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PROLOGUE

"Where did you dig this guy up?"

"What do you mean? He dug me up. Lay off, okay? He's a friend."

"Your friend? He's got big long sharp claws that come out of his--"

"I know, I know--and he's nearly killed me with them a couple times."

"And you still hang out?"

"Hey, if I had a buck for every time you nearly got me killed, I'd be--"

"What? Would anything at all be different, Tony?"

"Yeah. I wouldn't have all these gray hairs in my beard--"

"Oh, shut up."

"You shut up--he's getting in the car."

Tony Stark glanced over his shoulder to the back seat of the black BMW to see Wolverine pull the door open and flop down inside, slam the door shut and adjust his black leather coat.

"Did you find any?" Tony wondered.

"Some cheap ones, but they'll work," Wolverine grunted as he reached inside his coat and pulled out a package of cigars. He tore it open and pulled out one of the stogies.

"You're not going to smoke that in the car, are you?" Rhodes, sitting in the passenger seat, looked alarmed as he glanced behind him. Tony gripped the steering wheel as Wolverine stilled completely and gave Rhodes a look of death.

"It's my car."

"Yeah, well, they're my lungs, so wait until we're not in a confined space, okay?" Tony inserted. Wolverine's jaw tightened, but he rammed the cigar back into its package and sat back, glancing out the window. Tony shot Rhodes a warning glance, because he sensed Rhodes was going to mention a seat belt, and Rhodes heeded it. Tony suppressed a smile. He knew Wolverine--Logan--well enough now to realize that half the time, he was just rough and snarling because he enjoyed the tension it created--and Tony could only get away with answering back at him like that because of what they'd been through together.

Tony flipped the car into gear and hit the gas, pulling out of the filling station parking lot and back onto the highway.

"All right, boys--from here on out we're just getting deeper and deeper into the boonies."

"And you're sure you want to do this?" Rhodes asked, narrowing his eyes at the winding road. "Go find a guy who can toss a tank around like a beach ball."

"That's exactly why we want to find him." Tony shrugged. "Besides, I know how irritating tanks can be."

Wolverine chuckled darkly. Rhodes sighed.

"Okay. We'll see what happens."

TBC