Story Notes:
The story is set a little, (we'll go with 7 months) after the first movie.
I started this story 9 years ago (on fanfic.net, never got past chapter 2), and decided to do a massive overhaul and continue on with it.
So without further ado, here is my train wreck. Choo choo.
Anger, pain, fear, and confusion all muddled together the instant another’s skin came into contact with her own. The emotions coursing through her weren't her own. Marie wasn’t certain who they belonged to, nor did she care at the moment. The brunette wanted nothing more than to have her own mind back to herself. Silence was long overdue for her mind. There was never a dull moment within it. Between Magneto, Logan, Bobby, and Cody there was always someone jabbering away in there.

Her eyes opened slowly, her vision blurry for a few moments before everything snapped back into sharp clarity thanks to the enhanced senses of a certain Wolverine. Her green eyes peered around the room, taking in her surroundings. The room was one Marie had only been in a handful of times, the med-lab. It was vacant except for one other person. A young man, not much older than her, was lying on top of a steel table, a coarse blanket on top of him to combat the chill of the room.

It didn't take Marie long to piece together that he'd been the one she had inadvertently touched. Lucas her mind supplied for her. She sat up, slowly so her head wouldn't start spinning. It always took her some time to adjust to another person being added to her mind. Marie gingerly lifted herself from the table and stepped onto the cold, hard floor. Before she had a chance to step towards the boy and make sure he was okay, a voice made her jump.

"Rogue, you really shouldn't be up just yet." Her voice was stern, but contained a hint of concern for the younger mutant.

"Dr. Grey. Ah hadn't even heard ya come in." Marie replied, spinning around too fast to meet the eyes of the red head.

The sudden action made her gasp as a bolt of pain shot through her skull. Jean swiftly made her way over to Marie; her hands gripping the brunette's covered arm and keeping her steady.

"What's wrong, honey?" Jean asked the concern much more evident in her voice now.

Jean and Marie had never been close by any means, but Jean couldn’t help but feel for the young woman. The redhead understood more than anyone about having one’s head invaded by outside thoughts. At least Jean had learned to tune them out a bit, and they weren’t stuck with her.

"Nothin', just a headache. That's pretty much normal, though. Ah figure it's mah brains way of tellin' me to stop being such a klutz and absorbin' more people than it can handle." Marie said softly, running her fingers through her hair and pushing it out of her face.

The good doctor's expression only became more sympathetic towards the untouchable young woman. Marie hated it. She hated the pity that she saw on everyone's face when they learned of her mutation. Logan was one of the few people she’d come across who had never looked at her that way. That was part of the reason she typically preferred his company.

"Ah'll just go and finish recoverin' in mah room. If it gets worse or somethin' Ah'll come and let you know. Ah'm sure it's nothin', though." Marie said, a small smile on her lips. She didn't want to just take up space down here when she obviously wasn't suffering from anything more than a headache.

"Well, alright." Jean replied almost reluctantly as she let go of the girl. It went against her better judgment, but Jean figured this was something Marie was better off handling on her own.

"Ya worry too much." Marie muttered with a embarrassed laugh as she grabbed her gloves from on top the polished table and promptly pulled them on.

Jean smiled knowingly as she rolled her sparkling eyes, "It's kind of my job, dear."

Moments like these were what offered Jean hope that she could ultimately develop some type of relationship with Marie. She knew Marie somewhat resented her for the way Logan looked at her, but it wasn't as if she could suppress the older man's actions. Jean had consistently turned down his advances, but someone would have to be blind not to observe the way Marie cared for him. Jean didn't like it one bit, but there was nothing she could do about it. She wasn't jealous by any means, but she knew nothing good would come out of a girl as young as Marie pinning after a man like Logan.

Marie just simply smiled at Jean, her headache already subsiding. "Tell Scott Ah'll be skippin' the next danger room session, though."

Jean nodded in understanding as she watched Marie's retreating form. At least she wouldn't have to worry about the girl working herself to death. Jean turned to glance at the young man who'd joined the school only a few days ago. That's got to be one hell of a welcome gift, she thought bitterly as she carefully checked over his vital signs.

~~~

Marie retreated as quickly as she could to the privacy of her own room. The professor had deemed it too risky to let her share a room like the other students. As a result her bedroom was placed in the teacher's wing of the building, which Marie really didn't mind. She gently twisted the doorknob and stepped eagerly into her room, a slight frown forming when she realized she couldn't recall how she'd managed to touch the boy in the first place.

The last thing she remembered was she'd been down in the kitchen fixing a late night snack, alone. Marie glanced at the illuminated clock on her bedside table and groaned. It was 2:30 in the morning, and with all the recent excitement, she doubted she'd been sleeping peacefully any time soon. Maybe she could just skip all her classes tomorrow and hang out in her room. Surely the professor would understand her reasoning. A knock at the door pulled her out of her thoughts of playing hooky.

"Come in." She called out, wondering who the hell was up this late besides herself and Jean.

"I just wanted to make sure you were okay, kid." Logan stated as he cautiously opened the door and stepped inside.

Marie smiled warmly at him. He looked so uncomfortable when it came to actually showing any kind of concern for others. Cute but uncomfortable. She understood how hard it was for him. He did little to mess up his tough as nails, don't-fuck-with-me reputation. It meant a lot to Marie that he was at least willing to throw a little of his rep out of the window when it came to her.

"Ah'm fine. A little wound up now, but mostly fine." She replied. No matter what was going on in her life, just simply being in the vicinity of Logan made her smile.
"I know how hard it is for you, every time you… use your mutation." He told her hesitantly.

Logan wasn't even going to pretend to understand what she went through every time it happened, but he could at least try to be there for her. He held his arms out and open for her, a smile almost threatening to tug at the corners of his lips. Marie launched herself at him, more than thankful for his comforting presence. He'd saved her life countless times, and she couldn't be more grateful towards him.

Logan buried his face in her hair, almost getting lost in her scent as his grip around her tightened instinctively. The constant need to protect the younger woman was always there whenever Logan saw Marie. He had saved her life more than a couple of times, but in a way she saved his life just as much. Marie restored Logan's humanity and made it possible to actually care about another person's feelings. Granted he wasn't entirely 'domesticated', he was at least putting in the effort for Marie's sake.

Others obviously took notice of the two mutant's fondness for one another but shrugged it off or simply denied that anything would ever come of it. It was no secret that Marie had a slight crush on the Wolverine. Hero worship, they called it. Harmless. Marie knew Logan was in love with Jean and would never regard her in such a way.

Marie looked up at Logan her face visibly more relaxed now. "Thanks. Ah know hugs aren't your favorite thing in the world, but Ah really needed this."


*

Logan stared down at the southern beauty, a warmth in his eyes only present when alone with her. "Think nothin' of it, kid." He replied modestly, trying to shrug it off as no big deal.

Logan wanted to punch himself every time an inappropriate thought of Marie entered his mind, which too often for his liking. She was only seventeen years old for Christ's sake. He longed for her to just accept him as a friend or possibly even an older brother figure. Maybe if Marie accepted it, Logan could too.

He felt like such a dirty old man when his gaze lingered a little too long on her impressively filled out form. She'd come such a long way since they'd first met. Marie wasn't nearly as shy as she'd once been, but her mutation still kept her at a distance from everyone. Everyone but him.

Logan was the one person she could be around, and none of it really mattered. He didn't care that she could possibly be the only person in the world to kill him. He didn't care that everyone else was terrified to even look at her for too long.

Marie pulled away from the embrace and smiled sheepishly, a light blush covering her cheeks. "Ah should let ya get to bed. Ah'm sure ya have things ya need ta do tomorrow."

Logan nodded reluctantly, "You know where to find me if you need anything. Night, kid." He said, stepping away from her and exiting her room.

Anyone who looked at Marie could certainly tell she was far from being a kid. Logan just needed to remind himself that she was much too young for him. The entire female population could possibly be too young for him honestly, since he had no idea how old he really was. The walk back to his own room wasn't a particularly long one. Logan often thought in the beginning that having Marie so close would be a blessing, but it just proved torturous for him at times. The only beneficial thing that seemed to come from it was that if she ever had a nightmare, especially one of his, he could be there quickly to bring her out of it.



*

Marie stared at the shut door with a foolish smile still adorning her features, her body still warm from where he had been embracing her. Shaking herself out of it, she walked over to her bedside table and turned on the small lap before flipping off the main light. She changed into her night time wear, which was simply a pair of thin shorts and a cami. People knew better than to venture into her room at night, so she could just be free.

Alone in her room was the only time she didn't have to worry about covering up from head to toe like some kinda mummy. Every so often it got extremely oppressive and stifling for Marie, so she would retreat to the silence and privacy of her room. People surrounded her during the day, but she was always somehow detached. She would always lack any type of intimacy with another being.

Marie had dumped Bobby only a few weeks ago. The young brunette could see how much not being able to touch hurt him. He was male after all anyway, and Marie figured if she didn't break up with him he'd do it eventually. It wasn't fair to him either. He deserved a girl he could kiss, cuddle, and make love to without the imminent threat of death. The Rogue could do none of those things.

She crawled under the cool covers of her bed and let out a sigh. She had no idea what she'd do all day tomorrow since she had inevitably decided to skip her class. Maybe Logan would be up for some quality time in front of the tv. A hockey game or something like that was bound to be on. She left the light on and rolled over onto her side, facing away from it. Marie almost laughed out loud at herself. She was an extremely dangerous mutant who could kill almost anyone with a simple brush of her dainty fingers, and she was afraid of something as trivial as the dark.
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