Juka thought the ability of Koga's skin to change colour was absolutely amazing. "Can you change your skin so it doesn't blend in with things? Like, make it purple or something?" The uses of such an ability could be endless. He imagines himslelf with his darling Venus, matching red. Or, perhaps complimentary purple. Or maybe red with some purple highlights? Oh, the delicious possibilities. Though something told him Koga wasn't quite as fashion obsessed as he was. Then again, few were.

“Aura. Bleh.”

A nod of much agreement. "Bleh does not even begin to describe her. She killed someone then tried to kill someone else then tried to kill me when I tried to stop her from killing someone else. So yes, bleh." Juka couldn't help the disgust that entered his voice, nor did he try. It didn't seem likely that either of these two were friends of Aura and even if they were he didn't particularly care. Aura was a very bad person and needed to be stopped.

"Or we could just hunt down some cookies and bring them back here."

"What a brilliant woman you are," Juka nodded enthusiastically. "Surely somewhere around here someone must have delicous cookies." With another nod of his head, Juka spun around, looking towards the kitchen. "Don't worry, my pretties, I will have cookies for us all shortly. Try not to miss me too much." He grinned and blew them both a kiss before traipsing off to the kitchen in search of congradulatory cookies for all.

~~"Can you change your skin so it doesn't blend in with things? Like, make it purple or something?"

He smirked and turned a smooth royal purple, He didn’t realize that this revealed his still blushing cheeks and highlighted them more in fact. “ummmmm.” He closed his eyes and concentrated for a minute and then his skin was a pale sky blue and white clouds slowlys made way across his skin. “ his skin then went back to his natural color, a very pale white with the barest hint of amber. His hair jet black and so were his eyes.

“yeah I can, I can blend and copy asss well and make sssomething new, but it isssn’t perfect, there isss a girl here that can make it like ssshe isssn’t even there ssshe might as well disssappear.”


**"Mutual friend of yours?"

~~"Bleh does not even begin to describe her. She killed someone then tried to kill someone else then tried to kill me when I tried to stop her from killing someone else. So yes, bleh."

“Yeah, I met her in an orphanage where ssshe wasss doing wicked thingsss. I don’t even want to think about her, Ssshe would do well to leave New York and ssstay gone. Go reform sssomewhere far away.”


**"'twas a rough fight, wasn't it. I swung by the Infirmary ta get my ribs put back together. Quick as a flash."

“Yeah, I probably have some fractures, but I don’t want to leave the warmth and they can hold.”

**"Ya need help ta go down there?..."

He appreciated the persistence, “really I’ll be ok,” probably as she continued to look at him he gave in, he wouldn’t have had it been Gawain. “ How about in an hour or ssso? I’ll go with out protessst. Doc Prof isss probably looking forward to making me a mummy again and oh how he clucksss like a mother hen the whole time you are in hisss chair”

**"Or we could just hunt down some cookies and bring them back here."


Man his brain must have been feeling it too because he kept starting his sentences with Yeah.

“mmm” he took that as expectance of his plan to procrastinate.

~~"What a brilliant woman you are," "Surely somewhere around here someone must have delicious cookies." "Don't worry, my pretties, I will have cookies for us all shortly. Try not to miss me too much."

“Thank you Juka!” what awesome women he was hanging out with. One wanted to help him to the infirmary and the other was getting him cookies all the while he laid there and stifle urge to groan in pain. In his mind Juka’s kiss landed on his cheek. Oh what his lovely parents would think of this. A girl with out a bra that was sipping a beer, and was atleast part of the time a boy. And a male that cross dressed to an epic degree. Oh how they would judge, and how they would be wrong.

>>“yeah I can, I can blend and copy asss well and make sssomething new, but it isssn’t perfect, there isss a girl here that can make it like ssshe isssn’t even there ssshe might as well disssappear.”

Maya smiled a small smile at the display of coloring abilities - as a part-time mirror, she could appreciate something like that - and an even smaller one at the mention of the other chameleon in the school.

"Her name's Twyla" she nodded. Just because.

That Aura person sounded like the Bad kind of mutant, with a capital B - the kind Mom had warned him about, and the kind many turned out to be, especially those whose abilities were useful in a fight, or useful to some people who were also the capital B kind. Maya made a mental note to learn more about that girl, in order to avoid her the best he could.

She'd been right - Little Ninja was hurt as bad as his movements suggested.

>>“How about in an hour or ssso? I’ll go with out protessst. Doc Prof isss probably looking forward to making me a mummy again and oh how he clucksss like a mother hen the whole time you are in hisss chair”

Maya grinned. "He's the motherly type isn't he. Helluva way to present myself to him too... but he's cool." she had to hand him that "All right, ya can warm up an' eat your cookies, we'll drag ya down to Doc afterward" she agreed, grinning at the lizard boy. She had no clear knowledge about his mutation, but if the 'lizard' part she'd heard was any indication, he really needed heat.

>>"What a brilliant woman you are. Surely somewhere around here someone must have delicious cookies. Don't worry, my pretties, I will have cookies for us all shortly. Try not to miss me too much."

"Try the kitchen" she called after Juka as he pranced out of the room, and she laughed too, shaking her head as she turned back to Koga. "He's really somethin' different..."

Walking over to the fireplace she sat down next to the lizard boy, and sipped her beer. "Is life always this busy around this school, or Chtulhu was just a Christmas special?..."

Juka watched in amazed admiration as Koga's skin changed colors, right before his eyes and, upon completion of the display, clapped his hands. "You are truly amazing," my Ninja Koga. "To do the things you do and then change colors on top of that, why I might just think you almost rival me on the scale of most fabulous ever." He grinned and winked.

“Yeah, I met her in an orphanage where ssshe wasss doing wicked thingsss. I don’t even want to think about her, Ssshe would do well to leave New York and ssstay gone. Go reform sssomewhere far away.”

That was a new revaluation about the girl and yet another reason for Juka to dislike her, as if he needed any more reasons. Yet he wasn't surprised. "She won't leave unless forced to and one of these days someone is going to force her to." Possibly him. Possibly.

"He's the motherly type isn't he. Helluva way to present myself to him too... but he's cool." she had to hand him that "All right, ya can warm up an' eat your cookies, we'll drag ya down to Doc afterward"

"Maybe now that my bubble is gone Doc Prof can help me too?" Juka asked, wincing once again from one of his numerous bruises. He didn't think anything was broken but aside from the knowledge that he wasn't breathing, didn't really know much more than that. Despite his cheery demeanor brought on be his lack of bubble, he was still little more than a mass of pain of bruises.

It didn't take long for Juka to find the cookies in the kitchen. He had something of a sweet tooth and, despite the fact that he didn't technically live at the Mansion full time, cookies were among the first things he had sniffed out in the kitchen. For times just like this. Or...at least times just like this in the sense that he wanted cookies and so did others. Even the fabulously amazing Juka Miami couldn't have predicted the Cthulu attack could he? After a minute he returned holding his prize: A box of delicious chocolate chip cookies.

**"You are truly amazing,". "To do the things you do and then change colors on top of that, why I might just think you almost rival me on the scale of most fabulous ever."
“Potentially maybe, but letsss not get carried away, I’ve got a lot of climbing to do before I can come challenging that title.”
**"She won't leave unless forced to and one of these days someone is going to force her to."
“Damn Ssstrait.” Man he probably shouldn’t resist going to the doc so much. it was starting to make him mean.

~~"Her name's Twyla"
“oh cool, You know Twyla.” He would have shown more enthusiasm any other time, but someone was reminding him that he felt like he had been thrown a couple blocks threw a window. Not to mention the fact that he had already witnessed her, him smoozing with Twyla all flirty like.

**"Maybe now that my bubble is gone Doc Prof can help me too?"
“Try to go in with ssso much asss a ssscratch on you and get out without hisss help.”

~~"He's the motherly type isn't he. Helluva way to present myself to him too... but he's cool."
Koga sneered as much as he could manage.” Yeah he isss the motherly type, have I mentioned I don’t care for my parentsss?” He let out a painful laugh. “ I am sssure he isss pretty cool, but I’ve only ssseen him when I’ve needed tending. He thinksss I am irresssponsssible.” He was more responsible then most of the people living here, including the staff and adults.
~~"All right, ya can warm up an' eat your cookies, we'll drag ya down to Doc afterward"
He tried not to smirk back at girl-wain but he couldn’t help it. S/he was charming. “Thanksss. I appreciate being a well treated hostage. It isss nice to know I choose when I will be sssentenced.”

~~"Try the kitchen" "He's really somethin' different..."
“Juka is greatnessss, I barely know him but he rocksss different with no regretsss.”

~~"Is life always this busy around this school, or Chtulhu was just a Christmas special?..."
“uh? Well, asss far asss I know Cthulhu isss knew, but from what I hear the mansion hasss been rebuilt, repaired or remodeled almossst once a year. Ssso I am thinking chaosss isss a regular around here, at firssst I thought the other ssstudents were messssing with the new kid, but yeah, Sssam confirmed the ssstories.”
“You’re back! We missed you!”
Juka walked back into the room. and Koga yelled with a bit oh glee that hurt his ribs. Doc wasn’t going to let him train for a while again. Ugh

>>“Thanksss. I appreciate being a well treated hostage. It isss nice to know I choose when I will be sssentenced.”

Maya smiled at the lizard boy on the floor, looked like he had issues with the whole 'visiting Doc' thing.
"Don' be such a big baby, ninja, we've got a friggin' healer down there, not Dr. Frankenstein."
Doc didn't even need needles. Which in her opinion was a plus.
Maya remembered the time when she had to stumble into people's bathrooms to look for first aid kits whenever she got injured. With Rupert, it worked out well, but still, she didn't miss that habit one bit.

>>“uh? Well, asss far asss I know Cthulhu isss knew, but from what I hear the mansion hasss been rebuilt, repaired or remodeled almossst once a year. Ssso I am thinking chaosss isss a regular around here, at firssst I thought the other ssstudents were messssing with the new kid, but yeah, Sssam confirmed the ssstories.”

Maya arched an eyebrow and sipped her beer, thinking about what she just heard.
"Wow. Isn't this place supposed to be, y'know, safe?..." she smirked "All right, I guess it's all the superhero stuff. Savin' the World 101 an' all that. Ya're trainin' to be one too?" she asked curiously, but the conversation was somewhat interrupted by Juka's triumphant return.

>>“You’re back! We missed you!”

Maya laughed at Koga's enthusiasm, and the fact that it seemed to be a painful one.
"We sure did. If ya needed any more awesomeness, ya could buy that with chocolate chip anytime." she agreed. Once the box was close enough to her to reach it, she picked two cookies, putting one into Koga's mouth. "Sugar. Eat."

“Potentially maybe, but letsss not get carried away, I’ve got a lot of climbing to do before I can come challenging that title.”

Juka beamed happily. It was alway so satisfying when another recognized him for the truly fabulous individual that he was even if it was rather baffling those rare cases when they were not. The only logical explanation in those cases was that they were jealous and weren't willing to admit such a self evident truth. Stull, clearly Koga was a worthy and worth while person, fabulous in his own right and willing to admit the shining merits of others. More people could learn from the little colourful ninja boy.

Thankufully for the sake of Juka's poor bruised and battered body, the kitchen was not far from the living room and cookies were not difficult to find. Even if he didn't technically have to eat anymore, there was just something satisfying about the consumption of such sweet, sugary goodness especially after a long and pain-filled battle. Not that Juka had much experience with long and painful battles, but still. And, judgeing by the reactions he got from the other two upon his return, they seemed to agree.

“You’re back! We missed you!”

Juka grinned at the ninja's enthusiastic response and offered cookies for all. Despite his aching body, life was good. Here he was with two amazing people sharing delicious cookies and finally bubbleless after weeks of not being able to get rid of it. What more could he possibly ask for?

~~"Don' be such a big baby, ninja, we've got a friggin' healer down there, not Dr. Frankenstein."

“It’sss not the doctoring I am worried about it isss the being held captive to cluck cluck clucking all night long.”

~~"Wow. Isn't this place supposed to be, y'know, safe?..." "All right, I guess it's all the superhero stuff. Savin' the World 101 an' all that. Ya're trainin' to be one too?"



~~"We sure did. If ya needed any more awesomeness, ya could buy that with chocolate chip anytime.". "Sugar. Eat."

“Awe, you called me Sssugar.” Koga smirked after pulling the cookie from his mouth. “And Yeah, I am going to go for it once they get back from Romania, I heard that you had to sssixteen to join but you only need to be fifteen to be a trainee. Ssso, I am trying out asss sssoon asss I can get sssomething ssset up. Either of you guysss want to join me, the lassst tryoutsss were in cellsss of three.”

He looked from Maya to Juka, He was pretty sure Juka would be in, from his epiphany earlier, but Maya might be a hard sell. He really didn’t know what to think.

>>“Awe, you called me Sssugar.”

Maya blinked. Was this guy, what, flirting with her? He'd better not. He was fun and friendly and all, but he was... well, still a guy.
"Nah, I called sugar sugar." she grinned down at him, then returned to munching her own cookie. Sugar was good. After a battle and the shifting, her body welcomed the treat.

>>“And Yeah, I am going to go for it once they get back from Romania, I heard that you had to sssixteen to join but you only need to be fifteen to be a trainee. Ssso, I am trying out asss sssoon asss I can get sssomething ssset up. Either of you guysss want to join me, the lassst tryoutsss were in cellsss of three.”

Maya smirked. Superhero? Her? Fat chance. Not like she didn't like doing something heroic every now and then, but joining the official ranks of masks and costumes... that would just be ridiculous. Besides, her abilities were not exactly the offensive kind. Or the defensive kind. They were the sneaky kind, and that went with a whole different line of work...
Maya shrugged.

"Dunno. Maybe?... How does this team work anyway? All I hear about them is legends."

How very sweet that colorful ninja Koga seemed to have a crush and sweet little Mirror and Juka approved whole heartedly. He winked at the ninja boy, consiritorally. A man and a woman all in one, what could be better? Even his precious Prince Venus didn't have that going for him. Quite the shame really. Perhaps the ninja would be willing to share his Mirror with Juka. Yes, he must certainly pursue that line of thought some other time. Certainly he could make it worth both their whiles.

“And Yeah, I am going to go for it once they get back from Romania, I heard that you had to sssixteen to join but you only need to be fifteen to be a trainee. Ssso, I am trying out asss sssoon asss I can get sssomething ssset up. Either of you guysss want to join me, the lassst tryoutsss were in cellsss of three.”

"Oh I definately want to join," Juka agreed with enthusiasm. "I want to use my powers to help and protect people." He was still getting used to his new altruistic attitude, though he found he was meshing with it quite well. Besides, was it entirely altruistic when he also had aspirations of being known as the Great and Magnificant Juka Miami, super hero extraordinaire? It might not be his first motivation, but the prospect of fame certainly didn't hurt.

"Dunno. Maybe?... How does this team work anyway? All I hear about them is legends."

Juka shrugged. "I don't have any idea." He looked at Koga expectantly. The kid seemed to know a lot more about this sort of thing than he did. And now that he was paying attention, he realized taht Mirror didn't seem nearly as interested in Koga as Koga was in her. Oh, what a shame that would be. But of course, if the ninja was persistant then perhaps he might still have a shot. Persistance paid off, after all.

~~"Nah, I called sugar sugar."

He laughed another begrudging, pain filled laugh, yeah he was having his ribs taped and going to get all nice and healed again.

“jussst messssing with ya, man.” And or testing the water to figure out where he stood on that, feeding people stuff was confusing.


**"Oh I definately want to join," Juka "I want to use my powers to help and protect people."

~~"Dunno. Maybe?... How does this team work anyway? All I hear about them is legends."

** don't have any idea."

~~“ Definitely I like, Maybe I’ll take. Like the legend of how Cthulhu ssshowed up on Christmasss eve?
Well, for the most part it works like tonight did. A mutant sssized problem happensss and the x men ressspond, They’re working with the NYPD right now to try to take the MCR down.” His eyes glanced back and forth between the two. “ The mutant crime rate. But yeah anyway, they sssend out groupsss to fix problemsss, we try to negotiate firssst and fight sssecond, at leassst that isss what we are sssupposed to do. We fight to the point of capture and try to avoid casssualtiesss at all costsss. I mean I guessss sssometimesss it happensss. And that isss jussst assssuming that it is a fight, we work on disssassster recovery. Firesss. Hurricanesss, blizzardsss, giant clay monstersss. Pretty much anytime we can help, we do. And we work to try to improve the human mutant coexissstence. Sssomebody hasss to ssshow them we aren’t all homicidal maniacsss.”

He finished his cookie. “ I usssed to day dream about being a mutant before I became one. About being Heroic.” He shrugged lightly. “it’d be a ssshame to throw away the chance now.”

He took another cookie and after he finished it, he frowned. He really didn’t want to be fussed over right now, maybe Docprof would be to busy to linger.

Maya fished out another cookie from the box and nibbled at it while listening to Koga praise the X-men. She coul tell two things from his little speech:
1. The kid was realy serious about wnting to join the team that he thought of as the coolest thing on the planet,
and
2. If what he said was true then Maya happened to be crashing at the headquarters of a real superhero team.
Not half bad.

She could tell from the fight against Chtulhu that Koga had potential to become a superhero. He was fast, strong, insanely brave, willing to kill himself at least three times in a row for others, and his plans of destroying a clay monster were not bad either.
Maya wondered if becoming a superhero would mean she'd have to stop stealing stuff.

>>“I usssed to day dream about being a mutant before I became one. About being Heroic. It’d be a ssshame to throw away the chance now.”

Oh. That explained a lot. Maya smiled as she reached for another cookie. Sugar was good.

"I can imagine how ya felt when ya found out about your X-gene then" she nodded "I dunno about that, I was born with my powers active, and raised by mutants." well, one mutant in particular, but she had friends here and there who helped her with raising her weird child .
"So, let me ask ya somethin'. Both of you." she looked down at Koga with a smirk, then up at Juka-with-the-cookie-jar "D'ya think ya need a mutation to be a hero?..."

“ Definitely I like, Maybe I’ll take. Like the legend of how Cthulhu ssshowed up on Christmasss eve? Well, for the most part it works like tonight did. A mutant sssized problem happensss and the x men ressspond, They’re working with the NYPD right now to try to take the MCR down. The mutant crime rate. But yeah anyway, they sssend out groupsss to fix problemsss, we try to negotiate firssst and fight sssecond, at leassst that isss what we are sssupposed to do. We fight to the point of capture and try to avoid casssualtiesss at all costsss. I mean I guessss sssometimesss it happensss. And that isss jussst assssuming that it is a fight, we work on disssassster recovery. Firesss. Hurricanesss, blizzardsss, giant clay monstersss. Pretty much anytime we can help, we do. And we work to try to improve the human mutant coexissstence. Sssomebody hasss to ssshow them we aren’t all homicidal maniacsss.”

Juka could just imagine what kind of legend would grow out of the Cthulu incident. When Elder Gods attack or some such thing (even if it was only one Elder God). And, of course, the heroic mutant children and teens that saved the day for the entire city. Maybe someone would write a book about it. "Its what heroes do," Juka agreed with the ninja Koga. "We have to show the world that we aren't all like that evil villain Aura and her human killing ways. Some of us actually have respect and admiration for our human counterparts, or at least basic respect for life."

“ I usssed to day dream about being a mutant before I became one. About being Heroic. it’d be a ssshame to throw away the chance now.”

"The only dream I ever had was that of becoming a rock star," Juka added, with a touch of sorrow. It was a little unfortunate, looking back on his life now, just how shallow he had been but at least he had a chance to make up for all that and at least he hadn't done anything really bad in his youth. "I still want to become a rock star, or at least a proper rock muscision, but now I know there are more important things to strive for too." Juka settled himself gingerly upon a couch.

"I can imagine how ya felt when ya found out about your X-gene then. I dunno about that, I was born with my powers active, and raised by mutants. So, let me ask ya somethin'. Both of you." she looked down at Koga with a smirk, then up at Juka-with-the-cookie-jar "D'ya think ya need a mutation to be a hero?..."

"I discovered my mutation when life was at its worse. It was aweful when we moved to Japan. I had no friends and my parents were constantly dissapointed in me. I might have done something drastic if I hadn't found out I could escape all my problems by floating in a bubble, if only for a little while. I think those without mutantions can become heroes too, but its tough. All you really need is the will and the act to do something good. Its just a little easier for us with powers."

“yeah, don’t get me wrong, I undertand thossse fed up with prejuidice, but there isss obviousssly more appropriate waysss to counteract it.”“you know like stable, moral people.”

He listend to the others discuss their origins and smiled glumly, he had made peace with it but talking about it always drew a bit of the reminiscent sting to his mind.

He laughed lightly. “I woke up with my father yelling at me and a police officer at his ssside, baton at the ready, my mother in the background sssilently weeping, ssshe couldn’t tell my father no. Ssso what that I wasss an exemplarily in everything I did for them. The violin, my gradesss, gymnasticsss. In everything, I attempted perfection for them. but do I get even the courtesssy of being woke up and told why they don’t want me in their house? No I get a police officer in my bedroom reluctant to touch me because I am changing into the colorsss of my room and he doesn’t know what I am capable of anymore than I did, my eyesss are black and tounge forked. He triessss to corner me and Iclimb the frickin wall and pounce on him and ssstrangle him til he isss knocked out and then I ran. Ssso while yeah I am very thankful for who I am, it hassss itsss downssside.” He shrugged.

“But no, I agree with Juka, it merely takesss the will to do good and the backbone to follow throw with it. for inssstance that fire man that helped usss, he wasss awesome and he didn’t exhibit any power that I saw other than a flare for ramming a fire truck into Cathuy back there.”

He smirked a little bit. “ But then again it sssure asss heck doesssn’t hurt.”

He sat up and groaned as his body protested he reached around for his shirt and threw it over his shoulder. "
Ssspeaking of hurt, I think I might be ready to casssh in thessse achesss and painsss for an advil or two."

Maya always wondered what it would have been like to live a normal life up to a point when her powers manifested. Well, considering Mom's lifestyle, it probably wouldn't have been all that different from what she had, and she really doubted it could have been better. From the stories she's heard so far, discovering one's powers was always traumatic to say the least.
She listened to Juka's and Koga's stories; she nodded once in a while, and frowned. Poor kids. After all the superhero stuff and all the awesome powers, mutations did have a side that undeniably sucked.

>>"I think those without mutantions can become heroes too, but its tough. All you really need is the will and the act to do something good. Its just a little easier for us with powers."

>>“But no, I agree with Juka, it merely takesss the will to do good and the backbone to follow throw with it. for inssstance that fire man that helped usss, he wasss awesome and he didn’t exhibit any power that I saw other than a flare for ramming a fire truck into Cathuy back there. But then again it sssure asss heck doesssn’t hurt.”

Maya grinned. She knew they would answer that, and it was a good answer too, it was something every 'mutant superhero' should be aware of. Especially in cases like hers, when powers didn't really do anything good in a fight.
"That's exactly what I was hoping to hear." she smiled at them "Now that trainin' thing sound really good. I'm in."

>>"Ssspeaking of hurt, I think I might be ready to casssh in thessse achesss and painsss for an advil or two."

Maya nodded, drinking the rest of her beer before she stood and held out a hand to Koga.
"C'mon I'll walk ya down to Doc before I go to bed. We all deserve some rest don't we."