He lied on the exam table, tears pouring from his eyes. No one had
ever seen him cry before. No one thought he was capable. He gripped his
lovely wife's hand, who was crying also.
Professor Xavier took off the Cerebra helmet. He bowed his head in remorse and regret. He had vowed to bring Logan's memories back and piece by tiny piece, he did. But this newly recovered memory was probably left best forgotten.
Logan recovered the memory of his 27th birthday. He thought his wife, his true love, had died that day. She didn't, but was really killed by Sabretooth years later. He never knew he had a daughter. Fox probably didn't remember, either. The Weapon X program made sure of that.
He had a daughter. A daughter! A daughter by blood. He had adopted two teenage girls five years ago, after he had married his new wife, Natalie. They were sweet girls he had raised even before their official adoption. He loved them, but still had a void in his heart. He always wondered why. Was it Silver Fox he was missing? Or perhaps Mariko Yashida? But after today's session with Xavier, he knew. Marnie.
Natalie and his daughters, Amiko and Jubilee, had witnessed the memory thru telepathic projection. The girls were silent on their way back to their suite in the X-Mansion. Their mother consoled their father in whispers as he continued to cry. After they arrived, the girls watched TV while Logan and Natalie went to their bedroom.
"I feel so awful," Logan said. His head lay on Natalie's shoulder as she ran her fingers thru his hair in attempt of calming him.
"It's not your fault," his Asian rose whispered into his ear. "You didn't kill her. You tried to save her."
"By telling her ta run inta the woods?"
"What else could you have done?" his wife asked.
Logan sat silent. She was right. He did all he could. "But not only did I let her die…I forgot her. What kinda parent forgets 'bout his own flesh an' blood?"
"You didn't choose to forget. You didn't choose to be part of Weapon X. You didn't choose any of this."
"That should make me feel better, huh?" He paused, trying to hold back more tears. He can't. They come pouring again. "But it still hurts…" He cringed in Natalie's arms, sobbing now. She rocked him and kissed him, not knowing what else to do.
Xavier sat at his desk, rubbing his temples.
"Something wrong, Professor?" a female voice asked from the opened door.
He looked up and saw his first two students, Jean and Scott Summers. He sighed. "Yes. Of all the memories I have helped Logan recover, today's is one I wish I hadn't."
The couple walked to his desk and sat in the chairs provided. "What happened?" Jean asked.
Xavier sighed again. "Today, Logan learned he had a daughter with his first wife, Silver Fox."
The couple's eyes widened. "That's wonderful," Jean said.
"No, it's not," Xavier said. "Sabretooth killed her on his 27th birthday. She was only four years old."
The room fell silent. Jean covered her mouth in shock. Scott stared downwards. Xavier massaged his temples again. "It was painful," he said. "Logan felt as if acid was slowly burning away his body without his healing factor to compensate. He…cried."
"Wolverine? Cry?" Scott didn't know the man had tear ducts.
"It was more than tears. He sobbed and moaned. He grieved beyond what any human has ever grieved. He hurt more than when you witnessed Jean kill herself."
Scott remembered what that was like. He, himself, died that day as well—spiritually. He couldn't imagine what Logan felt. He didn't want to.
Then an idea struck him. "Professor! We could still save his little girl!"
Jean and her mentor looked at Scott curiously. "How?"
"You remember when Nathan, my son and Madelyne's, was infected with the techno-organic virus as a baby?" They nodded. "We saved him by sending him to the future with Rachel. What if we could go back in time and get her before she's killed?"
The other two sat silent as they absorbed this hypothesis. "It could work…" Jean said.
"It could," Xavier said, "but we risk changing the course of the past and future. We could alter the Universe, as we know it. We can't chance it with that as a consequence."
"That's true," Scott said. "But if we hadn't taken Nathan forward, who would have stood up to Apocalypse?"
"He's right, Professor," Jean said. "For all we know, this could be the child's destiny, as well as ours."
Xavier pondered the words that had been said. "I approve, however, it's Logan's decision."
Scott smiled. "As a father, I don't see how he couldn't."
She ran, frightened. It was night. There was no moon out. The thick brush of trees blocked out most of the light the stars provided. She ran as fast as her little legs could carry her. Small branches pulled the pigtails from her black hair. Her dress ripped as it caught on the bushes. Bruises and abrasions scarred her. She would have cried, had she not been so terrified to do so.
She tripped and fell headfirst onto the stony, thorny forest floor. She painstakingly tried to pick herself up. She looked up and saw Creed grinning evilly and laughing. She had time to scream.
"I don't think so, bub!"
Creed turned only to be speared thru the gut by adamantium claws. Logan twisted his claws, making sure his healing factor wouldn't mend the wound so easily. He popped Creed on the head, knocking him out.
"Daddy!" little Marnie screamed, tears rolling down her face.
He scooped up his little girl in his arms. She hugged him tightly and cried her little heart out. It hurt to see his daughter scruffed up and bleeding, but she was alive! That was all that mattered now. His sweet, sweet Marnie was alive! He rocked her in his arms, calming her the way he, now, remembered how to.
He waited until she was calmed before he trekked back thru the woods. "Where are we goin', Daddy?"
He patted her on the back gently. "Home," he said with a smile.
Marnie leaned off her father's shoulder and looked at him. She pointed, "But home is that way."
He smiled again. "We're going to a new home."
After a few moments, they reached a bright lady inside a giant, flying, fiery bird. Marnie's brown eyes grew large and round. "Wow!" she said. Her father laughed.
The radiant woman smiled. "Is this Miss Marnie?" she asked the child.
"Mm-hmm!" Marnie nodded.
The woman giggled. "I'm Rachel. I'm going to take you and your daddy home, okay?"
"Mm-hmm!"
The fiery bird known as the Phoenix enveloped the threesome and transported them from the past to the present—Marnie's new home.
Professor Xavier took off the Cerebra helmet. He bowed his head in remorse and regret. He had vowed to bring Logan's memories back and piece by tiny piece, he did. But this newly recovered memory was probably left best forgotten.
Logan recovered the memory of his 27th birthday. He thought his wife, his true love, had died that day. She didn't, but was really killed by Sabretooth years later. He never knew he had a daughter. Fox probably didn't remember, either. The Weapon X program made sure of that.
He had a daughter. A daughter! A daughter by blood. He had adopted two teenage girls five years ago, after he had married his new wife, Natalie. They were sweet girls he had raised even before their official adoption. He loved them, but still had a void in his heart. He always wondered why. Was it Silver Fox he was missing? Or perhaps Mariko Yashida? But after today's session with Xavier, he knew. Marnie.
Natalie and his daughters, Amiko and Jubilee, had witnessed the memory thru telepathic projection. The girls were silent on their way back to their suite in the X-Mansion. Their mother consoled their father in whispers as he continued to cry. After they arrived, the girls watched TV while Logan and Natalie went to their bedroom.
"I feel so awful," Logan said. His head lay on Natalie's shoulder as she ran her fingers thru his hair in attempt of calming him.
"It's not your fault," his Asian rose whispered into his ear. "You didn't kill her. You tried to save her."
"By telling her ta run inta the woods?"
"What else could you have done?" his wife asked.
Logan sat silent. She was right. He did all he could. "But not only did I let her die…I forgot her. What kinda parent forgets 'bout his own flesh an' blood?"
"You didn't choose to forget. You didn't choose to be part of Weapon X. You didn't choose any of this."
"That should make me feel better, huh?" He paused, trying to hold back more tears. He can't. They come pouring again. "But it still hurts…" He cringed in Natalie's arms, sobbing now. She rocked him and kissed him, not knowing what else to do.
Xavier sat at his desk, rubbing his temples.
"Something wrong, Professor?" a female voice asked from the opened door.
He looked up and saw his first two students, Jean and Scott Summers. He sighed. "Yes. Of all the memories I have helped Logan recover, today's is one I wish I hadn't."
The couple walked to his desk and sat in the chairs provided. "What happened?" Jean asked.
Xavier sighed again. "Today, Logan learned he had a daughter with his first wife, Silver Fox."
The couple's eyes widened. "That's wonderful," Jean said.
"No, it's not," Xavier said. "Sabretooth killed her on his 27th birthday. She was only four years old."
The room fell silent. Jean covered her mouth in shock. Scott stared downwards. Xavier massaged his temples again. "It was painful," he said. "Logan felt as if acid was slowly burning away his body without his healing factor to compensate. He…cried."
"Wolverine? Cry?" Scott didn't know the man had tear ducts.
"It was more than tears. He sobbed and moaned. He grieved beyond what any human has ever grieved. He hurt more than when you witnessed Jean kill herself."
Scott remembered what that was like. He, himself, died that day as well—spiritually. He couldn't imagine what Logan felt. He didn't want to.
Then an idea struck him. "Professor! We could still save his little girl!"
Jean and her mentor looked at Scott curiously. "How?"
"You remember when Nathan, my son and Madelyne's, was infected with the techno-organic virus as a baby?" They nodded. "We saved him by sending him to the future with Rachel. What if we could go back in time and get her before she's killed?"
The other two sat silent as they absorbed this hypothesis. "It could work…" Jean said.
"It could," Xavier said, "but we risk changing the course of the past and future. We could alter the Universe, as we know it. We can't chance it with that as a consequence."
"That's true," Scott said. "But if we hadn't taken Nathan forward, who would have stood up to Apocalypse?"
"He's right, Professor," Jean said. "For all we know, this could be the child's destiny, as well as ours."
Xavier pondered the words that had been said. "I approve, however, it's Logan's decision."
Scott smiled. "As a father, I don't see how he couldn't."
She ran, frightened. It was night. There was no moon out. The thick brush of trees blocked out most of the light the stars provided. She ran as fast as her little legs could carry her. Small branches pulled the pigtails from her black hair. Her dress ripped as it caught on the bushes. Bruises and abrasions scarred her. She would have cried, had she not been so terrified to do so.
She tripped and fell headfirst onto the stony, thorny forest floor. She painstakingly tried to pick herself up. She looked up and saw Creed grinning evilly and laughing. She had time to scream.
"I don't think so, bub!"
Creed turned only to be speared thru the gut by adamantium claws. Logan twisted his claws, making sure his healing factor wouldn't mend the wound so easily. He popped Creed on the head, knocking him out.
"Daddy!" little Marnie screamed, tears rolling down her face.
He scooped up his little girl in his arms. She hugged him tightly and cried her little heart out. It hurt to see his daughter scruffed up and bleeding, but she was alive! That was all that mattered now. His sweet, sweet Marnie was alive! He rocked her in his arms, calming her the way he, now, remembered how to.
He waited until she was calmed before he trekked back thru the woods. "Where are we goin', Daddy?"
He patted her on the back gently. "Home," he said with a smile.
Marnie leaned off her father's shoulder and looked at him. She pointed, "But home is that way."
He smiled again. "We're going to a new home."
After a few moments, they reached a bright lady inside a giant, flying, fiery bird. Marnie's brown eyes grew large and round. "Wow!" she said. Her father laughed.
The radiant woman smiled. "Is this Miss Marnie?" she asked the child.
"Mm-hmm!" Marnie nodded.
The woman giggled. "I'm Rachel. I'm going to take you and your daddy home, okay?"
"Mm-hmm!"
The fiery bird known as the Phoenix enveloped the threesome and transported them from the past to the present—Marnie's new home.