Healing

Chapter 10

Logan sighed. They were packing to go back. It had been a long couple of days, and he was quite tired. Scott had been very quiet ever since they had spoken to Victor yesterday. Jenny had fussed over the kid since they had gotten back. Neither of them seemed to have enough room in their bags though.

"I'm sure I must have gotten more stuff. Everything fit in when I came..."

"I know... oh, this isn't even mine. Catch Logan."

A jacket quickly flew into his face. Logan smirked, and wrapped it around his waist. He wasn't trying to get more in this bag.

"I'm gonna go borrow another bag, I think..."

XXX

"But professor... ok. Ok... Fine, I will. Thanks. Where we going? Ok... Bye."

Scott was driving, while talking to the professor on his phone. The thin line his mouth had become indicated Scott pleasure at what instructions he was receiving. He watched his upper lip curl slightly...

"New orders..."

"Which are...?"

"We are off to see the Wizard." The kid smirked, and looked expectantly at him.

"... The wonderful wizard of Oz?" He was getting beamed at now.

"Sadly not. He's from somewhere in Europe, I think. Not too good with recognising accents."

"Oh."

"I've never met him though... the way Charles speaks about him makes me think he's a bit... eccentric."

"Wonderful. What we doing there?"

"Need to know basis with this one Logan. You're there to 'Keep me alive' ... but he's telepathic, so you don't get to know." He grinned at him.

"Keep you alive. Whoa." They took a sharp turn to change the motorway they were on. Scott grinned and tugged on his seatbelt. Logan rolled his eyes and fastened his own.

"Thank you... yeah. The professor truly has a way with words. Don't worry; I'll try my best to make your job in this easier."

Logan smirked. He shifted and began to hunt for some good music.


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Scott sighed, causing Logan to look up. They had checked into a small motel nearly half an hour ago.

"Kid? What's up?"

"I was looking forward to getting home. To having things return to some normality. Even to get back to teaching."

The kid tried smirking, but it didn't quite work. The expression quickly died. Logan sat next to him, wrapping an arm around his shoulders.

"Tired?"

"I guess."

They sat together quietly. Logan had to smile. The feel of a body in his arms was nice. Especially one he cared about. He pressed his face into Scott hair, breathing in the faint scent of shampoo.

The kid had his head on Logan's shoulder. It was comfortable, the man decided. It made him feel trusted, and strangely useful. The professor's instruction to him echoed in the back of his head. He was to keep Scott alive. That didn't bode well for what was coming. He had come to a decision though. He was going to stand by Scott.

He'd phoned 'Ro that morning, the need to sort this thoughts out had been too big to ignore, but too complex to do alone. She'd managed to spend a good half hour laughing at him. It had been fairly embarrassing, but she had made one thing clear; Scott had a very good opinion of him.

Her exact words had been 'Why the Hell would he spend so much time with you if he had any objections anymore? Scott's too stubborn to do stuff he doesn't want to quietly.' ... she had then suggested Logan tried kissing him. The result had been Jenny getting coffee spat in her face. He'd apologised endlessly, but she had dismissed him, and asked what had shocked him. Logan had been unable to answer.

With the kid in his arms now, he thought of 'Ro's suggestion. Would Scott kiss him back, or would he punch him? Maybe he'd sit through it and not do anything. His stomach twisted as he debated.

Logan tilted his head back to look into the kid's face. He was still awake, his breathing wasn't slow and steady; in fact, it was almost erratic.

"Logan?" he whispered softly, before frowning. Logan just stared.

Scott leaned up, and pressed his lips to Logan's in a quick, chaste kiss. The young man then leaned back, and turned his head a way, a light blush spreading across his cheeks. Logan grinned, and figured he hadn't been the only one thinking along those lines. Possibly not the only one talking to 'Ro. He tightened his grip on Scott, and pressed a kiss into his hair.

"I made a decision, you know." Scott whispered, after sitting in Logan's arms for another half hour.

"Really?" he grunted softly in response.

"I know she's not quite Jean, at least, not all the time. But ... she's not... I mean, she is important, but not ... only. I mean, you... you are important to me. You're more than just a man I didn't like who stood by me after my fiancée died."

Anything else Scott tried to say was swallowed up by Logan's mouth. He kissed the younger man roughly, pinning him down and ravaging his mouth. Their lips slid over each other as their tongues battled. He pulled away, and smiled. Scott returned the expression, and allowed himself to be pulled into a hug.


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The Wizard was an old man. He was, as Scott expected, fairly crazy. He sniggered to himself a lot, and muttered under his breath all the time. Logan had commented on it to Scott within 10 minutes of meeting him, but Scott simply replied that he had difficulty telling the difference between a spoken comment and a thought. It led the man to be an unnoticed observer of many conversations, and he didn't always seem to notice people didn't usually respond to what he said.

Logan felt a twinge of sympathy for him. He wondered if it was the feeling of being invisible to everyone that pulled on his sanity. He'd been unable to stop a growl pushing into his throat though, when the man had placed his hands either side of Scott's head and searched his mind. Mine had been the dominant thought at that moment, but Scott had scowled at him, so he forced a neutral expression onto his face and nodded his head.

The two had gone off to discuss whatever he'd seen. However, as the man led Scott away into the adjoining room, he'd sent a thought to Logan.

"Hold onto what is yours. She's understanding as herself, but she isn't strong."

The "Eh?" Logan had let out led to a sigh in his brain.

"She still loves him, but she would do anything for him. Her current aim is to keep herself and Victor occupied so that you and Scott can get him properly fixed up. Yes, I can hear her thoughts. As a telepath, she is strong, but naive. She doesn't realise that others can hear her so easily. She projects."

"Fixed?" Logan tried to whisper back in his head, with no real idea of how. It seemed to work though, the man grinned.

"Fixed. So he can fight the Phoenix without breaking, like he did by the Lake?"

"You know about that?"

"He let me see everything..."

The link was cut off, and the door to the other room shut. Logan sat on the ground, and shut his eyes. He slowed his breathing and concentrated on listening. He would protect Scott to the very best of his ability. Nothing could get in the way of that.