Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Her legs burned as she pumped them harder and harder, quickly covering the ground in front of her. Her feet were torn and battered, having been cut by the rocks on the ground under her heels.

The night air was sharp, stinging her lungs, but she ignored it, pushing forward, to what she didn't know. She only knew what she was leaving behind.

Her toe caught and she felt herself fall forward and she fell onto her palms, the same rocks that had been cutting into her feet now cutting into her hands, arms, and face as she rolled and skidded to a stop.

With a gasp she lifted herself into her knees and elbows, shaking her head trying to clear it, but she was so tired, all she needed was a few hours sleep.

She rolled onto her back and closed her eyes and she was fast asleep before the first drops of rain hit her face.

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The X-men sat in the war room, watching as Bishop debriefed them on what had happened earlier yesterday morning. They all knew that Claire was gone; they all knew she was the only one who knew where Charles Xavier was.

What they didn't know was where Claire was.

"We scanned the surrounding area, however the recent rain washed away any traces she may have left, however it is doubtful that there were any." Bishop said, leaning back in his chair.

"Where do we go from here?" Asked Storm, brushing her long white hair out of her face.

The woman called Misty leaned forward, having been watching the proceedings in silence. "I may be new to this game, but wouldn't it be best to just go out and look for her? I mean, how far could she have gotten?"

Logan looked at the woman, "If she don't want to be found, she won't be found darlin." he said, tipping his hat back with his hand as he watched her.

Cable nodded, "Normally I might be able to contact her, but her brainwaves are not normal and there for I can't seem to get a lock on her. The professor might be able to, however he isn't here."

Scott clenched his hand, he hated feeling helpless. "We need to find her so we can find him, but we can't find her without him." He shook his head.

Misty sat back and slumped in her chair.

"You got something to say darlin?" Logan asked.

"Yeah, you can find her ya know, you just have to think outside the box."

Bishop gave her a dry look, "think outside the box?"

Misty nodded, "yeah. You see the reason you don't think you can find her is because you're worried about your traditional methods. Well Claire isn't your traditional person. If you want to find her you need to think like her."

"The problem is," Scott replied, "is that no one knows how she thinks."

Storm shook her head, "and we are all to blame for that. Perhaps if we had all made more effort we wouldn't be in this predicament now, however I have to disagree with you Scott." She turned to look at Remy.

"There is one person who knows how she thinks."

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The man stopped walking as he saw something in the distance. Setting his umbrella aside he walked towards it, allowing the rain to fall onto his dark hair and into his hazel eyes.

As he got closer he saw it was the crumpled form of a woman lying prone in the mud. Moving quickly he reached her side and knelt down next to her, moving her hair out of her face, and then he froze.

She was bruised and battered, but he still recognized her. He would recognize her anywhere.

"We meet again," he whispered softly, lifting her gently so he didn't disturb her. He didn't want to alarm her, not after last time.

He left his umbrella in the dirt, smiling to himself as he carried his burden through the woods. For once the fates seemed to be smiling on him.

He had searched for her for years, and finally he found her, she had dropped right into his lap.

Now things could be set right.