The four struggled through the snow, Wolverine stopping every now and again to sniff the air. After he'd taken a sizeable whiff, he'd mutter something about the blizzard coming closer and how they'd have to find shelter. Sadly, though, the blizzard came sooner than he had expected. Though they were on the edge of the point of Antarctica, they were still desperately too far away from the point where the explorer ship would be rescuing them from. They had left the cave behind them twelve hours ago, and the snow just seemed to get thicker. Wolverine recommended that they walked further inland – the ice getting hidden by the falling snow, thus making it easier for one of them to slip into the ice-cold water.
A few hours beforehand, Jubilee had been traipsing alongside the water, staring into its icy, clear depths, watching a few fish, every now and again, whirling through the water. She had been amazed to watch the walruses diving into the water, staying there for a few moments, and returning to the land with fish hanging from their mouths. She'd underestimated the sturdiness of the ground she walked upon. It cracked and sent her flying into the water with a great splash.
Wolverine had dropped Storm as gently as he could and dived in after the teenage girl. Within minutes he had saved her, plopping her onto the snow with a thud.
"Watch where you're goin', kid!" Wolverine scolded as Rogue wrapped a blanket around the shivering Jubilee. "Ya could've died!"
"She's out now, though." Rogue said, attempting to halt Wolverine's reproach.
Wolverine growled.
"Come on, we're walkin' in land. That way no one's slippin' into the damn water." Wolverine snapped, before adding an empty threat: "Next person who does slip in there is stayin' there!"
Jubilee, Rogue and Wolverine who was still carrying Storm, continued to trudge through the thickening snow, more snowflakes raging at them in massive flurries. Rogue and Wolverine squinted through the snow. Wolverine had covered Storm's face with the blanket, shielding her, whilst Jubilee had pulled her sunglasses down from the top of her head and was happily gazing through them, occasionally wiping the lenses of water from the melted snow.
Night had fallen, finally, but they had not managed to find another cave to shelter in. A large lump of snow that had frozen into ice, however, was viewed by Logan as a good enough igloo they could stay in overnight. He gave settled Storm onto the floor, Rogue and Jubilee cuddling up to her, keeping all three of themselves warm thanks to body heat as they watched Wolverine dice and slice at the ice mound.
Soon enough, after buckets of shards of ice had sprayed the women, Wolverine, proudly, stood back and admired his work, his damp claws retracting into his knuckles.
"Ah sure am glad you came to save us," Rogue said sincerely. "If anyone else did, we'd either keep walkin' or sleep out here and prob'bly freeze to death."
Wolverine beamed a wolf-like grin at the compliment Rogue had paid him, watching Jubilee and Rogue dip into the igloo. Storm had risen and limped to the entrance of the cave, stopping by Wolverine's side as the girls, obliviously, set up the blankets into beds.
"Thank you, Logan." Storm said, quietly, her gaze was intense and kind.
She bent and kissed Logan on the cheek before slipping into the igloo, lying down on a blanket in between Jubilee and Rogue.
"Ah don' need a watch to be able to tell ya it's late, Logan, so get ya butt in here." Rogue called.
Wolverine, snapped out of his stupor, pulled his hand from his cheek – where he'd touched his face since Storm had kissed it – and gruffly mumbled something about 'I'm comin' now!' before crouching into the igloo.
Jubilee was at the back of the igloo, keeping an eye on Storm. There was a large gap in the centre, a walking area. Two, thick sleeping bags were on either side of the door, indicating where Rogue and Wolverine were going to sleep. Wolverine, without a word to anyone, slipped into his sleeping bag and turned his back to everyone. Rogue followed suit but lay on her back, staring at the curved ceiling of the igloo.
Soon enough the four had fallen asleep.
*
"What are you doin' out here, this early?" Wolverine questioned, nearing Rogue who was stood surveying the scene before them. "It's only five."
"Ah knew how ya wanted everyone up early, so Ah got up early. Ah was gonna wake you guys in a couple of hours." Rogue replied, glancing at Wolverine when he stood by her side.
"It's gettin' colder. We'd better pick up the pace or the ship'll leave without us." Wolverine noted after a few moments of silence.
"Yeah," Rogue sighed, distantly, continuing to stare at the mass of ocean before them.
Polar bears were waking up and leaping into the water for an early morning swim. Polar bear cubs followed in playful bounds, toying with each other before chasing each other in the ocean. Rogue noticed these things but didn't see them – her mind was too busy elsewhere.
"What happened between you and Gumbo?" Wolverine asked, quietly.
"Why?"
"I'm concerned is all. You're not ya usual self. Lately, before all of this happened ... you've been off with him, since Paris, and everyone can tell. After you got your powers back." Wolverine explained.
"He asked me to marry him." Rogue replied, bluntly, glancing at the astonished look on Wolverine's face. "Well ... not in so many words. When we were in Paris he told me about a dream he had ... where we had a big ol' house with a river in the backyard ... a huge backyard where our cats and dog can run about in ... where our kids can play in ... we'd live in Paris, away from the fights, away from the dangers ... we'd keep in contact with the X-Men but ... but it'd be a normal life. He said that we'd get married first, then we'd buy the house, have the children, have the damn pets ..."
"And then he proposed?" Wolverine asked, slowly, his forehead furrowed.
"He told me that he wants to spend the rest of his life with me ... he said that he's ready to marry me whenever Ah'm ready to settle down and marry him ..." Rogue continued.
"And what did you say?" Wolverine asked.
"Ah said ..." She began, slowly. "Ah said Ah'd think about it – maybe Ah'd marry him after Ah get control of mah powers, but ..."
"But what?" Wolverine urged.
"But that could never happen." Rogue finished, sadly. "Ah'm startin' to think that this chip in mah head is the best chance Ah got of findin' true love. Ah mean, if Ah wanna touch Gambit Ah gotta die after three days, but now ... Now Ah can touch him and Ah won't die, but ... but Ah'm part of the X-Men, if Ah have no powers, then Ah leave the X-Men. After Muir Island Ah just ... Ah got to grips with how important mah powers are, and it's even more obvious how important they are now that we're stranded on this goddamn freezer. If Ah had mah powers Ah could've flown Jubilee back to the Institute. Ah could've saved all of this hassle but ... but Ah can't coz Ah haven't got mah powers. And Ah know that even if Ah did leave the X-Men, powerless, Ah'd still get hunted down. Ah've been with the X-Men a long time ... Ah'm always gonna be threatened with god knows who or what."
"You will be able to control your powers, Rogue! I promise you! Just because you can't do it now doesn't mean that in ten years you still won't be able to. Ya just gotta keep at it – keep fighting!" Wolverine explained, passionately.
"But Ah'm gettin' tried, Logan ... Tired of all this fightin'. Gambit's dream – it's mah dream, too! Ah couldn't imagine spendin' the rest of mah life with anyone but him, but ... but Ah think it's only ever gonna stay a dream, and, if that's so then ... then bein' with Gambit is just gonna make things worse. Make me want the dream even more, make me realise that it's only a fantasy. It's gonna break me down, Logan, and Ah can't have that, either! If Ah'm not a hundred percent then Ah'm just a waste of space with the X-Men!"
Wolverine grabbed Rogue frozen hand and held it in his warm hands. He stared her in the eyes, his voice low.
"You will never be a waste of space!" He promised. "I will help you get to grips with your powers, but for now you gotta keep ya head down and outta the clouds and focus on doin' controllin' ya powers. Worryin' and frettin' all the time isn't gonna get ya closer to controllin' 'em. Someday you will be able to settle down in Paris or Berlin or anywhere ya damn well want with whoever the hell ya want. And I'm always gonna be here to look after you when you decide to do that."
Rogue wrapped her arms around Logan, and he held her closely to him. Tears had poured down her face. Between sniffing she spoke again.
"Ah don't wanna bring a child up in this world, though, Logan. In a world that hates mutants, a world where there're cruel people like PURE tryin' to kill off mutants in the cruellest of ways. With mutant parents mah child is obviously gonna get the gene."
"And that's why we're the X-Men." Wolverine consoled. "We're gonna end this hatred once and for all."
"Do ya think it's possible?" Rogue asked amongst tears.
"I'm gonna make it possible if it's the last thing I do. For you, for Jubilee, for Storm. For everyone – including that idiot Cajun you love."