In short order they were back at the abandoned farmhouse where the jet was set down. Both watching warily as they walked, as more and more people and pick up trucks began to tail them less than discreetly. When they were finally safely on board, Logan realised they had a problem, not only was Scott still out cold but as drunk as he was he wouldn’t be any help piloting anyway.

“Ro, can you fly this thing alone?” Logan asked, as Jean set about fussing over Scott as she strapped him down to an emergency gurney.

“Not completely, I’ll need someone to push a few buttons here and there, maybe Rogue would like to help?” she suggested, smiling at Marie.

“No!” Marie immediately declared, “No way, no how, I’ve fucked up enough trying to fly this thing already.”

“Nonsense, you handled the jet very well, and single handedly,” Jean praised her as she straightened up. “But it’s okay, you’re still stressed, I can help Ororo, and then at a later date we can give you some real flying lessons,” she said, Ororo nodding along in agreement.

“We’ll only be able to do that if we get out of here very soon,” Logan interrupted, watching the growing crowd of locals closing in around them.

Jean and Ororo quickly jumped to work, strapping themselves in and beginning the launch sequence. Logan started to move away from the window when Marie stepped up beside him. Without conscious thought, he reflexively reached out and wrapped his arms around her.

“Don’t want you disappearing on me again,” Logan teased, as he rested his forehead against the crown of her head. “What's wrong darlin?” he murmured a moment later, picking up the sudden increase of salt that told him she was crying.

“I know these people,” Marie whispered, “Those boys over there I went to school with, that man over there, I babysat his daughter, that lady is my old elementary school teacher, that man owns an ice-cream parlor that I worked at one summer... and that’s my dad. They wanted to kill me. When I left I knew I made people uncomfortable, I understand that, I can even accept that but they tried to *kill me*, my own parents turned me over to them,” she sobbed.

“Well, in truth it was your dad, your mom didn’t support that,” Logan revealed, hoping that would offer her a bit of comfort no matter how insignificant.

“How do you know?” Marie asked, equal parts surprised and confused.

“When you two didn’t show we went looking for you, found where you got grabbed and backtracked to where you had been hiding out, interrupted an argument between your parents,” Logan replied with a shrug, glaring at the man out the window who had threatened Marie and was responsible for her tears; he really wished he had hit him harder.

“Is that what happened to daddy’s face,” Marie sniggered in spite of her tears. “Thank you Logan,” she replied, turning to press a kiss to his whiskered jaw before she smiled up at him.

“I told you darlin, I’ll take care of you, that is a never-ending promise,” Logan explained, before tugging her away from the window as the jet began to roar, and Ororo called out for them to sit.