NOTES: There is a CHARACTER DEATH in this part. I
don't THINK it will bother anyone but if it does you
can always bring the character back to life by writing
a story of your own. See? Simple.

*****

Logan stomped into the Professor's office and slammed
the door. " Damn it Chuck, you better be sure this
time! I was with-"

" I am well aware of what you were doing Wolverine."
He looked like he had aged ten years in the last
month. After Rogue never returned from the last big
mission he had been doing searches for the missing
girl. There was nothing at all for the first two weeks
and then she began to sporadically pop up in searches.
That had been going on for the last two weeks. Every
time the mini-Cerebro that was missed in the sweep of
the mansion would find her she would disappear again.
This time however, Charles was able to get a lock on
her position. " She is in Nebraska."

Logan shook his head confused, " What the Hell is she
doin' there?"

" She isn't alone. She is with her mother."

" I knew it! The little bitch turned on us!" He was
fuming. Why the Hell couldn't the girl stop ruining
things between him and Remy. He saw the look in the
kid's eyes when he had to leave! He could smell the
beginning of tears! She made him hurt the kid again
and she wasn't even in the same damn state!

" Erik was there too."

Logan's claws flew through the air and the Professor's
guest chair was no more. " Where the Hell are they. I
got me some pay back t' feed 'em." His voice had
turned into more of a growl than what could be
considered human speech. His eyes grew darker and he
was beginning to hunch forward. There wasn't much
keeping the animal back now.

" Control yourself Wolverine! You will take a team-"

" Hell no! This is personal Chuck. They made me lose
something more important to me than..." He stopped
because he couldn't come up with anything that would
explain how important Remy was to him. There was
nothing to measure it against that even came close.
" Chuck, I have to stop her and you know what it's
gonna take to do that. She knows too damn much." He
stared into the other man's eyes until he saw the
uneasy acknowledgment in them. " I'm goin' alone. If
ya don't hear from me in a couple weeks...try ta find
what's left of me I...I wanna be here. It's more a
home ta me than anywhere else."

" I will send the co-ordinates to the Raven." He
looked the feral Canadian in the eye, " I understand
completely what it is they stole from you. He's going
to need you now more than ever. Come back home Logan,
I will not tell that boy that you are dead."

Logan looked at him and gave him a bit of a smile,
" I'll be back, I need him too."

He walked out of the office and debated going back to
see Remy and explaining why he had to leave but Rogue
had found a way to shield herself from even the
Professor and he needed to move before he lost the
chance to give her the pay back she so deserved. "
I'll make this ALL up to ya darlin' I swear I will,"
he whispered to the boy in the med lab as he ran past
it to the hanger.

*****

Hank heard a clap of thunder and sighed, "Ro." He'd
been outside earlier and it was a beautiful sunny day.
He really needed to speak to her about this
overprotective streak she had where Remy was
concerned. He feared that in her need to protect him
she would end up hurting him instead. He had to admit
that he was a little overprotective of his young
patient too but Ro was out of control.Remy would end
up resenting her if she didn't ease up.Fifteen minutes
later she stormed into his office. The papers on his
desk rustled in the breeze that blew in with her.
"Ororo calm down."

" Calm down? You saw him Henry,he was despondent! I
will fry Logan where he stands when I find him."

" Ro, Remy is a big boy."

" Yes but he is hurt! He cannot take care of himself."

"Ro-"

" Stop right there Henry! You have seen the way my
brother is treated around this house! It's cruel!"

"Yes but they have ALL been down here numerous times
and yet you never told Remy."

She looked at her friend and sighed, " All right I
admit that but I was only protecting him! I ALMOST
lost him Henry..."

Hank stood and walked around his desk and placed both
large blue hands on her shoulders. " I understand that
but Remy still has a long hard recovery in front of
him. He is going to need a LOT of support from his
friends. I think you should at least let him know that
they were here! As far as he knows no one has even
asked about him in weeks. Now you tell me, is that
fair to him OR them?"

" I know you are right Henry. My brother is not a
stupid man and even as bad as he looks I know he is
not helpless either." She walked over to the pathetic
little plant on his desk and turned to give him a sad
smile. " He ALWAYS takes care of me, ALWAYS. I guess
it just felt nice to be able to return that care."

" He loves you Ro but he needs space to start trying
things on his own again. He is going to have good days
and bad days, wait for those to help him."

" All right. I am smothering him and I KNOW he hates
that. I will try to back off just a little. I am STILL
going to fry Logan though."

He could hear the smile in her voice and knew that if
he could see out a window right now the sun would be
shining again.

*****

Jean unpacked her suitcase and put her perfume back on
the dresser where it belonged. It felt a little weird
being back at the boathouse. She and Scott had talked;
and although they still had some issues Scott seemed
to finally understand why she left. He seemed to
finally understand that two men could love just as
deeply as a man and a woman. She wished she knew what
Logan said or did that night they talked because it
seemed to shed a whole new light on the subject for
her seemingly former homo-phobic husband. They were
getting back to the way things were before, the
anticipation and heat was returning to their marriage.
Jean suddenly reached out and grabbed the edge of the
dresser as feral thoughts washed over her. Logan was
in a mood and God bless anyone in his way. Earlier it
had been Remy whose feelings popped into her head. He
was so sad, no; it was more like he felt...empty for
some reason. Hank must have given him something
because the feelings became fuzzy then just vanished
but not before they brought a tear to her eye.

Alone. I'm all alone.

" Honey?" Scott walked up to her concerned.

" It's alright Scott. Logan is in a mood."

Scott kissed her hair and sat on the bed with a sigh,
"Charles found Rogue. He sent Logan to...take care
...of the situation."

She sat beside him and laid her head on his shoulder.
" I can't believe she had us all fooled like that. I
feel so bad for poor Remy, he never stood a chance."

" No, and Logan...Logan wasn't too happy when he left.
I just wish there was a way to get through to her, get
her back."

Jean surprised him by sitting straight and turning to
face him, " I don't! I am mad as Hell about the way
she treated us. We took her in, loved her like a
sister and now we find out that she was probably
working for HIM. I personally hope Logan finds her and
rips her to shreds! I only wish I was there too so I
could do the same to that cesspool she calls a mind!"

Scott stared at his normally very calm wife. This
outburst wasn't typical Jean at all. " Why do you feel
so strongly about this and don't give me it's for the
good of the team."

She looked at him and pouted a little. " I feel
betrayed and used and I HATE what it did to us. I miss
Remy and Logan together, you have NO idea how good
they were together."

She blushed a bit and he laughed, " Are you saying you
WATCHED? Jean, I had no idea."

" No! Well maybe but I couldn't help it! They
positively OOZED sexuality. Their thoughts were so
primal and...hot. You benefited too my dear, trust
me."

Her smile told him he needed to get her more
comfortable and discuss this further. " Could you get
the door dear? I think I want an example of how I
benefited."

Long into the night she showed him the things she...
picked up... from Logan and Remy. She was aggressive
and did things for him she only rarely agreed to
before. Things he was a little afraid to ask her to
do. He now knew he had Logan and Remy to thank for
those times. The more he thought about it the more he
realized she must have watched more than she let on
but he didn't care. GOD her mouth! He was numb from
the pure Heavenly bliss of what exactly that tongue
and those hands of hers were doing.

He moaned loudly and she giggled softly. Scott was
fantasizing about the things he now imagined Remy and
Logan did, forming a picture in his mind and she was
showing him how it was for them. She knew after
tonight he would completely understand. She also knew
that their love life was going to a place it had never
gone before. She put herself in his mind a moment and
moaned herself; if they survived this night she was
going to have to find a way to thank the boys big
time!

Rogue could go to Hell for all he cared. This was
incredible! Jean was watching his thoughts; doing
things to him he would never have dared ask her to do.
No wonder she was so happy when they were together. He
suddenly found himself wanting them back together too.

*****

Hank watched from the doorway as his young patient
played with the food on his plate. He had fallen into
a deep depression after his visit with Logan three
days ago and Henry was getting very concerned. He
finally took a deep breath and entered the room with a
false smile. " Aren't you finished that food yet? I
was sure I was going to have to try to slow you down!
You DO want to get out of here don't you?"

Remy looked up at him and dropped his fork to his
plate. " Oui I guess. I mean, I do but I thought... I
guess I hoped... I just wanted..."

" You expected to be going with Logan?"

Remy sighed and looked down at his lap, " I know it's
dumb."

Hank squatted in front of the young man, " I know this
has to be hard. It is very easy to see that you are in
love with Logan and now suddenly you find yourself
alone with no idea how or why it happened." He gently
lifted the boy's chin and caught his eyes. " I am very
worried about this depression you've fallen into. You
HAVE to concentrate on getting better now Remy. You
need to push EVERYTHING else to the back of your mind.
It's not going to be easy and you will need all your
attention focused on it if you want to make a full
recovery."

" I jus' don' think I can do it on m' own Henri." His
voice was quiet and held a tone that Hank had never
heard from the young Cajun before. For the first time
he could remember Hank heard fear and doubt in the
softly accented voice.

Hank gently squeezed his shoulder, " Remy, you aren't
alone. The rest of the team can't wait for you to set
foot outside the lab so they can apologize. You have
so many friends here if you can just try to let us
in." He smiled at the young man when he saw a hint of
hope grow in his strange eyes. " Storm is away on a
mission for a while, why don't you let me help you get
settled in your room and then talk to them one at a
time. I will even stay with you if you like. I WILL
NOT let them hurt you."

Remy looked into his calm blue eyes, he let just a
hint of his empathy reach out toward the man.

" Go ahead, I don't mind." He opened himself up
completely to the younger man, let him feel his
genuine need to comfort and protect his young friend.

" Merci Henri. You really think?..."

" I don't think, I know. Come on, eat up my boy! You
are getting out of here today!"

*****

He followed her for two weeks before he saw his
opportunity. Raven and Magneto were finally gone and
he knew from a quick communication with Charles that
the rest of the team was taking care of them. He
followed her through a mall, to a coffee shop and to a
dry cleaner's before she finally drove to a small
neighborhood a few miles outside of town. The nearest
house was a good quarter mile away. Perfect, he
thought to himself, no one would hear a thing not that
he cared if they did.

She parked the car and took all her packages out of
the trunk. He couldn't believe it when she started
whistling as she walked to the door like she didn't
have a care in the world. She wasn't wearing gloves
but Logan could hear something buzzing quietly on her
body. She dropped her keys and cursed, as she bent to
pick them up a boot struck her in the side of the
head. She started to roll into a defensive position
when the boot firmly planted it's self in the small of
her back. Before she could even think about moving
again two metal claws pinned her where she lay. "
Hello Rogue, how ya been?"

She started to say something but fell silent when she
felt the third claw prick the back of her neck. "
There is NOTHIN' you got to say that I want t' hear
...yet." With his other hand he smacked her head again
the cement step hard enough to knock her unconscious.

*****

" Good morning Remy, Henry. How are you both this
morning?" Charles asked as he entered the kitchen.

" I am fine but I think our young friend here is
probably very tired. He's working very hard trying to
get back into fighting shape." Hank smiled at Remy; in
the two weeks since his release from the lab he had
made good progress. He was able to leave the bed, wash
up and even get dressed completely on his own now. It
sounded trivial but it took an enormous amount of
energy considering the extent of the injuries he was
coming back from.

" I'm doin' better, merci." He finished his coffee and
started to get up to get another cup. Charles was
about to offer to get it but Henry thought loudly at
him
- don't, let him do it.-the young Cajun was obviously
still in a lot of pain and not very comfortable on the
crutches but he managed to get his coffee and sit back
down again without spilling a drop. Charles smiled at
his young students look of satisfaction; he remembered
only too well how good those tiny accomplishments felt
when he first lost the use of his legs.

" I've heard from the team. They have accomplished
their mission and are on their way home. They should
arrive sometime this evening."

Henry smiled and looked at Remy, " Look out Remy,
Ororo will want to take over again as soon as she sets
foot in the door."

Remy smiled at his friend and doctor, " Non, she won',
I won' let her. It's 'bout time I did stuff on m' own.
I'm not a baby."

Hank looked at Charles and they both smiled. THIS was
the Remy they were used to.

Remy was quiet a minute before he finally worked up
the nerve to ask, " Have y' heard anything from
Logan?"

Both Hank and Charles looked at the young man, Hank
knew what was happening but they hadn't thought it
wise to tell Remy. Hank thought it was more than Remy
could deal with at the moment.

" Actually yes I have. He will probably be finished
with what he needed to do and be home soon too."

Hank was watching him and Remy sighed, "Don' worry
Henri. I know it be over between us but he still m'
friend and I miss him, as a friend o' course." he
added a little too quickly. " Oh and by the way, I'm
gon' be goin' on a trip in three weeks."

Henry laughed but it died as soon as he saw the
serious look in the young man's eyes. " No you are
not! Remy, your back isn't healed, your leg will JUST
be out of the cast and the head wound is just barely
mended! You can't be traveling yet! WHERE do you think
you're going?"

"T' see m' sister. I made this appointment t' see her
months ago. I won't miss it."

"Remy," Charles started, " surely she would understand
that you aren't well enough to travel."

" Non, she won'. I'll be out o' the cast in two weeks,
oui?"

Hank sputtered, "well yes, most likely. The last x-ray
showed that your leg was close to mended but you still
won't be able to walk on it! Remy, there is NO WAY-"

"Y' right. There's no way I'll miss this trip Henri.
I'll take Stormy if it make y' feel better but I tol'
Alisa I'd be there and I will be there."

They could see that nothing was going to change his
mind so they backed down.

" I got some things t' work on so I'll see y' in the
gym later Henri." He slowly rose from his seat and
left the room.

" He is either crazy or a glutton for punishment. A
trip like that will be torture in his condition."

" Henry maybe seeing his sister will be exactly what
he needs to get him over Logan. You know how much they
care about each other, since her accident that bond
has grown even stronger."

" I realize that. I guess that if Ro goes with him to
ensure he doesn't over do and hurt himself..."

" Wasn't it you who said he needed space to do things
on his own?" Charles smiled at the look on the
doctor's face.

"It's very easy to want to shelter that boy once you
spend any amount of time with him! He's really a very
nice young man and this trip is going to be a lot
harder on him than he realizes."

*****

Logan smoked his cigar and watched as Rogue finally
regained consciousness. " 'Bout damn time. Yer a wuss
without yer powers." He puffed smoke into her face and
smiled when she started coughing.

" I GOT MY POWERS!"

Logan laughed and waved toward the chair, " Okay then,
get outta the ropes." She fought the ropes until she
was panting, " So what's blockin' yer powers? The
ring, the pin?"

She spit at him and he backhanded her then grabbed the
white stripe in her hair and pulled her head back
until she was forced to look up at him. " Don't push
it girl" he growled. " I'm GONNA kill ya; don't doubt
that for a second but I want some answers first."

She licked the blood at the corner of her mouth. " You
aren't gonna kill me Wolverine! My momma's gonna be
back any-"

" Yer momma and Mags are around the world getting
their Asses handed to them by the rest of the team.
It's just you and me now girl." There were a thousand
things he wanted to ask her, things Charles wanted to
know but the first thing to come to mind was " Why?"

She laughed; it was a cold cruel sound. She sat back
in the chair and looked him straight in the eye, "
Erik loves me. He treats me like a real woman!"

It was such a stupid answer that Logan was speechless
for a minute. " He loves you? You betrayed yer family
and friends because he can get in yer pants?"

" I didn't betray you! I tried t' help you! I was at
the mansion for YEARS, the Professor never helped me.
I don't have to be careful with Erik, I don't have to
worry anymore!"

" Yeah, that's why you're wearin that ring right?
Because it's SUCH a pretty piece of jewelry," he
answered sarcastically. "And just how in the blazin'
Hell did ya help us?"

" I was the one who told Erik to put swamp rat on
trial! If not for me you'd all still be in the dark
about what a low life loser he is!" She smiled then
and Logan knew the look of pure insanity. " He never
wanted to stay and be an X-Man! He thinks he's earnin'
a place in Heaven!" She started laughing hysterically
and Logan could feel the animal inside him getting
stronger.

"YOU?... YOU set him up?" He was floored, " But the
Cajun LOVED you!"

" The Cajun ain't nothin but a little boy tryin' to
pretend he's a man! He don't know anything! I'm NOT
the virgin all you busy-bodies wanna believe I am. In
that cave before the trial I BEGGED him t' fuck me and
he just shrank back into the corner like a scared
little rabbit! I need to be touched Logan, Erik can do
that!"

"You bitch. Then why the Hell did you mess with me?"
He didn't care much about getting answers for Charles
anymore, he was suddenly more concerned with why she
felt like she had to ruin his life.

She smiled again, "Because the Cajun looked happy. He
refused me! NOBODY refuses me!"

"Y' know what? I've heard enough of this shit. Yer a
twisted little bitch and I'm gonna enjoy sendin' yer
sorry ass to Hell. I don't even care what y' told yer
mother or old bucket head, we can handle them. Say a
prayer girl though I doubt it'll help ya any." He
looked up at the ceiling and quietly said, " This is
fer you darlin."

" You wouldn't dare," she spit at him. He wouldn't
kill her. He was an X-Man, they never killed and he
was becoming just as soft as the rest of them.

Her smirk made his blood boil, " Oh yer wrong girl.
See, I ain't gonna kill ya because ya betrayed yer
friends and family,this ain't an X-Man thing. I'm
gonna kill ya because ya made me hurt the kid. I love
him and because of you and yer BOYFRIEND he was
tryin' t' save me and nearly got himself killed. I
protect what I love girl, simple as that."

Without thinking twice he unsheathed the claws and
stabbed them into her chest. She smiled at first as if
she didn't believe he really did it. She made a sound
as if to say something but it turned into a cough and
she could taste blood. " Yer killin me fer him?" She
coughed again and started to panic as the shock wore
off and she looked down at the blood on her top. She
looked up at him, " Logan. help me!"

" Like you helped Remy in Antarctica? Okay, I can do
that."

He just watched as she started fighting for breath. He
never looked away, it was the price he would make
himself pay anytime he took a life no matter how
worthless. He wanted to feel bad, he wanted to feel
guilty about killing a person he once called friend
but he didn't...he couldn't. She was insane and a
threat to the entire world now that she was working
for Magneto.

" H-he's not w-worth..." she gasped out. There were a
few more breaths before her head dropped to her chest
and it stopped rising. He stared at her a minute
longer before he lit a cigar and turned toward the
door. He left her tied to the chair with a sadistic
grin on her dead face.

" He is to me."
 
 

TBC