I do not own the X-men or the universe in which they live. I only claim creation of Cassandra aka Tigeress. All rights are property of Stan Lee and Marvel. Some people may call this a "Mary Sue", I however think that it does not meet everything to be a Mary Sue. Cassandra is not perfect, she has issues, she isn't the most beautiful, thin nor does she have full control over her powers or life. I hope that some people will read my story and simply enjoy it for what it is. Thanks and please review:)
Kurt turned towards her. Beautiful? he thought, no one had ever thought of them as beautiful. Many people had shown an almost mystical fascination towards them but never had they been referred to in such a way. He took an erect posture; his underlining fears no longer forcing him to hold his defensive posture. He gave her a slight nod of forgiveness as he strode past her to a small table littered with newspapers. He scooped up an old set of rosary beads.
"I take it that you are not the authorities, then?" he asked, almost with a chuckle, his back to her. He was aware of the heavy sounds of her boots as she leveled up beside him.
"No, we are not," she answered simply.
"Yet you wear uniforms,"
"We just want to look cool," she almost laughed at the statement. She recalled a time when Logan had made a similar remark.
"I just don't understand what has happened to me. One moment I am here and the next I was there, fighting those people, those guards. I would have killed him, you know, your president. Just like these say," he gestured to the newspapers. He spoke, half for himself and half to fill the empty, awkward void between them, "I had no control. I saw myself, like a dream, I could not stop. Then the bullet hit me and I saw that it was not a dream, but a nightmare, it was real," his face was full of so much misery it made Cassie wish she had the power to take the memories from him.
Cassie found herself believing him, more so she found herself liking him. She tried to quickly looked him over, with eyes Da Vinci would have appreciated. His shirt was still folded neatly on a chair near his bed. The lightly raised scars ran from the soft features of his face and disappeared past his low, stripped pants. He was covered in a soft, thin and barely there fur that matched his indigo skin. Cassie would guess, from the pictures adorning his walls that he had been an acrobat, and he carried the lean musculature to match. She was finding it more and more difficult to not find him attractive. She wanted to touch him and offer him some small kind of comfort. She thought of her mother, for only a moment. She used to rub her knuckle up and down Cassie's spine, to comfort her when she was a child.
"I believe you, if it is any consolation," she said simply, his face fell again to the cross he held in his hand.
"I think maybe He has forsaken me," he stated, with just a small trace of self-pity etched into his voice. Cassie furrowed her thinly arched eyebrows, debating something in her mind.
"Or, maybe it is He who has lead us to you," she said, Cassie spoke rarely of her Catholic upbringing by her mother. Many people had teased her about her faith, which, since her mother's death had dwindled to nearly nothing. He raise his face to meet hers and smiled with his head cocked to the side, it was obviously the last thing he had expected for her to say.
Abruptly, Cassie heard a small sound coming from her ear piece and held up her hand, ending anything Kurt was going to say in reply. Ororo's voice came in over the static.
"Cass, we can't reach anyone at the Mansion, all lines are down. We need to get out of here. Convince Kurt to come with us and get the two of you back here ASAP. Storm, out," the line went down in a rush of static before she could have a chance to respond.
"Damn," she cursed, Kurt looked at her questionably, "That was Storm, they can't reach anyone at home, something may have happened or it could be nothing. But either way we need to leave, now. Storm wants us to get out of here,"
"Me, as well?" Kurt's brows furrowed. He obviously didn't want to leave his sanctuary. Cassie closed the short distance between them and placed her hand softly on his bare shoulder.
"Kurt, you have to understand, if we found you this quickly then it's only a matter of time before the real authorities find you," his face filled with a little fear, "Not to mention the people who did this to you already know where you are. You will be safest with us," that did it for him. Kurt moved away from her and started to redress himself, with seemingly no pain; Cassie had fully healed him. With the skill that comes only from years of route circus life, Kurt began to hurriedly back his few belongings in the duffel bag that had been doubling as his pillow. When he had rolled and carefully packed the last of his posters, Kurt shouldered the bag and nodded to Cassie.
"Lead the way, my Lady," he bowed gallantly, if but a bit awkwardly under the burden of his bag. She almost giggled but restrained herself to a light chuckle as she started down the stairs.
He must have been following her a bit too closely for her enjoyment, and as she sped up her coat began to billow behind her. As they reached the broken doors of the entry Cassie signaled for Kurt to stop while she stuck her head out to make sure the coast was clear. Kurt heard her curse lightly and he knew the usual group of vandals were loitering outside the high fencing.
"So, how many?" he grinned at her. She held of four fingers as she peaked back out at them. The were all armed with either bats or guns, this isn't looking good. When they had entered the cathedral she had noticed the anti-mutant dogma written all over the wooded sections of the fencing. She suspected these men as the perpetrators as a few of them had spray cans.
"I'm don't think that they are just going to let us walk out of here," Cassie said in dismay, "Is there a back door?"
"We don't need one," Kurt grinned. He stepped right into the open area of the door. Thankfully, the men hadn't notice him, yet. Cassie grabbed his arm, trying to pull him back, and Kurt used his forward momentum to jerk her into his arms. Cassie, her eyes wide, began to push away and struggle. She thrashed angrily as a small whimper of fear left her lips.
"Hush, this won't hurt," she looked purely horrified and her breathing was quickening. He understood that he was frightening to look at, but she hadn't seemed to scared of him before. I wasn't holding her before, was I? he thought to himself when he shut his eyes, but not before taking a glance across the street for a place out of sight. Her strength was great, making the teleportion almost dangerous due to her struggle.
Cassie stopped fighting as she felt his breath turn almost rhythmic, like meditation and his tail wrapped around her left leg and squeeze in almost a pleading way. Suddenly she felt a pressure building up all around and she realized he was going to teleport. Seconds before they went, she threw her arms around his neck with a squeak and burrowed her face into his chest. All they left behind was a thick, black, sulfurous smoke and the bamfing sound attracted the men's attention away from the alley that they materialized in. For a split second she wondered where they were. She felt surrounded by a silence that seemed to have nothing to do with silence, but only the absence of anything to make sound and a complete feeling of nothingness.
"God, warn me next time," she gasped, though she wasn't sure that she wanted a next time. She felt as though she had been turned inside out, then slowly put right. He held on to her as she regained her breath and composure. Her legs felt like jelly, his arms wrapped around her tighter as her knees buckled slightly.
"Don't worry, the first time is always the hardest. I'm sorry, I didn't think that you would mind....I didn't mean to frighten you," he backed away as she regained herself, running his hand through his hair.
"I know, just warn me. I'm... I'm not a very touchy person, I don't like to be constricted, you know held in," she lied, he had touched her in an intimate way. She was afraid that perhaps, she might have liked it. He nodded and they started down the alleyway, towards the park that Ororo had landed in and hidden the Blackbird.
Kurt turned towards her. Beautiful? he thought, no one had ever thought of them as beautiful. Many people had shown an almost mystical fascination towards them but never had they been referred to in such a way. He took an erect posture; his underlining fears no longer forcing him to hold his defensive posture. He gave her a slight nod of forgiveness as he strode past her to a small table littered with newspapers. He scooped up an old set of rosary beads.
"I take it that you are not the authorities, then?" he asked, almost with a chuckle, his back to her. He was aware of the heavy sounds of her boots as she leveled up beside him.
"No, we are not," she answered simply.
"Yet you wear uniforms,"
"We just want to look cool," she almost laughed at the statement. She recalled a time when Logan had made a similar remark.
"I just don't understand what has happened to me. One moment I am here and the next I was there, fighting those people, those guards. I would have killed him, you know, your president. Just like these say," he gestured to the newspapers. He spoke, half for himself and half to fill the empty, awkward void between them, "I had no control. I saw myself, like a dream, I could not stop. Then the bullet hit me and I saw that it was not a dream, but a nightmare, it was real," his face was full of so much misery it made Cassie wish she had the power to take the memories from him.
Cassie found herself believing him, more so she found herself liking him. She tried to quickly looked him over, with eyes Da Vinci would have appreciated. His shirt was still folded neatly on a chair near his bed. The lightly raised scars ran from the soft features of his face and disappeared past his low, stripped pants. He was covered in a soft, thin and barely there fur that matched his indigo skin. Cassie would guess, from the pictures adorning his walls that he had been an acrobat, and he carried the lean musculature to match. She was finding it more and more difficult to not find him attractive. She wanted to touch him and offer him some small kind of comfort. She thought of her mother, for only a moment. She used to rub her knuckle up and down Cassie's spine, to comfort her when she was a child.
"I believe you, if it is any consolation," she said simply, his face fell again to the cross he held in his hand.
"I think maybe He has forsaken me," he stated, with just a small trace of self-pity etched into his voice. Cassie furrowed her thinly arched eyebrows, debating something in her mind.
"Or, maybe it is He who has lead us to you," she said, Cassie spoke rarely of her Catholic upbringing by her mother. Many people had teased her about her faith, which, since her mother's death had dwindled to nearly nothing. He raise his face to meet hers and smiled with his head cocked to the side, it was obviously the last thing he had expected for her to say.
Abruptly, Cassie heard a small sound coming from her ear piece and held up her hand, ending anything Kurt was going to say in reply. Ororo's voice came in over the static.
"Cass, we can't reach anyone at the Mansion, all lines are down. We need to get out of here. Convince Kurt to come with us and get the two of you back here ASAP. Storm, out," the line went down in a rush of static before she could have a chance to respond.
"Damn," she cursed, Kurt looked at her questionably, "That was Storm, they can't reach anyone at home, something may have happened or it could be nothing. But either way we need to leave, now. Storm wants us to get out of here,"
"Me, as well?" Kurt's brows furrowed. He obviously didn't want to leave his sanctuary. Cassie closed the short distance between them and placed her hand softly on his bare shoulder.
"Kurt, you have to understand, if we found you this quickly then it's only a matter of time before the real authorities find you," his face filled with a little fear, "Not to mention the people who did this to you already know where you are. You will be safest with us," that did it for him. Kurt moved away from her and started to redress himself, with seemingly no pain; Cassie had fully healed him. With the skill that comes only from years of route circus life, Kurt began to hurriedly back his few belongings in the duffel bag that had been doubling as his pillow. When he had rolled and carefully packed the last of his posters, Kurt shouldered the bag and nodded to Cassie.
"Lead the way, my Lady," he bowed gallantly, if but a bit awkwardly under the burden of his bag. She almost giggled but restrained herself to a light chuckle as she started down the stairs.
He must have been following her a bit too closely for her enjoyment, and as she sped up her coat began to billow behind her. As they reached the broken doors of the entry Cassie signaled for Kurt to stop while she stuck her head out to make sure the coast was clear. Kurt heard her curse lightly and he knew the usual group of vandals were loitering outside the high fencing.
"So, how many?" he grinned at her. She held of four fingers as she peaked back out at them. The were all armed with either bats or guns, this isn't looking good. When they had entered the cathedral she had noticed the anti-mutant dogma written all over the wooded sections of the fencing. She suspected these men as the perpetrators as a few of them had spray cans.
"I'm don't think that they are just going to let us walk out of here," Cassie said in dismay, "Is there a back door?"
"We don't need one," Kurt grinned. He stepped right into the open area of the door. Thankfully, the men hadn't notice him, yet. Cassie grabbed his arm, trying to pull him back, and Kurt used his forward momentum to jerk her into his arms. Cassie, her eyes wide, began to push away and struggle. She thrashed angrily as a small whimper of fear left her lips.
"Hush, this won't hurt," she looked purely horrified and her breathing was quickening. He understood that he was frightening to look at, but she hadn't seemed to scared of him before. I wasn't holding her before, was I? he thought to himself when he shut his eyes, but not before taking a glance across the street for a place out of sight. Her strength was great, making the teleportion almost dangerous due to her struggle.
Cassie stopped fighting as she felt his breath turn almost rhythmic, like meditation and his tail wrapped around her left leg and squeeze in almost a pleading way. Suddenly she felt a pressure building up all around and she realized he was going to teleport. Seconds before they went, she threw her arms around his neck with a squeak and burrowed her face into his chest. All they left behind was a thick, black, sulfurous smoke and the bamfing sound attracted the men's attention away from the alley that they materialized in. For a split second she wondered where they were. She felt surrounded by a silence that seemed to have nothing to do with silence, but only the absence of anything to make sound and a complete feeling of nothingness.
"God, warn me next time," she gasped, though she wasn't sure that she wanted a next time. She felt as though she had been turned inside out, then slowly put right. He held on to her as she regained her breath and composure. Her legs felt like jelly, his arms wrapped around her tighter as her knees buckled slightly.
"Don't worry, the first time is always the hardest. I'm sorry, I didn't think that you would mind....I didn't mean to frighten you," he backed away as she regained herself, running his hand through his hair.
"I know, just warn me. I'm... I'm not a very touchy person, I don't like to be constricted, you know held in," she lied, he had touched her in an intimate way. She was afraid that perhaps, she might have liked it. He nodded and they started down the alleyway, towards the park that Ororo had landed in and hidden the Blackbird.
