Let It Rain, Tag; open.

[Logan Howlett]

When Logan Howlett got caught in a thunderstorm while out for a smoke, he was almost certain that he knew who to thank. He was positive that they were playing a game with him - stop smoking or get caught in the rain. Oh, how clever. Their ploys to get him to quit had been clever and annoying, but nothing had succeeded in stopping his weekend trips all the way back to Canada for the one brand of cigars that he preferred. These trips weren't just for the cigars, though. They were his defiance and his refuge; his place to get away from the responsibilities that had been slapped on his broad shoulders whether he wanted them or not, which he didn't. What bothered him the most, though, was the fact that his reasons for staying at Xavier didn't really play anymore. The Professor was gone. He hadn't gotten information on his past. The Registration Act had happened anyway. Jean was steadfast and attached to Scott, although this did little to stop Logan from rather blatantly hitting on her. He hated teaching. He hated being cooped up. He hated what he was becoming.

An ex-CIA operative, a member of Weapon X, a brute force unlike anyone had seen in years... and he was being turned into some kind of a teacher or babysitter or something. Sure, there was a roof over his head and he was making an honest living, but that simply wasn't what Logan wanted in life.

It was these thoughts that pushed him away from New York and into Canada every weekend and kept him there, though he had promised in the beginning to only be away for a day. It was already late Saturday morning, but he hadn't left yet; a thunderstorm had him wary, so he had lingered on the back porch for nearly an hour to enjoy one of the last few cigars he had. When the rain had started he'd just huffed, squared his shoulders, and stood up against it, blowing smoke into the wind and hoping that, if Storm had done this, she saw him. He hoped they all saw him and knew he was defying them.

Nobody had said anything, though, so once he was finished with the cigar, Logan simply wandered back inside. His bare feet were wet; his white wife-beater clung strangely, hanging in a rather unusual way because of the rainwater. Still, Logan didn't bother himself with going all the way to his room to change. Making his way toward the kitchen, he grabbed a soda from the fridge and seated himself at a barstool at the island. Leaning his arms on its surface, he stared down at the brown liquid inside its plastic bottle, not opening it just yet - instead, he slipped into his thoughts, a blank look coming over his face as he sat alone in the kitchen. It would only be a matter of time, though, before somebody else found themselves hungry, and then his reverie would be broken - of that much Logan was damned sure.

[Jean Grey-Summers]

She had *not* been able to wrangle Scott into making his way into the kitchen to make her a late breakfast. In fact she herself had almost been sucked into the DR for a strenuous morning workout. Feigning a headache, she found herself put back into bed for a few minutes while she watched her husband get dressed and make his way to the basement. Waiting until she could sense his mind's signature in the Danger Room, she crawled out of bed and made her way into the kitchen, sighing in relief when she made it there without her husband's face popping out of the wood paneled walls to ask why she wasn't in bed.

Inhaling to take a deep sigh, she instead found herself smelling the sweet aroma that only one man could wear without making her want to vomit, "Morning, Logan. Smoking already? Aren't you out of those things yet?" She turned to see Logan soaking wet and glancing out of the window to see the skies already clearing up she burst into laughter. Looking back to Logan to see that the storm had already seemed to move to his face, Jean tried quickly to sober, and made it as far as a big grin remaining on her face, "And I see that Roro still disapproves." She said making her way around him and into the refrigerator. She pulled out some bacon and a carton of eggs placing them on the counter before going back into the fridge and pulling out a banana and a carton of orange juice. Bumping the door closed with her hip, she placed her latest treasures on the counter, and took the bacon and eggs over to the stove finding a pan and quickly turning on the stove to began heating up. Retrieving her banana and OJ she poured herself a glass before placing it on the island that Logan was standing in front of, "Mind putting that back into the fridge for me?" she asked, before taking a sip and placing her cup beside the stove. putting a couple slices of bacon into the pan she glanced at him over her shoulder, "Want anything to eat? Since I'm cooking anyway?" She gave him a broad smile, knowing that while he was harsh on the outside, he was like a big.....TellyTubbies on the inside.

"You still leaving?" Her voice sobered slightly, it may be only for a couple of days, but she did miss Logan when he made his weekend trips to Canada. His presence in the mansion was always an added comfort, "Ya know, maybe you should stick around once in a while." She shrugged as she took another sip of her juice, turning around and leaning on the counter beside the stove, while she peeled her banana and started eating it, "Just a thought."

[Logan Howlett]

There were many things about Jean Grey that he could recognize instantly. The way she moved, mostly, and the fluidity to her motions that he simply refused to notice in other women. First and foremost, though, was the earthy smell that he could only assume came from whatever shampoo she used on that gorgeous hair of hers. He'd always loved redheads, afterall, and Jean was a prime example of one, if a tamed one. Unfortunately.

He knew she was coming before she entered; he'd smelled her, heard her footsteps, and then she was there a second later. Brown eyes followed her as she took him in, the thoughts he had been dabbling in before now completely gone and set aside for later. She put him on edge - kept him on his toes, as it were, and he felt no guilt in letting his eyes slip over her as she turned to the fridge, gathering a few items to make herself breakfast. "I have one more," he answered, grasping the cap of the bottle of soda and unscrewing it, glancing at the underside of the cap as he contemplated Jean's next statement. "I assumed I had her to thank for that one. I'm not afraid of a little rain, though," he grunted, taking a quick sip of his soda. It was only then that he remembered that he really was not a fan of carbonated beverages and he winced as he forced it down. Setting it on the counter, he picked up the carton of orange juice without so much as a second thought and walked it to the fridge, replacing it as she had asked him. "I'll take a few pieces of bacon, if you're sticking around." Logan answered honestly as he shut the fridge and made his way back to the stool at the island.

Screwing the cap back onto the bottle, he began to shake it up, hoping to get rid of the carbonation and leave behind the super-sugary beverage that he had originally hoped for. His eyes didn't leave her, however, and he continued to talk over the sound of the soda splashing around the bottle. "I don't have a reason to stick around," he grumbled, realizing after he had spoken that there had been the faintest hint of accusing in his voice. "I'm not a teacher, Jean. I'm not a babysitter." He added in an attempt to amend his previous statement. The confrontational part of him knew to be quiet - the last thing he wanted was to make Jean mad and make her leave him alone in the kitchen again.

[Jean Grey-Summers]

She could tell that as usual she was starting in on shaky territory with Logan. It always only took a few moments of the two of them being in the same room, and god forbid Scott was with her. Then Logan's defenses went up faster than a hooker's skirt. She sighed, "Yeah I'll be sticking around. Scott is in for a workout today, I swear the man is trying to kill himself." She smiled as she said it, but winced inwardly. She was pretty sure, would in fact be shocked if Logan didn't, take the opportunity to bash her husband into the ground.

She heard the accusation in Logan's voice, and her telepathy picked up the accusation as well. She refused to acknowledge it though. She had already had one two many serious discussions this morning. Hell it wasn't even noon and she had already felt the 'need' to lecture Remy on his attitude about the the Mansion and the X-Men. She then sighed, "I'm not saying you need to be a teacher or a babysitter, but how about a friend?" She sighed, "Nevermind. Just...forget I said anything." She turned back to the stove and added a few more pieces of bacon for Logan. Pulling out another pan she broke a few eggs into it, and scrambled them into the pan, making sure to keep a close eye on the bacon.

"So, what do you do up there? Just hang out? Drive around? Buy cigars?" She wondered, legitimately curious. She knew that Logan wasn't exactly the most team and people friendly of people, but still, she found herself wondering what was so exciting up there that it could take him away from the mansion every weekend for...well...It had been a while since she had seen Logan on a Sunday.

[Logan Howlett]

One thing he had learned, though it had taken a few years, was to save his thoughts for later when Jean was around. Her telepathy was good. Too good. Logan didn't like knowing that she could just poke around inside his head whenever she wanted, so he had done what he could to learn to hide what he didn't want her to see. Mind you, he wasn't nearly a focused enough individual to do much, so he did his best to keep his head clear. With a temper, that's hard to do, and he'll tell you that easily. It also made him even more honest with Jean than others, since he knew she could just find what he was really thinking if she didn't believe what he had said. It was because of that that he didn't bother hiding the little snort of a laugh that passed him when she said something about Scott working out. "Does he feel threatened?" he asked with a grin, shaking his head as he finally stopped shaking the soda and set it on the counter to let it de-fizz for a few minutes.

His lips pressed together over words that he wanted to lash back at her statement about how he could be a friend. Despite her telepathy, he was sure that Jean didn't understand that his sticking around all of these years was a pretty big deal for him. He didn't stay in one place... he didn't do the teamwork thing. He was leashed, but he had let them do it. It was only fair for him to escape on the weekends, if you asked him! Watching her in silence, he shook his head and pressed a hand through his thick hair, then grabbed his bottle and stood up, shaking it with a new vigor to release the irritation that her statement had built up inside of him.

"Mostly drive around. I only buy my cigars at one place, and it's not too far from the border, but I like to see how far north I can get by midnight. Then I stop for something to eat, maybe hit an old bar if I recognize one, and drive back." He stopped as he came up to a window, his free hand raising so one finger could pull the curtains further back, exposing more of the weather outside to him. "It's nice to have a day entirely to myself. Think stuff over. Smoke without worryin' about a monsoon." Turning back to her, he watched her for a moment or two, then folded his arms, the bottle now still against one of his large bicepts. "When's the last time you took a break?"

[Jean Grey-Summers]

And as predicted, there it was. Though she gave him credit for the fact that it was short and sweet, and relatively painless. She watched as he picked up the soda and began shaking it with a new amount of frustration, and she sighed. What had she said this time? She knew that a lot of people believed that she used her telepathic powers to just peep into people's minds, but Jean had never done that. The only time she picked up thoughts is when they were so violently loud that she couldn't help but hear them.

She nodded, "Yea I guess it would be." She said in response to him saying that it was nice to have a day to himself. She smiled at his mention of Ororo's rain whenever she saw him with a cigar, "It's her way of saying she cares. She'll stop eventually. When you continue to smoke in her rain." She sighed, "Logan, you know as well as I do that I kind of...lost myself after Charles died." Lost herself was pretty much an understatement. She was a mess, depressed a good majority of the time, refusing to even see her best friend. It was only Scott's persistence that ended the first month of her refusals to see anyone, and even then she still refused to allow anyone else into her room. "I spent more than enough break time then." She sighed, "I'm ok with the kids. I'm ok being here day in and day out making sure that the students are alright. That's why I stepped back from the team."

She sighed again, "Look, Logan" she turned away from him and took the eggs off of the stove and placed the cooked bacon onto a paper towel to get most of the grease off, "I know that our history has been...bumpy." To say the least. "And, I'm sorry for that. But..." She turned to him, her green eyes meeting his brown ones. Eyes that she could actually look into, and read... She'd admit, there were things that Logan had that definitely attracted her to him over Scott. But she married Scott. Loved him. At the moment wanted nothing more than to start a family with him.

She shook her head, "...Bacon's ready." She said, taking a couple pieces and putting them on a plate beside her eggs. She sat on the island beside Logan's soda, "Think it's defizzed enough yet?" she asked gesturing towards the soda that he had been shaking so harshly earlier. Hopefully he would drop the subject. But Jean would be shocked to pieces if Logan dropped the subject. If anything he was dogged.

[Logan Howlett]

It didn't come as much of a shock when Jean didn't answer his snarky question about Scott. That topic he allowed to drop, simply because it was no fun when she didn't react. He found himself worrying that perhaps she knew that, but shrugged it off with the rest of the topic. That was for later, when he was racing toward the border, a comfortable distance from the paranoia that she was reading his thoughts. Snorting softly at her statement about Storm, he shook his head. "If that's her way of caring then I wish she wouldn't." Squaring his shoulders, he wrinkled his nose. "What if I couldn't swim and she flooded the place?" Okay, so it was more than a little farfetched. Ororo was in much more control over herself than that, and Logan could find other solutions to escaping a flood. Swimming was out of the question anymore, thanks to the fact that he now weighed an extra hundred pounds, compliments of William Stryker.

Talk of Charles sobered him up quickly. It was one way to shut Logan up instantly, mentioning the professor, for even though he had been gone for a while he still harbored a deep, deep respect for him that he could recall giving to no other being - human or mutant - in his entire life. "Jean, that's not what I mean. Grieving isn't taking a break. It's... grieving." He protested, but only for a moment, falling silent as he watched her take the finished bacon out of the frying pan and place it on a paper towel. His eyes followed her, though a degree of shock lit up his face at the conversation that she seemed to be starting. Panic rippled through him, but eased when she trailed off and gave up. Disappointment came in after that, more intense than the panic. Shaking his head, he moved past her to pick up a piece of the bacon, finishing it in mere seconds before he even thought about trying to talk to her again.

There was something about Jean that bothered him. He used to delight in getting her temper to flare up, if just a little bit. There was a perfection to her anger that he adored, which only seemed to vex her more when he did manage to get the spark lit. Now he didn't dare to poke fun at her. She had sobered too much... had shrivelled into some old woman on the inside, a mere case of the woman he had been so intrigued by when he was first contacted by the X-Men. She hadn't been married then, and had still retained a youthful ignorance despite everything that was going on around them. "Jean," he began, setting the soda on the counter to free up his hands, which immediately rested themselves on his waist as he brought his eyes back to her, studying her as he had hundreds, thousands of times before. "I would take any moment of our bumpy history over what we have now. You... you worry me." Taking his hands from his hips, he moved over to the island and pressed them to the surface, leaning on it to look across it at her. "You're, what, twenty-four? Twenty-five? I know you're running a school and you're married, but don't you miss what you used to be? You were alive, Jean. You were firey and exciting and I had so much fun pissing you off because I was honestly unsure about if you'd kick my ass or not, but now..." Logan trailed off, standing up straight and throwing his hands into the air. "Now this." Pausing, he shook his head, then went on. "You make good bacon, Red, but you have to want more from your life than that, am I right?"

[Jean Grey-Summers]

Jean grimaced, "Yea I know it isn't a break, but I lost it, I needed to be there to help the students, and I wasn't." He was one of the few to know how guilty she felt about that. That not only did she feel the guilt of standing back while David killed Charles, but she felt the guilt of breaking down when people needed her. She shook her head, trying to ignore the waves of guilt that she was bringing back up for herself.

She quieted, focusing much to intently on her eggs as she listened to Logan. She stiffened as he asked if she missed being who she used to be. Before she was able to control it she felt her eyes flash in a familiar anger, one that only Logan could summon. She jumped off of the counter, landing lightly on her feet and turning to Logan placing her own hands against the island and looking fiercely at him, "For you information, no. I don't miss being who I was. The only thing I miss about that period of my life is Charles. I love being married, I love Scott, and I love being able to take care of every single one of those children. I love knowing that in this world, this country that is so violently against us, we provide a haven for these students."

She felt her red hair fall loosely around her shoulders and yanked the ponytail holder that was holding the main bulk of her hair together, hoping to sooth herself a little by braiding it. Usually it worked, but at this moment, it wasn't working. Perhaps it was because Logan was speaking a grain of truth. Jean had at one point liked being the girl in the middle of two equally passionate men, even if they showed their passion two different ways.

"And what, Logan? What precisely do you think I should want from my life?" Her green eyes, filled with anger at his audacity hit him full force, "You? To run away with you on the back of your motorcycle to Canada?" She gave him a harsh sarcastic laugh, "Even if I did. Even if at one point in my life I wanted to run away with you, that isn't who I am, Logan."

She quited, but the rage that she had felt would take longer to simmer down, "I have responsibilities now, Logan. I signed myself up for a decent majority of the responsibilities that I have. And sometimes I don't want them. Sometimes I want to give them back to make them go away, but I can't damnit.I can't make them go away. And you probably don't understand, but when I see those kids walk through my office door for the fist time, and hear that their powers are embraced here, the look on their faces make everything worthwhile."

"That is my life now, Logan. "

[Logan Howlett]

The satisfaction that pulsed through him when her shoulders stiffened was one that he could never hope to duplicate. The green eyes that flashed to him were filled with more fury than he had ever hoped to witness, but Logan was damned proud of himself. It was about time she got riled up again instead of moping about beneath all of these responsibilities of hers. It wasn't really so much for him to ask, was it? Just a reaction when he pushed her buttons and he was more than happy - and a reaction he was getting, although his satisfaction was squashed flat with her sarcastic laugh. What precisely do you think I should want from my life? You? To run away with you on the back of your motorcycle to Canada? At that, he felt his jaw go slack, lips parted slightly as he stared at her. It was not at all what he had expected from this. The ranting about Scott and loving him was like clockwork, but this... well, damn.

"I never said anything about you running away with me. You'd hate Canada and I know that. Hell, I'd probably hate having you there, to be honest." He quipped right back, more than ready for this argument now that he'd had a moment to recover. Stepping right up to her even as she attempted to stand up to him, he felt no remorse when he grabbed her arm, although he was incredibly conscious of the warm flesh beneath his fingers and exactly how much pressure he was not going to put on it. Angry as he was, he would not hurt her. He would not hurt Jean Grey. "Why the Hell else do you think I'm still here?" Logan hissed, then let go of her, taking a step backward before turning and picking up his flat soda. Wrenching the cap off of it, he took a long drink of it as he stepped past her, putting distance between them so he would have more of an opportunity to keep himself in check.

"But at least you reacted this time. That was a good one, too," he suddenly chirped, his voice no longer as dark as it had been mere seconds ago. "I was starting to think you'd lost your capability to get pissed entirely. It's good to see that my charms still work on you." Taking another swig of pop, he then folded his arms and leaned against the cabinet behind him, watching her from his new distance across the room. "Do you want me to bring anything back from Canada?" Ah, a glorious topic change that would hopefully gain him one last glare before their chat was over.

[Jean Grey-Summers]

When he grabbed her Jean for a second wasn't sure what was going on. She had been out of this type of interaction with Logan for so long, she actually felt a grain of fear in the pit of her stomach, and she knew that it showed in her eyes. The slight pressure that she felt she knew was only a fraction of a fraction of Logan's full power. It had been a long time since anyone had put their hands on her in a even mock violent way, and Jean couldn't help but look up to him. She knew he wouldn't hurt her. Knew that it wasn't even a thought in his mind.

"Your here because of me, Logan?" A part of her knew that, but refused to believe it. Refused to think about it. She didn't want to be the reason Logan was here. She didn't want to be the reason that he hung around the mansion, that he helped protect these students. Even though she knew that she had made it perfectly clear to him, she still couldn't help but feel... dirty. Like she was cheating on Scott, and like she was leading Logan on.

She didn't even feel as Logan released her shoulder, but she did feel herself lean back against the island. She watched him take a sip of his soda, and at the mere thought of finishing her eggs and bacon made her almost vomit. She turned away from him, until his voice chirped, and she turned looking at him incredulously. "God I forgot how much fun this was for you. How much fun you get in pissing me off and flustering me to the point where I feel sick." She shook her head as she took her plate and scraped it out in the garbage disposal. The Nazi that she was about the kitchen automatically cleaned the dishes that she had used while she thought.

"This isn't a game, Logan." she said when she was done, which coincided with his question about Canada, "I don't want anything from Canada, and if I am really the only reason that you are here..." she sighed, thinking about how upset Scott would be from a team leader point of view if she ran Logan out of the house, but how pleased he would be personally for the same, "Then I'm not to sure I want you to come back either." She turned to him, her eyes appraising him quietly, "Is this how you want to live your life, Logan? Pining after a girl who is not only taken, but dedicated to her husband, and the life that she has chosen for herself?" She shook her head, her hair escaping the half braid that she hadn't ever gotten around to finishing.

"I'd hate to see you go, Logan, but...Even I can say that that is no way to live your life."

[Logan Howlett]

There was a part of Logan that was devastated by her question. How did she not know - or pretend not to know - that he had only stuck around for her? How was that at all possible? What kind of a telepath was she, anyway? She knew that he wasn't a team player - that he hated institutions and rules and leadership. Staring at her for a long, tense second, Logan found that he was completely blank. "Are you serious?" He asked, incredulous as he watched her move to clean her plate. "What else would I be here for, Jean?" Spreading his arms a bit, Logan looked around the room that surrounded them. "The students don't like me, none of you lot like me, and I don't like living in the same place for more than a month, but dammit, Jean, I've given you years... and you're going to tell me that you didn't know that it was for you?" Dropping his arms, he shook his head and turned away from her.

How was he supposed to tell her that just being in the house with her was enough for him? Sure, it stung to have to witness Scott holding her, but Logan was a big boy - he knew a lost game when he saw one. It did no harm to hope, though, and be there on the offchance that something would happen. The truth was that he couldn't tell her that... couldn't even begin to explain himself, so he just huffed, anger causing the muscles in his back and shoulders to tense before he wheeled back to face her.

"I have given this - all of you - way too much time, Jean. You're not throwing me out that easily." Moving to the sink, he dumped out the rest of his soda, slamming the empty container into the trashcan as he moved past Jean. "And don't flatter yourself, Red. I don't pine after anybody. Certainly not somebody who is as dead on the inside as you are." This last part was hissed to her between Logan's teeth, and then he turned his back to her again, thick arms folding at his chest. He was standing at the window, glaring out at the landscape. Every inch of his posture screamed for him to be left alone to brood, but there was a hint of tension in the air. What would happen if she didn't walk away? Hell, Logan didn't even know the answer to that.

[Jean Grey-Summers]

Jean turned back on him anger evident in her eyes, her previous calm gone completely, "I'm sorry Logan, forgive me for thinking that maybe maybe after five years you would stop being so damned selfish. That you'd be able to look outside of yourself and realize that in all actuality there are people around here that care about you. The students look up to you, and the only reason that Scott hates you is because of me. And even then, he still respects you because of the fact that you are simply so Different from him!" She advanced on him, knowing and not caring that her emotions were getting the best of her powers. the pans that decoratively hung over the island began rattling thanks to Jean Grey's telekinesis. But she was too focused on Logan to care.

"And god damnit Logan Howlett you have some damn nerve telling me that I am dead on the inside. At least I can look outside of the deep well of hatred and pity for myself that I feel sometimes and see the people that care about me. You...You feel that all the time! And still refuse to believe anyone who says that they respect you, hell maybe even like you." She stopped in front of him levitating herself a few inches into the air so that she could truly look into his eyes.

"You wanna stay? Fine. I don't give a damn anymore. I'm tired of this. I'm tired of trying to understand you. I told you since day one that I belonged with Scott. And I know that you wish he would just fall into a fucking manhole and die, but let me tell you something, Wolverine." His codename came out of her mouth, tasting and sounding like the curse word she had meant for it to. Her voice dropped to a harsh whisper, more of a telepathic suggestion then actual words, "Even if he did, with the way that you act sometimes, you would be the very last person I came to."

With that she dropped back to the ground, noticing for the first time the clanging of the pots and pans, and taking another moment to realize that it was because of her. She quickly reigned in her power, and stalked to the refrigerator, where she had hidden a bottle of wine behind food that seemed to never get cleaned out. Fuck the fact that it wasn't even twelve o clock, the fact that at any moment a student could walk in and see the headmistress damn near battling it out over bacon and orange juice with a blueberry wine chaser, the fact that at this moment, Jean Grey could kill the next person that walked through the door. She was pissed. Anger that she had thought she could only reserve for David McTaggert.

She brushed a few strands of hair out of her face, and feeling the mass of hair that was there could only imagine what she looked like a second ago. Either she'd looked really good in a 'holy crap your so scary I wanna just do you right now" kind of way, or she'd looked really scary in a I-think-I-just-wet-myself kind of way. She could always feel when she's had one of those looks simply by running her hands through her hair.

[Jean Grey-Summers]

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