OOC: Kind of strange title, but hey, this is a big deal in Zeke's story. The fufillment of his hopes and dreams... with secondary objectives on the side.
IC:

Zeke stood outside the mansion walls, on the stairs leading in, wondering how he would approach the headmistress about this. Then again, he couldn't really talk to Tricity right now anyways, as she seemed to be awkwardly missing. No, the woman in charge now was Neena, and he would have to approach her directly if he was to get what he wanted. They had had a few chats before, but had not gotten to know each other well, and hadn't really discussed much of Zeke's plans on staff. All Zeke knew was that he would soon teach a philosophy course and a couple religion classes. Dates weren't specified yet.

And other plans were in the making. Zeke's new platform for change within the mutant/human infrastructure of social interaction needed a cover story in a sense. It needed a smoke screen. Besides that, Zeke had always wanted to join the X-Men. He had actually approached Tricity about it when he had first arrived, but never gotten the nod. He was told they needed to trust him more, get to know him.

But times were now different. Things had now changed. The X-Men were essentially desperate for members, confused and broken, needing more team players. They would take anyone they could get. Even the recruits in training had been given full status.

Hey, being a teacher had to count for something. He would speak to Neena on the matter.

Then there was the other matter of wedding bells. Zeke had always wanted to have the marriage right here at the mansion, but the kidnapping hadn't allowed it. It had been taken off the table before the plans had even started. Fate had intervened. But now that the crisis in the camps was over, Zeke was free to focus on the wedding, his relationship with his fiancee converted to a relationship with his wife. They had never consumated their relationship, both wanting to wait till the wedding... but they had waited so long that the impatience was mounting, and things would need to happen quickly. Zeke would have to speak to Neena about it.

Where was Neena anyways? Zeke decided to start on a walk, and headed for the small lake, if it could be called that, taking the path that led around it.

It would be easy to assume Neena did very little around the Mansion; seventy-five percent of the time people went looking for her, she could be found either asleep or at least dozing.

Today was no different except, perhaps, her choice of location. Her nap site today took in the shore of the lake. She lay on the grass near the dock, arms behind her head, black baseball cap over her face. Her chest rose and fell rhythmically.

However, the rhythm paused momentarily, as if she'd stopped breathing. After a few moments, the even rise and fall returned.

OOC: Oh great... making me wake up your character... lol
IC:

The path near the lake wrapped around about twenty feet from the edge, giving you the distinct scent of some floating algae, without actually inviting you for a closer look. Zeke preferred it that way. As an intellectual, it wasn't exactly his excitement to observe the creatures around him, and green algae was part of that. Weather, yes, Zeke loved it. But animals weren't necessarily his favorite thing. The mutants with animal powers kind of always creeped Zeke out, sometimes, occasionally. Oh well, it would okay. Zeke would make it. He was an adult after all, he could just simply get over it.

Or could he.

As he walked along he thought of how he would word his conversation with Neena. He had approached Tricity about the X-Men position rapidly and recklessly, not really wording his phrases correctly. But that was back then, and he had become far more cautious in his demeanor now. At least, as long as Beth wasn't part of the picture (OOC: His dream spirit's visions that make him reckless). No, he was more calculated now, but still fervent in his pursuits. This was no different. He would do his best to convince the assistant headmistress to allow him on the team.

Walking along, he spotted a figure near the dock, laying there with a baseball cap over the face. It was decidedly a woman Zeke could see, and as he got closer, he recognized Neena's figure. Fancy meeting you here... He kept walking along and as he got closer he decided to approach her if she was awake. Walking up to her form, standing about six feet away, behind her, he watched as occasionally her constant breathing would pause, then continue again. Her waking up momentarily then?

Zeke decided to go for it. If he had judged her character right, she wasn't one to get ticked off being woken. If anything, she would probably stand and say, "No it's okay" and then say "What's up?" or something to that effect... and that would okay with Zeke. He did need to have this conversation soon, because who knew what the future held? (OOC: Reference to FP!) No time like the present, Zeke decided, and jumped right in.

In the midst of one of her abrupt pauses, Zeke interjected in a low voice, "You know, they say that the average human being needs seven to eight hours of sleep a night, but that doesn't account for mutants, does it?"

"You know, they say that the average human being needs seven to eight hours of sleep a night, but that doesn't account for mutants, does it?"

Underneath the hat, Neena grinned. She thought she'd heard footsteps approach. And now that the feet had a voice to go with them, they also had a face.

"I dunno about mutants, but I'll believe that cattledung when someone shows me what an 'average' human being looks like. Personally, I have yet to meet one."

She yawned, and stretched, cap still covering her eyes. "How ya doin' Zeke? Are ya out sightseein' or soul searchin'?"

Zeke chuckled as the woman stretched out, still with her face hidden beneath the hat. He hadn't woken her, had he? She heard him coming all along. He didn't know how far her mutation went, but perhaps she had a certain elevated sense of other people? Either way, here they were in a kind of humorous situation. He scratched his chin and walked around the body in the grass.

Standing facing away from her, staring at the ripples on the lake. They were caused by the occasional rustling of the wind. Causing a chain reaction in the water molecules, or a stray blade of grass to wander its way in, or perhaps a browned leaf blown to hit the water with a soft and unheard crash. Only the leaf itself knew extent of what had happened. Or maybe it didn't even know. How ironic, that a dead leaf still affects the water on a living lake, spreading its effects as far as one can see. And indeed, once the ripples started, there really wasn't a stopping point.

Zeke now responded, "I've met plenty of average humans, every single one of them thinks their unique, and thus, they all are average." He smiled and then turned back to look at the hat for a face. "I guess I'm doing both. I'm sight-seeing, looking at nature's elements, colliding as basic principles of how the universe acts. But I'm also soul-searching, looking beyong the obvious at the heart of the matter, where the true universe is happening." He paused then continued, "Actually, strangely enough I was wanting to talk with you."

"I've met plenty of average humans, every single one of them thinks their unique, and thus, they all are average."

Neena chuckled. "A philosophy professor, through and through. Can't say I agree with you, but my definition of average may be warped." She blinked, watching his back from behind the hat as he stared out at the lake.

"I guess I'm doing both. I'm sight-seeing, looking at nature's elements, colliding as basic principles of how the universe acts. But I'm also soul-searching, looking beyong the obvious at the heart of the matter, where the true universe is happening."

"Deep," she commented simply.

"Actually, strangely enough I was wanting to talk with you."

"Oh?" She sat up, squinting as the hat fell from her face. She quickly replaced her glass to protect her eyes. "Well, I'm all ears, figuratively speaking."[/b]

Zeke raised an eyebrow mockingly, "Philosophy professor?" Then he smiled and lowered the brow with a sigh, "You're right, that's me." The wind was blowing stronger now than it was a second ago, and Zeke stood there, taking in the feeling of the breeze. He loved strong winds, and even though this was probably only about ten miles per hour, it was still better than calm. He closed his eyes and enjoyed it while it lasted, four seconds, then returned to the conversation.

Opening his eyes, his gaze rested on the Neena whose face could now be seen, albeit with a pair of sunglasses (OOC: I assume that's what you meant by glass?). He was starting to get uneasy, maybe nervous. It was about two years since he talked to Tricity about the X-Men, and things hadn't went well then. But Tricity had been pregnant and the team had been strong. Times had now changed. He decided to approach it that way with his mind... and his brain began to calm again...

"Neena, ever since the camps shut down I've thought a lot about my place here at the school. I was so happy to return to the staff, to be back in the place where I belong." He paused and sighed, "But the camps showed me things that I couldn't get around. In the past, my motivation was simply to help me and my fiancee out, to not care about others, but the camp showed me how flawed I really was." A chin rub. "When I saw those people in the camp, mutant and humans alike, I realized that I needed to change my perspective. For me it's no longer about helping myself, but about helping others."

He smiled coyly and then jumped back in with a slight faked chuckle, "Sorry for the monologue, I'll cut the chase. I want to join the X-Men team. I know your numbers are down and your members are young, and I want to bring leadership to the group. I also want to help people in any way possible, people that truly need it, and the X-Men are a great way to do that." A bird started chirping endlessly above Zeke's right shoulder. He tried to ignore it and move on. But then he realized he had said all he needed to say about the matter, at least until she replied.

He relaxed his posture just a bit, and rolled his shoulders.

Neena remained very still as Zeke spoke. She could have fallen asleep if you judged by her lack of movement. But while she did indeed hear what he said, the bulk of her attention lay with his body language and his eyes.

He kept twitching. Not enough that a normal person would think unusual, and not the sort of twitching that automatically indicated nervousness. But he couldn't remain still, and as a trained observer, she noticed.

He seemed to be measuring his words when he spoke about how the Camps had influenced him, as if trying to find the appropriate wording. Perhaps he was trying to figure out what she wanted to hear? Then he switched, and bluntly asked about joining the Xmen, and why he felt he needed to.

While he waited for her to reply, he tensed again. His head flinched to the right, just a bit. Neena focused in, but all she could hear were the birds conversing with each other. After a second, he relaxed, and waited for her to reply.

"They are young, aren't they? What do you think they need the most help or training in?"

It wasn't an answer to his question at all. But she didn't know Zeke very well yet, and his answer would give her a bit more insight into the type of man he was.