Disclaimer: I do not own the X-Men nor anything you recognize within this story. It is all property of Marvel, I'm just borrowing it for a spell.
Author Notes: Until very recently, I thought I had pretty much abandoned the world of fanfiction. I'd lost my drive to write anything non-original until I recently read a review somebody left on one of my other stories I haven't updated in over a year. What she had to say made inspired me to go back and look at the stories I'd abandoned. I found A Siren's Sorrow and remembered how much I loved the idea of pairing Kurt with a woman with such a complex background. But after I went back and read what I'd written, I realized how much I hated the helpless, victimized damsel in distress I'd crafted the main lady to be. I knew if I wanted to continue with this story, I'd have to start at the beginning again and rewrite everything. So, frightened Jasmine became complex Rose and the story evolved from there. The original title also had to go because 'A Siren's Sorrow' just didn't fit the evolved plot of this reincarnated story.This first chapter is considerably longer than the original but it may also be a mite disjointed. I promise you this was intentional and the parts that clearly need to be explained further in later chapters. So, Blood red lips, if you happen to be reading this, thank you for inspiring me to return to my writing. Your review is proof that authors really do live on the feedback we get from our readers.
Siren Song
Chapter One
The heavy moon hung pregnant in the sky, light stolen from the sun softly illuminated the silver plane flying low as to hide amongst the scattered clouds. Within, a few scant rays managed to permeate the thick tint on the craft's windows and created a kind of half light within the large cabin. Several men and women sat in tense silent, their matching indigo suits marking them as members of some kind of task force.
A man with thick mutton chop side burns chewed moodily on the edge of an unlit cigar, his dark eyes shifting uneasily from face to face. His gaze rested on a particular dark skinned man, his dislike evident as he looked at the odd tattoos on the other's skin. His appraisal was cut short when an African American woman with silver hair cleared her throat, bringing all scattered attention to her.
"Remember everyone; the professor warned us that the situation we're going into could be extremely dangerous. This mutant's power is essentially unknown and he or she may not know we're there to help. Use just enough force to neutralize the threat but nothing fatal unless the situation absolutely calls for it." She cast a pointed glance at the cigar chewing man. "That means no killing anybody unless we're in danger, Logan." The man snorted and made a comment under his breath but was generally ignored. "We're just about to touch down, so everyone prepare yourself."
True to the woman's words, the jet reunited with the earth mere moments later and the small group quickly disembarked. They had landed in a small clearing in what appeared to be the middle of a forest. A few electric lights twinkled far off in the distant, the yellow flickers just visible in between tree trunks. The X-Men crept quickly through the trees, careful not to make too much noise.
Within minutes they found themselves staring up at a wooden building similar to a warehouse with no obvious route inside. A man with a ruby visor across his eyes stepped to the forefront and carefully adjusted a dial on the side of the device on his head. A narrow beam of crimson light emerged from the visor and quickly burnt a hole large enough to fit even Logan's burly frame in the side of the warehouse.
"You'da bitched at me if I'da done that, Ororo." Logan mumbled, just loud enough for the other X-Men to hear.
The silver haired woman's head whipped around and she glared at Logan over her shoulder, her brown eyes irritated. "We are on a mission, Wolverine, so code names only! We know almost nothing about the situation inside the building. Cyclop's abilities are far more effective at entering a potentially hostile environment than you cutting the wall to pieces with your claws. So, until there's something you can slice or otherwise mutilate, I suggest you shut the hell up otherwise you'll find yourself baby sitting the children when we go on our next mission." Ororo Munson, aka Storm's, rant sufficiently chastised Logan and he fell silent, his enthusiastic chewing of his cigar growing more frenzied as he channeled his frustration onto the helpless stogie.
The group then crept carefully into the interior of the building, no noise becoming apparent once they were inside. The only red headed woman in the company narrowed her eyes pointed to their left, accompanying the gesture with a slight jerk of her head. It was the universal sign that there were people that way which meant it was left they would go.
They quickly moved through a series of warren-like hallways, depending entirely on Jean's telepathic abilities to bring them closer to their quarry. Soon the muffled sounds of voices became audible and the nearer they grew, the more defined and understandable the words became into they formed complete sentences.
"…beware though, for even catching a single glimpse of this foul demon could corrupt your precious soul and damn you to the blistering fires of Hell for all eternity. This is truly a test for the pure of heart for if you can look this evil creature in the face and not loose yourself to the wickedness of sin; the Kingdom of Heaven will be yours!" The voice paused for a moment, before the nasally tone continued. "What'd ya think, Avery? Is it better than the last one?"
"Oh yeah," came a sarcastic response, "that's loads better. You'll be dragging in the witless idiots by the sackful. Nobody'll be able to tell that you're just trying to con them into paying ya to see some…"
"If ya aren't gonna tell me anything helpful, then shut your god damn mouth. This time it'll work and they won't try to tear her to pieces. I swear to ya, she's gonna be our ticket to the high life."
The X-Men grew motionless outside a shut door when Jean made a frantic halting motion, letting them know that they had reached their final destination. Her cool voice filled their heads and gave them a last piece of advice.
"I sense three separate minds inside, two male and a female. I believe the woman is our target because her brain is so jumbled and littered with traps, she fits the Professor's description."
Affirmative gestures were made by all in the group and then Cyclops blasted the door open, the chunk of wood flying across the room to smack loudly against the opposite wall. The two men inside yelled in surprise and dove for weapons resting on the seats of pews, prepared to defend themselves against this surprise attack.
However, two humans were no challenge for the well trained X-Men and with several well placed blows, the men were subdued and lying unconscious on the cold stone floor. It was Rogue, a young woman with cinnamon hair with white streaks framing her face that saw the mystery female first, her soft exclamation drawing everyone's eyes towards the front of the room.
"Oh mah god…" She whispered, her tone shocked.
As was customary with most churches, a large cross decorated the far back wall of the large room but this crucifix didn't have the likeness of Christ carved into it, instead a slim figure was tied to beams of wood. Ropes bound her wrists and biceps to the cross arms, a miniscule wedge in the lower part of the body of the cross allowed her to support some of her weight on her toes.
Long dark hair swathed her body in what appeared to be its only covering, the wild curls falling to the middle of her thighs. The faint shine of metal peeked out from under her hair but in the muted light of the room, nobody noticed the dull glimmer. On either side of her arms, two bat-like wings stretched out, boney protrusion emerging from the tips of the membranous appendages.
Every so often her wings would twitch, but that was the only sign that the still woman even lived. Her muscular tail had a spade shaped end that was wrapped around the rough wood of the cross, the extra limb adding to her alien appearance. Even if she didn't have wings to mark her as a mutant, the dusky blue tone of her skin showed her to be something other than human. Cyclops and Logan immediately went in front of the cross and began to untie the knots keeping her captive, until the woman limply tumbled forward into Logan's arms.
He awkwardly caught her weight but her wings made carrying her almost impossible. He shifted her onto his shoulder so that she flopped down his back, her wings hanging lifelessly around her. The X-Men didn't linger long in the warehouse for the two men would awaken soon and it was highly doubtful they were alone in the large building.
They made their way back to the jet and once the ramp closed behind them, Logan quickly put the woman down on a medical table in the back of the cabin. Ororo covered her with a paper sheet from a compartment filled with medical supplies and stretched her wings out, the tough, vein laced skin drooping over the edges of the table. The girl's azure skin was riddled with pearly marks that spoke of a history of abuse. Ororo's brow furrowed and she looked away from the girl to one of the men in the cabin.
"Kurt, would you please come over here?" She called and a man with similarly hued skin as the unconscious woman strode across the cabin.
He stood beside Ororo and his dark eyes swept across the prone figure, his three fingered hands clasped loosely in front of him. "I do not think I can be of any help, Ororo." He murmured, faint strains of his German accent evident in his words. "Our skin is the same color but ve are not kin. I vas not aware vings like that vere possible."
Ororo merely shrugged her shoulders. "I understand but the fact that you share a similar skin colour may give her some comfort when she wakes up."
A soft glint caught Ororo's eye and she carefully pushed a few curls from the girl's chest, revealing dog tags similar to the ones Logan wore, resting against the girl's blue skin. She lifted the metal discs and her eyes widened when she saw what was written on the front of it.
"This says her name is Siren."
"Siren? That is an odd name. Do you think it could be like Logan's?" Kurt asked.
Ororo nodded slowly. "I suspect so but I wonder why someone as young as her would have them. There is no way she was ever in the army, not with the way she looks, she would never be accepted."
"Ve vill just have to vait until she vakes up, then."
Ororo nodded and Kurt went back to his chair, swiveling it around so that it faced the occupied medical table. She soon returned to her own seat because the girl did not appear to have any physical injuries, excluding a smattering of bruises and scratches that could be attributed to being bound for long periods of time. It would be a long flight back to the mansion and as an hour slipped past, attention on the still woman slowly began to fade until not even Kurt continued watching her. There was nothing more they could do for her without the Professor's help.
Freezing metal leeched what little heat her thin body produced and she fought the urge to wrap her wings around herself as she came out of a drug induced sleep. She could hear people talking softly a good distance away and she kept her breathing slow and even. It didn't sound as if Avery or any of the other men who held her captive were present, so she wasn't being moved to a new destination.
She couldn't sense anyone standing close and so she opened one eye by a minute sliver. Her violet iris made a quick sweep of the cabin, momentarily focusing on the other blue skinned person before taking in the rest of the room. Her gaze fell on the outline of the ramp in the floor and a plan began to form in her head. Her eyes flared briefly as if their color changed and she began to hum quietly, the melody faint and barely audible. It was enough noise to cause Kurt to begin to turn but then he forgot that he had ever heard anything from the back of the cabin.
She slowly stopped humming, not needing to make noise to maintain her power over the others. She slid off the metal table, the paper sheet crumpling in a heap at her feet and she immediately wrapped her wings about her body. She continued focusing her attention on the assorted people in front of her as she quickly scrambled towards the outline in the floor.
She scraped her sharp nails along the seam, trying to find a latch or button that would cause the ramp to descend. She tried for several more minutes to find the hidden catch but when it eluded her, she let out a frustrated growl and momentarily lost her focus. It only took that one lapse to free the X-Men from their stupor and in a heart beat Jean whipped around and used her telekinetic abilities to freeze her in place.
Her violet eyes grew wide when she discovered she couldn't move and she looked at the people advancing on her, not understanding that they were in actuality her rescuers. Her eyes flared again but this time her power didn't force them to bend to her will. Nothing happened and she hissed, baring her slightly pointed teeth in frustration. Somehow Jean had managed to suppress her powers, but the strain on the red head was evident as sweat began to appear on her forehead. Ororo then took charge of the situation and quickly rose to her feet, trying to draw her attention away from Jean.
"Whatever you are doing, please stop! We're trying to help you."
Her violet eyes snapped to Ororo, the old pain and betrayal burning in the amethyst depths. "Trying to help me?! You had me spread out on a gurney in the back of your airplane and you expect me to believe you?" While her voice was hoarse from disuse, the liquid quality of her voice was enchanting even without the aid of her power.
"Get your witch to release me otherwise I'll shatter her mind." She returned her gaze to Jean and increased the stream of power flowing from her, a cold smirk tugging at the corners of her mouth as Jean began to sweat heavily.
"If she removes her power, will you allow me to explain the situation to you? If you don't like what we have to offer then I promise you'll be free to go once we land." Ororo said quickly.
Her eyes narrowed for a moment at the proposal as if trying to determine how truthful Ororo was being but after mere seconds, shrugged and stopped forcing her power into Jean's mind. The moment she relented, her telekinetic paralysis was released and she crumpled to the ground. She slowly pushed herself up to her feet and kept her wings wrapped tightly around her torso, her tail twitching in an agitated manner. Beneath her membranous wings her fingers tapped nervously against her sides, the faint noise completely muffled by the thick skin.
Ororo cleared her throat. "My name is Ororo Monroe and I'm a teacher at Xavier's School for the Gifted. The school is truly for gifted children, it is a home for mutant teenagers with no other place to go. We offer them a proper education and even after they leave us, our doors are always open to our students. Some of the mutants that seek asylum with us show a certain dedication towards our cause or their mutation has marked them physically and they cannot blend in with the human part of the population are asked to join an elite group that work to further the mutant cause. Those people are called the X-Men." She motioned to the men and women sitting around her. "We are the majority of the X-Men and Professor Charles Xavier, our leader, sent us to find and rescue you, Siren."
During Ororo's speech, her face grew cautiously hopeful but when the African American woman addressed her by the name on her dog tag, her expression grew impassive and distant. Her wings tightened about her, a gesture the X-Men would soon realize she unconsciously did when she was nervous or uncomfortable, and the swaying of her tail grew erratic and jerky.
"I would appreciate if you didn't call me that, it isn't my name." Her tone was cool, yet still possessed that fluid, silvery quality.
"I apologize if I offended you but I saw it engraved on your necklace and I just assumed you went by it."
"You really shouldn't assume things about people you don't know, Miss Munroe, because they generally turn out to be quite incorrect."
"Again, I am sorry, but in absence of any other form of identification, I believe I was quite justified in assuming that you would at least answer to it. If you do not wish to be called Siren, what is your preferred name?"
"Rose, Rose Dupree."
Anything Ororo would have said in response was delayed when Scott spoke from the control panel of the plane. "We're just about to land; everyone needs to strap in or risk injury."
Ororo leapt into action. "Before we land, you need to put some clothes on."
"I…" Rose stammered, clearly taken aback at Ororo's sudden forceful manner.
Ororo found and shoved a pair of grey sweatpants and a simple white tank top into Rose's arms, then held up the paper sheet discarded early to give Rose a semblance of privacy. Her wings unfurled and she slipped into the clothing, biting her lip as she thought about the uncertainty of her future. For over a year she had been a possession to cruel men who had kidnapped her and kept her continually drugged up so she couldn't use her powers against them.
The countless hours spent tied to a cross and tormented, physically and mentally, were nothing short of torture and left her extremely mistrustful of people in general. She really didn't know if she could believe what this Ororo Monroe told her, regardless of how true it seemed. At least she wasn't drugged and she quickly decided that if the situation off the plane started to go awry, she would simply fly away.
At the thought of actually flying for the first time in a year, her wings ached and she stretched them out, the little bones in them cracking loudly. She then brought them close to her body and folded them against her back. She stepped out from behind the sheet and sat down in a vacant share, avoiding the curious gazes of the X-Men. She was too used to any attention on her being negative and hateful and even though these strangers seemed to mean well, after her initial hostile outburst, she didn't want to interact anymore with them.
The entire jet rumbled as it touched down and then the noise slowly died down as the engine turned off. Rose undid the seatbelt and rose to her feet, her wings rustling slightly as she followed the others off the plane. She made a quiet noise in the back of her throat as the softest puff of cool night air brushed against her cheeks and unconsciously flexed them. The moment they left the tarmac and entered a slick metal passage, a man's cultured voice spoke warmly in her head.
'Ah, Miss Dupree, I am quite pleased to welcome you to my school. I would like to speak with you, so if you would accompany Ororo up to my office, I'd be much obliged.'
Her spine stiffened at the unnaturalness of hearing someone else's voice in her head, but looked to Ororo to see if she heard the message too. The woman nodded and spoke out loud for the benefit of the others.
"Of course Professor, I'll bring her up right away."
Rose stood uncomfortably in front of the Professor's desk as the door closed quietly behind Ororo, feeling considerably out of place in the lavishly furnished room. She crossed her arms beneath her breasts and tapped her fingers against her rib cage, her violet eyes skimming the room, trying to avoid being caught in his gaze. The Professor wheeled his chair around the side of the desk and motioned for her to sit in one of the padded seats.
"Please, have a seat." She slowly sunk down into it, her wings flopping over the armrests in an uncomfortable way. He leant back in his wheelchair and clasped his hands loosely in his lap, his bright blue eyes resting squarely on her face. "Miss Dupree would you like to tell me anything about how you managed to find yourself in such a deplorable situation?"
Her uneasiness with the whole situation was evident in her tone. "Can't you just dig through my mind and find what you want to know?"
His expression grew surprised that she would even mention him doing something like that. "I would never search through a person's thoughts without their express permission. Such a thing would be entirely unforgivable. You don't have to worry about being taken advantage of here. I hope we can eventually become something of a family to you."
She shrugged her shoulders, entirely skirting the issue of her captivity. "I haven't decided whether or not I'm going to stay here."
"But you're a minor, you must have a place to live and adults to work as your legal guardian until you turn eighteen."
"A minor?" She said slowly. "I'm older than I look. I'm twenty."
"You're twenty years old?" His tone was slightly incredulous but he quickly schooled his expression into something more acceptable. "I apologize for assuming your age but do you have a place to go? So few families accept their mutant children, so you shouldn't feel ashamed if you are on your own, you are welcome to stay here as long as you need."
Rose mulled something over for a few minutes and opened her mouth to speak, but seemed to change her mind at the last moment about whatever she had been thinking about. "I…I don't know if I'd still be welcome at home. Will people here honestly accept me? I'm not exactly your average mutant."
Charles smiled warmly to her, his eyes sparkling with kindness. "We are a very accepting bunch here, Miss Dupree, that I promise." He paused for a moment. "You will be assigned a room near Kurt Wagner. I believe he was a part of the group that rescued you. He is the man with skin that is a very similar color to yours. Perhaps it will ease the blow of being in a place completely new if there is something remotely familiar to acclimatize you."
She didn't really know what to say to that, not really sure if having the presence of a strange man in her life would really make her more comfortable in the mansion but she didn't complain. She merely nodded and fidgeted nervously, waiting for him to dismiss her. He frowned slightly at her obvious discomfort before continuing.
"I've asked Kurt to come up here and show you to your new room. Once you feel suitably rested, whenever that may be, we will get you proper clothing."
There was a well timed knock at the door and then a distinctive bamf-like noise followed by the unpleasant odor sulfur. She turned to look at the door and was surprised to see the blue skinned man she vaguely remembered watching her. Their gazes met and suddenly Rose felt as if she had stuck her finger into an electrical outlet when her skin prickled.
She immediately dropped her gaze to her lap and didn't listen to whatever it was that the Professor told Kurt. She merely dutifully rose to her bare feet and walked quietly after him, confused and unsure over her reaction towards this man. Her wings flexed nervously as she walked a few steps behind him down the richly paneled corridor, her fingers picking at the hem of the tank top.
She looked at him from beneath her eyelashes and tried to ascertain what it was about him that made her skin tingle and her heart race. The only other time she had felt anything even remotely similar was in her life before the kidnapping and even then, her feelings for that boy weren't even comparable to the sudden, fierce attraction that tried to pull her against him.
She mulled over this until he suddenly stopped and she collided with his back. He spun around smoothly and grasped her forearms in an effort to stabilize her when she wobbled dangerously. Where his fingers touched her skin, electric currents sprung to life and made her shiver in a delighted way. He seemed to feel something similar because he jerked his hands away from her and quickly pushed the door to his right open, looking extremely uncomfortable.
"This is your room now, Miss Dupree. If you need me during the night, I sleep in the room right beside yours so please don't hesitate to vake me."
"Thank you." She murmured quietly, her smooth voice sweet. "Please just call me Rose, Miss Dupree makes me feel like I'm about to be punished."
He looked at her for a moment, almost as if he was trying to see if she meant something else by her words, before nodding slowly. "If that is vhat you vish then you should call me Kurt."
She offered him a tentative smile and stepped into the doorway of her new room. "Thank you again, Kurt. See you in the morning."
His surprised, pleased smile was the last thing she saw before her door closed all the way. Her happy expression faded once she was alone and she grew contemplative as she walked across the small room to one of the windows on the far wall. What did these feelings mean and how would they affect the rest of her time spent in the mansion?
She couldn't come up with any answers beyond how surprisingly attractive Kurt was with his dark blue skin and tail. The small talons that she had in place of nails easily flicked the latch on the window and she heaved it open, a soft noise of joy escaping her when fresh air blew across her skin. Without another thought about her puzzling attraction or how rapidly she had gone from captivity to freedom and how she would deal with the troublesome emotions she'd been suppressing since being kidnapped, she pulled herself up onto the window ledge and jumped.
Yes, that's a cliffhanger but this chapter was getting long. I would very much appreciate if you would leave me a review if you read this. I'd like to get some feedback on whether or not this revamping was a good idea.
Blessed be
Ame