She had felt so safe, wrapped up in layers. Not that it was an unusual feeling. She was vaguely aware that she had been covered by something for many years.

But since hearing that voice, that name, the layers didn't seem so protective anymore. Instead, they seemed almost restrictive, as if someone--Carol, that was her name, sometimes it was so hard to remember anything--was keeping her from returning.

Returning? To what? Where had she gone? She hardly even knew who she was anymore. All she knew was that the name she had hers was part of her, more a part of her than anything she had felt, through Carol, in a long time.

And, within the part of Rogue's mind that was Marie, a familiar presence began to stir as well.

---

He lay on his back, the mattress supporting him with just the amount of firmness he needed. And, damn it, he didn't like it. It was too comfortable, too much of a reminder of what he could have had, if he'd returned sooner. If he'd maybe visited once...four years ago..even three and a half years ago...

Logan couldn't help but wonder if it might have been different then. If his coming back to this place even a couple times would have made Marie fight harder to keep the dominant place in her mind. Would it have given her the will to survive?

That sounded too arrogant to him. More like something Mr. Fearless Leader would have thought up. Nah, even though he couldn't get that girl off his mind for five years, couldn't ignore the image of big brown eyes framed by two white streaks of hair no matter how hard he tried, she'd probably gotten over that "crush" Jean had mentioned a long time ago. Long before the accident.

Definitely.

So why did the thought that he could have changed things keep surfacing?