Disclaimer: I do not own the X-Men. Ilehana Xavier belongs to Corrinth and is used with permission. Blaze, Shockwave and Iona belong to Lamby and should not be used without my permission.
A/N: Big thanks to my translator in all matters 'Wolf', otherwise known as Corrinth.
Scene 12"Hide the book."
The lights had been on only a few seconds, but a few seconds that dragged ominously as the three remaining confidents sat in shock on their beds and did nothing. It was Sam who finally broke the silence, her voice grating in her dry throat.
"Hide it. They're gonna come to ask us what happened. They'll take it away…" The panic in Shockwave's voice sent waves of sudden recognition over the pale visages of Iona and Vertigo. Vertigo dived for the precious tome; she couldn't bear to be parted from it, and flung it forcefully under her bed. Just in time too, as a sudden knock on the door preceded Cyclops and Jubilee's arrival.
"What's going on?" Cyclops demanded, walking into the room without hesitancy, finger on his visor as though the girls were his enemies. After seeing the state of Wolverine just a minute ago, he wasn't taking any chances.
"Oh Scott!" Iona threw herself from the bed, flung her arms around Cyclops' waist and hung on as if for dear life. Sam and Vertigo exchanged frantic looks. Was Iona going to tell the X-Men everything? Would she give up their precious book? But with Jubilee and Cyclops right there, how could they shut her up? It was all over… "Oh Scott it was terrible!" Iona continued, "Wolfsbane was acting up, messing about, you know? She… she was pretending she was really a dog, showing us tricks, and she… She just fell, Scott, she fell and landed right on her head…"
"She did what?" Cyclops asked, dropping his hand from his visor to place it on the shaking shoulder of the apparently distraught child. Vertigo and Shockwave caught on and nodded slowly, swapping amazed glances as Iona answered Scott's questions easily.
"She landed on her head, off that chest of draws right there… It's a long way down, Vertigo went to see if she was alright, but… But Wolfsbane just flipped, she went for Vertigo… If Shockwave hadn't got the door open I don't know what would have happened…"
Jubilee looked slowly around the room, seeing the trail of destruction where Shockwave's mutant attack had sliced through the wall to open the door. These poor kids… Cyclops had come to the same conclusion, was picking the dainty Iona up and stroking her frizzy hair.
"Its okay, Iona, its okay… Its all over…"
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Wolfsbane had woken up quickly. Now she was systematically throwing her furry grey form at the door of the locked lower level room, furious and terrified. Watching her through the CCTV, Xavier and Ilehana were strangely silent, their joint mood troubled and concerned.
"She's still rejecting your telepathic approaches?" The Professor asked his daughter carefully, turning his trusting blue eyes on her.
"She doesn't want to know." Ilehana replied, blue eyes hard with her disappointment in her pupil. "What she did…"
"We don't know why she attacked Logan, Ilehana." Xavier reminded his daughter. "All you need to know is that she needs your help. No one else can help her through this…"
"Then we're going about this the wrong way. She's a wolf now, thinking like one, and a scared one at that. She won't respond to anything she doesn't understand."
"What are you suggesting?" The Professor asked his daughter pointedly, sensing her stubborn resolve. "If Wolfsbane turns on you…"
"She won't, Dad." Vixen was certain, kicking off her shoes and pulling her hair from her ponytail. "She's a lost cub, she needs an alpha, and you're right, I'm the only one who can give her that."
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Wolfsbane slammed herself into the solid silver door again, harder than she ever had before. The force of the impact sent her flying backwards, stunned her for a moment. And in that moment, the door opened with a swoosh.
The grey wolf that stood there was no juvenile. She was an alpha female, in the prime of her life, with black tips to the ears and tail, blonde highlights across the chest and muzzle. Wolfsbane pulled her feet under her, lifted her lips from her teeth in a silent snarl, but Vixen stood firm. The alpha didn't snarl, didn't yip, did nothing but stand in the doorway as the mechanism slid shut behind her, and silently demand that Wolfsbane meet her eyes.
Wolfsbane's ears slid back flat against her skull as her muscles tensed. Vixen knew the pup was going to charge without even having to think about it. Wolfsbane may think herself as closely related to wolves as humans, but it was Ilehana who had lived with a pack on and off for years, knew every nuance of wolf body language and behaviour like she knew the hairs on the back of her paw. As Wolfsbane charged, young body eager but clumsy in the unfamiliar form, Vixen simply sidestepped once, and with a sharp cuff of a paw sent the younger mutant slamming back to the ground.
#You will not fight me. # Ilehana commanded telepathically. #I am alpha, I am the leader here. You are just a cub. #
#No I'm not! # Wolfsbane's mind voice betrayed her youth, betrayed her fears. #I am a hunter! I have tasted blood! #
#The blood of Pack! # Ilehana shouted in return, teeth bared and striding forwards to stand aggressively over the smaller animal. #You have turned on a pack member and tried to kill him! I should kill you for it! # And as if to prove her point, Vixen snapped her jaws close to Wolfsbane's throat, slicing through hairs. Wolfsbane whimpered, a lowly pathetic sound, and cowered backwards. She suddenly knew she would be no match for the older, wiser female. #But you are just a cub… # Vixen acknowledged slowly, as if it took all her strength to do so. #Change back, Wolfsbane. We will deal with what you have done when you are in your human form. #
#I… # Wolfsbane began, shaking her head slightly as she eyed her hairy forelimbs with her black and white wolf's vision. #I don't know how… #
#What do you mean, you don't know how? If this is some ploy to get out of your punishment… # Ilehana's piercing blue eyes demanded.
#No, no… Vixen, please, I don't know what I'm supposed to do! I've done this a thousand times, but I don't know where to start… # There was nothing in Wolfsbane's terrified brown eyes as she pleaded to Ilehana like a cub begging for food. It would have taken a stronger wolf than Ilehana to deny that most fundamental of wolf-ish reactions.
#All right, I'll talk you through it… # Vixen gave a wolf-sigh and went to touch noses with the juvenile in a gesture of support. #Now relax, and concentrate… #
