His eyelids covered his blue eye and his gray eye as he blinked once than twice, was she trying to make a sarcastic comment? He laughed at her comment and nodded, ”Right, I can’t stay away from you, reason why you were here waiting for me while I was sleeping.” Carrick said as he closed his eyes and leaned back on his hands. While she continued to joke. When she finished up mentioning the importance of him writing a note Carrick wasn’t exactly sure what to say. He wasn’t really used to having people worry about him like that.

Yeah he had his parents and a few adult figures in his life but all of them knew he could handle themselves and they couldn’t stop him from flying off on his own, the question was why did Kat seem to feel differently about him leaving? There was no way she was honestly worried about him right? ”Even if I left a note of some kind it would most likely be a picture from those flip books…” thought Carrick aloud as he continued, ”Don’t really know how me telling you where I am going would keep me out of trouble but if it’s that important…” Carrick shrugged not really used to the idea.

Carrick laughed at Kat’s suggestion, ”Your asking me to see a giant statue? The Bird boy?” he thought it was a bit funny first thing he thought of when it came to statues was the large mass of birds flocking around it leaving gifts for all to see, he had no doubt that the Statue of Liberty wouldn't be much different. When she demonstrated how close she meant he nodded, ”Why not, though I’m not sure my other self should be the one taking us there… he might be tempted to leave a little something behind…” he shifted his eyes and yawned and stretched his arm.

”Wait… you can turn me invisible?” Carrick asked his head tilted as a grin crept onto his face. It took pranking to a whole new level. He filed the information for a later date before he looked over to Kat, ”If your serious about going you think we should pack some food or something?” he paused for a moment then added, ”Your mother isn’t going to be upset is she? I can’t cook and if Ruby isn’t around, I’ll be living on cereal for a while…” said Carrick as he pictured the displeased face of Kat’s mom.

Katrina mirrored his mischievous grin when he asked if she could turn him invisible, “I can. You have to be kind of close by me though. If you fly off to the other side of the city without me it won't stick, so if you're planning any grand adventures, you better bring me along.”

She nodded. “Alright, let's go. I'll just tell mom we're going on a picnic. She can always call me on my phone if she needs us back,” she sounded more confident than she really was. Probably her mom wouldn't mind. The thin blonde prepared to scramble back down the roof to the attic window, then realized it would be unnecessary.

“Has that door been up here the whole time?” She pointed at it. Who would have thought the architects would have foreseen the need for a roof access on a school for mutants?

Through the door, down the stairs, a quick stop at Katrina's room, and into the kitchen. Katrina's mother was not currently in there, which made things a bit easier. She scribbled a quick note: “Me 'n Carrick went on a picnic. Call my phone if you need me.” Phones were nice, they allowed her to leave things slightly ambiguous without causing too much panic, hopefully.

Rather than use a picnic basket that they'd have to hang onto, Katrina put the food into her backpack: a package of oreos, a bag of sour cream and onion chips, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, juice boxes, and, the best ever fruit snack ever, gushers. At the last minute, Katrina thought they might need something healthy, but the package of carrot sticks just wouldn't fit in her bag, so they got left behind.

Outside, the headed for the garden where either a takeoff or a vanishing pair of teens would be a little less noticeable.

Katrina fixed her aviator goggles around her head and looked over at Carrick. “I'm ready when you are.” Were they doing this piggy-back style, or swept-off-her-feet damsel style? Katrina wasn't sure which way was easier for the winged boy to carry someone.

His grin faded slightly when she rained on his parade with the fact that she would have to tag along if he was planning on any grand adventures. He never planned on any he just participated in them which meant if that was the case it would have been beneficial to have Kat around more than he would like. Sides he was never one for anything grand anyways, his wants and needs were often simple.

”Picnic it is…” Carrick said as he then started to laugh about the door, ”It’s funny that no one ever notices it’s up here, they always take the window.” laughed Carrick glad he didn’t have to deal with either one to get to the roof.

Just as soon as she snuck into his naptime she walked off going to write a note to her mother and gather the food for the trip. He however remained on the roof for a few more minutes yawning and trying to wake up fully before he contemplated how he was going to fly Kat towards the statue that was a good ways away.

After a few moments Carrick met Kat in the garden and folded his wings as she fixed the goggles to her head. He smirked and then nodded his head. It would have been faster to shift then take her but that would have required him to strip down to nothing and then trust his clothes to her and that was something he didn’t feel like particularly doing today. It wasn’t that he was afraid she would lose his clothes but rather he didn’t feel like getting naked around Kat today he knew he would have felt slightly off about the situation so he decided that his human form would suffice.

Walking over to her he paused before reaching down and sweeping his hand under her legs and on her back. He was weak always was he was after all a runt of the litter back home, he was feet shorter than his half brother and his dad as well his mother was even a close to a foot taller than him as well. Hell even Kat was taller than him, but luckily his legs was enough to hold her and as long as she held on tight he shouldn’t have a problem carrying her to the statue that was oh so far away.

Once he had Kat in his arms he pushed back an oncoming blush and opened his wings, ”Hold on!” he said quickly as he bent his legs and flapped his wings as fast and strong as he could to give him enough power to lift them off the ground.

Within seconds they were in the air and Carrick was already climbing the veins on his neck were pulsating as he struggled with the vertical ascension with the added weight of Katrina on his person. His hand that was located on her back (under the backpack) twitched on her back as he finally adjusted accordingly making it easier to climb with her added weight. One thing was for sure, if he was going to make a habit of this he best start bulking up other wise he would exhaust all his energy on the take off instead of the flying.

With a rush of wind, they were airborne. It was not without effort on Carrick's part. Katrina could tell that he was working hard for the takeoff. Maybe she should have left behind the juice boxes.

Once they were above the trees, and over the wall, and leveled out, it seemed to be easier for him. Katrina watched the city drop away beneath them and concentrated on keeping them invisible to anyone who looked up from the street or out through their windows.

They had to fly south to get to Liberty Island, and it brought them straight over central park. It was a beautiful day, and the wind up high made it nice and cool. Maybe a little too cool for a teen girl in a tank top and shorts, but she had a warm griffin boy to cling to, which balanced out the temperatures nicely.

It was pleasant.

The winged freeloader slowed his breathing once he was finally high enough and within seconds he let his wings do the work. Sure his arms were still holding Kat but it wasn’t as bad as it once was. The chilled air of the wind kissed his face as he blinked, his cheeks heating up when Kat adjusted her grip due to the chilled air. Mentally trying to place his thoughts else where than the girl clinging to his neck.

Once they were away from the mansion and over central park Carrick adjusted his neck craning over to the park beneath them his wings urging him to land for the time being just for a rest, reluctantly however he kept lapping his wings keeping the thought of the statue in his mind. He knew once he was there Katrina would be kind enough to let him rest long enough till he was ready to fly again and worst case scenario he could always shift if it was impossible for him to carry her back to the mansion in his human form even if it would have made him uncomfortable to strip down to his skibbies near her to do so.

It wasn’t long till their destination peaked through the buildings upon the horizon, his attention shifted again slightly as he looked through one or two of the office building windows to see a few people trapped in their 6x6 prisons oblivious to the fact that he and Kat were feet from them zooming by. He looked down to the girl hanging from his neck, ”Are we really invisible?” Carrick asked still slightly impressed that invisibility was her ability like flight and a second skin was his.

A thought came to mind when he thought about the first time the met if she really had the ability of invisibility why didn’t she use it when they were fighting the giant clay monster. Such a gift could have come in handy in that mucky situation

The little yellow canary lived in a cage, hopping from perch to perch each day to get from his food dish to his water dish. He didn't even have enough space to even stretch his wings. Still, he chirped now and then, content to be admired for his pretty yellow feathers.

One day, a plain brown wren landed on the windowsill next to his cage. She tilted her head, and flicked her tail up and down as wrens do. She looked through the glass and through the bars at the poor little creature trapped within. Don't you wish you could come out? You poor thing.

Hmph, the canary turned away and back to his plate of seeds. He didn't even turn to see the wren fly off again. He only thought to himself. I'm glad I'm not as unlucky as her, to be so plain that no one would want to keep her and admire her.

The office buildings were full of canaries. Each thought they were lucky, to have such good jobs and such high salaries. If they ever thought of it, many would be glad that they were not mutants, for surely they would not be so lucky as to be so well employed. They sang when the bosses said to sing, and they hopped each day from food dish to water dish in the same pattern. They were content. Even if they did happen to gaze out the window, none would notice the two wrens flying by.

“Of course we're invisible,” Katrina assured him. Ahead, she could see the glittering water of the bay. Any moment they would clear the buildings and catch their first glimpse of Lady Liberty. The little illusionist was glad that it hadn't been permanently destroyed the last time she had visited. She liked the statue and what it stood for. Freedom and liberty for everyone, no matter who or what they were, was the statue's promise.

“Can you make it all the way across the water?” Katrina shivered as a cold breeze from over the bay whistled past them. This would be their last chance to stop and rest before Liberty Island, if Carrick needed a break.

The winged one nodded his head to the girl in his arms, who was expressing concern for his well being, again something he wasn’t really used to. He blinked slightly and nodded again, ”Yeah, only a bit much more!” Carrick said deciding that he was nearing his limit. He could make it but he defiantly would need some time before their return to the mansion. Next time he had a chance he was defiantly going to work out his wings so he could go even further in the future.

He smirked slightly, it seemed that he was starting to think more and more like the people he didn’t like over in this country he wanted to get somewhere fast not slow and he wanted to do it now but alas he was going as fast as he could with this much weight added to his body.

His wings batted at the air as they climbed higher and higher as his tail got to the point were it was angled down face the ground as they continued to climb. He was putting more stain on his wings for the moment but he would be taking the strain off them within seconds.

Once they cleared the buildings and entered the bay Carrick’s jaw opened slightly, sure he had seen glimpses of the statue before but never like this. None of the glimpses so… wow… he shook his head and tilted his wings and craned his back till he was facing the bay his efforts to raise them higher and higher weren’t all for not for this was the reason he climbed so high. He turned downward and dove at an angle towards the bay and in the direction of the statue his wings folding slightly behind his back to decrease wind resistance.

He didn’t know what Kat’s reaction would be to the dive he just hope she didn’t freak out to much if she did it might have thrown him off balance. Once he reached the speed he wanted he opened his wings fully and aimed them up bringing them upward quickly towards the top of the statue. Within another ten minutes they were there and his wings were ready to give way. Trying his best to slow himself down he stuck out his feet and flapped a few times quickly till he could touch down on the head of the statue that was from what he could tell under construction.

His feet landed with a thud as he let Kat go. Falling to one knee he breathed heavily then fell over on his back his hands behind his head, ”Glad that worked!” Carrick said in between pants as he tried to catch his breath.

Katrina decided that from above was a much better view of the statue than from below. Lady Liberty looked breathtakingly beautiful from up here. They climbed higher and higher, then dove.

The little illusionist didn't make a peep as they dove toward the statue, but she did hold on a little tighter. She was careful not to strangle him, but she also wanted to make extra certain that she wasn't going to fall into the bay. The roller coaster falling feeling from the simple dive was enough of that, thank you very much.

His wings snapped open and she could literally feel the muscles in his chest tense with the strain of slowing them both down enough to land safely. Katrina untangled her arms from Carrick's neck and rubbed them. They had been in the same position for so long that they tingled a little now that they could move again. They were on top of the statue, right behind the crown. There was a bit of scaffolding set up with steps and railing, which made it look like it was still undergoing some of the final stages of restoration. Heh. They were sure taking their time about fixing her, weren't they?

Katrina stretched and peered over toward the city. This was a very cool angle, almost like the photographs taken from helicopters and airplanes, except this was three dimensional and right in front of her.

“Very cool,” she breathed, then carefully selected a spot to sit far away from the edges and started to dig in her backpack. One by one she took out the items for their picnic. The only thing she had forgotten was a blanket, and the goosebumps on her arms were really wishing that she hadn't.

Eyes momentarily closed as he tried to regain his breath all he could muster was nod for his response. Hearing the backpack being emptied Carrick let out a long and drawn out yawn as he sat up oxygen returning to his body making his muscles ease up making them no longer constricted. His wings drooped behind him as he rotated one shoulder then the other in an attempt to speed the process of loosing up his body so it would be as stiff for the flight home. Odds were he wouldn’t willingly fly as far as he did in one trip but it was too soon to tell. Heck maybe he was just hungry before they took off and maybe that was the reason he felt so exhausted and overheated.

Rolling up the sleeves on his flannel shirt he let out a quick sigh of relief when he looked up at the sky then down below over the bay. ”hoooo- bit of a workout there!” Carrick said as he wiped a few beads of sweat from his brow, enjoying every little breeze coming off of the bay that brushed up against him.

Eyes fixing from the bay to Kat and the contents of her backpack Carrick’s tail wagged slightly, ”So what exactly do we have here?” Carrick asked as he got up and moved closer to Kat and the food. Sitting down his legs crossed under him he noticed the goose bumps on Kat’s arms. ”You cold or something?” he asked not really waiting for a response before he rustled with his flannel shirt pulling his wings through one at a time then offering it up to the blonde as his gaze shifted to the food in front of him.

Katrina nodded. Cold equals yes. Flannel shirt equals warm equals topless Carrick.

The blonde teen took the shirt that he offered. If he didn't need it, she'd be more than glad for the extra warmth, awkward or not. Air vents in the back or not.

“Thanks,” she smiled at him for sharing the shirt and started handing him things from her backpack. A juice box first, because he looked thirsty. Then the salty and sweet snacks, and then the main course of PB and J.

“This is a much better view than the roof of the mansion,” she noted as she bit into one of her sandwiches.

Taking what was offered to him Carrick first started with the juice box and then bit into his own sandwich as he placed the salty snacks in his lap as his body slowly started to cool in the harbor breeze. Looking out over the horizon Carrick spotted a patrol boat here a freighter there and an occasional army of seagulls floating higher in the air no doubt circling for food that the nearest fishing boat was bringing in.

Chewing the sandwich quietly and nodding his head to Katrina he added, ”Something’s are better some not so much…” pointing out to the nothing but blue sky and the blue ocean in front of them, ”Not enough green for me…” Carrick said as he was noting the lack of trees leaves. There was something about the greens of trees that made everything seem so much more… alive. Yeah it was a good view but it wasn’t something he would have wanted to be stuck looking at the rest of his life… the company however wasn’t bad.

Sipping on the juice and continuing to eat the sandwich Carrick remained silent enjoying the scenery (however blue it may be) and the company he was in. his eyes fixed out in the horizon his wings however weak they felt at the time still longed to open up and stretch forward and outward, they still longed to go flying showing those seagulls out there what it really means to fly.

“To each their own,” Katrina responded. She really liked all the different shades of blue and aqua in the ocean, but the greens of forests and the yellows of fields had their draws as well. “I guess that's why traveling a lot is a bonus, you get to see lots of different landscapes that way; the best of every world.”

She turned to her own sandwich and there was quiet munching all around. It wasn't an awkward quiet, though. It was a comfortable one in which one could enjoy the company without stressing overly about making sure the conversation kept flowing forever and ever even if they ran out of things to talk about. Katrina passed a pack of gushers over to the eagle winged boy and ripped open her own pack.

What a great way to spend an afternoon.

He nodded his head and continued chewing on his sandwich before he responded, ”Why I enjoyed the circus so much, if I didn’t like the scenery or the location we just picked up our things and left within a week or two.” he took another bite of his sandwich and continued thinking about scenery and places he had been, and while some places were green to his liking no place was as green as home, mainly because it rained most of the time, but still when it wasn’t raining it was beautiful.

The damsel was quite now and while his eyes were fixed forward his attention shifted to the girl next to him wrapped in his shirt, she handed him a pack of gushers and he accepted with a smile directed forward. ”Thanks.” Carrick said quickly as he held onto the snack till the rest of the main course was completed.

A few seconds more in silence and the sandwich was completed then he tore open the gushers, ”Never had these before…” Carrick said as he opened the package to find a few of the gushers seemed to gush a bit to early. ”Well I know why they call them gushers now at least…”

Reaching in his fingers and pulling out a particularly gooey gusher Carrick slipped it into his mouth then looked at his fingers then decided his pants would be suitable at cleaning his fingers and so he started to wipe his fingers when the flavor finally gushed. His face scrunched up due to the sudden urge of flavor he wasn’t ready for and when the flavor passed he smirked. ”Safe to say I like’em.” Carrick said as he tried took two from the pouch this time.

Katrina had to agree. These were pretty much the best fruit snacks ever, especially when someone got to watch someone else eat them for the first time. They were pretty normal on the outside, but held a unique surprise on the inside. There were a lot of people like that, too. And some people who were flat like fruit roll ups, and some that were fun like scooby doo shaped...

The little illusionist shook her head; she was day dreaming.

“I suppose we should probably go home eventually,” she commented. Though she was still enjoying the sea air, it was getting a little late and her mother would probably start worrying eventually. She was already pushing her luck just a little to have been gone this long with a fairly flimsy alibi.

Apparently, though, they'd have to do things a little differently on the way home because Carrick was still le tired.

Katrina turned away so he could modestly change into his griffin version, then gathered up all his clothes for him. (With the number of times she'd been around when Calley shifted, this seemed like a completely normal thing to do.) Now that they had eaten all the food, there was plenty of room in her backpack to stuff everything inside. She adjusted her goggles, then climbed up onto her fairytale steed, and they were off.

With a “Yeehaw!” and a joyous bird shriek, they dove down toward the water, banked, turned, and headed toward home once again.