Ria's dreams that night were not good.

They started out alright; she and Victor were back at home, making love, the usual. Her mate was being uncharacteristically gentle, and that's how she knew it was a dream. Victor was never a soft lover; in all of her dreams, and in reality, he sank his fangs into her, he raked his claws down her, he forced the breath out of her body when he threw her down onto the bed or against a wall. But this was different from all that, and while she wished it were real, she knew by that tell-tale sign that it definitely wasn't. He ghosted his fingers along her, his claws retracted as far as they could go, and then he peppered kisses down her neck and torso, not even biting her once.

His movements were slow and soft, and Ria savored it as much as her dream-self could. His fingers left her skin tingling in their wake, his kisses so small and chaste that they felt more like butterfly wings fluttering over her. She felt so perfect, so at peace, so sure of everything. Nothing in her life had been so wonderful-but, as with most wonderful things, it wasn't real. It probably would never be that way with Victor and the Sabretooth inside of him.

Everything felt so delicious, though, in that way that only wet dreams could. Ria found herself aching for him, a feeling she was getting used to lately, and as his fingers traveled lower and his tongue followed, she heard herself moan. Did she do that out loud? Part of her hoped so. Whatever little bit of her was still awake wanted Victor to hear what he did to her, how he tortured her even in her sleep. As she grew warmer and warmer, heat spreading between her legs, she could feel her muscles tightening and bunching in a way that she had been expecting. She was enveloped in pleasure, the delightful sensation of an oncoming orgasm dancing just on the horizon at the edge of her mind. Everything felt so good, so wonderful, until then-

The lights above her were so bright that they were making her head hurt as she squinted up. Of course she wouldn't be allowed to finish the best dream in her entire life. Blinding lights had to come in instead and wake her the fuck up.

Who the fuck turned them on? Was it Tim? Mary? Was she even still in their house? No...where the fuck was she? She couldn't feel Victor next to her. Where had he gone? She was asking too many questions. He probably just went downstairs for a snack. There were still a lot of uneaten bags of gluten free chips in the kitchen. He was a big guy and he ate a lot, so that made sense.

Ria sighed. She never got to finish her wet dreams. The slight tingle creeping up her spine encouraged her to find Victor, though. He rarely left her alone. What if something was going on? She had to go downstairs and see.

When she tried to sit up, however, she found that she couldn't, and as the wheels in her foggy brain began turning, she realized that she was strapped down. It was a familiar feeling, and one that never used to bring any fear, only dismay. Things had changed, though, and now her heart was speeding up and pounding in her chest. This was the place she feared the most.

No, no, no…

How was she back in the lab? This was wrong, all wrong, everything about it...where was Victor? He promised she would never go back...or had she imagined that? No. She hadn't. She knew she hadn't. Her time with Victor had been real, that much she knew, and something had to have happened to him to land her back in this place. Something while she was sleeping? Had she been knocked out?

Had she been dreaming the whole time?

As her eyes finally adjusted, she saw that she was in an all white room. She couldn't see a door or any windows. There was no way out, and she was beginning to panic. It was all so disgustingly sterile and despairingly hopeless. It was the kind of place children always imagined the doctor's office to be like; a big, pearly room, no fun posters on the walls about the flu or mono, the constant feeling of impending doom seeping out of every corner.

Ria would do anything to leave this place, just like she had last time, and no matter how she got back here, she was going to get out. There was always a way, however tricky it was, and she was going to find it. That was the only thing that would keep her semi-calm-the knowledge that she had managed it before and she was going to manage it again. Nobody could really contain the leopard, and despite Victor's late interference last time she escaped, she had done all the rest on her own. She was going to be fine.

That's what she kept telling herself, at least.

A scraping sound made her turn her head to the wall directly opposite her as a well-hidden door opened. Two people walked in, one of them pushing a cart in front of her. Ria recognized them as a nurse and doctor. Neither of them had any distinguishable facial features, just an unsettling...blankness. Ria knew that they had faces-there was a nose, and a couple eyes on each-but she couldn't read any kind of emotion on them. There was just...nothing. They were like crash test dummies.

"So good to see you back here, 213," the doctor said as he approached Ria. His voice was just as unsettling as his not-face. It was lacking in tone and yet full of a poorly masked hostility. "We've missed you."

"Go fuck yourself," she hissed, straining against the straps that held her down.

"Ah-ah," he tutted. "I wouldn't struggle if I were you."

"Why the fuck not?"

He reached for the cart the retreating nurse had delivered and picked up a syringe filled with a light blue liquid, flicking it a few times. "Seems you've been busy while you were gone, my dear. You did all of our work for us."

"What are you-"

"Shh. You know the routine."

Ria felt a needle prick her arm and turned her head away. She couldn't believe this was happening. Yes, she knew the routine. Needle prick, conversation, maybe another prick or three and then the knives. It was always the same.

"There. That wasn't so bad, was it?" she heard him put the syringe back onto the cart and pick something else up. "But we've worked together for so long. I can't lie to you. This is going to be much, much worse."

Ria felt cold steel on her stomach and whipped her head around to look. Her belly was swollen, a big balloon that must have housed some little, living thing. Her jaw fell and she furrowed her brow in confusion. How in the fuck had that happened? Well, she knew how it happened, but the fact that she couldn't remember anything about it didn't make any sense. How long had she been out of it?

"What…?" she asked nobody in particular.

"We're lucky we found you in time." the doctor said, tracing the blade down the length of her baby bump, only pressing hard enough to draw blood. "I would have been rather disappointed if I had to train toddlers."

"Get away from me!" Ria screamed.

The doctor continued, unfazed. "That mate of yours wasn't too easy to subdue. But don't worry; we're keeping him alive for the time being. He'll prove to be useful, especially if this litter survives. You should be grateful that he's here."

"Why?"

"Well, as long as he's here, we've no reason to continue the IVF or AI sessions. You'll be permitted occasional visits. And, assuming all goes well, we won't need to risk anyone's health by pairing you with another male. Wouldn't that be nice?"

Ria was burning with a fiery rage that combated the icy fear spreading through her veins...or was that whatever serum he injected? She couldn't tell. All she knew was she hated this man, this place, everything that was happening to her. He was trying to take her babies away. He was trying to bribe her with Victor.

Nobody was going to do that.

"Don't touch me!" she screeched, kicking and twisting desperately, pulling with all her strength.

"If you relax, this will be much easier."

"No!"

The doctor paused. He seemed more exasperated than anything. "If you don't cooperate, I'll be forced to put that big male down."

She froze. "You wouldn't."

"We have plenty of others, 213. The only special one here is you. I'd hate to get rid of him, I really would. He's our trophy. But if you don't comply, well…"

She felt tears stinging at her eyes. "Don't make me choose."

"Unfortunately, I have to."

Ria felt those tears leave her eyes, streaming down her face as she began to cry. The knife pressed deeper into her belly, closer to her babies, and all she could feel was pain, both inside and out. She didn't want this. He couldn't do this to her. Images of her future children living in cells like imprisoned animals, being fed scraps of tainted food like she had been, training to kill humans and mutants alike, all flashed through her mind. She would never get to hug them, or kiss their cuts and bruises, or teach them anything that she knew. They probably wouldn't allow her to see them ever again.

She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to stay quiet as whimpers threatened to leave her throat. The quieter she was, the safer everyone would be. At least her cubs would survive, and Victor would stay in whatever dark, rotting cage they had thrown him into. They would suffer. The cubs would never know a different life, and Victor would be broken, and Ria would just do the same thing over and over again like they had tried to make her do last time.

But they would all be alive.

More pain exploded all over her, making her head spin and a scream rip through her just as the knife tore downwards as the crude cesarean was performed. Another, smaller cry echoed her, and as she looked up to see the bloody mess she had become, she caught a glimpse of the nurse holding something that seemed to be alive and moving. Ria screamed again, in pain and sorrow and now for her child while the doctor just continued working to grab the next one, and the emotions Ria felt were like nothing before. The tears rushed down her cheeks, blurring her vision as she called and cried and shrieked. They were taking them away. Her tiny, helpless babies. The most important things in her life, the very axis on which her whole world rotated.

They were gone.

With one last scream, her eyes finally snapped open, only to find a very concerned Victor leaning over her. He had a clawed hand on her shoulder, holding her down as she thrashed in fear and fury.

"Frail, it's fine." he said in his grumbly way, worry tinting his voice. "It was just a nightmare. You're okay."

She pushed him away and sat up. "Wh-where am I?"

"You're with me." he grabbed her and pulled her against him. "It was just a dream."

"H-he was going to kill you," she blubbered, reaching up to wipe the very real tears from her face.

Victor wrapped his arms around her. "Who was?"

"The doctor, he was-he was going to kill you. I-it was you or he was going to take them. I couldn't...I tried…."

"Who's them?"

She took a shuddery breath. "Cubs." she buried her face against his bare chest. She heard his heart leap for a moment. "He ripped them out. I watched, I saw them-"

Victor said nothing and just held her, squeezing her tightly and rocking them both back and forth. "Nobody's takin' anyone." he said finally, mumbling against her hair. "I won't let 'em."

The door suddenly flew open and Ria jumped as light from the hallway flooded into the room. Victor let loose a snarl as Mary's silhouette appeared, Ellen popping her head in to see what was going on. "Ria?"

"J-just a nightmare," Ria answered, turning her head to look at them. As feeling returned to her body, she became aware of the sticky coating of sweat that covered her skin. "I'm fine."

"Oh, thank God." Mary said, putting a hand over her heart. "Do you need anything? Water?"

Ria shook her head and then leaned back against Victor again. "It's okay. Really."

Her adoptive mother was hesitant to leave. "Well...if you're sure...I'll be next door if you need anything."

With that she left, nightgown swishing down the hall. Ellen took her place in the doorway, watching the mutants curiously. "Can I come in?"

"You already did, kid." Victor said, half grouchy and half amused.

"Oh. Right." She shuffled over to sit awkwardly on the bed, seeming unsure of how close she should get. "You sure you don't want anything?"

"No." Ria said, voice muffled as she shoved her face into Victor's chest.

"We have those cookies you like so much," Ellen pressed. "The kind with the sprinkles…"

Ria sniffled and peeked out at her. "No. My stomach is knotty."

"What happened?"

"I already said it was a nightmare!" She snapped.

Victor growled quietly, the sound barely more than a rumble vibrating in his chest. "Everything's fine now."

Ria inhaled as if she were going to yell, pause, and then let out a shuddery breath. "I...need to use the bathroom." She detached herself from Victor and shuffled out of the room, hugging herself as she made her way down the hall.

Victor and Ellen watched her go and an awkward silence fell over them.

"So...I guess it must have been pretty bad." Ellen said, looking down at her hands and wringing them together. "To scare her like that."

"It was." Victor replied.

"Ria's never scared. She's the bravest person I know." the girl paused. "Victor...you know a lot of mutants, right?"

He narrowed his eyes. "I do."

"What kinds?"

He shrugged. "A lot." What was she leading up to with this?

"Have you ever...met anybody who can leave their body?" she laughed nervously. "I-I had a dream about it, that's all."

"I might've at some point." Victor said, still staring at her with those narrowed, predatory eyes. "Why?"

"Nothing. It's nothing." she looked up at him. "Can you promise that you'll take care of her?"

"Ria?"

"Yeah. She's my sister...I was so upset when she disappeared, and now that she's back again, I can't even imagine losing her again." Ellen began blinking away some tears as quickly as she could, glancing away from Victor again. "A-and everybody else here feels the same, so...please…"

"You think I won't watch out for my own mate?" Victor growled. "That's an insult, kid."

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry, I just want to make sure." she balled her hands into fists, pressing them against the bed. "I care about her a lot. She taught me so much, and before she vanished, she always made sure I didn't have any bullies, and she helped me study, and she taught me to dance...she's really important to me, okay?"

"I understand."

Ellen let out a breath she hadn't known she was holding. "Good. Thank you."

Victor raised an eyebrow. "Anythin' else you feel like yellin' at me about?"

"I-I wasn't yelling!"

"But you wanted to, didn't you?"

"No!"

"It's okay to say yes." Victor said. "A tiny frail like you, talkin' back to me? It'll get you in trouble, but it's good to see you're brave."

She smiled a tiny bit. "I'm really not…"

"Lucky I'm so forgivin' or else you'd be eatin' that attitude."

Her smile widened, and Victor was honestly a bit confused. Was he actually making her feel better somehow? He wasn't used to that, especially with children...not that he had much experience with them. It seemed like Ellen was growing comfortable with him, though, and...well, he really wasn't sure how he felt about that. The only person who had ever been comfortable around him was Jimmy, and, he supposed, Ria, but she had to be. Mutants and humans alike generally weren't fans of the Sabretooth, and it had never bothered Victor much. He understood why they were afraid, and he liked keeping things that way, but maybe he was growing too soft if this girl liked him.

"You're scary, but not that scary." Ellen said as soft footsteps sounded in the hall, signaling Ria's return. "You're probably a big softie, aren't you?"

Victor snarled as quietly as he could. "I ain't a-"

"Victor," Ria said, hushing him as she crawled into bed, "don't use that tone with family. It's rude."

She seemed much more at peace than before, and as Ellen said goodnight and Victor laid back down with his mate, he, too, began to feel some semblance of serenity falling over him. He pulled Ria up against him, both arms wrapped around her small frame, and buried his face in the crook of her neck so that all he could smell was her. That sweet, fruity, frozen smell that could only belong to one person in the entire world: his mate.