Changes Chapter 2

„He scares me…",Rogue said and looked at her glass full of chocolate milk. "I mean…I have never seen him like this… He's so…"

"…different?" ,Bobby asked and watched her raising her head, her eyes meeting his.

"Yeah…"

"Well, you can't blame him."

"I don't!"

"I know", he nodded.

"Nevertheless, it can't go on like this forever!" Storm came into the kitchen and opened the fridge. "We need him. I can't run this school all by myself…", she said while grabbing a bottle of water.

Rogue had watched her. "You have to give him more time. He just…"

"How much more time, Marie?" Ororo had turned around and you could see the anger within her face. "It's been almost 4 month since it happened. He wasn't like this when Jean first died."

"Well, he hadn't had to kill her back then, hadn't he?" ,Bobby answered and gave her a look. "He loved her. Even you should know that!"

Storm sighed. "Yeah, I know." She sat down on a chair opposite them. "I'm just stressed. Sorry!"

An unpleasant silence filled the room, which went on for minutes.

"Can't we help him?", Rogue asked finally.

Bobby shook his head. "He won't let us."

"But…"

"You know that he almost attacked u when we tried to get Jean's body out of his hands. If Colossus hadn't intervened…", Ororo shook her head. "I don't know what Logan would have done…"

"I wished the Professor was here…he would know what to do…" Rogue looked down again. She had never felt sadness like this before. It did not only hurt her that she had lost friends, but also that she wasn't able to help a friend for whom she cared the most and who had always helped her…

Later the day, Ororo was heading down the hall on her way to class. Just as she reached the corner and wanted to turn around it, she bumped into someone, which almost made her fall to the ground. "Damn it…can't you just watch your…", she cursed and looked up. Surprise made its way to her face. "Logan…", Ororo said confused since she hadn't seen him for over a week now. Or better: no one had as far as she knew.

He only glanced briefly at her and started to walk down the corridor again.

"Logan, wait!" She had noticed his condition and that he seemed to be wounded. When he didn't listen she grabbed him by the arm and made him stop. "What happened to you?", she asked and looked down his body. "Don't tell me you were in the Dangerroom in your condition!", Ororo asked angrily and turned him around. "Damn it, Logan, you know that you can get seriously hurt in there and now look at you." She detected that he was holding his ribs with one hand. Still, he didn't say a word. "When was the last time you ate something? And since your wounds aren't healing, I assume that you do not sleep, too. Am I right?" Right now she was the leader again who had to deal with the school and its students on the one hand and the X-Men on the other. And since she was responsible for nearly anything since the incident, she had to make sure that everything and everyone worked as it was supposed to be. She couldn't need chaos right now and she couldn't make exceptions. Everyone tried to help her and listened to her, everyone except the mutant right in front of her who lapsed back into old habits and tried to get her off his arm right now. "Listen to me…"

"Leave me alone, 'Ro…" His low voice told Storm that she should better do what he said. Nevertheless she ignored him. "Logan, how long do you want to go on like this?", she asked with concern in her voice. "Talk to us or…"

"I said leave me alone!", he hissed and tore his arm from her. Without paying any more attention to her, he went on down the hall.

"Damn it, Logan. Do you think acting like this will change anything?", she called after him. "I don't think so!"

"I don't give a shit on what you think!", he shouted back with anger in his voice and shortly after that, he was gone.

Offended, Ororo shook her head and turned around since she was already late for class.

The students were already sitting on their chairs as Storms came into the room and were curiously watching her. They asked themselves what might have happened since their teacher never came too late to class. Ororo took her seat in the front of them and looked through the room until she found who she was looking for. "Marie, could you do me a favor?"

Rogue stood up. "Sure, what is it?"

"Could you go to the kitchen and get some food and soda? Bring it to Logan and tell him I want him to eat!"

Marie raised an eyebrow, looked to Bobby who was sitting next to her seemed to be as confused as she was. "Uhm,…sure…" She finally said and left the room.

"And tell him I want him to sleep, too!", she heard Storm calling after her.

Rogue arrived at Logan's door with a tray full of food and a cool soda to drink for him. She knocked at the door. No response. Carefully, she opened the door and put her head into the room. "Logan!", Rogue asked quietly. Finally, she saw him laying o his bed, one hand holding his side. Since he wasn't moving and didn't turn his head towards her, she thought he was sleeping. Therefore, Rogue silently slipped into his room and put the tray onto the bedside table.

"What do you want, kid?"

She smiled and jumped a bit by the sound of his voice. "You're awake?"

"Of course I am…" His hazel eyes, looking even more tired than the last time she had seen him, were watching her cautiously. "So what do you want?"

Rogue swallowed. She heard the anger in his low voice. "I…Ororo wanted me to bring you some food and to tell you that she wants you to eat it…"

"Does she…?", he said annoyed raising an eyebrow and sat up. "Tell her I don't need a babysitter!"

"But you haven't…", she began as she realized that she was backing off. "We're just worried…that's all."

He was only looking at her in silence.

"'Kay, I better go…" With that she turned around and left him alone. After she was gone he sighted and closed his eyes for a brief moment. He looked down to the tray before laying down again. Every inch of his body hurt, but it was his own fault, he knew that. He had pushed the Dangerroom to its limits, had gotten everything out of it that was possible…also of himself, without thinking that it might be too much for him in his current state. Logan snorted as he felt a sharp pain at his right side. He closed his eyes again and tried to erase the pain from his mind, but also desperately not to fall asleep…

Dark clouds were coming up, covering the whole grounds in dark lights. Ororo was standing on the giant balcony watching it. Even if she was mostly responsible for such quick changes, this time she had nothing to do with it. And this was what worried her the most…

She looked up with her eyes turning white. She focused and concentrated on the weather, wanted to change it, but nothing happened. Ororo got confused and felt even more uncomfortable than before. This couldn't be good. Her eyes narrowed a bit and she frowned. Her ability has never failed here before. "At least not if the weather was for real…", she thought.

Storm watched as dark clouds gathered directly above the institute. Slowly and not breaking eye contact, she stumbled backwards, breathing heavily. Was this an attack?

Suddenly, the earth began to shake rapidly…

"You know, Charles…I still think your students should know about this", Moira said and put down the cup. "I mean…"
"I know what you mean, Moira", Charles interrupted her. "I tried to contact Ororo, but somehow it doesn't work…and before all things aren't as they should be, I would rather prefer not to do it. It must be already hard enough for them." He laid on the bed with a cup in his hands. His gaze became sad and he broke eye contact. "Since the world still exists, I believe they had to kill one of her friends…"

"And especially in that situation they need you the most…", she said and looked at him. "What about this Logan you told me about? Didn't you say he was the only one who could get near the Phoenix without being destroyed and that he cared a lot about Jean?"

Charles nodded. "That's true. He could."

"What if he had to kill her?", Moira asked. "Don't you think that at least he needs your help?"

"He is tough enough to deal with it. And even if…he wouldn't ask for help." Charles set down the cup again after drinking a bit of the tea in it.

"Charles…", she began. "Even if he's as tough as you said….he's still a human being with feelings… And if I had to kill someone I love…", she broke off as the room began to shake heavily. "Oh my God…, what's happening?"

After a minute it was all over. Moira looked around the room, quickly checking if anything was seriously damaged. "We hadn't had an earthquake like this in the past years…or better said we never had such a strong one…", she said more to herself. When she realized that no one answered, she turned her head around. "Charles?", she asked puzzled. But soon she realized that the body, laying before her on the bed, was the same dead shell again which it had been before Charles' mind was transferred into it…

Back at the mansion, Storm was slowly getting back to her feet again. She had never experienced such a strong earthquake before. Surprised she looked up as she realized that the dark clouds were gone again. "Weird…", she thought as she suddenly heard a loud noise, as if a large stone broke, in the garden. Without thinking any further and with the same terrified feeling in her stomach, she ran downstairs…

The closer she got the more she slowed down. Ororo couldn't believe her eyes as she finally arrived at her destination: the graves of the Professor, Jean and Scott.

The scene before her ran her blood froze in the veins… The large gravestone of the Professor was broken and half destroyed. But this wasn't really what caught her fullest attention…

In front of Storm on the ground laid Charles Xavier who was directly looking at her.

"Oh my God…", was all she could barely audible say before she fell down on her knees…