(Eleven)
Kimble woke slowly. He wasn't sure how much time had passed, only that he'd slept without the nightmare for the first time since he'd been separated from the system. Fallen was awake and still holding him, petting him gently. He sniffed and looked up at her. "Hey."
She laughed and kissed him. "Hey. And you do snore, by the way," she teased.
"No I don't," he grunted with a laugh, playing the game. He rubbed his cheek against her and felt her Ristle trickle into him. "Ya needs a shot."
"I don't want it all. It's making me too sleepy. Just give me half."
"Ya shure?"
"I'll be okay."
He got up stiffly and stretched, loosening up and feeling much better. He went to the vanity and prepared her injection. He watched her as she came next to him, she did seem better herself since the accident, maybe because she'd slept so much. She wasn't having nightmares like he was. "Ya hungry?"
"Yeah. I promise not to barf this time," she joked wryly.
"S' okay, baby doll. Jus' aim fer Vally next time, is all."
He gave her the shot and they wandered out to the galley, they could hear that everyone was gathered inside. Henry was playing chess with Seth and Maylee was having a snack. Wolverine and Gambit were fooling around, sparring.
Kimble sat Fallen on a bench and began to prepare her a meal. He glanced at Maylee. She gave him a small smile and he nodded at her with a short laugh. It wasn't the same as a real apology, but it would do for now. He leaned against the counter and watched Wolverine and Gambit play.
Wolverine snatched at Remy with his hands but caught only air.
"You sure are slow, old man," Remy teased, his eyes merry.
"I'm fast enough fer you, Cajun, don't you worry."
They dodged and parried, Logan never quite gaining on Gambit. The boy was just too damn fast and slippery as an eel, impossible to pin down for long. No matter, he'd just wear him down as always, Logan was nothing if not relentless. Logan noticed Kimble's obvious interest in their game and grew uncomfortable, remembering about Kimble's near perfect memory. It just wouldn't do to have Kimble sneaking lessons on how to fight on the side like this. Best to end this quickly.
Gambit bobbed and weaved, but Wolverine ensnared him with a sudden surge of animal speed. He spun Remy around and lay him backwards over his knee, popping his claws at the poor thief's throat. It looked like they were dancing a tango. "Bang, yer dead, Gumbo," he grunted with a laugh.
Remy had no fear, but relaxed into Logan's embrace with all the ease of a long time lover. "Well, dis sure is cozy, but Gambit usually gets dinner an a movie first, cher." He batted his long lashes upwards and blew Logan a kiss.
"Humph," Logan snorted and dumped Gambit rudely onto the floor with a smile. He went over to the table and sat across from Fallen.
Gambit stood and dusted himself off. He winked at Kimble in greeting and sat at the table. He took out his cards and began to shuffle, once more showing off by doing it quick and fancy. Without asking, he dealt out a hand to everyone, making sure to include Kimble. He could see Kimble had slept and looked much better, calmer, and he wanted nothing more than to hear Kimble laugh again.
Kimble grinned when he saw he would be included and picked up his cards, intrigued. He looked at them and arranged them automatically without a clue of what to do. He was happy just to play.
Fallen grinned at Remy sheepishly. "It's been a long time..."
Gambit named the game, Five Card Stud, and read off the rules. They began to play. Kimble didn't need to be reminded as he played, he learned this as quickly as everything else. His spirits had brightened considerably and it showed.
Henry leaned over and watched them play. "This is going to be a long trip. Gambit will have won all your money by the time we land, I'm sure."
Fallen smiled warmly at him. "What's the first thing you're going to do when you get home, Dr. McCoy?"
"Hmm. Tough question. I suppose what I'd love most to do is to take a quick run down to Harry's for a nice cold beer and a pizza."
"Amen ta that," Logan growled and lay his hand down. He'd won the round. He grinned at Remy and chuckled.
"What's pizza?" Kimble wanted to know.
"Well, where Twinkies are golden slices of Heaven, I'd say pizza is the food of the Gods. Ah, yes, Anchovies, here I come!" Beast said dreamily.
"No way!" Fallen exclaimed. "Mushrooms and green peppers all the way."
"Sheesh, what a buncha babies," Logan grumbled. "The only way ta eat a pizza is with sausage, pepperoni, and salami smothered with onions."
"Not if you want to be sociable, my friend," Henry replied with a smile.
"Ain't never been much of a problem fer me."
"Does this mean your healing factor works against onions?" Fallen teased.
Logan grinned. "On the way in or the way out?"
"Believe me, you don't want to know," Henry complained, rolling his eyes. "He can peel the wallpaper off the bathroom walls just like the rest of us, my dear. Don't let him kid you."
"So what are you going to do when you get home, Logan?" Fallen asked as she laughed.
"Prob'ly wipe the dust off my Harley and take a spin down the back roads. It's been a long time since I took her out."
"What's a Harley?" Kimble asked, lost. He felt left out because he had no idea what they were talking about.
"It's a two wheeled motorized vehicle. You'd love it," Fallen answered. "What about you, Remy? What are you going to do when you get home?"
Gambit dealt the next hand. "I'd go down to Lucy's on de corner, pick up some nice fresh chicken, some spices. Cook up some nice Creole chicken. Light some candles. Bottle of wine. Set Rogue up nice an' fine. She like dat Ben an' Jerry's ice cream, too. Chunky Monkey. Gonna feed my girl an' den mebbe we make some good use of de loft in de barn, bien?"
"How kin ya do that if ya can't touch her right?" Kimble asked innocently, forgetting that young Maylee was sitting there among them.
Gambit just grinned. "Ancient Cajun secret."
Kimble cocked his head in confusion.
Henry just laughed. "Gambit here has invested in several large latex companies. He's doing quite well, I hear."
Fallen and Logan laughed at Henry's joke, but Kimble didn't get it. He had no idea what latex was. Fallen saw his confusion and spoke to him in Siskan, rolling her eyes suggestively as she explained what a condom was and how it was used. Instead of laughing, Kimble looked a little sad, genuinely dismayed at the thought of anything that would come between a man and his pleasure in that way. The idea of not making full bodied contact with a lover was disappointing and made him feel sorry for Remy. "That sucks."
"C'est bien, Kim. Gambit gets by just fine, don't you worry," Remy said with a grin. "It's a lot more fun den it sounds. I'm a t'eif, comprenez? Stealin' it makes it more excitin'."
Henry cleared his throat, wanting to change the subject. "What about you, Maylee? What would you like to do?"
"I don't know. I'd like to keep up my medical training. It's the only thing I really like."
"She doesn't get out much," Fallen said. "I hope there's some kids her age at the house."
"It would be my pleasure to continue training you," Henry replied. "I was impressed at how well you handled Gambit's injury."
"You guys gonna hang around that long?" Logan asked.
"I don't know. I'm not sure what we'll be doing," Fallen replied evasively.
"Gots ta git Seth out," Kimble said softly, saying what he knew was on her mind. He looked up at his brother on the screen and their eyes locked with silent understanding.
"Perhaps I can be of some assistance there," Henry offered.
"First we gotta get home," Logan said. He wasn't taken with the idea of having more Siskans on the loose. His experiences with Kimble's inability to maintain control wasn't a shining endorsement for Siskan liberation.
"What would you like to do, Fallen, when we get home?" Henry asked.
"I don't know. I think I'd like to go to the beach. It's been years since I've seen the ocean. I miss it. I miss the way it smells."
Henry cocked his head at Kimble. "And you?"
Gambit laughed. "P'etetre, it not so good to ask wit de kid 'ere, n'est ce pas?"
Kimble snickered. "Actually, I'd likes ta go outside. I mean really outside, not jus' outta the ship. I wants ta see a real sunrise, not jus' one on a computer screen." He closed his eyes. "I miss the orange an' red. 'Specially the red. I jus' love red."
Gambit nodded at Logan. The red. That's why Kimble locked onto the cards.
"What's so special 'bout red?" Logan asked.
"Cuz it's hot," Kimble replied. "I likes anathin' hot."
"Hot things'll burn ya, kid."
"Some risks're worth takin', I guess. I ain't scared. I wants ta try new things. I cain't wait. I wants ta try anchovies an' onions an' Creole chicken an' a Harley an' Chunky Monkey, too--whatever th' fuck that is," he ended with a laugh. "I wants ta see it all."
"Don't you worry, Kimble," Henry replied. "There's much to see and to do on Earth. I'm sure you will enjoy yourself."
"Just so long as ya stay outta trouble," Logan growled, setting the tone that would define their relationship forever.
Kimble put his head down submissively and looked at his cards, saying nothing. He felt Logan's dislike for him as if he'd been struck silently. His smile was gone and he really didn't feel like playing anymore. He set his cards down and got up. "Gots work ta do. Engines ain't gonna fix themselves," he mumbled and walked out, heading back to the Engine Room.
"Why do you do that?" Seth asked Logan, his face turned down with a pout.
"Do what."
"Shut him down."
"I ain't shuttin' nobody down. That boy's gotta control problem. Just makin' sure he stays with the program."
"Well, you don't have to be so mean about it," Seth complained. "I'm going down to help him." Seth clicked off.
"Yer Siskans're pretty sensitive," Logan said to Fallen, feeling a little guilty.
"They're not used to bullies," Fallen quipped, not so thrilled with Logan herself right now
"With Valentin around? Find that hard to believe."
"Yeah, well, he couldn't hurt them like you can," she said, rising.
"That ain't so true anymore. Vally's got an eye on your Kimble. Your boy best be careful."
"I can handle Valentin just fine," Fallen said as she went to follow Kimble. "I can handle you, too, don't worry. Good morrow, people," she finished arrogantly and walked out.
"Well, dat was smooth," Remy said as he collected his cards. "You gonna alienate de rest of us too b'fore we get home?"
"Just lookin' out fer us, that's all. If you can't handle that, too bad."
"You don' need to be comin' down on everyone so 'ard, patron. We used to it, dey ain't. You gotta chill out," Gambit complained.
"I'll chill out when we're all back home. 'Til then, I'm keepin' watch."
"If you keep pushing Kimble, you could cause him to react violently against you," Henry cautioned. "Obviously he sees you as a peer and a challenge. Why don't you try working with him instead of against him? If your opinion of him matters that much to him, your help could go a long way towards him maintaining his control. If he's fighting against both you and Valentin, he could snap."
Logan nodded silently, not really wanting to argue. He got up and walked out. He took Gambit's position on the front row of the passenger seats, looking like he was on guard duty but really sitting here to brood. He lay back comfortably and was quiet.
Maybe he was being a little hard, but that was just his way. A lifetime of military training and having most of your friends being ex-war buddies tended to do that to a person. Logan was just in the habit of being gruff and didn't really know any other way to be. Besides, Kimble's reckless temper and inability to control his childish emotions rankled his nerves. Logan had spent most of his years under the care of Professor Xavier trying to control his own wayward rages. His tight emotional control was the only thing that kept that in check. He'd made excellent progress and so had trouble tolerating anyone who failed where he had achieved so much. He didn't think Kimble was making enough of an effort to stay in line.
Wolverine relaxed and closed his eyes, not wanting to think about Kimble anymore. He didn't realize just how tired he was, just a few moments later he nodded off and quietly dozed.