Sarah roared in anger and leapt forward, claws sliding from their respective sheaths in her fists as she launched herself at her nearest target. Her target dodged aside as she yelled her battle-cry, flinging herself at the next one. They were all running now, their blasts heading at her, but she dodged and rolled aside, heading straight towards.
Suddenly something grabbed her from behind, plowing her to the ground. She reached up, trying to shake it off, but the bigger weight shifted out of range of her claws, as it kept her safely pinned against the ground. Nearby, the thick scent of sulfur assault her nose, and it was that more than anything else that snapped her back to reality.
Wolverine was atop of her, keeping her safely pinned against the ground, but equally careful not to injure her. Nearby, Kurt had just ported himself and Logan down, and they'd restrained her before she could reach the other students.
Logan waited very patiently until he felt the tension drain out of Sarah's body, then reluctantly let her up, helping her to her feet. Her eyes were damp with unshed tears, as she regarded those she'd tried to harm.
"I... I'm sorry," she managed to choke out. She fully expected to be reprimanded. Or worse, punished. No worse than she deserved, however.
"Sarah why don't you come with me," said Logan quietly. "We need to talk."
"Pardon me, Herr Logan," interrupted Kurt, making his way over towards him and Sarah. "Allow me to speak to Sarah. You can finish up the lesson here." In undertones that only Logan could hear, he added "No offense, but you're not known for being very subtle."
Logan growled but conceded the elf had a point, and reluctantly had Sarah go with Kurt. He immediately turned his attention to the remaining players, telling them in no uncertain terms that their game wasn't over. Now a free-for-all ensued, as the remaining three players turned on one another, shaking off the incident with Sarah like it was unimportant. They tried to understand. None of them had exactly led perfect lives, but they had no idea what she'd gone through. Evan Logan couldn't fully comprehend. He'd had a rough life, sure. He'd been an experiment and a guinea pig and had his entire body sliced open for the Weapon X project. But he'd had a childhood, even though he couldn't remember it.
She never had.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sarah reluctantly let Kurt lead her back to the women's underground locker room. He waited outside, stating in polite tones he didn't want to intrude while he made his way to the men's locker room to change back into his normal clothes and out of his uniform. Thus, Sarah reunited with him in the hallway after doing the same, and he beckoned her to follow him.
"Where're we going?" she asked, as they stepped into the elevator.
"You'll see," he replied. "This may help you deal with your anger, Sarah."
"Alright... lead on."
Kurt did so, leading Sarah up to the ground level and out of the Institute. They passed by the foyer, where Rogue was busy reading one of her favorite horror novels. She spared them a cursory glance, but turned her attention back to her book almost immediately. Kurt led Sarah onto the Institute grounds, and at once Sarah felt a little more at ease. She always did around nature. Trees and animals didn't have feelings the way humans did, nor were they capable of the evils that only man could commit. It was reassuring.
Her blue-furred guide led them deeper into the woods as Sarah looked around in amazement. A few of the nearby trees showed old scars, those nearest the Institute even looked blackened in spots from fire, though much of the damage had healed. A number of small birds and squirrels were within range of her senses. As she watches, startled, two squirrels made their way down a nearby tree and over towards Kurt, a few meters ahead of her. Her astonishment grew as the furry little critters made their way closer to Kurt, letting him gently pat their tiny little heads. But as she approached, they again took up normal behavioral patterns and ran back up to their trees, watching from a distance.
"Friends of yours?" she asked lightly, puzzled by their bizarre behavior.
"Yeah... they recognize me as one of them I guess," he replied with a short chuckle. Sarah didn't join in, though she did smile at his joke. "Come on, its just up ahead," he added, as he bounded off lightly, bouncing from one tree to another with the grace and agility of a spider-monkey.
Finally, they arrived at the clearing.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The session ended with the unlikely winner of Rahne Sinclair. She and Sam had teamed up to take down Bobby, then Sam had practically given up to allow the Scottish wolfgirl to win. He claimed he was exhausted. Ray claimed he was whipped.
Thankful to end the session, Wolverine dismissed the whole lot of them to go change and get back to the even less joyful activity of homework. It was also to get them out of the Danger Room, so he could have a real work out of his own. Not with dodgeballs and little white lines. With the settings on max with lethal rounds. He had a bit of his own anger to work out, as well as the frustration of not being able to personally see every single Hydra scientist rot in Hell.
"Good game Rahne," said Sam, as they exited the room, giving her an awkward pat on the shoulder. After another month or so reunited, he still didn't know how to act around her. The New Recruits traveling in a pack before they broke off for their respective locker rooms.
"Thanks a lot Sam, we're a really good team!" replied the russet-haired Scots girl as she skipped off to the ladies locker room with Jubes.
"Oooh I'm tired... I'm takin' a bath," remarked Tabitha, as she wandered off down towards the women's hot tub. It had been installed a year or so ago, as well as the men's adjacent. A third had been added out of necessity for Kurt and Hank. Do Not Disturb signs were within to be hung upon the doors, to keep out unwanted interlopers.
"I'll join you shortly," remarked Amara, running her fingers through her hair. It always got so grimy after a good work out like that. She headed off towards the women's locker room to change. Bobby tried to follow, but a sparkler, a tiny fireball and a very menacing growl convinced him it wasn't worth his life to see the x-girls changing. Not today, at least.
Maybe later he could try his luck with Sarah, but even Bobby wasn't that foolhardy.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Where are we?" asked Sarah, as she stepped out into the clearing. Apart from a large, fairly flat rock in the middle of the clearing, it was unadorned save the grass on the ground. Yet Sarah felt something here. A sense of peace, a sense of serenity. Maybe it was just her, maybe it was Kurt, who'd back flipped onto the rock to land in a cross-legged stance before her, his head resting on his palms as he regarded her quietly. He certainly seemed at peace.
"Meine church," he replied calmly. His expression was completely relaxed.
"Your church... this is where... your friend was, wasn't it?" she asked quietly, glancing around. Apart from a pair of squirrels, Kurt, and herself, they were alone. But Kurt's smile, if anything, grew wider.
"Not really... he's everywhere. Always listening, always working, always helping," he replied. Then he pointed a single one of his thick blue fingers at the sky, and Sarah's eyes widened marginally as she realized who he meant. Then they narrowed dangerously.
"He doesn't exist," she replied darkly, turning on her heel and starting to leave.
"Vhat makes you so sure of zat?" he called out after her, not moving from his perch on the rock. At this, Sarah nearly lost her temper and sliced up the nearest inanimate object next to her. She only barely managed to restrain herself in time.
Since she'd been young, Deborah had been the only scientist who'd ever treated her as anything other than a weapon or science experiment. Deborah had, once, during their lessons, spoken of religion, but the subject had confused X23. Deborah had told her about the divine being, about the supposed creation of the world, about heaven and hell, and other such things. When she'd been younger, X23 had listened and believed. But as she'd grown older, she'd found her belief waning. It had died on her twelfth birthday, when she'd undergone the Weapon X program, her hands sliced open and metal laced along her claws. No benevolent divine being could be so cruel.
"He can't be!" she shouted back at him. "What sort of God would make people do THIS to me?!" she asked, angrily unsheathing her claws, inches from Kurt's face. To her surprise, he didn't even blink. He wasn't surprised, but his expression did change. It grew more remorseful.
"It is true our understanding of God's vays is limited," he replied gently. "But ve do know zat his love for us is limitless. He forgives us."
"Its not true," replied Sarah angrily, hot tears forming in the corners of eyes. "If he's real, then he's taken everything away from me." Kurt gently lay a hand on her shoulder.
"Try looking at it through my eyes, Sarah. God did not take everything from you. He's given you things. He's guided you here, to your new family, at the Institute."
"It all sounds so nice," replied Sarah, angrily shaking off his hand and turning around once more. "But its just a delusion... its a false hope," she stated angrily, not caring that she was hurting Kurt's feelings or his belief. But the blue-furred elf was nothing if not someone who forgave others. "If your God is so nice," she asked cautiously. "Why did he make bad things happen to me? Why did he make me suffer like this...?"
"I don't know," Kurt replied honestly. "I don't claim to have all the answers... and as I said, its hard to understand God sometimes. But I like to think they're tests of his, to guide us."
"Do you always look on the bright side of something?" she asked, now genuinely curious.
"I try," he replied. With a gentle sigh, he added "But its not easy... so that's why I come here. When I get angry with something, I come here and talk to God about it. Or argue with him, really," he said with a toothy grin.
"With him?" asked Sarah, her nose scrunching up with confusion. Kurt nodded.
"It's how I deal with it," he replied. "It helps remind me I'm as human as any of his other creations," he added softly, his gaze dropping just a little.
"You... oh..." she gasped softly, hands coming up to cover her mouth as the full implications hit her. She'd been so upset about her own troublesome childhood, she hadn't even thought about how others might have suffered like her. Logan must've been the same way, she thought. He'd said so himself. I'm the one person on this planet who understands you, he'd said. They'd all suffered, were all suffering. But they managed to put it all behind them and leave fairly decent, happy lives.
"Are... do the other others at the Institute feel this way too?" she asked softly. "Do they come here and argue with God like you do?"
"Nein," replied Kurt. "Ve're a diverse bunch. Kitty's Jewish, Sam's a Methodist, Roberto's Catholic and little Rahne's a wiccan. Jubilee's parents are Buddhist but she isn't all that devout herself. Especially in the freedom of material possessions part," he added with a snicker. "Ororo has her own faith from Africa. She doesn't speak of it much though, its a little bit of a conflicting subject with her. Amara follows the Roman gods, if you can believe that. Meine schwester... vell, to be honest I don't know about her. Scott's learning christianity. He's also had a rough time of it, like you."
"How so?" she asked.
Kurt hesitated, glancing around before replying immediately. "Better I let him tell you that," he said after a moment or so. "Like I said, he's learned to deal with it."
"Kurt I... I'm thankful you've told me all this but... religion doesn't feel right. I still don't understand," said the dark-haired former assassin.
"Faith isn't something you understand, its just something you have. But I understand vhat you mean. And meine church is always velcome to you," he said, spreading his arms wide to encompass the clearing and the simple rock he held so sacred. "As if I vould ever think of denying you entry."
"Thank you Kurt," she replied respectfully. "I think I'd like coming here, maybe... but... the rest..."
"Give it time," he replied. "Even God needed six days to create the world, you don't need to do this all at once..."
"Thanks," she replied softly.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Logan exited the Danger Room with a smug sense of satisfaction. He'd positively enjoyed his own brand of training, which would've slaughtered a lesson fool caught in its path. Danger was almost an insufficient term to describe the Room once he'd set to his personal settings. Way too tough for the kids, but for him it made for a good work out. Plus, it managed to help him work out the anger in his system. Maybe he could introduce something similar for Sarah, if she needed it. Kinda hard to be angry when it was hard to catch your breath.
As he exited the elevator and walked down the upper hallways of the mansion, he bumped into Beast, who stated that a message had been sent, with specific instructions for Logan alone to read it. It was resting in the Professor's study. Logan made his way there, already anxious about what he'd find. To his relief, it was no video tape with the instructions "this will self-destruct in ten minutes" just an envelope. Inside a simple piece of paper, with instructions. Bayville Park, one hour, by the fountain. Come alone. Logan checked his watch, it was almost five and the sun had just barely touched the horizon. Now was as good a time as any, Fury, he thought.
Without a word to Hank or anyone else, Logan grabbed his bike and helmet, and made his way to the Bayville Park to talk to his former commander. Hopefully, SHIELD had come up with some answers to his inquires about Hydra being up and active. Or about the attacker who'd gone after Sarah.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sarah made her way back to the Institute much later, when it was dark. She didn't stay at Kurt's church, didn't particularly care to watch him pray and casually converse with a God who'd abandoned her and condemned her from birth to such a horrible life. But, she supposed, if he could overcome what had happened to him, she could do the same. But she needed time.
So she wandered the Institute grounds, sitting down on one of the concrete benches nearer the mansion as she watched the sun set over the horizon. It was, without a doubt, one of the most beautiful things she'd ever seen, and she couldn't take her eyes off of it.
"You're gonna ruin your eyes if you stare too long," came a voice she now recognized as belonging to Scott. Sarah didn't jump in surprise this time, she'd sensed him coming for a while now. His scent was very distinct, but by no means unpleasant, quite the contrary. He sat down next to her, also staring out at the sunset, the reddish rays reflected by his sunglasses.
"My eyes don't damage very easily," she replied without missing a beat, as she turned and smiled at him. Over the weekend, she'd learned how to relax around others a little at the Institute. Strangers still earned her trust the hard way, but those she lived with she now felt comfortable with.
"Good to hear... listen, I heard about what happened in the Danger Room... you okay?" Scott asked, turning to face her. Concern was evident in his features.
"I'm fine now," she replied. "I just... hate losing my temper like that."
"You will in time," he replied gently, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "And until then, we'll forgive any little outbursts you have, alright?"
She nodded gently. A somewhat uncomfortable silence arose, and though she was reluctant, she decided to ask him. "Scott... Kurt told me something tragic happened in your past... may I ask what it is?"
"My parents died in a plane crash," he replied after a moment, his expression becoming more somber as he remembered the incident. "And I thought my brother as well, though I found out recently that he survived," he added with another smile.
"Oh... that must've been horrible," she replied, not knowing what else she could say to that. To lose your parents. In some way, she was grateful she'd never had any to begin with. Nothing to start with, nothing to take away.
"Its okay... I've put the past behind me," he replied. "I haven't forgotten about it... I just... deal with it," he explained after a moment. Sarah smiled softly.
"Maybe I can learn to do the same," she said softly, hopefully.
"Well Rogue and me were gonna go watch a movie, you wanna come?" he asked, standing again.
"Sure," she replied as she stood, almost a little too eagerly. As an afterthought she added "What's it about?"
"It's a comedy... don't worry Sarah I think you'll like it," he replied with a smile. Again Sarah felt like her stomach was full of butterflies, and couldn't come up with an appropriate response. Not even a thank you. So she just followed Scott into the mansion and towards the foyer, where Rogue was already waiting for them.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Logan sat down on the nearby bench, overlooking the fountain at its center with a sense of ease. He stared ahead, but his other senses, his ears and his nose, stretched in 360 degrees around him. Thus he wasn't the least bit startled when a middle-aged, gray-haired man in a trench coat (yeah, like that's discreet, he thought) sat down behind him, also not facing him.
"How's it going, Logan?"
"Give it a rest with the friendly routine, Patch... just tell me what you know."
"Alright... nothing."
"Absolutely nothing?"
"No sign of Hydra activity can be found anywhere. Not where you found X23, not..."
"She has a name now, Patch."
"Use mine and I'll use hers," he replied. Though Logan couldn't see it, he was smirking.
"Fine, Fury, what about the operatives you captured? Any talking?"
"None of the soldiers know anything beyond what they're told, so nothing from them."
"And the octopus?"
"Omega Red is as tight-lipped as ever. All he does is rant about his revenge, all day and all night."
"I am really going to have to have a chat with him one of these days."
"The instant something comes up we'll let you know, Logan... you know that."
"Alright, then I guess we're done here."
"Logan," said Fury, starting to turn around. "Just so you know Deborah says she can..." and then he paused, because Logan wasn't there. He'd up and vanished into thin air. Damn, a hundred odd years old, and he could still do that.
The man certainly was good. Fury hoped it would be good enough, if Hydra was still up and running. After all, they hadn't found Viper in the wreckage of her crashed ship. And Fury's philosophy was never to believe they were dead until you saw the body. And even then, best decapitate them and burn the body to ashes... just to be safe.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The movie was a good one. Most of the humor was greatly exaggerated, but Sarah was grateful in a way, it made it that much easier to identify and react to. She didn't burst out laughing, like Rogue or Scott, she just did a quiet little chuckle. Still, it was enjoyable, and left her in a pleasant mood by the time dinner rolled around, as she joined the other students for a much needed meal.
She smiled a little more now, seeing them in a new light. Her talks with Kurt and Scott had shown her she hadn't been the only one to lead a miserable childhood because of the way she was born. They'd all suffered on one level or another, and it was unfair of her to keep pushing them away out of jealousy. After all, she now had everything they had. A home, friends, and a future as something other than a living weapon.
Truth be told, that bit scared her a little. A high school student, she was already supposed to be thinking about where to go after high school, what colleges, what career. Having so many choices was overwhelming her.
But she'd manage, somehow.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Author's Notes:
And yet more dealings with Sarah's explosive, dangerous anger. And Kurt's spiritual side. Much thanks owed to Internutter for giving me the inspiration for Kurt's own particular version of christianity. It was interesting to write as well, since my own views tend to run more along Sarah's view. It was fun arguing with myself. The ideas of the other students religions mostly were guesswork, to emphasize diversity. I don't know if Comic Cannonball or Jubilee were something else, my sincerest apologies if I made a mistake or offended anyone. Rahne being a wiccan was a last minute twist on my part. Also should note perhaps that Kurt and Sarah's conversation contains elements of a conversation between Wolverine and Nightcrawler from TAS, in the episode named after the latter character.
Flame31: I try to keep them in-character as much as possible, at least based on what we've seen in Evo. But thank you.
Lyranfan: Glad you think so. Maybe I'll involve that in another story later, with the whole F***ed up family tree Mystique has made. With Kurt and Victor and Graydon and Rogue and all (I mean, those are just the ones we know).
Kinomi: PrinciPAL, gotcha, danke fraulein. More to come, as always.
The Rogue Witch: You certainly are. Glad you're liking Sarah's explosions of rage, and all will be answered in time. Hope you can at least wait until then.
Steven P.P: Glad you like. And yeah, me too, season five I'd do a lot of things, and have seventeen or more episodes, just like season two.
Ultimate R-Man: Your spider-sense is accurate. As for Piotr, he'll be in it, but I can't guarantee he'll have too big of a role. But he'll at least be mentioned, at the very least.
Elrohirthewriter: And X23 isn't normal, is she? Awww, my poor mutants, in that mean high school. Don't worry, I'm putting X23 back into her proper element soon enough. You may want to work on your doom-sensing though. It off by a few chapters.
DoWriter12: ALL the Weapon X and Hydra characters are going to be brought into play. And more besides. Prepare thyself, the hour grows nigh.