The weeks after Jean returned from the dead were some of the most interesting as well as confusing we had ever endured at the mansion as me and Ro did what he could, to explain to the kids what was going on. It was confusing enough for us adults, I wasn’t all that sure how to wrap my mind around Jean coming back after two years, possessing more powers than ever, I just knew I was thrilled for her and Scott. He had been lost and alone without her, we had all tried to see him through his grief, but the cloud above him never parted completely. I set with him many nights while he cried and Logan had to help drag him off to bed more than once, when he drank enough to pass out in the kitchen.





Without Jean, Scott hadn’t been the same, a part of him had been missing and when he got her back, the sun seemed to shine for him again and I was happy to see it and so was Logan. He had long ago admitted his feelings for Jean hadn’t come close to the love Scott felt, Logan said he had simply wanted her, as he had wanted many women, in the past and he had actually respected Jean’s willingness to remain faithful. It was kind of a testament to the love she and Scott shared and after Jean’s return, she and Logan formed a friendship devoid of flirtation, which seemed to please Scott.





Well, it pleased Scott and me.





In the two years that Jean had been gone, a lot had happened, I had finished school, joined up with the team, killed a woman and found the means to turn my skin on and off at will.





I was no longer the half starved, fully terrified kid Logan had saved back in Canada.





I had grown up and Jean remarked on it, she was impressed by my battle skills and she noted that Logan and I had grown even closer. She could see the connection between us even more than before, he and I were almost always together, when we were not teaching or training.





We went for rides on his bike, we watched hockey and football and boxing and when I had a nightmare, I went to his room, and if he had the nightmare, he came to me, to find the peace we both craved. He and I felt safe together, free to be ourselves, to take a moment to lower the walls that kept most others at bay…Logan and I were the best of friends, but as Jean could see with one look into my eyes, I was in love with him and had been forever.





“After Liberty Island, I thought you had a crush on Logan.” Jean smiled as she recalled it and I did the same easily. “But I can see now that it was more than a crush and it’s kind of clear that your feelings for him aren’t going to change.”





“I love him.”





“And he loves you.”





She stated it as a fact, but I shook my head. “I want to believe that.”





“Then believe it. It’s obvious.”





“Is it?”





“I see how he looks at you, and added to that, how many times has the man risked his life to save yours?”





“Well, we are on the team…”





But Jean waved a hand. “Please. The only reason Logan is on the team is because you are on the team. If you weren’t here, he wouldn’t be.”





“You think?”





“I know.”





“Then why won’t he do something about it, if he loves me?”





“Because he is scared.”





I shot her a look that said I had a hard time believing that one.





“You know it’s true, Rogue. Logan has never felt anything like what he feels for you.”





“So he doesn’t know how to express it?”





“I don’t think he knows how and I think he is still hesitant because of his past and the fact that he could be well older than Charles.”





“If he is gonna let age factor in he’s in trouble.”





Jean laughed at that. “No kidding. I don’t even think he could find someone of a more compatible age at a local nursing home.”





“Well, he might come close.” I teased.





“Yeah. And who knows, dating someone with dentures might have a certain appeal.”





“You know, you’re getting as bad as Jubes with the visual images.”





“God help us all.”





“So…”





She smiled. “So?”





“Any advise?”





“Actually, yes.” She leaned across the table. “As you know, Scott and Charles are going to have me a ‘welcome home’ party.”





“Yeah. I’ve helped Scott out some.” We had picked out a caterer and a band.





“Well, what was suppose to be a little gathering has turned into a full fledged bash and I think this might be the perfect chance for you to make a move on Logan, instead of waiting for him to get his head out of his ass.”





“I’m listening.” If she had any seduce Logan ideas, I was all ears.





“First, we shop.”





“Shop?” Wow. She was channeling Jubes.





“Shop.”





“For…”





“For a dress that is gonna make Logan melt into a puddle at your feet.”





****************************************************************************************************





The night of Jean’s welcome home party, two days after she and I went shopping, I stood in my room, staring at my reflection in the mirror, trying to decide if I actually had the nerve to leave the room in the dress Jean had chosen for me.





I felt sexy.





I kind of felt like a tart.





But a very, very, very high priced tart.





The dress was a deep green stain with no back to speak of, a plunging neck line, and a split along the right leg that was far from modest and with my hair pulled up, a lot of skin was exposed.





Skin that Logan would want to touch, Jean had said.





Remembering that promise prompted me to actually leave the room and when I did I came face to face with Logan in the hall.





The look on his face was *priceless*.





For a moment, all he could do was stare at me, his eyes wide, his mouth half hanging open as I shifted nervously, anxious for his reaction.





“Logan?” I finally promoted, my heart racing.





“Marie, I…” He shook his head. “Are you…is that…isn’t there more…”





I raised an eyebrow in the same fashion he always did. “More what?”





“Dress. Is there more dress?”





I smiled and shook my head. “This is it.”





“Really? Cause, I don’t know if you noticed, but there isn’t a lot there.”





“I noticed.”





“You did?” He shoved his hands in his pockets, looking perplexed, which I have to

say, was an odd look on Logan.





“Jean helped me pick it out.”





He frowned. “She did?”





“Yeah. She said it would do the job.” I was gaining some confidence.





“What job?”





“Well, I’m trying to catch someone’s attention.”





“Ah, kid, you don’t have to dress like that to catch anyone’s attention, all you go to do is be you.”





Christ. That was the sweetest thing anyone had ever said to me.





“Logan…”





“Marie.”





I love you. I want you. Please take me to bed.





Which of those phrases to go with.





How about neither cause right then, as he and I were staring at one another with some serious sexual tension kicking between us, alarms sounded throughout the mansion, indicating we were under attack.





Step aside Logan and Marie, Wolverine and Rogue are needed to save the day.





Kicking off my heals, cause I knew there was no chance in hell I could go into battle teetering on three inch sticks, I raced down the stairs, a few steps behind Logan, to find all hell breaking lose in the form of The Brotherhood.





They were all there. Uninvited guest. Eric, Sabs, Mystique, Toad, and a couple of obvious new recruits I had never seen before and wasn’t too thrilled to see at the moment cause they were not only crashing Jean’s party, they had just cut off a major Logan and Marie moment.





That pissed me off.





That pissed me off enough to put a little extra super strength into kicking some serious ass, beginning with Toad, that lost part of his tongue while Ro went at it with the Blue Bitch.





And, as always, Logan had his hands full with Sabertooth.





Logan had the claws out, he was totally focused on the battle, slicing into Sabs’s who was giving as good as he got, shoving his own claws into Logan with such force I was actually afraid.





Sabertooth seemed to have the advantage, and seeing that, something inside of me sort of snapped.





Something about seeing that big ass hairy fucker hurting what was *mine* was enough to make me flip that mental switch that turned my skin on.





I flew across the room, landed on Sabs’s back, and locked my hands on either side of his face.





I could feel him flowing into me, his strength, his anger, his thoughts.





His knowledge.





He dropped to the floor in a hairy heap and I fell next to him, dizzy, confused, working to quite his voice in my head, which lucky for me, wasn’t all that hard,

even though I had gotten enough of him I was sure he was dead.





But that was the least of my worries, as Logan knelt beside me, calling my name and I looked at him.





“I’m okay. I’m…I’ll be fine.”





“Christ, Marie, what were you thinking?” He looked frantic and I smiled as best I could.





“I had to help you.”





“Marie…”





But I shook my head, pulling myself to my feet as I looked around the room to see most of The Brotherhood minions scattered about and the X-men gathered around, looking at me, to see if I was okay.





“Rogue…” I could see the concern in Scott’s eyes as he came to me and it hurt, to see his worry, because I knew he was about to be hurt again and there wasn’t a thing I could do to stop it.





“Where’s Jean and Charles?”





That prompted Scott to look around, frowning.





“Maybe they are in Charles’s office.”





Pulling from Logan, I ran towards the professor’s office, praying I was wrong, that I had gotten bad information from Sabertooth, yet knowing I hadn’t even before I busted into Charles’s office to find him on the floor, bleeding from a gash on the side of his head as what use to be Dr. Jean Grey towered over him.





“Jean, what the hell…” Scott and Logan came in behind me with Ro and the others just a few steps behind.





“Jean’s gone.”





I said the words softly, battling back the need to cry as the tall redhead turned to look at me, her eyes glowing, the smile on her face ice cold.





“I somehow thought you would be the one to figure it out, Rogue.”





“Did you?”





“You’re a smart girl. Jean always thought so.”





“What? What is this?” Scott tried to move past me, but I held up a hand.





“Don’t.”





“I would listen to her if I were you, Scott.”





“Who the hell are you?” Logan was glaring at the non Jean, his senses on high alert.





“I am Dark Phoenix.”





She said it calmly, logically, as if we should all know what that meant.





“And Jean?” I asked.





“Jean was strong and she struggled hard, to hold me back, to remain the one that was in control, but in the end, I proved stronger.”





“No…” Scott shook his head, looking broken, just as he had after Alkali.





“Jean is dead.”





“No.” Again Scott tried to make the denial, but what had been his wife smiled.





“I am afraid so. I am something else, something more powerful, something that simply needed Jean’s body to become what I have always been destined to be.”





“Is there any part of Jean left?” I so wanted there to be.





“Not enough to matter.”





“She’s been struggling to overcome you since she returned?”





“She never had a chance.”





“And now?” Logan asked.





“And now I win.”





“And why are you here?”





“To live.”





“And the professor?” I glanced at the man still motionless on the floor.





“I’m afraid he was beginning to suspect something was up, so I had to take care of that while The Brotherhood created a distraction.”





“This isn’t happening.” Ro sounded as desperate as we all felt.





“I am afraid it is.”





“Jean…” I could hear the tears in Scott’s voice.





“No more Jean.”





The voice coming from her changed and with a cry, there before us, what had been Jean changed into a winged creature unlike anything I had ever see and before we could resound, she waved a hand and blew a hole in the ceiling large enough for ‘her’ to make an escape.





My emotions to battered to lock down, I went to the professor and with Ro’s help, we got him to the med lab, where Hank patched him up and a few hours later, we were all gathered around his bed as he explained that Jean did appear to be gone. He had felt something else in her mind for days…he had not wanted to believe it…he looked at all of us with his heart ache in his eyes and I leaned into Logan, unable to battle back my tears any longer.





“Is she really gone for good?” I asked, grateful to feel Logan’s hands on my shoulders.





“It would seem so.” Charles said sadly.





“Why didn’t you say something sooner?” I could hear the anger in Scott, but I knew the pain he felt was greater.





“Because I wasn’t sure. I didn’t want to believe…”





Scott turned and stormed from the room, with Bobby and Kitty following after him as the professor sighed.





“What happens now?” Logan sounded as tired as I felt.





“I don’t know.”





“We haven’t see the last of this Dark Phoenix, have we?”





“No. No, we haven’t.”





“How do we fight her? She has unbelievable power.” Ro looked worried.





“We hope that something of Jean is left in her, something strong enough to fight back and maybe fight with us.”





It sounded like hopeful advise, but even as Charles offered it, I wasn’t sure I believed it.





I was no longer sure what I believed and I was too tired to figure it out, as Logan and I left Ro to sit with Charles while we went up stairs, into Logan’s room, both of us silent as I set on his bed and he stood, leaning against the closed door.





“I went shopping with her two days ago. I was with her for hours. I had no idea…”





“None of us knew. Only Chuck suspected. And there wasn’t anything he could do.”





“God.” I closed my eyes, crying again. “How will Scott handle this?”





“The same way he did last time, with us here, to help him.”





I opened my eyes, nodding. “Logan…” There was so much I wanted to say, I just didn’t know where to begin as he came to kneel in front of me, taking my hands in his.





“You scared the shit out of me tonight, Marie.”





“Sorry.”





“You should be. Sabertooth…”





“He’s quitted down in my head.” He wasn’t dead. Just in a coma that Hank didn’t think he would ever come out of, which was fine by me.





“Good. Thank God. I could have lost you.”





He sounded so forlorn, I lifted a hand to touch his face. “You will *never* lose me.”





“Marie…”





“God, I know this is bad timing, and I know that I might be selfish for doing this now, but I love you, Logan. I love you so much. I wanted to tell you that tonight…”





“Is that what the dress was about?”





I managed to nod. “I wanted to get your attention.”





“Marie, you always have my attention and you’ve always had my love.”





“Logan…”





“I love you, Marie. Only you. Always you.”





At those words, the words I had ached to hear for so long, I fell into his arms, holding to him as I cried with delight, to know he loved me…I held to him as I cried for Jean and for Scott and for how life could be so unfair at times.





“It’s all gonna be okay, Marie. I swear it, darlin’.”





“How can you be sure?” My voice was muffled against his shoulder.





“Because I choose to believe it, to believe that we are all gonna survive this and me and you, we are gonna be together forever.”





I pulled back to look at him, smiling. “Promise?”





He returned my smile, easily recalling the first time I had extracted a promise from him, from the man that had never said the word in his life, until I came along.





“Yeah. Yeah, I promise.”





I moved back into his arms, holding to him as he told me again that he loved me and I whispered the same words to him, knowing I would never let go, that I would keep him at my side forever.





I had to.





I needed and loved him too much to do other wise, and I knew it was what Jean would have told me to do.





She would have told me to love Logan with all my heart and soul all day everyday and never waste a moment.





I knew Jean would be happy for us.





She had been rooting for me and Logan all along.





I just wished she had been able to see us together, happy and freely admitting the love we felt.





It made me sad, at times, to think that Logan and I had finally come together on the night that we lost Jean, the night Scott lost her forever, but when I talked to Charles about it later, he told me that was how life worked, that it was all about risk and loss and finding something and sometimes losing it.





Life is bittersweet, at best, Charles told me with a sad smile, the best we can do is take each sweet moment we are granted and savor it, using it’s memory to see us through the darkness when the bitter times came.





It was wise advice.





Advise Jean would have given.





I kept the dress I wore that night, the one that Jean helped me pick out and when Logan and I decided we wanted to get married and we had our first real discussion about children, I told him that if we had a girl, I wanted to name her after Jean, after the woman that had given her life for ours at Alkali Lake.





For the woman that had fought even if she had lost the battle against the force that invaded her body and her mind.





Scott said he liked the idea. He thought Jean would be honored, just as I told him that it would come as a relief to Jean if he could happiness again, with Kitty, who he had began spending a lot of time with in the aftermath of losing Jean once again.





It took us time, to pick up the pieces, to understand, to make sense of it all, but we did it, a day at the time, as a family, there to love and support one another through the good and the bad.





The good and the bad that combine, in the end, to create the bittersweet.



The End