It wasn't like Kaz to second guess himself or feel apprehensive. But, considering his recent past and where he stood, it wasn't such an odd thing.

He hadn't planned on making his way towards the massive golden doors. In fact, he had been walking in the opposite direction from where he stood now. Not with any real purpose, just wandering and thinking. Kaz knew he'd been doing too much of that lately, he was beginning to have headaches.

A scaled head rubbed against his cheek, pulling him out of his stupor. Demi. His ever present bundle of scales, draped across his shoulders lazily. Kaz shook his head slightly before looking into Demi's eyes. He still felt apprehensive, though, not as much. Had he really been feeling that way, or was Demi? Or both? As if on cue, he felt a wave of mild confusion roll over him.

<That settles it.> He had been feeling apprehensive, and Demi just confused. Demi opened his maw as wide as he could, as he let out a long, drawn-out yawn. The little dragon began to make soft clicking sounds, as he inclined his head towards the golden doors. Kaz sighed, "Alright I get it, I get it." He scratched the top of Demi's head before he pushed the large golden doors open.

He wasn't surprised to see Lisa sitting at the desk ahead of him. She rarely seemed to be anywhere else, at least from what he could remember. Kaz walked up to the desk. "Is anyone home at the moment," He could have been referring to anyone, but he clarified it quickly. "Or are they out causing a ruckus?"

>Why in the world would you want to buy a car? New York is a sardine can.<

"Not if you know how to navigate the right way."

>Navigate? You mean play bumper cars?<

"Maybe. Sounds like fun."

>So does bungee jumping. So what's your point?<

Amp shook her head and glanced ceiling-ward. She continued shuffling through the packet of papers in her hand. Each page consisted of a picture of a vehicle, all of its relevant information, and prices. Vibe followed her through the hallways, looking through her own catalog filled, more predictably, with clothes, shoes and jewelry.

The pair made their way up the stairs toward the main lobby. They weren't actually headed out to shop, for once, but rather to see what trouble they could get into. Life had become a bit boring as of late. It was time to shake things up a bit. While Isabel enjoyed playing with the Badges, the Twin preferred to see how much mischief they could get into before they arrived.

The pair reached the top of the stairs, and rounded the corner into the foyer, just in time to hear a familiar voice.

"Is anyone home at the moment, or are they out causing a ruckus?"

Lisa opened her mouth to answer. Instead a simultaneous exclamation came from behind her desk.

" "Kaz!!" "[/i]

Lisa cocked one eyebrow, as if to say, 'Does that answer your question?', then went back to whatever she'd been doing.

The copper-headed duo hurried up to their friend, but skidded to a halt several feet away, Vibe behind her sister, chin just above Amp's shoulder. Both wore a wary and incredulous expression. Amp pointed, but they both chorused aloud.

"What is that thing??"[/color]

Kaz hadn't even hear the pair walking towards the foyer, so when they called his name he looked up with a pleasantly surprised look. He caught Lisa's expression, to which he gave a half chuckle and a smirk. Before he had a chance to say a word to the girls, they stopped several feet away from him, which confused him for a moment.

"What is that thing??" They asked in unison as Amp pointed to Kaz's shoulder. Demi seemed to catch on before Kaz did. The little guy lifted himself off of Kaz's shoulders, rested his forearms and head on Kaz's, and stretched his wings. "Ahh, yeah, him. This is Demi. He's harmless...mostly. Kinda like a very independent and intelligent cat." Demi gave a little snort, Kaz could feel that the comparison was an insult to Demi.

Kaz looked up just slightly, "I guess you could say he's my pet....kinda. He won't bite." Just as he finished his sentence, he realized what he noticed was off. He hadn't heard one voice, but two. Almost identical in sound, just slightly out of sync with each other. Not wanting the girls to feel unnerved, Kaz tapped Demi's nose and pointed to the ceiling. Demi gave a few low, quick clicks and headed towards the wall, to which he climbed until he reached a rafter to lay atop.

"Long time, no see. How've you two been?" He motioned for them to come closer, "And what did I interrupt?"

"Ahh, yeah, him. This is Demi. He's harmless...mostly. Kinda like a very independent and intelligent cat."

The girls watched the little creature warily as it stretched out its wings. Especially Vibe. She didn't like animals. She really didn't like cats, and comparing that thing to a cat wasn't winning it any favor in her eyes.

"I guess you could say he's my pet....kinda. He won't bite."

"Huh," was the most the longer-haired twin would say about it.

They both watched the reptilish creature crawl up the wall. They moved sideways to avoid standing under its new perch, not bothering to hide their suspicion.

"Long time, no see. How've you two been? And what did I interrupt?"

Satisfied that they were out of striking range, Amp and Vibe moved to give Kaz a hug, one on either side.

" "We're good," " they chorused. Then Amp continued, pouting, "And you haven't missed a thing. It's boring around here. Buncha people coming and going, but nobody worth torturing."

Vibe shook her head. "Ignore her. She just sore because the new bloods are all busy. We were just about to go out and have some fun in the city instead." She reached up and traced the line of one of the scars on his face, and snickered. "Looks like you've had your own fun, without us. How rude is that?"

"Very," Amp agreed, grinning.

When the twins came over and gave Kaz a hug, he returned the hugs with a slight squeeze added in. He chuckled as they spoke in chorus. "I'm glad to hear that." Kaz looked at Amp as she spoke with mock shock on his face. "Boring. Here? I never would have that was possible."

"Ignore her."

<Yup she's deffinantly talking with her own voice...> "I'm not sure that'd be good for my health." Kaz said with a slight laugh. "She just sore because the new bloods are all busy. We were just about to go out and have some fun in the city instead." Before Kaz could respond, Vibe started to trace of of the scars on his face.

"Oh yes...a lot of fun. I just wish I could remember it." He said half sarcastically. "Abyss told me y'all had some noobs around here. I guess they're not too fun then huh. Just a boring place without me here." He shook his head slightly while laughing. "So what sort of fun were ya thinking of?"

"I'm not sure that'd be good for my health."

Amp smirk, then stuck her tongue out at her sister childishly.

"Oh yes...a lot of fun. I just wish I could remember it. Abyss told me y'all had some noobs around here. I guess they're not too fun then huh. Just a boring place without me here."

"Don't flatter yourself." Vibe hrrmphed, and crossed her arms.

Truth be told, of the two of them, she'd missed him the most. She was over the crush, and had moved on to him being a big brother, like Abyss. And, naturally, big brothers were in existence to be tortured mercilessly by their little sisters.

"So what sort of fun were ya thinking of?"

" "The destructive kind." " Amp added. "What other kind is there?"

Vibe twirled a lock of her copper hair around on finger in a bored manner. "No kidding. Property damage, mind warping, cause a bit of physical pain. You know." She grinned wolfishly. "Wanna join?"

Amp stuck her tongue out at Vibe. Vibe crossed her arms and knocked Kaz down a few notches, playfully. Kaz couldn't help but laugh silently to himself. Demi had a different idea, as he made small hissing and clicking sound from above, imitating the good mood and laughter Kaz felt.

Kaz rolled his eyes at the girls as they explained their plan for fun. Sighing, "I should have known. Still a couple of little troublemakers." He shook his head and chuckled. "It's good to see you two," <Together,> He thought but didn't dare say, "again." He didn't know how the camp had effected the girls or how things had gone afterwards. He'd keep comments and questions like that to himself, so he wouldn't accidentally open wounds.

He was just as curious to find out how Vibe was 'talking'. Though again, he wouldn't say anything, as it might be a touchy subject, not to mention it was probably rude.

Kaz nodded slightly. "Sure I'll join ya. I could go for some entertainment."

The girls reacted to the little reptile’s hissing laughter by dodging away.

”You sure he won’t bite?” Vibe asked. Eyes on the little creature, she forgot to move her mouth along with the words coming from her choker.

"I should have known. Still a couple of little troublemakers."

”You were expecting something different?” Amp shook her head. ”Not in this world.” Her statement came out slightly acidic, a hint of malice shining through.

"It's good to see you two again. Sure I'll join ya. I could go for some entertainment."

” “Great! Let’s go!” “ Like kids, each of the girls took one of Kaz’s arms and tugged him toward the giant golden doors. Vibe glanced backwards and up, shoulders hunched slightly in anticipation of his ‘pet’ flying down to join them.

Outside, the began walking, chatting as they did. Actually, Vibe did most of the talking, while Amp simply watched and listened. Her eyes roved the sidewalks, taking in the various people passing by.

”You know, I’m still mad at you for disappearing without an explanation,” Vibe accused him. ”Not even phone number! You could have at least left that. What, didja think we were gonna stalk you or something?” She held out her phone, prompting him fix such a grievous error.

Then, more kindly, she asked, "You surviving all right?"

Both the girls shied away at Demi's laughter, Kaz shook his head slightly. "You sure he won't bite?" Nodding Kaz rubbed Vibe's shoulder gently, in an attempt to calm her. "Yes I'm sure....Unless you invite him too."

Kaz caught on to Amp's tone easily and held up his hand in mock-defense. "Woah...t'was a compliment my dear Amp. A compliment. Don't melt my face." Kaz could feel Demi laughing at him, feel that he liked Amp. Why? He wasn't sure, the little thing was still a bit of a mystery to him.

Just as soon as he agreed to go along with the twins, they began to pull him forward, though he didn't struggle against them at all. He couldn't help but notice how Vibe was shying away from Demi, hunching her shoulders as if to make herself a smaller target for him. As she looked up at him, she would see Demi leering at her, his maw slightly open showing the tips of his teeth, his form of a smile.

Kaz recognized the emotions Demi shared with him. How he enjoyed making Vibe feel uncomfortable, a sickly pleasure in it. Small but powerful in it's own way. It was a seductive pleasure, Kaz found himself wanting to feel it himself. It made him wonder whether Demi had taken more from him than just part of his DNA. The little terror knew better than to follow Kaz and the girls though, as much as he'd like to mess with Vibe some more.

It didn't take long after they had left Sanctuary for Vibe to bring up the subject of him leaving. He knew it would happen eventually. He listened to her words and waited till she was done. "If it was you two stalking me, I don't think I'd have a problem with it." He chuckled and gave Vibe a wink. "Abyss has always had my cell number, Syn too I believe. I'm surprised you didn't think to ask him." Kaz took Vibe's phone and put in his number before handing it back. "Before you ask why I left...I don't really have an answer. Not one that I'm clear on myself at least."

"You surviving all right?"

He wasn't sure how to answer that. He wasn't dying, he was physically fine, he was healthy. It would be obvious by his short silence he was thinking of how to answer. But answer he did, in a simple way, "Yup, just a bit lost." He smiled at Vibe to alleviate any worry.

Moving on the twins, a bit quickly perhaps, "What about you two?"

"Yes I'm sure....Unless you invite him too."

Vibe gave Kaz a a sideways, narrow-eyed glance that obviously said, 'Yeah right'.

"Woah...t'was a compliment my dear Amp. A compliment. Don't melt my face."

"I know." The shorter-haired twin smirked, and went back to her people-watching.

"If it was you two stalking me, I don't think I'd have a problem with it. Abyss has always had my cell number, Syn too I believe. I'm surprised you didn't think to ask him."

"We shouldn't have had to ask," Vibe retorted, accepting her cellphone back.

"Before you ask why I left...I don't really have an answer. Not one that I'm clear on myself at least."

"Oh?" It never really crossed her mind to ask why Kaz had left. The longer-haired twin had assumed it was because of his girlfriend at the time. She'd been pretty jealous about it, too, until she got to know Nicki a bit better during Registration. Finding out that he wasn't sure why he'd left came as a surprise.

"Yup, just a bit lost."

"Lost?" Vibe frowned in confusion. But before she could ask what he meant, he flipped back to her with another question of his own.

"What about you two?"

Vibe pursed her mouth to answer, but Amp cut in. "We're fabulous, as always," she said, grinning impishly. "And about to get even better. Check it."

The petite redhead pushed through a crowd of people headed into a subway tunnel and made her way down. She paused just before the token booth to wait for her sister and Kaz. Once they caught up, she smirked, and placed her hands on her hips. The ground rumbled a bit beneath their feet. Assuming it to be one of the trains, most of the subway-goers ignored the noise at first.

Until the concrete began cracking underfoot. Amp pointed, down the stairs, and a wave of buckling ground followed her gesture. The barristers were knocked off of their foundations, and the crowd split apart, fearing an earthquake collapsing the tunnel.

With a devilish sneer, Amp sat on the banister and slid down to the next floor. She looked around in a bored manner, trying to spot some mischief to get into.

Kaz was wondering if he'd been away to long. "We shouldn't have had to ask," It was true what Vibe said. Was it a statement? Was she upset with him? Was she teasing or messing with him? He was unsure, there had been a point where he didn't question it, he just knew.

"Oh?"
"Lost?"

Vibe's one word response questions gave Kaz pause momentarily. Maybe she expected him to elaborate. He hadn't given time for that. If she wanted, he'd talk about it later, but not out and about like this. Kaz was slightly surprised when Amp answered his question. She'd be quiet for the most part. From his memory, she wasn't this quiet. <Maybe something happened in the camps...>

He almost started feeling bad for the girl. Almost. That almost lasted about as long as it took Amp to crack the cement they were standing on. His worry flew out the window. Kaz smirked at the chaos she was creating. Hadn't the twins done something similar when he first met them? Amp seemed to have done this on her own, without Vibe's help. Maybe she did help and he just hadn't noticed. They were the same girls he had known, but they had both changed a bit. <Change is the only constant in life.> He thought to himself.

Kaz looked to Vibe, "That's one hell of an entrance. Kinda makes ya feel important." He couldn't keep the smirk from his face. "You two haven't been cooped up in Sanc have you?" He took a few steps downward before half turning and holding his hand out to Vibe, "Shall we? Your sister looks bored.

"That's one hell of an entrance. Kinda makes ya feel important."

Vibe rolled her eyes at her sister. >Show off,< she remarked silently. Amp turned and stuck her tongue out, before returning to her search.

"You two haven't been cooped up in Sanc have you?"

She shrugged. "Not really. But there hasn't been much time for fun lately."

"Shall we? Your sister looks bored."

"Nah," she retorted as she took the outstretched hand. "If she was bored, she'd have walked out in the middle of rush hour traffic. We're just having some fun."

Reaching the platform below, Vibe matched her sister's roving glance. While the majority of the subway-goers had fled the area, she could feel the approach of another train. She grinned at Kaz.

"Ever gotten lost on the subway before? Its a blast!"

"Incoming! Amp alerted at the same time, and moved off to the side.

"Uh, might want to plug your ears a bit. You can read lips, right?" was all of the warning Vibe gave Kaz as the train ground to a stop, and opened its doors. Standing by the head of the vehicle when it stopped, Vibe thrust her hand out, sending out a concentrated stream of vibrations, crafted into an audible, haunting melody.

"Everyone freeze," Amp commanded, amplifying her voice without shouting. It appeared that everyone was either human, or mutants with no resistance to mental molding, for they all obeyed instantly, even the subway driver. The petite redhead smirked. "Excellent."

She began wandering among the crowd, while Vibe moved forward to the conductor's booth. It appeared the train's route would take them right under Times Square.

"If I tapped your shoulder, hop back on the train, front car," Amp announced. "If not, get out of here." A group of about twenty returned to the vehicle, while the others began filing out. Amp waved to Kaz.

"Hurry up! Next train'll be coming soon!"

Once he was aboard and the doors hissed closed, Vibe told the driver to get moving, and not to stop at any more station until he was told to. Then she returned to the cabin. Picking one of the men, she ordered him to give her his phone and wallet, then to sit.

"So," she asked Kaz, and perched on the hypnotized man's lap, "any place particular you want to head?"

Amp took a similar seat, ordering the passengers to form a line, and begin handing over their phones, wallets, check books, and dayplanners. The hypno-song continued to fill the car with a steady thrum.

Amp turned and stuck her tongue out at Vibe. Kaz figured Vibe must have said something smart to her. All he could do was smile.

"If she was bored, she'd have walked out in the middle of rush hour traffic. We're just having some fun."

"Oh? That'd be a sight to see. What kind of mayhem would that create?" He asked more to himself, "Or have you two done that already?"

Kaz caught Vibe's smile as they stood on the waiting platform. <Uh-oh.>

"Ever gotten lost on the subway before? Its a blast!"

Kaz began to answer her when he heard Amp 'Incoming' alert. "Uh, might want to plug your ears a bit. You can read lips, right?" He only had time to raise an eyebrow before he heard a tune that seemed to come from everywhere at once. It wasn't loud, but to his sensitive ears, he heard every bit of it, every low and high tone, as clearly as if it was happening inside his head.

There was more to it than just the tune. It was something that took his mind a few long seconds to recognize. It felt the same as when Eldwyn messed around in his mind so long ago. By the time he realized this, he was already caught by it. When Amp commanded them to freeze, he did, but not completely. He felt sluggish, his movements probably were. He saw Vibe head into the train and began to follow, albeit slowly.

Amp's next command he was able to push away, though the tug to leave the area was almost overpowering. He had stood in place conflicted, unmoving. "Hurry up! Next train'll be coming soon!" Amp had aimed that at him, and he knew it. His body sprinted toward the train door just before the doors shut.

Amp began the 'willful' pilfering of the 20 or so passengers in the train-car. The tune was still going through the area. "So, any place particular you want to head?" Vibe asked.

"No where in particular." He said as he began to 'tune out' the tune. Kaz bit the inside of his cheek enough to draw blood. He felt the pain and focused on that instead of the tune. He found a seat next to Vibe. "I'm just along for the ride."

Finally the tune in his head was under control. "I see you girls have a few new tricks." He put his hand to his head, he was feeling the beginnings of a headache. "That last one was a doosy."

"No where in particular. I'm just along for the ride."

The overall dullness in Kaz's voice made Vibe glance up. He had a pained look on his face, and she briefly wondered if her song hurt his ears. She remembered his hearing was quite keen.

"I see you girls have a few new tricks. That last one was a doosy."

Ah! So it hurt his mind, not his ears. She did her best not to laugh at him, though a smile did make an appearance.

"I tried to warn you." She narrowed her eyes slightly in concentration. It took more focus and thought to deliberately keep the melody from reaching his ears, but it was possible. She couldn't multitask as well, however, and had to scale her activities down to pilfering the simple cash and credit.

She tossed the phone to Amp, who traded for several wallets.

"Not one for mind games, huh?" Amp remarked passively. "Shame."

"Yeah, we've learned a few things," Vibe answered Kaz's remark. "Glad you like them. Got anything of your own, since we're playing Show'n'Tell?" she asked.

In the meantime, not being as limited as her sister, the shorter-haired twin began messing with their passengers in a more 'fun' way. She motioned one of the older men to her side.

"Name."

"Phineas Trinke."

"Ya married?"

"Yes."

She handed the phone back. "Go call your wife. Tell you want a divorce. Wait!" She motioned to a college-aged girl. "Name."

"LaDrina Donnely."

She turned back toward the man. "Tell your wife you've been cheating on her with LaDrina Donnely. Then go make out with her in the corner." She motioned at the girl. "You, too."

The pair obeyed, and Amp moved onto the next person, a crisply dressed businessman, and started rifling through his PalmPilot. "Jordan Ashfield. Mmm! Lunch with the boss at two. Discuss promotion, huh? Looks like you're gonna need a new job, Jordie Babe." She began typing out a text message to send to the listed cellphone number.

"I tried to warn you."

"I know you did girlie." Kaz nearly let out a sigh of relief as Vibe focused the sound away from his head. "I might have had a better chance if it didn't go through my ears to my brain." He chuckled slightly. "Thanks."

"Not one for mind games, huh? Shame." Amp remarked seemingly offhand. "I don't mind them, but not the messing around in my head kind." He answered in the same way.

"Yeah, we've learned a few things," Vibe answered Kaz's remark. "Glad you like them. Got anything of your own, since we're playing Show'n'Tell?" she asked.

Kaz thought about that for a moment, "Hmm...Maybe. You've been looking at a change this whole time." Kaz wondered if that would get their minds to start questioning what they've seen or haven't seen so far. In preparation and so they would get the full effect, Kaz took his over-shirt off and tied it around his waist. Cracking his knuckles and his neck, he balled his hands into fists and crossed his arms in front of him mid-forearm while looking at the ground with his eyes shut.

He would try to slow the process as much as he could, it normally took less than a second to make the shift.

Taking a deep breath in, his skin began to darken: from his pale color to an ashy gray to a deep blue with red undertones to give him a deep royal purple color close to obsidian. His skin visibly thickened to nearly triple it's original thickness. The muscles of his body grew and became more dense, pressing against his skin to the point you could see every muscle clearly defined also keeping him from becoming too bulky. His rib cage tightened up towards the bottom, compressing his torso to make him thinner, lighter for more speed. His hair instantly took on a darker shade until it reached a color so dark it seemed to drink the light around it allowing none to give it color. Locks of hair coiled together so tightly they became solid 'quills' sticking up from his head in various lengths, anywhere from three to eight inches. His maxilla and mandible both widened and elongated slightly as he developed a stunted maw filled with extremely sharp teeth. The white of his eyes became black as his irises and pupils became crimson red with no visible distinction between the two.

He let out his deep breath slowly. As he raised his head he opened his eyes and found a target. A healthy looking man standing off to the side. Pulling his fist back slightly, Kaz punched out toward the man. Kaz's hand shimmered slightly for a moment, the shimmer continued through the air before hitting the man square in the chest. As he was hit he lifted off the ground and was thrown back twice his height before hitting the back of the train car and slumping to the ground.

Smirking, "How's that for Show'n'Tell?"