I rated this higher than it probably should be just to be on the safe side. Some more mature stuff happens as the story goes along. The events in this story might not be in the order that they were in the movie. This is set during the third movie. I will not tell you who she ends up with because that ruins a lot of the fun of reading it. Hope you enjoy!

I do not own X men.

It was a full moon that night as 15 year old Claire Richards left Xavier's School for the Gifted and headed towards the nearest town. Her hunched shoulders and darting eyes showed how nervous she was and her backpack with it's stretched seams that she didn't plan on returning to the mutant school.

As she came to the small town of Hillcrest the adrenaline rush had subsided and she realized her shoulders hurt. She sat on a bench at the corner of Jefferson and Eagle, rubbing her shoulders to try and get the blood flow back to normal.

Claire sighed deeply, wondering which way to go. North? South? East? West? She couldn't decide. There was nothing for her in any of the directions.

Gulp. Suddenly the world seemed a lot bigger than the globe in that sat on Professor Xavier's desk.

"What have I gotten myself into?" The girl whispered to herself.

"Sounds like I've found myself a kindred spirit." said a gruff female's voice from behind her. Claire jerked forward and spun her head around so fast she felt her neck pop.

"Down, girl. I won't hurt you."said the stranger. "Names' Samantha, Samantha Poulsen." She offered a gloved hand to Claire, with a small smirk. Claire stared at the hand for a moment before deciding it was safe to take it. Samantha plopped down next to the runaway and began digging through her tattered purse.

Claire wasn't sure if she should pay attention or try to ignore the newcomer. She hadn't been asked a name and didn't intend on giving it. Out of the corner of her eye she examined her company. She wore dark colors and an army jacket and her tangled brown hair made her look like she had been living in a tree for most of her life.

Samantha continued with her search for another minute before pulling out a small bag of beef jerky.

"Nothing like a midnight snack to cool your nerves." she said to no one in particular, pulling off her gloves and ripping the bag open. She stuffed a large chunk of the jerky in her mouth and then offered a handful to Claire.

Up until this point Clair hadn't said anything to Samantha. She stared at the hand. She saw the small ridges that made up the girl's fingerprint, the pink skin, a scab on one of the knuckles. Her heartbeat quickened and her mouth watered. She hadn't eaten for hours.

"No thank you." She said, suddenly very interested in her surroundings.

Samantha squinted a bit and her chewing slowed to a more calculating pace. They shared an uncomfortable silence for as the two sized each other up. Claire finally decided in a course of action.

She began standing up, not meeting Samantha's eyes "Well, it was nice meeting you, um-" She grabbed her bag but to leave but Samantha had a hand on it already. Claire tensed, eyes darting to her face, looking for signs of a threat.

Samantha's eyes looked hungry, a nefarious grin spreading across her dirty face."You're one of them, aren't you."

Next Chapter: No, no no. Claire thought, sure she was about to be experimented on. She hated using her powers, refused to use them but she was sure these people wouldn't let her go if she didn't get away right away.