"Ah was...well, we...he kissed meh..." Marie mumbled.

MINE. Should've been us, she's OUR mate!

I looked down at the top of her head that she had half buried in the crook of my arm. She said kissed like it was some sort of secret, magical thing and my stomach twisted in jealousy. I wanted to be her first and only for everything and never let anyone else touch her.

Our little Marie-mate...

"Ah don't even think Ah lahked him, but he lahked me, and Ah...Ah'd never been lahked before." She whispered.

I finally caught a good whiff of the underlying emotion in her scent. Shame. She was ashamed and apparently thought no one had ever liked her. I wanted to hunt down everyone in her past and kill the bastards. She deserved so much better than the life she had. Deserved better than me too, but I was here now, and I wasn't ever letting her go.

"Ah didn't mean to hurt him."

Hurt him? The fuck was she talk-

"Ah just didn't know what he wanted, an' if Ah would be his girlfriend, an' if Ah even wanted him tah kiss meh, an' Ah just got scared, an—"

"Kid."

I'd let her say what she needed to, but now that she was talking, it didn't seem like she was going to stop. She finally went quiet at the sound of my voice, but her face was pressed against my shoulder and she had practically crawled into my lap.

And as much as I liked the feeling of her curled up in my lap, that was against The Rules, so I shifted her back to her spot on the bed beside me. She still clutched at my arms though, and I didn't want to let go of her entirely. I stayed awkwardly twisted instead with my arms wrapped around her the best they could with her pressed against my side.

"Marie."

She made a muffled noise against my shoulder but didn't raise her head.

"It ain't yer fault, kid."

"He's in a coma."

Good. Don't fucking touch our mate.

I didn't give a fuck what happened to the little shit. If his voice wasn't one of the fuckers in her head, I might even feel a sick sense of satisfaction that he'd gotten what was coming to him for touching my mate.

"He in ya head too?" I asked.

She nodded. I sighed.

"Shit, kid. I'm sorry that happened to ya, but it ain't yer fault, alright?"

"But if Ah hadn't got scared, he—"

"If the little piece of shit had kept his hands to his fucking self." I growled.

Marie raised her head then, looking up at me in shock. Must've let just a bit too much jealousy seep into my voice.

"Ya said ya didn't even like him—"

The only reason I might not track him down and finish the job myself.

Rip his throat out...

"—and he scared ya. He never should've touched ya."

MinemineminemineMariemate.

"...uh, without ya permission." I tacked on to the end to make it sound less like I was just a possessive bastard.

Don't make fuckin' excuses 'bout it. She belongs to us!

"It was jus' a dare. His friends dared him tah kiss the weird girl down the street." She said.

My heart twisted instead of my stomach at the pain in her voice. The Wolverine was still growling in my head, and it was getting harder to keep my claws in.

"In mah head, he said he was sorry...an' Ah bet he is. Ah bet he's real sorry." She added with a bitter laugh.

I could smell the sharp scent of salt, and I pulled her tighter against me, shifting down until she was laying beside me. There was nothing in The Rules I'd made about holding her like this since we usually didn't get close enough at night for it to be an issue. And even though I should probably play it safe and push her over to her side of the bed, there was no fucking way I was letting her go when she was like this.

I adjusted our positions until I could lay on my back with one hand beneath my head and one arm wrapped around her. She lay half on and half against my side, her hands clutching my shirt, her head tucked beneath my chin, and her legs tangled up with my own.

She cried herself to sleep, and it drove me crazy. The Wolverine alternated between demanding that we kill that Cody fuckface and that we lick away her tears, mark her, bury ourselves inside her. But the only thing I buried was my face in her hair until I fell asleep breathing in my mate's scent while she lay against me.

I woke up seconds before Marie started stirring across from me. Her scent was thick with the smell of blood, and I popped my claws before I remembered she was due for her period soon. She moaned in her sleep and curled up around herself.

I reached out and touched her shoulder. "Kid."

She gave a soft sigh and turned her head to nuzzle my hand. The Wolverine purred in approval, and I could feel a low rumble building in my throat too. I choked it off and counted to ten, then shook her shoulder again.

"Marie."

She groaned and opened her eyes. "Lo?"

Pretty little mouth...

I practically suffocated trying to choke down my growl down at the half slurred name.

...smells so fucking good...

"Wake up, kid."

...fertile ripe little mate...

"Whassamattah?" She mumbled.

...jest needs a good hard fucking...

Not much, just the voice in my head yelling at me to fuck you again, except this time it's worse because he can smell your blood and knows you're fertile.

"Uhhh..."

She sat up and her eyes widened in sudden understanding.

"'Scuze meh." She gasped, bolting out of the bed and into the bathroom.

I could smell blood and embarrassment lingering in the air. I groaned and flopped back down onto the bed. I hadn't meant to embarrass the poor kid, just figured she'd rather be woken up sooner than later. The Wolverine hadn't stopped growling in my head, replaying the sound of her moaning half my name. I wondered if I would have enough time to jack off before she got back.

No, dammit, I was trying to get some control, not jack off into her pillowcase like a horny teenager. The Wolverine immediately roared in agreement to the last part. I pressed the heel of my palm against my crotch and started counting again.

By the time Marie came back out, I'd gotten my dick mostly under control, but I flopped onto my stomach to be sure. She hovered by the edge of the bed, still smelling embarrassed and nervous. My arms were wrapped around my head, and I lifted up just enough to look at her.

"'Mere." I grunted.

She gave me a small smile and hopped back into bed next to me. I flopped my head back down and closed my eyes so I wouldn't stare at her, but I opened them again when I felt her fingertips trailing across my arm.

I let her just touch me for several minutes, her explorations getting bolder until she was running her palm from my shoulder to my elbow. I kept quiet, but when she deliberately gripped my bicep, I flexed. She let out a little gasp, and I smirked at the sound.

We'd be a strong mate for our little kitling...

She let go. "Ah'm sorry, Ah..."

I regretted moving, missing her soft hand rubbing my skin.

"S'okay." I muttered.

It was quiet for almost a minute before she spoke again. "Ah can't sleep. Ah never can...do yah mind if Ah read or watch TV?"

"We could just talk."

Woah. Where the holy fuck did that come from? Sure, I'd been trying to talk to her more often, but since when did I volunteer to "just talk"?!

"We could play Never Have Ah Ever." She replied.

"What?"

She sat up against the headboard and glanced around. "Well, yeh supposed t'have more people, but it's a game. Everyone puts up all ten fingers and whose ever turn it is says something they've never done before. If yah've done it, yah put a finger down. First person with all their fingers down loses. But since it's jus' the two of us, we can play with five."

I stayed laying down and tried to think of something I'd never done before. I'd stuck to North America the last fifteen years, but I was pretty sure I had memories of being in France, England, Germany, Russia, even Japan. Vietnam definitely. Fucked just about everything and in every way too.

"Never mind, Ah can jus' read or so—"

"Nah." I sat up next to her. "I'll play."

Not sure how I would, and it didn't seem like this would end well, but I didn't like hearing my mate disappointed. I mimicked her pose and pulled both knees up to my chest, placing an outstretched hand on top. I'd just have to suck it up or cheat or something.

"Alrahght, Ah'll start! Never Have Ah Ever..." She paused to think of something. "...been to Alaska."

I'd been through Alaska two or three years ago, even made a short stop over at Russia for a nurse who could...not important anymore. I put down a finger.

"What's special about Alaska?" I asked, stalling for time.

"That's where Ah wanted to go for mah birthday." She said.

I rolled my eyes. "What's special about Alaska?"

She laughed. "Ah don't know. It's not Mississippi, Ah guess."

"You're from Mississippi?"

"No Logan, Ah just talk like this for fun. Now quit stallin', it's yeh turn."

"Dammit. Umm...I've never—"

"Never Have Ah Ever." She reminded me.

I grinned with a sudden idea. "Never Have I Ever...worn a dress."

Marie scowled at me and put down a finger. "Oh, is this how we're gonna play, sugah? Well, Never Have Ah Ever...grown a beard."

I put down a finger and she laughed and stuck her tongue out at me. I tried not to think about where else she could stick that cute little tongue of hers.

"Never Have I Ever...uhh...Ever...shit, kid. I've done a lot." I finally admitted.

She just huffed. "Oh, so yah've gone everywhere in the world, done everything to be done, twice, uphill both ways?"

"Don't get sassy with me, kid." I ruffled her hair and grinned at her. "Never Have I Ever...sang karaoke."

Marie burst out laughing. "Ah...Ah bet...yah singin' sucks!"

"Hey, my singing is damn beautiful!"

She just laughed even harder. I waited until she calmed down then nudged her to let her know it was her turn. I'd already learned she was from Mississippi and wanted to go to Alaska, so maybe this game wasn't half bad after all.

"Never Have Ah Ever..."

"Hold up, kid." I cut her off. "Have you ever sang karaoke?"

She blushed. "We-ellll..."

"Then put yer damn finger down, ya dirty cheater." I growled.

She giggled again and put a finger down. We were even now, each with two fingers down.

"Never Have Ah Ever..." She continued. "...been married."

I raised an eyebrow. "So that's how we're gonna play, kid?"

She didn't even blush this time, just looked me dead in the eye and shrugged, waiting for my reaction. I didn't put a finger down.

"Shoot! Ah thought that'd get yah for sure." She grumbled.

I kept my eyebrow raised. "I look like the type to get married to ya, kid?"

"At least three times." She agreed.

My other eyebrow joined the first. If she kept this up, they'd probably get lost in my hairline.

"What, I can't have a happy marriage with a nice woman?" I asked.

She started laughing again, but stopped it with an awkward cough when I didn't grin or join in.

"Oh, yah were serious." She mumbled, blushing again. "Ah guess yah could if yah wanted. Get hitched to a nice young lady an' go to church every Sunday an' have a couple of kids, maybe a dog. Work nine to five so she can stay at home an' sleep in separate beds."

My eyebrows finally came back down so I could frown. Sounded awfully fucking specific and not the happy, all in white wedding dream little girls where supposed to have.

Marie shot me a shy grin from beneath her lashes. "...or we could just run away to Alaska."

"Alaska or bust." I immediately agreed.

She grinned and nudged me with her elbow. "Yeh turn."

"Shiiiiit."

"Logan!"

"Never Have I Ever...um...shit."

"Ah'm pretty sure yah've done that before, sugah." She said with a grin.

I fake scowled at her. "What'd I tell you about your sass?"

"That it makes meh special and unique and to never change who Ah am." She retorted.

"Damn straight." I agreed. "Fuck, okay fine. Never Have I Ever...eaten chocolate cake."

Marie gasped. "Yeh such a dirty cheater!"

"I'm the dirty cheater?!"

"Well...that...that was jus' low!" She spluttered, lowering her third finger.

I smirked. "It still worked. Your turn."

"Fine! Never Have Ah Ever...rode on a motorcycle."

I put down a finger, and she gave a triumphant laugh. But it was my turn now, and I actually had a good one.

"Never Have I Ever...sat through an entire church service." I said.

Marie put her pinky finger down with a grimace. "Lucky."

"Thought you said you were religious?" I asked.

She shook her head. "Ah said mah parents were religious. We went to church Sunday morning, Sunday evening, Wednesday evening, church camp, everything. Ah still cringe whenever Ah see a Bible."

"So I don't have to worry about taking you to any church services?"

"Nah. Ah don't think yah need to go to church to be a good person." She replied.

"Guess that's good for me then." I looked over at her. She only had a thumb left, so it'd better be good. "Go."

"Ah'm thinkin'! Never Have Ah Ever...made out with a boy."

I nearly got whiplash from how fast I looked over at her. "The fuck?!"

"Finger up or down Logan." She said.

I glared at her and didn't put my pinky down. "What exactly makes you think I'd be making out with guys?"

"Midlife crisis?" She asked with a sheepish smile.

"I ain't midlife! Shit, kid. How old do you think I am?" I demanded.

Not that it mattered how old I really was. I hadn't aged in fifteen years, and I doubted I'd start any time soon. It still kind of pissed me off that she was talking about me having a midlife crisis like I was old enough to be her dad or something.

She suddenly decided the ceiling was really interesting. "Um...well...lahhhhke...thirty five?"

I grunted. "Still not midlife."

"That's almost exactly in the middle of the average human lifespan." She argued.

Her lifespan. She's gonna grow old and die, and yer jest sittin' here with yer thumb up yer ass!

"Never Have I Ever..." I said, continuing without a reply.

Marie twisted around and sat on her knees beside me. "Logan? Ah...Ah'm sorry. Ah didn't meantah—"

I put my legs down and pulled her closer to me. She leaned against my chest, still balanced on her knees. It was an awkward position, but she wasn't technically sitting on my lap either. I'd rather tell her now and let her get used to the idea than let her figure it out five, ten, another fifteen years down the road when she grew up and I stayed the same.

"I ain't exactly the average human." I muttered into her hair. "I uh...I don't get old."

"Yah don't age...at all?" She asked.

I sighed. "Been 'thirty five' for at least fifteen years, probably longer. Don't really remember before that."

"So yah not really in the middle...yeh jus'..." She looked up at me and trailed off.

I met her gaze. "I gotta lot more time ahead of me."

"Well, Ah'll keep yah company for as long as Ah can." She said.

Mine, ours, gonna die, gonna leave, grow older, find someone else, leave us, wanna stay forever...

I shut out the Wolverine's disjointed thoughts and pulled her back to me. She wrapped her arms around my neck and let me hold her for a while.

"Ya still gonna want me around when yer old?" I whispered.

It was killing me to think about that, her being old and gray. I'd give up my claws and healing in an instant if it would let me grow old with my mate. Well...maybe I'd wait for her to catch up to my age first. I didn't want to die of old age before her and leave her alone. I wanted us to spend the rest of our lives together and have fucking Hallmark moments and shit.

"Yah still gonna wantah be around when Ah'm old?" She whispered back.

I just held her tighter as I thought of something even worse. "I'll look like yer son. People'll talk. Ya might not want—"

Marie pulled away and I tried not to let out a desperate whine. She didn't try to get up or move out of my arms though, just gave me a strange look of sad determination.

"So let 'em talk. They do now. Yah said people are shit anyway."

I let out a shaky breath. Damn, my little Marie could be tough when she wanted to. I ran my hand down the side of her head, feeling her soft hair brush against my skin. She leaned into the touch, and I felt the tension in my shoulders unwind a bit.

"Yeah." I rasped. "Yer opinion is the only one that matters, kid."

Yer the only one that matters, only one we care about, our little Marie-mate.

She nodded and looked down at my chest. I kept petting her hair and she ran her palms down my shoulders to my collar bones and started fiddling with my shirt. I wanted it gone so I could feel her skin on my mine, her soft little hands smoothing over my chest. I started counting again but broke off when I noticed her smile. It got wider until it turned into a full on grin, and I nudged her shoulder.

"Ah'm gonna flaunt yah all around mah nursing home." She said, still grinning.

"What?"

She raised her head and fixed me with a mischievous smile. "Ah'll be eighty years old an' pinching yah butt cheeks."

"Uh...what?"

She just laughed. "An' Ah'll make yah play Mah-Jong with meh an' hold mah dentures. An' all the other old ladies will be so jealous!"

I managed to give a half smile back. It still made me feel sick to think about it, but at least she was talking about her growing old like I'd still be there. I didn't know what she wanted for her future, if staying with me was just a temporary thing before she grew up or if she really did want me to stay in her life, but hearing her talk about it like we'd always be together made me feel a little easier.

"That sounds good, kid."

"Yeah." She whispered in agreement. "It's yeh turn again."

She only had her thumb left, and I suddenly didn't want the game to end so soon. I tried to think of something I hadn't done that she wouldn't have either.

"Never Have I Ever..."

"Wait!" She cried. "Yah said yah can't remember past...fifteen years?"

I nodded.

"Then how do yah know what yah've done and what yah haven't?" She asked.

I shrugged. "I've been going off of the last fifteen I do remember."

"Oh. Well Ah guess that rules out some stuff." She said.

"Like what?"

"Lahke high school an' first dates an' stuff."

I grimaced at her. "Yeah. I think high school is the one hell life hasn't put me through."

"Guess yah could always get yah GED." She replied.

"For what? Cage fighting?"

"Or college."

I just stared at her.

"What?" She defended. "Yah might want to get a Master's in basket weaving one day!"

I kept staring at her and she started laughing again.

"Basket weaving." She snorted.

"Alright, kid. Ya wanna finish this game or not?" I growled.

She sobered up enough to sit up straight, but ignored my growl entirely and kept grinning at me.

"Never Have I Ever...been on a plane."

She'd acted like she wanted to get away from Mississippi, but I doubted she'd be so eager to leave if she had actually gotten to travel a bit, so I gambled that she'd never flown before. My bet paid off and she kept her thumb up.

"Yah've never flown before?" She asked.

I shifted and looked away. "Yeah. So?"

"Yah seem to move around a lot, an' yah've had at least fifteen years to travel." She shrugged. "Just seemed like yah might want to fly someplace...like Vegas or Mexico or something."

"Don't like being up high." I mumbled.

"Oh, so yah scared of hei—"

"I ain't scared." I snapped out of reflex before I remembered who I was talking to. "I just...don't like being up high."

"Rahhhhhght. Well. Ah don't lahke clowns." She admitted.

"Clowns are creepy as fuck."

"Thank yah! No one else seems to get it, but they're weird!"

She looked so dead set serious, like everyone in the world needed to know right fucking now that clowns were not okay, and I grinned at her.

"Got anything else you don't like that I should know about?" I asked.

"Ah don't lahke frogs." She said with a shudder.

I chuckled. "Why frogs?"

"Ah..." She stopped and frowned. "One of the neighbor boys sneaked one into my bed one night, an' that was a little scary. But not that much, so Ah don't really know. They're jus' gross, Ah guess."

I didn't like the sound of some "neighbor boy" sneaking anything into her bed, but even I could recognize that I was being irrational, so I took a deep breath and pushed the irritation down.

"Too cold for 'em this far north, so you'll be fine. Your turn, kid." I reminded her.

"Oh. Um, Never Have Ah Ever...had a sibling." She said.

I frowned and looked at my hand. Shit.

"Have yah? Ah mean...if it's none of mah business, Ah—"

"You're fine, kid." I reassured her. "I just ain't all that sure. Can't remember much...maybe...fuck, there might've been someone I fought with once. I just can't..."

I stopped and fought down a growl of frustration. Sometimes in my nightmares of half remembered wars I'd get the feeling there was someone fighting next to me, but I could never see the damn bastard.

"Fought?" She asked, looking at me with worried confusion.

I gave her a half grimace, half smile. "Yeah, kid. Didn't get those tags working at K-Mart."

She blinked in understanding. "Oh."

I put down a finger anyway, mostly just to make us even. Marie looked down at my hand and pressed her thumb against my mine. She glanced back up at me and smiled, then dropped her hand.

"Guess it's mah turn. Never Have Ah Evah—ahhhh—ahh..." She broke off with a yawn.

I ran my hand over her head again. "Gettin' sleepy, kid?"

She nodded and leaned against me, tilting her head so I could pet her again. I let her lay against me until her breath started to even out, then lay her back down on her side of the bed. She moved onto her side and cracked an eye open.

"Play again later?"

I shifted down to lay beside her. "Anytime."

"Thanks for ta—ahhh—lking to me." She said through another yawn.

I knew I should stop touching her hair, stop touching her altogether and let her sleep, but it felt nice to just touch my mate. And she made such sweet little noises, sighs and hums that somehow calmed me down and made me hard at the same time.

"I'm here to take care of ya."

She roused at that, and I winced. I didn't mean to wake her up, and I didn't really mean for her to hear that either. She opened her eyes and blinked hazily at me.

"Wha d'Ah do f'yah?" She mumbled.

I dug my fingers into her hair instead of just smoothing over the top of it. She smelled so sweet, and I knew it was sick, but the blood just make her scent thicker.

"Keep me company." I finally answered.

She yawned again and closed her eyes with a small smile.

"Night kid."

"G'nahght, sugah." She drawled.

I rolled over onto my back, my hands still itching to touch her more. Her breathed deepened and slowed as she fell asleep. The Wolverine prowled in my mind, snarling at every opportunity that we needed to claim her...now.

And I stayed awake until dawn, counting and thinking of what I'd learned about my mate from our little game.


A/N: Yeah, I know, I usually update earlier in the morning today, but I was on call at work all night, woke up late at 7:50, was at work for my morning shift at 8:00, and now I'm off for a one hour lunch break so my work can suck a bag of dicks. Living the dream.

A few people have commented in reviews about Victor, and he's kind of mentioned here, so just to clear things up: FUCK YES, he will be involved in this story. But no, he's not just going to show up, be a rapist, and get dropped by Marie so she can be immortal. He's actually going to be important to the story, but much later.

Also, I know Marie's been acting kind of childish lately, with her hissy fit over SVU, rash showering decisions, and making Logan play Never Have I Ever, but please keep in mind that she's fourteen right now, so she's going to act like it.

As for what comes next...dunno, honestly. I have scenes planned out where Marie gets involved in a bar fight, Logan sees/comforts Marie when she has her own nightmare, Logan and Maire go to a bookstore, and Marie paints Logan's toenails. I'm just not sure what I order I want that to happen in, so let me know what you really want to see next in your reviews! ;D