Title: Feral Attractions Part 6
Rating: NC-17
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters presented in this work of fanfiction with the exception of Heather and Todd, the bartender. I make no money from this simple story and only slightly more from my day job.
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Feral Attractions
Part 6: A Few Small Discoveries
Logan wiped the thick black grease on an old rag and tossed it with undue vengeance to the concrete. He rubbed at his knuckles until they were read as he fought the urge to unsheathe the adamantium so well hidden beneath. It would be so simple to just release his rage on the object before him, but then he'd be up shit's creek. He'd still be mad and his bike would be destroyed. He'd learned half an hour ago, destroying things didn't help. His beer that he'd brought down from the kitchen was now decorating the garage wall, and he was still thirsty. Maybe now was not the best time to try and clear his clogged exhaust, he decided. After all, he might want to go for a ride on his piece of shit motorcycle one day.
Leaning against the cool concrete wall, he sighed and allowed himself to think about the real reason he was so pissed off.
His mission at dinner was a complete and utter fuck up. He walked in the kitchen, dumped whatever looked edible on his plate and moved right past where Ororo sat, all with the precision of a machine. Sitting down he gave himself a pat on the back for not even looking her way despite the strong nervous scent she gave off from the moment he entered the room.
He sat and ate his food, managed a few grunts of conversation when Marie darted over to ask him where he'd been for the past few days and even threw a few adequately scathing looks right back at the Amazing Talking Dick. But then just when he had almost managed to swallow down the last of his meal, an obnoxiously loud laugh from across the room drew his attention and like a fool he looked up.
Looking across the room, he spotted the goofy blonde boy, Bobby or whatever his name was, standing before a rapt audience living up to his rep as a complete and total ass by making kissy faces in the air. Marie, he noted with a small note of pride was one of the few kids not egging the little boob on. In fact, she looked more than ready to bust his little bubble. 'That's my girl.' he thought with a satisfied smirk just before he unwittingly met Ororo's gaze at the far end of the table. They held eye contact for long tense moments before her blue eyes turned ice cold. His own narrowed in question. If anyone should have been cold it should have been him, he reasoned. Afterall, he wasn't the one sleeping with the enemy.
Still, it did something funny to his gut to see the hint of misery reflected back in her usually bright gaze and he finally dropped his gaze, stabbing viscously at Jean's salty meat loaf. But it was what he noticed a few minutes later when he heard a chair scrape back from the table and she stood to announce she was going to go to bed that made him loose his appetite. The bruises. Ugly dark purplish reminders of where he'd put his hands on her stood out in stark relief against her skin when she moved to pick up her plate.
They were like a big flashing neon signs reminding him how he'd slipped up and let out the animal inside. Christ, he didn't even realize he was hurting her. The damned woman barely even flinched to let him know he was holding on too tight. Truth be told, at the time he didn't really care enough to notice and that was what freaked him out most of all.
'Why the hell am I sweatin' this so much?' he stilled. 'Ororo fucked up here, not me. She goes off and screws around and I'm sittin' here like a pussy cause she's a little black and blue. Fuck. Victor Creed probably would've ended up doing a whole lot worse if she'd stuck around him long enough.
Looking up at the sound of approaching footsteps, a hint of a smile began forming at the corner of his mouth in spite of his annoyance with himself. Even with out the light citrus fragrance she'd worn since the day he met her, he recognized the careful tread of her steps.
"Checkin' up on me, Marie." Logan observed, the second her dark head appeared at the garage entrance.
Marie tossed him a apologetic grin as she step through the wide doorway, pausing slightly at the mess he'd made against the wall.
"Looks like maybe, I needed to. I take it ya don't think too highly of Budweiser."
"It ain't exactly my favorite." Logan replied easily, watching her approach him rubbing her gloved hands over the arms of the lightweight sweater she wore.
"It's a lil' chilly out here, tonight." she began, on a conversational tone.
"If yer cold, Darlin' why don't ya go back in the house." he told her, hoping to cut her off before she got started. Of course, he knew before he tried that he'd have no such luck.
Knowing that she, and no one else could get by with it, Marie prodded on. "That was kinda odd how ya just sort of shot out the door at dinner tonight. I know the meat loaf was bad, but it wasn't that bad." the southern teen teased, indicating his violently discarded beer with a incline of her head for emphasis. "Ya got somethin' on your mind, Sugah?"
"Nope."
Marie's eyes narrowed. "C'mon Logan. It's obvious ya have somethin'on yah mind." At his silent glare, she added. "It ain't like I'd tell all your business or somethin'."
Logan slid her a sidelong look complete with raised brow. "Exactly what business do you think I have to talk about, Kid?"
Marie had the good grace to look embarrassed but still didn't want to admit to listening too close to gossip. "I don't know, Logan. It's just that both you and Miss Munroe kinda ducked out at the same time and...."
"What does that have to do with anything?" he interrupted, not certain at all if he liked the direction this conversation was taking.
Marie was hesitant, her brown gaze wary as she spoke. "I just thought yah might of heard what Bobby Drake said and..."
"Why the hell would I care what that little boob was talking about?" he asked, her even as he tried to recall if he'd picked up anything worth listening too from the boy. Remembering the boy's silly antics, he had to admit his curiosity was peaked. "Wait. What did he say?"
Marie gave herself a quick mental kick. Dang it. She just knew that was the reason Logan looked so ticked when he stalked out of the kitchen. So much for saving Bobby's skinny hide from Logan's wrath. Thanks to her, he'd probably be looking for his teeth for a week.
"No...Nothing Logan. He was just being his usual silly self. Ya know how Bobby is. Always joking around."
Logan folded his arms over his chest, eyeing the flustered girl with unwavering intensity. "What did he say?" he repeated quietly. Too quietly for Marie's comfort.
Shifting restlessly, Marie avoided his gaze. "They were just jokin' around. Ah'm sure of it."
Her visible reluctance was grating on his nerves, but he had a solution. "Bobby's in his room, right?" he asked, not waiting for an answer. "I'll just go find out what he found so amusing myself." taking a step towards the door.
Her gloved hand shot out, catching his arm but he hid his satisfied grin as he paused. "Fine." she sighed. "He and St. John were jokin' around about you and Miss Munroe." she told him quickly.
"What kind of jokes? "he prompted, despite his sudden desire not to know.
"Well, Ah can't exactly repeat what he said but John told us he saw her coming out of yer room earlier this evenin.'
"What do you mean, you can't repeat what he said, Marie?" he asked, knowing he didn't like the turn of this conversation.
Marie made a small sound of frustration. "I ain't tellin' what he said, Logan." At his glare, she added. "But, they were insinuating that there was somethin' goin' on b'tween ya'll."
'The nosy little fuckers.' Logan thought. Every fuckin' time he turned around one of those sneaky little bastards were trying to spy on him. Perhaps it was time too send Ice Prick and Flame Butt a reminder to keep their beady little eyes to themselves, he decided.
"Ah can't help but wonder if its true. Ah mean, Miss Munroe has been actin' a little distracted for a while." Marie chattered on noticing Logan's deepening scow, feeling obligated to take some of the heat off her classmates. "Ah mean, she gave this test last week and she marked two of my answers wrong, even though Ah knew they couldn't have been. And she's been all jumpy and stuff."
Logan couldn't help but give a small laugh. "That doesn't mean I have somethin' to do with it."
"Ah didn't say yah did, Sugah. It's just that we all been noticin' how unusual she's been actin'. Ah was a lil' worried about her for a while there." Marie admitted. "Ah think it's great that it's you, who's been keepin' her so distracted."she added in hushed tones when he continued to stare at her.
Logan shook his head. "You have no idea what yer talkin' about. There's nothin' goin' on between me and Storm."
Marie surprised him, giving him a playful swat on the arm. "Yah can't fool me, Logan. Ah know how hot you think she is. Ah'm just surprised is all. Last ah recall, yah thought she wouldn't give yah the time of day.
"Marie..."he started.
"Ah thinks it's sweet, really." the girl continued, clearly on a roll. "Ah doubt many men can claim to have a former Goddess gettin' all flustered over 'em."
"Marie, I can guarantee that Ororo was not thinking about... "he paused. "Wait a sec..Why the hell are ya talkin' about Goddess' and crap fer?"
Marie rolled her eyes at his silliness. "Yah know. Miss Munroe." she clarified, taken aback by his marked confusion. "Oh my gad, Ah can't believe ya didn't know." Marie said, her big brown eyes widening. "Ah thought everyone knew about her now."
"You thought I knew what?" Logan cut in.
"She...Miss Munroe was a Goddess before she came here." she responding at his skeptical smirk. "Ah'm serious. She had whole villages worshippin' at her feet and stuff back in Africa. She told us all about it in class one day. Ah think she finds it sorta funny now."
Logan frowned. That explained a lot. Like why she came off like a prima donna sometimes. Too bad he didn't find it the least bit funny. The way she'd come to his room and almost demanded that he keep her secret for her. Then slapped him like he wasn't good enough to touch her. His frown deepened into a scowl. Miss High and Mighty certainly had enjoyed every filthy touch that animal she lusted after gave her.
"Did ah say somethin' wrong, Logan?" Marie said, interrupting his inner rant, with open concern. 'Why is he lookin' like I said she'd done something gross, like slept with Mr. Summers.'
He glanced at her, distractedly. "Nah. I'm just surprised." he half-lied, giving himself a mental shake and noticing her uneasy expression. He gave a forced smile. "Looks like you learn something' new everyday, Kid."
Logan endured her small talk, offering very little in exchange. In his head, a million thoughts coiled around. Many more unpleasant than even he liked. But by the time, she grew tired of chatting him up his darker thoughts were beginning to make themselves crystal clear. He leaned against his broken down bike deep in thought when Marie finally bid him goodnight.
He was letting little Miss Munroe off the hook way too easily. No way was he just gonna give in, when she snapped her fingers. She'd betrayed her teammates without a second thought and expected him to roll over and play dead. Now way was he gonna let this slide. Perhaps a little change of plans was in order, he decided as he moved to lock up the garage. The garage door clicked shut, shadowing his cold smile. It was high time the Goddess found out what it was like to do a little groveling.
****
Ororo sat at her desk, her gaze keeping a keen watch over the fifteen students in her care. She couldn't resist a small satisfied sigh, that at least for today she had yet to catch a wandering eye. Usually when she gave a pop quiz to this sneaky little bunch, at least two of her precious young minds could not resist the urge to test their stealth at cheating. Little did they know, she was always two steps ahead of them. Even her two favorite troublemakers were behaving herself, and if it were any other day she would have felt a bit of concern. As it was, she could only feel a surge of gratitude that Bobby and John were actually behaving today.
For the first time in a week, she felt things were finally returning to normal. In fact they were better than normal. Not only had her two competing class clowns been really seeming to apply themselves for the last two days, they seemed almost anxious to please her. Silently, Ororo thanked the Goddess for their complete turn around.
Earlier in the week they'd been getting on her last nerve. Giggling and making wolf sounds under their breath when she walked by, but of course she'd never been able to catch them in the act. She'd been on the verge of considering serious disciplinary action and at spoken with Scott a few days prior about their odd behavior. Scott seemed to find their behavior weird but amusing, but promised to speak to them since they both knew Ororo would be far to lenient with them. Class disruption was taken very seriously because of the amount of material they had to cram into a given semester. It was all due to their lack of being able to find qualified teachers willing to and trustworthy enough to teach mutant children. Ororo was beginning to wonder exactly what Scott could have possibly said to the terrible twosome. She made a mental note to speak with him just to ensure he did not go overboard in reprimanding the boys.
Satisfied, that all was indeed well with her students focus, her gaze was drawn to the enormous windows on the South wall. A faint smile lit her lips as she gazed out at the wonderful view of her garden the huge floor to ceiling windows afforded. She briefly considered stepping out during lunch to check on the tarp covered seedlings she'd planted in the fall, it had been a while since she's seriously devoted time out there. She was certain something in the nearby greenhouse needed replanting. Sheer exhaustion had kept her from her favorite pastime, something she knew she must remedy in a hurry.
The nightmares that had been keeping her up were finally subsided. It seemed in fact that Logan was truly going to keep his word, so perhaps that was the reason her dreams of being outed as the liar she was had begun to lessen. Last night she'd finally had a full nights sleep for the first time in a week. She'd have been lying if she said that the lack of sleep hadn't been taking its toll.
Not only was she dozing off at the worse possible time, but the constant fear of being discovered had her suffering from a lack of appetite for weeks now. Jean stopped her in the hall a few days ago to express he concern but she'd been far too uncomfortable in the telepath's presence so she swiftly changed the subject. And poor Scott. She was certain he meant no harm with his offhand comment about how terrible she looked yesterday during breakfast but she hadn't been prepared for his bluntness. She'd come painfully close to snapping at him.
Logan, however hadn't gotten off so easily when he grunted something about the bags under her eyes that same afternoon. She tried her best to bite her tongue but as usual Logan managed to push her buttons without even trying. She supposed she should apologize for calling him an irritating jerk but really she did not want to. He was irritating. All week he'd been sending her surreptitious little glances during dinner and avoiding her completely all other times. It was infuriating. She was beginning to wonder if he did not enjoy holding this secret over her head. And although he had yet to say anything about it, she couldn't help but feel anxious at the thought that someday he might.
Shaking the unpleasantness from her head, she reached for her class planner, her eyes trained on the twelve heads before her with well practiced ease. Only Katherine had finished, and upon noticing her teacher's attention stood and brought up her completed quiz. Turning back to her seat with a quick smile, the girl paused her gaze on something on the floor. Ororo watched with mild interest as the bright young lady stooped to pick up whatever it was.
"I think you dropped this, Miss Munroe." Kitty Pryde said, producing a small rectangular piece of paper as she stood.
Surprised, Ororo took what turned out to be a small white envelope with a polite smile of thanks and watched as Kitty slipped quietly back into her seat before giving it her attention. It was plain, on they type of paper one sent with greeting cards and she frowned knowing it was neither a holiday nor her birthday. Broad masculine looking black ink graced the outside, and it took a moment to figure out five letters so hastily scrawled on it, read Storm. Instantly, warning bells sounded in her head, knowing without a doubt this was not a silly prank from her students. None of them ever referred to her to anything but Miss Munroe. Considering there were only two other males around the house at the time, and it did not match Scott's near perfect penmanship in the least, she knew exactly who it was from.
Taking a moment to check on her student's progress before turning it over, she slid a nail underneath the seal ignoring her quickened heart rate. Inside was an equally plain sheet of paper with identical handwriting, this printed only slightly more legibly. Yet despite the fact it was easier on the eye, her heart still slammed painfully in her chest at the message.
~ The plans have changed. Don't worry, Princess. No one knows yet. If you want it to stay that way, meet me after dinner. Your room. Eight p.m. You don't show up on time then all bets are off.
Stuffing the letter back inside the envelope, Ororo's complexion was noticeably more colorless as she looked up to see Marie heading towards with her test.
"Everything o'kay, Miss Munroe? Yah look a little funny.." Marie commented, as she lay her paper atop Kitty's.
"I am fine, Marie."Ororo assured her, moving her hands to her lap where they could tremble out of sight.
Marie tossed her a odd look before smiling and returning to her seat.
Out of sight from her busy students, Ororo crumpled up the letter into a tight ball inside her fist. The action was a perfect mirror for the anxious ball of fear tightening in her stomach.
A/N: Your comments and suggestions are greatly appreciated. ~Trilogy