My mother's favorite thing to say before a beating was "hold still, this will only hurt for a minute." She lied. It always hurt for days.
But as Sabertooth saunters toward me, all six-foot-six of predatory muscle moving with casual confidence across the observation room floor, my pulse races with something that isn't fear. It's anticipation. For the first time in my life, I don't have to hold still and take it. I can fight back.
"It's such a shame, Sabertooth," I say, circling away from her approach, keeping the metal table between us. "We could have been friends. I was hoping we could even watch Star Wars, maybe build up a rapport."
Her amber eyes track my movement, pupils dilating slightly as she matches my steps with her own. "I hate sci-fi movies," she growls, suddenly lunging across the table.
Her clawed hand swipes lazily through the air where my throat was a split-second earlier. I barely dodge, feeling the rush of displaced air against my skin.
"Oh, you got some fight in you," she purrs, her elongated canines catching the red emergency light as she smiles.
"Sure," I reply, shifting my weight to the balls of my feet the way I've practiced thousands of times.
She moves faster than I expected, closing the distance between us in a blink. Her fist connects with my face in a thunderous impact. My head snaps back from the force, but instead of crumpling to the floor, I smile wide.
This is the moment I've been waiting for. I can finally test how my powers work in a real fight.
As her knuckles make contact with my cheekbone, I focus on that singular point of connection between us. I feel the velocity of my head moving backward, the burst of pain blooming across my face, and then, I push.
The sensation is strange, like rewinding a tape but only for that specific injury. The bruise forming on my face vanishes instantly, and for the briefest moment, an identical mark appears on Sabertooth's cheek.
"What the fuck was that?" she snarls, touching her face with genuine confusion.
I start laughing, the sound echoing off the walls of our crimson-lit prison. Something inside me snaps a little as I imagine all those years of beatings, all those broken bones and bruises. If only I'd had this power as a child.
"It's something beautiful, Sabertooth," I reply, still grinning as I wipe a trickle of blood from my lip.
She lunges at me again, her massive body crashing into mine with the force of a freight train. My back slams against the cold floor, knocking the wind from my lungs as she pins me down, her weight crushing my chest. Her face hovers inches from mine, hot breath reeking of violence.
"Oh no," I gasp sarcastically, struggling to breathe under her weight but still managing a smirk. "Was this whole rehabilitation thing just a joke then?"
Her amber eyes narrow, pupils contracting to dangerous slits. She leans closer, those deadly fangs just centimeters from my throat.
"No..." she whispers, her voice rough like sandpaper against stone. "But it's been a long time since I've killed..." One massive hand wraps around my throat. "And even longer since I've fucked."
"Sorry," I choke out, deliberately maintaining eye contact. "I don't fuck wannabe Wolverines."
Her face contorts with rage, nostrils flaring. "HOW DARE YOU!"
She extends her claws fully and drags them down my face in one vicious swipe. The sensation of skin parting under those razor-sharp weapons should be excruciating, but I'm ready this time. I focus intensely, feeling for that connection between injury and body, and the moment her claws make contact, I redirect the damage.
I laugh harder as her own face suddenly splits open in perfect parallel lines, blood welling up from wounds that should be on my skin. She recoils, momentarily releasing her grip on me as her hands fly to her face in shock.
"What the fuck?" she gasps, fingers coming away red with her own blood.
I seize the opportunity, bucking my hips and shoving her with all my strength. She rolls off me, more from surprise than my strength. I scramble to my feet, still laughing as I watch her wounds already beginning to close, her healing factor kicking in.
"You know," I say, wiping blood from my chin as we circle each other, "it's not too late. We could still be friends. I make a mean batch of popcorn for movie night."
Sabretooth laughs, a throaty sound that bounces off the walls as she wipes her healing face with the back of her hand. "Friendship's over, pretty boy. Who do you think turned off the lights?"
"Not you," I reply immediately. "You were locked up tight until…"
The door to the observation room slides open with a hydraulic hiss, flooding the crimson-bathed space with harsh fluorescent light from the hallway. Rogue stands silhouetted in the doorway, one gloved hand on her hip.
"Well, come on," she drawls, gesturing impatiently at Sabretooth. "We ain't got all night."
Before I can process what's happening, Sabretooth's massive arms wrap around me, lifting me off the ground in a bear hug that squeezes the air from my lungs. I feel her claws dig slightly into my sides as she hoists me up like a trophy.
"Found us a souvenir," Sabretooth grins, already moving toward the door.
"Nope! Don't fucking kidnap him!" Rogue barks, stepping forward with her hands raised. "He's not coming back to Genosha with us. Put him down."
Sabretooth's grip tightens possessively. "But he's funny," she whines like a child denied a toy. "And he's got a lot of fight in him."
I twist and struggle against her iron hold, kicking uselessly at air.
"Rogue!" I gasp out, still fighting to break free. "How could you betray us like this?"
Rogue's eyes meet mine, something unreadable flickering behind them. She tugs her glove tighter, a small smirk playing at the corner of her painted lips.
"Who knows, sugah?" she replies with a casual shrug. "Life's full of surprises."
Sabretooth holds me for a moment longer, her hot breath on my neck, before reluctantly lowering me to the ground. Her clawed hand lingers on my shoulder, almost possessive.
"If you ever end up in Genosha," she says, leaning close enough that I can feel her fangs graze my ear, "come find me. I bet I can show you a good time."
I take a step back, creating distance between us. "Yeah, right!"
Sabretooth turns to follow Rogue toward the door. Just before stepping through the threshold, she glances back at me over her shoulder, amber eyes gleaming with wicked amusement.
"Oh, then I guess I just imagined your boner pressing against me when I had you pinned to the floor," she purrs, voice dripping with satisfaction.
My eyes dart downward instinctively. Sure enough, my uniform does absolutely nothing to hide the obvious bulge tenting the fabric. My body's apparently decided that mortal danger is somehow a turn-on.
"Fuck."