A Tale From The Claw-Man

YEARS AGO

I was on my way ta my hideout when my nose picked up an unfamiliar scent. I scanned my surroundings an' saw a trail o' blood. I followed the bloody trail ta a cave. Prepared ta fight if necessary, I slid into the cave, makin' sure ta stay in the shadows. I sniffed the air; my nose picked up the scent o' a hurt girl.

I only had ta continue a few yards more into the cave 'fore I saw her. A young woman was layin' down in the very back o' the cave. Blood spilled from her right arm, makin' a red pool underneath part o' her body. She had long, reddish-brown hair with a white streak down the middle; the blood matted some o' her hair together. She opened her green eyes an' said in a whisper, "Who are ya?"

She was loosin' a lot o' blood an' wouldn't make it unless she got some help. If I had the right tools with me, I could've stopped the bleedin', but I didn't. I had ta do somethin' ta help the girl, though. I couldn't just leave her there ta die. I stepped out o' the shadows. "The name's Wolverine, but ya can call me Logan." I walked up ta her an' knelt down beside her. I reached out ta take her arm in my hands.

"No! Don't touch me!" she managed ta yell.

Too late. I'd already begun examinin' her arm. "Why not?"

The girl didn't answer me. She closed her eyes instead. I could only watch in surprise as the blood suddenly stopped flowin'. A claw similar to my own claws popped out o' her index finger on her left hand; she didn't wince as she used the claw ta pick the bullet from the hole on her right arm. I took the bullet from her claw an' tossed it out o' the way. When I looked back, the hole in her arm was sealed up, the claw was gone, an' she was sittin' up, lookin' at me. "Why did ya wait ta do that?" I asked, recoverin' from my surprise.

"'Cause Ah didn't have those powahs until ya touched me." I waited patiently fer her ta continue. "Ya see, Ah'm a mutant like ya. Mah powah's absorption. That means Ah get the powahs o' whoever Ah touch. Usually, Ah put 'em in a coma. Ah don't know why Ah didn't put ya out, but Ah'm glad Ah didn't."

"So am I. What's yer name?"

"Ah'm called Rogue."

"That's an unusual name fer a girl."

"It's what Ah am, mistah."

"Yer a thief, too?"

"What do ya mean 'too'? Are ya one?" I nodded. "Well, in that case, yeah . . . Ah am."

"How did ya get shot?"

"Ah'd stolen some money from this farmer who'd just gotten paid for some cattle. Ah managed ta get ta mah horse an' ride off, but he got on his an' rode after me. After we'd gotten far away from his farm, he shot me. Ah fell off mah horse an' hit the ground hard. It knocked the wind outta me, but Ah still managed ta crawl in here."

"Why don't we ride together? We can watch each other's backs," I suggested even though I sure didn't need her.

"Why, Ah'd love that, Wolvy!" Rogue exclaimed before cautiously addin', "Ah can call ya 'Wolvy', can't Ah?"

"Sure," I grinned. That was the beginnin' o' my friendship with Rogue.

PRESENT DAY

Rogue an' I were at a slave auction, but we weren't there ta buy a slave. We were there ta steal the people's wallets while they weren't lookin'. We were makin' pretty good progress o' it, too. I wasn't really listenin' ta the announcer, but I stopped dead in my tracks when I heard the name "Jubilation Lee". "It can't be," I whispered, lookin' up at the block. My jaw dropped open in surprise. "It is."

"What is it, Wolvy, shugah?" Rogue asked, comin' up ta stand beside me.

"I know that girl," I told Rogue.

"How?"

"I'll explain later. Here, take these," I handed her the stolen wallets I had with me, "an' get ready ta ride."

"Ah know what ya're thinkin', Wolvy . . . "

"Don't even try ta talk me outta it, Rogue. I have ta help her; she's my daughter."

Taken by surprise, Rogue froze still fer a few seconds, then shook her head, nodded, an' ran off fer the horses. I pushed my way through the crowd ta where I was right under her. "Jubilee," I whispered just loud enough fer her ta hear.

She looked down at me, an' I poked my hat up just 'nough so that she could see my face. Slowly, a grin formed on her face as she recognized me. I unsheathed my claws, jumped up onto the block, an' cut her free. She shot fireworks from her hands at the crowd, momentarily blindin' 'em. I picked her up an' ran us out o' the crowd. I kept runnin' until I reached my horse which Rogue had ready fer me. I put Jubilee down on her own two feet an' got on my black stallion. I then helped Jubilee up. She put her arms around my waist an' held on without needin' ta be told. I glanced at Rogue, saw she was ready ta go, an' then begun ta gallop on out o' there. Rogue followed right behind me at first, but soon, she was right beside me.

"Now, then, do y'all wanna tell me how y'all know each othah or not?" Rogue demanded impatiently.

"I grew up in Japan," Jubilee begun to explain. "That's where Wolvy an' I met years ago. I was runnin' after stealin' some money from these rich peeps my folks knew when I saw him' fightin' off a bunch o' lawmen. I knew he wouldn't ever get outta there alive if he didn't get some help, so I stopped an' helped him kick butt an' get outta there. After we'd lost the bozos, we started talkin' an' got to know each other an' become friends. From then on, we were inseparable until . . . until . . . " She glanced away towards the shadows where I sat, pickin' at piece of meat I'd gotten stuck in between my teeth.

"Until what?" Rogue asked.

"Until Wolvy disappeared on me," Jubilee whispered softly.

Her answer took Rogue by surprise. She shot me a questionin' look. "Ya wanna tell us what happened, Wolverine?"

I knew she wouldn't take no fer an answer. Besides, it was way past time I told Jubilee, an' they both deserved ta know any way. I stood up an' strode over ta 'em. I sat down an' folded my legs Indian-style 'fore answerin' her. I looked into Jubilee's blue eyes as I tried to refresh her memory. "Remember that time we were leavin' a bank after robbin' it an' we met a band o' robbers who'd planned ta rob that very same bank, Jubilee?" She nodded. "Remember how mad they were at us an' their leader swore they'd get us fer gettin' their loot?"

Jubilee gave a high, sharp whistle. "They were way p.o.'ed!"

I nodded in agreement. "So much so that they wanted ta kill us so they could get all o' our stuff. I found out, but I didn't tell ya. I took the first boat outta Japan that very night."

"But why?" Jubilee shook her head in confusion.

"I hoped they'd follow me instead o' goin' after ya. I didn't care what happened ta me as long as ya were okay . . . " I glanced away from the fire, wishin' I could return ta the shadows, not knowin' how Jubilee would handle the truth.

"They didn't," Jubilee said after a while. "They came after me, but I managed to get away."

"What about yer parents?"

Jubilee hesitated, blinkin' her eyes a few times, and the realization hit me 'fore she finally answered, "They . . . weren't so lucky. Remo an' his gang got them."

"I'm sorry, Jubilee. Yer parents were wonderful people," I whispered.

"I know." She nodded just as tears begun spillin' down her cheeks. I took her into my arms in a hug an' held her while she cried. My eyes met the green ones o' Rogue. I knew there would be more questions later, but now wasn't the time fer 'em.

"Ah thought ya said she was your daughter?" Rogue asked me in a low whisper.

"I did."

"Ah don't understand . . . " Rogue shook her head in confusion.

"Adopted. You two are the closest things I've got ta daughters."

"Oh."

We sat there in silence fer a while. The only sounds were Jubilee's soft snorin', the crickets chirpin', an' the horses searchin' fer tender grass ta nibble. Shortly, Rogue asked me, "Will she be stayin'?"

I looked over at where Jubilee slept, curled up in my sleepin' bag near 'nough ta the fire ta keep warm but far enough away from it that there was no chance o' the sleepin' bag catchin' on fire. "Yeah," I said in a voice one notch above a whisper. "We're all she's got now. We're a family."

Rogue followed my gaze. She stared at the sleepin' girl fer a while 'fore noddin'. A little while later, she told me, "Ah'm gonna get some shut-eye. Ya'd bettah get some rest, too. We've got that bank heist 'morrow."

I nodded in agreement. "'Night." I picked at my teeth some more, still tryin' ta get that one piece o' meat out. My claw finally managed ta snag it an' get it outta my mouth. My claw disappeared, causin' the meat to fall down onto one o' my fingers. I flicked over toward where the horses stood grazin' in the shadows. I wiped my finger off on the cool, green grass. My blue eyes swept over my surroundings: the horses grazin', Jubilee sleepin', and Rogue, who seemed ta have just fallen asleep. I wondered briefly 'bout what surprises the next day might bring 'fore stretchin' out an' leanin' against a tree. I folded my arms behind my head an' shut my eyes. I listened one last time fer any unusual noises, heard none, an' allowed myself ta doze off right then an' there.

The End