Chapter 14 – Nothings Black And White

"Hey, Logan is Marie here… You did tell her I was coming to visit with her today right?" Kitty asked the big grumpy looking bear in front of her. How Marie got so lucky as to be married to household hunk Scott Summers one day, and then be living with the embodiment of sexual fantasies Logan the next, she would never understand.

And although she knew her best friend's heart had been broken and surely didn't see it the way Kitty did, she couldn't help herself in feeling just the teeny tiniest bit jealous. After all, not only had she had Logan and Scott, but she had also had her husband at one point in time, not that she would ever hold that against her after all she had done for them.

"Sorry, I didn't remember to tell her, but she's out back on the porch," he told the small mouse-like girl. How on earth Marie could have such a friendship with her ex-boyfriend and his wife was beyond Logan. But that was just the type of person his Marie was, and besides, the two had never failed to be there for her so they couldn't be all that bad. The girl had only visited them three other times in the five weeks they had lived here in the cabin and already he was thankful for her presence, since every time she came she left Marie in good sprits and with a smile on her face.

Kitty walked past the door block that called himself Wolverine and made her way to the back porch the find Rogue sitting in her usual spot overlooking the lake. She had no idea what was up with the connection both Rogue and her wild man shared with nature. They both preferred to be outside rather than in where as Kitty, on the other hand, couldn't stand to sweat in the heat of the summer or freeze in the cold of the winter. She could always be found in the comfort of the inside with the AC roaring cold or the heater full blast. However, with it being the end of September, the weather wasn't too bad, so she guessed it wouldn't hurt for her to sit outside this visit, she decided as she took a seat on the porch swing next to Rogue.

"Hey sweetie… how you been? Has the big bad wolf been keeping you busy with any…? I don't know… maybe… physical activities? Because you know if I was interrupting something I can always come back later," Kitty said with her trademark smile and wink of her eye.

"Good one. Cute, very cute," Marie said not being able to hold back a smile. She loved the girl sitting next to her and no matter what the situation, Kitty always knew just the right thing to say to make her smile. She looked at Kitty who was now 6 months pregnant and her hand unknowingly even to her own hand fell to her abdomen where she and Scott's child grew with each passing day. Since she had gotten back the only other person she had informed of her impending motherhood had been Hank. She had almost had a heart attack the first time she had went to see him a couple of weeks ago and had quite literally run into Scott on her way out. She just finished up with the sonogram Hank had given her informing the both of them that she was in her 14th week of pregnancy, and that both she and the baby in prefect health. Then as she made her way out the sliding doors she had been too busy looking at the small picture of her child to even notice that Scott had been coming straight at her.

"Hello, earth to Rogue, are you listening to me…" Kitty said waving a hand in front of her friend's face, pretty sure that she hadn't heard a word she just said. Sighing at Rogue's automatic apology, she knew she was going to have to start her spiel over again. "Ok, well now that I have your attention I guess I will just cut straight to the question I want to know."

"Which is?" Marie inquired now lost and confused, which wasn't all too uncommon in her conversations with Kitty.

"Are you two sleeping together yet?" Kitty asked without a moment's hesitation.

"Excuse Me?" Marie stated, questioning Kitty sanity now, while she turned sideways in the swing to face her friend and look her in the eyes so that she could make sure she wasn't joking. And to her surprise, she found that Kitty was quite serious.

"You heard me. Are you and Logan an item, yet? Exclusive or whatever?" She couldn't hint around the subject any longer. Fact of the matter was, that Jean had made it very apparent the she and Scott were on more than friendly speaking terms the last few weeks, giving him small touches and kisses to just about everyone present, and she knew that the news would devastate her already coping friend. Rogue had already been through so much, Kitty just wanted for her friend to be happy, and as far as she was concerned, the Wolf Man was the cure. And even if he wasn't the cure to her happiness, it would at the very least give her a very nice distraction from Scott and his whore. Ok, so maybe Jean wasn't a whore but she was kind of acting like one lately and she wasn't the only one who thought so.

"Hey don't look at me like I just asked you to sleep with me, you know I'm married. Plus, being 6 months pregnant and felling like a hot air balloon, sex isn't exactly the top thing on your mind. And don't go getting pissy with me either Ms. Thing; at least hear me out before you decide to tell Mr. Grumpy in there off with her head. I know that it hasn't been all that long since you and Scott split, but I also know how much you care for that big ass inside. I just… I just want you to be happy, the way Bobby and I are, and I have seen the way he looks at you since you've been back. Not to mention the fact that he never leaves your side unless it's something important. You know… I think, I think you have another chance at real love here, Hon, and I hate to see you throw it away because dickhead broke your heart. Then again, if it's none of my business just tell me so and I won't say a thing."

"It's a bit late for that Kitty, don't you think." Marie replied with a smile, as she stood up and walked over to the railing, leaning over to rest on her fore arms as she looked out at the nature around her all the while having Kitty's words replaying over in her head. Sighing she turned to look at Kitty still sitting were she had left her. "I understand that you are worried about me, and even if your solutions to my… problems are a little off the wall, I appreciate you wanting to help… and if I knew that… I don't know Kitty… I do care a lot for Logan, I really do, it's just that when I was with Scott…" Marie began but was cut off short.

"Scott… god, you know what … I didn't want to say anything, but I, as your friend, even if it is going to hurt you, I feel you are in need of a severe wake up call. Scott is with Jean, and by the way when I say with Jean I do mean with Jean. Baby, there is no more you and Scott, there hasn't been in more than two months now. And I know you are hurt it's just that… you deserve better… and maybe Logan is it," Kitty explained, now standing beside Rogue with a pleading look on her face, hoping she was getting through.

"It's not that simple Kitty," Marie said with a deep sadness in her voice hearing yet again what she already knew.

"You miss him, I get that, maybe you always will, and maybe nothing will ever make that go away. But he's moved on babe, and it wouldn't kill you to let your self be happy, to let yourself move on to someone else who I know loves you more than either he or you will ever admit," Kitty pleaded with Rogue to let go of the pain she seemed to be holding on to.

"Kit… I'm… I'm pregnant," Rogue confessed as and she broke into tears.

"What... You mean…. with… Oh my god, Rogue. I had no idea. I mean I noticed you were putting on a little weight but that's not something you just come out and say to your friend, you know. Hey, how you doing? By the way, you're getting fat," Kitty replied as she circled her arms around her best friend. "How could that bastard do this knowing you're carrying his child? That son of a …."

"He doesn't know. I never told him… and you can't either," Marie pleaded with her friend through her tears. With a shaky breath and a unsteady hand wiping away at her tears for what must have been the millionth time in the past four months, Marie turned and looked Kitty dead in her eyes. "He can't know Kitty. He made his choice, and it was Jean; which leaves no room in his life for me or an unwanted child."

"So what happens when you really start showing huh, and trust me honey it just happens now it's not so bad, hardly noticeable but the next thing you know instant blimp. You can't just go around telling everyone for the next few months that you've put on a few pounds?" Kitty asked sarcastically, filled with anger at Scott for choosing Jean, at Marie for hiding the information from him when he had every right to know, and at fate for putting her friend through the whole damn situation.

"I don't know… I was thinking about maybe asking Logan if..." Marie said turning away from her friend as her vision became blurred with a fresh stream of teams.

"Wait a minute… Logan knows… you told Logan before you told me?" Kitty asked truly and utterly surprised by the news.

"I didn't tell Kit, he heard the baby's heartbeat…when we met up in New York... I had only found out a few days before that, and I had planned on telling Scott the night we got the call from the Professor… I had it all planned, we went out and we got home I went up stairs and wrote Hi Daddy down on a little piece of paper… and when I came down… After that call, everything changed so fast. Scott and I fell apart in a matter of a few hours; everything we had, everything we were… it was just gone."

Marie spilled out her emotion that she had been holding for more than three months to her friend as she relived the shocking news of Jeans return, the hateful words she and Scott had exchanged, the moment she had slipped her ring off her finger and packed it away with Scott's things instead of her own.

"So Logan knows and he's still here by your side knowing that you're going to have Scott's child. Wow… now I know the man is in love with you," Kitty joked, doing her best to try and lighten the mood, smiling a bit when she heard Rogue laugh a little through the sobs. Things were getting emotional entirely too fast and that wasn't good for Rogue and her baby or Kitty's and her own.

"Yeah, yeah he does love me and this baby. Logan has been… a godsend to me through all of this; which is why I was thinking of asking him if he would mind… mind if maybe I told everyone that he's the father," Marie said softly not knowing what kind of reaction she was going to receive from her friend.

"You sure that's what you want?" Logan spoke as he set the glasses of Lemonade on a side table next to one of the chairs by the door. He hadn't meant to overhear their conversation, but he had come to learn a little bit about pregnant women since living with one for the past couple of months. And the three things he knew for sure were, they went to the bathroom at least 5 times a day, it was never just "morning" sickness, and they always could use something to drink.

"Logan…" she started in surprise. She had planned to talk about this with him a number of times but had always chickened out in the end. In truth, her hesitation in coming to Logan with her idea of telling everyone he was the father, was the same reasons she hadn't told Scott the about the baby. She was just flat out scared of his reaction; what if he wouldn't do it, what if he didn't want the responsibility, what if he could never see Scott's child as his own?

"Wow… Oh boy do I have to go pee. Yeah, be right back," Kitty blurted out before she made a fast exit into the house feeling a suddenly uncomfortable and out of place.

"Logan… I…" Marie fumbled with her words. There was no way out of this one, but at least he knew now and she no longer had to play out the "what if" scenarios in her head.

"Don't say anything, just let me… Look if this is what you want then you should know by now I would give anything to be that kid's father," Logan confessed easily as he made his way to stand in front of her. This was it, everything he wanted being offered to him on a silver platter, all he had to do was take it. Still, he wouldn't do it at the expense of Marie's happiness. "There's just one problem Marie… I know you and I'm not so sure you could live with a lie like that, I think with time it would tear you up inside. And your happiness is not something I am willing to sacrifice just to get Scooter out of the picture. I just want you to think about it… ok." He finished as he wrapped his arms around her.

"What would I do without you?" Marie asked with her face buried in his chest. Everything always felt better when she was in Logan's arms, so why couldn't she just love him the way she had before. It would defiantly make a lot of things easier in her life.

"You don't ever have to worry about that darlin', because it isn't ever going to happen," Logan replied as his fingers ran through her hair down her back as he breathed in the sweet scent of her.

"Ahhh… that's so sweet." Kitty said with tear in her eyes as her hormones kicked in.