Skylar skipped around the room while she finished getting ready. "I convinced Storm to let us skip class so that we can go get your stuff."

Ziva suppressed a small shudder at Skylar's overly cheerful tone. How could she be that cheerful at eight in the morning? "Great, I need something else to wear." She frowned. "Wait, when did you convince Storm?"

"While you were still asleep, sleepyhead!"

So, she was this cheerful and she'd been up for who knows how long already, great. She really didn't need this. Craig wandered into the room, followed by her least favorite water gnome, Lenny.

"Morning, ready for class?"

"We aren't going to class," Skylar told Craig. "I convinced Storm to let us take Ziva to get her things. I was very logical and told her it wasn't wise to let her go alone and unprotected."

"Sounds good, I'll drive," Craig, answered.

"Shotgun!" Lenny yelled.

Craig rolled his eyes. "Ziva needs to ride upfront so she can give me directions to her place." Lenny glowered at him but said nothing further as he slunk over and propped himself against the wall.

"Well, are we going or what?" Skylar was bouncing around on the balls of her feet as she spoke.

Craig chuckled. "Yeah, let's go before Storm changes her mind and makes us go to class instead. He ushered them off down the hall.

"I'm eighteen, why do I have to go to classes anyway?" Ziva grumbled.

"It's not just regular school stuff. It's more mutant related, philosophy and other things, all related to mutants and powers. The professor believed in a lot of that. The big moral questions." Skylar shrugged as they entered the garage.

"We'll take the truck," Craig lifted the keys off the hook by the door.

Skylar made a sound of disappointment. "Aw, can't we take the MDX?"

"Storm would have fit if we did, you know that. The MDX is her baby. We'll take the Escalade, everyone hop in," Craig called out.

Skylar was grumbling and eyeing the MDX across the garage as she jumped in the back beside Lenny. Who looked less than happy about not getting to ride shotgun.

Ziva wished Lenny had opted to stay behind altogether, she wasn't fond of him. As far as she was concerned, water boy could go drown himself. Every time she turned around she caught him staring at her ass. The guy needed to back off or she'd drop him with enough electricity to jump-start the time machine from Back to the Future.

Craig pulled out of the garage and Ziva gave him directions. The ride was less than comfortable; she honestly didn't want them in her tiny apartment at the shelter. Didn't want them to see where she was living. To see how she'd been living. Not that she was particularly embarrassed by it, but she didn't necessarily want them to know that she was living at that place like some loser who couldn't get her life together.

"This is it," she told Craig, pointing to the shelter building.

"Cool." He pulled up and parked.

Lenny snorted from his spot in the back seat. "Isn't this a homeless shelter?"

Ziva twisted in her seat to glare at Lenny. "You seriously want me to fry you don't you, Mutant Ice Cube?"

Lenny arched an eyebrow at her. "Mutant Ice Cube?"

Skylar giggled, "That was a good one, Ziva. Come on let's go get your stuff."

Ziva shoved her door open and led the way to her tiny apartment inside the shelter. It was more of a one-room studio. A tiny bedroom, bathroom, and an itty-bitty kitchen that was smaller than a walk-in closet.

"This is home," she announced as she waved a hand across the tiny space.

"Ohh, let's pack!" Skylar skipped across the room and promptly possessed Ziva's suitcase, 'walked' it over, and hopped it up onto the bed before popping out of it with a grin.

"Don't do that Skylar it's creepy," Ziva said with a scowl.

Craig smirked at her. "You'll get used to it after a while."

She stared at Skylar. "How do you even do that?"

"Oh, it isn't easy. I mean like when I first got my powers I couldn't stay for the life of me, I kept popping right back out when I would try and possess things. It's all about concentration, ya know? It took me a while then I found the secret!"

"Uh huh, secret." Ziva had no idea what she was babbling about.

"Oh yes, meditation! And yoga, lots of yoga. I'm very Zen now. Clear my mind and I'm set to go. As long as my mind is clear I can possess anything big or small."

"Right, got it."

"So, what needs to go?" Craig asked.

Ziva sighed and went to the small chest of drawers near the bed. "I don't have all that much. A few clothes, some stuff in the kitchen and then the bathroom. Can you guys get the stuff in the kitchen drawers?"

Skylar skipped into the kitchen. "I'll pack the kitchen stuff!" A minute later Ziva's large skillet came skittering out of the kitchen on its own.

"Skylar! Stop it!" Ziva yelled at the skillet.

Skylar popped out of the skillet looking disappointed. "I'm just trying to help!"

"Well help by packing like a normal person!"

"Right, like any of us is normal," Lenny grumbled under his breath.

"You least of all, Slip 'N Slide," Ziva said snidely.

"Can you two get along for at least five minutes?" Craig snapped.

"No," they replied simultaneously.

"Let's just pack and get back to the school," Craig said wearily.

They did the rest of the packing mostly in silence. Although, Ziva did send a small electrical shock Lenny's way at one point when he tried to pack the roach motel from under the kitchen sink.

They decided to stop and eat on the way back and hit a small family restaurant near the school.

"Stop looking worried, Storm won't flip. We'll be fine," Craig told her.

Ziva wasn't so certain. Storm had said they could get her things, not get her things, and then go eat. Lenny was slouched in his seat looking glum. She almost smirked. He was still sulking about the electrical shock she'd given him.

"Don't look so put out there, Swizzle Stick, you'll live," she told him.

"Oh shove it, Voltanna," he grumbled.

Skylar burst out laughing. "Voltanna? That was a good one, Lenny. Have you been thinking about that all day?"

"Go possess a menu, Skylar," he snapped at her.

She stuck her tongue out at him with a big smile. "I don't need to possess a menu; I already know what I want."

Craig shook his head at them. "I can see this is gonna be so much fun. Lenny, come on stop it. Ziva, you too. Seriously, why can't you two get along?"

"Oil and water. We simply don't mix." Ziva shrugged and took a sip of her soda.

"Oil and water, huh? I'm not buying it." Craig nudged her. "Come on what is it?"

"Hey, I'm telling the truth."

Lenny nodded in agreement, shooting her a glare loaded with venom. "She's deliberately annoying."

Craig rolled his eyes. "Really? Is that all. As if you aren't."

"I'm not!" he protested.

Skylar snorted. "You are too, Lenny. You go out of your way to be annoying. Continuously."

"I'm suddenly not hungry. Can we leave?" Lenny gave them all a look of loathing.

"Guys come on stop it. Can't we all be friends?" Craig looked from one face to another.

"No," Lenny replied glaring at Ziva.

"Hey, I'm willing to try. Have a talk with the walking water balloon here." She gestured at Lenny.

"See! She's trying to provoke me!" Lenny poked a finger at Ziva.

Craig rubbed his temples. "I should just put both of you to sleep."

"Touch me and die, Rip Van Winkle," Ziva told him.

"I suppose that's better than Sandman, I still don't like it," Craig muttered.

The waitress took their order and left and everyone fell silent.

Ziva fiddled with her glass for several minutes before finally speaking. "Craig, you guys said something is coming after me. Do you know what is coming after me?"

Craig sat back, slumping down in his seat until his head rested against the top of the booth. "Not really, all we know is that it's another mutant. A powerful one who is probably intent on taking over. But that is only speculation on our part. It's mostly rumors."

"How do you even know that much?" She looked over at him curiously.

"Intelligence from snitches on the street." That came from Lenny, surprisingly enough.

"Yeah, we have a network of informants who let us know when they hear things," Skylar said in a serious tone. Probably the most serious Ziva had heard her thus far.

"So someone told you that I was a target?" Ziva stared into her glass as she swirled her straw around.

Craig gave a small nod. "Yes, your power to be more exact. Even though you've had no formal training you have exceptional control of your power. You could be dangerous to the right person. According to what Storm has said you're an Alpha level mutant."

"Alpha level?" Ziva asked.

"Very powerful. Like, high-level power," Skylar told her.

Ziva fidgeted. "I've never considered myself high-level anything."

Craig smiled. "I suppose that's why you make a good target for this person. A little flattery about how wonderfully powerful you are and they probably hoped to seduce you to their side."

She sighed. "I suppose so. I don't like using my power. I don't like what it has the potential to do."

"Exactly why we wanted to get to you before this other mutant did. You seemed like a good person, we didn't want you to get pulled into some war that you didn't want to be a part of. You'll be safe at the school." Craig sent her a sincere look.

"And if I don't fight for your side, what, I have to leave?"

"You don't have to fight if you don't want to and you won't have to leave," Skylar replied quietly.

"Right, like I believe that," Ziva snorted.

"I've always wanted to be a part of the X-Men. It's been a dream of mine since I came to school," Skylar told her.

"X-Men?" Ziva sent her a confused look. They all looked at her like she should know what Skylar was talking about. She must have kept a bit too low a profile if she was out of the loop about mutant goings-on.

"Yes! They're the ones who fought Magneto's army when he tried to take over. Storm and Logan are part of the team. I'm hoping that one day I can be a part of it. To be able to fight alongside them and help. It would be awesome!" Skylar gushed.

Ziva rolled her eyes. "Oh yes, putting yourself in the line of fire for people who couldn't give a crap for you. Sounds like tons of fun."

Lenny sent her a nod. "Finally something we agree on."

"Ziva, not everyone hates us," Craig told her quietly.

"Right, I almost believe that. My mother threw me out of the house when she found out what I was."

The food arrived and they ate in silence and left the same way. Though she saw Craig shoot her a couple of looks while they ate as if he wanted to say more on the subject.

Ziva spent the ride home silently contemplating things. The trouble that was coming after her. Their conversation about the X-men team. And her dislike of one waterlogged idiot who was sitting behind her. Her glance went to Craig sitting beside her. She didn't want to go there. She slumped in her seat and decided that maybe she might let the curtain climbers kill her when she got back to the school.

After all, how bad could death by boogers be?