Love and Loyalty - NC17 - Scott/Rogue

[sarcastic-fina.livejournal.com]

Author: Tarafina
Rating: M (NC-17)
Genre: Romance/Drama/Action
Ship(s): Scott/Rogue, Logan/Jean (Phoenix), one-sided Logan/Rogue, Beast/Ororo
Warning(s): AU, Sexually explicit material, Coarse language
Disclaimer: I own nothing pertaining to X-Men the Movie, Comics, TV Shows, etcetera.
Summary:(AU - Major X3 twist) While Scott and Marie are planning their wedding and enjoying their engagement, a cure for mutants is announced and Magneto is trying to recruit a powerful telepath named Jean Grey who's traveling the world with Wolverine. After saving the two mutants, the X-Men get more than they bargained for.

VERY IMPORTANT! Author's Note: Okay, important things to know before reading this because you will be so confused if you don't! Scott and Rogue are the same age - 28! Rogue's past is explained in this first chapter, so pay attention. All other characters are their regular ages, meaning Bobby/Jubilee/Pyro/Kitty, still in their usual movie settings. Jean is not a part of the X-Men. She is with Logan, which is also explained in this chapter. She and Scott do not know each pther and were never in love. Scott and Rogue are! This is like a twist, in some ways, of the Scott/Jean/Logan/Rogue square, except that Scott/Rogue is not as shaky as Scott/Jean. You'll understand as you read. This is an intense and explicit story. There will be sex, violence, and swearing. I have thoroughly screwed with the movies and while a lot of what happened in X1 and X2 happened, anything involving Logan/Rogue or Jean/Scott/Logan did NOT happen. Those relationships are void in this story. Logan does not know Rogue, Scott, Xavier, or anyone but Jean. Jean knows Xavier and that's it. Read carefully and all is explained. Please, I don't want a bunch of reviews saying this is confusing! READ!

---

Love and Loyalty

Scott sat comfortably at his desk, eyes down on the homework before him, going through each page carefully and marking them right or wrong. As the bell rang scheduling lunch break, he called out to his grade eleven students, “Assigned work due Monday. There will be a test on it Tuesday, so I suggest you study.” The usual groans and moans reached his ears and he simply shook his head at them as they hurried out, already talking to each other about what they wanted to do the coming weekend. He decided to finish marking the assignment he had before leaving for lunch, leaning forward in his chair and circling the small miscalculations with his red pen. Time seemed to fly by as he concentrated on making sure each answer was formulated correctly. Most of his students were flourishing in the subject matter they were covering, but there were still a few mistakes here or there. Before he knew it, he’d opened a second and then a third assignment and continued on with his marking.

“Sugah, lunch is gonna be over if ya don’t tear yaself away from there,” he heard, the voice sending a relaxing feeling all through him. He refrained from sighing, instead turning in his seat to his fiancée of approximately three weeks leaning against the doorjamb, a warm smile on her face.

Pushing his work away, he stood up from his wooden chair, walking toward her. “You save me any?”

She shook her head, standing up from her lean and waiting for him to reach her. “Now how would ya learn ya lesson if ah made it okay for ya to shirk off lunch?” she teased, reaching up to straighten his tie simply because she wanted to touch him. Her silk gloves seemed to shimmer in the light slipping through the windows.

Smiling, he reached up, tugging the thin strips of fabric from each of her fingers and tangling his hands with hers, skin to skin. “You ever think maybe I avoid lunch just because I enjoy having you chase me down?”

Her head fell back as she laughed and he felt a pool of warmth settle in his stomach. Her lower body leaned forward as her head lolled, hair flowing down her back in a waterfall of reddish brown. His arms wrapped around her petite waist, holding her curvy body close to his, relishing in the warmth and comfort it provided. As she lifted her head, her smile was still curving her sweet pink lips. “Why Mista Summas are ya tryin’ to get lil’ ol’ me alone?” she teased, using her mock innocent face. Her drawl was more pronounced and he felt himself grinning.

His arms tightened around her, drawing her closer and nuzzling her neck. “Well it worked, didn’t it?”

“Ah’ll have ya know, sir, that ah am an engaged woman,” she replied in faux haughtiness.

“Is that right?” he asked, trailing hot kisses down her throat.

“Y-yes,” she stuttered as she leaned into his mouth eagerly. “Ah’m very much t-taken. Mmm,” she murmured.

Her fingers delved into his hair, nails scraping enticingly against his scalp. He shivered and bit down on her throat, laving it with his tongue as she moaned lowly against his ear. His hands smoothed up her back, kneading her through her white blouse. He remembered watching her dress that morning for her classes, wanting nothing more than to strip each and every conservative item from her luscious creamy body and take her on the bed, forgetting completely about responsibilities and work. Knowing him, she cut him off before he could even get off the bed and tossed a towel at him, telling him to go have a shower and she’d see him at breakfast. She left him with a saucy wink for a promise of later and he muttered that he’d have to have a cold shower now, hearing nothing but her answering laughter as she left the room.

“Scott, darlin’, we c-can’t do this in here,” she tried to tell him, though she followed him as he backed his way toward his desk, after reaching out to close and lock the classroom door.

“We have time,” he assured, his hands quickly tugging her blouse from her black pants. He could hear her panting against his shoulder and her hands were tugging at his hair tellingly. He pushed the assignments off his desk, careless of the mess it made. She was the only one who could do that to him, turn that neurotic man off in his head and switch him into a needy, wanting, lustful man, caring only for touching her.

“B-But the professa,” she reminded, shaking her head though complying as he lifted her up and dropped her on top of the desk, his hand already fiddling with the buttons of her blouse. “He’ll know.”

Scott shrugged. “I’m sure he’ll understand. We’re newly engaged. It happens,” he defended, finally popping the last button on her shirt and pulling it down off her shoulders, leaving it dangling at her elbows. He immediately attached his mouth to the newly freed skin, suckling at the pale flesh of her shoulders, the curves of her breasts. She leaned back on her elbows as he trailed down her torso, nipping and kissing her abdomen, swirling his tongue in her navel. She tasted sweet, smelled faintly of her vanilla body wash, and felt soft as silk beneath his calloused fingers. Her head fell back and her eyes were half-lidded as she watched him pepper her with sweet promises.

As he fiddled with the button on the waist of her pants, she sat up to hurriedly undo the buttons of his shirt, tugging it from his pressed slacks and practically tearing it off of him. Her eyes widened happily as they fell upon his muscled and toned torso, hands tracing from his broad shoulders down to his tapered waist. She watched as his stomach tensed and the strong abs clenched at her touch. Licking her lips, she admired his physique as she always did. She’d seen him, touched him, loved him like this for ten long years. Since she was just an eighteen year old girl with fantasies and desires. He filled her every one tenfold.

She was fifteen when she met him, a scared little girl who feared her lethal skin and what it could do to others. He had been friendly and courageous enough to befriend her from the beginning. He was fifteen and an ace student at Xavier’s Institute. They’d become fast friends, leaning on each other for support in a world that despised them. They hadn’t begun a romantic relationship for a couple years, relying heavily on their friendship and fearing what might happen if they admit their feelings were something more. But when he took a leap of faith and kissed her beneath the mistletoe when they were just seventeen years old, a new bond had been created. The short kiss filled her with his thoughts of her, his want for her, his growing feelings for her and she shared them wholeheartedly.

When school ended, they went to college together, getting their teaching degrees and returning to Xavier’s Institute to become teachers for him. It wasn’t until she was twenty that she’d learned how to control her skin, though she still feared for the safety of others. Her and Scott had spent two incredibly years learning how to get around the pull of her skin and she knew then that what they had was meant for forever. Even after she’d learned control, she kept her body mostly covered with long sleeved shirts and jeans, scarves around her neck and gloves on her hands. She only allowed Scott to touch her skin, as he wasn’t afraid and she felt her body knew him well enough to never trigger when he was touching her.

At twenty-eight years old, their lives had its many ups and downs, but they were content with each other to lean on. They’d been working under Xavier for some time, teaching the many mutants that passed through the mansion looking for acceptance and knowledge. They were the leaders of the X-Men, working with a group of well trained and strong mutants to keep their kind and humankind safe and well. They were newly engaged, getting ready for a wedding to put the final touches on their relationship, and while the world was still on uneven ground, they were as happy as they could be.

He shrugged his shoulders, lifting his arms from the sleeves of his shirt and letting it fall to the floor as he leaned into her touch, his hands wrapping around her hips and squeezing them lightly, lifting her with one hand and tugging her pants down with the other. They fiddled around a bit until her pants fell to her ankles and then he attacked his own belt, hands shaky as he tried to calm himself down enough to do the task. She giggled softly and reached forward, pushing his hands away and undoing it for him, slipping the leather out of the latch and undoing the button before slipping down the zipper and pushing them down his legs.

He smiled at her, for a moment feeling like that eighteen year old boy about to have sex for the first time with his girlfriend of a year, his best friend of three. She was beautiful, just as she had been then. A little older, a little wiser, her hair streaked with a platinum strip that reminded them of one of those down moments in their lives. She still looked at him with that same smile though, one of reassurance and love, of want and need. He captured her mouth in a deep and hot kiss, tongue tangling, lips bruising, teeth gnashing. Her hands slipped up his back, fingers digging in, dragging him forward. She leaned back on the desk as he leaned forward, hands slipping into the band of her lace panties, fingers finding her warm, wet folds, stroking her heat until she was crying out for more, lifting her hips in want. He pulled the flimsy strip of cloth down her hips, leaving them around her knees as she slipped his hardness from his briefs, stroking it strongly. He gasped into her mouth, nipping her bottom lip and drawing a strangled cry from her.

“Scott, please,” she whimpered, her tongue darting out to lick his upper lip.

His eyes rolled back for a moment as her thumb swiped across the head of his cock and he thrust forward, cursing under his breath. Her legs parted, hindered slightly by the lace around her knees. He could practically feel her heat against him, throbbing, needing.

He was mindless, caring not for school or classes or how much time was left of lunch. He took her hand off of him, his teeth clenching as he held back against the wave of pleasure that coursed through him. He wrapped a hand around her thigh, bringing her closer to the edge of his desk and stepping between her legs. Her opening was wet and waiting and he spared not a second before he thrust deep inside of her, capturing her mouth and the cry that escaped it. She bucked up against him, one of her hands tightening around his hair and her mouth attacking his with lustful ferocity. Her silent pleas could be felt easily. More, her voice called in his head. Harder, deeper, Scott. He responded eagerly.

Her hips lifted with each fall of his, their bodies had a long standing knowledge of this dance. They met perfectly, soft and hard meeting like puzzle pieces. His arms wrapped tight around her small body, one of his hands tangled in her thick dark hair. His mouth trailed over her throat and shoulders, biting and suckling at her alabaster skin. She unclasped the front of her bra, pushing it out of the way swiftly and drawing his head down. His mouth attached to the needy pink bud in the center of her perfectly sculpted breasts. They fit into his hands as if made for them, and his mouth laved at the sensitive middles, teeth nipping and sending pleasurable twinges through her whole body.

Her hands slipped down his back, fingers delving into the contours of the tensing muscles. She gripped his hips, kneading his sides and lifting her hips to meet his every deep thrust. Her inner muscles clenched and shook around him, making him buck into her harder, quicker. She moaned deliriously, her knees pressing against his thighs, toes curling. Her hands trailed up the front of him, nails flicking across his nipples and digging into his hard pectorals. He hissed at the minor pain, but sucked greedily at her breasts, teeth nipping around the curve of them.

She could feel her orgasm approaching quickly and let her hands fall to where they met, slipping her fingers around him to trail her nails around his cock as he slipped out of her. He shivered and grunted at the feeling and thrust harder into her, pace picking up dramatically. His mouth trailed from her breasts up her throat, teeth biting her chin before he kissed her deeply. The bell rang loudly in the background, causing them to pause and jump momentarily. But Scott simply frowned at the interruption and continued on. His hands wrapped around her shoulders, back arching as he thrust into her and sucked her tongue between his teeth. He felt her walls clamp around him and then quiver, causing him to tense up as his body began bucking against her heavily. He felt her cry enter his mouth, could hear it muffle against his tongue and then felt the coil of warmth in his stomach unfurl. Her hips thrust up against his and he pressed down heavily, spilling forward as her walls clenched him tightly, milking him. He shivered from head to toe, his knees shaking as his body falling forward onto her. His hips bucked uselessly as she continued to quiver around him.

Sweat beaded to his back and his mouth fell from hers as he gasped for air. His head fell to her shoulder while she rubbed his tensed back soothingly. He felt so good where he was, surrounded by her warmth and held comfortably in her arms. This was where he meant to be, without a doubt. The noise of feet in the hallway reminded them that afternoon classes were starting and they had only a couple minutes to fix themselves up, open a window to air out the room and get back to work, pretending they hadn’t just done what they had during school hours, in a classroom about to be used by students.

He could practically feel her blush as reality fell on top of her and gathered his strength enough to get off of her, slipping out of her heat with a stifled groan. She passed him a tissue from the table and he wiped himself off, tossing it into the garbage can and righting his clothes. She did the same, her face flaming and her hands working her hair back into place.

They heard the door handle jiggle and looked at each other with sheepish smiles. Scott hurried to the windows, opening them up and then ran back across the room and taking her hand as she slipped her gloves on.

“Eh, Mister Summers, you in there?” he heard a boy call through the door. It appeared his grade twelve class was actually on time for once.

“He’s, like, probably back in his room with Missus D’Ancanto,” they heard the unmistakeable voice of Jubilation Lee reply. “Five bucks says they’re going at it like bunnies.”

“Jubilee! He’s our math teacher!” Katherine Pryde replied reprovingly.

“Uh, so what? Doesn’t mean he isn’t a hormonal male, Kitty. He’s engaged to her. They’re bound to be having sex.”

“I’d so do her,” a boy commented.

Scott rolled his eyes, frowning.

“Don’t let Summers hear you say that, he’ll blast you!”

“He‘s a teacher, he can‘t attack a student!”

“Whatever, Bobby, you know what I meant! Like, Summers and D’Ancanto are high school sweethearts. He’d be pissed if he knew you were crushing on her.”

“Then he’d be pissed at a whole lot of students! Every guy I know likes Rogue,” Bobby reminded.

Scott fidgeted, looking over at his fiancée who was looking rather stunned. He wasn’t surprised. She was easily the most beautiful woman in the school. It didn’t bother him so much that there were a bunch of high school boys who liked her, he knew she wasn’t interested. But he was wondering how he was supposed to react to them when he finally opened the door. They were bound to realize that not only had he heard, but he and Marie had been in a locked classroom together. The ribbing could get out of hand.

“Yeah, well, it’s not like Summers isn’t a hot number himself,” a girl put in. “Missus D’Ancanto is one very lucky lady.”

Marie rolled her eyes as Scott grinned at her rather smugly.

Having had enough of eavesdropping and needing to get to her own class, Marie reached out to open the door and lifted a brow as the conversation around her dramatically quieted. “Afternoon,” she greeted, pushing the door open wider. She turned back to Scott, smiling goodbye at him. “Ah’ll see ya later.”

“’Kay,” he agreed, leaning in to peck her lips lingeringly. “Love you,” he whispered against her mouth.

“Love you too, shug,” she breathed, tapping the tip of his nose before she walked past the students toward her Art classes.

Scott watched her go for a moment before turning back to roll his eyes at the smirking faces of his students.

“Wow, Mr. S, care to explain why you and Missus D were locked up in here all alone,” Jubilee asked, her brows lifting and her mouth twisting in a greedy grin. Ready for her daily dose of gossip.

Suppressing a smirk, Scott shook his head. “Talking,” he said simply.

“Is that why all those homework assignments are on the floor?” Bobby teased, motioning to the scattered papers he’d thrown off his desk in his haste.

Wincing, he tried to come up with a logical explanation but couldn’t.

The class snickered.

“Your sex hair gave you away already, Mr. S,” Jubilee told him, patting his shoulder with mock sympathy.

His hands immediately went to his hair and began fiddling with it as he cleared his throat and tried to pretend he couldn’t hear their amused laughter. “Homework out, guys,” he ordered, picking up his teaching persona.

“Should we put it on your desk or throw it to the floor to save you the trouble?” someone ribbed.

Rolling his eyes, he chuckled, falling into his seat. Life was good. The laughter was something they all needed right about now. The world wasn’t as accepting as it could be. Rumors were on the rise and Scott was fairly certain that Charles knew something big was coming but wasn’t willing to talk about it just yet. He felt worry worm into his chest. Could his happy and content life soon be ruined by whatever impending darkness was coming? He’d had his close calls already. Marie had almost been killed two years ago when Magneto had tried to use her and her power to infect humans, but hadn’t succeeded. The year prior a Mutant Registration Act had been put forward, eliminating the somewhat peaceful coexistence between humans and mutants after the president was nearly assassinated. Soon thereafter William Stryker attacked the school looking to help eradicate mutants and nearly harmed Marie in the process. Though she escaped with two of the students and they hid at one of their houses before being attacked by the police. One of their students retaliated against the police and things escalated quickly. The X-Men were forced to work together with Magneto to keep things from getting too far out of hand but it seemed the world still hadn’t accepted their existence.

Scott forced his thoughts away from the situation and got down to business. He had a class to teach and he knew that if things were getting bad, Charles would tell him. He was the leader of the X-Men and one of Charles’ most trusted friends and teachers. Whatever was coming, he would deal with it.

“Turn to page 126,” he called out, lifting a piece of chalk and moving to the blackboard.

He glanced at the clock. Two more hours and he could go and find Marie. Despite the encounter they’d just had, he felt like he needed to be near her again. She’d easily be able to reassure him that whatever disaster was coming their way was nothing to be too worried about. They’d probably battled worse and they would get through this too. They had wedding plans to discuss later and a Danger Room exercise to work on with the X-Men recruits. They had a busy afternoon ahead of them, but he was sure that the shower afterwards would make up for it entirely. He grinned to himself.

“Who can tell me the answer to number 1b?”

---

Jean Grey stared out the window of the dingy Motel room she and Logan were staying in. The curtains smelled stale and the room was too warm for her taste but she was used to this. She’d been on the road with him for six long years and living a life of constant movement since she was just eighteen. She ran into Logan in a bar while he was cage fighting and she was waitressing. He caught the attention of both her and her alter-ego quickly and after a rough fuck against the outside wall, they found the feelings were mutual. They never discussed leaving town together, but when he climbed on the back of his motorcycle, he held out the helmet to her and she accepted. From then on, they were together. It wasn’t the most monogamous relationship. The Wolverine inside of him wanted women, all kinds, anytime. She and the Phoenix accepted that, more because they’d fallen in love than because they wanted their freedom too. It didn’t matter who he slept around with, in the end he came back to her. Wrapped his arms around her in the stale and low cost motel rooms, gave her the helmet to wear as they road around far too fast on his motorcycle, kissed her and loved her until the early hours of the morning. He fucked them, but he loved her.

 

She could feel something was changing though. Not between them, but out in the world. It was ominous and life altering. And it was coming for her. She knew Logan would keep her safe. He’d put his life out there and sacrifice himself for her any day. But she didn’t want that and neither did the Phoenix. They wanted to live a long life, with him, alive to drive her through city after city. She couldn’t imagine a life where she wasn’t inhaling the second hand smoke of his cigars or feeling his large, muscled arms wrapped around her at night. She didn’t want an existence that didn’t have his manly, forest-like scent invading her senses. His large body in front of hers and the powerful bike of his between her legs. Her life was meant for living fast and hard, with him beside her.

But whatever was coming wasn’t just going to go away and she knew that they had only one option. Charles Xavier. He was a professor of hers once. Taught her when she was young and alone, in need of boundaries and help. He trapped Phoenix inside of her and cut her power off almost completely, leaving only Jean Grey and not her powerful alter-ego. But when she was eighteen and graduated, she hit the road and she worked at letting the Phoenix out just a little bit at a time. They had merged into an acceptable being. More Jean than Phoenix, as she still had control, but she listened to what her alter-ego thought and wanted. She didn’t smother her like the professor thought she should. She was powerful, exotic and sultry. She didn’t want to be caged, but welcomed and used to her full extent.

Logan’s loud snoring filled the room, grating and growly from the stiff bed behind her. They had to get moving, the darkness was approaching. The powerful being that wanted to use her. No, not her, the Phoenix. Wanted her power to change things. But both Jean and the Phoenix didn’t want that. They wanted to live, outside of whatever it was the world was doing. It was always chaotic. Always messing something up. She didn’t care about humans or mutants, just her and Logan.

Turning swiftly, a feeling of unease quickly taking hold of her body, she hurried to Logan and shook him awake. His adamantium claws unsheathed from his fists but they pointed away from her and when he realized it was just her, he quickly retracted them.

“Damn, Jeanie, what the hell are ya doin’? I was sleepin’,” he grumbled.

She smothered the desire to roll her eyes. “We have to leave,” she told him simply. “Something’s coming.”

“So I’ll deal with it when it gets here,” he replied, rolling back over.

“Not this time,” she told him, shaking her head. She had no doubt that Logan could handle himself and keep her safe, but something told her that this wouldn’t be as easy as usual.

He sat up, his expression both perturbed and wary. “You sure?”

“I’m sure, Logan. We must leave,” she told him, moving to their bags and stuffing them with their things. She used her telekinesis to bring his boots to him and lift his clothes in the air for him to grab. He shuffled into them quickly and roughly tied his boots on.

They walked out the door, leaving the key on the bed and hurrying toward the bike. Logan pulled out a cigar from his jacket and fiddled with his lighter as Jean sat on the back of his motorcycle impatiently.

“Gimme a sec,” he replied, cocking a brow at her. He finally got it lit and clicked the lighter shut, dropping it in his chest pocket and climbing onto the bike. He started it up and kept his senses alert, eyes scanning the area.

Jean shivered against him, arms wrapped tight around his waist. “Logan,” she murmured.

“All right, all right,” he replied, nodding. He drove them out of the parking lot and onto the main road, reading the signs to find the quickest way out of town. Not long later, they were on the highway as Jean told him to drive toward New York.

“Why the hell d’ya wanna go there?” he asked, frowning.

“I know someone who can help us,” she shouted over the noise of the engine and the whipping air around them. She knew he could hear her, his sensitive hearing took care of outside noises and heard the smallest of things.

“Help us?” he asked, sounding annoyed. “What the hell is this thing we’re runnin’ from?”

“I don’t know,” she answered honestly.

“Then why the fuck are we runnin’?” he growled.

“Because I do know that whatever it is it needs me and can destroy you if need be.”

“Destroy me?” he snickered, and she didn’t have to see his face to know he was cocking his eyebrow speculatively. He wasn’t immortal, but he was damn close and he knew it.

“Just drive, Logan,” she told him, squeezing his waist. She could feel the impending darkness again, it was getting close and she wasn’t sure they were going to escape it.

“Fuck,” she heard Logan curse and then everything went haywire.

---

“X-Men, report to my office. Immediately.” Charles Xavier’s grave voice reached out across the mansion.

 

Without question, Storm, Rogue, Cyclops, Iceman, Shadowcat, Jubilee and Colossus excused themselves from classes and made their way to his office to find out what was happening.

The eight X-Men stood stiffly in front of Charles, awaiting orders.

“A former student of mine from quite some time ago is currently being surrounded by Magneto’s Brotherhood. Jean Grey. She is a powerful telepath with abilities that quite surpass most any I know. She is with a man who goes by Wolverine, a fierce and protective mutant who will do all possible to keep her safe. But I fear that this situation will put them both in a very dire place. They need your help. I believe they were coming here for our assistance but the Brotherhood bore down on them before they could arrive. I trust that you will be able to handle this.”

“Of course, sir,” Scott replied, nodding readily. “Do you have a location?”

Charles nodded, listing off the last reading he got from Jean as she had passed on a mental image of the area around her and the road signs she passed. “I don’t believe I need to tell you how important it is that they do not wind up in the hands of Magneto.”

The X-Men nodded sagely and left the room quickly as he nodded his dismissal. Leaning back in his chair, he let out a heavy sigh. While he knew that his former student needed his help, he couldn’t smother the feeling that things were about to get very out of hand. It didn’t help that moments after his team left, a student barged into his office frantically. “Professor, sir, the news!” she shouted, her hands wringing. “They’re saying there’s a cure. A cure for mutants!”

Charles felt his chest tighten and fear clutch his throat. Dear God, no. He shook his head sadly, wishing the world could be a better place.

---

“Bobby, Kitty, Jubilee, I realize you’ve been working in the Danger Room and on a few missions, but this could be far more dangerous. Keep your eyes open, minds sharp, and don’t get too far away from the main fight,” Scott commanded as he flew the Blackbird toward their destination.

 

He heard their frustrated sighs, but he wasn’t about to take back his warning. They were still just kids and he sometimes feared that they were too young for the world around them.

“How close are we?” Storm asked from behind him.

“Five minutes,” Rogue replied on his right. He glanced at her briefly, admiring her body in the skin tight leather outfit.

Shaking his head, he focused on the mission ahead. “Have you ever heard of this former student of his?” Scott wondered.

“The Professor has mentioned her in passing,” Ororo replied, shrugging. “Nothing too in-depth though.”

“For her to be so powerful and him not to have her on the staff…” Scott shook his head. Something felt off. He didn’t like not having all the facts.

“Not all of us wanna work tahward world peace, sugah,” Rogue told him, smiling softly.

He nodded. She was right. Not all mutants finished their schooling and immediately worked toward becoming an X-Man or working for Charles as a teacher. Some left to become as normal as possible. Still, he felt like the professor had left something out, something important. He’d felt his unease on the subject. Whoever this Jean was, she obviously weighed heavily on Charles’ mind for whatever reason.

As their destination approached, he could see the line of mutants facing just the two they came for and sighed. “Landing gear?”

“Ready,” Rogue replied.

“Seatbelts?”

“Check,” he heard from the team simultaneously.

The Blackbird landed perfectly and he pressed the buttons to release the back hatch, undoing his belt and rising from his seat. “Storm?”

“Ready when you are,” she replied, following him to the back.

“Iceman? Kitty? Jubilee? Colossus?”

“Steady,” they replied, grinning with excitement.

“Marie,” he asked, his voice a little more gentle.

“Ya better stay in one piece, Mista Summas, ah plan on marryin’ ya this spring,” she replied, winking at him.

Smirking, he watched her swagger off the Blackbird. She was ready. Shoulders set, he walked into the chaos, ready to battle.

---

Logan growled as his bike lay smashed against a tree. He and Jean had to make a quick exit when a large, burly animal of a man got in the way. A line of mutants stood before them, each looking angry and cocky. A man wearing a ridiculous helmet stood in the center, half-smirking in their direction.

 

“Jean Grey, I presume,” he called out in a rather charming but suspicious voice.

“What’s it to ya, bub?” Wolverine growled back, his claws unsheathing from between his knuckles.

“You must be Wolverine. That remarkable metal doesn’t run through your entire body, does it?” he asked, his eyes flashing with excitement.

“What d‘you want with me?” he asked suspiciously.

He shook his head, tutting. “You? My dear boy, who ever said I wanted you?”

Sneering, Logan looked at Jean from the corner of his eyes. She was keeping up a brave face, but he could smell the fear rolling off of her in waves. “Well, then ya came for nothing’, Buckethead. She ain’t on the market and I don‘t think yer her type.”

The older man laughed richly. “Not brutish enough, I suppose. Not a problem. I have other plans for her than that,” he said dryly.

Logan shook his head. “Not on my watch.”

“I’m afraid it isn’t up to you.”

Growling deep in his throat, Wolverine advanced, arms rippling with the desire to tear his adversary to pieces and spill his blood. But as he reached just five feet from the smirking old man, he lifted his hand flicked his wrist and Logan felt his adamantium skeleton freeze, stretch, and strain his body, catching and holding him mid-air in a crushing embrace. “Ah ah. Be a good little dog and stay put.”

“Phoenix,” Logan growled, trying to turn his neck but unable to. “Little help here.”

Nodding, Jean let her darker half advance upon her and take some control of the situation. Her eyes darkened and her mind expanded to take in her surroundings. She could feel, somewhere in the near distance, the roar of help on its way. The other mutants surrounding the metal-controlling mutant were advancing on her however, and she knew unconsciously that she simply wasn’t equipped to handle this. She hadn’t been trained and while she was very powerful, she only used her powers to keep her and Logan safe from small scale attacks. She could sense the power surrounding her and while she was a level 5, she was surrounded by various level 4’s, enough so that she with her limited experience could be taken down if she wasn’t careful.

“My dear, if you simply transfer to our cause, you and the uncouth beast could walk away unscathed,” the older gentlemen told her enticingly.

“By walk away, you mean stay with you until you’ve used us up?” she replied, lifting a brow challengingly.

He grinned maliciously. “Your abilities have obviously seen right through me. I won’t deny that I need you for a very important purpose, and care little for you otherwise.”

Jean shook her head, scowling. “We’re not interested. Now let him down.”

“Whether you want to or not, you’re coming with us,” a woman shouted at her, sneering. Suddenly, she was beside Jean, her face turned to one side, tattoos covering her coffee colored skin. “Didn’t see that coming?” she mocked. Her arm raised speedily and her fist collided with Jean’s face, knocking her to the side. Phoenix flared, her temper rising viciously and throwing the cocky mutant high up in the air and dropping her heavily onto the pavement.

“Who are you anyway?” Logan spat, his face twisted with pain and anger.

“I am Magneto and this is my Brotherhood,” the man announced, his voice raising with pride.

“I’ll stick with callin’ ya Buckethead.”

“Pyro,” Magneto said, nodding his head.

“My pleasure,” the teenager replied, smirking. Stepping forward, he lifted his wrists and flames shot out before he manipulated them into forming a circle around Jean, the fire licking at her to hold her in place.

“You could have a strong place by my side, my dear. Save the mutant race from a mutiny,” Magneto told her, stepping forward and staring her straight in the eyes. “Rule the world by my side. Dispose of the humans that treat you and your kind like garbage.”

“We have nothing to do with that war,” Jean told him, shaking her head.

“You have everything to do with it. All mutants do,” he replied, his voice becoming bitter and angry. “Take your place, Phoenix. Your power is immeasurable. You could make them suffer for all they’ve done to you. They want to cure us, did you know? Just you wait, they’ll lure us all in, pretend it’s up to you and eventually you’ll all be forced into it. Held at gunpoint, told you have no choice in the matter. A cure, they say. As if you’re sick or in need of an answer to some sort of mistake.” He paused, staring at her intently. “Are you a mistake, Phoenix?”

“No,” she replied, her eyes burning with hatred, for him, for the people who came up with this supposed cure.

“Prove it.”

The roar of help stopped close by and somewhere in her mind she could hear their voices, readying themselves to help and save and fix this problem. Xavier had sent them, had known that she was in need of their help.

“We have company,” Pyro spat, nodding his head at Magneto to take a look.

“Mystique, my dear, go greet our friends, will you?” he asked, smiling.

The blue scaled woman smirked at him devilishly before taking off toward the saviours. Her bright red hair slicked back over her head and her yellow eyes flashing with delight.

“Seems our chat must end here. Will you come willingly, or must this turn ugly?”

“Not. Interested. Bub.” Logan growled.

Jean looked at him, despite the fact that he was faced away from her. She nodded as if to agree with Wolverine, knowing it was the right choice.

“That’s too bad,” Magneto said, before curling his fingers in and forcing Wolverine’s body to follow painfully. He cried out in vicious agony, his arms turning in and his claws pressing through his skin and into his torso, drawing blood and puncturing vital organs. Jean screamed and Phoenix broke out, lashing out at the people around her, throwing a burst of energy and knocking back a few of the less powerful mutants. Magneto stumbled, his hold on Logan breaking and dropping the man to the pavement below.

Groaning in pain, Wolverine retracted his claws from himself, a pool of blood poured out around him, darkening the road. He grunted, his eyes flashing and his mouth snarling. He leapt from the ground, ignoring his injuries which were fast healing and attacking the nearest mutant, tearing an arm from the unknown man and gutting him without remorse. Jean clearly heard the gargle of blood meet his throat and then he fell away, dead.

Wolverine was on a rampage then and Phoenix simply watched, a devilish gleam in her eyes.

---

“Mystique,” Scott greeted, his hand raising to his visor. “Come to greet us?”

 

“Call me the welcome wagon,” she replied, her shoulders hunching forward as she got into position. Her body changed to that of Marie and she grinned as Scott’s hand wavered over his visor. “What’s a matter, darlin’?”

Scowling, he let out a beam of red, though she dodged it easily, laughingly excitedly. She changed back to herself and her lithe body flipped easily through the air until she was standing right in front of Jubilee. Her arm swung forward, fist connecting swiftly and forcing the girl off her feet and onto the pavement. “Bringing students now, X-Man? Little low on heroes lately?”

Bobby let forth a burst of ice, but the blue scaled mutant dodged it, flipping backwards and crouching low, ready to fight. As he lifted his hand to throw an ice ball, fire flared toward him and he was forced to duck.

“How’s it goin’ Drake?”

“Pyro,” Bobby greeted, his expression faltering as he glared at his former best friend.

“Spread out,” Cyclops ordered.

Storm rose up into the air, her eyes greying and her arms lifting as the weather witch darkened the sky and called forth lightning.

Rogue, after helping Jubilee up from the ground, made her way around the fight and toward Magneto and the two mutants in need of their assistance. Colossus followed after her while Kitty and Jubilee went in the opposite direction where a collection of mutants were advancing from the right toward the woman standing in the center of a ring of fire.

Scott squared off with Mystique, hand on his visor and body tensed for a fight.

Fire and ice were fighting to their left, but Scott only had eyes for the scaly mutant smirking before him. She turned back to Marie and tipped her head, soft doe eyes staring at him sadly. “Ya wouldn’t hurt lil’ ol’ me, would ya sugah?”

Scott didn’t hesitate, his finger clicked his visor and he let loose the optic blast that sent her flipping backward to avoid being burned. He smirked. She didn’t look so cocky anymore.

---

Blood and innards lay weeping on the pavement and Rogue forced down a throat full of bile as she reached closer to the chaos. Jean, the woman they’d come to save, was surrounded by fire and seemed to be feeding it. It kept her safe for the time being, though she seemed to be more focused on what the Wolverine man was doing. If he hadn’t been destroying the Brotherhood with his silver claws, Rogue would’ve assumed he was one of the “bad guys”.

 

Various mutants lay down around her and while Magneto cared little for them, he seemed to be realizing that the ratio was dwindling quickly and he was on the losing side. “We’ll meet again,” he said to Jean before he held onto Callisto’s arm and motioned for her to take them away. They were gone with a flash and Rogue turned to assess the damage.

Pyro was still fighting Bobby and doing rather well, though when he saw that Magneto had left, he seemed to be looking for a way out himself. Mystique was toying with Scott, but she too seemed to be scanning for an exit. Storm was frying a few unknowns that were hurling their powers at the fire around Jean unsuccessfully. And Jubilee and Kitty were in hand-to-hand combat with a few younger mutants that weren’t fairing well.

The man who was apparently on their side was tearing up two mutants at a time with a hungry look in his eyes and rage in his posture. While Rogue wasn’t one to save any of the Brotherhood she had a feeling he would turn on the rest of them when he was done with them. So, discarding her gloves, she did the only thing she could. She advanced quickly and leapt on his back when he was unguarded. He quickly tried to dislodge her but her hands clasped his face, wrists brushing his bristly mutton chops and activated her skin to suck the energy out of him.

He fell like a sack of bricks. His claws retracted and his knees gave out, forcing him down to the hard pavement. Blue veins appeared on his face and his eyes seemed to fuzz before her. She could hear the enraged shout of Jean behind her, but she held fast, just enough to make him pass out. She could feel his healing ability beneath her skin and knew he would bounce back. She let go when she noticed his eyes fluttering and watched him fall backwards, twitching slightly. Leaning over him, she smiled reassuringly. “Don’t worry. You’re safe. We’ll take real good care of you and Jean.” She stroked his hair to calm him and watched his mouth turn in a frown.

“You an angel?” he asked, his speech slurred.

She smiled, chuckling lightly. “Not by a long shot.”

“Didn’t think I was headed up that way,” he muttered.

“Hush. Go on ta sleep now. When ya wake up, ya’ll be in a safe place.”

“You gonna be there?” he asked giving her a shaky but flirty smile.

Lifting a brow, Rogue was amused at his audacity. “Yeah, I’ll be there.”

“Good. Won’t hafta come lookin’ for ya.”

“Why would ya look for me?” she asked, cocking her brow in confusion.

“Can’t have my angel runnin’ off on me. Gotta keep ya close. Cleanse me of my sins or some shit,” he murmured, eyes fluttering again.

“Ya have me confused with someone else there, darlin’. Ain’t no angel and I definitely ain’t here to cleanse ya of anythin’.” Her attention was diverted for a moment and she moved away from him, ignoring his grunts for her to come back.

---

Wolverine wanted to look for her, tried to turn his head to watch her, but couldn’t force his body to comply. She sure was a hot little thing. Pretty face, plump lips, soft looking hair, curvy body, breasts that looked like they’d fit nicely in his hands. He could already see her writhing beneath him, pretty little mouth shouting his name. But she wasn’t responding like most women did. Wasn’t responding to his charm in the least. He could smell her amusement and that chafed him more than it should.

 

He heard clomping footsteps and a deep growl coming from nearby. The scent told him it was the same beast that forced him to stop his bike when they were escaping. His body screamed for attention, warning him that danger was close, but he was too drained to do anything but wait for the inevitable.

“I knew I smelled something rotten,” the large man announced as he leaned over Logan. His eyes were completely black, hair long and reminding him of a lion’s mane. His teeth were sharp and dog like.

“Probably your breath,” Wolverine replied hoarsely, angry with himself for not fighting off the draining he’d gone through. Where the fuck was his healing ability right about now?

“I’m gonna tear you apart!” the beast growled before lifting his black claw-like fingernails. His body seemed to leap forward and Logan prepared himself for pain, but it never came. A hoarse cry was heard and he watched as the mutant was blasted away, red beams searing his body and throwing him a few feet into the air.

A man appeared beside him, dressed in far too tight leather and wearing some kind of visor over his eyes. He looked down at Logan, his expression serious. “Can you move?”

Logan tried but failed. He grunted a denial and felt embarrassment flood him.

He nodded, not looking the least surprised. “Sometimes, she doesn’t know her own strength,” he told him simply. “Colossus? Can you handle this?” he shouted, looking away from him dismissively.

“Easy.”

Wolverine felt the need to tell them that his body was far heavier than they could imagine, but decided to let them find out for themselves, his mind was flooding with the need to sleep, his body relaxing into a state of peace.

“Jeanie,” he called out, the worry clouding his mind. How the hell did he even know if they were with the good guys or not? He saw a hot chick and forgot all about what the fuck they were doing?

“It’s all right, Logan. These people are here to help. Rest.”

He nodded jerkily, eyes closing.

“I love you,” her voice whispered through his mind.

“Yeah,” he grunted aloud.

---

Scott sighed as he looked at the carnage surrounding them. He would have to call it into highway patrol, let them know an animal seemed to have attacked some hitchhikers. They’d take care of the mess. Marie met up with him as he was taking a count of everyone to make sure the team was in tact. She took his hand and leaned into his side. “Things just got real interesting,” she whispered against his shoulder.

 

“Good or bad interesting?” he asked, nodding as Colossus passed by and put the large man on a chair and strapping him in.

“Not sure,” she replied honestly.

He sighed, wrapping his arm around her shoulders and walking them on to the Blackbird. “Guess we’ll have to see.”

She nodded, leaning up and kissing his chin. Her eyes fluttered as she inhaled the scent that clearly spoke “Scott” to her. A little sweat, leather, a hint of his cologne, and something that she couldn’t pin point, something all him. It helped that Wolverine’s senses had developed in her. She could pick up the scents of everyone on the jet, hear every little sound. But the only ones she focused on were coming from Scott. His scent, the thrum of his heartbeat, the steady sound of his breathing. It was intoxicating and calming. She could fall asleep to it easy.

“You okay, Marie? You look ready to pass out,” Scott said, rubbing her back. “You took a lot out of that guy.”

She nodded, fidgeting. She wondered what he would say if she told him of the man’s flirting. Scott didn’t get jealous really, and he knew that she was completely devoted to him. But she had the feeling that this Wolverine man wasn’t just interested in flirting with her. He wanted her. Lusted for her. And he wasn’t using to hearing no. But she wasn’t his type. She was happy with Scott. And she had a feeling that Jean was very much a part of Wolverine, whether he wanted her to be or not. The red-haired woman sat in her seat, back straight, eyes forward, not a word spoken. She was rather intimidating, really.

“We’ll be home soon,” Scott told her, sitting down in the pilot’s seat. “We can get some sleep then.”

Marie nodded, squeezing his shoulder before taking the co-pilot’s chair. She took a deep breath. She just wanted to get home to her warm bed, cuddle up to Scott and dream away the whole day. The blood, the gore, the fighting. Sometimes, she hated being an X-Man. The constant state of war and panic. She wondered if Scott could be happy with just escaping to a little house with just the two of them and their future children. No outside world to mar their perfect solitude. But then she remembered all those mutants that needed saving, all those poor souls who had nobody to care about them. This was her job, her life, her dream. Peace was on the horizon, she just had to help the world get to it.

The Blackbird rose up into the air, flying above the blood drenched pavement and turning back toward the mansion. Rogue could only hope that things would get better from then on. Unfortunately, her hopes would not come to pass.

To be continued...