The Uncanny R-Man: Oh no even I can't make Evan sound like a good character. But I do like Jean and Scott they might be uptight and got their problems but they are core characters and it's not the X-Men without either of them. I mean look how the comics always seem to go down in quality when one of them is gone.

Ruby631: Damn I hate it when that happens.

Slickboy444: Wanda is 13 and Jean and Scott are 14 at this point, plus I'm glad you liked it so far. Unfortunately not many people are reading this so updates may take awhile since the more reviews I get for stories the more I work on it. In fact if I don't get enough I may just pull it.

Red Witch: Oh you know it, not exactly the best way to start things off.

Thanks to: PureEvilOne, NightZero, ldypebsaby, jason


WANDA'S LIFE

CHAPTER 3: THE WITCH AND THE WOLVERINE

Wanda looked up terrified at the burly man in jeans and a biker jacket before her. "What are ya lookin' at kid?" He said to her in a deep gruff voice. Wanda felt like running and then she felt it. Her power was rising up in her again. The walls started to shake and the lights flickered and groaning could be heard from within the walls.

Logan tried to balance himself as the floors started to shake. Luckily Scott came running up to Wanda. "Wanda, calm down it's all right it's just Mr. Logan." Wanda heard him and saw he wasn't afraid of the big man so Wanda tried to calm down.

'Wanda it's alright he won't hurt you, in fact he's rather protective of the children.' She heard Xavier call to her in her mind. Xavier also sent a calming influence towards her and Wanda felt herself get less tense and her powers began to die down. She looked up at Logan then seeing him look at her, she wasn't sure what he was thinking but she could see he wasn't too happy.

"I-I-I'm sorry." She said to him.

Logan let out a small growl. "Just...don't let it happen again kid." He muttered and walked on past her. Scott helped her up onto her feet.

"You alright?" He asked out of concern. Wanda nodded slightly, she watched him walked down the hall then Jean came running around the corner.

"Is everything alright?" She asked. She had sense Wanda's distress and Xavier had asked her to see what was going on.

"Yeah Jean. She just had a run-in with Mr. Logan...literally." He informed her. Jean winched at that, she knew how Logan could get at times and with all the fear that Wanda had coming off of her and what she head heard about her life she guessed it wasn't a pleasant experience. She also noticed a few cracks in the walls and a few pictures were crooked.

"What happened to the hall?"

Wanda looked down at her feet. "I'm sorry...that was me. I...I didn't mean to...I'm not going to be sent away am I?"

Scott placed his hands on her shoulders. "Oh course not, these things happen. I mean one time my glasses fell off and I wasn't quick enough to close my eyes and destroyed a wall."

"He's right." Jean said standing next to her. "I mean I still have trouble I mean sometimes I can't shut out the 'voices' of other people and also have trouble with my telekinesis. Sometimes if I get startled or something it can activate and then something usually breaks."

Wanda looked up at them, her eyes hopeful that she wasn't going to get sent away. "You mean I can still stay...even though my powers go off like that?"

"Wanda...we're not like your father." Jean said gently to her. "We won't abandon you like he did. Not now, not ever."

"Yeah, you're one of us now." Scott said trying to encourage her. "So you can forget about leaving, this is your home now Wanda. Right here and with us." Wanda smiled at their words. It had been so long since she had a home, a real home and she was touched by their kind words.

"Thanks...I mean it." Wanda said her eyes tearing up from all the emotional feelings she was having.

"Hey it's alright." Jean said softly. "Everything will be fine now." She could feel all the emotions radiating off of Wanda, from fear to sadness but there was something else there. A small feeling of happiness and hope growing inside of her. Jean couldn't even imagine what she had endured and her heart went out to the girl. It wasn't fair or right that someone so young had to go through something like that...but then she and Scott knew the kind of horrors the world had.

"Yeah we know how rough it can get." Scott said to her.

Wanda looked up at him with a touch of anger. "Rough! What do you know about it? I bet your parents never put you in a place like that!" She shouted at him. 'How can they possibly know what she had gone through? All the sleepless nights, the terror, the loneliness all of it!'

Scott's face fell and became emotionless. "I wouldn't know...my parents and brother died in a plane crash when I was a kid."

Instantly Wanda regretted her words. "Oh god...I'm...I'm so sorry I-I didn't know."

Scott sighed. "There wasn't a way you could have known, besides you were just lashing out I know that so no worries, when I woke up in the hospital and found out...about that I was angry at first too."

Logan went in search of Xavier. After that run-in with the new kid he wanted to know what was up with her and her powers. He found Xavier outside in the back yard drinking some tea. "Charles I want to talk about that kid."

"I figured as much." Xavier sighed to himself. After what had happened he was thankful they had calmed her down as much. "Be careful around her Logan, she is in a fragile state at the moment and your...intimidating presence frightens her."

"Yeah I kind of figured that." Logan said flatly. "Ro' told me about that place she was left in, I'm actually glad you got her out of that hellhole when you did, no telling how she would have ended up being stuck in there for longer then that. But what's her powers, the whole hallway went freaking nuts."

Xavier considered this. "I'm not sure exactly. Her powers are extremely powerful but I'll have to test them. Over time of course hopefully after she has had time to readjust herself to her new life here. Plus I'm going to have her join in with the control sessions I have with Jean. Hopefully that will help her gain more control over her abilities."

"Well I hope that works Charley cause that girl has some nasty powers and we might have to renovate the mansion if she blows her lid."

"Yes." Xavier said curtly. "Logan could you please not call me Charley. I prefer Charles, Xavier, Professor or something but not Charley."

"Fine Chuck." Logan said while leaving a small smile on his face, he could sense Xavier silently fuming, he did respect Xavier more then any man, but he still got a perverse pleasure doing that to him from time to time. It was all in good fun anyways.

Later on Wanda was shown her room. It was the largest room she had ever seen. Ororo was behind her smiling at the young girl's face as she looked around the place. "This...is my room?" She asked still looking with awe at it. It had a nice large bed, a balcony outside a pair of French doors, a closet and dresser and the other normal items found there.

"Yes Wanda this is your room." Ororo said to her. "Tomorrow we'll go and get you some clothing of your own at the mall and a few personal item too."

Wanda took in all in. After everything she had been through all this was a dream come true for her. She turned to Ororo and hugged her closely. She was a little surprised at this but didn't resist and hugged her back. "Thank you...thanks you all, this is...I mean. I feel like I just woke up from a nightmare into a dream world!" She said happily.

Ororo stoked the girl's long dark hair. "I'm glad you feel that way. You deserve better then that place." Wanda pulled away from Ororo then smiling up at the woman.

"This is really great. I mean I've never had a room like this, or a home...or other friends."

Ororo's brow knitted together. "Why no friends?"

Wanda looked down at her feet. "Daddy...he...he said that we weren't supposed to trust anyone outside the family that everyone outside our family were dangerous...but he lied didn't he?"

Ororo sighed sadly at hearing that. "Yes he did. Not everyone is like that, especially here."

Wanda looked up and smiled. "I can see that now. You and the others are great...well...Logan scares me though."

Ororo laughed at that. "Don't worry about Logan, he looks more fearsome then he actually is."

"Well...if you say so." Wanda told her not really believing that. When Ororo left her Wanda looked around and jumped onto her new bed and laid down spreading her rams and legs wide. The bed was so large her hands and feet didn't reach the edges. She smiled to herself feeling the comfortable mattress and sheets under her.

Compared to what she used to be sleeping on this was perfect and she actually couldn't wait for night to actually sleep on an actual bed for a change. She looked up at the ceiling and sighed happily to herself. So far she was in a new home that was a mansion, she had her first real friends, Xavier and Ororo was just so nice too. Okay Logan might need to get some getting used to, but nothing was perfect. She figured her life had just had a turn for the best and maybe, just maybe she could control her powers too.

For the first time in a long time, Wanda had hope in her life.

LATER THAT NIGHT

She was back in that room the darkness there, she was alone again. Then the doors opened, there were figures there but she couldn't make them out. They came for her she tried to scream but couldn't they were towering over her grabbing her roughly saying things like 'freak' and 'witch'. Things she had over heard the people call her back at the asylum. They were dragging her to the door but there was nothing but darkness there and she was afraid.

She struggled and when she turned her head to the back she saw him. She saw her father just was he was the day she last saw him. She reached out to him and called out for him, but he just stood there looking at her passively then turned away from her and walked away.

While in this nightmare Wanda was sweating and tossing and turning in her bead, moaning out words such as "stop" and "leave me alone". Then her powers started to flair up and everything around her room started to shake.

Logan was up late, he didn't feel like turning in at the moment even though everyone else was in bed. But then again he didn't much sleep with his healing factor and all so he liked to stay up late, mostly with s drink or with a smoke since it was the quietest time in this place when he could do that without any interruptions or someone asking him to put out his cigar. He knew he was immune to cancer but the kids weren't so he couldn't light up with them around.

It was nice and quiet, but he should have known it wouldn't last. When he felt the shaking he knew it had to be the new girl. He put his beer down and his cigar in an ashtray and quickly left his room. He ran to the young girl's room and when he got close he could smell fear.

He opened the door and saw the young girl was having one heck of a nightmare, the lights were going on and off, everything was shaking, her bed was starting to jump about it was like something out of the Exorcist. He quickly moved to the kid and shook her trying to wake her up. "Kid wake up, wake up!"

Wanda snapped awake with a small scream. She looked about in the darkness and thought she was back in the room and that the man holding her was one of the guards. She tried to fight against him but he held her wrists in a strong grip. "Kid it's me Logan calm down, you were having a bad dream." He said loudly trying to get through.

Wanda started to stop fighting hearing his words. She started to try and make thing out in the room and felt Logan release his grip. He turned on the lamp by her bed, which blinded her for a minute. Logan could see the tears in her eyes now and the scared look on her face. 'What has this kid been through?' He had to wonder. He looked so scared and vulnerable to him, he could see her sniffing and shaking slightly.

"Hey...it's alright." He said gently and slowly placed an arm around her. She flinched at first but she started to relax seeing he wasn't going to yell or hurt her. "What happened to ya darling?"

"I...I was back in the room...it was dark...and...and they came for me...again." She broke down crying then. "I don't want to go back! I hate that place! I don't want to go back please!" Logan hugged the girl close to him as she cried her heart out to him.

"It's alright, you're not going back there, no one will put you back there...ya know why?" She stopped her crying a little and looked up into his face, her eyes red and puffy, tears all over her cheeks, her lip quivering. "Because they'd have to go through me to do it, and I ain't going to let anyone hurt you or take you back there."

Wanda was strangely comforted by that news. "Thank you." She managed to say even though it came out weakly from the stress she was under.

'Logan is everything all right with Wanda?' Charles mentally sent to him. He had felt Wanda's upset mind in his sleep and it had woken him up.

'Yeah she's fine now, just a nightmare. Best get ready for a few sleepless nights Chuck, this girl has had it rough.' Logan sent back to him.

'Do you want me to wake Ororo up for her?'

'Naw...I got this. Let her and the others sleep. You too, I think she's fine at the moment anyways.' Logan sent to him. He looked down at Wanda still sniffing but her crying had died down and was cradled in his arms as she rested her head against his chest.

'I'm definitely getting soft while here.' He thought to himself. But he had to admit it was a long time since he felt this good about something he had done. It took awhile but eventually she fell back to sleep. When he was sure he tucked her back into to her bed. He looked as she drew the covers towards her hugging them close.

He gently brushed his hand on her head. "Sweat dreams kid." And he turned out the light. In the darkness though Wanda was asleep a part of her had felt and heard him and a small smile formed on her face as she fell into a nice peaceful sleep for the rest of the night.


NEXT UP CHAPTER 4: THE IN BETWEEN YEARS

See how Wanda's life has changed now that she's eighteen and in high school and about the past she thinks about. Set just before the first episode of the show.