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Clyde had not been waiting for too long when he heard tapping next to him. He turned to see the examiner, a slim, dark skinned man, motioning for him to roll down the window. Obediently, he lowered down it, then placed his hands on the wheel, ready to toggle the controls when asked. That's when the examiner saw what he looked like.

Listening to what the man said, it was evident that he thought his presence in the car was some sort of practical joke. That meant it was Clyde's cue to try to convince him of the truth. Dang, it was so embarrassing having to deal with his appearance.

“No, I'm not a kid,” the age shifter sighed, looking up at the examiner. “I just have a condition. If you don't believe me, theah ah the files.” The words came out automatically, for he'd been through that drill many times already that day. He really hoped that he'd be able to pass the test and get it all past him.

Clyde quickly looked back up when the other student told him his “story.” Twenty-one? That was older than the average highschooler indeed. It sure explained why he caught on so fast. And, not only was he a mutant as well, but it seemed like he was one who somehow was able to pass for someone younger as well.

The age shifter might have asked why the guy was going to a high school if he was too old for one, but he'd already answered that, too. So apparently, a bad woman was after him? Though that did raise some questions, Clyde wasn't going to ask for anymore detail on that one. From the way the guy said it, it seemed to be one of those things he was better off not knowing any more about.

There was still the possibility that this was all part of an elaborate act to get him to talk, though it was getting smaller by the minute. After all, if someone was simply trying to get him to talk about his mutation so they could bully him later, they would've given up by now. Just to be on the safe side, Clyde decided to check anyways.

“That's quite a story,” Clyde responded, leaving the other highschooler to interpret that whichever way he wanted.

Okay, maybe the thing about her being a mutant didn't quite come out the way Clyde had wanted it to. Admittedly, some of his previous encounters with other mutants had proved less than savory, but he knew full well that being a mutant did not automatically make one bad. But she appeared completely offended, and proceeded to lecture him about the whole “born this way” subject. The whole time, Clyde just stood there, rolling his eyes. It was information he was already all too aware of. If anything, being patronized was just an irritating reminder of what his mutation did to him.

Just when he was starting to tune her out, the subject went right back to the shoes. Ugh... why wouldn't she get over it? She couldn't seriously be expecting him to pay up for a pair of overpriced blister-causing footwear that touched the ground, could she? Or could she? Even crazier, she was now treating him like some low-life criminal! It went without saying; that woman was some pompous buffoon who was convinced she was above everyone else.

“What? First you lay full blame on me foh the accident, now you're accusing me of stealing?” he exclaimed, doing his best to stand his ground. “Fine, if it will shut you up...” Grumbling, he turned his pants pockets inside out and pulled out what contents they had, which only amounted to a couple of items. “See, phone and keys. In case that isn't enough, and you want to conduct a cavity search, get a warrant.”

Clyde's pickpocketing attempt, to say the least, was a complete disaster. While the bumping part was easy, it was far from being enough of a distraction to retrieve the stolen wallet. The guy's tail had been a bigger obstacle than he'd counted on. Who'd think there was actually an advantage to having one? Though he'd made an effort to avoid the tail, as soon as he accidentally touched it, it set off alarm bells.

“Ow! Hey!” Clyde yelped as the other mutant grabbed his wrist. This wasn't part of the plan! Of all things to be caught for, why did it have to be attempting to reach into some other guy's pants? Cautiously, he looked up at the pickpocketer. Getting stolen from would make anyone, even a thief, angry, but luckily, he didn't seem so mad about it, though Clyde couldn't tell for sure.

“Um... accident?” Clyde tried a made-up-on-the-spot excuse, though, from what the guy said, he had a strong feeling that he was already cornered. But, this was no time to back down; it was time for him to gather his courage. True, he could go into full on accusation mode and demanded that he return the stolen property, but that rarely went well. He'd have to settle for saying something else instead. “Fine,” he said, snapping into his tougher, more serious tone. “Second rule, watch out foh witnesses. Look, I saw you steal it from that guy. It makes people like me look bad.” With that, he then attempted to yank his hand free of the guy's hold.

The fact that he might have been letting slip the fact he was a mutant barely occurred to him. At least he wasn't at school and was certain a guy with wings like that was not a classmate, so it wasn't as big of a deal. Besides, the fact that they were both mutants was the one of the reasons he'd acted in the first place.

“Hey! Don't call me that!” Clyde snapped at the woman. He wasn't stupid! Nor was he dirty. It was so annoying that people associated him with those, just because he looked like a child. Yes, children generally knew a lot less and tended to get covered in dirt while at play, but that was only a generalization, and an irritating one at that. It meant that anyone who made those assumptions would act like he was incapable of doing anything constructive. Obviously, that was her train of thought regarding kids.

It was evident that she still blamed him for the accident. Maybe he was partially at fault, but despite trying to be the bigger person and picking up a fallen bag for her, his efforts were ignored and she instead opted to go on a completely melodramatic rant regarding a pair of red shoes and spoiled wardrobe plans. She acted as though they were ruined, but they looked just fine to him. Shoes were meant to be walked in, so of course they'd get a bit dirty. Most people would have shrugged it off. But, this woman was instead staring at them with a mournful expression and even talking to them as if they were, well, a loved one that had just died. Behavior like that couldn't be a healthy sign. Though Clyde was still angry, he couldn't help but feel a sort of confused concern for her.

“Umm... ah you okay?” he asked in a puzzled tone. He looked of to the side, rolling his eyes. Why was she so bent out of shape over dropping a pair of shoes? And, oh geez, was she actually about to cry? “Look on the bright side. Nothing fell into a mud puddle,” he sighed, trying show her the situation in a more appropriate perspective.

So far, nothing noteworthy really happened. Clyde was considering trying to return home when one of the pedestrians, a teenager around his real age, caught his attention. Wings? And was that a tail? Definitely another mutant. Yep, no doubt this was New York City, the Mutant Mecca. Clyde watched as the guy, in a casual manner, snatched a wallet from the back pocket of an unsuspecting man.

Clyde's eyes went wide. Did he just see what he think he saw? Yes, yes, robberies like that were commonplace, and it was normal for people to turn a blind eye. However, this was a little different. The offender was a mutant like he was. Though Clyde wasn't responsible for what another mutant did, the public was quick to lump all mutants together, and therefore, if one did something bad, it made every other mutant look bad. Plus, by seeing this go down and not acting, he'd be an accomplice.

Letting a police officer know didn't sound like a good idea. The video in recent news had proven that some police officers were willing to be brutal towards mutants, and an assault was not something Clyde wished on anyone, thief or not. The same went for the robbery victim. Trying to convince the other mutant to return it was also not a good option, given Clyde's notoriously poor track record of attempts to persuade people.

There was one final idea. Maybe, he could pick the thief's pocket. If he acted fast, perhaps he could steal it from the guy, catch up to the victim, and tell him he'd dropped it. There, simple and free of confrontation. How hard could it be to pick a pocket? After all, no one ever suspected a little kid.

The age shifter left the bench and began trailing a few feet behind the pickpocketer. Quickening his pace, he closed the gap between him and the other mutant. Here goes nothing, he thought to himself. Taking a leap of faith, he tried to bump into the guy and time the grab so it would happen when he was distracted. Dang, this was the first time he'd tried something like this, and he really didn't know what he was doing.