Fear wasn’t something that Logan could ever remember feeling. At least not for someone other than himself. But as he raced towards the mob of anti-mutant fanatics, Logan redefined his definition of terror.
Marie-- his sweet, beautiful Marie --was strung up from a tree while a throng of poor excuses for human beings cheered for her death. That was something Logan wouldn’t stand for. He’d promised Marie that he’d take care of her and Logan would be damned before he broke that promise. Marie was all that mattered at that moment.
Fight, kid. I know you can do it. Fight! Logan cried in his mind as he raced towards the tree that Marie was hanging from.
As he bolted across the lawn, Logan cursed Scooter and his goddamned plan. Because of Scooter’s plan, Logan was rescuing Marie in an olive green Armani suit. True, he blended in with the politicians who littered the crowd, but Logan couldn’t move quite as well in the tailored suit as he could in his own clothes. Besides, the time he had spent changing into the blasted suit with its royal blue silk shirt could have been put to better use trying to save Marie. He could have prevented the present turn of events.
Logan’s advance was slowed considerably when he reached the main mass of people crowding around Marie’s suspended body. Each of them was jostling for the prefect view while Logan struggled to reach Marie. Her movements were slowing considerably and that meant that she was losing oxygen faster.
“What’s your hurry, buddy? She’ll die no matter where you are,” a well dressed politician stated as Logan jabbed his elbow into his side.
“Get the fuck outta my way!” Logan roared, shoving the other man roughly to the ground. He stepped over the fallen man and continued to shove his way through the crowd.
It was a challenge for Logan to keep his cover and not let his claws extend. As it was, he was barely passing for one of the anti-mutant freaks roaming about, cheering as Marie fought for each breath of air. All that Logan wanted to do was let his more feral side take over and protect Marie.
Protect his mate.
That thought hit Logan with a suddenness that terrified Logan almost as much as the present situation. Logan had never felt that way about anyone. At least not that he could remember. It didn’t matter what he felt for Marie, though. Whether he loved her or not, Logan was going to do everything in his power to save her life.
FIGHT, DAMN IT!! YOU FIGHT THEM, MARIE!! Logan screamed to Marie, praying that she would somehow be able to hear him.
The following events threw Logan for a loop. Logan felt something inside of him snap and staggered slightly. The next thing that he knew, Marie had her arms free and was clawing at the rope around her neck. Knowing what was going to happen next, Logan released his claws, startling those around him. It was just the opportunity he needed. As the crowd parted, Logan was able to rush forward.
Glancing up, Logan saw Marie begin her rapid decent from the rope that she had been hanging from. Try as he might, Logan could not get to her fast enough to catch her before she hit the ground. Her legs crumpled under her and Marie laid in a heap on the ground, unmoving.
“MARIE!!” Logan roared, his voice breaking through the silence.
An almost clear path between him and Marie formed them. Wasting no time, Logan charged towards Marie’s prone form. Logan collapsed on his knees beside her, rolling her onto her back and gathering her up in his arms.
“Come on, Marie, look at me,” Logan murmured, running a hand through her hair. “Come on, kid, open your eyes. Please, Marie, open your eyes.”
There was no response from Marie and that worried Logan. Unable to think of anything to help her, Logan did the first thing that popped into his mind. It was very desperate, but Logan was willing to do anything to save Marie’s life.
“Just hang on, kid,” Logan whispered in her ear as he brought his hand up to her face.
Without hesitation, Logan began to trace a finger along the bottom of her lip. Seeing the dark, angry bruise around her throat, Logan lowered his lips to her throat. As Logan began to feel his energy draining for him, he pressed several soft, open-mouthed kisses along the bruise. Logan’s body began to tremble as more and more of his energy was drained from his body into Marie’s. It was a worthwhile trade as far as Logan was concerned.
“LOGAN!!!” Marie cried, her body arching against his.
With a relieved whimper, Logan collapsed on top of Marie. He was breathing heavily, gasping in lungfuls of air as he laid with his face pressed against Marie’s chest. At the feel of Marie’s fingers in his hair, Logan turned his head to press a kiss to her stomach.
There was a savage roar and Logan felt himself being torn violently from Marie. He flew through the air, slamming painfully into the tree that Marie had been hanging from only a few moments ago.
“Logan!”
Claws extended, Logan sluggishly lifted his head to glare at his assailant. He arched an eyebrow at the sight of Sabertooth all dressed up in a suit and tie with his hair cut, muttonchops and all. Had the situation not been so dire, Logan would have burst into tears. As it was, he could barely manage to remain standing.
“Hey there, runt. Long time no see,” Sabertooth snarled, grinning maniacally. “What say you and I finish what we started on the Statue?”
“I say you’re on, bub,” Logan grumbled, straightening his body as much as he was able to.
The gloves were removed and Sabertooth advanced on an incapacitated Logan. Breathing heavily, Logan pushed himself away from the tree and staggered towards Sabertooth. He refused to back down. It just wasn’t in him. Especially not after what Sabertooth had done to Marie.
With an outraged roar, Logan flung his hand over his chest in the wake of an attack by Sabertooth who lashed out with his right hand, clawing Logan painfully across the chest. The gouges were deep, destroying the expensive shirt. Not backing down for a moment, Logan launched an attack of his own, catching Sabertooth by surprise.
Logan knew that he couldn’t beat Sabertooth. Not in the condition he was in. It took a lot to make Logan admit something like that. Whether he won or lost, though, didn’t matter. He had saved Marie. Logan had done what he had set out to do. Marie was alive and that was the important thing.
A tear from his shoulder across his pectoral to the centre of his chest sent Logan down on one knee. Before Logan could regain his balance, he was backhanded and sent sprawling on the ground.
Logan felt someone-- most likely Marie --fling their body over his just seconds before he saw a bright flash of red light up above him. Logan tried to push himself up, but was held firmly in place by the person who was on top of him. Logan continued to struggle until he heard Marie whispering softly in his ear.
“Easy there, Logan. Let Scooter an’ the rest o’ them take care o’ it,” Marie murmured in his ear as she ran her hand up and down his back in a soothing motion. His head somehow ended up on her lap, but Logan didn’t mind one bit. Instead, he wrapped his arms around Marie’s waist, holding onto her as the X-Geeks took out Sabertooth and the blue-bellied bitch.
Once again, Logan found himself being ripped away from Marie. Not having the energy to fight against whoever was taking him away from his Marie, Logan let out a weak snarl. It had its desired effect because Marie’s gloved hands suddenly appeared on his face.
“It’s all right, sugah. It’s just Scooter. We’re gettin’ ya outta here,” Marie told him, her voice calming him instantly.
“Marie....”
“Ah’m here, sugah. Just sit tight,” Marie whispered, her voice very close to his ear. “Jeanie, there’s no way you could fly us to the jet! They’re getting closer!”
The wind around Logan began to move faster and Logan assumed that they were flying. All that Logan cared about was the fact that he could feel Marie’s fingers brushing through his hair on a continual basis. He focused on that, ignoring everything else around him. The pain in his chest was agonizing. Normally the wounds he’d received from Sabertooth would have healed by that point, but because he had spent so much energy helping Marie, Logan’s healing ability was seriously tapped.
Logan cried out in pain when Scott jerked him slightly.
“Will ya be careful, Scooter! Ya don’t need ta hurt Logan more than he already is!” Marie shouted as she moved her hands to soothe the sides of his face.
That was the last thing that Logan heard before he passed out.