X-men: Bast Ch. 06

Kia snapped out a front kick at his abdomen, making him scoot back out of range. Before he'd even finished dodging she exploded into motion again, raising her knee and driving forward with it past Logan's guard.

Logan grunted heavily as the woman's knee blasted into his stomach. He had to admit, she was good, especially for someone who was only now becoming a part of the X-men's dangerous world. She was dizzying fast when she used her powers on herself, and her strength was nothing to laugh at either.

But he was Wolverine, and no one knew the game as well as he did.

His hand shot forward and gripped the front of her shirt, bunching it in his fist and yanking it forward as he kicked out her legs. Kia tumbled over, quickly catching herself and attempting to roll away.

But Logan kept his hold on her shirt and jerked her back, smacking her to the ground and reaching down to press his free hand to her throat warningly. Kia ceased struggling and lay still, acknowledging his victory.

Logan gripped her slender hand and pulled her to her feet. He nodded, his face serious and void of emotion. "Again."

Kia approached more slowly this time, edging forward and cautiously moving into his range. He swung at her, a wide, looping hook she knew was a baited punch. She took it, stepping into his guard and then blocking the body blow she correctly anticipated. Even though she could barely feel the pain, Kia winced at the dull clang of his metallic bone meeting hers. She shuddered as she considered what such an unyielding block could do to her if he wasn't holding back.

She gripped Logan's muscled forearm and kicked out, slamming a sidekick into his side and pushing him backward. His metal ribs absorbed most of the kick, and the rest he easily shook off. He nodded and motioned for her to come at him again.

Her speed once more picked up as she struck at him, punching, kicking, lunging and spinning as she advanced on him. Logan retreated, blocking and dodging, his powerful forearms and shins turning and absorbing every attack even as he gave ground. He snapped his own occasional jab and kick at her, which she easily dodged, but he was content for the moment to allow her the offensive and see what she could do.

The pair stepped into the rock garden, their feet skipping and sliding along the shifting rocks, disrupting the pattern of the stones to form a new, less obvious one. Logan blocked and twisted out of the way of a quick combination of kicks, then turned aside a straight punch aimed at his throat. He struck at Kia's head with his right hand, then reached down and gripped the back of her collar when she ducked. He yanked her forward, pushing his left hand out at the same time, and tossed her effortlessly to the ground.

Kia groaned softly as she got back up, feeling pretty certain that some of those rocks had left pointy imprints on her back.

"Again," Logan nodded, settling back into a guarded stance.

Kia focused her power, directing her adrenal gland to produce an even greater amount of adrenaline. She flew into motion again, this time feinting with a few strikes before reaching for Logan's head. She pulled him into a clinch and jumped forward, raising her knee to strike him in the face, but he moved too quickly and pushed hard on her abdomen. She slipped back through the air and managed to land on her feet.

She was unprepared for the suddenly aggressive and wild man attacking her.

He charged her, his meaty fists swinging at her. She ducked and skipped around with her feet nearly slipping on the stones as she avoided his strikes. He kicked at her legs and narrowly missed as she leapt over it and flipped back. He lunged at her and Kia narrowing rolled out of reach, coming up and kicking out at his back. He spun and caught the kick, lifting her leg upward as he smacked his palm into her chest, sending her to the ground.

Logan's powerful hands gripped her leg and began to twist it into a hold. Kia desperately kicked at him with her free leg for several moments to no avail. Finally, she managed to hook her foot around one of his heels and unbalance him enough to slip free.

As the woman sprang to her feet, Logan was back in her face, striking and lashing out at her. Both of them exchanged blows, attacking and blocking back and forth in a flurry of movement, their feet slipping and sliding along the stones, yet both perfectly balanced and composed. Kia planted the heel of her foot into his stomach, then lunged forward to drive the tip of her elbow into his face. Logan slipped down and to the side, avoiding her strike and stepping smoothly around her body. Kia attempted to slip free for only a moment as his arm closed around her throat from behind, then tapped his forearm to signal her surrender.

"Again."

They moved off of the rock garden, spinning, lunging, flipping and twisting toward the small stream, their fists creating a burst of wind to brush against sweating skin as they narrowly missed making contact.

Despite Kia's power augmented body, she was tiring. Using her powers so heavily was taxing her, draining the very energy reserves that she used her powers to replenish. Soon, they were going to be tapped out.

But not before she proved that she could hold her own, too.

She lunged forward, exploding into a left-left-right combination and then launching a roundhouse at her sparing partner. Logan retreated slightly but blocked each attack, making her limbs ache dully with the impact. Both of them scooted back onto the bridge spanning the stream and continued to attack and block back and forth.

Kia shot a hook at the side of his head. Logan ducked the strike, slipping past her guard. He drove the heel of his palm into her solar plexus, knocking the breath from her. He straightened, grabbed her arm, then hip-tossed her over the railing of the wooden bridge and into the stream.

The splash into the cold water shattered Kia's concentration. She sat upright, sputtering slightly as she wiped the dripping water from her face.

"Ow," she muttered. She flicked a waterlogged tendril of hair from her face and gave a sigh.

"You okay?" Logan asked as he walked to the side of the stream.

"Yeah...I think I may be a bit spent for the moment, though," Kia said through a heavy breath.

Logan held a hand out to her and helped her to her feet. He nodded slowly and stepped away. "We'll finish for tonight. Ya did good. I think I can teach ya a few things, but ya got a real solid foundation."

"Thanks," Kia smiled tiredly.

"Yer gonna be bruised up pretty bad, huh?" Logan said. Kia glanced down at her body and noticed the bruises already rising on her arms.

"I'll be okay," she assured him. "About an hour or two of healing and I'll be good as new."

"Good," Logan nodded. "We'll train again sometime soon, and I'll teach ya a few things that should sit well with yer kinda fightin'."

"Okay, that sounds good to me," Kia nodded.

"Deactivate simulation," Logan said, and the garden around them faded, leaving them standing in the cold metal chamber of the danger room.

"Are you coming to dinner tonight?" Kia asked as she retrieved her towel and mopped away the gleaming sheen of sweat from her brow.

Thursday was the day that the team generally tried to gather for a group dinner. It was an old tradition at the Mansion, and a good time for the friends and teammates to relax and enjoy conversation and companionship. It was something of a 'family' time for the X-men.

"As long as Rogue ain't cookin', I'll be there," Logan grinned.

"Nah," Kia giggled. "Ororo is going to make some pasta and potato salad. Hank is making cheeseburgers. And I'm baking some stuff."

"Jean ain't cookin'?" Logan asked with an arched brow. Jean was the closest thing to a cook that the team had.

"Um, no, I don't think so. Ororo said Scott was going to take her out to dinner."

"Ah," Logan muttered. "Yeah, I'll be there. See if Beast can sneak in some bacon fer me."

"No problem," Kia smiled. "See you around seven then. And thanks for the training."

***

Logan arrived in the dining room at seven, dressed in a black t-shirt and worn pants. He wanted a cigar. He refrained from smoking for dinner. He seldom cared about others impressions of his bad habits, but he felt a dinner table wasn't exactly the place to light up a Cuban. Kurt was placing some trivets on the table while Hank brought out a giant bowl of pasta salad. Rogue followed him out of the kitchen, carrying a plate laden with fresh, steaming muffins ranging from corn to blueberry to banana. Peter and Bobby entered and took their seats at the table, talking and joking together. Ororo brought in her famous potato salad as Hank walked back into the kitchen and returned a moment later with a huge platter of burgers and an extra large bag of buns. Kia exited the kitchen last, carrying yet another tray, this one bearing small plates of toppings; lettuce, relish, pickles, tomatoes, condiment bottles, and fresh, crispy bacon.

Everyone started getting settled and comfortable, Several seats remained empty; it was rare for each and every one of them to show up for dinner, and no one took much notice, despite the wariness everyone was going through. Kurt took a seat next to Kia and Logan sat between Peter and Bobby. Both Logan and Peter, along with Hank, had specially crafted chairs designed to support their unusual weight.

Hank pushed a small cart covered with various drinks and beverages out to the table. Everyone started grabbing food and drink, piling their plates with burgers and various kinds of salads. Rogue handed Logan one of his beers as Hank took a seat beside Storm.

Kurt cleared his throat softly. "If it vould please my friends, shall ve have a blessing?"

"Of course, Kurt," Ororo smiled. Despite coming from all walks of life and having a variety of beliefs between all of them, everyone respected Kurt's blessings. He offered to pray for his friends because he cared for them, not to convince or convert, and each of them appreciated his good intentions.

After the blessing everyone began to eat enthusiastically. The clatter of dishes filled the room. Logan helped himself to an extra scoop of potato salad while Peter grabbed up more corn muffins than anyone else. Most of them grabbed an extra hamburger. Sporadic and varied conversations crisscrossed the table, relaxed one on one talks and rowdy debates and group exchanges that involved nearly everyone present. It was a relaxed, enjoyable time where everyone could catch up and bond over good food.

***

After the meal, most everyone pitched in for the clean-up process, though not everyone could fit into the kitchen. Almost no food remained from the pleasant meal, so most of the work centered around cleaning dishes. Peter and Kurt carried dishes to the kitchen. Betsy and Bobby put up the remaining drinks and soda's, and tidied up the kitchen. Hank and Ororo cleaned and arrange the mess in the dining room and then left to spend some time together. Most of the ground dispersed.

That left Kia to do the dishes. She filled the sink with hot water and soap and grabbed a sponge and a wire brush, and had at it without complaint.

"Lemme give ya a hand," Logan offered as he stepped up beside her.

Kia arched a curious brow; Logan didn't seem like the dish-washing type, but she nodded anyway and made room for him at the sink. They settled into a rhythm of Logan scrubbing the food and mess from the dishes before handing it to Kia, who rinsed and wiped the majority of the water from the dish before setting it in the rack to dry.

"How're ya holdin' up?" Logan asked after minutes of silence.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Kia asked as she wiped a glass.

"With the attack an' all. Lot o' us are kinda on edge lately. Must be kinda hard for ya, bein' kinda half in an' half out o' the team."

"I guess," Kia shrugged. "I'm being included because the Professor wants me to, but from what I can see, none of us are reallydoinganything anyway."

Logan nodded and handed her one of the extra large platters. "How ya sleepin'?"

"Fine," Kia shrugged, then smiled slightly. "I'm not going to lose any sleep over this or anything. I get pretty little as it is."

"How's that?" Logan asked.

Kia shrugged and reached up to scratch her nose. "It's because of my powers. I only need about four or five hours of sleep to function normally, and I can manage on less than that if I have to. I use my powers to boost my body's energy producing systems while I sleep, so it takes less time in a sleep state for me to get well rested."

A wry smirk twitched across Logan's face. Kia gave him a confused look. "What?"

"Ya got suds on yer nose," he reported with a wider grin.

Kia tried her best not to turn red as she grabbed a paper towel and wiped her nose.

"You ain't the only one," Logan said as he turned his attention back to the dishes.

"Pardon?" Kia asked.

"Yer sleep trick," Logan explained. "I do that too, only I ain't got much say in it."

Kia nodded as Logan handed her the last dish to rinse and dry. "I like sleeping, though, so I usually sleep in anyway. I'd probably sleep till noon every day if I didn't have to teach classes."

"Yer kinda strange sometimes," Logan chuckled.

Kia glanced at him, smirking softly as she put the last dish on the rack to dry. "Yeah, I know. But I don't really mind."

"Ya shouldn't," Logan agreed. He walked to the fridge and fished around for a beer.

"If ya hadn't noticed yet," he continued without glancing at her. "We're all kinda off here. An' it ain't just 'cus we're Mutants, either, though for some o' us that helps. When ya live like we do...ya tend to see stuff different than most folk. Bein' strange...it's part o' the job. An' I think it makes ya a better person, anyway."

He stood up straight, beer in hand, and glanced at her. "Night," he said with a curt nod.

"Thanks," Kia said softly, but he was already walking away. She watched him go, then gave a shrug and returned to her room for the night, trying to decide which of the two of them was actually the strange one.

***

Jean stepped out of her room with a sigh and shut the door softly behind her. She wore an emerald spaghetti strap night-gown that fell to just above her knees. She walked bare-foot down the Mansion halls feeling down and upset. Her rich fiery curls hung about her face. She approached the kitchen quietly, but when she glanced in, she spotted Logan and Kia sitting at the table. She and Kia weren't entirely comfortable around each other, and although Logan was often surprisingly reliable for a shoulder to cry on, she didn't want to talk to him about this.

So Jean walked quietly past the kitchen and made her way to the rec room down the hall. She entered to find the TV screen casting its soft light about the room and the volume on low. Elizabeth was sitting on the couch. She wore a pair of small, fuzzy blue slippers and a soft purple robe over her nightwear.

Psylocke glanced up as Jean entered the room, watching the redhead as she walked across the floor and sat down on the couch beside her.

You're upset,Betsy said into her mind.

We're not supposed to pry like that,Jean replied telepathicly.

I didn't have to read your mind, you know. It's all over your face.

"Betsy," Jean sighed out loud. "I just don't know what I'm going to do. I feel like we're falling apart."

Betsy nodded slowly, sitting up straighter and turning to face Jean. "You two have another fight?"

"No," Jean replied glumly.

"Did dinner not go well, then?"

Jean shrugged one shoulder as she lifted one slender hand and began to distractedly chew her thumb nail. "I guess. It was just...We sat there and stared at our food, and barely said two words to each other in the span of an hour. It was...uncomfortable."

"I'm sorry," Betsy sighed and shook her head. "I know it's been hard on you, Jean."

"I don't know what's happened to us, Betsy," Jean murmured. "We used to be so close...so in love...and now it's like we're strangers. It isn't even comfortable to be in the same bed with him anymore."

"Scott does seem to have changed some," Betsy muttered.

"You think so, too?" Jean asked.

"Yeah. I mean, he's always been anal, but lately..." Betsy let her words trail off as she shrugged.

"I wonder if it's because of our problems," Jean confided. "I sometimes think the relationship and I are the reason he's acting the way he is."

"Don't take it all on yourself," Betsy scolded, reaching out to pat her friend's hand. "Scott is responsible for his own actions, and it's hardly like he's being a great guy to be around lately, for you or anyone else."

Jean ran her hands through her curls in frustration. "Things just aren't the way they used to be...I don't feel like I used to. I don't think I love him anymore."

An uncomfortable silence stretched between them for several moments, neither wanting to really address the issue that had just been put on the table.

"If you don't love him, then maybe you should start thinking about where your relationship is at now, and if it's something you want to continue," Betsy advised.

"How can I do that? Besides all the personal issues that would cause, us breaking up could rip the team apart. Can you imagine how awkward that would make things around here?"

"No more awkward than they're getting as things are," Betsy insisted.

"Maybe," Jean muttered. "I just don't know what to do right now."

"Right now you should relax and watch crappy late-night TV with me, and leave thinking about this kind of stuff till a more reasonable hour," Betsy smiled.

"Yeah," Jean replied, then stifled a yawn. "Anything good on?"

"Is there ever anything good on at this hour?"

"What're you doing up, anyway?"

Betsy shrugged and flipped a few channels. "The attack has me a bit...edgy. It'll probably be a few nights before I can relax enough to sleep properly."

"We're all edgy," Jean replied as she relaxed into the couch.

"I know. Still, everyone seems to be handling things reasonably well."

"I'm glad for that," Jean nodded. "I'd hate to think what kind of mood Scott would be in if we didn't."

***

Logan shuffled into the kitchen shortly after midnight the next night, dressed in a tank top and shorts and scratching his head. He was feeling restless and couldn't seem to settle in to sleep just yet, so he decided he'd get himself a snack and a beer, and maybe catch up on some reading. While he certainly didn't consider himself an intellectual, Logan was more well read than some of his friends realized.

He smelled Kia just before he saw her and paused in the doorway. She was rifling through the fridge, likely for the same reason as he, and he wasn't sure if he really felt like talking to someone at the moment.

But Kia glanced up and caught him in the corner of her eye before he could step back out of view. She jumped ever so slightly when she spotted him, but then straightened and smiled.

"So the kitchen calls you at night too, huh?" she asked.

"Never could sleep on an empty stomach," Logan replied, and stepped more fully into the kitchen. "How 'bout you?"

"Spending my nights grading papers," Kia replied as she bent back down and started pulling things out of the fridge. "Sit down, I'll warm you up some leftovers."

"Thanks," Logan grunted as he pulled one of the chairs out and plopped down into it. "So. How many o' yer kids ya failed so far?"

"None, actually," Kia replied as she put a jar of mayo on the counter. Her hair, loose and unbound at this late hour, hung down beside her face like a curtain waving in the breeze when she bent back down to grab more from the fridge. "All of my classes are advanced and optional, so all the children in them can handle it."