Danielle woke up the next morning, oddly enough a little hungry and somewhat full of energy. The smell of pancakes and bacon and a conversation along with it enticed her to get out of bed, but she was still shaky. The long walk from the day before had weakened her and confined her to bed (indeed, she was tired from being dragged around too), but she felt confident that there was a way for her to escape Mae and her rules. After all, Mae had been sleeping beside her (Logan was somewhere else and stood guard too, she was sure of it) and was snoring away next to her on the bed. Danielle was pretty positive Mae would keep there for a time and enthusiastically took the chance to get out of bed.

The dizziness was easy to handle. Danielle had vertigo for years and had successfully controlled it with her powers. But the pain in her abdomen…that had been her downfall. Danielle grabbed for the nearby door and clenched the doorknob, thanking whoever was up there that she had been quiet and that this baby was still alive and wanting to live (chalking that up to Logan and his stubbornness being passed down the generations). She waited for the pain to pass, almost leaning against the door for some minutes, before smiling assertively as she opened the thick door to the second floor. The hallway had been opened up like a balcony, the stairs to the right. Danielle walked down to the voices and the smell of food with further issue. When she reached the kitchen and small table though, where Logan and Parker sat (the former with a cup of coffee), the two stood up simultaneously.

"Jimmy, sit down," Parker ordered, his kind eyes on Danielle. "I need to check the food anyway."

Logan said nothing about the old name (Danielle figured that was not going to change and it was something that Logan would seethe about), but obeyed the order. Logan then watched Danielle sit where Parker originally was, smiling all the way. She smiled back, realizing that they were being observed from behind. Parker watched from the stove in the kitchen, pulling bacon from the pan and flipping pancakes. When he turned around though, the two went emotionless, as if they did not know the other, doing menial things to make the atmosphere seem normal (Danielle even went as far as picking her dry cuticles). Whatever food that was hot and done he served to the two at the table (as well as some plates and utensils and his cup of coffee too), hoping that the kids would stay in bed a little longer, so they could talk.

Parker then pulled a chair out from the other room and brought it over, seating himself. "So, Jimmy turn pretty white when you told him you were pregnant?" he asked Danielle bluntly, taking a plate full of pancakes and bacon.

Danielle said nothing, but her face betrayed more than just surprise (mostly a "How dare you?" face). Logan did the same for a moment too, but his face was more passive afterward, like he knew nothing and would add nothing more too.

Typical. Parker was not shocked that Agent Ten seemed too distant from the situation…still.

"The signs are pretty much there, sweetie," Parker continued when Danielle questioned him nonverbally. "You came in and went to bed, Jimmy was concerned and he was off in his own world. He cares."

Logan still said nothing, but dimly remembered that he asked Parker the same thing when Mary said that she was pregnant, over fifty years ago. It was a bad joke in passing, he supposed in afterthought, but seeing that Parker actually remembered that was a little bit of revenge…and it tasted pretty bitter anyway. Logan was still getting used to the idea of being a parent and was still trying to figure his way into the lives of kids who were not his and did not need to sarcasm on Parker's part either. It was enough to hear it from the three kids themselves.

It was difficult for him and Mary to adjust too. Logan also remembered that Parker left his son with his older brother and sister-in-law when they went on missions overseas, but he wasn't going to mention that and put salt in a wound either. Parenting wasn't the Parkers' strong points.

"So people would say," Danielle said carefully, referring to Logan. Logan and Parker both noticed that she wasn't going to be giving up much information, if possible. The situation was new to her and she had yet to explore it.

"People say a lot." Parker took a sip of coffee. He offered Danielle some of the food wordlessly, but whatever appetite she had was instantly gone once she saw the food. He noticed that she was now trying hard not to gag, the smell overwhelmed her so much.

"Let's cut down the chase here," Logan butted in, seemingly to continue a conversation that was put down some time ago and try to get Danielle off her nausea. "We need to get to Alberta and that's final."

Parker glared at Logan, his face masking everything for a reply, but his eyes asking if Danielle can be trusted. Logan sipped his cup of coffee quietly, but his hands made some sort of signal, Danielle assuming that it meant an affirmative. She had enough of their talk though and decided that she was going to show her hand. Now without much energy (and not hungry anymore), she used her powers to try to link with Parker and talk through their minds, but even that was beginning to wear her down.

You really think you can have a conversation and not have me know about it? You have got to be kidding me, right?

The look on Parker's face was priceless. Logan almost spit out his sip of coffee but choked on it instead, he thought it was that funny that Danielle was that brazen. Danielle grinned weakly to see Parker's great surprise, but was almost disappointed to see him recover quickly. She hid her feelings well then, but continuing to feel quite smug about her interruption.

"I can see how important we feel," Parker said to Danielle rather sarcastically. "How many other abilities you have, other than mind reading?"

"None that I would think is your concern now," Danielle replied smoothly, turning back to business quickly and hiding behind a wall herself, the nausea wearing down finally. "Now, Logan has told you that we need to go to Alberta. It's urgent that we do."

Parker waved his hand in indifference again. "Yes, yes, I know. And I told Jimmy here why it's a bad idea."

Danielle exchanged a glance with Logan quickly (the two might have had a word or three in their minds, Parker thought), but turned back to Parker just as fast. "And why can't we?"

"Politics," Logan answered for Parker, as if the one word covered it all. His tone was even spiteful too, Danielle noted.

"That's about it." Parker sipped his coffee again. "It's best, since those Sentinels are out, that you all stay here for now. Once the excitement dies down, we can see what the Ministry has been up to. It could have been them all along that sent the Sentinels this way."

"I thought they were on our side," Danielle pointed out.

"They were," Parker replied. "The new dumbass hotshots think they know it all and like what being anti-mutant is all about, excuse my language. Mostly, it's the grandkids taking off their grandfather's work, but hey…I can't complain."

"You're not a mutant." Danielle's voice dripped more sarcasm than Logan's ever did.

"Right." Parker put his cup down. "I'm not. I'm just loyal to the men who worked with me, have known me and needed my help. I never stooped down to those guys' levels. You think they like me here? It's easier for them, but they fear me too. The quieter I am though, the more they leave me alone and I can do the work originally sent out for me to do. Granted, it'll be to my dying days, but who will miss an old man who's nearly eighty?"

"You're just a pawn," Danielle said seriously. "You're only an old man, who everyone thinks is dead and is made to do the work of a ghost. They should fear you more than use you."

Parker turned to Logan, disturbed. "Might I ask how she knew that?"

"Simple," Danielle answered for Logan before he could talk. "Your thoughts. It's all over you, painted on your body like a tattoo. I can sense it off of you without even trying. Who you are, what you've done and your life are always covering your body, like scars, a journey to hell you cannot erase. It takes a skilled person to truly hide who they are and become the person they choose not to be. You? You hate it now. You wished life could be as it was, with your wife and playing a true agent for Department H. Granted, having your son was unexpected, but you loved him nonetheless and wish you could see him, even if he's middle aged now."

It was now Parker's turn to keep his counsel. He studied Danielle intently, his hand rubbing his chin as he eyed her from head to toe. Danielle wasn't wearing much, maybe some stretch pants, a comfortable tank top and flannel shirt (rolled up to the elbows) and some socks, but she showed her physical scars like they were trophies, challenges of her life. There had been many around her neck, one of them appearing to be a prize from someone's cold knife, others from ropes maybe. Tiny flecks of odd flesh covered her face, like glass shards hit them, and white and red hair covered the rest of her face, except her hazel eyes, which Parker swore turned a shade of red and the black a minute before. On her left shoulder was a true tattoo, but Parker could not see what it was, just that it was a black figure. However, what interested him more was the other tattoo, this time on her left arm, which seemed to cover claw marks made years ago.

Dangling from the tattoo's web was a black widow spider…covering up claw marks Agent Ten had made years ago.

It was as good a message as any, Parker thought carefully. If this weak woman was as she's claiming to be, then he had his hands full. However, with her being so sick and with the kids on her constantly, he might be lucky and she'll be distracted as any mother would be. He wouldn't always have to watch his shoulder and fear a knife in the night. However, he had to admit to himself that this woman of Agent Ten's at least had balls and was honest. She appraised grave situations well enough and could probably stab someone in the back at the same time she was their best friend, she was that good. She was an assassin, no doubt about it, and one who planned her strategies very well.

Danielle knew that Parker was studying her, but remained amused. Her correct statements about Parker had him thinking too much and his thoughts were easily heard from her. Sure, he figured out who she was quickly. But where she was now going was another situation altogether. Danielle was already planning out how they would get to Alberta with Parker's help, but it was going to take some time and some scheming with Logan perhaps. And the time it was going to take for them to settle in here and keep out of trouble might be the excuse they needed. It was almost the greatest serendipity, if Danielle had ever seen one, but it would work to their advantage soon enough.

"You assess very well, my friend," Parker said carefully after some silence. "But that is all in the past. Right now, we'll wait. Patience is the best virtue, I always said."

"And a lack of one always got us into problems," Logan said quietly just as they heard the kids above their heads. In the background upstairs, as Devon and Rogue woke up too, Mae was heard to be yelling on the stairs for Danielle. What she was angry about, Logan did not want to know, but he knew it had something to do with Danielle running off without her again and not staying in bed when she was supposed to.

"Oops," Danielle muttered, trying hard not to snicker. "I guess I escaped my nurse again."

~00~

October 14

I guess it has been a quiet few days, but I've wanted to pull my hair out. While being at Richard Parker's large and comfy cabin has its advantages, the kids have been restless. Being cooped up inside all day, especially with the cold, Sentinels and some snow outside, made them more antsy than ever before. They have already wrecked the house twice over, found escape tunnels underneath the floorboards Parker claims never to have known about and have befriended a mother cat and her kittens, all of whom are now situated in front of a fire downstairs. While they have been on Parker's good side and have played cute, it hasn't been an easy walk. Worse yet, they are getting on Logan's nerves and he's been a ball of that for weeks now.

I am sitting here on the bed, bored myself, but the game of patience has begun. Logan and I agreed to keep at Parker about going to Alberta, but in small and subtle ways. We think it's safer to stay here too, since the walls seem to keep the Sentinels from sensing the mutants inside, but in time, we need to wear down the resistance, find the issue with Parker (other than younger blood liking money) and move on. We can't sit here while Magneto, the Professor and the others work their way south.

Being here has made me uneasy too. I feel like something bad is going to happen and I can't put my finger on it. I can't say when it began, but I've always felt dread since I've met that man some weeks ago in prison. I can chalk it up there with being fearful of all shadows, but in times like this, I can't help but feel like we're being watched by someone more powerful than we'll ever be, more powerful than even hate ever is…