Pent up anger

Loika's vision was clouded with rage. She wasnt 100% sure it was aimed at Ghost but it might as well have been. After glaring at the new headmistress she had stormed her way outside. Ghost had told her to come outside and because he was alpha male she had to listen to him. As much as she didnt want to it was an impulse for her. Deep ingrained she had to.
Outside the light made her blink and her eyes needed a few minutes to adjust. She walked to Ghost and stood there. Her skin trembled a little as she resisted shifting. She didnt dare look up at him but stared at her feet instead. She didnt bother to put shoes on this morning. She hated them. So she stood there staring at her bare feet. " You summoned me?Maaaaster. The last word she said sarcastically.

Ghost smirked behind his mask, not that the young woman would see it.

"No reason to call me master" Ghost replied. He wasn't one to use titles and it didn't feel appropriate anyways

"What happened yesterday?" He attempted to keep his tone neutral wanting to hear what the girl had to say. It was clear she had gotten into some kind of fight the day before, the evidence still showed on her, but he wanted to know the circumstances before proceeding.

loika closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She let it out slowly. " When i first arrived here in Atlanta i took shelter in a warehouse. Turns out i wasnt the only one. A boy there... he helped me out. I saw the same boy again yesterday. I skipped my last class...needed a break. I was feeling pent up." Her eyes were still closed as she retold her account of what happened. "I saw the boy in the park. We laid in the grass and talked for a while. I felt a strong pull towards this boy. I-i think i kissed him. When i was getting ready to leave-" Her body started to tremble again and her eyes opened. The glow in her eyes was a mixture of pain and anger.
" They attacked purely because we were different." tears started to roll from her eyes. Unclear as to if they were sad or angry tears. " He had a freakin bat what was i supposed to do! I attacked him in wolf form. He saw me shift!" She punched a tree on the lawn. The wood cracked a little and her knuckle had small cuts that bled very little. The tiny fractures and cuts would heal by dinner. probably even lunch if she didnt shift.
She clutched her hand to her chest. " I cant say for sure.. the smell was very faint. But i smelled it on Hikuro... just now." She said just barely audible.

Ghost listened to the girl's story. Having actually been given a bit more information then he had asked for but he didn't interrupt her.

"You could have not attacked" Ghost replied to her question "However defending yourself isn't wrong. The matter is knowing where and when to defend by attacking and defend by running away"

Ghost walked to the tree the girl punched running his hand along it

"I understand your anger but unless you learn to control it you are going to put yourself and others at risk. From now on you are going to be taking special classes. I will teach you focus and control. You may still have you anger but you will at least know how to focus it, how to use it in your favor"

Ghost explained things to the girl slowly. It wasn't a punishment..not in his mind at least as he had seen few students worth taking special notice to but it was clear from Loika's actions yesterday that he would have to start with her sooner rather then later

Loika rolled her eyes and moved away from Ghost when he got close. She had a habit of keeping space between her and people around her. Or even have her back to them for that matter. " You want to control me? I had years of living in a cage and attacking on command. Someone's trained dog. I'm no one's dog." She rubbed a barefoot on the ground but continued to stare at him. Her body relaxed a little after a few minutes. And she took a breath. "I'm not used to so much positive attention. A bed to sleep in. Food. Kinda need to talk to susan or someone about the food thing.... but ill train with you. I want to learn to control myself. I dont like feeling out of control. I dont want to hurt anyone."

Ghost laughed a little

"I'm not here to control anyone. At least not in the sense you are implying. I will teach you to control yourself. The only times you will answer to me is in the school or on a mission."

He moved from the tree looking at the girl through is ever unblinking mask

"I noticed the food situation, the school is not yet equipped to handle "special diets" however that is where your first lesson will begin."

Ghost turned gesturing past the school

"As I am sure you noticed the school grounds cover a large area, a good percentage being woods. Woods I would point out are full of animals. Shall we catch us a deer?"

Ghost posed the question to the young girl. It would take steps and her had figured her personality and mannerisms already. She saw herself more as wolf then human so he would work on that side before turning to the other. The end result, he hoped, would be the girl finding balance and using both human and animal strengths together

Loika didnt need much coaxing. She had eatten the night before but if she was going to be doing alot of training she could always eat more. High metabolisms. Gotta love em or hate em. She actually smiled at ghost for what felt like the first time. " Y-you actually...are going to let me hunt?...Hunt with me? Like for real?" She looked up at him through her bangs.

She had only moved a step or two back when ghost had stepped in her direction. It had been so long since she had hunted without the stress of being caught, or even hunting with someone else around for that matter. She deep down missed hunting with the wolf pack from Canada.

"We are meant to tend to each students special needs" Ghost answered simply "I personally have no issue with you hunting. However..if you are going to, we are going to make a lesson out of it"

He began to walk headed towards the heavily wooded area of the campus.

"Besides I don't like to sit about and it has been a while since I have hunted for food, need to be sure my skills haven't dulled"

Ghost, despite his appearance, was actually a pretty nice guy. He just was a very serious one at the same time. He may have taken special notice of Loika and was going to help work with her. But that didn't mean in class he was going to hold back any more then he already had.

"That is of course unless you rather just go back to the Danger Room and I see how long it takes you to break down from exhaustion?" It wasn't clear but that was perhaps the closest Ghost had ever come to making a joke since meeting these other mutants

Loika trotted alongside Ghost out to the woods. She was feeling giddy about going hunting. " I Spent a while in Canada living with a pack of wolves. Didnt shift for months. That was some of the best time of my life. She said as they walked to the woods.

When they reached the edge of the woods she moved behind some brush to slip out of her clothes and shift. She poked her head out when he spoke of going to the danger room to train. " No no im fine with this this is good we dont have to go to the danger room just yet. We can go hunt. " She trotted out of the brush and back to Ghost. She wagged her tail very slowly. " Alright... ready."

Ghost nodded slightly. He had already expected her to shift to her wolf form. That would be a matter to work on at a later time. For the moment getting her to trust the right people was what was important.

"We won't be going after the first we see. The purpose it to learn patience and to pick your fights understand?"

His voice was more of a whisper then usual as he began to walk. His boots barely making a sound as her expertly moved through the woods. It took a few minutes but he eventually stopped when they came to a clearing with a stream moving through it. He walked slowly observing the surroundings. It was clear this was a common stopping spot for many of the animals.

"This is where we will wait. Find a place out of sight and downwind" He whispered to Loika as he found his own spot, a firm branch on a tree downwind from the stream. "When we spot the right prey we will go for a standard High-Low attack. If we do this properly we will take the animal down in a matter of moments"

Loika walked along side him. Her big thick paw pads cushioned her steps so she made no sound when she walked. Her mouth was already beginning to water when he told her what she would be allowed to take down. That annoyed her a little.

As she moved through the brush she stayed low to the ground and down wind. It was comical that he was trying to tell her how to hunt. She had taken down moose with the pack in Canada. Moose were alot more dangerous than any little white tail they would see here. She laid on her stomach in some thick/tall grass and watched the stream. In her low crouched position her nose flared as she tried to pick up any scent she could. A couple of rabbits had been here hours ago. A skunk the day before. There was a dull scent of deer that was getting stronger. Her hopes were that it was a deer coming for a drink. Her ears flicked foreward and she listened for any sound that could mean a meal was coming. She also listened for any whispered command that ghost might give.

Ghost remained motionless in his perched position. He was aware that the girl knew how to hunt. But him telling her what to do wasn't because he didn't think she knew what she was doing. It was to build a sense of understanding. At the moment they were a team, working together. That meant one had to listen to the other.

They sat in their respective positions for well over 20 minutes. A few smaller deer had passed through but each time Ghost had let them pass. They were young and a few were females, not the right kind of prey and not one he felt the girl would be satisfied with.

It wasn't until another 10 minutes passed that Ghost spotted a very promising prey. A large buck walked slowly towards the water. It was clearly older, its antlers huge. Ghost whispered down to Loika giving her a slow count. When he reached three the buck has wandered near enough to his location he jumped startling the beast but moving fast enough that he grabbed the antlers as her fell pulling the animals head down causing it to crash under its own weight providing a perfect opening for Loika to end it.

Loika waited patiently in the brush for Ghost's command. She had hunted with the wolf pack in Canada and had brought down elk. So she was skilled in hunting large game. The deer around here would be small game for her in comparison.

She laid crouched in the grass. She let the small doe pass through. They were nothing but snacks for her. she waited for Ghosts command and it came. When Ghost brought the large buck down and called out to her she was ready. She sprang out of the brush and grabbed the buck by the throat. She ended its suffering quickly by clamping down her powerful jaws. When she was sure the animal was finaly defeated she released it.

She looked up at ghost, waiting to see if he would want any of the kill or if would let her take it. In a wolf pack the pack leader took what he wanted first.

Ghost smiled unseen behind his mask. The activity had been a success. It seems so long as he approached this in a more natural setting working with Loika would be easy. But he knew the real challenge would be when it came to getting her to use her human side. He pushed the thought away kneeling down to the buck and lowering his head in a silent gesture.

"It's all yours kid" Ghost told her. He had no use for animal himself. "Just try not to eat it all in one go. We will come out again but I'm sure you know we can't too often or it will scare the prey away"

Ghost wasn't going to underestimate her knowledge of hunting

"And try not to waste anything alright? We must respect that which helps us live"

It was probably a little surprising coming from Ghost but deep down the man held a high respect for life. It didn't stop him from killing when needing to...or when he had been ordered to, but that too was life

"Make you a deal. You stay out out of trouble..if possible and keep quiet about me being "nice", next time we will hunt something worth while. Something I am willing to bet you haven't hunted before"

loika's muzzle was dirty with blood. She was surprised that ghost was going to let her keep the buck to herself. A buck this size would keep her fed for a while unless she really pushed herself. "Th-thanks professor Ghost...The meat i took from the freezer wasnt going to last me forever." She looked down, her ears lowering. " I dont mean to be in trouble, it just sorta finds me..."

She grabbed the deer gently in her jaws by the back of its neck. She dragged it into the woods away from the creek and found a more secluded spot to eat. Before she ate she dug a hole to put whatever she didnt eat into it. As soon as the hole was finished, she started to eat her kill.

"Trust me I know about trouble finding you" Ghost replied. "And you don't need to bury the rest we can just take it to the school. Not like it will be under lock and key, we can't keep you from eating...hmm though there is an idea for a punishment"

Ghost watched the sky as the girl ate. A few birds flew over head and Ghost smiled as he recognized a familiar silhouette.

"But like I said there are times to pick and chose. You can't fight everyone Loika, trust me eventually you lose. But enough of that, you hunted with wolves in Canada..what is the biggest thing you have hunted? either on your own or in pack so I have an idea of if my treat will actually be a treat"

Ghost was talking rather idly which was different for him but it was because he knew a bit about the girls past and knew being his normal self wouldn't be the proper approach when handling the girl. He would go back to his usual self once back at the school where he only spoke when he needed and to those he bothered to want to listen to.

Loika was busy eating and listening to Ghost until she heard him talk of withdrawing food as punishment. Her ears went forward and she had flashbacks of the lab. She could hear ghost somewhere in the distance but for now the flashback took center stage.It was like watching an old memory on a screen in front of her. She had bitten a lab technician that had tried to draw blood. " No food-five days" She could hear faintly in the background.

She came out of it and backed up quickly, her rump hitting a tree before she could back up very far. Her body trembled a little but this time it wasnt from getting ready to shift. " Caribou... we hunted Caribou." She said through gritted teeth. She was trying to keep it together. " I fought a small mountain lion before-couldnt have been too old, prolly just left its mom to live on its own. Only won by a hair. If it would have been bigger it would have won."

"Hmm I see" Ghost replied "Then you will be in for a real treat next time we go hunting"

Ghost noticed the girls sudden change but didn't say a word.

"We can head back when you are ready. You still have classes to get to"

Even if Ghost didn't always act it he was still a teacher for the school which meant he had to put the classes before most other things, even if he felt some of the classes were a bit pointless.


As he began to walk away a little he turned back and as if sensing what the girl had been upset about "And the no food thing was a joke. The school would never let us do something like that. Plus be pointless. My job is to keep you kids alive, starving you wouldn't really help in that matter now would it?"

Loika shifted back to her human form. Up close you could see surgical scars that had never completely gone away. She put her clothes back on that she had stashed in the woods. She picked up the deer as if it weighed nothing and started carrying it back alongside ghost. " Before Canada i was in a lab. Government lab. They were making me into a weapon. Kept me in a cage." She snorted and shifted the weight of the remaining deer. " When i was a 'bad dog' I was left alone without food for days till i learned better." For a moment she seemed like an old soul and not a 16 year old kid.

"Everyone is used as a weapon at some point. It is just a matter of what kind of weapon" Ghost replied.

He had served in the military for a few years. But within that time he had probably racked up more missions then any other soldier, aside from someone like Captain America or such. Everything from sabotage to assassination. It got more intense when SHIELD had come to him. He hadn't minded it though. It had given him a purpose.

"I spent some time in Wakanda" Ghost spoke up again deciding to share just a tiny bit about himself "They don't like outsiders..hardly ever let any that enter survive if they are dumb enough not to leave after the first warning. But eventually I was welcomed by them, became one of them..as much as I could at least."

There was no emotion behind the memory, it wasn't happy and it wasn't sad. It was just...there.

"I know you kids think you are tough, that you have seen the most evil things humans can do to another living thing and I don't want to belittle you but none of you have even come close to scratching the surface. And as sad as it is humans aren't the only ones we need to watch out for. Other mutants wish to cause harm just as much as humans and for some they have to be weary of the powers they are given. It doesn't mean we have to fight the world, that would be a fruitless battle. It just means I need to teach you kids to think with your heads. Having a good heart and good intentions is all well and good but do you know what happens to people to try to get by on only that? They die. The world doesn't run on good intentions, remember that Loika. Just because someone seems nice doesn't mean they are"

The last part was clearly a warning about the person she had mentioned had helped her earlier that she said she had smelled on Spitfire, and considering the most recent smells would have been from the back that means that Loika had run into one of the people robbing the place.

Loika tripped on a stick but caught herself, never dropping the buck. She was still barefoot but it was rare that she ever actually wore shoes. She sucked in a breath.I killed a kid... once. Completely lost it, like i had no control. I think i was young. Theres a huge chunk of memory missing." She was trying to choose her words carefully. " I havent met one person or mutant with good intentions. I guess thats why i stayed with the pack so long. It felt right.

She stopped as they were walking. The deer still on her shoulder. " I dont like being like this Ghost. I dont like not knowing when im gunna snap. Im trying." She looked down. " I feel like i gain ground and then loose it again. I cant get that damn place out of my head. It just keeps haunting me. I see or smell something or even hear something and i remember things."

"We will work on it. IT won't be simple and I won't be easy on you but I understand wanting to change yourself. And you will eventually pick up a sense of people, to know which ones to trust and which not to. It may not be 100% accurate all the time but it is better then blindly trusting or blindly untrusting people"

Ghost stopped reached over and grabbed the buck putting it on his shoulder, it much easier for him to carry the large animal then the girl


"But as I said it will take time, you will get frustrated and you will get over it that is life"

Loika frowned when Ghost took the buck from her. " I can carry it myself ya know. Im alot stronger than most girls my age." She didnt bother arguing the matter. She decided it was better to let Ghost help and put just a little bit of trust in him to do so. Not much but just a teensy bit.

As they were reaching the edge of the wood she realized she still had some blood on her mouth, hands, and a small smear on her shoulder. She quickly wiped the blood off of her mouth. Since she wasnt one to carry wet naps she started to lick the dried blood off of her hands. Something normal for her, not so much for humans.

"Perhaps you can and perhaps you are. However I am taking it because I don't have to go to class"

Ghost gestured toward the building a few of the students and teachers heading to their respective classes.

"Whether you enjoy them or not lessons come first so try not to skip too many of them. And remember what I told you earlier"

With that Ghost broke off from Loika heading towards the cafeteria to drop the buck off in the cooler to keep it fresh. His lessons weren't till the afternoon so that gave him time to drop the deer, check some things in his office, and still set things up.

Loika nodded and for once didnt argue. She did however look down at her clothes and realized that it probably wasnt the best class attire. She jogged to catch up with ghost. " Let my next teacher know im going to be a little late! I need to change out of these bloody clothes!" She jogged past him in a pretty good mood as she hurried to change for her class.