A/N:

This is more a prologue than anything else, but I thought you'd appreciate seeing this update than none at all :)

For anyone who 'forgot' to read the summary, this is the continuation of Intertwined and takes place during X-1. Since not much happened in X-1, this story is really short- only 9 chapters long- so it won't be updated for a couple of days. I don't want this story to last one week. Also, that gives me more time to work on Without Needing, the continuation of this.

Hope you like it even though I don't own X-Men.


"Hey," a quiet voice rang out behind me. I didn't jump at the voice. I had known that Scott was there, I could smell his hesitance.

Unbidden, my mind went back to that day that I had, with the help of just a few others, freed Scott and two dozen other young mutants. That day was almost fifteen years ago but stayed fresh as ever in my mind.

"Hey, yourself. What's up?" I said, pushing myself onto my elbows as I turned away from the television, ignoring the warning voice of Senator Kelly as he preached to the Senate.

"Not much," Scott said, sitting down beside me. I noted the beer in his hand and I raised an eyebrow expectantly. Sighing but complying, the younger mutant passed me the beer before getting his own.

"So, Mr. Summers, how are things going with Jean?" I asked bluntly, shifting so that my feet were under me as I made room for Scott. He paused slightly and I smirked. "I'm not that old, ya know. I'm… thirty-nine? Maybe?"

"Shouldn't you know how old you are?" he chuckled. I shrugged.

"Eh. The way I look at it, I'm always going to look like I'm twenty-something. So, unless someone manages to take my head off, it won't matter too much. Anyway, if that does happen, I don't think I'll be caring too much about how I look."

Scott smiled tightly but didn't respond otherwise.

We sat in silence, our attention caught by the debate occurring in the capital between our very own Dr. Jean Grey and the 'pro-human' advocate, Senator Robert Kelly.

"I have here a list of identified mutants living right here in the United States," Kelly said, holding up a sheet of paper. Jean leaned forward into her podium.

"Senator-" she began.

"Here's a girl in Illinois who can walk through walls. Now what's to stop her from walking into a bank vault, or the White House, or into their houses?" he proclaimed, waving out to all in attendance.

"Senator, please-"

"And there are even rumors, Miss Grey, of mutants so powerful that they can enter our minds and control our thoughts, taking away our god-given free will. Now I think the American people deserve the right to decide if they want their children to be in school with mutants. To be taught by mutants! Ladies and gentlemen, the truth is that mutants are very real, and that they are among us. We must know who they are, and above all, what they can do!"

I shut off the television as the applause got louder and louder, supported by Kelly's victorious smirk. I took a deep breath as the screen flickered into blackness.

"My feral is getting stronger," I admitted to Scott, answering the concern hidden behind his red sunglasses.

"Are you going to leave?"

"Only for a few days," I promised. This urge to run… It grew as time went on; a natural instinct to keep moving, cutting all ties as I moved onto the next location. This urge, which I suspected originated from Logan, battled with my own instincts to protect the students. Which, incidentally, kept me tied to the school for long amounts of time.

"Where?" Scott asked after a long pause. I stood, stretching. I glanced back at the younger mutant on the couch.

"Not sure; Canada maybe. Maybe I'll stop by Cerebro to see where Logan is nowadays," I decided. Scott nodded and I flashed him a smile.

"See you in a week," Scott called as I walked away. I waved, not turning.

Whispers rose, swirling around my head as Cerebro began to track down James Logan Howlett. Charles had taught me to use Cerebro soon after what the students had named the Island Break-Out. I had protested at first, but the older man was determined.

I concentrated, pulling my mental defenses up as I tried to sift through the voices.

There! Heh, Canada… Who would have thought? I smirked to myself. Looks like he's cage-fighting again.

As far as coping mechanisms go, cage-fighting was a good one, especially for a feral like Logan. His therapy involved punches and sweaty arenas. Mine involved teaching or spending time in the gardens that I now shared with our resident weather witch, Ororo Monroe. And more recently fighting, now that I played host to his wolverine's instincts.

Nevertheless, I shut the machine down and walked away, towards the hanger in which we kept the new X-Jet. The new jet was faster, sleeker, and quieter than all of it's predecessors. But, more important than that- at least in my opinion-, was the new motorcycle resting on its kickstand beside the plane. My Yamaha YZF-R1 sat, ready for a new trip. The vibrant red paint was speckled with dirt, evidence of the drive home from New York City.

I glanced at the fuel levels and smiled at the full tank as I shrugged into my favorite leather jacket and slipped my biking gloves on.

Thank you, I thought towards Scott. He smiled in his mind but gave me no other acknowledge as I kicked the bike to life.

I revved the engine before releasing the brake, heading directly for the ramp leading up to the surface. The doors opened in front of me and I skidded slightly as my tires slipped on the ground before gaining traction. The ride smoothed slightly and I leaned into my back as I sped away from the school at speeds that Charles Xavier would have questioned, the urge to run seceding as the miles melt away under my bike.


A/N:

So, yeah, short little chapter.

And look! I did my research on motorcycles! Well... I looked through a bunch of pictures on Google and decided which one looked the coolest... But no one needs to know that, so shushhhh...

*jamming out to Skillet*

The more reviews, the faster I updated ^-^

^.^ Susie ^.^