It is as if a hurricane swept through here, one centered on Remy's bedroom. The destruction seems widespread and not limited to material things like her favorite flower vase currently lying next to the coffee table. Or the trail of discarded clothing ending at the couch she and Remy picked out together. In the dim light, she can make out Remy's usual clothing and other more feminine articles that she knows are not her own.
Remy had been a breath of fresh air for Marie. Just recently she had begun to consider this bedroom to be hers as well, even started to move some of her own things over. In the two years since her separation from Bobby, Remy was the only man to seriously pursue her, even before she gained a semblance of control over her skin.
He was handsome, charming, flirtatious and relentless in his pursuit. Candy, flowers, poems, everything her younger self once imagined in a romance, he did with expertise. Of course, she'd heard the rumors, and many of her friends warned her of him. Yet there was something irresistible in having a man wanted by so many, chasing after her.
So she let herself get caught, an obvious lapse in judgment in hindsight. Deep down she knew he couldn't give her what she really wanted, something that she sought out ever since being chased out of her home shortly after the discovery of her powers.
She wanted a home of her own, and someone to share it with, but it is not in his nature. He comes and goes like the wind; Remy simply is not one to be tied down, by anything or anyone. She knew that even before they officially became a couple. For Remy, once the fantasy becomes reality, once he succeeds in his conquest, he will move on eventually. It is pretty miraculous that they lasted as long as they did, considering how long their courtship lasted perhaps Remy simply wanted to savor his victory a bit longer than usual.
That must be why she doesn't she feel any surprise finding them naked and tangled in Remy’s bed. Lorna looks up at her with an absolutely mortified expression on her face, she is clutching the sheet Marie bought for them in an effort to maintain her modesty. Marie simply can't muster any anger towards the younger woman. She too had experienced Remy's considerable charm first hand after all.
His reaction still hurts, however. He looks at her unabashedly; his ever-charming smile does not have even a hint of regret to it. As if her finding Lorna and him together is the most natural thing in the world.
Instead, she feels resigned, and wholly inadequate in equal measure, with a large helping of stupidity for thinking Remy would treat her any differently than all the other women he has bedded. That she could be something special, something that he loved and cherished. Trying her best to keep calm, she walks over to his dresser, picking up a few of the more sentimental items she has left there, and leaves the room without a word.
She is already halfway down the hall, right in front of her door before the full force of what happened hits her. She thought he might at least come after her, to apologize if nothing else, maybe even spin some lies for appearance's sake. She is wrong.
Fighting against the tears welling up in her eyes, she barges into Jubes' room. Slamming the door shut behind her, she proceeds to strip out of her clothing, the ones he bought her, practically tearing them off. When she finally manages to remove her skirt, she looks up and notices Jubes wordlessly staring at her in shock. Standing in the middle of her friend's room, in just her underwear, Marie makes a decision. Resting one hand on her hip, she points the other at Jubes’ closet. “Jubes, I need the sluttiest outfit you have.”
“Well, you’ve come to the right place chica!” Throwing her wardrobe open, Jubes rubs her hands together gleefully. Somehow Marie knew Jubes would be supportive and considering how expeditiously Jubes is working, she has no doubt Jubes must have realized what just happened. With the attention the gossip circle gives to Remy, the whole school will hear of this soon enough. It matters little to Marie though, with luck and Jubes help she will be well on her way out of here by then, and perhaps in the arms of someone that will make her forget.
Opening the door to that dive of a bar, the first thing that hits her is the wall of cigarette smoke, followed by the distinctive smell of vomit, alcohol, traces of urine and blood. Marie steels her nerves and steps inside, the heels of her boots stick to the floor with each step. The interior is dark, stale and damp, in the center stands a large foreboding steel cage. The bar is filled to the brim with the kind of men Ms. Grey is always warning her about. Older, rougher, grizzled men. She can feel their lewd gaze slither over her body as she walks by.
Some of that blame rests on her; she is wearing this outfit exactly for that kind of reaction. A tiny stretchy white tube top, short leather mini skirt, and long high-heeled leather boots. She fights the flushing of her cheeks as the room follows her every move, the smallest motion of her body caught and memorized. Pretending this is a battlefield she puts on her game face and saunters up to the bar. Ordering herself a drink with the most casual gesture she can manage, she turns around and scans the room.
This is not a pleasant place, and it sets off all sorts of alarms in her head. Most of the men here are not pleasant to look at, much less pleasant to be around. Even with all the repulsive combination of scent, she can still smell the body odor from the men closest to her. The few women she can see are worn, even the ones she knows are probably around her age, have a dull, resigned look in their eyes. Marie knows she shouldn't be here, but then she thinks back to what just happened, and all of a sudden she can’t think of a better place to get what she believes she needs.
Taking a sip of her whiskey, she does her best to calm the nervous jitters in her stomach. Letting out a breath, she thinks back to everything that led her to this place, here and now. She always did everything she is supposed to do. Training as an X-Men from a young age, she worked hard to control her powers. Through all that time she can only recall one serious mistake, the cure. She was younger then and even more headstrong, foolish even. Somehow believing that the ability to touch would save her failing relationship with Bobby, she made her way to Alcatraz in secret.
Back then she couldn't even comprehend life without Bobby, he was the first and only boy she dated through high school. She thought they were going to college together, that the two of them had a long promising future ahead. The signs are obvious now that she thinks about it, Bobby always had a wandering eye she just never wanted to believe it. The sex was, well after Remy she knows it wasn’t very good and did nothing to repair their relationship.
The cure failed less than a year later. Despite how he insisted that he never wanted her to take the cure in the first place, Bobby broke up with her, with the usual banal excuses. Only for her to find him less than a week later creeping around Kitty, giving her the smiles Marie always thought were meant for her alone.
She should have known better, she saw what almost happened on that frozen fountain. Kitty turned out to be a better friend than she knew though; they were friends long before either of them knew Bobby. While Marie knew Kitty felt something for Bobby, Kitty still turned him down quickly and unambiguously. That was four years ago, yet after what just happen the wound feels fresh and just as painful as ever.
After Bobby she modeled herself on Ms. Grey, throwing herself into her studies and her training. Trying extra hard, hoping the Professor and the teachers could be proud of her again. Over the last few years, she did everything a good upstanding and responsible girl should have done. Then Remy came to the mansion and now she finds herself here, in a dump like this, on a Saturday night, dressed like a ten-dollar hooker.
While she is reminiscing, some kind of a competition starts in the bar, the commotion lures her from her thoughts and towards the cage. A fight is starting; a bare-knuckled no holds barred kind of fight. One of the fighters is what Marie is expecting in someplace like this, a large, burly, and hamfisted giant of a man. But the other one, she feels something happening when her eyes find him. He is statuesque, athletic, wide chiseled back, long muscular legs, and arms like corded steel. She catches his profile, with the wild black hair, piercing hazel eyes and well-trimmed mutton chops, one word immediately springs to her mind, predatory.
The lock clicks into place on the cage, and Marie can't help but feel sympathy for the wild man’s opponent. The man doesn’t realize it yet but he just got trapped inside a steel cage with an apex predator. She has never been partial to violence. It is a necessary part of her job but she never sought it out or found any delight or excitement in it. Even while her eyes are glued to the cage she still finds the spectacle gruesome and disturbing. Still, she can’t look away; there is an undeniable beauty in the way that man skillfully and viciously crushes his opponent, like watching a raging wildfire or the impending arrival of a tornado.
Observing that wild man fight, easily defeating a string of opponents the hour passes in a flash. When his eyes meet hers briefly at the end of the carnage, Marie finally realizes that her mouth is dry and she has yet to finish her second drink. Several of the burly men who had been openly ogling her all night rise from their table and start walking towards her, lewd grins on their faces. She remembers that table had groaned loudly when the last several matches ended. It is obvious that they are trying to compensate for their losses tonight.
It is a bit disconcerting to have all these men approaching her. Their eyes wandering everywhere over her body, yet not one of them has yet bothered to look her in the eye. She chooses to ignore them all. While she is interested in some company tonight and might be willing to loosen her standards a lot, she's not going to go dig through garbage.
Slithering up to her side, one of the overweight, rather beaten up and unkempt man runs a finger over her hand, his eyes lingering over her bust. Marie realizes that this is the very first man to be dragged out of the cage tonight. She grimaces at the touch, turning her head away from his rancid breath and slurring words, “What's a girl like you doin’ at a place like this?”
She looks around warily as his friends encircle her, caging her in. A sinking feeling appears in her stomach, she might not be on a first-stringer for the X-Men but she did take her training seriously. Nevertheless, these are rough and tumble men, she is not sure if she can take all three of them in a fight. She rubs the power suppression bracelet, as distasteful as the thought of having these men in her head, even briefly, she is preparing for it if necessary.
“None of your business.” She directs her answer to whom she thinks is the leader of the group, still trying to maintain her facade, even if she is getting more alarmed by the second. These types of men are not what she is hoping to meet tonight. A little voice in her head asks her what she is hoping to find here, but she has no answer.
An even larger man steps up to her, shoving his way through the wall of drunks around her. At first glance, Marie thought she might have found someone suitable for her purposes. He is a tall, burly man. Somewhat fit, and passably looking with a slight beer belly. Most importantly for her, he is clearly the leader of the group.
He walks right up to her, alcohol heavy on his breath, leaning in close, almost pressing up against her, he puts his arms around her shoulder, pulling her in close. All it takes is one look into his eyes for Marie to know he is the by far the worst man here.
“What a girl like you need is a real man.” She barely stops herself from rolling her eyes at that pickup line. With no consideration whatsoever his hands slide up her bare arms, his touch is clammy and cold on her skin. Normally she would never even be the same room as a man like this, much less let him touch her. And even if she willingly put herself out there, there is no way she is going to let this filthy man molest her.
Marie shifts her foot back pulling further from his reach and settles into a more defensive position. “Maybe, maybe not, but I know you're not it.”
She is being disingenuous, what he is asking for is exactly why she is out here. A quick, dirty fuck, a brief moment of pleasure to chase away her pain, her regrets, her insecurities. But now, her resolve is wavering, she doesn’t think she can, not with these kinds of men.
“Come on babe, you don’t know what you're missing.” Fending off his revolting, wandering hands, Marie feels the man force himself closer to her, his lips hovering near her neck, his pungent breath assaulting her senses. She shuts her eyes, feeling just awful, something welling up inside her. She is tired of being treated like some kind of a plaything first by Bobby, then Remy and now by this fatass right here.
She reaches up to him pretending to pull him closer for a kiss, only to drive her knee straight into his crotch, followed by a stomp down onto his foot, her backstep is wobbly on the account of her high heels, but she manages to keep her footing. Steadying herself she slams her shoulder straight into his solar plexus, sending the man flying away from her with a grunt. The disgusting man lies whimpering where he fell, curling up and clutching his family jewels. Marie stands back up straight, glaring at the men still surrounding her.
“What the hell?! You fucking tease!” One of the bigger men around her yells out, slamming his hands down on the counter beside her. His already frightening face turning an angry shade of red, when he raises his hand again, she raises her fists in response. A large strong hand suddenly intercedes, Marie follows the muscular arm all the way back to its owner and is surprised to find that wild man standing there.
Now that he is closer she takes a moment to appreciate the sight of him. His certainly is handsome even more so up close, his stern hazel eyes flash in amusement as he looks her over. He grins and she briefly focuses on the unlit stub of cigar clutch tight between his teeth. Her eyes linger on his lips, and she licks her own in response.
“Fuck off boys, she ain’t interested.” His voice is deep, she can practically feel it reverberate through her, and her body shudders in response.
“Come on man, she's just playing hard to get.” She almost sighs in relief when the men back away from her, hands raised. She is not surprised the man already cuts an imposing figure. Given what just happened in that cage, she herself should be wary of this man.
“She said no, ain’t bout to repeat myself.” The man’s hands close into fists, the entire bar instantly quiets, and the faces of all the men still around her pale. One of them stumbles backward, right into a stool, and yelps in surprise. Her mystery man simple chuckles at the sight of several grown men fleeing out of the bar, spooked by their own clumsiness. She certainly has never seen men so drunk move so quickly. When she turns to her savior, he is already standing next to her, her unfinished drink in his hands. Marie’s heart already racing from adrenaline beats even faster; from fear or excitement she is not sure. He gives her a lopsided grin and places her drink in her hands, silently urging her to finish it. Her fears faded away when he speaks, “This ain’t no place for a lady.”
Marie finishes her drink in one gulp. Adjusting her top, she feels a flutter in her stomach when his eyes flicker over her appreciatively. She smiles at him a real one, a first for the night. “Who said I was a lady?”
“No need to, got a nose for that kind of a thing.” The man smiles back tapping his nose with an index finger. To her disappointment, the man then walks towards the bar singling for an old man behind the counter.
Sighing, the night is pretty much ruined; she was an idiot to listen to Jubes advice on where to find a man. She can still feel the tension in the bar; the bawdy noises that filled the room just a few minutes ago are reduced to a quiet whisper. At first, she thought they are all waiting for her, see what she might do, but she soon realized they are actually waiting for him, hanging on his every movement with palpable fear. She starts walking to the door and feels a thrill when she somehow feels him behind her, matching her pace.
She feels much calmer as soon as she is outside. The cold night air sweeps over her sending a shiver through her body. Pulling out a thin jacket from her purse she puts it on and wraps her arms around herself to conserve some warmth. On the edges of her vision, she sees him put away his cigar, and catches him getting a good look at her, while she unrolls the bottom edge of her skirt, returning herself to a more modest appearance.
Deactivating her bracelet with a sigh, Marie considers how her plan went awry so quickly. The almost painful tingling sensation sweeping over her body as her powers emerge is enough to distract her from noticing how close he has gotten.
“Need a ride?” He voice rumbles right beside her, in the time it takes her to pull away from his gaze, he's already covered what little distance that was left between them.
Marie considers her options. They snickered at her when she first left the school tonight. They saw the way she was dressed even if she had a jacket and the hem of her skirt was lower, they knew why she is leaving on a Friday night taking a taxi, there would be rumors. She knows they still are talking about her behind her back, hypocrites every one of them. Every one of those girls has done what she is doing right now, and far more often. She could return now, and wear her failure on her sleeves, but why would she? The night is still young and there is a very handsome man with her.
“Hey.” Boldly she places her hand on his arm, “How about I buy you dinner? As a thank you, for back there.”
“Buy me dinner?” He looks away seeming to consider her offer, then he looks back at her, eyes purposely roaming down her body, and answers in almost a low growl, “Just a warning darlin’, I have a big appetite.”
“I do hope we’re still talking about food.” She gives him a disbelieving look but then it melts into a saucy grin and they share a chuckle. Suddenly it dawns on Marie that she still doesn't know his name “Mister?”
“Logan.” He offers her his hand.
Taking his hand, she watches in fascination when it completely engulfs hers, looking up towards him through her lashes she hears her name whispered to him before she can stop herself. “Marie.”
“Marie.” He repeats her name deep and low, rolling it on his tongue as if he is tasting her. Her stomach does several flips at the tone of his voice, and she flushes.
Now more than ever she wants to salvage this night, so with renewed determination, she takes his arm in hers smiling, “Come on sugar, I know just the place.”
The Wolverine & Rogue Fanfiction Archive
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Story Notes:
A challenge fic, something that's been sitting for a while staring back at me. Not super happy with it but rather than letting it sit for another six month and mess it up more I figure I should let this one lie.
Also I don't remember who picked the prompt since I can't find the challenge anymore, so whoever it was, please enjoy.
Also I don't remember who picked the prompt since I can't find the challenge anymore, so whoever it was, please enjoy.
Author's Chapter Notes:
A big thank you to my beta cschoolgirl for her great suggestions, and for making this readable. Any mistakes are of course my own.
Chapter End Notes:
Next stop smutsville.