After two weeks on the road with Jimmy, and a near endless chase cramped inside a rusty old van, with just a few hours every few days to flex his claws, Victor is about ready to explode. Finally, they found the target, and he is struggling hard to rein himself in, no need to blow it all when he is on the cusp of victory. The target they are after is just inside that small mansion across the road, completely unaware of what is about to happen. He wants to move now, charge in there kill everyone else and rip what they need out of the little fucker. But Jimmy adamantly refuses, doesn’t want the extra attention it would bring. At least it isn’t because of some misguided need to feel human, not like the last time they argued over this.
Victor is glad that Jimmy seems to have grown a pair when it comes to killing now, the last time they actually worked together, as a team, as brothers, they were just across the Rhine, taking the fight to the Nazis. So what if he raped and slaughtered his way through that small hamlet, it was war, it was why they were there. Jimmy and his bleeding heart, he actually fought with the villagers against his own brother. He didn’t see him again for thirty some years, and his memories of that meeting are strangely fuzzy, but he remembers one thing, Jimmy was much more casual about killing people, perhaps not out of a sense of enjoyment like himself, collateral damage Jimmy had said when he asked, but still killing is killing, small first steps and all.
The wait for nightfall seems eternal, and what’s worse he is also stuck in here with her. Mystique, she leads the other two man team, a hard smile appears on Victor's face when he thinks back to the years immediately after Paris. Somehow he ended up running with that little blue frail from the X-Men. She'd just left Magneto recently, uncertainty and doubt surrounded her like a cloak, and he took full advantage. They were fucking like animals before the week was out. He knew it wasn’t a permanent arrangement, but he thought that they parted on pretty good terms.
Yet here they are, right next to each other after several decades and not a word between them. Of course, he isn’t actually interested in talking to her, but some small talk can usually speed things along, towards his ultimate goal of having her writhing under him while he takes his fill. Perhaps it is that scrawny red eye Cajun she is traveling with, they don’t smell involved, but she could have taken precautions knowing he would be here.
Jimmy opens the van door and signals that it is time, and all thoughts of fucking slip from his mind, he enjoys a good fuck, but the hunt and the kill, that is by far his favorite activity. And dare he thinks it, hunting with Jimmy again, it is nothing if not nostalgic, two brothers one prey. The mere thought of hunting in a pack again make his blood boil with excitement.
Perhaps this was a mistake, coming here, with both her ex, if he could even be called that, and the current target of her desires in one place. It is surprising how similar they are in mannerisms, but the difference is there if you know what to look for, Victor is filled with suppressed fury and a bloodlust ready to burst, while Logan exudes a calm calculated rage, as cold as he is deadly. Really she is not sure why she did not see it sooner, her attraction to Erik’s methodical process, to Victor’s raw animalistic intensity, all in one package. It certainly helps that Logan also possess the connection and resource to advance her cause by leaps and bounds.
She takes a deep breath and calms herself, Victor is watching her like a hawk, she must be very careful not to let him catch her interest in Logan. She doesn’t want Victor to start a fight over her with Logan, considering Logan’s disinterest for her back at the mansion, this is something she must handle carefully. Despite having done this before, many times, in fact, luring a man into her schemes all the while making them think they were in charge. She is wary, Logan will be a far more dangerous prey, and perhaps it’s that danger that makes him even more attractive.
She is the first out of the van, standing off to the side nonchalantly, in the form of the target's wife. She certainly doesn’t want to give Logan the impression that she is not taking this seriously. She is more invested in this operation that either Charles or Erik, a successful rescue of the mutant children from those labs would be a major boost to her organization, and perhaps to finally allow her to stand side by side with Charles’s institute and Erik political party, this could be a chance for her to finally step out of their shadows.
“Gambit, stay with the vehicle.” He winks at her and flashes a charming smile before moving to the driver's seat. She shakes her head at his antics, he might be an annoying flirt, but he is one of her more competent operatives. He has done his part well, the discovery of this location, and securing the target's wife, it is all thanks to him. Plus she knows he would rather not get his hands bloody needlessly. Between Victor and Logan, she is not even sure if she can handle the bloodbath that is sure to come.
Close proximity to Victor is starting to affect Logan’s judgment, his animal, always pushing at the edge of his consciousness has never been stronger. Everything about him is heightened, it is as if he and Victor are subconsciously continuing their struggle for supremacy. Raven’s presence is not helping, he was aware the two partnered up for a few years after Paris, but this tension between them, the way Victor postures near her, he is now sure their partnership was not all professional.
Relief is the last thing he feels as his emotions fade away, his battle trance slipping into place, bringing his killer instincts to the forefront. From the depth of his mind, the icy rational presences that guide his actions since he first heard about Marie's disappearance a lifetime ago, rises. It whispers soothingly, another step closer to a major goal in his life, keeping Marie safe.
“We all know the drill, Mystique, get in there do your thing.” He growls out, nodding to Victor, “Once the security is down, leave the rest to us.”
Mystique in the guise of a tall redhead pouts at him, “When was the last time I disappointed you?”
He dismisses her with a grunt, it is hard reconciling this Raven with the Mystique he was familiar with, every once in awhile he sees sparks of the other Mystique, but perhaps due to their closer association in the founding of the X-Men, it is more difficult to see her just as that other Mystique. He and Victor stand side by side beyond the property line watching Mystique drive the wife’s car into the garage. “Been awhile hasn’t it Jimmy?”
Logan raises an eyebrow at him. There is an excitement in the air, and despite the icy calm effusing his body, he can still feel it.
“Us, hunting together.” Victor flexes his claws and grins. It has been a long time, however, muffled, his instincts have been screaming at him since the day he left Victor on the banks of the Rhine. Finding Marie tempered it somewhat but the urge is still there, a mate of his own, a pack of his own, a family of his own.
“We are going to be discreet.” This is not the time for self-reflection, Logan stares right at Victor and emphasize his order. “This is just a simple robbery.”
The only answer he got is the psychotic gleam in Victor’s eyes when the lights at the house all flicker out in an instant, and he finds himself sprinting down the grassy lawn after him.
Despite the head start, Logan reaches the mansion first, Victor suppressed a growl of irritation when he catches Logan’s signal to put on their masks and gear. Hefting the crowbar in his hand, Victor bites back a sigh of irritation, it just didn’t feel right, to break down the door like this when he could have easily torn the metal door off its hinges. He couldn't help but gripe. “Can you possibly have made this more complicated?”
“It’s how normal people do it,” Jimmy growls back. Victor is happy to see his little brother also seething, wouldn't do to have his only flesh and blood start resorting to the human way of doing things, how embarrassing would that be?
Victor reminds himself of the bigger picture, the info they’re are getting here today will lead him to that fucking lab he was trapped in for years, he trembles with excitement at the thought of what he will do there. Dutifully he jams the crowbar into the door and pries it open with ease, he sneers at Jimmy the best he can under this mask “Happy?”
Jimmy ignores him completely and rushes in. He quickly follows. This new Jimmy is growing on him more and more, now if he would just learn to enjoy the hunt. A woman's scream echos from the kitchen, and he snickers, Raven always did have a fine set of lungs on her. He raises the crowbar when the faint sound of footsteps approaches from the living room. With two swings he effortlessly knocks out the guards.
“Fuck this is boring!” He gripes again when Jimmy appears with the “wife” in hand. He glances at the unconscious men at his feet, claws itching to tear into their flesh, he can almost taste blood on his tongue. “Can't I bash a skull or two, maybe a little maiming?”
Raven breaks her character for just a second enough to snort derisively at him. Victor growls back, his mind already thinking of the many ways he can make her pay for that little insult.
“No, stick to the plan.” While Jimmy’s voice never sounded so cold, he can smell the underlying frustrations, Jimmy is just as bloodthirsty as he is right now. His mind wanders a bit as Jimmy prys the basement door open, after this, he really needs to get Jimmy to go hunting with him, it would be some fine bonding time between brothers, whether he wants to or not.
Victor stands menacingly in the basement of the mansion in front of a large digitally locked safe. Their target tied to a chair, and herself disguised as the target’s disheveled wife is currently pinned to the wall by her throat, courtesy of Logan. She watches as Victor paces in front of the pathetic man, his fists flexing every few steps.
“No motherfucker keeps a safe like this,” Victor pounds hard on the safe, the impact reverberate throughout the room, “And expects me to believe that there's nothing valuable inside.”
Raven puts on her most terrified expression when she sees the target look in her direction, and pleads, “Please Doug! Just give them what they wa-”
She fights off a warm flutter in her abdomen when Logan’s hand tightens around her throat, cutting off her plea. Then with a flash of steel, the front of her dress is sliced open. She doesn’t fight the blush rising to her cheeks, smiling inwardly, she let out a pitiful scream.
“Didn’t come all this way for nothin’.” Exaggerating his accent, Logan gives her a cool gaze before sliding a hand up her stomach and paws at her breast roughly. “Maybe we outta take the missus for a spin…”
She fights off a moan when his hand finds her nipple and tweaks it hard, and wonders if not insisting on Victor being the one to handle the wife was the right choice. Victor, she was used too, the callous way Logan is touching her is a major turn on. She is almost hoping the man might have the guts to resist long enough to call Logan’s bluff. She gasps when he tightens his hand around her throat again, while the other rolls her nipple roughly between his fingers and wonders if he is actually bluffing. The thought of him just taking her in front of her “husband” is definitely exciting, and if she is honest with herself, Logan is doing a damn good job warming her up whether he means to or not.
“Heh, you got a fine looking wife.” Victor walks over to them, grabbing a handful of her hair, he tugs on it hard. “She’d look even better choking on my cock!”
“Oooh god!” That scream was real, but luckily Doug thought she was screaming in fear, and she is glad her control over her body is not letting the two mutants with very sensitive noses smell just how turned on she was by all this.
Slowly she feels Logan’s hand move lower, looking into his eyes she hopes for a clue of what he is planning, but they reveal nothing. She is surprised when he slips his hand under her panties, gasping out loud when he brushes against her folds. Raven hears the rip before she feels the sting of the cloth being torn from her, and she screams again. She definitely needs to get Logan alone after this mission. Sex with Victor was great, that animalistic lust made sure it was rough just the way she likes it. But the casual way Logan takes control, the utter disregard for what she might want, that is what she was missing since her time with Erik. The fact that he is not actually interested in controlling her life makes him all the more appealing.
“Okay! Okay! I’ll unlock it! Just please leave my wife alone!” The whining little man drew her from her fantasy. Annoyance wells up within her for him, if only he'd held out a few more minutes. Her professionalism slips back into place when Logan scratches her neck in a particular way just as they arranged she braces herself for the strike that is sure to come.
There is a difference between wanting control and actually being in control, Logan is the only man she has met that is firmly in the latter. Only Erik ever came close, and even his need to control Raven's every move, to guide her every action, revealed a weakness. Despite all that bluster, he was controlled by his fear, fear of losing control, of his organization, of his men, of his lovers. And after years of being under his thumb, it was so very satisfying to leave him behind and taking all that he owed to her.
She never paid Logan much mind before, until the first time they worked together a few years after her split from Erik then Victor. Somehow their goal aligned briefly over a captured mutant and it was then her eyes were opened. She had gotten more adept and confident in her skills and ability over the years, especially where it come to men. And it was a blow to her pride when he easily disregarded her advances, brushed aside her flirtation as if she was a rank amateur. She tried to pay him back for her wounded pride, and the operation ended in failure, but just for her.
She still remembers it, the conversation they had after the mission, in a dark alley, he had her pinned against a wall then too. She tried to speak but he was choking her, tried to struggle but her arms flailed uselessly against him. She expected rage, anger, Erik always punished her for her disobedience, she expected it from him too. Instead, Logan’s glare and the tone of his voice chilled her to her core,“Thought you were smarter.”
It dawned on her that he wasn’t there for her, or even with her, they for a short while, traveled the same path to different goals. He was in control and succeed she was not and failed, it was that simple. After he left her on the ground in that alley, she never felt so humiliated, never so angry, and never so motivated. She didn’t matter to him, not yet.
But she will, he will come to want her, to need her, he will see that she is someone worthwhile, and keep her. Then perhaps she will feel worthwhile at last.
“Chere, are you okay.” She awakens in the passenger seat of her car, finding Gambit glancing at her with some concern. Not a good look for him is the first thought she has. Looking around she realizes that she is alone with him, still in her disguise. Her skin ripples and she returns to her true form, shaking off her dream.
“Logan and Victor?” Looking into her compact, she touches her cheek, where Logan had struck her, and finds no bruises or marks. He must have used one of those fancy martial arts strikes he is so proud of.
“They have been gone for some time.” Gambit returns his focus to the road ahead, seeming to sense her foul mood. She curses silently, she was hoping to get Logan alone, she knows Victor would insist on a celebration of some sort, it would have been a good opportunity. Logan is a practical man, she is pretty sure he wouldn’t turn down some no strings attached, stress relieving sex, especially after a mission like this.
“Everything went well?” She knew it went well, or they wouldn’t be so relaxed like this. Now that the prospect of Logan is no in her near future, her mind slips back into its usual professionalism. She can wait for another opportunity with Logan.
“Yes, and you been out for close to three hours. Remy was getting worried.” Another of his flirty smiles came with the reply. Raven rolls her eyes at him, he never misses a chance to flirt, and as annoying it is to her, she’s seen it work, sweep women of all ages off their feet, most recently the target’s wife.
“That long?” she answers but her mind has already left the conversation. Turning her head and looking out into the night, a new plan is already formulating in her mind. One that she hopes will give her the things she most desires, recognition, acknowledgment from Charles and Erik, and most of all Logan, all of him.
“Gambit, contact Unuscione, Tell her we are relocating.”
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Not as road trippy as I originally planned.
Chapter End Notes:
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