|
Title:
Alter-Eighteen: Turnabout
Author:
Terri
E-mail:
xgrrl26@yahoo.com
Rating:
R, sexual situations
Disclaimer:
I don't own any of them. Rats.
Archive:
Ask, and I will gladly provide.
Feedback:
Please! Although the Surgeon General warns that positive feedback
may lead to more fic.Good, Bad, and Ugly welcome
Summary:
Alternative version of events in the movie and the Eighteen
Series. Logan is hired to kill Rogue, but she has other ideas.
Comments:
First of all, hats off to Annika, who has graciously supplied me with
many, many plot bunnies :) This fic reflects two of them.
The first one asked for a "kick-ass Rogue, with a lot more sass and in
control of her powers. Lots of Marie-characteristics underneath, which
she keeps carefully hidden." The second was having Logan as
assassin, hired by Magneto to
kill Rogue. He spies on her and ends up falling in love with her.
As
always, I went a tad off-course from the original bunnies as flung by
Annika,
so don't hold her responsible if you don't like how this fic turned
out-that's
all me, I'm afraid ;) Second, although this doesn't carry a
"BadJean"
warning, there is one anti-Jean comment made in jest therein. I
mention
it only because I realize that some of you don't like to see *any* of
that
kind of thing-zero, zip, nada. And last, but definitely not
least,
thanks to Keli, my great brbf, who all of my fics are inflicted upon in
their
raw state. She's having kind of a tough week, and I just want to
say,
'Keep your chin up, little buckaroo!" See, now she'll be full of
the
urge to smack me instead of being upset at anything else ;)
-------------------------------------------------------
"Forty
thousand's a lotta money for one dead girl."
"Yes,
well, let's just say she's special. You've read the briefing on
her mutation, correct?"
"Yeah,
yeah, deadly skin, whatever. It's not a problem."
"The
rest of the information is in the briefcase. Half now, half when
I receive confirmation that she's dead."
"Right."
"Wolverine.or
whatever your name is.you're not the first to go after her. She's
a lot more dangerous than she looks."
"She's
a girl. She's-what? Eighteen? Nineteen? I can
handle it."
"I'm
betting twenty thousand dollars that you can. See to it that you
do."
I knew
I'd find her here eventually. Teenage girls and the mall.
That's one
of life's fuckin' constants. I knew she'd hafta leave that
mansion sooner
or later. Tight security there, and I'd rather not deal with it
if
I don't hafta.
"Jubes,
that's soooo not my color." Just like all the other little muties
her
age, worried about clothes and boys and shit. Kinda makes you
wonder
what she did to make it worth forty grand to somebody to make her dead,
but
then again, that's none of my damn business. I never ask
questions. Only leads to a lotta shit you wish you never knew.
"Come
on, Rogue, one yellow dress does not a wardrobe make. Besides,
you need to show some skin." Wonder if the Asian girl has any
formidable powers. Odds are she's a mutie too if she's livin' at
the mansion.
"That's
exactly what I don't need. I'm not a hooker, Jubes."
Plus-her
skin. Can't leave that much showin' and expect not to
accidentally
kill someone.
"But,
Rogue-"
"Shh."
What's she doin'? Sniffin' the air or somethin'? Oh yeah,
powers she absorbed along the way-healing, kinda like mine if you
believe the briefs, and super-senses. Wonder where she got
those. "I smell someone.." Can't be me-she don't know me
and even if she did smell me, so what? She don't know what I'm
here for or even who I am. "Jubes-it's them-those FOH
guys." FOH? Those anti-mutant skinheads are at a mall?
"Where?"
"Over
there-look." Yeah, sure as hell, there they are. Hasslin'
some little mutie girl. She's a pretty obvious one with the green
skin and tail and all. Probably about thirteen or so.
"Oh,
God, those are the ones we caught kidnapping kids and selling them for
experiments. I thought they were still in jail! What do we
do?"
"You
call the Professor. I'm going to go over there." Hmm.
Could get
interesting. And it could end up givin' me a little demonstration
of
her fightin' style. That might not be a bad idea at all.
"Rogue,
it's
dangerous and Mr. Summers says that entering a confrontation alone is
never-"
"I
know what
he says. Just go call the Professor." Whoa. Little
bit
of a spitfire, she is. And she sure is headin' right over
there. Two big guys, probably each of 'em with a hundred pounds
and six inches on her. She's gotta know she'll start a panic if
she uses her skin out in public like this. "Hello, idiots,
remember me?"
The
look on their faces says they sure as hell do. Heh. I think
one of 'em mighta just crapped his pants. "You're-you're-"
"The
Rogue. We've been introduced, sugar. Now, do you want a
repeat performance or are you going to let this nice young lady shop
for earrings in peace?" She's either bluffin' pretty good or
she's really not scared of these two.
"Aaargh!"
One of 'em lungin' at her with a knife. She fended it off pretty
easily and gave the other one a back-kick while he was tryin' to get a
hold of
her. Not bad. Average.
"I
guess that means you and I need to get reacquainted." That's
amatuer. No talkin', just fightin'. No need to converse
with somebody you might hafta kill.
"You're
gonna get it, you freak! You're-ooomph!" Now, I bet that
hurt.
That looked like a pretty solid inside right. It knocked him back
on
his ass, anyway. More upper body strength there than I woulda
thought. Oh-oh. Pants-crapper is back up and comin' up
behind her. Well, she didn't guard her six, that's her own fault
if he-
"Ow!"
What a pansy-ass. 'Ow?' That's a sissy thing to say when
somebody breaks your nose with a roundhouse kick. She musta
smelled him or somethin'. No way she saw him, and he was bein'
pretty sneaky, for an incompetent asshole. Not bad. Above
average.
"Ooof!"
That's gotta hurt-kick right to her sternum. Even if she's got
the healing thing, she won't be able to breathe for a few seconds
and-huh. That's interesting. Used the chair she got knocked
back into to whack the guy right upside the head. Drew it up
between her legs as soon as
her ass touched it and just nailed him. I think he's out.
Down
for the count. Interesting. Creative.
"Where
are you going, sugar?" Ouch. Kicked him right between the
knees, right
in the family jewels. That's not playin' fair, and she had
him-she just
did that outta spite. Must be an emotional fighter. "Don't
you
want to hang around and meet the mall cops?" He ain't gonna
answer ya,
he's wailin' in pain.
"Way
to go,
chica!" Ugh. That one's mutant power is probably the
ability to
annoy. "The Prof. said to see if we can talk to the girl and her
family,
and to cooperate with the cops."
"You
talk to the family. The cops are going to want to talk to
me. Thanks, Jubes." Yeah, she is a little more dangerous
than she looks. Not
a pro, but she's got some interesting edges. That chair
thing-quick reaction time and pretty smart. I'm gonna hafta give
this some more thought.
She's
gotta be around here somewhere. I shoulda paid more attention to
her scent the last coupla times. She comes here almost every
evening, just walks around, lookin' at things and not buyin' 'em.
Most of the time with her little friends, but last time, it looked like
just her. That could be a break-maybe I could follow her, grab
her on her way back to her car. That could work. I wonder
where the hell she is tonight. If she's not here or by the
bookstore, she's probably-
"Hello."
Fuck! That's her. Shit. Snuck up right behind
me. Fuck. That's not like me, I'm usually fuckin' paranoid
about watchin' my back.
"Hello."
Play it off. You're just a stranger in the mall. She
doesn't know
anythin'.
"I
noticed you looking at the painting. Do you like it?"
Shit, she wants to talk. Fuck. Gotta cut that short.
She don't need to be able to ID me.
"No."
"Me
either." Now she's smilin' like she's amused by that. It
ain't funny.
I wasn't bein' funny. "Thomas Kinkade-it's just not art to
me. 'Painter of Light,' my ass."
"Whatever."
I'll just go-that'll end the conversation. I'll just-
"Do
you paint?"
What the hell? She's got some piss-poor instincts if she pegged
me
for some kinda artist.
"No."
"I
do. Of course, I don't have my own little towel racks and candle
holders, like Mr. Kinkade here, but I like to think I do all
right." She paints? Now I'm the one with the piss-poor
instincts 'cause I never woulda pegged her as an artist. It's
been my experience that ass-kickers don't go in for the arty stuff.
"Whaddya
paint?" What the hell am I doin'? Shut up, Logan.
Shut up,
and-
"People,
mostly. Actually, that's why I came over. I know it might
sound a little weird, and I know you don't know me, but you look
interesting. I was wondering if you might let me paint
you." Ah, that's a gift, right
there. We'll hafta be alone for that, and it'll make my job one
hundred
percent easier.
"Sure,
why not? Where do you paint?"
"I
have a
small studio space downtown." Not the mansion-even better.
"Would
you be available this weekend? Maybe Saturday afternoon? I
can't
really afford to pay you to model, but I'll bring lunch." I can
see
why somebody would wanna kill her-that smile and that look-it almost
makes
ya believe that she's a good person, that she's someone worth killin'
for
or dyin' for. And she's got the kinda eyes that you could fall
right
into, the kinda eyes that make you believe she's lookin' right into
your
soul and likin' what she sees. If that turned out not to be
true-well, I can see that hurtin' enough to make it worth forty grand
to get revenge. "What do you say?"
"Sure.
How about around eleven?" That'll mean she'll be dead by noon and
I can be outta town and on my way to collect the other half before
dark. Or I could-I guess I could maybe even let her paint me and
then do it. I've never had somebody paint me before. That
might not be bad.
"Hey.
Glad you found it. I brought Chinese. Make yourself at
home, I'm still setting up the canvas." Eleven on the dot.
Equipment in the car. Still haven't quite decided whether or not
to let her paint me first. "I hope you like egg foo young-there's
some egg drop soup and some egg rolls too. It's an all-egg
lunch." Wink and a little smile. Clever girl. Maybe
that means-maybe that means she gets to live a little longer, long
enough to paint me. No harm in that, right?
I got her right where I want her, I can do it anytime.
"Sounds
good."
"Hey,
I never
did get your name." She's showin a lotta skin. Jeans, but a
tank
top. Wonder if she did that on purpose, you know, to protect
herself
in case I got rough or tried somethin'. After all, she don't
really
know me. "I, don't really want to call this one 'mall guy.'"
"It's
Logan." I never, never do that. But she's-she's not gonna
be leavin' this studio alive, so who's she gonna tell?
"I'm
Marie." Huh. That wasn't in the briefs, just 'Rogue.'
That's what she called herself at the mall-The Rogue.
"Nice
to meetcha." This Chinese food ain't bad. "How long have
you been paintin', Marie?"
"Oh,
ever since I ran away from home at fourteen. It's a nice outlet
for my emotions, it lets me express myself."
"You
ran away?" Probably 'cause of her mutation. Happens a
lot. Just
makin' conversation so everythin' seems normal, it's not like I really
care.
"Uh-huh.
Didn't you? Doesn't everybody?" A little jokin' and a
little not.
"I
grew up
on the road." True. Don't remember if I ever had a home to
run
away from, but I kinda think not.
"Best
teacher of them all, isn't it?" Can't imagine her survivin' long
on the road at fourteen. Must have, though, 'cause here she is
now. Musta taught her to fight, musta made her at least a little
bit hard. Shoulda given her better sense than to invite strangers
to her loft.
"You
got that right." Weird. It feels-comfortable, almost,
talkin' to her.
Odd.
"What
do you do for a living, Logan?" She's startin' to paint
already. Thought she might wait for me to be done eatin'.
Maybe it's just a background
or somethin'.
"Odd
jobs, you know, this and that. Is this what you do for a
livin'?"
"No,
this is just for fun. I've sold a few paintings, but it's not
really what I do." Wonder what my picture's gonna end up lookin'
like. From the other stuff hangin' up in here, looks like she's
one of those artists that paint things that don't quite look like what
they do in real life. What's the word? Abstract, yeah,
that's it.
"What
do you do then?" Wonder if she wanted any of this food. I
could finish off those egg rolls.
"Guess."
She's havin' fun here. Well, no need to spoil that just yet.
"Well..maybe
you're a teacher." That's what the file said she probably was.
"Nope.
Guess again."
"A
nurse?" I could see that, her in a little white uniform, comin'
over to check on you.
Dark hair spillin' down and big brown eyes askin' if you're OK, if you
need
anythin'.
"Oh,
no. Medical stuff makes me squeamish, and I don't like
doctors." She's
givin' me kind of a look now-part amused, part curious. "Want to
guess
again?"
"Model?"
She's pretty enough to be one, but not tall enough. Her skin
would put that one right out too, probably. But women like to
hear that.
"Flatterer.
Be serious."
"Scientist?"
Women like to hear that too-makes 'em think you realize they got
brains, not
just boobs.
"I
flunked math. Repeatedly. Again, be serious. Do I
look that smart?" She's actually laughin' out loud a little at
that one. You'd think she'd
be at least a little flattered. Maybe she's had her head turned
enough
to know when it's bullshit. Pretty thing like her-bet she gets
lotsa
attention even with the skin thing.
"You
look smart enough." Maybe a little too good-hearted. Maybe
a little too naïve. After all, you're lettin' a total
stranger in pretty close quarters all alone with you. But you
don't look stupid, darlin'.
"Guess
again."
"I'm
all outta guesses. Why dontcha tell me?" Now I really am
kinda curious. The briefs said she was a probably teacher, but
she said she wasn't.
"I'll
make you a deal. I'll tell you when the painting's finished, all
right?"
"All
right." I was plannin' on lettin' her live that long
anyhow. "Tell me somethin' else about yourself, then."
Shit. Shouldnta said that-I really shouldn't know that kinda
thing.
"Well,
I'm originally from Mississippi." Makes sense-she's still got a
trace of the accent. "What about you?"
"Canada."
I think. I can't really remember, but that's where I woke up
naked and in the snow fifteen years ago, so I'm gonna go with it.
"Hmmm.
Canada-what's it like?" Paintin' up a storm now.
"Cold.
Snowy. Not a lotta people and the ones it does got are pretty
mellow. Good beer. Lotsa hockey."
"You
should work for their tourism department." Jokin', I think.
"Hmm. Let's see-something else about me..I have a weakness for
strong, handsome men." Is she flirtin' with me? "Well,
strong, handsome men who have the good taste not to like Thomas
Kinkade." She *is* flirtin' with
me.
"Yeah?
Well, I got a weakness for southern belles with long dark hair."
Where the hell did that come from? I gotta get a grip because I
don't know what the hell I'm doin' here-lettin' her paint me insteada
killin' her off the bat, tellin' her shit and askin' her shit, flirtin'-
"What
a coincidence.
Tell me-" Shit. Shit. She's comin' over here. "-just
how
much do you like them?" Straddlin' my legs and sittin' on my lap,
real
seductive. Grindin' her hips into mine a little. Damn,
that's
good. But-but her arms are all naked and that skin could fuckin'
kill
me. What-what the hell is she up to? "Twenty thousand
dollars
worth?"
Fuck,
she knows. Motherfucker. I gotta-
"Don't
move, sugar." Hands, bare hands, a millimeter away from my
face. "I kinda like you, even if you are tryin' to kill me."
"How'd
you know?" Normally, I wouldn't admit to it, but she said twenty
thousand, so she must know somethin'. Fuck. Maybe this
whole thing was some kinda set-up from the start or maybe-
"A
girl has
to keep some secrets. Don't worry, I'm not going to get upset
about all that. I'm here to make you a better offer."
Another little grind of her hips and I bet she can feel my hard-on
pretty good. I was
wrong-she ain't-she ain't no teenage girl.
"Like
what?"
"Well,
here's what I had in mind. You take the twenty you have and
forget about the job." Shit, ridin' me now, nice and slow,
grindin' just the way I like
it. It's been a helluva long time since I had a woman.
"What's
in
that for me?"
"You
get to live, for one. You might get to fuck me, for two.
And you could
get a better career out of it, for three." Right now, number
two's
got my interest. "Sugar, I know who sent you after me.
She's
already being dealt with." Now I got her-she don't know
everythin' about
what's goin' on 'cause it was a man that paid for the job.
"You
got the wrong person then, Marie. It wasn't a woman." She
wants to play-fine. I'm gonna grab her ass and hold those hips to
mine.
"She
wasn't a woman when she met with you, maybe, but she's a shapeshifter,
sugar, she can look like whoever she wants. And just for your
information, she was never gonna pay you the other twenty. She
was planning on turning you over to a little friend of hers, goes by
the name of Magneto. He's a mutant that's got an interesting
power-the ability to shape and move metal. Bet that metal
skeleton and those claws of yours would've made an interesting little
toy for him." Dammit, it was a set-up. And does everybody
fuckin' know about my mutation? I'm losin' it in my old fuckin'
age or somethin'. Goddammit. She could be lyin' but-"Why
would I lie,
sugar?"
"So I
won't kill you." Still movin' her hips against mine and she don't
seem to mind at all that I'm grabbin' her ass.
"You're
not
going to kill me, Logan." She's startin' to breathe heavy and go
harder
now. Fuck. Fuck.
"Yeah?
What am I gonna do with ya then?" I wanna grab her breasts but
all that exposed skin is showin'. I gotta-I gotta be careful here.
"Right
now?" Shit! She-she licked me! And nothin'-nothin'
happened. Her
skin-what about her skin? "Whatever you want, baby."
"Your
skin?"
"Is
off." She's takin' off that tank top, and she's got some
outstanding breasts. Just exceptional. "Come on,
sugar."
You
know what? I dunno really what the hell's goin' on here, but I'm
pretty
damn sure I wanna fuck the livin' daylights outta her. I can find
out
the whole story later.
"Oh!"
Heh. I've got some moves of my own, Marie. Bet she didn't
see that comin'-well, from the surprised look on her face when I dumped
her outta my lap and on the floor, I'd hafta say no. "You want to
do it down here,
then?" Back to sweet little seductress. But there's
somethin' about her eyes that's-it's different. It's all there,
it's not playin'.
"Yeah.
And I wanna be on top." Yeah, I can find out the whole story
later.
"Damn,
sugar. That was one hell of a good one." Yes, it was.
It sure as hell was. She's got a lotta stamina, almost as much as
me.
"Go
again in a minute, huh?" I still haven't done her on the
table. I think we covered every other square inch of this little
studio, though.
"Sure.
Listen-I never did tell you what I do." She's still
breathin' a little hard. She might need a little more than a
minute.
"What's
that?"
"I'm
an X-man.
Heard of them?" Rollin' on her side to face me. Serious
look
on her face. I wonder if this is really what all this bullshit is
about-why
she got me out here, why she's doin' this.
"Yeah.
Buncha mutie do-gooders. You're one of them?" There was a
lotta information in the briefin' about them, but x-men havin' sex with
assassins sent to kill 'em wasn't included. Don't seem like their
style.
"I am,
but there's a reason they call me The Rogue, sugar. You wanna
give joinin' up with the mutie do-gooders a try? We could use
someone with your..skills. Free room and board, all the mutant
ass you can kick, and a lovely retirement plan. What do you
think?"
"So
that's what all this is? That's why you're fuckin' me-tryin' to
get me to
join up?" Oh-oh. She looks mad as hell all of a sudden
and-"Ow!" Shit, that was a helluva left hook, and she punched me
from layin' down too. Dammit!
"Do I
look like a whore to you? Was I fucking you like a whore,
Logan?" Gettin'
up and stompin' off to the bathroom. Fuck. Fuck. "I
fucked
you because I wanted you and let me tell you something-I'm not part of
the
deal. You join up, you *don't* get a lifetime's worth of sex from
me.
You know something? You're really are an asshole."
"Marie-"
Slammin' the door. Great. Just great. "I don't need
this shit, you know, and I don't wanna join up with your little
do-gooder squad."
"Fine.
Why don't you just get the hell out of my studio then?" Not
openin' the door. Shit.
"Look,
Marie, just come out, all right? I ain't talkin' to a goddamn
bathroom door."
"Fine."
Oh shit, she looks even more pissed. And like she maybe wants to
cry too, but she's not gonna let herself do that. "Look me in the
eye and talk to me, then. What do you have to say, hmmm?"
"I
didn't mean to imply that you were a whore." Well, I
didn't. "I just dunno what the hell is goin' on here."
"Fine."
That's the third damn 'fine' I've gotten outta her. And I can
tell it ain't fine, it's anythin' but fine. "I found out you'd
been hired to kill me. I know a little about your past. I
know the government had you, I know you don't remember too much.
Instead of taking you out
or turning you back over to the government, I called in a lot of favors
and
asked the X-men to let me approach you about joining the team.
That's
what the hell is going on here. Happy now?"
"How
do you
know all that shit about me?" Nobody knows that-I haven't told a
livin'
soul anythin' at all about the government and the lab and my memory.
"I was
captured by them when I ran away from home. I was trying to get
to Alaska. They had me for almost a month before I escaped.
I took some of the records with me. You were in there." She
looks a lot less mad now, and I feel like an asshole for actin'
shitty-if they had her too, and she was only fourteen. "Do you
want to meet the team or not?"
"I
ain't a team kinda guy, Marie."
"Fine."
Brushin' past me, gettin' her clothes gathered together. Her
underwear's ripped up pretty good, those ain't gonna be much
help. "Just let me put some clothes back on, and then you can get
on with your little plan to kill me."
"I
ain't gonna kill you." How-how could she even be thinkin' that
now? Just 'cause I don't wanna join up with the damn x-men?
"Oh,
come on, that'll be fun-trying to kill the whore that just fucked
you. Tons of enjoyment there." God, she is pissed as
hell. Spitfire-that's an understatement. I musta-I musta
cut her deep with what I said, how I acted.
"Stop
callin' yourself that." 'Cause she wasn't like that with me, not
like that
at all. And I've been with a lot of 'em, I should know. But
she was just-just passionate. And there. She was all there,
you could tell.
"Why?
Isn't that what I am-just a little enticement to join the team? A
little treat? Come on, that's what you think, I know it
is."
She's dressed again now. She tossed the underwear aside, but the
jeans
and tank top are back on.
"It
ain't what I think. What I said came out wrong. I didn't
know what was
goin' on."
"Put
your clothes back on. Let's go. Let's just get this
overwith." Nothin' soft about her now, nothin' teenage or
girly. She's The Rogue now.
"I'm
not gonna try to kill ya. Look, I'll just-I'll just go, all
right? I'll just go." Fucked up here. She woulda
been-she woulda been real nice to have. Real nice to get to know
and be with. I fucked up here.
"Fine.
Take your painting." I forgot all about that damn thing-I didn't
think-she couldnta painted me so fast. "I don't want it anywhere
near me."
It's-it's
just striking. It's me, I can tell, but it's not like a portrait
or somethin'. It's not-she got me, dead to rights. I can't
really explain it, but the figure she painted standin' on a hillside,
lookin' out over the land, that's everythin' that's me, right
there. How the hell could she see all that and know all that
about me? "It's a beautiful paintin', Marie."
"Hmm.
Not bad for a-"
"Don't.
Don't say it." All of a sudden, my chest feels all
tight-what-what the hell is that? It's just not right, those
words comin' outta her while I'm lookin' at somethin' like this,
somethin' so good. "I didn't-I never thought that about
you. Not for a second. I just didn't know why you were
doin' it, that's all."
"I was
doing it because I wanted you, Logan." Her voice sounds just like
mine-maybe her chest is gettin' tight too. "It wasn't-the x-men
would never ask me to do that. I was only ever a whore once, when
the government got me. They did whatever they wanted.
That's why-that's why I thought I'd make you the offer to join.
They got you too and you deserved a break if you wanted one."
"I'm
doin' fine on my own." I dunno what else to say. No
wonder-no wonder she got so pissed. They probably did make her do
shit like this, to lure people to 'em. God, I fucked up.
"Hmph.
So you like killing people? You like being alone all the time?"
"No,
but it makes money. And it's all I know how to do. It's all
I'm good at." That's the truth. I'm not smart, I'm not
talented, not like she is, I'm not good at anythin' but fightin' and
killin'. At that, I'm the best there is.
"You
could be good at being an x-man. Look-I'm not-I'm not a team kind
of person either. I'm not a joiner either. But I fit in
there, and you could too. Just-just meet them, just try it.
If you meet them and say no, I'll get the hell out of your life for
good." I don't like that idea for some reason. I can-she
said she went to a lotta trouble and called in favors and shit for me,
so I guess I can just meet them. It don't mean I hafta
join. Just-as a favor to her or somethin'. To make up for
what I said, at least a little.
"All
right. I'll meet 'em. But, look, Marie-why the hell would
you want me? I'm pretty much an asshole." That wasn't
supposed to get a smile outta her-I'm bein' serious.
"Because
I'm a lot like you, Logan. Because I know what you've been
through. But mostly because I knew the second you walked in that
door that you didn't want to kill me, despite everything. Why do
you think you didn't want to?"
"Dunno.
Gut reaction, I guess. I felt somethin'."
"Exactly."
"Shit!
Don't move! Don't move!" Stupid ass mother fuckin'-
"UnnnhhLogan?"
"Yeah.
Don't move, baby." Got a big-ass metal rod right through her
chest and her healin' factor hasn't been workin' as fast lately 'cause
of that genetically
engineered virus she's still gettin' over, and-
"Shit.what
happened?" She's bleedin' bad. She could be-this could be
serious. Fuck. She shoulda let me go in first. I told
her she shoulda let
me go in first.
"Stupid
fuckin'
Scooter wasn't fast enough. Just stay still. I'm gonna pull
it
out."
"But-OW!"
Shit, shit, shit. She doesn't usually yell unless it
*really* hurts.
"Sorry,
baby, sorry. It hadta come out. Sorry." She looks
like
she's healin' up a little. Good. Good. Now all we
gotta
do is get the hell outta here before the building comes down around
us.
"It's
OK. I can-I'll be able to stand up in a minute. Hey-where
is everybody else?"
"Scattered
when shit started explodin'. Scooter was chasin' the big one and
Jean went after the other one." Stupid FOH assholes. They
multiply faster than goddamn rabbits. Every time we clean out one
installation, another five pop up to take it's place.
"Dammit,
Jean was supposed to be watching my back."
"Yeah,
she was." The x-morons ain't much better. Can't follow a
battle plan to save their damn lives once the shit hits the fan.
"She
wants me dead because she wants to fuck you. This is all your
fault, dammit." Jokin'. That's my girl. Come on
back. You're gonna be
OK. Can't lose you. "How long until that roof comes down?"
"Sit
still. We got a couple minutes."
"OK."
She's tryin' to put on a brave face, but I can tell she's really
feelin' it.
"Look,
Marie-" That got her attention. She never told anybody else
that name and she made me promise not to use it outside our
bedroom. "-this is the last one, I mean it. The last
mission. No more of this shit." We've given them five
years-Marie's given them more than that. And that's
enough. I know she feels grateful to 'em and all for helpin' her
out
after she escaped form the government. I know she even likes some
of
'em. But I can't take too much more of this.
Fightin', kickin' ass-it ain't fun anymore, and it especially ain't fun
when I see her
get hurt like this. She'll be OK, but still.
"What?
You ready to retire to your little mountain cabin already, old
man?"
"Yeah.
And it's our cabin." Bought the land with half her money and half
mine. We both spent time up there clearin' the land, puttin' in
security,
and buildin' the house. Our cabin. "I really mean it, this
is
the last one."
"OK."
OK? Just-OK? She's been fightin' me on this for months and
now-OK?
"Is
that the pain talkin'? Are you just sayin' that to shut me up?"
"No,
I'd just kiss you if I wanted to shut you up. Come on, let's get
out of here before the roof comes down. That'd really piss me
off."
"You
really did pick a good spot. It's beautiful up here."
"Yeah,
and hard to get to." Which is why I picked it and why I kept it
quiet. The x-fuckers don't even know where it is.
"Mmmhmmm.
You know, there's still one place in here we haven't had sex."
There is? 'Cause I thought we've been pretty thorough.
"Where
at? The roof?"
"OK,
two places. I was thinking of the bed." Oh, yeah.
Forgot all about that. "Come over here, sugar." I can tell
already that this
ain't gonna be one of the really hot ones, it's gonna be slow and
sweet. We both usually like hot, but every now and then, she gets
an urge for sweet. I don't mind too much.
"What're
you gonna do with me if I do?" Sweet don't mean I can't tease her
a little, though.
"Whatever
I want." She looks damn good, layin' back on the bed like
that. Very invitin'.
"Got
anythin' specific in mind?" Think I'll do what she says.
I'm a dominant kinda guy by nature, but I've found that doin' what she
says now and then can result in some very good things. Like bein'
right next to her
in a nice, soft bed when she's got sex on her mind.
"Oh, I
thought I'd kiss you." Yeah, sweet, definitely. "Like this,
maybe. Just a little. All over your face. You've got
a very handsome face, sugar. I could kiss you all day long." The
way she is when she's like this-it makes me think about how she'd be if
they never got a hold of her. All soft and innocent and so, so
lovin'. If there's anythin' besides seein' her hurt that makes me
wanna lose it, it's thinkin' about that.
"No
problem there." I know she thinks I do the sweet stuff mostly to
placate her, but there are times when I kinda like it too. Soft
little kisses all across my face and neck, that's pretty good.
And I know what she likes to hear when she's in this kinda mood.
"I love you, Marie." Neither one of us says it very much-I mean,
come on, we're a couple of badasses, whaddya
expect? But every now and then, I know she likes to hear it, and
I
do too.
"I
love you
too. Lay back." Takin' off my shirt and movin' down my
chest with
those little kisses.
"I
coulda never hurt you, baby, you know that, right?" Sometimes I
worry about that. After all, I was sent to kill her in the first
place.
I wonder if sometimes she thinks-maybe he coulda done it. Maybe
he
woulda done it if I hadn't fucked him. I don't want her thinkin'
that.
"I
know. I love you." She must be feelin' a little iffy about
this whole thing-retirin', leavin' the only place she's ever really
called home, havin' it be just
her and me for the duration. She never says it twice in a row
like
that.
"Hey."
Just gonna stop her for a second. "You OK?"
"Yeah.
I'm just-I feel so calm, so quiet inside. Peaceful. When
all that other stuff stops humming-battles, missions, FOH, brotherhood,
whatever-when all that other stuff is gone, I just realize how full of
love for you I am. How glad I am that you love me back. How
lucky we both are.
And most of all, how much I savor you-I just really appreciate and want
you
in my life. I know-I know I'm going all Oprah, but I mean
it.
I do." That's it again-that's the young girl she woulda been
without government fuckin' intervention. And you know what?
It kinda brings
out somethin' in me-maybe what I woulda been like without all that shit
happenin'
to me too.
"I
feel all
that too. I never woulda had nothin' without you, baby. And
now
I got everythin'-everythin' worth havin'. I love you so damn much
for
that." Sounds like a pansy-ass thing to say, but it's true.
I
got everythin' I'll ever want right here in this bed beside me.
"So
does that mean I can I go back to kissing you now?"
Teasin' again-the little girl's gone now and The Rogue is back.
That's OK. They're all my Marie, they're all the person I love.
"Definitely.
Definitely, darlin'."
|
 |
 |