Disclaimer: Please see first chapter.

A/N: I guess this is gonna be a three chapter story! I just can't neatly fit things into two. This chap has a slightly different flavor, but I hope ye like!

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Light broke through the windows of the school bedrooms like it did every morning. Students groaned and scrambled out of their beds before making a mad dash to the bathrooms. To get a hot shower was sometimes a blessing.

Those unfortunate enough to not be woken up by the sun's rays or the scuffling of feet and occasional gasps from people who had stubbed their toes would just roll over and wait for the morning call. One of those sleepers this morning happened to be Marie. She

was tucked happily into her bedding, clinging to her oversized pillow, baring a huge grin on her face.

Turning over she murmured in her sleep contently. The same girl who had tossed the pillow into her face the previous night raised a suspicious brow. She wasn't sure she had ever seen Rogue sleep so deeply.

"Hey, sleepy head. Get up or you'll be the last one out of here." The mutant shook Marie awake carefully.

"Five more minutes..." She groaned. The lack of recuperating sleep was finally catching up with her. When she found herself being shocked with small bits of electricity she finally sat up out of bed.

"Geez, Jubilee. Do ya' really have to do that?" Rogue groaned, going to her dresser drawers to try to find something to throw on.

Glancing at her clock, she realized just how late she was. Suddenly she was extremely glad she had taken a shower before she had settled back in. She threw off her night shirt, praying no one would walk in, and tossed another day time suitable one over her head. A pair of jeans and sandals later, she was making her way down to the hallway where the students were being herded.

Marie scanned the room, not sure what or who she was searching for. On the opposite side of the room she saw Logan leaning on a pillar in the shadows. She gave a casual wave in his direction, not really expecting any response.

"HEY" Rogue nearly left her shoes when a voice came from behind her. The reaction just provoked a set of laughter. "A little jumpy are we?"

"Bobby!" She turned around and hit him playfully in the shoulder. "I just got up!"

"So?" He smirked, wrapping his arms around her waist. Marie fought the urge to wriggle away. For some reason things didn't just seem as conformable as they had been a few days ago.

The white-streaked mutant breathed out quietly in relief as Storm made a note to Bobby about public affection. Normally, Marie would have flushed slightly. But today, she could only give a mental thank you.

She listened with an unusual interest as the student leader told them what groups they'd be splitting up into and what they'd actually be doing. The school's population would be heading out to an amusement part for about two hours, followed by an hour at an art

museum, and then off to a multi-focused concert. A excited chatter covered the group, one Marie joined for the sake of a distraction.

For a similar reason, Marie was glad to find out that even though Logan was being asked to help 'baby sit' she wasn't placed in his group. She really didn't feel like following him around, though she certainly wouldn't go out of her way to avoid either of the men
in her life that were baffling her. She simply didn't want to have a day filled of the same odd-edged moments like the day Wolverine had come back from his personal journey.

The trip to the park was pleasant. For the hour it took, everything felt completely normal. Or at least, nearly the same of an atmosphere as it had been a few short days ago. Marie spent the time chatting idly with those around her, and trying not to fall back asleep against Bobby's shoulder that he willingly offered.

At the park, Marie indulged in several rides she never would have taken if it weren't for bets that let her rake in a few extra bucks. The food court, though odd and questionably sanitary, offered as many fatting goodies as anyone could dream for. She even won
herself a large lion plush at one of the carnival style games.

And, the best part, was that the park seemed to be designed with mutants in mind. The park owners seemed to keep in mind that younger mutants, who were still children and a target group, usually didn't have a good control on their powers. Knowing that some had different developments that might interfere with the proper function of some of the rides, they had apparently tried to vary the variety of what the had to offer. In the minds of those who realized this, it was a huge step in their favor.

The remainder of the outing was pleasant. The students had managed to gather more souvenirs then necessary, and were generally content. They were even treated to a half hour at the local mall as a reward for 'good behavior' as the last trip they had an 'incident'
occurred.

As they walked down the congested halls, one shop window caught Marie's eye. A jewelry shop adorned a display of intricate silver accessories that would make any girl's mouth water. But what interested her the most was a delicate diamond-shined silver chain that was spread out near the bottom corner.

"Uh-oh. Someone pull her away before I'm roped into purchasing that!" Bobby chuckled, leaning down to look
with her.

"No thanks..." Marie smile, touched by his offer. "The price tag's a little too steep for any of our budgets."

As the group of students walked down the mall strip, Jubilee gained a rather mischievous grin on her face. Marie caught the look and frowned. As things went, the two teenagers were fairly good friends. But she wouldn't put it past Jubes to try to pull a quick card to get a piece of gossip.

"Hey, Bobby!" She exclaimed, leaning on one of his shoulder's. "What have you and Marie been up to lately?"

"Uh...huh?" Iceman looked extremely puzzled.

"It's alright, you don't have to tell us." The dark haired girl threw her hands up in a mock surrender. Her eyes, though, showed that she wasn't quite done. " But whatever it was, Marie was QUITE happy in her sleep...had to shock her to get her moving!"

Rogue blinked, her breath caught in her throat. How can she be doing this! Damn her! She cursed to herself.

"Oh, Jubes, wouldn't you just LOVE to know!" Rogue purposely made her voice colder, a clear warning, as she looped her arm with Bobby's to solidify her message.

Marie's room mate backed off, just as she suspected. Marie made a note to still talk to her about it when they got back. But she was too tired to contemplate too long. At least the ride home would provide as the perfect setting for a well over-due nap!

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"Jubes!" Marie all but shoved her friend into their room before slamming the door behind them.

The nap had refreshed the energy-vampiric like girl quite the much. When she woke up and she saw Jubilee grinning at her like a cheshire cat, it reminded her of the earlier incident. And, of how livid she actually was at her!

It had taken Marie a few hours to cool down enough to not rip off Jubilee's head. But as soon as her friend stopped talking with her romantic crush of the week, Marie had dragged her friend away. This had to be addressed.

"Hey, yeow! Let go!" Jubilee seemed confused. "What's your problem?"

"HOW could you do that to me!" Marie half screamed.

"Do what?"

"In the mall! The whole 'What have you two been doing?' thing! Do you even REALIZE how embarrassing that was!" She shrieked, throwing her arms out.

Marie was about to continue her ranting, when her friend burst out laughing. One jaw dropped. One smirked.

"THAT? Aw, come'on Marie, I was only fooling around! Besides, it's not like anything actually HAPPENED. He kind of got a kick out of it."

"Well I didn't! It's none of your business what I dream about and what I don't!" Marie was growing redder by the second.

"I don't see what your problem is. Everyone got the joke except you, and you even seemed fine with it there!"

The door creaked open. Both girls turned to see Kitty fly in and start rambling on about all the probably useless junk she had grabbed up. Of corse, then, they had to sit through a showing of three bag's contents. Rogue huffed. She wasn't in the mood for this.

"...And, by the way, what were you two fighting about? I could hear yelling all the way down the hall." Kitty added on with the last of her breath.

"Oh, I told Bobby that Rogue was smiling in her sleep and joked that she was dreaming of him. But, apparently, Marie doesn't like the thought of dreaming of her boyfriend..." Jube stopped in middle of her sentence before she gasped.

"I know WHY!" She shrieked. "You were dreaming of somebody else, weren't you!"

Kitty's eyes widened, her shopping high melting away to one of shock. Her teenage gabby-girl mode clicked on instantly. Marie never COULD understand how those two had such an easy switch.

"I-I don't know what your talking about, Jubes!" Marie insisted, throwing her lion cub onto her bed. "That's simply a foolish statement. Then again, I wouldn't expect anything else from you today."

With a slight squeal Kitty pounced over from her bed to Marie's, stopping in front of her. Jubilee blocked her in the back. The embarrassed girl was blocked, with no sign of an escape route.

"You WERE, weren't you!" Jubilee forced Marie to sit down by pressing down at her shoulders. "I knew it!"

"OOOH! Who was it?" Kitty's eyes sparkled. "Come on, Rogue! Tell us! Tell us who this infamous 'man of dreams' is."

Fighting from their space, Marie walked over to the desk by the window, pretending that her assignments needed organization. The two other girls looked at each other. A look of sympathy played across their faces as if they had just realized how awkward they had made their friend feel. They really hadn't intended that.

"Your secret's safe with us! We swear! I'll made sure Jubes doesn't do anything like she did today again!" Kitty pleaded.

"Well, Kits, if she won't tell us who it was, we'll just have to do a little deductive reasoning. And come to think of it now, I think the answer is quite obvious!"

Rogue froze in her spot. This couldn't be good! Slowly she turned around, putting her best unimpressed look onto her face. "Okay, then, smarty pants. Who was it?"

"Wolverine. You were dreaming of Wolverine." Jubilee smirked. "And all this time, I thought you had given up on him. That's why you hooked up with Bobby in the first place, wasn't it?"

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Bobby leaned on his pool stick as he waited for a few of his fellow students to make their shots. His mind really wasn't on the game, anyway. Something had been bothering Marie. She had done a good job at hiding it, but, she just wasn't good enough.

For some reason he couldn't help think about what Jubilee had said to him. It wasn't that he didn't like the thought of him haunting his girlfriend's dreams. It was quite the opposite. It was how the other girl had said it. It was like Jubilee was trying to stir up something. Was something happening to Marie that he didn't know about?

Bobby leaned over the faded green playing table, his eyes fixed on the striped six. He glided the pole across his fingers gracefully, hitting the ball squarely, putting a slight twist in it, helping it to plonk directly into the upper left corner pocket. The other boys nodded, impressed, complimenting him.

"Hey! Iceman!" Bobby straightened up as he heard someone call his name.

Wolverine was leaning against the door frame, looking straight at him. The look on his face made the younger man shiver. He just couldn't get quite used to the older man.

All in all, Bobby respected Logan. His heart was in the right place. And his sense of humor never failed to get the younger. Plus he thought, he keeps an extra eye out for Marie.

Iceman wasn't sure why he wasn't jealous of that fact. True, he was well aware of how Rogue once felt about Wolverine right after he had left. But, when he came back, she had stayed beside his side. That, he supposed, was good enough for him.

"What's up?" He leaned his pool stick against the nearby wall before striding over to the other man.

"Follow me." Logan said, nodding his head outside.

"Uh...okay?" Bobby was slightly confused.

Logan walked through the halls and out one of the back doors that lead to a balcony. When there, he promptly lit one of his trademark cigars. He seemed to look over the younger man a few times before he shrugged. The older man then reached into his pocket to fish something out.

"Here." Logan handed the item, a small white box, to Bobby.

"I didn't know you cared!" Iceman mocked the action, batting his eyelashes. The mock turned in to a submissive eyebrow raise when he saw Logan's face harden.

Opening the box, Bobby became speechless. Inside was the same silver chain that Rogue had been eying at the stores. Bobby shook his head and thrust the gift back at Logan.

"Hey, man, I appreciate the thought, but I can't take this." He had seen the price tag with his own eyes. There was no way he was going to take something like that.

"It's not FOR you." Logan said simply. "Look, she wanted it, you wanted to get it for her. I'm just a short cut. Besides, I won't return it, and I'm not letting the money go to waste. If you don't give it to her, I will. Personally, I don't think I'd want to hear the rumors that would spread around after. She doesn't need that."

Bobby blinked. He did have a point. He didn't want to see Marie try to hide it or never wear it simply because she was uneasy with who it came from.

"Thanks." Bobby placed the box in his pocket. "I owe you one."

"No, you owe me about seventy. But, who's counting." Logan shot him a quick smile. "Ya' know what? Just make her happy. Don't hurt her."

" I won't." Iceman didn't like the way the last statement had sounded. Why would he ever want to hurt her? Logan's protectiveness of her was getting slightly out of line tonight.

As Bobby was turning away to go back inside he stopped when Wolverine called his name again. When he turned around he saw another something come flying away. Catching it, he saw that it was a silver dog tag. On it the letters R-O-G-U-E were etched. The letters were even underlined by four thin claw like scratches.

"She seemed to like mine. So I thought she would like her own." Logan explained. "You don't have to give that to her." He added hastily.

Bobby became tense. The tag with her name was fine. But why the scratch marks? It occurred to him that Wolverine wasn't just being friendly. He was testing him! Or, testing Rogue. Even worse, What if he's warning me Bobby cringed.

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Bobby walked past the door that lead to the girl's half of the student section. He had a half hour until he'd be tossed out, that would be plenty of time. Besides, he just planned on picking Marie up any way. In his right pocket the little white box set. In his left the dog tag remained.

As he approached the room he was headed towards, he heard raised voices. Was something wrong? He walked a little bit faster to catch the conversation.

"Wolverine. You were dreaming of Wolverine." He heard Jubilee's voice. "And all this time, I thought you had given up on him. That's why you hooked up with Bobby in the first place, wasn't it?"

Bobby's heart stopped momentarily. He had walked to fast. Instead of being outside the door, he found himself standing in the doorway itself. tried fool himself into thinking Jubilee was talking to someone else. But the last sentence made it impossible. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

"Bobby!" Marie gasped as she noticed him, after glancing over both of the other girls' shoulders.

"Well. At least I know why you were so rigid today." He gritted his teeth.

"Bobby." Marie broke through the other two to go to him and pull him into the room. " I never said Jubes was right! She's just trying to pry to see something that isn't there!"

Jubilee and Kitty took the cue. They weren't numb. They were out of the room within a heart beat, being careful to close the door behind them.

"Then tell me. Was she right? Were you dreaming of him?" Bobby demanded.

Marie took in a deep breath, trying to collect her thoughts. This had to come out right. If it didn't... she didn't even want to think that way. It WOULD work.

"Yes, Bobby, I did dream of him." She saw his fists clench. "But him leaving wasn't the reason that I'm with you."

"I accepted when you asked me to be with you because of you." She took his hand into her gloved, squeezing it gently. " When we met, you were so sweet to me, so kind. You always knew what was going on in my mind, and you were already the best friend someone could ask for. The more I got to know you, the more you grew on me. Please. Don't let one stupid dream ruin what we've got, hun."

Rogue heard herself saying the words, but she wasn't sure if she believed all of them. He was all that she said, but was that truly why she had accepted him? Either way, she didn't want her relationship with him to collapse because of her idiotic subconscious. What would be worse, was to loose his friendship or trust.

She couldn't live with herself if it turned out that she had been lying for these past couple of months. If she had been using him, even unintentionally, it would make her sick. She already felt her stomach churning.

"Please." She begged, "Say something."

"Was he good?"

"WHAT!" Marie shrieked.

"In your dream. Was Logan good at whatever he was doing?" Bobby tried to hold back laughter at the look on her face. To taunt her more, he backed away, opened the door with one of his hands, and opened it before adding. "Or could he not make you squirm?" With that he started running down the hall.

"BOBBY DRAKE YOU GET BACK HERE!" Marie, flushed three shades of red screamed as she scrambled after him. This was NOT the reaction she had expected.

The cat and mouse chase began. Both of them twisted and turned down corners, avoiding students' questioning looks and teacher's warnings for them to slow down. Bobby lead her half way through the school before he broke out through one of the exits and out into one of the gardens.

Once outside, Marie caught up with him, and grabbed his wrist to pull him backwards. When she did, he was laughing so hard, his face matched hers in color. Marie didn't know if she should be relieved or enraged.

"How can you laugh like that?" She gaped.

"The look...on your face.." He coughed a few times, relieving the pain in his chest. When he could breath normally he continued.

"Marie, look..." He pulled her closer. "It was just a dream. To hear it just kind of shook me. I mean, you can't control what your mind sends you images of! If so, I sure as hell wouldn't have visions of pigs skating around me."

Rogue just shook her head. As angry as she was for a moment, she felt as if one layer of trouble was off her shoulders. If only she could bring herself to tell him about the previous night...

Bobby took her other hand and lead her further into the garden. Finding a bench, he sat her down. He reached into his right pocket to pull out the white box.

"Besides... If I was angry at you for too long, I couldn't give you this." He smirked as he presented the chain to her.

"Oh Bobby!" She gasped as she took it into her fingers. "How did you...Why...It's..."

"I have my ways." He shrugged, delighted with how much she liked it. He was prepared for the hug that almost toppled him over. "Woah!"

The hug lasted for a few moments. Bobby held her there, taking his time with the next part of the conversation. He didn't want to ruin this moment, but procrastinating wasn't going to make things any better.

"Oh..." He pulled a way a bit. "Logan wanted me to give this to you." He took out the tag, and placed it onto the leather palm that he raised up.

Marie just stared at the metal piece for a moment. Her gut reaction was to choke back the waterworks that wanted to rise, and she did manage that. But it knotted her throat painfully. The fact that Logan had realized how much his own tag had meant to her was one thing. For him to try to extend another comfort to her threatened to pull her over the edge.

"Maybe he thought it would look good on the chain?" Bobby offered, trying to distract Marie.

"...M..Maybe." She replied, turning the tag over a few times.

The garden hummed with bugs. It echoed with silence. But it screamed with warning.

" Marie... You say that you care for me. I know you do. But I can't help but wonder. I love you." Marie looked up to him with shock all over her face.

"I love you... but I...I don't think you love me. You can't. You won't let yourself." He continued. She looked over her shoulder to stare ate the empty garden. " Somewhere in there, I think your still holding onto some kind of hope that he'll notice you as a woman, not as a little girl."

"Bobby, please, don't--" Her voice broke.

"No, Marie. I have to say this. You want him to see you. But your afraid. Your afraid of the gossip. Your afraid the administration here won't let you be together. But the most of all, I think your afraid of loosing me. You do care for me. I don't know how deeply, truly, but you do."

"What you don't know, Marie, is that you could never loose me." Bobby placed a hand on her shoulder. "I won't stop loving you. But if I can't make you completely happy... Then there's no sense of me trapping you."

Iceman stood up, leaving her sitting. "I don't like saying this. I hate the thought of you leaving me. I don't want you to, the heavens know that. But if I am going to loose you, at least I'll be loosing you to some decent guy and not some pretty boy. And if not, well, then I guess there was no sense of me saying this."

"You don't have to say anything now. I don't want you to. Just, please, think. Please." Bobby turned his back on her and walked back into the school leaving Marie there alone with her thoughts.