Posse Comitatus

[Jack Brocius]

A dark-tinted sedan drove up to the gates of the Cullen Institute in upstate New York. The driver rolled down the window, and punched the intercomm.

"This is Jack Brocius. I'm here to speak with a school administrator."

Brocius, caged in the confines of civilian garments, tugged at the stiff collar of his company shirt. As he waited, he pulled his sunglasses off his tanned face, breathing curtly on each lens before wiping them down. He slipped the shades back on, and carefully returned his hands to the steering wheel, large forearms flexing and unflexing as he gripped at the wheel. He hated this sort of thing, and hated having to put up pretenses. Forget Tehran, forget Baghdad, forget Waziristan. This was ground zero for the greatest enemy of the free world. Brocius had to find the most efficient way to neutralize these mutants.

[Dragon]

"Sure, send him to the main entrance. I'll be there to meet him."

John set the phone receiver back in its cradle, folded up the documents he was working on, and headed out the door of his office toward the school's main foyer. Like any school, Cullen's Institute received its share of visitors and had its security measures in place to protect its students. But because of the unique nature of Cullen's, they had to maintain an extra degree of caution, especially as recent events had been increasing the atmosphere of genetic tension. More than once the school gates had been picketed with protesters. They very commonly received hate-mail. There had even been a handful of break-in attempts.

Because of that, John found himself regarding every newcomer with a certain level of suspicion. It was a frustrating situation - it seemed every day they were moving father away from Cullen's vision of coexistence rather than closer to it.

He stepped through the large front double doors and came down the steps to the roundabout as a dark sedan came gliding up the driveway. He was dressed fairly casually in slacks, a turtleneck, and a corduroy jacket, whose cuffs he adjusted as the car came to a halt and the door opened.

"Hello, Mr. Brocius," he said, extending one hand. "I'm Professor John Rhee. How can I help you?"

[Jack Brocius]

"Professor Rhee, a pleasure to meet you."

Jack extended a hand as he removed his sunglasses with the other. He gave the man a curt, firm handshake, eyes steady on his host's for a moment, and he glanced about as they released the embrace.

"Are you the headmaster here? I was wanting to talk about a project the government is working on, and I was hoping we could work together."

[Dragon]

"I'm afraid our headmaster is off-campus right now on business matters," John replied. "But I'd be happy to speak with you. May I ask who you're representing?"

[Jack Brocius]

"I'm with Praetorian Consulting Corp. We're working on some research with the Department of Homeland Security, and were hoping to find some volunteer participants."

Jack reached into his wallet, and extended Professor Rhee his card.

"Interviews mostly. Focus groups, that sort of thing."

[Dragon]

John's countenance hardened as he took the business card. He gave it little more than a perfunctory glance.

"Volunteer participants?" he asked. "Mr. Brocius, I think you may be confused. This is a school. I don't see what interest either your corporation or Homeland Security could have with us."

[Jack Brocius]

Jack looked modestly taken aback. It was a part of the act.

"I was told that the Institute has reported several threats. We've had several incidents of genetically-motivated hate crimes across the country in the past year.

Washington takes these threats very seriously, and they're committed to preventing this outbreak of intolerance. The Institute has been very cooperative with pro-mutant efforts in the community from what I've heard. I was hoping to continue that cooperation."

[Dragon]

This smelled of bureaucratic entanglement - something John would have liked very much to avoid, especially with the teachers at the institute taking so many matters into their own hands lately. But to turn the man away flatly without so much as listening to his proposal could raise some unwanted questions.

John considered letting Brocius speak his piece in the blustering March wind, but he decided he should at least be courteous.

"Well, I have a class starting next hour, but I would be happy to hear your proposal," he said. "Would you like to come inside?"

John led the man on a very direct route to a small conference room just off the front hallway. Call it paranoia, but there was enough boot polish in Brocius's presentation to suggest a military mind, even if the name of Praetorian wasn't enough of an indicator. All he saw on the way was the sweeping stair leading to the second floor sleeping quarters and a window-side lounge the students used for studying.

John moved around to the far side of the table and motioned for his guest to take a seat. "You'll have to pardon me, Mr. Brocius. With everything going on, I'm inclined to be very protective where our students are concerned."

[Jack Brocius]

"That's reassuring." Jack pandered to John's concerns, and used them to establish rapport.

"I think we can work together then. While it's ignorant to ignore the incidents of mutant violence in the world, it's equally so to take an assumptive stance with the vast majority of law abiding mutants, here in America and otherwise."

Jack laid a folder on the desk, and slid it across to his host.

"Here's a summary of our past work. I won't politicize the wars in Iraq or Afghanistan, but we've built a name for not only providing direct security for clients, but also for providing consulting services. You know the proverb about teaching a man to fish, and such."

Jack steepled his fingers before resting his hands palms-down on the table, with a casual smile.

"The government is sometimes two steps behind in the dance, even in this post 9-11 world. Red tape slows down response and effectiveness. What we're here to do is to grease the wheels. We're talking to law enforcement to see what they can offer you, and wanted to work with your staff and students to get a ground floor perspective."

[Dragon]

The Korean mutant opened the folder and glanced over the first few pages - client lists, statistics, evaluations. It was nothing he wouldn't expect to see from a company like Brocius's.

"We already have a working relationship with both state and local law enforcement," John replied. "In fact, one of our former teachers is on-force with the NYPD and has been a valuable liaison for us. I guess I'd like to know what it is in particular you want to offer us beyond what we already have in place."

[Jack Brocius]

"It's good that you're on positive terms with local and state police, but I'm going to be realistic. The police can only do so much, and they can only do it with what they have in their toolbox. I want to give everybody the tools and training to use the tools. I want the police to be able to better protect your institute, and I want to get to the bottom of other security needs that might go unsaid otherwise."

Jack could see that John was suspicious, and he expected that sort of resistance.

"Look, it's a lot to think about, and I don't mean to unload anything too big on you. I know that the last things you want are to endanger your students or to disrupt their studies. I'm willing to work with you and be transparent. Maybe get me a demographic list of students to interview, and you sit in on the interviews?"

[Dragon]

John buried a few more seconds in the file folder. The way he saw it, any assistance the school could receive from Brocius's firm would only be for show; the X-Men satisfied its security needs, and it was wiser in his mind to keep those details in-house. He didn't want to put the students through Praetorian's screen and he certainly didn't want to put Brocius in a position where he might learn about the school's back-door business.

"Well, I certainly couldn't give you an answer today," he said. "We'd have to discuss it at the next directors' meeting. But I assure you we have been very proactive in considering such issues, and we've put a lot of work into making this one of the most secure facilities of its kind in the U.S. without negatively affecting our student body. It's a delicate balance, and while we're eager to cooperate with initiatives like this, I'm reluctant to introduce a factor that might destabilize that balance."

[Jack Brocius]

"I respect that."

Jack gave a measured nod, and gestured to the folder of information he'd given John.

"Keep the materials, and talk to the staff if you can. We've gotten a positive response from law enforcement over this brainstorming session, and we'd like to have you on board. My card is clipped on the inside, too. I'm available any time."

[Dragon]

The directors' meeting had gone much the way John had feared.

He broached the topic, passed around the packet Brocius had given him, and shared his own misgivings. They had bandied it around for a while, discussed the merits of networking with government agencies and trying to dispell any attitude of isolationism about the school.

And, finally, when Ethan had asked him, point-blank, whether he thought Brocius represented a security risk to the school, John could only say he didn't know, but he didn't like opening the grounds to hired guns. Even if they were only asking questions.

Three days later, John was watching the same sedan pull up the driveway to the main entrance. "Welcome back, Mr. Brocius," he said. "Do you need a hand with your materials?"

[Jack Brocius]

Jack emerged from his sedan, this time accompanied by two other Praetorian employees. One was a blonde woman in her late twenties, and another was a similarly aged man with red hair and a widow's peak. Both wore the same knit cotton collared shirts, and khakis.

Jack approached John and gave another firm handshake, as the other two grabbed a laptop, and a cardboard document box from the trunk.

"That's okay, Mr. Rhee. We won't crowd you out. Just lead us on to where you'd like us to get to work."

[Dragon]

John nodded civilly toward the other two - the two he hadn't known were coming - and led them into the same conference room where he'd interviewed Brocius before. One of Max's dupes came by to drop off a trio of visitor's passes for them.

"The first student should be arriving shortly," John said. "If there's anything else you need while you're here - coffee, water, I can have it sent in."

[Jack Brocius]

Jack looked to his assistants, and back to his host.

"That would be great, thanks."

He extended another folder to John.

"Here's a rough itinerary, sample questions, and everything else we'll be going over. I'll try to keep everybody no more than twenty minutes per session."

The questions involved were fairly benign and generic, asking about experiences interacting with humans, any negative encounters or any racist incidents that they might have suffered, and things such as what they would like to see changed to feel safer without feeling isolated.

[Dragon]

John buzzed in a request to the office and sat down to review the material. A minute or so later, one of the student teacher's aids walked in, smiled shyly at the visitors, and set down a tray with a coffee pot, several mugs, and a few bottles of water.

Shortly afterward, there was a knock at the door. "Come on in," John said.

[Jacinda Blake]

For a student, she was spending an awful lot of time in the faculty offices and conference rooms lately.. Jacinda stopped in front of a mirror in the mansions hall, licked at her teeth, tucked her hair behind her ears and deemed herself presentable for an interview. She saw one of Professor Flannery's dupes leaving the room and sent her a wave..

To be honest, she wasn't sure what exactly this was all about. Professor Rhee had given her a heads up last night during training in the sub-basement and he had done so with a look that clearly told her to be careful. After her introduction to the mansions sub-levels and the goings on of the X-men, Jacinda understood why..

A little nervous, but not enough that it showed, she knocked on the conference room door. When she heard Professor Rhee tell her to come in, she did. "Hello Professor.."

She looked at the others. "Good morning.."

[Jack Brocius]

"Good morning..."

Jack briefly diverted his eyes to a folder in front of him.

"...Jacinda. I'm Jack Brocius, and I won't take up too much time. I just want to get some input from you about your interaction with the human community."

[Dragon]

John smiled at Jacinda and motioned for her to sit in the seat next to him and across from Brocius. The implication was clear - he was keeping watch over the whole proceeding, poised to oppose the strangers if they took a wrong turn.

[Jack Brocius]

"First off, the word human. What do you think about it? Do you consider yourself human? Does it offend you if nonmutants refer to you as otherwise?"

[Jacinda Blake]

Jacinda slid into the seat next to Professor Rhee, crossed her ankles beneath her and rested her hands in her lap comfortably. She nodded to confirm that she understood Mr. Brocius and his line of questioning.

"That will be fine." She smiled.

She was glad that the Professor was staying, she sorta had the creeps, the way Mr. Brocius had refererred to the 'human community' as if they were no longer a part of it. It made her feel like an alien or something, but she understoood. It was because she was a mutant.

The guy was good. His question hit on her exact thoughts.

"Well.. yes I still consider myself to be human. I think mutant is also acceptable, it doesn't offend me, what I am."

[Jack Brocius]

The woman to Brocius's left was calmly making notes. The man to her left continued reading something.

"So you're comfortable with both labels? That's good."

Jack read down the line.

"Have you ever been the target of discrimination because of your abilities? Tell us about that."

[Jacinda Blake]

Jacinda tensed. "Well, to be brief, it was not long after I came into my abilities that I arrived here at Cullen's.", then she hesitated.

It was not a pleasant tale and she wasn't sure how much about her abilities she was supposed to reveal. She didn't look over at Professor Rhee though, or make it obvious she was unsure of what to say. She just stuck to the facts.

"There was a bit of a panic. My peers reacted the only way they knew how. I don't blame them for it now, but it did hurt my feelings at the time."

[Jack Brocius]

Jack listened intently to her describe that moment.

"Change is something that most people resist, intentionally or otherwise. People have honest questions and concerns about mutant powers, but that doesn't forgive deliberate actions of discrimination. Have you witnessed any violence against mutants?"

[Jacinda Blake]

She shook her head. "No, not directly. Every so often you see something on the News, but that's it. "

[Jack Brocius]

"Has there ever been a moment where you didn't feel safe around other humans? Unwelcome? Who was involved, and what was done?"

[Jacinda Blake]

"Just that time I mentioned, before I came to Cullen's." She tried to think how to put it, being as diplomatic - yet cautious, as possible.

"The police were involved. My school, both students and faculty. After the panic, I was taken into custody until Professor Dupont and Professor Flannery came to invite me to attend Cullen's."

[Jack Brocius]

"Have you spent much time off campus since the incident?"

Jack gave a sidelong look in John's direction momentarily before looking back to Jacinda.

[Jacinda Blake]

Her gaze dropped to her lap. "I attended a funeral recently. My family was involved in an auto collision."

Sore subject. Not one she wanted to talk about. It still caused her abilities to act random when she thought about it, and she did not need to have an episode in front of these people.

She looked up, obviously pained and didn't stop herself from glancing over at the Professor. He'd been with her through the whole thing and it was second nature to reach out for a friendly face.

[Dragon]

John met Jacinda's eyes and gave her a reassuring nod. She was doing extraordinarily well, even though the questions had brushed by several difficult topics. This was one she didn't need to face just yet.

"I think we can move on to the next question," he suggested gently.

[Jack Brocius]

"Okay."

Jack swiped through the question with a pen as he moved on. He met Jacinda's eyes, and smiled.

"Where do you see yourself in five years? Ten?"

[Jacinda Blake]

Forcing her dark thoughts away, Jacinda warmed to the new question. It was a subject of particular interest to her.

"Actually, I'd like to see myself here, in the future. What I mean is, I'd like to further my education and stay on as a teacher for Cullen's."

[Jack Brocius]

Jack gave a satisfied nod, and after jotting something down for a few seconds, he glanced at John, nodded, and returned his attention once again to Jacinda.

"Thank you for your responses, Jacinda. I wish you luck in that."

He rose to his feet, and took a folder and a business card over to Jacinda.

"I think we're done today. I want to give you some reading materials, and my card. If you experience any unwarranted hostility, discrimination, acts of violence or implied threats of violence, please let me know."

[Carlos Calaveras]

There was a knock at the door and, unheeded, a head peered into the conference room. Carlos smiled, a little sheepishly.

“Uh, am I late?”

[Jacinda Blake]

Politely accepting the card, and giving it a cursory inspection, Jacinda rose from her seat.

"Thank you.." That hadn't been as bad as she had thought. Still, she wondered what was up with these people..

"I'll see you later Professor." , with a smile, and the literature in her grip, she turned to go out the door only to find it opening and Carlos peeking in.

"I'm guessing you're right on time, Carlos.." Stepping out the door she poked him in the stomach playfully and whispered for his ears only..

"Watch out... They bite."

[Dragon]

John nodded in parting to Jacinda and said, "See you, and thanks."

He motioned Carlos toward the empty seat.

So far, Brocius's line of questioning had been pertinent and, aside from the accident, inoffensive. But John still couldn't quite quell his conviction that something must be going on under the surface.

Carlos was level-headed and savvy. Barring any strokes of bad luck, John didn't foresee any problems here.

[Jack Brocius]

"Carlos..."

Jack briefly looked to a new sheet.

"...Calaveras. Thanks for coming. You can relax, I just have some informal qu..."

A line of red suddenly started to drip from Jack's nose, causing him to pause. His left hand tensed into a fist, but otherwise he appeared calm at the sudden nosebleed.

"I'm sorry about this..."

With a sheepish yet muted expression, Jack quickly gestured to his blonde assistant, who produced a kleenex for him to stem the sudden incident.

[Carlos Calaveras]

Carlos took the offered seat, dropping into a comfortable slouch. He looked at the assembled group and, recognizing only Professor Rhee, shrugged.

“What's up?”

[Dragon]

John politely turned away as Mr. Brocius attended to the nosebleed.

"Carlos, Mr. Brocius and his associates are conducting a study into mutant-human relations," he said. "He's going to ask you a few questions about your experiences on- and off-campus with non-mutants. I'm just here to moderate."

He nodded toward the Praetorian employees to let them know he was ready to continue.

[Jack Brocius]

"Sorry about that."

Jack frowned at the crimson-dabbled kleenex, folding it inward on itself to conceal the blood before throwing it in the rubbish bin.

"Just enough dry winter air upstate to get me raw I'm afraid."

He returned to his seat, collected himself, and started from a new sheet.

"Carlos, tell me a little bit about yourself. About the first time you discovered your gifts, and how that affected your relationships with friends, family, and society."

[Carlos Calaveras]

Carlos smiled, as if to say 'no problem'.

“When I first discovered my gifts,” he repeated, laughing a little to himself. Clearly he was comfortable with discussing his mutation.

“I don't know. I never had many friends anyway. I've got this... passive bad-luck vibe. I don't know when it kicked in really. People just thought I was a jinx until, uh, one day I was fighting with this kid, after school... he was talking trash about my sister, so I decide to do something about it and – BAM!”

He clapped his hands together. “I'm on fire. The kid ran like hell, thought I had a bomb or something. Everyone was freaking out all over the place, saying it was some sign from God.”

[Jack Brocius]

The Praetorian employee mulled over the Mexican's words.

"You said you didn't have many friends? How about enemies?"

[Carlos Calaveras]

It didn't really occur to Carlos to wonder why he was being interviewed. If John Rhee was happy for him to be questioned, he'd go along with it.

“I guess, but that was before people even knew I was a mutant, you know? My parents pulled me out of school after the whole exploding-hands incident.”

[Jack Brocius]

"I see."

The ginger-haired Praetorian was scrawling notes this time. Jack continued.

"Then what happened? From the incident until your enrollment at Cullen."

[Carlos Calaveras]

Another shrug.

“It was only a couple of weeks before I got transferred. People didn't really like that I was around still, so I just tried to keep out of their way... stayed in the house until Mr. Daniel's got everything approved.”

[Jack Brocius]

An arch of an eyebrow.

"Stayed inside? You're just a kid. Didn't it chap you that you couldn't go out and play, horse around, or such?"

[Carlos Calaveras]

“With who?” Carlos frowned, a little confused – though, admitedly, slightly amused by the idea of horsing around.

“People avoided me even worse than before.”

[Jack Brocius]

"Anthing more than ignoring? Any threats against you? Against your family?"

Trying another angle, Jack continued.

"Have you talked much with your family since leaving the country?"

[Carlos Calaveras]

“We don't really talk. My dad wasn't happy that I got taken out of school.”

Carlos paused for a moment, rubbing at his chin.

“I dunno if they got threatened, really. I get letters from my sister sometimes, but she never mentioned anything like that.”

[Jack Brocius]

"And your time at the Institute? Have you experienced any acts of hate against you or a friend? How much time do you venture off campus?"

The Praetorian flipped a page over as he spoke.

[Carlos Calaveras]

“Uhh...”

Carlos passed one hand back through his hair, as he rifled through his memories. He looked over to John, frowning a little.

“I don't think so? Just the usual stuff... I don't go off campus much, anyway.”

[Jack Brocius]

"You sound like a better student than I was. I could never wait for the weekend and to get away."

Jack smiled politely.

"One more question. Where do you see yourself in five years? In ten?"

[Carlos Calaveras]

“I... got no idea.”

Carlos smiled lopsidedly. To his credit, he was being honest.

“I always wanted to be a comic book artist. Maybe doing that?”

[Jack Brocius]

"Comic books, like superheroes and such?"

Jack smiled, setting his pen down.

"My favorite was always Iron Man. Do you have any drawings?"

[Carlos Calaveras]

“Yeah, superheroes. Don't have many sketches left... I lost my old sketchbook on the way here, and my new one isn't even half full. Don't have a lot of time to practice, with school and friends and everything.”

Carlos shrugged, yet didn't seem too unhappy with the situation. After all, he had a good group of friends and a good future ahead.

“Got to admit, though... I never liked Tony Stark.”

[Jack Brocius]

"That's understandable. He's a complex character."

Jack gathered up a folder and a business card, and passed it along to Carlos.

"Thank you for your time and your answers. I want you to have this. Just some reading materials and things to think about. My card is there too, and if you have any problems with any harassment or discrimination off campus, we'd like to hear from you."

[Carlos Calaveras]

“Okay. Think I can probably handle it myself though, eh Professor?”

Carlos tossed a wink in John's direction, though the gesture didn't seem to be appreciated. With a salute, he said his good-byes and left, with Brocius' card and 'reading material' stuffed into the back pocket of his jeans.

[Dragon]

John gave Carlos a cordial smile, quite willing to pass off the comment as an off-hand joke. "Thanks, Carlos," he said.

The door swung shut, leaving him alone with the Praetorians. He waited quietly as Brocius and his colleagues took down a few more notes.

After a few more seconds of silence, he asked, "I hope you're finding these interviews helpful so far, Mr. Brocius?" It was more an idle courtesy than anything else - he doubted he'd get anything more in return.

[Jack Brocius]

"Yes I am, thank you."

Finishing writing another few lines, Jack set his pen down.

"The more we hear from the mutant community and law enforcement, the better we can improve community relations.

Did you have another interviewee lined up?"

[Batdude]

Marty took Carlos' leaving as the cue that it was his time to enter. He had a stormy look on his face, and breathed out a single word as he stood from his seat to go inside.

"...pigs."

The choice to sit on this interview had been his, and Professor Rhee had given him the scoop on this jackboot. Better Marty do it than some starry-eyed kid who had no idea what to say and what not to say around people like that.

Marty walked directly to the seat, dropped into it, and crossed his arms.

[Dragon]

John smiled perfunctorily at Marty. Secretly, he thought he wouldn't mind if Marty had decided to skip this interview. But if Brocius wanted a broad sample of Cullen's students...

Well, he was about to get it.

"Hello, Marty. This is Mr. Brocius and..." He glanced at the other two Praetorians. "...his associates. Mr. Brocius, you can carry on."

He plastered a pensively bemused expression on his face and braced himself.

[Jack Brocius]

The air chilled the moment this kid came in the room. Jack had enough law enforcement training to read the cues. He distrusted anything hinting of authority. He kept a polite face about him, but exchanged a quick glance to his colleagues. This guy should be paid attention to.

"Don't worry, we won't take up too much time. I'm Jack Brocius, and I'm just going to ask you a few questions."

[Batdude]

Marty was quick with his words, and replied back, large eyes blinking behind his glasses.

"What kind of questions? You're not a cop."

[Dragon]

John cleared his throat. "Mr. Brocius is conducting some research into mutant/non-mutant relations on the behalf of the Department of Homeland Security," he clarified. "He's going to ask you some questions about your experiences on- and off-campus."

He'd discussed this with Marty before, of course - which meant this adversarial posturing was very much intentional. This was not a good sign.

[Jack Brocius]

"Right, I'm not."

The polite smile was now slightly strained. Jack wasn't about to let some pot-head punk (the odor was obvious to his enhanced olfactory sense) bust his balls. This was his show.

"As Professor Rhee said, we're just doing a survey. We're working with you, and with the local police to prevent hate crimes against the Institute and the mutant community. It's completely voluntary, so if you'd rather not participate, that's fine as well."

In other words, if he wasn't going to play ball, he could kindly shove off.

[Batdude]

"I'll answer your questions, Mr. Brocius."

Marty thought about it a moment.

"Homeland Security? Do they give you a badge for that? I'm assuming accountability still works like that. I'd like to know who I'm talking to, in writing."

[Dragon]

This actually had the potential to be quite amusing if not for the potential repercussions on the reputation of the school.

John sat back in his chair, facing as much as possible between the two combattants - his body language had definitely shifted. He had sat next to Jacinda and Carlos, clearly lining himself up on their side. Now he was trying as much as possible to be the detached third party.

[Jack Brocius]

The pretenses of the smile had faded. Jack now wore an impassive expression. He reached into a pocket, and pulled out a card.

"Here's my card. I'm not sure why you're so concerned, but yes, my credentials are all there for you."

Jack gestured to his colleague to get this kid an info packet. Unless the kid was ready to play ball, he wanted to drum him out as soon as possible.

[Batdude]

Marty took the card and the folder, and examined the card for a moment, holding it abnormally close to his face so that he could read it with his poor eyesight.

"Praetorian Consulting? Aren't you those guys on the internet in the Iraqi prison camp pictures?"

[Dragon]

John cleared his throat once more. "Marty, I'm sure Mr. Brocius is very busy."

[Jack Brocius]

"It's alright."

The slight tension in Jack's athletic physique betrayed that lie, but he went on.

"Marty, you sound like a passionate and politically-astute young man. I'm sure you won't let a few sensationalist media articles stop you from helping in your community."

Jack rose from his seat.

"If you'd rather not talk about it now, that's okay. Look over our information in your spare time, and feel free to give us a call. No fingerprints, no blood samples. We just want to hear from you, about what can be done to make your community safer."

Ignoring Marty from that moment on, Jack extended a hand to John.

"Professor, thank you and your students for being forthcoming with their time and answers."

[Dragon]

"Actually, there is one more student that Headmaster Daniels thought you would benefit from speaking to," John said. "I'm sorry she's not on your list, I didn't have the chance to speak to her before this morning - but she said she was interested in participating."

He glanced over to Marty and smiled very rigidly. "Thank you, Marty. I'll see you tomorrow evening?"

[Batdude]

Marty could obviously tell that Professor Rhee was pissed about his behavior, but Marty felt vindicated in doing what he did. This guy was a scumbag and the people he worked for were bad news. Why they'd even been let in the gate was beyond him.

"Alright, later."

He bolted up from his seat, paying the people in the room no mind as he strolled out.

[Jack Brocius]

Jack bored his eyes into the back of Marty's head as he left. He considered talking to Professor Rhee about the suspicious odor he picked up on the demi bat, but there was no need for anything so brazen. He already imagined that the smell, combined with his handling of authority might indicate that Mr. Finkelstein may already have an arrest record somewhere.

He returned his attention to John, nodding politely.

"If that's alright with you, we'd be happy to interview any other students that you have for us."

[Taya Robbins]

Cullen's Institute for the Gifted was one new, bizarre experience out of a new, bizarre year. Taya still wasn't convinced she fit in here any better than anywhere else - her old high school in San Mateo certainly had its share of freaks, even if none of them came equipped with whiskers and a tail.

But if her experience with mutancy had taught her anything, it was how to be flexible. People always made assumptions about her when they saw her the first time. That she was embarrassed by how she looked. Like if they didn't say anything, they could pretend they hadn't noticed she was a five-foot-tall, human-shaped cat. She'd decided one of her favorite pastimes was taking those assumptions and turning them on their pointy, tufted ears.

Which was why she'd decided to agree to this interview thing Professor Rhee had asked her about. She could tell by the way he'd presented it, almost as an apology. She'd decided to one-up him. Hey, if she couldn't tell her story, who would?

Taya checked her watch and smoothed out the green designer tank top she was wearing - even in the chillier months she tended to dress light; a fur coat was warm enough without adding so many silly layers to it - and raised a three-fingered paw to knock on the door. She heard Professor Rhee's voice call her in from the other side.

Jack Brocius saw an unmistakeably feline head lean in through the door, tall triangular ears swiveling back and forth as if scanning the room. "I guess this is the right place?"

Taya stepped in, a petite teenaged girl with an irrepressible spring in her digitigrade stride. She gave Brocius a pointy-toothed smile and slid into the chair next to Professor Rhee, her tail running deftly through the gap in the chair's back.

[Dragon]

"Mr. Brocius, this is Taya Robbins," John said. "She just joined our school a week ago. Taya, I've filled you in on what we're doing here."

[Jack Brocius]

Another anthromorphic mutant. Hopefully this one wasn't as maladjusted as Mr. Finkelstein had been.

"Miss Robbins, may I call you Taya? I won't keep you too long. We're here just to get a few ideas from you, and hear your story. First off, tell us a little bit about yourself, and what brought you to the Institute?"

[Taya Robbins]

"Sure! All right, so..." Her tail curled expressively behind her as she looked for a jumping-off point. "Until two years ago, I looked pretty much normal. I used to live in San Mateo..."

If anything, she seemed more wistful about leaving California than her appearance.

"...and a little after I turned fourteen, I noticed I was growing fur. So we had tests done, found out I was a mutant, and I spent the next year and a half going from hospital to hospital where they kept trying to cure me. But that didn't stop me from growing a tail, bigger ears, claws... pretty much got the whole package now."

She smiled, looked at Professor Rhee, and then remembered, "Oh! The Institute. My parents and I were in in-patient housing at CUMC - sorry, Compton University Medical Center, in Cleveland, and they thought I needed to be in a 'mutant-friendly environment.'" The quotes were clearly audible in her tone of voice. "We looked at a few places, but this was the only place where the teachers actually came to visit. So I'm tryin' it out for a while."

[Jack Brocius]

"You said it was your parents idea to cure you? I take it you weren't enthusiastic about it? I know most mutations tend to onset during puberty, which is an awkward time for even normal human teens. How did that work with classmates and friends?"

[Taya Robbins]

"Well, it's not like I knew what was going on with me, either," she said with a shrug. "But once it got to the point where I couldn't hide it with a shave every morning, my parents took me out of school. I tried to keep up with my friends, but we sorta lost contact. Most of them just stopped answering their email or IMs."

[Jack Brocius]

"Did you face any overt discrimination, abuse, or threats during the time you discovered your mutation? If so, tell us about any instances, and what was done."

Jack jotted down notes as he spoke, looking up to smile politely. Fortunately, Miss Robbins was a much easier subject, and seemed quite forthcoming.

[Taya Robbins]

Taya took in a breath and held it a moment.

"Well... nothing overt. I pretty much lived in hospitals for a year and a half, because... even when they weren't trying to stop me from changing, or changing me back, there were times it was pretty rough. I couldn't walk for three months because my feet weren't the right shape yet. I was even blind for a few days. But, you know..."

She shifted in her seat, and her ears visibly drooped. "Some of the nurses and doctors were great. And some of them, you could just tell they weren't quite thinking of me being human anymore. Kept talking about my deformities. My condition. I guess, once I figured out I was gonna be this way the rest of my life, I got sick of being talked about that way."

[Jack Brocius]

"That's understandable. You don't stop being a person because you have a mutation. It's good that you haven't been subjected to any other ill treatment. Unfortunately there's still intolerance and bigotry, even in the 21st century."

Jack turned a page, and continued.

"I know it's short notice, but how's your first week been? Have you bonded with any of your classmates?"

[Taya Robbins]

"Starting to," she said - it was almost, almost an expression of resignation. "Like I said, coming here was my parents' idea. I guess I'm still not sure this is where I really belong. But everybody's been great, my roommate is awesome, and at least I'm not treated like a freak here."

[Jack Brocius]

"Well, I hope it works out for you. Speaking with Professor Rhee and the other students, it sounds like a really good thing."

Jack gave her a smile, allowing himself to slowly become more personable again.

"I know it's an open-ended question, but I've been asking all of the other kids. Where do you see yourself in five years? In ten?"

[Taya Robbins]

Taya laughed and gave a shrug that would've pulled a normal human's shoulders out of joint. "Oh, geeze, um... well, I'd like to go to college. Not sure what in yet. Maybe art school. After that, who knows? Just take life and roll, I guess."

[Jack Brocius]

"I like that. You've got your head in the right place, it sounds like."

Jack rose to his feet, closing his folder as he reached for another info packet and a business card.

"That's about it, Taya. Like I said, just a couple of questions to get a feel for things. I want to give you some information to just browse over, and if you experience any ill treatment or any possible hate crimes, please let us know. We're working to keep you safe, and appreciate your input."

[Taya Robbins]

Taya took the card in her very large thumb and forefinger and looked it over. Her catlike nose flared - a reflex more than anything else, part of her feline nature - and something made her jolt to a stop for just a moment. Something in the smell of the card that reminded her of something else...

Brocius's words pulled her back to the present, and she dropped the card in with the rest of the materials in the packet. "Oh, well, thanks," she said. "Nice talking to you."

She tucked the folder under one arm and nimbly hopped over the arm of the chair on her way out the door. "See you, Mr. Rhee!"

[Dragon]

"Thank you, Taya."

John stood as well and extended a hand to Jack Brocius. "Once again, I hope this has been helpful for you. Thank you for your interest and concern."

[Jack Brocius]

"It's been a pleasure, Mr. Rhee."

Jack took John's hand in a firm shake, nodding as he did.

"I've got a bit of work to do on this, but I'll be giving you a next level briefing, maybe in two weeks or so. Nothing big, just tying loose ends together, and maybe getting your opinion on some findings."

[Dragon]

That was to be expected. But, as far as John could tell, nothing had been divulged in the interviews that could possibly betray the Institute's more covert interests - at worst, Brocius could report that one out of four mutant students may be a paranoid beatnick.

And maybe, just maybe, Brocius and his associates really were just trying to do some good. He always had to hold that option out there somewhere, even if it was at the end of a long pole.

"I look forward to it. I'm eager to hear what you come up with."