Taming a Beast

After the intense food battle that had somehow spread to other wings of the house, we received a lecture from Xavier about at least keeping food fights in the kitchen, then we were sent to go clean up our messes. Because I had stayed in the kitchen for the whole fight, I began scrubbing mercilessly. I heard a chuckle from above me and Logan saying, “That’s got to be an amazing workout for your biceps.”

I hit his shin with my hand, and he laughed again, plopping down next to me and beginning to stare off into space. I hit him in the arm and he looked over at me questioningly and I said, “Why don’t you pick up a broom or something and help out, Wolverine?”

I always used his codename to tease him; other than that, it was always Logan, and I was one of the few people who got away with calling him by his real name. He growled playfully at me before grabbing a towel and beginning to scrub at the floor. Scotty, who was overlooking the whole process, walked by and whistled. “Wow, first you get him to allow you to call him by his first name, now you’re having him clean?! What’s next, dress up and a tea party?”

“Scotty boy, you better watch your mouth,” Logan growled, standing up to look into Scotty’s eyes. I stood up between the two of them, pushing Logan back as I laughed.

“Down, boy,” I said to him as he obediently took a seat at the table behind him. I looked over at Scotty and gave him condescending eyes. “Scotty, watch what you say. One day, I won’t be there to keep Logan’s claws from sliding into you, alright?”

“Oh, come on, but it’s so fun!” Scotty said with a huge grin. I’m sure if he wasn’t wearing his sunglasses that kept his power under control, his eyes would be dancing playfully. I hit him in the chest and the doors opened as Storm ran in. We looked over at her, and Logan stood up quickly and put his hand in my back protectively.

“What’s wrong?” I asked, just sensing that something was by the way Storm’s face looked.

“Nothing, we just got a minor hit on a mutant wreaking havoc. Xavier wants us three to go with Jean,” Storm said, pointing to herself, Scotty, and I. Logan’s grip tensed.

“Why not me? I should go instead of Shiloh, she still needs to rest up,” Logan said. Storm gave him a look to not question it, and, for whatever reason, he shut up. He turned to me and said, “Shiloh, promise me you won’t tax yourself out.”

“I’ve got more self-control than that, Loag,” I said to him, smiling as I kissed his cheek. I saw some of the younger kids giggle at my gesture, something they always did whenever they saw Logan and I together. They all knew we were together, so we didn’t try and hide it from them. “I’ll see you later.”

“Wolverine, I’m leaving you on patrol. Make sure every kid is cleaning up,” Scotty said. Logan sighed and nodded, looking at me worriedly before we turned and began running out. The kids all looked tensed as we passed, thinking something was wrong. I had to reassure some of them that they were in no danger, just that we were in a rush.

We all put on our suits and loaded up the plane. I took my seat in the back seat as Storm took the pilot seat and Scotty took the co-pilot seat. I shifted into Xavier and sat patiently, just reading people’s minds back at school as we flew to our destination. I was watching one of my students’ minds when suddenly, a person jumped in front of them and their mind went blank. I jerked in my seat and quickly changed to Logan’s mind. He was fighting several men dressed in all black, and I could hear children’s screams echoing throughout the school.

“Shit,” I said, shifting as Scotty sat up, attentive to me. I looked over at him and said, “Re-route for the school, they’re being attacked. I’m going to teleport. Get ahold of Nightcrawler, tell him to meet me there if he can.”

Scotty nodded, running over to the radio as Storm began to move the plane to head back home. I focused all my energy on the kitchen back home, and teleported, landing on my hands and knees. I heard screaming and yelling, fast footsteps echoing around the house. I snuck around the corner and saw four kids run past me, three men running after them in CIA issued suits. I shifted into Lady Deathstrike, a Brotherhood member who Logan had killed, and shot out her claws, so much like Logan’s. I grabbed the three men by the back, pulling them in and slicing through their bodies easily enough, phasing back to my normal being to conserve energy.

I walked around the corner and found that a little girl I had grown fond of, Mylie, had been attacked, stunned into oblivion. I quickly picked her up, and even though she was a tiny four year old, I wasn’t the strongest person in the world, and her limp body really slowed me down.

I hit the wall as I caught my breath, hearing quick footsteps. A man turned around the corner and I was stuck with what to do, and as his eyes fiercely met mine, I let out a breath of air. Logan gave me a confused look and asked, “Shiloh, what are you doing here?”

“That’s besides the point, Logan. Can you take her for me?” I asked, a sob tearing at my throat as I handed Mylie’s body over to Logan. He nodded, holding her like a baby although she was passed out. He gave me a sympathetic look and I shook my head. “How many students have you gotten out so far?”

“Only seven have been unaccounted for,” Bobby Drake said, popping up out of nowhere. I looked over at Logan, but he was handing Mylie over to Bobby, who carried her through a cavity to evacuate her. We heard grunts of the military men as they neared us, and Logan grabbed my arm before I had a chance to run away.

“Shiloh, I don’t think you’re in any condition to fight,” Logan said, looking at me worriedly. I gave him a smirk, although inside, I was breaking because of seeing Mylie near-dead. I pushed it aside and pressed forward the cockiness Logan had rubbed off on me.

“You’re fucking Wolverine, you don’t give a shit, remember?” I asked him, shifting into Lady Deathstrike again. I looked at her claws admiringly. “You know, I get why you’re so confident. Your power’s pretty fucking badass.”

“Shift, you’re fooling everybody but me, I just hope you know that,” Logan said as he unsheathed his own weapon. “We’re talking about this later.”

I rolled my eyes. “Okay, Dad.”

We both went around the corner at his motion, and began slicing through the military men. Another reason I hadn’t told Logan about loving Lady Deathstrike is that she was essentially invincible just like Wolverine, and I didn’t have to worry about the bullets that hit my legs or the bruises the guys gave me. I knew I’d be pretty banged up afterwards though-- I always had some scar, even if I impersonated someone else.

“We need to get out of here,” Logan said, heaving as he placed his arm around my waist and I shifted back to my normal being. “We can’t take them all, as much as you may want to.”

I nodded as Logan punched out a cavity in the wall and allowed me in first, watching my back for anybody who followed us. He kept his hand on my back to let me know that he was still there, and we made it to the end of the tunnel as we sprinted out towards his Jeep. We clambered inside and took off towards the city, where we would be safe.

Logan pulled up to a motel right outside of town as he turned off the car and we both just sat there in silence. Logan reached over slowly and took my hand in his, as I stared out the window, biting my lip harshly as the tears filled up my eyes. Logan’s hand moved up my arm, stroking it now.

“Sh, Shiloh, it’s alright,” he reassured me. I pulled out of his grip and stepped out of the car as he quickly met me around the front. He put his arm around my waist, holding me next to him as support as we walked into the motel. Logan greeted the secretary at the desk with a nod of his head, and asked, “One room, please.”

The man nodded, writing something down as he handed Logan the key. He looked at us suspiciously, noting neither of us had luggage, and watched us walk down the hall as Logan opened the door with no difficulty even though he was supporting me. He pushed open the door and guided me to the bed, as I sat with his arms still around me. He knelt down in front of me, putting his hands on my thighs and watching me worriedly as tears continued to swim in my eyes.

“Shiloh,” he whispered to me, looking up at me. “Something else has got to be wrong, it can’t just be that Mylie’s hurt. I’ve never seen you so torn up before, you’re usually very in control of your feelings.”

I laughed, wiping away some of the tears that had begun to edge over my eyelid. “I suppose that’s part of it, then-- that I bottle up my feelings. I’m certainly not in control of them, Logan. I can reign them in for a certain amount of time, then the dam breaks and hell lets lose.”

“So why did this event trigger it so badly?” He asked me, his hands on my hips now.

I looked down, and he lifted up my tight leather shirt to place his hand on my bare hip, drawing circles on my skin with his surprisingly soft fingertips. I let out a shaky sigh, and he kept his eyes fixated on me as I told him, “I think it’s time I tell you something I’ve never told anybody.”

“And what’s that?” He asked me gently. I met his eyes, a single tear falling down my face as he quickly reached out to wipe it from my face, holding my head and my heart in the palm of his hand.

“My life before Xavier’s.”