the mansion they needed him back. So he said, "I gotta be getting back to work helping them clean things up." He stood up and said over his shoulder, "I'll see ya around Pix." Then he started to walk off back the direction he came.