The Wolverines Daughter

Chapter 16

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I woke early. So early I couldn't really see. It was only around three in the morning. I emerged from the tent and went to the river. I removed my shoes and socks and stuck my feet into the frozen water. Something moved on the other side that caught my attention. It was a grizzly bear. It looked to be old enough to take care of itself but not too old. I watched it sit down and scoop a fish out of the water and then tear it apart. It ate it and then curdled up for a nap. I looked down at my feet. A bush rustled behind me and I turned and unsheathed a set of claws. "Relax sunshine it's me." My dad was really good at sneaking up on people. He leaned against a tree at the edge of the forest. "Shouldn't you be sleeping?" I asked him. "So should you." I hate it when he's right. He spotted the bear on the other side. "Beautiful isn't it? I had one that followed me everywhere." He said coming to sit with me. "What happened to it?" I asked turning to look at my father. "A hunter. Tracked it down and stabbed him in the hand with his own arrow." He said. I didn't know how to respond, to laugh at the hunter or cry for the bear. I lifted my feet out of the water and dried them the best I could. I laid back in the grass, looking at the twinkling stars. "Could you tell me a story?" I ask not taking my eyes off the stars. "What kind of story?" He asked. "Anything."

He laid down next to me. "Did I ever tell you the story about how i met your mother?" He asked. I shook my head.

"Once there was a beautiful girl with light brown hair from North Carolina who decided to take a vacation to Canada. It was during the summer and she walked into a bar to get some lunch. She couldn't pay for it because she was robbed after she was a couple miles over the border so she decided to enter a cage fight to try and win some money. when her opponent stepped into the cage and saw her he refused to fight her. You see i was the champion for the last two weeks and everyone who faced me came out with more than a couple bruises. I stepped back out and went back to the bar. The girl came over to him and asked why he wouldn't fight her. I then asked why she was fighting. She told me about how she could t pay for her food. I payed for it and asked her if she had anywhere to stay. " I interrupted. "What did she say?"

"She said no and then I offered a place for her at my house. She agreed. After the first night we became friends. The i went to work everyday and the girl cooked for me. In a couple weeks she learned that I was a mutant. She didn't care. Two months later she had to go back to North Carolina because she had an important thing to do for work. After she left the i never saw her again." He ended. I never knew that about my mom. "Dad, what was her name?" I asked moving closer to him. He never told me that either. "Her name was Lisa cage. Prettiest girl I ever saw. Until I saw you." He said. My dad is never one for mushy feelings but he try's. "how is it that when I was two I had animantium grafted to my bones?" I asked. He put his hands on his head. "You didn't. You got your powers when you were four and a half. We dipped your claws in liquid animantium. You didn't get it on your bones until you were

ten. We went to the beach after. I had jean and the professor erase the memory. So you wouldn't be haunted by the pain." Now that he said it I do remember breaking my arm a couple times and maybe a few ribs. But they quickly healed so I don't remember them much. I also remember that he didn't let me on a motorcycle until after we went to the beach. "This is pretty confusing and explanatory at the same time." I say noticing that its almost five. "We better get back I say dragging myself to my feet and jamming my shoes on. My dad followed me back, climbing back up his tree and falling asleep. I sat by the fire thinking about what I now knew about my past and my mom. I kept it going until around six when Matt woke up. He came out and joined me. My dad was still snoring loudly in his tree. "Couldn't sleep?" He asks coming to sit by me. "Yeah. I've been up since three. You?" I ad a few more logs to the fire. "Mike started telling stories in his sleep. It had enough during the day." He yawned and I laughed. "You know he likes you, right?" He says. "Yep. I know but the truth is if he was constantly following me then he would be dead in two hours. I'm still puzzled on how jack is alive." He laughs. "Speaking of jack, how are things going between you? Fights?" He asks me. Normally it's me and Annie in this conversation. That's another to my list of people concerned with me. "No, not one. He agrees with most things as long as he knows it won't hurt me." I say poking at the fire with my hand. Ouch. The pain quickly fades away. "Jack is a nice match for you. He brought out the fun part of you." He said adjusting his position. "What do you mean by the fun part of me?" I ask accusingly. "Nothing it's just that you were so focused on training to be an xmen before he came and then it's just like poof! Lets blow of a day of training!" He says with funny hand gestures. The sun started rising. "I better wake up jack. You can wake Annie if you want." He nodded and we made a silent agreement not to wake mike. Well let the wolverine take care of him.

I move silently into the tent and sit next to jack who was still snoring. "Jack... Jack... Come on fuzzy." I said gently. "Come on its time to get up." He blearily opens his eyes and smiles. "Morning muffin." He says sitting up and kissing me. "How long have you been up?" He asks. "A while. Get dressed. I have to wake up my dad." I said exiting the tent. I climb the tree and about half way up I find the source of the snoring. I poke my dad. "Daddy. Wake up. You have to catch breakfast or something." He sits up and rubbed his eyes with one hand and unsheathed the claws on the other. "What. Oh yeah food. Did you wake mike yet?" He asked jumping down after me. "No we thought you would like to wake him up. Besides the less time for stories the better." I said as he chuckled a bit. "We'll I'm off for breakfast. Only goin a couple miles. Il be back soon." He said walking off into the woods. "Hey take a coat!" I said throwing his jacket at him. He took it and walked off. Matt soon emerged with a sleepy Annie. I came over and helped put her down by the fire. She was still half asleep. "Morning Annie. Hey! Come on you got to wake up!" I said into her ear. Her eyes snapped open and she hit me in the shoulder. I didn't flinch. "Nice to see your awake I said patting her head as she leaned into Matt. Jack came out of our tent fully dressed for a blizzard. He even brought me a sweater and my purple snow jacket. He helped me put them on and we sat by the fire. "What's for breakfast?" Annie asked finally woken up. "I don't know what ever dad brings back." I say petting jacks ears. "What about mike?" Matt said. "Let him sleep as long as he is able. Less time for our ears to die." I say laughing. Jack had pulled out his muffin container and selected a blueberry muffin. "By the way it's December first today." He said in mid chew. "That means its six days until your birthday!" I said hugging him. Six days for me to find a present. He gave me a bite of his muffin as I sat down next to him. "You still look tired." He said concerned. "I'll be fine." I said kissing him. "Nothing's killed me yet." I said getting up and heading to the forest. I could smell my dad coming with food. I met him about fifty feet in with a couple hunks of meat. "What are those?" I asked. "Well this ones a possum, and this ones a raccoon, and I think these two are rabbits." He said happily. "Ok then. Don't wake mike yet we're enjoying the peace" I said taking what i think were bunnies. as we walked back to camp. I threw a bunny to Matt and he impaled it on a stick. I took the other bunny and stuck it on a fist full of blades and held it over the fire. Dad did the same with the other two and soon we were eating breakfast.

"So I was thinking that while you guys explore everything that I could go help the loggers today. Just until lunch." I said in between bites of raccoon. "Yeah you can go. Just don't mess with the crazy ones with the chainsaws." My dad said getting up. It was almost nine and if mike wasn't woken up soon no food for him. My dad went to wake up mike and I headed towards my bike which I had parked a little closer to the camp. Jack had followed me. He helped me switch out my purple jacket and sweater for my leather jacket and he put my sparkly scarf on too. "I won't be gone long. If they don't need me I'll be right back." I promised giving him a hug. "And I'll be right here waiting for you." He said. I leaned up and kissed him. Just a couple seconds. I could smell something, and that something was mike. He was on his way to the bathroom and he found me kissing jack. But I got on my bike and road off. I hope jack doesn't have a hard time with him.