Hey guys! Here is the latest chapter, can't wait to hear what you think! I also hope you guys will forgive me, but I took a little extra time to write a different Romy story. I was listening to Christmas music and the inspiration just descended on me, refusing to be ignored. Hopefully this timely update is apology enough for getting distracted. Anyway, the other story is a Christmas one-shot, and it's complete and posted if you'd like to take a look. Hope you're all having a wonderful holiday season!

Blimey the Toad: Wow! What a review! Thank you! I'm really glad you enjoyed the Rogue chapter. I absolutely adore this character, partially because she is helplessly crazy. Lol. We're all crazy people at heart I think, trying to figure out a way to act normal. I also really like her powers. Though I don't know if I'd like to have them, I think they make a great symbol. Who hasn't felt totally isolated at times, incapable of connecting others in the ways we desperately need to? I just love this girl, and I'm really lucky to have such intelligent, classy, like-minded readers. Lol. As far as Marrow, she's one character that I really feel like I have a poor grasp on, though she interests me greatly. I trust you to keep me in check and make sure that my rendition of her is faithful. I'll do my best. To me, characters are the most important part of any story. By the way, I was completely thrilled to have find out I have a fellow southern girl in my corner. Thank you for reading and your lengthy review, I hope this newest installment lives up to your expectations!

Red Skippy: Thank you for your sweet review! As usual the part of the story I was the most nervous about is the one you chose as your favorite. Lol! As always, your kind reassurance has made me breathe a little easier. I hope you enjoy the chapter. Thanks a ton for reading and for your review. I always love to hear your take on things.

Bologna121 – I love Rogue too! This is why I love fan fic people, we just get each other. Lol! Ororo is getting on my dang nerves too, how lame is that? I mean, she really isn't trying to be malicious, she has good reasons for behaving the way she does, but she's really trying my patience. Still, I have the feeling she will utterly redeem herself like she always does before the end. Thank you so much for reading, the review, and your encouragement. It seems that the farther I come in this story the less sure of myself I become. Lol.

Gidgeygirl – I hadn't really planned that end part with Rogue, but I just couldn't find any more excuses for her to give people with everything she's dealing with. It was only a matter of time. I'm glad it came across so well, and that you enjoyed it. I do have some plans for Marrow as a temporary part of the team, but I'm trying to leave her some wiggle room for the time being. I guess we'll all just have to nervously watch and wait to see what she'll do. Lol. Thanks for reading and your review!

Starlight2twilight – I hope your exams went well! I just got done with my bachelor's degree a few weeks back, so I definitely feel your pain. Knowing the awesome type of people we X-men fans are, I'm sure you knocked them out of the park. I'm glad I could have two chapters ready for you as a reward for all your hard work. Here's the requested "moar!", hope you enjoy! Thanks for reading and your review!

MDD – In answer to your question: I am updating next….RIGHT NOW! Lol!Just so you know, I don't really have my updates on any type of schedule. I'm just chucking them out as quickly as I possibly can. Wow, thanks so much for your head-swelling review. This is really my first attempt at a story of this magnitude, fan fiction or otherwise. I'm really glad so many people are enjoying it, because I'm having a blast writing it. I will probably never get over Remy Lebeau, seeing as I've loved him for 15 years now, so I'm sure there's lots more ff to come. I really think I've learned a lot from writing this story, and I hope my approaches will just keep getting better. In the meantime, I just posted a Christmas story that is just chock full of Remy. Thank you so very much for reading, and your review. I can't stress enough how much it means to me to have feedback, good or bad.

Crack4sure – hey, I've been checking out some of your favorite stories lately, and I gotta say your taste in ff has me intimidated. There's some stiff competition, and fantastic stories. Thanks for making me a directory of the best of the best. As far as the photo thing, I was a little unsure of how to approach that with everything going on, but I get a little burned out on constant melodrama. I tried to kind of lighten things with the photo thing, plus I needed the pictures for reasons you'll see below, but I'm sorry it came across a little too shaky. Any ideas on how I could maybe improve it? I'd love to hear your opinion. Thanks as always for reading and your review!

Part 29: Odd Couple

I kept my eyes trained carefully on the road in front o' me, counting de lines as dey sped by. I was determined to give not'ing away; a skill I had practiced almos' since birth. Today it was difficult to summon up my more carefree persona, so I had turned the radio on "blare" as soon as de mansion faded out o' sight to cover me.

I was irritated dat Logan was wit' me. S' not dat I have anyt'ing particular against Logan, but he was one person dat I refused to show vulnerability. I used up almos' all my willpower to make it out o' de mansion wit' what little dignity I could pretend. I had counted on having dis long, lonesome car ride to let myself fall apart in private. Now I couldn'. I was pulling from empty reserves.

I had managed to keep a stone face while de threads of my life had slipped away, I hadn' said one word about being cut out o' de team, I hadn' hunted Rogue down and made her be closer to me dan she wanted, I hadn' argued one single decision, regardless o' how much it hurt. I had even restrained my more brazen, selfish nature. I hadn' taken anyt'ing dat didn' belong to me: not even a drugged and tied up Rogue. De t'ought had occurred to me, but it was idle and spawned no action.

I suppose I should've been more t'ankful to Logan fo' taking my part against de X-men, but I had a distinct feeling dat his defection really had very little to do wit' me. I'm a man who understands ulterior motives, and I figured I was jus' a useful pawn in some much bigger game. Maybe dat's being harsh, but although Logan and I had similarities we couldn' ignore and dere was no real bad blood between us, we weren' exactly friends, non?

To his credit, he was making t'ings easy on me. We rode in companionable silence, him looking out his window, me staring out de windshield. He didn' try to talk to me, he didn' mess wit' de radio, didn' even watch where we were going.

I would have been content to leave t'ings dis way, but after an hour or so I needed to know what to do wit' de man. I rolled down my window and lit a cigarette befo' turning off de radio. Logan turned his head to me casually.

"So where you headed?" I kept my eyes on de road when I spoke, taking a drag to make de moment seem unimportant. It wasn' my best, but still a believable act to any outsider.

He watched me steadily, keeping his casual stance. Still, his focused attention was intense. You can never be sure if Logan is buying into yo' load o' crap: in fact you can' help but doubt it. I would try, but if Logan asked me any direct questions, I wasn' sure if I could lie. His gaze almos' made me itch. I wanted away from him, I needed some time to be honest wit' myself befo' I went insane.

I waited, but he only shrugged.

"As often as yo' gone, you got to have someplace you go, someone you wan' to see?"

"Nope. Usually when I leave it's because I have things to do, when they're done I come back. I don't have much in the way of roots."

I tried not to get exasperated wit' him. Nice as it was getting to know de inner Logan, I was not trying to have an idle tete-a-tete: I was trying to figure out how soon I could dump de excess baggage.

"Well den, where's yo' business dis time?"

"Don't have any business of my own this time."

I finally braved looking over at him. I put a conversational smile on my face, and hoped it didn' look menacing.

"Maybe you'd like to sort yo' path out at de nearest bar?"

Logan's eyes narrowed a little and he turned to look straight ahead. He turned de radio back on to "blare".

I was too frustrated to trust myself, so I looked back out as well, wordlessly. If he didn' watch it wit' dat attitude he was gon' get kicked out on de wayside to fend fo' himself. We rode in silence fo' annudah hour befo' I tried again, dis time more directly.

"Where do you wan' me to drop you off, Logan? I got places to be."

"Like where?"

He was still totally composed, almos' seeming bored. It made de itch worse. He was cool, calm, and collected while I was jus' pretending to be. It made me feel like he had de upper hand and I couldn' figure a way to take it from him.

I let some o' my frustration leak out into my words. "Does it matter?"

"Not really." Logan was unfazed. I waited fo' him to say somet'ing useful, but once again he acted like I hadn' asked him anyt'ing.

Logan is a man who appreciates being dealt wit' candidly. Normally dis is de area in which we disagree: I'm all fo' a little parley and subterfuge, but if I wanted my way I t'ought it'd be better to err on his side.

"Logan, I appreciate what you did fo' me, but I got to go warn my family about de Morlocks, take care o' some business. S' a little urgent, and little personal. So I need to be on my way. I can' do dat while yo' in de car. I'll take you anywhere you wan' to go, but we need to start heading dat way."

Logan non-chalantly took out a cigar, cut it, and stuck it between his teeth befo' answering me. It was almos' like he was trying to get on my nerves.

"Like I said, I have no place in particular I need to be. How about we head your way and I'll duck out when I'm good and ready?"

What?! I tried to keep my facial features composed. I allowed myself a bewildered smile.

"Sorry, but you can' come wit' me. Like I said, personal business."

He lit his cigar, puffing around his words. "You can keep trying this conversation as many times as you like, Gumbo, but it ends the same way: with me in the car."

"Dat what yo' after? You need de car?"

"I'm after you, Gambit."

"I hate to go around breaking hearts, Wolverine, but yo' jus' not my type."

I was trying to goad his temper and in de act, relieve mine. He jus' grinned at me.

"Actually, I'm just exactly yer type. I mind my own business, take care of myself. I have a shady past so I don't nose my way in to other people's problems. I'm good at turning a blind eye when the occasion calls fer a little moral bending. Plus, I'm intimidating. All in all, a perfect wingman, and a perfect balance to yer little act."

"Says you. I don' know what act yo' talking about, but I work best alone, mon ami. Desole, but Gambit Enterprises is not accepting applications at dis time."

His eyes twinkled as he turned back to the window, flicking ashes out into de rushing wind. I waited, but he sat in silence.

Once again, de conversation ended wit' him in de car.

I narrowed my eyes at him. "I'm not kidding, Logan. Yo' not coming wit' me."

He looked back at me again, still bemused. "Then why am I still in the car?

I looked at him half a second longer, utterly appalled. Who knew Wolverine had a sick, twisted, biting sense o' humor? Apparently everyone but me. I swerved off de road, fishtailing in de gravel as we screeched to a halt. De car behind us leaned on de horn as dey passed us. I flipped dem de bird befo' I reached over Logan and slung open his door.

"Get out, Logan."

His grin turned wicked as he slammed de door back shut. "Nope."

I leveled him wit' my mos' serious glare. "Get. Out. Of. My. Car."

"Nope," he said as again as he blew smoke in my face.

Any normal bargaining situation would have turned to blows by dis point, but de man was Rogue's friend. Luck is jus' not wit' me dese days.

Wit'out annudah word, I jumped out o' de car and started storming down de road wit' my thumb out. Wouldn' be de first time I hitched my way cross country. I heard his door slam a second later and his rushed footsteps as he hurried to keep up wit' me.

"Turn around and leave me alone. I don' wan' to have to resort to anyt'ing drastic."

He laughed raucously. "Threats, Gumbo? Wouldn't I just love to throw down with you one time, just to know? Maybe one of these days but not today. If you really want to ride with strangers I can deal with that, but it seems a real waste since you already paid fer the car."

I spun to face him. "What is yo' problem?! What happened to minding yo' own business?!"

His face grew jus' a little more serious. "Nothing happened to it. You became my business."

"Dat's bull."

"Besides, you left all yer stuff in the car."

I turned back around, stalking away. "I'll get new stuff."

"Yeah, most things are pretty replaceable fer you. Yer not the sentimental type. Still, I wonder how exactly you plan on coming up with another set of these."

I knew better dan to turn around. I knew better, but still I glanced back over my shoulder like I didn' have no better sense. He held aloft a white envelope, trying to keep de triumph off his face.

I spun on him again, and dis time I felt my eyes glowing. I didn' bother wit' stopping dem. I don' take well to coercion.

"Dose are mine!" Yeah, I probably should have come up wit' a better opening line.

Logan kept his cool. "You gonna give me a lecture on stealing?"

I clenched my fists, feeling de energy inside me swirl to dangerous proportions, searching fo' a release. I wanted to give it one, but I tenuously kept control.

"I don' need dose to remember. It'd be nice to have dem, but I don' need dem. You got not'ing to make me stick around. I don' know which one o' us would win in fight, Logan, though I'm starting to suspect we jus' might find out, but I do know which one o' us can run faster. So we can keep having dis conversation as many times as you wan', but it'll end de same way: me dropping you someplace."

"Ooh, nice turnabout. Yer quick on yer feet, no doubt about that." He slipped his zippo out o' his pocket, flicking it open and igniting a flame.

He dangled de envelope dat held my pictures, my last moments wit' Rogue over de fire. It seemed to rise jus' a little higher, trying to lick de surface greedily.

"So we have two possible outcomes: you seem to think they're you leaving, or me staying. Yer wrong about that."

He waved his lighter back and forth tauntingly, inches away from de envelope. "You can simmer the hell down right now, we can get back in the car, and I'll give you yer precious belongings back unharmed. Or you can be a pain in my ass and keep walking, in which case this envelope gets charred beyond recognition, and you end up back in the car anyway. The options are getting back in the driver seat, or riding bound and gagged in the trunk. I'm game either way."

I tried to keep a poker face, but I knew I was failing miserably. "I'll jus' charge anyt'ing you use to tie me."

"I'll knock you out."

"I'll wake up eventually."

"I'll beat you up and tie you again."

"I'll blow you into tiny lil' bastard smithereens."

"I'll get over it. Then I'll call Rogue and tell on you."

Damn. Dere jus' pictures, dere jus' pictures, dere jus' pictures my mind wailed helplessly.

Logan raised an eyebrow, letting his hand lower painfully toward de lighter. "Time's wastin', Cajun. What's it gonna be?"

Dey were de only t'ing I had from her, de only t'ing she'd given me.

"I don' like you, Logan."

He snorted as he flicked de lighter shut. "You think yer the first? Glad you decided to be smart after all."

I held out my hand, grimacing. Logan raised an eyebrow befo' tucking de envelope back into his jacket.

"Hey! We had a deal!"

"I told you I'd give you yer pictures: I didn' say when. Once you get back in the car like a good little Cajun, you can have the first. I think these might be a useful tool at positive reinforcement fer you. I figure it'll make the trip simpler fer both of us."

I didn' know what to say. I'd been had. Me, de prince o' t'ieves, by Logan of all people. He jus' waited and watched, looking like he had all de time in de world. I did de only t'ing I really could do, under de circumstances: I walked back to de car.

He stopped me befo' I got dere, holding out his hand. He said simply, "Keys."

"Yo' pushing my limits, Logan."

"You want yer picture or not?"

I resisted de urge to snarl at him, instead giving him an evil grimace befo' handing over de keys and getting in de passenger side. He's impressive, but at de end of de day he's jus' annudah man. He had to eat and sleep. I would bide my time, observe my case, and when de opportunity presented itself, I would take my pictures back and leave him someplace really nasty. Like maybe a mental institute, or de 3rd grade classroom of an all girls' school in not'ing but his boxers.

He got in de driver's side, cranked it up, and we pulled back onto de rode wit' as much ease as if we were headed to a drive-in movie. Logan reached into his jacket pocket and tossed a picture at me wit'out even glancing at it.

I snatched it out o' de air, glaring at him all de harder fo' his lack of reverence. Least he could do is be careful wit' my t'ings if he's gon' use dem as bait.

I meant to tuck de picture into my jacket wit'out looking. I had no interest in walking down memory lane wit' Logan present. Unfortunately, my eyes betrayed me and flickered down, jus' to see which one I'd gotten safely back into my care.

My breath caught. I didn' t'ink it was possible, but de camera had captured every tiny detail o' Rogue's face as she smiled up at me. De green o' her eyes, even caught indirectly, was bright enough dat it seemed like it should burn through de page. Her silver locks framed her face gently, and gave her skin a rosy glow in contrast. A few light freckles danced across her nose like golden dust. Her posture was relaxed, shoulders sloping gently down, highlighting the graceful length o' her neck.

De gentle smile dat lit her face added light to de whole picture: it made a small part o' me feel euphoric. Dat smile was almos' more dan I could bear.

She was smiling up at me as my red eyes glittered down at her. As always, she was untroubled by my peculiar eyes. More noticeably, she was undaunted by my arm draped heavily around her shoulders. We were standing close togeddah, obviously a couple.

I was smiling back. De devil and an angel, smiling at one annudah. I looked in love. I'd never seen my face look so adoring of anyt'ing, and yet I remembered dis moment was o' small remark. Jubilee had asked us to look like a couple, we had smiled at one annudah, a little embarrassed as we tried to comply. It was not a moment o' great intimacy, though it was a nice one. Was dis jus' how I looked at her?

I looked happy. Dis had been one o' de lowest moments I shared wit' Rogue, our goodbye. But gazing into her face, I still looked happier dan I had ever seen myself. I almos' looked like someone entirely different.

It descended suddenly, dropped like a weight. Someone had pulled de plug and I was being sucked down. I watched all de color drain out o' my world, leaving everyt'ing void: black, white, shades o' grey.

I couldn' hold it back anymore, de t'ought I had mos' wanted to avoid.

She was really gone. Each second we drove put us further apart. She would not come after me. I would be as I once was.

What did it matter if Logan t'ought I was weak? Who de hell cared?

I crawled into de backseat. Logan raised an eyebrow and looked over his shoulder.

"I'm gon' sleep."

He turned back to de front. I laid on de seat, rolling to face away from him. I knew I wouldn' sleep, but it was as alone as I could get. I wrapped my arms around and pulled myself into as tight a ball as I could manage in a misguided attempt to hold my body togeddah while de rest o' me fell apart, and den I let de wave crash.

I was surprised to open my eyes and realize I had actually fallen asleep. It was dark now, deep into de night probably. Dere's a certain time o' night, long after de sun has set, and long befo' it rises, dat de sky seems to forget it was ever annudah color. De street lights passing had disturbed me as de gaudy amber light flashed in steady increments through de window.

Fo' a while, I jus' let dem go by. As my body slowly came back around to de land o' de living, I realized I was uncomfortable. I was still in de same tense position I had fallen asleep in, and mos' o' me was complainin' about it. De arm pinned beneath me had fallen asleep ages ago, and dere was a terrible crick in my neck.

Moreover, I needed to find a men's facility. It seemed dat life was cruelly ironic. Everyt'ing important to me had ended, and de world went on exactly on cue, as though not'ing had changed. Rogue was gone, and I had to make a pit stop. It never rains when you wan' it to.

Knowing dere was no way to get out o' it, I sat up.

"What time is it?"

"Just after midnight." Logan kept his eyes on de road ahead o' him, and answered casually, as though we were mid-conversation.

"Mon dieu."

"Yeah, I'd say you got a solid 11 hours. Considering yer usual M.O., you should be good fer the next couple of weeks. I'll take the next exit that comes up, let you stretch yer legs."

I knew dat I was vaguely still mad, but overall I was too groggy and numb to summon any impressive emotion. "T'anks."

We sat in silence again. Dat's one nice t'ing about Logan, he doesn't need de constant reassurance o' conversation. A minute or so later, we came up on an exit. Logan pulled us into de parking lot o' a non-descript gas station, and we hopped out.

After dealing wit' de mos' pressing business, Logan went through and stocked up on beef jerky, cigars, sandwiches and beer. Apparently he's pretty comfortable in his own skin. I took some long strides and stretched out all my road kinks befo' heading out to fill de tank. While I was watching de numbers spin and muttering about de rising costs o' gasoline, it occurred to me dat I had no idea where we were. When Logan came out to join me, I asked.

"You mentioned family. Only other people that talk like you are down Louisiana way. I made an educated guess and headed south. We're on I-40, not far into Tennessee."

"Good guess."

He shrugged. "We stopping fer the night?"

I hadn' even had a chance to t'ink about it. It still felt like I jus' left, what wit' sleeping through half de journey.

"We can. You been driving all dis time, you mus' be getting tired."

"Not really. My regeneration factor means I don't need a whole lot of sleep. If I sleep every day, I really only need an hour or two. I've gone five days without it and only been a little rough around the edges. If you want, we can pull a straight shot."

His face stayed cool, but his eyes twinkled as he spoke, as though he had somehow guessed dat I was counting on using his human needs to get around him at some point. I frowned at him, wondering if I was jus' getting paranoid.

"Whatever. I'm not picky as long as I get to drive a while. I get bored jus' sitting, and I don' t'ink I can go back to sleep. Am I allowed to drive, Deputy?"

He tossed me the keys, ignoring de jab. We got in and pulled back out onto de road. It was a quiet affair again fo' a while, but finally Logan spoke. De sound almos' surprised me.

"Ok, I think we better get some key points straight. We're both males with strong personalities, and if one of us dies before this is over, Rogue'll be pissed."

Her name had a new quality to it, a new fierceness in de sound, like glass breaking in de next room…hard to ignore.

"Whatever you say." I had meant it to sound sarcastic, but my voice sounded too hollow.

"First I think it'll help you to know where you stand with me. Fer the most part…I like ya."

"Be still my heart."

"When you get down to business and stop mouthing off, at least. Yer obviously a low down sleaze with a sketchy background-,"

"Oh don' hold back, sweetheart."

Logan shot a sharp glare at me. "…but you haven't actually done anything that I can hold against ya. Far as I can tell, you've tried as hard as ya can to be as good as you can since you first came to New York."

I didn' say anyt'ing. Yeah, I had tried hard. He didn' know how hard. Hadn' made one damn bit o' difference.

He took a deep breath. "That being said, I like Rogue more, and I hate you with her."

I didn' say anyt'ing still. What was I supposed to say? Congratulations?

He stared straight ahead, hating as usual to talk about personal issues.

"It's been a real pain fer me, being drawn to both of ya, and hoping ya wouldn't be drawn to each other."

"Dat's why you act all alpha around me?"

He ignored my question.

"I hate you with her, because I know that in order fer you to be a good thing for her, you'll have to go against everything that comes to ya naturally. You'll have to try harder than I've ever seen anyone try. I don't know if yer capable of that. I trust her, but I don't know if I can trust you yet. I'm hoping to find out."

My knuckles tightened against the steering wheel. "S' a little late fo' you to go to all this trouble befriending me. Looks like you all got yo' wish. Gambit won' be soiling yo' precious school, precious team, and precious Rogue. If you'd quit being stubborn and let me leave, I could jus' fade off into de sunset like a bad dream. Everyt'ing would be de way it was, and no one would lose any sleep."

Logan waited patiently through my tirade. "You done?"

"I really might have to kill you. Jus' to keep my sanity."

"You done?"

I glared over at him. What was his problem today? He took my silence as cooperation.

"Rogue's family to me, and one of the reasons that we understand each other so well is because we both have a void in us we can't explain. We don't even know what belongs there, only that there's something missing. Rogue's decisions are her own, and so long as you didn't do anything to force my hand, I would've left it there."

Logan was going off on one o' his vague tangents dat I didn' understand. He wasn' very good at talking about feelings and relationships, and right now, despite de extra sleep, I didn' have de energy to sort through his words to find deir meaning. I t'ought maybe he was having a case o' "misery loves company", projecting his personality on Rogue like dat. I never noticed Rogue having some kind o' mystical void. She had scars, and unfilled wants and needs, but not'ing like what Logan was talking about.

"If yo' gon' say somet'ing cryptic and life altering, could you please get to de punchline?"

Logan was unhappy with my intrusion, and my lack of regard fo' his emotional honesty. He did dis so rarely dat he was used to getting undivided attention.

His icy eyes bored out straight ahead like he was trying to drill a hole through de glass. "Forget it. We'll just have to try not to kill each other and hope fer the best."

"Why can' you jus' go home?"

He crossed his arms over his chest. "Lots of reasons. One, they had no right to toss you like they did, and deep down they know it. Thanks to personal ties and hierarchy, no one's got the stones to do anything about it, except me. If we're gonna be the damn good guys, then we don't get to pick and choose who needs our help. Me leaving forces them to be the people they mean to be."

He sat quietly, seeming content to leave it dere.

"You said lots o' reasons."

"Doesn't mean I have to give you all of 'em."

"No, course not. God forbid I make you uncomfortable."

He watched me coolly, unaffected by my shifting moods.

"How about you have a penchant fer getting yerself in trouble? Rogue is trusting me to keep you out of it, at least til she makes up her mind. So just you remember that, while yer planning yer great escape."

"You sho' are playing de Rogue card a lot tonight. You better be careful you don' run out."

"I'll use whatever works. That's one of the differences between me and you. You try to be prepared, make sure you got enough tricks to get by. Me, I deal with whatever I have. Right now, Rogue is the thing yer responding to."

"Yes, but yo' taking it fo' granted dat I'm responding de way you wan' me to. Face it Logan, your dislike o' me runs deeper dan my dalliances wit' de girl: you hate it dat you can' figure me out. You don' know what to expect from me. Remember dat when you start to feel confident."

"Didn't I basically say as much? That I don't trust you?"

"Yeah, but you blamed it on my personality, not yo' inability to read said personality. In dat, dere is a world o' difference. I'm jus' pointing it out so we're bot' on de same page."

He gave me a sidelong glance. "One of us is gonna die. I don't see any way around it."

Suddenly, an idea occurred to me: Rogue wasn' de only playing card in dis game.

"You know, lil Jubilee didn' seem too pleased wit' yo' decision. I wonder if she knows jus' how far Rogue outranks her in de heart of Wolverine. Dat Wolverine's a scoundrel, strings everybody along wit' his natural charm."

Dere it was, de subtle tightening around his eyes dat I would have missed if I hadn' been looking fo' it. Interesting. I jus' might have a weapon in dis little tournament. It was nowhere near as strong as his, but at least I wasn' defenseless.

"She'll get over it."

"Sure hope you make it back befo' de big mission. She's a little spoiled by you watching out fo' her."

He turned to me, and I could see in his expression dat I was finally starting to get to de man, at least a little. It was a small and petty victory, but a victory nonetheless.

"I didn't leave her alone. Like I said, I trust Rogue. She'll look out fer Jubilee. You dig too far under my skin, Cajun, yer gonna find yerself a set of claws."

I smiled. Rogue had sewed me up in a tight little box: hopelessly in love wit' her, painfully separated from her, and wit' Logan here, unable to keep her from my t'oughts. I couldn' move forward, nor go back. But Logan was de thread holdin' dis whole, tormenting box togeddah, and I had found a loose string. All I had to do was find a way to pull hard enough, and he'd unravel.

My smile widened. Logan had no idea what he got himself into when he decided to go visit de t'ieves guild.

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