The shrill scream that pierced the night air brought Logan up out of a dead sleep and left him standing in the middle of the room, wearing only the jeans he'd gone to sleep in, with his claws out and a snarl dying on his lips. As awareness came back in a rush, another strangled cry tore right through his soul and his eyes turned to the alcove. In the darkness, he could see Kiara's still sleeping form where it thrashed amidst the sheets. On bare feet, Logan padded silently across the wood floor towards her. Even with nothing more than the light of the moon shining in the single window, he could see where her short hair was plastered to her forehead with the sweat than ran in rivulets down her face. Her face twisted into a grimace of pain, her eyes clenched shut against whatever horrors ran rampant through her dreams... Bending down over her, Logan reached out his left hand and gently grasped her right shoulder. The moment his hand came into contact with her bare skin, he realized his mistake. Same mistake Rogue made...
Even knowing it was coming, the blinding speed with which Kiara moved was still too fast for even Logan to get out of the way. The claws of her left hand sank into his side with a sickening thud as she surged upwards out of the bed. "Oh fuck..." Logan bit out past the pain, as his legs gave and he sank to his knees beside the bed, tearing her claws out of his flesh in the process. Kiara stared down at the fresh blood on her claws - *his* blood - and then down at his bowed head. The claws retracted with a metallic snap, leaving only her bloodied hands.
"Oh god, Logan..." The anguish in her voice was more than he could bear and, even though it was almost too much effort to even breath past the agonizing pain in his side, Logan forced the words out.
"I'm... alright.... just... give me... a minute...." With each breath he forced, he could feel the tears in his lungs reparing themselves. Could feel the muscles knitting themselves together again... Raising his head up, he could see Kiara sitting on the bed, collapsed into herself, her body racked by uncontrollable sobs. Easing himself down into the space between Kiara's back and the wall of the alcove, Logan out a hand to gently stroke her back. "Hey, it's alright.... no permanent damage..." With a force that knocked him backwards into the wall, Kiara turned and buried her tearstreaked face in his chest. Feeling his heart tighten and still not fully comprehending why this stranger's pain should cut him so deeply, Logan wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly to him. "Shh.... shh....." he murmured into her hair as his hands continued to stroke her back. Gradually the sobbing eased and the maddening trickle of hot tears down his bare chest slowed and then stopped.
"You wanna talk about it?" he asked softly, brushing the damp hair away from her face. A mute shake of her head was his only answer. So, they simply sat as they were, with Kiara's face still buried in Logan's chest and his hands stroking her hair and back. Even though the tears had long since passed, the air remained charged with emotion and he was becoming acutely aware of every single point where her bare flesh touched his. Kiara's began to trace absentminded circles through the soft hair on his chest and Logan felt his breath catch in his throat. Fighting desperately to maintain some control, he ground his teeth together. Don't be a dick, Logan. She's upset, she's just looking for a shoulder to lean on. Don't read into it. Do *not* read into it.... The electrifying sensation of a soft, hesitant kiss on the bare skin of his chest, just above his thudding heart, picked control up and threw it bodily out the window. Okay, *read* into it...
Trembling with the need to not rush this, Logan let his fingers trace lightly down the curve of her shoulder to her hip. The hesitancy of her kisses was lost, as she pressed her warm lips more firmly to his burning skin. The warm, spicy scent of her seemed almost overwhelming and he let his hand slip down to rest on her lower stomach, as his other hand rose to cup the back of her head as she bent over his chest. The flick of a wet tongue over his nipple tore a groan from his throat and the time for passive participation came to an abrupt end. No longer trembling fingers tilted her head back as his lips came down on hers. Her lips tasted both sweet and salty from the tears that had fallen what seemed like such a long time ago, and Logan could easily imagine himself spending the rest of his days kissing those tender lips... And then she parted her lips to him and the world dissolved into pure sensation. Joined in a familiar dance... the way she sucked his lower lip into her mouth... It was all *too* familiar... In sudden shock, Logan jerked away from her. Kiara stared up at him with eyes as wide as saucers. Those lips... those eyes.... he *knew* them. He knew *her*. He was sure of it.
"What's wrong, Logan?" she asked nervously, as he continued to stare down at her in dumbfounded surprise.
"You... you didn't feel that?" Damn it, even his voice was trembling now...
"Feel what?" Confusion was plain on her face now. She knew he wasn't simply talking about the pleasure of the kiss. No, the weight in his voice said he meant a lot more than that...
"I *know* you. I mean, we've kissed before.... Damn it, I know it!" Agitation and anger over not being able to remember more than that taste of familiarity were warring inside him now. Kiara shook her head rapidly in response.
"No, Logan. No, I don't know what you're talking about. You're just tired... we're both tired. I think we need to get some sleep now...." The words came out in a gush, and Logan's eyes narrowed. He could hear the belief she held in those words, but at the same time, he could sense subconscious denial inside her. Knowing that to push his point, to make her believe him, would only make her run, he dragged a frustrated hand over his face and sighed.
"Yeah, you're probably right..." Kiara smiled up at him in relief.
"You know... you don't have to go back to sleeping on the floor..." The invitation was there and he was glad of it. Even if she didn't feel that connection, that linked past, he wanted to be as close to her as he could get. After all, she was the first real, tangible piece of his own past that he'd come across in 15 years...
No more words were spoken as they both settled down into the sheets. Logan lay with his head on one arm, and the other arm around the now sleeping woman whose head was resting on his chest. Although he felt both frustrated and excited at the same time, sleep didn't take long to find him. He felt comfortable, like a part of him that had been missing had finally come home, and even fear of nightmares wasn't enough to keep him awake...
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