Over the next few months their relationship grew. Rogue would come to his room often, at first for sex, and while they still had a lot of sex Logan realised over time that there was more to his feelings for the girl.
The first time she had been waiting for him after a long mission he had been relieved, they'd fucked until well into the next morning which had worked wonders for his post-mission temper. It hadn't been until he was lying sated, with an armful of sleeping Marie, that he had realised most of the intense feelings he'd felt were because there was someone who cared enough to worry about him, to be there to make sure he was okay. He hadn't been able to put a name on the feelings that had burned deep inside him then, that had come later, but he welcomed them after so long living in a bland numbness trying solely to survive, now he was starting to feel alive.
He realised he loved her one afternoon when Marie had burst into his room crying, and thrown herself into his arms. She had sought him out when she was hurt and needed comforting, that had made him proud that he meant that much to her and she trusted him that much. He couldn't for the life of him remember what she had been upset about, but as he held her, he realised that he actually cared about not just comforting her but actually making her feel better, he wanted to take away her pain and tears. When she had finally finished her tale of woe and turned her red rimmed eyes to him, he couldn't help himself but blurt out his realization.
That first time he said 'I love you', it was like heaven split opened and Angel's started singing. He'd always thought it was cheesy when sappy sentimental shit like that was said but there was no other way to explain the effect the brilliant smile she gave him had on him, and the weight that lifted off his chest when she replied softly, "I love you too".
Marie on the other hand had fallen in love with him much sooner, and for an entirely different reason. After they had lain in bed one morning after Logan had returned from a long mission, she had asked him what exactly the deal was with the secret team. None of the students knew much about what happened beneath the school. Several students, Marie included, had seen the jet, many had been brought to the school in it, but other than that the teachers were tight lipped, and no excuse was ever given when classes were cancelled suddenly on the rare occasion.
Logan had explained what they did, raiding labs, stealing information, and tech that was being built to use against mutants. When she'd asked what his role was Logan had gotten quiet, he had showed her the claws for the first time that morning, explained how the military had made him into a weapon. He called himself the first point of contact but wouldn't explain further, which sent an ominous chill down Marie's spine when she considered the implications of that.
It wasn't until she had asked why he was never seen around the school, why he always stayed hidden, that things really began to get bizarre. Logan told her about how the X-Men had rescued him from a lab, that when he had been brought here he was so feral and out of control they had had to keep him locked in an isolation cell in the lower levels until he had calmed down and the drugs the lab had given him had worn off and they'd been able to communicate with him. When he had asked to be released from the cell they had agreed, on the condition he lived in this room, and didn't try to approach the students.
They had told him some of the students had been his targets while he had been being used by the military and so some of the students were afraid of him, he needed to stay out of sight so they weren't made insecure in their new home. Logan's guilt about what they told him he had done, even when he wasn't the one in control, had initially made him respect that, but he become more and more disillusioned as time wore on.
The only time he was allowed out of confinement was when the X-Men needed him on a mission. He had been outside, several times, in the middle of the night to avoid being seen, and had tried to leave many times but been stopped by an excruciating pain that had ripped through him whenever he got too far away from the mansion. He had begun to feel trapped; it was like the military all over again, though at least he had a nice cage now, and he was helping to shut down the fuckers who did what they'd done to him before they could hurt anyone else. He had admitted that Marie had made it more bearable over the last few months, even though he didn't like the idea he was being used.
His story had piqued Rogue's curiosity, and the next time the team had been on a mission she had snuck through the second door, eventually finding the correct halls and stairwells to get down to the lower levels. She had spent several hours going through mission logs and even found medical files, all of which identified Wolverine, which she knew was Logan's codename, but despite the fact the other team members where often referred to by their actual names, Logan never was. In fact, he was barely mentioned at all, and always in a terminology that reminded her of artillery. The most common phrase she found relating to him was simply 'Wolverine deployed, targets neutralised', whatever Logan did he clearly did it well, his targets were never not neutralized.
His medical records related almost solely to his military enhancements, and observations of things that took him longer to heal from. There were no post mission physicals, no record of him receiving medical treatment, it was all clinical and detached, as if Logan were a piece of equipment rather than a human being. Tucked in the back of the folder she found an x-ray that showed a small chip near the base of a skull, a brief note listed it as a safety feature and included a voltage reading, there was also a picture attached of what was identified as a transponder.
She had been interrupted then by the sound of an elevator door opening, she had hurriedly pushed the file she had been reading back where she had found it and hidden, before stealthily stealing back upstairs when the Professor, who had exited the elevator, had gone into a different room. The jet had been landing by the time she had gotten back to Logan's room, and he had arrived himself several minutes later.
He had shouted at her for going down to the lower levels, he had been able to scent her in the area when he got back, at first she had been afraid but when she had seen his shoulders sag and he had pulled her into his arms she realised he was worried for her, even before he warned her what would happen if she got caught. He had made her promise never to go down there again, pressing the issue when she hesitated. He had sent her back to her own room then, worried she might get caught with him in his room. The mission had apparently gone badly and he expected to be called back down for a briefing once Dr Grey had finished patching up the wounded.
Marie had lain in her bed that night thinking over everything she had seen, there were still things that didn't make sense, information about Wolverine that was missing, but she couldn't get over her suspicion that he was being used for something more sinister than just as a clawed battering ram. She resolved to continue trying to covertly find out everything she could about Wolverine, more importantly, why the X-Men wanted him, what they kept him here for. Logan on the other hand she knew, had pushed all those doubts and misgivings aside and was doing his best to do the right thing, with seemingly no gratitude from the rest of the team.
The next night her thoughts on the gratitude of the team were proven correct. She had snuck up the back stairs to Logan's room and been almost at his door when she'd heard voices shouting from inside. Mr Summers was yelling at Logan, who was mostly silent, the conversation eventually ended when Logan growled back, "I was already down, what the fuck did you expect me to do?" Before the door slammed shut and footsteps moved away down the opposite hall, as the other man muttered unforgivingly, 'Get off your fucking ass that's what'.
Marie slipped into Logan's room a minute later, as he shoved a dresser in front of the other door. Logan smiled at her tightly before nodding at the blocked door and commenting, 'He shouldn't come back tonight but just in case', before he pulled her into his arms and kissed her deeply. She had tried asking about the mission but aside from telling her Storm, her English teacher Ms Munroe's codename, had been injured he wouldn't give her any more information. She was surprised too when that night he didn't jump her the first chance he got, instead he spent hours touching her and bringing her pleasure before she fell asleep. He woke her early in the morning and sent her back to her room, refusing her offer to 'make up for last night' with a grin and a kiss, and a swat on the ass as she left.
One morning, Logan pulled her aside before she left, to tell her there was a big mission coming up, it would likely be several hours to a couple of days, and he didn't know when it would be called, he was warning her now so that she wouldn't worry while he was gone. "I'm still gonna worry," she informed him, "But thank you for letting me know, if I don't see you before you go, be safe," she said with a kiss.
The mission was called two days later in the middle of the day, the timing made her nervous as she watched the plane fly away, while her classmates rejoiced at the impromptu holiday. It felt rushed, like something wasn't right. She wished she'd been able to see Logan one last time before they'd left but there hadn't been the chance.
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