A/N: I wrote the first version of this 10 years ago and while it got mostly positive reviews, I was never really happy with it. I re-wrote certain portions of the story, but never published it...the computer crashed and I thought it was lost. My current computer isn't long for this world and as I was backing up the files, I discovered another copy. So, here is the final version of Crusade...10 years late.

Think of this as the "Directors Cut" I didn't pull any punches with the profanity or the violence; it's there, it's ugly sometimes and if it's not your cup of tea...well, I completely understand. That said, I do hope you will give it a shot, especially if you read the previous version.

The first seven chapters are mostly fluff, although there are some good character moments when Tabitha and Rahne find love. Chapters 8-20 deal directly with the new threat posed by RIGHT and the four main characters prove they are ready to join the X-Men; with tragic results for one.

This story is based in the X-Men Evolution Universe, but it doesn't follow the story exactly and it's influenced by the comics as well.

Disclaimer: Obviously, I don't own anything but my OC; Marvel owns everything else.

Crusade

Chapter 1: Bent and Broken

Charles Xavier sat in his office, reading the latest incident report that lay before him on his desk. "You've seen this?" he asked Ororo.

"Yes Charles...it's horrifying..." she muttered.

"Horrifying doesn't begin to describe it..." he sighed as he closed the folder and pushed it away in disgust. The folder contained a police report detailing the latest in a series of brutal hate crimes against mutants. This time the perpetrator was a group known as The Reavers...a group who had made their voice heard by abducting and crucifying several young mutants.

"So what are we going to do about it?" Logan growled as he walked in and sat down.

"Those who were immediately responsible for the attack have already been arrested...our goal should be to find out who's responsible for organizing and funding these groups and deal with them appropriately."

"Good...cause you can rest assured nobody else is going to do anything about it...arresting these lackeys is like putting a band-aid on cancer." he snorted as he tossed the folder aside.

"Logan, I share your anger...but I'm going to ask all of you to use the utmost discretion in dealing with this situation. It's our job to protect the innocent, both human and mutant, but in doing that we don't want to provoke more violence if we can help it."

"Fine Chuck...if that's how its gotta be, but we better get to work, cause I gotta tell ya...I don't enjoy sittin here on my ass while kids are gettin killed and I could be doin somethin about it...and I a'int the only one." He said as he lit a cigar and left the room.

"Regrettably, he's right." Xavier said gravely. "Atrocities like this only make Eric right...and his actions do the same for the humans...if either side succeeds, millions could be killed."

"Which is why we're all behind you...we have to learn to live together...we'll make your vision a reality." Ororo reassured him.

"Thank you...without your support...we would have been at war years ago..." He said.

"There have been times when I thought about giving up..." she admitted. "All this anger and violence can poison your soul if you let it...but every time was ready to give up and go home, I stopped and looked at the kids and realized I had to keep on fighting if they were going to have a future." "They believe in you Charles...I believe in you...you could have done so many things with your fortune, but you chose to help a handful of children that no one wanted...we'd lost hope before you took us in and showed us what good we could do with our lives..."

"Don't make me out to be a saint..." Xavier interrupted.

"You never forced any of us to fight...we chose this life because we share your dream and your respect for life...and we're not alone." she said. "I've prepared a room for our new student and I've almost finished with the paperwork to enroll him in school." She said. She had to admit, she was a little apprehensive, their new student had some psychological and emotional issues and they had their hands full with poor Laura already. Still, they'd never turn anyone away and Laura was making progress, especially now that Rahne had befriended her. 'I'm so proud of her….I'm proud of all of them.' Ororo thought as she looked out the window and saw Sam, Tabitha and Rahne returning from school.

Outside

'She's so lucky to have him...' Rahne thought as Sam parked his truck in the garage and leaned over to give Tabitha a quick kiss on the cheek. Tabitha had returned to the institute about two months ago and they'd quickly become attracted to each other. Tabitha was her roommate and she was really close to both of them, even taking Sam to church with her. Part of her wished that their relationship had become more serious that just a strong friendship. She was ashamed to admit that she was a little jealous of her roommate, but she couldn't help it, Sam was a really great guy. He was kind and patient, he was strong, honest and a really hard worker...he was also really good looking too, the kind of guy she'd always hoped to have a relationship with. Unfortunately, he treated her more like a little sister than anything else, so Rahne made up her mind she wasn't going to be jealous anymore, that was just selfish and wrong. It was Sam's choice and he'd chosen Tabitha; she loved her roommate and she felt like she was betraying her by even having thoughts like these. 'I'm happy for you, and I promise I won't come between the two of you.' she thought as they got out and started walking back up the driveway to the institute.

After everything she'd learned about her roommate, she realized Tabitha needed Sam more than she did, she felt that God had brought the two of them together for a reason and she trusted him to lead her to the right man for her. Rahne didn't know all the details, but she knew Tabitha had a horrible relationship with her parents, especially her father, so it was pretty obvious to her why she was so attracted to Sam. Rahne hated her father and she knew exactly what Tabitha was going through and really wanted to help her. Despite their blossoming friendship, Tabitha wasn't really eager to talk about her past and Rahne tried to respect her privacy, but she was really worried about her.

Tabitha didn't really fit in well and some of the instructors regarded her as a slacker and a bad influence on the others. Fortunately Ororo and Professor Xavier seemed to be on her side and they kept trying to work with her even though she was given to blowing off Danger Room training and sneaking out to go get drunk at parties with the kids from town. Rahne could see that all Tabitha's drinking, partying and flirting was just a cover for her own self-doubt and the pain she felt from being abandoned and unloved. She tried to talk to her about it when she first moved in with her, but Tabitha couldn't stand Rahne's wholesome attitude and thought she was being holier than thou. Rahne was offended, but she refused to give up on her and started following her to make sure nothing bad happened to her and no one tried to take advantage of her.

At first Tabitha had been annoyed by Rahne tagging along with her, but after the last party they went too, she was glad she had. Rahne had caught a guy putting GHB in her drink and stopped him and his friends from taking advantage of her or any of the other girls at the party. Rahne was one of Logan's best students in self-defense class and she wiped the floor with him without even using her powers. His friends freaked out and bailed on him before anyone could call the police, but she wasn't about to spend one more second at that party. Rahne grabbed her inebriated roommate and got a ride from one of the girls from her church before the police arrived, but they'd still gotten caught by Logan.

Rahne pleaded with him not to punish Tabitha or tell the others what had happed, to let her handle it when she sobered up. Logan would have refused such a request from anyone else, but he had a soft spot for Rahne and he knew he could trust her to always do the right thing. He gave Rahne his word and even carried Tabitha back to their room for her. Tabitha was sick most of the night and Rahne stayed up with her and took care of her until she was well enough to talk about what had almost happened. Tabitha was so ashamed of herself she didn't know what to say to Rahne, she knew how dangerous the world really was and she couldn't believe she'd gotten so drunk she'd fallen for that. She realized Rahne really did care about her and wanted to be the first real friend she'd ever had.

Tabitha also realized she was ruining her life just as her parents had ruined theirs and the thought that she'd nearly been raped by five guys made her reconsider her idea of a good time and she'd stopped drinking so much and hanging out at those kind of parties. She knew Rahne wasn't going to stop following her and for the first time in her life, she stopped to consider what effect her actions were having on other people. Tabitha would never forgive herself if something happened to her, she was beginning to truly understand how special Rahne was, she respected her now and she was glad they were friends. She also began to notice that as strong as Rahne seemed to be, she was hurting inside as well and Tabitha wanted to help her.

"Tha' new haircut looks really good on ye Tabby." Rahne said as they walked up the driveway.

"Thanks, I thought it was time for a change." she said. Her hair had been really long, but now she'd gotten it cut short and it looked great on her.

"Yeah and ya helped some poor kid with cancer too." Sam reminded her as he leaned over and kissed her.

"That's really what made me go through with it...and I'm really glad I did." she said as she put her arm around Rahne. Rahne had told her she could donate it and she was glad she could help someone and look good doing it.

"Tabitha, you've got a visitor." Jean-Paul said as he greeted them at the door. "He's in the old sitting room." he added, nodding toward the door.

The Old Sitting Room

"Why are you here?! You know you're not supposed to have any contact with me!" Tabitha snapped as she walked in and saw her father. 'What the hell was Northstar thinking?!' she wondered. She thought she'd made it clear to the instructors she never wanted to see either of her parents ever again, especially not her father, she had a restraining order against him. Unfortunately, Jean-Paul had just come back to visit and he didn't know about her father; otherwise he'd never have let him near her.

"You're my daughter; I just wanted to see you again." Martin Smith answered as he held out his arms. The insincerity was evident in his voice and he wasn't fooling anyone, let alone her.

"You're just here because you're broke." Tabitha said bluntly as she took a step back from him. There was no way she was going to hug him after everything he'd done. Sam and Rahne both took a step toward him and gave him looks that could have melted steel.

"What the hell is your problem boy?!" he snapped as he turned to Sam. His real personality was on full display now and he was every bit as hateful as Rahne had imagined he'd be. Sam didn't know anything about Tabitha's life before the institute, he'd only known her about two months, but he knew she didn't get along with parents. Now that he met her father it was easy to see why, he was short, ugly and bad tempered, it was almost impossible to believe Tabitha could be related to someone so pathetic. If this guy thought he was going to intimidate Sam Guthrie, he was sadly mistaken, one look in his eyes and Sam knew he was a coward, he'd seen his kind before and he hated guys like him.

"Ya try t' put yer hands on her again and you'll find out." he said coldly as Martin Smith took a step back. "You damn well better back up." Sam hissed. It was obvious from her father's attitude and from what she'd said about no contact with her that he must have abused her and Sam wanted to beat the hell out of him. Rahne was having similar thoughts, but she reached over and put her hand on Sam's arm, she could sense his anger and while she shared his contempt for the man, it would be better if this confrontation ended peacefully.

"I don't have anything for you! Get out and leave me alone! I never want to see you again!" Tabitha yelled. She was ashamed of her father and ashamed of her past, she didn't want anyone to find out what she'd done or where she'd come from, especially not Sam and Rahne. They both treated her with respect and dignity and she didn't want them to know the truth about how he'd forced her to use her powers to help him steal and she didn't want to have to admit she was white-trash from a trailer park.

"So now you think you're too good for me?!" her dad yelled. "You're a thief! You're nothin but a white-trash whore just like your mom and..." He never got a chance to finish as Sam slammed his fist into his face and started beating him mercilessly. Rahne let him go for a few moments before she pulled him away, she abhorred violence but knew it was sometimes necessary, especially in this case. This horrible man reminded her of her own father, who she loathed, and she felt terrible that he'd said that to Tabitha in front of the others. They'd heard them yelling at each other and had arrived just in time to hear everything. It was obvious from the look on Tabitha's face that she was beyond humiliated, she was completely destroyed. Tabitha broke down crying and pushed her way past the others, followed by Rahne and Sam. The X-Men and other students were shocked, Tabitha always seemed so happy and cheerful; they never would have guessed she had such a horrible life before she came to live with them.

Logan grabbed Martin Smith and dragged him, beaten and bloody, to the front door to throw him out. Logan hurled him down in the driveway and stood over him like an animal about to go in for the kill. "You piece of shit!" he yelled as he kicked him as hard as he could. "You think you're tough beating up little girls?! Let's see how big your balls are now!" Martin rolled over and vomited from the force of the blow, if he got out of this alive, there was no way he was ever coming back to this place.

Logan walked over and put his boot on his throat. "Now you listen to me and you listen good, you're gonna get up and you're gonna get outta here and you're never gonna hurt her again, or they won't find your body...I promise you that Bub." he said as his claws burst out. Martin Smith forced himself to his feet and scramble to his truck, desperate to escape another savage beating.

"Asshole." he muttered as he watched him drive away. 'Poor kid, she didn't deserve this...' Logan thought as he turned and walked back to the house. Tabitha could be a nuisance sometimes, blowing off training, sneaking out and he hated it when she called him "badger" but he'd seen enough to know she was a good kid despite all the clowning around she did.

Meanwhile

"Tabitha! Wait!" Sam pleaded as he and Rahne followed her upstairs. They'd only been going out for a short time, but he really wanted their relationship to become serious. He knew Tabitha had her faults and was obviously running from her past, it didn't take a genius to figure that out, but he didn't care. He didn't believe anything her father had said about her, but even if it was all true, he still didn't care, he respected Tabitha because she hadn't allowed herself to give in to anger or self pity. He respected her because she didn't take things for granted like a lot of the others did; she was one of the few students who didn't rely completely on the professor's generosity.

"Leave me alone Sam...please just go away..." Tabitha sobbed as she headed for her room.

"Ah don't care if everything he said is true! It doesn't matter to me, but you do!" he said in utter desperation.

"Leave me alone!" she cried as she slammed the door and locked it.

"Damn it..." he cursed as he turned around and leaned against her door. Rahne came to his side and listened at the door for a moment. She still had the senses of a wolf even in her normal form and there was very little that escaped her notice.

"Let her be..." Rahne sighed as she heard Tabitha sobbing. "I'll come back later when she's calmed down." she said as they walked back down the hall to Sam's room. Sam had split the skin on his knuckles punching Tabitha's father and Rahne cleaned his wound and bandaged his hand before they both sat down on his bed to talk.

"Is she mad at me because Ah hit him?" Sam asked as kicked off his boots and lay back on his bed.

"She's nae mad at ye." Rahne said as she tossed her shoes beside his bed and sat there facing him. "She's humiliated...worse than tha' really...and I know jus' how she feels." She sighed. She knew Tabitha had family problems and she'd been trying to talk to her about it, but Tabitha had been avoiding the subject. Rahne knew she should have been more direct and forthcoming about her own past and she felt like she'd failed Tabitha.

"He beat ya too?!" Sam asked. This day was turning into nightmare, he just found out both his friend and his girlfriend had been abused and treated like garbage and there was nothing he could really do to make it any better. He didn't know what to say to either of them, he came from a big family that loved each other, what did he know about what they were going through?

"Aye….he did….." Rahne said, as a thousand horrible memories flooded back to her. "Tha's why ye ha' tae let me be th' first one tae talk tae her...I know wha' she's feeling, be glad ye ne'er will." she added.

"Ah am." he said as he reached over and held Rahne's hand. She'd told them Reverend Craig treated her badly, she could be moody sometimes and she had emotional outbursts now and then, but Sam hadn't wanted to believe anyone could beat someone like Rahne. She was so sweet and innocent and it really hurt him to know she'd been abused and treated so horribly. He was absolutely sick over what had happened to Tabitha and he couldn't get the image of her beaten, bruised, lonely, unloved and crying in pain and fear out of his mind. It was sickening and he was glad Rahne was there to talk with him and help him deal with it; this level of cruelty was completely alien to him.

They must have talked for an hour before Rahne finally got up and went to check on her roommate. She didn't get any answer when she knocked and she could tell there was no one in the room even though the door was still locked, it smelled like the window was open, she could smell grass and pollen. A horrible thought flashed through Rahne's mind and she kicked the door open, ran to the window and jumped out.

The Garden

"Where are ye goin?!" Rahne asked as she caught up to Tabitha at the edge of the woods. Tabitha dropped her backpack off her shoulder, sat down and began to cry.

"Away Rahne…..I don't know, but I can't stay here….everything he said is true…..I'm a thief, I'm white-trash….I'm damn sure not X-Men material and Sam's not gonna want someone like me…." She cried. Rahne fought the urge to slap her, she was being ridiculous, but she knew she was so emotionally destroyed that she couldn't help it. "I don't matter Rahne…." Tabitha said. "My own mother told me I was an accident…."

"Yui're nae an accident! Yuir life is nae a mistake Tabby! Ye were born fer a purpose! Jesus died tae save ye from hell and he loves ye ne matter wha' ye've done. Ye matter tae God and ye matter tae me! Yui're muh friend and I love ye!" Rahne cried.

"What do you want with a friend like me?" Tabitha asked, trying not to cry. Her life was a total train wreck and nobody ever stayed close to her long, but one look in Rahne's eyes told her she was dead serious. She'd always been there for her and Tabitha realized she really did care about her; she was the first real friend she'd ever had.

"Yui're th only one who understands me..." Rahne whispered. "Muh father hurt me tae..."

"I'm sorry...oh God, I'm sorry...all this time you've been trying to help me, but I wouldn't listen...I've been so selfish..." she said, realizing how deeply Rahne was suffering.

"Ye were jus' lost and hurt...I know, I've been there." Rahne said as she put her arm around her. Tabitha was so touched by Rahne's love and concern for her that she started to cry herself. "Let it out Tabby...I know ye dinnae want tae, but its jus' th two of us and I know how much it hurts..." Tabitha had given up on God a long time ago and had tried to pretend she didn't believe, but Rahne's sincerity and her genuine love and compassion for her moved Tabitha in a way nothing else in her life ever had and she opened her heart to the truth. The truth that she wasn't an accident, that God didn't make mistakes and that her life did have meaning and she'd never be alone again. She had to face the truth; it was obvious that she was only hurting herself with her rebellious behavior; her parents didn't care and they never had. She didn't know where to even begin, she wasn't exactly a model of virtue and she'd always thought of Christians as a bunch of pompous hypocrites, but she couldn't deny what she was feeling. God loved her, he was calling her and she couldn't ignore it, she knew it was time to give her life to him and stop destroying herself.

Tabitha finally broke down and told Rahne about her dad, about his drinking and criminal record, and how badly he'd beaten her when her powers manifested, and every other time she'd made him angry. About how he'd forced her to help him steal by using her powers, about how he'd finally gotten arrested and about how her step mother had rejected her and she'd lived on the street, about how her mom had refused to take her in and abandoned her at the institute. Finally, Tabitha began to cry again, her tears had been suppressed by beatings and insults for too long and now that she had finally found someone who understood her, she couldn't pretend it didn't hurt any longer.

Rahne knew exactly how Tabitha felt and she was glad she could help her new friend, she held her and tried to comfort her, but it wasn't long before she was crying as well. She had come a long way toward getting her life straightened out since Moira had saved her, but she still carried emotional scars from her past life and she knew she always would. Rahne also told Tabitha about her life, about how her mother had died when she was four. She told her about how Reverend Craig, who she later discovered was her father, had taken her in and abused her for years before she finally became desperate enough to run away one night when she was nine. It was a miracle she'd survived the freezing night on the moor to be found by Moira MacTaggert the next morning. Craig had been arrested and exposed as the monster he really was, but justice had come too late as it often does.

It took years to undo the damage he did to her; she was so shy and insecure and so utterly convinced she was worthless and evil when she first came to live with her, that Moira wondered if she'd ever be able to have a normal life. Reverend Craig had raised her to be extremely intolerant and judgmental and filled her head with all kinds of blasphemous lies. Reverend MacLaren, who'd come to replace Craig was horrified by what had happened to Rahne and he devoted himself to leading her back to Christ and teaching her the truth. With Moira's love and his guidance, she'd come to truly understand God's word and had left all the lies behind for the most part. Rahne was now a strong and dedicated Christian, who tried to love everyone, but she wouldn't compromise her beliefs to be accepted and she wasn't afraid to stand up for herself or her faith. Rahne had beaten her father; she could have become just like him, but she'd become better than him in every way.

"Let's go home." Rahne said as she dried her eyes and helped Tabitha to her feet.

'I don't deserve a friend as good as you.' Tabitha thought as they walked back to the house. Rahne had been so frantic to find her she hadn't even stopped to put her shoes on. Tabitha felt horribly ashamed that she'd tried to run away from her problems and her family. Rahne was always looking out for her, but she'd just treated her cruelly and she didn't feel like she deserved Rahne's love and forgiveness. Still, Rahne always seemed to be able to speak to her with such wisdom and love that she felt better until she saw Sam coming to meet them. She'd hoped to get back before he knew what she'd done, but now he knew how thoughtless she'd been.

"I'm sorry Sam…..I'm so sorry…" Tabitha said as he took her in his arms and held her close. Rahne took Tabitha's backpack and left them to talk things over. "It's true…..I was a thief and I'm white-trash from a trailer park…."

"Yer're not and I don't ever want t' hear ya say that about yerself again." He said emphatically. "Listen, Ah know we've only been together a little while, but Ah can see how special ya really are. Anybody else would be bitter and selfish, but yer're always tryin to help th others and make 'em happy...even though yer're hurtin so bad inside." Sam said as they walked back toward the house. "Tabitha, Ah wanna be a part of yer life if you'll still have me, but ya don't have t' hide things like this from me...Ah love ya fer who ya are, Ah don't care what ya did or who ya used to be." Sam said. He knew she'd probably had to do a lot of things she wasn't proud of, but all that matter to him was the person she'd become. He'd never felt like this about anyone and he'd been through enough to know what love really was and what it really meant. He wasn't so naive as to think he was doing her any kind of favor and he damn sure wasn't attracted to her because he felt sorry for her and thought she needed protecting. He did want to protect her, that was just the kind of man he was, but he was attracted to her strength, her independence and her character, he just hoped she felt something real for him.

"You're sure about this? ...you don't really know me Sam..." Tabitha said, trying to control her emotions. She was so thankful to have found someone as kind, loving and patient as Sam, for a long time she didn't think men like him really existed and after what her father had said, she still couldn't quite believe he'd want anything to do with her. His family wasn't well off, but they were decent and hardworking; they had nothing in common with her awful, dysfunctional family of criminals and drunks.

"Ah know enough." he said emphatically as he reached over and took her hand. "Ah know Ah can't get ma mind off ya, Ah know Ah'm a better man when Ah'm around ya...and Ah know Ah felt th same way Ah did when ma dad died when Ah realized you were gone." he told her as he looked into her eyes. She had the most beautiful eyes he'd ever seen and he could see how sad and beaten down she was, but there was still a spark of hope and defiance in them. Sam wished he could wipe away all the pain and misery of Tabitha's abusive childhood, but he knew that was impossible, all he could do was treat her with the respect and dignity she deserved and he was going to love her and stand by her no matter what she was going through.

"I love you Sam...and I promise there won't be anymore secrets between us." she said as he held her in his arms and the tears started to run down her cheeks again. "I'm not as good as you think I am." she whispered. "...I am selfish and..."

"Ah know, yer're not perfect and it should be obvious by now that Ah'm not either." he said as he stopped her. "This is gonna be hard sometimes and a lotta work fer both of us, but yer're worth it." he said as he kissed her. They'd kissed before, but never like this and she knew how much he loved her and how much she loved him.

"You're worth it too." she told him as they continued to hold each other. Sam offered a silent prayer of thanks as he tried to comfort her, she loved him and he couldn't ask for more than the wisdom to be the man she needed him to be. He promised her he'd never yell at her, hit her, insult her or even be too busy to spend time with her as they committed to each other.

Thanks for reading chapter one!

I'd greatly appreciate any feedback you'd care to give and I'm certainly not afraid of legitimate criticism. I'm strongly considering continuing the story past chapter twenty-two and I'd like to know what people think so far.