Logan hadn’t been entirely sure what response he had expected, but it certainly wasn’t the one he got.
“Well that’s a shitty thing to say!” Rogue screeched, scowling up at him. “Ah can’t believe you, Logan!”
Her accent’s back, Wolverine observed mildly.
“W-what’d I do?” Logan stammered.
“Ah shouldn’t have to tell you! Don’t come near me until you figure it out then, got it?” Rogue stomped toward the cabin, muttering too low for Logan to hear her clearly.
Pretty sure she said ‘jackass’ somewhere in there, Wolverine offered helpfully.
That’s not important right now! Logan roared at him. What the hell is her problem?
I agree with Marie on this one…shouldn’t have to tell you, bub.
Logan paused in the middle of descending the ladder. Hey genius, as long as she’s mad at me, you don’t stand a chance of getting near her either.
There was only silence from Wolverine until Logan’s feet touched the ground. You have a point there.
So? Logan growled as he picked up the tool box and trudged toward the small storage shed beside the cabin. You gonna tell me or not?
Oh, I’ll tell you, Wolverine promised dourly.
* * *
An hour later Logan was still mulling over Wolverine’s explanation. Stepping out of the shower, he absently reached for a towel and scrubbed it roughly over his face and hair before wrapping it securely around his waist. He could faintly hear Rogue moving around downstairs in the kitchen and was only mildly alarmed to discover that her dinner preparations were being interspersed with colorful descriptions of his character.
You really think that’s why she’s upset? Logan asked yet again.
Get your head out of your ass, partner, Wolverine growled. Just go over the damn conversation again start to finish. What else could it be?
As Logan walked down the hall toward his bedroom he was unaware of drawing a deeper breath when he passed Rogue’s room. The sweet smell of strawberries made him smile briefly.
No way, he finally decided. There’s no way that’s what she’s thinking’.
Fine then. If you have a better idea, let’s hear it.
After grabbing a pair of boxers and jeans from the stack of clean laundry at the foot of his bed, Logan yanked his damp towel off in irritation. He flung it violently into the corner by the door.
Fine, Logan mentally sighed. We’ll go with your idea, but it’s just plain stupid.
Oh, really? And let’s say it just happens to be right as well. You gonna apologize to Marie by tellin’ her what she’s thinkin’ is stupid?
Logan zipped his jeans and admitted gruffly, Hell no. Don’t think I’d survive the fallout if I did that.
Then get goin’, chump, Wolverine prompted, forcefully turning Logan’s body toward the door. Apologize to our lady.
“How the hell’d you do that?” Logan wondered out loud as he continued on the course Wolverine had set him.
My body too. Can move it when I have to if you’re not actively fightin’ me.
“Huh,” Logan mused, forgetting that he still hadn’t put on a shirt.
* * *
“Stupid ass!” Rogue snarled as she slammed a bowl of peas onto the kitchen table. A few leapt up out of the bowl from the force of the impact and made soft, wet smacking sounds when they landed.
Rogue growled wordlessly before gathering them up. “And you’re an even stupider ass, Marie, makin’ his dinner for him like a good little….a good little….” she trailed off and smashed the peas in her fist. “Like a good little whatever the hell he thinks you are!” she finished viciously.
“Everything,” Logan said from behind her.
Rogue yelped and stumbled back a step in surprise. As she did, her foot caught on the chair beside her and she started to fall. She was vaguely aware of Logan lunging forward as she reached for the edge of the table to steady herself.
She forgot about the slick mess of peas coating her palm, though, and her hand skidded off to the side, changing the trajectory of her fall.
Logan barely caught her around the shoulders and their heads smashed together with a meaty thunk.
Both somewhat stunned, they lay in a graceless huddle on the floor.
“My head,” Rogue groaned, rolling away from Logan onto her side and cradling her forehead in her hand.
“Marie,” Logan said urgently, gripping her shoulder and pulling her onto her back, “let me see, darlin’.”
Rogue glared at him sullenly before finally allowing him to pull her hand away from her injured forehead.
Logan snorted a laugh.
Rogue’s eyes widened. “Ya think me bein’ hurt is funny?” she shrieked, aiming
a punch at Logan’s chin.
Logan neatly caught her fist before it could connect. “No, no, darlin’, of course not. I just don’t think this particular shade of green is your color though, hmm?”
He uncurled her fingers and turned her palm toward her.
“Damn peas,” Rogue muttered, seeing the grey-green slime.
Logan let go of her hand and brushed her forehead lightly with his fingers. “You’ve definitely got a goose egg startin’.” He looked at her curiously. “Why aren’t you able to heal it, darlin’?”
Still lying on the floor, Rogue crossed her arms with a huff and glared at him. “Because apparently when Ah’m upset none of my powers work. Wanted to knock ya off the roof earlier, but Ah couldn’t levitate a damned thing.”
Logan smiled uneasily. “Guess that’s a good thing for me, huh?”
Rogue merely narrowed her eyes as she continued to glare at him.
“I didn’t mean to upset you earlier, darlin’,” he began, “and really had no clue what set you off.”
“Oh?” Rogue’s voice was dangerously quiet.
“But I do now,” Logan assured her hastily. “Have a clue, I mean.” He winced. “I mean, I think I understand why you were upset.”
“Do tell,” Rogue invited, her teeth clenched together.
“Uhh, you’re not exactly makin’ this easy, darlin’,” Logan hedged.
“Why should Ah make it easy for you, you ass?” she snapped.
“Well, shit!” Logan snapped back, “How was I supposed to know you’d get such a stupid idea in your head?”
Rogue’s face smoothed out and she smiled at him sweetly.
Oh shit…now you’ve done it, Wolverine sighed.
“Stupid am Ah, Logan?” she asked softly.
“No!” he growled, “You’re not stupid, just what you were thinkin’ is stupid.”
Still soft, Rogue continued, “Well, if what Ah think is stupid, it stands to reason that Ah’m stupid too, hmm?”
“No, dammit! Will you just listen to me, you idiot?”
What the hell are you doin’? Wolverine hissed frantically.
Rogue’s smile ratcheted up a notch. “Stupid and an idiot, Logan? My, ya sure know how to charm a lady.”
Logan snorted. “I never claimed to be the charming type.” Feeling Wolverine fighting for control over his words, Logan delivered a mental smack to his counterpart. “And I never claimed to be good with words,” he continued, “so it’s no wonder I’m makin’ a mess of this.”
Rogue raised her eyebrows in polite inquiry.
“Listen, everythin’s just been a huge misunderstandin’, darlin’. We never said that Wolverine and I think about you in completely different ways, we said there’s a slight difference in how we think of you.”
Rogue frowned.
Somehow the frown was more encouraging to him than the smile had been. “So Wolverine’s all about simple, instinctive concepts. All about what he wants. ‘Mate’ is all about what he wants and nothing about what you want.”
“Ah’m not sure Ah’m followin’ you, Logan,” Rogue admitted hesitantly, searching his eyes.
“I’m sayin’ that that’s where the difference is when it comes to the way I think about you, darlin’. I’m more concerned with what you want than what I want.” Logan smoothed her hair back and gently ran his thumb across her forehead to clean away the faint streak above her right eyebrow. “He thinks of you as his ‘mate’ and I think of you as my everything. If you’re not happy, I’m not happy. So to make you happy, I’ll be anythin’ you want, regardless o’ what Wolverine or I want.”
Rogue looked at him thoughtfully for several silent moments.
“Say somethin’, darlin’?” Logan urged.
“What if Ah want what Wolverine wants?”
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Hey all...there's a new chapter of Last Chance too, but for some reason, it's not showing up with the recent updates or showing a current date. Don't know what's going on, but it's there if you're interested.