Chapter 17: Old Wounds Part One

It was the morning at the Xavier Institute, Sunday morning, quiet, and peaceful all things considered, or at least what passed for quiet and peaceful. Kitty sat herself down at the table, to draft her latest e-mail to her parents, giving them all of the details of what has been going on at the Xavier Institute. Well most of the details, there were a few of the more private bits that Kitty had been leaving out, but she gave them the general overview of what was going on her life.

A loud scream had brought Kitty out of her concentration, and ruined her focus, causing the moment to be lost. Kurt had teleported out of nowhere. Scott and Jean had arrived at that moment, and Rogue was right behind them. The chaotic sounds of the morning echoed along with a combination of sounds. Kitty offered a bit of a grimace, perhaps this was not the best time to attempt to draft some kind of letter.

One could not blame the girl for trying, and, at that moment, Kitty tried to move her letter writing to a more private venue. The living room was fine, and Kitty had stopped at that moment, when Logan was watching something on the television. There was news of a wild animal going through. Kitty could tell that Logan was intent at what he was watching, and did not want to be disturbed.

"Are you troubled, Logan?"

The voice of Professor Xavier cut through the air, and Logan spun around, but he relaxed, completely on edge at that point.

"Yes, one could say I'm a bit troubled, Chuck, but do you blame me after what's happened?" Logan asked him, and Xavier shook his head, no one could not blame Logan for being the slightest bit frazzled, and he clutched his head, feeling the buzz throughout his mind. Logan growled at the sensation he had felt. "It's been happening for the past three days…now I've seen that place before."

"Could it be that your memories are coming back to focus?" Xavier asked, and Logan just responded with a grunt, noncommittal.

Kitty walked off, before this conversation could go any further. Harry stepped forward, and stood beside Kitty at that moment, startling her briefly, but the brunette mutant recovered quickly.

"Oh, hey Harry, sorry if I'm not in the mood to chat right now, but I've got a letter to type, to my parents, I'm so behind," Kitty answered, holding out the laptop she had for emphasis Harry nodded in understanding.

"It's quite alright, I'm actually sneaking off in the confusion to have a meeting with my stalker right now," Harry responded to Kitty, and Kitty just tensed up at that moment, before she grabbed Harry's hands, tightening her grip, and peering directly into his eyes.

"That's today?" Kitty asked, and Harry responded with a nod. "Well that's up to you, but just…just don't get in over your head."

Harry placed his hands on his hips, and a winning smile on his lips, a warm expression in his eyes once he looked at Kitty. "Come on now Kitty, when have I ever got in over my head?"

Kitty was not going to dignify that comment with an answer, but she got on her tip-toes, and gave Harry a kiss goodbye. She watched as Harry also exchanged a goodbye with Rogue, before he slipped off to the mansion. He had learned a neat trick where he could blend into his surroundings, practically becoming invisible. Kitty had to admit, it was kind of useful for stealth, magic really was cool when one really thought about it.

At that moment, Kitty really did need a private place to think, and what better place to think would be out in the hanger, sitting in the back of the X-Jet. Nothing could have gone wrong right there, and Kitty quickened her steps, before reaching it.

Kitty pulled herself into the back of the hanger, and pulled out her laptop, before she began to fight. Kurt popped up beside her before she could really get going, and Kitty nearly elbowed him in the face.

"Sorry," Kitty replied, but her face crossed into a frown and her eyes looked at Kurt, taking a moment to regain her bearings before she spoke. "But you really shouldn't be teleporting behind people without warning them, because it so totally freaks them out."

Kurt nodded, but he had some news that he needed to tell the brunette mutant. "Logan is….well Logan wants you to know that we're skipping Danger Room practice."

"Logan never cancels a Danger Room training session," Kitty replied, absolutely flummoxed, and given how weird Logan had been acting this morning, Kitty wondered if something was up. The brunette mutant racked it over in her mind, over and over until she just shrugged her shoulders.

"I know weird, huh?" Kurt asked, and Kitty just offered a brief nod of her head.

"Yeah, weird," Kitty agreed, and she placed her hands on her chin, preparing to type, when suddenly, the X-Jet managed to take off, with both of them inside. It had gotten off the ground, before any of them could react.

Kitty thought that she could phase through, but found out that would be too risky, with the X-Jet off the ground. Kurt just looked through the window, and saw Logan flying.

"He's a madman," Kurt remarked underneath his breath.

Kitty rolled her eyes. "Yeah, got that the moment where he took off the ground, without buckling up, I mean healing factor or not, that's still kind of reckless."

Logan turned around, and saw the two teenagers sitting in the back. His eyes widened at that moment, and his teeth gritted, practically snarling at them.

"What are you doing here?" Logan snarled, but suddenly a ringing echoed through his ear. Logan locked the door, his feral instincts returning, but the mutant tried to suppress them, struggling and shutting his eyes, thinking that if he did not see anything, there would be no potential targets attacked.

"He's fighting something, something painful," Kitty replied, trying to look forward. "Maybe you can teleport us out of here…"

"Are you nuts, from this high up?" Kurt exclaimed, and he shuddered at the sound.

"Okay, okay, fine, my powers can't get us out of this mess, your powers can't, so…we're going to need some back up," Kitty remarked, finally catching her breath, and whipping out her communicator. It was all about keeping cool under pressure, and she tapped it, before activating it. "Um, Harry, hi, it's me, we have a problem, get here is soon as you can."

Kitty tried hard not to freak out, but Logan's breathing was not something that was normal. He continued to fly reckless, serving around in an erratic and random matter.

"The way he's flying, I hope we don't crash," Kurt replied, and Kitty sat rigid, hoping so as well, and hoped that Harry would answer soon, and soon enough she got her wish.

Nick Fury waited in the background of the meeting place, watched and tapped his foot in an impatient matter. The SHIELD director took a long drag from the cigarette that he was smoking. According to his watch, the mysterious Harry Potter had agreed to a meeting, and he was close to being late. Fury waited and watched, impatient, and he did not enjoy waiting for someone, but it turned out he did not have to wait for long.

"I'm here, right on time, just as promised."

Fury paused, and looked forward, before his hands clutched at that moment. The grizzled government agent took a step forward, and folded his arms, his voice gruff. "I'd feel a lot better if I could see you."

"And I'd feel a lot better if there weren't a half a dozen SHIELD agents waiting to nail me in the back of the head," Harry answered at that moment, and there was a long pause, before both had stared each other down. Technically Fury was staring in the general direction where Harry was, but the sentiment was in fact there, and Fury still tried to gain some semblance of control.

"Very well, just who are you and where did you come from?" Fury demanded, and he stepped forward. Fury was very much on edge, he did not like someone he could not see, because that just left the government agent opened for some kind of attack.

"As you well know, my name is Harry Potter, and I moved over from Britain, in case you couldn't tell from my charming accent," Harry replied, and Fury surveyed Harry at that moment.

"You came directly over from Britain?" Fury asked, not believing him for a second.

Harry just paused, before he answered in a slightly casual tone of voice. "It was a very long trip."

"I see, but how long is the question?" Fury asked, and there was a long moment where both paused. Neither had really given the other that much information. Both stared each other down, and they waited, watched, and just paused, Fury getting more annoyed by the lack of answers. "Well?"

"It's a deep subject," Harry answered, and Fury looked at Harry, like he grew two heads, or like he had finally gone insane. "Sorry, inside joke."

"Look kid, if I wanted some kind of comedy act, I'd hang around Spider-Man," Fury responded in a dry voice, and there was a moment where Harry just paused, and snickered. "One day, I could find you, and we could have serious problems."

Harry just shuffled on his feet, and just responded with a slight smile that crossed his face. Fury continued to stare intently towards the direct where he thought Harry was, and both of them had really nothing to say right now. It was an intense battle of wills, and while Harry was stubborn, so was Fury; something had to give, but the real question was what. The two had their eyes on each other, with Fury narrowing an eye on Harry and focusing on him.

"When you really think about this, I've done nothing more than come here, but the real question is, how?" Harry asked, and Fury just responded with a nod.

"That's the problem, no one pops up, not without a reason," Fury answered, and he stepped forward towards Harry. "So how did you do it?"

Harry responded with a smirk, even though Fury could not see it. It was the principal of the matter.

"Fury, I've given you some information, basic details, have fun trying to figure it out, the folder is right there on that box," Harry responded, and the box glowed to give Fury a sign, since Harry was not about to give up his exact location to Fury.

Fury took a step forward, and grabbed the folder, flipping over the information. A shadow of a smile crossed his face, and he flipped through the information, just vowing to study it at his next possible opportunity until he could verify the validity of it, which he had doubts on. Fury took a look at the boy's grades in school, and realized that he was not stupid, even if the grades of Harry Potter was not the most stellar in the world.

Harry Potter had promised to give Fury information, but never once promised accurate information would be given.

"So this is what you're going to give me?" Fury asked, taking a threatening step towards where he perceived the voice to be.

"Did you expect a full account of my life, and my goals?" Harry retorted, and once again his voice held a tiny hint of a taunt. "No trust me Fury, I'm not going to give you something like that, not that easy. It's something that you got to earn, and perhaps I may trust you with more information. Who knows, maybe we'll work together."

"Maybe," Fury answered, and he cracked his knuckles in a knowing manner. The truth was if he was skilled, and on the level, perhaps Fury might have a place for this young man in the future, or at the very least, he could work together. "We're just going to have to wait and see what happens."

"Yes, we shall," Harry answered, and there was a brief pop, where Fury understood that Potter had left.

Containing someone like Harry was going to be a headache. That was the fact of the matter, but Fury had to take this information. He would continue his watch of Harry, and hoped for another hint. Perhaps Fury needed to go for more unconventional methods, and it was at this point where he walked off.

Harry stepped out, hoping that would get Fury off of his back. He doubted it however, the man seemed determined, and rather tough to shake. His communicator went off, and Harry answered it at this moment.

"Yes, what is it?" Harry asked, to the person on the other side.

It was Kitty's voice that answered. "Um, Harry, hi, we might have a little problem."

"What kind of problem?" Harry asked, feeling a sense of impending doom.

There was a loud growl and Kurt's voice chimed in at that moment. "Um, yeah, it would be a problem like that Harry."

'Of course it was,' Harry thought to himself, and he shook his head, before taking charge of the situation.

"Just try and keep calm, and stick by, I'll track you, and get there as soon as I can," Harry answered, and he tried to figure out how to track them through the communicator. Harry was still a bit rusty with the technology aspect, but he managed to find a way to track, and once he tracked, he could get there.

One of his girlfriends, and one of his teammates were in trouble, but there was something wrong with Logan, and Harry was determined to find out what, moving towards the location quick as his feet could carry him.

Trying to fly a plane, along with keeping one's head about themselves was extremely hard, but that's what Logan tried to do. Yet, he was losing himself and his mind to everything else, to the beast within side. Wolverine was a name that was very appropriate right now, and he tried to fight it, yet the beast within would not allow him to fight.

He struggled, the will power he suffered. Logan rubbed his temples, and immediately, the plane was going down. He felt compelled to land it. Why here, in the middle of nowhere, he had no clear idea? Logan landed the plan, and jumped out the windows. His head continued to ring, and his claws popped out, whilst he stalked into the woods, feral and mean.

Carefully, Kitty popped her head out of the plane, and landed on the ground. Kurt followed her with a pop, teleporting into the scene, and let out the breath he had been holding.

"I don't think that's normal, not even for Logan," Kurt remarked, eyes widened when he watched Logan stalk forward. Kitty just took a step forward, and knew that Harry would be here at any minute, now that they were stationary. All Kitty had to do was wait, and be patient. Something that was a virtue for her, but suddenly, her heart thumped across her ribcage.

Kitty stopped, and stared. She did not have the super heightened senses that Logan did, or the ability to sense trouble that Harry did, but one did not need to when the noises that were being made in the woods, were made. They were in the wilderness, and very prone to anything.

"What was that?" Kurt asked, taking a step back, and nearly jumping in a frightful manner. Kitty shook her head, and took a deep breath.

"I don't know, but something tells me that it isn't big foot," Kitty responded, and she looked forward.

There was no noise at the moment, but that did not relax Kitty at the slightest. In fact, if something was too quiet, that was just going to make her a bit more nervous. The brunette mutant took a few steps forward, and waited for the other shoe to drop. Harry should be turning up at any moment.

The problem was that the figure that swooped down next to them was not Harry at all. Then they heard the growls suddenly. Kurt just barely teleported out of the way, when Wolverine charged them, claws popped up. Kitty sunk down in the ground, and Logan stumbled around, shaking his head, growling, and slashing at the air out of his feral, most base instincts.

"Get out of here!" Logan demanded, trying to not hurt the children.

Harry flew through the air, and Logan dodged his attempt to attack. The dark haired wizard flew around, circling Logan, and the mutant tried to stab at him with the claws. Harry created a shield around him, Kitty and Kurt, managing to block Logan from gutting the entire lot of them.

"Logan, just snap out of it!" Harry yelled, trying to get through to him. "I don't want to hurt you but…if I have to, I will."

Harry flicked his hand, and Logan felt a ringing go through his ears, that was not like the other ringing. He moved away, for his hearing was super sensitive, and he growled at that moment, before moving away, crashing into the woods.

"We got him off of our backs, now we need to figure out what went wrong with him," Harry replied, taking a deep breath, and Kitty sighed in relief.

"Logan's never acted like this before," Kitty responded, and Harry just gripped her hand.

"Yeah, but it's likely a side of him he would prefer that none of us sees at any given time," Harry responded, trying to figure out what he was going on against. "Was there anything that either of you saw that could have pointed towards why Logan was acting like this?"

"Unless you count the news broadcast Logan watched this morning, it kind of made him act weird," Kitty said, and Harry just understood everything right now. "Do you think…"

"I think someone might have lured Logan here, yes," Harry responded, and there was a moment where he paused, before peering out to the woods, and figuring out his next move.

Harry managed to slip a tracking spell on Logan, but his instincts kept him moving, never staying in the same place more than once. This fact made everything much more problematic, and Harry just mentally prepared himself for what had to be done. Slowly, he turned to Kitty and Kurt.

"You two got your communicators, still, right?" Harry asked them, and Kitty and Kurt responded with two brief nods. "Use the communicators if you see anything, and stay on the path. I'm going to see if I can figure out who is doing this to Logan."

Harry had left no room for argument, making sure his communicator was secure. There were any number of spells to subdue Logan, but it would not solve the problem of who was doing this to him. That was something that Harry would have to find, and he had a feeling if he would have seen some kind of settlement, he might be getting that much closer.

There was no time to delay, Harry had to focus on the task at hand, and looked over his shoulder, to make sure Kitty and Kurt were safe on the path. His first instinct was to get them back to the Institute, but it might have been useful to have a little bit of backup.

Harry sensed that there was something, or someone out there that should not be. The problem was finding out who, and now tracking down Logan. Who as Harry noticed, was very close to his current location.

The dark haired wizard had to keep moving, and so he did.

Doctor Abraham Cornelius watched as his property moved closer, just as he had been lured. The doctor was part of the Weapon X project years ago, that had created the weapon known as Wolverine. He had worked for a higher backer, someone who paid him big bucks to use these mutants as weapons. The project had been mostly shut down, but the backer had returned with more interest, and there was time for one more round with these mutants.

Cornelius tapped his fingers, and clicked his pen. The fact of the matter was that everything had gone smoothly, a bit too smoothly come to think about it. He had allowed the news report, hoping that would trigger Logan, and lure the Wolverine to him. Then once Logan was in range, he could activate the implant that was in his head. He marveled at the technology that had been created, and would be used to condition the weapon, the weapons, for their intended goal. They had deviated a bit, but now that Cornelius was back in business, he was ready.

"I trust you have reclaimed the asset," a voice stated from over the other end of the line, garbled and unable to make out.

"Yes, sir, both of them are en route here, Sabertooth has been dispatched into the woods as we speak," Cornelius replied, and the man on the other end of the line had remained silence, before he spoke.

"Just make sure both weapons are in one piece. Leshnerr and Xavier have not spotted the implants in the minds of either of their pets, which makes it all the better. All will bow before the supreme rulers of the world. Heil HYDRA."

"Yes, heil HYDRA," Cornelius replied in a swift voice, and the call was disconnected in a matter of moments. That allowed the scientist to continue to go forward, and continue to monitor his weapon. "Yes, Logan, you are quite a marvel. You make it worth every dime I have invested in you, and soon you will be right before my feet. Just think, the magnificent Wolverine right at my fingertips. You got away once my friend, but now I have you."

Cornelius spotted something peculiar at that moment, and his eyes snapped towards the view screen. He saw Wolverine, and he spotted Sabertooth, but there were three other guest, and they were not invited to this party. Two of the guests remained stationary on the path leading to the woods, so they were not an immediate threat, even though Cornelius could send Sabertooth and Wolverine to take them out immediately. The third guest was on the move and Cornelius had to admit his resourcefulness.

He very nearly eluded tracking, and kept a few steps ahead of everything. Whoever this young man was, he was smart enough to stay three or four steps ahead of any scientific equipment that could track him. Cornelius wondered how anyone could move so fast, but he would allow himself to get some more professional help.

Well professional might not have been the correct word to use to describe this particular individual, but qualified would be a better word. Never the less, he could get the job done, for the most part.

"I require your assistance," Cornelius said, and sure enough the assistance was granted when a figure approached in the shadows.

"You rang, Abe, my boy!"

"Yes, I did, there is someone in the woods who could pose a threat," Cornelius replied, use to the eccentric behavior of this particular individual by this point.

The individual in the shadows offered a gasp of mock surprise, shock, and awe. "You mean to tell me that there are some nefarious doings that are countering your nefarious doings. Well, isn't that a kick in the pants."

"I need you to find out who this threat is, and neutralize him immediately," Cornelius replied, not really missing a beat, but knowing that he had to deal with a potential wildcard. If his plans for Sabertooth and Wolverine, along with the plans of his employers, would go without a hitch, he would need to trusty this man.

"I'm on it, don't worry, Abe, we're going to have a lot of fun in the woods tonight."

"Just make sure you get the job done," Cornelius remarked, and the man just acted like he was outraged.

"I always get the job done, in a fashion. I mean, who do you think I am, some Johnny come lately, fly by night act? Just put me in coach, and I'll take care of the boy who lived to have his name be hyphenated in no time flat."

"I'm trusting you on this, Wilson, don't disappoint me," Cornelius said, but the man had just disappeared, and the Project Weapon X doctor resumed his tracking of Wolverine and Sabertooth. The two other guests were near on the path, and he offered them a suitable reception.

"Of course, there's no need to fear, Deadpool is here!"

A malicious expression spread over his face at that moment, and Cornelius amped up the volume on the implants, to make sure his little pets obeyed their master's orders.

Harry remained in the woods, and if he was honest, there was only a slight bit of intimidation to him. Intimidation was something that should not be concerned with fear, for Harry had entered the Forbidden Forest in Hogwarts many times, and lived to tell the tale. However, there was just something about the unknown, and the uncertainty that made Harry stand up, and take notice, prepare himself for anything.

The words constant vigilance rang in his mind.

There was a slight thump, and Harry held his hand, scanning the woods for any signs of life.

So far, there was nothing, at least nothing of value.

Yet, Harry did not ease up on what he was looking for. There was many times where Harry wanted to be alert, and there were instances where he knew the dangers of letting one's guard down. Moody, the fake one at least, drilled that into their head, and while the man was an imposter, he spoke wisdom. Harry took a swift step forward, ready to engage anyone who had showed up.

Another thump, and Harry had sent a spell through the trees, but it had not connected with anything. Harry thought about calling out for Logan, but realized the sheer potential danger that invited. He wanted to retain somewhat of an element of surprise, even though it would be difficult to. The mutant slipped into the woods, and Harry had a feeling that he was just biding his time.

The time had been bided well, and Harry felt his heart thump against the side of his chest. Time ticked on once again, and a growl could be heard. It could have been a wild animal, or it could have been the person Harry was looking for.

He was not going to take any chances, and Harry looked forward, when he saw a figure move forward in the shadows. It was not Logan, which made Harry even more inclined to blast him. A jet of purple light was sent into the shadows, but the figure just dodged with skill, and determination. The movements of the figure were random and helter-skelter, and Harry noticed that he would have to focus extra hard to pick up a pattern.

"Be careful with that thing, you'll shoot your eye out kid!"

"Just who are you?" Harry asked, but he saw the figure step forward. He wore a full red and black bodysuit with a mask, and he had two guns on either holster, along with a pair of swords in his hands.

"Don't you read the Internet, kid?"

Harry wondered what this would have had to do with anything. He looked over his shoulder, and waited.

"Since you asked so nicely, I'm the Man with the Plan, whose name isn't Stan, Lee or otherwise. I am the one and only, Merc with the Mouth, the one, the only, Deadpool!"

Harry just stood in the shadows, and just looked at him, unimpressed, and shaking his head. It was at this point where Harry was trying to figure out whether this Deadpool was a threat, or a nuisance.

"Not even a comment, not even one, really?" Deadpool asked, and suddenly the Merc with the Mouth turned his head a half of an inch to the side. "Can you believe this kid? I really think that he's unbelievable."

Harry began to perform scanning spells, as it was obvious Deadpool was talking to someone. So he had hidden enemies somewhere, but the question was where? The Boy-Who-Lived tried every scanning spell that he had picked up, but there was nothing, other than a few squirrels.

"You know, we're just sitting here, shooting the breeze, but I think we're supposed to fight now," Deadpool remarked, and without warning, he shot Harry. Harry blocked the bullets with a spell and fired him back. Deadpool was struck hard, and he staggered. "Oh dear, woe is me, cut down in the prime of my life, oh the agony of it all, oh the pain, oh the suffering, oh and all of the fried chicken."

Deadpool shrugged it off, and leapt at Harry. Harry dodged Deadpool at that moment, and the two of them circled each other. Deadpool's sword was blown to bits.

"Hey, I went all the way to Japan, and had that custom made from a part of a soul of a long dead Samurai!" Deadpool shouted in an indignant voice, and Harry tried to blast him again. Deadpool stopped. "No, wait, I bought it off of EBay for thirty dollars, but the other story just sounds so much better."

Harry really had no idea who this guy was, and Deadpool teleported himself out of the way. Harry spun around and turned his daggers into harmless paper airplanes. The dark haired wizard stepped forward, and used every spell that he could think of, but Deadpool seemed to not be there.

He could not pick out a fighting pattern.

Did this guy even have any kind of defined fighting pattern?

"So, you're starting a harem, are you?" Deadpool asked casually, and he dodged an attack from Harry, who refused to answer. He just wanted this guy to shut up, and fast. "Hey, I sympathize with your ambition kid, I've had a few harems in my time too."

Deadpool ducked another attack, and pulled out another gun, trying to get Harry, but it blew up in his face, and knocked him back. With a swift motion, Deadpool sprang up to his feet.

"No, that's actually all of the dead nuns I keep in my basement, I tend to get the two mixed up."

"Do you ever shut up?" Harry asked, trying to use a silencing charm on Deadpool, just so he could focus on a way to kill him.

"No, don't sew my mouth shut, people hate that when I don't talk," Deadpool said in a mock dramatic voice. The Merc with the Mouth continued to dodge and duck. "Can't touch this!"

Harry conjured flaming spikes, but Deadpool screamed and dodged out of the way.

"Hey, careful with those things, you're going to kill someone with those things, likely me!" Deadpool shouted, shaking his fist at Harry, and waggling his finger at him like a stern parent.

"Why won't you go down?" Harry demanded, and Deadpool just raised his hands, and shrugged his shoulders.

"Hey, if I go down in one spell, it wouldn't be that entertaining, now would it?" Deadpool asked in a nonchalant voice, before he tried to attack Harry. Deadpool knocked Harry off to the side, and the Merc with the Mouth was blasted hard.

'Ah, he's pulling out the big guns,' Deadpool thought.

"Why are you attacking me anyway?" Harry said through gritted teeth, sending another spell, which Deadpool dodged.

The mercenary just rolled his eyes at Harry, and stated in a matter of fact voice. "Well, for the lolz mostly, and because I need to distract you so Sabertooth and Wolverine can run amuck and tear your little friends to ribbons."

Harry was not impressed with that, and he tried to go in.

"No, you can't stop now!" Deadpool yelled, and he sent flash powder at Harry. "You know, there are fifteen different ways to kill me, seven of them involving rabid rabies infested gophers, but that wouldn't be fun or dramatic, even if it would make a lot of sense."

Deadpool jumped forward, and threw himself at Harry. Harry momentarily was knocked to the side, where he hung onto the edge of the cliff, his legs kicking.

"Now, that's a good spot for a Cliffhanger!" Deadpool cheered as Harry hung from the cliff, just about to pull himself back up.