9803/An Unexpected, but Familiar Visitor

An Unexpected, but Familiar Visitor
Date of Scene:	27 October 2019
Location:	Cabin In The Woods
Synopsis:	Aware that Wolfsbane has a place of her own closer to Xavier's now, Logan comes a-knockin' for some catching up.
Cast of Characters:	Wolverine, Wolfsbane

---

Wolverine has posed:
    Logan had been mostly keeping to himself for a short while now. Working on his own things, on his own time. Everyone knows that's how he is. The most common complaint about him has always been that he's prone to wandering, and for going off on his own. They say it makes him unreliable. Those who know him best know that's anything but the case. Those who are most like him understand that sometimes, you just need your space to work out your own demons.

    One such person would be Rahne.

    It's been a long time since he's had a chance to really sit down and share some time with the wolfgirl. He'd, of course, been keeping tabs on her, in a loose way. Logan can be accused of many, many things, but no one could accuse him of being a smothering type and keep a straight face. He's seen the girl go through her issues. Distance herself from the team and the Mansion. And now, here, in this cabin. Not far from his own, truth be told.

    And so, after he had stopped by the mansion to have a number of bladed trinkets removed from his bodily person, gotten a shower, and grabbed a six pack of beer, he had been heading home when he decided to take a slight detour.

    Standing outside the door, his adamantium laced knuckles lend weight and clarity to the knocking sound when they rap against the wood.

Wolfsbane has posed:
The interior of the cabin is silent, which sharpened hearing would soon pick up on. It could be deserted, if not for the fact there's some illumination coming from the other side of the walls and windows, and someone like Logan could tell something else: recent scents.

Wolfsbane is home, curled up on the sofa with a book she's in the midst of reading, a glass of water placed nearby. She's just in the middle of reaching for it when a firm sound at the door causes her to jump slightly. The Scot is still getting used to living in this new place, no doubt, getting used to what is and isn't nearby. The cabin is secluded enough within the woods that it's unlikely random people will just happen upon it, so if she's getting a visitor it's probably for a reason.

"Who is it?" she calls out, shifting to her feet.

Wolverine has posed:
    "It's me, kid. Your favorite neighbor," comes the gravelly voice of Logan from the other side of the door. Outside, he leans his husky, powerfully built body against the door frame. Lifting up his hand as if Rahne might be able to see it, he holds the six pack of beer aloft, and adds, "I brought a housewarming gift."

    It's a bit of a joke, really.

    Turning his gaze out across the lake, he breathes in a deep breath of the crisp, chill mountain and lake air. Resting his head against the doorframe, he adds, "It's been a minute since we talked. Figured I'd drop in. See how you're adjusting."

Wolfsbane has posed:
Trees nearby. Lake as well. It's got all the things around it that Rahne likes without the overpopulation of the big city. No noise. No foul odors. Just things that are more pure and natural.

And then...there is Logan. He brings with him a variety of things that can leave a person off-balance. There's his own scent. There's the smoking. The drinking. The often gruff attitude, the understanding that, at times, it's enough for him just to act the way he wants at a given time without other things influencing him. There's also the knowledge that he's been a vital part of what the X-Men do, and there's a lot of stuff he's taught her in the past that others could not hope to get across in ways she'd grasp. He's been there, done that, numerous times over, and can get things across in ways others can't.

Silence again from within, then the sound of the door unlatching can be heard. Oh, it wouldn't have stopped him if he really wanted in, but the furred face of the wolfen mutant shows in the doorway afterward as it opens a crack, a notable sniff or two following prior to her squinting. "Ye know I dinna drink, but Kurt might like some o' tha' later on." She also isn't great at picking up on a joke.

The door swings open further, allowing him entry. "But..come on in. We've no' spoken in a while noo, have we?" She watches him, seeking to determine the kind of mood he's come in. Now he can see the way the place is set up.

Wolverine has posed:
    When the door cracks open, she'll see the mutant himself. Freshly showered, from the looks and smell of it. His black hair is slicked back, still glossy and wet, and not yet dry enough to form itself into the wild, pointed mane that he's known for. He smells like soap. Plain soap. None of that fancy stuff that supposedly smells like "wolfclaws and foxglove" or anything like that. Plain deodorant, too, along with just a splash of cologne. Masculine, but muted. Used exceedingly sparingly, most likely to save his own nose. The sweet and aromatic scent of cigar tobacco or the pungent aroma of beer is only a mostly faded memory of something that lingers on by virtue of familiarity more than anything else. A spectre that just never leaves. The scent of blood is the same.

    As for his expression, it's mostly neutral. He looks passive, and at peace, but he isn't wearing a smile, either. Those piercing blue-green eyes look as sharp, but as haunted, as they ever have. Eyes that are far too old for the ruggedly handsome face that bears them. The eyes of mourner. They latch on to the wolfen mutant's own, and seem to never release them as he lifts from his perch.

    "Yeah, I'll be sure to leave the elf one or two. They're mostly for me to drink while you talk," He says, as he slips in past her, inside the cabin. Only then does his gaze drift from her, to take in the surroundings. He gives a tight lipped nod of approval, and mutters, "Not half bad. Kinda fancy, even. Can definitely tell that Kurt had a a hand in the decoratin'."

    Turning back to Wolfsbane, only now does Logan allow the vaguest hint of a smile to grace his thin lips. "So, how ya doin', anyway, kid?"

Wolfsbane has posed:
There are a few long moments where wider green eyes, the whites tinted yellow, stare back at Logan and the way he looks and smells. "Were ye on a..date?" Wolfsbane asks him, giving off enough of a surprised reaction that it's clear she wasn't expecting him to be there looking like that, regardless of whatever clothing he's in. As for her, she's barefoot in just a plain shirt with the familiar Xavier's 'X' on it, and a pair of shorts. The wolfen features are obvious in spite of the primarily human appearance.

She shuts the door behind him and is the first to break eye contact, which has just about always been the case sooner or later when he does /that/ thing with her, whether he's consciously thinking of it or not. The wolf in her knows what it means. "Ahh, there are a few other chairs, ye see. Kurt did all o' this after..well." She cuts herself off there, but was clearly about to go into detail about something.

Instead, she says as she stands near the kitchen area, "I've been, ye know, up an' doon." A pause, a returned smile there and gone. He's treated her well, maybe some tough love at times when she needed it, but he never did anything that would be considered out of bounds with their teaching. He always gave her just enough of what she needed to know to have a chance to do just a little better than the time before. "Whit about ye?"

Wolverine has posed:
    "A... what?"

    He sounds incredulous at the very thought of that. He even scoffs a little, though he cants his head to the side, his brows quirked into an expression of questioning, which is reflected in the veneer of his pale blue-green eyes. "No. Not a date. I just got back from a little tussle with the Hand. Had a lotta sharp, metal things stuck in me. Felt kinda dirty. Just... caught a shower is all."

    As for his attire, it's standard fare for him. Jeans that are faded nearly to white, worn threadbare, with frayed snags in the knees and thighs. Workboots that are stained with spots of motor oil, and still dusty with the remnants of being caked with mud at one point. A plain white tank top that's stretched across his muscular torso like a second skin, with an unbuttoned blue and gray patterned flannel shirt over it. Sleeves rolled up to his elbows, of course.

    Definitely not date attire.

    Apparently making himself at home, Logan strides across the living room area, and eases down at one corner of the overstuffed sofa, placing the beer on the floor by his foot. Retrieving a bottle, he pops a single claw to use to remove the cap, releasing a hiss of decompressed carbonation, along with the hoppy scent of the brew itself.

    "After?" He asks, one brow lifting curiously as she leaves that statement half unspoken. But, he doesn't press any further. Instead, he eases back, taking a moment to look her up and down. It's clear that he's not "checking her out" so much as assessing her state of being. Up and down, she says. He gives a nod of his head.

    "Up and down," He replies back to her own question about how he's been. Giving a tilt of his head to indicate that she should come sit with him, he continues speaking.

    "I've been keepin' a loose eye on you. Not watching, really. Just... keeping up. I figured I'd give you space, since you seemed to be searching for something in yourself. Just wonderin' how that's been going. You finding what you needed to find?"

Wolfsbane has posed:
Wolfsbane's water is still over there. Right. "Ahh, maybe no' a date, but.." She shakes her head quickly. Maybe she's not used to him showering before talking with her. The clothing sure doesn't look like datewear, but who knows what he'd consider appropriate for that sort of thing? An instinctive grimace follows. She knows, even if he heals rapidly from things, they still don't feel good when they happen.

The wolfen woman pays attention to the way he seems to claim the room whether meaning to give that impression or not - it could just be in her head - and the scent of the beer eventually reaches her sensitive nose. It's not as bad as cigarette smoke, and even if she doesn't like smoking in general...cigar smoke is not always so bad in comparison.

"Ye know Kurt an' I had been seeing each other, an' I moved oot tae Mutant Town, then," she clarifies. "An' there have been some problems wi' all tha'." Something of an understatement. She comes closer by a couple steps.

Wolverine has posed:
    "Right. I noticed when ya moved out. Like I said, I didn't wanna try to stop you," He says, as he lifts the dark brown bottle to his lips and takes a sip of the beer. Then, he places the bottle down on the table beside the sofa, wiping his lips on the back of his hand. "I figured you were trying to grow. This place... as good as it is... it has a way of swallowing you whole. The team... the mission... the mansion and all that comes with it... It can be hard to feel like an individual. You can lose your sense of self. I think for people like you and me? That's easy to fall in to. We... we're a different breed. We need our space. So I get it."

    He tilts his head to one side, a few errant locks of wet, raven black hair falling over his brow, draped across the bridge of his aquiline nose. His eyes narrow keenly. Not in anger or malice, but as he studies her expressions and movements. A crease forms in the center of his forehead as he scowls, but his lips curl into a faint smile nonetheless.

    "The elf is a good one," He assures, but he looks around at the place that they're in, and says, "He's got a heart of gold, and is veritably a saint. But I'm really hopin' that this isn't the equivalent of the whole "Our marriage isn't working so let's have a kid" thing. That'd be embarrassing."

    Turning his attention back to Rahne, his gaze softens, and he adds, "So... are you doing better? Is this... better?"

    It's not a pointed question with a predetermined answer that he's decided already. No. It's a genuine thing. A true question and invitation for her to talk to him and be herself, without expectation, judgment or pretense.

Wolfsbane has posed:
Wolfsbane guides a hand up to the back of her head and neck, one of those self-conscious little tics she has when she starts to rub back there. "See, it's like..like, I was starting tae feel tha' way, like trying tae be an X-Man is no' for me. Once th' first class o' New Mutants graduated, some o' us went on tae be X-Men, some o' us started teaching th' newer students, but.." She hesitates when it comes to what to say next, but she does approach the sofa enough to rest a hand against the side.

"I felt like I needed tae try tae live muh own life, an' I thought I could help some people better oot there. But I just started feeling isolated." In other words, she left the pack but realized she still needed it in some way. "Then some bad things happened an' I started tae hide within muhself, an' nothing Kurt was trying tae do helped me feel better." She glances away from him studying a couple of the paintings for a spell.

"An' he's a verra nice person, an' cares a lot, an'...did ye say have kids?" This interrupts her train of thought enough for her to stare at him unblinkingly, as if the very concept is a foreign one.

Wolverine has posed:
    "Yeah."

    The only thing Logan says, when she bares the feelings she had when she left. He knows that feeling well. Too well. Even now, after all this time, he still struggles with feeling like he belongs in the X-Men. Like even though he's a part of the pack, he still stands alone from it.

    "You needed to grow a bit. Get some independence. It's a good thing. But the world can be hard and lonely, and... family is a bastion in the cold. You can find yourself, and live your own life, though. Even in the middle of all of it. And it's important. I think it might even be more important for people like us. There's a side to us that needs to be considered. A side that needs freedom. A certain quality in our souls that can't be tamed for too long. It feels like a cage, after awhile. Even if it's not."

    He gives a grunt that serves as a chuckle when she interrupts herself with the comment on kids. He shakes his head, lifting his beer and taking another sip of it before clarifying. "I didn't mean... I mean this cabin. A lot of couples out there will be struggling, and things aren't working out for them, so they make drastic decisions. Most often it's have a kid. Or get a puppy. Or... get a house together."

    He looks around at the cabin they find themselves in again, before shrugging his broad shoulders. "It was mostly a joke, anyway. Don't worry your head about it."

Wolfsbane has posed:
Wolfsbane's other hand joins the first at the sofa's armrest. "Maybe, but I'm no' sure whit I need yet. I thought I needed tae do something different, then I just felt alone. I learned I need others around, but no' all th' time, an' no' far enough away tha' visiting is a bother. Maybe I should ha' looked intae a thing like this first." She gestures to the cabin itself.

His words about needing that freedom and not feeling caged rings true, realized through a few slow nods of understanding, agreement. "Aye, an'..oh." A sigh of relief follows as her misinterpretation of what he meant about the place is explained. "Well, we..had a long talk. I think he came tae break up, because he couldna make me happy, but after we talked about a few things...here we are." And, Kurt's scent is in the cabin, even if it's not as strong or fresh.

Wolverine has posed:
    "Sounds like you've got it mostly figured out already. Maybe more than you realize," Logan says plainly, easing his head back on the sofa, resting it there and letting his gaze rise up to fall on the wolfish mutant woman. "Being a part of the X-Men is... a part of who we are. But it ain't meant to be the whole of it. When you let it become that, you get Scott."

    A bit of wry humor, that. There's the faintest hint of a smile playing at one corner of his lips, and a faint twinkle in his eye.

    "We need balance. We need to do things that are just us. Nothing more. Just our own thing. To have a life that isn't just the Mansion and the Mission. Everyone does. But that doesn't mean it's not home, and that it's not family."

    He places his beer between his thighs, and gives a careless shrug. "Now, you just have to find what it is that you, Rahne Sinclair, want to do with your life, just for you. Take up some hobbies. Paint. Play guitar. Take some cooking classes, or a pottery course. Everything will fall into place for you. You're young, still. And even old, bitter men like me ain't got it all figured out."

    He does smell Kurt, of course. He also sees his imprint on the place, as elegantly rustic as it is. It looks as if Rahne might have picked out the decor, but Kurt did the actual interior design. Or something. Too much flare. That is all elf, right there.

    "I'm glad you were able to work it out. Like I said, the elf is a good one. Not many like him out there. You could do a lot worse."

Wolfsbane has posed:
Wolfsbane's path brings her closer to the front of the sofa now, close enough to reach for her water. The book, which is closed, is some generic high fantasy story, the sort of thing Logan would probably never be caught reading.

"Th' only thing I've figured oot is maybe this is more home than I thought, though I need muh space from it while still being close enough tae help if I'm needed. I still dinna know whit I'm gaunae do next. Just get used tae being back around here first, I suppose," she explains, gesturing with her free hand, palm up, the water in her other one for a sip.

"An' I like tae read, an' draw, an' I'm happier around th' woods an' ootdoors again without a bunch o' noisy cars and smelly people everywhere. Every night, I heard things in th' apartment next tae mine." One guess what, given her frown. Ahh, paper-thin walls.

The hand lowers. "But ye're verra good a' whit ye do. I've learned a lot, but there's still a lot more I dinna know. Anything one o' th' students could learn from me, they can learn from ye better." She'd know from personal experience. It doesn't hit her that this fact may not be the ultimate point. A mere nod follows regarding Kurt, an admission following. "He's verra nice, an' we do have some things in common. But it's also easy for us tae go tae bad places in our heads an'..get stuck in them."

Wolverine has posed:
    "You and me, kid? We've had different experiences. We have different outlooks, and we see things in different ways," Logan says, after taking a long moment to reflect on Rahne's deference to him, in terms of what she could contribute to teaching. His massive shoulders rise and fall in a shrug. "Even if you an' me were teaching the same things, you'd still have value to put forth into the effort. Don't forget that. It ain't all about experience. We ain't trying to teach kids what to do so much as we're trying to teach kids how to find their own way. Having those differing ways of looking at the same act or the same problem? That's invaluable."

    Logan allows himself to offer up a small, soft smile. A tender thing that always seem so alien when it's worn on this visage of masculine ruggedness. "I know what you mean, though. Obviously. My cabin is just a bit up the road from you, here. The woods, nature, wildlife... The sounds and smells of it. That's home to people like you an' me. We're more connected to it. Because we're wild things, you an' me. We're animals as much as we are people. But I'll tell ya this... you think what you dealt with in your apartment was bad? Next time I make a trip out to Madripoor, you should tag along."

    A chuckle escapes him at that. He lowers his gaze to his beer, clasped loosely between his thighs, before he lifts it to take a deep, long drink. After he lowers the nearly empty bottle, he says, "Well, feedback loops are a thing. Feeding off of each other's darkness... creating a toxic spiral... It can be real tough. Sometime I'll tell you about my ex..."

    A moment of thought, and he adds, "You could get away, though. Spend a few weeks up in Northern Saskatchewan. Nothing but miles and miles of forest. Just the wolves, and the deer. It's what I do in my dark periods. Turn off the man for a couple of weeks. Run with the wolves. Reconnect with something pure and honest."

Wolfsbane has posed:
Wolfsbane's expression seems to relent, as if she understands Logan may be right about different perspectives on teaching the same things. Some people may be more receptive to one form of instruction than another, or an approach that isn't the same. "Ye may be right."

Rather than returning to the sofa, she crouches a few feet away from it. Looks comfortable enough, for someone with a feral nature. Her features turn cloudier at the suggestion surrounding Madripoor and she answers flatly, "I'll take yuir word for it on tha'. But..th' more I go around like this, th' more I feel like I understand th' other side o' me. I used tae be afraid o' it an' hide from it, but no' for a while. I know Kurt doesna have a choice in tha', though."

A glance down at her claws is had. They'd be so easy to use to cut through flesh, even bone. Her fangs and jaws? Strong enough to bite into and tear flesh apart. Wolf would do things like that. Human..not so much. But, her instincts have not normally been that wild. Yet, there's a balance, an itch to scratch, a side to satisfy. "We were actually thinking, Kurt an' I, o' spending a wee bit o' time around Germany an' Scotland, maybe go tae places we're familiar wi'."

Wolverine has posed:
    "I typically am," Logan responds to her admitting that he might be on to something. He does offer a lopsided grin, however, indicating that it wasn't a serious moment of total narcissism. His face softens, however, as she speaks about spending more time in her hybrid form. "This is a good look on ya, Rahne. It's maybe the truest you. You're both woman and wolf. Two parts of you, and like this? You're equally both. Ain't no use in running from it, or hiding from it. It's you. And it isn't something scary. A wolf is a noble creature. A part of nature. It's not cruel. It's not monstrous. It's pure. It doesn't play games, and it doesn't pretend to be anything other than a wolf, despite all the old tales about wolves in sheeps' skins."

    When she mentions taking a sabbatical to explore places like Germany and Scotland, Logan gives a nod of his head. Lifting his beer, he finishes the last of it before setting the empty bottle back in the six pack carton. "That'd be a good idea, I think. It'd be a nice trip, if nothin' else. You should do it."

    Rising up from his seat, The Wolverine lifts his pack of beer, and plucks one of the full bottles from it, setting it on the table. "I should get goin', though. A present for the elf. If ya ever need to get away, need to talk... need to just be, or whatever, Rahne... I'm just up the hill. Head up towards the campgrounds, and ya can't miss the way to my place. It's pretty obvious."

Wolfsbane has posed:
"I know, an' it took me a while tae reach this point. Noo I dinna even like tae go away from it unless I really have tae for some reason," Wolfsbane explains. Might be a reason she tried Mutant Town. She could fit in there, the way she came to see herself. It didn't work, but not for that reason.

She explains, "I..think I know how it is for ye, though. Ye have these times where ye're fighting wi' yuirself, an' ye have tae be verra careful about yuir control. I have some feelings sometimes, but usually tha's no' a big problem for me. It's th' hardest when I'm angry, or no' thinking straight. Being able tae clear muh thoughts a bit helps a lot."

The trip idea does sound good to her, and she nods to his agreement of such. When he gets to his feet and expresses that it's time to be moving on, she nods and steps aside to give him room. "I'll make sure he gets it, an'..maybe sometime we should do a few o' th' things we used tae, when ye were teaching me about muhself." She doesn't, however, move as if to offer a hug or anything. She hasn't known him to be too touchy-feely in the past, but it may depend. It's also been a while.

Wolverine has posed:
    "Yeah, well... the beast inside of me, it ain't always so noble... It's savage and it fights dirty. Control is... necessary," Wolverine admits, with a rolling shrug of one shoulder. Something in his expression shifts. It's something subtle. A change in the look in his eyes. Maybe a deepening of the creases in his brow. It's like the shadows cling to the hollows of his face more sharply. He looks haunted by the thoughts of his own bestial nature. Of the thing he becomes when he does lose his control.

    And he should be. Everyone should be afraid of that thing. That unstoppable machine of rage and metal and teeth.

    "Yeah, sure, we can do some tracking and hunting. We have some coyotes up in the hills, too. Like I said, my door's open for you. Just swing on by."

    He doesn't move in for a hug or any sort of physical contact. He just stands there for a moment, letting his eyes tick up and down the length of her before giving a nod of his head. Striding towards the door, he opens it and turns around. "Have a good night, Rahne. Good to have you home."