A Reoccurring Flame

Logan stopped his bike just as he reached the meadow. Just on the other side was the one place he could truly speak his mind. He walked through the meadow, pushing leaves and plants aside and smiling as he finally reached the grave.

"Hello Jean," He said, hunching down and setting a single rose in front of it. He smiled and sat cross-legged in front of the tombstone. The truth is he was the only one who knew where she was really buried. Afraid some kind of harm would come to her, he led the X-Men to believe she was buried on campus. They didn't realize she was more than 100 miles from it. He ran his hand along the rough tombstone and slowly stood up.

"I'll be back on Monday," He said, acting as if she was standing before him.

"Whatever for?" a voice came from behind him. Jean stood, her cherry red hair blowing in the wind. She was wearing the red material she had been in the last time he had seen her, except it was worn. Logan couldn't even speak. He just stood there in silence while she smiled at him.

"Bu...bu…but…how?" He said, stepping back. Suddenly terrifying thoughts of evil people some how animating her body for their own milieus intent rose in his mind, filling him with rage.

"Don't worry, I'm fine," She said rolling her eyes.

"Last time you were fine you ended up throwing me across the room and killing the professor," He took another step back.

"Logan, don't be afraid, I'm still Jean," She said, frowning at his disbelief.

"Jean or the Phoenix?" He said tripping backwards and landing on the grass. She walked over to him and hunched beside him.

"Jean, just Jean," She said. She pulled him to her and into a long romantic kiss. He pulled away and jumped back, half because he knew it was possible for him to forget everything else, just to touch her once more.

"Logan, what's wrong?" She said, grabbing his hand. He started to breathe harder and harder. Jean pulled him closer again and wrapped her arms around him. Logan did the same, and they sat there, hugging. Logan began to cry, was it really Jean?

"But it's been two years, why come back now?" He asked, pulling away once more.

"Well my mind took time to awaken, but eventually the telekinesis woke me. I've been waiting for you to arrive," She said, holding on to his hand, not letting him go.

"And the Phoenix?" He asked, razing his brows.

"Controlled," She smiled, "Somehow, when you killed me, you didn't really kill me, you killed the phoenix, or the force. So it is me that has reawakened, not it. The small amount that is left of it is controlled," She said, pulling him in for another kiss. This time, he did not pull away. Jean leaned against him and he wrapped him arms around her.

"So what now?" She asked looking up at Logan as she pulled away slowly from the kiss.

"I'll take you back to the institute," He said standing up and helping her up as well. Logan and Jean returned to his bike, and then to the institute, to home.

Storm sat in her office, fettling with a pencil. The institute had been quiet for hours; obviously the new teachers were able to control their students, or could it be possible they had received a slew of perfectly well behaved children? She hadn't even seen an Elite X-Man all day. She jumped as the silence was shattered and someone opened the door. Logan walked in, towing someone behind him.

"Jean?" Storm almost fell out of her seat. Jean pushed past Logan and ran to Storm. The two took part in a long embrace, Storm began to cry and Jean just kept smiling, until tears finally took her over as well.

"What happened?" Storm sat down, almost missing the seat.

"Well Storm, I... uh," Logan looked at Jean not sure how to continue.

"Something went off inside my brain, awakening me, and bringing me to Logan. When I woke, the part of me called the Phoenix wasn't there, or not as much, enough, to control me."

"Oh my god…this is amazing! Logan call the X-Men," Storm said, "Darn, I'm the one who has them on speed dial, hold on."

"Someone's happy," Jean shrugged at him. Storm almost tripped getting to the phone.

"That makes two of us," He smiled.

"Ok, they're on their way!" Storm sat back down, her eyes still watering with tears. The room was soon filled with cries of joys and excitement, other then Storm (although she didn't stop either). Jean told her story, Logan chiming in every now and then.

"Well I just think it's nice to meet you," Angel said, causing a room of laughter.

"Yeah, I wasn't at this whole battle thing at all," Rogue, said smiling.

"Don't tell me you gave into it," Jean's face was serious and the room turned quiet.

"Well she's back now," Storm said, breaking the silence. Rogue got up and walked out the door, her footsteps dying. After a minute of arguing, they sent Bobby out to find out the problem.

"Rogue?" Bobby yelled, his voice echoing off the walls. Rogue was slumped against the wall a few feet down the hallway.

"I'm sure she didn't mean anything by it," He said, sitting beside her.

"Only that I made a really crappy decision," Rogue said bitterly.

"Well, you did," He mumbled.

"Thanks, that makes me feel a hell of a lot better," She stood up to leave.

"Well there was no point of you getting it, wasn't like I told you to," His voice was ringing down the halls.

"Yeah you were too afraid to, so you just touched Kitty instead!" She screeched. Bobby just stood there in silence. Rogue rolled her eyes and turned around, to see Kitty standing there. She was starting to cry and then she turned and ran up the stairs.

"No wonder no one wants to touch you," Bobby shoved past Rogue and up the stairs. Rogue exhaled a breath and then followed Bobby. She hid on the stairwell closest to Kitty's room.

"C'mon Kit, open up!" Bobby was banging on the door and sighing like crazy. She heard him take a deep breath and then walk away. After making sure he was gone, she crept to the door.

"Kitty?" She said, knocking on the door. No one answered, but she could see a shadow coming from right under the door. She pulled off her glove and crouched down. She poked one finger under the door, until she felt skin. She could hear someone coughing and within a minute she was inside the room. Kitty jumped back, still holding her neck as the pain subsided.

"Ok, you wouldn't open your door, so I had to do it this way," She said. Kitty just sat on her bed and looked at the floor.

"You can breathe right, the pains gone?" Rogue asked slowly. Kitty just nodded.

"Okay…. You know why I left? It wasn't because I thought I wasn't an X-Men anymore. I knew Storm would insist that I stay here, because I was 'Part of the Family' and stuff. I left because even after I got the cure, Bobby still wasn't happy. He would kiss me, but feel like he was kissing you. Look at me, and to him, I was you, or…. something. I could see it in his eyes. So I left because a thousand touches from me didn't mean as much to him as one from you," Rogue sighed at Kitty's continuous silence.

"He never told this to me," Kitty was still quiet. They sat in silence for a moment.

"I'm sorry I took him from you, but I don't want you to hate me," Kitty said, finally making eye contact with Rogue.

"I don't hate you," Rogue said softly.

Kitty looked up at her, "Yeah you do."

"Kit, may I call you Kit?" Rogue smiled, "There's no reason to hate someone for falling in love, Bobby and you love each other…I guess I just haven't fallen out of love yet."

"Well my mom used to say, there's plenty of mutants in the sea!" Kitty laughed.

"Well, your pond is about to be full of dead fish," Rogue began to laugh as well, "…but the truth is…I'm still not over Bobby, even after two years."

"I don't really know what to say…" Kitty looked at her in a sympathetic expression.

"That's ok," Rogue said slowly.

"Rogue, this is a really stupid question, but…do you wanna be…like…friends?" Kitty smiled.

"Yeah, sure," Rogue smiled back.

"Ok," Kitty laughed at the awkwardness of the moment.

"So your part of the Elite X-Men, right?"" Rogue asked.

"Yeah, Jubilee and Me, but we still have to go to classes, since we're first years," Kitty shrugged and giggled.

"More women," Rogue nodded in approval. Bobby walked into the room.

"Rogue, what did you say to her? Kitty did she say anything to you," Bobby ran to Kitty and pulled her away from Rogue.

"Bobby, chill!" Kitty tried to get out before he pulled her out of the room and away from Rogue. Rogue didn't even have time to give an explanation, an excuse.

"What happened?" Bobby asked, once Kitty and he were down the hall.

"Nothing Bobby! She used her gift to get in and then-" Kitty tried to explain.

"Just don't go near her again, go back to class!" He screamed.

"Bobby god, stop! Classes are already over for today, just breathe for a sec!" Kitty said in a frustrated tone.

"If she touches you-" Bobby turned away from her, mumbling more, but Kitty couldn't hear. Kitty shook her head and walked away, bumping Bobby's shoulder and slamming her door, after stomping back to it.

"Damn it!" Bobby banged his fist on the wall and walked away. Rogue just sat quietly in Kitty's room, listening to the screaming of the two in the hall. She quietly slipped out and walked back to Storm's office, running smack into Jean, who was leaving.

"I was just about to look for you and Bobby," Jean said, standing two feet from Rogue.

"We got in a bit of a…. fight," Rogue smirked.

"You still dating?" Jean asked.

"Uh...no...We broke up…" Rogue trailed off. Logan appeared from inside and smiled to see Rogue.

"We were gonna go and buy some stuff, for Jean. We talked about her moving into my room…so," He didn't say it but Rogue knew she was out.

"That's okay…. I'll find some other room," Rogue said, a fake smile on her face. Jean grabbed Logan's hand and they disappeared around the corner.

"That's just great," Rogue muttered to herself, "Guess I'm just in the way these days."

"I hardly think you're just in the way," she jumped not having seen Warren sitting calmly in an open window.

"Where did you go earlier?" she asked trying to look too adorable to not forgive, "I wanted to apologize."

"That's okay, most people react that way," He said, his voice low and sad.

"Well when you look back on those people, please delete me from your memory," Rogue smiled.

"Wanna lift?" He said looking up at the sky.

"I'm afraid of heights," Rogue opened her eyes wide, at the thought of being 100 feet in the air.

"Well maybe some other time," He said smiling.

"Maybe," She said, leaning against the wall next to the window.

"What are you thinking?" He asked.

"Really wanna know?" She challenged.

"Completely."

"I wish you'd put a shirt on, so I could look at something else," She said and ran off before he could see that she was blushing bright red. Even as she did so Angel hoped she hadn't seen that he was blushing just as hard as she was.