Shades of Red and Grey (X-Men Fic)

Part 7

“Hey Slim, wait up.” Logan walked his usual unhurried pace towards the couple up ahead. They paused and turned. Summers stiffened and the smile trickled from Jean’s face. Curious, Logan took a tentative sniff of the air and studied the two. Ol’ One Eye, looking haggard with his face scratched up, was scared and Red started to act defensive.

“Don’t shoot the messenger, bub.” Logan held up his hands in mock surrender. “I’m just relaying the word from Chuck. He wants to see you.”

“Both of us?”

“Nope, just Slim.” He answered Jean. She frowned slightly and turned back to Scott. A look passed between them, something bordering terror and skepticism.

“I’ll catch up with you later, okay?” Scott leaned over and gave Jean a quick peck on the cheek. Logan snickered. They made out to be such prudes in public. Sometimes Logan cursed the fact he had such heightened senses; it made sleeping really difficult when the two were in the mood.

“You bet.” Scott walked off in the direction Logan had come from.

“You off to breakfast?”

“That was the idea.” She gave Logan a small sideways smile and started walking. “You want to come with?”

“That was the idea.” He fell into line beside her, taking in the small nuances of the way she moved, and the way the red silk dress flowed over her curves. Jean looked tired, a little overwrought, and paler than usual.

Logan knew what had happened, at least the gist of it, from what he was able to coerce out of Hank. The whole mansion smelled of fear and pain after he came back from his walk around the woods last night. He wasn’t sure if something had happened to one of the kids, but finding Jean and Scott in the med lab had changed that idea. Scott looked as if he had taken on a glass window and lost. Jean was unconscious and bleeding from her nose, suffering from overtaxing her mutation. Hank attributed it to a Danger Room incident, but Logan figured it somehow had to do with the way Scott had acted during the meeting earlier.

“Jeannie.” Reaching out, he slipped a gentle hand around her arm. She stopped and turned, glancing between his hand and his face.

“Logan?”

“You okay?” His dark eyes narrowed, signaling she be better off not lying to him. She stiffened slightly under his touch.

“I’m just a little tired is all.” Meeting his eyes, Jean smiled. “Really.”

“And Scott?”

The smile faded and her mouth pouted slightly.

“You know, despite the fact I think he’s an dick, I don’t wish the man pain, unless I’m on the giving end.” Logan smirked slightly. “I know he fucked himself up pretty good last night and dragged you down with him.”

“He didn’t ‘drag’ me anywhere.” Jean spoke through her teeth and tried to remove her arm from Logan’s grasp. His fingers tightened enough to keep hold. “He got into some trouble. I helped him deal with it. End of story.”

“I don’t believe you, Red.”

“What do you want me to tell you, Logan?” Her face flushed a deep red, flustered at being cornered. She didn’t want to talk about it, especially not with Logan. It wasn’t any of his business.

“The truth.” He took a step forward and closed the gap further by pulling Jean towards him.

“What makes you think you deserve to know that?” Her voice was low, her green eyes boring into his dark gaze. “You’re not his friend, nor have you ever tried to be.”