The Family Creed.
Volume 1: The Sins of the Father.
Chapter 3: The Man With No Name.
Lookin' in the mirror, I just see my father. Except my eyes, that's Mama. Messy blonde hair that reaches the center of my back, Sharp nail-claws. The height's his, the muscles are his. The fangs n' everything're his. Except the eyes, like bright blue stars burnin' in the sky. A Moonchild. The lead in guitars an' all. King Crimson. Remy'd let me borrow his records.
"Now now, mon ami, here's the biggin'." he flips out some Johnny Cash, a man with wavy dark hair dressed all in black cradling a guitar like a baby. An' comin' outta the speakers is a voice that's bassy and rich. I could hear him singin', the deeper workings an' all.
"Which one's this?"
"Ring of Fire,"
"Ah. Why'd he fall in it?"
"That's love, Vic. Y'fall in love. Like me an' Anna Marie." he smiles, "Or you an' Miss Jean Grey?"
"What?! Naw! Naw, me an' Jean? Come on, not in a million years!" Smellin' lies never was good. But hey, she's happy with Scott an' I'm barely a person. Why am I on the defense? Why am I just…
My cheeks heat up and I look away from him, "She's… just a friend." Remy perks up and grins with his voice rising.
"Aww, y'do love her!"
"I barely know her, LeBeau." I look out the window, seeing her outside drawin' something, "It's for the best, you know it is."
"C'est la vie." Remy answers, "Such is life."
"She's the sun, I'm the moon." I huff, "An' don't compare it to Romeo an' Juliet. It's more about two people who're fucked up an' can't be together."
"Well, one guy and one perfect golden girl."
Mr. Cash sings about bein' sad in Folsom Prison. I close my eyes and listen. Imagining the man himself singing to convicts. Felons. Bad people who did bad things or good men who weren't bad at all.
Remy's hand lands on my shoulder an' my arm moves, grabbing his wrist before he could land it.
"Bad move." I snarl.
"Look, it don't take a psychic gal t'tell me that you're hurt on the inside. Y'can't trust nobody. Well, you can trust me." I sniff, grunt at the truth and let go. He grins and gets out a pack of cards.
"Ya know how to play King's Corners?"
"Fuck no."
He and I spent the afternoon playing card games. That night, I lay wide awake, softly humming Folsom again, tryin' to read more 'a Moby Dick for class. That's when I smell brimstone an' Kurt stands there.
"Kurt, what're ya…?"
"Can I… stay with you?" he asks, yellow eyes downcast and tail whipping softly through the air, "I… I had a nightmare. A bad one." he shivers and I pat the empty space near me. He smiles and clambers into bed, his three fingers n' toes not botherin' me at all.
"So, what brings ya to my room instead'a Piotr's or Remy's?" I ask, "Is it 'cause I'm bigger n' one of 'em and twice as mean as the other?"
Kurt shakes his head, "No it's just… I wanted someone who'd tell me stories!"
"Stories? Ain't much but blood n' guts." I sigh, "Why not go to Mr. Logan?"
"He ran out. But you? You must've seen so much up there!" he exclaims, "Well, ran out of stories of Canada anyway!"
"Why Canada? Wouldn't you want anywhere else?"
"Well no." Kurt shrugs, "Just… have you seen Niagara Falls?!"
"No. I didn't stick in bigger cities near the border because that's where my Dad'd get me. Plus they're loud and smell like shit. If you're talking about the actual falls… no."
"What did you do?" he bounces a little.
"I survived. Did all I could and now I'm here with no idea how I got to it." I sit with a smile on my face, "It was hell, running from place to place followin' nothing but my gut. Earned money with odd jobs, probably some hits."
"Was it good money?"
"No. It wasn't." I look down at my hands, "I actually hurt people. Killed 'em. They… well. It wasn't like surviving." I close my eyes and smile.
"But I won't hurt you guys. That's a promise." I say, with Kurt nodding and listening to some more to the times I can tell him about without the bad memories. Maybe about how some guys called me Little Rambo?
But he's already startin' to nod off, "You're not as bad… haaah… as you think you are." he yawns, and I stand up, hoistin' him into my arms an' carrying him out of my room.
"Victor…?" he mumbles.
"Yeah?"
"Why'd you help us?"
I open his door, bumping it out of my way with my hip, "Dunno. Just felt like it."
I lay him down and tuck him in. It's not that he minded, he asked me for stories and I figured he wanted some help gettin' to bed. His tail wiggles below him as he shifts to his stomach. I wait at the door.
"Kurt, you have a good night now."
"I will, thank you!" he exclaims. I smile and shut the door behind me with a soft click. As I move out to the common room to think, there's Summers. He's watching the Giants game and leanin' against the back of the couch.
"Football, huh?" I ask, sitting down next to him, "Never really sat down an' watched a game."
"Hmph." he grunts, still watching.
"The fuck's your damage, Summers?" I ask, "Ever since I showed up it's like you got a stick the size of a sequoia jammed up your asshole."
He looks at me from behind his glasses, red quartz lenses block his rays. So he's okay. He looks back at the screen.
"You're scared, aren'tcha?" I guess, "Scared that I'll end up outshinin' you?"
"Yes." he says, "You just show up and everyone's eating out of your hands."
"If you think I'm here as a mole you're stupid as hell, the only reason why I'm here is 'cause I don't wanna run anymore. I don't have a big family like you or had a stable life like Jean. So if you're scared a' me stealin' her…"
His visor whines, "I'm not scared of you, I'm scared of what you CAN do. You're unknown even to the Professor."
"Maybe that's for the best. I'm not showin' what hurts." I look at the screen, "I'm not here to steal Jean from you, that's up to her. An' whatever bullshit you got with me ain't with me, it's with you." his heart rate picks up and I rise.
"Well, goodnight Scott." I turn towards our rooms, "Don't worry about a thing,"
When I get into mine, I take off my jacket and my shirt, my ears picking up on everyone. Jean's thoughts gently seep into my head. Vague feelings, some lasting memories, it's like a mental highway.
Memories and feelings speed around me, trailing lights behind them an\d turning into little ember-colored shards. The air screams by, cars too. But all I hear is the constant clashing, the gnash and the buzz, the scream of steel. The city pulverizes me the second I open my eyes. A heavy strike of a blastin' horn and I'm runnin' helter skelter down the way. The neon signs' blades slash and stab my eyes, mutters sound like roars and cries sound like the rumbles of thunder.
How'd I…?
"Hey, get the hell out of the way!" my ears burst into ringin' and I clap my hands over my ears and take off. The lights go away but then I'm just lost. So much noise, so many smells, so many sights seared in my mind. I dunno what to do, an' I forgot my shirt an' jacket back at the Mansion. All I do is run away, covering my ears and closing my eyes. Everything burns and rings and screams. It's not quiet here.
But then I feel a hand on my shoulder, "Gaagh!" I roar, my claws whirling and my arm's caught with my claws sinking into the muscle. I snarl and growl at Logan as he holds my wrists. But I still try to attack him by biting him.
"Kid, kid. Listen." he says, "Calm down." his blue eyes stare up at mine. Blood fills my nostrils, oddly enough it tastes even more metallic than normal blood.
"Grrgh…" I pull back with a chunk of him torn out. I spit it out, "Mr. Logan?" I bunch up and he pulls away.
"You're out of the school, why is that?" he asks.
"I dunno! I just… Grrgh! Loud!" I clap my hands over my ears, "Ggh… Why are cities so-" Logan grabs my shoulders.
"Breathe. Close your eyes an' breathe." he orders, and I center myself, he pats me on the shoulder.
"There we go, good kid. It's a lot for the first time, Victor." he says, "You hungry?" he leads me down a street and my ears still ring and buzz with the din of the city. I shake my head and follow after anyway.
"So, you just woke up out here?" he asks.
"Yeah, I think it's an old strat I used to do. Used to sleep on the move so my body would just walk me out, but it was more than that. It was blind."
Logan nods and takes a beer out of his jacket, popping the tab and drinking. The lights twinkle below and I look over at him.
"Did you know my Mama, Mr. Logan?" I ask.
"Yeah, she was a woman I knew. Both me an' your old man did. One of our many one man wars," he drinks down the beer, "She was a tough woman. Don't blame her for how she ended up though,"
"It ain't my fault…" I mutter, "Why does it feel like it is?"
Logan looks at me, "It's not. It's mine. An' mine alone."
I grit my teeth, my mind clicking and creaking with the descent of the elevator, the canary softly chirping and the mark on my arm itchin' and smarting. Just constantly doing that. I don't wanna carry it anymore. It's not that heavy but…
Logan sighs, "Vic, I wish I could say it gets easier. They start… blurring together and you just forget faces and names after a while." he looks over his beer at me.
"The only good thing about all this is that I felt like The Man with No Name…" I laugh a little, "A fistful of bucks, a rough voice, an' I knew things."
"You watched the old spaghetti westerns?" he stares at me almost in surprise. I notice that about him, despite smellin' like a distillery he's pretty in control of himself. I wish I was that good but I guess I need ta learn all that.
"Yeah, my Mama had the original tapes. I just kept them in an old bag and used to project them on nights I really felt safe." I smile, "I remember she used to tell me you reminded her of Clint Eastwood in those flicks."
"Huh." Logan grunts, "Really?"
"Well yeah, you're grumpy and ya drift in from nowhere, you got the same cigar chomping rough talkin' brogue that women love and men fear. I dunno what you've been through but it's gotta be a lot."
He smirks, "Ain't that the truth?"
"It's just… you kinda were my goal? The kinda guy you are. Tough. Never lets things hurt as much as they can. Just sorta invincible?" I smile a bit, "Made me feel like if I could be that way, if I could be strong like you-"
"It ain't about strength, Vic. An' it's not about being tough. I've been through some shit that'd make you cry." he rises, "Come on, let's head back."
My nose twitches an' I smell adrenaline. Hear someone's heart going a mile a minute. Breath heaving out of their nose. Doesn't sound normal at all. Then I hear more steps after them, cries of…
"Where you goin', beautiful?!"
"Never been into Muties before!"
"Hey, get back here!"
"Hey, Mr. Logan?" I ask before straightening up, "I'm gettin' someone. A runner." Logan sighs and shakes his head.
"Why's it always a girl?" he leaps off, almost like a predator and I follow on behind him. We close in on the guys chasing this girl down. She's younger than me, long light green hair and softly panting as she sticks to an alleyway wall with three normal guys gathered around her.
"Whaddya wanna do?"
"Well she's a pretty one."
"Maybe we should show her a good ti-" Before Logan could stop me I grab the guy by the back of the neck with my claws lightly digging into his skin, "Immme?!"
"Leave that girl alone." I snarl with the other two brandishing some random tire smell like they've drunk an entire keg all at once. They shamble and bring them up.
"You… you think you can… ulp! Order us aroun'?" one of them burps, wearing a shirt that says 'Friends of Humanity New York Chapter.' I don't know what the fuck that is but if they're cornering a girl in an alleyway…
It's fuckin' bad news.
"I ain't orderin' I'm telling y'all." I snap, "So get to steppin'." I snarl, hearing the SNIKT of Logan's claws.
"Because I don't think ya know how fucked you are." I smile, "An' I'm nicer than my friend." They hesitate and one of them seems to dawn recognition and see me for something familiar.
"SCREW YOU!" one of them yells, swingin' for me and catchin' me on the back of the head. That's when all I'm wound up with gets undone like a spring. But instead of a blind rage, I got a reason to.
"Okay~!" I snarl, my claws hittin' home hard and fast, whapping the offender into the wall and leaving a five line streak, I scrape my claws against the wall, stalking them up the alleyway. Logan gets the girl behind him.
"He's an even bigger Mutie!" one of them screeches with one of the three charging and trying to hit me again but I clothesline him and dig my claws into his shoulder.
"Gaaah!"
"If I ever see any of you pukes chasin' after anyone for bein' a mutant I'll rip you to shreds." I snarl into his face, "Now get going."
I let the guy's shoulder go and he dashes off with his friends. Logan and I looking at the girl at the back of the alleyway. I can just smell the epinephrine and norepinephrine with the distinct tinge of dopamine.
"Hey." I walk over and kneel to her level, "You're alright now," I smile.
"What's your name? I'm Victor." I continue and she opens her mouth.
"Lorna…" she says and her heartbeat calms with her green eyes softly looking up at me. I'm not scaring her. Which is good. That's good.
"Okay Lorna, where're you headed?" I ask.
"Victor…" Logan cuts in.
"Cut it out, Logan." I wave him off, "Just lemme help 'er. She's scared."
"I'm from… well… Over there." she points uptown.
"And whaddya doing out here?" I ask.
"Well, sometimes I… I just want to get away for a while." she mumbles, looking down at the pavement and I get it. Sometimes I get the same way and there's nothing wrong with it. She almost makes it sound that way but sometimes even I gotta get away.
"Ain't nothing wrong with that, Lorna." I hold out my hand, "Where do you wanna go?"
"I guess back home." she answers and I feel her hand in mine.
"Alright, Miss Lorna. I'll getcha home in a few shakes." I squeeze her hand, "Just gimme directions."
She giggles a little and Logan shakes his head, "Seriously? Outta all the cockamanie…"
"Look, if you wanna be a grumpy old man I'll find my own way back!" I snap, "Now me and Lorna are-" suddenly a red aura shines around me and everything goes sideways.
"What the fuuuuuucccckk?!" I scream, almost being blown away if it wasn't for my toe claws digging into the pavement, "Okay, what the hell?"
Floating down from the sky is a girl in red, more my age, her long curly black hair streaked with red and billowing around her face, "Lorna, there you are!" she exclaims, "What were these men doing to you?"
"Mr. Victor was just trying to take me home, Wanda!"
"Alright, the fuck is your damage, girlie?!" Logan snaps, "My student here was just tryin' to help your sister not become the victim of a bunch of Mutanists!"
"Hm. Is that so, Mr. Howlett?"
"Rrgh…" he growls, he turns and grabs me by the collar, "Let's go."
"What?! You're gonna take that lying down?!" I yell, "Some lady comes in and almost tosses me half a block down and you're runnin'?!"
He glares at me, "Victor, that lady is somebody way above your weight class. And her Dad's a whole different beast." he drags me behind him with the girl holding Lorna's hand and leading her away.
"Have a good evening, Sabretooth~!" She calls after me and my rage runs through me like a burning tide of fire because that's a sore spot.
"I AIN'T MY DAD, YA WITCH!" I roar back.
Jean sits outside, drawing all the time. It's quiet, the crickets chirping. A flashlight poised between her teeth as she draws, the charcoal and ink forming whatever she's seeing in her mind. It's home. The pines, the snow, all of it. She works diligently and I sit next to her, watching. New York's different from Canada, of course I dunno where in Canada I was at but... she found me.
"Looks good." I say, and she takes the flashlight out of her mouth, smiling at me.
"Thank you, Victor. How are you adjusting?"
"Well, I hung out with Mr. Logan, told stories to Kurt, and played cards with Remy..." I look towards the woods, "And Scott came to a compromise with me."
She nods, her expression growing a little darker, "Scott's just worried, that's all."
"It ain't right, it should be up to you." I look at her, hesitating to reach out and pat her on the shoulder, "I mean... if I were your boyfriend I'd..."
Jean looks at me with a coy smile, "You'd be even more protective."
Blinking, my mouth going dry, "Well! I uh... no, not really, no." she searches through my mind, the slight burning tingle spreads from my head to my toes.
"Quit it." I wave my hands as if warding her off and she giggles.
"Am I wrong?" she wonders, "Or am I right?"
"Rrgh, I can't lie to ya, can I?" I growl.
"You can try but I won't let you." she winks and my cheeks grow hot, thinking how she got me head over heels absolutely caught with my foot in my mouth.
She's right, I would be. I'd think we'd be stuck together but this is different. She can see what I think, hear what I think. Nothin' will ever be normal between us. She'll know. She always will. And I'll know 'cause I'll smell it on her.
No lies, no secrets.
"Being out there… It was so simple. Now I'm in the city and it's just so much at once. Like… it's loud and angry, years o' history an' not one of it makes it any better." I sigh, "And then that girl."
"Girl?" she asks.
"Look, I tried to help this girl getting chased down by a trio of Mutatists, and well I'm bein' all cool and trying to help her out and then her sister almost threw me a block down. So not ONLY did I have sensory issues, but trying to do a good deed's almost got me tossed."
"Oh, I see." she smiles and draws some more, "Don't worry about it, I'm sure it's going to be alright."
"I mean… Mr. Logan DID drag me away from the girl, so… yeah, I think he's scared." I sigh and head back towards the inside, "Hey, Jean?"
"Hm?"
"Goodnight."
"Yeah, goodnight." she says with a smile. When I get back to my room I notice something weird. The window's open. I ease the door open and realize that it's from me and it's just something normal enough. I slide it closed, but even weirder is…
The feeling of… jealousy? Well no, it's not that? Jean's connection sends it across and I send my feeling of contentedness back. But then it's just… weird. I settle back in my bed and close my eyes.
Tomorrow's another day.
