Laying Low

[Victor Creed]

Victor had decided that Phoenix and himself needed some time to lay low. With the whole rally thing their faces were everywhere and they'd certainly be hunted down if they remained in New York.

It had been a long flight, drive, and walk to where they were headed. The snow was still a good foot upon the ground and was a bit of trouble to walk through. It wasn't anything Victor wasn't used to. In fact he easily walked through the snow as they headed to the cabin he owned. It was way out into the wilderness and he prided the fact that no one knew where it was but himself. Well Phoenix did now too, if she was even paying attention to where she was going. She followed him the whole way but he hadn't bothered to slow down for her in the slightest.

It was a few hours on foot before they finally had his cabin come into view. He kept walking towards it without any sort of aprehension. Even as they grew closer there seemd to be a large tan furred, something on the porch of the log cabin. But it wasn't too long before they reached the cabin and Victor's hand reached out to pat the beast on it's head when its attention perked to their arrival. The large creature was unmistakably a sabretooth tiger and its attention regarded Phoenix with a simple glance before it placed its head back on the ground to rest once more.

Victor walked into the cabin and immediately worked on setting a fire in the fireplace so there would be some warmth within the cabin again. It was small but not too small. The place was a perfect example of 'rustic' there was wood furniture and antler lights hanging from the ceiling. Any furniture was covered in a mixture of furs, as well as the bed that was up the stairs in a loft area. The kitchen was towards the back, it was small but had everything that would be needed while they were there.

[The Phoenix]

Phoenix was irritated to say the least. Ever since her last burst of power at the rally she had been completely powerless. Not even anything small. That was what irritated her the most but it didn't help that Victor had insisted on dragging her out into who the hell knows where! They had boarded a plane which she was fine with. It was moderately comfortable. But then there was the drive. Which again wasn't that but but what really got her blood boiling was the walk. She hated walking long distances. She would do it if she had to but in the foot of snow that covered the ground she was heated. She followed Victor with a scowl on her face but she kept her mouth shut.

Once they reached the cabin she sighed in a sort of relief but her eyes soon fell on a giant animal laying on porch. It was a real Sabretoothed Tiger. She had never seen one before and she admitted to herself it was quite beautiful. She wondered how Victor had gotten it. It glanced at her as she walked past and into the cabin. She just eyed it and walked in after Victor. She put her bag on the floor and pulled off her jacket as she looked around the place. It was everything she expected from Victor. But her mood was still foul. It was a different foul though. She wanted to rip Victor to shreds but then again she just wanted to sit down and stuff her face with whatever she could find in the refrigerator. She had no idea why she was feeling this way and she was guessing it was from the journey to get here. She leaned on the counter and looked at the decor again as she looked over at Victor.

"Quaint."

[Victor Creed]

Victor has the fire roaring in record time. He was used to setting one after all. He heard the first word out of Phoenix in a long while. He couldn't help smirking to it either. "It's a roof and some walls. Enough to keep ya warm." He really didn't need to worry about keeping warm. It would have to be far colder than this to start making him worry about how cold it was. "I should have a few steaks left in the freezer. I'll go hunting tomorrow." He mentioned to her while he passed her to see what he left in the fridge the last time he was up here. Luckily for him there were still a few beers in that fridge. He pulled one out and opened it before taking a swallow of it. Definitely didn't taste the freshest but it would do.

He knew she was irritated but he really didn't care. They had needed to get out of New York and this was the best way to do it. Sure it took awhile but it was peaceful out here. The air was clear and things were simple. It would be a nice break from everything.

[The Phoenix]

She watched him as he started the fire. It was started fast and soon the heat from it was drifting over her body. It felt good. Her skin was warmed soon and she had to admit she was rather comfortable. All she could think about was food right now. When he mentioned steak she smiled a little and her stomach growled silently. She was starving right now. Her eyes were still fixed on Victor as he walked by her. Her eyes drank him in. He was in his element right now and she just couldn't get enough of him.

Phoenix shook her head to clear the thoughts. What the hell was she doing? First she was irritated, then starving, then comfortable, then wanting to rip Victor's clothes off, then back to irritated. She figured it was the lack of sleep she had or even the lack of powers she had. Maybe she was finally starting to go mad.

"Good. I'm starving right now, Victor."

With those words spoke she walked off in search of the bathroom. Her skin was covered in sweat from the walk up here. She needed a shower. She walked in and turned the shower on and let it run for a bit to heat the water up. She then stripped and climbed in. Her stomach rolled as she stood there in the hot water. What the hell was wrong with it? She stepped out of the shower and soon everything she had eaten before the trip was out of her stomach and in the toilet. She groaned and grabbed the toothbrush out of her bag she had brought in with her brushing her teeth. She looked at herself in the mirror.

"What the hell is going on?"

[Victor Creed]

Victor watched as Phoenix left after her rather blunt statement. That sounded more like a demand than a statement too. Once she left he took a few sniffs of the air, her scent had lingered which wasn't unusual but something about it was. He probably should have noticed it earlier but the travel had him preoccupied. It wasn't too long before his keen ears heard the sound of her emptying the contents of her stomach. Victor scowled slightly, this wasn't exactly something he was looking forward to.

But it did make him decide to listen to the barking comment that she had given him earlier. He went to the larger and separated floor freezer to find those venison steaks he knew he had left there previously. He only found two, which meant that he would definitely have to hunt tomorrow. That was fine with him, it had been awhile since he had done that and he was looking forward to it.

But in the meantime he started up the gas stove and set the steaks onto the castiron pans he had. It wasn't the best way to cook a steak, he prefered to have it fresh but...it would do for now. And hopefully they would be pretty much done by the time Phoenix was finally out of the shower.

[The Phoenix]

Phoenix had been in the bathroom for awhile now. Her stomach was rolling and every thought of food made her want to throw up again. She stood up and brushed her teeth once more as she splashed water on her face. How could she be sick right now? She had never been sick before! And she was not liking it one bit. She got dressed and walked out of the bathroom with her hair pulled up on the top of her head in a pair of yoga pants and a long sleeved shirt.

She looked at Victor as he cooked the steaks. The thought of them made her stomach churn but the smell of them cooking wafted over to her nose and her mouth watered and her stomach growled. Her eyes flicked over him again. He was cooking.....she had never seen him cook before. But right now she just didn't care. She laid her head on her arms on the table and just surveyed the room with her eyes. She could see herself and Victor staying there for awhile. The furs on the furniture looked so inviting and soft. Maybe She could get Victor out of those constricting clothes later. She just smirked as she laid there.

[Victor Creed]

He was actually a pretty decent cook, at least when it came to things that he would survive on at the cabin. So it probably was mostly like 'cowboy food' but hey..it was edible. He'd glance towards her now and then as she sat and laid at the table all at once. She looked a little pathetic...

Eventually he turned the stove off and walked to the table with two plates in hand. He watched her somewhat warily for a moment before he placed one of the plates infront of her. It was simple, a slab of cooked steak with a few seasonings and some canned corn he found in the cupboard on the side. He sat down in the chair across from her and started to eat his steak without a word. Perhaps being in the cabin alone made him more silent. He wasn't used to having company out here so it was going to take awhile for him to change that mindset in him probably. But Victor still kept an eye on her curiously seeing how much of the steak she'd eat and if she'd vanish into the bathroom again. He couldn't help wondering if his own theory was correct..

[The Phoenix]

The smell of the steaks got stronger as he set the plate in front of her. She glanced at it. It wasn't the five course meals she was used to getting in the city but it would do. Phoenix in all reality was pretty high maintenance but at the same time she could rough it if she had to. If they had to stay here for a length of period of time she could. She might complain now and again but she could do it.

She picked up a fork and knife and devoured the plate in front of her. She had no idea how hungry she had been until the food was in her mouth. It was actually really good. She was surprised that Victor could cook at all. The thought of it was actually quite entertaining to her in a way. Here was the manly animal in the kitchen cooking her dinner. She almost laughed just thinking about it. Then she said something she had never said before in her entire life. She even looked a little surprised as she said it. Her mentality was bouncing all over the place right now and she felt...well, weird.

"Thank you."

[Victor Creed]

Victor ate his steak but not in the speed Phoenix seemed to portray. It actually surprised him how quickly she ate. He only wondered if that would stay down considering how quickly she ate it. But his attention was diverted to the two words she had said. Thank you? Had she really said that? He couldn't remember her ever saying that before and suddenly his cooking a steak for her brought those words out? Weird...

Once he finished his own food he stood up and gathered the plates. It wasn't really out of curtousy so much as out of habit. He wasn't the cleanliest of men but he managed. He walked back to the kitchen and placed the dishes in the sink.

He then walked back out to look at her from the entrance into the kitchen. "Maybe you should go lay down...its been a long trip." He wasn't exactly sure why he offered the option to get rest. Perhaps it was the knowledge he knew perhaps even above her own...but he wasn't really sure. At least if she was asleep he could get some peace and quiet for a few hours. It would give him the chance to get a few things settled too.

[The Phoenix]

She couldn't really do anything else but nod at that moment. She was so tired. Her body and mind were exhausted and she was still a little shocked by the words she had said. She stood up and walked over to where the bedroom was and crawled into the big bed that was there. She didn't care that she was still in her clothes. She just wanted sleep and an escape from her stomach rolling. She curled up into a ball underneath the furs that covered the bed and listened to Victor moving around the cabin.

Maybe she had really meant those words. He had done so much for her. He had saved her countless times, given her a place to live, and now he had brought her with him to lie low after the attack on the anti-mutant rally. He could have left her in the city to get captured and probably taken to some sort of camp or something. But he had taken her with him. She soon drifted off to sleep.

She awoke a couple of hours later. The sun was down already and it was somewhat dark in the cabin. Why had she woken up? Her stomach jolted and she knew why as she jumped out of bed and ran to the bathroom making it just in time to expel the contents from her stomach once more. Phoenix groaned and sat on the floor and leaned her back against the cold wall. Something was wrong. She could feel it. Something was different in her body and she had no idea what it was but it wasn't good. It was making her sick and Phoenix was not liking this one bit. She stood up and brushed her teeth. Her hair was pulled up on top of her head and she was in sweat pants and one of Victor's white t-shirts as she walked out and sat on the couch in the living room curling up near the fire.

"Something's wrong, Victor..."

[Victor Creed]

He had been quite busy as she rested. He went out to gather some more wood and even ended up chopping some more for the time being. It could get really cold at night and he didn't need her freezing. In fact everything that he was doing simply out of what seemed to be habit was to make her more comfortable. He could easily make due in the cold with nothing but some sort of shelter. And here he was bringing more wood into the cabin and seeing what other supplies he had.

It wasn't until he was organizing the pile of wood next to the fireplace that noticed Phoenix had gotten up. He couldn't help hearing her and shook his head slightly. His eyes watched her as she wandered into the livingroom in sweats...and was that one of his shirts? Silly woman...

Yea something was wrong, she had a parasite living inside of her. But how did you break that kind of news to someone like her? He wondered if the Phoenix ever really encountered such an experience in her long existance. "What's that?" Okay..so he was playing dumb, he wanted to see if she jumped to any of her own conclusions.

[The Phoenix]

Phoenix looked up at him as he asked what it was that was wrong. Was he being serious? If she knew then it wouldn't really be a problem. Her irritation returned as she looked at him. She rolled her eyes and stood up looking at him. He could be so thick headed sometimes. Why did she continue to stay with him? He drove her to the brink of insanity! Yet, she stayed. She followed him even.

"If I knew then I would have fixed it by now! I don't know what's wrong. I'm sick and I've never gotten sick before. Never."

She shook her head and walked into the kitchen. She needed something to drink. Her hand reached out for a glass that was in the cupboard she had opened as she walked over and filled it with water and drank half the glass in one gulp. Her mind spun as she thought of what it could possibly be. For a split second she felt bad for snapping at him.

"Looks, I'm sorry......wait....no I'm not. Why the hell am I apologizing?! This isn't me. I don't say thank you. I don't apologize...."

Phoenix stopped for a second as she thought. It had to be something Victor did to her. She couldn't think of anything else. The thought of being pregnant never even entered her mind since she had never had any dealings with stuff like this. She turned and glared at him.

"What the hell did you do to me?"

[Victor Creed]

Victor was still crouched down near the floor as he situated the wood for the fireplace. He watched as Phoenix snapped at him and it honestly didn't effect him at all. He really didn't care how much she screamed and ranted.

It wasn't until she apologized and then freaked out about apologizing that he even made a noise. And he laughed. He couldn't help it. Then she asked him that question and he laughed harder. She really was clueless wasn't she? But then that really didn't surprise him either. He finally pushed himself back up to his feet while his laughter started to subside.

"I suppose you could say I did it to you." He smirked to her, unable to help it after all. "But it wasn't like you weren't willing." He chuckled again, more amused by her little emotional seizure than anything. He wasn't sure how he was going to break this to her....he wasn't even sure if he wanted this to happen himself. He wasn't really father material...not that Phoenix really seemed like mother material either.

"Well...I'm fairly certain that yer actually pregnant." It explained all of ther symptoms...of course he had more of a animalistic way of telling but any human would have guessed that with her sudden sickness.

[The Phoenix]

"Pregnant....PREGNANT?! You have got to be kidding me! No, I can't be pregnant.....I just....UGH!!!"

Phoenix didn't know what to say. Before she even reacted she just stared at Victor for a second before it sunk it. She was pregnant! She had never thought it to be possible for her to be pregnant. She had never even had the notion of becoming a mother and bringing a child into this world. Phoenix was far from mother material. And the thought of Victor being an actual father was just as far fetched.

To say Phoenix was angry was an understatement. She was heated. She really didn't know what to say so she ranted. Mostly to herself trying to figure out how this had happened. Her anger and shock were so bad though they were pulling on the old memories of the body she occupied and she started yelling at Victor in Spanish. She paced the floor and her hands were absentmindedly on her stomach the whole entire time.

"¡Hijo de puta! ¿Cómo diablos pudiste permitir que esto suceda? Ojalá pudiera arrancar esa sonrisa de tu cara molesta ahora mismo! ¿Cómo demonios se supone que debemos hacer esto? Si sólo había sido cuidado! Pero, ¡oh no, no, Víctor! No es todopoderoso Victor Creed! Él no es cuidadoso con cualquier cosa!"

(Son of a bitch! How the hell could you let this happen? I wish I could rip that smile off your annoying face right now! How the hell are we supposed to do this? If only you had been careful! But, oh no, not Victor! Victor Creed is all powerful! He's not careful with anything!)

Could she really bring a child into this world? She was the definition of evil in a lot of ways. And Victor...he was already trying to kill his own son. What would her try and do to this child? She finally grew silent and just sat down on a chair that was closest to her. Her hands still on her stomach looking at nothing really in particular.

[Victor Creed]

Victor watched as she had even more of what seemed to be a complete meltdown. He wasn't even sure how to react as she started blurting on in Spanish. He wasn't sure what she had said so he made no reactions. Which in the long run was probably best that he didn't really understand what she said. After all, it might have just pissed him off. So far he was in a fairly entertained mood but when she went silent that manner seemed to fade.

He wondered what was going on in her mind past the shock of the news. "If you really don't want the child that is easily taken care of..." He wasn't exactly sure how he was supposed to interpret this insanity. But if she didn't want the child the easiest way was to get rid of it. Just a bit of slicing of flesh and blood would be necesary. He was rather certain it wouldn't take too much time at all. It was really all up to her if she decided to keep the thing or not. Perhaps he'd be happier with circumventing the whole thing, but you didn't always get what you wanted.