Until We Get It Right

Where You Belong

"We're close." Laura said, looking up at a contraption on the cliff. Was that a makeshift lift? "Rictor!"

"Laura, we don't know if we're somewhere safe. Are you sure yelling is the best idea?" Hera asked, beginning to falter under Logan's weight.

"Rictor! We need help!"

To Hera's surprise, the figure of a boy not much older than Laura appeared peering over the edge of the cliff.

"Laura! We'll send the platform! Just wait a minute." The boy called down.

Laura and Hera smiled widely at each other. Hera sat Logan's unconscious form against a rock and took a deep breath. Laura launched herself at the woman, wrapping her small arms around Hera's waist.

"We made it, kiddo. We made it. You go up first. I'll get Logan strapped in second, and then I'll come up last. Alright?"

Laura nodded, happy to finally be at their destination. "We're safe. We can go together and be safe. You and Logan could help us. You could take care of us like Charles. Like his school."

"You know I'd love nothing more than to stick around and take care of you. To help you and your friends. But you know that's up to Logan in the end. I'll take you as far as I can. But my home is with him."

Laura nodded. She knew that Hera belonged wherever Logan was. She just hoped that was with her. The platform made it to them, and Laura went up first. Hera strapped Logan securely to the platform and yelled for them to pull him up, then wasfinally pulled up herself. The group of children didn't hesitate to help move him, giving Hera a break. Laura grabbed her hand and walked in the back of the group as they were led to camp.

When they arrived to where the others had been hiding out, Hera gave Laura's hand a gentle squeeze. "You need to get some more rest."

Laura shook her head. "You first."

"What if we both get some rest? Logan will probably be out for a while. We can have the others wake us when he gets up." Her gaze strayed to where Logan now laid on a bed. He would need time to recuperate, and honestly, so did she.

Laura nodded and looked to Rictor. "Where can we sleep?"

Rictor pointed to a bunk bed. "There. Rest as long as you need. We will watch over you."

"Thank you. All of you. Your help is far more than we could have asked for. And if you need help when he wakes up, please get me." Hera said, smiling at the children around her. "He may not exactly be the most cooperative."

"No need to thank us. You helped get Laura here safely. We should be thanking you." Rictor said earnestly.

Laura tugged gently on her hand, causing Hera to look down at her.

"Will you lay there with me?"

Hera looked at her, a bit surprised, but nodded. She knew what it was like to want that security and comfort from having someone close. "Of course. Come on."

They laid on the bottom bunk, Laura curled tightly into Hera's side as sleep quickly took them both.

A few hours later, Logan's eyes blinked open. He found that he was on a bed now, body weak, eyes heavy. He saw the kids. Some of them sleeping, reading, or busy. A few of them tended to him. One of the kids brought a wet cloth for Logan, but before handing it to him, she held it under her breath, freezing it into an ice pack for his battered ribs.

"Where am I?" Logan croaked out.

"Is this good, Rictor?" One of the boys asked, drawing a few drops of green fluid from a vial into a syringe.

"Not so much. Less."

Logan squinted at the bottle and grabbed it. "Where did you get this?!"

Some of the children stepped back at his harsh tone.

"Where we come from." Rictor explained calmly. "They gave it to us when we fight. It makes you stronger."

"It makes you crazy is what it does. It'll kill you."

"Not in small doses. It's helping you heal, man."

Logan looked around as he tried to sit up. "Where's Hera? Where's Laura?"

"They're asleep." Bobby said, pointing to where Laura was wrapped tightly around Hera's arm like a lifeline. "Do you want me to wake them up?"

"...No." Logan decided. They had been going nonstop, and they both deserved a chance to rest unbothered. He laid back down, closing his eyes again.

Near dusk, Hera woke with a small gasp. She looked up to see Rictor standing with a hand outstretched as if he was about to tap her shoulder. She held up a finger to signal for him to wait for a moment, then gently pulled her arm from Laura's iron grip. She stood up and walked over to the door, walking out to the cooling afternoon air.

"I know you haven't gotten much rest, but the younger kids were wondering if you could make a small dinner? We've been living off sandwiches for a while, and we have the stuff to make dinner. We just don't know how to cook very well." Rictor asked.

"Of course I can." She assured him. "Take me to the kitchen, I'll take care of it from there."

Thirty minutes later, there was a passable spaghetti with meat sauce on plates for all the kids. They dug in enthusiastically, thanking her with mouths full of food.

Hera simply smiled and walked to the makeshift bedroom. She kneeled beside Laura and placed a gentle hand on the girl's arm.

"Corazóncito. La cena está lista. Deberías ir a comer con tu familia."

Laura's eyes opened, and she blinked blearily. She looked at Hera, then over to Logan's sleeping form.

"¿Lo estás despertando para que venga a comer?"

"Voy a cuidarlo mientras todos comen. Déjanos lo suficiente para que tengamos en un rato, ¿vale?"

"Sí." Laura agreed, finally going to eat with the others.

Hera pulled a chair over to Logan's bedside and sat in contemplative silence. A million questions ran through her mind. Why would Temporus send her here? What gave this timeline a better chance of thriving if she was there? And why on earth did he call her some sort of "anchor being"?

Logan shifted in his sleep, breaking her out of her mental spiral. She looked at his face, relieved to see that he looked much more relaxed than he had earlier. Fuck, she had missed him. Yeah, this might not have been the same Logan as the one she knew before, but it was still Logan. It killed her to not be able to just hold him and reassure him that he was loved and doing everything he could. That Charles's death hadn't been his fault. Or any of the other X-Men for that matter. 

She didn't even realize that she had fallen asleep until Logan himself woke with a start, screaming. Laura sat on a chair beside her, watching them. He met her eyes, disoriented, shaken.

"Hey, you're alright. You're okay, love." She soothed him, gently holding his face in her gloved hands. His hands came to hold hers as his heart raced. "You're here. Wherever your mind went, you aren't there. You're safe."

His breathing slowed, and she slowly moved her hands from his face. She looked to Laura as she stood. "You stay with him. I'll go get water and a damp cloth."

Laura nodded and watched as Logan's eyes followed Hera's form until the woman was no longer visible.