Family Ties:
Chapter 5
A/N: WOWEE! This fic's been up on the net less than a week, and already has
over two reviews. *sniff, sniff* You LIKE me! You really LIKE me!
X-men countdown: 1 month and 18 days. Give or take.
*****
Rose sat in her room, gazing at her old circus posters. They had company now; they had been joined by many of the framed photos that her student's taken the other day, along with a trio sketches she herself had done. One was of Xavier in his wheelchair, facing the gardens, with a pleasured look on his face. Another was of Evan skateboarding, pulling a 180, or whatever he called those odd moves of his. The last was a copy of the drawing she had done of Logan and his Harley motorcycle. That one was her favorite.
But her attention was not on that at the moment. It was on the Sam's photo. Unlike the kids, she had noticed the tiny figure of herself in the bottom. She began to wonder about a quote she had read somewhere: "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself."
Should she really be cowering like a dog? For all she knew, Wolfgang was no longer the ringmaster of the Adolph & Family Circus. If he wasn't, what was there to be afraid of?
Rose frowned, utterly disgusted at her behavior. She was most certainly NOT setting a good example for Kurt and Rogue. And would she act like this forever? Hiding for fear that old nightmares would rise again to torment her as they had at the tender age of fifteen?
"No," she said firmly, rising from her bed, her eyes stern and hold. She walked out the door and walked into the professor.
"Good morning, Rose."
"Good morning, Professor." She watched him roll away, then had a wild but inspiring thought. "Professor?"
Xavier stopped rolling and turned back to face her. "Yes?"
She paused, suddenly uncertain of her decision. She threw caution to the winds. "How about I take the students on a.field trip?"
*****
Clowns with too-large-to-be-real noses. Kids with ice cream. Elephants sending shudders through the ground with ever step.
And one huge, colorful sign blaring, "WELCOME!"
The teens, although they had at first thought that they were far too old for this, couldn't help but stare at all the flashing colors swirling around them. Every time you turned.kapow! You were pummeled with all the intensity and energy. The very air crackled with commotion.
Rose, on the other hand, was completely calm. She was used to all the color, people, and animals. She strode through the crowd like she owned the place, steering her posse of teenagers through the crowd with expertise. Logan had also tagged along, just to make sure that this Wolfgang guy didn't try something on Rose.
If he could recognize her. Rose had recently been given a holowatch like Kurt's that hid her true form and gave the appearance of a Caucasian woman in her prime. Quite a few men had given her a look, but she ignored them every single one. That absolutely delighted Logan.
"Let's find our seats," Rose said, pointing to the dozens of benches inside the largest tent, the main arena. It had to stand at least a hundred feet high, supported by thick wood beams. On these beams were the high-wire and the trapeze. Along the floor was your basic circus stuff; a cage for the "ferocious" tigers and lions, miscellaneous toys for the clowns to use, and the small stands for the elephants to pose on in ways that nature had never intended them to.
They took their seats and patiently waited, exchanging popcorn, Twizzlers, and Pepsi. Rose only nibbled and sipped. She looked relaxed.until you noticed that her eyes were darting every which direction, her fingers clenching and unclenching in tight fists, and her breathing was a little more forced than usual. Every muscle on her body, every sense, was ready for fight or flight.
When the arena darkened, she jumped. Logan put a strong and comforting hand on her shoulder, squeezing it to give her reassurance. She settled and attempted a smile. "Thank you for coming, Logan."
"No big deal."
Rose was about to reply when Kitty raised her finger to her lips in the universal sign of silence. A trio of spotlights swirled around the tent and finally stopping on a single figure. Logan smelled the now-familiar odor of fear emitting from Rose so strongly that he was surprised that the kids didn't pick it up. "Wolfgang?" he whispered in ear.
"Ja," she said, her voice no more than a whisper, struggling not to break. "That's him."
"Welcome" Wolfgang bellowed, somehow making his voice amplify without a bullhorn, "to the Adolph & Family circus!" He paused to allow the audience to clap. Rose didn't clap. "For the first time in America, I give you the most talented and wondrous performers you will ever see!" He gestured to the dark arena. "And heeeere's.Frederick Greene, the King of Fire!"
Rose jumped in her seat. Logan, with his hand still on her shoulder, felt her fur stand on end. Her fear had been replaced with excitement and anticipation. Eyes went wide, pupils dilating to their limits.
A small man stood in the arena. He looked like a small mountain, and had a physique that would have made him the perfect linebacker for the Dallas Cowboys, or any other NFL team. But his face told otherwise: it had a friendly quality to it, the kind of thing you'd expect from an older brother or a father. It made you want to trust him.
Frederick bowed gracefully as the spectators cheered, hooted, clapped, and whistled. As soon as that faded, he straightened his back and held up two sticks, showing them to the audience to assure them that there wasn't a trick up his sleeve. Holding one stick out, he inhaled deeply, then let it all out in a rush.
Instantly, the stick was aflame. The crowd loved it, as did Rose and Logan's wards. Even Logan let a smile creep onto his face until he looked over at Rose. She was staring at Frederick, but not the in the frightened way she had at Wolfgang. This was.different, and it worried him.
Frederick set the end of the second stick and left it there until it, too, was lit. Holding one stick in each hand, he preceded to toss and twirl them agilely, not missing a beat. After five whole minutes, he held the pair up, and slammed the flaming ends together. They instantly smoked and both flames were put out.
Again, the crowd absolutely adored the spectacular performance. All the kids from the Institute stood up with the audience and clapped. Only Rose and Logan remained seated. "You know that guy?" Logan asked, gesturing to the man.
"Yes." Logan was disappointed to see that Rose was still staring at Frederick with that odd gaze.
"'Kay." He slumped in his seat huffily as Wolfgang introduced the next act. This wasn't why he came.
*****
"Man, that was sooo awesome, vasn't Kitty?"
"Oh yeah!" Kitty said. Her eyes were laughing with delight and wonderment. They were still talking about the performances. "I loved that Frederick guy, he was, like, so cool."
As the kids, being kids, gossiped in the way that made everything else unimportant, Rose led them to the back of the circus where all the backstage things happened. Memory upon memory flooded into her mind; that trailer! That's where she'd grown up! And that stain on the tent! She'd done that when she spilled her juice, when she was ten! Everything reminded her of something or someone.
As if he had teleported, Frederick appeared out of thin air, drying his sweat-soaked hair with a towel. Rose's heart jumped into her throat. The last time she had seen that man, he'd been a gangly, fire-breather wannabe with his soot-colored hair cut so short that she had often made fun of him, asking him if he had lost a fight with a lawnmower.
But now.he was.so different. Hair had grown into a luscious mane of ebony curls. Green eyes shone so brightly that they would have done emeralds proud. His muscled, coffee-colored skin rippled under the orange and red tights, flaunting ever curve and dip on his body.
He turned around, apparently startled to see them out here. "I'm sorry," he said. Rose instantly the difference in his voice; it had gotten stronger.deeper. libidinous, some how. "But you are not allowed back here." He bowed politely. "My deepest apologies."
Rose managed to shake some sense back into her head. "Oh, really?" She sauntered up to him, ignoring a sputter from Logan. "'Ave you forgotten old companions already, Icky?" She put a hand on his arm. She knew good and well that even though the holowatch hid her true aspect, it didn't stop people from feeling fur and only two fingers instead of the usual four.
Frederick's eyes widened. "Rose?" he breathed. "It can't be."
"Oh, can't it?"
He paused. "Prove it."
She grinned energetically. "Du are a der Esel."
He smiled back at her, green eyes dancing. "Nice to see you again, Rose."
Rose shut off her holowatch. "Nice to see you too, Icky."
"Aren't you ever gonna call me Frederick?" he sighed dramatically.
"If you say please," she teased.
At that moment, a young girl burst out of the trailer behind them. "Frederick! I've can't find-"
She stopped dead in her tracks at the sight of Rose, goggle-eyed. Rose looked exactly the same. The girl was only about ten, her thick red hair swept back and kept in place by a pair of bobby pins. Her features were pleasant, but sharp, features. The ashen-colored eyes in her head snapped with the speed of a snake, taking in every single thing about Rose's odd appearance, along with her company.
Frederick, wishing to ease the tension, walked over and put one muscled arm around the girl's shoulders. "This, Rose and co., is Adelaide. She's the recent lady of the trapeze. Adelaide, say hello."
"Hello," Adelaide said, still staring at Rose. Rose didn't mind. She was used to it.
The students, Rose, and Logan all said their greetings. Frederick turned his gaze back to Rose. "So.you've come back to the circus business? Finally find that brother of yours, eh?"
Rose smiled brightly, showing all her teeth. Adelaide gasped. "Yes! Yes, I did." She motioned for Kurt to come over. "This is Kurt Wagner. Kurt, this is Frederick Greene."
"Nice ta meet ya, young man!" As soon as Frederick shook Kurt's hand, he added, "You look like your pretty sis' over there, don't you?" He cocked his head, flashing a friendly smile. "You purple too?"
Kurt cast a glance over at Rose and Logan, who nodded their assent. Seeing it was okay, Kurt dropped the hologram. Again, Adelaide gasped in shock.
"Hey!" cried Frederick, not at all frightened. "You DO look like Rose! Ha! I knew it!" He looked over at Rose. "Lots of fuzzies in your family tree, eh, Rose?"
Rose was about to answer when Evan blurted out, "How do breath fire like that?"
All of the teens chattered about how he did his trick. Frederick only chuckled. "No trick, kids." He gestured for a stick and Adelaide handed him a branch from the ground. "Watch and learn." Just like in the arena, he inhaled and exhaled. The stick obediently lit on fire. The kids all applauded politely.
Pointing to the stick, he said, "See, that's my ability; I can make just about anything 'cept water light on fire."
Kurt's eyes widened. "You're a-"
"A mutant? Sure! Ain't ashamed to admit it, either. After all, look where it's got me!" He defused the flame and swept the stick to the colossal tents behind them. "The big top!"
Suddenly, his expression changed from glee to panic. Rose turned and jerked like she'd just had her tail stuck in a light socket.
Wolfgang was approaching. "Kurt!" snarled Rose. "Put your vatch back on!"
Kurt had already activated his holowatch the second the ringmaster was in sight. Logan looked Wolfgang up and down. He didn't look all that alarming; his flaming red hair was shoulder-length, left to float in the breeze. His face was sharp, like Adelaide's, fairly handsome, although he couldn't hold a candle to Frederick. He had a lighter in hand, a Zippo, and was casually flicking the lid back and forth, making a clicking sound that really, really irritated Logan.
The second he saw Rose, his dirt-brown eyes glittered. "Rose?" If he saw Rose tense, he ignored it. "My, my, Demoness, you've come back to us. Dare I hope you've come back to stay?" he asked in a sultry voice that sent chills up even Logan's back. A few of the students shivered and stepped away from the ringmaster. Wolfgang reached over and took both of Rose's hands in his own. She flinched, and this time he noticed. "Ah.I see that isn't the case." Looking over at Adelaide and Frederick, like he had just noticed them, he said, "Oh, visiting old friends? I suppose you missed us and wanted to pay a visit?"
"You could say that," she answered, her eyes dull. She slipped her hands out of his, leaving him grasping at open air. Logan almost snorted with amusement.
"I see." He glanced at Logan and the troop of kids, and grinned. It was a very feline grin, like a cat's when it has caught a mouse and was toying with it before eating. "Starting a circus of your own?"
"No," Rose said, her tone of voice as flat as paper. "These are students from Xavier's Institute for Gifted Children. And he-" she gestured to Logan, who brought himself to his full height "-is Logan, a dear friend of mine."
Wolfgang flinched at "dear", which seemed to please Rose greatly. "Oh."
Rose reactivated her own watch and turned on her heel. "Come children, Logan. We really need to get going back to the school now." As she walked, she slowed by Frederick and Adelaide. In the blink of an eye, she crushed a piece of paper into Frederick's hand as she passed. "Goodbye."
"Wait!" Wolfgang cried, grasping Rose's wrist. She whirled on him, her gaze full of fear and hate, but Wolfgang didn't seem to notice. "Why don't you stay a while? Chat with old compatriots?" His tone of voice, the look in his eyes, and his body language all together seemed a little desperate to keep Rose there.
He and Rose glared at one another for a full minute. The air filled with tension until Frederick gently reached over and pulled Wolfgang's hand off of Rose's wrist. "I believe she said that she needs to go, Wolfgang, sir."
Wolfgang glared, half-snarled, at Frederick, then turned back to Rose with a sweet smile plastered on his face. "Why don't you come by sometime? Just you? We can all sit down and talk."
Rose curled her lip and walked away with her charges and Logan by her side, not answering at all.
Wolfgang royally cursed himself. He'd finally hunted her down, and she was gone AGAIN. He whirled on Frederick and Adelaide, although she had done nothing wrong. "Both of you! Manure duty! Fred, I'll talk to YOU later."
As the pair stalked off to their duties, Wolfgang stared after Rose, growling softly in his throat. Then he noticed a piece of paper on the ground. Curious, he plucked it up and read it. A slow, cat-like grin spread across his face. Right there was Rose's current address.
He looked back up to catch one last glance at Rose climbing into a car and driving away. "Oh, yes. You're my ticket to fame, Demoness, and you'll get me there whether you want to or not."
*****
Rose sat in her room, gazing at her old circus posters. They had company now; they had been joined by many of the framed photos that her student's taken the other day, along with a trio sketches she herself had done. One was of Xavier in his wheelchair, facing the gardens, with a pleasured look on his face. Another was of Evan skateboarding, pulling a 180, or whatever he called those odd moves of his. The last was a copy of the drawing she had done of Logan and his Harley motorcycle. That one was her favorite.
But her attention was not on that at the moment. It was on the Sam's photo. Unlike the kids, she had noticed the tiny figure of herself in the bottom. She began to wonder about a quote she had read somewhere: "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself."
Should she really be cowering like a dog? For all she knew, Wolfgang was no longer the ringmaster of the Adolph & Family Circus. If he wasn't, what was there to be afraid of?
Rose frowned, utterly disgusted at her behavior. She was most certainly NOT setting a good example for Kurt and Rogue. And would she act like this forever? Hiding for fear that old nightmares would rise again to torment her as they had at the tender age of fifteen?
"No," she said firmly, rising from her bed, her eyes stern and hold. She walked out the door and walked into the professor.
"Good morning, Rose."
"Good morning, Professor." She watched him roll away, then had a wild but inspiring thought. "Professor?"
Xavier stopped rolling and turned back to face her. "Yes?"
She paused, suddenly uncertain of her decision. She threw caution to the winds. "How about I take the students on a.field trip?"
*****
Clowns with too-large-to-be-real noses. Kids with ice cream. Elephants sending shudders through the ground with ever step.
And one huge, colorful sign blaring, "WELCOME!"
The teens, although they had at first thought that they were far too old for this, couldn't help but stare at all the flashing colors swirling around them. Every time you turned.kapow! You were pummeled with all the intensity and energy. The very air crackled with commotion.
Rose, on the other hand, was completely calm. She was used to all the color, people, and animals. She strode through the crowd like she owned the place, steering her posse of teenagers through the crowd with expertise. Logan had also tagged along, just to make sure that this Wolfgang guy didn't try something on Rose.
If he could recognize her. Rose had recently been given a holowatch like Kurt's that hid her true form and gave the appearance of a Caucasian woman in her prime. Quite a few men had given her a look, but she ignored them every single one. That absolutely delighted Logan.
"Let's find our seats," Rose said, pointing to the dozens of benches inside the largest tent, the main arena. It had to stand at least a hundred feet high, supported by thick wood beams. On these beams were the high-wire and the trapeze. Along the floor was your basic circus stuff; a cage for the "ferocious" tigers and lions, miscellaneous toys for the clowns to use, and the small stands for the elephants to pose on in ways that nature had never intended them to.
They took their seats and patiently waited, exchanging popcorn, Twizzlers, and Pepsi. Rose only nibbled and sipped. She looked relaxed.until you noticed that her eyes were darting every which direction, her fingers clenching and unclenching in tight fists, and her breathing was a little more forced than usual. Every muscle on her body, every sense, was ready for fight or flight.
When the arena darkened, she jumped. Logan put a strong and comforting hand on her shoulder, squeezing it to give her reassurance. She settled and attempted a smile. "Thank you for coming, Logan."
"No big deal."
Rose was about to reply when Kitty raised her finger to her lips in the universal sign of silence. A trio of spotlights swirled around the tent and finally stopping on a single figure. Logan smelled the now-familiar odor of fear emitting from Rose so strongly that he was surprised that the kids didn't pick it up. "Wolfgang?" he whispered in ear.
"Ja," she said, her voice no more than a whisper, struggling not to break. "That's him."
"Welcome" Wolfgang bellowed, somehow making his voice amplify without a bullhorn, "to the Adolph & Family circus!" He paused to allow the audience to clap. Rose didn't clap. "For the first time in America, I give you the most talented and wondrous performers you will ever see!" He gestured to the dark arena. "And heeeere's.Frederick Greene, the King of Fire!"
Rose jumped in her seat. Logan, with his hand still on her shoulder, felt her fur stand on end. Her fear had been replaced with excitement and anticipation. Eyes went wide, pupils dilating to their limits.
A small man stood in the arena. He looked like a small mountain, and had a physique that would have made him the perfect linebacker for the Dallas Cowboys, or any other NFL team. But his face told otherwise: it had a friendly quality to it, the kind of thing you'd expect from an older brother or a father. It made you want to trust him.
Frederick bowed gracefully as the spectators cheered, hooted, clapped, and whistled. As soon as that faded, he straightened his back and held up two sticks, showing them to the audience to assure them that there wasn't a trick up his sleeve. Holding one stick out, he inhaled deeply, then let it all out in a rush.
Instantly, the stick was aflame. The crowd loved it, as did Rose and Logan's wards. Even Logan let a smile creep onto his face until he looked over at Rose. She was staring at Frederick, but not the in the frightened way she had at Wolfgang. This was.different, and it worried him.
Frederick set the end of the second stick and left it there until it, too, was lit. Holding one stick in each hand, he preceded to toss and twirl them agilely, not missing a beat. After five whole minutes, he held the pair up, and slammed the flaming ends together. They instantly smoked and both flames were put out.
Again, the crowd absolutely adored the spectacular performance. All the kids from the Institute stood up with the audience and clapped. Only Rose and Logan remained seated. "You know that guy?" Logan asked, gesturing to the man.
"Yes." Logan was disappointed to see that Rose was still staring at Frederick with that odd gaze.
"'Kay." He slumped in his seat huffily as Wolfgang introduced the next act. This wasn't why he came.
*****
"Man, that was sooo awesome, vasn't Kitty?"
"Oh yeah!" Kitty said. Her eyes were laughing with delight and wonderment. They were still talking about the performances. "I loved that Frederick guy, he was, like, so cool."
As the kids, being kids, gossiped in the way that made everything else unimportant, Rose led them to the back of the circus where all the backstage things happened. Memory upon memory flooded into her mind; that trailer! That's where she'd grown up! And that stain on the tent! She'd done that when she spilled her juice, when she was ten! Everything reminded her of something or someone.
As if he had teleported, Frederick appeared out of thin air, drying his sweat-soaked hair with a towel. Rose's heart jumped into her throat. The last time she had seen that man, he'd been a gangly, fire-breather wannabe with his soot-colored hair cut so short that she had often made fun of him, asking him if he had lost a fight with a lawnmower.
But now.he was.so different. Hair had grown into a luscious mane of ebony curls. Green eyes shone so brightly that they would have done emeralds proud. His muscled, coffee-colored skin rippled under the orange and red tights, flaunting ever curve and dip on his body.
He turned around, apparently startled to see them out here. "I'm sorry," he said. Rose instantly the difference in his voice; it had gotten stronger.deeper. libidinous, some how. "But you are not allowed back here." He bowed politely. "My deepest apologies."
Rose managed to shake some sense back into her head. "Oh, really?" She sauntered up to him, ignoring a sputter from Logan. "'Ave you forgotten old companions already, Icky?" She put a hand on his arm. She knew good and well that even though the holowatch hid her true aspect, it didn't stop people from feeling fur and only two fingers instead of the usual four.
Frederick's eyes widened. "Rose?" he breathed. "It can't be."
"Oh, can't it?"
He paused. "Prove it."
She grinned energetically. "Du are a der Esel."
He smiled back at her, green eyes dancing. "Nice to see you again, Rose."
Rose shut off her holowatch. "Nice to see you too, Icky."
"Aren't you ever gonna call me Frederick?" he sighed dramatically.
"If you say please," she teased.
At that moment, a young girl burst out of the trailer behind them. "Frederick! I've can't find-"
She stopped dead in her tracks at the sight of Rose, goggle-eyed. Rose looked exactly the same. The girl was only about ten, her thick red hair swept back and kept in place by a pair of bobby pins. Her features were pleasant, but sharp, features. The ashen-colored eyes in her head snapped with the speed of a snake, taking in every single thing about Rose's odd appearance, along with her company.
Frederick, wishing to ease the tension, walked over and put one muscled arm around the girl's shoulders. "This, Rose and co., is Adelaide. She's the recent lady of the trapeze. Adelaide, say hello."
"Hello," Adelaide said, still staring at Rose. Rose didn't mind. She was used to it.
The students, Rose, and Logan all said their greetings. Frederick turned his gaze back to Rose. "So.you've come back to the circus business? Finally find that brother of yours, eh?"
Rose smiled brightly, showing all her teeth. Adelaide gasped. "Yes! Yes, I did." She motioned for Kurt to come over. "This is Kurt Wagner. Kurt, this is Frederick Greene."
"Nice ta meet ya, young man!" As soon as Frederick shook Kurt's hand, he added, "You look like your pretty sis' over there, don't you?" He cocked his head, flashing a friendly smile. "You purple too?"
Kurt cast a glance over at Rose and Logan, who nodded their assent. Seeing it was okay, Kurt dropped the hologram. Again, Adelaide gasped in shock.
"Hey!" cried Frederick, not at all frightened. "You DO look like Rose! Ha! I knew it!" He looked over at Rose. "Lots of fuzzies in your family tree, eh, Rose?"
Rose was about to answer when Evan blurted out, "How do breath fire like that?"
All of the teens chattered about how he did his trick. Frederick only chuckled. "No trick, kids." He gestured for a stick and Adelaide handed him a branch from the ground. "Watch and learn." Just like in the arena, he inhaled and exhaled. The stick obediently lit on fire. The kids all applauded politely.
Pointing to the stick, he said, "See, that's my ability; I can make just about anything 'cept water light on fire."
Kurt's eyes widened. "You're a-"
"A mutant? Sure! Ain't ashamed to admit it, either. After all, look where it's got me!" He defused the flame and swept the stick to the colossal tents behind them. "The big top!"
Suddenly, his expression changed from glee to panic. Rose turned and jerked like she'd just had her tail stuck in a light socket.
Wolfgang was approaching. "Kurt!" snarled Rose. "Put your vatch back on!"
Kurt had already activated his holowatch the second the ringmaster was in sight. Logan looked Wolfgang up and down. He didn't look all that alarming; his flaming red hair was shoulder-length, left to float in the breeze. His face was sharp, like Adelaide's, fairly handsome, although he couldn't hold a candle to Frederick. He had a lighter in hand, a Zippo, and was casually flicking the lid back and forth, making a clicking sound that really, really irritated Logan.
The second he saw Rose, his dirt-brown eyes glittered. "Rose?" If he saw Rose tense, he ignored it. "My, my, Demoness, you've come back to us. Dare I hope you've come back to stay?" he asked in a sultry voice that sent chills up even Logan's back. A few of the students shivered and stepped away from the ringmaster. Wolfgang reached over and took both of Rose's hands in his own. She flinched, and this time he noticed. "Ah.I see that isn't the case." Looking over at Adelaide and Frederick, like he had just noticed them, he said, "Oh, visiting old friends? I suppose you missed us and wanted to pay a visit?"
"You could say that," she answered, her eyes dull. She slipped her hands out of his, leaving him grasping at open air. Logan almost snorted with amusement.
"I see." He glanced at Logan and the troop of kids, and grinned. It was a very feline grin, like a cat's when it has caught a mouse and was toying with it before eating. "Starting a circus of your own?"
"No," Rose said, her tone of voice as flat as paper. "These are students from Xavier's Institute for Gifted Children. And he-" she gestured to Logan, who brought himself to his full height "-is Logan, a dear friend of mine."
Wolfgang flinched at "dear", which seemed to please Rose greatly. "Oh."
Rose reactivated her own watch and turned on her heel. "Come children, Logan. We really need to get going back to the school now." As she walked, she slowed by Frederick and Adelaide. In the blink of an eye, she crushed a piece of paper into Frederick's hand as she passed. "Goodbye."
"Wait!" Wolfgang cried, grasping Rose's wrist. She whirled on him, her gaze full of fear and hate, but Wolfgang didn't seem to notice. "Why don't you stay a while? Chat with old compatriots?" His tone of voice, the look in his eyes, and his body language all together seemed a little desperate to keep Rose there.
He and Rose glared at one another for a full minute. The air filled with tension until Frederick gently reached over and pulled Wolfgang's hand off of Rose's wrist. "I believe she said that she needs to go, Wolfgang, sir."
Wolfgang glared, half-snarled, at Frederick, then turned back to Rose with a sweet smile plastered on his face. "Why don't you come by sometime? Just you? We can all sit down and talk."
Rose curled her lip and walked away with her charges and Logan by her side, not answering at all.
Wolfgang royally cursed himself. He'd finally hunted her down, and she was gone AGAIN. He whirled on Frederick and Adelaide, although she had done nothing wrong. "Both of you! Manure duty! Fred, I'll talk to YOU later."
As the pair stalked off to their duties, Wolfgang stared after Rose, growling softly in his throat. Then he noticed a piece of paper on the ground. Curious, he plucked it up and read it. A slow, cat-like grin spread across his face. Right there was Rose's current address.
He looked back up to catch one last glance at Rose climbing into a car and driving away. "Oh, yes. You're my ticket to fame, Demoness, and you'll get me there whether you want to or not."