Disclaimer: Out of this story, I only own Kylie. Everything else is property of Marvel Comics. Kylie's story arc takes place during Season 3, between the episodes of "Self-Possessed", and "Lock and Key."
Jeep Premonitions
"It's an eighty-four, Wrangler." Lance corrected as they drove by the beat up vehicle in question. "Off-road edition, guarantee it's a five-speed manual tranny, auto-locking hubs, and some severely gnarly four-wheel drive action."
Todd favored the driver with a slow, withering glance. "What matters is that it's been there for two days now."
"What's so unusual about that?" Pietro harrumphed, leaning his front passenger seat back a little further, squishing Todd back into an ever-shrinking space.
"It's got no ticket on it!" Todd snapped as if everyone would notice something like that.
"So?" Freddie picked up on Todd's annoyance, and tried to edge his massive bulk further away. He only succeeded in angering Wanda, who was crammed in on the Blob's opposite side.
"It's a two-hour spot… there should at least be a ticket on it," Todd watched out the window as they left the hunter green Jeep in the dust. It was two blocks from the school, in Bayville, New York, with Montana license plates!
Todd opened his mouth to comment on that, but decided against the further ridicule of his fellows. No, he'd just sneak out of class, and head back towards the vehicle. He had a sneaking suspicion about it, something that made his nose wrinkle. The school part would be the easiest, but he'd have to manage it without Principle Kelly finding out. He pondered that on the remainder of the ride, hanging on to the oh-shit handle for dear life as Lance spun and sped to school.
When he managed to find a break during lunch, Todd sprung with his powerful, toad-like legs, over the back fence to the school; he winced as he figured the punishment that was going to be on its way. But with each hop that drew him closer and closer to freedom, and satisfying the morbid sense of curiosity, he felt more and more content with his decision to ditch classes.
The Jeep was still there when he arrived around the corner, but what was parked behind it, caused him to freeze and backpeddle, pressing himself thin against the side of the building. The police car didn't have its lights on, but it was nonetheless parked behind the Montanan Jeep. And the officers within it didn't look too happy. Todd peeked around the corner, his eyes wide as he watched the tableau unfold before him.
As the officers approached the Jeep, one from each side of the vehicle, Todd noticed that there was a foot sticking out of one of the windows. Clad in a colorful sock, it looked almost like the foot of a child, petite and small. As the officer peered in the window, he immediately leapt back. The sound of ferocious barking filled the air, barely muted by the Jeeps windows. In the back seat, a large dog raged at the cops around the car. The foot in the window moved, withdrew and the dog's barking quieted.
Todd strained to make out what was being said. The girl, as she sat up, could have been no older than Todd himself. Her hair was dark, and curly, attractively tousled and mussed from what appeared to be an interrupted nap. From this distance, Todd couldn't make out many other features, except for the dark, heavily circled eyes. She was leaning over, presumably for her license and registration, but as she straightened, both cops leapt back with shouted curses.
Todd's eyes nearly fell out of his head as the sharp report of a pistol broke the silence. One cop fell into the street, clutching at a spot near his left shoulder. The other leapt out of the way as the Jeep roared to life, and drove up over the curb. Down the sidewalk, it bolted, directly towards Todd's vantage point. Todd swore, and dove further back into the alleyway. The squeal of tires, and a sharp bark caused him to look back over his shoulder.
There, stopped at the head of the alley, was the Jeep. The girl had thrown the door open and was gesturing to him.
"Quick!" she ordered in a weary, oddly calm voice. "They'll be after you too, if you don't come with me now."
Todd glanced at the giant dog in the backseat, and again at the pretty girl offering him sanctuary. He weighed his option and leapt into the passenger seat. The girl made no response as he pulled the door shut behind him; she hit the gas, feathered the clutch and burned rubber as the wail of sirens rose around them. The dog in the back was smart; he flattened himself down against the seat to resist the rocking and swaying of the Jeep as it spun around corners and sped through stop signs.
The young mutant marveled, as she seemed to always be one step ahead of the police. His heart lodged in his throat as she gunned the engine, and jumped a curb. Glancing around, Todd recognized where he was, the back lot of the school. She was tearing up the soccer field; her hands moving as quickly and easily as artist's hands as she locked the vehicle into 4-by. She went directly through the football field, and into the woods. He was forced to hold on with both hands as she took out young saplings, forded two streams, and finally came to a sedate rest after she broke through a clearing onto an ancient cow-path.
Todd was breathing heavily as he stared in awe at her. She continued to ignore his presence as she turned around in her seat to check on the animal, whimpering softly in the back. She scratched the dog's ears and whispered to him. With a sigh, she turned to Todd, smiling gently and shaking her head.
"I'm sorry you had to see that…"
Something in her tone made Todd's heart stop. He frantically searched for the door handle, trying not to take his eyes off the girl, or the gun she had tucked beneath her thigh. But her hands remained calmly on the steering wheel, her gaze locked with Todd's fearful one. The giant dog in the back was stretching, sniffing the air, and then he poked his immense, sleek head over the seat to sniff at Todd's sleeve.
"If I were going to kill you, Todd Tolensky, you'd already be dead," she said calmly, as if that would assuage his fears.
Todd blinked, and pulled his hand away from the door. "Hey, how'd you know my name?" He managed to sputter through his waning fears. "And what the hell just happened back there?"
"They weren't cops," she said carefully, glancing around. "My name's Kylie… Kylie McManus. And that's Max." She chuckled affectionately as she reached out and scratched the big dog's head. Todd noticed how carefully she didn't answer his questions. "Look, I should really get you home; they always find me. It's really better if you just forget everything you saw."
"Woah! Wait, I can't forget that! You shot that guy!" Todd noticed that the dog began to growl, as he got agitated. He took a long deep breath, and calmed himself down as best he could. "You shot a cop… you're running from something… and how do you know my name?"
Kylie rubbed the bridge of her nose, pinching the space between her eyes like she had a headache. "I'm a prophet… a prognosticator if you would." She opened her eyes again, and shifted sideways in her seat. "You're a toad… a mutant… what-have-you… I had a vision. That's how I know you." She drew a deep breath. "They weren't cops. No badges, no identification. I've been running long enough to know what to look for. I didn't even kill it, just set it back a little."
Kylie scowled, and banged her palm against the steering wheel as she twisted back in her seat. "Look, I don't have to tell you this… I need to get you to your home, and then I'll be on my way."
Todd opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off as she gunned the engine again. The cow-path was bumpy and ill-kept, and the Jeep jostled and bounced even as she was taking it slow. "K-kylie… one more question?" He finally managed to ask.
"Besides that one? Sure, shoot."
"Why'd you pull me off the street?"
She glanced at him, sidelong, a ghostly smile playing at the edge of her lips. "Because they would have killed you if I hadn't."
"It's nothing special," Todd muttered as he eyed the old building they approached. Three stories of cracking plaster (courtesy of Lance's temper), and half-squashed furniture (thanks to Fred's obesity), it crouched between two not-much-brighter homes in one of the lower class neighborhoods.
Kylie eyed it with a sense of longing. "It's better than nothing, Todd." Her tone was so somber, so quiet, that it gave Todd a moment of pause.
"Yeah…" he nodded as he popped the Jeep's door open. "I suppose it is." He hopped down and eyed her with the door still open. "You sure you don't wanna come in?"
Kylie hesitated. That was the last question from her vision; it was up to her now to choose her own fate. She glanced in the back at her dog, and the mutt's liquid eyes stared back at her. "Can Max come too?"
Todd's face lit up, a flashing smile that fled as quickly as it appeared. "Sure!"
She slid out of the Jeep, and shifted her seat forward, letting Max jump down with a happy bark. The giant dog romped around in the driveway, stretching his limbs and playing a merry game with himself. As Todd rounded the front of the Jeep, he watched Kylie pull down her shirt over a waist-holster that concealed her pistol. A small lump formed in his throat, and he worried about her for no reason.
He was tempted to grab her hand, and pull her inside, but he refrained, curbing his enthusiasm. The others were already home. As quietly as possible he opened the door, only to look onto the living room filled with his fellows. Freddie had a 2L bottle of soda clasped in one meat hook, and a 3ft sub in the other. Wanda was calmly shuffling her deck of Tarot cards, her dark eyes harboring even darker hatred. Lance had the television set occupied with a video game. Pietro seemed to be at rest, his head tilted back against the sofa cushions.
But Pietro never rested. In a flash and blur, he was blocking the doorway. "And what kind of stunt did we pull today?" he demanded.
Todd's mouth opened as he hurried to make up a lie, but a hand fell on his shoulder and he remembered Kylie.
"It's my fault," she interjected as she came up beside Todd. If she was intimidated by Pietro, she hid it extremely well. At the sound of her voice however, every set of eyes was upon her in the room.Kylie took a deep breath, and idly scratched the large dog's head. "Todd was kind enough to be concerned about me… even if he didn't know it was me." Kylie offered Todd a little smile, as the teen tried to puff up and be macho. "He just… happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. I pulled the stunt. I… had to shoot someone in self-defense…"
Pietro's eyes narrowed. He didn't believe a single word of it. His cold gaze focused on Todd, gauging his reactions. The boy definitely believed her. The others were beginning to draw away from their activities, milling around and trying to get a good look.
"Can I just show her around, yo?" Todd asked suddenly, breaking the silence.
Kylie's eyes were focused on the floor, her hand ruffling the short thick black fur that covered Max's back. There was a battle of wills taking place here, and Kylie didn't like it in the least. "It's easiest if I just go," she murmured to Todd, reaching out to place her hand on his shoulder.
Todd, startled, looked up, and suddenly straightened from his defensive crouch. "Well… I…" His yellowed eyes shifted suddenly back towards the others. She was already moving towards the door when he gathered the rest of his nerve to speak. He hopped after her, catching her wrist as she exited. "Will I ever see you again?"
Kylie looked back and smiled softly. "I don't know, Todd… I really don't know." She offered him a smile as she gently pulled away from Todd's hand. Before Todd could think of anything to say, she was gone.
He turned back to the house to find everyone, watching him expectantly. Pietro had a snide grin, and couldn't help but chuckle at the youngest mutant's expense. "Toady's got a crush," he chortled quietly.
Todd refused to answer, and hopped resolutely up the stairs, and into his room.
Max whined, leaning over the back seat to lick Kylie's ear. She batted his giant muzzle away and cautiously pulled the jeep over to the side of the highway. The giant dog dove out the open back before she could even get out. Kylie chuckled, as he perused a short length of highway for a good spot to mark. She leaned against the jeep and idly wished that she had something to drink.
Max turned suddenly, and began to bark, his deep-throated snarl echoed over the empty highway. Kylie turned as he began to run directly towards her. Looking around, she saw nothing amiss, until she looked up…
He was flying… Wearing a cape that drifted in the gentle breeze, he looked like something out of a vampire-movie. Kylie reached for her pistol, only to find that it wasn't in it's holster. It too hovered six feet in the air, by the man's right hand. Slowly, he lowered himself to the ground, and the pistol floated into his right hand.
"Good evening, Kylie," he said with a smile, reaching up, and removing the dark purple helmet from his head.
Kylie was relieved to find he looked completely normal. His eyes were pale blue; his hair was snowy. He was old enough to be her father, a thought that suddenly made her shiver. She quickly found her wits.
"Good evening, sir," she responded, as she knelt to grab Max around the neck before he tried to take out this guy's jugular.
"I am Erik Lensherr." He knelt as he spoke, purposefully staying on Kylie's level. "I have heard much about you… and I am prepared to offer you sanctuary from your troubles."
Kylie's heart fluttered. "I… I can't possibly…"
"You are running from something; I understand that. But the safest place that you can be is surrounded by mutants, like yourself, who can help and protect you." Lensherr did have a convincing argument, and Kylie liked the idea of having a home for once. "You have three days, my dear. Just return to Mystique, and the Brotherhood. You'll hear from me again."
With a thought, he was in the air again, rising through the clouds. Kylie leapt forward to grab her pistol lest it too disappear from where he had been. She looked back at Max, and sighed. The dog was staring into the clouds, as if he could will the stranger to float back down.
"Come on, handsome," she said to the beast. "Let's go find a culvert to bed down in for the night. We have a lot of thinking to do."
Huge arms engulfed her. Blood. Sweat. Musk. The scents assaulted her. Safety surrounded her. Fear was within her. Muscles rippled, a hand cupped the back of her head. Eyes met eyes. She could never forget that face. "Don't worry, frail… I ain't never gonna let anythin' hurt ya."
Kylie's eyes snapped open to daylight. Max lay curled up in the front seat still, as she sat up in the back. Rolling her neck, she tried to work the kinks out of it. There was definitely more and more reasons popping into her head that she could head back to the Boarding House. She only worried about her pursuant. He had destroyed her life before, and he wouldn't balk at another chance to do the same. Kylie used the roll-bar to pull herself out of the jeep. Max leapt out, joyously wagging the stump of his tail, and snapping his jaws at a passing butterfly.
"Alright, Max," Kylie sighed as she approached back from the woods. "Next river we find, I'm taking a bath!" The dog leapt up, placing his paws on her shoulders and licking her face. Kylie laughed at the slobbering dog and took his paws in her hands, to dance with him for a moment or two. Finally, she let him back down to the ground. Scratching between his ears, she dried her face with her sleeve. "Okay, big boy, which way are we going?"
Kylie prided herself on the big mutt's training. He padded to the road, and first looked one way, then the other. Max whined softly, and Kylie came up beside him. He was looking back down the road from whence they had come. She scratched idly behind his ears to comfort him. "You wanna go back too?" He scratched his paw in the dirt, and barked, once. Kylie fancied he could really understand her. "Yeah, I'm scared too."
She walked back to the jeep, reflecting on the words of Erik Lensherr. Max jumped into the back, and settled down. Kylie ran her hands thoughtfully over the dash, and steering wheel. The mutt's liquid brown eyes reflected her own dark ones as she turned to look at the dog.
"Even if we only get to stay two nights, Max…" she whispered. "It'll be two less nights of running… and two nights with a roof over our heads."
Max barked, and wagged himself so furiously that he nearly fell off the seat. Kylie giggled, and started up the jeep.
Todd flung his tongue again, spearing the buzzing house fly on the end of the sticky muscle easily. Swallowing, he savored the flavor as it slid down, it's wings tickling the inside of his throat. He chuckled softly, and stretched; it was almost midnight. Time to bunk down; he figured he'd need his strength at school tomorrow. Just as he had reached the bottom of the stairs, a light knock roused his interest at the door.
He didn't hesitate to swing the door open, and broke into the widest grin he could manage. "Kylie! I knew it! Wanda comes through again!"
Kylie responded with a shy smile, shifting the giant duffel bag on her shoulder. Max, the giant black mutt, slavered at her feet. "Hey Todd," she managed before he had grabbed her hand and yanked her inside.
He suddenly found it impossible to keep still, as he hopped in circles around her, tugging her this way and that. Kylie laughed softly, and for the first time in years, felt like she was truly coming home.