Click Twyla didn't even have to think about unlocking her door anymore--it was down to instinct. As she pushed it open she heard Gawain suggest something about breakfast, to which Henri soon agreed to. "Oh yeah, you betcha'." Nate said in the worst interpretation of a Wisconsin-mingled-Minnesotan accent. "Youbetski , Nate's always hungry." She smiled back at her friends when she saw that her brother was smiling at them in the goofy way that meant he was relaxing to the situation. Hopefully her comments from moments ago would help him tone down his testosterone. She appreciated the mindset but Twyla thought she could take care of herself--she'd made her own decisions so far and everything had been fine, right?

Except for the whole Christmas thing...but that didn't count, she'd done that decision making with Henri. It didn't count if you could convince someone else to stupidly take on a giant clay monster with you.

Nate whistled appreciatively when he saw the state of her room. Piles of clothes meshed with piles of books on her floor and there were papers scattered about full of lists she'd written and then forgotten. A slight blush crept up her neck as she realized what all of the lists said and she carefully kicked a few out of the way as she swept an arm around the room. "You never change, do you?" Nate was smirking at the disarray and was still smirking when the girl slammed the door. "Oh! that reminds me." Soon the man was fishing around in his back pocket. "Mandy gave me some pictures of baby Henry to give you." A few more seconds of fishing and soon the catch of the day appeared in glossy picture form.

Gingerly, Twyla took the photos from his palm, one by one. "Oh..." Her voice was soft as she held up a picture of a baby boy lying on the floor. "He looks like his daddy more than an Ashby...Such dark hair." Her fingers traced the glossy locks gently. When she looked up again her eyes were misted over, but she angrily dabbed at the with her shirt sleeve before handing all the pictures to the brunette girl behind her. "Henri, meet my nephew Henry. Let's move on, shall we?" The man gave the girl a questioning look, but said nothing--knowing that sometimes with hissister you had to let her deal however she saw fit.

"Let's adjourn to my favorite room, the library." Twyla took the lead, practically running down the hall. Her brother slowed, matching the pace of the boy he'd questioned earlier. Giving him a long look he finally asked: "How's she been keeping up?" There were a few lines of worry in the man's chiseled face as she watched his younger sister speed down the hall, running away from baby pictures. It was a Big question and not asked lightly.

>>"Henri, meet my nephew Henry. Let's move on, shall we?"

Gawain took a glance at the photo, then at Twyla's face. Li'l Henry looked pretty much like any other kid. Babies were a complete mystery to the young knight; the thought that one day in the future he might have one of those had been freaking him out ever since he found out where they come from. Yeah, like the world would need more kids with a screwed up set of X and Y.
Twyla, on the other hand, seemed strangely sad about the pictures, and hurried down the hall. Gawain walked after her with the others, hands in his pockets. He really didn't know if he was supposed to say something.
Girls. Half being one of them didn't help at all.

>>"How's she been keeping up?"

It took a few seconds to register that Nate was talking to him again. He looked at the guy walking next to him. He looked serious. Almost worried. Was this another test?...

"She blends in." Gawain chuckled softly, looking after Twyla, then turned more serious "'tis a good place to be, for us. People look after each other 'n' stuff." he glanced at Nate again "But she still misses you all. A lot."

I know how that feels like.
They walked down the corridor towards the library. Gawain wondered what would happen if Nate decided to take Twyla home. If she decided to go.

"She is also much braver than she thinks." he added with a small smile. She really was.

Twyla's eyes became sad looking as she stared at the photo of the baby boy. She passed the photographs to Henri and she looked down at the cute, little baby. The brunette smiled as she looked at the picture for a moment. "That's your nephew? He's so cute." The girl smiled and handed the photos to Nate. "Congrats on being an uncle. That must be exciting." The blonde had shot down the hall to go to the library. The trio followed her, but not at the same pace she had used. It seemed like she might need a minute to clear her head or something.

Nate had asked Gawain how she's been holding up. Henrietta listened to their conversation without saying anything. The question hadn't been directed to the brunette, so she remained silent. Mirror talked about how it was a good place for them and how everyone took care of each other. The girl smiled to herself. It was true. They did all kind of take care of each other in some way or another. Henri thought back to all the times she had talked and made friends at the mansion. It had been very good for her, personally.

They were getting closer to the library and Henri started thinking about how nice it must've been to have a family member come visit. She smiled, but then frowned a little. It must be kind of sad too. It's only one person out of her family and he'll have to leave again. I'm not sure if I'd ever want my mother to come here anyway. I can just about imagine how that would go over. The brunette laughed quietly to herself. Her mother would be shocked at how big the inside was. She probably wouldn't know what to do first. Well, at least what to clean first.

Babies don't make normal people cry. You are not going to cry. Twyla's fists clenched as she plowed down the hall towards the library. She made it to the door first and stood staring at the wood as she waited for everyone else to catch up. The girl could remember the fall day that her eldest sister Mandy had come home with her husband and told their mother that she was pregnant. Everyone had been so excited and they'd remained excited through the pregnancy. Baby Henry had been born while Twyla was still scraping the bottom of her duffel bag for change to get on the bus. She still hadn't seen the nephew that was almost a year old--her first nephew. There was so much she missed while she was in New York. So much she didn't get to experience with her family. I am not going to cry. I am not going to cry. There is no reason to cry. He's a healthy baby boy, no reason to cry. Deep breaths, deep breaths.

"It seems like it's a good place for her--better than home, at least right now. They don't bother with mutants where we're from, it's not something that's affected our town much yet. If she came home...it would be hard for her." He paused, not explaining his meaning before adding. "Brave or stupid? She has tendencies towards both." A small chuckle escaped his lips and the emotional moment was gone--replaced by a polite and happy look on his face.

"Thanks, Henri. It's really weird, thinking that my sisters are old enough to be getting married and having kids, ya know?" He took the pictures back from the brunette and tucked them into his jeans pocket. "I'll give them back to her later." Nate smiled down at the girl. "I've heard a lot about you too, Miss Braun." A grin spread across his face as the trio made it closer to the door. When they made it to the girl at the end the man put his hand on her shoulder and squeezed. This caused the girl to straighten up, turn, and smile. "I love this place." She said as she pushed open the door, revealing the two story library that she spent a lot of her time in, before stepping into it so everyone else could file through. Twyla made sure to remind herself to give Gawain and Henri big smiles when they walked past to show them that everything was alright and that she was fine.

"Nice digs, I'm sure you're happy as a clam, Shy-Twy. Please don't tell me reading is all she does for fun around here." This time the man directed the question at both teenagers not his sister. It seemed as if a sudden thought popped into his head and he abruptly turned to the blond. "Did I tell you that I almost convinced Dad to get a new four-wheeler this spring? There was this Polaris--" He stopped when he realized he'd just cut himself off and turned back to the boy and the girl. "So sorry, you'll have to forgive my hick manners. I was not brought up in such elegant country as this." The man's speech was eloquent and it seemed like he was having a hard time not laughing at himself as his sister erupted into silent giggles behind him.

>>"It seems like it's a good place for her--better than home, at least right now. They don't bother with mutants where we're from, it's not something that's affected our town much yet. If she came home...it would be hard for her."

Gawain felt a pang of guilt. Right after his eyes lit up. Nate didn't want to take Twyla home.
Now now, Sir Knight, this is just selfish.

>>"Brave or stupid? She has tendencies towards both."

"Brave." he answered without hesitation, with a hint of pride in his voice. Then he grinned "She usually leaves the stupid part to us. Umm." glance at Henri "... me."
Yeah, right. He was taking the blame here. In case Nate happened to find some very interesting news footage on the Internet or something...

Twyla was smiling again as she opened the door of the library. It almost looked like a real smile. Gawain let Nate and Henri go first, since he was talking to her, and he stopped to brush his fingers against Bubbleum's hand. Whatever made her upset about the pictures, she was at least smiling again.

>>"Nice digs, I'm sure you're happy as a clam, Shy-Twy. Please don't tell me reading is all she does for fun around here."

"Why, what's wrong with reading?" Gawain asked with overly innocent eyes. He was a bigger dork than he'd ever admitted. He grinned at Nate. "Nah, she does other stuff too."
He didn't elaborate. Let big bro think whatever.

Nate smiled and said how he’d heard a lot about Henri too. She smiled. “I hope it’s all good.” She stopped to try to think of anything bad that could be said. Hmm, well, I tried fighting a giant clay thing. I’m overly concerned with my appearance at times. I guess none of it is too bad. It could be a lot worse. I could do drugs and hear voices. She tilted her head to the side slightly and shook her head.

Twyla was holding the library door open with a smile on her face. Gawain let both Nate and Henrietta go first. She gave him an appreciative smile and followed after Nate into the library. He asked if Twyla did anything else. Henri laughed and nodded. “We hang out and dance sometimes. It’s really fun, not to mention she’s an awesome dancer.” She smiled at her best friend and gave her a pat on the back.

She looked around at all of the books and smiled. The brunette loved to read as well and she was glad to see the inside of the library once again. She had only visited a few times. The first time was when Twyla had taken her on the grand tour of the huge Mansion. That had been the first time Henri had met her best friend. She had been so happy to meet someone that could relate to her and also loved to dance. The girl had heard there were other mutants out there, but it had been so hard to believe until she saw them.

Twyla smiled a more human smile when Gawain's fingers touched hers in passing. Her own hand tangled itself up in his and squeezed before the boy walked away. The touch responded to what his said with 'I'm okay, really.' She was fine--she'd be fine. It was just homesickness, just a little bit of homesickness.

For some reason that little moment made Twyla want to kiss Gawain. It was a very strange sudden thought but one glance at Nate silenced it--she sensed he wouldn't tolerate public displays of affection in his presence. Why was she suddenly craving some PDA anyway? It was a strange phenomenon and Twyla was taken aback by herself. Weird...

Nate's attention focused on the tall girl as she responded to his question. "No crazy parties? I'm disappointed--That reminds me I'm got all the hot gossip, darling." When he said 'hot gossip' the man's tone changed into something emulating a feminine voice. He turned to the boy when he responded. "Nothing's wrong with--" Nate stopped talking as his mind caught up with his mouth and then traveled to all the places that 'she does other stuff too' could take him. "Right." He finally finished with slightly narrowed eyes and a half grin twisting his mouth as he turned back to his sister.

"Library, check. Can we get some food now?" He smirked at the blond and then sheepishly added after a moment and her look of disapproval: "Please?" Despite his size when Nate pouted there was something adorable in his usually angular facial features that was of course lost on his sister, who just shrugged and looked at Henri and Gawain. "I don't know, I guess we could if everyone's cool with that..." She trailed off, opening her statement up for disagreeing. Nate didn't seem too keen on a tour--which made sense. The school wasn't the important part; spending time together and meeting his younger sister's friends was the important part--at least that's what Twyla was guessing, but she could be reading into it too much. Nate did like to eat.

Twyla responding to his touch and squeezing his hand brought a somewhat goofy grin on Gawain's face that sayed plastered there till Nate turned back to him, and the young knight realized he was staring at his lady's brother with shining eyes. Quickly looking away and wiping the grin off his face, Gawain cleared his throat.

>>"Library, check. Can we get some food now? Please?"
>>"I don't know, I guess we could if everyone's cool with that..."

"Yup, let's go get some food." Gawain agreed hastily, holding the door open "And let's hope the little ones haven't robbed the fridge empty yet..."

Because that seemed to happen a lot around here. Kids, grown-ups, hungry werewolves... oh yes, the Mansion kitchen was a crowded place. He also happened to know where to hide stuff one didn't want others to find.

"I can also get ya a beer if ya want one." he added matter-of-factly as they walked down the corridor to the kitchen. Not like I would drink any of that evil thing, his innocent gaze said, I just happen to know where they keep it.

Henrietta stood as everyone talked. The blonde’s brother asked about crazy parties and the girl laughed. “Nope, not too many of those in my short 16 years. I’ve actually never been to anything close to a wild party. My version is probably watching an R-rated movie and staying up until God-knows-when in the morning." She grinned, slightly form embarrassment of being so lame.

Nate was obviously hungry and Twyla mentioned going to the kitchen. Gawain seemed to agree and the brunette nodded in agreement as well. “Sure, I’m up for it. I usually have room for food. I’m gifted like that.” Henri smirked and walked with the three people to the kitchen. Mirror mentioned something about getting Twyla’s brother a beer. She glanced at him and raised an eyebrow as if to question his thought-process in that statement. Does he really think that was a good thing to say or did it just kind of come out?

Henrietta was walking behind the rest of the people to get to the kitchen. She was a bit in her own world. The girl had been thinking about having her mother come down ever since she heard Twyla was having Nate down. She wasn’t sure if that would be a good idea, but part of her wanted to try to have that relationship with her female role model once again. Well, having a female role model in general would be kind of nice and couldn’t hurt.

Since no one had any problems with getting food the group headed out. As they walked past door opening Gawain, Nate leaned down to whisper: "Henri's not as crazy as the girls back home, nice." into his sister's ear. It was a very true summation made by Nate--Henrietta Braun was no crazy-stay-out-all-night-let's-go-shopping-at-ten-and-then-find-some-beer girl like some of Twyla's crowd back home and that was a good thing seeing as Twyla never really understood those girls anyway. Louder Nate said "Thanks." to the boy holding to the door. Twyla also said "Thanks." with a smile as she passed him and made her way into the hall--luckily this time the urge to kiss him did not resurface.

Twyla stopped walking at the mention of a beer. Her brother, on the other hand, just made his way over to the boy that made the offer. The man looked down at his watch before he began to speak. "Well, it is a little early but--" He was cut off by a resounding smack as his sister planted a slap on his muscled shoulder. "I mean...It is too early for me to drink because I am not 21 yet and that would be wrong..." Nate turned to look at the blond. "Right...? Right." Nate's shoulders drooped and he slunk away from his younger sister looking like a puppy with his tail between his legs.

Twyla slowed her pace to fall in step next to Henri, who seemed to be spacing on her. "Nate approves." She smiled at the brunette. "And I bet five dollars that offering him alcohol just made Gawain his new favorite teenager." The girl sighed and rolled her eyes as she watched her older brother make his way over to her...something and lean down a bit to tell him something quietly. "Five dollar as to what they're talking about. Idiot." CUe another eye roll.

Twyla's assumption was right. "So about that beer...maybe later you could hook me up, ya know, help a brother out." He grinned his best charming grin and patted Gawain almost too forcefully on the back.

>>"Well, it is a little early but-- I mean...It is too early for me to drink because I am not 21 yet and that would be wrong... Right...? Right."

Gawain bit back a grin as Nate got slapped by his younger sister. Twyla apparently didn't approve of her brother drinking alcohol. That, or she didn't approve of her brother drinking alcohol with Gawain. Because there was a difference.

"My bad, Bubblegum" he grinned a somewhat apologetic grin at the girl "He's very mature for his age."

Walking down the corridor, the girls dropped behind, and apparently Nate had a different idea about Gawain's offer.

>>"So about that beer...maybe later you could hook me up, ya know, help a brother out."

"Sure thing" Gawain nodded, trying to pretend he didn't almost miss a step from being slapped on the back. Glancing back at the girls, for the first time since he arrived Gawain knew what was going through Nate's head. We gotta loose the girls first.

The kitchen was empty, and so was the diner. The young knight walked over to the fridge and opened the door. "Soooo, we have... stuff." he summarized, stepping aside to let the others choose whatever they wanted to eat. He was never that great at cooking. Neither was Maya, for that matter.

Henri walked passed Gawain and said a ‘thank you’. She smiled at him and continued to walk further into the kitchen to get out of everyone else’s way. The girl glanced around the large room and sighed quietly. She was beginning to feel hungry, but she wasn’t sure what she wanted. I hate it when that happens. Hmm, I wonder if there’s apples. She glanced at the three other people and smiled. It was really nice to hang out with them. It sure was interesting to observe the similarities and differences between Twyla and Nate.

Twyla came next to Henrietta and began to whisper to her. She said that Gawain was probably Nate’s new favorite teenager. The brunette smirked and then giggled. “I thought your brother would be a little concerned by your…something asking about alcohol. Of course, if he drinks, it might’ve been a good move on Mirror’s part.” Henri watched as the two males wandered a little farther off and then began to converse. “I wonder what they’re talking about.” She turned and smiled at her best friend.

The brunette went to a cabinet and opened it. Feeling around, she found a glass. Walking over to the sink she began to fill it up. She set it on the counter and then continued her search for nourishment. Henrietta walked over to the refrigerator and opened it. Sticking her head in, she made a ‘hmm’ noise. When she came back out, she was holding a red apple and grinning. “Apples sounded really good to me right now. Anyone want me to grab something out of here for them before I shut the door? Any takers? Going once, going twice…”

"Oh he's mature alright...." Twyla half mumbled, rolling her eyes. If you only knew... Discussing all of Nate's character flaws with Gawain and Henri wasn't a good plan since many of his most immature moments involved his adorable younger sister. No, she'd just leave her comments on the matter at that.

Promise of beer made, Nate smiled as his gaze followed the younger boy's back to his sister and her friend. "Hmmmm..." He'd get that beer, he'd just have to have some 'bonding time' with Twyla's....whatever she was calling the non-football playing mutant boy/girl.

"As if Nathan Ashby would say no to a buzz. Oh I know what they're talking about." Twyla rolled her eyes again as she walked next to Henri and followed everyone into the kitchen. "He's such a--" She shook her head. "Nate does what he wants when he wants." A pause as Twyla realized what her friend said. "Oh my god! I've been thinking in 'something' too, I should probably figure out what's going on and all that..."

Like, for example, Nate wanted something out of the fridge, so when it was held open he made his way over and grabbed a jar of pickles and a soda. Sitting down at a stool, the hulking man made himself at home by kicking off his work boots and plopping his feet on the counter. "Nate, really?" Twyla pushed the feet down, but they came back up a moment later. The girl turned back and made a face. "Ew, pickles. I'm thinking an apple sounds good too." Her face broke out into a charming, adorable, smile. "Someone want to toss me one?" She looked pointedly at Henri and then longer at Gawain, hoping for the best and that she wouldn't have to walk to the fridge.

>>“Apples sounded really good to me right now. Anyone want me to grab something out of here for them before I shut the door? Any takers? Going once, going twice…”

>>"I'm thinking an apple sounds good too." Her face broke out into a charming, adorable, smile. "Someone want to toss me one?"

Gawain leaned on top of the open fidge door, and grinned.

"A whole apple, Henri? Aren't ya eatin' too much?" he teased the brunette before leaning in and fishing out three more. And because his inner show-off thought it would be fun, he juggled with them too, as if it was the normal way of taking apples out of a fridge. Well, for a Trickster, it was.
Juggling was one ofthe things he picked up on the streets. Most of the time, dancing was enough; but if you really wanted to make a living out of street performances, some simple tricks always came in handy. One can't show off mutations left and right just for kicks.
Besides, it was fun.

Gawain caught two apples with one hand, then tossed one at Twyla. "Catch." The second one he kept for himself, taking a good healthy bite out of it while he idly tossed thethird one into the air and caught it again. And again. And he used his heel to kick the fridge door shut.
Multitasking is something a trickster does best.

"So, Nate, how long are ya stayin' with us?"

“You have been too?! I’ve had no other way to refer to the situation. I didn’t know what you were calling Mirror, so I tried not to think of them a certain way, you know?” She was whispering to the blonde. Before this, Twyla had talked about how Nate did whatever he wanted. Henri wondered what she exactly meant by this. She didn’t need to ask. The longer she watched, the more she learned exactly what her friend had meant.

Nate went right passed the girl holding the refrigerator door and helped himself to pickles and soda. He then made his way over to the counter and put his feet on it. His younger sister pushed his feet back off again. Henri smirked to herself and shook her head. Twyla requested an apple, but Gawain retrieved it. He joked with the brunette that she was going to eat the whole apple by herself. She laughed. “Yeah, I’m gonna be putting on the pounds, huh?” The girl poked her lack-of-gut and then smiled at the rest of the people in the room.

Gawain asked how Nate he’d be staying. As she waited to hear what he was going to say, she made herself comfortable on one of the stools. She left two seats between the two in case Mirror and Twyla wanted to sit there. Taking a bite of her apple, she spun the stool one turn counter-clockwise. She put her foot out and stopped. It didn’t take long to see what she was after. She lifted her water glass to her mouth and then set it back down. All right, now I’m ready for more conversation.