Ruhko was not only noisy, she was messy. Steph had never seen an eater like
the little girl, who eagerly grabbed the food Logan had paid for and
stuffed it in her mouth. Steph enjoyed the little girl's company, and the
delicious food made it even better. Ruhko was a funny kid, laughing at the
slightest tickle and extremely physical, it had been impossible to keep her
from climbing onto Steph's lap while eating, so now Steph's pajamas were as
dirty as Ruhko.
"Nyono!" Ruhko cried as Steph tried to get up. Steph wished the baby could read, she couldn't talk to her and her legs were falling asleep, plus the fact she couldn't eat much herself when Ruhko grabbed all the food out of her hand.
"You two doin' alright in there?" Logan shouted from the bathroom. Steph rolled her eyes, but Ruhko replied in her own way.
"BEESHA!" she shouted. Steph winced, the girl had a pair of lungs on her. But then the baby went back to grabbing more of Steph's breakfast with her chubby fingers and either squashing it for fun or shoving it into her mouth.
A little bit later Logan came out, rubbing his hair with a towel and bare- chested.
"You kids doin' alright?" he asked again. Steph glared at him and grabbed her slate and wrote a message.
"Your kid is eating MY food, and I'm not a kid. I don't call you old fart do I?" she showed him the message and he laughed.
"Sorry, bout both of yer complaints. Ruhko ain't my kid though, I found her," he replied. Steph arched an eyebrow, but Logan ignored it and asked a question that had been bothering him since he found Steph. "So why do yeh write everything down? Not a talker?" Steph wrote something on the slate and then gave it back to Logan.
"Can't talk, I'd hurt you and the baby. Where are you taking me anyway?" Steph looked at him.
"Hurt me?" he repeated. Steph rolled her eyes and scribbled something else.
"I'm more worried about the baby then some old fart." Logan laughed again.
"Alright, fair's fair. There's this place in New York called Westchester, more specifically a school." He said. The teen mouthed the word 'school' and then looked put off, shaking her head. Logan held up his hands.
"No, wait. This is a special school fer mutants, run by a guy named Xavier. He's a telepath, yeh know what that is?" Steph rolled her eyes and nodded. Logan grinned and continued. "Well, he found yeh with a machine o' his and sent me teh get yeh, but only if yeh want." Logan finished and looked at the girl, who laughed her soundless laugh again. Her brown eyes looking at him almost sadly. She wrote something on her pallet and gave it to him.
"How could I go to a school? I can't talk." Logan looked at her.
"Xavier's taught lots o' kids to control their mutations, I'm more than sure he can help yeh." Steph still looked skeptical, but grabbed her new backpack and sorted through to pick out some clothes. Then she looked at Ruhko, who was now sticking her whole face in a large bowl of oatmeal and sighed, writing something on the pad and then dropping it on the bed, grabbing Ruhko as she tried to crawl away.
"Nyoooooooooo! Nyonononono!" Ruhko screamed, but Steph was firm, picking up the baby and walking into the bathroom, setting her down in the bathtub and turning on the water. Logan looked at the message Steph had left; "Ruhko is filthy, I'll clean her up, but only because you obviously don't know anything about taking care of kids. Am I right?" Logan looked closer and noticed "Typical man" was scribbled in a corner.
"Yer a bit opinionated, huh?" Logan asked. Steph turned around and glared at him, then turned back to the struggling Ruhko and removed her diaper, taking a wash cloth and gently beginning to wash away the food all over the baby. Ruhko laughed as the cloth tickled her sides and splashed, sending a wave of warm water over Steph, who sneezed and smiled.
"Yer right, I don't know how t' take care o' babies, I guess I'll leave that t' you," Logan laughed. Steph whipped her long red hair around, stood up, and slammed the bathroom door shut. Logan shook his head at the closed door, peering through one of the holes. "I ken still see yeh!" he called. A moment later a towel was stuffed through, and Ruhko's insane giggles were muffled slightly.
After a while in the tub Steph began to see a baby again, and not a mush- monster. Ruhko, however, seemed less pleased at the idea of being clean. Steph gulped when out of Ruhko's pudgy wrist three very sharp, very dangerous claws appeared and Ruhko tried to fend Steph off with them. Steph, however, was not going to be put off by a baby's claws, and kept trying to dodge them until Ruhko got one lucky cut, right across Steph' wrist.
"Ow!" Steph yelped. She stared at her bleeding hand and stumbled over to the sink, finding enough bandages to cover the cut she hastily bandaged it. Then she clasped a hand over her mouth and looked at Ruhko worriedly, but Ruhko seemed extremely happy that she had heard something besides her own voice and water. Steph stared at the baby for a moment and then, for reasons unknown to her, decided to go with the gut.
"Ruhko?" Steph said quietly. Ruhko giggled.
"Gok!" she replied.
"Ruhko?" Steph said a bit louder. This could not be happening! Thoughts flashed through Steph's mind. What if she had been cured? What if it was something else that made everyone else Steph talked to pass out? Excitement shot through Steph, and she suddenly needed to try out her voice on Logan.
"You ok for a sec Ruk?" Step asked. The baby grinned at her, and Steph took that as a yes. Leaping to her feet Steph raced to the door and threw it open. Logan looked up, startled.
"LOGAN!!!" Steph screamed, leaping forward. But he seemed to be hit by some unseen force and was immediately thrown back a couple feet and collapsed in a heap. In the bathroom Ruhko started crying, and Steph immediately closed her mouth. Hurrying over to Logan she was relieved to find the man still breathing, and she dragged him out on the floor and hurriedly put a few pillows under his head, then went back to the bathroom and lifted Ruhko out of the water, grabbing a towel and wrapping it around her.
"Oh, baby, you ok?" Steph said, hugging her close. Ruhko snuggled up into the crevice of Steph's neck. "I'm sorry, so sorry! Shh..." Hugging her new friend close Steph went into the other room and tried to make Logan more comfortable. After she did all she could she sat on the sofa, hugged Ruhko a little tighter, and cried.
"Nyono!" Ruhko cried as Steph tried to get up. Steph wished the baby could read, she couldn't talk to her and her legs were falling asleep, plus the fact she couldn't eat much herself when Ruhko grabbed all the food out of her hand.
"You two doin' alright in there?" Logan shouted from the bathroom. Steph rolled her eyes, but Ruhko replied in her own way.
"BEESHA!" she shouted. Steph winced, the girl had a pair of lungs on her. But then the baby went back to grabbing more of Steph's breakfast with her chubby fingers and either squashing it for fun or shoving it into her mouth.
A little bit later Logan came out, rubbing his hair with a towel and bare- chested.
"You kids doin' alright?" he asked again. Steph glared at him and grabbed her slate and wrote a message.
"Your kid is eating MY food, and I'm not a kid. I don't call you old fart do I?" she showed him the message and he laughed.
"Sorry, bout both of yer complaints. Ruhko ain't my kid though, I found her," he replied. Steph arched an eyebrow, but Logan ignored it and asked a question that had been bothering him since he found Steph. "So why do yeh write everything down? Not a talker?" Steph wrote something on the slate and then gave it back to Logan.
"Can't talk, I'd hurt you and the baby. Where are you taking me anyway?" Steph looked at him.
"Hurt me?" he repeated. Steph rolled her eyes and scribbled something else.
"I'm more worried about the baby then some old fart." Logan laughed again.
"Alright, fair's fair. There's this place in New York called Westchester, more specifically a school." He said. The teen mouthed the word 'school' and then looked put off, shaking her head. Logan held up his hands.
"No, wait. This is a special school fer mutants, run by a guy named Xavier. He's a telepath, yeh know what that is?" Steph rolled her eyes and nodded. Logan grinned and continued. "Well, he found yeh with a machine o' his and sent me teh get yeh, but only if yeh want." Logan finished and looked at the girl, who laughed her soundless laugh again. Her brown eyes looking at him almost sadly. She wrote something on her pallet and gave it to him.
"How could I go to a school? I can't talk." Logan looked at her.
"Xavier's taught lots o' kids to control their mutations, I'm more than sure he can help yeh." Steph still looked skeptical, but grabbed her new backpack and sorted through to pick out some clothes. Then she looked at Ruhko, who was now sticking her whole face in a large bowl of oatmeal and sighed, writing something on the pad and then dropping it on the bed, grabbing Ruhko as she tried to crawl away.
"Nyoooooooooo! Nyonononono!" Ruhko screamed, but Steph was firm, picking up the baby and walking into the bathroom, setting her down in the bathtub and turning on the water. Logan looked at the message Steph had left; "Ruhko is filthy, I'll clean her up, but only because you obviously don't know anything about taking care of kids. Am I right?" Logan looked closer and noticed "Typical man" was scribbled in a corner.
"Yer a bit opinionated, huh?" Logan asked. Steph turned around and glared at him, then turned back to the struggling Ruhko and removed her diaper, taking a wash cloth and gently beginning to wash away the food all over the baby. Ruhko laughed as the cloth tickled her sides and splashed, sending a wave of warm water over Steph, who sneezed and smiled.
"Yer right, I don't know how t' take care o' babies, I guess I'll leave that t' you," Logan laughed. Steph whipped her long red hair around, stood up, and slammed the bathroom door shut. Logan shook his head at the closed door, peering through one of the holes. "I ken still see yeh!" he called. A moment later a towel was stuffed through, and Ruhko's insane giggles were muffled slightly.
After a while in the tub Steph began to see a baby again, and not a mush- monster. Ruhko, however, seemed less pleased at the idea of being clean. Steph gulped when out of Ruhko's pudgy wrist three very sharp, very dangerous claws appeared and Ruhko tried to fend Steph off with them. Steph, however, was not going to be put off by a baby's claws, and kept trying to dodge them until Ruhko got one lucky cut, right across Steph' wrist.
"Ow!" Steph yelped. She stared at her bleeding hand and stumbled over to the sink, finding enough bandages to cover the cut she hastily bandaged it. Then she clasped a hand over her mouth and looked at Ruhko worriedly, but Ruhko seemed extremely happy that she had heard something besides her own voice and water. Steph stared at the baby for a moment and then, for reasons unknown to her, decided to go with the gut.
"Ruhko?" Steph said quietly. Ruhko giggled.
"Gok!" she replied.
"Ruhko?" Steph said a bit louder. This could not be happening! Thoughts flashed through Steph's mind. What if she had been cured? What if it was something else that made everyone else Steph talked to pass out? Excitement shot through Steph, and she suddenly needed to try out her voice on Logan.
"You ok for a sec Ruk?" Step asked. The baby grinned at her, and Steph took that as a yes. Leaping to her feet Steph raced to the door and threw it open. Logan looked up, startled.
"LOGAN!!!" Steph screamed, leaping forward. But he seemed to be hit by some unseen force and was immediately thrown back a couple feet and collapsed in a heap. In the bathroom Ruhko started crying, and Steph immediately closed her mouth. Hurrying over to Logan she was relieved to find the man still breathing, and she dragged him out on the floor and hurriedly put a few pillows under his head, then went back to the bathroom and lifted Ruhko out of the water, grabbing a towel and wrapping it around her.
"Oh, baby, you ok?" Steph said, hugging her close. Ruhko snuggled up into the crevice of Steph's neck. "I'm sorry, so sorry! Shh..." Hugging her new friend close Steph went into the other room and tried to make Logan more comfortable. After she did all she could she sat on the sofa, hugged Ruhko a little tighter, and cried.