Rin: Daughters of Mnemosyne/Wolverine

Second Shot

The man called Logan, known sometimes as James Logan, James Howlett and often as Wolverine, considered himself the best there was at what he did. And what he did, more often than not, was get into trouble.

The front wall of the San Francisco bar exploded outwards as the man flew through it, bodily thrown out the window. Within the bar it was pure chaos as men and women tried to swarm the shorter man in the middle, who held them off with fists and a feral grin.

"You have got to be kidding me!" the Asian man yelped, popping a switchblade and lunging at Logan. The smaller man actually let the blade lodge deep in his fore arm then grinned, before punching him in the face and knocking him silly.

Logan didn't pop his claws, instead enjoying the brawl for what it was, mostly good clean fun. Men were fighting him and each other, chairs were being swung and fists were flying and Logan couldn't stop grinning. There was nothing much funner, in his mind, than a good fight and this was shaping up to be a pretty good one.

With a strong swing Logan dropped another man, then head butted a woman trying to grab at him. Two more guys tried to bowl him over but were clearly not expecting the sort of mass a adamantium skeleton gave a guy. Logan braced himself and shoved back, sending one man staggering back as he punched another one out.

"Look out!" a unfamiliar female voice cried a warning even as Logan caught a whiff of something he didn't like.

Logan ducked without thinking as the sword cut through the air, the blade glistening with something decidedly unhealthy. 'Nerve toxin?' Logan thought as he wheeled around to face the sword using man, finally popping his claws.

"Holy shit," the man muttered, his scraggly brown hair falling into his eyes, "those claws are real. I thought they were just a story...."

As the man attacked Logan struck, swiping across the blade and slicing the metal into pieces. Stunned the man gaped in astonishment Logan pulled one set of claws in, swiftly punching him in the guts. As he staggered backwards Logan moved in for the kill, only to blink as a strange woman tacked the killer to the ground.

Her long black hair swinging she grabbed the man before he could try to bold, clutching on to him. Sweeping his legs out she sent them crashing to the floor as she grappled with him. "Bad boy," she chided as she grabbed him by the ears and hammered his head against the floor, "stay down!"

Logan casually leaned against one of the support beams for the bar, drawing out a cigar and lighting up, dressed in jeans, a t-shirt and a now somewhat battered leather jacket. "Not that I don't appreciate the help," he noted, "but I could have handled him."

"I know," the woman got up, her rather busty figure held within a stylish blue pant suit, "but I have questions to ask him." She dusted off her clothes and then offered her hand, "Rin Asogi, I think we've met?"

Logan's eyes widened as he recognized her, unchanged though more than a few decades had passed them by. Back in the sixties he had been in Japan, and at the time not under Romulus' control. He had been staying with a family who it turned out was being pressured by a certain yakuza clan. Deciding that the best defense was offense Logan decided to meet with th clan, only to run into Rin breaking in too. Together they confronted the clan leadership and made then back off, then they each went their separate ways.

As he was considering Rin restored one of the overturned tables then went over to the abandoned bar, finding a intact bottle of Vodka and three glasses. "Drink?" she asked as she carried the bottle and glasses over.

"Yeah, why not?" Logan said, blinking as he saw a much younger kid looking in the broken out front door of the bar.

The purple haired little girl was shaking her head as she walked through the out cold men and the wreckage of the bar. "You two done having fun yet?" the maybe teen aged girl noted wryly, wearing a short skirt and blouse.

"Sorry, Mimi," Rin smiled gently. She looked at Logan, "I'd like you to meet my partner, Mimi. She's older than she looks."

"Mister Logan," Mimi nodded, "it hasn't been easy to find you."

Logan pulled over some not busted up chairs and they sat around the table, Rin taking a shot of the vodka in a show of good faith. Logan took a shot too, then set the glass down as he asked, "So why are you looking for me?" He looked at Rin, "An' why aren't you any older?"

"Magic, sort of," Rin answered promptly, "and I could ask you the same question."

Deciding it might be best to be upfront Logan answered, "I'm a mutant, I was born with a rapid healing ability. It slows my aging quite a bit."

"Ah," Mimi nodded, looking just a wee bit disappointed.

"Stuck as a kid?" Logan guessed.

"Something like that," Rin agreed. Everyone downed another shot then she said, "I hate to tell you this, but someone's out to kill you."

"Again?" Logan smiled wryly.

Mimi snickered, "I like him."

Rin shook her head, smiling. "Remember the Hayagami clan?" she asked curiously.

Logan blinked, then frowned. He and Rin had confronted them back in the day, and in the years since he'd had a few other run ins with them. The family seemed to always be involved in something dirty, from arms smuggling to the skin trade. He'd shut their ops down more than once, and clearly they held a bit of a grudge.

"Yeah," Logan nodded, "what are they up to this time?"

"They contacted me and Mimi in Japan, looking for you," Rin admitted, "I fed them some old data on you in Madripoor, then went looking for you to give you a heads up." She scowled, "You really don't stay still very long, Logan."

"Sorry," Logan chuckled. He had recently been to New York, Russia, then out to San Fran, so if they had been following him these ladies had been on a long trip.

"Oooh," the man Rin had knocked out groaned, coming to.

Casually Logan got up, walking over to the reviving man. "Hello, bub," Logan smiled coldly, the man going visibly pale.

"G.. get away from me," he stammered.

"Now, is that nice?" Logan asked Rin and Mimi with a grin, "I was just going to ask some questions."

"Hey buddy?" Rin smiled slightly, "we still have pieces of that sword you were gonna stab Logan with." As the man went even whiter she added, "I'm pretty sure whatever is on that blade is nasty as hell. Do you really want us to cut you with it?"

Logan had to admire her deadpan, as he wasn't totally sure she was joking. In fact he couldn't even tell from her scent, she had suck fine control.

"All right," the man whimpered. Quietly he said, "Lady Hayate arranged the brawl as a distraction, she wanted me to get close enough to stab you."

"Is she in town?" Mimi asked curiously.

"At the Empress," he nodded quickly, "please, don't kill me."

"Oh shut up," Logan calmly bopped him on the head, knocking him out.

Rin downed another shot of vodka, then poured more for Logan. "Think it's a trap?" she asked as she handed him his drink.

"Of course," Logan tossed it back, "he gave up the info way too easy."

"We gonna spring it anyway?" Mimi asked as she finished her own drink.

"Yup," Logan nodded, "but you can sit this out if you want."

"Old business," Rin shook her head, "I should help you clean it up."

"Let's go," Logan agreed as the three headed out.

The Empress was not the best hotel in the city, but it wasn't bad either. They scouted out the exterior, noting with some surprise the minimal number of guards outside. "This is almost insulting," Rin noted mildly, "do they think we're idiots?"

"Don't look a gift horse in the mouth," Mimi shrugged, hefting a pistol as they slipped inside.

The ambush hit on the second floor, after which things got messy. The men were just using replica swords but they were still dangerous, swinging at all three as Logan let himself revel in the violence. Beside him Rin threw small throwing blades as well as using a knife on a chain, while Mimi used her gun to mow men down.

The third was a bit of a break but they got jumped again ascending to the top floor. The cramped hallway made it harder to use his claws so Logan stuck mostly with his fists, roughhousing his way through as Rin and Mimi covered his sides. They broke through the defenses to reach the penthouse, entering the large suite warily.

"Well," the black haired woman looked up from where she was preparing tea, "it took you longer than I had expected."

"We were trying not to kill too many of your men," Logan shrugged casually as he added, "slowed us down a bit."

"Thank you," the woman nodded.

"Hayate Hayagami, assuming that's your real name?" Rin asked.

"I wouldn't lie on such a important manner," Hayate poured four cups of tea. "Join me?"

Logan exchanged looks with Rin and Mimi, and they walked forward to sit on the mat beside the woman. She poured the tea expertly and they each drank, savoring it politely. Setting the cup down with a soft sound Logan looked at her, "You arranged all this just to see us?"

"Indeed," Hayate agreed. She set her own cup down as she said seriously, "Mr. Logan, you have been trouble for my family since the sixties. I wish it to stop."

"Ain't been intentional," Logan admitted, "but if I catch whiff of that kinda thing, I tend to try to shut it down."

"I understand," Hayate agreed, "which is why my family has chosen to get out of those kind of businesses." She sighed, "It simply isn't profitable with people like you three around."

"Thank you," Rin murmured, "I think."

"So...," Mimi looked at her, "hiring us, the bar fight and all this was just to get Logan here so you could talk with him?"

"Yes," Hayate agreed.

"WHY?" Mimi yelped.

Hayate drank more tea then put her cup down. "If I invited you here normally," she noted dryly, "would any of you come?"

Logan blinked then began to laugh. "No, I guess not," he admitted, chuckling.

"She's right," Rin laughed softly.

Mimi shook her head, "I'm surrounded by crazy people."

End?

Notes: Went with Logan's POV rather than Rin's this time. I'm writing him a bit lighter than in canon, as I find 'grim and gritty' Logan rather tiresome, compared to his lighter moments.