Untamed: Part 2
by
Moonchild DJ
Disclaimer: Wolverine, Jubilee and the others do not belong to me, they belong to Marvel. Wild Cat and this story and its plotline belong to me, so please don't steal. Thanks.
Author's Note: Hey, everybody! Moonchild DJ is back! Yep, I know I just posted the first chapter, but I want everyone to get caught up to where I am and what I've posted elsewhere. I hope you enjoy the double treat, and please, tell me what you think! On with the fic! ^_^
************
Voices echoed in her head, making her toss and turn restlessly in her sleep. Jubilee shivered, struggling to banish the voices, but they wouldn't cease.
*So you think you're so hot, do you? You killed your enemies, stopped us from hurting you...* A blonde woman sneered at her, blue eyes narrowing coldly. *Guess what, little girl--you won't get rid of us that easily!*
"You're the one who killed us, after all--we're YOUR cross to bear now, YOUR haunted ones, much like Logan with his demons..* A green-haired woman smiled nastily, tossing her head. *You're stuck with us, now!*
Jubilee snarled at the visions. *You hurt me, hurt Logan! You wanted us to suffer! You're not the victims, here! You ask me, you got what you deserved!*
Viper smirked. *Ah, but X-Men do not kill. You killed, did you not? Then you broke the rules.*
Wild Cat grinned maliciously. *And that means that we can huant you for the rest of your days!*
"NOOOOOOOOOO!!" Jubilee howled, awakening from the nightmare and, scrambling to her feet yet again, shattered Logan's bedroom window and leapt out, the voices driving her insane.
Logan jerked to wakefullness as the alarms shrieked yet again. He leapt to his feet, then promptly fell on his butt as he became entangled in the guest room's couch's sheets and crashed to the floor. Cursing a blue streak, he sliced his way through the covers and raced out the door. "Darlin', I know you're hurtin', but you're murder on a man's nerves...!" he grumbled, the X-Men right behind him.
They found her at the cove behind the mansion, dressed in one of Rogue's old nightshirts that fluttered in the breeze as the girl slashed at imagined phantoms, roaring in absolute fury.
Robert "Bobby" Drake, aka Iceman, glanced at Logan as he watched the girl he considered a sister stagger on the dock. "You sure we wanna do this? There's no telling what she could do in this state..."
"I'm sure." Logan growled, eyes never leaving the tiny young woman. He remembered another time on this cove, when she had been hurting over the loss of a friend who'd died too young..but that was a different kind of pain. She needed him even more now than she ever did before. Problem was, how to stop her, without hurting her or putting risk to the others?
"I can take her out..." Scott said softly, raising his hand to his visor. Logan snarled, grabbing his hand.
"Do it and die, Summers. I'm not gonna let her be put down like some flamin' animal!"
"Got a better idea?"
"Kinda, yeah." He motioned Jean over with his head. "Jeannie, I need ya to help me knock her off balance. When she goes t' attack me, you need t' trip her up an' use your mind to push back th' animal an' bring out the human."
Jean looked doubtfully at Jubilee. "I'm not sure if I can, Logan. The Weapon X project brought out a savage creature in her. It would take some heavy-duty powers to punch through what's been done to her, and I don't want to hurt her in any way."
"Don't ya wanna help her?"
"You know I do! But I won't risk making her worse!"
Logan snorted. "If we don't do *somethin'*, we're gonna lose her! She's gettin' worse, Jeannie!"
Jean winced as she saw Jubilee's eyes crackle and spark in the moonlight. "God, where is our little Jubilee?" She was so special to them all, now, thanks to vindictive enemies, their Firecracker may be lost to them forever...she sighed and reached out hesitantly.
*Jubilee? Can you hear me?*
Jubilee's snarl petered out into a growl of surprise, and she turned and glared at the redhead. Her lip curled, and her growl rumbled through the small cove.
Logan cursed softly. "Wrong move, Red."
Jean took a step back. *C'mon, Jubilee, you wouldn't hurt me, would you?*
Jubilee curled into a crouch, claws springing from their housings.
*Guess so.*
"SCATTER!!" she cried as Jubilee lunged.
Rogue leapt to catch her, tucking her like a football. "Shugah, Ah love ya to pieces, but Ah can't let ya hurt our family!"
But Jubilee didn't hear Rogue's protests. Truth be told, she didn't even really see Rogue, Jean or the others. A red rage, like Logan's own berserker fury, had taken over, and all she wanted to do was hurt anything or anyone to ease her own pain. Guilt, fury, vengeance, pain and madness clawed at her until there was barely anything left of one Jubilation Lee. There was only a wild-eyed animal that slashed furiously at Rogue until she was free of the constricting grasp.
She raised her arm, claws shining in the moonlight as the X-Men scattered. There was never anything that could be done for Logan in his rages, and Jubilee seemed far worse. What could be done without harming her more?
"Darlin'...Jubilation, stop this."
Jubilee wheeled about, snarling at Logan as he stared sadly at her. Her enemies had been his enemies, therefore it was his fault she had been reduced to this. He gruffly brushed away the tears at the sight of his precious Jubilee like this. This wasn't her, this wasn't his little Firefly. He had to help her before she ended up like him. "Darlin', please, hear me. Remember who ya are. Remember who WE are. We ain't your enemies, we don't wanna hurt ya!"
The savage eyes, the gaze that had once belonged to a beautiful, vivacious, fun-loving young woman, narrowed dangerously. With nary a sound and in a blur of motion, Jubilee attacked Logan.
He just barely got his own claws out in time and up in defense before she was slashing furiously at him. It was all he could do to block her attacks from doing any real damage--he had taught her too well. He spoke to her as best he could as metal clanged against metal.
"Darlin'--don't do--this! C'mon--fight--the feral! Don't let--Viper or the-- others--win! Come back--to--us. Come--back to--me!"
Jean was astonished to see tears fill Logan's eyes as he spoke, fall down his face as he stood there and blocked her attacks, and did nothing to attack her. Having to fight against a teammate..a friend... even more than that, she sensed...was tearing him apart. Seeing his tears, she grabbed Scott's hand for support and strength, mentally launched on to Logan's memories and feelings, and threw them back at Jubilee a thousandfold.
"PLEASE let this work..." she mumbled softly as she saw Jubilee's head arch backwards.
The savage part of Jubilee gave a confused, pained mental yelp when that memory hitch swamped her, swirling out the red haze and ramming the foreign memories into the part of her that was still human. A part of her, that was curled into a protective ball, knew those memories. Jubilee-that-was-Human fought against Jubilee-savage for dominion, letting the memories sink in..
...Finding a beat-up ol' Canucklehead in the middle of the Austrailan Outback, defending and tending him...
...Becoming friends and he becoming everything to her when she had nothing, taking her, training here, bringing her into the X-Men...
...Becoming his sidekick/partner/protegee and learning so much, having a family again...
...she being there for him when he lost Mariko, he being there for her as she grieved for her parents and Illyana...
...losing him, in a way, when he left the X-Men, and again when she left to join Gen X, but still remaining close...
...until...
Cat.
The memories of the past few months swirled inside her head, the pain and heartbreak and change and horror of it all. But one thought still remained, one that was echoed in the thoughts not her own...whatever happened, they would always be there for each other, they would always care.
"No matter what."
Wait..she didn't say that. What...?
The haze cleared, and she found herself cradled in Logan's arms, she laying on her side, he on his knees. She looked up, blinked stupidly at the tears she saw flowing freely from his eyes. She raised a hand, brushing his cheek and its wetness, stunned.
"Logan...did I hurt you 'gain...?"
Logan shook his head, smiling faintly.
"No, darlin', you didn't. I was just scared for you."
"You were?" Jubilee squeaked.
"Yeah, I was. I was afraid o' losin' you. You were so far gone into the feral, I thought I'd never see ya human again. If it wasn't for Jean..." He shuddered, remembering her fierceness. He wasn't quite sure what was happening when Jubilee's head had arched suddenly and her knees had buckled, but he'd been relieved to see his Jubilee again in those beautiful eyes. He nodded in thanks at Jean, who only smiled.
"I'm sorry for scarin' you.." Jubilee whispered. "The feral side is nearly uncontrollable, and I just wasn't strong enough.." She winced as she retracted the metal blades back into her skin, watching as the wounds from their entry healed over. "an...*this*...this is nearly more than I can stand. Being a walking firecracker isn't bad enough, now I'm a portable Swiss Army Knife!"
But he knew her cynical, sarcastic attitude covered her tears, so he shushed her quietly and held her as she gazed bitterly at her hands. "Don't worry, Jubilation. Everythin' will be okay, startin' tomorrow."
"Why? What's tomorrow?"
"Yer trainin'. I'm gonna teach ya how to deal with the feral and these..." he traced gentle fingertips over her knuckles, where the skin pulled tight now with the bone and muscles' new addition. "...before it makes ya lose your mind!"
********
~End Chapter 2~
by
Moonchild DJ
Disclaimer: Wolverine, Jubilee and the others do not belong to me, they belong to Marvel. Wild Cat and this story and its plotline belong to me, so please don't steal. Thanks.
Author's Note: Hey, everybody! Moonchild DJ is back! Yep, I know I just posted the first chapter, but I want everyone to get caught up to where I am and what I've posted elsewhere. I hope you enjoy the double treat, and please, tell me what you think! On with the fic! ^_^
************
Voices echoed in her head, making her toss and turn restlessly in her sleep. Jubilee shivered, struggling to banish the voices, but they wouldn't cease.
*So you think you're so hot, do you? You killed your enemies, stopped us from hurting you...* A blonde woman sneered at her, blue eyes narrowing coldly. *Guess what, little girl--you won't get rid of us that easily!*
"You're the one who killed us, after all--we're YOUR cross to bear now, YOUR haunted ones, much like Logan with his demons..* A green-haired woman smiled nastily, tossing her head. *You're stuck with us, now!*
Jubilee snarled at the visions. *You hurt me, hurt Logan! You wanted us to suffer! You're not the victims, here! You ask me, you got what you deserved!*
Viper smirked. *Ah, but X-Men do not kill. You killed, did you not? Then you broke the rules.*
Wild Cat grinned maliciously. *And that means that we can huant you for the rest of your days!*
"NOOOOOOOOOO!!" Jubilee howled, awakening from the nightmare and, scrambling to her feet yet again, shattered Logan's bedroom window and leapt out, the voices driving her insane.
Logan jerked to wakefullness as the alarms shrieked yet again. He leapt to his feet, then promptly fell on his butt as he became entangled in the guest room's couch's sheets and crashed to the floor. Cursing a blue streak, he sliced his way through the covers and raced out the door. "Darlin', I know you're hurtin', but you're murder on a man's nerves...!" he grumbled, the X-Men right behind him.
They found her at the cove behind the mansion, dressed in one of Rogue's old nightshirts that fluttered in the breeze as the girl slashed at imagined phantoms, roaring in absolute fury.
Robert "Bobby" Drake, aka Iceman, glanced at Logan as he watched the girl he considered a sister stagger on the dock. "You sure we wanna do this? There's no telling what she could do in this state..."
"I'm sure." Logan growled, eyes never leaving the tiny young woman. He remembered another time on this cove, when she had been hurting over the loss of a friend who'd died too young..but that was a different kind of pain. She needed him even more now than she ever did before. Problem was, how to stop her, without hurting her or putting risk to the others?
"I can take her out..." Scott said softly, raising his hand to his visor. Logan snarled, grabbing his hand.
"Do it and die, Summers. I'm not gonna let her be put down like some flamin' animal!"
"Got a better idea?"
"Kinda, yeah." He motioned Jean over with his head. "Jeannie, I need ya to help me knock her off balance. When she goes t' attack me, you need t' trip her up an' use your mind to push back th' animal an' bring out the human."
Jean looked doubtfully at Jubilee. "I'm not sure if I can, Logan. The Weapon X project brought out a savage creature in her. It would take some heavy-duty powers to punch through what's been done to her, and I don't want to hurt her in any way."
"Don't ya wanna help her?"
"You know I do! But I won't risk making her worse!"
Logan snorted. "If we don't do *somethin'*, we're gonna lose her! She's gettin' worse, Jeannie!"
Jean winced as she saw Jubilee's eyes crackle and spark in the moonlight. "God, where is our little Jubilee?" She was so special to them all, now, thanks to vindictive enemies, their Firecracker may be lost to them forever...she sighed and reached out hesitantly.
*Jubilee? Can you hear me?*
Jubilee's snarl petered out into a growl of surprise, and she turned and glared at the redhead. Her lip curled, and her growl rumbled through the small cove.
Logan cursed softly. "Wrong move, Red."
Jean took a step back. *C'mon, Jubilee, you wouldn't hurt me, would you?*
Jubilee curled into a crouch, claws springing from their housings.
*Guess so.*
"SCATTER!!" she cried as Jubilee lunged.
Rogue leapt to catch her, tucking her like a football. "Shugah, Ah love ya to pieces, but Ah can't let ya hurt our family!"
But Jubilee didn't hear Rogue's protests. Truth be told, she didn't even really see Rogue, Jean or the others. A red rage, like Logan's own berserker fury, had taken over, and all she wanted to do was hurt anything or anyone to ease her own pain. Guilt, fury, vengeance, pain and madness clawed at her until there was barely anything left of one Jubilation Lee. There was only a wild-eyed animal that slashed furiously at Rogue until she was free of the constricting grasp.
She raised her arm, claws shining in the moonlight as the X-Men scattered. There was never anything that could be done for Logan in his rages, and Jubilee seemed far worse. What could be done without harming her more?
"Darlin'...Jubilation, stop this."
Jubilee wheeled about, snarling at Logan as he stared sadly at her. Her enemies had been his enemies, therefore it was his fault she had been reduced to this. He gruffly brushed away the tears at the sight of his precious Jubilee like this. This wasn't her, this wasn't his little Firefly. He had to help her before she ended up like him. "Darlin', please, hear me. Remember who ya are. Remember who WE are. We ain't your enemies, we don't wanna hurt ya!"
The savage eyes, the gaze that had once belonged to a beautiful, vivacious, fun-loving young woman, narrowed dangerously. With nary a sound and in a blur of motion, Jubilee attacked Logan.
He just barely got his own claws out in time and up in defense before she was slashing furiously at him. It was all he could do to block her attacks from doing any real damage--he had taught her too well. He spoke to her as best he could as metal clanged against metal.
"Darlin'--don't do--this! C'mon--fight--the feral! Don't let--Viper or the-- others--win! Come back--to--us. Come--back to--me!"
Jean was astonished to see tears fill Logan's eyes as he spoke, fall down his face as he stood there and blocked her attacks, and did nothing to attack her. Having to fight against a teammate..a friend... even more than that, she sensed...was tearing him apart. Seeing his tears, she grabbed Scott's hand for support and strength, mentally launched on to Logan's memories and feelings, and threw them back at Jubilee a thousandfold.
"PLEASE let this work..." she mumbled softly as she saw Jubilee's head arch backwards.
The savage part of Jubilee gave a confused, pained mental yelp when that memory hitch swamped her, swirling out the red haze and ramming the foreign memories into the part of her that was still human. A part of her, that was curled into a protective ball, knew those memories. Jubilee-that-was-Human fought against Jubilee-savage for dominion, letting the memories sink in..
...Finding a beat-up ol' Canucklehead in the middle of the Austrailan Outback, defending and tending him...
...Becoming friends and he becoming everything to her when she had nothing, taking her, training here, bringing her into the X-Men...
...Becoming his sidekick/partner/protegee and learning so much, having a family again...
...she being there for him when he lost Mariko, he being there for her as she grieved for her parents and Illyana...
...losing him, in a way, when he left the X-Men, and again when she left to join Gen X, but still remaining close...
...until...
Cat.
The memories of the past few months swirled inside her head, the pain and heartbreak and change and horror of it all. But one thought still remained, one that was echoed in the thoughts not her own...whatever happened, they would always be there for each other, they would always care.
"No matter what."
Wait..she didn't say that. What...?
The haze cleared, and she found herself cradled in Logan's arms, she laying on her side, he on his knees. She looked up, blinked stupidly at the tears she saw flowing freely from his eyes. She raised a hand, brushing his cheek and its wetness, stunned.
"Logan...did I hurt you 'gain...?"
Logan shook his head, smiling faintly.
"No, darlin', you didn't. I was just scared for you."
"You were?" Jubilee squeaked.
"Yeah, I was. I was afraid o' losin' you. You were so far gone into the feral, I thought I'd never see ya human again. If it wasn't for Jean..." He shuddered, remembering her fierceness. He wasn't quite sure what was happening when Jubilee's head had arched suddenly and her knees had buckled, but he'd been relieved to see his Jubilee again in those beautiful eyes. He nodded in thanks at Jean, who only smiled.
"I'm sorry for scarin' you.." Jubilee whispered. "The feral side is nearly uncontrollable, and I just wasn't strong enough.." She winced as she retracted the metal blades back into her skin, watching as the wounds from their entry healed over. "an...*this*...this is nearly more than I can stand. Being a walking firecracker isn't bad enough, now I'm a portable Swiss Army Knife!"
But he knew her cynical, sarcastic attitude covered her tears, so he shushed her quietly and held her as she gazed bitterly at her hands. "Don't worry, Jubilation. Everythin' will be okay, startin' tomorrow."
"Why? What's tomorrow?"
"Yer trainin'. I'm gonna teach ya how to deal with the feral and these..." he traced gentle fingertips over her knuckles, where the skin pulled tight now with the bone and muscles' new addition. "...before it makes ya lose your mind!"
********
~End Chapter 2~