Still winded from his last punch, Jean rolled to her feet and backed away as she smiled down at him. He could feel her satisfaction bleeding hotly through the link. Her smug expression changed to a look of confusion as she realized he wasn't furious. In fact, he felt oddly elated by her unexpected telekinetic attack.

Chuckling aloud, he rose to his feet and grinned dangerously. He still hadn't removed his hand from where it cupped his groin protectively. {Now it's personal, darlin'.} The tone in his words sent shivers down her spine. He held her eyes and rubbed himself through the black silk as the last of the agonizing ache faded. His hand dropped away and his eyes glittered with predatory delight as they both prepared for another round.

{Hmm... pity. You looked good on your knees, Logan.} She taunted as he advanced on her.

A ruthless smile twisted his sensual lips. {Not as good as you'd look on your knees in fronta me, darlin'.}

Focused on the sexual heat in his words, she was unable to move quickly enough to dodge his fist. This time however, she let him land the blow, but deflected all the force behind it.

He grinned inwardly. That's it, Red. He attacked her again and again. She dodged the blows she could, and deflected the power behind those she couldn't. And now, each time she landed a blow, there was a telekinetic force behind it that staggered him. Fuckin' finally. He was still the better fighter, and she didn't land many - but those she did manage to land would have felled lesser men.

Each time she used her 'gift', it became easier, the power more seductive. She could feel the beast rising within her and she became more aggressive, more violent, as it screamed for the Wolverine's blood.

Logan felt his ribs crack under a particularly vicious blow. He moved away, guarding his left side as it healed and snarling a warning at her as she advanced on him. For the first time since they started, he was on the defensive, and the Wolverine didn't like that. Not one little bit. He could feel the wildness, the raw power seething and rolling within her. The man in him smiled inwardly. She'd finally taken the first step in becoming the fighter they so desperately needed, but the Wolverine rebelled. He would not lose this fight.

Jean could feel Logan struggling to keep the animal in check and she would have none of it. {Let him out.} He was no longer a challenge to her with the Wolverine so tightly leashed.

He smiled in pleasure as he let the last of his monumental control go and she felt the Wolverine fully integrate into his consciousness. He held nothing back now. If she failed to deflect one of his blows, it would cause some serious damage.

They pounded away at each other, no longer two X-Men working to better the team. No longer two people caught up in a sexual power play. They weren't even two humans bent on proving might makes right. They were simply two powerful predators fighting for supremacy.

Her blows were becoming even more violent as she lost ground to the beast she harbored inside herself and Logan knew he couldn't sustain this indefinitely, especially now that she'd rendered his hits powerless. His healing factor simply couldn't keep up with the fierce, crushing blows she ruthlessly doled out. Sweat slicked and panting, their bodies met again. She effortlessly blocked his jab and he felt the bones of his arm snap and knit themselves back together.

Fuck, too slow.

He was taking too much heavy damage with this 'strike and retreat' strategy and he knew he had to hold some of his strength in reserve in the event the power she harbored got away from her. It was time to change tactics. Her new skills would be much less effective in close quarters fighting until she learned to adapt... and all he needed was a few seconds to end this.

Snarling, Logan tangled his fingers in her hair and pulled her close as he used his body weight to throw her to the mat and pin her underneath him. Caught unprepared, she was at a loss as to how to defend herself now that he was no longer raining blows down upon her. She bucked wildly under him and something inside him snapped. He roughly flipped her over on her stomach and caught both her hands in one of his as she thrashed beneath him. The Wolverine reacted instinctively to the intimate position, and growled in her ear as he grew hard against her supple curves.

This time, it was completely different. Last time, although sexual in nature, his attack had only been about pushing her buttons - about keeping her off balance. This time it was only about him. Only about what he wanted. Any fear or pleasure she might have derived from his touch was purely incidental. It wouldn't be rape, but she knew it would take more than a simple 'no' to stop him at this point.

A lot more.

Now she understood why he never mixed sex and violence where the Wolverine was concerned. Logan was many things, but a liar wasn't one of them. Not to her and certainly not to himself. It was too dangerous. He had a pretty good idea of what would happen if he mixed arousal and violence... and he was right. The result was both terrifying, and at the same time incredibly arousing simply because she knew it was her presence, her touch and scent, that was driving him wild. That she could affect such a powerful man so profoundly was immensely satisfying.

Satisfying or not, Jean was very aware the heavy male body above her was no longer subject to the dictates of Logan's mind. He was no longer in control. She could feel him fighting to regain the ground he'd lost to the animal, but it was the Wolverine who held her now and he was not above taking what he wanted. Jean shivered under his weight as he shifted to cover her more fully. The taut, sweaty skin of his stomach slid agonizingly against the slick skin at the small of her back. A soft gasp of desire left her lips in a rush, even as she fought to free herself.

He caught hold of her hips and pulled them back to where the black silk of his pants was stretched taut over a heavy erection. Jean flinched at the heat radiating out from him. She tried to free herself, but he held her where he wanted her, groaning thickly as he ground himself against her. The Wolverine knew the female writhing under him wanted him to finish what he'd started, but the man fighting him for control wouldn't give him a moment's peace. He growled in frustration as the man regained the ground he'd momentarily lost and pushed him aside... for the time being. He would have his turn and when he did, no amount of fighting would deter him from taking what was rightfully his.

Jean shuddered under him as Logan's consciousness rushed to the fore, and once again became the dominant presence in his mind. She could feel his anger and his elation - both heavily interwoven with lust - seeping hotly through the link. The low growl in his chest rumbled against her back and a very predatory smile graced his harsh, sensual features. His breath was hot on her back and without warning he dragged the flat of his tongue up her neck, tasting her. The sensuality inherent in the gesture was belied by the harsh, painful grip he had on her wrists. He squeezed a little harder to drive his point home and snarled a single word into her mind.

{Yield!}

There was only one way for her to beat him now. Either way, he won. If she submitted to him and acknowledged his dominance, he won, and if she tapped into the power he felt thrumming inside her and revealed her true nature, he also won. Satisfaction burned through him. He knew she could feel it and he chuckled darkly as she fought him that much harder.

The Wolverine surged against the chokehold Logan had on him as her sweet curves rubbed damp silk over throbbing flesh. The frayed threads holding his tattered control together were beginning to snap one by one as the thick heat between his legs became unbearable. Ruthlessly, he shoved down the desire to hold her down and sheathe himself deep inside her. He'd fought too hard for this victory to let it slip through his fingers now.

Her body panted and heaved as she struggled under him. Enough. He'd had enough. The rational part of his mind knew it was time to end this. Now. But the Wolverine was determined to have his say right along with the man in these final moments. It was his right. He lowered his head and bit her sharply on the back of her neck in warning as he pressed his knuckles to the side of her jaw and forced her chin up, baring the elegant line of her throat. Had they been fighting for real, she'd be dead.

{Yield to me!}

He could taste victory as clearly as he could taste her arousal, and Jean felt satisfaction spike hotly within him. That hot stick of male satisfaction was the last straw. Something inside of her gave way and the power buzzing in her head became a dull roar.

Logan became aware of several things simultaneously. The bank of observation windows above them were humming with vibrations and both doors were clattering fiercely, straining against their locks. The volume on the stereo had instantly jacked up to a painful decibel, but most alarming was the fact that he could no longer sense Jean through the link. In the split second that those things registered in his mind, he felt an awesome surge of power well up inside her, and suddenly he wasn't pinning her down any longer.

He couldn't even remember traversing the thirty feet that now separated them. One second he was on top of her and the next, his back was impacting the concrete wall with a concussive force he couldn't believe had been generated by a flesh and blood being, except for the pain that bloomed crimson in his mind as he felt his ribs snap under the crushing impact.

Fuck.

Healing factor or not, he hadn't expected her attack to hurt so damn much. Whatever elation he might have felt at finally getting Jean to reveal her true predatory nature was eclipsed by the agonizing pain wracking his body as he slid out of the foot-deep depression his body had left behind in the wall and sagged to the floor in a crumpled heap. A stray thought, like sunlight reflecting off a silver lure, flashed through his mind.

Just like Neo.

Only when Agent Smith had slammed Neo into the cement wall and pummeled the shit out of him, the little fucker got right back up. Well, that was the movies. Cinema superheroes did that. In reality, there were no superheroes, just men and women who hurt and bled like everyone else. And he sure as fuck wasn't going to be able to get his sorry carcass up and kick Jean's ass any time soon. Not to mention the fact that he was getting pretty damn tired of this habit she'd seemed to develop where she first aroused his body and then stamped out that blatant desire in an incredibly painful manner. A small bark of laughter escaped his one functioning lung, and it brought blood with it as the sound escaped his lips.

After so many years of dealing with heavy injuries, his mind functioned like a field medic, and he could hear it cataloging the damage, but the voice sounded tinny and far away.

Eleven ribs - multiple fractures. Vertebra at C6 and C7 - crushed. Left lung collapsed. Left scapula and left clavicle - fractured. Small rupture in the aorta. Sternum...

No wonder his chest hurt so goddamn much. He listened to the running list for a few more moments and then shut out the voice. It didn't make it hurt any less to know exactly what was damaged. He didn't need a list to know how badly she'd fucked him up. The nauseating pain was doing that well enough on its own... but even as that thought occurred to him, he could already feel the worst of the injuries healing as his body knit sinew and bone back together. Logan drew in a sharp, painful breath as his lung reinflated and he sat up a little straighter, still using the wall behind him for support. Now that the pain was marginally manageable, he opened his eyes and got his first good look at Jean.

Holy fuck.

She seemed luminous, like alabaster flesh pulled too tight over streaming starlight. The air around her resonated with power. Her eyes were moving rapidly under her closed lids and she was suspended a few inches above the floor. Her hair whipped wildly around her face and white flames crackled from the tips, not unlike the way lightning bled off Storm when she called the sky - only they weren't flames of fire. They generated no heat. Suddenly he understood. They were flames of raw power. She was bleeding it off in an effort to bring it down to a more manageable level.

Abruptly her eyes snapped open, and pinned him with an intense stare. He blinked as eyes so green they almost glowed stared back at him. Those weren't Jean's eyes. But the Wolverine knew who they belonged to and he snarled a greeting at the female he wanted. The Phoenix recognized the greeting and responded instinctively to the male she'd chosen. Jean's mouth opened and a sound emerged, at first like a woman's scream but it quickly became sharper, like the piercing cry of a hawk, before it passed through the upper register of even his enhanced hearing.

Gracefully, her body descended, and as she touched the ground the air around her seemed to ripple outward. She wasn't just powerful, she was power. Ruthless. Confident. And utterly without remorse. God, she was sex and danger entwined with something primally female. And he'd never wanted her more.

In truth, it went far beyond something so tame as want.

His hungry gaze lingered, following her unhurried progress across the room. Her confident stride never faltered as she approached the doors. She raised an arm. The graceful motion showed not even a hint of the awesome power she now wielded.

Logan felt the building shudder as the doors were ripped violently from their hinges and flung outward with unimaginable force. The sickening shriek of rent metal echoed loudly in the clean lines of the underground corridor. As that thunderous noise faded, the blaring stereo suddenly went dead in an impressive display of sparks and smoke, and overhead, the humming stopped abruptly as the bank of tinted observations windows shattered and rained down like dirty, razor-sharp hail.

Charles would not be pleased.

Another thought, far more urgent in nature, forced him to his feet and his healing body screamed in protest. He'd been expecting a little collateral damage, but nothing like this. He might find her power arousing, but he was well aware if she met anyone in the lower levels now, they'd be scared shitless. And rightly so.

However violent her exit, Logan wasn't entirely convinced she was completely out of control. The fact that he was still breathing and that the building was still standing said a lot and he knew, without a doubt, she was fully capable of doing far worse. The power he'd felt her tap was nearly limitless and he was aware what he'd just experienced was a mere drop in the bucket. She was only just beginning to recognize her full potential.

Despite the fading pain in his healing body, the thought gave him a hard-on. Though the others probably would - and should - be afraid of her, he wasn't. The more powerful she became and the more of her true self she revealed, the more she excited him. A part of him realized he should be worried he'd just turned an incredibly powerful creature loose in a school full of children, but another, deeper part understood that she wouldn't hurt her pack any more than he would.

That didn't stop her from being dangerous, though, and a very wicked smile lit up his harsh features as he eyed the mangled wreckage that had once been a doorway and stepped beyond it into the corridor. Logan wasn't at all sure what he'd find - or more to the point, who he'd find after that dramatic exit. As dangerous as it was, he was half hoping he'd find the green-eyed female who'd screamed a greeting at the Wolverine.

He sighed heavily. Jean's mind was as complex as it was guarded, but the Phoenix was different. He understood her. Hell, they understood each other. Regardless of the power they possessed, predators were simple in nature. In a nutshell, they fought, they fucked, they ate and slept when necessary, and when they weren't satisfying those needs, they played. Logan licked the blood from his lower lip. Despite the pain, he'd certainly enjoyed playing with her.

Now he wanted to satisfy another of those base needs.

Her scent was easy to follow here. It hung heavy in the still air and he could tell she hadn't gone far. He didn't quite know what to make of that. Massaging his erection into uneasy submission, he strode quickly down the wrecked hall and rounded the corner. The sight that met his eyes brought him up short.

She was standing stock still in front of the bust of Hippocrates that led to the medical wing of this underground rabbit warren. Her back was to him and the fact that she didn't turn to acknowledge his presence did not escape his notice. There weren't many people who were arrogant enough to keep their backs to him. Fewer still who were powerful enough to back up such arrogance. And the simple fact that she was, excited him.

He watched as she lifted her hand and slowly traced the words cast in bronze on the plaque mounted under the bust.

First, do no harm.

Logan grimaced. Shit. She didn't need to be analyzing herself now. The truth was, if he'd been anyone else, he wouldn't have walked out of that room. He knew it. She knew it. The problem was, the doctor in her just couldn't come to grips with the fact that she'd not only fought him and hurt him, but that she'd liked it. A lot. Logan understood. It was a hard, hard thing to accept deriving enjoyment from causing another person pain. And if that one were a doctor... well, he imagined that would only make it harder.

Her eyes, no longer glowing now, but a soft mossy green, met his. "Logan-"

"Don't." She opened her mouth to protest, but he cut her off again. "Don't beat yourself up, Jeannie." Her eyes glittered wetly and dropped to the floor. He caught her chin in his large fingers and stroked her lip with the pad of his thumb before forcing her chin up to met his eyes. They were dark and intense and when he spoke again, there was a heat in his voice that was impossible to deny. "I liked whatcha did as much as you liked doin' it." She shivered at the sensual heat in his words. His voice dropped, becoming even more husky. "And I liked what I did to you even more, darlin'."

Jean nearly groaned aloud as her exhausted body reacted to his low gravelly words with a rush of desire so intense it left her dizzy and breathless. She pressed her thighs together as the ache in the pit of her stomach dropped lower and bloomed hot and wet between her legs.

Logan's mouth turned up with sensual promise as he pointedly ran one blunt fingertip down her elegant, sweat-slicked neck to the pulse pounding so furiously just above her delicate collarbone. She might have kicked his ass at the end, but he'd won that fight fair and square. He didn't have to be in her mind to understand what his victory meant to her.

The female only mated with the strongest, with the alpha.

Aware of her every response to him, he leaned in closer until there was barely a heartbeat of space between them. His nostrils flared as he breathed her in and when he spoke, his breath tickled her ear and made her shiver. "I'm gonna go shower, darlin'." He rasped the words against her sweaty skin as he deliberately pressed the length of his hot, hard body to hers. "You comin'?"