A/N: Thanks to Mezza999 and edf-k for their reviews! Happy Reading! Also there's a bit of cursing in this chapter by a pissed and jealous feral…silly Wolverine.

'Cause no one knows you like I do.

They don't see you like I do, baby.

They'll try to, but if only they knew

they'll never some close to you.

- "If Only They Knew A Rocket To The Moon

Logan grabbed his worn leather jacket and motorcycle keys. It was nine o'clock at night. Exactly four days after Phoenix killed the Professor. Earlier today Logan had walked out to the site of the gifted man's headstone, only to have a painful migraine hit him suddenly. Then, he heard Jean's voice in his head. She was asking for help, pleading with him to save her. After her distraught voice faded away, he opened his eyes and realized he had collapsed onto the grass. He stayed there for a moment, dazed and in shock. Was Jean trying to contact him? Or was it just a trap laid by Magneto? Either way, he couldn't just sit here; had to do something. Immediately, he had rushed upstairs on a mission to go out and find Jean. The school needed her, especially with the professor gone. He knew that Ororo had given up on Jean. Just yesterday she had told him that Jean had made her choice and that there was nothing they could do. But if there was just a minuscule chance that the real Jean Grey was still reachable…then he would try and help her. Logan flicked out the light to his bedroom and walked down the staircase, only to be caught by Storm. Her eyes took in his hurried appearance and the keys in his left hand.

"Going somewhere?"

"I have to help her 'Ro." He stated, preparing himself for the white-haired woman's disapproval.

"We need your help here." Storm argued swiftly, crossing her arms. "With the Professor and Scott gone, we don't exactly have a strength in numbers." Storm knew without a doubt that Logan was their best in combat. Heck, he had managed to protect a school full of children almost single-handedly a few years ago.

"I'll be back as soon as I can." He replied simply, turning and opening the front door.

"Does Rogue know?"

The feral mutant froze, his body tensing at her words. He inhaled sharply, tips of adamantium sliding out from his knuckles. His fists clenched in an effort to keep himself from lashing out at Storm for bringing up her name. This whole time he had avoided seeing Marie knowing that he couldn't look into her eyes and tell her he was leaving…again. Hell, he had even attempted to avoid thinking about her. In fact, his plan was to be back the very next day so that the Southern girl didn't even notice his absence.

His silence answered the question, prompting Ororo to shake her head and walk away. For a moment Logan hesitated. He contemplated turning around, tossing his keys back on his dresser, and going to find Marie. He would probably find her in the library with her nose in a book. It would take some persuasion on his part, but he would finally coax her from her seat and convince her to watch a hockey game with him. Of course he would make empty promises of ice cream, candy, or whatever other girly crap she would like…but really there would only be beer. And she would be okay with that. Because she was Marie. His Marie.

Shaking the thought away, he continued out the door; slamming it shut behind him. And then he was gone.

Magneto stood on a platform in front of his fellow mutants. They had successfully diverted the government from their location, allowing them to continue to prepare for the war that was coming. If this was a reflection on how poor of a job the homo-sapiens were going to do during the raid on Alcatraz, well then Magneto was sure to come out on top. As the elder man spoke to his followers, he detected a peculiar source of metal in the woods. And it was getting closer. He continued to speak, never once betraying what his mutation had just told him; the Wolverine was near. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Jean flinch before turning and fleeing from his side. Except for the tiniest narrowing of his eyes, the metal-wielding man was able to remain stoic and composed. Nevertheless, he continued his speech as planned and rallied his mutant followers before leaving the platform. He sensed the Wolverine's metal laced bones about a third of a mile deeper into the forest, where his secret weapon undoubtedly would be as well. How stupid was Wolverine to come here knowing that he could kill him with such ease? He found the feral mutant glaring at the former X-Men member, his claws unsheathed. Immediately, Magneto flicked his hand, leaving him suspended in mid-air. The muscles in Logan's arms tightened as he attempted to escape the other man's hold, to no avail.

"Trying to steal from me, are you Wolverine?"

"She's not a possession to steal."

"You are quite right. As you can see she has chosen to be here." Erik corrected himself, turning to face Phoenix. "Haven't you?"

"Yes."

"No, Jean I know you're in there." Logan pleaded, searching the woman standing in front of him for any sign of her old self. "You know this isn't right. What you're doing…it isn't you."

"Well then maybe you don't know me at all." She replied coldly, her dark eyes blank. Then she turned away disinterestedly, moving to re-join the camp. He stared after her, his teeth bared in anger. He heard Magneto's pleased chuckles and wished more than anything that he had control of his claws in that moment. This was the bastard that nearly killed Marie.

"What did you hope to accomplish by coming here?" Erik questioned, curious as to why the mutant he held suspended in the air would be so reckless for just one person. "You saw how she destroyed Charles Xavier."

"I also saw you stand there and do nothing. You just let him die." Logan accused, wincing when the older man manipulated the adamantium in his body painfully. Erik felt overwhelming guilt for watching Charles die. It was the single most difficult moment of his life. But, he had a duty to mutant-kind. And he couldn't let anything get in the way of that. So, he compartmentalized; shoving these unwelcome feelings to the back corner of his mind to collect dust.

Ignoring his words, Erik continued vengefully, "Or could it be that you love her?"

Logan growled, hatred burning through his veins like fire. "Go to hell."

"No, no that's not it. I saw how you looked at that untouchable girl the night on the Statue of Liberty. The X-Men may be blind, but I am not. Do you feel ashamed? She was practically a child then." Magneto continued cruelly, enjoying the pained look that overcame Wolverine's face. "If I see you here again I will twist the metal in your bones so that it takes weeks for you to heal. Pass the message along to those pesky X-Men. They will not stand in my way." Then Erik sent Logan flying backwards through the trees, where he landed harshly on the ground in an unconscious and bleeding heap.

"Hey have you seen Logan?"

"Chica, if anyone knew where he was it would be you." Jubilation Lee pointed out to her friend.

"Well we were supposed to have a training session." The brunette explained, purposefully ignoring her friend's comments.

"He's probably out somewhere getting drunk off that fine ass of his."

"Yeah. I mean, Jean's disappearance was pretty hard on him." Marie said matter-of-factly, trying her best to seem unaffected. Even with the former doctor gone, Rogue still felt insecure. At least Logan was still completely unaware of her feelings. And it wasn't a "crush" as Jean had so delicately phrased it years ago. It was more of a feeling of belonging. When he was next to her, it just felt…right. And when he was with other women…well, it made her want to kick their slutty butts to the curb!

"Oh please, girl you are so blind. He didn't even bother to chase after that red-head witch. And I seem to remember hearing about a time when he hurtled through the air towards a spinning death machine to save you." Jubliee scoffed, cackling at the embarrassed expression on her best friend's face.

"Shut up Jubes." Rogue growled, rolling her eyes at her friend's immaturity as she turned to leave. "Never mind."

"Go get your man Roguey!" Jubliee cat-called, causing the brunette to flush and thank goodness that no one was around to hear her exuberant friend's parting words. Well, she wasn't going to run around the school searching for Logan like a freakin' lost puppy. If he wanted to see her he could find her himself. And then apologize for blowing her off. He was probably off with some hooker anyways, she scoffed inwardly. Instantly Marie felt guilty for her slanderous thoughts about her friend. Sure he wasn't exactly the monogamous type, but he didn't deserve for her to be talking down about him; even if it was just to herself. I mean, how many times had he saved her life? Even though he would deny it, he kinda was the hero type. Maybe not the prince charming, ride in on a white horse type; but he definitely cared enough to risk his life for others. For her. And that was more than anyone else had ever done for her.

Marie was returning to her room when she saw Storm in her classroom sitting across from Dr. McCoy, and engaged in what seemed to be a very serious conversation. Storm glanced up at Rogue and her face dropped slightly before she turned back to resume talking. Rogue wondered what that was about as she continued to her room.

Magneto and his followers stood on a hill overlooking the small island Alcatraz, which sat in the middle of the San Francisco Bay. As he stared at the white building that sat in the center of the island, Erik felt a sense of purpose overcome him. His goal was so close he could practically taste the sweet flavor of victory. The suffering he endured throughout his life taught him one thing; never give in. That was a grave mistake that he allowed himself to become a part of in Germany, and he would not let it happen again. He would rise up against his enemy, stronger and smarter. And he would win.

"Worthington Labs. It will end where it began." Magneto stated ominously before turning to Callisto. "Are you sure the boy's still inside?"

"Are you doubting my ability to sense a the location of strong mutants? Yes, he is inside." The woman replied surely.

"How are we supposed to get there? Some of us don't swim."

"Leave that to me." Magneto replied confidently, turning his cold gaze to the calm Pacific waters.

Logan bursted through the doors of the mansion, walking quickly to the Professor's office. There he found Storm and Hank McCoy pouring over a pile of documents. When he entered the room both mutants looked up in surprise.

"Logan. What are you doing back?" Ororo asked before understanding the expression on his newly healed face. "You found her?"

"Yeah 'Ro. She's with Magneto. They're planning to go to Alcatraz and destroy Worthington Labs." He replied urgently, his voice gruff.

"You saw Magneto?" Hank stated in shock, standing from his seat.

"We have to go now." Logan continued, ignoring the pointless question. The three powerful mutants continued speaking as they walked down the hall. They had to gather the X-Men.

The leather-clad Junior Team, which consisted of: Iceman, Colossus, Shadowcat, and Firecracker, gathered in the hallway outside the Danger Room. Looks varying from concentration to anxiety adorned their faces. Storm, Wolverine, and Angel stood among them. Seeing that a certain X-Mem member was missing, Logan felt a pressure build in his chest. He still hadn't seen Marie since he returned from his impromptu mission to save Jean. He knew she must have noticed his absence because he was gone for over twenty-four hours. His eyes meet Piotr's, who returned his stare blankly before turning back to his friends. Resisting the urge to tear the mansion apart to find the girl, he turned to Storm to ask about Marie's whereabouts.

"Where's R-"

"Sorry to keep everyone waitin'."

Logan's head snapped towards the voice, his eyes drinking in the view of Marie clad in the customary X-Men leather uniform. He had never appreciated the outfits until he saw the way it molded to her every curve. For christssakes, how could she look so damn good in this ridiculous uniform?! His hazel eyes narrowed when he caught sight of who was standing next to her. "Hell no."

Ignoring his growled outburst, Marie continued "I thought we could use all the manpower we could get." Ororo glanced at the red-eyed man before nodding in consent. Logan shot a piercing look at the weather goddess before turning and wordlessly entering the jet. He couldn't fathom what would possess Marie to trust that damn sneaky Cajun! She almost misses the jet just to make sure Gumbo could come along? It wasn't a fuckin' vacation, this was a war! How could she trust that man she barely knows! And she was touching his arm when they came in! Fuckin' touching his arm. Even though her small hands were covered by gloves, the sight sent an irrational thrill of anger through the possessive mutant. As everyone else boarded the jet, the seat next to him remained vacant. No one wanted to deal with an agitated Wolverine.

As they traveled through the air Logan found his gaze frequently venturing over to Marie, despite his best efforts to keep it up front. She either was ignoring him, or didn't notice the fact that he was watching her. Either way it made the knot in his chest tighten. He knew this was his fault. He had, once again, broken her trust in him. He had left the mansion without a word to her. In the past he had always found himself knocking on her door to inform Marie when he was taking off for awhile. But this time, he hadn't. He had left in the middle of the night without a word to her; as if she didn't even matter. But that couldn't be farther from the truth. His emotions for the small, yet strong and brave woman were incomprehensible to him. He didn't understand why he felt the overwhelming urge to protect her. Why he felt like ripping Bobby apart for breaking her heart. Why he felt himself fill with jealousy and anger when he saw her with Piotr or Gambit. Caring about someone else on such a deep level was a foreign concept to him. He had smelt betrayal on her when she first entered with Gambit, and he knew that he had screwed up. He vowed to himself to keep an eye on her during the upcoming battle. If she was hurt he would never forgive himself. He had made a promise to always be there to protect her, and that was one he wasn't planning on breaking. Ever.

A/N: The battle scene is up next, yay! Leave a review if you want a preview of the next chapter. It's going to be an action-packed one. :)