Marvel NYC was really quite strange. Andrew has absolutely no idea how things worked, because even though it was still "Earth" and "America" the young boy felt as if he was in some weird foreign country. The people used a strange rather aggressive accent he'd only heard on T.V and movies, the streets were always insanely crowded, and the crime rate was just unbelievable.

Although that last bit was actually quite helpful in filling his own empty pockets.

What were they going to do? Tell the police that their big bad gang full of "tuff" guys got robbed after attempting to mug a scrawny 13-year-old at knifepoint? That'd be the day.

Suffice to say, after strolling around every dark, damp, and deserted alleyway he could find and wandering through the parks at night Andrew had multiple late-night encounters. Two birds one stone and all that jazz as he managed to help clean up the streets and more importantly, he wasn't a poor bum anymore.

Still homeless, but at least not poor.

The only issue was how he was going to enroll in high school, after all, what better way to blend in and avoid S.H.I.E.L.D or Hydra than a place with a bunch of kids entering and going by the hundreds every day? If other superpowered teenagers could do it without getting caught, so could he right..?

The only problem was that he still didn't have any I.D and wasn't registered in any government system on the planet. Midtown high would've been perfect considering Spidey was one of his all-time favorite heroes, but alas life hardly ever goes as you plan it, which is why he was currently on the train towards the one place that he hoped could help an aspiring young hero with strange fucked up genetics.

Bayville.

Or more specifically Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters.

Finding the X-Mansion was easier than expected, a quick google search and hike and he found the place. Fighting his nerves to actually go towards the door was far harder than finding the secret institute for Mutants. He took a deep breath to calm his nerves before heading towards the front door, social anxiety wouldn't stop him!

At least not today when his life literally depended on it.

It was quite hard to calm down when you're about to attempt to lie/trick someone who can literally read your mind, bend it over, and fuck it sideways. Without lube.

Still, he was already at the front door and there was no going back from here. It was a bit rude, but he started playing some good old rock and roll on his phone, adjusting the headphones while leaving one ear open to hear the outside world. Nothing better to calm your nerves than some quality music after all, and he was pretty sure he remembered in one of the old episodes of Young Justice how Bane blocked out Ms. Martian from reading his thoughts by mentally reciting Spanish football scores or something, so singing in his head and being distracted might work for him here too, right?

He was so fucked, wasn't he..?

Thankfully, Andrew didn't have any more time to contemplate that particular train of thought when the door opened, revealing a much younger Xavier than he was expecting. He seemed to be in his 30s, wearing a classy black suit over a simple white dress shirt and a deep blue tie. One of the greatest minds in the world, academically and telepathically, Charles Xavier was sitting in a wheelchair in all his bald glory.

"Why hello there, how can I help you, young man?" The older man looked surprised at seeing such a young boy all alone on his doorsteps. Was that a good sign? Unless the man was a really good actor, that meant that he hadn't used his powers to check on him, right?

Wait, crap, what if that only provoked his curiosity and now he's going to check me out? Oh God, what do I do?!

Andrew idly hoped that he'd be able to tell if the other man was actually searching through his mind and soul as Xavier's sharp eyes seemed to be doing. Frankly, even though the man was only half of his height while sitting down, Andrew felt as if he was a small child in front of a giant, yet he couldn't avoid staring into the other's eyes anyway. He made sure not to flinch or have wandering eyes, keeping contact as he spoke. Partly because avoiding eye contact was a sign of guilt or anxiety... According to all the detective shows and movies he has seen anyways, but mostly because he was raised better than to not look someone in the face when talking to them. Even more so when he was going to basically ask them for a favor.

"Hello, sir. It's an honor to meet you, Mr. Xavier, my name is Andrew William and I'm here to-" For a brief moment Andrew considered turning right around and walking away. Sure, he didn't have an I.D, but he could always just go get one right?

How hard could getting a green card really be? He was Caucasian, he wasn't technically a mutant, and he was still under 18 so not legally an adult yet. Heck, he could get a fake one! Did he even want to be a hero? He didn't owe anyone here anything. Yeah, it would be "Super cool" to use his powers to beat up bad guys, but that also meant risking his life and dedicating a whole lot of time and effort. Effort he wasn't even sure he was able nor willing to put in.

The more he thought about it the more he was starting to be convinced the entire thing was a terrible terrible plan. He could just move from New York where all the insanity and bullshit fuckery tends to happen. Maybe go to Norway or Sweden, those places were nice, right? Heroes were a dim a dozen here, they didn't need some half baked kid with powers like him. He could survive just fine working minimal wage considering he barely needed to eat, sleep, or drink.

Get a nice small apartment, keep lowkey for a while, maybe go back to school and start over. Maybe change his name? Alexander? While he liked Andrew well enough, he always thought William was a bit boring. Maybe Kingsley? Or a color, such as White, or Grey. Oh! Blackmore, that one's pretty badass and it was what he named his Runescape character all those years ago. Alexander Blackmore, now there's an awesome name unlike boring Andrew William.

Oh yeah, it was all coming together. A new name, a cute little bakery in northern Sweden, a cute little redhead girlfriend or a tall blonde. One- no, two, no, five dogs. No more sweating during the summer, just cute little fur hats and coats. Yes, he could live with that. His fantasy grew and seemed more solid, tangible, and legit by the second.

Just as he was about to apologize for taking up the man's time and make an excuse to leave he saw something out of the corner of his eyes. A curtain of red hair, a pair of bright green eyes opened wide, and... a floating teddy bear?

Peeking around the corner along with her, it was far too high to have been raised by her arms. Telekinesis, his mind silently whispered in awe using his incredible powers of deduction and keen intellect.

It had absolutely nothing to do with the faint blue glow around the plush toy in question. Nope, nothing at all.

Welp, guess that's that. Judging by the man's suddenly narrowing of his eyes and pointed look in his direction from the corner of his eyes, if Andrew didn't want to get mind raped by baldy here, he'd need to act fast and hope for the best. Heck, since God/s are real, maybe praying will actually work for once. A quick and silent prayer to TOAA, and all the other Marvel Gods he knew for a fact existed later, and he continued on with his previous plans.

"Oh, oh wow. That's so cool!"

Andrew made an exaggerated exclamation as he pointed behind Xavier into the depths of the mansion where little Jean Grey was still peeking at them. The sudden action surprised her so much so that her power momentarily got disrupted and the stuffed bear fell upon her head, the sudden weight sent her sprawling on the floor from her unbalanced position. Professor X made a show of turning around surprised at the noise and laughing slightly at the display, but Andrew didn't buy it for a fucking moment. Andrew could practically feel the man's eyes burning a hole in the side of his head from their intensity, watching and judging his reaction.

He had to make an effort to not think or make a snarky comment even in his head as he focused on the Power Metal song now playing on his headphones. If catchy music and having a song stuck in your head with the volume turned to 12 out of 10 wasn't a good enough mental defense for nosey psychics he didn't know what was. That and he would be so fucking dead, as in Area 51 cut open and experimented on dead.

"Telekinesis? Man, I wish I had that power, but all I got was this."

His arm began to shift to look almost tube-shaped with fat and blocky fingers, the forearm elongated but as he waved it around it was also flopping around as if it was boneless. He didn't want to reveal the fact that he wasn't an actual mutant nor did he wanted to go out and say what he could actually do. Telling people you aren't human, from this dimension/multiverse, and can eat people and steal their powers/memories/souls probably wasn't a good way to make friends. He just hoped they would draw their own, hopefully wrong, conclusions.

Not that he actually would do any of that, he wasn't a murderer or psychopath, and cannibalism was disgusting.

A small gasp came from the little redhead's mouth as she stared at the rubbery appendage, thankfully there was no fear on her face. He gave himself a mental pack on the back for learning how to make his transformation "family-friendly" because having a black, veiny, and muscular arm with knife-like claws was sure to leave a terrible first impression. It only took him 3 days too! Well, that and probably 5 groups of traumatized gang members, but hey, maybe now they'll think twice before trying to strong-arm kids into buying drugs?

Charles gave him a calculating look, and even though he had full control over almost literally every function and part of his body he felt like sweating as a cold chill crawled up his spine. He made a mental note to at least attempt to be nice to the next flesh-eating alien monster he'd undoubtedly meet sometime in the future. This was so unfair.

"So, um, I heard that the Xavier's School for Gifted Youngster was a sort of safe haven for, um- er. "special" kids? Seeing how Red over there is looking fine and dandy I take it the rumor are true..?"

For once his stumbling through the conversation wasn't just due to teenage awkwardness, but thankfully Xavier didn't seem to pick it up as the man smiled at Andrew understandingly after the display of his "mutant powers". Andrew planned to milk the good reputation and intentional "parallels" between himself and Mr. Fantastic's powers for all it was worth. He thanked his lucky stars as the man rolled out of the doorway and welcomed him into the mansion.

"You've heard correctly, my young friend. Please, come inside as we have much to discuss."

Holy crapbasket, it worked. He literally could not believe it, but he somehow managed to bullshit one of the most intelligent and gifted men on the planet, nay perhaps the multiverse itself, into believing his made up on the spot story.

A kid abandoned by his parents after his powers awakened and was roaming the country searching for answers. An encounter with other mutants and discovery of who, or rather what, he was. Visiting famed geneticists, overhearing a conversation about Xavier's school from one of his former friends.

It was a big risk tossing in names considering he didn't know the continuity of the universe he was in, but it made his story all the more solid. It helped that he had experience reciting an almost completely identical backstory before when his friends dragged him to D&D.

Oh KORKASS, the orc berserker who was raised by humans and too fucking stupid to realize he was adopted, I'll miss you and your shitty sense of fart-based humor so.

"I see. Thank you for sharing your story with me. It must've been hard for you, being alone all those years, but your long journey has finally come to its conclusion, Andrew. You're more than welcome to stay here at my school, a safe haven for all mutants to learn and grow."

"Thank you, Professor. I'm grateful for your help."

The sympathy in his voice was obvious, and for a brief moment, Andrew felt a bit bad. He wanted to sell a convincing sob story, which to him meant being choked up and crying, but maybe the tears were a touch too much? He didn't have any more time to ponder it as a series of rapid footsteps could be heard coming from down the hall. The door to the study they were chatting in was suddenly slammed open as a certain fireball dashed into the room, practically buzzing with excitement.

"Hello, there Jean. This is Andrew William, he's a new student that'll be staying here with us. Could you please show him to his room and give him a tour of the mansion for me?"

"Of course, Professor! Just leave it to me! Cmon Andrew, let's go!"

And so he was dragged off to explore the X-men's mansion with the first of the lot. He didn't really know why she was so taken up with him until a couple of days later when he realized that he was almost right at the beginning of it all. There was no "X-men" There had only been her and Charles and she was just lonely. Her powers were unstable at this point in time and she couldn't control it properly, making her a danger to herself and others.

It didn't help that when her power awakened she had been traumatized by being psychically connected to her friend who was dying. The mental wounds were still fresh because even as she told him her own "origin story" to make it fair since she heard his, tears were still leaking out of her green eyes like a broken faucet.

Needless to say, he felt like a grade A ass afterward.

It wasn't all sunshine and rainbows in the world of capes, and he could only imagine the chaos that'll appear in the future once Phoenix awakens. Hopefully, he'd be able to do something about it. No, he would do something about it. He chose this life and there was no backing down now, no more lame excuses, no more half-assing his way through life.

This was his second chance and he'd make the most of it.