Xaviers!

"I spent, like, six hours in the common room yesterday, just listening to people talk, and I spent a bunch of time in the rec center the day before."

"And I guess it's worth it to be around people who won't think you're weird, aye? Or if they do, they'll get over it."

"Well, some of the people I met did think I was strange, but they didn't lock me in a room or anything, so things are going better."

"Why would they lock you in a room for that?"

"When the people on the base first found out who I was, they immediately locked me up for security reasons. I think they were just scared that I had been there for so long without them realizing, though."

"I think a lot of people had some trust issues with people they knew when their powers came out."

"Not exactly grounds for locking somebody up. Well, if it's a military base maybe... Is that where your power manifested?" she asks Will.

"I'm...not quite sure when I...'manifested', as you put it. I've been like this for as long as I can remember.

When they found me, they poked and prodded me for a while, and I didn't like it, so I escaped. I spent...a long time in there getting to know them, though, and they're all really nice people. I spent years watching them, and then I found I could be helpful, so I spent years helping them. It was really...fulfilling, I think.

And then they found out I was there, and they didn't want me to be helpful anymore, so they sold me here. But it's OK; lieutenant Van Buren explained it all to me, and I think this is best."

"So you just... weren't yourself for awhile?"

"I'm always myself," Will said, confused.

"Oh! You mean, like this. No, this is new--I only started looking like this four years or so ago. It's still a little weird--like a negative image of what I'm used to.

I spent my first time in the base as the break room couch, and then moved up to a pool table, and went off from there," he said, as if this was the only natural progression.

"How did you end up at the base in the first place?" she asks curiously.

"They found me in Antarctica.

I don't remember how I ended up there. I'd been there for as long as I can remember."

"That's... really rather odd. I'm not saying that to make you feel bad or anything, I just can't wrap my head around it."

"Oh? Is it that unusual?

THat's not how you got your powers?"

"It just... kind of happened." she says, kind of voiding the topic of the circumstances of her own mutation manifesting. "Though I suppose if things had gone a little differently I might have forgotten about my life before that point as well."

"Aye. Mine came out one night. It took a long while to learn how to control it."

"You mean, it wasn't instinctive?" he said, looking back between the two of them.

"No. It took a lot of work to get it under control."

"That's so strange to me.

I mean, I've gotten better, but I can't imagine not being able to just...change," he said, a little perturbed.

"That's really rather odd. I'm not saying that to make you feel bad or anything, I just can't wrap my head around it," he smiled.

"Holding one form was really hard for awhile, especially around people."

"Why did you pick this form?" he said, gesturing to her. "I mean, it's really nice, but why?"

"Well this is, you know, me. This is what I looked like before my powers came out. I mean, I'm older and all but..."

"Huh," Will said. "Well, that makes that easy, then. That must be convenient."

"Nice humble-brag." Miriam smirks faintly. "Oh I'm a shapeshifter but I was actually born naturally gorgeous."

"What? No, I wasn't... saying that," she says as a blush quickly spreads on her face.

"Well, natural or not, it suits you. I don't know how to explain it. It's a weird feeling."

Miriam laughs. "Oh relax. I'm just jealous."

"I'm not trying to do anything other than be me, honest."

"What else would you be?" Will said. "As long as you're you up here," Will said, tapping Sam on the forehead, "you're you."

"He's got a point."

"Thank you!" He grinned.

"He can have a lot of points if he wants," she smirks faintly.

"But aye, you're probably right. Get a little touchy about it because it took work to get back to this."

"Maybe you just need more practice. I'm sure we could work together on that; they'll probably have us as a team anyway, as we are clearly the cool ones here."

"Oh, you're part of the teams?" she asks the two of them.

"I tried out today. They didn't cut me or anything, so I guess so."

"I'm not. Do you think I should try out for them?"

"Depends, do you feel like putting your ass on the line for the kind of people who would lock you in a closet for being weird?"

"I like being helpful."

"Well not all the people would, aye?"

"Not as long as you're useful to them, I guess."