ANSWERS

AUTHOR: SisterWine

RATING: PG

WARNINGS: NONE

DISCLAIMER: THE X-MEN AND HARRY DO NOT BELONG TO ME. THEY ARE THE SOLE PROPERTY OF MARVEL AND 20th CENTURY FOX. IRIVAN,
HOWEVER, HANDS OFF! SHE'S MINE!

SUMMARY: Follow-up to Confessions.

sisterwine75@hotmail.com


ANSWERS
by SisterWine

The bell on the door rang as the swinging door was open and then shut. It sounded again a few seconds later as another person entered the near empty barroom. The two then made their way up to the bar and sat down on two stools in the middle of a long row.

A firm knock twice.

The backroom light came on and a figure appeared in the doorway. But it wasn't the girl. Instead, it was a much taller, older, male figure who stepped into the room and up to the counter. "What can I get you boys?" The man asked as he wiped a shotglass off with a long white and half wet dishtowel.

"A beer. Two." Logan spoke up. "Where's the girl?" He looked around the man, into the backroom. Not finding her, his eyes moved back to the man just in time to watch two Budweiser bottles be set on the bar.

"Iri? She had a paper due for her class. What's this, Logan? You got a thing for my niece?" The man wiped off the counter and raised an eyebrow at Logan.

Logan took a swallow and replaced the bottle on the counter, in front of him. "Naw, just talked to her the other night. Thought I'd stop in and say hi. The kid, here," Nodding in Remy's direction, to his right. "is from her side o' the swamp. Give him someone to talk to about that, stead of him yappin at me about it."

"Hey." Remy sat up and eyed Logan in playful offense.

Logan smiled at him.

Harry chuckled and retrieved a glass for himself and sprayed water into it, from a spout, in front of him. "She'll be back in a while. I gotta finish unloadin these orders." Taking his glass of water and nodding to Logan, he went back into the backroom and left the two alone.

Remy stared at Logan. He sighed and took another drink. "Who's de fille, Logan? What ya mean, she from my side o' de swamp?" Turning his head to look at the other man, he squinted. Remy was told earlier to dress nicely, and he did. White running shoes with snug blue jeans and an old, worn Def Leppard T-Shirt from the 'Hysteria' days, that wasn't tucked in. His hair had been pulled back in it's normal ponytail. Logan had thought the boy was born with the band in his hair.

"She's a good kid. Name's Irivan. She set me straight the other night, and said she'd be here till tomorrow. Her daddy was a Cajun, like someone else I know. Funny thing is, she was so familiar." Logan sat in somewhat of a reclined position. He hd turned around so that his back rested against the shiny brown bar.

"Oh."

Logan turned his head to face the young Acadian. His eyebrow raised, slightly, as he caught the sudden unease in the youth's scent. His ears perked as an engine belonging to a Sizuki motorcycle pulled up and shut off, just outside. "She's here." He took another drink of beer, as the bottle had been in his left hand.

Pretty soon, a young, slender body walked in. Her helmet had still been on and she waited until she was fully inside the room before she unclipped the strap and lifted the round, black helmet off. Carrying it over to the bar, she noted the two men at the bar, watching her. "Gents...... oh, hey Logan! Thought you weren't gonna come back." Irivan winked at him and continued to make her way behind the bar and slide her helmet and thin, leather shortcoat into her cubby, underneath the bar at the end. Her black jeans were nearly too tight and accented her subtle curves, while her black T-shirt was tucked in and pulled out slightly, for comfort. Excusing herself for a moment, she poked her head into the backroom and yelled to Harry that she had the front. "So, who's this?" She eyed Remy and smiled at him but directed her question to Logan. Looking back at the older man, she began running her fingers of her left hand through her long bangs and then made sure her long auburn braid had remained in tact from the ride.

Logan smiled and turned around fully to rest his right hand on Remy's left shoulder as he introduced him. "This is the kid we had that talk about. Remy, Irivan." Logan nodded to the girl as he glanced from the young man to her.

"En chante, m'sieur." She smiled and held out her hand for a handshake.

Remy accepted it, and shook her hand before smiling back and answering in a cool voice. He was still a bit confused yet, he could see the resemblance that Logan was talking about. When she disappeared into the backroom, again, he took the moment to ask about why he was there. "Why ya bring me here, homme? Y' got a t'ing for de girl, an' ya want Remy t' be jealous?" He leaned over and nudged Logan with his elbow.

"Nope. Like I said, she's a good kid. Thought maybe you two would be more of a conversation thing about New Orleans, than I am. Sides, she knows some stuff I didn't have to tell her, about you." Logan took another drink and then finished off his first bottle.

Remy winced at her knowing things about him that he might not wanted to have shared.

Irivan came back and immediately set another bottle of Budweiser down, in front of Logan. Turning to Remy, she smiled and set another bottle down in front of him, eventhough he hadn't finished his first, yet. "I don't intrude in people's personal things. Just read them. I understand it's a hard manner for ya. But, I think you already know that, don't ya?" Her calm tone and easy manner caused Remy to nod and then smile. "So, you came back just to see me off, huh? How sweet. Thought I scared ya, the other night."

"Na. I'm not easily scared. The kid, here, he does the same thing. I just thought I'd bring him over to say hi." Logan looked at Remy and smiled before the youth's cell phone rang, from the beltclip he had on his right side, and he excused himself to take the call, outside.

Irivan waited until Remy had been fully outside before asking Logan how everything had gone, since they'd talked. She'd noted to herself that Remy was somewhat unsure about her, but felt better around Logan. Also noting, Logan was a bit more happier than he had been the night prior, when they had met and talked. "So, how'd it go? Looks like you talked, but he doesn't seem to thrilled to be here."

Clearing his throat and glancing back at the door, Logan turned back to stare into her deep blue eyes and shrug his answer. "We talked."

"...And?" She giggled.

"And, he basically asked me what had taken me so long to tell him. I told him, I wasn't sure what he'd say. I just gotta know, how'd you know about him? I know you look familiar, just can't quite get a handle on ya." Logan took a sip of his new beer and blinked. It was her confession time and he half expected her to shrug and give a half-explanation of it, but he wasn't counting on a full one.

Taking in a breath and shrugging, Irivan reached into her back left pocket and pulled out her faded brown leather billfold. She opened it and removed a small picture from a hidden slot under the left side of the credit card slots. Handing it to him, she pointed out her mother on the left and father on the right, in the foreground, and then drew his attention to a person standing just over her father's right shoulder, in between the mother and the father. It was the profile of a younger version of Remy, and all three had been standing in the front yard of a near-shambled mansion that stood alone amidst a swampland.

"So, ya knew him?" Handing the picture back to her and watching her as she looked at it before sliding it back into place in her billfold.

As she put it back into her pocket, she shrugged and stared at the counter. "Not really. We moved here when I was 12. While I was away at boarding school, they'd make trips back there. If you mean, did I know he was who you were thinking about when we first met? The answer is no. But, when you mentioned he was a Cajun, and an empath, his name popped into my head. That and, Harry tells me all about the more interesting people who call this a 2nd home." She smiled and turned her attention back to the door as Remy had re-entered and took his seat beside Logan.

"Miss anyt'ing excitin?" Remy asked as he made himself comfortable on the wooden stool.

Logan and Irivan exhanged smiles and answered, in unison, "Nope."

They sat and talked for a good three hours about New Orleans, and billiards and then nothing at all. They laughed and joked and even played a few games. In between a few customers, Irivan had also shot a few games and had manged to win 4 out of 5 with Remy, which wasn't easy to do.

By the end of the night, They said their goodbyes and promises to get together when either she came back, or they planned a trip down south.

"I told ya, she was one of you. Damn Cajuns!" Logan joked as he started the engine to the jeep. He glanced over to Remy and smiled as the boy smirked.

"Wha' would ya do wit'out us, though?" Remy grinned and replied from the passenger seat as they headed back to the mansion. He had to admit, life was easier since Logan confessed. Now all he had to do, was
to make sure, he would never regret it.


End.