Cage fights in the seedier parts of town where a common occurrence, everyone knew if you wanted a good show your best bet was coming into Moe’s bar on a Thursday or Friday when either Wolverine or the Phoenix where fighting. For starters the regulars knew they where a great source of money, neither ever lost, and they made fights interesting due to the Wolverine’s rugged worn appearance and the Phoenix's slim and beautiful body. The only difference between the two aside from the obvious was their eyes, while Wolverines where a common hazel his sister’s where something else all together, when she was angry they burned bright red but the most common color was a deep purple that she usually wore sunglasses to cover.

Marie D’Ancanto sat at a bar eyeing the tip jar, she stifled a smile at the written words “Tipping is not a city in China.”

“Can I get you anything else or are you sticking with water,” the bartender asked apparently misreading her interest in the jar and moving it away from her reach.

“I’ll have a beer,” the man she had seen in the cage match, the Wolverine commented, next to him was a beautiful woman who put up two fingers doubling his order while the man placed money on the counter.

“Good fight,” she commented taking a sip of the beer, her leather jacket rode up exposing a strange looking scar on her right wrist to Marie who couldn't help but study it.

“Well I try,” the man returned smirking and nudging the woman with his shoulder. Her only response was to roll her eyes and take another sip of her beer.

“Hey” the large man Marie recognized as the man who had volunteered to fight the Wolverine in the cage match she had been witness to approach the pair who looked up at him then back down disinterested. “You owe me money,” he said over the man next to him voicing his regret about approaching the fighter “No man goes through a beating like that without a bruise to show for it.”

“You already lost your money so back off before I take something else,” the man growled while the woman studied the bar determinedly her grip on the wooden table white knuckled.

“Look out!” she shouted seeing the man pull a knife, in an instant the man was on his feet with the knife wielding man against the wall. Her concern turned to shock as she saw two claws come out from between his knuckles, another claw came out to press against the man’s neck.

“Get outa my bar,” the bartender held a shotgun against the man’s head and this it seemed was the woman’s cue to move. Her own set of impressive claws came out slicing the shot gun in half. Her eyes seemed to spit fire as her anger enveloped her causing two large balls of fire to appear in her hands and she crouched ready for a fight.

“Lets go Phoenix,” the man grabbed his beer and tossed the woman hers before retreating from the bar his back tensed waiting for a fight. Marie followed and just as the truck pulled out she managed to slip into the back where a covered vehicle of some sort rested.


About an hour later she felt the car stopping and pulled her cloak tighter over herself to shield the weather and her body. She heard the man coming closer and ducked lower but he managed to spot her anyway poking her rather hard in the side. After a bit of persuading he let her into the truck, she looked back and spotted the woman asleep on one of the bunks. “Where you in the army, that means you where in the army right?” she pointed to the dog tags he wore trying to make conversation. His only response was to tuck them under his shirt. Once she had eaten enough so it didn't feel as though her stomach was consuming itself from the inside she breathed into her hands and his own came out turning on the heater.

“Here put your hands on the heat,” he reached for them but she pulled back. “I don't bite kid.”

“It’s not you, when people touch my skin, something happens…” she confided her eyes then drifted to his knuckles. “When they come out, does it hurt?” she asked a question bothering her for the entire ride.

“Every damn time,” a female voice commented sticking her head between the seats. “Hi, I don't know you.”

“Rouge,” she held out a gloved hand.

“What kind of a name is Rouge?” she asked warming her own hands on the heater.

“What kind of a name is Phoenix?” she asked back, the woman chuckled.

“Rachel, he’s Logan,” was her reply as she placed herself between Logan and the girl.

“Marie,” she conceded, “You know you should really wear a seatbelt.

“Look kid I don't need you lecturing me on-” he was abruptly cut off by the car’s impact with a log sending him out of the windshield while the woman remained half inside impaled on a piece of glass. Rouge watched amazed as she pulled herself off falling to the ground. Her hands reached up and she lost more blood pulling the glass from her body.

“You ok kid?” Logan asked from outside the truck, she watched stunned as the large gash on his face healed itself. “I said are you ok?” he called out again, a moan caused her to yell back.

“I’m stuck and she’s hurt,” he wiped the blood from his face before moving toward the truck but he stopped short as a fire sprung up in back of the truck. He turned just in time to get hit in the face by a large blonde man. The claw’s came out again but the man simply laughed and threw him against the truck where his claws came in. Rouge pulled harder at the belt holding her in but Rachel launched herself out the windshield one of her claw’s caching the belt ripping it and she got started on pulling her leg from where it was stuck. After a short fight Rachel was also out and Rouge stopped short seeing two people enter the picture.

One was a woman whose eyes looked almost white from where she stood, as white as her hair and the snow around her. The other was a man, holding a hand to the strangest pair of glasses she had ever seen. As she watched a beam of red light shot out of the man’s glasses but the blonde jumped out of the way causing it to hit a tree. The pair walked over the man lifting Rachel over his shoulder and taking Logan by the leg to drag him while the woman grabbed her hand. She was then hustled out of the car, the woman threw herself on top of her as the car exploded and she joined her friends in the world of darkness.

*****

Logan awoke to a painful prick in his arm, he growled and pulled the arm holding his own down to him and wrapped a woman into his arms holding tightly. A quick look around spotted his sister wearing only her pants and bra he dragged the woman with him and slapped her hard on the face.

“I was just waking up you know,” she joked playfully when she realized what was going on however she sobered quickly. He dropped the woman and together they ran for the door pulling probes and in his case a needle from them. A few minutes of searching found sweatshirts as well as some unusual suits but they chose to stem their curiosity and find a way out. He heard a voice in his head causing him to crouch and Rachel’s simultaneous action informed him that she heard the same. ‘In here’ the voice called and they both darted into an elevator. They reached a higher floor and the voice continued calling to them, they dodged a bunch of kids running around before Rachel spotted a door and ducked through it pulling Logan by the wrist.

“Rachel, Logan welcome,” a bald man sitting behind a desk commented wheeling out. “I’ll want that report on my desk by Monday, class is dismissed,” he smiled at the group. One girl ran to the door past the pair but rushed back realizing she had forgotten something, both Rachel and Logan watched her run by and straight through the door.

“Where are we?” Rachel inquired her hackles raised.

“Westchester, New York. My people brought you here for medical attention,” the man smiled at them and they realized he was in a wheelchair.

“We don't need medical attention,” Logan ground out.
“Yes,” he smiled at them as a door opened admitting three people with the woman Logan recognized from the doctor’s office moving over to stand beside him. “Ah, wonderful, this is Ororo Munroe also called Storm, Scott Summers or Cyclops… and I believe you already know Dr. Jean Grey, and I am Charles Xavier. I’d like to keep you here for a while to protect you from Magneto.”

“What’s a Magneto?” Rachel inquired her dry and sarcastic side rearing its ugly head.

“A very powerful mutant who believes that humans should be destroyed and is willing to do anything to reach that goal. The man who attacked you is a very powerful associate of his called Sabertooth,” Xavier answered simply.

“Right, Right, Storm is it?” he pointed to the platinum haired woman ignoring the odd… feeling that she invoked, “And Cyclops, what do they call you Wheels.”

“This is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard,” Rachel’s eyes met everyone’s in the room and she chuckled.

“Well hate to ruin the gathering but we must be going, thanks for your time,” Logan nodded to Rachel who responded with a head shake and they both moved for the door.

“It’s been fifteen years hasn’t it,” the Professor inquired stopping both in their tracks. “I feel it inside you, moving from place to place, never knowing who or what you are.”

“Stop it,” Logan ground out his anger rising.

“How do you know that?” Rachel inquired from his left side the first time she had shown any emotion in the room.

‘You’re not the only one with gifts’, Xavier’s mouth didn't move as he spoke and Rachel turned her head back and forth while Logan focused on the Professor who remained motionless.

“What is this place?” Logan asked finally ignoring the slightly betrayed look Rachel shot his way.

“Come,” Xavier started his wheelchair and the twins followed him closely outside to where a group of kids where playing basketball a few sparing waves for Xavier as he moved by “Anonymity is a mutants best defense against the worlds hostility” Rachel jumped as a boy appeared beside her and caught a ball that he threw to himself. “To the outside world where only a school for the gifted, Cyclops, Storm, and Jean where some of my first students I protected them, trained them to use their powers and eventually teach others to do the same,” it was Logan’s turn to jump in surprise as he narrowly missed being trampled by a kid who ran over a body of water to win a race. “The students are mostly runaway’s, some with gifts so extreme they’ve become a danger to themselves and others. Like your friend Rouge incapable of real human contact, probably for the rest of her life and yet here she is, with others her own age being accepted, not feared.”

“What’ll happen to her?” Logan asked pulling his face back from the window that looked into the white haired woman Ororo’s classroom.

“Well that’s up to her, either she’ll rejoin the world as an educated young woman, or stay on to become what my students have affectionately called ‘X-Men’ but that’s just the upper levels of the school, the bottom levels are another matter entirely,” Charles commented as he pushed a large button and the elevator Logan and Rachel recognized as one they had seen in their run from the voices they now knew where Xavier’s opened. The doors opened and he led them through a maze of corridors ending up in a room with a large jet that Logan could feel his sister itching to take for a midnight ride.

“When I was sixteen I learned that I could control others minds, make them do or think whatever I wanted. Around that time I met another young man Eric Lensherr who also had an amazing power. He could create magnetic fields and control metal… convinced that humanity would never accept us he grew angry and vengeful, he became Magneto.” Xavier led them to another elevator Rachel sparing one lingering glance to the jet before the doors closed, “Many powerful mutants are out there, and many of them do not share my respect for mankind. Without anyone to protect them, humanity’s days may be numbered,” the barn they where in also fascinated Rachel, as did the girl who was gossiping with another student while grooming her horse… with her tail. “I’ll make a deal with you Logan, Rachel. Give me forty eight hours to find what Magneto wants with you and I promise I’ll do everything in my power to help you piece together what you’ve lost… and what you’re looking for.”

******

Rachel looked over at the medical table next to hers to find her brother with his flirting face on. Some things she just didn't understand about him his attraction to the white haired woman with the odd name was practically obvious when they had met. “So… couldn't wait to get my shirt off again,” Rachel rolled her eyes looking down at her own freezing cold body sans shirt, she gave a haughty smirk when the red head shoved the button sending Logan into the scary tube.

“So, your with visor man huh?” she asked smirking, she like Logan had been able to smell the other man’s scent all over Dr. Grey and that she was convinced spurred her brother’s advances no matter how stupid they may be.

“Yah, I’ve got to run through a couple tests with you,” she moved over to Rachel who sat silently observing.

“Don't I feel lucky,” she commented as Jean came closer.

“Claws please,” Jean practically growled, territorial for a woman attached to another man and flirtatious with one after that.

“I’m not that kind of a girl,” while her sense of humor was not as quick to rear its head as her brother her biting sarcasm and quick wit where equals for it.

“Now please,” Jean said this time Rachel was entirely positive she had growled, due to that she made sure to extend her claws quickly and just far enough away from the woman’s neck that they didn't touch.

“Good then,” she said watching Jean growl and take a scalpel, she tried to scrape part of the claw off but found it impossible to do, after the fifth mangled scalpel Rachel took pity on her and scraped two together making a metal grating on metal sound that earned a yelp from Logan’s side of the room.

“I hate you,” Logan yelled rubbing his ears.

“No you don't, you love me,” she shouted back much to Jean’s chagrin. A few more scrapings and a demonstration of her fire handling abilities and the group left the room in favor of a conference room, Logan and Rachel sat silently listening to every word said.

“The metal’s called Adamantium, supposedly unbreakable,” Jean’s voice, Rachel felt her neck twitch at the sound of it. “It’s been grafted to their entire skeletons.”

“How could anyone survive such an operation,” the deeper more musical tones of Ororo's voice inquired softly.

“Their mutation, they have uncharted regenerative ability, plus Rachel’s development to her heat much like Ororo’s to her lightning, it also makes their age impossible to determine. They could very well be older then you Professor,” lightening? Rachel mouthed to Logan interested.

“Who did this too them?” Scott’s slick voice with intelligence behind his words asked with authority lacing his louder voice.

“They don't know, and they don't remember life before it happened,” Jean answered.

“Experimentation on mutants, it’s not unheard of but I’ve never seen anything like this before,” the oily English accented Xavier said his voice accompanied by the quiet hum of his wheelchair.

“What could Magneto want with them?” Scott asked curiously.

“I’m not exactly sure it’s them Magneto wants,” Xavier said cryptically before leaving the room.

“Well that was helpful,” Logan groaned sarcastically, he stood rolling his eyes.

“Come on Logan at least they know more then we do,” Rachel found the need to defend these people to her brother.

“They can’t tell us anything Rae, I know your all for moving on but I want to know what happened. I hate having this blank spot it’s killing me from the inside out,” Logan spat turning from her, she reached out a slim hand to touch his arm, it slid around to rest at his elbow and her other hand went the same way. She pressed her forehead into his back inhaling the scent that never failed to make her feel comfortable and protected.

“I know Logan but we have to accept that we might not find answers,” she felt his muscles unclench under her head and his shoulders sag.

“I don't want to,” he whispered, and that was her only warning before he turned and pulled her into a crushing embrace. The Wolverine was strong and powerful to everyone but his sister, with both of them sharing the same experiences it was quite simple that the bond they shared would be grater then most. Before they had left the lab they awakened in they had pinched the files labeled Wolverine and Phoenix all they had given the pair was first names and the fact that they where brother and sister, their travels and searching’s had brought them closer then most married couples and it was a bond both treasured.

“These people seem to genuinely want to help, and that’s a really rare thing you know that,” she whispered softly, “I say we give them another shot.”

“Like I have a choice,” he smirked his laugh rumbling in his chest, he released her and together they walked into the room where Jean and Ororo, where cleaning up X-Rays from the meeting.

“So looks like where stickin around huh darlin,” Logan hopped up onto a desk smirking at Jean who simply rolled her eyes.

******

Logan sat atop the roof of the mansion staring out into the darkness. Jean and Ororo had been elected to find him and Rachel rooms and where currently scouting the best ones, he felt a cool tap at his wrist and accepted the beer Rachel handed him.

“What do you think?” she asked leaning back on the slanted roof while Logan sat at the peak.

“I think we need to stop buyin light beer,” he tossed the bottle down watching it roll into the gutter, a nice surprise for red eyes.

“I meant about this magneto guy,” she rolled her eyes then rolled her body onto her stomach, “Be honest, do you buy it?”

“What buy that some super villain is after us and this elite club of trust fund babies can help us not a chance,” he lay down next to her turning to face her.

“Geze Logan tell me how you really feel,” she smiled and closed her eyes breathing in the scents. “What did you get?” Logan had the ability to read people’s emotions, a fact that irritated Rachel to no end as he took great pleasure in using it on her constantly.

“Grey’s kind of like that dog we found back in Texas, that one who constantly latched on to whoever it thought it could get the best deal from. I think I got a shot gotta know I’m bigger then Scooter,” he cupped his balls with a smirk at her and she simply rolled her eyes.

“And the others?” she asked propping her head up in her hand.

“Xavier wasn't lyin outright, you woulda sensed that too but he was definitely holdin somethin back. That Summers character’s an uptight son of a bitch but hell who can hold that against him… the other one, the one with the freaky name… there’s somethin there that I can’t really sense. Pain or somethin like that, I get it from you sometimes too but not as strong. Also a bit of guilt hidin in there,” he leaned back missing Rachel’s pleased smile at the attention he paid to Ororo. They often joked about how the least sensitive of the pair could sense people’s feelings and the least destructive of the two had the more deadly power Logan called it just another way of nature to screw with them.

“Your rooms are ready,” Logan heard a voice he recognized as Ororo and grabbed Rachel’s hand to stop her from falling off the roof, they had been so wrapped up in their conversation they hadn't heard or otherwise sensed her approach.

“How’d you get up here?” Logan asked pulling Rachel to her feet searching the woman’s eyes for an idea of what she had heard.

“I also have powers,” she spoke cryptically and moved to the edge of the roof before stepping off. Logan lunged forward but spotted her gracefully falling down to the lawn, Rachel gave an impressed smile before leaping off the side of the roof followed shortly by Logan.

“You scared the crap out of me,” he heard Dr. Grey chewing out Rachel when he reached the ground, he as she did, landed silently and watched her roll her eyes at him over the Doctor’s shoulder.

“You should know,” Logan jumped again not hearing Ororo come up behind him, “A good place for beer is Sammy’s Pool Hall, I don't think they serve light,” she handed him the beer bottle that had rolled into the gutter and gestured for Rachel to follow her.





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