Disclaimer: The X-Men don't belong to me nor do the songs or movies or things of the like.

~ PART THREE ~

As Logan landed the mini jet, he glanced over at Mickey. "You wanna tell me exactly why we're here?"

She released a breath. "To find Jean Grey."

"What?! What's there to find? The way that water was moving she could be anywhere, that is if the wolves haven't gotten to her first." Her look was unmoving and sheer determination was written in her eyes. He sighed. "Mickey, this isn't smart."

Mickey looked at him as they walked off the plane he'd landed in the woods. "Logan, I grew up with Scott, he's lost everything but Xavier and the school. He's the only thing that I love that I still have something of, I can't stand to see him hurt like this. Jean was his life."

Logan stiffened. Something inside of him was understanding her more than he wanted to admit. "I know."

She glanced at him as they began to walk. "You loved her too, didn't you?"

"I didn't say that."

"I didn't say you did," Mickey said softly. "It's written all over your face when someone talks about her. You hurt just as Scott does."

"I wouldn't go that far. There's a difference in how we feel. Scott's-"

"What? He's more controlled? He loves more? What is it that makes him so different from you? He's a man and he feels things just like you do."

Logan's gaze didn't quite meet hers as they searched the surrounding area for any sign of Jean Grey's remains. Several moments of silence passed as they two walked bundled up in winter clothes. "All right, say we find Jean, what happens then?"

Mickey glanced at him. She hadn't wanted to think about it. It had been several years since she'd laid eyes on Scott Summers, and now that she was near him again she wanted nothing more than to make him happy, to live out childhood fantasies. Scott Summers kissed her once many years ago. He'd been in the orphanage, but she'd found him and he'd asked her to a school dance, because no one else would go with him. She'd fallen in love with him then and there.
She closed her eyes swallowing hard at the memory. Memories of a once hopeful future were too much. Scott Summers was in love with Jean Grey and if there was anything she could do to bring them back together, then heart be dammed she'd do it!

"Mickey."

"I'll do whatever I can."

"What if you can't cough it up?"

"Then my life for hers. If she makes Scott happy, then so be it."

Logan grabbed her arm and turned her to face him. He stared into her brown eyes. "You're in love with him?"

No words left her lips as her eyes searched him. She wouldn't deny nor confirm his suspicions. It wasn't his concern who held her heart. She had no plans of telling anyone, least of all the man who owned it.

"How can you do this if you love him?"

"Because she's making him happy, and I never could. How could I destroy their happiness to try to win the second rate love of a man?"

He let go of her. "And what about what you want?"

"I want his happiness."

"Even at the cost of your own heart?"

Mickey reached up touching his face, as though she could make him understand her words. "To see the man I love happy, will bring me more joy than if I had him and knew that he wasn't happy because his heart belonged to a dead woman. Can you understand that?"

Logan's gaze turned as her words began to penetrate the recesses of his mind.

~

Far above them on a cliff stood none other than Jean Grey. She could see, but not hear what was said. Memories came flooding back to her as she watched Logan. She could remember the first time she'd met him and the passionate kiss they'd shared. She remembered seeing Mystique sneaking into his tent that same night. Now Logan stood intimately close to a beautiful woman. A rage like none she'd ever felt raged in her. She couldn't believe she'd ever considered giving her heart to a man like that.
Logan was here with another woman. Rage flooded her, and an intense heat enveloped her. Slowly she rose into the air effortlessly. One thought flooded her entire being, murder! What right did this woman have to steal her man? All thoughts of Scott Summers were gone from her memory. Logan was hers!

Logan stopped and sniffed the air. "Jean?"

"Where," Mickey demanded, looking around.

"Here."

The voice was strange to Logan's ears. It wasn't the sweet sound he'd loved to hear any longer. There was an evil ring to it. He turned in the direction, stunned. Surrounding Jean was a fire resembling the shape of a bird. "Jean?"

Slowly she set down, pushing the two toward the cliff. "Who's this?"

Logan stared and sniffed the air again. He was struggling with believing his senses. This smelled like Jean, but it didn't seem right. "Mickey. We came here looking for you. Scott-"

Jean moved closer backing them up. "She's not happy with just one of you? She needs both of you?"

"That's not it," Mickey said. "I'm not after either of them, Jean. Scott's torn apart inside, everyone's thought you were dead."

"Jean Grey is dead. Call me . . . Phoenix!"

Logan and Mickey exchanged glances. "Come on, Jean. This ain't no time for games. We need to get you back to the school. Xavier and Scott will be thrilled."

Phoenix looked at him. "And what about you, Logan? Are you 'thrilled' that this body's alive? You've already found someone else, do you not want me anymore?"

Logan stared at her, as she drew closer to him. "Of course I still want you, but you made your choice. You wanted Cyclops. We came to an understanding, remember?"

"No."

"What are you? You ain't Jean. She don't act like this."

Fury blazed in her eyes as they turned red. "What's wrong with it? I thought you liked aggressive women!"

Logan watched as her gaze drifted from him to Mickey and back again. The looked he saw was murderous. She moved too quickly, and Mickey was dangling just feet off the cliff. "Jean!"

"Logan," Mickey screamed as she fell the ten feet into the icy water.

The phoenix laughed as Logan struggled for seconds. He wanted to save Jean but he wanted to help Mickey. Whatever had Jean wouldn't let her go without a fight and he had only a moment to make his choice. He ran to the cliff and dove over the side. The hundred extra pounds of his skeleton made the fall quick and his ability to float harder to maintain. All thoughts were of the woman floating down stream. He managed to reach her hand and pull her in close. "Hang on!"
They reached the shore in a few minutes as Logan carried both their weight. He hauled himself out of the water and her. "Are you all right?"

"Thanks to you. We can't get to the jet."

"We'll have to wait 'til morning."

Mickey shivered fiercely. "Great."

"This is not over!"

They could both see this Phoenix in the air watching them. Logan looked at Mickey. "Come on. I think there was a cabin around here somewhere. We can hold up there tonight and maybe get to the plane tomorrow."

"Okay."

Logan's arm went around her shoulders. "It's a walk, but we'll make it."

"Thanks for the pep talk," she shivered.

~

They found the cabin, and thank God it was empty. Logan got them in and began to collect things for a fire. "Get out of those wet clothes," he snapped.

"Excuse me?"

He handed her a blanket. "You have to get warmed up, before hypothermia sets in."

"All right." After stripping down to her undergarments, Mickey watched silently as Logan built a fire.

He glanced at her over his shoulder. "Come over here and sit down."

She moved slowly and sat down next to the fire. "What about you?"

"I heal fast," he said, and stood.

Mickey watched as he walked from the room. He returned several moments later with towels and more blankets. "What's that?"

"I found some things we'll need. I hope this works for you." He handed her the shirt that matched the pajama bottoms he was wearing.

She shrugged and the blanket fell from her shoulders as she took the shirt. She pulled it on and pulled the blanket tight around her. "It's still so cold."

"Here." Grabbing a towel he stood behind her and dried her hair. "That ought to help."

"Thanks, Logan."

"Yeah." He pulled the mattress off the bed and next to the fireplace. "Lay down."

Mickey dropped the damp blanket and laid down on the mattress. Logan lay several blankets over her. "So that was Jean earlier?"

"Supposed to be. Something's over taken her." Logan lifted the layers of blankets and slid onto the bed next to her. His arms went around her waist and she stiffened. "I ain't getting fresh, we need to get your body temperature back up."

"I know. I worked as a nurse until I lost my job. . . . Logan, we can't leave until we've got her back."

Logan closed his eyes. He wanted nothing more than to get Jean back. He could take her home to the mansion and . . . back to Scott. He groaned and fought back the feelings threatening to overtake him. The shivering of the woman beside him caused him to shake off his thoughts and hold her closer. "You're all right, Mickey."

"Thanks to you. You saved my life, Logan. Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet, I haven't gotten you home safely yet."

She turned her head slightly to look at him. "But you have brought me this far."

"Yeah. Try to get some sleep."

~ ~ ~

"Where'd they go, Professor?"

"I don't know, Scott. It's almost as if they're beyond my reach or something. I don't understand it."

Rogue and Bobby exchanged glances as they stood just outside of Xavier's office. They both knew where Logan and Mickey had disappeared to, but they'd promised not to tell. "How long do we wait?"

"Three days, like we promised," Bobby said.

"What if they get into trouble and need our help," she protested.

"Then they'll have to wait. We promised and Logan can take care of himself and everyone else, just as he's proven," Bobby said. He took her glove covered hand and pulled her away from the professor's office.

Xavier studied Scott. Why did everyone that Scott cared about end up dead or missing? Why was it always the ones that he grew close to? Was Scott Summers some kind of a jinx? Did he cause all of this to happen to people? What was happening here at this place in this world that caused these people to die?

"Professor, where do we start looking?"

"I don't know, Scott. I can only hope that they will both return when they're ready. I don't understand what possessed them to run off together in the first place."

"There has to be something we can do. I can't lose anyone else. I can't take it. We have to be able to find them!"

"I do understand, Scott, but unfortunately I haven't been able to locate them with Cerebro. It's not fully repaired yet, and too much use may damage it further."

Scott lifted a fist to grim lips as he leaned against a wall staring out one of the windows. This was one more heart ache and one more reason not to get up every morning. First he'd lost his parents and his brother. Every friend he'd made had turned their backs on him when they learned of his mutation. Every one, but Mickey, and he'd lost touch with her years ago. He'd found the school and Jean. Jean was gone and now that he'd been reunited with a childhood friend she was snatched away from him too. It wasn't fair!

Life hadn't been fair to him, Xavier knew, but right now he struggled with his own feelings of loss. There was Jean, who had been like a daughter to him. Though he could never replace her, Mickey was a supplement as he'd promised her father that he'd look at her, but she was also taken from him. Nothing stayed consistent in his life either.

~ ~ ~

Phoenix buried herself inside of Jean as the woman slept. Jean woke in the light of day, to find herself laying in the snow. She jumped to her feet unable to remember how she'd gotten to where she was at. She glanced around only seeing a small fire and nothing else. There were no blankets or pillows. She could finally remember who the dark alluring man in her dreams was, Logan. She stretched and began to walk in search of anything that may help her to remember more, or to get home.

~

Logan woke the instant it was over. His eyes flashed open and he stared at the walls surrounding him. Where was he? It came back just as quick and he glanced over at the woman laying beside him. She was still asleep and still in his arms. The slightest smile curved the corners of her mouth. His racing heart thundered in his ears. His breathing was heavy as he lay there remembering the dream he'd just woken from. It replayed itself in his mind in slow motion, every kiss and every touch.
"That was way too intense to be a dream," he whispered. They were still in the clothes they'd fallen asleep in. He stared at Mickey who lay still, her hand on his chest. He lifted his hand and traced the line of her cheekbone. His breathing began to slow but this dream wouldn't let go. It was at that moment that he realized that there was a sickening sweet smell coming off her body. "Oh, God! Hang on, I'll try to get us out of here!"

Logan left the bed and changed into his damp clothes from the day before, and left the cabin, locking the door behind him. He had to get to that plane and he had to get her back to the mansion. Running through the woods his heart racing, he searched for anyway across the water without going into it. After searching several miles along the shore, he found an old bridge. He wasted no time in crossing it and looking for the mini jet. When he found the mini jet he cursed. The Phoenix had demolished it. He searched the remains for the emergency kit that Mickey had placed in the first aid box. There it was. He checked it's contents and headed back. He had to do something, or she would die.

Mickey's eyes were open when he walked into the cabin. She was curled up in a fetal position on the bed trying to stay warm. "Where'd you go?"

He laid the box on the bed. "To the mini jet. It's been demolished."

"What do we do now?"

"Wait it out, I guess. Rogue and Bobby know we're here and the professor is having Cerebro repaired. I don't know what to do here," he said as he pulled the insulin kit out of the first aid box.

"You can smell it, huh?"

He looked at her. "Yeah."

Mickey instructed Logan on how to prepare her syringe of insulin and how much to use. She moved the blankets and lifted the shirt. She tore open an alcohol pad, lowered the waist band of her underwear and swabbed an area. Logan carefully gave her the shot of insulin and watched her reaction. He swabbed the area when he was done. She watched him. "Did you see her at all while you were out there?"

"No."

"We have to find her and get her back."

"You have to rest."

She studied him, unable to understand how his mind worked. "Do you always dream like that?"

His eyes widened, as the dream flashed through his mind. "That was my dream?"

"I'm not a telepath, Logan. I only heal peoples minds and bodies. You're very open to me and I took something from you, that's never happened before." He nodded slowly. He couldn't quite understand why but he was embarrassed. "I don't want to get too personal here, but was it a memory? That would explain why I would take it, if there was pain attached to it, though I don't recall there being any."

He stared at her. "No."

Mickey cocked her head to the side. "Who were you with? I don't understand."

"You."

Mickey's eyes widened. "You don't make love to a stranger that way! You must have been thinking of someone you loved; someone you've lost."

"I don't think so."

Mickey looked away. "That doesn't make sense! I take memories and pain, not fantasies or thoughts."

Logan was stunned at how stressed this made her. She was truly bothered by a dream they'd shared. "You've never done anything like that, have you?"

"Like what," she asked staring into the fire.

"That dream."

She shrugged her shoulders. "I don't fully understand my gifts, only that I can help people. I'm sorry I stole your thoughts."

"It don't matter. I'll see if I can't hunt up some food. Stay under those blankets."

"Don't have much of a choice, do I?"