Kageneko
MARVELOUS TALES
KAGENEKO
Wolverine and Storm are looking for one of their own missing, Kitty Pryde. They fought an army of youkai, and slaughtered each and every one of them until they arrive at the stronghold of the Youkai’s master.
Ogun, the ninja warlord with the demon mask greets Wolverine as an old friend and student, and Storm as ‘the next squeeze that he had gotten himself in the centuries he’s been alive.’ Wolverine says Ororo is a respected friend and deserves to not be referred to as that. Also, he also wants back the girl that Ogun took.
Ogun laughs as he says he would want to but he had grown attached to the girl, and since Wolverine had abandoned him he decided to take in a new student. Kitty Pryde appears from the shadow in ninja gear and a blade, which she nearly uses to cut them down. Kitty says that all her father’s enemies must be punished.
Wolverine and Storm are heartbroken to see Kitty as this. A growling Wolverine says it’s sick that he bent Kitty to his will with his mind games. Ogun says he did what Wolverine and Storm did in Kitty’s lives, replace a void in her heart after her parents’ deaths. Though unlike them he’ll make sure she is living up to her full potential.
He sicks Kitty on them, neither of them want to fight back. Ogun says that two against one isn’t fair and he’ll summon a little playmate. He summons Raiju, and he’s a lot bigger and stronger then any of the minor Youkai they defeated before. Raiju, the lightning beast tackles Storm and they have an elemental showdown.
Wolverine tries to get through to Kitty, though she says her name is Nekokage, the daughter of Ogun. Wolverine says she’s not. He knows Ogun, he manages to twist people uses them as a tool. He doesn’t consider anyone family. Wolverine says that he has seen many people come and go over the years and his sense of family is iffy. But he knows he considers the X-Men family and Kitty is one of them. Kitty starts to fight the control Ogun has over her.
At the same time Kitty resist Ogun’s brainwashing and expels the curse that controlled her. Ogun is only slightly surprised and says that he has a tendency to pick out the stubborn ones. He decides that he probably has to get his own hands dirty again and challenges his old student ‘Kuzuri’. Kitty Pryde says she wants a piece of him, Ogun summons a Nekomata to keep her busy so ‘the adults can have a talk’.
Storm is struggling against the Raiju. The Raiju is a god among Youkai, an elemental deity incarnate. Ogun mocks Storm that he has bent a godly being to his will whom dwarfs her powers. Storm picks herself up and says that in the past she has been worshipped as a god for her power. She’ll show why that is. She fights back harder against the Raiju, whom now starts to struggle. The Raiju blasts Storm full force with its lightning. Storm cries out, but instead of being harmed by the lightning, she takes it in…alongside the Youkai, whose being is pure electrical energy, dispersing and being absorbed.
Kitty manages to slay the Nekomata, whom takes on a human/cat hybrid form with Kitty’s face to mock her about becoming Ogun’s daughter and plaything. Kitty manages to slay the Nekomata in battle.
And Wolverine fights his old mentor, and gets spell and blow thrown at him and is tossed around. Ogun says that Wolverine has gone soft in recent years, and is frankly disappointed in him. However, Kitty and Storm after dealing with their opponents say that Wolverine hasn’t become soft, he has become a hero and friend they look up to.
Wolverine gets a second wind and strikes back against Ogun, beating him into the ground. Ogun laughs and says that ‘Kuzuri’ still has claws. He wonders if he has found a different source of strength then his anger. Wolverine says that Ogun can shove it. They take one of their own home and if he tries to go after his friends and loved ones, threaten them or even bumps into them at the street, he’ll slice him into pieces. The trio of X-Men decide to leave.
Ogun says that for all his strength, Wolverine is still weak and tries to shoot him in the back with a spell. Kitty makes Wolverine transparent and it flies through him. Wolverine says he gave him a chance and blew it, rushed down and slashes Ogun’s face, his mask breaking. Dark magic leaks out as his physical form twists out of control.
Storm uses the power of the Raiju she absorbed to blast Ogun with a burst of lightning, and with that he’s seemingly gone. Though Wolverine says that the son of the bitch is a lot like him, he won’t die easily. Though it may take a bit before he puts himself back together.
Storm and Wolverine return home. Kitty has been quiet since her return, takes distance from everyone, only allowing Wolverine and Storm near her. Being brainwashed and twisted by Ogun had an effect on her. Wolverine asks if Xavier can’t just use his mind powers to wipe away her trauma. Xavier says that he could but there are some wounds that better heal naturally, and that includes some mental ones. Even for a powerful telepath as him, he doesn’t dare to speed through a healing process like that, as it may do more damage to Kitty in the long run. Wolverine understands and he was just grasping at straws.
Kitty does get therapy sessions. However, she still feels Ogun’s shadow over her. He had forcefully programmed a new life with memories and ninja training into her. And she feels when overwhelmed grabbing at a sword that she no longer holds. Though she still has the sword given to her by Ogun under her bed, and she can’t either bear to see it or discard it. As she still wonders if she’s Shadowcat or Kageneko.
Wolverine entrusts her to spar with him. He asks her to not hold back, he heals easily and she needs to vent her frustration. During the fight he says in his lifetimes others have tried molding him into a weapon many times over. And each time he broke the control and took his life in his own hands again. Ogun tried to shape her, but he couldn’t keep ahold of her. Like how Weapon X gave him new weapons which he appropriates, he convinces Kitty to take whatever Ogun gave her and use it for herself.
During the training Kitty mixes up the ninja fighting style of Ogun with her own fighting style she learned from training with the X-Men and says she understands now. Whatever didn’t kill her made her stronger.
Afterwards, Storm meets kitty on the roof of the mansion at night. Kitty was crying. She says she’s doing better but she still feels afraid and broken and quite pathetic. She is not a child, she shouldn’t be looking weak. But Storm assures her that she’s strong and tears aren’t a sign of weakness. It shows strength, it shows the pain of the dangers and trials she faced, and yet she still stands.
Kitty thanks Storm, for her and Wolverine’s rescue of her. During this talk she slips up and accidentally calls Ororo ‘mom’ but quickly covers it up. Ororo pretends she didn’t hear it. She asks Kitty to get back to bed. And she immediately falls asleep upon touching the bed. Storm covers her with the sheets and softly sings a lullaby from Kenya.
Storm and Wolverine meet in the night and both are glad Kitty is healing. Wolverine says he admits that he wondered why he accepted Professors Xavier’s offer to be part of this school’s staff years ago. He had wondered if he should have told him to ‘F*** off!’ At the time he thought he’d get a place to stay, three squares a day and in exchange he just has to tell a few kids to read some books or get their ass kicked in training. He wonders if it was worth it but each time he thinks it was worth it.
Storm says that despite his past denials, he’s part of the team…of the entire extended family they built here. And the students love their ‘Uncle Logan’. Wolverine growling to not be called that. Storm asked if its better if they call him ‘Dad’.
Wolverine says that he has been a dad several times over, and the track record with his kids has been a mixed bag. Though Storm says that in the case of Kitty he is doing a stellar job. Wolverine says Ogun was right, he has been going soft as the little ones keep worming their way in his heart. He can’t believe himself, Wolverine the Dad…Though points out that Ororo must be the mom. Storm proudly says she is aware she is a mom to a lot of the students here. Wolverine says that with Kitty it may be especially be motherly.
Storm asks if that makes them Kitty’s new parents. Wolverine says he’s unsure. And Kitty and Storm deserve better then him, he is a cranky old bastard whom has been around too long and is perpetually stuck in cynical hothead mode. Storm says Wolverine shouldn’t sell himself short. Also, what was that mentioning her in the same breath as Kitty. Wolverine says to not think too hard, they just work together well, and she is a respected teammates and friend. Storm says someone has to be his friend, to make sure a lug like him doesn’t fly of the handle. Wolverine jokes she does a decent job.
Storm admits she does truly care for Kitty. She cares for all students but she has stronger maternal instincts for Kitty. But she hasn’t dared to ask Kitty if she wants to be adopted. Since her own family is gone and she is still healing she doesn’t want to overstep, or disrespect her. Wolverine says give Kitty the time she needs to heal, but that she should consider going for it. She knows Kitty will be in good hands and would be delighted. Storm thanks her old friend for his support as Wolverine says ‘Whatever’ though with a small smile.
A few months later Kitty is recovering. To the point she can jokingly refer to herself as ‘ninja’ around her friends, after she bests them in stealth training.
We cut to Kitty signing a paper, and then hugging Storm as she is her new legal guardian, and for the first time since that slip up on the roof calls her mom. Wolverine shows he does a have a thoughtful side by having bought Storm and Kitty’s favorite cakes to celebrate.
Xavier looks on this scene with a smile. It is moments like this that reminds him what he fights for. For mutants everywhere to find a place in a world to call home and be happy. To find family where they had lost it before, to heal where they are hurt. It’s things like that, that keep him going.
Though in Japan, someone uncovers the broken mask of Ogun. The two halves meld together as the eyes glow, and the unsuspecting fool whom picked up the mask has his eyes glow too…Wolverine was right in that it wasn’t the last of him.
TRIVIA
- I wrote this chapter just because Storm is my favorite X-Men member. I did have to do more research on her since my Marvel knowledge is still minimal.
- Once I learned that Kitty looked up to Storm as a mother figure I knew I had to put that in as a central aspect of this chapter. I am a fan of ‘found family’ in that people whom have no family can still find it in others, by blood or not.
- Wolverine and Storm are platonic life partners. At times they have had a brief romance. So there may be some subtext. But that doesn’t mean they come together as a couple. Or that’s not my intent. They have other love interests. But as I write this, I start to realize they could actually work if we don’t take other love interests in consideration. But I still leave some openness as I don’t know where this fic will go in general. Though probably No WolverStorm as endgame.
- Kageneko is a literal translation of Shadowcat in Japanese. So that’s a moniker Ogun gave her in this universe.
- Ogun did turn Kitty in a brainwashed ‘daughter’ in the comic. I only learned about Ogun recently but decided to include him because of his ties to Wolverine in the past, and excuses to delve into Japanese mythology.
- Kitty still knows some ninja tricks, and for a character with her powers and skills it would fit her.
- ‘Kuzuri’ is the Japanese name for a wolverine as well as a youkai of the same name based on a wolverine. It is the nickname that Wolverine was given in the movie ‘The Wolverine’ by Ichirō Yashida.
- Form the Death Battle between Storm and Avatar Korra in the online series of the same name I thought that Storm besting a Raiju and absorbing it would be in the realm of possibility.
- Kitty’s father died after the Ogun ordeal and his mother was still alive, but the latter was a non-entity as I find little info about her. So since this is my universe I’ll say both are gone. And She has mama Storm now.