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Lorna had swung by the apartment earlier that day and offered to take the boys over to the school. Since Charles had cleared them, she figured any time was good enough to drag them along. At least so long as they weren't otherwise occupied. She promised cookies and other various baked sweets, and in no time they were driving up to Westchester in her powder blue Chevy BellAir. The radio tuned to something from a few years ago, but held at a soft enough volume that they could still talk. It was a decent drive, after all.
When they finally pulled onto the road, passing mansion and other swanky looking buildings in the country she cast a glance toward Kaleb briefly, considering. Her car slowed as they approached the gates and with a wave of her hand they swung open and shut as they drove through. She pulled up the wooded lane to the school proper, and drove off to the side where other cars were parked. Some far nicer than her's, among others a little less so. Either way, all of them were obviously taken care of. She got out, shutting the door and gesturing with a grand flourish of her hands.
"Here we are! The Xavier School for Gifted Youngster and Developing College for Adults. I'm still not sure where the Frost Academy is getting put into the name, but it's totally there too."
Kaleb was no stranger to ridiculously architecture. Really it was pretty much all he's ever known, and ye along the way he's never failed to appreciate it. Landscaping to the choice of brick to historic influences, and in this case a strong lean towards Scottish influence in the crenelations around the top of the school. He watched with the same dispassionate look he had when his face was just at rest, and lost somewhere in his thought of thoughts. He bit at his lip thoughtfully eyeing even the lot as they stepped out of the car. Others might have accused him of dressing up for the occasion, but really this was just how he was and everyone else could cope with their own mediocrity if they had an issue with it. When Lorna spoke he was snapped out of thoughts and he looked back o her, and then to Jay arching an eyebrow. "Well, you didn't undersell it." He looked back and wondered how long he could take drawing the whole thing.
Jay is quieter as they get closer to the school and silent by the time they pull up the long, historic drive. Luckily, that's not unusual for him, though the light occasional shiver of wings betrays a little bit of anxiety when the car comes to a stop, watching the building come up on them. Lorna gets out and he slips out of his side of the car as well, flicking a small smile in Kaleb's direction as he speaks up. "Mm," he juts his chin upward in a vague agreement to the slightly snarky remark, looking at the building again. "The grounds are nice. There's a lake in the back. Lahke, way in th' back." Soft fwipping of his extra appendages, Jay slides his hands into his pockets and strolls forward to meet up with Lorna's side.
Lorna grinned, "Well, what do you want to see first?" She asked, walking out of the parking lot and toward the side of the large building. "We can go inside, walk around back, where ever." She folded her hands behind her back as she walked, practically skipping in the sunlight. Her green hair bouncing with each movement. She wore a simple blue tank top and floral skirt with flip flops, relaxed and just as colorful as her personality.
"There's also the gym, the kitchen, the library and stuff too." She paused and considered Kaleb. "Or I could just leave you out here with some cookies so you can sketch it."
Kaleb arched an eyebrow and said back with his usual tone of casual observation, "Wow, Lorna, that was borderline passive-aggressive and everything. I am nearly entirely proud of you. Like I gave something back to the world… imagine that." He waggled his eyebrows at her and started a patient walk up the drive. "Library sounds cool. Back garden. Whatever. Whatever grooves your goose. The old guy said this is gonna happen so I have time to draw the campus, and bask in your ridicule while eating cookies later." His mouth curled into a faint smile. Ya know, Jay was right, 'lawn darts' were sometimes fun to ruffle. Just not for keeps. There was a breaking point on harassment that seemed to be understood among the 'Plan at least.
Jay trails behind Lorna's prancing excitement, smiling softly in amusement while he watches her lead the way with such exhuberance. Well, someone had to be excited! The light click-clack of his flip-flops follows him wherever he goes as he slides to Kaleb's side and shoulders him a little bit. "The library is a cool place. Though, Ah'm sure yer most to big places like this, huh? All old news to you. Ah was scared fer weeks to touch anything." Jay smiles in spite of himself and tilts his head to Lorna.
Lorna shrugged, a hint of color spreading over her cheeks at Kaleb's words, and she bit her lower lip, attempting to hold back her grin and failing. "Well, lets just go to the back and I can show you where the obstacle course is usually set up, and then there's the lake of course. Off to the side a few hundred yards into the woods back there, I have my scrap yard kinda sorta. My father set it up for me to practice on." She started heading toward the back, glancing behind her as she walked backwards.
"There's a garage too. Julie works on the cars, she used to work in a shop. I've had to help out with a few pieces here and there. Which is cool. And oh, fishing in the lake is fun. We've got a row boat and a dock and stuff." She tilted her head, turning around to continue her happy waltz to the back yard.
Kaleb wasn't like Jay and Lorna, it was true. He wasn't giddy, he wasn't expressive, and wasn't without being impressed. Jay's words drew a look of confusion from Jay and he corrected, "On the contrary, just because my world is covered in flagstone, steel, and lacquered floors doesn't mean that I lack any passion for something new. A building is a monument to someone's will, dictated upon the world to long survive them. When you make… a building Jay it's like saying what legacy do I want to leave? And you can tell worlds about them from how the space functions. How it makes you feel, what it was designed to do, how much did they care about the needs of the future? Did it account for evolving expansion and purpose or was i locked in a frame that had to be retrofit over time and why?" He paused and fell quiet realizing he might have expounded on his hobbies a bit much there and fell quiet.
Looking back to Lorna he took in the inventory of the place as she relayed it. He cracked a bit of a grin commenting to Jay, "She bakes, she welds, let's hope for our sake she never confuses the two." He wasn't immune to the scale of the place and seemed to process having feelings on it slowly in his own way figuring out what his college of feelings was indicative of. He couldn't shake that gnat of wariness in the back of his head, but he walked on taking harbour in her enthusiasm and Jay's encouragement. Taking a couple longer strides he caught he and Jay up to her a bit.
While Kaleb catches himself in an explanation, Jay is silent while he listens and actually gives the genuine impression of /listening/. Toward the end however, there is a glimmer of amusement in his eyes and a light smile, not in humor, but with fondness. "Don't stop. Ah'm pickin' up what yer layin' down, Kale." Jay promises and pats the young man on the shoulder. "They both involve heat, raght? Same thing." The winged mutant jokingly disregards with a wave of his hand as his long strides speed up to keep pace with Kaleb up the steps. Lorna mentions fishing and Jay inhales deeply a cathartic breath. "Ah don't suppose you've ever been fishin, have ya? Man…What is it with me findin' friends who've never fished?" Making a quick asumption about Kaleb because, duh.
Lorna glanced back at Kaleb, her eyebrows shooting upwards and her head tilting to the side. "Well, I know that it wasn't originally school, but the Professor's family home. And well, there have been additions and what not. I know Miss Frost was talking about it." She shrugged lightly, and as Kaleb teases her about welding and baking she shot him another dry look.
"Honestly Kaleb, you don't get enough iron in your diet as it is. What if I'm just protecting you from getting anemic?" She grinned and twisted around, nodding to Jay. "Yeah, Remy and I went fishing with Daire. Spent most of the day out there. Also, metal hooks. No more getting caught on things." She wiggled her fingers as if to demonstrate. She was clearly in the lead of the little gaggle, showing them the outside, heading toward the back.
And there's a rumble of a hopped-up V-8, as a nosed cameo-locket colored '56 Nomad custom job rolls up the drive and into a parking spot: exhaust pipes stop rumbling and out steps a girl looking a little less polished than the car, really, in a slightly-oversized bowling-style shirt that's swag from some Hurst shifter salemen. giving a wave as she sees people out and about, she slings a jacket over her shoulder as she starts threading that way.
Kaleb looked at Jay uncertainly, but finally nodded. Was he nervous? Yes. Would he admit it? Never in a Twinkie's half-life. He was dressed down today which was still dressed very up for most. His sleeves and pant legs still had a crisp crease in them, though the former was rolled to the elbow. He had a vest, sunglasses on, and shoes polished up to a satin shine. Some people didn't miss a detail did they? At the question of anemia and iron cookies he mused, "Gee, I dunno. I'm guessing go through life bloodless and cookiless?" He'd humor her. At the question of fishing he paused and thought about it. Huh. He hadn't. He offered with a wry, wolfish grin, "Naaaah but I caught me plenty of pool sharks before."
His hands dropped into his pockets trying to make out the sounds around the school as the three approached the doors trying to see who was there, what they were doing, what the feel of the place was. Lorna was in too good of a mood leading the pack finally getting Kaleb to get his butt out to the school. Jay, ever the avatar of moral support was meandering along with kid that called himself Echo. As they got to the wide front of the building he stopped and let them lead. Finally he ventured, "I'd try going."
One of the many advantages of being a telepath. Knowing when a group of nervous kids are huddling at the door working up courage. The door opens slowly, as the Professor is standing in the doorway, "Oh, hello, glad to see that you decided to come up and see the campus." He smiles cheerfully, gesturing, "Come on in." He gives Jay a curious look, but doesn't seem to mind Jay being here as moral support.
The red-headed mutant with the shivering hump on his back, covered by a denim overshirt walks beside Kaleb while Lorna leads the group. Keeping pace with the unfamiliar mutant, Jay serves as support while Lorna leads with excitement. Light twitches of motion hover over Jay's shoulders as compressed wings fwip with motion occassionally as he follows Lorna toward the back grounds. For whatever the reason, Lorna's affirmation of fishing in back with Remy and Daire results in a bow of the young man's head and swift color flooding through his cheeks while Jay nods, a rolling, bobbing, consistent motion. "Yeah, Daire, ah…mentioned." Flicking a smile at Lorna.
The deep, throaty rumble of an engine coming up makes him look up while Julie pulls in. A faint, polite smile touching his expression as he looks back with a half twist. "Speak of the devil." Mentioning offhand toward Lorna. Though as they bypass the door to go around the back, it opens and Jay's attention swings fluidly in the direction of the Professor. The curious look he's given is met with a pause of hesitation, suddenly uncertain with a step and a half of hang back.
Lorna paused as the door swung open and she beamed at the Professor, "Hey!" She waved and glanced back at Kaleb and Jay. "I brought them over 'cause everything was all cleared and stuff. Kellan I think is still out with my nephew, so he couldn't come." At the roar of the car's approach she swung her attention toward Julie and waved as well.
"Julie! I was just talking about you. Kaleb, this is Julie. The girl that teaches the shop class." She seemed particularly pleased to be managing introductions here and there, glancing back toward Jay she hooked an eyebrow upwards. "What? Daire told you about our fishing day?"
Julie smiles as she comes on up, "Hey, everyone, …Professor." And she looks to the new faces, somewhat upward given relative heights. Jabs out an offered hand. "Most folks call me Dizzy, how ya doing? …Come for the grand tour, then?"
Kaleb stood still looking every bit like his charming, cantankerous self people expected of him, and dammit if he was one not to let people down. He went to answer but there was a V8 engine that rumbled in before a wall of sound was just cut off over Kaleb's left shoulder turning the rumble of the engine to a murmur by he and the door. He was not shy about adapting his environment to suit himself; first, last, and always. Less crabby he offered to the Professor in a tone that fell back on professionalism that could be bought at a high price boarding school that allowed one to comfortably bluff mood in awkward situations while sill having 'manners'. The interest, however by contrast, seemed utterly genuine, "Yeah I, um, wanted to see the building and you seemed fairly adamant that it could…be a smart match. Whoever your landscaper is I think you still owe them money. They did a fantastic job." He turned though as Julie approached up. He fell quiet and nodded watching Lorna greet her and her reaction. Yeaaaaah, he was not good with people. Buildings and landscape he could spend all day on. Objectivly he offered to asnwer Julie a likewise greet. "Seems so. Nice ride."
The Professor smiles over at Dizzy, "Except me, I still call you Julie." He chuckles a bit, "How'd the work go on the car? Everything running smoothly?" Then he glances over towards at Kaleb and smiles, "Well, thank you. I try to make sure everything stays in tip-top shape here. Actually, this was my family's mansion and grounds originally, but once I decided to come back from England, I turned it into a school for higher learning." He smiles over at Kaleb, "You do have a remarkably good eye for the landscaping, I have to say. That's the first time someone has noticed that right away, I think."
Before things pull too far from her question, Jay offers Lorna a smile, though it seems a touch tight as he nods and murmurs into the background of the conversation more poignantly to the front of the moment, "Yeah." Still blushing red hot around his ears and cheeks, Jay swallows to try to dim the reaction and breathes deeply, shoulders rising with it and all the way up into the hump on his back, making it swell, then shiver. Sticking vigilently by Kaleb's side, the red-head remains quiet and politely attentive while introductions are made and re-made all around, his attention flicking to each soul in turn.
Lorna slide back beside Jay, her arms folding though his vague 'yeah' to her question and blush caused her only ever more curiousity. "Oooh?" She leaned her weight onto her toes, cocking her head to the side. Practically screaming 'Tell me moooore?' in every movement of her frame.
But only for so long until she got something from Jay. Then her focus shifted back to the introductions. "Kaleb is a mmm, friend." That was awkward. Was he just a friend? Did taking her out to a fancy dinner finally count as a date or not? He hadn't even held her hand. Life was so confusing. "I brought him along after talking his ear off about the school."
Julie ahs, seeming to pick up on body language more than anything there, and just smiles, "Ah, sure, Prof, except I'm still waiting on a few things from England so's to finish giving you this year's brakes, they'll, ah, help your lap times like I said, and that other stuff come out pretty good, not too much extra weight." She nods to Kaleb, since he seemed interested in the shop class. "Looks like I got a project car lined up for the regular school year, found a Studebaker Hawk that needs some of everything done." Studebakers, the brand she grew up with in the family.
Kaleb offered to Dizzy, "It's okay. Billy started calling me 'Echo'. I think it's because it's fun for him to make me repeat myself." The stoic young man did warm a faint grin to the compliment returned. "Eh, things resonate with me. No pun intended." It was Lorna who got a confused look though. For the life of him he did NOT understand why she wanted to or ever agreed to go and stood with several ladies at the school that she should have said no and just avoided him all together. Clearly she was disturbed, but not unwelcome. He endured this which, as Jay could attest, was possibly the highest form of flattery he was capable of bestowing. god he was his own particular brand of awful wasn't he? "You are so odd." He told her, and he left it at that. "So what's 'shop class' mean exactly?" He… genuinely didn't know?
The Professor laughs, and looks at Dizzy, "Sounds like you have a volunteer for fall shop, because they are skills that everyone should really learn. If you like landscaping and architecture, I think shop class is right up your alley Kaleb." He hmms a bit, "But if you wanted a bit of a tour, we could definitely manage that I think." The Professor is talking with Lorna and some of the other kids in front of the school, looking quite pleased as punch as he always seems to be when interacting with students. Or potential students.
Exchanging a long look with Lorna, Jay knows that look. He has sisters. He has aunts and a mother and numerous curious people in his tiny home town. He /knows/ that look. And he handles it much the same as he would there; with a gentle 'aw shucks' rock forward on his toes and back on his heels as he bows his head, peering up at Lorna through loose bits of long hair that dared to fall in his face. Later. Later.
The mention of how Kaleb got his name makes Jay stifle a smile and snort lightly with a dip of his head, amusement shining in his eyes when the young man straightens once more with a roiling twitch of the hump constricted to his back. He's content to hang in the background, standing beside Kaleb as moral support.
Lorna grinned at Julie, "Let me know if you need any help with it." In regards to the car, her focus shifting back toward the Professor with a chipper expression and swing of her weight back onto her heels. "I'm not so good at that whole tour thing. So, you'd best handle it Professor." She bit her lower lip, her gaze settling on Kaleb after Jay gave her the brush off of the esstential 'Later look'. The Faint narrowing of her own green eyed gaze promised she wasn't going to forget.
"I'm odd?" She tilted her head as she considered Kaleb. "You're just as bad." She shot back, wrinkling her nose and considering his question. "Well Julie works on cars, she teaches a class on it."
Julie smiles to Lorna, "Well, maybe you can try your rust trick on some of it. There's gonna be some. But maybe you'd like to sign up, find out some other angles on what you're dealing with." Dizzy then hrms, to Kaleb, "I think I get the general theme what you could do, then," she winks, then adds, "Ah, auto shop, …Guess you don't really look the type just now, but it's learning how to fix cars and other mechanical stuff. Been thinking of throwing in some, err, special driver's ed cause sometimes people like us, we can end up in sticky situations, don't want no one wiping out or nothing." And of course it's the 60's, cars are *important,* even to a lot of New Yorkers.
The friendly jibe back at Kaleb didn't evoke scorn from the haughty young man. Quite the opposite, there was a wry grin given to Lorna and he chuckled, approving, "Gooood , I hope I am." Being like 'normal' people was on the bottom of the list of things he wanted in life. He looked almost touched that he could point that out. Almost. He'd have to know what that feeling actually was first. Flattered he managed. His posture shifted to his back foot giving a side long glance to Jay. Kaleb listened to the Professor and Dizzy but the more she went into trying to explain manual labour the more wary and confused he looked. By the time she got down to driver's ed he muttered to Jay trying to consult his (literal) wingman, "Do they… not have a driver here?" because everyone had those right? Like sure Lorna had her car and that was cute and all but he looked back to Dizzy who was serious. This was going to be slightly more of a culture shock than he planned on and in unexpected fashion. His lips pressed together and his weight shifted evenly again. "Uh huh. Kay." That was nothing like landscaping or architecture! That was the fine art of drafting exactly what you wanted and made other people execute your will onto the world. He was feeling slightly duped right now but waded it out to see where it went.
Scott had been out in the city, taking care of a few errands and getting a little bit of time away from the school. This is home for him, though, and as he pulls up the drive, he looks out the window to get a look at the group of students and the professor. Once he's pulled into the garage, he locks up and heads out to meet the group, hands in his pockets. "Professor," he greets with a small smile, getting a better look at the group. "Diz, Lorna, Jay. Hi, I'm Scott," he introduces himself to Kaleb, offering over a hand.
The Professor blinks at the mention of a driver, "Now… where would the fun be in /that/?" He grins at Kaleb, "There's something special about the wind in your hair as you're driving down the road." He looks about ready to expound further, but then Scott pulls up. "Ah, and here's Scott Summers. Scott, this is Kaleb. He's thinking of joining the school as a student."
Jay exchanges looks with Kaleb while he tries to figure out heads and tails, getting a general vibe and feeling for the culture of the school. Something was up. Reading into that look, a creeping smile touching the young man's face as he swings a loose pivot of his upper body toward Kaleb to murmur low, "Nah." He winks at his friend, fading back once again as Charles argues for the merits of driving yourself. Commenting mildly with a flick of his eyes down toward the ground to Charles' comment. "Ah think Ah can identify a bit…" Amused.
Scott rolls up and Jay's expression grows with a thread of familiarity. "Mister Summers, hey." One hand wrests out of his pocket, waving briefly with a cordial, lazy sway.
Lorna shot Kaleb a look that clearly stated she thought his insistence for a driver was a tad silly. Still she grinned in Scott's direction offering a wave. "Heya Scott." She glanced back toward the Professor and Kaleb, shoving her hands into the pocket of her skirts and just shook her head. "Driving is totally the best part of having a car, I know you can hire someone, but there's something freeing about being able to do whatever you want when you want to. I mean.." She bit her lower lip, "I guess you just pay people, but c'mon.."
She sighed glancing back toward Julie. "Yeah, I've been playing around with a few things to see how well I can sense the inside of a car without looking at it. It's good practice. So if you want to help me test that out by visually confirming what I pick up? That would be a big help."
Julie smirks a little bit. "Hey, Scott." The girl with the almost-ever-present checkered flag accessories smirks, "Yeah, though, we got a driver or two round here. Point is to be one of them." Once again, Diz represents the blue-collar people of America, apparently. But she says, "Scott here sure knows his way around a valvetrain, too, mind you. Smirks again. "Never saw him driving, though," she teases, whatever he just pulled up in aside, apparently.
She nods to Lorna, then. "Yeah, I got my own ways of feeling what's going on in there and stuff, but I bet we could play around a bit, see what you can do. I guess let's go by the salvage yard so it don't matter so much if we break things."
Kaleb pulled his hand out of his pocket shaking Scott's hand. Solid, business. All business. After what was a brief greeting for the sake of professionalism he took his hand back, not exactly being a tactile sort. "Kaleb. Kaleb Miller. Yeah the, um, Professor and Lorna said there might be college options with a better class of people. Considering how that'd work out though." He fell silent, and the look was either one of judgement or just discomfort. Lorna and Dizzy's explanation garnished a quiet 'Oh.' with a nod before he just fell quiet and took acute note of the architecture again. So many windows. His jaw tightened thoughtfully.
"Driving's functional. Flying's fun," Scott smirks back at Julie, setting his hands in his pockets again as the professor explains. "Nice to meet you, Kaleb," he nods. "And welcome. The school's a good place, but I'm sure these guys have already told you about that. Not sure about the whole better class of people, though. You might have to be a little bit more specific about that."
The Professor blinks, "Better class… I don't believe I said that. But I do think it might be a better fit for you here than elsewhere." He smiles wryly at Kaleb, "We do occasionally have our squabbles, but in the end, we try to treat each other like family. And yes, flying… never really had the aptitude for that myself." He chuckles, "Rode in more than enough helicopters back in the day, I don't really have much of an appetite for flying that way."
Jay coughs into his hand and slides Kaleb a look. You know the one. The 'bring it down a step' look. Straightening back up, there's a knowing smile to Scott when he catches his insinuation about wind through one's hair. The same smile that turns a little sheepish toward the professor to his addition to the subject. The young man whispers a gentle chuckle under his breath, barely audible, while his encapsulated wings shiver beneath his shirt.
Lorna nodded toward Julie, "Yeah the salvage yard is likely a good idea." She chuckled softly, rubbing the back of her neck. "I mean I haven't really accidentally broken anything for a while, but better safe than taking out a chandlier or something." She grinned.
Then her attention was shifting back toward Kaleb and she bit her lower lip as first Scott then the Professor question Kaleb's comment on a 'Better class of people'. She knew what he meant and she took a moment to look down at her feet.
Maybe Crystal had been a tad right on describing Kaleb's leaning toward the Brotherhood.. Still, she exhaled a breath, "I was telling Kaleb that the school's a safe place, where he can learn how to use his powers without fear. And that maybe, Professor, you could help him with the reverberations that cause him physical injury when he uses them."
Julie smirks to Scott, "I think you got that backwards, Scott, I only flown Sikorsky, pretty much. One of them little Bell jobs once or twice." Xavier will know just the sorts of things, since Korean war-era heloes are the bread and butter of that side of her uncle's business. The mention of 'better classes' seems to roll of her back somewhat, because this is an area richer people tend to come to *her* to sort out their expensive cars. She smiles to Kaleb, "Actually a lot of the better-off guys around here got some fun cars. Lot of Jags, really, great engines, multo bella." It's about then she notices the squirming of Jay's shirt, looks puzzled. "Ah, I bet you could relax about whatever's under there at this place, buddy."
Kaleb gave Scott a half grin and shook his head, "I don't think Jay or Lorna want me to get more specific. Just," He picked up Jay's look with an arches eyebrow over his sunglasses. Yup. Confirmed. He offered to Scott, "Elaboration on that comes with a two drink minimum. The short short story? My fallback is Yale. Fantastic school. Terrible people. Do not care for us very much." Apparently the wealthy snot was not at all shy about calling out his own. Maybe Crystal was a lot right? It was early and hard to say. Something was definitely gnawing at the back of his brain but he'd be damned on the spot if he let it reach his face and express itself as a feeling. Sometimes it was just easier to be the asshole.
Lorna's elaboration on his behalf however gravitated his attention back to her, his jaw tightened a bit and you could drop a pin around him and hear it. He didn't dispute what she said, he just seemed less than thrilled that she'd said it. Pushing the conversation to shift back to Dizzy's elaboration he admitted, "I never had a chance to drive a car before. I'd try it." He looked from her to Jay to her and shrugged with a faint half-grin, "Maybe he doesn't want windburn from everyone driving around so fast."
"It all depends on what you want out of life," Scott nods to Kaleb. "If you want to go to Yale, you should have the right to go to Yale. But I think you'll be pleasantly surprised by what you find here. We've got a lot of impressive staff here, and impressive connections, too. Without the parts where people think they know who and what you are."
The Professor nods, "Admittedly, we're no Yale, we aim for a bit more of a smaller scale than that." He grins a bit, "If you do decide to go to Yale, well, that would be a shame… but it's your choice to make, in the end. No matter what." He then adds, "We've got a top flight staff here, and some of the best teachers you could hope for. Especially in regards to your special abilities."
The quiet young man hanging on the sidelines beside Kaleb exchanges a look with Lorna as well when she shifts uncomfortably. They both damned well know and hear, at length, what Kaleb means. Julie gets a flashed smile after the fact while she talks about her specialty. her passion. Quietly appreciative of that sort of thing, the young man also quirks a small smile when she points out he can likely relax over whatever he keeps trapped under the denim of his over shirt. "Ah understand, though Ah ain't much for strippin in public, Miss Julie. Especially not in mixed company on the front porch." Explaining lightly, relaxed and familiar with the concept, like he gets told that quite a bit.
The tension from the man beside him draws Jay's attention back to Kaleb. An elbow cocking out to dap against Echo's, blooming with a broad, rare grin when his friend makes that comment to Julie about windburn. Exhaling a breath with a chuckle wound into it. The comments from both Scott and Charles simmer him back down, lifting his attention back to those he's marked as higher on the food chain somehow. A slow nod of rolling solidarity to what they have to say, peering back to Kaleb again. "Choices exist."
Lorna bit her lower lip at Kaleb's look, and she quickly glanced away. He needed the help, and instead of letting him blunder onwards about Mutants and his beliefs that were sure to get a few raised eyebrows on the first introduction? Well, she knew Charles knew, but Scott? Better safe than sorry. Besides, if anyone could sympathize with having a mutation that caused damage to the user, it would be Scott of all people.
An exhale followed and Lorna shrugged, "I bet Yale doesn't teach you about how to use those sound waves of your's in new and interesting waves." She joked, but it was lame by comparison, she'd caught the look that Kaleb had not appreciated her attempts and it soured her bubbly mood slightly.
Her gaze swung to Jay and she flashed him a grin, "Aww, taking off your shirt to show off those wings of your's here is in public? C'mon Jay, it's not like we're nuns or something. I've seen a shirtless guy before, we have a lake here you know…"
Julie smiles a bit and nods to Jay, …well, the 'Miss Julie' bit's a little charming, maybe. To Jay, she says, "Hey, speaking of driving, I done a few custom seat frames by now, you know, for folks that got wings and tails and stuff. A lot of things, they don't make with mutations in mind and all, but you can pass just about anything off as a custom job with upholsterers back in Cali." She nods, "And, hey, no percentage in me going to a real university, but I bet I could learn a few things here, maybe get a college degree and all, too."
See? Scott got it. Dissonant as he presented Scott had his ear on that and he admitted minimally, "Really the last part is what sort of sells it. Yale's more my father's choice for me than mine. I just wanted to study architecture, and see… this for myself." He looked to Jay then at the ground tilting his head to the side. He looked back to Scott and the Professor admitting reluctantly, but honestly for his own reasons, "I'm exhausted on hiding as much as anyone else."
Echo's jaw shift a bit still irked that Lorna kinda did him out like that. His frailty from his own abilities seemed to actually stab through his layers of indifference and hit his pride, but he didn't call her out on doing it. It was what it was, and it already done and over with the proverbial band-aid being off. He took a deep breath and agreed with her, "Yeah. Probably not in any manner any of us would like to see it do again." Which weirdly only the Professor would know what he made reference to in that statement. Still there was an agreeing nod at Julie's words. "Hey, look, I'm here okay? Kellan and I talked, we agreed to try this out." Sure, choices he could make, this wasn't superficial though which sort of put it out of his comfort zone. "So… what…do I have to do?"
"Most of us don't come into our powers with perfect control," Scott smiles ruefully to Kaleb. "The Professor picked me up after I took out a crane. Not…on purpose," he chuckles, tapping a finger at the side of his glasses. "I used get crippling migraines, too. But we learn, we improve." At the question of what to do next, though, he looks to Charles, pulling one hand from his pocket to gesture deferentially to the Professor.
The Professor smiles a little bit, "What you have to do? Well, open your mind, learn, and most importantly have fun. We can teach you how to control and channel your powers, in ways most people couldn't even conceive of just yet." He shrugs a bit, and looks over at Scott, giving him a smile, "Even if you accidentally destroy my favorite tree." With that, he claps his hand on Scott's shoulder, grinning as he's obviously joking with the lad about that.
Turning back to Julie as the conversation advances, Jay tunes in to listen to her explain the concept of custom frames for folks with extra appendages. Folks like him. A slow arch of his brows register light surprise. There's still so much he hasn't thought of, coming off the farm, as it were. Interest flickers in his eyes, shifting his weight forward slightly. "Ah hadn't much thought of that, actually, but that'd be real handy, Miss Julie. Ah mean, heh, Ah don't actually own a vehicle, but if ya take that concept, Ah can think of a half dozen things…" And that's how Jay makes a new friend through the merits of Ideas.
Reminded what he's here for, he turns back to Kaleb as Jay notices the young man look over toward him. His weight shifts between his feet then leans in Kaleb's direction, a corner of his mouth lifting crookedly over the other. He understands Kaleb has guilt and tries to bolster him with what little non verbal signs that Jay can. Like a forgiveness. Stories about Scott starting out has him smiling down at his flip-flops and exhaling a chortle. Murmuring softly, "Mah brother had some stories…" Boy.
Lorna shifted, falling silent as she listened to the conversation with care and then blinked abruptly, "Wait, that old tree in the back? That was Scott?" She whistled and grinned as she rocked her weight back on her heels and glanced in the direction of the back. The urge to fly over and see for herself was strong, but skirts and flying are a bad combo.
As Julie and Jay converse about modified cars she considered and tapped her chin. "I can help with the custom frames. Wouldn't be too hard. A bigger door frame would likely help too. I mean, doors aren't exactly created with wings in mind. Or much else actually than the usual human shape." A head tilt, and she considered. "Julie, we totally have to take our ideas down to Mutant Town sometime and help out there. Test them out first, but yeah.."
Julie nods to Lorna. "Maybe if I can show you what a mandrel-bender does, you can figure out how to do it without one, but it ain't so hard the old-fashioned way, sometimes you just gotta change things a few times till you get it right. I mean, I know this guy with wings and *nobody* wrote the manual how to make seats for that, so you kinda just figure it out till it's right." Kaleb gets a little bit of a 'cool' sign she picked up in her California sojourn, waggling a thumb and pinkie, then indicates the Prof, for 'what to do next.' She adds to Jay and Lorna, "Anyway, if you need wheels, we could probably just make you some, probably easier to start with something that's got doors you already like. But shapes are pretty negotiable." Winks to Lorna. Certainly between the two, well.
Kaleb seemed to be listening acutely to every word Scott had to say right now. The young man was clearly not used to having his addressed. Still, it was sort of nice to hear he wasn't the world's largest screw up for not being able to have a grip on everything. He looked up and his brow furrowed in a positively rare show of a genuine feeling that wasn't annoyance or hey cool, new stuff. Will wonders ever cease? He admitted to Scott, "Tinnitus. Can," he paused and looked from Scott to the Professor asking with cautionary eagerness, "the migraines really stop?" he looked back to Scott like bro, do NOT screw with me here. His fingers rubbed his head behind his left ear thoughtfully and he queried, "You think any of that's retroactive?" Okay he might have some damages he didn't cop to but at least it was far more useful than questions about world conquest and a rant on civil liberties. It was a lot to process but so far he couldn't argue much. Except for shop. That sounded suspicious. He eyed Julie making plans to accommodate all teh people and though he didn't need any? He smiled faintly; nervous. Time would tell on that one. "Kay. So Lorna said no one knows what this place /actually/ is? If that's so when's next semester start I guess?"
"I can not be blamed for a failure to aim the blind kid." Scott raises his hands in innocence when the professor mentions the tree. "The migraines did go away," he adds to Kaleb, nodding. "Most of the time. It's still…" He pauses, a wry smile twisting across his features. "You know, it's probably easier to demonstrate than to explain."
Digging into his pocket, he pulls out a visor, replacing the sunglasses with a practiced motion then setting his sights on a broken branch hanging from a tree along the entry. "See that?" he points it out, the other hand rising to a trigger on the side of his visor. A flick of his finger, and a beam of what looks like red light shoots out, snapping the branch cleanly off.
"Without the glasses or the visor, I can't stop that," he explains to Kaleb, swapping visor for glasses once more. "Short of closing my eyes. But we found a way around it. I live a pretty normal life, aside from the part where we protect mutants, fight injustice, all the rest. We can do the same for you, I'm sure of it. Next semester will start in September. We've got some summer classes going, but it's mostly catch up. Given the nature of the school, we get a lot of transfers. People need to catch up, get on the same page."
The conversation regarding the possibilities of rigs, cars, harnesses, whatever else that had Jay's attention a moment ago is suddenly pressed to the back burner as he watches Scott pull the visor out. A little bump of his elbow against Kaleb's, jutting his chin in a clear 'Watch this, bro.' without dwelling on the points of insight which Kaleb just alluded to. No point in making him /more/ uncomfortable than he is already.
Scott does some long-distance pruning and Jay smiles broadly, closed-lipped, and looks toward Kaleb to see his reaction. It's cool to see the possibilities and all the differences in mutations. The lump on his back expands, shivers and compresses back down once more with a whisper of soft friction from the feathers hiding behind his legs.
Lorna nodded toward Kaleb, "No one from the outside knows what this school is or what it does. It's why we're very careful about who we bring here and why the Professor has to check first. Being secret is part and parcel for security here." Never mind the powerful telepaths that lived here. She stepped back as Scott spoke, her smile warming as he talks about his migraines. She knew the two would have at least that in common if nothing else.
As Scott brought out his visor, she stepped back, glancing toward the tree and waiting to see the show. And wasn't let down in the least to watch Scott neatly take down the tree branch. She grinned and glanced back to Kaleb.
"I just finished my Freshman year here for college this past Spring. Been working on those extra classes too." She wrinkled her nose faintly, extra cirriculum that her father had insisted had become the bane of her summer life. But at least combat training hadn't been horrible. She didn't complain about it. "Josh said he's going to start teaching a first aid class soon, I'm definitely signing up for it."
Julie just whoas a little as Scott actually does his thing, which she's never seen herself. She jumps a little anyway. "Mammamia." Smirks to Lorna. And she nods to Kaleb. "Sometimes I feel like I got off easy compared to some, but everybody's got something, I guess." She doesn't elaborate, but perhaps she has her own coping mechanisms. And she nods with some reluctance to Lorna, "Yeah, I guess that's something we all oughtta know." Perhaps fixing *people* is a bit more intimidating than machines. "Anyway, that's kind of the whole idea. Learn how to do some good in the world, not be so much the 'mutant menace' like you read about in them bird-cage liners."
Kaleb dropped his hands into his pockets and watched with an avid curiosity. At the explanation his eyebrow went up, up. "You must seriously have the most powerful eyelids known to man. My brother flips my light on and my eyelids can't even stop that." At the nudge he looked to Jay and paid attention here. At seeing Scott kill the tree Echo's jaw dropped open, closed, and hesitated to start a sentence. That was both impressive and terrifying, not to mention the day to day inconvenience of it? Wow. Just, wow. Okay pretense aside? He was pretty mystified. Good call, Lorna. Extremely well played for a 'lawn dart'. His fingers went slowly up his hairline and combed back through his hair shaking his head, "Maaaaaan that's some precision."
Echo sat with that thought for a while . People spoke and he might be listening? It seemed he was. "Yeah let's not…get started on bird-liners. Yes everyone's got something. Some people got it really… really bad right now and it is not their fault and they can't survive alone. Keeping our brothers and sisters from being hunted and shot? I'm all ears. The signal's open."
"Precision comes from training. Which isn't always fun," Scott admits, looking to Lorna and Jay with a faint smirk. They've been the target of his training more than once. "But the end goal is being able to control your powers as much as is physically and mentally possible. If you're interested, it sounds like the professor's cleared you - you're in. It's just a matter of when you want to move in. After that, we'll get you set with a schedule and get to work."
"Lots of practice," Jay murmurs in a softer echo to Scott's admission and nods, still with a smile touching his expression in appreciation for that work, meeting Scott's glance behind that visor. Yes. Lots of practice. And a little bit of guilt since he's been, uh, distracted lately. "Kaleb's got an apartment with his brother 'cross town," Jay juts his chin up and out in explanation, smiling over toward Kaleb. "Ah…don't quite see ya wantin' t'move in, but Ah've been wrong b'fore. Gettin' on a schedule ain't so hard, especially with yer 'schedule' raght now." Smirking halfways, teasing butted up against encouragement. The red-head turns his head and lowers it to murmur toward Kaleb's shoulder, "It'll be good." Certainty. Rock solid certainty. "Come by a few times a week with Lorna 'r me. We still got the rest of the place t'see, too."
Lorna smiled toward Kaleb, "Well, it's nothing you have to make a choice over immediately. And you haven't seen the rest of the school yet either." She nodded toward the door the Professor had used.
"C'mon we can go through the inside and if you want, I'm sure Scott can show you around the gym and obstacle courses." She hooked an eyebrow up in Scott's direction, twisting around as she went to open the door and hold it open for the others. "Plus I do have cookies I baked earlier this morning in the kitchen for after."
Julie nods, for her part. "Yeah, training, pretty serious, but serious got a way of happenning in the world, these days." She glances to Lorna. Smirks. "Cookies happen too, though. That ain't bad."
Kaleb had to agree reluctantly with Jay and casually dropped, "Yeeeeeah I might have sonically detonated everything in a city block radius." He looked back to Scott like weeeeeell yeah focus might be a thing to work on. Unapologetically he said "They were shooting at Jay. I'm not sorry but still, I don't know the Hallmark store kinda deserved all that." He sighed working on making light of it putting all the huge life changes back to the back of his mind to marinate right now. Glibly the comment went to jay, "So many tiny dead glass cats." He made a mental note to add 'Filleter of Figurines' to his list of accomplishments.
A faint, but grateful expression was given to Jay for paying back the favour of having his back from earlier on the living situation. "Still have a place to go if the day runs late isn't a bad plan. Still, I gotta talk to my twin. It'll make more sense if you meet em. He's one of them… sort of does the telepathy thing. Neither of us are terribly groovy if we drop signal too long, ya dig?" He wasn't wanting to be living where Kellan wasn't. Hey he respected his loyalties at least.
Turning to Lorna one eyebrow arched, and he had to correct Julie, "Nonsense Ms. Diz. Those cookies might be the best thing to happen to the city of New York in seven months. And unlike half the people they never tried to hurt anyone." Point in favour of the cookies. A hand was extended back to Scott with an earnest, "Hey, I, um, I appreciate it. We'll talk." He turned to let Lorna finish giving the tour, in a way, seeming grateful for the break to just process everything, though Jay was given the look of 'I want to hear about these upgrades later'.
Scott takes the offered hand, grip firm and confident. "You know where to find us," he nods, then tips his chin to the others. "I've got a few things of my own to see to. Enjoy the tour," he says, waving before he heads off back toward the garage.
Kaleb goes home.
Julie hrms, and smirks to Jay, "Hrm, well, I guess meanwhile, let's s see if one of the boys got something we could cut up for youse to wear. May as well relax for the evening, I say."
Jay feels really inclined to go show Kaleb around alongside Lorna, though when she plans to take him to the kitchen for those cookies she made earlier, he taps out and promises to meet them in about a half hour elsewhere.
Quick arrangements made, Jay steps back as people filter off, waiting for the group to disburse and when they do, he turns and looks to none other than Miss Julie. The offer to go 'cut something up' rouses an eyebrow loft of mild surprise. "'Scuse me?" A small smile touches his lips, brief and fleeting, with another soft shiver from the hump on his back, whispers of friction. "Cut somethin' up?"
Julie ahs, indicates where Jay's wings are getting restless. "Oh, I was figuring whatever you got under there… I'm guessing maybe some kinda wings, but I know this guy with some… Anyway, there's a reason you'd have to take your shirt off, so I figured we could find youse something we could make more comfortable. No need to hide around here and all. Kinda nice just to be able to breathe easy around here, even if your mutation don't really show, believe me."
"Ah'm curious who you know with wings," Jay mentions softly, tilting his head to the side mildly, a fresh pink hue coming to his cheeks as Julie casually mentions whatever he's hiding under his long-sleeved shirt, but that smile never wavers. "Ah, yeah," lowering his voice to a bashful level. "Ah got wings. Feathered ones." Turning around to show her his back. Broad, long, crimson primary and secondary feathers stick out of the bottom of his shirt, streamlining down the backs of his legs in two tails to brush the ground. "They ain't the most convenient things, Ah gotta agree. And I'm kinda…shy, strippin' an' whatnot." He coughs and turns back to face Diz with a smile. "So, uh, Ah don't mean t'pry but…Ah showed ya mine?" Bashful.
Julie ahs. She hrms. "Hey, that's fair enough, but, yeah, maybe you'll meet that guy. Ain't seen him in a while, but he'll be around. Obviously, everything's on the Q.T. outside this place and all, but he's a good guy, bet he knows everything about what to do with those, even." She fusses in a pocket a moment for what looks like a finely-machined yo-yo. Cause that's what it is. "My stuff ain't so much just to see, really, just like that, but…" She slips a finger in the loop of the string, and lazily tosses the body of it to the side, with a rolling motion. There's an audible 'Vrrrr' sound from somewhere around her, as the thing flies out about horizontally, and…well, it's a yo-yo trick called a 'sleeper,' only the yo-yo's spinning so fast, all of a sudden, it just hangs there, like a gyroscope, before it starts conceding reluctantly to gravity, the string smoking with a smell of some kind of wax, before she tugs it in a broad circle to cool it down. "I make stuff turn. All kinds of stuff." Potentially… really fast, in fact, it would seem.
"Yeah, Ah know, Ah was really just curious cause the only folks Ah know with wings can hide em inside their bodies," Jay explains mildly, scooping a hand through his longer hair, scattering it with a shake. "They only come out sometimes, so…Ah'm the only fellah Ah've met who has 'em all the time." Sheepish, his tone low, even in a space like the school, Jay remains mild and soft-spoken. Watching Julie's trick with the yo-yo, he doesn't seem to…get it right away. It's a slow-dawning awareness and arch of his brows, hiding behind his long hairline. "Oh. Wow. That's…really boss—er, that's neat, Miss Julie. An' yer handy. Yer like…a real gearhead chickie, yeah? That's incredible."
Julie winks, "I know, spooky enough I can turn wrenches, ain't it?" she teases. "You should see what I can do behind the wheel, …not that I'd cheat in a race or nothing." This seems to be a point of honor with her. "But, yeah, it's kind of the family business, and, I guess I got a thing for moving parts that way. Ain't blowing down trees by looking at em, or nothing, but it comes in pretty handy, really. And, you could call me Diz. Jay, wasn't it?"
Teasing is something Jay can handle and handle well with a broad curve of a smile in spite of himself. Then he realizes that he hasn't actually given anyone his name, busy working on Kaleb and making sure he got around all right. Practically stumbling over himself, there's a whisper of anxious shivering and feather friction behind him and Jay steps forward a half step, holding a hand out for a shake. "Oh, Lord. Ah'm sorry Miss Diz, yeah. Yeah, m'name's Jay. Jay Guthrie." Of the million and a half mutant Guthries that seem to come through the school. Okay, just the three so far.
Julie nods, introducing formally. "Dizzy Bottero. The Prof's got everyone in the bad habit of calling me Julie half the time around here, though. Like mi Mama and, well, teachers. Anyway, it gets kind of upper-crusty around here, but they're all right." She winks and smirks. Which she seems to do a lot of, perhaps given the surroundings. She glances toward the rather extensive garage. "Anyway, you want a beer or something, or a look around?"
Jay smiles sympathetically, "Well, fer the sake of any sort of equal parts, Ah know when m'momma's got it fer me when Ah hear 'Joshua Zachariah' yelled across the house." He trades full name for name with that southern lean accent of his, it sounds /extra/ redneck. "You wanna talk about upper-crusty, you were just here when Kale asked me if th' school had a driver, raght?" Bright green eyes squint with humor. His attention looks toward the garage, Julie's domain. "Sure. Ah mean, Ah gotta meet up with Miss Lorna an' Kale in a bit, but Ah never got so far as the garage b'fore."
Julie nods. "I get called the full Julia and middle namesstuff, I know I'm in Dutch. " Scott'll be there probably blueprinting a camshaft or something, but the man's got focus, we won't bother him, I don't think. Also it's a big barn, believe you me." She gestures with a bit of mock-grandiosity that way.