When they were both ready they made the journey back to the cabin together, stopping by a stream to wash the blood from themselves. A symbolic thing as they both emerged to see Anne stood by the edge, Marie next to her with towels ready, Marie speaking to the both of them as they approached. “Anne knew before I did, we need to talk. All of us.” Handing them the towels to dry themselves off, Logan and Lupa watched the women retreat, Marie looping her arm through Anne’s. The look on Logan’s face one of upset and despair, Lupa tried to ease it for him, “She knows you did it for the right reason you know.” Logan turned to see his son’s gaze filled with feeling for him, the sense he was talking helping to ease the pain a little.
“I know, Marie’s a forgiving woman.” Lupa shook his head and gripped Logan’s shoulder.
“No, I meant Anne. Katherine showed me what happened, who was watching you. It wasn’t just one Logan, it was all of them.”
The words dropped straight into his mind, that they’d been in the same situation as Lupa just had been but with no one to protect them. Anne could feel everything around her just like Katherine could and she’d still let him do what they’d needed to, she’d risked everything to defend his home and his family. The knowledge of the risks she’d taken chilled his bones, she was nineteen but she’d shown more courage than some of the team that went out to fight the world. Moving quickly Logan went after the two of them; Lupa following behind at a trot, a small smile on his face as he watched Logan chase after the two women he loved.
Anne had come that morning just after Logan had left with Lupa she’d made breakfast for everyone, setting the tables and sorting out the dishes afterward. Marie hadn’t known how to approach her while everyone else was around but she’d noticed how the young woman avoided her gaze or touch. Unsure of Marie’s reaction to her when she found out about what had happened between her and her husband, she waited until Hank, Jubilee and the rest of the adults had taken the kids out to the lake to swim. She’d just walked upto Anne, touching her on the shoulder and saying, “I know,” Anne had turned then her face filled with fear and tears threatening to fall.
All her anger had dissipated at the sight of the young woman in front of her, at the fear she’d held of her reaction to what had happened yesterday, what she’d had to do even though she hadn’t wanted it. Anne’s voice shook as she spoke to her, “I made him, he didn’t do it willingly Marie, he didn’t.” She tried to take all the blame on herself, not knowing she’d seen the whole thing and what she’d done to herself afterward. Looking at her Marie shook her head, wiping a tear from her skin, “No, you did what you had to to keep us all safe here, that’s all. There’s nothing to forgive Anne, we’re alive today because of what you did, I know that but it still hurt me.” Marie watched the pain surface in Anne’s face, as her tears rolled down her cheeks.
“I didn’t mean to hurt him, I didn’t, please believe me.” Marie took her in her arms and held her as she cried rubbing her back with slow circles trying to soothe the pain she was feeling. Knowing she’d had no choice about it, she’d had to take everything he was and not feel fear, to move him in the right direction at the right time. Wolverine was a hard man to reach sometimes and she felt Anne wince as she moved, “You alright? Anne?” the look on her face was one she knew. “Come on lets get you looked at, I’ve got some witchazel upstairs.”
Anne let her move her upstairs, watched as she undressed in front of her, not feeling any shame or discomfort as she did so. The bruises were still forming, they’d be a deep blue black when they’d finally formed, Marie recognised the pattern, the grip of Wolverines hands, the way his last two fingers hooked onto the hip bone digging deep into the flesh. It was painful to move when you had bruises like this, she’d had them more than once in her life, yet Anne was walking around as if it didn’t give her any pain at all.
“Turn around Anne. Let me see your back.” She did so and the thumbprints were already black, the spread of the pressure forming a bruise that went up toward her spine. Hissing between her teeth Marie took the small bottle of witchazel and dabbed the bruises she could see, bending down to touch the one on her hip she caught the sight of dried blood on her inner thigh. Straightening slowly, she caught the look in Anne’s eye, watched as her bottom lip trembled and she broke down.
“I didn’t feel clean. I still don’t.” Marie dropped the bottle and grabbed Anne, pulling her naked form into her embrace letting the girl cry; it had been a bad experience for her. Making someone she loved lose control enough to hurt her like this but knowing if she didn’t they’d all be dead by morning. “He…He didn’t mean to hurt me but it did, so much.”
The rest was lost in large hitching breaths and tears, listening to her trying to apologise for hurting him, while she saw the damage Wolverine had done to her small frame. When she’d calmed down enough she put her down on the bed and wrapped her up in the covers, “I’m going to get Hank to come and have a look at you okay?” Anne almost pushed out of the bed until Marie held her down. “NO. You’re going to listen to me Anne; I’ve lived with Wolverine longer than you have. Been on the receiving end of this before and you need to see Hank, I know what I’m talking about Anne. Hank won’t judge you, he knows about Logan, about how Wolverine can surface when he doesn’t want him to.” Marie watched as the information soaked through her, seeing the sense of it reach her, nodding her head in agreement eventually.
“It’ll be okay Anne, when they get back we’ll have a talk about it all. Get it out in the open and talk it through, despite what people think Logan does like to talk, only about things that are important to him. An despite what your feeling right now, you are important to him, he needs you.” Marie watched Anne’s reaction to her words as she told her the truth, Logan did need her, she was his friend and he trusted her. He needed to know he hadn’t destroyed what he’d had with her by doing this, Anne needed to let him talk to her and to listen to what he had to say to her, not how he said it. Leaving her resting Marie went to get Hank, her mind filled with image of Anne stood there naked, facing down a ring of creatures three times her size with nothing but a set of Wolverines claws in her hand. She’d won but at a price, one she hoped they all could live with.
Hank’s diagnosis had been one Marie had expected, bruising and tearing of Anne’s sex, nothing a couple of weeks of rest wouldn’t fix but if her period was more than usual or more painful than usual, she was come to the school immediately. Marie had been right about Hank’s treatment of her; he’d been calm and delicate with her, non-judgmental of her or what she’d done with Wolverine. Hank had just finished when Anne had just smiled at them both, her words filling their minds with joy; “Lupa won. Lupa won!” Hank left to collect the children from their swimming lesson leaving Marie and Anne together, Anne redressed herself carefully, plucking two towels from the bathroom and giving Marie one as they went downstairs. “They need these,” sure enough both Lupa and Logan appeared over the ridge dripping wet.
“Anne knew before I did, we need to talk. All of us.” With that, Marie turned her back on the both of them, knowing that Hank would keep the kids occupied for a while outside while they talked about this. Now that the main danger was passed they had a different bomb to diffuse and looking at the both of them it would take a good bit of diffusing.
Logan caught the scent of witchazel and he knew he’d hurt Anne more than he’d known, seeing Marie her arm linked with Anne’s watching her guide her movements. Slow and steady recognising the unsteady swing of Anne’s hips as she moved without letting the pain show on her face. Still picking up on the stress she was giving out to the room as they crossed it and went down into the playroom. Marie seated herself and Anne together their arms wrapped around each other giving both men a united front to tackle, when they were seated Logan by the side of Marie and Lupa propped against the comfortable sofa his head resting against Marie’s and Logan’s legs. “Right, what happens now?”
Anne shifted round a little to face them all, seeing the look of hope in Lupa’s gaze, something bright with promise, his self worth and personal power shining through his eyes. Falteringly Anne spoke, “Wayland just told me what to do, not what would come after. I think as far as Lupa’s concerned the fight’s over, they had one chance and Lupa chose. They don’t have any rights now, the band should disperse on it’s own account.” Anne flicked her gaze to Logan who was touching Lupa’s neck with his fingers gently stroking his son’s throat, his gaze filled with love and pride. “Lupa belongs here, where he wants to be.” She held back the rest of the news Wayland had given her, that Lupa would be Amber’s husband, that she would have a life filled with suffering and pain as the war finally broke over them all. Logan and Lupa would be the cornerstones of her life, training her in the ways she needed to survive, what she would need to know to rebuild what would be destroyed at the hands of those who would kill her. Whether she and Marie would survive this was another matter but the powers she was holding in trust for Amber would be given her when she asked for them, then the war would come home to the door not until that day.
Pushing the thoughts down Anne looked at the family seated around her and felt the wound she’d dealt them all, Marie was trying to forgive her, understanding what she’d been through but she still couldn’t meet Logan’s gaze while she was there. As if sensing her discomfort, Marie squeezed her hand and pulled on Lupa’s shoulder, “Come on Lupa you’re going to tell me all about it, I want a blow by blow description here because you know Amber’s going to want to know all about it and we need to censor some of it before she hears it.” The warmth and smile on Lupa’s face lit the room as he got up holding his hand out to Marie, wrapping him up in her embrace she stood and looked at Logan and Anne. “You two have got some talking to do and I know neither of you are good at doing it with others watching, so you can both tell me later.”
Her eyes flicked to the wall clock and saw the dinner hour approaching, “I’ll lock the top door so you won’t be disturbed, you’ve got half an hour tops before the kids want down here so I’d get started if I were you.” Pulling Lupa along with her they climbed the stairs Marie sending thoughts and visions of Anne’s naked bruised form to her husband, her upset, her pain, her regrets about tricking him. Showing him the real danger they’d both been in and her bravery at standing with him, bleeding afterward and crying herself to sleep, cursing Katherine’s name for making her hurt him, taking the blame for everything.
As the door shut above them Logan looked at Anne, the images and feelings Marie had given him made perfect sense to him now, she was looking everywhere but at him and his own nerves were screaming at him. That she should hate him for doing that to her, to hurt her so badly, to just allow him to use her like that, all right there’d been a damn good reason why she’d had to but he didn’t have to hurt her the way he did. Anne was curled up on the end of the large sofa, legs curled under her, feeling the weight of his gaze on her Anne met his eyes for a second her own filling with bitter tears as she watched the pain gather in his frame.
“I..I…Logan I’m…” she never got the words out, he just moved over to her and held her tight to his chest. Rocking back and forth with her like he did with Amber, Anne’s hands gripping his back tightly as the tears burned his skin, his own hurt flowing silently from his open eyed stare. He knew they’d had no choice, neither of them had, it had been something ordained, something needed and because of it Anne had suffered a blow to her from the one person she’d trusted. Logan had been there when she’d revealed her dark little secret, that she’d killed her mother, that she’d seen and known abuse at the hands of those who’d been her family. She’d carried the pain of it, hidden it until he’d shown her the way through it, to be something different and this had led her here, to him hurting her, scarring her worse than her family had.
Knowing she was linked to him now, that she felt the same things he did, Katherine had given her the power to feel, to know, but not to understand how deep the link went. Stroking her hair Logan moved her head so he could see her properly, his large hand cradling her face, wiping the tears from her blue eyes. “I’m sorry Anne, I never meant to hurt you.” He watched as she tried to understand him, that he was taking the blame for it, for his actions on her body, for Wolverine’s treatment of her. “Anne….” He needed to see her, to see the damage he’d caused, Marie had shown him but he needed to see it for himself, to remind himself why he had to control himself.
She could see the question in him, the look in his eyes and the tremor of his voice, slowly she shifted back a little and revealed her neck. The bite mark was his, it covered her spine, it was his way of claiming someone, holding them tight by the neck as he fucked them, dominating them, making them keep still as he took what he wanted from them. Marie wore the same mark when Wolverine surfaced and he knew how painful it was for her, for Anne it must be torture. His fingers shook as he touched the deep purple bruise, seeing her wince as he traced it, the small wounds on her skin showing where his teeth punctured her skin. Her hair dropped back covering the mark, knowing if that was there then his finger prints were tattooed in purple on her body. Her face turned back to his and she saw the regret lodged in him, his hand guided her up off the sofa and she knew he wanted to see her, all of her. Nodding to him she turned her back on him and stripped, knowing he had to see her, had to see the damage he’d wrought or they couldn’t move on from this.
The clothing fell to the floor and she heard the strangled sob behind her, her heart going out to him, feeling the self-hatred fill the room. His hands ghosted over the bruises that were now in full bloom, her body wincing with the almost contact of his touch, getting her to move and scenting the pain it caused her to walk a small amount. He couldn’t take any more; Logan just plucked her up in his arms from behind and buried his face in her neck, falling back onto the sofa with her. Wrapping her up in his arms, his eyes tight shut but the image of his handprints on her skin etched into his memory forever. The redness between her legs, the bruising that flowed like a multicoloured tide down her thighs was all his doing and he hated himself for it. He couldn’t stop rocking her, wishing he could sponge the bruises away, take the pain from her, that this was his fault not hers, she had nothing to be ashamed of. She’d saved his family, given everything of herself and he’d hurt her, tainted her with his touch, with the dark half of himself, with Wolverine.
His tears were sliding down her skin washing her, her own emotions breaking open as she tried to comfort him as he held her to him. Using soft sounds and touches on his face to get him to look at her, his eyes making her heart spike with pain as she saw how much guilt he carried there. Kissing the side of his mouth softly, curling into him, gaining comfort from his touch on her skin, her voice winding through him and finding his heart. “It’s okay Logan. It’s okay, shhhh…I’m fine.” Her words galvanised his own throat into answering her, his head shaking in answer to her words.
“No, no you’re not. I hurt you, I hurt you.” Anne lifted his head to make him look at her, tears standing in her eyes.
“You didn’t have a choice Logan, I made you. I did, not you.” The look of confusion ran across his face and Anne had to tell him the truth, “Wayland gave me a charm, something to use if I felt afraid.” Logan’s eyes grew a little distant as he realised what she was saying, yet part of him didn’t believe it, he’d acted because he’d wanted her, needed her.
“Say it.” His words caught her by surprise and she almost bolted out of his arms but he held her tight to him, his gaze filled with warmth and trust, “Please Anne, say it.” He needed to know who had been in control that night, if it had been him then his actions were his own and he’d answer for them, make amends for them, if he’d been controlled then he wasn’t fully responsible for them and that would hurt him even more.
Swallowing Anne opened her mouth and the words flowed out over them both, “Sator, Arepo, Tenet, Opera, Rotas.” She waited for the charm to work, for his eyes to darken, for him to pull her into his body again, the minutes dragged by and he still held her to him tightly. His breath unaltered, his eyes still a warm hazel as the truth of it went across her face, Wayland had lied to her, he’d given her something to keep her mind occupied while her body could be free. To make Wolverine react to her the way she needed him to, like a mate, like a lover, her eyes lowered and fresh tears tracked down her already red face.
Pulling her closer Logan held her; both of them knowing why Wayland had told her that, it had been easier for them to believe they’d had no choice or control. Not that it had been their own desires for each other that had driven them to complete the task that had been set for them. She loved him and he loved her, it had been enough to bond them together for a moment, to keep everyone else around them safe. But now they both knew the truth, Wolverine had wanted her because she’d been with him before when Lupa had met Katherine in the forest. He’d wanted her and she’d wanted him, it had to happen and it made him wonder why Katherine had allowed her passions to fill both of them that night. He had an inkling of why now, to allow Wolverine access to Anne, to see her as the woman she was growing into, as a potential mate worth fighting for.
Her voice was quiet when she eventually spoke to him her voice muffled by his shirts; “It was you wasn’t it?” He lifted her face in his hand and looked at her red eyed gaze, she needed him to be honest with her the strength in her showing through. “Yeah kid it was, it was me, all of me.” He was about to apologise when she just put her fingers to his lips her face blushing a little as she moved in his lap.
“I’m glad,” his eyes almost shot out of his head as she shifted out of his arms, bending to pick up her clothes, dressing with her back turned to him. Her body language reading loud and clear, he wasn’t to look at her while she was naked, not again she couldn’t take it. He meant so much to her, he was her friend, her mentor, he’d looked after her in ways no one else had even tried to, always been there for her to talk to.
“Anne you can’t mean that, I hurt ….” She turned on him, a steel in her gaze and her voice a little firmer as she put her hand out to him, taking it he pulled her down to him on the sofa making her smile while he was all seriousness. “Anne….”
“No Logan. I thought I made you do that with me, that I hurt you but it wasn’t was it?” he shook his head as the logic of her thinking came through. “You see if it was you, not me trying to control you then you did it because you love me, not because you had to.” She searched his face for the understanding she hoped was there and found it lodged in his eyes. “You did it because you love me, just like I love you. Not everyone gets to show someone how much they trust or love the other person like we did.” Her eyes clouded a little as she remembered the pain that went with it, the rough grip on her skin as he held her to him as he thrust inside her body. Knowing he was picking up her stress and scent that he’d caused her pain, not knowing he hadn’t been the first to take her. “You weren’t my first Logan, I had that joy here as well.”
She could see a small piece of relief flow through him at her words, he hadn’t been her first but he’d still hurt her and it rankled on his soul. She wanted to make sure he didn’t hate himself or her because of what had happened, “Logan if we hadn’t we wouldn’t be here, the school would be in tatters and the rest of them wouldn’t know what to do when they found our bodies. We didn’t have a choice, although it wasn’t all that bad. I did enjoy some of it.”
Logan looked like he’d been slapped with a wet towel, the look of shock that went across his face made Anne blush and hide her face for a moment before looking him straight in the eye. “Tell me you didn’t enjoy it Logan, that you didn’t like having me with you.” The trap was there, laid and baited for him, if he said he didn’t then she’d think he didn’t care for her, if he did she’d know she’d gotten under his skin, that he did love her more than she thought. But she already knew that, she’d seen the upset he’d gone through when he’d seen her skin so he answered her honestly from his heart.
“Yeah I liked it.” For a second Wolverine surfaced in his gaze and she saw his hunger reflected at her in his eyes, “Don’t ever mean it’ll happen again.” The tone was all she needed to hear, it was final, bringing an end to this part of their lives. They’d done what was necessary but he would never hurt her again, never touch her again like a lover.
Anne snuggled upto his side resting her head on his shoulder, comfortable again with him as she answered him. “I know it won’t, I love you Logan but you're not mine and you never will be. I had a moment of you, of the underneath of you and it’s too much for me, you’re too much for me.” Her hands gripped him and hugged him tight to her, her voice wavering a little as she spoke, “I’ll always love you though, not everyone knows me Logan, not like you do,” her blue eyes meeting his and seeing the truth of her words.
He knew she’d killed, been hurt, abused, abandoned, alone and afraid even here at the school, he’d been here for her to talk to when she had no one else. “It’s just something else we share now, something just between us, it might have been for everyone Logan but it was for us as much as them.” Kissing the top of her head he heard the kids thunder through the cabin door, holding her to him as the door to the playroom opened up and little feet came down the stairs followed by Jubilee and Damask. Smiling to the new fresh faced little ones they smiled at each other, secure in their new found understanding with each other. Marie called Logan upstairs leaving Anne with the rest of the kids running around her feet and bouncing off the sofa’s, taking a quick look behind him and seeing the damage healing between them he turned and walked away. Knowing for now the conversation was finished but it would be reopened later when nights would drive him outside into the forest, into her realm.
Marie knew Lupa was bursting with the news so she settled them both outside in the sunshine, Lupa looked different, he carried himself proudly, with more confidence. Still holding his arm she squeezed it tight making him look at her, his form a little more human than Hank. “So you going to tell me?” Lupa smiled at her sadly, seeing her need to know, to hear the details of the fight but he wouldn't let her know about his animalistic side. The side that had wanted to kill, to tear, to destroy everything in his path in a blind rage powered by hatred so deep he couldn’t understand it.
“No, not everything,” the look on his face was one she’d seen before, Logan had it when he’d come home from missions Xavier sent him on that were nothing to do with the X-Men. Things she knew haunted his soul but to share them with her would taint her and he’d lose the comfort he could find within her arms, the ability to forget what he’d done and just live. Lupa saw her understanding fill her eyes and it made his heart soar, “It’s not that I don’t want to tell you, I just can’t. Not yet, not until I get a few things sorted out in here,” he tapped the side of his head with a talon. “There’s things I need to work out about me before it feels safe, today I learned something important about me, about who I am.” Marie let him talk while her hand ghosted over his fur, stroking it calming him as he spoke, his body leaning into the touch she gave him knowing it meant so much to him to have her touch on his body. Looking out at the forest he pulled himself closer to her, his arm going onto her thigh and resting there the powerful hand splayed out over her flesh covering the entire thigh with one span.
“I could hurt you without knowing it,” the tone was cold, distant and Marie caught the edge of hurt in his voice. The tense set of his body a mirror of Logan’s own stance when he was hurting; Marie just pulled herself into his body and snuggled herself into Lupa’s large frame. Burying her face in him and kissing the skin she met under her lips, “Lupa honey, you’d never hurt me or anyone else you love on purpose, we know that just as much as you do.” The soft sigh that left his throat was one of hope as he blinked away the tears that had formed in his eyes as the children came running toward them. All of them wet and shining with water from the lake, even Hank looked like he could do with a few towels, as he carried three children back. Lupa’s gaze was on them all as they walked back and the words he spoke to her made a slight chill go through her, “Yeah I know but there’s a part of me that might one day and I don’t know what he’d do if I did. I know what I’d do if I hurt you,” the silence was filled by the screams of hungry children and teachers passing them and the serious silence between them was ended by Amber landing between them both as she left Hank’s arms.
“Mommy! Lupa!” Marie gave a quick smile to her daughter and caught the edge of sorrow that was burned away by Amber’s little body wrapping itself around Lupa. Hank looked down at the threesome and waited until everyone else had gone inside before asking what was on his mind.
“Are we okay?” Marie looked at Lupa smiling and playing with Amber, holding her tight to him and swinging her up into the clear air, making her squeal with laughter. Hank was all seriousness as Logan finally appeared behind them all catching her answer, “Yeah we are Hank, for now. We’re okay.” The look of relief flooded over Hank as Marie watched her daughter play with her brother, feeling her husbands solid warmth wrap around her supporting her, her words a whisper she knew only he would catch. “For how long, that’s another matter entirely.” Logan squeezed her and brought his head down to kiss her cheek, the touch of his skin on hers making her hope they’d get through this intact. Letting her fears drift away Marie just let herself enjoy the sight of the forest, of the sounds of children laughing and her own daughter playing with a son she’d adopted yet felt like her own. Life may be difficult in the future but for now they had each other and that’s what mattered.
Aftermath
The next few days were filled with play, exploration of the forest around them and a few ‘games’ that were nothing of the sort children play in school. Stalking, hunting, hiding, wild food gathering, scent masking and how to move through the forest without being seen, Logan caught up on the sleep he’d missed out on, Anne came to the cabin in the day and left before nightfall, preferring to stay at the vardo to sleep. Knowing her own mind needed some space between her and Logan the memory of the things they’d had to do still fresh in her mind and on her skin.
The days passed quickly and quietly, everyone sinking into a calm state of being, even Hank managed to get some rest out in the forest. Letting off some steam in the tree's canopy as he swung his frame around the arboreal gym, the boughs creaking as he passed above the children below. Peiter was the first to tell them that the rest of the school was back, he’d been to check the perimeter and had noticed the large school buses and the cars had returned. It took them only three hours to clean and tidy the cabin, Logan and Hank would come to restock the supplies later when everyone else was back in the main house.
The mass walk back was like a small rag tag army, covered in leaves and moss, dressed in natural camouflage as they went home, Logan looked for Scott and found him quickly. He was in the garage doing the maintenance on the cars they’d used on the trip, knowing that it had to be done but sometimes Scott could be so anal it made him wonder where the rod went when he bent over.
Scott looked up over the exposed engine bay and smiled at the frowning Logan approaching, “Nice to see you managed to keep twenty kids alive for a week Logan, wondered if we’d be getting back and seeing you in med bay locked up in a rubber room.” The serious look on Logan’s face didn’t change as the playful ribbing went unnoticed, Scott got serious, “What happened?” The maintenance forgotten for now Scott wiped his hands clean and looked at Logan, there was a tension to him that hadn’t been there before they’d left.
“I need to talk to the Prof, I need Hank there too, it’s about Lupa.” Scott’s face was all concern as he heard the name come out of Logan’s mouth, if he was asking for help from Hank and the Professor then it was serious.
“Is he alright? What’s happened?” Logan looked at Scott his face trying to convey the seriousness of the situation they’d been in only a few days ago, the tiredness still showing in his eyes as he spoke.
“Yeah he’s fine, just that you know when we thought Lupa was a one off?” Scott nodded, they’d talked about it and had come to the conclusion that Lupa was a remnant of a species, if there were others they were few and far between. “We were wrong, there’s more, much more and we need to make sure everyone knows about em because between you and me Pete and me combined would have a hard time putting just one down.”
The actual admission of difficulty had Scott stunned for a second, this was the man who took on any odds, had run into battle with Sentinels with nothing but his own wits to win. A man who’d saved his life more times than he could remember and had returned the favour, there were never any doubts in Logan’s mind about winning so to hear him voice these doubts unnerved him. What he told him next shook him further, “There were twenty here on the grounds recently, bigger stronger than Lupa, they got in without tripping the security system, and they left just as easily. Hell I don‘t even know if they’re still hanging around watchin’ us but I know this if we make an enemy out of em we’re as dead as Sabretooth.” Scott just took the look in Logan’s eye and dropped the cloth on the engine, the action speaking for the amount of upset he was in. Scott’s engines were so clean you eat off them, so to leave a dirty rag in plain sight on his babies heart meant Logan had gotten through to him.
“Come on Charles should be in the solarium.” Both men were quiet as they left the garage not knowing someone had been watching them, hidden from their gaze sliding through the world as if it were smoke following them through the mansion. Needing to hear the words they were going to tell their leader, if it endangered them she would have to act and she hoped she wouldn’t have to.
Charles was sat with a group of children still covered in camouflage their faces telling him about their week in the woods, the swimming and the group activities that everyone had enjoyed. One youngster was balanced on his knee stroking the skin of his cheek with the back of her hand, concentrating on everything as only young children can. When the two men came in the entire group went quiet, a mental summons from Charles sent them all running to the rec room a sudden urge to play the loudest video games they could echoing in their minds. When the last child was safely out of earshot Charles turned his attention to the two men who were both radiating a quiet stress his gaze clear and his hands folded neatly in his lap. “I believe we have some news to discuss?”
It took over an hour to fully describe the scene Logan had watched from his vantage point in the tree, describing the creatures to both men while watching their reactions to the news of Lupa’s own changes. Assuring himself that they wouldn’t lump his own flesh and blood with them and see him as a danger to the school or the pupils here. Scott almost spoke but a silent word from Charles stopped it in his throat, making Scott cover it with a gentle cough. When the entire thing had been described the questions began, what were they, how large were they, what weak points did he see?
Logan answered the best he could all the while a third pair of ears were listening to every word, concentrating on the descriptions that were being given over. The presence listening beginning to anger as the weaknesses of her kind were pointed out, their ankles, knees and hips. All the danger was from the front of their kind listening to Logan assure them that Lupa would help in training to fight against them if necessary. That broke the final straw, law or no law she would not allow her kind to be killed by their so called ‘saviour’, fleeing the mansion she went through the insubstantial building her anger powering her movements, her own rush to leave making her sloppy. The calm grey gaze of Charles had watched her leaving, feeling the rage burning from her, the air turning red around where she’d been to his gaze.
The warning came just as Marie was putting Amber’s washed clothes into her drawers upstairs, Charles was in her head and his words were quick and succinct. ‘Danger, anger’, a picture of Lupa raging was forced into her mind, searching for her daughter Marie found her playing with Lupa on the back porch. A tight smile on her lips as she quickly pulled Amber inside and sent her thoughts to her husband, Lupa catching the look in her eye just as the forest behind them shook with a cry that chilled his mind but fired his blood. Slowly standing he heard Marie screaming at him to come inside but the pounding of his blood wouldn’t allow it, he couldn’t ignore this challenge.
Feeling his bones and tendons twist and reform, the fire under his skin turning into a furnace as his ears lengthened, able to catch the cadence of the song being sung on the wind to him. Speaking of death, of killing, of tearing the heart out of the enemy and knowing who the song was for, for Logan, for his father. She expected to ambush him, stepping out of hiding to cut him to the bone, to tear the flesh from him and devour it whole. Marie was stood her hand outstretched to him, her eyes clouded with tears and Amber looking frightened at the noise in the forest. Her small mind understanding what he couldn’t explain to her mother, seeing her little fingers gripping the fabric of Maries jeans and peeking through her legs, no words were spoken but as Marie’s hand dropped he heard her quiet voice telling him to go. Holding Amber to her Marie shut the door as he powered away into the forest her eyes finally releasing the tears she’d been holding back.
The call had been given, the land knew why it had to be done, he’d revealed them to an enemy, to one who could hurt them. As she moved through the forest a ghost unseen, her old alpha was with her, his wounds still healing and his voice telling her to stop what she was doing. He’d seen the truth of this place, of what it meant to their future as a species, his hand fell on her shoulder trying to get her to see sense but she turned away from him. He’d lost he was no longer her Alpha, she didn’t have to do as he told her anymore, the challenge had been given and if this Logan knew what it meant then she was within her rights to kill him. She wouldn’t challenge the young Alpha here that would be suicide but Logan was another matter entirely, getting herself ready for the ambush she never noticed the bees swarming above her in the trees.
Anne had been braiding her hair up when the first bee had landed on her skin, it’s gentle tickle of it’s feet brushing against hairs making it’s progress noticeable. Looking down at it she saw the tiny queen dancing on her skin, followed by workers tending to her covering her skin with their small brown bodies. The movements telling her of the thing that was happening in her own territory, the small shaking movement of her body across her skin telegraphing everything to her making her blanche white as the enormity hit her. Sending the bees scattering as she ran out of the vardo, her mind searching for the intruder as the swarm milled around the clearing, a low drone filling the air as a hornet flew through the small brown bodies of the wild bees. Homing in on her as it landed gently on her hand, the weight of it making her look down, the deep yellow of it’s body reminding her of a time when she hadn’t understood the difference between bees and hornets. A sense of calm filled her as the hornet picked itself up and flew off into the forest, the message given it was free again.
Watching her bees pull themselves together and flow into the forest as if called, which was true in a way, they were listening to a voice that even she couldn’t hear but one she could feel. Opening her mind to the forest the large weight of his presence made itself known to her, comforting in it’s strength, in it’s power. There was nothing to fear, nothing to be afraid of but only she knew this and she knew Marie would be distraught never mind Amber. Pulling herself together Anne picked up her herbs and made her way to the now well trodden path to the cabin, it should be all over by the time she got there. She only hoped Xavier could take the news without too much shock, for an intelligent man he really was quite clueless sometimes.
Scott and Logan were chasing back toward Logan’s home when Logan just stopped dead, the path wasn’t the same, it should lead upward here not downward. Scott had carried on for a few seconds finally noticing that he wasn’t following he looked for him, seeing him climbing a tree instead, “Logan?! What the hell….?” He ignored the shout and looked over the canopy, the smoke coming from his house was over a mile away and in a different direction to one they were travelling in. They’d been turned around in the forest, the path wasn’t the one they’d started on and he was fuming, Anne had done this to him. His family was in danger and Anne had turned the forest against him, Scott was quiet below him and that was unusual. Dropping his gaze down he saw the second figure standing there with Scott, as if he’d always been there, the dark hair and steel calliper chilling Logan’s blood. Wayland.
He dropped the last few feet into a crouch, the leaves sticking in his hair, moss staining his skin. Wayland turned around to look at Logan and noticed the almost blank stare coming from Scott, Wayland smiled and touched Scott’s unresisting shoulder. Turning a smile that had the world’s knowledge in it on Logan and feeling the fear drain away from him, moving a little unsteadily Wayland moved Scott as if he was a child back toward the cabin, toward Logan’s home. “Come on Logan, let me see my goddaughter it’s been a while since I’ve been this way and it looks like it’ll be a while before I’m back this way again.” The question burned on Logan’s mind as Wayland walked toward his home, he was about to grab Wayland when the cold blue gaze dropped into his letting him see and sense what was really under the surface of the crippled man in front of him. Logan’s hand stayed still as the gaze delved deep into his own, the voice that accompanied it rang through his blood echoing in the metal on his bone. “Do you really think your loved ones are in any danger Logan? Did you think I’d let one random act destroy a thousand years of work? Me, the maker of miracles?” Logan dropped his hand as the knowledge poured into him, Wayland had had a hand in everything, in his creation as well as Lupa’s and the knowledge made his heart stutter. Wayland just nodded as he saw the recognition pass through Logan’s gaze, the words he spoken to him as they’d climbed the right path to his home were lost in the haze that Wayland had woven around his mind. The only thing he’d ever remember were these words spoken with such feeling and remorse that it still hurt to hear Wayland speak them in his memory, “I’m sorry it had to be that way Logan, it was the only way, you were needed and She took you, guided you, led you to the light that has saved you, the light that has brought a saviour to the world. One that mankind will never touch but for what it’s worth I’m sorry you had to suffer, but as we both know it makes the good all the sweeter doesn’t it?”
The next he remembered was being sat with Marie, Amber, Scott and Wayland at his table coffee being drunk, Amber being cuddled by Wayland as he pulled things out of his pockets for her. Wolverine was making him edgy and the comforter on the sofa finally made him put two and two together, Lupa, Lupa was still missing. Standing quickly Logan left the rest of them behind inside the house, the blue eyed gaze of Wayland burning into his skin as Logan ran out to find his son.
Where was the human? He should have been here by now, her patience was wearing thin as she fingered the bone glaive, her body was hidden well in the cover of the trees, her breath steady as her ears finally picked up on the footsteps coming her way. Running toward her she dropped into her crouch ready to spring out on the unprepared human, the thought of devouring him making her teeth ache. Not feeling the gentle rain of leaves on her fur from the branches above her hiding place, marking her position on the pathway.
The burning never left his blood as he ran toward the challenge, the singing of Katherine in his ears, no words just the voice guiding him, calming him as he ran. Feeling his body change as he neared his goal, pulling him back to his human face but the burning never left him, the power never left his body as he neared the ambush, seeing the green waterfall of cut leaves drifting down marking her position. A thin smile on his lips as he purposefully went past it, his eyes devoid of emotion as he heard her leap from her hiding spot listening to the siren song in his blood and ears. Knowing that only one of them would be leaving here alive and it had to be him.
There he was! Her eyes were seeing a man with dark hair, small and weak, his back naked and unprotected, raising her glaive as she flew from her spot her aim sure as she came down toward the small figure. Her anger blinding her to the reality until it was too late, the face turned toward her and the smile that covered it snapped her bravery. It was the new Alpha, she was attacking the new Alpha!
Logan watched as the blade came down toward Lupa, he could see the smile on Lupa’s face as he saw him running toward him. Then everything slowed down, he saw Lupa’s head turn to his attacker, the huge figure almost hanging in mid air as he turned to look at her. The realisation covering it’s face as Lupa turned toward it, then as if he was just plucking a leaf from a branch Lupa took the weapon from her. Using her own body weight against her, moving the blade into her own body, using his smaller size to roll under her as she went over. Using her arms to push the glaive into her own heart, feeling the body shudder as it’s weight hit the forest floor. The smile on his face never reached his eyes, no joy was shown there at the death at his hands, only regret as Logan reached the two of them. The whine that left her body was one of sorrow and Lupa was stroking her face as she bled to death, his hand wrapped around the large weapon pinning her to the floor. His voice cracking as he spoke to her, the sorrow evident in his voice as she died, “You made the challenge not I, you called for death not I.” The eyes went to Logan’s own and he caught the anger there, the hatred of him, of what he’d done, of what he’d brought to being.
“Lupa?” Logan’s voice was quiet yet the emotion wasn’t lost in the simple word, Lupa locked his gaze with Logan’s own, the tear tracks evident as the last breath left the large body the eyes going dull as the light of life slipped away into the earth. Standing Lupa pulled the glaive out of the corpse, the bone blade sharp and fitting comfortably in his hand. Something had changed between the two of them, Lupa had killed for him, he’d known that Lupa wasn’t the true target not when he’d seen the shock in the creatures face. That knife had been for him, that death had been his and they knew how to kill their own kind, Lupa had acted without thought, without regret, he’d killed because he’d had to. Only afterward had he felt the pain of it, the loss of it of a piece of his humanity because of what he’d had to do. He was the only one who could help him now, not Marie, not Amber, just him. Wrapping his arm around his shoulder he guided Lupa home, listening to the ground soaking up the blood and fluids from the cooling body behind them.
When they reached home Anne was there, making tea for them all, the scent of summer reaching out to everyone, the calmness emanating from the cabin making them both relax. Going straight into the kitchen Lupa put the glaive in the sink before Amber saw it, Logan looked across the room at the people sat at his table. Scott was still under some kind of spell, Marie was sat comfortably with Amber on her knee playing with a toy a wolf made of silver that ran as you moved its tail. Wayland stood as they entered, his eyes meeting Lupa’s for the first time and Lupa freezing up. Lupa reaching out to Logan in fear, the scent of his fear thick in the air as Lupa didn’t move his gaze from Wayland.
Moving away from the table Wayland walked toward the back door, his gaze lowered from the two of them, finally raising before he shut the door behind him. A smile was all he left them with and Lupa began to breathe again, shaken Lupa went to check on Amber and Marie that they were safe that he hadn’t hurt them. Anne walked to him handing him a mug of sweet smelling tea, her touch soothing him as much as the scent from the mug in his hands. “He was there, the night Lupa’s family was attacked, he took him away from the men who would’ve killed him. Thing is Lupa only remembers the bad things, that he was there, not that he saved him.” Her eyes held more than she was saying here and he knew she’d tell him when it was time when they were all capable of coping with it all. Squeezing his arm she went to sit with Scott, her touch bringing Scott round from his trance, her smile telling him it wasn’t worth asking about, everyone was safe.
Logan looked at the family in front of him and the home he had, he had everything he’d ever wanted, security, love, happiness, contentment with what he was doing. He had everything yet the knowledge that it had come at a price was still with him, he met Lupa’s gaze as he held Amber up in his arms, the understanding passing between them that he would always put them first, just as Logan would. Lifting his mug as Marie wrapped herself around him, a contented sigh passing her lips, the safe solid comfort of her easing his fears. Yet what he had could be taken away just as easily and from now on he’d be watching from closer to home but if he needed to leave he knew Lupa would care for his family keeping everyone safe including himself. The sunlight was dappling the room making everything seem golden a memory to hold close to his mind as Amber smiled and laughed with her brother as they played with the silver wolf between them. His eyes drawn to the small toy knowing it had a significance to them all but what it was would only be told in time.
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