To Catch a Fox

Authors Note/Disclaimer:
I do not own the X Men or the fictional universe they live in. This is a work of fan fiction. I’m just borrowing them for my own amusement and yours. I am making no money from this.

Please tell me what you think by posting a review or emailing me at ginevrasn@yahoo.com. Put AFF in the subject line if you do so, so I don’t delete it by mistake. I do not have a beta to proof for me, so don’t be shy. I am currently rough drafting Chapter Twelve, which I expect to be the final chapter.

Warnings: There will be some M/F sex in later chapters. There will also be some violence and a smattering of profanity.

Chapter Three: Pursuit

As always, Logan was the last to sleep and the first to wake. He dressed quietly, careful not to wake his companions and slipped outside to scout around. When he returned, Kit was awake. She was quietly sorting through the supplies and carefully stowing them in the sled.

“I think the youngster’s sweet on you.” He held up the carcasses of two freshly killed rabbits. In his other hand he held the plate he had left outside. Kit turned to look over her shoulder.

“You may be right.” She pushed back a lock of hair, and in the dim light Logan could see it was more than half white now. She gave a small smile. “Rabbit for breakfast?”

“Be a shame to waste it.” Logan grinned and went to work dressing the carcasses and setting them to roast over the fire.

Kit continued her work, carefully dividing the supplies between a stack at the edge of the cave and the sled. She had already replaced the burned out candles around the room with fresh ones. When Remy stirred she stopped and crouched beside him, laying a hand on his cheek to check his temperature. He mumbled something in his sleep and Kit took her hand away.

“How’s he doing?”

“Fine. Temperature’s back to normal. He’s strong and healthy.” She reached to brush a lock of hair from his face. “I’ll watch him more closely now. You’re right, not an ounce of fat on him – no insulation at all. Like sleeping next to a furnace.” She rose and returned to her work.

By the time Remy woke up, the cave was filled with the scent of roasting meat and more warm cider. The sled was packed and waited outside the cave and Kit had already repacked his pack, except for the bedding he’d been using.

“Good Morning.” Kit offered him some cider but he waved it away. He had a more pressing need to attend to and he braved the cold to find a convenient bush.

“Watch your step.” Logan admonished as he passed.

Remy wandered a short distance from the cave and stepped off the trail for a bit of privacy. After taking care of his business, he lit a cigarette and strolled a little further, enjoying the view of the forest that lay below the outcropping. He was startled when what looked like solid rock turned out to be nothing more than loose snow and he began to pitch forward.

He was stopped from falling headlong into a ravine by a hand grasping the back of his parka. He heard a grunt of effort behind him and there was a stomach clenching moment when his unseen friend seemed to slide with him. Then he was pulled backwards away from the edge.

“Thanks, mon ami.”

He turned, expecting to see one of his companions behind him. Instead he was face to face with a stranger. The man…no boy… looked to be about fourteen or fifteen, his skin was a shade darker than Kit’s and his long braided hair was mottled gray and white. His slim figure was dressed in fur and leather. The boy smiled and raised a finger to his lips. Before Remy could speak again, he backed away and disappeared behind a tree.

A few moments later he heard a strange yipping noise, almost like laughter. He could make out something furry moving through the undergrowth back the way he had come. Cursing under his breath he headed back to the trail, watching his footing carefully. The yipping rang through the trees as he trudged back to the cave.

“What the hell is so funny?” Logan scowled as he scanned the trees outside the cave and spotted Remy on his way back. The strange noise had brought Jean and Scott out as well.

“Damned if I know.” Kit sounded irritated as she turned on her heel making a full circle. She stopped and stared at a spot above the cave entrance.

“Scott! Look!” Jean spotted it first and nudged Scott. A large animal sat watching them from its perch above the cave entrance. Its ears and tail were held high and it actually seemed to be grinning at them. Its coat was white with a gray mottling on its head and shoulders.

“It’s huge! Is that one of your foxes Kit?” Scott spoke quietly as he tried to estimate the animal’s size. Even if he subtracted for the animal’s winter coat, it had to mass as much as Kit, maybe even as much as Jean.

“He’s not mine.” Kit stepped closer to the animal’s perch and the fox yipped again, tail wagging. “But yeah. That’s one of ‘em. About three quarters grown, I’d say.” Kit cocked her head to the side and spoke again, this time in an unfamiliar language. The fox looked at her intently, then barked at her sharply and turned to bound away quickly.

“Smart ass.” She muttered as she turned around. Remy walked up to stand at her elbow.

“What did you say to him?”

“He’s gonna get his damn self shot.” She looked up at Remy sideways. “I don’t suppose you know what had him so full of himself?”

“I wish I could help you, cher.” He shrugged innocently. “Is there any breakfast left?”

Remy was given precious little time to eat. Kit was adamant that they needed to make up for lost time. They would be taking the sled in case they needed it again and it would allow them to take part of the cache of food stuffs. Logan insisted that he could pull it without slowing anyone down. Kit took him at his word and they set off as soon as Remy was finished.

After the previous days near disaster, Kit made a point of checking each one of them whenever they stopped. Shortly after noon, they stopped just long enough for a hot meal. This cave too held a cache of supplies, albeit a smaller one and a fire pit. They stayed just long enough to warm their bones before taking off again.

“How many of these places do you have, Kit?” Logan gestured at the neat pile of supplies beneath a tarp.

“Quite a few. Any time I find a good den site I stock it, just in case I need it sometime. I don’t use this one so often.” She wrinkled her nose as she kicked some leaves and other debris out of the entrance.

“I don’t understand how you get so much stuff out here.” Jean commented.

“I bring it out a bit at a time during the warmer months. This stuff keeps for years.”

When they set out again, they found the trees had thinned. Remy and his companions enjoyed the view, but Kit seemed jumpy. They had been traveling over an hour when Logan called a halt. He gestured for silence as he listened to something in the distance.

“Chopper.” He explained and scanned the sky.

“Off the trail.” Kit ordered, motioning Logan to pull the sled back into the tree line. “Go.” She turned and pressed Jean and Scott back towards the trees. Remy didn’t wait to be told twice. He could feel her panic and responded without thinking.

“Wait a minute...” Scott began to argue.

“That’s not Search and Rescue!” Kit glared at him. “Get out of sight. Now!”

“She’s right, Slim. Military. Let’s go!” Logan was already heading toward the trees.

Scott relented and retreated with Jean in tow. They waited tensely under the thin screen of trees as the sound of rotors grew closer. The helicopter flew into sight, flying low. It was black and bore no visible markings. Logan cursed quietly.

“Jean?” Scott spoke quietly.

“They’re looking for us. How did they find us out here?” The woman raised a hand to her temples and she closed her eyes in concentration.

“I don’t know. Guess we were recognized in town. I’ll try to get a shot off when they come closer.” Scott reached for his glasses.

“Who are you people?” Kit crept forward and unzipped her parka.

“Never you mind about that right now, darlin.’” Logan shrugged out of the sled harness and moved closer to Jean and Scott’s position. Remy approached on the other side, reaching for the deck of cards in his pocket.

The helicopter came in low enough to whip the tree branches, obviously following the trail. Scott tensed as he waited for his shot. All eyes were on the helicopter as Kit pulled her scarf out of her parka.

“This wasn’t part of the deal.” The helicopter was low enough now that they could see the pilot through the window. Without warning, Kit flipped her scarf across Scott’s face and pulled him backwards with all her weight. “I can’t let you do that.”

Scott staggered under her weight and there was a brief scuffle as both Remy and Logan moved to pull her off. Scott’s glasses were knocked to the ground and Kit kicked them under a bush before they managed to pin her down in the snow.

“Get off of me!” Kit squirmed and kicked and her parka slipped off in their hands. She rolled away but Logan snatched her around the waist and held her tightly.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Scott was furious. He waited with eyes closed for Jean to locate his glasses. Meanwhile, the helicopter pulled away, the sound fading into the distance.

“I can’t let you do that. They don’t know we’re here.” Kit slammed her head back into Logan’s face, which turned out to be a mistake as bone met adamantium. She was momentarily stunned and Logan lowered her to her feet. “We can’t take the risk.” Kit staggered a moment before regaining her balance.

“They already know we here, petit.” Remy offered her the discarded parka. The girl snatched it from him angrily.

“The deal’s off. I’m outta here.” Kit turned her back on them and grabbed her pack off of the sled.

“Wait a minute! We paid you good money to guide us.” Scott moved to stop her, blocking the trail.

“Your money’s no good here.” Kit dug inside her pocket and pulled out a battered envelope and threw it at his feet. “Turn around and go back the way you came.” She settled her pack on her back and sidestepped him. Remy could still sense the fear behind her anger as she stopped in front of him.

“Come with me. Two can travel faster.” Her knuckles were white where they gripped the straps of her pack.

“Non. Remy don’ leave his friends, cher.” He shook his head.

“Good luck then.” She paused to scan the sky and the forest around them. “Better get moving or you won’t make it.” She walked off, not toward the trail but deeper into the forest. In a few seconds she had vanished from sight. Scott moved to follow her, but Jean halted him with a hand on his arm.

“We should go. Now.” Jean’s tone was urgent. “Her thoughts are clear now. She thinks she’s leaving us to die. The foxes will not let us pass once they realize she’s left us.”

“I’ve had enough of her ‘people of the forest’ shit. She may believe it, but I don’t. We’ve seen one animal and heard a few weird noises. No people, no shape shifters, nothing!”

“Speak for yourself, mon ami.” Remy pulled out a cigarette and lit it to cover his nervousness. Something in the back of his mind told him he should be following the girl, not standing in the open.

“What?”

“De youngster at de spring, he change. He save Remy a nasty tumble, maybe even save his life.”

“And you didn’t tell us?”

“No.” Remy shrugged and took a long drag on his cigarette. “He save my life and all he wan’ is Remy to keep a secret. What de harm in dat?” Scott opened his mouth to argue, but he was interrupted.

“Scott. When she said ‘we’, I don’t think she meant us at all.” Jean tugged at his sleeve and once she had his attention, she pointed.

Two giant foxes, larger than the one they’d seen before stood at the edge of the clearing watching them. Logan sniffed the air and turned around slowly to study the forest around them

“There’s more we can’t see.”

“How many?”

“Not sure. They keep movin’.”

“Jean?”

“I have trouble reading them, but there are definitely more.”

“Mebbe they’ll move if we do.” Logan moved slowly toward the pair they could see. The larger of the two growled a warning. “Or maybe not.”

“A few shots should scatter them.”

“Think that wise? Don’ know how many there are an’ they been almost friendly until now.” Remy carefully extinguished his cigarette and pulled out one of his collapsible staves.

“They’re waiting for something.” Jean looked around again. “I can sense Kit. She’s angry.” The forest began to come alive with sound: a chaotic mix of shrieking, yipping, and barking. The two foxes that blocked their way stood still, ears erect and twitching to follow each sound.

There was a commotion further up the trail, and now they could hear growling and Kit’s voice shouting.

“Let me go! Have you fucking lost your minds? Goddamn it!” Two more foxes were literally dragging the girl backwards by the fabric of her parka. More foxes emerged from the trees to stand at the edges of the clearing. She continued to curse, changing mid sentence to the same dialect she’d used to scold the youngster at the spring. She struggled and was hampered by the weight of the pack on her back.

“Should we do something?” Jean asked.

“Wait.” Logan advised, looking at the animals around them. “She ain’t hurt none.”

The foxes continued to pull at her and a third came forward to tug on her pack. She staggered under the extra weight and fell hard. One of the foxes lost its grip on her parka and she managed to slip one arm out of the pack straps before it caught her up again.

“Five fucking years and not a one of you has stepped foot outside! Don’t you understand? They’ll get you killed or worse.” She kicked at one of the foxes and it yelped. “Tail and chase won’t save you from soldiers and automatic machine guns you idiots!” By now the foxes were less than ten feet away, the girl still struggling in their grip.

“I know you understand me!” Kit made a heroic effort to gain her footing again. “One of you bastards had better talk to me!” Suddenly the foxes released her clothing and gear and the largest one shouldered her into the snow. She fell sprawling and the strap of her pack finally snapped and it rolled once before stopping at Remy’s feet.

“Welcome back, cher.” Remy took a step closer, gripping his staff tightly.

“Fuck you.” Kit panted and tugged angrily at her parka.

“Tsk. Tsk. Such language.”

“What’s going on?” Scott had traded his glasses for his visor and drew a bead on the large fox that now approached slowly. It was male and it gave the impression of age.

“I’ve been overruled. And I want to know why.” Kit growled as she stood slowly. She pulled off her parka and tossed it on top of her pack. “What the hell are you doing?” She addressed her comment directly to the fox that now stood in front of her. He stopped a few feet away and stared her down.

“Talk to me, damn you!” The fox stepped forward and she backed up a step. “As far as the outside world is concerned, you’re the same as them! Mutants!” Kit waved a hand at Remy and the others. “They’re not going to be scared by fireside tales and spooky noises. They’ll come in with helicopters and guns and God only knows what else!”

The fox only stepped closer, forcing her to retreat further.

“What do you want from me?” Kit stood, fists balled at her sides and refused to retreat any more. “Answer me!” The fox sat and stared at her, then rose and turned as if to leave. “Why you son of a bitch! I know you understand me you half-breed son of a coyote.” The animal turned in a flash and leapt on Kit, knocking her to the ground with a snarl, his teeth at her throat. The girl froze.

“Remy think he understan’ dat.” The fox growled again, slowly closing his teeth on the flesh of her neck. When Scott stepped forward, several foxes moved in closer, hackles raised. For a moment neither fox nor man moved.

Kit whimpered and Remy stepped closer, locking gazes with the old fox. He growled louder and Kit winced as the teeth closed tighter. Again Remy was aware of the girl’s emotions, pain, fear, shock, and an overwhelming sense of betrayal.

“Enough.” Remy extended his staff and pushed at the fox’s shoulder, bracing himself for an attack. The fox tensed and snarled, crouching lower over Kit’s prone form. “Let her go.” Remy pushed harder. Kit’s face was ashen. She raised her hands to press against the beast’s shoulders. The fox snarled once more, then released her, backing away slowly. Remy advanced until he stood beside the girl. He raised his staff.

“Remy! Don’t.” Kit gasped as she sat up slowly, resting her elbows on her knees and rubbing her neck. The fox had stopped and stood watching Remy, his hackles raised. Remy reached down cautiously to help her stand. The girl took a few deep breaths and then spoke again. “If you want me to do this, I need help. I can’t lead them and cover our trail. There’s not enough time.”

The old fox seemed to relax and nodded deliberately at her. The other foxes had begun to retreat, melting into the forest. He gave a series of short barks and several others answered him. The two that had been blocking the trail to their rear turned and trotted out of sight. The old one barked once more at Kit, then turned and walked away down the trail and quickly disappeared from sight.