(Three)
Wolverine stood at the back door looking out to the big oak tree in the back. Molly had been sitting there for a couple of hours now, just staring off into the woods. At least she had come down from the roof. She had been sullen and quiet like this for the past two days, even after Remy's return, and he decided he wasn't going to let her brooding continue like this. He stepped out of the house and slowly walked over to where she was sitting. "Hey, darlin'," he greeted, keeping his voice gentle.
Molly looked up at him and smiled, a good sign. She had an air of thoughtfulness, but not one of sadness and anger like before. She was feeling better. Hey, she signed back.
"You been out here awhile. Got somethin' on yer mind?"
She started to shake her head, but paused. Instead, she asked, How long have you known Gambit?
" 'Bout four years or so. Why?"
Is he as bad as everyone says?
Logan wasn't quite sure how to respond. He was aware of her crush and had no desire to encourage it, but didn't want to paint a bad picture of the Cajun, either. He opted for honesty. "I'm not gonna to tell ya that he can be completely trusted, but I will tell ya this — he's been there fer me every time I've needed him ta be. Many times he coulda skipped out and left me, but he didn't. Ya gotta trust yer instincts, yer heart. What do they tell ya?"
They tell me that he's a good person. He's always nice to me. He makes me laugh and always tries to cheer me up when I'm upset.
"Then ya should pay attention to that, I guess. Just listen up, kiddo. Yer real young. Too young to be more than friends with the guy. He's got a good eight years on ya."
I know. He tells me that just as much as you do.
"I've never said it."
No, but it's in your eyes. Just remember that I've been alone a long time, taking care of myself. I'm not as young on the inside as I am on the outside.
He smiled at her sadly and stroked a hand over her head. "Yeah, I know, darlin'. But that don't mean ya gotta go rushin' things, either. Life catches up with us all, it don't need no help. Enjoy yer youth while ya have it."
Thanks, she replied, smiling now. I'll remember that.
Wolverine patted her head once more and walked off, satisfied that she was feeling better now. Molly watched him go and relaxed her head back against the tree, thinking about what he had said. She knew he was protective of her and she was grateful for it. It was nice to know she wasn't so alone anymore.
What she had told Logan was true, she had been on her own for a while. After the death of her mother she had been put in foster care, but had been passed around a lot. It was difficult to raise a mutant child with claws who couldn't speak. When she was ten, she ran away and began living on the streets of New York City. She might have been small, but out there, her claws and enhanced strength and senses gave her a definite advantage. They kept her ahead of the predators and she used them to protect herself from anyone who tried to take advantage of her. More than a few homeless creeps were walking about with the scars from failed attempts to steal her virginity. None succeeded.
Molly spent time in the parks begging for money or scrounged her meals where she could. She would never match Remy's skill at thievery, but she did learn how to steal for what she couldn't manage any other way. She was very familiar with what the inside of a restaurant dumpster looked like. She favored the Italian and Chinese food places, finding one or two who would feed her scraps at the end of the night so long as she didn't hang around during the day, scaring customers away.
About two years ago, she moved into the abandoned half of a warehouse by the water. The other side was being used for storage by a wealthy businessman named Gordon Mason. He came to the site often and she would watch him through broken glass, marveling at his big shiny car and expensive clothes. One fateful day, the warehouse caught fire — old wiring or some such — and poor Molly was trapped inside. She managed to creep her way out, but heard Mason and his men crying for help. She didn't know them, but yet responded to their voices. She found them in the smoke and used her enhanced strength to haul Mason and one of his men outside to safety. By then the fire department arrived and wouldn't let her back in to aid the others.
Mason was grateful for the save and took Molly in as his ward, giving her a place to live in his huge house. She was still quite wild, but he left her as she was, treating her as some kind of favored dog. He fed her well, clothed her, and kept her clean. He gave her his affection and they grew to be fast friends. He never made a move on her, he was much too old to even consider it, but lavished her with treats and love. Molly had lived without it for so long, she soaked it up like a sponge and was gentle with him, loving him as a father in return.
Mason learned of Karen Richards' work with young mutants and asked her to come down and do what she could to teach Molly to sign. She happily agreed and began her work in earnest, finding in Molly an eager student. Progress was slow, but Molly was determined to learn. Karen came over as often as she could, bringing books and attempting to teach Molly how to read as well.
The party came to an end a year later when Mason had a heart attack. His family came to squabble over the scraps, only to find that the old man had left Molly a good chunk of his estate. She was wild with the strange people now inside the territory she had shared with the old man and had to be restrained. Her mutation ensured that SHIELD would be called. She was taken to a SHIELD holding facility until they could decide what should be done with her. It was there she found kindness in Tommy Jenkins and was told about the Morlock Massacre in greater detail than she had heard on the streets.
Karen came to see her as well and did her best to have the girl freed, but poor Molly had been too violent at the house. She wouldn't be released to Karen on her own. Karen needed help. She gave Xavier a call, happy to discover Charles knew Mason well and that the Professor was more than willing to arrange for Molly's release into the school's custody. That was how she found herself here now under this tree, pondering a matter not of survival, but of her heart.
She had pretty much made her decision about Remy but had decided to wait some before talking to him again, just to make sure she was sure. She might have had a crush on Tommy Jenkins, but what she felt for Remy was so much more than that. It was strong enough to tell her she needed to be very careful of her heart.