Part Three
Day 16 - Peace
Marie hummed contentedly to herself as she cleared away the breakfast things - kicking sand over the small fire to gut the flames and collecting up the tin bowls, spoons and saucepan that had been used to prepare and devour a simple meal of porridge made with coconut milk and sprinkled with raisons.
Dumping the dirty utensils into a string bag ready to take to the well to clean, she relished the feel of the sun on her back and the warm grains of sand pushing up between her toes. As she listened to the sounds around her - the gulls screaming overhead, the exotic birds squawking behind in the small copse of rainforest, and the gentle waves lapping lazily against the shore - she indulged herself with a small wistful smile.
She was really beginning to enjoy this simplistic way of life. More than she ever thought she would. The real world seemed a million miles away and it was only this morning that she realised she wasn't missing it at all.
Admittedly, the idea of no make-up, hot water and TV had initially been a little daunting but she had found herself adapting surprisingly fast. And as the days had passed she had come to accept that it was only when you were deprived of those things that you were forced to admit that you didn't really need to be so dependent on them as you were.
It proved to be refreshingly liberating to wake up and face the new day exactly the same way as you had bid it goodnight.
And with the same person...
She sighed wistfully. She could stay here with Logan forever, regardless of whether anything ever happened between them. Because it didn't matter if they were friends or...lovers...the simple fact was, they just seemed to *fit*...work well as a team...very different souls...but a Yin and Yang that *needed* to be together to seem...complete somehow.
And yet they didn't have to spend every second of every day together either. That was what made their relationship so unique. Although Logan was never far away (it *was* a tiny island after all) he still liked his time alone, and in a strange way, she enjoyed his absence as much as his company.
It was *knowing* he was close that reassured her. Gave her peace of mind.
And the solitude on the island was incredibly calming. Was having an amazing affect on her well-being, both internally and externally.
Externally she felt so much healthier, the basic food trimming her of a few stubborn pounds and streamlining her body, as well as making her skin positively glow (at least those parts of her she could see - she had been forbidden to take a mirror!). The glorious weather was also contributing to that *glow*, and she had developed a nice tan, something she never would have dreamed of doing had she not been able to control her mutation still.
As for internally...Marie knew she had a good deal of anger still locked away inside her, what with the whole mutant-issues thing, as well as several frustratingly different people kicking around in her head, but everything seemed to have stilled since coming here. Had suddenly gone quiet. She could think more clearly and didn't have to concentrate so hard to be *herself*.
The island was helping Logan too. Calming some of those inner demons of his. She knew it instinctively. Could hear it in his voice and see it influence and steer his every action. Even something as simple as his walk seemed different, his step possessing more spring, less restraint...
He still moaned about anything and everything - he wouldn't be Logan if he weren't grouchy - but that was just trivial stuff. On the surface. It didn't run deep. But those shadows really seemed to have lifted from his face...
She woke that morning to discover him watching her. His smile, when she sleepily focused upon him, was so gentle and tender, it almost took her breath away. For the first time in all the years she had known him, he seemed at peace.
Her heart ached to see more of *that* Logan.
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Logan flicked his gaze away from his fishing float and looked out across the ocean. The sun had turned the great expanse liquid gold and it was so still it seemed almost solid, like you could walk straight across it and head off towards the horizon. In a strange way it reminded him of being back in Canada, when a frozen lake was turned orange by the sunset, and it was only when a seabird splashed through its surface that the illusion was broken.
He had never been a lover of water (at least being in it) but even *he* had to admit that the scenery here was pretty amazing. Neither could he deny that its warmth seemed to seep down into your skin, deep down into parts of you where you thought nothing could ever possibly penetrate. And like some exotic elixir of life it seemed able to perform miracles.
Where as the cold could numb those inner demons, the heat just melted them away. For the first time since escaping the lab he felt completely at peace.
Happy?
*She* made him happy.
She had opened a door inside him that had been locked for so many years he couldn't even remember what he had even been hiding behind it.
Himself, perhaps?
The *real* Logan?
Wishing he had a cigar, he sighed deeply, sun-bleached shoulders rising and falling despondently. But who was the real Logan? He was so used to maintaining that hard steely persona, forged over years of rage and bitterness, that he had forgotten what it was like to be...natural. To offer a smile that wasn't forced or feigned, or react in a way that wasn't defensive or aggressive.
Yet *she* made him smile without effort, without cynicism or obligation.
She made him *want* to smile.
God, she was so beautiful. A gorgeous sassy angel sent to redeem him of his past and offer him a future. A future without facades.
A life.
And fuck, if he didn't want it.
A life.
A life with her.
Nothing else had meaning to him anymore. The thought both unsettled and comforted him.
He had woken early that morning. Watched her sleep for at least ten minutes before she had opened those beautiful doe-like brown eyes.
She had looked so serene, so breathtaking, lying there. And he had known then that he didn't just want to protect her, take care of her, like he had promised all those years ago.
He wanted to let her in.
He wanted her to know the *real* Logan.
But it was just finding the goddamn words to tell her. He had never been one for sharing anything deep. Christ - small talk was difficult enough! Besides, conversation gave too much away. Could loosen chinks from that protective psychological armour. Other people called it anti-social behaviour; he called it self-preservation. Whilst a small voice deep inside called it fear.
He ignored that small voice, of course. The Wolverine didn't *do* fear. He balked at the very idea.
Sometimes Logan tired of the Wolverine. Wished he would just disappear behind one of those *doors*. His alter ego could complicate a lot of things. Stand in the way of a lot of *Logan's* good intentions.
But not anymore.
It was day sixteen - he made a mental note. That meant he had two weeks to show Marie how much she meant to him.
To tell her that he loved her.
He ran a hand through his hair apprehensively. And try not to fuck things up in the process.
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Marie reached for her journal, having collected it from her hiding place on the way back from cleaning the breakfast things at the well. She was getting a bit bored with adding entries now. Not because she didn't have anything to say as such, but because it was tending to become repetitive. Repetitive in a good way - beautiful weather, beautiful scenery, beautiful man to share it all with - but repetitive all the same.
As she was flicking to a new blank page, however, her eyes caught a flash of ink about half way through. Frowning her puzzlement, at the same time wondering excitedly whether Logan had added something, she quickly re-located the page.
It turned out that it wasn't from Logan at all, but one Charles Xavier.
***Congratulations, Castaways, on reaching the half way mark! I hope that you are enjoying your time on the island and are finding it stimulating, both in mind and body.***
Not stimulating enough, Marie decided, somewhat dryly.
***...As a reward for your labours and sacrifices up until now, it is my pleasure to reveal that a small box of treats has been hidden somewhere on the island and I hope you will not find the following clue to its whereabouts, too taxing -
The softest things in the world overcome the hardest things in the world. Through this I know the advantage of taking no action. Lao-tzu, Chinese philosopher (604 BC - 531 BC)
Kindest Regards Charles***
A wide grin stretched across Marie's face and she quickly brought the journal to her lips and gave the page a big old kiss. The Professor was such a sweetheart!
Snapping the book shut she suddenly looked thoughtful, wondering if Logan would have the same message in his journal. And if so, whether he had even noticed it yet. She very much doubted it. He didn't tend to write much as it was and seemed to find it a chore to do so. There was also the fact that the Professor had written *Castaways* - plural - not just Marie, no doubt expecting her to pass on his words to Logan.
As her eyes flared with mischief her smile turned devious.
So now she had a dilemma.
Should she tell Logan of her discovery so that they could go hunt for the box together (two brains might work out the riddle sooner), or, did she keep the knowledge to herself, try to locate the box alone and then surprise him with it?
She realised that if she *did* tell Logan he might just disregard the clue and turn the island upside down in an attempt to find those treats. The Professor, being the sweetie he was, was sure to have popped a cigar or two in that box, and Logan would immediately cling to that hope. He was already half crazed from nicotine withdrawal as it was!
Frowning, she pondered the clue some more:
The softest things in the world overcome the hardest things in the world.
Through this I know the advantage of taking no action.
Hm...perplexing. Trust the Professor to choose the quote of a philosopher. But she had to admit that the words touched her. The soft and hard could almost represent that fanciful belief of hers...she and Logan...like Yin and Yang...
She sighed gently. But could she ever *overcome* the Wolverine?
She stood up, looking about her determinedly. Well, right now she had to overcome that riddle first. Damn the Professor and his love affair with words!
Deciding that a walk around the island might prompt some ideas she set off, journal in hand and excitement bubbling up in her stomach.
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