A/N: Hello there, my lovelies! I see that there's a lot of people that have added this to their Favorites and Alerts, little reviews though, but that's fine with me. I am happy, happy, happy. I bring to you this little update. It's got short scenes in it and I think that I did okay on it. Been a bit distracted, you see. Anyway, please enjoy this little number!

OOOOOOOOO

Scarlet did not sleep well after making it to her room that night. She was grumpy as Hell when she dragged herself down to the kitchen for breakfast and banged things around, stuffing random foods in her mouth. Her crimson eyes turned in the direction of the entrance when she heard someone enter and narrowed when she saw Logan pop his head in.

"Maria," he said, stepping into the room.

Scarlet pointedly turned her back on him and popped another cookie into her mouth. She was not in the mood to speak to the man that had not defended her in front of Scott. The one that had made her use her powers when she had not wanted to in the first place. The one that had crushed her heart and made her feel.

"Maria, will you please talk to me?" Logan asked, coming around her.

Scarlet looked away from him and shook her box of cookies, making noise. She'd rather punch him in the face or kick him between the legs. Well, Scott deserved a good kicking too, but he wasn't in the room with her. Logan was. And if he kept talking to her, she was going to end up doing something that she'd regret later.

"Princess, what is the matter with you?" Logan demanded, putting a hand on her arm which she immediately shrugged off. "You were happy last night and then something happened. Tell me what's going on."

The copy mutant let out a small growl and reached into the pocket of her shorts, pulling out her iPod. She made a show of putting in her earbuds and cranked her music up until the sound hurt her ears. Logan rolled his dark eyes and made to yank the ear buds out.

"Maria –"

"Logan," Hank said, stepping into the kitchen. "We've got a mission. Scott and Jean are staying here with the kids, but you and me are heading out."

Scarlet finally glanced at Logan as he lowered his hand with a small sigh. He pointed at her. "We're going to talk when I get back, Maria," he told her. "And you're going to cooperate or I'm going to hold you down and make you."

Scarlet rolled her eyes and stuffed another cookie into her mouth. Like hell you will, she thought, considering flipping him off for the fun of it.

Logan gave her one last look before walking out of the kitchen. Scarlet didn't relax when he was gone. She felt worse not giving him the chance to speak to her. But she couldn't. Not after he had made her cry.

Get over yourself, Scarlet thought, smacking the container of cookies down onto a counter. He isn't worth your time anyway. You have to get over him and move on. He's a tutor, a babysitter and that's all he's ever going to be, dammit! You don't need him to be anything else. You're doing okay on your own.

But those words hurt. They hurt in her heart which had begun to soften since coming into the mansion. Since meeting that man that had taken her under his wing and treated her like she was something that wasn't dangerous.

"She's dangerous…"

Scarlet closed her eyes as Scott's words filled her head again. She could see the lights flicker against her eyelids and tried to rein in her powers. Now was not the time to lose control.

"I have a test to get to," Scarlet told herself, slipping out of the kitchen. "With Scooter."

The teen mingled in with the crowd of students until she found her way to class and plopped down in her seat. When Scott called the class to order, Scarlet's eyes found his and she noticed a rather nasty bruise on his lower jaw. Like he'd been punched in the face by someone.

Whoever did it, kudos to them, Scarlet thought as Scott passed out the tests and she took hers quietly. The bastard flipping deserves it. Talking about me like that right in front of my face. He's probably said worse behind my back too. No, he definitely has.

Scarlet scribbled down "Scarlet Wayne" on the name line, knowing that most of the teachers accepted that, but Scott always scribbled out the Scarlet part and marked down "Maria" instead. Like he thought that she would one day accept her real name in class.

I hate him and I hate this stupid class, Scarlet thought bitterly, staring down at the test as she started scribbling down answers. I can't stand being here with people that don't like me because of what I am and what I did in the past. I can't help it. If I could, I wouldn't have done it.

She sighed and looked out the window for a moment. Something is wrong with me. I need to go and see Red about this…Something has happened and I can't shake it…

"Pay attention to your test, Maria," Scott said, earning her attention.

Scarlet sneered up at him. "Nice face, Scooter. Who punched you?"

Scott glared down at her through his shades, his jaw tense. "Just take your test and be quiet."

"Whatever," Scarlet muttered, lowering her eyes to her test.

OOOOOOOOO

Scarlet walked out of an elevator and down a hall, muttering to herself about how stupid she was for thinking about coming down to the one place that she vowed to never come back to. She stepped into the infirmary and drew the attention of Jean as the redhead sat at a computer. Jean spun around on her chair and looked at Scarlet in confusion.

"Maria, what are you doing here?" Jean asked, placing her hands on her lap.

"I think something's wrong with me," Scarlet told the mutant, shoving her hands in the pockets of her denim shorts. "Something bad."

Jean started to rise from her seat. "Tell me what's wrong, Maria."

"I can't focus anymore. My stomach is weird. And my heart is doing this weird jumpy thing," Scarlet told her. "My body is starting to wake up itself up again. I get angry and happy and confused. I'm doing things that I've never done before like dancing and laughing and going out of my way to make someone happy."

"Oh." Scarlet noticed the sudden smile on Jean's face. "I see."

"You see?" Scarlet asked, lifting an eyebrow. "What the hell do you see?"

"Maria," Jean said, approaching the girl. "I think I know what you're experiencing."

"Can it be cured?" Scarlet demanded. "Like really fast? Because whatever it is, it's annoying and I don't like it."

"I'm afraid not." Jean shook her head with a soft smile. "This kind of thing can't be cured. It can only grow stronger."

"Oh great. An incurable disease. Perfect." Scarlet sighed and leaned back against a row of shelves. "Tell me, Red. What do I have?"

"You've got a crush on someone," Jean told her. Scarlet frowned at her. "Haven't you ever been in love before, Maria?"

"Um, no?" Scarlet shook her head. "I don't fall in love and I don't get love. Ever. Period." She patted her chest over her heart. "This thing doesn't do anything for anyone. Never has. So, I don't see how you could think that I could be in love with anyone, Red."

"Well, you have the classic signs, Maria. I think that you're in love with someone and you're just too afraid to admit it."

"I think you're wrong. I can't be in love with anyone. I just can't."

"Why not?"

"Because love is stupid. Love gets you nowhere but hurt and depressed. Okay?" Scarlet shrugged a shoulder. "I'm better off alone anyway."

"But –"

"But nothing. I have to do this, Red. Because I ain't getting hurt over nothing." She patted her chest again. "This is going to stop doing this weird tango over whoever and I'll be fine. I'll be weird bitchy me again."

Jean shook her head. "I don't think that is going to happen, Maria. That's not how love works. It only gets stronger and stronger and eventually, you're going to want to tell that person how you feel. He may even love you himself."

Scarlet rolled her eyes. "There is no one, Red. Get it into your head. I'm a freaking loner here. I have friends, yes. But that's it. God!"

Her eyes turned towards the doors to the infirmary when they hissed open and widened when they saw that Hank was coming in with Logan. But the blue, furry man was supporting Logan heavily and her tutor was in nasty shape, his side bleeding profusely.

"Logan!" Jean exclaimed, rushing to his side.

Why aren't his healing powers kicking in? Scarlet wondered, pushing herself away from the shelves as Jean and Hank negotiated Logan past her and onto an examination table. Logan is supposed to heal after being injured and he's still bleeding like that…What the hell is going on here?

"Henry, what happened?" Jean demanded, probing at Logan's injuries as she ripped away parts of his X-suit.

"Magneto got to him," Hank told her, watching her work. "He managed to pull some of Logan's metal coating out and…"

Scarlet heard Logan growl as Jean touched his wound and her heart clenched. She stepped over and saw the shining metal poking out of his bleeding, torn skin. His healing abilities were trying to kick in, but they weren't sealing the wound properly. It just kept opening up again.

Damn him! Scarlet thought, curling her hands into fists. I should kill him for what he's done…

"I don't know how I'm going to reset this," Jean said, barely touching the exposed metal. "There's a lot of damage and I just don't know how I'm going to do it without hurting him worse…"

"Let me do it," Scarlet said softly, moving closer.

Jean looked over at her and her eyes softened. "Maria, this is a very difficult procedure and –"

"I am the only one that has the ability to manipulate metal," Scarlet cut across her, shaking her head. "I know it's a long shot and that I'm going to feel it later, but I have to do something." She gestured at Logan. "He's just going to be in pain if I don't try, Red, and you don't want him like this."

Hank put his large hand on Jean's arm. "Let her try, Jean. She has the ability."

Jean sighed. "Okay, but I'm going to be right here and keep an eye on things."

"I had no doubt that you wouldn't." Scarlet looked down at Logan. "Hey there, Funny Hair. This is going to be a big old bitch, just like me. Okay?" She lifted her hand, mentally cursing herself for it shaking. "You're going to be in a lot of pain, Logan, but please, just trust me here."

OOOOOOOOO

Logan had not expected Magneto to be such a problem for him or to rip out part of the metal coating on his skeleton. Nor had he expected to find Scarlet in the one place that Jean had said that the girl had promised to never come back. But here she was, standing at his side in the infirmary with her hand raised to help him. He could already feel the tug of her father's powers on his skeleton again as she tapped into her stock of powers, but she hesitated, watching his eyes.

"Do it," he ground out, gripping the side of the examination table with one hand.

Scarlet sighed and her eyes focused on his side as she shifted her hand over that spot. Logan grit his teeth together as her powers fell over him and the metal shifted against his skin. Scarlet reached out her other hand and pressed it against his chest, holding him down with more strength than he remembered her having. He cried out after a moment and gripped the table harder as his metal skeleton pulled under her power and Scarlet muttered an apology under her breath.

She's scared, Logan realized when he looked at Scarlet through narrowed eyes and noticing her hand shake and the look in her eyes. And in pain…Dammit! Why am I doing this to her? I can see what's going on in her head right now and it's killing her to use Magneto's powers on me. That bastard must have screwed her over big time when she was little…I should have killed him when I had the chance. I should have held onto her a bit longer. I should have – God dammit!

Logan growled again as the metal slipped back into his skin and smoothed back against his skeleton. Scarlet's hand shook worse as she held it over him, trying to keep her powers in line. Logan felt her speeding up his healing powers, but the pain was getting to him. He felt the world spin and then he saw black…

OOOOOOOOOO

"Oh God!" Scarlet cried out, dropping her hand onto Logan's side and looking at Jean. "What happened? Did I do something wrong?"

Jean shook her head as she smoothed a hand over Logan's forehead. "No, Maria. You didn't do anything wrong. Logan just passed out from the shock. He's going to be fine." She smiled at the teen. "You did a good job."

"Oh." Scarlet glanced at the unconscious mutant and Jean didn't miss the look in her eyes. "I guess that's a good thing."

"It is," Jean agreed. She gestured at another table. "Do you want to lie down for a bit? To regather your strength?"

Scarlet shook her head. "No. I – I should go." She patted Logan's shoulder. "Keep an eye on him, Red. He's my tutor and all, so if he croaks, I'm screwed." The teen turned away slowly. "So, um, I'm leaving. Good – good talking to you. Let's try not doing it again sometime, okay?"

Jean watched Scarlet walk out of the doors and sighed. "That girl is something else." She looked at Logan's unconscious face. "I hope you realize what you're doing to her, Logan."

"What's he doing to her, Jean?" Hank asked, watching the redhead.

"He's making her feel," Jean told him simply, preparing to run more tests on her unconscious friend.

OOOOOOOOO

Scarlet tossed a football around with Piotr and sighed a couple hours later. "Have you ever been in love, Pete?"

Piotr lifted an eyebrow and caught the football. "Yeah, why? Are you in love with me or something? Because Kitty would kill you if you were…"

"Ha! No." Scarlet shook her head. "I just talked with Red and she thinks that I'm in love with someone which I don't think I am."

"Oh." Piotr tossed her the ball. "Why does she think that?"

"Because of something stupid that I told her." Scarlet dropped the ball as her fingers stopped working for a moment. "Damn!"

Piotr moved closer to her. "You okay?"

"I don't know," Scarlet said, bending to pick the ball up. She had to press a hand to the ground to keep from falling over completely. "Okay. Dizzy spell. That's great. Absolutely great."

She closed her eyes and willed herself not to puke in front of Piotr. What the hell is wrong with me? I usually don't get this bad except when I've had too much heat in me and I haven't had a heat overload in forever…What is going on here? She breathed in slowly. I seriously need to straighten up and get moving again.

Scarlet grabbed the ball and pushed herself upright, only to fall backwards. Luckily, Piotr rushed forward and caught her in his arms, cradling her against his chest. Scarlet made a small sound and shook her head, trying to banish her dizziness. Piotr glanced down at her eyes and shook his head slowly.

"You don't look so good," he told her softly.

"I'm okay," Scarlet grumbled, patting him on his chest.

"Uh-huh. Try standing up without falling over," Piotr ordered, looking down at her.

Scarlet blew some hair out of her face. "Fine. I will."

She pushed herself out of Pitor's arms and wobbled on her feet. Scarlet took a step away from the taller teen and felt another dizzy spell hit her. Cursing, she dropped the ball and placed a hand against her head as her legs gave out underneath her.

"Easy, Scarlet," Piotr said, catching her against him.

"Shit," Scarlet muttered, shaking her head. "What the hell is going on with me?"

"I don't know, but I don't like it," Piotr told her. He shifted her so that he was holding her bridal style. "I hate to do this to you, Scarlet, but I have to take you to see Jean."

Scarlet made a face as she wrapped an arm around his neck. "I don't want to go back there, Pete!" Logan's probably still lying there, looking all helpless…

"I'm sorry, but you need help," Piotr said, turning and heading towards the mansion. "And Jean is the best option we have right now." He sighed. "Maybe she can figure out what's wrong with you, Scarlet. Get you back to your grumpy self and we can play a rough game of tackle football later…"

Scarlet sighed too. "Fine. But I'm not liking this." What the hell is going on with me?

OOOOOOOOO

A/N: I honestly don't know what's getting into my head these days. I have been working on things and not working on things. I have stories that I want to work on that are new and things that I don't want to work on that are old. I have other projects that need attention that have nothing to do with writing, but I don't have the energy to get started on them…Anyway, what do you think of this? Do you like it? Hate it? Indifferent? Mixed about it? Let me know, please! I crave feedback like chocolate these days. Well, coffee and pizza, anyway. I need me some pizza. And tacos. Let me know what you think, my lovelies, and I'll try to get back to you when I can. As always, thank you and much love from me and my Logan love! -Scarlet