A/N: This chapter is probably the weirdest one yet, and probably very out of character for Logan, but I needed it to establish a bond between him and Elle. It's a little squicky, especially since they get very close to a father/daughter relationship and I plan to later push them into lovers when she grows up.
Logan's going to give Elle the "girl talk". Awkwardly. So if you don't like hearing about monthlies, I won't blame you for skipping this chapter.
"So what's your plan, now?" I asked Logan as we stood in the shadows behind a large building, which he informed me was a bar. After about two days of walking, we finally found a town. I rode in on his back, holding onto his neck while he studied the people coming and going.
Without a word he put me down and motioned for me to be quiet, then moved to the edge of the building and watched as a heavyset guy stumbled over to a motorcycle parked just in front of us. When he got close enough Logan reached out and slugged him, knocking him cold before he even realized we were there.
Logan dragged the guy into the shadows and stole his coat, grimacing at how bad he stunk of beer and tobacco. "This shit was going to drive?" He took his hat, shirt, boots, wallet, and keys as well, then punched the guy again to make sure he stayed out. He put the boots and coat on himself, then came over to me. "Put this hat and shirt on."
"It's too big and it smells funny," I said once he threw the shirt over me. Even with the fur pelt he had wrapped around me for our trip through the forest, the shirt felt like it was going to fall off. Plus it went to my feet, and I could barely see the improvised shoes Logan had made for me.
"It's just temporary," he said as he went over and started the guy's motorcycle. "At least the fat fuck filled the gas tank." He looked over at me fiddling with the sleeves, and grumbled. "Damn. Okay kid, come here."
"What?" I looked up like I was in trouble.
"No, you didn't do anything. You're going to have to sit in front of me," he explained. "Your arms aren't long enough to reach around me from behind, and I don't have eyes in the back of my head to make sure you haven't fallen off."
"Is that safe?"
"Hell no. But we don't have a choice." He picked me up by my neck like a kitten, and I freaked out like a kitten, clinging to him and wrapping my arms and legs around his neck and waist. I even heard him chuckle as he tore out of the parking lot.
As I discovered in our little adventure, Logan knows a lot of things but he is an unusual teacher. It started when he found out I couldn't read. So I quickly learned the difference between the words bourbon and scotch, and why I wasn't supposed to touch either of them (or anything else I saw him drinking) apart from the time my back teeth came in.
Luckily I picked reading up with ease, which he appreciated because that meant I could finally help him fiddle with the various vehicles we picked up as we drifted along. Tiny hands come in handy, especially on motorcycle engines. I was helping him fix an old Harley when I got a stomach ache one day when I was twelve, and after going to the bathroom and screaming my head off, I learned another thing about Logan. He has a sensitive side.
He came running, claws out, and just about tore the door off the bathroom in the little cabin we were currently calling home. He saw me curled up in the corner staring at the trash can with tears in my eyes, and I watched from the corner of my eye as he leaned over and peeked inside. I immediately heard his claws retract, and him sigh.
"...Elle, come here. You don't have to say anything."
He used my name when he was serious, so I listened. What was that? Am I mutating again? Logan has two mutations, so far I only have one... I followed him to my room where he had me change my clothes, then we got in his truck and drove to the store. He bought a bottle of liquor, a few bottles of pills, and something else I didn't recognize. The cashier stopped when she scanned it, and looked at me.
"Aww, is this her first-"
"Shut your damned mouth, lady," Logan snarled, grabbing the stuff and his change and hurrying me out of the store. When we got back to the cabin, he sat me on the couch and gave me the bag.
"What's going on, Logan?" He usually doesn't like me touching his liquor.
"That... in there," he pointed to the bathroom, where I had thrown out my underwear. "That's normal. You're not sick, and you're not dying or mutating. You don't need to be afraid of it."
I could tell he was embarrassed talking about this, which confused me. Logan, the fearsome Wolverine, never got embarrassed. "What is it? Why am I bleeding then? I thought I healed like you do, just slower..."
"It's a girl thing," he said, kneeling next to me. "You know, like how girls have different bodies than men do. Girls have long hair on their heads, and soft, angel like blonde hair on the rest of their body. Some men end up looking like a damn bearskin rug like me when they take their shirt off."
I giggled a little, making him smile. He does look like a bear sometimes.
"Girls are the ones who give birth, you know that much. But, uh, there's a process involved."
"A process?"
"Yeah, well... You know what an egg is, right?"
"Logan, humans don't lay eggs. I know I didn't go to school, but I'm not that dumb."
He was getting frustrated, but I knew it wasn't with me. "The baby thing, see, your brain is thinking that it needs to get ready to grow a baby inside you. Does that make any sense?"
"I suppose..."
"So your body builds a little nest to grow the baby in, but then when it figures out you don't want a baby, it destroys the nest. That's why you're bleeding." Logan scratched his head. "I know twelve seems a little young for a baby, but that's just how it is."
"Why doesn't my body just build one nest and keep it until I decide to have a baby?"
I think I got him with my question, because it took a little bit for him to answer. "Well, the nests only last a few weeks at a time. I think the whole cycle is only about a month."
"You mean this is going to happen every MONTH?!" My eyes started watering, and before I knew it Logan had pulled me into an embrace.
"Hey Elle, it's okay. I know there's a lot of rough shit women have to go through, and no it's not fair that you have to do this twelve times a year for the rest of your life. I'm not sure why your healing ability doesn't stop it or the pain, but that's what this is for." He held up the bag. "You put the napkins in your underwear to keep blood from getting everywhere. You can try these pills for the pain, though anesthesia doesn't work on me so they might not do anything for you. If they don't, I'm pretty sure the vodka will."
I took the bag from him and smiled. He could have just handed me a book and told me to figure things out on my own, but instead he talked me through it. "...Thank you, Logan."
"Don't sweat it, kid," he said with a smile, ruffling my hair as he stood up. As he went to leave the room, I couldn't resist teasing him.
"Hey Logan, seeing as I'm a woman now, aren't you gonna tell me how to make the baby?"
As he turned back and leered at me, I could barely contain my laughter.