Stretching out, pain, God damn that hurts……… dizziness, distant voices….. who’s talking so fucking quietly. Dizziness again.
Blackness………
Come on, eyes, I know you want to open, but it’s so hard, the voices are there again. “Marie?” I think one of them said my name, but I don’t know who’s there. Feeling tired again.
Blackness………
“I’m sorry, Logan, but she can’t be moved.” Voices are louder now, yes, eyes are going to work. I blink to try and get my eyes to focus on the blobs in front of me. I know that one, I think.
“Lo…gan?” The tall blob turns towards me and touches my cheek with its hand. Yeah, that’s Logan, I think.
“Hey darlin’. How you feeling?” I’m on my side. Am I in bed? No, because I can’t see Jubes, she’s always in our room.
I try to push myself up and flop back onto the bed or wherever I am. “Hey, take it easy, darlin’. You’re not up to moving much yet.” Mmmmm, Logan. Dreamy Logan, I’m dreaming, I’m tired.
Blackness………..
I physically jump awake. Whatever I was dreaming about I can’t remember it now, but I am vaguely aware of violence. I turn slightly and try to sit up. Everything aches, hurts, and wants to go back to sleep. I push myself up, and the thin sheet falls down to my waist.
I’m on a gurney in the med lab. “How the fuck did I get in here?” God, my voice is croaky. Check that, this isn’t our med lab. It’s more advanced, more monitors and stuff. This is really weird. I was awake when he let go, I don’t get it. I’m wearing only a vest top and panties. That’s even weirder. Where did my clothes go?
The med lab door opens, and holy sweet be-Jesus! I scramble back on the small bed until my back hits the wall. Shit! There’s nowhere else to go. Fuck! I’m trapped in here with a fucking great blue gorilla.
The gorilla looks at me with a puzzled expression. Well, you’re, huge, and you’re blue. What do you want me to do, say, ‘Here you are. Kill me already!’?
“You’re awake, I see. Would you like something to drink?” My hands are wedged under my bottom, balled into tight fists. I really need to get out of here. I nod slowly. I would like a drink, but, God, what if it’s poisoned?
He hands me a small glass of water with a cheerful smile. I take it and raise it to my lips without taking my eyes off him. “Marie?” He seems hesitant. Fuck, it knows my name!
I put the glass down on the bed by my side. “How do you know my name?” He looks puzzled again, and he takes off his glasses and polishes them with the end of his lab coat, smiling.
“My dear, everyone knows your name.” I shake my head and try to back up even more, but the wall is stopping me. This isn’t happening. Where’s Logan? Logan, of course….
“LOGAN!” I scream as loud as I can. Blue gorilla jumps and backs up from me. It’s a long shot, but there’s a good chance he is near. Or maybe he’s not here? What if he’s hurt or dead? Oh God, Logan can’t be dead!
My breathing is coming in short gasps, and I know I’m on the verge of panic. The doors burst open, and thank God! Oh thank you, God! I scramble off the bed and fling myself at him, not worrying about the amount of exposed skin. He clings to me so tightly.
“I woke up, and I was all alone, then this blue gorilla came in and he knows my name and I don’t tell people my name –well, only you- but I‘ve got no clothes and…and…” My words rush out in my panic.
“Shh, shh, baby, it’s ok. I’m here, and everything is ok. Just calm down, darlin’. Hank, what the hell’s going on?” Hank - he knows him?
“I think that maybe Marie could be experiencing a small amount of short-term memory loss due to the, um, knock on the head. She appeared not to know who I am.” I turn around in Logan’s embrace. Something is not right here.
“What? I don’t know you! Certainly not enough to be standing here in my underwear, that’s for sure. And what knock on the head?” I look at Logan again. He moves me back over to the bed and lifts me up onto it. He has gloves on. That’s sweet. He picks up the sheet and wraps it around me and smirks.
“Better?” I nod and cling to his hand, I’m so confused. “You had a bang on the head We were on a mission. You’ve been out for nearly two whole days. Been waking up every now and again, but you ain’t been very coherent.” Mr. Blue or Hank or whatever-his-name is comes over. Mission?
“Or cooperative I, might add.” He hands me the glass of water again, and I sip from it.
“What do you mean by ‘short-term’?” Blue takes his glasses off to clean them again. I’m guessing it’s a it-makes-me-look-important gesture. He’s about to tell Logan whatever is wrong with me. Where the fuck is Jean anyway?
“Where’s Jean? Can’t she look after me? I mean, I know I’m not exactly her biggest fan, but at least I know her.” I’m whining like a 12-year-old, but I don’t care. I feel crappy, and everyone should know about it. They both turn and look at me like I just let one go in a confined space.
They look at each other, and Logan lets go of my hand and rubs the back of his head. “Um, Jeannie’s, um, not here at the moment.” He looks at Blue. “What’s going on?” He takes a couple of paces away from me and carries on rubbing his head. Why do they both look so worried? Hank tries to sound positive.
“Marie, this is very important. What’s the last thing you remember clearly? Not a dream or something you think you know, but the actual last thing that you recall?”
Logan is standing with his hands on his hips looking really serious. “Um, the machine.” He looks pale for some reason and like he has no idea what I’m talking about. “You know, Magento’s machine? But I can’t remember hitting my head.”
“The Statue of Liberty? That’s the last thing you remember?”
“Well, duh!! You couldn’t have forgotten about it that easy. I mean, Jesus Logan, you were kinda….. you know, dead!”
“Marie, darlin’ that was, um…..” He is rubbing the back of his neck again and looking at Hank for help.
“What?”
“That was eight years ago, darlin’.”
He can’t be serious.
I start to laugh at him, but when he doesn’t laugh back, I stop and stare at him. “You’re kidding, right? Eight years? I’ve lost the last eight years of my life? So I’m….TWENTY-FOUR?!”
“Not lost, my dear, just put out-of-place, temporarily. It will come back with a little time, as everything clears. Don’t fret.” As I look at Logan, I realise this is how he must have felt.
“Isn’t there anything you can give me to help it go quicker?”
“Generally, drugs just mask the problem. You should figure it out on your own.”
“Fine by me. Mask it, throw a cape on it, let it fight crime! I don’t give a rat’s ass. I just, don’t want to feel like this anymore.” Logan chuckles at my impatience.
“That’s my girl. Come on, lets get you a shower and something to eat. Maybe a walk around will do you some good.” He looks at Hank for approval, who smiles and nods.
“Look, um, Hank, sorry. I never meant to be rude. This is a little odd.” He puts a hand gently on my arm.
“Its fine,” he shoots Logan a knowing smile. “I’m guessing I’m not going to be the only surprise around here.”
I look at myself. “Logan I’m not going up there with nothing on. It’s too much skin. What if I bump into someone?” He smirks again.
“This is going to be hard. Marie, you don’t have your original mutation anymore. Your skin’s normal, darlin’. Temporarily anyway.” That can’t be right.
“How?”
“A long story that hopefully I won’t have to explain, but the general idea is, your powers got switched with someone else’s about three months ago, and you never got ‘em back yet.”
“So I have another power then? What?” He looks tired and frustrated, and he smells really nervous - I wonder how I know that? OH DEAR LORD! “Yours? I have your powers, don’t I? And that’s why you’re wearing gloves. FUCK!”
“Calm down.” He puts his gloved hands out to stroke my upper arms gently. “Like I said, it’s a long story, darlin’. Come on.” He walks over to the chair and picks up some jeans and flip flops. I never noticed them, stupid girl. I put them on and turn to him. “Its after ten, so no one will be up there anyway.”
He’s wearing a white vest, open shirt, tight jeans and boots. He is a vision of loveliness, and even though I’m slightly out of it at the moment, I still definitely would!
Eeww, I can smell my own arousal. That’s just disturbing - but I can smell him as well. Mmmm, lemon washing powder, cigar, testosterone and desire. Nice combination.
He steers me into the elevator, and the door slides shut in front of us. I lean on him and drown myself in his scent.
“You ok?” His hand is rubbing my back, and he feels so strong next to me.
“Terrific! You?” Sarcasm, don’t you just love it.
“That’s my girl, you moan your way out of it.”
“That’s the second time you called me your girl. Is there something you ‘re not telling me?” He drops his arm from around me and moves away a little. The elevator starts to slow. We can’t be near the top yet?
“We dated, for about two years now, but it’s not been working lately. Guess we kinda broke up.” He looks at his feet, and I can smell the sadness rolling off him, as well as the fact that he is keeping something from me.
“What hap…..” I don’t have time to finish my sentence because the elevator lights go out, and it veers slightly, knocking Logan into me. Then it comes to a complete stop, and I fall on my ass.
*******************END OF PART ONE
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Author's Chapter Notes:
What would you do with Wolverine in an enclosed space for two hours??? I rest my case!!!!