Okay I had another one hit me. Yes I know I have unfinished ones, and blame the blockage monster - and a few real world blockages - at least the creative juices are flowing in some direction.
Summary: We all know that the most successful hunters, serial killers, and psychopaths hide in plain sight, successfully blending in with normal society. Logically, Sabretooth should follow that trend. I've written him in a normal environment before, but not like this. 25 years after Origins, Origins Sabretooth/Victor CreedXOC. (Yes that puts him 'working' during X1, I am assuming the events of X1 took place over spring break, and that Creed has some control of how to alter his appearance so he is not 'recognized' in his 'day job.')
Disclaimer: I don't own them, no really I don't. I swear I make nothing off of this except the satisfaction to get some sick stuff out of my head safely.
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She was watching the landscape roll by when her stomach let out a loud growl. She blushed and glanced over at him. He looked at her, and actually looked sheepish.
"I forgot, you haven't eaten." He punched a button on the console in the door. "Is there a restaurant nearby?"
"Sir, there is a Sushi place at the next exit." The driver said.
"Perfect." He released the button, and looked at her. "Hope you like Sushi."
"Right now, even raw fish sounds good." He grinned at her.
The limo left the highway and took two turns and they were in front of an upscale shopping center with a restaurant. He opened the door and held out his hand to help her from the car. She climbed out, suddenly self conscious. Her fingers touched the flower pendant made of diamonds that hung from her neck and she blushed a little. The large bracelet of clusters of the same floral design flashed on her wrist, and the earrings rested cool against her earlobes. She glanced around the parking lot, but no one seemed to notice them.
He tucked her hand in the crook of his elbow and led her to the door. The hostess asked them how many and he signaled two with his fingers. She smiled and led them to a secluded back table.
The waitress asked for their drink choices and he ordered a green tea for both of them, and then proceeded to order the meal. The waitress's eyes were huge, but she nodded at everything he said.
"What did you order?"
"Eh, just about everything on the menu. They didn't have blowfish but I expected that."
She just looked at him, and he shrugged. "I'm hungry too, and I want you to eat your fill."
"That's a LOT of food."
"And you're still recovering from having your mutation manifest. You're no where near full strength or recovery." He growled softly, the one that made her go all warm and tingly in her stomach.
She just nodded. The tea came first, in a beautiful, ornate teapot, and small cups. The waitress poured for them, and gave her a strange look. She blushed a little, not sure why the woman was so condescending to her.
Victor said something to the waitress in a language that Kathy didn't understand and she glared at him, but the waitress gave a little bow and responded. They conversed for a few minutes and the waitress bowed again, and seemed to back off on whatever it was that was giving her an attitude.
"What did you say to her?" She asked him after the waitress left.
"I told her she didn't need to serve the tea, you would do it."
"That's what her problem is?"
"She's traditional Japanese, a man doesn't serve his own tea." He explained as he sipped from his cup.
"Oh."
"It's nothing against you, she just doesn't understand American women and how they allow their men to do things that they shouldn't." He grinned at her. "She honestly doesn't think a man CAN pour his own tea without making a mess." He chuckled.
She smiled at that and relaxed a little. She glanced around the restaurant and realized several people kept glancing at them, some not as discreet stared openly.
"What is their problem?" She whispered.
"Look at us. We look like a wealthy couple out for dinner, they noticed the limo, our clothes, and are trying to figure out who we are, if we're famous. Relax." She blushed a little, and stroked the pendant again.
"You look great, kid. No one would know, a couple hours ago, you looked like something out of a rag bin." She hissed at him and glared and he grinned at her. "Better. I don't deal with fear well."
"How did you know I'm scared?"
"I can smell it, you can too if you concentrate." He said. He paused as the waitress walked up with a thin platter of sashimi and a large bowl of rice. There was a small round platter with condiments, wasabi, soy sauce, a type of hot mustard, and a red hot sweet sauce. She picked up her chopsticks, suddenly grateful her father had taught her to use them.
Victor said something else to the waitress and she nodded, and with a slight smile, walked off.
"What did you say this time?"
"Keep it coming." He used his own chopsticks to place some rice in the bowl in front of him and picked up a piece of fish and laid it on the rice, then used a little of the sweet sauce over the top, then picked up the whole thing with his sticks and popped it into his mouth. She grinned and followed his example.
The fish she picked was a darker color, and she started with the simple soy sauce. The rice was slightly sweet, and the fish had a strong oily flavor that made her stomach growl even louder. He grinned. "That was eel."
"Yum." was all she managed as she picked up another piece of fish, this more recognizable as salmon. She dripped a bit of the green wasabi over it, and braced herself for the burn, but somehow it tasted better than any she'd had before. It didn't burn her sinuses as badly and she tasted the slight sweetness of the radish instead of the overwhelming heat. She glanced at him and he grinned again.
"Yeah, Sushi is a different experience for us. We taste more, and the heat doesn't affect us as much." He let out a low chuckle. "I guess we're really feline at some level. I love fish."
She nodded, and glanced at his tea cup. It was almost empty so she reached over and poured him another one. The waitress walked by just then, and gave her a small smile. She smiled back, and went back to her food.
Three platters, two bowls of rice and two condiment trays later she actually felt full for the first time in days. It all had tasted terrific but the eel seemed to be something her body was craving so after the first tray he ordered more eel on the others. He took the ticket from the waitress, and reached into the front inner pocket of his jacket and pulled out a long, thin leather wallet and dropped five one hundred dollar bills on the table. She gasped, not realizing the meal was that expensive.
The waitress gasped. He said something else to her and she bowed again. He pulled something out of the other side of the wallet and handed it to her.
"What was that." Kathy asked as they climbed back into the limo.
"Her younger sister is in California and she wanted to bring her to New York. I gave her my card. I don't mind helping people that are trying to make it on their own, especially if they are minor mutants like her."
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She was quiet the rest of the trip. He was going to have to work on teaching her to interpret her sense of smell, but right now she was so overwhelmed with everything else, he just wanted to get her someplace safe.
"What's got you worried?" She finally asked.
"I need to get you someplace safe, where I know that the people threatening me can't come after you." He said, after thinking about it a moment. She still didn't know who he was, she had an idea what he was, but not the whole picture.
"Threat?" She looked at him, and thank God it was confusion not fear in her scent. "Come after me?"
"I had some visitors before we left. Nick Fury from SHIELD." He decided at this point honesty was going to work best. "He had pictures of your hunting trip. I had no idea they were monitoring the hunting preserve or I'd have taken you to a national park or something. Then Mystique, you probably saw her leaving the office."
"Mystique, as in the terrorist Mystique?" She said, still puzzled.
"Yeah. She wanted me to come back to the Brotherhood, but I told her no. If she finds out about you, She'd try to hurt you to get to me." He said simply.
"You were in the Brotherhood?"
"My code name with them, and with SHIELD is Sabretooth." He said simply, expecting fear, but it didn't come.
"I figured you were someone, I mean you're taking me to the X-Men for God's sake, but I had no idea I'd be in danger because you were my teacher." She said.
"Teacher..." He wanted to punch something. She knew what the damned scars did, and she still thought he was just a teacher. "Yeah, I guess. It's a little more than that with the mutation, but I guess mentor might be a better word. I told you, you're mine to protect now, get used to it." He growled the last. He had no idea how this was going to play out, and staying conservative would keep it from going south if things turned out like his instincts were screaming...she was his mate, the dam of his cubs, his companion for life, she'd better get used to the idea quick, because he wasn't going to have a whole lot of patience if it turned out they weren't related.
He looked out the window at the closed gate of the school. It was now or never. He rolled down the window of the limo and pushed the intercom button.
"Xavier's School for the Gifted."