Disclaimer: Marvel owns them. I just have my wicked way with them. :)
Warnings: Explicit sexual content and some violence.
"I have to protest, Jean," Professor Xavier said, wheeling close to her. "You aren't in any condition to go back into his mind."
*Did I lose you, Jean?*
Jean bit back a curse. "Professor, you don't understand. Logan is calling me telepathically. I left him there and I have to go back. He won't be able to find his way out without me."
Charles sighed, rubbing his eyes. "You need rest, Jean. . . "
"I'll rest when Logan is back."
"I'm not going to be able to talk you out of this, am I?"
Jean smiled dryly. "I'm sorry, Professor, but no. I'm going back in and I'm going to bring Logan back."
Dr. Millar came out of the bathroom. "At least let me start an IV. Ya can't eat while you're in there and ya need nutrients or you'll keel over," she said.
"How long have I been in his mind?" Jean asked, finally noticing the trembling in her hands that signaled the need for food.
"Nearly six hours," Charles answered.
Six hours. . . Jean was astounded. Was the web of Logan's memories so tangled? "Go ahead with the IV."
Jean winced instinctively when the needle slid into her hand, but there wasn't much pain. "You're pretty good at that," she told Autumn.
Dr. Millar smiled briefly, hooking a tube to the needle. "So I've been told," she replied, starting a drip. "I figure that most people hate needles as much as I do, so I ought to be as gentle as I can. You're ready."
Jean nodded, then laughed. "What is it?" Autumn asked, giving Jean an odd look.
"I was just remembering the first time I put an IV in Logan's arm. He nearly choked me," she said with a smile.
Autumn raised an eyebrow. "Ya really do need some food, girl. I think you've gone daft."
Reaching for her calm center, Jean reestablished her grounding connection. "I'm ready," she said softly, and placed her hands on both sides of Logan's head, slipping back into his mind.
This time walking into Logan's mind was like walking down a tangled forest trail. Jean batted hanging vines out of the way and squeezed through twisted briars. "Logan!" she shouted, wincing when a bramble scratched her arm. *Logan! Where are you?*
She fell through the tangle of thorny branches and found herself in a clearing, staring down a powerful grey wolf. Jean was surprised; if she had expected any animal symbols in Logan's mind, she had expected his namesake, a wolverine. The wolf stared at her with intelligent eyes, as if it was examining her. After a long, breathless moment, the wolf lowered his head, almost as if he had nodded. He turned and started down a path, pausing once to look over his shoulder at her, seeming to beckon her to follow. Jean hesitated for only a second before trailing after the wolf, trailing him through the woods.
Everything was so dark and tangled. Things must have gotten worse since she'd pulled out of his mind. Loneliness and pain and confusion permeated the atmosphere, turning the air cold and damp. "I shouldn't have left," she whispered to herself.
The wolf stopped and looked back at her, staring her directly in the eye, just as Logan always did.
*Believe me, you would have done no good to him by staying and dying.*
Jean gaped; the wolf was talking to her?
What could almost be seen as a smile crossed the wolf's muzzle. *Not talking, really. But it's basically the same thing, isn't it?*
Jean knelt on the surprisingly soft ground, so that she was on eye-level with the wolf. "Are you Logan?" she asked.
The wolf bared its fangs, but Jean knew that this expression was a full grin. *Oh, no. I'm one of his spirit guides.*
"One of?"
*Yes. His wolverine is around here somewhere, and his falcon is perched right above us.*
Jean looked up and saw a huge brown falcon balanced on a branch above her head. It inclined its head to her in greeting and she did the same. "So, why are you the one that's talking to me? I'd think that his wolverine would be his. . . spokesman," Jean said.
The wolf nodded understandingly. *It would make sense, considering that so much of Logan's personality is based upon the wolverine. However, I am the one who has been guiding him of late.*
He sat down and licked one paw nonchalantly. *I am a restless wanderer, Jean. I travel the lands and return to my pack to share my knowledge. My sense of smell and instincts are so finely tuned that I can sniff out danger from miles away. I live in a close relationship with my mate, remaining true until I die,* the wolf paused and gazed at her meaningfully. *Do you see why I am his first guide?*
Jean nodded. "I do."
*Good. Now, I will tell you why we are here,* the wolf sniffed the air in a manner so like Logan that Jean smiled. *You are also one of his spirit guides.*
Jean's knitted her brows. "I don't understand," she said.
*You are his soul mate. Do you believe in reincarnation, Jean?*
"I think so."
The wolf nodded. *Well, each soul has a mate, another half, and humans spend all of their lives searching for that half. Many times, the halves come together, but something is missing, so they don't become complete. They don't join into one soul when they die.
*You and Logan have been dancing that dance for many lifetimes, more for you than him. It's quite a long and tragic story, and I don't have time to tell it all right now. Logan needs you right now, more than he has ever needed any of us.*
Jean watched a wolverine creep out of the forest tangle and hover at the edge of the trail. The wolf continued. *He needs you to guide him out of this place of darkness, and only you can do it. We are here simply to lend you strength.*
"I assume that I'm going to need it."
The wolf gave her a knowing look. *The worst still lies ahead, Jean. As I said, Logan will need you now more than ever. There are many things in his past that are horrifying, and can tear him apart. Walk beside him.
*He is just ahead. Are you ready to go?*
Jean looked from the wolf, to the wolverine, to the falcon. She could almost feel their strength flowing into her. "I'm ready," she whispered, rising and following the path into the darkness.
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