A smile tugged at Logan's lips when he saw the bar in the middle of nowhere and took in the scents around him. Rogue knew that face and noticed the excitement in his dark eyes, but then he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pressed her closer to his chest. "Don't worry I won't let the Wolverine out to play."

The brunette smiled in thanks. She didn't want to give her parents more reasons to dislike her secret love than there already were. They walked up the pebble covered ground towards the D'Ancantos, who had parked their car a little closer to the entrance and were waiting for them.

To Logan's annoyance the planned two hours – a period measured by Logan's driving; meaning much, much too fast, but still save enough for Marie - turned into almost the double since Marie's father decided to drive not even close to the speed limit. At least the long ride gave Rogue the opportunity to get some needed sleep.

The bar was obviously a resting place for truckers on their long trips throughout the country – the most part of the parking lot was covered with the monstrous vehicles and Rogue wondered if her parents ever were in this kind of places. Across from the bar was a shady little motel whose customers would pay per hour rather than for a full night, at least that was Rogue's impression of it.

The brunette suppressed her grin when she saw the doubtful faces of her family as Logan opened the door to the smoky bar and the loud voices of cheering men sounded from within. Feeling confident in such places Rogue walked past Wolverine, who held the door open for her. "Thanks, sugah." With amusement the young woman watched her family slip into the bar close behind Logan. She could tell her mother would voice any minute her wish to leave this place.

"Ya sure, they serve here hot meals?" Rogue had to give it to her mother this was a rather subtle method to leave this bar.

Logan smirked and eyed the fighting ring in the far end of the room. "They do."

Curious yet afraid Josh observed the room with the loud and gruff looking truckers as he moved closer to his older sister, who led the little group together with the other mutant towards the tables in the adjoining room.

Rogue grinned as her brother gripped her sleeve when he watched wide eyed one cage fighter punch his already staggering opponent in the guts and then in the back of the neck sending him unconscious to the ground. "They won't bite ya. Just don't stare at them. 'K?" She whispered to Josh and saw the boy and her parents nod in affirmation.

A few steps later and a few steps nearer to the fighting ring the winner whipped the sweat from his forehead together with some blood from a gash and Rogue felt his eyes on her. And it just happened what she was already used to in such a place and her wearing tight jeans and shirts. He whistled. "Hey, honey, hot curves! How about a cool drink?!" But Rogue ignored the nasty man in the cage. "Hey, I'm talking to you, silver-locks!" Then after a moment. "Are you deaf?"

Finally Rogue turned on her heel and faced the annoying guy her head slightly titled to the side and her gloved hands on her hips. "Didn't want to rebuff ya in front of your friends, but ya gave me no other choice. No, thanks. Ya're not mah type." She simply shrugged her shoulders and continued her way while the other men in the audience chuckled.

The guy eyed the brunette and the boy that clutched her sleeve. "Oh, you like baby faces! You need a real man than a kid, babe!"

Logan's knuckles itched, but he suppressed the urge to let his claws on the fresh air. Taking a deep breath he slung his arm over Marie's shoulders protectively before addressing the cage fighter. "What's your problem, bub? She said no!"

The other man's gaze traveled to Logan. "Think your daddy has a chance against me!?"

"I'm not her father!" Wolverine snarled back and pulled Rogue away from the cage.

"Huh, she has a thing for old guys, no wonder she already has grey hair!"

Rogue growled from deep within her chest and locked her chocolate eyes with her Wolverine. "You sure?" Logan could hardly hide his excitement and the smirk that formed on his lips.

"Go." The brunette hissed her eyes burning into the opponent. "That jerk doesn't want it any other way, sugah."

That was all that Wolverine needed to come to the surface and he walked with a grim expression towards the open door of the ring, Rogue never left his side and her family decided to stay close was saver than staying in the background all by themselves.

The opponent watched his challenger remove his cloths from his torso. "Don't think I will go easy on your old man!"

"Will ya finally shut your mouth? There only comes shit out!" Rogue hissed back and made the crowd laugh once more.

Logan loved the naughty side of his Marie. Smirking he handed his jacket, red flannel shirt, white wife beater and wallet to the young woman after taking a cigar and his lighter from the inner pocket of his worn jacket. "What's your name?"

Rogue smirked at the emcee. "He's the Wolverine." Pressing his clothes to her chest the brunette traded a last gaze with her Logan as he entered the cage, in both their eyes danced pleasure and anticipation.

"Have fun, sugah." Rogue shouted after Logan when the door was closed between them and the two rivals were announced. She heard Wolverine only grunt in respond and then she walked grinning into the first row of the audience. How she loved that moment before the fight; before everyone saw Wolverine step into action.

Though all the violence and the feral expression in his dark eyes and his harsh features that sent chills through even the toughest of men, Marie saw the man Logan beneath the hard shell of the animal Wolverine, who despite the burning desire to completely crush his opponent, held back – at least so much as to not kill his rival or inflict so serious wounds that his life would be at risk.

Her family stayed glued to her side. After a moment her father asked watching the emcee give his ok for the start of the fight. "Does he know the rules?"

"Yeah. There are almost none." Rogue saw her Logan eye his opponent and both men circled each other for a few moments.

"That's unfair. Ah mean his…" Josh whispered but was silenced by the first punch Logan took to the gut.

"Today it's fairer than ever. His healing still isn't up to normal." Rogue whispered to her family watching her mother cover her eyes when Logan broke the other man's nose, blood splattering on the floor.

A young man approached Rogue and came to a stop next to her, his eyes never leaving the fight. "That's Wolverine?! The cage fighter Wolverine?!"

"Ya heard of him?" Lifting an eyebrow Rogue turned her gaze slightly to the guy.

"Yup, they still tell in Phili he won 16 KOs in row!" The chatty man saw the eyes of the teenage boy and the elderly couple, who didn't fit into the ranks of the audience at all, widen in awe - or was it shock.

Rogue only smiled knowing her family was listening. The cat was already out of the bag, no need to play Logan's hobby down. "He had a bad day back then. Would have been more KOs if there were any challengers left."

"I really wanna fight him!"

"Experience?"

"Not really, but I was with the Marines."

"Could become interesting." Not really meaning it though, when Rogue checked the guy next to her out. He was build well and quite tall, but no match for her Wolverine.

Meanwhile Logan placed a punching combo to the man's chest and gut, knowing the fight was over when he heard ribs crack and the man spitted blood, before sinking to the ground. The emcee was still counting out as Logan lightened his cigar and took a deep drag sure that his opponent wouldn't wake up so soon.

"Ya still wanna fight? Ah can tell him to go easy on ya." Rogue smirked cutely at the guy next to her who was staring at the two men that pulled the unconscious jerk over the dirty floor out of the ring and to a few chairs in a far corner. The fight was over in far less than 60 seconds.

"You his girl?"

"Yep." She saw faint doubt in the man's eyes as he still observed the many open wounds on the loser.

Then he eyed Wolverine's harsh expression and the feral look in his eyes as he paced the small space of the cage. "Nah, I want an all out fight. Don't think I get this chance again."

"'K." Rogue watched Logan approach her side of the cage his face still grim, but she could tell he was enjoying his time. She smiled up to her Wolverine. "Sugah, this newbie wanna challenge ya! Said if he wins Ah have to kiss him! With tongue!" Abruptly Logan's eyes narrowed on the man next to his love and his expression became even darker than before.

"I didn't! Are you nuts?!" The former soldier hissed noting the murderous look in the other man's eyes.

Smiling sweetly the brunette whispered. "Ya wanted an all out fight. Now ya get one."

The man entered the cage and faced Rogue the moment the door was closed. "Hey, if I win I want the kiss, hon!"

"Believe me ya don't want. And ya won't win either." She faced Logan with a wink. "Ah'll order food, sugah." She caught from the corner of her eyes Logan's opponent's startled expression, when he heard she wouldn't even watch the fight.

Taking a last draw from his cigar before placing it down on the small sideboard Wolverine's dark gaze met hers. "Do that, darlin'! I'll take care of that punk!" In his gloomy features was a small smile hidden that only belonged to his Marie. He readied himself for the next fight, cracked his neck from side to side and walked to the center of the cage.

Lust rouse every time she watched her Logan fight. A primal urge. Desire. Her knees would grow week as he locked his heated gaze with her hazel eyes, him panting heavily while sweat glittered on his bare chest. 'You know, he smells you goin' all wet about him, runt?!'

This voice in her head snapped her out of her staring. 'Shut the fucking hell up, Victor!'

'Wonder why he didn't already tear those awfully thigh pants from you and didn't take you hard and-'

'Watch it, Victor!'

'Oh you still there, Jimmy? Haven't heard from you in a while.' Victor knew how to tease his little brother.

'Victor, will ya stop it?! Ah can't have ya two get into another screaming match at the moment!'

'Right, you have to ogle Jimmy and mentally strip him.'

'Victor!' Logan's voice and Rogue yelled back at the third presence.

'What? I just state the obvious! It isn't like Jimmy wouldn't want to fuck you!

'Kuso. Will you finally mind your own damn business and shut the fuckin' hell up?!' Logan growled back in a low and threatening tone, that would everyone else intimidate except his dear brother.

But Victor continued unimpressed and finally addressed his brother's presence directly on that topic. 'Why didn't you already claim her as yours?! That lovey-dovey crap of the two of you is terrible! It's damn obvious to everybody that you love her! Even that brain dead FBI agent got that! She IS practically already yours!'

Wolverine's growling had abruptly stopped by the word 'love' and after Victor's rant was over it became awfully silent in her head. Tentatively she called out for her love in her mind. 'Logan?' No reaction. 'What's wrong, Logan?'

'He's probably sulking 'cause I broke it to you!'

'Urusai! Baka no Aniki!'

Rogue thought it funny that she suddenly understood Logan telling his 'idiot brother' in Japanese to 'shut up'. 'Speaking with your brother in Japanese so Ah wouldn't understand isn't nice of ya at all Logan! By the way Ah understood every word!'

'Kuso!' (meaning 'shit')

'Would ya stop cursing and tell me what's up?!' She only heard him growl. 'Is Victor telling the truth?' The growling stopped again and silence followed.

'Course. Even I tell sometimes the truth, runt!'

Suddenly Rogue was ripped from her inner conversation by her brother's voice.

X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X

"Wow, that was mean, Marie!" Josh remarked when he saw his sister snap out of her thoughts and a wide grin plastered her face – though she wasn't grinning about the poor former Marine as her family thought she was.

"Why did ya tell the man ya are Logan's girlfriend?" Her father inquired with a stern glare.

'Cause you are!' growled Victor in annoyance and made Rogue blush slightly.

'Would ya please shut up, Victor!' She told the voice in her head in a firm tone, hoping he would give her finally a break since she couldn't count on her inner Logan at the moment to take care of his brother. 'Ewww, my headache is returning…' "Logan said it's saver for me to tell Ah'm his girlfriend while he's fighting and Ah'm standing in the crowd." The family finally entered the adjoining room and took a seat at one of the tables. "The guys won't be so stupid to do any approaches when Logan knocks out one after one of guys that look much stronger." Rogue placed Logan's clothes over the back of the chair next to hers and eyed the piece of paper that was the menu card.

All color drained from Mrs. D'Ancanto's face. "So he takes ya more often into this kind of places, where he fights?" Her mother finally knew why she didn't like that apparently violent man. He indeed fitted into this kind of bars and he brought her little daughter in such terrible places.

"It's like he has a built-in radar for cage fights. Funny that it was ya to decide we take a stop here, Dad." She saw the waitress, a young woman about her age, approach and she told her Logan's and her orders and waited for her family to make up their mind.

After the waitress was gone her father had an angry scowl on his features. "That with the teacher was a lie after all."

"No. He has classes when he's at the mansion. Cage fights are only his hobby."

"And ya can watch this barbaric… sport?" Her mother was almost at a loss of words, remembering the violent fight with all that blood, she wasn't sure she could eat one bite.

"He's having his fun and Ah don't have to worry about him becoming seriously injured anyway." Rogue grinned. "Ah like seeing the shocked faces of his opponents and their women, when they finally get that they are beyond him."

Scowling her father narrowed his eyes on his daughter. "How did he break this hobby to ya, Marie?"

"Didn't have to. That's how we met." On the shocked and puzzled expressions of her family Rogue continued. "Ah hitched a ride and ended up in a place similar to this one and there Ah saw him fight. Ah felt he was different." A smile plastered her lips when she remembered the moment she laid first her eyes on him. "Ah then hid in his trailer, but he soon smelled me and chucked me out."

"On the street?" Her mother wasn't certain what to say on that.

"But his conscience kicked in and he gave me the ride."

"And then? He took ya with him?"

"Nah. We talked a while and Ah think Ah grew on him. But then we had an accident." She remembered that day as if it was yesterday. "Ironic, it was also Victor who attacked us back then."

Her mother's eyes widened. "That monster from the mall?!"

"Back then his orders were to get me alive, but Logan fought him and then help arrived and we ended up in the Institute – the school."

"Romantic!" Her brother remarked sarcastically.

"Ah know not the normal meeting in a pub thing, but we're both not average." Rogue shrugged and gave the waitress a thanking smile when she placed a cocktail in front of her and a bottle of beer to her left, where Logan's seat was.