Title: Step into the Past
Author: Angel LeeAnn
Rating: PG-13
Summary: What if they (Logan, Rogue, Bobby, and John) had gone to Marie's parents' house instead?
Disclaimer: Anything/one you recognize doesn't belong to me. They are the property of Marvel, Bryan Singer, and – as I'm sure – others.
NOTES: In the "Special Features" of the X2 movie, we learn that they (Logan, Marie, Bobby, and John) were originally supposed to go to Marie's house not Bobby's. However, the geography didn't work so the idea was scratched. Well, this is a take on how it could have been if they had gone to Marie's house instead of Bobby's. In order for this to work, Jean and Storm went to Mississippi to retrieve Kurt.
Chapter One
Road Trip
"Here," Rogue's tentative voice interrupted the silence. "These are yours," she murmured, yanking a chain off her wrist and lowering the cool metal into Logan's palm.
Logan glanced down, a small smile gracing his lips as his eyes fell on his dog tags. He peered over at Rogue who ducked her head bashfully. A ghost of a smirk dancing over his features, he turned his attention back to the road: aware of Bobby's intense glare piercing the back of his head.
John "Pyro" leaned between the two front seats, reaching for the radio's controls. "I don't like uncomfortable silences," he stated, pushing "power".
Immediately the car's speakers exploded with an irritating beat of instruments and a woman's grating voice. Logan flinched, his ultra-sensitive ears burning in pain from the screechy song. Finally, John switched it off and went instead for the CD player. A door swooshed open and a strange mechanical device sprung forth. "I don't think that's the CD player," John announced.
Logan plucked the device from its holder, eyeing it oddly. He flashed his eyes towards the teenager. "Sit back," he ordered and then jerked when the device popped apart. It was now obvious to tell it was a cell phone of some sort. Logan pressed it to his ear and asked, "Hello?"
Nothing. It was dead air.
"So where are we going," John inquired.
"Jackson, Mississippi," Logan answered curtly. "Jean and Storm are there."
Rogue sank further into her seat, looking miserable. "My parents live near there," she mumbled. The thought of returning to her home state sent mixed feelings cursing through her.
"Good," Logan said, seemingly not picking up on her distress. He stepped harder on the gas pedal.
Marie sighed and focused her attention out the window, watching in dismay as the scenery whizzed by. She had about twenty hours – sixteen going by Logan's driving standards – to dread over her return to Mississippi. She knew it would be agony.
Twelve hours slowly melted away. Bobby and John had eventually drifted off to sleep, leaving Marie and Logan in semi-privacy. Logan finally cleared his throat, risking a glance towards his younger companion. "How ya doin', kid?"
She shrugged, tearing her eyes away from the mountainous landscape they were currently driving through. Should she tell him about the maddening turmoil raging through her gut? "Ah'm alright. Tired. My legs are cramped. A little hungry."
Logan grimaced. Why hadn't he thought of that? These kids weren't like him. They couldn't go on long stretches without eating and sleeping like he could. "Sorry, kid. The next rest stop we come to you can get out and walk around a bit. I may have a few dollars in my wallet. I'm sure they'll be a vending machine or somethin'."
Rogue smiled, pulling at the satin material of her nightgown. "Ah think my choice in clothes may bring on starin'. Not everyday you see a woman walkin' around in her negligee."
Logan grunted, a silent agreement to her observations.
Another hour disappeared before Logan turned off the highway onto a rest stop. He killed the engine and peered over at the sleeping girl beside him. Her head was resting against the glass, her auburn hair falling over her shoulders: the white streak cascading over her naturally pale, soft cheek. She looked peaceful – like an angel.
Silently, he climbed out of Cyclops's car. Thank god he wore his jeans and t-shirt to bed. No one paid too much notice to him as he fed the candy machine a few dollars, grumbling at the ridiculously high prices. He trotted back to the vehicle, annoyed at seeing Marie behind the wheel. He flung open the driver's door, glaring in at her. "What're you doin', kid?"
"Drivin'. Ah know the rest of the way. This is my territory."
Logan growled, slamming the door shut and marching around the car. He crawled into the passenger seat, dumping the assortment of candy onto her lap. "I didn't know what you liked," he said off-handedly.
Marie grinned, eyeing the junk food appreciatively. "Thanks, Logan. Ah'm starvin'."
"So are we," John spoke up from the backseat. He reached around, his goal to snatch some of the loot.
Marie smacked his hand. "Hey! Tell me what ya want. Don't just go grabbin' around down there."
Bobby chuckled, shoving John aside and stretching his own hand toward Marie's lap. "It's ok, Rogue. I'll get it."
Logan watched as Bobby scooped up a handful of bags, his fingers grazing Marie's thighs. For some reason it bothered him. He was suddenly like a father begrudgingly allowing his daughter to go to her first prom. His attitude being: back off, bub, or you won't be having children.
In the darkest hours of the night, Marie got lost in the stillness. Her parents lived thirty minutes outside of Jackson's borders. It was to close for comfort, especially considering Logan had mentioned maybe that was where they should head. They would never find Jean and Storm in Jackson, but they did need a place to hideout until they could communicate with the two X-women.
Marie had kept quite, her jaw tight and her face grim. She didn't want to go back to that town. Ever. She'd left it all behind with the stern determination to never return.
Yet now she seemingly didn't have a choice.
"What's up, kid," Logan muttered beside her, fidgeting in the ever-condensing space, itching to get out of the car.
"Nothin'," Rogue murmured, shifting due to a mixture of her numbing butt and her anxiety. "Ah just…my parents…Ah's just not ready to see'em is all."
Logan snorted in understanding. "Had a fall out? Kicked out because of your mutation?"
"No, not really." Rogue glanced his way, catching his eye. "Remember when Ah told ya about that first boy Ah kissed? Ah put him in a coma for weeks. It was horrible. Ah ran away the night after graduation."
"Mmm, tough break, kid."
"Ah never thought Ah'd have to see'em again. They were so mad at me. The whole damn town…my friends wouldn't even look at me: the freak who hurt people with a simple touch." She bit her lower lip, staring straight ahead out into the murky outside. Why had she said all that to him? She felt like an idiot.
Logan scrutinized her in reverent silence before tenderly reaching out and caressing the back of his hand against her cheek, careful to pull back before she could absorb him. "I'm sorry about this, Marie."
"Ah know." She smiled thinly, but warmly at him. "Ah'm just glad Ah won't be facin'em alone."
Logan grinned. "Never."
End Chapter One