It was just before lunch. Logan had taken the kids outside to play, while Rogue was in the library, she had an assignment due at the end of the week for her college history class but she had gotten totally side-tracked looking into home-schooling, and all its associated how-to’s. It wasn't looking as complicated as what she thought it would be.
"Rogue, do you have a minute?" Scott asked suddenly, a moment after tapping on the open library door.
"Yeah, is everything okay?" she asked with a smile, as she closed her laptop. She liked Scott, as much as it annoyed her inner-Logan, but he had always been nice to her, and encouraged her to push herself to achieve, not in the same way Logan did though. Scott was all about being strait-laced and overachieving, while Logan was an only fight when necessary but win at all costs kinda guy; she liked to think she cut a nice middle ground between the two.
"How are you doing, haven't seen much of you lately?" Scott asked, with obvious forced joviality.
With a sceptical look reminiscent of something Logan would pull, complete with raised brow and mildly amused smirk, she replied, "Scott, I've seen you at least once every day for most of the last couple of weeks but I'm good, how about you?"
"Alright, alright, I'm just worried about you, you've been... distant, it feels like you've completely fallen away from your path, you haven't been teaching, training, studying..."
Rogue picked up the textbook next to her. "Studying..." she pointed out with a grin, "I know everything kind of got thrown up in the air but the kids are settling in now, I'll be picking back up the history roster from next week. I'm not going to be restarting with training though, I'm sorry I know you don't want to hear this but, I'm withdrawing from the team, and it would be pointless and a waste of time for me to take up your time, and a space on the training squad, so -" Scott cut her off.
"Rogue, you don't have to give up your life to take care of Logan and his kids, just because he asks you to doesn't mean-" he started.
"Woah!" Rogue exclaimed, "Excuse me? First off, Logan hasn't asked me to do anything, second, I'm sorry you feel that way but I don’t feel like I'm 'giving up my life', I'm more than happy where I am and where my life is going... Is there something else you have a problem with because you've never questioned me on anything I've done before and I can't help the feeling that there's more at play here than just me not doing what you think I should." Rogue's attitude was annoyed but not quite angry, much like Logan's had been when he had questioned him.
Scott sighed, he didn't know how upset Logan still was with him, and wasn't sure if he should risk pissing Rogue off too. "I just don’t want to see you waste your life on someone who doesn't deserve it," he said, standing up to leave.
Rogue bristled at his comment, jumping to her feet. "How dare you! What the hell would you know about who or what Logan deserves, or are you implying Ava and James don't deserve a mother figure? After everything that's happened just in the last few weeks how can you even think Logan doesn't, finally, for once in his life deserve something good, or is it that I am not good enough for him? You know, you really should be more careful with what you say Scott, so many ways for it to be interpreted, and not a single one of them anywhere near true," she growled in his shocked face, her own inner Logan slipping out.
"And just for the record-" she ripped her glove off her left hand- "I will 'waste my life' on who and what I feel like and there is nothing you can do about it!" she declared, holding her hand in clear view so he could see the ring. "Now get the hell out, I have more important things to do than to sit here and discuss my personal life with a goddamn chauvinist," she sat back down at the table, deliberately refusing to look at him, and threw her laptop open again.
Scott opened his mouth and tried to speak but the glare and sudden, unexpected growl, from the girl in front of him, led him to snap his mouth shut quickly before he hurried away. He went straight to his own office, pushing the door shut he began pacing back and forth across the small room. The door opened a moment later as Jean walked in, looking shocked and surprised, she watched him warily as she shut the door quietly, and walked across the room to perch on the edge of the desk.
"So, I did call out to you in the hall but you didn't seem to notice, is everything okay?" she asked tentatively.
Scott stared at her blankly for a minute before he sat down heavily in his chair dropping his head into his hands, a moment later he looked back up and said, dumbfounded, "Logan asked Rogue to marry him!"
"WHAT!?" Jean shouted, jumping to her feet. "No! No, you must have misheard, misunderstood, what, why...?"
"Nope, she's got a ring and everything, she's quitting the team, and..." Scott replied, as the facts began to sink in.
"What the hell! She's seventeen, what the hell is he thinking! Why would she say yes!? ... I'm going to talk to her," Jean announced, heading for the door, wrenching it open and storming out before Scott could stop her.
The situation deteriorated almost immediately as Jean rushed into the hall, looking around as she tried to decide which direction Rogue would most likely be in, when she spotted Logan just disappearing into the kitchen.
"What the actual fuck Logan!" she yelled, as she stormed into the kitchen after him, not even noticing the various faces that turned to stare at her, among them both James and Ava. "What the hell were you thinking, how could you do that to her!"
It took her a moment to realise Logan was just staring at her, mouth open in confusion, before he replied, "I'm sorry, what? And who?"
"Rogue!" Jean shouted, as Scott came stumbling into the room, after jogging down the hall after her. "What the hell were you thinking telling her you'd marry her, for god sake Logan I get having an on call baby sitter is convenient but you don't tell a fucking teenager you'll marry her, god, give her some goddamn mall money or something but... fuck!"
"This is going to sound just a little hypocritical coming from me but if you don't mind Jean, could you watch the language, my kids are in the room, and I didn't tell Rogue I would marry her," he replied, as the girl in question walked into the room, having heard her name being shrieked from down the hall.
Jean stared between him, Scott, and Rogue in confusion. "Well then you'd better explain that to Rogue because she seems to think you're engaged!"
"We are," Logan replied with a grin, ignoring the excited squeals from multiple females across the room, while Rogue stood in the doorway trying not to laugh, as Jean and Scott stood staring at him open mouthed.
"But, what... then why did you say...?" Scott tried to say.
"I didn't tell Rogue I would marry her, I asked Rogue if she wanted to marry me, she said yes, so, we're engaged, like I said Scotty-boy, some battles can't be won," Logan replied, as he continued pulling out the ingredients for the sandwiches he had been about to make.
"But, you can't, she's too young, you can't seriously expect her to take on two half grown kids, she's not experienced enough to be a mother, she has to have a life Logan!" Jean began to argue.
"Not that it's any of your business but she does have a life, and I'm going to do my damnedest to make sure she has the best life possible, it's not going to be perfect but since when did any of us have perfect lives, holy hell Jean, you're talking to a room full of mutants, three of whom have survived labs! I know she's young, she'll get older, she'll mature, and I can live with that, I don't expect anything from her, except for her to be happy and to let me know if she's not. As for her experience, from where I'm standing, she's the second most experienced woman in this room when it comes to motherhood, only Sarah could claim more experience, and I have to say Rogue's doing a damn fine job. If you want to object to our relationship go right ahead, I personally don't give a fuck, I didn't ask you to marry me," Logan replied heatedly.
"I can't believe this; you can't be serious! Rogue, think about what you're doing here, you have your whole life ahead of you, you've got college, and you've never dated, you'll be tied to kids that aren't yours for years, and what happens when Logan gets sick of being tied down and takes off again, do you really want to be left here, looking after his kids, while he's off fucking who knows who a continent away?" Jean ranted, Scott nodding along in agreement.
"Yes, I have my whole life ahead of me, a life I intend to live with Logan. I've got college, I'm half a year into a four-year degree, there's probably times it's going to be difficult to keep up but Logan's got my back and he won't let me quit, or fail. I have dated as a matter of fact, went on an absolutely amazingly perfect date just last night, dinner, we missed the movies, midnight walk around the lake, it was wonderful. I don't recall ever seeing written anywhere only being able to love children that are biologically yours, shall I just go tell Jubilee that her parents, the ones who adopted her, and died trying to save her, didn't love her? As for what will happen if or when Logan or I get sick of the hypocrisy and double standards of certain people here and decide to leave, I can guarantee it will be together," Rogue responded, her eyes flashing angrily as she dared anyone else to object.
"Rogue ... Logan didn't take you with him last time he left, and do you really think he's going to be satisfied stuck with a girl he can't touch? The evidence of Logan's level of physicality is in the room right now, three kids, with three different women, do you really think he's going to be content with having to find ways around your mutation for the rest of forever? He's using you Rogue, free childcare and a young body to take advantage of, " Scott threw his own two cents in, emboldened to speak by having his thoughts backed up by Jean.
"Enough," Logan barked lethally. "Even if it was any of your business, which it's not, this is neither the time nor the location for this conversation. For the record One-Eye, I left here because it was the right thing to do, she needed to finish school, I promised to come back, and I did, I have never made a promise like that before, because honestly, there was never a person I wanted that desperately to go back to. I love Rogue whether you approve or not and would never take advantage of her."
Jean's mouth dropped open as she looked between a furious Logan, and Rogue, who though she also looked angry, held a touch of insecurity in her countenance, not to mention the blush that infused her cheeks when Scott mentioned being 'physical'. "You - you're not having sex?" she asked suddenly, as the realization hit her.
"What did I just say?" Logan asked, glaring at her before glancing pointedly across the room at the two small children watching the exchange with worried faces.
"But -" Logan cut her off with a growl.
Scott tried again. "That aside it doesn't change the fact that Rogue is not old enough to be mother to a three-year-old, let alone a seven-year-old, and I don't even want to try and describe the relationship between her and your sixteen-year-old son. She shouldn't be expected to play mom."
Everyone's attention was distracted as James yelled 'No!' loudly, as he rushed to Rogue and wrapped his arms around her legs as he clung to her. "Mama, my mama," James insisted loudly, as he stared, distressed, up at Rogue.
"Yes sweetie, don't you worry about them, I'm your mama and that's just the way it is," Rogue replied softly, as she gently pet the little boys hair.
"Rogue that's not how this works, you can't just be his mom-" Jean's words, and advance toward Rogue were cut off by a vicious snarl.
What happened next was a blur as Logan yelled for Jean to 'get back' as he launched himself over the counter, as Caleb jumped out of his seat, and Ava screamed.
Caleb got to James first, grabbing the little boy in a tackle around his middle as he agilely launched himself at Jean, Caleb was mindful to roll in mid-air so he hit the ground first with James landing on top of him. He held fast to James as the little boy raged, claws flailing, as he tried to get out of his grasp. Caleb didn't release his hold until Logan had the boys’ hands and was talking to him gently.
"It's alright James, calm down, everything's okay, you're not in danger," Logan assured him. It took a few moments before the little boy's growling and ragged panting subsided, leaving him with tears running down his cheeks as he whimpered in pain. "Should we put the claws away now?" Logan asked gently.
"I don' know how," James whispered, with a sniffle. With a gentle smile Logan released one of his arms, taking the other in both hands he manoeuvred the little boys’ hand into the correct position to allow the claws to slide back into his arm, before doing the same with the second.
"Are you okay now?" Logan asked gently, as Caleb pulled himself up to sit on the floor nearby, and Rogue knelt down beside them.
"They gonna take mama away?" James asked scared, before his eyes got even wider, "They gonna take me away!"
"No little man, no one's taking you or your mama away, you hear me? I won't let them," Logan replied, as he pulled Rogue to his side, wrapping one arm around her as the other cradled James.
"But the doctor lady doesn't like us," James said, sounding not entirely convinced.
"Jean's just jealous kiddo, she'll get over it," Logan told him. "People do dumb things when they get jealous, like threaten little feral boys and their mothers, but it won't happen again, if it does she'll have the big mean feral daddy to deal with and she won't want that," Logan glared at Jean, it was enough for her to back away even further.