Disclaimer: The X-MEN do not belong to me. Never have, probably never will.

Dragon's Milk:

Chapter 1

by Egypt

How long had it been? She couldn't remember. The days had seemed to blend together, each one running into the other with no evident split and no way of marking the end of one and the beginning of the next. It had been that way for as long as she could conceivably remember. She wasn't sure if this was how her life had always been or not. Her memories were short and choppy at best never coming in fully understandable portions. Instead only small snippets came and then went never answering the questions that haunted her and most often just leaving more questions.

She looked up from her crouched position in the corner as he stepped into the darkened living room. Every window in the house had been covered with a thick blanket and if he caught her looking out any of them he would beat her. He wanted to make sure that she never knew what was outside, and that no one ever knew she was inside.

He was a scruffy looking man and it made her sick to look at him. Not just because of the way he looked, but more because of what he had done to her. The beatings had left her bruised and battered, and she didn't even want to think about the other things. She wasn't sure how she had come to be with him, or even who he was. All she remembered was waking up one morning to his yelling followed shortly by the first beating. Since then it had been almost a daily occurrence, the beating followed by his apology and then the sex. She wasn't sure she could take it anymore. It made her want to retch just thinking about it.

"It's snowin' again," his voice was like salt on an open wound causing her to wince, "Looks like it'll be a while before it stops this time."

He went over to the fridge and grabbed a beer. Popping it open he moved over to stand next to her his hand reaching down and running through her tangled hair. She fought the urge to cringe away knowing that if she did it would only start another beating. After a few moments he moved away from her, causing her to breath easier. He didn't smell as bad as he looked, but he disgusted her just the same.

She watched him carefully, waiting for her chance to escape. She had been trying to work out a plan in her head but had so far not come up with a very good one. The only thing that had come to mind was to get a chance and just run for it. By now she didn't care if he killed her, it would be a welcome release.

He walked over to one of the windows and pulled back the blanket that covered it, staring out at the falling snow.

"I should go get more wood," he let the blanket fall back into place and looked over at her, "Don't want us to freeze to death now do we. Of course we could just huddle up in bed together and stay warm that way now couldn't we."

He gave her a lustful smile that made her stomach turn, then turned and went into the back room to get ready to go outside. She waited till he closed the door, then stood up from where she crouched in the corner. She didn't have much time, she knew that, but she was determined to get away. She wouldn't spend another minute living this way. She wasn't sure how she had lived before, but she knew it wasn't like this.

Her bare feet made almost no sound as she crept across the floor to the door, her eyes never leaving the door through which he had disappeared. She let a small smile of triumph cross her lips as she felt her hands close over the brass knob. She held her breath as she twisted the knob hoping that he couldn't hear the soft squeak it made. She breathed a sigh of relief as it turned easily. It was only then that she dared a glance at the locks making sure the deadbolt was unlocked and that the chain was not in it's place. She wasn't sure why they were left unlocked, but at that time she didn't care. With one last deep breath she yanked it open and made a mad dash into the frozen world beyond.

* * * *

Josh was in the bedroom putting on his boots to go out for more firewood. His thoughts were not on the firewood though, they were on the blonde that sat huddled in a corner of the living room. He had 'acquired' her about a month ago and had not wanted to get rid of this one as quickly as the others. This one still had fire and fight in her and was still an amusement to him. The way she fought him was something that none of the others had ever done. They had simply given in, but this one had spirit and he liked that.

He shook his head, smiling to himself as he pulled his boots on. He had plans for tonight. She had become scared of him, always huddling in a corner and only scowling at him. Tonight would change that. Tonight she would see that he wasn't such a bad person, just determined.

He had almost gotten his second boot on when he felt a cold chill creep across the floor of the room. He yanked on his boot and ran to the door yanking it open to find exactly what he had expected. The front door stood wide open and she was gone.

"SHIT!"

In one smooth motion he grabbed his coat off of the rack by the door and shrugged it on, checking to make sure that the gun was still in the left pocket. Satisfied that it was there he took off out the door after her, not bothering to close it behind him.

~That's the problem with the spunky ones,~ he thought as he ran through the snow, ~They always think they can get away.~

* * * *

She tried hard to ignore the burning of her feet as she ran through the snow covered woods in an attempt to escape. She had a head start, but he was wearing shoes and a jacket. Chances were he would catch her, but she would rather die than go back to that. Even though she couldn't remember anything before this life she knew it had to be better somewhere and she was determined to find it, or die trying.

She heard him shouting at her, heard his boots as they crunched through the snow. He was gaining on her and she knew he would catch her soon. She turned long enough to see how close he was, to see how much time she had. That was when she ran into what she thought was a tree. It was solid and didn't even flinch as she hit it, but just as she was about to fall backwards a set of strong hands grabbed her shoulders to steady her. She looked up to find herself staring at the scariest looking person she had ever seen.

Just as her captor (she vaguely recalled him telling her his name was Josh) had let her shower and eat he had also let her watch TV. She had seen lots of things on the TV, but she had never seen anything like this. The man before her had to be a full foot taller than she was with long blonde hair and amber eyes. His face was hard and feline in nature, complete with fangs.

He looked down at her, his eyes cold and hard. She thought she saw a flash of hatred in them but it was gone so soon that she dismissed it as just a fluke. For some reason, even though he seemed horrifying, she wasn't scared of him. To her, he seemed to be like a safe haven. Somehow she knew that everything would be alright now.

"HEY!" Josh's voice pulled the attention of the other man causing him to look up, "Get away from her. She's mine."

A low growl emanated from the larger man's throat as he gently pushed her out of the way and stepped toward Josh. She could now fully see his hands and it made her shudder. They appeared to be human enough, that was if you didn't count the claws that replaced his fingernails. Each one was about three inches long and looked just as menacing as the fangs that he bore when he growled. His body seemed to be all muscle, rippling in his fur covered costume as he moved closer to Josh.

She heard shots ring out and waited for the larger man to fall, but he never did. She counted six shots and with each one she cringed. The last one rang out just as the larger man reached Josh and was followed shortly by a strangled scream as she watched the larger man's claws lash out at Josh's throat. She cringed as she saw the blood splatter into the white snow and the hole that the man's claws had left in Josh's chest and throat. The whole thing only took a minute then the larger man turned and walked back toward her as if nothing was amiss.

She stood rooted to that spot in the snow as he walked back over to her, his hands dripping a bloody trail on to the fresh snow. She shivered involuntarily but more from the cold than any fear of him. She wasn't sure what was going to happen next, but she was sure it would be better than what Josh had put her through. She looked over to where Josh's body laid on the ground, his blood turning the snow around him a crystalline red color.

~He deserved that,~ she thought menacingly to herself, ~For everything he did to me...he deserved that.~

She flinched as she felt the larger man place his hand on her left cheek, the warm stickiness of Josh's blood warming her chilled flesh for a moment before it to became as chilled as the air around it. She looked up at him and was surprised to see a gentle look in his eyes, a recognition that made her heart jump. It was as if he knew her, but she didn't remember him. She didn't remember anything.

He gently rubbed his thumb across her cheek just under her eye, leaving another trail of blood behind.

"Are you alright Reggie?"

His voice was deep and seemed more animal than human but it seemed to fit his appearance.

~Reggie!~ she thought with excitement, ~He called me Reggie! That means he knows me!~

She opened her mouth to speak, to shout for joy, to ask him who she was and how he knew her...but nothing came out. She wasn't even sure she could talk. All she remembered doing was screaming, lots and lots of screaming. In despair, she finally just nodded, letting him know that she was alright.

He graced her with a toothy smile that looked more menacing than anything else, then released her face and reached down grabbing her hand.

"C'mon," he said, roughly dragging her along after him, "We have a long way to go and you won't survive out here for long."

She didn't understand where it was that he was taking her and she didn't understand the sudden roughness where just moments earlier there had been tenderness but she followed none the less. Anywhere was better than going back where she had been.

* * * *

Sabretooth trudged through the snow with Regina in tow, his mood growing darker the closer they got to their destination. He would have picked her up and carried her but he wasn't sure he could keep the beast within him at bay if she were that close to him. It was amazing he had managed to go this long without trying to rip her apart. He had stopped fighting the beast years ago, choosing to give in to the urges that it awakened in him instead of fighting them. It had served him well, keeping him alive and giving him an edge that no other person alive had. He was a born killer and he embraced that, taking pride in his kills and how he had managed to get away with so many. True, everyone knew he was a killer but no one had ever been able to catch him and hold onto him long enough to prove it...no one.

~Kill her,~ the beast inside him hissed, ~She is our weakness. Didn't you see the look in her eyes? She doesn't remember us. Kill her now and we'll be stronger for it. Can't you smell her, hear her blood pumping through her veins. You know what it would be like to see that blood pumping out onto the ground, turning the snow that beautiful shade of red.~

'No,' he replied, trying to shove the beast back down, 'I came out here to save her, not to take her life. She deserves more, she deserves better and I'm going to make sure she gets it this time.'

~SHE DESERVES NOTHING!~ the beast roared, ~She has been a thorn in our side since the beginning, always showing up when not wanted and always bringing that RUNT with her. We should get rid of her NOW while we have the chance. There will never again be an opportunity like this one...never. Take it now.~

'NO!' he roared back, 'I WILL NOT! I owe her this much.'

He could feel the beast concede and retreat to the farther parts of his mind but he knew it wouldn't be long before it came back and tried again. How much longer would he have to fight it? How much longer could he fight it before it wore him down enough to take control again? And then what? How would he be able to protect her then? He had done too much to hurt her before, and all because of his overwhelming lust for blood. No, not this time. This time it would be different. This time he would get her to safety before the beast took over...he had to.

* * * *

Reggie trudged along behind the man, shivering with every step. Her feet had long since become numb to the pain of the cold and the rest of her had followed shortly after.

~Where are we going?~ she screamed in her head, knowing that he couldn't hear her thoughts.

It was so cold, and she was beginning to grow tired. She wanted to lay down and sleep. She didn't care where, she just wanted to sleep. Sleep would be so nice right now, so welcome. She longed for the numbness and the sweet oblivion that came with sleep. It was always an escape from her troubles.

"C'mon Regg," she heard him say, "It isn't much further."

She pushed on, willing her aching muscles to move even though they rebelled and continuous spasms of pain shot through her legs. It seemed like they had been walking forever, as if they had been trudging through the snow for miles. She had no idea where they were and was starting to wish he had killed her as he had Josh. It would have been easier that way, it would have saved her from this misery.

He stopped abruptly and dropped into a crouch as he pulled her up along side him. He didn't look at her though, he simply stared through the trees into what looked like a small clearing up ahead. He stayed there, still and silent for a long moment, then he pulled her in front of him and grasped her shoulders with both hands.

"Listen to me Reggie," his voice was gruff once again, but there was an urgency in it that startled her, "Through those trees is a house, a large house. You need to go there and knock on the door. They'll help you. Don't look back, and don't turn around, do you understand me?"

She nodded, a question in her eyes that she could not give voice to.

"Trust me. They'll help you. Just go and knock on the door. You'll be safe there. Promise me you won't look back. Promise?"

She glanced over her shoulder, now seeing the house he spoke of. She couldn't see it all but she saw enough. It was not like the cabin she had been in. This house was large and warm. She could see the light glowing in some of the windows, warding off the darkness that was threatening to creep across the land.

She felt him shake her, bringing her back around to look at him again.

"Promise me Reggie."

She simply nodded again.

He looked at her, then reached up and ran his hand through her tangled mess of blonde hair. For the second time since she had run into him in the woods she saw something pass through his eyes but it was gone so fast she wasn't sure what it was.

"Go." he said as he turned her around and gave her a shove in that direction.

She stumbled, then caught herself and started trudging through the snow toward the house he had indicated.

Sabretooth watched her go, fighting the screams of the beast inside him to go after her. He fought with ever muscle in his body to stay in that spot as he watched her walk across the clearing and approach the door. Maybe he was a fool like the beast said, but at the moment he didn't care. He had given her back what he had almost taken from her so long ago. Chances were that the next time he saw her he would try to kill her just as he had so many times before, but for now he was happy to know that there would be a next time.

He watched as she stumbled up to the door and leaned on it as she knocked. He saw movement in the house and waited as the door opened and the one known as Gambit caught her as she began to fall through the open door.

'She's safe now,' he thought, a sense of pride washing over him.

That pride was soon drowned out by the feeling of hatred and self loathing that crashed over him as the beast once again took control. Together they watched as Gambit picked her up and rushed into the house slamming the door behind him.

* * * *

TO BE CONTINUED...