A Bottle Can't Hold You

AN: No beta, as usual. Feel free to point out errors. And as usual, I’ll respond personally to any and all reviews. Good critiques are absolutely essential to the progression of this story, so please keep them coming.

Chapter 7: Massage

“Get up, Elf.”

That voice was never good.

Kurt cracked his eyes open to find himself staring at a pile of his own vomit. The fur on his face was caked with it as well. It felt disgusting, the extra insult to top off the injuries from the cannons’ barrage.

“Come on, up. Ain’t waiting around all day for you to have naptime.”

With a groan, Kurt braced his hands against the ground and began to push up…

And fell back down, writhing on the cold floor as his severely bruised abdominal muscles began to spasm in protest. He counted himself lucky that the turrets hadn’t aimed for his face, and hoped he hadn’t cracked any ribs.

A gentle pair of hands on his shoulders stilled him, and as they looped under his arms and lifted, he was extremely grateful. Kurt was certain he would never have been able to make it to his feet alone; even now, he was leaning heavily on his benefactor, one arm wrapped around her shoulder.

Tabby looked over at him, smiling as she put her hand around his hips to give him extra stability. She had tried to wipe away the evidence of her tears, but had only succeeded in leaving little black streaks across her face like badly applied war paint. It was oddly cute.

The sight of Logan, however, was very much not cute. He was striding around, roughly pulling the recruits who were just regaining consciousness to their feet. Jamie took a flying tumble and wound up dazed on the floor again, staring at a multiple on either side of him.

When all the students were standing, Wolverine began to speak.

“What in the hell was that?” he snarled. “Crispy, you went lights out thirty seconds in! Ice Cube, Sparky, you spent so much time trying to protect each other that you didn’t look out for yourselves!”

Angry at being lectured, Ray crossed over to face Logan, looming over the older man. “Hey, now hold on a fucking second, man! This was a bullshit exercise and you know it! You can’t just expect us to wake up at the asscrack of dawn and jump around with no powers like we’re a bunch of fucking lab rats!”

Logan stared back at him, unfazed. “Bullshit? This is life, bub. Or did you forget this place has already been attacked, blown up, and shot to hell half a dozen times?”

Berzerker snorted. “Whatever, old man. I’m going back to bed.” As he walked past Logan, he moved to shoulder the smaller mutant aside.

That was a mistake.

In a flash, Wolverine had Ray in a chokehold, legs splayed out and made useless by a perfectly placed blow to a nerve cluster. Berzerker was being choked by his own weight.

“I could kill you like this, bub. And this is just a simple hold. I know at least three different ways to get out of it. Do you know any of ’em?”

Sputtering and choking, Ray struggled in vain to free himself. At least the headstrong mutant knew enough not to electrocute Logan; that would be inviting pain beyond belief.

Logan released his grip, leaving Berzerker to drop on the floor, both legs sprawled out in front of him.

The silence was broken only by Ray’s shuddering gasps for air.

“Half-Pint and Stripes had the right idea, covering each other and sticking close. That’s how you survive. You watch each other’s backs, and you watch yourself.”

Logan strode over to Cyclops. “For a prime example of how to fuck that up royally, take your so-called team leader here. Scooter, the second you saw cover, you ran for it, and when you did, you left your teammate out in the rain. You didn’t even tell him about the container, for Christ’s sake! And you’re supposed to be in charge of leading these kids? No wonder your own teammates knocked you out; if you pulled that shit with me in a real combat situation, I’d frag you myself.”

Kurt and Tabitha were next to be fixed with Wolverine’s gaze. “Firecracker, you froze. In the real world, that gets you killed. Chances are pretty good there won’t be a little blue elf around to take the bullets for you.”

Boom-Boom’s head lowered in shame, and Kurt could see her fighting back more tears. She was usually so strong; why did this have her upset to the point of crying?

“Elf, you acted most like a leader out of anybody here. You thought it all through and found a way to keep your teammates safe. But for the love of God, leave the martyr business to someone who can walk away from it afterward. And if you’re gonna be dumb and play hero anyway, use your back, not your gut.”

A wince was all Kurt could manage when he tried to respond verbally; he settled for a nod. Useful advice, if a bit late. He leaned a bit more heavily on Tabby and hoped that Logan would be done soon. His body felt like a mass of throbbing bruises, and even standing was extremely painful.

“One last thing: Red, come over here.”

Jean walked over to Logan, and he whipped something thin and black from behind his back and latched it around her neck. Jean’s eyes bulged, a keening noise coming from her wide-open mouth.

“Some coincidences, I can overlook. Shades might have just gotten lucky and looked over at the container. Not likely, but possible. But I know for a fact that those cannons don’t shoot curveballs.” He gave her a grim smile. “You’re supposed to be pretty bright, Red, but it looks to me like you’re a real slow learner. I said no powers, and I meant it.”

Clutching her head, Jean began to sob at the sudden deprivation of her telepathy.

“Collar comes off when I think you’ve learned your lesson.” With this, Wolverine walked away from her and addressed the rest of the students.

“This was a wakeup call for all of you.” Logan said. “Vacation’s over. From now on you do real training. Now everybody get your asses out of here, except Firecracker and the Elf. They’re gonna clean up his mess.”

Defeated, the mass of students filed out, Scott consoling Jean as best he could, Logan bringing up the back of the pack to be sure everyone exited. When they were alone, Tabby turned to face Kurt.

“Uh, Blue?” she began, “I kind of want to… well, thank you for what you did back there. I mean, god, that must have hurt like hell.” She shifted, pulling at the back of her hair with the thumb and forefinger of her free hand. “Look, you just go ahead and pop up to your room so you can clean up. I’m gonna finish up here, and then I want to come up and visit you. Just so I can take care of you a little bit, y’know?”

Kurt murmured his thanks, releasing Tabby and teleporting straight to his room, where he collapsed facedown on his bed.

Vertical teleports were always more taxing on Kurt’s energy reserves, but it was still far better than having to crawl upstairs with the bruises. And he most certainly would have had to crawl; there was no way he could possibly walk at the moment.

Rolling his way off of the bed, he began scooting on his back towards the bathroom, thankful that the professor had seen fit to give the older students their own private bathrooms when the mansion had been rebuilt. The one thing Kurt despised most of all was pity, and anyone who saw him in this position would do nothing but pity him.

Kurt didn’t bother to lock the bathroom door; he had recently taken to keeping his bedroom door locked and teleporting in and out to keep any snoopers from invading his privacy. The only person who could easily circumvent that was Kätzchen, and Kurt trusted her not to enter his room when he wasn’t around.

Taking hold of the edge of the tub, Kurt managed to hoist himself to his feet. The tiled walls supported him as he climbed in, and held him upright when he leaned against them. Still, when he reached for the faucet, he fell to his knees as another wave of spasms wracked his stomach. He sighed. At least his showerhead was removable.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Half an hour later, Kurt emerged from his bathroom, wrapped only in a towel. His fur was still damp, as usual; he never could dry off all the way without a long stay under a blow dryer. His sheets could dry him the rest of the way.

Climbing into his bed, he pulled off the towel and slid gingerly under the covers, glad that he could go back to sleep for at least a few hours before starting his Sunday morning.

As he began settling in to sleep, his hand stretched out and touched something warm, which snuggled in closer in response.

Then a hand began stroking back and forth along his tail.

Jerking back to wakefulness, he looked over to see who had invaded his bed, and found blond hair and sparkling blue eyes peeking out from under his covers.

“Tabby? What are you—”

“Shhh!” The tip of a finger pressed itself to his lips. “I told you I’d be coming by, Blue. I waited, but you were taking a while, so I just hopped in here and took a little nap.”

“How did you even get in?” he whispered back.

The blue eyes got a mischievous twinkle. “You’re not the only one who knows how to pick a lock.”

Kurt relaxed, not wanting to argue further. He lay back and closed his eyes, comforted somewhat by another presence in his bed.

“Kurt?”

He opened his eyes. “You know, I think that’s one of the first times I’ve heard you use my real name.”

“Yeah, I… don’t like using ’em. One more way to keep from getting attached, I guess. I don’t think about it much anymore, really. It just happens.”

“I can understand that.”

“And about this morning… I want to thank you again.”

“It’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”

“No, seriously. I saw the turrets coming and I just… froze. I couldn’t move at all. I was so scared. And it was like you came out of nowhere to save me. You even let them shoot you to keep me safe. Nobody’s ever cared about me like that.” She took a shuddering breath, eyes glistening with tears. “I know I keep saying this, but… thank you, Blue. So much.”

He gave her a rueful grin. “I would say anytime, but I would really prefer not to repeat that in the near future. Pencil it in for no earlier than, say, next Friday?”

She gave him a weak smile. “Yeah, sure thing,” she said. Her hand resumed its lazy stroking of his tail.

Kurt lay back, a peaceful smile on his face. Then he gasped as he felt the fingers of Tabby’s other hand begin running along his thigh.

“You sleep in the buff, Blue? Good to know.” She let out a giggle at his obvious discomfort. “Don’t worry. I know my boundaries. I won’t do anything to make your girlie too jealous. What’s her name again? Amy? Aman—”

“Don’t even mention that name!” he growled, then stiffened. He hadn’t meant to snap; Tabby didn’t deserve to be treated like that. Why was he always hurting everyone important to him?

Shocked, Tabitha pulled back for a moment, hurt in her eyes. “What’s wrong, Blue? What…” Her tone shifted abruptly. “Oh my God, she did, didn’t she?” Little bunches formed in the covers where she was clenching her fists. “I’m gonna kill that bitch.”

“No, Tabitha,” he said, grabbing her hand. “Just… let it go. Please? I don’t want to think about it, about her. Just… not right now, okay?”

“Oh, Blue… I’m so, so sorry. I wish I had said something, but you seemed so happy and I didn’t want to ruin that.”

He laughed, a bitter, hollow sound that was closer to a bark or a cough than any sort of mirth. “Ja, I was.”

Tabby shifted, bringing herself up and out of the covers. She was wearing panties and an oversized T-shirt for some punk band. “Let me to take your mind off of all that, Blue. Flip over and I’ll give you a nice massage.”

“But I’m—”

“Naked? Yeah, I know. It’s fine. Don’t you want a full body massage?”

With a groan that was half pain and half nervousness, Kurt turned to lie facedown. His tail began thrashing uneasily when Tabby straddled him, but she just laughed.

“Relax, Blue. This is how I give massages. Easier to put pressure on the right spots this way.”

With some effort, his tail stilled to a gentle swishing, and Boom-Boom went to work.

Kurt had gotten some idea of how skilled her hands were from her previous attention to his tail; this, though, was mind-blowing. Her hands pressed into just the right spots in his back, delivering a mix of mild pain and overwhelming relief. She even managed to be mindful of the grain of his fur. Despite his best efforts, he failed to contain a moan that made his entire pillow vibrate.

Tabby giggled again. Gott, she had no idea how cute that was. Encouraged by the sounds he was making, she redoubled her efforts, adding in light scratches with her fingernails.

Kurt Wagner had died and gone to a heaven beyond imagination.

Minutes passed by, or maybe hours. He never wanted this feeling to stop. Her hands caressed his shoulders, his neck, his sides…

Another giggle came from Tabby, and her fingers stilled. He let out a sound of protest, and she laughed outright.

“Looks like someone really likes this.”

Kurt looked over his shoulder at her, confused, until she looked down pointedly. His tail had wrapped itself around her waist without him realizing it, and still more embarrassing, he had begun gently gyrating his hips.

“Es tut mir leid, sorry, Tabby, I didn’t realize—”

“Don’t worry, Blue. I kinda like having the tail there. But you’re gonna have to let go for the next part.”

Once he had obliged, she turned around and, pushing the covers back, scooted down and began massaging his legs.

Massaging one leg at a time, she moved from his thighs to his calves, kneading away weeks of tension in minutes. She seemed to have no trouble adapting her techniques to his digigrade legs; she even massaged just above and below his elongated Achilles’ tendon.

When she moved to his feet, his entire body shivered. No one, not even Amanda, had ever given his feet such careful attention. And it felt absolutely wonderful. Blessed pressure, little scratches that made his feet twitch involuntarily and return for more; it was the most exquisite torture Kurt had ever experienced.

She shifted her weight again, returning to straddle him facing forward from a somewhat lower position, and her hands took up kneading his lower back, just above his buttocks. As he began moaning more, her hands became bolder, and one began stroking his tail as the other ran along his iliac crest, slipping under him when his hips bucked involuntarily. Her fingers began closing around…

“Tabby, wait! What are you doing?” he asked, part of him protesting the nature of her ministrations but a larger part hoping she would continue.

“This is called a happy ending, Blue,” Tabby whispered in his ear, voice low and husky now. That voice reduced his self-control to mere tatters. “I want to do this for you, but I won’t if you say no. Do you want it, Kurt?”

Hearing her say his name tore away the last shred of resistance.

“Ja, oh Gott, bitte, Tabitha, please!”

“I love the way you say my name— Tabissa. It’s so cute and sexy at the same time. Say it one more time for me.”

“Please, Tabitha, I want…” His pleading dissolved into incoherent moans and growls as she went to work with a vengeance.

Her hands were everywhere at once, it seemed; stroking, scratching, rubbing, just the right touch for every area. He felt heat and pressure building inside him, and began thrusting until he lost himself in a burst of electricity that radiated out through his whole body.

Gasping, he fell forward onto his bed, not caring about the mess that would undoubtedly find its way onto his fur. Another shower was a small price for… that.

Tabby let out a contented sigh and lay on top of him, hands resting on top of his in a sort of embrace.

“Mmmm… now that was fun,” she whispered in his ear. “Do it again sometime soon?”

“Ja,” was all he could manage between gasps.

“Perfect. Now let’s get a couple hours of sleep, okay, Blue?” She rolled off of him and curled up on her side, and he soon took up a position behind her, tail curling around her thigh as he spooned her, not too closely so as not to aggravate his bruises.

A contented rumble came from his chest, and he heard Tabby stifle a giggle at the realization that Blue really did purr just like a cat.