"Man that really would have come in handy back in the da- yyyy, eh... I mean... eh. Yeah... "
Jewel blinked at the sudden change, then smirked, but didn't comment on it. She'd always used her powers to create things - first beautiful things, later on useful things. But she was well aware of the fact that from many others' point of view her ability seemed like a most effective tool to getting filthy rich. Or making a living in a cruel anti-mutant world. She experienced it, and she still had to meet a parole officer every week.
Saphirus looked like someone with much less luck than her. She wondered if he had a home.
"Jewel... That's a really nice name... I like it."
"Thank you." she smiled, finishing off her coffee.
"Y'know, I had the feeling that you were from down south... Though I guess the accent was a dead giveaway... I've never left the state, myself... The change in temperature must have been pretty bad... Makes me even more sorry that I stumbled on in and made you come outside...Sorry, by the way."
She shook her head.
"Never mind. Seriously. Anyone else here would have done the same. Not many people walk in here just for the fun of it... so you're from around here, huh? Just found out about your powers, or just found out about the school?..."
Suddenly, another thought occurred to her, but she decided to wait before asking. If he was with the Kabal or the Order, she'd soon find out anyway. Besides, he didn't look like that kind of a person.
Then again, she might be wrong.

"Nah... I have had my powers for as long as i can remember... 'Bin getting used to it for years now... I don't exactly got it down to a science yet, but you shoulda seen the mess i was in when it first started acting up a lot." He took the last gulp on coffee, setting the cup on the table, and continuing. "And this school ain't exactly a secret, especially if you are from around here... " He looked off to the right as he spoke this part, seeming just a bit nervous " I... eh... I was laid off from my job... figured that you guys could help out, know?" He looked back to her, smiling a bit. He figured he wasn't fully lying; he had quit his last job as a thief and hobo, and come here to change his life... Things were looking good, honestly.

He leaned back on the couch once again after he had finished speaking, relaxing fully... "It's been a long time since i had a good cup of coffee, y'know that? Thanks, Jewel." She was nice... Nicer than anyone on the streets... He wondered if, and wished that, everyone here was as nice as her... If they were, he might actually enjoy changing his life. It kinda made him feel guilty that he was lying through his teeth at her about his past. In the end, what mattered was that he turn out to be a good person, right? What was a little fib? "Hey, so what brought you here, anyways?"

Her coffee finished, Jewel sat back and fiddled with the blanket. She let Saphirus talk. They had a lot of time.
"And this school ain't exactly a secret, especially if you are from around here... "
That earned him a chuckle. She could remember how surprised some people were when she chanced upon the secret of the X-men. No wonder a New York City boy can just walk in here in the middle of the night. She wondered if Saphirus knew about the X-team as well.
" I... eh... I was laid off from my job... figured that you guys could help out, know?"
She nodded in understanding and didn't question anything. Laid off, too bad. She could tell by looking at him that he had it rough, but asking probably wouldn't have made the conversation easier.
"It's been a long time since i had a good cup of coffee, y'know that? Thanks, Jewel."
She smiled at him. The nickname seemed to stick with her, and she didn't mind at all. After seeing her powers, for most people it just came more naturally than 'Lily'.
"You are most welcome. Tell me if you want more. I can probably find something to eat for you too. We can have an early breakfast."
All right, that was motherly instincts on overdrive. She shook her head, smirking at herself.
"Hey, so what brought you here, anyways?"
Oh, there were a lot of answers to that. For example...
"Court order." she summed up matter-of-factly, something she hadn't done before. Looking at him over the empty coffee cups, she suddenly grinned. "Who would've thought that getting busted for thievery would turn out to be the best thing that's ever happened to me?"
It was true. And it was said in a most cheerful way.
Welcome to the Mansion, Saph.

He stared blankly for a good moment as she stated how she ended up here...The southern bell, having run-ins with the law?! Boy was she something else! Just when you figure you had someone all figured out... CRASH! In one sentence someone could shatter the image you had of them in your head. He found himself smiling just a bit as he looked her right in the eye and spoke with his smile evident in his voice. "Y'know what, Jewel? I think a little bit of breakfast would be amazing." My god, it was refreshing as hell to know that not only was he not alone in his search to better himself(though he was without a court order to do so), but that the young woman in front of him was a lot more 3-dimensional that he had first thought. Maybe he should tell her the truth... Honestly, his history with illegal acts wasn't something that he wanted to openly share with others... He definitely didn't want every other person in the house watching him closely to make sure he didn't lift every stray piece of silver ware that managed to find its way out into the open. He figured that his reaction to her open, and light hearted confession was probably a bit odd, but there would always be time to explain later...

First, He was gonna have him some breakfast.
Thanks for the greet, Jewel

Saphirus was surprised. Jewel almost laughed out at the expression on his face; a few months ago she would have been flushed with embarrassment, but right now she found the whole thing rather funny.
"Breakfast it is" she nodded, standing up with the blanket draped around her shoulders "C'mon."
She walked back to the kitchen, flipping the lights on, and started rummaging around in the fridge and the cupboards. She was not sleepy anymore. Glancing at Saphirus, she chuckled.
"Everybody here has a story. Some of us had it rough, others, like me, got off real easy." she started piling things on the kitchen table "Some people won't open up this easy though. You gotta give them time to trust you. Things outside the Mansion usually teach us a thing or two about whom to trust, but I guess you already know that."
If he'd been living with his powers active for years, he would know what she was talking about. As for herself, being recently beaten up in the park was still something she had to deal with. Especially with the part when she hit back...
She threw the blanket on the back of a chair to move more freely, and picked up a frying pan.
"So. How about pancakes?"

Saph stood with her as she did, though paused for a second before following her into the kitchen, remembering to turn and gather their coffee cups so's not to leave a mess. He walked into the kitchen, looking around at it with a touristic vibe about him... It was the first time he had ever been here, after all... The place was amazing at first glance! It was as if it were all too good to be true; a place filled with food, warmth, and kindness all reserved for sap's like him! The greasy hands of the outside world had somehow overlooked this place, leaving it clean and pristine. Or that's what it seemed like at first glance, anyways. "Yeah, no kidding." He said in response to the comment about lessons learnt from the great city of New York.
"So. How about pancakes?"
"Sounds good! You need some help?" He said as he placed the coffee cups he had in his hand into the sink, and turned to her, leaning against the counter... Come to think of it... Pancakes really did sound good; he hadn't eaten all day, and the flat, syrup covered breakfast item were kinda hard to come by on the streets.
He folded his arms across his chest, and looked at her thoughtfully. "You know... I really gotta ask... Is everyone here as nice as you are? I mean... You probably got the impression I had of this place coming in, what with all of the death traps placed about... But this... Well, this is honestly looking better than I thought possible." He waited to her response to both of his questions, though he had the feeling she knew what she was doing when it came to cooking breakfast... In fact, she seemed almost motherly in her methods... Then again, what did he know? He never even knew his mother. He noticed a clock hung up on the wall above the door... It was already almost five thirty! Time really did have a way of flying, didn't it? He wondered what time people started waking up around here... At the shelter they kicked you out in the bright and early; somehow he figured it wasn't like that here.

"Sounds good! You need some help?"
"Yeah, sure." she nodded, handing the bowl over to him "You mix, I flip."
And she did. 'Pancake' seemed to mean a different thing for her than what someone would expect from an average American breakfast. It was thinner and sweeter and she had a curious way of juggling it, turning it from one side to the other. She chuckled as she did so.
"My nanny used to make me pancakes for breakfast. She was French."
While they worked on the meal together, she glanced at Saphirus once in a while. He seemed to be enjoying himself. That was a great deal of improvement, going from scared-to-death to making-breakfast in two hours straight. Jewel was secretly proud of herself for handling the situation. Even if she didn't really stop to think about it.
"You know... I really gotta ask... Is everyone here as nice as you are? I mean... You probably got the impression I had of this place coming in, what with all of the death traps placed about... But this... Well, this is honestly looking better than I thought possible."
Jewel's cheeks turned pink with pride and she laughed at him, setting the table for two.
"Believe me, this place is better than possible. As for the others..." she shrugged a bit "...everyone I've met so far is very nice in their own speacial way. Some are more reserved, especially those who have a reason to be afraid from strangers, but... you know, the Mansion is home for all of us. For some of us, it's also the only family they know."
Sitting down, she grinned at him. She didn't even realize she was hungry until she saw all the food they managed to make.
"Don't expect everyone to make you coffee and pancakes though. Bon appétit."

He watched in slight confusion as she made the pancakes... He had learned to makes pancakes from one of his foster families way back when, who always made him help with this charity they had where they made pancakes for people with crippling stutters...He shook his head quickly in order to stop himself from thinking back to the long line of people who all said the word 'thanks' their own way... He nodded as she explained that she was making some kinda fancy French deal, and shrugged a bit... He had never had irregular pancakes before, so this would be fun.

After they were done cooking, he places all of the dirty dishes in the sink while she set the table, looking back as she laughed at his remarks. He smiled widely, and turned to walk over and take his seat as he listened to her speak. Everything she said made sense, and though ti was kind of ridiculous, he was a little worried that he might be the worst person here... In the sense that he was in a transitional period between not-so-good and good. He got comfortable in the kitchen chair, and surveyed the good amount of pancake-age they had created... For just a moment he got another one of those slightly paranoid thoughts 'They really are cannibals, and they are fattening me up so they can eat me... They really just sent the pretty one out so I wouldn't struggle' He shrugged the thought off quickly, as it was crazy, and began eating.

They were good, these French pancakes... Sweeter than normal, and they had a different texture that fit well with the taste. He finished his first few bites, and looked up at her. "Eh... You sure it's alright that I'm here? I mean... you did say that you were new... And you don't really know me..." He realized that he really didn't know anything about this place... Who was he supposed to talk to about staying here? Could he get a job here? What was the answer to life, the universe, and everything?!

"Eh... You sure it's alright that I'm here? I mean... you did say that you were new... And you don't really know me..."
Jewel could tell Saphrius was still not comfortable with the environment. No wonder he wasn't. Even without the traps, getting used to the Mansion's dimensions and the way of life within took a longer period of time. He did seem to be thinking about something else too.
Jewel tilted her head, and looked at him over the table.
"You don't know me either. And you know even less about the Mansion. Chances are, if you wanted to leave now, you'd end up in one of the traps again. So. Two things. One: I have no reason to be afraid of you. Two: don't think coffee and pancakes are the official process. Soon as one of the lazy bums in charge wakes up you'll be properly questioned with paperwork filled out and whatnot. But sadly that's not my job. So."
The smile was still in the corner of her lips, but she looked more serious now.
"You tell me, Saphirus: why on Earth shouldn't you be here?"

She had gotten a little more serious than before, causing his appetite to quickly fade away... He placed his fork down slowly, and looked up at her as she asked the question, apparently taking it a little bit more seriously than even she had. To tell the truth... He felt bad for lying to her; it made him feel even worse that she had been completely open and honest with him from the get-go. So, it was with a slightly ashamed look on his face that he returned the favor. "Cause maybe I'm not the greatest person there ever was. Maybe I've done a couple bad things in my life, and i wonder if I even deserve to come to a place as nice as this..." He leaned forward, looking down to his plate, as if he couldn't bare to hold her gaze any longer. "I was never laid off from my job... Hell, I ain't even had a job in... god knows how long. I steal radios for a living... Empty out people's houses when i want something nice... Hell, last week I kidnapped a freakin baby! Eh... that was an accident, though, they left it in the car, didn't see it, I swear." He paused and looked tried to get up the courage to look at her for a second. He failed miserably, and sighed. "I guess i had this image in my head, that I could waltz on in here, and with a little work, I could change... But now I wonder if I deserve even that..." He tried again, and this time he successfully lifted his eyes to her... "So yeah... There it is... I'm a criminal... And I also thought you might be a cannibal for a moment... you aren't one, right?" That last one was not really necessary, but he figured while he was coming clean he might as well be spotless, right? He readied himself for any rebuttal she might have, such as kicking him out, or stabbing him with a toothpick to see if he was done.

Jewel slowly tilted her head to the other side as she watched him; she wrinkled her nose, deep in thought. After several seconds, she finally shook her head.
"Nope, still not scared. Sorry."
And then her smile was back.
She expected Saphirus to come out with something like that, although she was surprisd how fast he decided to come clean. Deep down she'd been a bit worried too for the last few minutes, not sure how she would deal with if the guy admitted having done something truly horrible. Like... whatever. He didn't seem like a hardened criminal, and she was good at reading people. Still, you can never know. But by the time he finished his little speech, she knew he was not someone to be afraid of. Thieving and hard life she could deal with.
"And I also thought you might be a cannibal for a moment... you aren't one, right?"
That earned him a laugh.
"No I am not. Nor is anyone else in the Mansion, as far as I know, though some guys might want you to believe that." she leaned back in her chair, folding her arms "Besides, I'm full with pancakes right now, thank you very much."
She looked at Saph over the table, and could tell he felt emberrassed.
"Look, Saphirus. I am not saying you should take the things you did lightly. All I know is I was very fortunate to have a loving family when I discovered my powers, and that most people are not lucky enough to have a choice. So as long as you are honest about wanting a fresh start, this is the place to do it."
Memories of her early days came back to her fo a moment, and she chuckled softly.
"You know what? When I came here I was so ashamed of having been a thief, I thought telling anyone would be the end of the world. And then, when I finally worked up the courage to share it with some people, their reaction was something like 'Is that all you've got?'..." she reached over the table to pat his hand with a friendly smile "People around here have been through a lot. Don't worry about it."
As a second thought, she added
"Did you return the baby?..."

Streak had been watching the whole scene since the first sensors were tripped. It was his turn to work the nights and he was actually entertained as all of this unfolded. When Lily ran out he disabled all of the remaining security measures from his office. Once she had gotten him inside he had reset all the security and he was glad that they had all worked so well. Though he did think it a bit unfortunate that someone new had to be one of the ones to test it out. Streak left his post and walked around the mansion to find him. When he got closer to the front of the school he heard them talking in the living room. Unfortunately by the time he got there they had left; however the cooking in the kitchen told him where they were. Not to many people would be cooking breakfast at this time of night.

“Lazy bums huh?” said Streak announcing his presence. “I hardly doubt that’s appropriate Lily.” He walked into the kitchen at this time and Streak looked at the new person she was talking to. The silver mutant felt that he should apologize to the guy about the security. “Sorry about that man. It’s just past unexpected intrusions has made us more take more precautions to protect the students. Next time it might be easier to ring the bell. Someone’s always awake. And what's this about returning a baby?” He said. Streak took a glance at the pancakes and decided to grab a few. He hadn’t eaten in a few hours so he decided he could do with a snack. Streak sat down with Lily and the new guy. “I’m Streak. And you are?” he said trying to get some info from him.

That several seconds of waiting had actually been pretty agonizing for him, honestly. He watched her wrinkle her nose, wondering in that was a good, or bad thing... Maybe it was the cue for the rest of the cannibals to come out and ambush him! Once she spoke up, he sighed with a little relief; The fact that she laughed at the cannibal thing was good, too... Cause... y'know... He definitely hadn't been serious about it. Her little joke didn't get a laugh, but it put the smile back on his face... He felt relieved. Very much so. He didn't think there would ever be a place that would accept him for who he was. Ever. But here he was... He had noticed, on the streets, that people seemed to clump together into groups according to just how bad they were... There would be people who were just thieves cooking up schemes together, but just down the street a group of cold blooded killers, and those aspiring to be the same, would all be talkin about who they wanted to shoot... Apparently it was the same with good people... This building was like a huge gang of care-bears! He smiled at the thought, but forced himself to pay attention to his new friend.

He felt genuinely comforted by Jewels words and actions... She seemed to have a talent for this stuff. He nodded slowly as she spoke, and patted his hand."People around here have been through a lot. Don't worry about it... Did you return the baby?..." He paused, and then opened his mouth to respond to her, but someone else spoke up out of the blue.

“Lazy bums huh? I hardly doubt that’s appropriate Lily.”
Saph turned to look at the source of the voice, obviously a man... He tilted his head a bit as he realized that the man had brought up something from when he wasn't around... The place was bugged? He had a beat, and barely stopped himself from frowning just a bit... Of course, the whole place was probably rigged with hidden cameras... it was enough to leave him feeling just a bit uncomfortable. He looked to jewel for a second, and then back to the man as he apologized for the death traps "No problem... I guess I understand... I just didn't expect it from a place like this." He shrugged when he got the inquiry about the baby... This guy had obviously just missed his short confession while he was on the way down... That comforted him a little. He looked to Jewel, and said in a very light hearted way "Ah, its nothin really... I'm Saphirus, likewise, nice to meet you." Returning his eyes to Streak, he held his hand out to the man as he took a seat. No reason he shouldn't greet the man with respect.

“Lazy bums huh? I hardly doubt that’s appropriate Lily.”
Jewel grinned as she turned to look at him.
"I knew that would lure you out of the shadows, Shawn. You can't hide from me, remember?"
Saphirus seemed a bit surprised at Streak's entrance. In the middle of their conversation too. Lily rolled her eyes. Guys really had a timing around here.
She waited while Shawn apologized for the traps, and they introduced themselves. She felt like she should explain a couple of things.
"Saphirus, Shawn is head of security here. Even though I was the one doing his job tonight..." she grinned at her friend "... Shawn, Saphirus is a mutant like us, and he would like to stay here at the school. I was just telling him... hm, you've already heard that. So. Eat your pancakes, gentlemen, before they go cold."
She chuckled as she wrapped herself up in the blanket once again. She could remember her first days in the Mansion, when she only ventured out of her room fully dressed. Now here she was in the middle of the night - more like dawn now, really - in her pj's, with a guy she just met and a guy who was... well, Shawn. Funny.

(OOC: Saph. Streak isn’t using his powers right now. He looks normal)

“I wasn’t trying to hide from you Lily.” Streak smiled at her. “Hey, I set up those traps. I’m not about to run out there with them still on. Especially for someone I don’t know.” He defended himself. “I figured he was a mutant when I watched him jump the fence and jump out of the pit.” Streak said before he started eating the pancakes he’d grabbed. They were really good; he had to hand it to Jewel. The girl could cook. “These are really good Lily.” He commented to her.

Streak then realized that this was one of the rare times that he’d seen Lily in her pjs. Most of the time Lily was fully clothed; but maybe she wasn’t that self conscious anymore, which was a good thing. “So Saphirus. Trying to turn over a new leaf here?” It was a loaded question to which he already knew the answer to. People who came to the mansion were 99% of the time trying to start a new life or trying to get a grip on what was making their world change more drastically than puberty does.