Marie was heartbroken when Logan called the professor and refused to even ask to speak with her. As soon as she grabbed the phone away from Chuck, he hung up on her.
She cried for hours after that.
Kitty and Jubilee did their best to comfort her, but Marie was inconsolable, angry and depressed. She discontinued all training with Scott and refused further psychotherapy from the professor. She hid out in her room for two weeks, but was firmly warned by the professor that if she did not earn her keep by training to be a team member, she could not be allowed to stay and since she was convinced Logan would come back and they might be able to somehow work it out, she agreed to continue training...under Hank.
She enjoyed training with him for obvious reasons. Not only was he nice and easy going, his mutation gave him the ability to engage in impressive acrobatic tricks and she loved trying to keep up with him using the agility she'd inherited from Logan.
Over four weeks had passed since Logan left, and the only comfort she had was the fact that the professor told her that he had asked about her during their last phone call. That simple fact gave her hope, so she pushed on with her day-to-day duties.
During one particularly rainy afternoon, she made her way down to the gym for a session with Hank, sick looking and already sweating. He furrowed his blue brows, "My dear...you look ill."
"Gee. Thanks. Should we get started?" she asked as she pulled off her hoodie.
Hank placed a hand on her forehead, but before he could feel how warm she was, she moved away, "I said I'm fine. Let's get on with me... 'earning my keep'..."
"If you insist..." Hank turned away to pick up some boxing gloves, but spun back around when he heard a loud *thud* behind him. Marie had passed out.
Twenty minutes later, he had placed a cool cloth on her forehead as she lay in the med lab, "I feel like such an idiot."
"When was he last time you ate something?"
She thought for a moment, "I've kind of had this stomach bug I've been struggling with for the past couple of weeks...so food and I haven't been getting along."
"A couple of weeks? Why didn't you come see me?"
Marie shrugged, "It didn't seem like anything major."
Hank turned around and began searching the drawers to the lab, "Well two weeks is quite a while for a simple stomach bug to linger. Have you had any other symptoms?"
She looked down, "I think I'm just sad that Logan left. I never want to get out of bed, I keep having these headaches and weird, crampy feelings like I'm gonna get my period, but as usual, my body's not acting right. It's late this month...again."
The blue doctor cocked his head to the side, "Late?"
"Yeah. Remember? I have endometriosis. My period is irregular. I had some spotting a couple of weeks ago, but it stopped-"
Hank narrowed his eyes, "Marie...how long has it been since you absorbed Logan?"
"Maybe eight weeks...why?"
He rushed over to his laptop and opened it, "...and how long after that you get your first period?"
"Maybe a few days."
Hank began typing something into his laptop, "How was that period?"
Marie scrunched up her face, "Excuse me?"
"How was it? I know your period are usually very painful and heavy..."
She let out a breath, "Well, that one wasn't bad-"
Hank rubbed his hands together, "Alright...do you recall when the first time you were intimate after the incident?"
Marie tried not to blush as she answered, "Three weeks..."
"And you've not had a period since then?"
He continued typing into his computer and shook his head, "Rogue, I must say, the headaches, nausea, spotting, cramping, fatigue, faintness...they're all telltale pregnancy symptoms."
Marie laughed and hopped down off of the bed, "Right! Real funny, doc! I'm sure you're gonna find the cure for AIDs too."
She started to walk out of the door, but he called after her, "It's possible, Rogue. When you touched Logan, you gained his agility, his strength, parts of his personality and...his healing factor."
Marie stopped and looked down without turning around, "Yeah...so?"
"So...it's very possible that his healing factor healed your endometriosis and cleared up your scar tissue. When you two were intimate for the first time after the absorption...you would have been directly in the middle of your cycle...meaning you would be ovulating."
She turned around and shook her head, "No. It can't be. I'm not supposed to be able to get pregnant."
Hank took a slow step toward her and lowered his voice, "Marie. I understand that this is quite a bit of information to absorb, but it is a strong possibility. Please...submit to a test."
After some convincing, Hank got her to agree to a pregnancy test, which came back positive. Marie felt numb. She didn't know what to do or say, but she did have the sense to swear Hank to secrecy before she made her way back to her room, where she hid out and avoided even Kitty and Jubilee.
She was forced out of the confines of her room when the professor sent her a telepathic message, "requesting" a meeting. When she arrived in his office, he smiled warmly, "Please. Have a seat."
Marie did as instructed, "Sorry I haven't been doing the training. I've been a little under the weather."
He waved his hand, "I'm not concerned with that at the moment. I need to talk to you about Logan."
She perked up a little, "What about him?"
The professor sighed, "I feel as though Logan's hesitation to return results from your presence. He feels deeply hurt and betrayed by you-"
"But nothing happened! I would never hurt him."
"I am sure you understand how valuable he is to our team and every day he's not here is a day that our team is ill prepared for duty."
Marie narrowed her eyes, "What are you saying?"
The professor let out a breath, "I think it may be best for you to leave."
"But, but...I love him. We..." her voice trailed off as she began tearing up, then lowered her head.
"He is never going to come back if you are still here..."
Marie spoke quietly as she looked up with tears wetting her cheeks, "I don't have anywhere else to go..."
"I can offer you financial assistance until you're on your feet, but I can't allow you to stay here knowing your presence is crippling my team."
Realizing that the odds were against her, Marie decided to take the professor's "assistance" and vacate the mansion by the following week.
Before she left, she visited Hank in the med lab. He smiled, "I thought you'd left already."
"My cab will be here in an hour...the professor is setting me up in a place in Philadelphia...do you know any Obstetricians there?"
"So you've decided to keep the baby?"
Marie nodded as her hand absently rested on her stomach, "I'd be crazy not to. I never thought I'd be able to have my own baby...and now, because of Logan, I get to experience something I refused to even dream of..."
Hank gave her a sad smile, "If he comes back-"
Before he could finish his sentence, she nodded, "Yeah...please. Tell him I need to speak to him."
She started to walk away, then turned back around and favored Hank with a bear hug, "Thanks for bein' nice to me when it wasn't popular."
He patted her on the back as he released her, "You take care of yourself...and your little one. I do hope to see you again."
When her cab came, Jubilee and Kitty tearfully bid her goodbye.
Jubilee hugged her tight, "Promise you'll come back."
Marie hugged her friend back, "You know I can't."
"Then at least call everyday" whined Kitty.
Marie smiled, "Fine."
Jubilee sighed as she watched Marie get into the cab, "Don't worry chica, I'm gonna make Wolvie come to his senses if he comes back..."
She sighed, "Thanks for everything doll..."
Jean watched the cab pull out of the gates of the mansion from the professor's office window. She turned back to the professor, "You're making the right decision. She was a distraction for Logan and for this team. She's caused nothing but trouble since her arrival. A baby would only make everyone's lives worse."
Both telepaths had found out about Rogue's pregnancy through a careless, panicked projection she sent out mere moments after finding out. It was a single, simple distress call that she practically yelled, "I'm pregnant?"
She must have realized how loud her thoughts were, because neither telepath heard anything after that.
The professor let out a low breath, "Do you think there's a chance the child is Scott's?"
Jean turned her back to the professor and stared out the window. She'd need to put up some pretty unique blocks to get away with the lie she was about to tell...
"Yes."
"You're willing to allow the man you loved for most of your adult life miss out on his child's life?"
Jean nodded, "If it's what's best for him, then yes...just like we know that this is best for Logan."
The professor lowered and shook his head. When Jean saw his saddened demeanor she walked over to him and knelt in front of his wheelchair, "I know you feel bad now, but this is what's best for the team. Rogue may be a lot of things, but she is smart...and if she loves that baby at all, she'll just give it away to people who can love and take care of it the way she can't."
Less than two days after Marie left, Logan returned to the mansion, completely unaware that she had vacated the premises.
The truth was, he never told the professor that Marie being there was keeping him from returning. He just wanted some time away so that he wouldn't have to face Marie while he was so angry.
When he finally came to his senses after that fateful day, he realized that, even though he was angry with Marie, he shouldn't have resorted to getting physical with her.
He still believed that she had been unfaithful. After all, the professor hadn't offered any explanation, and from what he had been told, Scott and Jean broke up soon after "the incident". So he decided to return for the team...and for closure.
Logan was surprised, however, when he began longing for Marie the closer he got to Westchester.
When he returned to the mansion, it was three in the morning. He silently crept into his room, expecting to see her sleeping there, but instead, he found it barren, without even so much as sheets on the bed.
As he rummaged through the closet and dresser drawers for any sign of her existence, he sent out a loud telepathic distress signal that awoke the professor and Jean.
Ten minutes later, he was pacing in the professor's bedroom as Jean joined them, looking as if she'd just woken up, "Where is she?"
Jean ran a hand through her hair, "She left, Logan. She knew there was nothing left for her here."
He stopped to growl at her, "So she just left? She didn't bother to wait for me?"
The redhead crossed her arms, "I don't know why that's such a surprise. She was using you, Logan."
Charles clasped his hands together and spoke diplomatically, "What we must remember is that Rogue is a former trained member of Magneto's forces. The RNC incident, her nearly killing you-"
"And don't forget her little episode with my fiance!" Jean said, interrupting the professor.
Charles nodded in agreement, "Yes, and her incident with Scott...they're simply too coincidental."
Logan narrowed his eyes, "I thought you said you read her mind..."
"I did. Several times...but Magneto is very familiar with my powers. If anyone could find a way around them, it would be him. Marie could have absorbed a telepath previously and learned how to manipulate blocks in her mind to keep me from seeing certain thoughts...we'll never know. But what I do know is that she was a distraction for you and this team. She caused discord."
Logan took a moment to absorb the information he was being told, "Where is she?"
Jean rolled her eyes, "Logan, there really is no need-"
He growled at Jean and unsheathed the claws from his right hand, making her jump, "Where. Is. She?"
The professor sighed from his place on his bed, "Rogue went to Philadelphia. She's staying in a townhouse I own there."
"Address", Logan demanded.
Jean let out a breath, "Logan this is no use-"
He ignored her as he kept his determined stare fixed on the professor, "Give me the address."
"355 Hayden Lane."
He began stalking out of the room, but Jean caught up with him halfway down the hall, "So that's it? You're going to go kiss and make up after all she's pulled around here?"
"Jean, I don't have time for this-"
"Are you just going to forget about what happened between her and Scott? I know something happened between them and you're willing to turn a blind eye to all the pain and destruction she caused around here?"
Logan turned around, "How much happened?"
Jean sighed, "Enough..."
He furrowed his eyebrows and took a step closer, "What the hell's that supposed to mean?"
She crossed her arms and murmured "you'll see" before turning and walking away.
Logan, who had heard what she said, just stood there, confused.
Marie was jolted awake by pounding on her door. One glance at her clock told her is was barely 7am...who the hell could be at her door?
She grabbed her pocket knife and slowly made her way down to the door, "Who is it?"
"Me."
Marie immediately recognized the voice and gasped as she snatched open the door, "Logan..."
He stared down at her for a long time before stepping into the townhouse. She closed the door behind him and eagerly followed him as he looked around the living room, "You here alone?"
"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be?"
Logan looked her up and down, "You never know."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
He rolled his eyes, "Don't play dumb."
She stomped her foot and yelled, "For the last time, noooothing happened!"
"Why should I believe that? Everything that has happened...it's just too coincidental."
Marie rushed over and took his face in her hands, forcing him to look into her eyes, "Logan...look at me. Nothing about us has ever been a lie. I love you...you've given me so much..."
"What do you mean?"
A couple of tears started welling in her eyes as she smiled and spoke with a broken voice, "I'm pregnant...we're gonna have a baby."
Somehow, the normal panic that a man feels when faced with impending fatherhood took a wrong turn and melded with his paranoia. Suddenly, Jean's little quip about Marie and Scott doing "enough" made sense.
He moved away from her touch and glared, "What the hell was all that talk about you not being able to have kids?"
She blinked at his harsh reaction and stuttered, "W-When I absorbed-"
"Oh right...the infamous 'accident'..." he said as he made quotation marks with his fingers.
Marie shook her head as tears flowed down her cheeks, "How could you say that? I would never-"
"So you're pregnant...is it mine?"
"What?"
"You heard me, Marie. Is there a chance the baby's Scott's?"
She pushed him in the chest and yelled, "It's yours, you idiot! You're the only one I've been with in the past year!"
"And I'm supposed to believe that after I saw you two inches away from fucking Scott? Who knows what else I didn't catch you doing?"
Marie wiped at her face and stared at him, "What happened to you? What happened to us?"
"Ask yourself that...you're not pinning this kid on me without some solid proof. Get Cyclops up here to fetch your fucking pickles and ice cream because I am done being made a fool of Marie."
Logan stomped out and slammed the door behind him as she crumpled to the floor in a fit of sobs. Meanwhile, on the other side of the door, he'd collapsed to his knees on the sidewalk and punched the concrete in a fit of rage.
Alright, so, I know Logan's overreacting, but he's freaking out because he put all of his trust in Marie for the umpteenth time, and again, he's getting burned. From the very first time when he ended up nearly getting killed because of the whole Brotherhood recruitment thing to the Scott-debacle.
Obviously, as the reader, we see that Marie just has really bad luck and made a couple of bad choices, but to Logan, he just sees that he's given her chance after chance, but things just keep happening. After a while (and after a bunch of manipulations by Jean/lack of interference on the professor's part), he just stops believing that Marie's as innocent as she says. He feels like he's given her enough chances and put himself on the line enough for her.
The professor isn't really meaning to be mean, he just thinks he's doing what's best for the team, and again, Jean is manipulating him. I feel like (with the Phoenix) she's smart enough/powerful enough to manipulate even the professor.
Jean's just being a bitch. Her jealousy, genuine distrust and overall "Alpha Female" attitude has led her to hate Marie. I'm sorry if you like Jean as a character and are offended by this portrayal, but I have several stories where she's nice. I just decided to play devil's advocate!
Anywho...that's my justification for the characters I portray here. A lot of the time, Logan is the one f*cking up, but I thought it would be good for Marie to be the "bad" one for a change.
Review please!
