AN: I don't own any of the X-Men Characters. I do own Kelpie, however, Gerri, Aunt Erika, Kelpie's foster family, the story-line, and all animal characters she converses with, including the gang members :P. Vixen belongs to one Melody S. (an ex-friend of mine), Aquifer belongs to Rob G. (soon-to-be famous fantasy writer!), Sensherak (aka Alan) belongs to an ex-online-bf whom no longer speaks to me, Jonny LeBeau belongs to an ex-online-acquaintance. Phew! If I've missed anyone, let me know :P

There are some Gaelic words in here that I've acquired through reading and such. Diolain means bastard; Mionnaich is just a curse word, with no real specific meaning. Galla means bitch; and a bhidse means sod it, which is basically our equivalent of damnit. If any of you have read my bio, you'll know that I'm not fluent at Gaelic at all, I only know a few words and phrases. If any of you happen to know Gaelic, and I make a mistake, please, let me know, it's the only way I'm gonna learn!

CHAPTER 3

"Hey, K. Wasup?" Cal asked as Kelpie came up to his table in the crowded warehouse. He was playing poker with some other guys in his gang. A girl--a crack-whore, thought Kelpie--sat on one knee.

"I dunno, Cal. Why dunna ye tell me?" Kelpie stood with her hands on her hips.

Cal looked up and whistled as his eyes traveled over her beaten form. "Shit, K. What bitch ya tangle with?"

"No bitch, Cal. Ye ken 'oo did this tae me."

"Hey, they told me what happened. Sorry 'bout that. But, hey, maybe if ya give 'em what they want, they'd leave ya alone." He laid down a card as if he had this kind of conversation every day. It would not surprise her.

"Baby," said sweetly the crack-whore on Cals' knee. She was dressed in a black vest-looking tank-top that stretched tightly across her generous endowments and a black mini-skirt that rode high on her thighs which were covered with fish-net stockings. On her feet were stilettos. Her long black hair was tangled and fell to her mid-back and her mud-brown eyes were glazed over with dilated pupils indicating she was high. "What's wrong with her speech? Sounds like her tongue's been cut off."

Kelpie held up a fist. "Wha's wrong wit' yer face, galla? Mionnaich, girl, I've seen dogs betta leukin' than ye. Maybe if I sock ye ane, ye'd look a li'l mo' decen'."

"Hey, hey," said Cal, tightening his arm around the crack-whore's waist as she made to get up. "Let's stop this. Tina didn't mean to offend ya."

"Bullshit, Cal--"

"Calm down, K. Come on, we're all friends here. Go on with what ya were gonna say."

Kelpie sighed, frustrated. "Ye ken I dunna do tha' shit wit' guys like them. Tell 'em tae lay off, or next time it willna be a stranger tha's kickin' their sorry asses."

Cal threw his head back and laughed loudly, the crack-whore joining in.

Kelpie gritted her teeth. "I'm serious, Cal. Ye sick 'em on me again, an' they willna be comin' back."

Cal, still laughing, said, "Come now, K. Why'd ya really come here tonight?"

"Tha' the reason. Came tae give ye a fair warnin'."

His eyebrows rose. "You don't want the usual?"

Kelpie shook her head. "I've go' enough," she lied. She was tempted, but she had come to deliver a message. Not smoke pot or drink. 'Sides, even if she wanted some, she didn't have the money with her.

"You haven't bought anything for over a month."

Kelpie smiled innocently. "Foun' 'nother source. She dunna charge me 'alf o' wha' I pay ye." She laughed inwardly to herself at the look on his face at the thought of losing a regular customer. "Lata, Cal," she said sweetly and left the warehouse, taking the short way home. She didn't see Cal motion to three men to follow her. Nor did she see him take a finger and draw it across his throat before sending them off.

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Wolverine turned to Vixen. "How'd she get out? I thought you locked the door."

"I did," Vixen whispered back.

"Better follow her. Those bastards will kill her if someone doesn't intervene."

Vixen nodded, but before she left, asked, "Did you notice she ain't limpin'?"

Wolverine nodded. "The blood on her leg is gone, too."

"There's only one explanation for that, you know."

Wolverine nodded once more. "She's one of us."

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By the time Kelpie reached her block, her thigh was throbbing and had slowly started to bleed again. Once in a while, she would hear footsteps behind her, but when she turned to look, no one was there. Yer gettin' too paranoid, girl. Gotta slacken up a bit.

She froze when she heard a motorcycle engine, then relaxed when she realized it was a block away and heading west, rather than south toward her.

They prob'ly found their 'otel room empty by now. She cursed under her breath. Why does e'ryone always try tae 'elp me? I dunna nee' their 'elp.

How wrong she was.

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Vixen watched from behind a building as the girl stopped and looked around before entering the dark alley. After several minutes passed, she didn't come back out. Vixen hurried across the street and peeked into the alley. It was too dark to see anything, but she could hear the girl talking.

"Careful, Ra. It's a stab wound. No' a thorn scratch."

There was a rustling of what Vixen thought were feathers. She sniffed the air. Yes, a bird of some sort.

"I am no' a bairn! I'd like tae see some ane stab a six-inch blade intae yer wing and no' make ye flinch jus' a--"

There was a loud screech.

"Ow! Wha' was tha' fo'?"

More rustling of feathers.

What in the world is she doin'? thought Vixen. And who is she talkin' to?

"I ken I gotta big mouth. Think ye'd be used tae i' by now."

There was more rustling of feathers and the sound of a scolding bird of prey.

"Oh, Ra," said the girl more gently. "I ken I'm gone a lot, bu' I've gotta work or I cann ge' money tae take care o' ye. Speakin' o' which, I've gotta ge' goin', I jus' wan'ed tae stop and get some herbs an' heal a bi' mo'. I'll be back in 'bout an hour. Ge' some sleep."

Vixen hid behind the corner of the building and watched as the girl walked out. If it hadn't been for Vixen's own healing abilities, the sight of the girl coming out unbruised and unscratched would have surprised her. The only thing evident that the girl had been in a fight was the hole in her jeans where the knife had ripped through to the skin.

When the girl had disappeared down the street, Vixen went into the alley to investigate. This time she was surprised. She cocked an eyebrow as she studied the dead-end alley. There was nothing here but a garden full of flowers and plants and a single baobab tree. That confused her, for baobabs only grew in Africa. Vixen did a double take at the baobab. Sitting on a branch, its head under a wing was a peregrine falcon. Strange, they never came this far into the city.

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Kelpie put her sweatshirt hood up over her head as she approached the small department store, careful to keep her face down. Taking her stolen glasscutter out of her pocket, she attached it to the glass door and cut out a hold large enough for her arm to fit through. Too bad she hadn't had this with her at the hotel, it would have come in handy. She slipped her arm in and unlatched the door then hurried inside. Thanks to those diolains, she'd need new clothes.

Kelpie grabbed a pair of jeans off the rack, a new grey sweatshirt and a sky-blue tank-top. It was getting too hot to wear a sweatshirt all the time. And she wasn't about to change the weather just so she could keep wearing the hooded shirt. Her garden would suffer.

She hurried to the cash register and took a plastic bag out from under the counter. She typed in some numbers and the cash register popped open. She had been in here enough to know the correct buttons to push. She was lucky that this store only emptied its cash register every other day.

Kelpie dumped all the cash into her bag, almost filling it, then hurried back out the door…

…Only to run into Cal's boys again.

"You sure heal fast," said the leader, pushing her back as the others circled her.

"Leuk," she said, "I ken yer all fans an' e'rythin', but canna ye leave me be fo' a day?" Without waiting for one to respond, she twisted and kicked the nearest gangster high in the chin then rushed past his prone form.

"Get her! Don't let her get away!"

Several feet pounded after her, but she had had a head start. As she ran, she heard the familiar sound of police sirens headed her way. Swearing, she picked up her pace and ran faster than she ever had before. So intent on running, she didn't hear the engine of a motorcycle behind her. So she had to skid to a stop to keep from running right into the bike as it swerved to stop in her path.

"Stealin's illegal, ya know," said Vixen.

"Galla!" Kelpie heaved, glaring at the woman on the bike. "I've go' enough pro'lems wit'ou' 'avin' tae deal wit' ye a' the momen'," she said through gasps of breath.

"Hey, ya've not only got the police and a bunch of gangsters chasin' ya, but Wolverine's gonna be on your case when he gets a hold of ya. So why dontcha be a little bit nicer to me, eh?"

"Getta life," Kelpie said and started around the motorcycle.

Vixen grabbed her arm and pulled her to a stop. "No ya don't. You'll never get away from them on foot." As if to proove her point, cop cars, their sirens blaring and their lights flashing, raced around a corner a block away. "Get on," Vixen commanded.

Kelpie looked at the squad cars racing toward them and the group of thugs gathered in the shadows--hiding from the police--waiting sourly. She looked down at her hands that held the bag and then at Vixen, undecided.

"Come on!" Vixen shouted.

Kelpie threw a leg over the bike and before she had even settled completely, Vixen revved the engine and took off. Looking back over her shoulder, Kelpie saw at least six squad cars on their tail and she swore. "Yer no' gonna ou' run 'em! They're gonna run us off the road!" she shouted over the engine to Vixen.

With only a view of Vixen's profile, Kelpie saw the woman grin. "Not with this baby." Over the woman's shoulder, Kelpie saw her flip open a cover with a button underneath. Vixen punched the button and the bike jerked, nearly throwing Kelpie from her seat.

Mionnaich! This canna be! No motorcycle can go this fast! 'Tis impossible! thought Kelpie. Indeed, she felt as if they were traveling at the speed of light. Once more, she looked over her shoulder. The cop cars were falling behind and soon they were out of sight. Kelpie sighed and relaxed.

"You're not gettin' off that easy, kid," said Vixen. "Ya still got me and Wolverine to deal with."

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When they reached the hotel, instead of parking in the parking lot, Vixen went around back and parked next to her room door. Another motorcycle was parked next to the building. Kelpie didn't even get a chance to get off the bike before a metal-clawed fist grabbed her by the neck of her sweatshirt and she was slammed against the hotel wall. Three sharp metal claws were thrust against her neck, but didn't puncture the skin.

"Ya don't listen very well, do ya?" Wolverine growled.

"Wha' the 'ell--"

Wolverine tightened his grip on her sweatshirt and lifted her farther off the ground. "We told ya to stay in the hotel room. And whadda ya do? Ya break out--"

"Ye locked me in a room, a bhidse!" Kelpie raved, "I'm claus'raphobic! And dunna tell me ye wouldna done the same!"

The wind picked up and blew a strand of blonde hair across her blue eyes. Eyes that never stayed the same, Wolverine noticed. They changed different shades of blue with each emotion that flickered in them. Blue-green, dark-blue, turquoise, baby blue, sky-blue, pacific blue, slate blue, shades of blue he couldn't name. He lowered his hand away from her neck but didn't let her step away from the wall. She was right, he would have done the same thing.

"What business do you have with Cal?" Wolverine asked her firmly.

Kelpie's eyes widened momentarily but she quickly composed herself. 'Ow'd 'e know 'bout Cal? "I dunna ken 'oo ye talkin' 'bout," she said harshly. "I dunna ken any Cals."

"Don't lie, kid," said Vixen, "We can smell it on you a mile away. Besides, we were there, we saw you."

Kelpie sighed. So much for playing ignorance. "Twas 'is boys 'oo bea' me up."

Wolverine sneered. "I don't believe you. I think he's your pimp and you're his crack-whore."

Kelpie's eyes turned the color of ice daggers as she glared at him. "If I wasna so sure ye'd kill me, I'd strangle ye for sayin' tha'." Lightning flashed in tune to the lightning in her eyes and dark clouds rolled in as the thunder trumpeted its arrival.

"So what is he to ya if he ain't your pimp?"

"I used tae ge' me pot an' alco'ol from 'im."

"Why'd ya stop?"

Kelpie shrugged. "Didna 'ave the money." Her voice turned sweet, "Ow'd ye ken Cal? Ye 'is pimp?"

"Watch your mouth, kid," Wolverine growled.

Kelpie put her hands up in mock surrender. "Jus' askin'. I always wondered 'bout 'im."

Vixen chuckled. She still sat on her motorcycle watching the inquiry.

Looking down, Wolverine saw the bag of money and clothing still clutched in her hands. He snatched it away and shoved it in her face. "Ya a thief now, too?"

Kelpie didn't flinch but just shrugged. "Been a thief all me life. Gotta ge' clothin' an' money fo' food."

"Less ya all wanna catch a chill, I suggest we go inside before it rains," said Vixen, eyeing the angry black clouds.

"I' willna," said Kelpie. When they looked at her, she shrugged. "It reacts wit' me emotions."

"The weather?" Vixen asked.

Kelpie nodded. "I was angry, so i' reflected tha'. Bu' I can only make i' rain a li'l a' a time. Enough tae water me garden, anyway."

Raucous laughter from a few doors down made them glance in that direction and Wolverine grabbed Kelpie's arm. "Let's take this inside, anyway." He shoved her inside and allowed Vixen to follow, then he slammed the door behind him. He then threw Kelpie's sack of clothing and money back at her and she caught it just before it hit the ground. "Why dontcha get a job, 'stead of stealin'?" he asked harshly, folding his arms across his chest. Something he did often, she was noticing.

"Ard tae get a job when yer deformed."

Wolverine looked over her. "Ya look healthy enough to me." He stole a glance at Vixen who was plopping down on the couch, watching them.

"I hide i' well."

"I think your only deformity is your problem with drugs."

"Well it's no'."

"Prove it."

Glaring at Wolverine, she put her foot up on a coffee table and began to pull her pant leg up. Only problem was that it refused to roll up. The fabric was too tight. Growling in frustration, she ripped the fabric up to her knee, exposing brown and white patched skin underneath. Frowning, the two watched as she pulled off her shoe and sock to reveal her…hoof. She had a horse hoof for a foot and the brown and white skin wasn't skin, but horsehide.

Vixen glanced meaningfully at Wolverine, then cleared her throat. "How long have you been buying alcohol from Cal?"

"Sine I was twelve," Kelpie said, confused.

"And your…what? Fifteen now?"

"Fourteen, why?"

Vixen looked again at Wolverine who was still staring that the girl's deformed foot and leg. He glanced then to Vixen as if feeling her eyes on him. "You wanna tell her?" she asked, "Or should I?"

Kelpie stared in disbelief at the floor when they had finished telling her their story. "So yer sayin' Cal's been workin' fo' this group, the Brotherhood, who are tryin' tae ge' mo' mutants on their side tae fight against the humans?" Kelpie asked them.

Wolverine, his arms still folded across his chest, looked at Vixen, "She ain't as blonde as she looks, is she?"

Kelpie gave him a sarcastic, "Ha ha, verra funny."

Vixen smiled, well, smirked really. Kelpie wasn't sure if the woman was capable of a full-fledged smile. She didn't seem the type. "Yes, you're following."

"So they pu' this…chemical, concoction, wha'eva, intae the alcohol an' i' turns human users intae mutants?"

Vixen nodded. "But somethin' in yer blood must've reacted with it. Usually it just makes people gain unique abilities, and I suppose it could turn someone into an animal, hell, look at Dr. McCoy, but I've never seen it do both."

"Nae," said Kelpie, "I've been able tae use me powers sine I was five."

Vixen's eyebrows rose. "So young? Usually powers don't manifest until puberty."

Kelpie shrugged. "Sine I was placed in foster care, I've been able tae use me powers."

"Foster care? What happened to your parents?"

Kelpie looked down at her hands. "They died. The 'ouse star'ed on fire an' they go' caugh' in the flames."

"I'm sorry."

They were all silent for a moment, as if respecting the dead. Then Vixen said, "Not to change the subject, but somethin's been botherin' me. Cal called you K, but your name doesn't have a K in it."

Kelpie's brows furrowed, confused, "Course it does."

"Then I must be gettin' someone else's broadcasting, because the name I'm pickin' up is Aisilí."

Kelpie's breath lodged in her throat and she stiffened visibly. "Ow'd ye ken me name is Aisilí?"

"I have telepathic powers. Very weak, but enough to get a person's name and read the thoughts that they don't hide well."

Kelpie relaxed slightly. "Nae ane 'as called me tha' in years. I go by Kelpie now."

"Why?" Wolverine asked.

"I s'pose 'tis the same reason ye two dunna go by yer real names," said Kelpie.

"Not because of your hoof?" Wolverine smirked.

"Nae. 'Tis wha' me Seanathair called me."

"Shawna what?" Wolverine asked.

"Seanathair, me grandad. He called me Kelpie all the time. Said I acted a lot like one."

"You eat humans and leave their insides to float down a river?" asked Vixen with disgust.

Kelpie laughed. "Nae. Yer thinkin' o' an evil-spirited kelpie. I ac' like a good-spirited kelpie. I fool around--" she broke off and looked at Wolverine sharply, "If ye make ane remark 'bout guys, I'll slap ye tae kingdom come--tae try tae make people laugh."

Suddenly yawning, Kelpie stretched and grabbed her bag. "If it's a'ight wit' ye, I'm gonna clean up an' change then ge' some shu' eye."

Vixen nodded. "Go ahead, the bathroom's over there."

Closing the bathroom door behind her, the sound of running water reached the couple's ears. Vixen looked over at Wolverine and caught him staring at her. "What?" she asked.

He raised a single eyebrow and sent her mind a very visual picture of what he wanted.

Blushing, Vixen scolded, "Wolverine! We can't! She'd wonder where we went."

Smiling, Wolverine went to the bathroom door and knocked. "Hey, kid. We're gonna move to a different room and letcha have this one to yourself."

No answer.

"Kelpie?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah…okay," said Kelpie, sounding distracted.

Wolverine took Vixen's hand and pulled her outside, locking the door behind him. Then he pulled his bike in front of the broken window. It was low enough that no one could get in--or out for that matter--without knocking the bike over and therefore alerting him.

Going to the room next door, he extended one metal claw and started picking the lock. He smiled as the lock clicked and he grabbed Vixen's hand once more, pulling her into the room and shutting the door behind him. Seconds later, the door reopened and his hand reached out, hanging a sign on the doorknob. In nice and neat script, it said:

Do Not Disturb

Carved on the bottom--compliments of Wolverine's claws--were the words"

Or Die

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Inside, Kelpie was standing, not in the shower, but in the middle of the bathroom with clear water appearing above her head and pouring over and around her, but never touching the floor. She preferred to use her own water--pulled from the moisture in the air around her--rather than the water from a rusty and used hotel faucet. When Wolverine had spoken, she had barely heard his words. She was too busy staring in horror at the horsehide that had spread past her knee, up her thigh, and across her stomach.

She needed to get home before something else changed. Other than the color of her skin…

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THE NEXT NIGHT…

Laughing at one of Wolverine's sarcastic jokes, Vixen unlocked Kelpie's hotel room door and let herself and Wolverine in. "Kelpie? Ya up?" she called.

No answer.

Wolverine, still smirking, closed the door behind him and looked around. His smile faded. The room was empty. He looked to the window. No, his bike was still in place. "She in the bathroom?" he asked Vixen.

Vixen hurried to the bathroom and knocked.

Again, no answer. She opened the door and disappeared inside while Wolverine studied the surroundings. There on the coffee table next to the bed was a stack of money and a note on top of it.

"Shit!" Vixen swore, storming out of the bathroom. "She broke the window above the sink and climbed through."

Wolverine picked up the stack of bills and counted them. "There's three hundred dollars here all in twenties."

Vixen took the note and read it aloud:

"Sory, guys. Sumtin cam up and I ha ta leef. Mabee Ill se u round. Thanckz fo saven me ass twic, Vicken.

Ya an Wolfy can haf this muny as a tocen ov my apreeciashun. Thanckz agen.

Kelpie

"She didn't just call me Wolfy," said Wolverine in angry disbelief.

Vixen nodded.

"That kid is toast."