Part 1

Chapter 4

The Canadian Wilds

1998

His girl was ten now. She'd grown taller, a little more gangly, and ever closer to the precipice of puberty. Victor dreaded it.

He'd been thirteen when he'd gone through puberty. When he'd begun to grow claws and his teeth began to sharpen. He was thirteen when his mutation had developed.

But, for some reason, Leonora had become feral when she'd been only five. Far before mutants usually developed. On one hand, Victor was thankful it had. If she hadn't developed early, he might never have found her.

But on the other hand, he didn't know what would happen when Leo finally went through puberty. Would she change? Would she develop another mutation?

One was hard enough.

x

If Victor decided to be selfish, he'd say that bringing Leonora to Xavier's school – the first time – had been a mistake. Until then, he'd been the center of his cub's whole world.

He'd been working more over the last two years, and the X-Geeks had been his babysitters of choice. Leonora was always excited to go. And she was always overjoyed when Victor returned, diving into his arms with her sweet calls of 'Papa!'.

Before, Victor had been the only planet in Leo's orbit. Now, the X-Geeks were in there too. He didn't mind, exactly. Sometimes he missed the old days, when it'd been just him and his cub. But now her family was bigger. And she was happier.

Victor wouldn't begrudge her that, even when he missed her.

But it was time now. He'd put it off for nearly two years, even with her intellect growing hungrier and hungrier each moment. He'd said she wasn't ready to be away from home so long. Be away from him so long.

But maybe it was Victor who wasn't ready.

Tomorrow Leonora would go to school.

Xavier's School for Exceptional Children

Westchester County, New York

That sunny, yellow room Jean and Scott had shown them to, the first time around, had remained Leonora's room. The X-Geeks had kept it for her with her frequent visits, knowing one day she would be a student.

Today, instead of a little suitcase, Leonora felt like she'd brought almost everything she owned. Two suitcases and four boxes almost as big as her. Her father had bought her new clothes, new books, new toys – anything he thought she'd needed.

But the thing she'd needed most – knowing she wouldn't see her father again for months – was sealed in a Ziploc bag.

When Victor had finished packing her things last night, Leonora felt ready. But when she thought of being away for so long? Not so much. She'd asked her father what she should do when she missed him.

Victor had replied by sealing one of his shirts in a bag. Something full of her father's scent would surely comfort her when she missed him.

Out of all the things she'd brought, it was that Ziploc bag she needed the most. It was the first thing she unpacked, and carefully hid it away so no one else would find it and mistake it for dirty laundry.

Jean and Scott had helped Leonora and Victor unpack her room in the matter of an hour.

It felt so soon. So final. The young couple had left quickly after to allow them to say goodbye.

Leonora wasn't ashamed to say she cried. Victor had squeezed her tight exactly once, and then he'd been out the door.

That night, she'd slept between Jean and Scott.

2000

Leonora adjusted. She always did. She spent her summers at home in Canada with her father, spending much of their time in the woods. The older she got, the more important Victor thought survival skills were.

Every time she thought there was nothing more to learn, her father found something new.

Other than her summers, Leo only saw her father for the holidays. For Thanksgiving and Christmas, Victor came and whisked her home for a short few days together. Gone were the days of seeing him all the time.

Victor worked throughout the year – and his type of work usually meant he would be unreachable. But he never took a job during their summers together. It was only the two of them for three months straight, and Leo knew it was what he preferred. And while Leo missed her friends during that time, she missed her father so much more the rest of the year.

She was twelve now, and she rarely snuck into bed with Jean and Scott anymore. The two were engaged now – and as much as they loved her, she knew she was too old to sleep with them anymore.

But the thing was – Leonora didn't need that much sleep. And she got lonely all by herself while everyone slept. Sleeping with Jean and Scott meant she wasn't by herself. And when she was home, her father slept even less than she did. She never lacked for company.

Leonora never quite found her wavelength with the other children at Xavier's school. They were all older than her, and she'd surpassed them in her studies. She'd earned her high school diploma and the Professor was now helping her with college-level courses.

She spent much of her time on independent studies, reporting to either Jean or the Professor each day with what she'd learned or worked on.

Her fascination was with history and the way humans interacted with each other. Jean had suggested her major be either history or anthropology – or both - but she hadn't decided yet.

Leo also liked working with her hands. There was a small room off the side of the library, filled with broken computers and various other items. When she'd expressed an interest in tinkering, Scott had shown her the How-To section of the library, as well as dug out the old user's manuals for the broken items. Then he'd left her with the simple wish of 'good luck!'.

She wouldn't say she was good at it. But it interested her. She liked the puzzle of pulling the items apart and figuring out how to put it all back together. How to make it work.

Weird as things were for Leonora, she was happy.

But things were about to change.

January 2001

It was a cold and snowy night when he came.

Leonora had never met another Feral besides her father. He'd arrived late in the night with the X-Men and was taken straight to the medical wing.

She'd been able to smell him the moment he entered the school. He'd smelled like her. Like her father, but with a strange hint of metal.

Even knowing she shouldn't, Leo took the elevator down to the medical wing. Scott, still in his X-Men suit, was waiting for her when the doors opened. No doubt Jean had warned him she was coming.

"Go to bed, Leo," Scott said firmly, arms crossed over his chest.

"I need to meet him, Scott," she said pleadingly, stepping out of the elevator to tug at his arms.

"Who?"

"The man you brought here. The man like me," she insisted, pouting up at him.

Scott's mouth dropped open. "Like you?" he asked in surprise.

"He smells like me. Like my dad. He's feral," Leonora explained, reaching out to the young man who was like a second father to her.

Scott took her hand without a thought, a gloved thumb brushing fondly over her palm. "We don't know if he could be dangerous yet, Leo. Please trust me," Scott began, holding his other hand up when she opened her mouth to object.

The argument dried up in her throat before she could voice it. "Once we're sure, I'll bring him to meet you, alright? Please promise me you'll stay away until I say," Scott pleaded with her.

His other hand came to rest on her shoulder, giving it an affectionate squeeze. Leo sighed, and after a moment, she nodded. "I'll go back to bed,"

Logan didn't know where he was. He didn't know if Marie was okay, or where she was, either. Everything was unfamiliar, and overwhelming, and he didn't know how to handle it.

So he'd ran. Without direction until he'd begun to hear voices. Well – one in particular.

A man's voice, who guided him to an elevator and up several floors into what was revealed to be a wood-trimmed manor. Children – teenagers, really – ran this way and that, causing Logan to flatten against the wall to avoid collision.

The voice guided him towards a door across the foyer. As Logan was halfway there, a scent hit his nose. Something familiar, yet not. His head shot up, catching sight of a girl standing at the top of the stairs.

She was young, younger than the other students Logan had seen so far, no more than twelve or thirteen. She had long, rusty-orange hair bound back in a ponytail, and sharp, almost feline features. She was watching him just as he was her.

The girl smelled like he did. And Logan decided he wanted to know why.

He'd taken exactly one step towards her before she'd darted away. He'd been ready to pursue her – until that voice had returned, insisting Logan leave her be and come to the office.

Not having another choice, Logan did.

It was late in the morning when Scott finally came, the stranger in tow. Leonora hadn't slept at all that night, kept awake by the possibilities of another feral.

Her father had been so sure of himself when he'd told her there were no others.

But she knew he'd once had a brother. A brother he'd all but raised.

And a small part of Leonora wondered if this was him. If the mysterious Logan was Victor's long-lost brother. He smelled like her father. Sort of. There was something familiar in that scent that she couldn't quite identify.

When she hadn't been able to sleep, Leo had gone to her room of broken things. She'd studied a manual for three hours before she'd started working on a toaster that had been broken for longer than she'd been alive.

Scott appeared in her doorway, looking haggard with his reddish hair sticking up in all different directions. Then that man – Logan – had emerged behind him, peering over Scott's shoulder. Leo jumped out of her seat and took Scott's hand, guiding him over to her seat.

Surprised, the young man let the girl pull him around and then push him into the seat she'd abandoned. Leo fondly patted his head before turning to the Feral man.

"You're Logan," she said.

"And you are?" he questioned.

"I'm Leo. I'm like you," Leo answered simply.

Logan lifted an eyebrow. "How are you so sure?"

"You smell like I do. Like my dad does,"

"Your father is like us?"

"Yes,"

"Is he here?" he questioned.

"No. He's working,"

"Are there any more like you here?"

"No. It was just me," Leo said, sounding sad for a moment. Then her expression brightened. "Now you!"

Logan hesitated. "Why did you run from me earlier?" he asked.

"Scott," she answered, glancing back to the young man behind her. He'd all but fallen asleep in the chair, chin propped up on a hand. She turned back to Logan with a knowing look.

"What?" he growled.

"I could smell you the moment they brought you here. I tried to see you, but Scott told me to wait. He wanted to be sure you were safe first," Leo explained.

"And now?" Logan asked, flashing the dozing young man a grudging look of respect.

"I trust Scott. And he brought you to me, so he must think you're okay," Leo answered, patting the other man's shoulder.

He jolted upright from the contact, waking up from his light doze. "Alright, Leo?" Scott asked sleepily, a finger swiping beneath his red glasses to wipe at his eyes.

"Yes," she said, squeezing his shoulder. A sudden thought must have struck the young girl – she turned back to Logan with hopeful eyes. "Oh! No one likes to go to the woods with me! Maybe Logan will! Since he's like me!" Leo said hopefully.

Scott began to splutter at the idea. "You're not going to go run off in the woods with a stranger, Leo!"

Lifting a brow, Logan looked down at the girl. "What do you do in the woods?" he asked.

"Run! Camp! Hunt! Fish!" Leo said excitedly.

"It's kinda cold out there for most of that," Logan pointed out.

"Then run!" she crowed.

"Leo, are you listening to me?" Scott said, leaning forward to grab her hand. "You are not going to run about the woods alone with a stranger,"

Logan smirked. "Well, I guess you're gonna have to supervise, huh, bub?"

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