Wow. That was a looong delay and I'm sorry; my muse deserted me for warmer pastures. The release of X2 on dvd got the creative juices flowing again, so here goes.
A couple of notes about the story-
a) The X-men show up (I swear to every god I know) show up in the chapter after next.
b) The word 'Cerebra' is not a typo. It's like, Cerebro version 2.0.
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He wasn't really that tall- maybe a couple of inches shorter than Theo, actually- but he was barrel-chested and massive with muscle. Kindly blue eyes twinkled with benevolence and intelligence behind half-moon spectacles, and the hands that set him on his feet and straightened his coat were gentle.
But all Theo really noticed was that the man was covered from head to toe in thick blue fur.
Cat scrambled into the window and the giant grabbed her in the biggest approximation of a bear hug Theo had ever seen, Cat grimacing comically over his shoulder as joints in her spine popped. "Lemme breathe, Henry," she said finally, squirming.
"Apologies, Cat," the giant said, in a surprisingly cultured voice. "You have no idea how relieved I am that you showed up. The Morlocks are on the run."
Cat winced, one hand coming to her forehead. "Shit! Is it that bad?"
The giant nodded. "There have been three lynch mobs already." He moved to the desk and lifted the bottom out of a drawer.
"Anyone we know?" Cat asked, accepting two vials of blue liquid and wrapping them in a motel washcloth before sticking them in her pockets.
"Minder," the giant said heavily, handing her a sheaf of papers.
Cat swore loudly. "Sasha?" She stuffed the papers into one of her pillowcases.
"I sent her with the Morlocks. The cops will be moving in on this place soon."
"You want me to get the Cerebra program out of here?" Cat asked, yanking the zipper on her pocket shut and nodding towards a door. "By the way," she said suddenly. "This is Theodore Jenkins. Theo, this is Dr. Henry McCoy. We call him the Beast."
The giant's mouth- muzzle?- moved into a sheepish smile at the lapse in courtesy. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Theo. If it pleases Cat to call me Beast, then you may as well. And your head is probably spinning in confusion," he continued, noting the look on Theo's face.
Theo smiled. "Yes, sir, it is."
"I'll get the program," Cat said quickly, ducking through the door.
Beast grinned. "Cat hates hearing people talk about her. She's says she's afraid she'll hear something bad. Where'd you two meet?"
Theo shrugged. "A rock quarry in Massachusetts."
"Sounds like a Cat-ish sort of place. I've known her for a couple of years now," Beast said, changing the subject abruptly. "I helped her out with a problem, then she helped me contact some of the people I can't be seen contacting- at least until this FBI nonsense. Cat's a good enough kid, when she wants to be. You sticking with her?" Suddenly Theo recognized this for what it was- the interrogation of a potential boyfriend by a protective male guardian.
Theo thought about his response carefully. "As long as she lets me, sir. Something tells me she calls the shots in her life, you know?"
"Definately an Alpha female complex," Beast chuckled agreeably.
"If you don't mind my asking, sir, what was the blue stuff you gave her?"
"That's an anti-serum for a virus I invented for Cat."
"A virus you invented...?"
"It's not as bad as it sounds. Cat had a problem with feline hormones overwhelming her sense of self. I invented the virus to erradicate all outside influences that don't match with Cat's human DNA. She called it 'the Handyman.' She needs the anti-serum in case the virus does something it's not supposed to."
"Do you do that for all mutants, sir?" Theo surveyed the man with a new respect, for he knew Cat couldn't have paid for something like that to save her life, no matter how much pool she played.
Beast shrugged. "Only cases that can't be treated any other way. Most powers can be controlled, with a little discipline. With the Handyman virus, Cat has the ability to control her powers." Another modest shrug as the blue-furred man tried to downplay his part in Cat's life.
"Are you finished?" Cat asked as she reentered the office, carrying a disk's jewel case in her hand. "Not to interrupt Happy Hour, but there's a SWAT team about a block away and closing."
Beast choked and grabbed up a piece of paper. "I want you to take the program here- Prof. Charles Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. Give it to no one but Xavier. The place is near a town called Salem Center, not far from here.
"I know. We passed through the town on our way. We'll get it there. What about you?" Cat pocketed the hastily penned note along with the jewel case.
"I'm going to buy you some time," Beast said, with the grim look of a man about to become a martyr. When both Cat and Theo would have protested, he made slashing movements with his hands. "No. The program is the most important thing I've ever made, and it will save hundreds, maybe even thousands, of mutants. It must get to Xavier, and I'm too conspicuous to get it there."
Cat's spine stiffened, her face a mask of denial and stubbornness, then she sighed in resignation. "I just hope this Xavier guy appreciates what you've done here, Henry," she said, giving Theo a little shove towards the window. "G'bye."
"Good luck, Cat," Beast said, giving them both thumps on the back that knocked the wind clear out of Theo's ribcage.
At Cat's urging, Theo clambered out of the window, and she held onto his wrist and lowered him to within four feet of the ground, hanging onto the window frame with the tops of her feet alone, and then dropped effortlessly beside him. "I still think you'd be a lot better off without me to watch out for," he said.
She gave him a look. "We've had this conversation already, man." She started out of the alley, swore, and quickly turned, grabbing him by the front of his jacket and kissing him hard.
Theo almost pushed her away, confused, when he heard the quick, light sound of multiple feet tapping into the alley. Something hard poked him in the back and, careful to keep his hands hidden by Cat's waist, he turned to face the masked figures of two SWAT people, who were gesturing for what they thought was just two teenagers using the cover of the alley to make out to make a quick and quiet exit.
Not needing to keep the fear out of his face, he and Cat beat a speedy retreat out of the alley, breaking into a run like any startled teens would have. "You're brilliant, you know that?" he gasped, not releasing his hold on Cat's hand even though they were out of sight of the office building. "I would never think of the things you come up with."
She grinned tightly, mind only half on the conversation. "What time is it, do you know?"
Theo shrugged. "Eleven, maybe twelve."
"We don't need to go quite as fast as we did coming in," she said, and Theo couldn't restrain his sigh of relief. "We should get there about five, maybe six in the morning, you think?"
"Sounds good," Theo said, since she seemed to want a response.
Suddenly she grinned mischeviously. "You wanna go skinny-dipping in Central Park?"
He laughed. "Maybe next time."
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Review. Next chapter tomorrow.
A couple of notes about the story-
a) The X-men show up (I swear to every god I know) show up in the chapter after next.
b) The word 'Cerebra' is not a typo. It's like, Cerebro version 2.0.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
He wasn't really that tall- maybe a couple of inches shorter than Theo, actually- but he was barrel-chested and massive with muscle. Kindly blue eyes twinkled with benevolence and intelligence behind half-moon spectacles, and the hands that set him on his feet and straightened his coat were gentle.
But all Theo really noticed was that the man was covered from head to toe in thick blue fur.
Cat scrambled into the window and the giant grabbed her in the biggest approximation of a bear hug Theo had ever seen, Cat grimacing comically over his shoulder as joints in her spine popped. "Lemme breathe, Henry," she said finally, squirming.
"Apologies, Cat," the giant said, in a surprisingly cultured voice. "You have no idea how relieved I am that you showed up. The Morlocks are on the run."
Cat winced, one hand coming to her forehead. "Shit! Is it that bad?"
The giant nodded. "There have been three lynch mobs already." He moved to the desk and lifted the bottom out of a drawer.
"Anyone we know?" Cat asked, accepting two vials of blue liquid and wrapping them in a motel washcloth before sticking them in her pockets.
"Minder," the giant said heavily, handing her a sheaf of papers.
Cat swore loudly. "Sasha?" She stuffed the papers into one of her pillowcases.
"I sent her with the Morlocks. The cops will be moving in on this place soon."
"You want me to get the Cerebra program out of here?" Cat asked, yanking the zipper on her pocket shut and nodding towards a door. "By the way," she said suddenly. "This is Theodore Jenkins. Theo, this is Dr. Henry McCoy. We call him the Beast."
The giant's mouth- muzzle?- moved into a sheepish smile at the lapse in courtesy. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Theo. If it pleases Cat to call me Beast, then you may as well. And your head is probably spinning in confusion," he continued, noting the look on Theo's face.
Theo smiled. "Yes, sir, it is."
"I'll get the program," Cat said quickly, ducking through the door.
Beast grinned. "Cat hates hearing people talk about her. She's says she's afraid she'll hear something bad. Where'd you two meet?"
Theo shrugged. "A rock quarry in Massachusetts."
"Sounds like a Cat-ish sort of place. I've known her for a couple of years now," Beast said, changing the subject abruptly. "I helped her out with a problem, then she helped me contact some of the people I can't be seen contacting- at least until this FBI nonsense. Cat's a good enough kid, when she wants to be. You sticking with her?" Suddenly Theo recognized this for what it was- the interrogation of a potential boyfriend by a protective male guardian.
Theo thought about his response carefully. "As long as she lets me, sir. Something tells me she calls the shots in her life, you know?"
"Definately an Alpha female complex," Beast chuckled agreeably.
"If you don't mind my asking, sir, what was the blue stuff you gave her?"
"That's an anti-serum for a virus I invented for Cat."
"A virus you invented...?"
"It's not as bad as it sounds. Cat had a problem with feline hormones overwhelming her sense of self. I invented the virus to erradicate all outside influences that don't match with Cat's human DNA. She called it 'the Handyman.' She needs the anti-serum in case the virus does something it's not supposed to."
"Do you do that for all mutants, sir?" Theo surveyed the man with a new respect, for he knew Cat couldn't have paid for something like that to save her life, no matter how much pool she played.
Beast shrugged. "Only cases that can't be treated any other way. Most powers can be controlled, with a little discipline. With the Handyman virus, Cat has the ability to control her powers." Another modest shrug as the blue-furred man tried to downplay his part in Cat's life.
"Are you finished?" Cat asked as she reentered the office, carrying a disk's jewel case in her hand. "Not to interrupt Happy Hour, but there's a SWAT team about a block away and closing."
Beast choked and grabbed up a piece of paper. "I want you to take the program here- Prof. Charles Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters. Give it to no one but Xavier. The place is near a town called Salem Center, not far from here.
"I know. We passed through the town on our way. We'll get it there. What about you?" Cat pocketed the hastily penned note along with the jewel case.
"I'm going to buy you some time," Beast said, with the grim look of a man about to become a martyr. When both Cat and Theo would have protested, he made slashing movements with his hands. "No. The program is the most important thing I've ever made, and it will save hundreds, maybe even thousands, of mutants. It must get to Xavier, and I'm too conspicuous to get it there."
Cat's spine stiffened, her face a mask of denial and stubbornness, then she sighed in resignation. "I just hope this Xavier guy appreciates what you've done here, Henry," she said, giving Theo a little shove towards the window. "G'bye."
"Good luck, Cat," Beast said, giving them both thumps on the back that knocked the wind clear out of Theo's ribcage.
At Cat's urging, Theo clambered out of the window, and she held onto his wrist and lowered him to within four feet of the ground, hanging onto the window frame with the tops of her feet alone, and then dropped effortlessly beside him. "I still think you'd be a lot better off without me to watch out for," he said.
She gave him a look. "We've had this conversation already, man." She started out of the alley, swore, and quickly turned, grabbing him by the front of his jacket and kissing him hard.
Theo almost pushed her away, confused, when he heard the quick, light sound of multiple feet tapping into the alley. Something hard poked him in the back and, careful to keep his hands hidden by Cat's waist, he turned to face the masked figures of two SWAT people, who were gesturing for what they thought was just two teenagers using the cover of the alley to make out to make a quick and quiet exit.
Not needing to keep the fear out of his face, he and Cat beat a speedy retreat out of the alley, breaking into a run like any startled teens would have. "You're brilliant, you know that?" he gasped, not releasing his hold on Cat's hand even though they were out of sight of the office building. "I would never think of the things you come up with."
She grinned tightly, mind only half on the conversation. "What time is it, do you know?"
Theo shrugged. "Eleven, maybe twelve."
"We don't need to go quite as fast as we did coming in," she said, and Theo couldn't restrain his sigh of relief. "We should get there about five, maybe six in the morning, you think?"
"Sounds good," Theo said, since she seemed to want a response.
Suddenly she grinned mischeviously. "You wanna go skinny-dipping in Central Park?"
He laughed. "Maybe next time."
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Review. Next chapter tomorrow.