Well, I'm finally getting my ass into gear on this story... :) Sorry it's been so long between chapters, but I made the mistake of taking statistics during the summer *in addition* to a math class. Summer school kicked my butt. My new job is also very time consuming (section editor of the NMSU paper!) but at least it pays decently. Deadlines suck though. ANYWAY, enough of my rambling! On to the disclaimer!!! DISCLAIMER: I am not profitting in anyway from this piece of fan fiction. It is not meant to infringe on any copyrights, it is done for pure enjoyment. Unless you really want a statistics book, don't sue, I'm a poor college student. Domino, Cable, X-Force, O:ZT, and assorted X-Men all belong to Marvel. Grifter, the WildCATs, and the Puritans all belong to Image Comics' Wildstorm Productions. Notes: <> denotes normal thought {} denotes telepathic thought ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ LUCK BE A LADY TONIGHT 5/? Cable knew he was being irrational. He had no reason to feel betrayed. He had no reason to feel...this *angry* Domino freqently picked up and split. Usually when you least expected it. She had done it to him at least a half dozen times since she'd been with X-Force. He should be used to her abrupt comings and goings after all these years. But he had a feeling that she'd left for good this time. Besides, he had no claim on her. He'd made that choice when he'd decided to...involve himself with Ororo. Not that that could have anything to do with it. Could it? The anger swelled up again. How dare she just leave??!!! She owed him an explanation at the very least. A fight at the most. Dammit, he needed her! She had worked wonders with Shatterstar and Meltdown when he'd been at his wit's ends. Cable checked his watch. Dinnertime. Good. Everyone should be in the kitchen by now; it was Jean's turn to cook. Cable lingered in his room for a few more minutes. He didn't want to run into anyone in the hall. Making his way through the corridors of the mansion, he quickly scanned the vicinity. Sensing no one, he ducked into a dark room and closed the door. Jean would kill him if she found him in here. Cable powered up Cerebro and reasoned out how to use it. ********** "'Star?" Teresa Rouke Cassidy stuck her head inside Shatterstar's room. He still hadn't made an appearance in the kitchen and Siryn was a little worried. "Ye comin' to dinner?" Shatterstar didn't even look up from the twin swords in his lap. "No. I'm not hungry." Siryn's heart went out to him. He sounded just as lost as he did after Rictor left. She walked into the room and sat crosslegged across him. "Ye want to talk?" Shatterstar looked up at her thoughtfully. Maybe it was time to trust someone. ************* Cole Cash and the woman known as Domino ate quietly. The silence was not uncomfortable, but both felt slightly uneasy. Both were wondering about the previous night. Neither wanted to be the one to mention it first. "Cole? Is there...something you wanted to talk to me about? You obviously took some trouble to find me. Not too many people know about this building being mine." "I....Dammit. It's last night, Neena. I don't...remember...ah shit. The drinks...." Cole's voice trailed off uncertainly, his eyes unable to meet hers. Domino stared at him incredulously. The laughter just spilled out. "You, too...?" After a shocked glance, the import of what she had said sunk in. Grifter began to laugh too. "Guess we can go back to normal, then, huh, Lucky? I mean, we don't even have to pretend that we don't remember!" Domino's sides hurt. This was just so...stupid. All that worrying for nothing. "Cole?" *SMACK* "Don't call me Lucky. You know I hate that name." ***************** {WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING???!!!!} Cable reeled from the telepathic anger evident in Jean Grey-Summers' mental voice. "I TOLD YOU TO LEAVE IT BE!" Phoenix took a deep breath. "Domino left for her own reasons. If she did not see fit to tell them to you, chasing after her will only make things worse. Especially if she thinks you used Cerebro to track her down." Privately, Jean had applauded Domino for taking the action she had. She was, however, a little sorry that Domino hadn't told Nathan exactly where to shove it before she left. Harsh maybe, after all, Nathan Dayspring Summers *was* her son, sort of, but that didn't mean Jean had to approve of the way Nathan was treating Domino. Sometimes gender is a tie stronger than blood. "I just want to make sure she's not in trouble," Cable explained calmly, keeping his mental shields tightly locked into place to filter out his feelings of anger and betrayal. "The whole team is concerned about her." Jean shook her head. "You were broadcasting all over the mansion this morning. I know exactly how you feel about her leaving. That's why I refused to let you use Cerebro this morning to track Domino down. You cannot control her life, Nathan. If she chooses to spend it away from you, there is nothing you can do. If you chase after her now, as furious as you are, you'll just make things worse." Cable stared at her. His mother. Sort of. "But...I need her...." Jean almost felt sorry for him. Almost. "Nathan, that is something you need to figure out for yourself. Domino knows exactly what was going on between you and Storm. If you don't even respect her enough to come clean with her about your relationship with Ororo, what makes you think you need her? What makes you think you even deserve her? Quite frankly, you should be glad she let you off as easy as she did." With those biting last words, Phoenix walked out the room, her heart heavy with the words she had spoken to her son. yeah, sorry it's so short, but... NEXT: While hanging out at Halo waiting for Grifter, Domino gets involved in the Puritan strike against the WildCATs! Shatterstar and Siryn make some plans! And Cable...well he's still furious! feedback to mhuertac@nmsu.edu ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ God did not create the world in seven days; He screwed around for six days and then pulled an all-nighter.