1Author's note: Also those of you that are not members here can leave a review. So please do it! ; ) Thanks to those who have reviewed the last chapter: )
Descena and I have begun to write a story together. It would be nice if you guys could give us an opinion or suggestions on it!!! It's called About vows and men
And I am sorry for not updating sooner, but I had a major jetleg from flying back to Germany. I even slept 18 hours in a row because I couldn't sleep for 50 hours at all. It wasn't funny… And then my friends invited me to celebrate that I was back and now college started again. So I was busy and only managed to update Repairing what's lost, since it has short chapters. Sorry for that: (
And just a question but what is wrong with writing We'veWe learned it at school like that, even the British version We've got and I was told it's wrong?! Even my grammar books say We've, so what's wrong with writing it??
This chapter includes a flashback to Changes Sequel 1 Chapter 10 (italics and bold letters). The flashback is rated M and for mature readers!!! So be warned! Flashback is again written in italics. The flashback takes place after Logan's doppelganger and Logan attacking the mansion as Death and after Sabretooth's first attack on Ororo and before Jamie was born.
And what's up with all those 24's?? This is chapter 24, the image value thingy while logging in was 24, on Nov 23rd is my 24th birthday... OO scary...
Changes Sequel – II. Covenant Part 24
Hank had just stood next to Logan and was watching him. Even if he wanted, he couldn't do much more than that. He didn't know what to say or do to make this shock any easier for his friend. "Logan…," he said in a calm voice and made a step forwards.
"Where's the door," Logan hissed and the furry mutant could easily tell that he was furious.
"I'll show you," Hank offered and heard how Logan slammed his hand onto the bed.
"I don't want ya t'show me," his friend roared. "Just tell me where that fuckin' door is!"
"On your left," Hank replied in a calm voice. "Just turn left and head straight." He watched how Logan got up and did as he was told but bumped into the small table on which the tray stood. Hank closed his eyes when both objects hit the opposite wall and sighed heavily next.
In the meanwhile, Logan had found the door and stood in the middle of the corridor. Knowing that the elevator was on the left from the infirmary he headed that way. "Wait!" he heard Jean calling and felt how she grabbed his arm.
"Leave me alone!" Logan snapped and pulled his arm roughly away.
"No, the elevator is on your right," she said and gave him a push into that direction. "You were in the lab, not the infirmary, Logan." Ignoring his warning growl when she took his hand, she began to lead the way. "I'll show you."
"Stop babysittin' me!" Logan said aloud after they had entered the elevator.
"I only want to show you…," the redhead tried to sooth him in a calm voice and waited for the door to open again. Instead of leading him to the West Wing door, she stopped at the kitchen and pulled him inside of it.
A sniff was enough for him to figure out where he was. "I wanna go upstairs…," he grunted annoyed.
"You need to eat something first," Jean said and turned to look at him; ignoring the looks the others gave them on purpose.
"How?" Logan asked cynically. "By sniffin' it out? Or are ya gonna hand feed me?"
"Logan…," she sighed and rubbed her temples when her head began to hurt again.
"Don't…play the nanny now, Red," he growled. "I warn ya!" Turning around, he reached out to look for the doorframe and used the wall to find the way to the West Wing door.
In the kitchen Jean stared at the ground and shook her head. "What's wrong?" Ororo asked and met her gaze when the redhead looked up.
"Did you find out what's wrong with his eyes?" Scott asked next and gave her his full attention when she nodded.
"He has a metallic splinter in his brain from the explosion. It's stuck and we think that it somehow prevents his healing factor from reaching his eyes," Jean explained.
"Will you do a surgery then?" he asked and began to frown when she shook his head. "Why not?!"
"We can't because of the adamantium…"
"But…what does that mean?" Ororo asked and watched the redhead closely. "For Logan I mean…?"
Looking away, Jean swallowed hard and bit her lower lip. "He's blind… Permanently…"
Covering her mouth in shock, Ororo stared at her first before she exchanged a look with Scott. "But you need to do something….," she said in denial. "It almost killed him the last time… He can't deal with not being able to see…"
"I know that!" Jean snapped and narrowed her eyes. Sighing, she ran her hands over her face and looked at them in surprise and confusion. She hadn't noticed that she was crying or that Scott had gotten up to hug her. Confused about is as she was she just allowed him to pull her closer.
Upstairs, Logan sat on the ground in the bedroom with his legs pulled close and his arms resting on his knees. He stared into nothingness and even kept his head lowered when the door opened. When Jean entered the room and didn't see him first, she furrowed her brows. About to turn around again, she stopped after spotting him and closed the door silently. "Why are you sitting in the corner?" she asked and wiped her tears away before she came slowly closer.
"Was easier t'find…," he grunted and turned his head away from her when she knelt down next to him. Hoping that she would just go away and leave him alone, he had to realize that she wouldn't do it. "Have fun…"
"With what?" Jean whispered.
"T'protect our children if they attack us again," he growled and clenched his fists angered. "It's up t'ya now so don't dare t'screw it up!"
"Logan…," she sighed and looked back up when he went on.
"If they attack I want ya t'bring them into safety and stay with them no matter what," he added and made her frown.
"But… What about you?"
"Forget about me…," Logan grunted and she couldn't help but stare at him in shock.
"I'd never leave you behind!" Jean said in a stronger voice and shook her head.
"Ya will, ya hear me?!" he said louder and made her leant back a bit. "I ain't gonna risk my kids' life just because of this shit!" he added and pointed at his eyes. "What matters is their life and not mine!"
"But…," the redhead swallowed and heaved a deep breath. "They'll kill you…"
"Don't care," Logan grunted and looked away again.
"You can't give up like this!" she protested and dared to touch his shoulder. "That's not like you!"
"You're a doc, Jean!" he snapped. "Ya should know better, so stop behavin' like a stupid lil'girl and face the truth!"
Looking at him angrily, Jean moved around and cupped his face roughly. "I won't accept this, Logan! I'll find a way!" she said determined and noticed his smirk.
He only gave a short snort and shrug and pushed her hands away. "Then go on waistin' your time."
Not knowing how to deal with his constant rejection, she heaved another deep breath. "How can you say that?!" she asked and stared at him.
"How?!" Logan asked and she knew he was beyond anger by now. "Well, it ain't ya who doesn't see his children growin' up, ain't it? You'll know what they'll look like later, ya can protect and help them if necessary," he snapped and ran both hands over his face just to bury them in his hair next. He lowered his head and shook it. "Ya don't know what it's like…," he added in a surprisingly calm voice and could hear and smell that she was crying silently. When he felt her hand touching his head he pushed it away again. "Go away!"
"Logan…," Jean sniffed and noticed that he moved away from her and further into the corner.
"Go away!" he demanded once more and she gave in.
"I'll bring you something to eat then," she offered and got up.
"Ain't hungry…"
"You need to eat," Jean sighed in exhaustion and heard him growling.
"Do ya have trouble t'understand English today?!" he snapped aloud. "I said go away and I ain't hungry! So piss off!"
Feeling a sharp stitch in her heart, she nodded and left the room just to begin walking. Before Jean had even noticed it, she was standing in front of Jake's tomb stone that was covered with snow. Not caring about the cold white stuff, she knelt down to wipe it away and just stared at it for a while. She couldn't help but think about the fact that the boy would have turned three in February and wondered what he would have looked like. "Jean?" a voice behind her asked and made her startle. "Hey, I've been calling your name for at least five minutes. Are you daydreaming?" Scott, with his hands in his pockets to keep them warm, came closer and noticed her tearstained face. "Hey…," he said softly and knelt down next to her to put a hand on her back. "He's stubborn again, huh?"
"I don't know what to do…," she sniffed and wiped her tears away. "I mean we already are in a major crisis… He hates me…"
"He doesn't accept your help, hm?" he asked and she shook her head.
"It's not only that, Scott…," Jean sighed and kept her eyes fixed on the stone. "He can't stand being in a room with me. I can feel that every time… And now…" She shook her head. "He'll need my help and knows that. And this makes him only madder at me…"
"So you're afraid that the two of you will split?" he asked and saw that she nodded weakly. Nodding, too, he looked at the stone briefly. It was no secret to him or the others that Logan didn't want Jean to be close by. The man didn't make a secret out of it that he disliked his wife at the moment and only stayed with her because of the children. And Scott knew that the woman next to him behaved odd lately. Or better since she was back. "Jean,…think about it… The two of you have been through so many major crises. And if a relationship survives the loss of a child…," Scott said and stroked through her hair. "…then it will survive this, too. You know Logan. He's the last one to admit that he needs help or is not feeling well."
"He did admit what he feels and this is what scares me," Jean replied and looked at him. "He's given up. He's even told me to just leave him behind during an attack…"
"Just leaving him behind, huh?" he asked and shook his head. "And who am I supposed to fight with?" Hearing her weak attempt of a laugh that sounded more like a sob, he reached out to touch her cheek. "I promise that I'll take care of him in case of an attack. And if I have to carry him out of there personally."
"Thank you," she whispered and sniffed again.
When she pushed her hair back he frowned. "Did he hit you?"
"What?"
"You cheekbone," Scott said and stroked lightly over the bruise.
"That was my own stupidity," she waved off. "I didn't switch on the light at night and ran into the doorframe of the bathroom…" Seeing his skeptical face, Jean sighed. "It's true, Scott. Logan wouldn't hit me."
"You didn't tell us that this imposter had abused you, too," he said in a serious voice. "Do you really believe I hadn't noticed that you couldn't even walk normally without being in pain back then?"
Turning away from him, she fixed her eyes on a tree. "That wasn't because he hit me… He hit me only once or twice."
"Once or twice?!" Scott asked in disbelief. "What did he do to you then?"
"Doesn't matter," Jean sighed in annoyance and snarled when he made her look at him.
"What did this bastard do to you, Jean?" he asked but she avoided his gaze. Knowing that she wouldn't reply to his question, he began to think about it on his own. He remembered that she had looked like someone that was in major pain. She'd also been jumpy during that time and had looked scared of the faked-Logan every time she had seen or heard him. His eyes suddenly widened in shock. "Don't tell me he…"
"Yes, Scott, he has raped me," Jean snapped in annoyance and with dark eyes. "Satisfied now?"
"Why didn't you tell us?!" Scott asked in shock and ran a hand through his hair.
"Because Logan broke into the mansion on that day," she sighed and shook her head.
"And afterwards?" he asked. "You never said anything at all!"
"It's not something you just talk about, Scott!" she said angrily.
"Does Logan know?" he demanded to know and saw her nodding. Nodding in return, he thought about it and suddenly slapped his head. "Now I get it…," Scott said and made her frown. "That night when we went out… When Logan became angry and attacked you in the kitchen…," he went on and she rolled her eyes. "Now I understand why you've been so scared of Logan…"
While Jean had linked arms with Logan, Mystique and Scott just walked next to each other and followed them into the pub. "How about the corner over there?" the redhead asked the black haired woman, who nodded. Leading the way towards it and being fully aware of some men staring at them, to their men's dislike, they sat down opposite of each other with Logan and Scott next to them. After ordering something to drink, Logan looked around the room and didn't pay attention to what Jean and Raven were talking about. What he paid attention to was the way some guys were staring at his girl and he gave them a warning look. "Hon," Jean said and put a hand on his thigh. "I need to use the bathroom. Would you mind getting up?" Flashing him a thankful smile after he did what he'd been asked for, she pulled him into a kiss.
"Same here," Raven said and gave Scott a brief smile before she followed the redhead.
Logan instantly glared at two men since they dared to talk to his mate and sipped on his beer angrily. Not only was the pub crowded, something he didn't like, and men were staring too much at his girl, he was also stuck with Scott, something he didn't like either. While he kept on sipping on his beer, Scott sat opposite of him with his arms crossed and had obviously decided to act as if Logan wasn't there at all. For minutes no one of them moved or even looked at the other one for even less than a second, until Scott looked at his watch, "What's taking them so long?" he asked since the woman were gone for nearly 20 minutes by now.
"Ya don't get it, do ya?" Logan grunted and shook his head about the man's stupidity.
"Get what?" Scott snapped.
"Do ya really believe it's coincidence that we accidentally met down the street and accidentally were on the way t'the same pub?" the other man grunted and gave a short laugh. "Or that both of them accidentally have t'go onto the toilet at the same time?"
"I still don't get what you mean, Logan," Scott replied and noticed the cocked eyebrow. "What?!"
"God, are ya stupid," Logan said and rolled his eyes. "They want the two of us t'talk, bub."
"Fine," his opposite replied with a shrug and put his soda down. "Then talk!"
Logan gave a brief snort and crossed his arms, too. "Forget it!"
"As you wish," Scott shrugged and couldn't care less. "Can you at least tell me where they are?"
"Playin' pool in the back room," Logan grunted and emptied his bottle.
"Great…"
"Can you tell what they are doing?" Raven asked and watched how two more balls disappeared in the holes.
"Not talking to each other…," Jean sighed and sipped on her soda before she went on playing the game.
The other woman could only shake her head and leant back against the table. "How can two men be so stubborn?" she asked and the redhead gave a brief laugh.
"They can!" she replied and rolled her eyes after a brief look at the door.
"What?" Raven asked with furrowed brows and turned just to roll her eyes, too. She watched how two men entered, obviously to use the second table, and smirked at the two women. She couldn't help but give Jean a knowing look, which made the redhead grin. "Let's see how long it'll take them…"
"What are two so beautiful ladies doing here all alone?" one of the man asked and Jean couldn't help but giggle about Mystique's reaction.
"Oh please…," the woman sighed and rolled her eyes once more. The men had reacted faster than she'd thought. Looking at Jean again she bent forward a bit. "And the next thing they come up with is a drink, huh?" she whispered and the redhead only shrugged smiling.
"Can we buy you a drink, ladies?" the second man asked.
"No, thanks," Jean waved off and hid her smirk when Raven rolled her eyes again. It was way too easily to read in the woman's face what this one thought about their company. She looked aside when one of the men came closer.
"Why not?" he demanded to know.
"Because we're not interested maybe?" Mystique asked in annoyance.
"And why's that?" his friend asked and also approached the two woman at the table.
Angered about their behavior the woman turned around and glared daggers at them. "Can't you just accept a no?!" she asked and felt how Jean touched her arm.
"Raven!" she warned and shook her head. "Leave it, okay?"
"Right," the taller man of the two grinned. "Listen to your friend, baby." Chuckling he turned and smiled at Jean, who gave him a warning look only. "What about you, sweety, huh?" he asked and grabbed her hand to pull her closer. Smelling the alcohol on his breath and figuring that he obviously had too many beers, she gave his hand a brief look and heard how the other man behind her focused his attention on Raven.
"Don't be such a prude, gorgeous," he said and approached her. "I'm sure the four of us can have a lot of fun."
"Touch me and your hand will never touch anything again," Mystique warned him and began to tense her muscles.
Behind her on the other side of the table, Jean pulled her hand roughly away and began to feel disgusted by the strong odor of alcohol in the air. She gasped in surprise when her opposite pushed her against the table all of a sudden and cupped her butt with one of his large hands, while he pressed against her with a dark grin. Instinctively she began press her hands against his chest and tensed her muscles when his free hand grabbed her neck to force her into a kiss. "Let go of me!" Jean hissed and turned her head away.
"Come on, baby," he grunted and tried it again. "We can also use the bathroom if you want."
Not knowing what to do since using her powers would mean to expose them as mutants, Jean watched how Mystique slapped the second man after he had touched her butt. "Bitch!" he cursed and was about to hit her back when the woman kicked him into his groin and sent him to the floor with a howl-like sound.
"You wanna make trouble, too, baby?" the man, who still held Jean captive, asked and tightened his grip on her.
Glaring at him in return, the redhead tried to recall what Logan had taught her about defending herself against a stronger adversary. "You've three seconds to let go of me," she warned and narrowed her eyes when he chuckled.
"Or you do what, slut?"
"How about this?" Jean asked and used her knee to kick him into his groin, too. While he dropped to the ground she quickly took his hand and turned it to twist his arm. In the meanwhile, Mystique had begun to hit and kick the second man while this one tried to grab her in anger and got even madder, since his attempts were useless. When his friend managed to grab Jean's arm the redhead kicked him against the knee with her boots and made him instantly letting go of her. "If I were the two of you, I'd leave now," she warned and watched how he backed off limping.
"You heard what she said, right?" Raven asked and twisted her adversary's wrist until he hissed in pain. "So if you still want to use your little thing down there…piss…off!" With that she gave him a good push to the door and glared daggers at him.
"Better hope I don't get my hands on you again, bitch!" he warned and was joined by his friend at the door.
"You gonna regret this!" this one added and followed the other man out of the room.
While heaving a deep breath, Raven turned around just to stare at Jean. "Logan will be pissed…," she remarked and made the redhead frown.
"Why?" this one asked and watched how she came closer.
"Your wrist," Mystique said and Jean looked down on it. "And your bleeding," she added with a nod at it and watched how the redhead touched it. "Come on, we fix it."
"I think we should better help our men," Jean said instead and earned a confused look from her friend. "Something's happening in the front…"
"They can handle themselves," Mystique waved off and led her further to the bathroom. "I'd rather fix Scott up later, than running into a furious Wolverine when this one sees that you're hurt. So come on!" she said and dragged her into the restroom.
"You didn't hear me, did you?" a fat man asked Scott, who still sat on the same spot and looked back at him. "We don't wanna have mutant scum here, so piss off!"
"Really?" he asked and put his soda down. "As far as I can tell there was no sign at the door!"
Glaring at him, the man grabbed his opposite roughly by the shirt and pulled him up. "You think you can risk a big mouth, mutie?!" he hissed and turned around when someone touched his shoulder. "What?!" he snapped and glared daggers at the man next to him who dared to give him the same look back.
"Put him down," Logan grunted and waited for the man to do so, but instead another one appeared.
"Says who, hm?"
Looking at him, Logan narrowed his eyes. He could tell that they wanted to fight, no matter what he would say. Deciding that he hadn't had a good bar fight in years, he wanted to risk it. "Your worst nightmare, if your buddy here doesn't put him down, bub!"
"Another mutie, huh?" the man asked and grabbed Logan's collar before he gave Scott a look. "Your boyfriend, prettyface? So what are you, huh? The woman in your relationship and he's the man?" he mocked and chuckled when he turned back to look at Logan. "Your lot isn't welcome here, pal, so take your girl here and piss off!"
"Logan…," Scott warned since he had noticed the change in the man's eyes. "Let's go…"
"No," his teammate growled and cracked his neck. "I'm sick of people like them."
"People like us?" the man who held Scott asked and turned to look at him. "Did you hear that, Jeff? People like us!"
The man called Jeff gave a faked grin and pulled Logan closer. "You're gonna regret being born, scum!" he hissed and took a good swing that sent Logan to his knees.
"Stop it!" Scott said and grabbed his adversary's wrists while he looked at the man on the ground, who held his abdomen. "We'll leave, okay?! So calm down!" Hearing how his comrade suddenly chuckled, he furrowed his brows in confusion and began to ask himself if Logan had either lost his mind or if he had missed a joke that had been funny.
This one got slowly up and pressed one hand in his abdomen while he glared at the men. "Is that what ya gonna teach your kid?" he asked Scott and cocked an eyebrow. "People bully ya, so run away?!"
"Better than fighting, Logan," this one gave back. "Violence is no solution!" The men, who had listened to it, began to grin.
"And sometimes, Cyke, ya gotta get your hands dirty!" Logan replied and cracked his knuckles.
"Freaks!" one of the men laughed. "You guys are so fucked up, you even fight your own lot!"
Glaring at him, Logan turned. "Like this more, bub?" he asked and took a good swing that sent the man into the next table.
"Logan!" Scott said aloud and was staring at the mess in shock.
The man on the ground got up with a more than pissed off look on his face. "You gonna regret that!" he hissed and drew a butterfly knife. His friend suddenly punched Scott, while the other guests got up to see what was wrong all of a sudden.
"Someone should call the police!" a woman yelled and backed off when Logan and his opposite began a merciless brawl.
Mystique leant against the white tiles and watched how Jean cleaned the wound. "What's going on out there?" the redhead mumbled and took some tissues to dry her face.
"A fight…," her friend shrugged after she had opened the door a bit and frowned when she noticed the look Jean gave her.
"We better hurry up," this one said and threw the tissues away. "I don't need my powers to know who is in it…"
"Had enough?!" Scott asked angrily and was still breathing hard in exhaustion.
In the meanwhile, Logan had knocked out his adversary and was smirking at his teammate.
"Piss off!" Scott added and gave a knocked off chair an additional kick. "What are you grinning at?!" he asked Logan, who chuckled.
"So the sissy finally got some balls, huh?" he mocked him.
Snorting, Scott grabbed Logan's arm and began to pull him away. "Let's find Raven and Jean and then we drive back home!"
"Right…," Logan chuckled but glared at the bartender next.
"Get out of my bar, freaks!" this one barked and earned a cocked eyebrow and unimpressed look from the mutant.
"They're at the back door," he informed Scott and followed him out of the front door, while he informed Jean about it. He couldn't help but smirk since his teammate was still angry and tensed. "Don't tell me ya don't feel better now?!" he asked and received a warning look. Nevertheless, Logan also noticed the weak smirk and smirked back. "As I thought…"
On the outside, Jean and Raven were waiting at the cars and gave their men a look. "What happened to you?" the latter asked when she noticed the bruises in Scott's face. "Don't tell me the two of you beat each other up?!"
The man gave Logan a brief look. "Actually…no!"
Jean, who had taken notice of Logan's weird look, lowered her head. "What has happened then?"
"Some mutant haters…," Scott hissed and began to rub his cheek when this one began to hurt. "Come on, let's go." He gave her a gentle push towards their car and Jean began to follow them, but was suddenly held back by Logan. When he grabbed her arm, she startled and looked at him with widened eyes.
"What happened t'ya?" he growled and Scott froze on the spot.
"Nothing…," she lied and held her breath when he pushed the hair from the left side of her face.
In an instant his eyes blackened and he began to growl. "Who touched ya?!"
"It's okay, Logan!" she said and hoped to soothe him with hit, but his grip on her arm tightened.
"Nothin's okay!" he snapped. "The two of ya smell of other males!"
"What?!" Scott asked and let go of Raven to give her a shocked look. "Had some fun?!"
"God!" Mystique groaned and crossed her arms. "We had to kick two men's butts, okay? Get a grip!"
"Who attacked you?" he demanded to know and came closer again.
"Scott, please!" Jean begged but sounded angered by now. "Can we just go home?!"
"No, we can't!" Logan grunted. "Who touched ya?" he asked once more and saw from the corner of his eyes how Mystique glared at two men that had just left the bar. One sniff was enough to answer his question. With a low growl he let go of his wife's arm and began to walk towards them with clenched teeth.
"Logan, please!" Jean called and ran a hand through her face.
"They attacked you?" Scott asked and didn't wait for a reply before he joined Logan.
"Would it make a difference if I said no?" Mystique asked angered and went over to the redhead. "Is it just me or is Scott's car gone?" she asked since she couldn't see the blue sports car somewhere.
"Great…," Jean cursed and groaned in frustration, since the men were arguing now and she knew how it would end.
"Why don't you stop them with your powers?" her friend asked and only shook her head when one of the drunkards crashed into the wall.
"If Logan's in that state there's no way of stopping him," the redhead explained angered and wished she could blast the men right here and now when they began a brawl. "You know…the strange thing about evolution is that it has apparently forgotten to evolve their brains… Instead of doing a step forward they are back to the Neanderthals…"
"Well, using their brains has never been their strength obviously…," Mystique hissed and crossed her arms when the men came back to them.
"Get in the car!" Logan growled and opened the door for the glaring redhead.
"Hope you're happy now!" she snapped.
"Get inside!" he grunted.
"Stop giving me orders, Logan!" Jean said aloud and glared daggers at him that he returned. She slammed the door shut and buckled up, while Scott had finally noticed that his car was gone and came over to theirs with loud and angry curses. Mystique only rolled her eyes and walked around the car to sit down next to the red head in the back, while the men took their seats in the front; both glaring out of the windows.
The mood remained chilly until they reached the mansion and retreated to their room, where Jean snapped as soon as Logan had closed their bedroom door. "You think I'm the inferior sex, don't you?!" she asked him furiously and her eyes were burning with rage. "That I'm incapable of dealing with things on my own and need my strong man to protect me?!" Before he was able to answer she stormed out of the room and to the kitchen in the need of a drink that would hopefully help her to cool down.
Looking up from his tea, Hank began to frown when he noticed the angry look on her face and narrowed his eyes when he saw the now clearly visible bruise next. Moira's eyes widened in surprise when her he began to snarl and pinned Logan to the wall right after this one had entered the room. "What did you do to her?!" he demanded to know since he thought the man had hit the woman he regarded as his younger sister.
"Hank!" Scott intervened and explained the situation to him before Logan's threatening growl could become even lower.
"How can you leave her alone in a place like this?" the furry mutant asked angrily and glared at Logan from across the counter.
"Ask her," this one snapped with a nod at his wife and turned to her. "She's Ms I-can-deal-with-everythin'-by-myself!"
"I dealt with him, Logan!" Jean shot back and had her arms crossed.
"Right…," he nodded arrogantly and came slowly closer. Too slowly as the other noticed. "So ya gonna tell me that ya can always fight a man off without usin' your powers, eh?" While he glared at her she gave him a self-assured look in anger. Logan only nodded. "That's a yes, hm?" he asked and she shrieked when he suddenly pressed her face down onto the counter and held her pinned her to it. Struggling against him physically, Jean had to noticed that he held her in a deadly grip.
"Are you crazy, Logan?" Hank asked and came closer. "Let her go!"
"What has gotten into you all of a sudden?!" Moira demanded to know and was clearly angered.
"Then tell me, darlin', how you'd deal with me without usin' your powers!" Logan snarled into her ear. "What would ya do now, eh? Defendin' yourself?! Well, go ahead!" He let go of her and quickly caught her hand that she wanted to use to slap him after turning around. "Ya can't defend yourself against a man without your powers if you're surprised like that, girl! Especially not against two men, don't ya realize that?!" he asked and walked back over to the door angrily. "Next time ya use your powers or ya call for help, got that?!"
Moira gave Jean, who only stared at the ground with tears in her eyes and rubbed her wrist unconsciously, a shocked look and got up to support her friend. "What has gotten into him?!" she asked the men angrily.
"He's right," Scott shrugged and put his glass down.
"What?" Hank asked and looked at him. "Since when do you of all people agree with Logan?!"
"Because he has a point here."
"What point?!" Moira snapped at him and gave the woman a sympathetic look when a tear ran down her cheek. "He hurt her!" she said and gave the redhead's wrist a worried look.
"The point is," Scott said and got off of his stool while addressing Jean. "That the two of you were careless!"
"Right…," Moira nodded cynically. "We're women, so we depend on our knights, hm? Your face is the proof that you weren't successful either, Scott, so don't even start that macho topic!" Hearing her being angry like that made Hank's mouth slightly drop in awe.
"What do you think could have happened if one of you had been alone with those two drunkards?" Scott asked Jean, who still refused to look up at all. "Logan has a point here, Jean! You were completely at his mercy just now. He could have done anything with you and you wouldn't have been able to defend yourself without your powers. What do you think could two men have done to you, hm?" he asked her seriously but in a gentle voice. "Don't you realize that we're scared for you? And you know perfectly well that especially Logan reacts extremely if he gets to know that you are either in danger or smell like another man. How do you think he would feel if something serious had happened to you and he hadn't been able to help you?" With a last look at her he left and returned to his room; hoping that Mystique had either calmed down or was already asleep.
"Still Logan's method of showing her was wrong, Scott!" Moira yelled after him and gave Jean a surprised look when she just left the kitchen.
Upstairs she entered the apartment and found Logan sitting on the sofa and still glaring at the table. She closed the door silently and sat down next to him but without daring to look at the man. Instead her focus was on the by now burning wound above her eye and the new bruise on her wrist and she realized that her cheek must have been bruised in the fight, too, since it began to hurt as well. It was then that she began to realize what he'd meant before. She had been scared to death by his sudden attack and her mind automatically began to imagine how she would have felt if a stranger had done this to her. Looking at him from aside, while he looked back at her, Jean began to pull a face and moved closer to bury her face on his neck. Logan on the contrary pulled her onto his lap and wrapped his arms around her shaking form protectively.
"I didn't mean t'be that harsh…," he mumbled into her hair in barely more than a whisper. "I'm sorry…"
"You scared me…," she sobbed and held onto his shirt.
"I know…," Logan sighed and stroked over her hair. "But, Jean… Don't ya understand that I'm worried if ya refuse to use your powers in dangerous situations?!" he asked. "And worried is a big understatement, girl! Do ya think I want the same happenin' to ya as Sabretooth did t'Ro or my previous partners?"
"The same already happened to me…," he heard her crying into his shirt and sighed.
"How am I supposed to know, Red? Ya never told me what that imposter did t'ya…," Logan replied and pulled her into a sitting position on his lap, before he brushed her hair aside. "Ya never talked about it… What happened back then? Ya know ya can tell me…" Biting her lip hard, Jean looked away, which made him give her a concerned look. "Jean, since it has happened our sex is different… As soon as it gets a bit rougher I can smell fear on ya and that has never been the case before… So what happened, hm?"
Not moving for a while and just staring at her wrists, Jean finally moved so that she was able to rest her head in his chest and wrapped her arms around his waist. His steady heartbeat helped her to calm down a bit and closed her eyes when he reached out to wipe her tears away with a gentle touch. "It was practically the same you did…," she mumbled and knew this would become hard for her.
"What did he do?" Logan asked calmly and cocked an eyebrow at her since she took one of his hands into hers.
"Close your eyes," Jean demanded barely audible and waited for him to do obey, before she did the same and began to show him…
Holding the pillow tight to her head, Jean stared at the opposite wall in the darkness of the room. Even if she tried it, she couldn't find any sleep. Too much of a mess were her emotions and she desperately still tried to find a reason why everything she has was going to hell. Hearing him moving behind her, her heart kicked into high gear when she raised her voice bit. "Do you still love me at all?" she asked him barely audible and heard him turning around a bit. After weeks of just living next to each other without talking to each other at all, she was sick of it.
"Sure," Logan replied and still looked at the opposite wall.
"Then why are you doing this?" Jean asked him despaired and ran a hand through her face, while she felt tears coming up again, as they always did when she thought about her marriage.
"What?" he gave back and she could tell that he was already pissed off again.
"All of this! Your strange behavior, the way you talk to others, how you treat the kids and me…," she listed and rolled onto her back. "Why? I don't understand this. And then the things with Emma. I mean, what are you missing all of a sudden? Everything was fine before you took off to that mission and I refuse to believe that nothing has happened to you." Swallowing to suppress a sob, she began to cry silently. "Don't you realize that everything we have is going to hell?" Stressed, he turned around and looked at her oddly from aside. Reaching out, he grabbed her hand and pulled her over to him, before he turned around completely to pin her down to the mattress by holding her hands firmly over her head. "You're hurting me!" Jean said and tried to free her wrists again, when he suddenly kissed her hard.
"I want it a bit rougher today," Logan growled in a low voice, which made her shiver.
"But I don't want it at all, Logan. Not after everything you've done," she gave back and stared into darkness, knowing that he could probably see her. Gasping when he bit her neck with a growl, she felt his face stopping right next to hers.
"Don't care!" was everything he said before he kissed her roughly once more.
Feeling how his lips crushed on hers with a violent force she'd never felt him using before, Jean felt panic rising within her. She tensed the muscles in her arm and tried to ease the firm grip with which he held her wrist still pinned above her head, but it was completely useless. She shrieked when he suddenly flipped her around and pressed her face down onto the bed. Jean began to concentrate her powers on him, only to realize that nothing happened at all. Before she could think about it any further, a painful gasp escaped her mouth and he used his right hand to pin both arms forcefully onto her back with a menacing low growl. Unable to see anything at all except the blackness of the room, she understood perfectly well what he was about to do. "No!" Jean said panting and arched her back but was pressed down by his weight. Feeling how he strengthened the firm grip on her wrist and grabbed her hip with his other hand, she couldn't help but start crying in fear of what he was about to do; desperately she tried to use her powers against him once more. She heard her heart racing in every inch of her body when he got rid off her panties in a rush. "Please stop it!" Jean begged crying heavily but he only chuckled.
"Ya think you're better than me, darlin'?" he hissed into her right ear while he pushed her wrists upwards until he heard a painful whimper from her.
"No…," she cried and shook her head as good as she could. "I never did, I swear!"
"I don't think so, ya know," he growled and pushed her further down while he smirked about her desperate sobs. "Ya ain't better, Red. You're weak…," he hissed and parted her legs with his knee; ignoring her terrified shriek when his skin touched hers.
"No, please, don't!" Jean begged under her heavy sobs, feeling how a sharp pain rushed down her spine as he strengthened the pressure on her arms again. "I'll sleep with you, but please not like this…Please…" Crying even heavier, she let her head sink in defeat. "Please…"
Pulling her hand away crying, Jean heaved a deep breath before she opened her eyes slowly, just to look into Logan's glaring ones. "Did he do it?!" was all he asked through clenched teeth and his eyes blackened for a brief moment, when Wolverine's rage came to the surface by the thought of another male hurting his mate.
Looking away, Jean nodded weakly still sobbing. "He gave a short laugh only and took what he wanted. Over and over again…," she explained crying and buried her face in his shirt. "And I couldn't do anything… I didn't understand why my powers were failing me back then. He only told me that I was weak and inferior to him and I believed him…"
Shaking his head when he remembered what she'd done in Japan, Logan could only hiss in disbelief. "How could ya do this in Japan, darlin'?!" he asked. "How could ya ask me t'just take ya after what has happened to ya, knowing that Wolverine hated ya?! Do ya know what he could have done t'ya?!"
She snuggled deeper into his embrace and sighed. "Because I know you'd never take me by force, Logan. No matter how pissed off you are, you'd never do this…"
"Jesus, Jeannie…," he only said and shoo his head before he pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her protectively. "Why didn't ya tell me sooner?"
Cuddling up to him, she closed her eyes. "Because it hurts… And too many other things had happened back then…"
"Pity that I killed him," Logan growled full of hatred. "I'd do it painful and slowly now…"
Playing with his shirt absently, Jean heaved a deep breath to calm herself again. "Back then I've thought that it was my fault… That I've provoked him by…well, because of the thing with Scott…," she went on and felt how he was about to reply. "But I've figured now that you were right with the things you've told me about those soldiers in that village in Vietnam…"
"Right with what, Jeannie?!" he asked her softly and tilted his head a bit to have a better look at her.
"That those soldiers didn't possess the bodies of those women or girls, but destroyed their souls by forcing themselves on them…"
"He didn't manage to destroy ya." Logan shook his head and stroked over her cheek absently to wipe her tears away.
"No… No, he didn't," Jean said calmly. "Do you think I'm weak?"
"Are ya kiddin'?"he nearly laughed but kept his voice low because of the children. "Jean. You're the strongest woman I've ever met. Hell, you're the most powerful mutant on this planet. Ya wouldn't be it, if ya were weak, right?" Smirking and trying to cheer her up again, he made her look up. "And besides… The alpha male only mates with the strongest female… Thought ya knew that?" Smiling weakly, Jean raised her head a bit to kiss him. "It's already late. Let's go t'bed." Nodding, she got off if his lap and made her way to the bathroom, while he went to the bedroom to get rid off his shirt and jeans. He waited for her to come out of the bathroom again before he went into it next. Before the redhead lay down in the bed she went over to their children and made sure that the twins and Rachel were still asleep. When she lay in bed, she looked at her wrist again and couldn't stop her thoughts from drifting off to the imposter once more. Before today she hadn't realized that it still bothered her that much. She hadn't noticed that her subconscious still dealt with it, while she thought she was over it. Startling, when the mattress moved a bit, she sighed in relief when she saw that it was only Logan. Since he looked at her worriedly at her, Jean tried to give him a soothing smile.
"Everythin' alright?" he asked and lay down next to her.
"Yeah," she nodded and switched off the lights on her side of the bed.
"You're lyin', Jean…"
Turning around again, she pulled her pillow close but didn't look at him. "I just thought…that I was over it…"
"Ya can't tell me that ya can just forget about it, Jeannie," he replied and supported his head with one arm, while his eyes were fixed on her. "I've seen what he's done t'ya. Ya can be happy that ya dealt with it so well so far. But it's impossible that ya can just forget about it and act as if nothin' has happened. Especially because ya believed it was me back then…"
"I know…," Jean sighed and ran both hands over her tired face when he reached out to touch her arm.
"You're damn tired, darlin'. Let's sleep…," Logan said and turned around to switch off the light on his side of the bed. "We can talk more later if ya want, 'kay?" he added and gave her a look over his shoulder.
"Thanks." Yawing when the lights went out, she heard him moving over a bit to give her a gentle kiss on the cheek, before he withdrew again to give her enough space. "Don't do this!" Jean instantly said and reached out to touch his arm in the dark. "Come here…"
"Ya sure?" Logan asked insecurely but her powers nudged him gently.
Moving over, he was about to wrap his arms around her, when she stopped him and turned around so that her back faced him. Frowning, Logan waited; not knowing what she wanted him to do. In the dark he watched how she looked for his hand. Touching hers, Jean entwined her hand with his and beckoned him to cuddle up to her from behind. Doing so, he nuzzled her neck gently with his nose and placed a gentle kiss on it. "Night…"
Smiling pleasantly while she closed her eyes, Jean pulled his arm even closer and enjoyed the soothing warmth he radiated. "Night," she replied in a whisper and slowly drifted off into oblivion…
Scott only shook his head and ran a hand over his face. "How could you even look at Logan afterwards?" he asked and was still not able to believe what he's just heard.
"It wasn't him…," Jean sighed and looked away.
"I know, but this guy looked like him," he gave back. "You can't tell me that this knowledge didn't affect you…"
"Can we leave it?!" she snapped and gave him an angry look. "It's over!"
"Sorry…," Scott apologized and was surprised about her unusual reaction. He wasn't used to Jean being that angry and especially not that she snapped. "Can you really do nothing about Logan's eyes?" he asked and hoped to change her mood with that question. The only reaction he got from her was a brief shake of her head. "Damn…"
"But I want to help him somehow…," she mumbled and had her eyes fixed on the stone again. "He's used to his senses for 119 years by now… It'll kill him to live without them."
Watching how she buried her face in her hand and shook her head, he laid a hand onto her shoulder. "Can't you do something with your powers?"
"I don't know…," Jean mumbled and bent forward to wipe the snow from the small tree on her son's grave.
"I always wanted to ask what this thing is…," Scott said and nodded at it.
"A Japanese bonsai. A miniature tree," she explained. "Logan must have planted it after he came back from Japan…" After cleaning the stone, too, she got up. "He needs to eat something," she said more to herself than Scott and turned to walk back to the mansion.
"Can I be of any help?" he asked and joined her side.
"I know what you mean, Erik," the Professor said and folded his hands.
"Still you do nothing, Charles," his opposite said and began to pace again. "We can't just sit and wait, we have to do something! This is a war and I intend to fight it!"
Sighing, since it was the at least 8th time that they had this discussion, Charles wheeled around the desk to stop the man from running a whole into his carpet. "We can't do anything because we don't know where our enemy is."
"Why can't you strengthen your powers when you use Cerebro?" Magneto asked angrily. "It doesn't matter if you kill them or not."
"It's not that easy!"
"What about your great X-Men then?" he asked next and crossed his arms while he glared at the man in front of him. "Or Phoenix? She's a level 5 mutant and playing housewife here."
"Erik, stop it!" the Professor said sharply and narrowed his eyes. "What do you think did we try in the past months? We tried to find them, we tried to fight them… No one knows where our enemy is hiding. We've groups all around the world and no one has seen Sinister or Apocalypse."
"Which groups?" Erik asked since he had no idea what the man was talking about.
"Logan has contacted old groups he once worked with. They help us and we exchange information we have with them," Charles explained and saw that his opposite began to smirk.
"So…you have finally told him about his past?"
"No, Logan began to remember on his own."
Nodding, Magneto walked over to the window and looked out. "About what he did, too?" he asked after a while and his smile grew when the Professor looked away. "I see… Still afraid to lose your precious X-Man…"
"It wasn't Logan's fault!" the bald man said and ignored his friend's low chuckle. "He didn't know what he was doing! He was used by Stryker!"
"He's an animal, Charles," Magneto replied and his smile was gone. Instead his face masked the hate within him. "An animal that runs on instincts and is not any better than Sabretooth!"
"And still Victor was your ally for quiet some time," Charles gave back. "Logan is not like him! He has changed a lot and suffers greatly from his memories."
Shaking his head, Erik walked over to the door; signaling that he was done with their conversation. "You can turn a man into an animal, but you can't turn an animal into a man," he said while opening the door and closed it behind him. Inside his office, the Professor sighed and ran his hand over his face. He had guessed that living with the Brotherhood under one roof would become problematic, but he'd never imagined how problematic…
"So?" Pyro asked and leant against the wall with his arms crossed, while Cain was right next to him.
"It seems we have to do it on our own," Magneto snarled and lead the way down the corridor. "The X-Men prefer to hide in their precious house and wait for the enemy to knock on their doors…"
"Excuse me…," a male voice suddenly said and they turned around. "We're looking for the Professor."
"Then go on looking," Pyro snarled, which made Juggernaut laugh.
"Please," Magneto said with a glare. "He's where he usually is."
"Which is?" the woman asked.
"In his office down the corridor," the man replied and left with his small group.
"Wasn't that Magneto?" the man asked the green-haired woman, who shrugged and both of them walked down the corridor until they reached a door that read Professor Charles Xavier and knocked.
"Please come in, Alex," Charles said and smiled at the man when he entered the room. "I am so glad to see you again."
"Same here, Professor," the man smiled and took the hand he was offered. "This is my fiancée, Lorna Dane."
"Nice to meet you, sir," the woman smiled and shook the bald man's hand.
"You said something about a problem," Alex said and crossed his arms. "I hope it has nothing to do with my brother…"
"No, it is not about Scott," Charles waved off. "I know the two of you had some…difficulties in the past and haven't talked to each other in quiet a while." Alex nodded. "Why don't you sit down while I tell you why I called you?" the Professor smiled and beckoned them to sit down on the sofas.
Later the day, the X-Men gathered in the kitchen for the casual dinner. While the Professor led Alex and Lorna to the room, Scott, Mystique and Alex went downstairs, too and the man froze at the door when he noticed who Charles was introducing to the others. "What is he doing here?" he asked with a look at his brother through his visor and began to ask himself if the others had known.
"The Professor has called me," Alex gave back in the same chilly voice and crossed his arms.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Scott asked the bald man and hid his anger and surprise as good as he could.
"What's wrong with him being here?" Mystique asked him and pulled their son up. "Who is he?"
"Alex, Scott's younger brother," Hank explained and patted the man's shoulder happily. "It's been a long time, my friend. How many years?"
"I don't know…," the blonde man shrugged. "At least 20."
"And who is that lady?" Hank smiled and shook Lorna's hand.
"Lorna Dane, my wife."
"Wife?!" Scott asked shocked and looked to and fro between them.
"Yes, wife!" his brother snapped. "Do you have a problem with it?"
"Did I say that?!"
"Guys, please," Ororo sighed and gave an annoyed look. "Is it still the same after all those years? Can you not sit down and talk like normal people?" Getting up, she shook Lorna's hand. "Nice to meet you. I'm…"
"Ororo Munroe, I know," the greenhead smiled. "Alex told me a lot about you guys."
"So…," Alex said and looked around. "A lots of new faces…"
"You will get to know the team very quickly," the Professor said with a smile. "I am sure Ororo and Hank will be so nice to show you to your rooms after dinner."
"Of course," the furry mutant smiled. "We have a lot of catch up to do."
"I believe that," Alex smiled and sat down next to them with Lorna. After he had taken another look around, he turned to his brother. "So…where's Jean?"
"Probably still upstairs to get the children," Scott shrugged and still had his arms crossed to show his disapproval.
"So you have children with her?"
"No…"
"No?" Alex asked and frowned. "But you just said…"
"She's not my girlfriend anymore," Scott sighed and gave the bowl with rice over to Mystique when his brother chuckled. "What's so funny?!"
"I'm impressed, really…," Alex smirked. "The two inseparables are not an item anymore." Shaking his head, he entwined his hand with his wife. "She left you, hm?"
"No, not really," his brother hissed through clenched teeth and wished he could blast him, as Mystique entwined their hands, too and gave him an encouraging smile. "But this is Raven my girlfriend," he went on and watched how Alex's eyes switched to the blue woman next to him. "And our son, Alex Logan," Scott added with pride in his voice, since he could tell that his brother hadn't had children.
"I see…," the blonde man nodded and switched his eyes from the boy back to the others. "So, who's the father of Jean's children then?"
"Logan is," Ororo told him. "But I you'll be able to meet him, he'll…"
"Logan?!" Alex asked surprised and leant forward a bit. "The Wolverine? He's here?!"
"How come you know Logan?" Hank asked him, but both Lorna and Alex laughed.
"Oh, come on, who doesn't?" the woman asked amused. "Logan worked with Alex and me in Mexico for a while. We already wondered where he was."
Scott snorted. "Did he work with every mutant on this planet?!"
"So he's with Jean now?" Alex asked; ignoring his brother's statement and saw a girl he didn't know nodding. "Good choice," he said impressed and smirked when Scott snorted once more.
"You really need to eat something," Jean sighed and still remained at the door while she looked at the man on the bed. "You haven't eaten anything in three days, Logan."
"What do you care?!" he grunted and rolled onto his other side so that his back was facing her. "Go downstairs or out of the room, but just leave me the hell alone!"
Only shaking her head, she closed the door and left the apartment with Jamie on her arm to meet the rest of her children downstairs.
"Where's daddy?" Rachel asked her mother and gave her a confused look.
"He's sleeping," the redhead replied and began to lead the way to the kitchen.
"But you've talked with daddy, so how can he be sleeping?" Laura asked and waited for a reply, but Jean didn't give one.
"He's not coming again?" Moira asked when the woman entered the room and put Jamie into his highchair. Only receiving a shake of the head, she sighed. "He needs to eat. Tell him he can't do this again!"
"Tell him yourself," Jean snapped and earned surprised looks from everyone. Running a hand over her face, she heaved a deep breath. "I'm sorry… I didn't mean to snap…"
"God, is he cute," Lorna purred and stroked over Jamie's cheek with a wide smile, but withdrew her hand quickly when Jack lashed out at her with a growl. "Hey!"
"I don't know you, so stop touching my brother!" the boy grunted and Alex laughed aloud.
"Yeah, definitely Logan's son," he chuckled and smiled at Jean. "Hi, Jean."
"What are you doing here?" the redhead asked surprised and noticed the sour look on Scott's face.
"The Professor gave us a call," the man explained and she nodded. "So….you're Logan's girl, hm? How is the ol' Cunucklehead?"
"Difficult…," Jean mumbled more to herself and frowned when Lily jumped off of her stool with a bottle in her hand and was joined by her twin brother, who carried a plate with food. "We're eating here!"
"But daddy needs food," the girl complained and followed her brother without giving her mother a second glance. This one only rubbed her temples and heaved a deep breath.
"He's still making problems, hm?" Scott asked her.
"He's…difficult…," she mumbled and summoned the bowl with chicken over to her with her powers.
"When is he not?" Alex said with a shrug and gave his wife a smile before he began to eat.
Upstairs Logan still lay on bed with his back facing the door when he heard a noise and raised his head. "Daddy?" Lily asked carefully and waited for him to sit up.
"What, pumkin?" he asked and ran a hand through his tousled hair.
"We brought you food," Jack said and held the plate up to him.
"Put it on the bedside table, will ya?" Logan said with a nod to the left. "I'll eat it later." He was well aware of the fact that the twins could pick up on the mess he was within and he hoped they wouldn't notice that he couldn't see what they were doing right now. He still had no idea how to tell the, about his state…
"Are you sick, daddy?" Lily asked and touched his arm with a worried look.
"Somethin' like that…," he grunted as a reply and kept his eyes downcast.
"Why are you not playing with us anymore?" his son asked and gave him a disappointed look. "You haven't even gone out with us in the first snow…"
"I know," Logan sighed and ran a hand over his face. "I'm sorry, kid…"
"And mommy is weird, too…," the boy went on.
"Don't you like us anymore?" Lily asked barely audible and had her eyes fixed on the ground. For days she was asking herself this question since their parents behaved odd and their father hardly spoke to them at all.
"'f course we do!" Logan replied and felt how his heart had gained speed. "Pumkin, you're our babies. What makes ya think that?!"
"Because you don't talk to us or play with us anymore?" Jack asked and crossed his arms.
"This has nothin' t'do with ya," his father said and shook his head; knowing that he had to tell them the truth. "I don't play with ya anymore, because…because I can't…"
"Why?" Lily asked and made a step back.
Thinking about what to say, Logan heaved a deep sigh and pulled his legs closer to rest his arms in his knees. "Look… The last mission I went on… Well somethin' went wrong and…I got hurt, okay?"
"So you are sick?!" Jack asked.
"No…"
"Then what?!"
"My eyes got hurt…," Logan tried to explain and heard Lily gasping. "Pretty bad and… Well, I can't see…" Hearing nothing from then, he began to concentrate his senses on his twins. While Lily's heart had begun to race, Jack radiated fear. "I would play with ya…, ya know that, kiddo. But I can't…"
"Never again?" the girl whispered frightened and turned to run away when she received a shake of her father's head.
"You're a liar!" Jack suddenly said and his voice sounded angry and like crying at the same time.
"I ain't lyin', Jack!" Logan replied darkly.
"You and mommy have promised us that you wouldn't go on missions anymore and you still do and get hurt!" the boy sobbed. "You promised us to stay home with us and you lied!"
"I know we said it…," his father sighed and supported his head with one hand. "You're t'small t'understand why we have t'go on missions…"
"We're not and you lied!" Jack yelled crying. "I hate you and mommy!" Turning, the boy slammed the door shut behind him and left Logan staring into nothingness, before he grabbed the first thing he could and threw it against the opposite wall. After he'd let himself fall backwards onto the bed and had covered his eyes with one arm, he felt something wet on his cheeks.
"Ya angry, too?" Logan grunted and reached out to stroke Miloh's fur. "Where's your mate, eh?" He heard how the wolf lay down next to him and rested his head on his stomach. "Fine, then stay here…. I ain't feelin' like lookin' for the door anyway…," he mumbled and continued to stroke absently through the soft, white fur of his wolf, while his thoughts dealt with something else.
In the kitchen John's head had shot up when his senses picked up on something. "Jean," he said and made the redhead look up. "The twins are crying down the corridor…"
Sighing, Jean got up and made her way down to the foyer where the sobs became louder. Since she was being followed by Ororo, Scott and John, who had all been alarmed since it rarely happened that the twins cried, she knelt down next to them and laid a hand on their shoulder. "Baby, what's wrong?" the redhead asked in a soothing voice.
"Go away!" Jack instantly snapped and pulled away from her touch.
"Honey, what happened?" Ororo tried it next and made Lily look up. The girl instantly wrapped her arms around her waist and began to sob into it. "Baby, what's wrong? Has daddy been mean to you?" the woman asked worriedly but the girl shook her head.
"Leave me alone!" Jack suddenly barked and slashed out at his mother with a growl. "You're a liar, go away!"
"What do you mean, Jack?!" Jean asked in confusion and had begun to frown. "Why am I a liar?"
"Because you keep on promising things and don't keep to it!" her son shot back crying. "You and daddy promised us to not go on mission anymore and you still do and now he's gotten hurt!"
Feeling how her heart clenched painfully, Jean looked up when the Professor came closer with a concerned look on his face. "Baby…," she began and reached out to touch Jack, when this one extracted his claws and growled at her warningly. "Honey, calm down!"
"I fucking hate you!" the boy yelled and began to pant when his eyes blackened in rage.
"Calm down!" Jean said and tried to grab her son when he got caught in a berserker rage she had never witnessed before.
"Let me do it," John said and pulled her aside. "I heal, you don't." About to grab the boy, he withdrew his hand quickly when the bone claws slashed out at him and snarled back when the growl of the boy became louder.
"It's okay, sweety…," Ororo cooed and rocked Lily back and forth. "Calm down and then we talk, okay?" She looked up when Jean called her son's name and saw how the boy stormed down the corridor after fighting against John and leaving a wound in the man's arm. "You alright?" she asked shocked but he waved off since the wound was already healing. "Jeez, he has never been like that!"
"Lily," the Professor asked and the girl looked up with a tearstained face. "What happened? What did your father say that upset you so much?"
"That…that he got hurt and…and can't see," Lily sniffed into Ororo's arms and buried her head again.
"We need to find the boy before he runs off or hurts himself," John suggested. "In that state he doesn't realize what he's doing or where he's going. His instincts probably tell him to run."
"Would you go looking for him, please?" the bald man asked and received a nod. "And Jean," the Professor added after John had run off. "We really need to talk. Follow me, please."
"I told you before, Charles, that I…," the redhead began and returned the look her former mentor gave her. "I have to look for my son," she said and got up.
"No, John will be fine and he has already asked Scott and Hank for help," the Professor said. "Follow me, please!"
"We don't need to talk!" Jean snapped and turned around to walk down the corridor next.
"What is wrong with her?" Ororo asked and still held Lily close. When she saw the look Charles gave her she made the girl look up. "Honey, why don't you go upstairs to daddy and make sure that he eats, hm?" She gave the girl a warm smile and a kiss on the forehead before she watched how Lily obeyed and left them alone. "Since Jean is back she is so distant and weird… It can't be the stress with Logan only…"
"I know what you mean, Ororo," Charles said and wheeled next to the woman back to his office. "I don't know but her brainwaves are different… But I can't tell why. And that she refuses to talk to me is…really not helping."
"What about Logan?" she asked and stopped at his door. "His depressions don't only affect his family and relationship with Jean, he also affects the team by now…"
"You know that if he refuses to talk to others, no one can make him," he replied and shook his head with a concerned look on it. "But I might know someone, who can…"
"Do you smell him?" Hank asked and was glad that his fur protected him against the cold. "The traced indicate that he had run into the wood…"
"Then we better hope he hasn't fallen into the hole in the ground," Scott mumbled and began to follow John through the thick snow.
Somewhere in the wood, Jack had stopped running and was panting heavily in exhaustion. His eyes were still dark and glaring and his heavy and fast breathing was reflected in the cold air. Thick tears were running down his cheeks in anger when he clenched his fists and bared his teeth and the boy didn't even realize how far away from the mansion he really was. He couldn't hear the voices in the mansion anymore or smell the smoke from the chimney. All he heard was the silence of the wood and the wind that played with the branches that were covered with snow. His sense told him that darkness would follow soon and also that it would start to snow. Jack began to shiver as he realized how cold it really was and felt how his healing factor kicked in to keep him from freezing too much. "Poor boy…," he heard someone saying and turned with a growl.
"Who's there?!" he asked and began to look around when a noise on his right caught his attention. Jack watched how a man, who wasn't as tall as his father but as muscular as him, stepped out of the shadows and smirked at him. "Who are you?"
"A friend…," the man replied and stopped still smirking. "Aren't you a bit far from home?"
"What do you care?!" Jack grunted and gave a stone a good kick, but still paid attention to the man's movements. His eyes scanned the man from head to toe, took notice of the nearly black eyes and messy black hair. Somehow, the boy thought, the man looked familiar. "Do I know you?"
"No, but I know you," the man smiled and lowered himself a bit onto his knees to be on eyelevel with the boy. "You're Jack, right?" he asked and received a weak nod. "I'm Daken."
"What are you doing in the wood?" Jack asked and crossed his arms.
"Taking a walk and you?" Daken asked and received another shrug. "Why are you crying?"
"Because they are mean…," the boy replied and wiped his tears away.
"Daddy's been mean to you?"
"I hate him," Jack mumbled with narrowed eyes. "And mommy, too…"
"Well…,"the older man shrugged with a smirk. "That's how parents are…"
Hearing it, the boy looked up and met his opposite's gaze. "Are your parents the same?"
"I don't have any," Daken replied with a stern face and saw how Jack's eyes grew wide in surprise.
"Why?"
"My father abandoned me, you know," the man replied and got up again while his eyes were fixed at a spot behind Jack.
"And your mommy?" this one replied. "Why don't you have a mommy?"
"My father has killed her," Daken said darkly and made the boy back off.
"Your daddy killed your mommy?" Jack asked with a frown and received a nod. "But why?"
"Because my dad's evil," the man hissed. "My dad's not what everyone thinks he is. He is a selfish bastard, he only thinks about himself and prefers to run away from his problems."
Thinking about what he has heard, Jack looked up again. "I wouldn't like your daddy either…"
Chuckling, Daken nodded. "But you know what's the funny thing about this situation is, Jack?"
"No, what?"
"Jack, come here!" Scott said aloud and stopped right next to a tree while his hand was on his glasses. "Step away from him!"
"Why?" the boy asked in confusion and looked to and fro between the smirking Daken and his angry uncles.
"Come here, boy," Hank snarled and bared his teeth at their adversary as a warning, while John had even popped his claws and growled.
"Do what they say before they start a brawl and get hurt," Daken winked at Jack, who obeyed and stopped next to Hank.
"What do you want this time?!" Scott asked and made another step forward so that the boy was behind him.
Daken buried his hands in his jeans pockets with another chuckle. "What?" he asked arrogantly. "Am I not allowed to talk to my little brother?" he asked with a nod at Jack.
"You have no business here!" John growled and came slowly closer. "Leave the boy alone!"
"Shut up, Uncle!" his opposite snarled and popped his claws, too since he felt threatened. "I can talk to him whenever I want!"
"He has claws, too," Jack said in awe and received a smirk from the man.
"Of course I do," Daken replied. "We're half-brothers. Didn't your daddy or dear Uncle John, tell you?"
"Leave!" Hank growled and got in a position to fight, while Scott had one hand on Jack's shoulder and was pulling him away from the scenery; still the other hand ready and on his glasses.
"What…what does he mean, Uncle Scott?" Jack asked and looked up at the man, who was about to reply.
"Nothing," John said and stopped right in front of Daken. "He meant nothing!"
"What I meant was…," his opposite said instead and looked right into Jack's eyes. "That we have the same father… You should ask your daddy about me. I bet he denies it." Putting as much disgust into the last sentence as he could, he pushed John roughly away. "Tell my father that he should watch his back!" he growled and turned around to leave, but stopped to give the boy another look. "Bye, Jack."
Watching how the man disappeared into the dark wood, Jack was still staring at the spot when Scott pulled him up and began to walk back towards the mansion. He didn't listen to the sermon the men gave him. He was completely occupied with thinking about what the man had told him. Due to his senses he was able to tell that the man hadn't lied, but what the man called Daken has said was too confusing for him to understand it.
"Where has he been?" Jean asked and took her son from Scott.
"In the wood," this one said and sighed. "Talking to Daken…"
"What?!" the redhead asked and her eyes had widened.
"It's true," John nodded after locking the door behind them. "They were talking to each other."
"Did he hurt you?" she asked her son and began to check on him, when Jack pulled away until she had to let go of him. Only giving her an angry look, the boy turned and ran away again. "Did he hurt him?!" she asked the men.
"No," Hank replied and shook his head but with a serious look on his face. "But Daken told him that he and Jack are half brothers…" He watched how Jean narrowed his eyes and would have sworn that they had blackened for less than a second.
"Not only that…," John suddenly said and earned confused glances. "I heard the whole thing. He also told Jack that Logan has killed his mother and had abandoned him. I can sense that the boy is confused now… You should tell Logan to explain the situation to him." With a nod at Scott he turned.
"We go and make a team that will stay up all night and watch over the mansion," Scott informed Jean and received a nod. "Tell Logan about it! Hank, would you inform the Professor?"
"Of course," the man nodded and watched them leaving, before he joined the redhead and walked down the corridor. "Will you be fine with talking to Logan?"
"I think so…," she mumbled and was stopped by him.
"Jean…are you alright?" Hank asked her in a concerned voice. "Since you're back, you're so…distant. We are worried."
"I'm fine," Jean only said and left him in the middle of the corridor.
"I don't think so…," he mumbled and looked down before he turned to make his way to Charles office.
This chapter was supposed to be even longer, but I already reached 40 pages… More than I wanted to write. Anyway, I am terribly that this chapter took so long. I had typed up to page 16 in the US and all scenes except the introduction of Havok and Lorna, the Daken scene at the end and the conversation with Magneto were pre-written as dialogue scenes long ago, but I had a writer's block when I were back home and couldn't type more than 26 pages. So….I am glad that I finally finished this chapter, even if it turned out to be different than I expected it to be… Please forgive me for not updating sooner and I really wanna know what you guys think about this. Please review!!!! See ya!