DISCLAIMER: If you know them and love them (or hate them), they aren't mine. If you don't know 'em, they are.
DISTRIBUTION: If you would like permission to archive this story, please email: mydestinyfic@yahoo.com.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is my first attempt at an XFic. If you don't like it, don't read it. I'd like to thank the ladies of the WXF for their support and encouragement. Special thanks to Albertina, Chase and Joanne for beta'ing this for me. Big sloppy baby kisses to Cyn and baby Nicky for their special brand of ego-boostin'. And, finally, if you like it, please let me know. I've already got a few sequels spinning in my brain. Eve and Logan will not be stopped.
SPECIAL NOTE: Look Ma, all that thesis research came in handy for something!
Logan walked across the lawn with determined strides. He'd been trapped in one meeting after another; he found himself craving some peace and quiet. After the two women had left the room, he and the Professor had had a long talk. Xavier wanted to know how Logan felt about the day's events.
He'd found himself saying something he never thought he'd hear himself say. Summers was right. The Professor had made his mind up long ago. Granted, the circumstances didn't exactly give them many options. But, it still gnawed at him that the decision had been made for him. He knew what it was like to have someone fuck with your life and he couldn't allow the same thing to happen to Eve. Besides, Marie would never forgive him if he let her walk out the door.
He broke into a run, trying to free himself from his thoughts. As he reached the edge of the lawn near the wooded knolls that surrounded the compound, he opened his senses to the night. He trotted through the trees, listening to the birds and small forest creatures scurrying from his path. Dry branches and dead leaves from the previous autumn crunched under his feet. He pressed on, desperate to get away from the school and all the demands that were being placed upon him.
As he reached a shallow brook, the shrill chorus of frog song filled his ears. They quieted quickly as he splashed through the water and into the brush on the other side. He was almost there now. His nose twitched as he smelled the fresh spoor of deer nearby. They were coming in closer, seemingly aware that no one on the property would hurt them.
He leapt over a fallen log and slid down a leafy hill into a shallow gully. There, at the bottom, was his destination. He pressed onward, squeezing his muscular frame through the narrow opening in the rocks. He sniffed in the darkness. Nothing. Still empty.
Feeling his way through the empty cave, he found the small pile of branches and brush he'd left during his last visit. He pulled a match out of the small tin container he kept in the pocket of his jeans. Scraping the match across the sole of his boot quickly brought it to life. He touched the glowing tip to a piece of birch bark and soon a small fire was burning.
He settled back against the rock wall of the cave, breathing in it's damp, earthen smell. He felt the tension in his body abate. He was home again. No one had ever followed him here. And he'd never offered to take anyone along on these outings. He pulled a cigar out of his jacket pocket and bit off the end, spitting it into the darkness. Leaning forward, he touched the end to the flames. He pulled back, sucking the burning, acrid smoke into his lungs. Now he was getting somewhere.
From a ledge a short distance from the fire, he picked up a tightly rolled sleeping bag and a canvas sack. He rolled open the bag and spread it a safe distance from the fire. Logan sat down on the fabric, hauling the canvas sack onto his lap. He pulled out a package of jerky and several slices of stale bread.
As he opened the plastic pouch that held the jerky, he heard the skittering of small rocks across the floor of the cave. He smiled.
"Knew you'd show up," he said into the darkness.
He pulled out a piece of jerky and bit into it savagely, his teeth shredding the spicy meat. In the face of everything going on at the school, he hadn't had anything to eat all day. His stomach grumbled appreciatively. After popping the rest of the jerky into his mouth, he picked up one of the slices of bread and waved it in the air.
"Yer goin' to have to come over here if you want this," he said, coaxingly.
He watched the darkness until the tip of a brown nose appeared. Two glittering dark eyes looked at him from the other side of the fire. Slowly, the canine emerged from the shadows. It's long, dark coat glistened in the fire light. Logan had spent the last couple of years trying to gain the feral dog's trust. It was a slow and painful process, but he found it rewarding.
He tossed the slice of bread and the dog caught it with a quick snap of its jaws. Logan hadn't figured out the story with this one and he really didn't care. He enjoyed the dog's quiet company.
The animal whined, obviously still hungry. Logan threw the rest of the bread and the last of his jerky in its direction. He took another drag off his cigar as he watched the animal inhale his meager offerings. He made a mental note to remember to bring more the next time he came.
Lying back on the sleeping bag, Logan rested his head on his arm. He took another puff on the cigar and blew a smoke ring toward the ceiling of the cave. Maybe he'd stay there for the night, safely out of the reach of the Professor and that damn woman.
He turned his head and stared into the flames.
His companion seemed to sense his disquiet and got up, inching closer toward him. Logan remained quiet, but kept his eyes on the dog. To his surprise, the animal lay down beside him, its muzzle resting in the crook of his armpit. He slowly moved his free hand in its direction before running it across the dog's silky coat. She grunted happily before closing her eyes and going to sleep.
Logan threw the remains of his cigar into the fire before rolling into the dog's body. He draped his arm across the animal and closed his eyes. This was exactly what he needed.
~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~*~~
Eve looked into the night. He was still out there. The mansion was quiet. All the children had gone to bed hours ago. She smiled as she remembered the sudden interest they had developed in her after Rogue ran up and gave her a hug and kiss goodnight. She turned as she heard the quiet hush of wheels rolling across the carpeted floor.
"You're up late," the Professor said.
Eve nodded.
"I don't sleep much when I'm above ground. It's too dangerous."
"You're safe here," he said.
"I know. It's not that I feel threatened. It's just an old habit; one that is dying a hard death."
She looked back out the window and into the night.
"He's still out there, you know."
He nodded absently.
"I know. He does this from time to time. It's nothing unusual."
She said nothing.
Xavier looked at her. One hand rested lightly on her stomach. Her fingers gently massaged back and forth as though they were trying to caress tired, aching muscles. He watched her face and wondered if she was thinking of the children she would never have.
"Was Jean's procedure successful?"
She looked at him uncomfortably.
"You know about that?"
He nodded.
"You'll find that there is very little going on here that I do not know about."
"The procedure is complete," she said with a sad smile. "Jean's down in the lab now. She took some blood and tissue samples. I think she's hoping to find a cure . . . or something. I asked her to destroy the samples when she was finished. She's smart enough to understand the terrible power that could come from them."
"They'll be kept in the vault until she's finished with her research," he said. "You needn't worry. The locks on the doors respond only to my brain waves. It's a little something Jean came up with after we realized that retinal scans weren't completely fail safe."
She looked out the window, enjoying the reflection of the moonlight on the rich green blades of grass that carpeted the lawn. The glow was soothing to her frequently over-stimulated senses. Maybe, she thought, when I am finished with the Professor, I will walk the grounds, away from the lights and the noise and the people.
"Charles?"
"Yes," he said, his voice quiet.
"Why is it so important that you save me? I know you've said many times that you're trying to save your children, but this is not the way you have to do it. You know me well enough to know that I would destroy myself before I ever let them use my body so profanely. I will not be defiled."
"I think you under-rate yourself and your potential value to this world, Eve. You seem convinced that having those children is the only good that you can do, but that is far too short-sighted. Though I will never be able to understand the pressures of living as long as you have, I can see the gifts. I am an old man," he said, waving her off as she tried in interrupt. "No, don't try arguing with me. I know what I am. I can feel a weakness in myself that has never been there before. Someday, perhaps not to far into the future, I won't be here anymore. I have been preparing Scott, Jean, Storm, even Logan, to take my place when I'm gone. But, they can only secure the immediate future of this school and these mutants. They won't live forever; though," he smiled bitterly, "Logan may give the Reaper a run for his money. What I want more than anything else is to guarantee the continuation of my life's work. Someone with the gift of eternal life could do that for me. You could keep this dream alive."
She laughed bitterly.
"I am not your savior, Charles. If you have such a strong desire for immortality, then I suggest that you take the blood from these veins," she said, offering him the blue-violet vein in her wrist. "This isn't my dream. Though, I must admit that the children make it very hard to resist. You wave them in front of my face like a piece of meat in front of a rabid hound. I will stay, Charles," she said, gripping the arms of his chair, her face hovering inches away from his, "because I have made a promise to these people. But, don't you ever try to make my life about your dream. I have my own dreams. Many of which I am locking away inside of me by choosing to stay here."
She turned from him quickly.
"It would be best," she said, "if we did not continue this conversation."
He stared at the back of her head, desperately wishing that she would let him into her mind so that he might understand. She would not. Every time he had suggested the possibility, she had pulled back abruptly. There were things about herself that she was afraid to share with anyone. As hard as he had tried, he found that he could not fully understand her. She was a puzzle to him.
As he placed his hands on the arms of his chair, he felt the ridges her fingers had made in the metal. He looked at them in disbelief. She was already stronger than he had anticipated. He had never had the chance to test her abilities, nor had he seen Jean's report on her physical health. He felt a momentary flutter of fear in the pit of his stomach.
"I tried to tell you Charles, but you never listen. I am not like your X-Men. There is this thing inside of me that I do not control."
She pressed her hand against the glass of the window, a pained expression on her face.
"Logan is the only one who understands. He sees what you do not allow yourself to see. Scott is right to be afraid of me, Charles. They want me for a reason. We are killers. I have seen my people tear the gullet from a human woman with a newborn still suckling at her breast. There is no fear, Charles. Can you imagine? We are the highest creature on the food chain and in thousands of years, no one has managed to tear us from our pinnacle."
"Are you saying this to scare me?"
She laughed.
"I don't know," she said. "Perhaps I am saying it to frighten myself. Maybe I am just trying to remember what I really am. The last of my kind."
"Not necessarily," he said, "what abo-"
"Enough. I do not wish to speak of it. It is but a dream. Tomorrow the life will run out of me. I will be empty."
She walked across the room to the front door.
"If you will excuse me Charles, there are things that I must do before morning."
She opened the door and left the room without bothering to wait for his response.
Xavier stared at the door, a great pain filling his chest. Scott, Logan, they were all right. He had pushed and prodded, fashioning this situation like the hand of God. It had all seemed so simple, so logical. Her stoicism had helped to convince him that he was absolutely right. He was right. He knew that. She knew that. This was the only way to ensure the safely of the mutant populace. But, there was so much pain, so much regret. He felt it inside of himself.
His mind turned to the two creatures walking alone in the night. They were both so adept at walling themselves off from everyone. He found himself wondering if this would destroy one or both of them. He could see now that the implications of his plan reached far deeper into the team than he had expected. He had not anticipated the rapport between Eve and Jean, nor had he foreseen the maternal way Eve was able to peer through Scott's petulant armor. Then there was Logan. The two were alike in ways that he had never stopped to consider. Perhaps, if she had allowed him inside her mind, he might have seen that inevitability.
It was too late for regrets. The wheel of life had been set in motion and there would be no stopping it. Xavier rolled over to the window and peered into the darkness. He could only hope that they would all make it through.
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