Disclaimer: Not mine, marvel's. Mine is mine though. Darkchilde hates disclaimers almost as much as she hates cold weather!

Sam led Tabitha to a small den somewhere in the back of the mansion. It looked like it had hardly ever been used, but it was clean enough. It just didn't look lived in.

Tabitha slowly sat down in a chair, her eyes still locked on Sam. Sam sat down in a chair in front of her, and dropped his head into his hands, digging his long fingers through his hair.

"What did you want to talk to me about?" Tabitha finally asked, nervously twisting her hair around her pinkie finger.

Sam looked up at her, and cleared his throat. "Ah wanna know why you left." Tabitha dropped her gaze. She knew that was what he wanted to know. And he deserved to know. But how was she going to tell him?

"Why Tabitha? What did Ah do wrong?" Sam asked again, this time sounding dangerously close to tears. "Ah love you so much."

"Don't you mean loved?" Tabitha corrected, not even daring to hope. Sam didn't say anything. The silence stretched on for several more minutes.

Sam took a deep breath and looked up into Tabitha's eyes. "You didn't answer my question."

Tabitha looked back at him, a tear slipping down her cheek "You didn't answer mine."

"Ah asked you first." Sam reminded her.

Tabitha bit her lip. "Sam�I had to leave."

"Why? Ah didn't see anybody throwin' your stuff out the door." Sam snapped, his hands shaking.

"You don't understand." Tabitha whispered.

"Understand what?! That you left with out even saying goodbye!? Or leaving a note?! Ah loved you so much back then Tabitha�what did Ah do that forced you away from me?" Sam's voice had steadily dropped until he was almost whispering.

"You did nothing. It wasn't you, but it was." Tabitha stumbled through her explanation.

"What do you mean?" Sam asked.

"I loved you so much Sam. I would have given up everything for you. And I did." Tabitha whispered.

"What are you talkin' about?" Sam asked, his voice quivering.

"I left because if I didn't I know what you would have done." Tabitha tried again to explain.

"Ah still have no idea what you are talkin' about." Sam told her.

"I was pregnant, Sam." Tabitha told him, looking him right in the eye. "And I couldn't bare to make you give up your life as an X-Man because of it."

Sam had collapsed back in his chair, his face an awful ash gray. "You�you were�pregnant?"

"I was. Did you met Sami?" Tabitha asked. Sam nodded dumbly. "That is your daughter."

"She�she's my daughter?" Sam asked, his eyes huge. Tabitha was suddenly reminded of their daughter.

"Yes, Sam." Tabitha whispered.

"Why didn't you tell me? Ah still don't understand." Sam asked, his brain still frozen in shock.

"What would you have done if I told you that I was pregnant?" Tabitha asked him.

"Ah would have married you, and gone home to Kentucky with you." Sam answered immediately.

"You never would have been happy living that life. You want to help people so much Sam�it's part of what I love about you." Tabitha whispered. Sam slowly rose to his feet and went to kneel in front of Tabitha.

"Ah would have been happy, with you as my wife." Sam whispered back to her.

"I couldn't believe that Sam. I still can't believe it." Tabitha told him, tears slipping down her cheeks.

"Why don't you believe that Ah love you?" Sam cried suddenly. "Ah love you so much that it hurts inside. Everyday I wake up longing for you and go to sleep dreaming of you. Why don't you believe me?!"

"Because I just can't!" Tabitha wept leaping to her feet and running out the door.

"Tabitha! Come back!" Sam screamed as the young woman sprinted away. "Come back."

Sam turned and flung himself down on the couch, tears slipping down his face. He was a father. That adorable little girl was his own flesh and blood, part of his soul. And he didn't even know her. He didn't know anything about her, what she liked to eat, to wear or to play with. He should know her better.

He should get to know is daughter. And that was what he was going to do.

******

Tabitha flung herself down on her bed and wept. Oh god, it was happening again. She had come back to this place and she felt exactly like that scared seventeen-year-old again. What was she going to do? How was she going to tell Sami? Sami deserved to know. Sami deserved a chance to know her father.

Tabitha began to cry even harder. Finally she just cried herself to sleep.

It was early afternoon when she woke up. The sunlight was slanting through the window, making strange patterns on the floor. Tabitha looked around her in confusion. Where was she?

Then it all clicked. "Sami!" Tabitha screamed, leaping out of bed.

The distraught mother raced down the hallway�and directly into Demi.

"Demi! Have you seen Sami?!" Tabitha cried out, tears rolling down her face.

"Yes. She is in the den watching a movie with Sam." Demi told her friend.

"She's okay then?" Tabitha begged, dashing the tears off her face.

"Ja, she is fine. She has been playing with Sam all morning." Demi told her.

"What do you mean, playing with Sam?" Tabitha asked in shock.

"I mean, he took her out in the snow and played with her and then brought her back in and gave her lunch. She really seems to like him." Demi told her. "Where have you been?"
"I fell asleep. I'm sorry." Tabitha said, pushing her hair out of her face.

"You look terrible. Do you feel all right?" Demi asked, worried.

"I'm okay. You said Sami was in the den?" Tabitha asked.

"Ja, she is." Demi nodded. "Have you seen Rictor?"

"No, I haven't. Sorry." Tabitha said, already heading toward the den.

"Okay, I'll see you later then." Demi said, heading in the opposite direction.

Tabitha made her way to the den as quickly as she could. As she got closer she thought she could hear voices coming from the den.

"Again! Make it again!"

"You really like this thing don't you?"

"It's pretty!"

The first voice she recognized as Sami's. The second one was Sam's. When Tabitha got to the door of the den she stopped dead in her tracks.

Sami was sitting in Sam's lap and was watching in amazement as he wove a cat's cradle out of a loop of yarn. She turned around to look at him and made some whispered comment that made him smile and nod. He whispered something back to her and she began to giggle. They both looked highly amused about whatever it was that they were talking about.

Tabitha watched them for a long time smiling at the fun they were sharing.

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