((OOC: Neena and I will be posting a bit of an intro for Tric's arrival to catch her up and what's happened. Afterwards, we'll give a head's up for all those interested in joining the X-Men or a part of the X-Men to start entering the scene.))

Tricity placed her palm on the scanner next to the door, waiting for the ID to recognize her prints. The familiar electronic click sounded and the lock released a moment later. She hauled the baby bag on her shoulder once more and put her hip into the door, slowly pushing it open.

The room was still the same. Chairs surrounding the large table in the center of the room. All business. Ah yes, the coffee maker was still there. Tricity mentally turned the appliance on, setting the baby carrier at the head of the table before heading over to the enticing aroma.

It wasn't long before she had her cup of energy and patiently waited for Neena, as she sat on the table playing with Sevion.

As usual, Neena found herself running late to her meeting with Tricity. Jonathon had announced her arrival by bolting out of the Danger Room at top speed with loud, "Finally!" The white-eyed teacher would have loved to follow, but she'd been tied up in an exercise. Literally. The rest of the kids were excited as well, so class ended early anyway. After disentangling herself from several hundred yards of ivy vines, she'd headed out the door, all intentions set on greeting the Headmistress at the front door.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Fifteen minutes later found her skidding to a halt in front of the War Room door instead. Still dressed in her 'training outfit' of black jogging sweats, and hair pulled back in a tight ponytail, she paused just inside the door to catch her breath.

"Sorry!" she apologized. "I was headed to say hi, got stopped umpteen times!" She took a deep breath and let it out in a deep whoosh!.

Not on the verge of passing out now, she walked further into the room, holding her arms out for a tight hug.

"Welcome home!" she exclaimed. "Do you have any idea how much you've been missed, m'friend? Did you get any rest at all? Or did this little bugger keep ya hoppin' the whole time?"

She turned to the little boy playing on the table, and leaned down to eye-level. Pushing her glasses onto her head, and probably not out of grabbing range, she winked at the tiny tot, then crossed her eyes and stuck the tip of her tongue out comically.

Tricity gave a huge smile as Neena made her entrance. She returned the hug and plopped down to her chair and coffee once more, giggling just as Sevion did the same at Neena. "I got some rest, but this kid can be a handful." She tugged on her son's foot playfully. "Boy, does he like you."

Taking a huge sip of her coffee, she sighed and began the meeting. "So... I've been hearing a couple of troublesome things. Though know, I don't blame ANY thing on you. There can really be no blame to pass around for all the crazy things that happen around here." Tricity sighed again and tapped her finger to her temple. "Xavier popped into my head to give me a brief update, but I want to hear it from you and not a go-between."

"So..." She took another sip of coffee before pulling Sevion into her arms as he squeeled in excitement. "Tell me what's happened."

"I got some rest, but this kid can be a handful. Boy, does he like you."

Neena grinned, then at the little one. "I know I'm funny looking," she told him teasingly. "I can't help it. It's in the DNA."

"So... I've been hearing a couple of troublesome things."

She gave Tricity her attention, though still playing with the baby.

"Though know, I don't blame ANY thing on you. There can really be no blame to pass around for all the crazy things that happen around here."

While that statement might have worried or intimidated anyone else, the African woman merely chuckled. "Personally, I blame Leeyio," she replied, naming the Masaai version of Adam. "Since he's not around to defend himself, that's my story, and I'm sticking with it."

"Xavier popped into my head to give me a brief update, but I want to hear it from you and not a go-between."

"Fair enough," she nodded. She pulled up a chair and sat next to Tricity. "Let's see.... Um.... Let's start with just after you left."

She glanced at the ceiling, gathering events in proper order in her mind.

"Quite a bit of it is mundane and not really earth-shattering. Rebuilding went quickly, with very few hitches, as you can see. We've had an influx of new residents, and a few new students, including a girl with leeches in her body, a boy who can and does eat anything, a kid who's blood is radioactive, a light manipulator, a gargoyle, and a boy with fins and webbed hands and feet. A couple have mutations that could possibly prove dangerous, but so far there hasn't been any incident, so I'm not overly worried. The computer list and files are updated, so you can scan them whenever you need to. Oh! And I hired Raina as the new Music Teacher. She needed help with visa issues, and with her voice, it only seemed a logical solution."

"I did call a meeting of the Xmen just after you left, and let them know you were taking a brief hiatus. All of the Trainees were upgraded to full status, and a new Trainee joined us. You remember Silver Streak? From the Camps? I spent a session with him in the Danger Room, and I think he's going to be a real asset. Let's see.... we reintroduced everyone to each other and talked for a bit. Emerald and I got off on the wrong foot, I think, our views on justice and revenge being fairly different. I haven't seen her for a while, actually, and haven't had a chance to talk with her privately."

Neena frowned slightly, but continued on, playing with Sevion's fingers idly.

"We've made several new recruits. Let's see.... Sam is an ice manipulator, Garrett is a neural manipulator, and Ghost is an air elemental. There have been others expressing interest as well, but I haven't had a chance to get together with them. Speaking of those three....."

She sighed deeply.

"That was one major problem we've had. I can't prove it yet, but someone I think is one of Syn's flunkies invaded the Mansion and attacked Ghost. Garrett took the hit instead, and lost control of his powers. I sent Streak and Nika to KP to investigate, but it looks like another Haywire attack. No one was severely hurt, but the attack took everyone by surprise."

She paused, then added, "We really need to consider some other security options. We added hidden cameras and motion detectors into the estate privacy wall, and Jonathon's been monitoring them. But this guy is some kind of teleporter, so...." she shrugged helplessly.

"The kids themselves are a handful as it is. Teaching them how to control themselves is one thing. Protecting them from malicious intent is something entirely different. Garrett suggested some kind of commlink to help us keep track of each other. But I'm kind of at a loss for what else to add."

She grimaced slightly, and a bit comically, an expression little Sevion seemed to find amusing.

"So, how's that for a 'Welcome Home' speech? I know I'm forgetting something, too," she added.

Tricity listened as her colleague went into a quick overview of what was past and present for the mansion residents. She put faces to names as Neena described the infiltration.

"I swear, no matter how many damn cameras we put into this house, someone will always find a way around," she mumbled, biting her thumb nail absentmindedly. "We can never really be sure who's coming and going... All the X-Men should have a com link," she replied, rummaging around in the baby bag and pulling out the sleek looking cell phone device. "We'll need to pass these around to those who don't have them, including the teachers."

Tricity looked over at the coffee machine and mentally started it once more. She turned back again to Neena with a sigh and then a smile. "Don't know what I'd do without you." Sevion coo-ed at this and gave a little screech toward Neena. "He agrees."

The PA system suddenly crackled to life and Johnathon's voice echoed throughout the mansion. "All X-Men, trainees, and those that are interested in becoming a part of the team, please meet Miss Tipper and Miss Neena in the War Room for a manditory meeting immediately. This is an open call, so get your butts in there or..."

Tricity rolled her eyes at the speaker, cutting the connection before Johnathon could continue. "I swear sometimes that boy..." She smiled and got up to fill her coffee mug once again. "Well, let's reform the X-Men, shall we?"

((OOC: All that are interested may now post. The door is standing open and it's Neena, Tricity, and her baby at the head of the massive table that fills the room. There are chairs surrounding the table for people to sit. A sophisticated computer system covers one wall. Coffee maker, fridge, and table fill another. A couple of sofas line the other walls. Hence.. a place of business.))

Garrett had been working out in the Danger Room, trying desperately to get some tone back after alot of laying about, both reasonably in a hospital bed and otherwise, moping in his room. He felt a new sense of power and revitalization at the events that had occurred recently. He had brought himself back in balance, joined the team properly and cemented the bond with Maya permanently. So many reasons to feel good, even more so in light of how incredibly bad things had been not so long ago.

The announcement popped on as he was just going to attempt the balance beam. The sudden sound actually had made him lose his grip and bounce off the Danger Room floor with a thump. Tricity and Neena in the War Room, calling for the team and anyone interested to come down for a meeting. Now that was something to really get animated about. He grabbed the towel he had brought and headed out towards the meeting. He should have showered for such an occasion, but the chance to make the first impression overrode tact by a long shot.

He was keeping a good pace, halfheartedly chuckling as the children in the halls parted like the Red Sea at his sprinting. Some were dodging for safety, others out of fear of Pain Guy. Either way, as long as he made it in good time, the reasons were really irrelevant, though he did make sure not to bump into anyone. He was still a nice guy, supposed monster or not. He came into the hall and slid a bit, like Tom Cruise in Risky Business. He quickly tried to restrain and compose himself, though his anticipation would be more than apparent to the ladies and the...toddler? sitting on the table.

He slowed his pace and began a new wipe-down of sweat from the second sprint, slowing his breathing as best as he could and hanging the towel around his neck. He did a quick glance in both directions and then a satisfied smile appeared, finding himself indeed the first to arrive. " Hello, Ladies. Sorry for my appearance, but sweating isn't so conducive to being completely hairless." He opened the little fridge and pulled a crisp, cold water out, cracking the lid and downing about half of it in one fell gulp. He walked up to the two women and then , after a nice cooling sensation soothed his innards, spoke again, this time to Tricity.

" A pleasure to finally meet you, Tricity. I am Garrett Wills, new to the team. Hmm. I guess I need a codename, being in the War Room and all." He seemed to chew on his lip absently and then the bulb popped on upstairs. He looked up and winked at Neena." How about Seizure?"

Raina came scurrying behing Garrett a few feet away. She was very anxious about this meeting, the last time they had a meeting she didn't see eye to eye with most on the issue of justice and revenge. She hadn't been spending much time with the xmen on that account. She didn't feel like she could against was she thought was truley right and revenge just wasn't something in her books. She'd seen one side of herself like that and she didn't want to again.

"Seizure eh?" she smiled sneaking up behind him and nodding a hello to the others. "Well then, You can call me Rain Water" she grinned. "Nice to see you all!"

Shawn was standing on op of the mansion roof outside. He'd finally figured out why Neena like it so much, you could see everything that was going on and yet it was very peaceful. When he heard the announcement of the meeting in the War Room Streak couldn't help but hurry away. Maybe it's another mission. The one with Nika had been lots of fun. Streak rushed off the top of the mansion and down towards the main hallways so that he could get to the War Room.

There were plenty of people in his way so he couldn't get there as fast as he would have liked. Shawn had spent much time getting his powers back to where they were when before he'd gone to the camps. He was improving dramatically and had even figured out some other things that have helped him. The silver covered his body and he created wings, still unable to fly without them, he gave one powerful stroke with his arms and took off towards the ceiling. He could get up to a good speed flying around like this and he flew over the younger students, who stared up at him in awe as he streaked by. It was taking to long for him to navigate the hallways from the air; so, Streak landed. The wings disappeared and he focused on the ground. With a ripple the floor beneath him seemed to give way for him as he fell to the floor below.

Once on the shiny floor that was the hallway to the War Room he formed skates on his feet and headed straight for the meeting. This would be an interesting meting. He'd only met Tricity once and then hadn't seen her since. It would be interesting to see what she had in store for them. Skating into view of the War Room he saw Raina was already there and someone else that he couldn't see because whoever it was, was standing in front of Raina. He blew past Raina, and as he looked back saw Garret he tried stopping but that was unsuccessful. Streak was moving to fast to stop in time. "Whoa." he exclaimed as he fell and slid towards the other end of the room. The only thing that went throw Streak's mind at this point was that he was making a bad impression with Tricity. Fortunately he was able to say it aloud. "Great now they decide to wax the floors." He continued to slide and once again focused on going through the wall. Continuing to slide the wall rippled, like the floors had done earlier, and he went through it with ease and came out on the other side of the wall. It was another hallway that could be taken to the Danger Room or anything else down here that the xmen used.

Finally coming to a stop Streak stood up and brushed himself off. For a second time within a matter of a minute the wall rippled and Streak walked through it. Thoroughly embarrassed he decided to make the best of it. "Ta da." He said holding his arms out and walking back to the group. "Hi Neena, Garret, Raina. Hi Tricity. Nice to met you again. I'm Shawn. Or Silver Streak, or Streak for short. Whatever floats your boat." He said smiling and retracting the silver back to where it normally rested. He was now Shawn with a silver shirt and shorts.

Jeramya was just about to sit down at a computer in the library when the announcement went through the Mansion. He had been been going there for many hours day after day, getting up to speed with the world around him. His interest was peeked as he stood looking at the chair deciding whether he should, or could, go to the meeting. The X-Men was a subject he had looked into for hours on end before. 'War Room?' He thought it sounded ominous, though through his hours of reading, he had seen that Professor Xavier's X-Men had fought often with those who meant and did harm to humans and mutants alike.

With a deep breath, he began to make his way from the library towards the War Room, asking an upperclassman to point the way when he wasn't sure where to go. The younger students didn't seem to be scared of him anymore, but they still shied away from a walking, talking, breathing statue.

Jeramya kept a steady pace, not slow, but not rushed either. As he neared the room, he saw a silver man shoot out from the wall, turn around and walk into the wall he had just come from. It gave Jay a pause momentarily as he straightened slightly and raised an eyebrow. Blinking a few times before shrugging and continuing on his way. As he entered the final hallway, he stopped to satisfy a curiosity. Moving to the wall he reached up as if to lift himself up onto the wall, immediately he felt the wall start to give way under his claw-like fingers. Unlike stone or brick, which could support his weight, the wallpaper or sheet-rock, or whatever it was that made up the wall, began to rip, tear, and crumble as his fingers dug in slightly. He was as comfortable 'walking' on the walls and ceilings as he was on the ground, sometimes it felt more right, but he wasn't able to do it in here, at least not without destroying them as he went along.

Taking a deep breath before reaching the door, 'The worst they could have me do is leave.' With that in mind he moved with steady motion through the door. He saw Neena immediately and smiled at her. She was the first person he had met when he arrived, she had been nice and hadn't looked at him oddly as others had. She was kind and respectful then, and had always been the same to him and others that he observed. Miss. Tripper sat at the head of the table with a child. Jeramya respectfully kneeled on one knee with his head down when he saw her. It was her school, she was also the leader of this Mansion's X-Men, backed by Professor Xavier himself. It was proper to show respect to someone in her position. The three others in the room he knew their names, though he doubted any of them knew of him. The silver clothed man was Shawn, who like himself, enjoyed the roof of the Mansion, he was also the one who had shot out of the wall. Garrett and Raina he knew by name only, not having seen them often.

He didn't know how these things were done, so he was quite nervous. To keep from making any odd movements, he kept one hand gripping his upraised knee, while the other was in a fist on the ground, as if it was supporting his weight, his eyes were closed yet still focused on the ground in front of him as he waited for permission to speak and rise, or to be told to leave.

All X-Men, trainees, and those that are interested in becoming a part of the team, please meet Miss Tipper and Miss Neena in the War Room for a manditory meeting immediately. This is an open call, so get your butts in there or..."

Sam was on his way to the kitchen when he heard the call over the P.A. system. A sudden urge of excitement already was over him as he smiled and began to run towards the War Room. Icing his feet Sam jumped into the air and crated a small ice slide that only extended a foot in front of himself and a foot behind. Sliding Sam maneuvered around corners and low ceilings till he came in the elevator leading down. To excited to pay attention Sam slide right into the wall of the elevator. Sam blinked as he was looking up to the ceiling of the elevator. “Owww….” Sam’s head was ringing in pain as he tried to stand up. Sam stood and hit the down button as he leaned against the wall of the elevator as it started to descend.

The door opened as a second wind or a concussion came over Sam, his sudden headache had vanished completely as he made his way to the danger room. Sam inhaled and exhaled deeply as he was walking to the room he had only stumbled on by accident. ‘Deep breath, come on, nothing to be nervous about…’ Sam told himself, as he got closer to the door.

A sudden feeling he hadn’t had since he was a kid came upon him. As the door to the war room opened he walked in like a solider and saluted. Realizing what he was doing his face swelled up with blood for a second as he waved to the people in the room. He saw Neena, Tricity and Garret. Which surprised him because he didn’t really peg him for a hero, maybe a do gooder but that was about it.

Some other faces seemed familiar as well. There was the walking statute that he only had the pleasure of meeting once but it was interesting to say the least. Looking around Sam saw a red head he hit on in the park that had a similar power to him; the only difference was she had to sing to control it, which in his opinion required a lot of talent. Continuing shifting his gaze he saw his buddy Streak, Sam walked towards the table with a big grin on his face as he spoke introducing himself, “Sam, or if you prefer Cold Steel or Steel. I’m a cool guy.” Sam let out a small grin as he raised his arm to a corner of the room as an icy blue coffin like box created itself from thin air. The coffin opened to release an icy mist as one of his ice golems steeped out. The golem stood about nine feet tall and motionless for a second then it took two steps from the coffin and waved to Tricity and Neena.

Sam’s grin grew a bit more, as he was proud over the control he had over the golem. Sam tossed a wink to Streak thanking him again for his help in the danger room. Sam snapped his fingers as all the ice in the room scattered into tiny shards of icy dust and then into nothing. Sam nodded his head towards Tricity and said, “Nice to finally meet you.”

A light flickered, and the landscapes outside of the train's walls were smothered in a creamy darkness that Maximillian thought might have been tangible. Perhaps, if he were to extend his arm out into the sky, he'd be able to feel the black sky and then— A bump scattered his thoughts, as his head was hit violently against the window which it had been resting against. A questioning of how trains even had bumps caused him to question his safety, even though he'd been on trains like this many times before. The small compartment he had was roomy enough. It might not have been excessively first class, but he loved it for its privacy. It was near the end of the train, and since most of the people in the train were at the front, excluding a small group of teens who were messing around a few compartments behind him. His knees were curled tightly against himself, in a ball form, his feet resting on the plastic seats. There was another booth-seat identical to his across from him, but it was empty. The strangeness of the missing company seemed not to perturb him at any rate. After all, it was by train he'd traveled the first time he'd journeyed to the mansion. However, that was before all the recent commotions. After his run in with the Registration Act, and adventures with Ethan, Cold Steel, and the others, he'd made it back home. By home, the definition would be Everett,Oregon. After all, whoever would be able to guess when he'd had so many different self-declared homes. On the streets, in the underground-areas, in an old house, etc. A sense of melancholy had swamped over the young mutant as he stared out the window, up at the moon, who was over-watching him.

His pilgrimage home was less than wonderful. After all, his parents seemed surprised, if not confused, when he showed up on their doorstep. He couldn't say truthfully that they were upset that he was okay after all the news, but they didn't seem quite thrilled enough to do more than welcome him home and give him a place to live for the remainder of the time from then to now. It was especially beautiful of a moment when they asked him when he planned on leaving. Luckily enough for them, however, he did plan on leaving. Ever since Ethan had mentioned the X-Men again, Max had his mind set on rejoining. He'd heard the old mansion was back. He'd still feel guilty by taking up residence without having helped out, but who knows, maybe they'd have forgotten about his previous living there. He laughed audibly at the thought. This shattered the cold silence that had engulfed the back of the train, and an empty watched feeling surrounded him and made him feel uneasy. Getting a bit chilly, he bent down to his book bag on the ground, and pulled a flannel-patterned fleece blanket from it. It warmed him up quickly. His new jeans, and black hoodie with "Nightwish" on the front of it with dramatic font were completely covered by the material. Leaning his head against the window once more, he trusted a lack of bumps in the future, and drifted off to sleep.

The rise after that was quick and easy. The train stopped in the state needed, and he got off the train and met with a cab driver that had been holding a sign with his name on it. Since the destination of where he was going to be dropped off was already determined, Maximillian was able to pay him there. Others might have been more cautious, but like the train, this was the same driver that had dropped him off the first time. Luckily for Maximillian, the driver was perfectly fine with the mutant's lack of urges for conversation. They sat in silence for about an hour, if not more, before the car pulled up to the mansion grounds. Immediately, his mind fogged over, and he only thought of the attack that had occurred that night. The screaming, capturing of other mutants, and mutations on display frantically as each person tried to escape unscathed. Maximillian was one of the lucky ones, after all. As the car drove away, leaving him there, he wondered if the driver was hired by the mansion and was a mutant himself. He walked up to the main entrance, trying not to be paranoid about any little person, or big person for that matter, that looked his way. They're talking about me... He thought as a group of children maybe two years younger than him had huddle into a group, mumbling. His brown backpack was slung over his shoulder, and he walked into the large foyer-like room. Now what? He tried to remember what he had done the last time he had came here. Shrugging away the loss of what to do, he fished around into a pocket of his book bag, and found a key. It was a bit battered, but it wasn't broken. The old key to his room. He would have to see if it still worked. He couldn't remember whether his door was destroyed the night of the attack or not. There was no reason now stopping him from entering his old room.

Max didn't plan on going to any specific place first, but setting out to put his belongings in his room seemed a wondrous idea., but he was already up the stairs, going to his room. He remembered where it was well, and it seemed that they had left the room unoccupied for him when they'd learned of his return. He opened the door with ease, and shoved away the sickening stab of nostalgia that ran through him like liquid nitrogen. He set his bag onto the twin-sized bad, and sighed. He did, however, feel a stab of hunger, not nostalgia. Therefore, what was the sane thing to do, but to pilgrimage his way down to the old school's cafeteria?

(continued from this: Chilly Winds of Warmth )

Max had recently left Iron Mouth and the Kitchen, and had hurried back into the lobby-area, fearing that not signing in or something of the sort would cause some sort of penalization. Did he even need to check in, or was it not as close to a hotel as he believed? Something caught his ear, quite plainly.

All X-Men, trainees, and those that are interested in becoming a part of the team, please meet Miss Tipper and Miss Neena in the War Room for a mandatory meeting immediately. This is an open call, so get your butts in there or..."

At first, Max stood there waiting for the announcement to finish, but they seemed to have an incompetent person running said announcement, cause it didn't finish. Max was pretty clueless as to where the War Room was. How long had he been away, after all? He saw the group of children from before listen to the same announcement, and hurry off in a direction. He followed them, but was careful not to get to close. Who knew how tame they were. Nevertheless, he was rewarded indeed, as the War Room was not as far away as he had imagined, and he entered the room that seemed to be filled with people. Not too far away he'd glanced upon Cold Steel, surprised. He was the same man that had been involved in the incident with the FBI-like mutant cop guys, correct? The ones that pinned him down. They probably would have taken him to jail, or something like that, other than he had a clean slate, and was practically innocent. He wondered how Cold Steel ended up there, and wondered if Ethan was somewhere there too. A large amount of people surrounded him, but he suppressed his anxiety, keeping his power at its calming level, rather than that of a disorienting level.

Since she'd seen the headmistress earlier, Ghost was only waiting for the call. When it came she took her time, she didn't want to be the first one there. She didn't want to risk uncomfortable silence and scrutiny from the head mistress. Maya hummed and swished her arms taking her time as she navigated the bustling hallways. Everything was buzzing with the news of Ms. Tipper's return everywhere she went she felt whispers, air currents with the headmistress' name carried there.

Finally she made her way to the war room. For the very first time she stepped across the threshold. "Uhm... hello." With an uneasy smile she wiggled her fingers in a hello at Garrett and CS, the two she was most familiar with, before she stepped around the scary, kneeling... stone... guy... and edged around the... scary... ice... guy... and stood relatively close to Neena on the opposite side of the table from Garrett so that she could easily catch his eye if she wanted. Ghost nudged Sam and pointed to the ice thing. "Is that yours?" She paused from her whispers and looked over her shoulder at the ice man and his coffin and then back at Sam, who was the only ice man she knew. "... he's creepy."

Outside a low rumble could be heard. It slowly became louder. Out of the window an old black Dodge Charger could be seen pulling into the garage. Presently the heavy thumps of boots walking across the halls could be heard. Tricity knew who this was. She smiled in anticipation and those that knew who it was saw her smile and knew exactly why. Orion's right hand smoked a little and his hair smoothed out and his beard shrunk and dissapeared. Now looking much better he pushed open the war room door and was a bit startled to see everyone in the room. His large frame and broad shoulders filled the doorway and he seemed to be a little taller. Though this was not true, one would swear that it was true. His eyes immediatly fell on Tricity and a smile so broad crested his face it looked as though it threatened to tear it in half. His smile withdrew to a normal size as he walked over to Tricity's side. He kissed her deeply once and as his mouth passed her ear on the way back up he whispered to her. "Still as beautiful as ever." his beefy hand outstretched toward the baby. The very tip of his finger smoked just a smidge and Sevion giggled and batted at it with his little hands. A low rumble issued forth from Orion's chest and his grin stayed. Tricity knew this was his sigh of contentment. As was a habit of his his eyes caught everyone staring at them and his grin faded and brow furrowed and he raised his head. "So, whats been happening here?" he asked. His deep voice reverberated off the walls . He rested his hand on her shoulder and allowed it to smoke a little, this he knew relaxed Tric a little and any aches and pains she may have had melted away. There he stood still as a statue minus his eyes which methodically worked their way from one person to another cataloguing everything he could. He found many of these people showed the same traits a new soldier who had never seen combat beore would show just before engaging the enemy, so to speak. Noting this he gently squeezed his smoking hand and began to masage her shoulder as well and awaited for the meeting to begin. He noted her almost cold shoulder attitude and assumed it wasdue to his absence, again. He figured hed apologize for it later, and try to make up for it.

(OOC: Sorry I was a little confused, so I hope this makes sense for everyone.)

Neena nodded at the cellphone idea. She was fairly sure the teachers all had them, but not the Xmen.

"If we don't have enough, I think Chip might be able to duplicate enough of them."

In reply to Trcity's compliment, she remarked, "Probably remain sane," chuckled, and continued to tickle the little boy.

"All X-Men, trainees, and those that are interested in becoming a part of the team, please meet Miss Tipper and Miss Neena in the War Room for a manditory meeting immediately. This is an open call, so get your butts in there or..."

Neena grumbled at the same time as Tricity, though for different reasons. "I told him I hate that 'Miss' nonsense...."

The announcement was a catalyst; within minutes people began arriving, starting with Garrett and Raina. Or Seizure and Rain Water, as they said. Neena waved at them both, and cheerily returned their greetings.

Silver Streak came next, in an unusually dramatic way. Neena felt like she was in a Keystone Cops rerun as she watched the silver man enter with a slide, hit the far wall, go through it, then come back in the same way.

Jeramya's entered next, and for a moment she was confused by his kneeling action. Thinking it was possibly a custom from the centuries he'd lived in before, she was about to address it when Sam entered the room, and also made a dramatic introduction. She shivered at the sight of the ice golem, and moved away, grimacing.

"Sorry," she apologized to him. "Neat trick, but you know how I feel about the cold."

She noticed another youth slip in, a brown-eyed boy she'd never met or seen before. And right behind him came Ghost, and Neena grinned. Finally making her way to Jeramya, she greeted them both at the same time.

"This is Ghost, and Jeramya," she introduced them to Tricity, and pushed them both to move further into the room. "Ghost is one of the new Trainees, and Jeramya is our resident stone shifter."

She felt someone tap her shoulder, and turned to see the DocProf standing behind her in the doorway. She snickered.

"So you're an Xman now, eh Doc?"

"Hardly," was the good-natured, if a bit monotone reply. "But it is my job to make sure this team remains fit for duty." She nodded, and moved aside so he could make his way to Tricity's side. He stood behind the Headmistress, surveying those gathered.

Feeling the presence of someone behind her, and someone rather tall, Neena bent backwards a bit. She found herself looking up at a man she hadn't seen before. His greeting indicated he knew Tricity, as well as the DocProf.

"Is there a reason everyone is staring at me?" the man asked. Neena couldn't help herself; she chuckled.

"Doesn't everyone stare at tall people at first?" She held out her hand, totally unintimidated, as usual. "I'm Neena. Nice to meet you...." She let her words trail off so he could fill in his name.

Then she began turning in a circle, checking to see who was missing of the team. She didn't see Nika or Raven Fire, or Calley, nor some of the older team members either. Come to think of it, other than Tricity, Raina, and Silver Streak, Neena didn't see any of the old team yet.

((ooc: Continued from "Back Again...".))

Calley was still Kabal. And this, my friends, was a fact.

But he'd held his own against Hunter Antonescu in a fight to the death. And without anyone's help but his own, he'd put an end to a year of being that man's little pet spy. Granted that he was still a spy. But he was his own spy. And he didn't see much need for the Not-So-Scary Boss Man to know every single detail about the current X-Men team, or its newest recruits, or any of their powers or personalities or names. The Kabal hadn't fought against them yet, and probably wouldn't anytime soon. And if he looked at it in terms of his own spying viability, it didn't make any sense to share that information--if the rest of the Kabal seemed to know everything about the X-fools, then it would be obvious there was a spy on the team. No, information about the X's was surprisingly safe with him, right now.

The first time he'd ever stepped foot in the Mansion had been as a cat, and the first thing he'd ever done was spy on the War Room. Like Ghost and Cold Steel, he'd met Tricity out on the lawn today--he'd known this meeting was coming. He'd even done the teammately thing, and both given a call to Luke to make sure he knew about the meeting, and put Jonathon on watch at the gate to let the man in. Then he'd gone to his room afterwards. Sat down. And given a good ten-minute-long stare at the minutes passing on his clock before he'd come down, after that announcement. His first instinct had been to be the first to arrive. There were always those flashy people who would show up, powers blazing--and my, but weren't those little display so interesting. But he wasn't passing that information on. And he wasn't planning to fight them himself. So there was no need for him to even know it. He'd fought his information-hording instincts for ten minutes. Without knowing it, he'd missed a roller skating silver man going through a wall, a gargoyle bowing, a one-man ice-slide, and an oddly intimidating doorway lurker with a hand that made Smokey the Bear cringe in his sleep. He didn't know that he'd missed them, but he was strangely prideful about having missed them.

So at twelve minutes past the announcement, a scrawny Italian boy who'd been holding his back a whole lot straighter this past month padded quietly into the War Room on typically bare feet. He was well-dressed, as usual of late: a pair of loose khaki pants whose pockets were inhabited by his hands, and a black dress shirt whose shoulders were inhabited by an equally black kitten who was draped with half-lidded eyes across his shoulders. He couldn't resist looking at everyone there. But it was perfectly appropriate to give each of your teammates an amiable nod.

Tricity and her baby. He'd met them already, on the front lawn. A nod, and a welcome-back-again smile.

Strange man standing next to them, rubbing the headmistress' shoulders like he was a little too familiar with her--with a smoking hand, no less. Fire manipulator? An absent father, who was responsible for 'Ms Tricity' not being 'Mrs Tricity'? Through the kitten's lazy breaths, he knew that the man's smell was one he'd never run into before, in the Mansion or elsewhere. A nod, with a curious head tilt, from both the Italian boy and the kitten.

Raina. A woman he didn't know well, but had glimpsed around. Her smell was very familiar, with a slight tang to it that made the kitten lazily raise its nose in the air, breathing deeply. Ummm, that was edible. A nod, and a half-grin her way.

Silver Streak and Cold Steel. Again, not people he knew well. He'd seen a demonstration of Cold Steel's powers out on the lawn today. Silver Streak had a tendency to show his off around the Mansion with a certain regularity that let Calley know he'd picked his name for a reason; he'd seen him at the last War Room meeting, but hadn't really had the chance to talk with him. A nod to the both of them, with a certain I-don't-know-you, but-you-seem-cool-enough openness to his blue eyes.

Ted, Nika, Sentinel, Raven Fire, General Shield--it seemed like all the people he knew, all the ones he'd actually joined the team with, were absent. That was a strange feeling. And of all people, the DocProf was here. Was he an X-Men now? Heh.

A Gargoyle. It was very Gargoyled. A surprised blink; even the kitten fully opened one of its eyes. A yawn from the kitten, and a nod from the teen. "Cool," he couldn't help but say, as he made his way further into the room. Was that his normal appearance, or just one of those fun power shows Calley had tried to miss?

Here was another teen Calley didn't know--he looked younger than Calley, but he was an inch taller. Brown eyes. Hair that was as standard as standard can be, for a group of mutant teens; so standard, in fact, it barely seemed to have a color. Scrawny like Calley but, unlike Calley, there's wasn't a hint of wiry muscle to the thinness. No sign of his mutation. Unfamiliar smell--a new arrival? Another candidate for Tricity's baby's daddy? ...He hoped not. A nod, and a repressed laugh for that last thought that made his shoulders shake the slightest bit and caused the kitten to dig its claws in through his shirt in an annoyed grasp at balance.

Here was Garret, the Pain Guy. Calley stopped next to him. "Hey," he greeted simply. "Thanks for that help, before. It... it came in useful." The kitten licked one paw, and slid it behind an ear. "You mind if I sit next to you?"

It was a good spot. First off, there were two unclaimed seats--he could grab one, and easily keep up his 'good teammate' role by saving Luke a seat. He hadn't heard the details about Luke's joining of the team... but the idea that he had senority over the older man made him feel a little like a role-model on the inside. He could totally teach the man all he knew about the X-Men and the Order and... err, maybe not about the Kabal. Across the table was Ghost, a young woman he'd met both out on the lawn and in an alleyway, before Registration. Granted that she probably only pegged one of those meetings to him, but that was fine. He gave her a little fancy-seeing-you-here wave.

And next to Ghost was Neena. Who was awesome. He gave an honest grin at her. The kitten gave a dishonest look in a completely different direction, though a quiet purr started up in its chest. "Hi, Neena. Umm, so, I was thinking about codenames for missions, and stuff. I think I'd like to be Milieu, if that's not a problem. It isn't all that close to my power... but that might almost be good, right?" It was about as close to his power as the name 'Ouroboros' was to a certain attack form of his. It followed the same Calley-logic.

Milieu--the background; the million little and big things about your environment, both noticed and unnoticed. The kitten continued its purr. To the handful of heartworms in its chest, it felt like a strange sort of massage. The heartworms in Calley's human-self were a little jealous. The mouse curled up in his pocket, in the cup of one palm, remained as unimpressed as the twelve-inch-long viper curled out of sight around his right ankle, under his loose khaki pants. Hypnale hypnale, the smallest of the pit vipers. Infrared vision: the novelty had yet to wear off. He really needed to get a working bat form, too--echolocation was sounding like it could be a blast.

Calley was an X-Men Trainee. And this, friends, was also a fact, right along with his Kabal membership, and occasional Sanctuary wanderings. There was plenty of him to go around. That he didn't see any particular conflict of interest in this situation was just another part of his Calley-logic. And who else's logic could he possibly be asked to use?