The screaming had stopped almost as soon as he had touched her, changing into a heartbroken sobbing which was still dreadful to hear but none the less vast improvement, the reaction of sane person faced with horror as opposed to the madness that had threatened to engulf her. She clung to him desperately, with all the intensity of a terrified child waking from a nightmare. Which was, after all, exactly what she was doing! As was he. Extricating themselves body and soul from the hell that Dark Amber had plunged them into.
Logan’s emotions were now free of her manipulative cruelty but they were still in turmoil and the aftermath of recent pain wracked his body even if the wounds had gone. That didn’t matter though. What was important was getting everyone through this mess as best he could. And for the moment that meant holding on while Lorili wept, silently now though no less ugently, being there for her as he had said he would be, lending her his strength until her own came back.
"Logan?" He hadn’t heard her come, hadn’t even sensed her presence till she spoke. Storm, her eyes worried as she took in the scene, a peaceful room reduced to blood and chaos by his fury. They widened further when she saw the injured girl, her hand already going to her com badge even as she moved forward to help. "We need medical support in the student’s kitchen. Now .” she said, gently examining Amber’s wounded shoulder. *I should have done that* Wolverine told himself *Called them down to help. She needed me to and I didn’t…*
He had been terribly hurt both physically and mentally, his emotions flayed alive for the petty amusement of a deranged adolescent. You didn’t just get up from something like that and start functioning normally. If anyone other than himself had been concerned he would have realised that. But this was Logan, and like his anger, guilt and shame were never far from the surface and all to ready to slip their leash.
They crashed in on him now as he looked at Amber’s still form, remembering how scared she had been, how close he had come to killing her. Storm would see what he had done, how could she not, and she would look at him as they always did, as if he was an animal. She was turning to him now and he dreaded to see her face, to hear the justified horror in her voice.
"Are you alright?" Logan’s shock was evident, his eyes flashing wide and confused. She was worried about him? Despite all of this, the claw marks scarring the walls and the remains of now ruined furniture. The urine on the floor that told all too clearly of the terror he had inspired. Still she showed him only concern and friendship. She had faith in him even when his faith in himself had been shattered. Wolverine took a deep breath, drawing down on the feeling of calm that Storm wore around her like a mantle, feeling it steady him as he had tried to steady the girl in his arms.
“Yeah I’m …..fine” he said quietly, lying, knowing she would see it but needing to say the words. For the girls sake more than anything else! “But Lorili …” He could feel the tell tale shivers that spoke of shock running through her, a creeping chill that only his body’s heat held at bay. “She can’t go to med lab…….” he told Storm “her powers…. they could hurt her even more if she did.”
There's just somethin' wild inside me pullin' me to do things I don't understand.
I can't figure it. It's like tryin' to explai
Re: Morning Coffee (Logan, D.Amber)OOC: Sorry for the wait, Zira. This'll be only a really short post too, I'm afraid.
Ann, I left a lot open for the med people as I wasn't too sure about the procedures and who'd be part of the team...
The look he gave her before his reply was guilt-heavy. So he thought he was the one to blame for all this... question being how true that actually was. There is always some discrepancy between reality and people's mental image of it, and so Storm was hesitant to conclude anything from the expression on Logan's face. Best get the girl, or rather all three of them, into the medical bay, make sure they were and remained all right. There was still time to figure out all the details the surveillance camera hadn't been able to transmit, make sense of the strange things the security man had seen. So contradictory, the details...
The light frown wrinkling her brow made it rather clear what she thought of the statement about his condition, yet she did not comment. If Wolverine said he was fine and in truth was not, then close to nothing could make him admit the truth. And considering how much he had been trough in his time, Storm knew chances were he'd be better at coping with whatever had hit him than the girls. Now which one was Lorili? Blue orbs' gaze shifted from the one on the floor to the one in Logan's arms and back. "Why? What are her powers?" she asked, deciding it had to be the white-haired girl as the other seemed even farther away from consciousness and not as much of the clawed mutant's concern.
It was then that the med team came rushing in, proving background noise Ororo ignored save for a curt nod sent their way. They were professionals, all of them, and so they acted as such. "We have to get her out of here and under medical surveillance regardless," the weather witch added with an urgent tone in her voice, "She cannot stay here." Very soon, the more early rising of students would arrive here and it would already be hard enough to clean up the mess before that happened without having to find an excuse for why one of the teachers was sitting there, cradling a student. Just because she trusted him didn't mean the Windrider was blind to how things might look to others and she didn't plan on letting others draw any wrong conclusions in that regard.
"I could have Kane bring his power nullifier. The progress he has made would allow for him to go without it a bit." She hadn't given Wolverine any chance to reply so far, and realising that with sudden embarrassment, the weather witch kept herself from continuing, eyes lingering on the puddle of urine mixed with blood for a moment. Someone would have to clean that up... and considering the time of the day, she guessed it would be she. Nothing like that to get you awake in the morning, was there?
Re: Morning Coffee (Logan, D.Amber)
Lorili kept her eyes closed as she shivered there in his arms. She couldn't bring herself to open her eyes even when someone else had entred the room. A woman by the sound of the voice. There going to be more people there soon, the woman had called for them. She couldn't handle that. Not right now anyway. She barely could handle too many people in a room before but right now she just wanted to vanish... needed to vanish. "Are you alright?" The question was directed to Logan, Lorili was sure of it. The woman couldn't have been asking anyone else.
Was he? Was he alright? There was so much blood and he had been layingon the floor motionless and lifeless only a couple of moments ago. Lorili couldn't see how he could be alright. He had been assaulted not only by that evil little b*tch that was laying on the floor but by someone he had sworn to protect.... She felt cold. A cold like as if someone had the air conditioning on and was turning it down colder and colder. And the tiredness from all of the emotional juggling was hitting now too. She felt sick.
She wished that he was alright even though there was no way he could have been after all of that. She could feel his body tense ever so slighlty from the question and felt a little sick, not wanting to hear his reply. Lorili didn't want to hear his answer to if he were alright or not, already knowing the answer. How the hell couldn't the woman see the answer herself when the kitchen was in such chaos? When everyone who was in the kitchen was in chaos? Couldn't she see? Was she blind or something!? When a deep breath came from Logan, Lorili tensed and closed her eyes tighter wishing she could block out everything. But then, she felt him relax some.
“Yeah I’m …..fine” The answer came in a quiet voice. She wasn't one to admit pain most of the time but it still came as a surprise to her when he answered with that. “But Lorili … She can’t go to med lab…… her powers…. they could hurt her even more if she did.” Logan told the woman. How could his concern be more for her than for himself or the girl that was bleeding on the floor? His words caused her to open her eyes and look at him in surprise but then as the person responded, Lorili looked over to see an equally pale haired woman.
"Why? What are her powers?" The white haired blue eyed woman asked. By that point, more people were filling into the room and this caused Lorili to tense. "We have to get her out of here and under medical surveillance regardless... She cannot stay here. I could have Kane bring his power nullifier. The progress he has made would allow for him to go without it a bit." No, she didn't need all of that. Even if she did, she didn't deserve being looked after after what she had done. She didn't even deserve having been comforted. Lorili was breathing a little quickly now as she let go completely and pulled away, trembling as she did so. She didnt want anyone else near her.
She was a couple feet away from Logan now, having made herself scoot away from him before sliding down into a sit as she placed her hands on the sides of her head. She remained like that only for a couple of seconds before she gave the most appologetic look to Logan then looking at the woman then at where that evil little brat was. To answer the woman's question and at the same time try to take back some of what had happened. She glanced at the girl again to try to get the best concentration she could. The wound closed up suddenly and a small sharp hiss came from Lorili as blood splashed down her arm before that wound vanished and contributed another piece of damage to the mostly splintered table.
She brought her arms up to hug herself both for comfort and to try to warm herself up although the tears seemed to be warm enough as they trailed down her cheeks once more. Lorili hung her head. She wouldn't fight them. She just felt so... There wasn't even a word for it. There were a few to scratch the surface of what she was feeling like disgust, fear, loathing, pain, but nothing for what she felt in her core... It was a good thing that they hadn't had the chance for coffee... or it would have been contributing to the mess on the floor.
Lorili didn't want anything except for this to have never happened but that wasn't possible, was it? But coming back from death hadn't been possible either... That had happened.... Then why the hell couldn't this have been erased already? Why couldn't they be having coffee and having small talk? Maybe by this time, going to the stables to tend to the horses or something?
Re: Morning Coffee (Logan, D.Amber)
Of course Storm looked puzzled, how could she not? She didn’t know anything about Lorili, neither her problematic powers nor her equally traumatic background. Amber, lying unconscious and wounded on the floor would probably be as big a mystery to her as well. Logan sighed and tried to pull his shattered thoughts into something like order.
Only he had truly knew what had happened here. Only he held all the pieces of this fractured puzzle for not even Amber, indeed probably her least of all, would be able to say what had actually gone on in the now ruined kitchen. Intellectually Logan recognised that she wasn’t to blame, that her strange nature made her as much a victim here as anyone else. *So why am I sitting here holding Lorili while I watch her bleed?* Ok he had seen that the wound wasn’t life threatening, he had made sure of that at least. But still………
The truth was that he wasn’t ready to touch her yet, not when all his senses still screamed at him that she was an enemy, someone who had, with deliberate cruelty set about turning him and Lorili against each other. Besides….. he’d scared her. Badly! As badly as he’d ever scared anyone in his long life! Even if he could get past what had happened between them he doubted that she could. And as for her sister…..
"Why? What are her powers?" Logan looked up at Storm with a start, realising his thoughts had wandered again, sad testimony to the state he was in at the moment. "We have to get her out of here and under medical surveillance regardless...” his friend stated reasonably. “She cannot stay here. “
He knew that. Hell, he didn’t want her here. Not in this battlefield. He would take her back to her room. That would be best surely? He just had to tell Storm, to make her understand that they needed time alone to deal with this. Not fussing. Not even Hank’s tender ministrations. Just space and calm ” I could have Kane bring his power nullifier. The progress he has made would allow for him to go without it a bit." So like Storm. Already she had found a solution. One that would work too. Just not one Lorili would go for. Already he could feel her tensing, whether at the words or at the arrival of the med lab team he couldn’t be sure.
Certainly he himself felt exposed as the others entered quiet and efficient as always but with that inevitable curiosity in their eyes. Logan didn’t know them but he had little doubt that they knew him. And the legends that surrounded him. Well this would just confirm the stories once again, wouldn’t it? Another tale of savagery and bloodlust they could lay at his door. It was a wonder that he still cared after all this time but he did. Dear god what would the kids say when news of this got back to them, as it inevitably would. Would he lose them all over again?
The thought struck him as painfully as Lorili’s knife ever had, his eyes, clouding with misery as he imagined what they would here. His concentration wavered again, and though he could feel the young mutant move in his arms still he could do nothing to stop her as she broke away from him, sitting for a moment in a despair like his own before meeting his gaze with eyes full of regret and sorrow.
He didn’t know how to comfort her. In truth he didn’t know how to comfort himself. He only clung to the fact that, tragic as they were, those eyes held no trace of the madness he had feared when he had clawed his way out of death in response to her lost sobbing. Then she gasped and shuddered and Logan realised just how far from being broken she really was.
The medics looked round in confusion as Ambers wound disappeared as swiftly as it had come. Oh that was well done. Logan closed his eyes, feeling his own pain ease, to be replaced by affection and quiet pride for the girl who sat weeping beside him. Despite everything that had happened, all the suffering, all the mental anguish, she had still healed the one who as far as she knew was responsible for it all.
It was more than he could ever have hoped for. It marked the distance she had travelled since he had met her in that coffee shop as nothing else could. Opening his eyes again he smiled across at Storm, his face still weary but without the ghastly tension that had been in it just seconds before. “Well” he said quietly “It looks like we are going to be all right after all.”
There's just somethin' wild inside me pullin' me to do things I don't understand.
I can't figure it. It's like tryin' to explai
Re: Morning Coffee (Logan, D.Amber)OOC: extreme shortness... sorry, I really didn't know what to put here...
This was more than a random encounter of student and teacher, Storm observed, blue gaze lingering on Logan and the girl who was pulling away from him that very moment. What exactly, she did not know and, truth be told, the Windrider wasn't really sure she actually wanted to. Not that she expected the clawed mutant to have got himself into the rather awkward predicament of dating someone the age of his own children, but for the off chance that this was indeed the case, Storm secretly decided she'd try not to know about it for as long as possible. Wolverine was old enough to know what he did and if he did in fact not really think about what he was doing... well, even then Storm had no right to judge or interfere. Not when it came to such personal matters.
Watching the wound the seemingly unconscious girl carried fade away, Ororo first expected Lorili to be a healing-empowered mutant and wondered why her old friend had called her gift harmful. It was what followed that solved this mystery in quite an ostensive manner, though not entirely. Was she maybe not in full control of her abilities? Logan's following statement was met with the lightest of frowns as her eyes wandered over the scene. "Are you sure?" she asked doubtfully, signalling the medical team to take Amber to the medlab anyway. It would be better to keep her under observation for a day or two to make sure she really was unharmed and treat whatever damage might not have been made undone.
They'd need to find out what exactly had happened. As it was, however, none of the ones involved seemed up for some investigative interview and considering everyone seemed at least physically all right, Storm was leaning towards leaving it at that for the time being. There'd have to be some discussing the case later on though – no way around it. Considering the amount of time they'd known each other, she was rather sure Wolverine was fully aware of that though. "Ok then...," the weather witch hesitantly agreed to the unspoken question that had hung in the room, "I'll leave it to you, Logan." It was with a certain relief that she noticed one of the emergency team had decided to clean up as there wasn't much else to do. "Make sure you contact me should there be any complications though."
After a few moments of inner struggle, half turned to the kitchen door, Storm sighed and grabbed a pair of rubber gloves. She couldn't just let the poor guy do the revolting work all by himself, could she? "And I do hope you have a good explanation for this mess," Ororo added half jokingly, yet with a certain amount of suppressed revulsion in her voice before turning to helping at cleaning up.
There comes a time for everyone when they have to take over responsibility. It stands to argue whether there is also a time when they can get rid of it again.
Re: Morning Coffee (Logan, D.Amber)
It seemed that his statement had been less than convincing, not that he was in the least surprised. It was woefully obvious that they were very far from being all right so Ororo’s hesitant question was only to be expected. As was the appraising look on her face that said they hadn’t heard the last of this little incident.
God, Logan hated that even though he knew there was no getting round it. Students had been hurt, badly hurt and he had been at the heart of it. No there was no chance that this was just going to go away. There would be the inevitable investigation, everything that had happened, everything that had been said and done dragged up and put under the microscope till some sense could be made of it. Screw it all, he didn’t want Lorilli going through that! Nor Amber either.
What good would it do to even try to ask her what had happened? She hadn’t been there when the shit had hit the proverbial fan. Not mentally anyway. No it had been her sadistic twisted alter ego that had set them at each others throats and he somehow doubted that she would put in a convenient appearance and take responsibility for the whole thing. All Amber had in fact seen was him coming at her like some monster out of a teen horror movie, all claws and gore. Hardly the best impression he had ever made but then again given the circumstances it could so easily have been worse.
At least, as he had said to Lorilli moments before, they were all still alive. And, against the odds, maybe even sane! So yes he knew when he had said that they were going to be all right that it was hard to believe. Even he doubted that they would get out of it without scars. Still it was the emotional equivalent of looking through the aftermath of a train wreck and finding someone still breathing. Little short of a miracle even if it wasn’t a pretty sight.
In any case he seemed to have done or said enough for Storm to consider him fit enough at least to cope. . "Ok then...," she said, still sounding far from reassured "I'll leave it to you, Logan. Make sure you contact me should there be any complications though." Complications? Logan almost laughed. How could there not be complications? This business was going to leave fallout whichever way you looked at it. And all he could do was try to keep the girls as far away from it as possible.
After all he was the teacher here, wasn’t he, the so called responsible adult who should have held things together instead of letting himself be played like a rookie! Sure they would have to discuss Amber’s dangerous powers but then again they had already been warned, hadn’t they. Crystal had spelled things out pretty clearly when she had brought her sister here looking for help. So if they had got careless, in the end, they only had themselves to blame. And as for Lorilli…..
She had been an innocent bystander, pushed into using her powers by pure manipulation. Undoing the damage she had done at the first opportunity. What more did they need to know? Surely they could spare her the third degree? She wasn’t up to a hail of questions. She hadn’t been even before this had happened! Logan looked over at where Lorilli sat hunched on the floor still wrapped in her own misery and made a decision It just wasn’t going to happen He didn’t care what the others said or thought, he wasn’t going to put her through any more suffering and that was all there was too it.
"And I do hope you have a good explanation for this mess," Storm’s voice held a hint of humour but the question was, in the end, the sixty four thousand dollar one. “Lets just say that you can be pretty sure it wasn’t just because we’d run out of sugar” Logan told her cynically, getting to his feet and moving over to Lorilli. ”Come on kid” he said gently, stretching out a bloodied hand for her to take. “Let’s get the hell out of here. Before word spreads and this place turns into a zoo.”
There's just somethin' wild inside me pullin' me to do things I don't understand.
I can't figure it. It's like tryin' to explai
Re: Morning Coffee (Logan, D.Amber)
There had been confusion form the other people who had filtered in and who had been taking that evil brat away when she took the wound onto herself and left the girl with only drying blood as proof of her ever having been injured in the first place. Lorili didn't blame them for being confused... it wasn't every day that wounds just vanished... But then again, if there were people like Logan living here, they shouldn't have been so caught off guard, should they. So maybe she did have a part of her that thought it was kind of stupid for them to be so shocked.
A part of her cringed a little at how she was thinking but it was a small part as the rest of her was so tired and stressed that there was just irritability and jumpiness left clinging on, the other emotions having retreated to try to find refuge where they wouldn't be pulled and tugged every which way. Tired and stressed didn't even begin to cover it. She wanted to sink into the floor and vanish. There were too many people. Too many eyes taking in the tale that was strewn about in blood and scattered through the pieces of splintered wood, torn cloth, and broken glass.
“It looks like we are going to be all right after all.” Logan stated not too long after Lorili had sent the wound to the table remains. Were they? Were they really going to be alright? She wsn't too sure of it... Not too sure of it at all. There were so many thoughts twiting around in her head and her emotions.. the anger the pain.. surging and screaming to be let out. Only her guilt holding them back and the effort was making her body tremble and at the same time draining her. She just hoped that her feelings weren't visable. She was as sure as hell doing her best to hide what was going on inside like she used to in the cage when she used to only show her opponent the weapon and not the woman that was before them.
"Ok then... I'll leave it to you, Logan... Make sure you contact me should there be any complications though." It might have been her imagination making her feel like the chocolate skinned beauty wasn't completely sure but more of her mind was thinking that it wasn't the imagination than was.
"And I do hope you have a good explanation for this mess," The brown skinned pale haired woman stated in what sounded like a semi-joking tone. A good explaination? How the hell was what just happened supposed to be explained? The only thing that Lorili could think of that could explain it was telling of the whole thing happening due to whatever that little brat had done... But even then, she wasn't sure if that could even half way uncover all of the layers of the unfortunate and insane event that had happened.
She felt like someone just stabbed her and twisted the blade. What had been real and what had been made from the manipulation of the girl? How many times had they been influenced by her? Maybe she had been affecting them the whole time without them knowing it. What if the friendship they had built... the closeness that had built up between the two of them had been.... No, she couldn't even finish the thought... But a part of her did. And it hurt. It hurt as much as it had hurt when she had watched Logan die.
No, it couldn't be fake. That girl hadn't been there in the beginning. Their bond was real, Lorili knew it in her core that it was. It was just the matter of how much of the bond was true and how much had been the weaving of the twisted adolescent. How long had the girl been there? Listening. Watching. Invading in the privacy that they cherished... or at least she had cherished.
It seemed like nothing that she held dear ever managed to escape from harm. That was why she had told herself she wouldn't let herself hold anything dear again but it seemed that she had broken that promise to herself. What just happened was just proof of that. Nothing... Her body... Her mind... The innocense... The friendships... They all were attacked and if she had just closed herself away completely she would be safe... But something in her wanted to be open so badly. Wanted to have something dear to her even if it was destined for failure and pain in the end.
“Lets just say that you can be pretty sure it wasn’t just because we’d run out of sugar” Logan's response to the woman's words was something that she hadn't expected. Lorii wasn't sure if she wanted to laugh or to cry.... Neither. She would do neither. She had cried more than enough showing just how weak she was. As Logan got up and walked over to where she was still sitting curled up on the floor, she raised her face to look at him. eye contact was something she couldn't make though, her gaze stopping at the tattered soaked crimson remains of his shirt and going no further up.
"Come on kid... Let’s get the hell out of here. Before word spreads and this place turns into a zoo.” Logan told her. That caused her to first look at his hand then hesitantly make herself look up to his face before she gave a nod and reached out to accept his hand. Her body felt like a lead weight but she pushed herself up more than allowing him to do all the work. It took a good amount of effort to do so though.. But it was better than the other option.
Lorili didn't only think that she wouldn't be able to handle what was going to come once other people heard of what the kitchen situation was, she knew she wouldn't be able to. She didn't do well at all with crowds except when the people were on the other side of a chain linked fence or on top of a man made pit. The very thought of yet more people coming to see this.... it made her cringe and she couldn't even hide how much it bothered her to know that there would indeed be more people seeing this. Knowing about what happened or at least thinking they had made most of what had happened come together to make sense. No one would be able to make sense of this, damn it!
Worst of all,she had the feeling that it would all land on Logan.. As if he hadn't been through enough. She didn't want it all to end up crashing down on him. Lorili wanted to take it onto herself. A lot of this had been her fault and there was no one who would be able to tell her otherwise. If she could do as her name... If she could trade anything... She would trade her ability to take and send wounds and instead have the ability to take the emnity that was sure to come from this all.
Re: Morning Coffee (Logan, D.Amber)
She was on her feet, a bit unsteady but upright all the same. And that in the end was all that mattered. For the time being anyway. Walking out of there with their heads held high, despite the carnage they left behind and the blood that stained them. Logan had learned that over the years. There were times to be ashamed that was true. When your anger got out of hand and left a trail of body parts strewn in your wake. Then you had only yourself to blame and the weight of that realisation was hard to bear.
But there were also times like this. When you yourself knew that you had overcome the odds no matter how bad things looked to outsiders. And on those occasions you just had to stare anyone who dared to judge you square in the eye and think Were they there? Did they go through what I’ve just gone through? Because until they do they can take their opinion and shove it where the sun don’t shine! That was what Logan was thinking now as he helped Lorili out of what remained of the kitchen. Though he didn’t harbour many illusions as to what would be said in days to come.
Once you got a certain reputation it was hard to shake it off and he had to admit that his was amply merited. Lorili on the other hand….. This was her clean slate. Her chance at a fresh start! Her past was her own? to be divulged only to those she chose worthy. And he was damned if he was going to let this twisted incident spoil that.
So let them talk. Let them say that he’d lost it again. That he’d sent yet another student on a stretcher to med lab! It wouldn’t be the first time they’d got something wrong. Nor the last. What really counted was that the people who mattered to him knew that it wasn’t true. His fellow X men! They at least would listen to what he had to say. His family? That was less sure. Though this time he was determined to at least try and explain. Who knows! Maybe if he had done that a little more in the past things wouldn’t have been the way they were today.In any case he was going to find out. Because one way or another he and Lorili were on the front page. And the paparazzi were always out for blood.
And so he walked through the halls beside her, his face fierce as always, watching her steps to make sure they didn’t falter. Making sure she got back to her room. Offering himself up as a target for any inquisitive early risers to wonder about. Keeping her safe as he had told her he would. Even if the end result wasn’t all he would have desired. Though in the end it was a hell of a lot better than it could have been!
..................
Thread ended
There's just somethin' wild inside me pullin' me to do things I don't understand.
I can't figure it. It's like tryin' to explai
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