The moment she had walked into the bar in Laughlin City he had sensed her.
She smelt achingly familiar - as if he had known her all his life and yet
so innocent and pure. She smelt clean, like vanilla and underneath just
that unique scent he'd be able to distinguish amongst millions - just
Marie. He had wondered what someone so innocent was doing in a place like
this. Leaning against the cage, smoking his cigar he saw her approach - a
hooded figure that approached the crowd cautiously. He watched her - her
body language indicated a severe sense of caution. She carried herself as
if she was afraid of touching anybody and she was covered from head to toe
with clothing, which meant he still couldn't see her face. His enhanced
sight had meant he could see her eyes though, they were huge bottomless
pools of sadness and he felt drawn to them. She hadn't known that he was
aware of her every reaction during the fight - he could smell her horror
with the cage and her fascination with him. His immense power, he could
tell she could sense the animal in him and he smelt a sense of elation when
she realized what he was. He couldn't understand that then, he had known
she was a mutant, mutants smelt different to the others but the
overwhelming relief that radiated from her when she realized what he was
staggered him.
Afterwards, he had approached the bar where she was sitting. Maybe he'd get lucky tonight, though he sensed she'd be different to what he was used to. He spent his lift eating, screwing and fighting - it was all he was good for, all he knew and he was satisfied with his lot. It meant no hard questions and no interaction with people who could hurt him. The moment he had seen her face though he knew this was different. She was pretty on the way to beautiful but she was young, younger than he had thought at first. He figured she was around sixteen or seventeen. Logan was many things but he wasn't a pervert. She still fascinated him though; she kept darting glances at him as he did her. He realized she was a runaway; there was an air of caution and a weary resignation about her but when that TV report had mentioned mutants and they had made eye contact the sadness he had previously sensed staggered him. He had never seen anything like it in someone so young. "Young", her eyes belied her youth though, hers were the eyes of someone who had seen too much and was tired of life and yet curiosity and youth was still there somewhere. She was an enigma, and he realized he wanted to know more about her. She wanted to protect him too, she had sounded a warning when that redneck had threatened him with the puny knife and she hadn't been horrified when she saw the claws, just fascinated. That had really thrown him off balance. He had never encountered a reaction like interest and fascination in relation to him and his claws before, it disturbed him, as did his fascination with this kid. He never felt like this, he couldn't allow himself to either. Feeling like this would knock down all the barriers he had so carefully erected. That couldn't happen, he couldn't risk letting his interest go any further so he ran out of the bar and hit the road.
He didn't know how he sensed her in the back of the trailer. All he knew was that he couldn't get her scent out of his head, the sadness of her eyes. It was driving him crazy - sweet, innocent, pure - like nothing he had sensed before, everything he was not. A muffled "ow!" when he drove over a pothole alerted him to her presence though. The kid had spunk; he had to give her that. No one ever stood up to the Wolverine. She thought she had saved his life, she had shouted that at him as he walked away. It was only now, sitting here and thinking about that particular moment that he realized how right she was. Meeting her had saved him, saved the man in him that was increasingly being shut out by the animal that raged inside, so difficult to keep in check. Stopping the truck, - he still didn't know what had prompted him to do it - had been a turning point in his life. He remembered when she told him his name, "What kind of name is Wolverine?", he smiled at the memory of that. Her fascination with his dog tags, with him. The roll of his name on her tongue pleased him as did the way she uttered her name in her sweet southern drawl, "Marie", much more appropriate that Rogue though her code name was just right for when she was with the geeks. It pleased him that he was the only one who knew her real name; it was like a secret bond between them. Hell, even that Bobby kid didn't know her name and he didn't realize why but that gave him a deep sense of satisfaction.
Lecturing him about his seatbelt and that was when his world was just turned upside down - literally. The crash, the darkness and then the dull ache that he knew would later become a relentless pounding as his healing factor kicked in. He could see the shock on her face and knew that she probably was seeing his healing powers establish their presence. Remembered shouting if she was ok, if the kid was ok. He wasn't sure when or why he started addressing her as "kid", he hadn't wanted to call her Marie, he knew she liked to keep her name a secret that was shared between them, and Rogue just didn't feel right to him so he supposed he settled on kid. It was a brotherly endearment and it served to remind him how young she was, how innocent. Remembered the pure feral smell that signaled danger and the raw power and pain that followed, more severe than anything he had ever encountered in the cage. He remembered the smell of gasoline, the roar of the flames, Marie screaming for help and then blackness. Logan was thankful that the geeks had saved his skin and more importantly Maries. He would always owe them that but the fact that it was Cyke was a kick in the teeth. "Hell, the guy already had a poker up his ass and now was one up on Logan and then there was Jeannie" Jean. Logan remembered Jean
Afterwards, he had approached the bar where she was sitting. Maybe he'd get lucky tonight, though he sensed she'd be different to what he was used to. He spent his lift eating, screwing and fighting - it was all he was good for, all he knew and he was satisfied with his lot. It meant no hard questions and no interaction with people who could hurt him. The moment he had seen her face though he knew this was different. She was pretty on the way to beautiful but she was young, younger than he had thought at first. He figured she was around sixteen or seventeen. Logan was many things but he wasn't a pervert. She still fascinated him though; she kept darting glances at him as he did her. He realized she was a runaway; there was an air of caution and a weary resignation about her but when that TV report had mentioned mutants and they had made eye contact the sadness he had previously sensed staggered him. He had never seen anything like it in someone so young. "Young", her eyes belied her youth though, hers were the eyes of someone who had seen too much and was tired of life and yet curiosity and youth was still there somewhere. She was an enigma, and he realized he wanted to know more about her. She wanted to protect him too, she had sounded a warning when that redneck had threatened him with the puny knife and she hadn't been horrified when she saw the claws, just fascinated. That had really thrown him off balance. He had never encountered a reaction like interest and fascination in relation to him and his claws before, it disturbed him, as did his fascination with this kid. He never felt like this, he couldn't allow himself to either. Feeling like this would knock down all the barriers he had so carefully erected. That couldn't happen, he couldn't risk letting his interest go any further so he ran out of the bar and hit the road.
He didn't know how he sensed her in the back of the trailer. All he knew was that he couldn't get her scent out of his head, the sadness of her eyes. It was driving him crazy - sweet, innocent, pure - like nothing he had sensed before, everything he was not. A muffled "ow!" when he drove over a pothole alerted him to her presence though. The kid had spunk; he had to give her that. No one ever stood up to the Wolverine. She thought she had saved his life, she had shouted that at him as he walked away. It was only now, sitting here and thinking about that particular moment that he realized how right she was. Meeting her had saved him, saved the man in him that was increasingly being shut out by the animal that raged inside, so difficult to keep in check. Stopping the truck, - he still didn't know what had prompted him to do it - had been a turning point in his life. He remembered when she told him his name, "What kind of name is Wolverine?", he smiled at the memory of that. Her fascination with his dog tags, with him. The roll of his name on her tongue pleased him as did the way she uttered her name in her sweet southern drawl, "Marie", much more appropriate that Rogue though her code name was just right for when she was with the geeks. It pleased him that he was the only one who knew her real name; it was like a secret bond between them. Hell, even that Bobby kid didn't know her name and he didn't realize why but that gave him a deep sense of satisfaction.
Lecturing him about his seatbelt and that was when his world was just turned upside down - literally. The crash, the darkness and then the dull ache that he knew would later become a relentless pounding as his healing factor kicked in. He could see the shock on her face and knew that she probably was seeing his healing powers establish their presence. Remembered shouting if she was ok, if the kid was ok. He wasn't sure when or why he started addressing her as "kid", he hadn't wanted to call her Marie, he knew she liked to keep her name a secret that was shared between them, and Rogue just didn't feel right to him so he supposed he settled on kid. It was a brotherly endearment and it served to remind him how young she was, how innocent. Remembered the pure feral smell that signaled danger and the raw power and pain that followed, more severe than anything he had ever encountered in the cage. He remembered the smell of gasoline, the roar of the flames, Marie screaming for help and then blackness. Logan was thankful that the geeks had saved his skin and more importantly Maries. He would always owe them that but the fact that it was Cyke was a kick in the teeth. "Hell, the guy already had a poker up his ass and now was one up on Logan and then there was Jeannie" Jean. Logan remembered Jean