Chapter 2
After the drive back to the town that Logan was staying in, with his new "guest", he pulled up in front of the local Bar & Grill. He hopped off and put the kickstand down and she followed. She pulled her long, still damp hair back into a ponytail, not looking too much like she just got pulled out of a lake. She looked at him and smiled slightly at where they were, "These places are always fun." He nodded and walked to the door with her and opened it as she walked in first, followed by him.
They looked around and he nudged her lightly to one of the open booths, "I'll be there in a minute kid, just gotta make a phone call." She made a slight face at being called kid again and headed for the table, plopping into one of the seats as she looked around at the people. "Not too many drunks right now... what a shame," She said to herself with a smirk as she tucked her dogtags into her shirt.
Logan approached the payphone, slipping a couple coins into the slot and dialed up the number for the mansion. "Hello?" Logan could hear the Boy Scout-type voice of Scott. "Put the professor on one-eye," he said gruffly. "Oh, it's you Logan... Hey, I'd better get my motorcycle back in one piec-" There was a sigh on Scott's end as something cut him off as the phone was given to Xavier, "Hello Logan, how is your trip going?"
Logan glanced around, kinda liking to hear Chuck's voice again, "Trip's goin' alright... had a set back at the compound though."
"What kind of set back, if you don't mind my asking?" Xavier responded.
Logan took a slight breath, remembering the days events, "A kid was stayin' there from what it looked like, and a little after I got there, she was followed by a bunch of soldiers who attacked us. I got the kid with me now... there's something familiar about her."
There was a pause before Xavier spoke; most likely, he was thinking it over, "Are any of the soldiers still alive? And what exactly about the girl is familiar? Did you have time to look around?"
Logan glanced over at the girl who sat quietly, looking around, "I don't think any of the soldiers that were there were left, except for one that she sent back with a message to whoever sent them after her. The girl can fight; I'll give her that. She just acts familiar; her scent's familiar too. I didn't have any time to look around much, but the kid is wearin' a dogtag like mine... I'm wondering if she knows anything."
"That may very well be a possibility. When do you think you will be coming back?" Xavier responded.
"I'll probably be back in a day or two... I'm pretty much done here, and I dunno what kinda surveillance they'll have over the compound now, so I don't think I'll be heading back any time soon," Logan said, looking back to the phone, knowing he didn't have much time left on it.
"Alright, that sounds good. You'll be bringing the girl back with you I assume...?" Xavier responded after a moment.
"Yea', probably a good idea with those guys after her. I dunno, maybe I'm going soft, but there's something about her," Logan said as he looked back to the girl. "Well, I gotta go, almost outta time. I'll talk to ya when I get back Chuck."
"Splendid. We'll be looking forward to both of your arrivals. Talk to you soon Logan," Xavier said with a slight smile.
"Yea', talk to ya later," Logan replied as he hung up before Scott could start in again about his motorcycle. He glanced around then went over to the table and slid into the seat across from Catalyst, "So... what kind of a name is Catalyst?" He had used that same line on Rogue when he had found her.
She smirked and shrugged, "I don't know, the kind that you're forced to pick up? You know, you look familiar...."
He looked at her when she said that, the look in his eyes making her glance away for a moment, "Really? Why's that?"
She looked back to him, "I dunno... How exactly did you find the compound on the Lake? They don't exactly advertise the location."
He smirked slightly, "I noticed... Mr. High and Mighty tried to give me the 3rd degree on trespassing. "
Catalyst snickered slightly, "That sounds like something John'd do. He's been after me twice now, and he just keeps getting more and more full of himself."
Logan thought about that, "So you knew all those guys? Where'd they come from?"
She looked at him again as the waitress came to the table, "I'll have some coffee, and some eggs."
"What about you doll? What ya want?" The waitress asked, looking at Logan, obviously trying to flirt through visual contact with him.
"I'll have a beer and some chicken," Logan said, ignoring the flirtatious looks and watched the girl.
After the waitress left, a bit red from being shot down, Catalyst looked back to Logan, "Sorry about that, but I don't like to talk about stuff like that with other people around. We all came from a military base about 10 miles north of where the Lake is."
"And how didja know about the base? What kinda base are ya from?" Logan asked, hoping that he didn't sound too nosy; he just wanted some damn answers that might lead to who he was.
She looked at him, chewing her lip slightly, not sure how much she should tell him. She glanced around, then looked to the table, "I grew up for a few years at the base at Alkali Lake, when I was little, before it was destroyed by a person that wanted out. The base that we're from isn't too much unlike it; it was built after the one at the Lake was destroyed, to replace it. It's pretty much a prison for people like me... and you I assume. It's a mutant experimentation lab." She grew silent quickly, staring at the table as her fingers rubbed her right wrist gently.
Logan froze as he watched her explain the base, flashes of his past racing in his head. He sat quietly for several moments, thinking that he might have actually found something on his trip that was worth it, a person that had actually been there at the lab. Finally, after she shifted in discomfort at the silence he looked at her wrist and took it gently, though she tugged slightly away out of reflex. He looked at the dark bar code-type tattoo that covered her wrist, along with the number 711766, "So you were one of the lab-rats too?" She nodded silently, looking up at him as he gently released her as he nodded slightly, sitting back in his seat.
After the drive back to the town that Logan was staying in, with his new "guest", he pulled up in front of the local Bar & Grill. He hopped off and put the kickstand down and she followed. She pulled her long, still damp hair back into a ponytail, not looking too much like she just got pulled out of a lake. She looked at him and smiled slightly at where they were, "These places are always fun." He nodded and walked to the door with her and opened it as she walked in first, followed by him.
They looked around and he nudged her lightly to one of the open booths, "I'll be there in a minute kid, just gotta make a phone call." She made a slight face at being called kid again and headed for the table, plopping into one of the seats as she looked around at the people. "Not too many drunks right now... what a shame," She said to herself with a smirk as she tucked her dogtags into her shirt.
Logan approached the payphone, slipping a couple coins into the slot and dialed up the number for the mansion. "Hello?" Logan could hear the Boy Scout-type voice of Scott. "Put the professor on one-eye," he said gruffly. "Oh, it's you Logan... Hey, I'd better get my motorcycle back in one piec-" There was a sigh on Scott's end as something cut him off as the phone was given to Xavier, "Hello Logan, how is your trip going?"
Logan glanced around, kinda liking to hear Chuck's voice again, "Trip's goin' alright... had a set back at the compound though."
"What kind of set back, if you don't mind my asking?" Xavier responded.
Logan took a slight breath, remembering the days events, "A kid was stayin' there from what it looked like, and a little after I got there, she was followed by a bunch of soldiers who attacked us. I got the kid with me now... there's something familiar about her."
There was a pause before Xavier spoke; most likely, he was thinking it over, "Are any of the soldiers still alive? And what exactly about the girl is familiar? Did you have time to look around?"
Logan glanced over at the girl who sat quietly, looking around, "I don't think any of the soldiers that were there were left, except for one that she sent back with a message to whoever sent them after her. The girl can fight; I'll give her that. She just acts familiar; her scent's familiar too. I didn't have any time to look around much, but the kid is wearin' a dogtag like mine... I'm wondering if she knows anything."
"That may very well be a possibility. When do you think you will be coming back?" Xavier responded.
"I'll probably be back in a day or two... I'm pretty much done here, and I dunno what kinda surveillance they'll have over the compound now, so I don't think I'll be heading back any time soon," Logan said, looking back to the phone, knowing he didn't have much time left on it.
"Alright, that sounds good. You'll be bringing the girl back with you I assume...?" Xavier responded after a moment.
"Yea', probably a good idea with those guys after her. I dunno, maybe I'm going soft, but there's something about her," Logan said as he looked back to the girl. "Well, I gotta go, almost outta time. I'll talk to ya when I get back Chuck."
"Splendid. We'll be looking forward to both of your arrivals. Talk to you soon Logan," Xavier said with a slight smile.
"Yea', talk to ya later," Logan replied as he hung up before Scott could start in again about his motorcycle. He glanced around then went over to the table and slid into the seat across from Catalyst, "So... what kind of a name is Catalyst?" He had used that same line on Rogue when he had found her.
She smirked and shrugged, "I don't know, the kind that you're forced to pick up? You know, you look familiar...."
He looked at her when she said that, the look in his eyes making her glance away for a moment, "Really? Why's that?"
She looked back to him, "I dunno... How exactly did you find the compound on the Lake? They don't exactly advertise the location."
He smirked slightly, "I noticed... Mr. High and Mighty tried to give me the 3rd degree on trespassing. "
Catalyst snickered slightly, "That sounds like something John'd do. He's been after me twice now, and he just keeps getting more and more full of himself."
Logan thought about that, "So you knew all those guys? Where'd they come from?"
She looked at him again as the waitress came to the table, "I'll have some coffee, and some eggs."
"What about you doll? What ya want?" The waitress asked, looking at Logan, obviously trying to flirt through visual contact with him.
"I'll have a beer and some chicken," Logan said, ignoring the flirtatious looks and watched the girl.
After the waitress left, a bit red from being shot down, Catalyst looked back to Logan, "Sorry about that, but I don't like to talk about stuff like that with other people around. We all came from a military base about 10 miles north of where the Lake is."
"And how didja know about the base? What kinda base are ya from?" Logan asked, hoping that he didn't sound too nosy; he just wanted some damn answers that might lead to who he was.
She looked at him, chewing her lip slightly, not sure how much she should tell him. She glanced around, then looked to the table, "I grew up for a few years at the base at Alkali Lake, when I was little, before it was destroyed by a person that wanted out. The base that we're from isn't too much unlike it; it was built after the one at the Lake was destroyed, to replace it. It's pretty much a prison for people like me... and you I assume. It's a mutant experimentation lab." She grew silent quickly, staring at the table as her fingers rubbed her right wrist gently.
Logan froze as he watched her explain the base, flashes of his past racing in his head. He sat quietly for several moments, thinking that he might have actually found something on his trip that was worth it, a person that had actually been there at the lab. Finally, after she shifted in discomfort at the silence he looked at her wrist and took it gently, though she tugged slightly away out of reflex. He looked at the dark bar code-type tattoo that covered her wrist, along with the number 711766, "So you were one of the lab-rats too?" She nodded silently, looking up at him as he gently released her as he nodded slightly, sitting back in his seat.