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Even in sleep, his senses were always on high alert. So, he wasn't surprised when his sensitive nose twitched. What surprised him was the heavy stench of saline. His eyes remained closed, making the scent more prominent. He wondered why the hell this scent was in his room of all places. He felt the beast begin to rise within him, it too wondering where that scent was coming from. His brain immediately went to work to identify that scent of immense grief. Taking a few sniffs, he realized the saline was overpowering the strongest scent in the room… 'Ro's scent. He would have taken his time to enjoy it if it wasn't for the other scents of salt and water. Then he heard it. Faint sniffles. He instantly sprang into action, turning the lamp on and lifting his frame over Ororo. He gently tilted her face up over towards him.

What he saw made his heart ache and his beast howl in agony. She was in the grips of slumber, but it was anything but peaceful. He had more than his share of nightmares to know that she was trapped in one of her own. Her beautiful face was distorted with immense pain and bathed in tears. The scents of sorrow and anguish roiling off her were even worse. He felt as if he was suffocating on those scents, so strong and thick they were. His animal whined, begging to be freed so it can help free its chosen mate from her hell.

He cursed silently when a small cry escaped her lips. He had no choice but to wake her. "'Ro? Ro, darlin' wake up," he entreated quietly.

When his only response was another cry and more tears, he went around to her side of the bed and knelt in front of her. His rough hands wiped away her tears and he caressed the soft delicate cocoa skin of her face. Even in sleep and the throes of a nightmare, she leaned into his touch.

He wished he was touching her like this under different circumstances, but her hitched breath and sob of her ex-fiancé's name brought him out of the dreamlike state he was in.

"Why T'Challa?"

His features hardened and his eyes dilated when he heard that idiot's name. As if he didn't hurt her enough, he had to come and invade and hurt her in her sleep as well. "Come on sweetheart, wake up."

Another appeal made him turn his attention back to her. "Why T'Challa?"

Logan's blood boiled and his body grew tense with rage. Oh yeah, he and that prick would be having a conversation very soon.

Ororo became more agitated, and her cries grew in frequency and volume. What in the holy hell did she suffer in Wakanda? He wasn't going to wait to find out.

Shaking her softly, he frantically hissed, "Come on baby, wake up. Open those beauties of yours."

The only response from her were more pleas asking T'Challa why. Why what? Her movements became more frantic, and her legs began to thrash under the comforter. Logan, deciding it was time enough to take matters into his own hands, got up from where he knelt, sat next to her and mindful of her injuries, pulled her into his arms. He submerged his face into the softness of her hair, murmuring reassurances to her. But, Ororo didn't submit to his comfort, she fought him, pushing against the solidness that was his chest.

"Do not come near me!" She screamed, struggling to get away from his hold.

With his mouth close to her ear, he whispered, "Its ok, 'Ro. Baby I got ya. Come on, wake up."

"No. It is not okay," she answered, still asleep.

"Darlin', ya know I won't let anything happen ta ya," he muttered with conviction. "I'm here, baby."

Her response was a heart wrenching sob. The cries of her anguish and pain were getting too much for him and he knew it was now or never to get through to her.

His hold on her became tighter but was gentle at the same time. He inhaled her sweet-smelling fragrance before pulling her into him even closer. Her struggles had stopped, which he saw as a good sign. His rough timbre was soft, as he spoke to her from the heart.

"Darlin'," he began, closing his eyes. "I know ya can hear me and I want ya ta listen ta me really good. I don't know what that prick is sayin' and doin' ta ya, but, baby, please know that none of it is true. Ya mean everything ta me 'Ro, everything. If it wasn't fer ya, I would have kept on movin' a long time ago, but ya challenged me and changed me. Ya accepted me from the beginnin', gave me a whole new sense of purpose." He paused, sighed, and looked up to the ceiling, as if seeking divine intervention. After a few moments, he pressed a kiss into her hair and continued, "Ya need ta open yer eyes so I can do the same fer ya, 'Ro. Just wake up and let me take care of ya and love ya, the way ya deserve."

Logan looked down at her, smoothing tendrils of snow hair away from her face, waiting with bated breath to see if his words had registered. Moments later, her eyes fluttered open, and he smiled seeing a dull yet beautiful shade of blue.

"Logan?" She whispered hoarsely.

"Yeah, darlin'."

"Logan?" She repeated. He could see that she was still partly asleep.

"I'm right here, baby. I've got ya. Always will." He leaned down and kissed her forehead. "Ya were dreamin'. Ya ok now?"

Her eyes cleared of the remnants of sleep and darted about the room nervously. "How bad was it this time?"

"Worse one yet."

Her eyes whited over momentarily, and he felt the immediate drop in the temperature and scented the ozone in the room. Once she regained her slipping control, her eyes returned to their blue depths. "Goddess! I am so sorry, Logan."

"Sorry? What fer? Ya ain't got nothin' ta be sorry fer."

"It cannot be good for you witnessing me in the grips of nightmares every night since we have been here."

Logan gave her a quizzical look. He was a man whose old nightmares had only left him recently, only to be replaced by new ones. Hell, he was the king of nightmares. "Ya do know who ya're talkin' ta, right?"

"The dream was so real," she whispered fretfully.

He nodded his head. This one was sure different from the others. Usually, she'll be out of the nightmare as soon as he touched her, but his time, it took some effort to get her back to reality. "I know, darlin'. But everythin' is ok now."

Ororo opened her mouth to reply but choked on a sob. Her head fell into Logan's chest as she struggled to get her emotions under control.

Logan tried everything in his power not to be affected by her cool breath fanning his naked chest. He focused on soothing her, running his hand up and down her back. "Everythin' is gonna be alright, 'Ro. I've got ya."

His body heat and whispered comfort was the safety net she needed at that moment. "I really hope so, Logan." Her reply was muffled in this chest. "I want them to end." She lifted sad, vulnerable eyes to him.

"Maybe they're tellin' ya somethin', sweetheart."

"What can nightmares such as these be telling me, Logan?" He heard the skepticism in her voice.

"Time will tell, Goddess."

He pulled back from her, attempting to lie her back down on the bed, but she held onto him, burrowing down further into him. "No. Do not leave me."

"I ain't leavin' darlin'," he replied to her whispered request with conviction. "Ya could bet yer sweet ass I ain't leavin ya."

He felt rather than saw her smile. "Good. Not that I would let you leave anyway. Remember there is always a lightning bolt with your name on it."

Logan's mirth filled up the room, glad that some of her spunk had returned. He glanced at the clock on the dresser. 3:15am. "How ya feelin'? Any pain I should know 'bout?"

"Some."

"One ta ten?" His tone demanded the truth.

"Seven." She answered truthfully. No sense lying to the Wolverine.

He scowled at her as he laid her down gently. "Why didn't ya say somethin', sooner?" He grumbled.

Ororo allowed him to fret over her. She wasn't going to argue with him. She knew she'll get nowhere arguing with the stubborn mountain man.

Logan continued to grumble as he made his way to the bathroom, returning with her meds and a glass of water. He held the items out to her with a stern look. Their eyes never left each other, even when she scowled at him while downing the medication.

"Happy now?" She griped, handing him the empty glass.

He returned the glass to the bathroom then went back to bed, where he carefully gathered her in his arms. "No. I ain't gonna be happy 'til ya're up and walkin' and kickin' my ass again."

She couldn't help but laugh as she snuggled into his hard body. She clasped his arm where it laid on her stomach, drawing comfort as her mind still tried to make sense of the nightmares she's been having since their arrival in Canada. Those nightmares renewed the pain of T'Challa's betrayal every time and she was at her wits end, drowning in the sea of grief and pain. She knew it was only a matter of time before she cracked under all the pressure of having to keep the pain at bay. And she feared the manifestation of that pain once she succumbed to the pressure.

Being the powerful mutant she was, keeping her emotions in check was essential and the norm. She had become immune to showing any emotion for fear of what she was capable of once those emotions were allowed to run free. As she held the fate of the world and its billions of inhabitants in her hands, she had been ridiculed, dubbed unsavory nicknames, lost friends and was even left at the altar. Living the life she truly wanted and frankly thought that she deserved had to take a backseat to her Goddess given responsibilities and the fight for mutant rights. When she had finally decided to do what's best for herself, to give herself the chance at living the life she wanted, she was once again rewarded with pain. And as always, when she was wounded, she turned to what was familiar and dear to her. Her family and the man currently holding her as if she was all that mattered in the world…her Logan.

She sighed pitiably.

Hearing the sound and scenting a spike in her sadness, Logan asked, "What'cha thinkin'?"

She sighed again. "Life."

"Heavy thoughts."

"I know. Sometimes I wonder if this is my purpose on Earth."

"What'cha talkin' bout 'Ro?"

She turned in his arms, so she was lying on her back, and he was leaning over her. She looked into his captivating gray eyes, allowing herself to drown in them for a moment. "I am talking about, the pain and suffering Logan."

He was the living embodiment of pain and suffering. So he knew what he was talking about. "All that comes with livin', 'Ro," he answered. "Life ain't easy. Never was and never will be. We all have ta suffer and experience pain at some point in our lives. It's those experiences that make us the people we are."

"I guess you are right. But, do you not ever think that you have suffered enough and it is time for some happiness?"

Logan inhaled deeply, reveling in her scent. "Yeah, I wonder when my ship gonna come in. But I also wonder if I don't deserve the pain and sufferin' I've had in my life."

Ororo frowned. She hated to hear him talk like that. "Good people do not deserve pain and suffering."

Logan laughed, but it was a hollow sound. "I ain't good people, 'Ro. The shit I've done in this long sorry ass life 'o mine…" he paused, as some of the worse memories came to him.

She reached up and cupped his cheek, marveling at the immediate calming affect her touch had on him. "You are a good person, Logan. What you did in the past does not matter. What matters is the man you have become, and you are now."

"It matters, darlin'. It matters ta me."

"Why?"

"I'm a monster," he said disgustingly.

"You are not a monster!" she whispered harshly, her words punctuated with a rumble of thunder. "I would not allow you to say that about yourself."

"Darlin'…"

"Do not 'darlin'' me if you are going to speak about yourself like that," she huffed. "You need to realize how much you are loved and appreciated."

Logan's bushy brows shot up. Common sense dictated that he leave that one alone for now. Neither of them was ready to enter that new realm of their relationship.

Ororo leaned up and kissed his lips gently. "Logan, I know what you found out about your past is eating you alive and you need to reconcile your past. So, know that I am here to help you."

He willed his nether regions to quiet down after her kiss. "I hope ya realize it's a two-way street, 'Ro. I know whatever went down in Wakanda is killin' ya slowly and I'm here whenever ya're ready ta share."

She smiled at him sadly before resettling her head on the pillow. "I know you are here, Logan. And I know you will move heaven and earth to help me," she paused before imploring, "Give me some time please."

"Sure, darlin'. Whenever ya're ready."

"Likewise tough guy."