Most of the evils of life, arise from man's being unable to sit still in a room.
-Blaise Pascal
"Stop it." Gina said, not taking her eyes from the large, flat screen in the rec room as Dean through small bits of popcorn her way.
"What are you gonna do about it?" He teased, continuing to throw one piece at a time.
"I mean it you little brat!" She turned to look at him. "Stop."
"Make me."
They stared at each other for brief seconds before each displayed a knowing expression. She flung the remote control to one side as she bolted for him, clearing the coffee table in an easy jump. He tossed the popcorn to one side and headed for the door, sliding as he turned the corner and sped away from his attacker. Kai dropped his head back and took a deep breath, having grown steadily bored of the DVD that played, and the childishness with which he'd been surrounded. He would've taken off earlier, but Ororo and Logan seemed adamant that he stay, just for tonight. He wasn't sure what possessed him to obey, but he did. With seemingly great effort, he rose and dropped onto the previously occupied couch, grabbing the remote and proceeding to flip through a hundred channels of nothing. He turned to face the door, midway between flipping to the thirty-third channel on his list.
"You busy?" Logan asked, folding his arms and leaning against the door frame.
"Yeah. I'm studying the social behavioural patterns of plasmatronus flatscreenus." He glared. "What do you think?"
"Get up. It's time I teach ya the facts of life."
888
"Fact number one: Behind every good man, is a better woman. Between them however, is a good bar." Logan said, lifting his beer as he did. He'd brought Kai to Harry's Hideaway. Patrons littered the bar at the usually quiet. Men at the pool tables, parties tucked away in the far booths, barely memorable music escaped the jukebox. Smoke, alcohol, and salted peanuts. He watched as his son received his own drink. "It falls ta me t' teach ya to be a man, and you got a lot o' catchin' up ta do. After all, you're gonna be here a while."
Kai feigned surprise. "So, I won't be turnin' into an old man anytime soon."
Logan shook his head. "You got the insides of a newborn pup, an' yer cells are as normal as mine." He halted. "Well, you know what I mean."
"Insides of a newborn pup?" He mimicked. "Guess that makes me healthier than you, old man."
"Yeah, yeah. It ain't no mean feat, I'll give ya that." Logan laughed, responding to Kai's cocky smirk.
"Does Hank know why?" He asked, the question causing his father to raise a brow. "Does Hank know why I don't have X gene, even though you and mom do?" The question had crossed Logan's mind more times than he could count, but he'd never heard it come from Kai.
"No." He answered, pursing his lips. "Wish he did. Maybe it'd explain a few things about why your cells kicked it into high gear, then suddenly decided on cruise control."
"Does it disappoint you that I don't have the gene? That I'm not like you?"
"Hey." Logan grabbed the back of his son's neck; brought him in. "Don't you ever fuckin' think that, you got me?" His eyes were deadly serious. "You think I give a shit that you ain't a mutant? You're my flesh an' blood, an' that's all I'm ever gonna need t' know." Again: "You got me?"
Kai felt the gravity in his voice, and though the last words may have seemed a threat to a passerby, it was an affirmation for him alone. He nodded, pulling himself free of the large hand before taking a swig of his beer. What the hell is wrong with me? He asked himself, fighting back the lump in his throat.
"What happened last night?" Logan asked, feeling a change of topic was in order.
"What do you mean." The question was honest enough, since he hadn't been paying attention.
"Heard the art kids were cleanin' up a paint spill outside the studio this mornin'," he began, "which is normal enough, 'til I find out that the same paint somehow landed on you, an' Xierra, an' yer sheets."
Kai had only realised the threat Logan's senses posed to his cover-up that morning. It was easy enough to trick the rest of the mansion into believing that he'd slept with the woman, but he didn't smell it, he wouldn't believe it. The whole thing had been a ploy, a clever rouse to discredit his archenemy should she ever find someone who might believe her wild accusations; he couldn't fumble the opportunity. Luck, however, had worked in his favour. Xierra had left his room and the mansion, at the crack of dawn, seemingly guilty to the few who saw her. He'd found out an undisclosed errand had sent his father away for the night and most of the day, apparently having returned half an hour before inviting him out. It had given him the time he needed to do the sheets discreetly... but not too discreetly, and air out his room. He'd need to steer Logan away for another day or so; the lack of scent had to be plausible.
"Guess you don't need t' teach me how to be a man." He said, bringing the bottle up as he eyed the waitress that served a near booth. "Things happen." With a shrug.
"I don't expect 'em t' happen with a woman that despises ya."
"Passion is passion, doesn't matter what emotion it comes with." He said. The waitress smiled at him as she passed, and he reciprocated with a wink as he bit his lower lip.
"Keep it in yer pants." Logan smacked the back of his head. "Jesus, you're worse than the Cajun."
"Give the kid a break." Harry said, fitting his apron. He waved off the early shift that was leaving. "Or are you forgetting that you aren't exactly a saint yourself?" Kai laughed at his father's silence as he rubbed the back of his head. "And you would be?" Harry asked, extending a hand.
"Name's Kai." He answered, accepting it. "This here's my old man." Gesturing to Logan.
Harry's eyes widened in surprise. "No shit." He looked between them.
"What, you think this good lookin' mug couldn't have anythin' t' do with him?" Logan turned his head one way, then the other, mockingly.
"That's exactly what I fucking think." He laughed, slapping down a cloth and wiping the counter. A thoughtful look suddenly crossed his bulbous features. "You know, you look kinda like a woman who comes in here with your dad an' his lot. White hair, blue eyes, dark skin."
The statement would seem fairly obvious to most in his position, facing a young man, with white hair, grey eyes, and dark skin. "That'd be 'cause she's my mother," he paused, "and I'll take that as a compliment."
"Do so." He said earnestly, between a rather amusing expression of shock at the lineage. "Real looker, real lady. What the hell does she see in you?" He joked.
"I ask myself the same damn question." He took another swig of his favourite brand. The bartender looked at the emptying bottles, threw the cloth over his shoulder, and moved to the fridge to replace the beverages. The jukebox skipped to a different song.
You burden me with your questions
You'd have me tell no lies
You're always asking what it's all about
"You two are going to move." A deep voice from behind. Logan and Kai turned together, and met with a large man; heavy around the midsection, leather clad. They tilted their heads to peer around him, assuming this was the leader of the growing biker gang that entered. They looked to each other, shrugged, and turned back. "Me an' my pack ride together, we drink together."
"Sure you do a lot more together too." Kai said under his breath, hunching over the beer. Logan chuckled, having caught what the ogre hadn't.
"Place's big enough fer all of us, bub." Logan said, watching as Harry returned the brewskis to the fridge.
Now listen to my replies
You say to me I don't talk enough
But when I do I'm a fool
"Yeah, but the bar isn't. Now you and your girlfriend, get lost." He dropped a par on Kai's shoulder.
"You need to seriously consider moving that hand." He said, raising a brow to it. Harry was now lowering the expensive alcohols from their spots on the shelves, and placing them under the bar counter. Logan had considered removing his son from the danger of the impending brawl, but in that single sentence, he realised that he wasn't going to. There was confidence there, without a trace of fear. He wasn't sure just how positive that was, but he knew he had to let it play out for different reasons.
"You don't wanna mess with us." The brute said, gesturing to his buddies behind him. Harry appeared from the back, broom and scoop in hand.
These times I've spent, I've realized
I'm going to shoot through
And leave you
"I was just about to say the same thing." Kai lifted his hand at the poised fist, draining the last of his drink. "You just about done, dad?" Logan grinned, tipping an empty bottle. The kinsman stood, facing the leader.
"You boys have fun." Unfortunately mistaking their intentions.
The things, you say
Your purple prose just gives you away
The things, you say...
"Oh, we will." The duo toasted with empty bottles.
...You're unbelievable...
They slammed either side of his head, green glass shattering. The overweight man dropped as Logan took on two goons, punching the first square between the eyes, and sweeping his elbow to the jaw of the next. Kai brought a knee to the fallen man's face, and caught the arm of the next assailant. He grabbed at the leather jacket as well, spinning the biker and throwing him into the wall of a nearby booth. He smiled at the three ladies, apologizing.
I'm always so concerned
With the way you say,
You've always go to stop
To think of us being one
Is more than I ever know
Kai saw his father grab another attacker, eyes met as he did the same. The gang members felt the wind get knocked out of them as they were hurled at each other, backs first. Father and son held the barely conscious faces in one hand, before slamming their heads together. Logan ducked a poorly executed swing, levered the man over his back, and into the glass shelves behind the bar. Kai crouched below a punch, and rose to lay an upper cut on an exposed chin. Too late his old man saw him flung onto the green felt of the pool table by two guys. Kai reached for a cue, finding one, and striking a collared jugular. The overhead lamp swung wildly as they fought, a final head butt deciding the snowy haired victor.
The things, you say
Your purple prose just gives you away...
Kai watched as his father took a tumbler to the cheek. The mutant was pissed, cricking his neck as the torn flesh healed. He turned to the stunned man, and growled with such voracity that the attacker passed out. Kai caught the site of a threat to his left, ducked, and used a wooden triangle to slap the side of the small man's head. They both looked down at the weapon, having achieved far from its desired effect. A bronze hand raced up, and slammed the guy's head against the wall, knocking him out cold. He grabbed the black eight-ball from the table, and threw it to his father. It sailed across the room at a slow spin, finding its intended mark. In a single, fluid motion, Logan snatched the ball from the air, pivoted, and drove it straight into the unsuspecting forehead of the last conscious biker.
...You're unbelievable.
Gathering glass could be heard in the silence as the jukebox changed its tune. The patrons watched, speechless. Harry lifted his head from behind the bar, placing a scoop full of shattered fragments on the counter, and readying a plastic bag to collect more. "Should I send the bill to the usual address then?"
888
Knock. Knock.
"Professor." Ororo called from behind the door. Finally, she sauntered in, just as he reached for his temples. "Professor, are you alright?"
"I'm fine, Ororo." He smiled, unconvincingly. "Please, sit." He moved himself from behind his desk, coming to her side.
"I apologize. I realise that it's late but I felt that I needed to speak with you." She ran a hand through her white locks, her gaze drifted across to the tall windows facing out to the east, stars twinkling amidst a dark sky. "Kai's lab results came back. He's going to be alright."
Charles smiled again, the honesty that was once absent, now present. "Congratulations."
She nodded, accepting it. "However, I would like to discuss another matter with you." Ororo paused. "Xierra." The professor did not seem to take much from the mention of her name. "Are you aware of what has recently transpired between her and my son?"
"What has allegedly transpired." Charles stressed.
"He has admitted to it." Their eyes locked as the meaning of his words, dawned on her. "You do not believe him." A statement, not a question.
He shook his head. Something had changed him in the last few months. Charles seemed a tired man, even though he was gaining some progress with government dealings, for mutants. The school was taking on new and eager pupils, and it seemed that its reputation was growing within the ranks of the mutant population. Finally, others were beginning to recognise and appreciate the headway they were making, and trust it enough to place their children in his care. Mutants were being given the chance at an education, absent of fear. Yet still... "It's not that, Ororo."
"Then what is it?" Her defensiveness was clear.
"The entire relationship between the two, it is... delicate."
"Professor, you cannot seriously believe in her accusations about Kai?" Her face expressed her amazement. "It is too ridiculous to even consider." She stood, and knelt once she was at his side. "Charles, she is becoming mentally unstable; her actions are proving that. Coupled with her abilities and her hate for Kai, her powers pose a serious threat to my son." He looked down at her. "I say this out of concern, for all involved." She thought back to her first days with the woman in question. "She and I were friends, once. But with the hate she expresses for my child, my family." Ororo sighed.
"Do not forget that Xierra is my family." He said, thumbing the gold band on his finger. "Meyrin has entrusted me with her safe keeping. She has my protection."
"Does she have your support also?"
"I believe that she believes." Simply. He took Ororo's hand in his own. "You have my vow that I will protect Kai from harm, from anyone. And I will speak with Xierra." He leant over and kissed her hair. "More than that I cannot give you."
She nodded, and stood. Her next thought was to leave, but it was interrupted by another thought, and with it, she knelt back down. "How are you, Charles?" Voice soft, gentle.
"She won't let me in." Her questioning look prompted him to continue. "I have tried to communicate with Meyrin, but she won't have me. There have been brief moments, where she floods my mind, and bathes it in seas of loving emotion, but just as quickly she pulls away." He closed his eyes. "I have never felt so powerless, Ororo. Her ability to wield magics overrides my ability to astral project. I know that she wishes to assure me of her well-being but... Aside from those moments, all I know of her is what Xierra tells me."
"Is she alright?"
"She's at war. I believe the term, 'alright' can never truly apply in such times." He drew in a deep breath. "We've gained families, you and I both. Sometimes I wonder what it might be like, to leave all of this behind and focus on my life, living to the full what's left of it."
"We need you here, with us."
"I know. It's just idle musing." He was dismissive, and unconvincing. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to leave you, Ororo. I've had a long day, and am in desperate need of a good sleep."
She kissed his forehead. "Of course. Pleasant dreams, Charles." He smiled and made his way out of the office.
The conversation had left her feeling uneasy. Charles Xavier had always been a focused and determined man; these were traits that lead him to become such a formidable man. But his manner had lead her to believe that his focus was now wavering. It was understandable, that he might crave a life away from fighting for the cause, however noble it may be. All of the X-men had felt that at some point or another. She pondered on this as she walked back to her room, and finally decided that it was too much to think on so late at night. She'd already caught the scent of him, nearing to their room. "You boys have a nice night?"
"I think our ideas of 'nice', differ a little." Logan grinned, removing his shirt. He'd come in not too much earlier and hadn't bothered to turn on any of the lights, though the moon had compensated for that. He continued to undress, feeling her eyes on him as he did. "But we did alright."
"I would not have expected the two of you to bond any differently." She took to the bed, propping herself up on her elbow. "You know," Ororo unclipped her hair; cascades of soft white curls hit her mocha shoulder, "you and I haven't done much bonding lately." The strap of her dress, accidentally slid down her shoulder, revealing the gentle curve of her cleavage.
He turned, having picked up her scent. "No, we haven't." She stood and slowly etched closer, each step predatory. "So what're we gonna do about that?"
Her eyes took him in shamelessly as she circled her lover. "I could think of a few things."
"I could think of a few more." He grinned, arousal steadily rising. With a speed masked by his bulk, he brought his hands to her pert rear, and lifted her effortlessly. Her legs wrapped around him, revealing that her womanhood was bare, ready and waiting. "Always prepared." He growled. Logan moved them against the wall, giving him a chance to enter her. She clawed at his back as he slipped in, biting his neck to stifle her cries.
Her eyes moved up, catching their reflection in the full length mirror to the far wall behind him. White hair draped across his healing back, and her slender limbs clung hungrily to him. She caught her own eyes, suddenly shocked at the black pools that stared back at her. Ororo felt herself grin, but couldn't be sure she'd commanded the action; the same could be said of her sudden shift of the weather. Though at first, the loss of control scared her, she began to enjoy it. The veins in her hands became prevalent, and they began to pulsate with black liquid, faster as Logan's thrusts deepened and the sky outside raged. She took in the erotic scene before her, her expression baring a cold and villainous air that had only shown itself at one time in her life. The freedom she felt, unmistakable. The ecstasy that engulfed her, inescapable.
Violence
Greed
Hate
Hunger
Lust
Passion
Pain
To Be Continued
Unbelievable by EMF. Available on their album Unbelievable or Coyote Ugly Soundtrack. (This is serious 90s music)
