Songs for this chapter: Flyleaf "All Around Me", Linkin Park, "My December", Metallica "Nothing Else Matters", Muse "Feeling Good", Nickelback "Far Away" For Logan. For Cass, some Korn, some Disturbed, and some random Three Days Grace thrown in there.

I apologize for the language that will be read in this chapter lol, too much Wide Awake I think.

Sorry for the delay in getting this chapter to you guys. Family and friends took up a lot of my time this week.

But this will throw this plot forward, even though it's sort of short, there's a lot of info in here, and'll have you drooling for more.

Thanks to everyone that added this to their story alerts.

Sam Wiise Gamjii: Definitely not, LOL

Teresa: I told you! LOL sorry for the delay girl.

Chapter 13: Past meet present

Logan

Light filtered in through the white curtains of his bedroom, drifting over the pillows the next morning, shining right into his eyes alerting him to the new day. He moved to stretch when he realized there was a soft weight on his left arm. A warm body was pressed against his, a leg tangled between his, an arm wrapped around his waist, cucumber, watermelon and vanilla surged into his senses and he gasped slightly as he opened his eyes and saw Cassandra still in his bed, holding onto him tightly. Her eyes were still closed, her breathing deep and even, still asleep.

A smile played on his lips as he recalled the night before, and despite having to kill the first woman he remembered loving, which sent a sudden intense pain through him at the thought, he still had ended on a good note. The woman still laying in his arms truly cared about him, she didn't leave him when she had every fucking right to. There he was, almost comatose over having to do his duty and save the team when no one else could, when only an hour before he had promised her that no matter what happened, he cared about her and wanted her. It felt wrong to him, but she was there, still wrapped around him, clinging to him.

She sighed contented in her sleep and snuggled against him closer, burying her face into his chest again. Her fingers moved absently on his back, sending goosebumps racing over his skin. It shocked him slightly to feel the sensation, it had been far too long since he had those inflicted on him by a caress. "Logan" She mumbled softly. He tilted his head as he watched her, brushing her hair back off of her cheek, the back of his fingers brushing against her skin. It gave him another contented sigh from her lips. Then his name again. And then something that startled him. "Don't break my heart."

His breath caught, and he sighed as he pressed a kiss to her temple. "I'll try not to, sweetheart." He whispered to her, he wondered just what she was dreaming about to make her tell him not to break her heart. He couldn't promise anything to her, and he knew it, and it killed him that he knew it. He wasn't the type of man to just stick around in one spot for long. He was a nomad, it was who he was, even then he was feeling the urge to take Scott's bike, and just drive for the next week. He sighed, and fell back against the pillows, groaning. His arm tightened around her, giving her a half assed hug.

He hated the restraints of making a commitment to anyone. And though he had told Jean before the incident at the lake that he could be the good guy, he knew that he wouldn't be able to truly pull it off. Too much rested on being able to handle staying put, before, he really hadn't had anything to keep him in one spot, there was too much he needed to find. But this one. She could see it, tell him everything, right from the moment he was born until two seconds before he asked her, could he take advantage of her gift like that? Would it be taking advantage of her if she offered? Everything had become so incredibly confusing, and he wasn't sure if it was a good confusion or if he should be irritated by it.

After holding her in silence for a few long moments, her breathing finally changed and she started to stir against him. She moved once, and only once, then stiffened. He smirked as he could feel her eyes on him, and he lazily looked down at her. "Mornin'." He grinned down at her.

She giggled softly up at him. "Morning."

"You look surprised." He said, his eyes searching hers.

She nodded against his arm. "I thought I was dreaming again."

A grin spread on his lips. "Again?"

A blush sprang forward on her cheeks, and she giggled softly again, trying to hide her face. "Yes..."

A smug smirk moved over his lips then, and he chuckled giving her another squeeze. "Just how many of those dreams have you had?"

"In the last two weeks?" She waited until he nodded before she automatically answered. "At least twenty."

His eyebrows his his hair line. "Really?" A smug smirk appeared on his lips then as he settled back against the pillows. "I have you beat."

She lifted herself up on her elbow beside him, and stared down at him. "What?"

"At least 50," He waited for her to take in that information before dumping it fully on her. "A day."

He got exactly the reaction he wanted. Her eyes widened, her jaw dropped, and he had rendered her speechless. "Don't be so shocked, sweetheart." He chuckled, then sighed as his mind was pulled back to the reality of their situation when he could hear Rogue a floor below them arguing with Bobby on the grieving process.

"We have about five minutes before Scott is going to barge in here." Cassandra said beside him, bolting up, reaching for the discarded T-shirt from the night before, and moved to a chair across the room with a blanket covering her legs. He lounged back in bed, barely caring that Cyclops was going to burst into the room, unannounced, then understood her predicament, and groaned when the pulled on the sweatpants exactly two seconds before the door was thrown open. "Ya know, that's closed for a reason."

"You had to?!" Scott's voice had taken on a gruff, scratchy tone and he sighed as he leaned back against the headboard.

"Yeah, I did. Otherwise we'd all be piles of nothing on Alcatraz island. I'm sure you'd rather the entire team live and one person die, then allow her to live, and let everyone die. My plan was to hit Magneto with one dart, and Jean with another." His eyes moved to Cassandra then. "But it was meant to happen this way."

Scott had followed his line of sight, and finally noticed the woman sitting curled up in the chair. Cassandra was smiling sweetly up at him, That's my girl. Logan thought as he smiled at her, then as he turned his gaze back to Scott, his smile quickly dissipated. He waited for a long minute before the other male acknowledged him again. "What... did you do?"

He opened his mouth to tell him to back off when Cassandra spoke for him. "Nothing that you haven't done before." Her smile was gone, and she was glaring up at him. "Logan did all his grieving last night, If you need to take your anger out on anyone, let it be the entity that consumed her. Not the one person that set her free." She stared at him in silence for five full minutes before Scott looked away from her, and turned out of the room.

"Where did you learn that?" Logan asked her stunned.

"Pure logic." She smiled over at him. "He was upset because of Jean's death. You killed her, who's he gonna be mad at? The one that killed her. What he should be mad at is the reason behind the death, The Phoenix."

He smiled at her, and moved over to her, leaning his hands on the arms of the chair, putting himself close to her. "Cass, honey, is there anything you can't do?"

She half considered it as she grinned up at him. "Fly." She smiled brightly, then pursed her lips as her stomach growled. "And not eat, apparently."

Logan chuckled softly, and pressed a kiss to her lips. "Go get dressed, meet me in the kitchen." He grinned as she threw the blanket off of her legs, and ran into the hallway, heading for her room. He immediately moved to the dresser, and threw on a pair of blue jeans and a white T-shirt, it was simple, but he knew his woman loved it. That was enough.

As he descended the stairs ten minutes later he noticed a woman standing between the staircases flanking the front door, and he frowned. She turned, and the recognition knocked him back against the wall. "Shit." It was Cassandra's mother. Her scent came down the opposite stairway from him, and his eyes widened, she wasn't going to be able to get out of it. He knew she could handle it, so he hung back, hoping he wouldn't need to step in for her.

Cassandra

She noticed the woman standing between the stairways, but not even her gift could have prepared her for the face that now stared at her. She swallowed everything, and stepped off the last stair, crossing her arms, looking her mother up and down in slight confusion, but her eyes relayed no emotion what so ever. "Yes?"

"Cassie? Cass, honey." Her mother's eyes welled up with tears, and reached her arms out for her, preparing to pull her into an embrace.

Cassandra took a hasty step back, anger replacing the confusion. "Don't. Call. Me. Cassie." She spat, her fury coming off of her in almost visible waves.

"I... we always..." Her mother's voice sounded hurt.

Good. She thought, now blatantly glaring at her. "I know. What do you want?"

"Your father and I saw you on television last night. You fought for those soldiers lives."

She rolled her eyes. "No. I fought for mutant lives. My life. Which is something you know nothing about, mother."

"Cass..." She trailed off as the glare in her daughter's eyes intensified warning her to leave it at that. "You have to understand.... we knew nothing about it, we thought you were part of..."

"So you didn't want to try to HELP me? You threw me out on the street, convinced that I was part of a gang that tried to kill DAD?! You couldn't have given me, your FLESH and BLOOD a chance?" She watched as her mother tried to interrupt her. "NO you need to hear this. You threw me out on the streets, didn't care if I lived or died. Let me guess. You're here because of the cure." When her mother's eyes dropped away from her, her fury was so intense the pressure started building in her head, but she didn't care. "You want me to take the cure, so we can all be one big happy family again?"

"It would solve everything!" When her mother looked back at her, she was startled into silence at the sight of her daughter, electricity jumped between her fingers, swirled in her eyes, this was not the daughter she knew.

"It solves NOTHING!" With that, she started stalking toward her. "You know nothing about what I've been through, what you threw me to, you never WILL know! I wasn't good enough for your family when I was thirteen, and you still think I'm not. Well you know what? FUCK YOU! I'm better then you'll ever be! I would never throw my own child out because I was scared of her. I would never betray my blood like that." She had her cornered against the wall then, her anger outweighing all her caution then. "I don't want you. I won't ever want to be with you and Daddy again. You lost me, and every right to call me your daughter when the concrete curb hit my face."

A hand came down onto her shoulder then. "Sweetheart, calm yourself."

As the gruff voice came to her, she looked at the hand resting on her shoulder, she followed it up to Logan's eyes, and stared at him for a long moment before she backed off of her mother. She looked down at her hands, and saw the electricity then took a deep breath, as she felt the calming gesture he had used in the danger room, moving his thumb back and forth on her shoulder.

"I think you need to leave." He spoke again, this time to her mother. "She's not going anywhere with you."

Her mother cast a disgusted look at Logan then, "And who are you to try to tell me what to do?"

"Your elder. Get out, and don't come back. You're out of your element here, lady." Logan's voice was low, dangerous, no one in their right mind would ignore the commanding tone he spoke in.

Cassandra smirked, and leaned back against him, thankful for his presence. Her eyes moved over the woman in front of her, and shook her head. This wasn't the mom she remembered, and she didn't want to know this woman. She thought no one would speak again after how Logan had just spoken... her mother apparently wasn't very sane.

"I don't know who the hell you think you are, but this does not concern you, and I am older then you are!"

Logan's adamantium claws shot out of his hand that rest on Cassandra's shoulder. She jumped slightly, and only looked fleetingly at them before back to her mother. "Leave." She said, turning out of Logan's grasp, and moving down the hallway. She wouldn't waste anymore of her better used time on a woman that abandoned her.

Only moments later, Logan caught up to her, grasping her arm. "Cass." She turned, and looked up at him, fighting back tears. He took one look at her, then pulled her into his arms, holding onto her. "Don't let her get to you, honey. You know you're better off."

She nodded against his chest. "I know. Breakfast?" She asked weakly.

"I'm cooking." He grinned down at her when she pulled back and looked at him, shocked. "I did take care of myself for a long time before you and the X-men."

She shrugged slightly, and turned under his arm still letting him hug her to him as they walked to the kitchen. She was more then disturbed to know that her mother had found her at the mansion, but she knew exactly how she'd found her. There were security cameras taping the whole battle, she was sure it had been broadcast on the morning news, was even more certain that Charles' name was dropped somewhere in the broadcasts, and her mother had found her, simple as that. But it still bugged her that after eight years, she would ask her to take the cure and come back 'home'. As if she had a home in Ohio anymore. She couldn't imagine going back, and not only because of Logan. She had grown attached to everyone in the X-men.

"What's on your mind sweetheart?" Logan asked as he placed a plate of bacon onto the island in front of her. It was shortly followed by two pancakes on a spatula, being slid off onto the plate.

"My mother." She answered honestly, picking up a strip of the bacon, biting into it absentmindedly.

He frowned back at her as her set the syrup out in front of her. "Cass, you can't let her..."

She nodded cutting him off. "I know. Doesn't set aside the disturbed feeling I have that she found me so easily."

He frowned then as he turned from the frying pan. "You're thinking..." He didn't finish his statement, but she could tell he was tense, ready to spring to action as if the very person he was insinuating would drop into the kitchen if his name was said.

"Yup." As she looked away from him she took another bite of the bacon, suddenly not hungry at all, and wrapped her arms around herself, hunching forward.

There was a click at the stove, and suddenly his arms were wrapping around her, pulling her back against his chest. His temple rested against the side of her head, just above her ear as he spoke. "Cassandra, I would never, do you hear me... never let anyone hurt you."

"What if you're not there?" She asked quietly, leaning against him, taking what comfort she could from his arms.

"Then you electrocute the bastard, Cass. I'm not joking. You kill him." His arms tightened around her, putting the punctuation on his statement. He breathed in her scent, long and deep, filling his lungs with her before he pressed a kiss to the side of her head, and slowly pulled away from her, moving back to the stove to finish his breakfast, letting her eat her own.

She knew that Logan was serious, the tone in his voice held the 'don't argue with me' un-avoidable compliance was all she could muster. Knowing that her past could catch up to her so easily was terrifying. She hated that her mother had found her, and hated that she still feared Alec so intensely. She was an X-man, she was stronger then him, she knew it. But the memories of him flooded into her mind, bringing her back to that horrible place she had once resided in for so long.

Meekly Cassandra finished her breakfast, and for an hour and a half after cozied up next to his side on the couch in the den. Students milled about the room, but none spoke to them. She could feel Logan's eyes glaring any comment away with each sideways look. She knew she was slipping too far, reverting too much to who she used to be, and it scared her. She found comfort in Logan's reassuring squeezes, the little caress his thumb would give her arm, and the fact that he didn't ask what was wrong with her. He knew, he accepted it, and let her know without saying a word that he would be there for her.

She was incredibly thankful that he didn't insist on staying with her when she wanted to visit Charles later that evening. He walked her to the door, gave her a hug, and sent her inside. He didn't tell her he'd wait for her, or even tell her to come to his room when she was done, he was letting her make the choice on what she wanted from him. She appreciated everything. Now she had to know just how easily it would be for anyone else to find her, she didn't need Logan on her mind, in her thoughts, clouding her decisions.

Logan

It killed him to see how quickly she had withdrawn inside herself, that she would barely speak, only give one word answers, but she needed the space, he would give it to her. Hell he wasn't even sure if he should be giving her anything. Which was why when he walked her to Charles' office he didn't offer her his bed, or that he would wait for her to finish. The night before had been great, he needed someone, she was there for him, he'd gotten his lust for her out of his body... for the most part. She had asked him in her sleep not to break her heart, he didn't think he had it in him to do that to her, but he also didn't know if he had it in him to commit to her either. The day had been too entirely strange, ups and downs.

After wandering the halls for a while after leaving Charles' office doorway, he arrived at his bedroom, but seeing the rumpled sheets, smelling her in the room, he couldn't take it. Immediately he turned, and headed for the basement.

Scott was coming out of the infirmary as the elevator opened, and he frowned slightly at the confused expression. "What?"

Scott's face lifted up, startled. "None of you business. I need to see the Professor."

Logan shook his head. "He's busy. What's going on?"

"Jean." One word. One name, and everything got fucked up even more then it already was.

"What about her?" He hated how concerned his voice sounded, how her name would bring those thoughts forward in his mind

"Her heart." He looked back in the direction he came from, if he didn't just spit it out Logan thought he'd stab him. "It's.... it started..."

"It started what?" Logan's eyebrows met as curiosity over took him.

"That's it." Scott said, suddenly looking like a scared little boy.

"It.... started? It's beating​?" Logan's gaze moved to the doorway as Scott nodded in his peripheral vision. "When?"

"Three minutes ago now."

He wasn't waiting anymore, he pushed past him, moving to the doorway. Jean's chest rose slightly with every breath her body drew in, he could hear the perfectly rhythmic beating of her heart, and the wounds he'd inflicted in her abdomen... were gone. He sniffed the air slightly, she was still different, but not as bad as she had been before throwing him against the wall. "The Phoenix."

"What?" Scott's voice was right over his shoulder.

"The phoenix rises from the ashes, it regenerates. She's alive." Logan breathed out. Yup, things were definitely even more fucked up then they had been. He thought as the heart beat echoed in his ears.

I have a few things going on this week, but I will try to get the next chapter out as soon as I possibly can.

If you want to know what's being said in Charles' office, let me know I will write it.

Reviews are definitely not better then walking in on Logan in the shower, but they are close to having him cook you breakfast.