Tracy squirmed uncomfortably in the bed Wolverine had placed her in to rest. She had been asleep at the time but had woken up soon after being placed in it to discover it was too comfortable to sleep in. She had been sleeping on her old torn up couch at her apartment for so long that she didn't feel comfortable in a normal bed anymore. There had been a bed in her old apartment, but it had been so broken that the springs were sticking out of the mattress, she had decided it wouldn't be fun to sleep on. For years she had used the couch now she didn't know how to get comfortable on the very large bed he had placed her on. Climbing off of it she grabbed the sheet and pillow and put them on the floor, getting on top of the sheet she fell asleep on the floor almost instantly.
She took a deep breath of air when she woke up. The window was open so she could smell the fresh cut grass, the flowers in the garden below and through it all she could hear the chirping of a bird in a nearby tree. The urge to hunt for fresh meat became overwhelming in her at that moment and she crept towards the open window, ready to pounce onto the unaware bird. Tracy prepped herself for the jump and waited for the bird to look away. Just as she was going to jump a hand was placed on her shoulder, making her whirl around to see Wolverine standing next to her with a funny look on his face. She growled low in her throat when she saw the bird fly away, she had missed her chance just because he came to her. Narrowing her eyes she motioned for him to move his hand.
"Go take a shower and get yerself cleaned up, I'll meet ya outside yer room ta take ya ta breakfast when yer done. Help yerself ta tha clothes in tha drawers, make any adjustments ya need and I'll see ya soon." Wolverine informed her even as he stepped out of the room. Tracy grabbed some random clothing from several drawers and went through a door that she assumed led to the bathroom. Showering quickly so she didn't leave Wolverine waiting too long she dried herself off and pulled the shirt on. She didn't have a bra but she'd figure out a way to ask for one later. Pulling on some underwear she found she looked at the shorts strangely. How was her tail going to fit? Ripping a claw through the material she tore the pants a new hole right where her tail would be. Pulling them on she flipped her tail out through the makeshift hole. Grabbing a brush she saw in the cabinet she ran it through her wet hair until it ran flat down her body to the top of her hips. Exiting the bathroom she opened up her bedroom door to see Wolverine leaning against the wall opposite her bedroom door.
"Ready ta go?" She nodded and he led the way to these huge double doors. "It's gonna be a tad loud." He warned. She nodded again and he pulled the doors open. The noise that met Tracy's ears was unlike anything she'd experienced before. Sure she'd lived in LA for most of her life and it was pretty loud in the streets but nothing she'd experienced could compare to this. Kids, teenagers and adults were everywhere, either sitting at a table talking to people while eating or standing in a line to get food while talking to the person next to them. The noise was so loud she couldn't bare it so she slapped her hands over her ears. She could still hear it all, mindless chatter filling her mind making her head hurt.
"Ya okay?" She could barely hear Wolverine's voice above the voices flooding her head. She shook her head violently as the pain increased, he pulled her away from the doors and closed them. Most of the noise was gone but she could still hear voices floating around in her head. Tracy whimpered, why wouldn't the noises just leave her alone? Wolverine pulled her against his chest and held her. "Hey, it's okay kid, don'tcha worry." He shushed her whimpers but she could still hear the voices. They started to grow in intensity, yelling in her mind. She roared, trying to push away the pain of having so much noise in her head. It hurt so bad. Unable to take it anymore she collapsed into unconsciousness in Wolverine's arms.
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Logan stood there with the girl in his arms for a few moments trying to figure out just what he should do. Lifting her up into his arms he recalling seeing the Professor in the cafeteria eating breakfast. He didn't want to take the girl in there but he might not have a choice. His luck changed when Ororo exited the cafeteria with a disgruntled look on her face.
"Ro! Ya gotta help me, can ya go get tha Professor for me?" Ororo looked at him and then at the unconscious girl in his arms before nodding and turning to go back into the room. Logan waited impatiently for the Professor to come out as the girl in his arms still made no motion to indicate that she was trying to wake up. He relaxed imensely when the Professor exited the room with Ororo at his side. The Professor didn't have an expression on his face, he just motioned for Logan to follow him. They entered the med lab and the black haired girl was placed onto the examining table.
"Now, what made her pass out Logan?" He had anticipated the Professor's questions and sat down on a chair next to the bed.
"I told her ta get dressed once she woke up, I took her ta tha cafeteria, warned her it would be loud, opened up tha doors, she clamped her hands over her ears, so I closed tha doors. But she still didn't take her hands offa her ears, she had a pained expression on her face and she was whimpering so I pulled her inta my arms and then she just passed out." Logan shook his head in disbelief, one day here and she already was messed up.
"Interesting." The Professor had a thinking expression on his face as he pondered the situation. On the bed where Jean was now tending her after being summoned by the Professor the girl started to toss and turn. Suddenly, her eyes were wide open tears streaming down her face. She started screaming and roaring like she was in the ultimate torture. Logan quickly restrained her arms and legs with the buckles that were installed into the beds for cases just like this. She struggled against the restraints and continued to thrash wildly on the bed. The Professor entered her mind and she stopped moving. Logan would've thought her dead if he didn't see her breathing and hear the calming thump of her heart. The Professor pulled from her mind and turned to Logan with a strange look on his face.
"So what's wrong with 'er?" Logan asked gruffly, worried about her.
"She's telepathic, that's why she was struggling, she can hear the voices in her head." The Professor mused about this new fact as he talked to Logan. "Her name is Tracy, her last name she does not know. I would like some tests done on her to determine the reason why I didn't feel her presence as a telepath beforehand Jean." The red head nodded her head and started up the tests. "Until then, let us eat breakfast."
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Tracy felt the numbness when she woke up. All she could hear was the soft beating of a machine and the sound of feet shuffling on the floor as the person moved around the room. Her head had a splitting headache as she lay in the bed restrained. Seeing the red head called Jean she whimpered. The woman gave her a critical look and continued working on some pointless object. Collapsing completely onto the bed she felt the voices begin to return. Nameless people whispering around in her head, slowly gaining strength as they spoke. Some were squeaky, others soft and musical sounding. Hearing the gruff voice of Wolverine passing softly by her she grasped out for his voice. Suddenly she was assaulted by things that he wouldn't say, things that a person would think.
"I wonder how that girl's doin', Tracy tha Professor called her. Didn' know she was telepathic, that's strange that she wouldn' respond ta it before now." Tracy followed his thoughts for a while as well as thinking her own. Telepathic? She had no idea.
"It is not right to read other people's minds Tracy my dear." The Professor's voice shocked her into pulling away from the voices. Laying on the bed she pushed them away, she didn't want to hear them anymore. She just wanted the quiet to come back. Hearing more people enter the room she turned her head slightly against the restraints so she could see who it was. The Professor was being wheeled in on his wheelchair by Wolverine who looked like he was in deep thought.
"Good to see you are awake now Tracy. How is your head?" The Professor's question would've sounded innocent to everyone else but Tracy as she realized exactly what he was reffering to. She growled low as he knew she couldn't answer him. Fighting against the restraints she longed for the peace of her apartment again, she would never have to deal with struggling to speak and show her feelings and what she wanted if she was still there. "You don't have to be afraid to answer me Tracy, tell me, how are you this afternoon?" She growled again and wanted to scream at him. "No need to be shy." She narrowed her eyes and bared her teeth at him. He continued to ask her questions she couldn't answer without a nod or shake of the head. Getting fed up she let the voices return, she wanted to whimper but she pushed it back as she searched for the voice of the Professor. Finding it she decided to let him know exactly how she felt.
"Shut the hell up old man!" Unconsciously she yelled her thoughts out on a wide basis, everybody in the room heard what she said as she tried to direct it towards the bald man in the chair before her. He smiled as Jean and Logan stared at her in shock. Anger pulsed in her blood as she tried to make him see just how badly she wanted to tear his throat out at the moment.
"Good, you have figured out how to speak through telepathy, though you'll have to learn how to direct it to a certain person as well as a group without making their heads hurt." The Professor smiled through his words and Tracy wanted very badly at the moment to yell.
"Just shut up and leave me alone, my head hurts okay? I have a headache the size of mount Everest and I my arms hurt because these darn buckles are so tight! Happy now!" Tracy turned her head so she could see out the window even as Logan loosened the straps holding her to the medical bed. God she missed her home.
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Logan sighed in frustration as he went to answer the front door, Tracy was down in the medical bay getting quizzed by the Professor while he was up here answering the door to some crazy maniacs who wouldn't take their hand off the doorbell. Opening up the front door he was about to give them a piece of his mind when he saw Jubilee standing there with the broadest grin on her face he'd ever seen. Next to her was her husband of two years Taris but he was hardly aware of that as he picked Jubilee up and spun her around the house.
"Wolvie! Careful I don't wanna upset the baby." She squealed as he spun her around. Setting her down he raised an eyebrow.
"Baby?" He growled out, she'd told him long ago that she would never have a baby after seeing Jean give birth to her baby Rachel.
"Yep." She smiled impishly as Taris rolled his eyes and wrapped his arm around her.
"Good ta see ya 'gain Taris." Logan greeted him with a shake of the hand.
"Good to see you too Logan." Taris answered in kind, his bright blue eyes sparkling. As much as Logan didn't want to give Jubilee up for marriage he had to admit that Taris was a good kid and could take care of his little firecracker.
"Been pregnant for three months now, thought we'd drop by and tell everybody the good news." Jubilee said, grinning so wide Logan thought her face my split in two.
"Well that's good news an' all, it's just right now I gotta get down stairs ta tha med bay ta take care o'tha new girl." He growled out, just thinking of Tracy down there with the Professor getting quizzed was unpleasant.
"New girl?" Jubilee asked, her curiousity was the one thing that hadn't mellowed out with maturing.
"Yeah, she's a strange one. She's got all this fur, orange and black striped like a tiger, fangs, claws ear's an' all! An' what tops it all of is that she's telepathic." Taris raised his eyebrows with every word Logan spoke.
"She's like a tiger huh?" He asked, his curiousity was now piqued as well.
"Yeah, why doncha come down an' visit her with me?" As he spoke Logan started towards the elevator to take him down to the lowest level of the X Mansion. They gathered into the elevator and waited patiently for it to land at the bottom level. Exiting the elevator they walked in silence except for Jubilee's random chatter until they reached the med bay. Opening up the door they saw Tracy still pinned to the bed growling at the Professor who was chuckling.
"Oh come in come in!" He beckoned to them as Tracy whined and turned away from them towards the window. "This is Tracy everyone. Tracy, this is Taris and Jubilee." He introduced them as they came to stand next to the Professor. She turned slightly in bed to see all of them since her head was now restrained to the bed.
"Whatever." Came her telepathic greeting. Taris chuckled at her response.
"Nice to meet you Tracy." He greeted her.
"Yeah, like Taris said." Jubilee was hyper so she started sounding more like her younger self with every word. At twenty years old she sounded not one day over thirteen.
"Tracy is a very special person, but I'll explain what makes her so special once we have a meeting to introduce her to the team." The Professor stated once he retrieved the test results from Jean. "Now that I have all the information I need let's have that meeting, I'll see you all in the parlor in ten minutes." Taris and Jubilee nodded and went to Taris' old room to place all their stuff in there. "Logan, why don't you get Tracy and meet me down there." The Professor turned around and was led out of the room by Jean. Logan turned to Tracy now that they were alone.
"Alright Tracy, let's getcha offa this contraption." He spoke as he unbuckled her restraints. She leapt out of the bed as soon as she was released. Stretching her aching muscles that she had strained while struggling agains the restraints she hugged Logan.
"Thanks for getting me out of those things, it was really uncomfortable." Out of nowhere her belly rumbled and they both heard it. They remembered then that Tracy hadn't had breakfast and was probably very hungry.
"Let's go ta tha kitchen, we got at least ten minutes."
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(A/N) And here it is! The sequel to Fireworks and White Tigers! For those of you who read my other story My Love Is True, don't worry! I'm going to have a sequel, I'm just so tired that I'm probably not gonna be able to start it until the end of the week cuz of camp. Sorry! -Sabeybaby