The Savage Lands
15:03 (3:03 pm)
Day 3

"Ah wish we could stay like this forever."

Logan sighed and stroked Rogue's hair. "I know."

He felt little drops of hot wetness fall on his chest. "Are you crying?" he asked, concerned.

"Uh—uhuh..." Rogue managed between sobs.

He put his other arm around her. "Rogue...don't cry...shhh...it's ok..."

She sniffled. "Ah'm-ah'm just thinking—what-what it'll be l-like b-back home..."

He swallowed noisily. Home was a place he tried to keep his mind off of.

"E-everything will be d-different...ah won't b-be able to t-touch you..."

He pulled her closer. "I know...I know..." he soothed. "But we'll always have the memories."

She broke out into fresh tears. "But m-memories aren't good en-nough!"

He inhaled deeply. "We'll figure it all out then," he said. "Don't worry about it."

He stayed awake long after Rogue had drifted off, thinking. What would things be like at home? He wondered. Would they be together?

He looked at Rogue, sleeping peacefully by his side, and felt guilty.

Had he used her? He hoped not. He didn't like the idea of anyone using the beautiful young woman in his arms, least of all him.

Do I love her? The thought struck him hard. I don't know, do I?

He knew beyond a doubt that she was his friend, maybe his best friend. But did he love her? He finally decided to shove the matter aside, as he had done with so many things, and think about it later.

Rogue woke up later, energized by her nap. She remembered where she was and what she had done earlier, and she smiled. She cuddled closer to his side, feeling secure and protected in his arms, as she never had before.

Her mind idly began to drift, and she saw flashes of the moments before played in her head. Then a thought struck her. Does he love me?

She thought back to those precious moments. He certainly acted like he did.

But he hadn't told her, hadn't said anything when she was crying.

We'll always have the memories.

She bit her lip. Did he see their relationship as a thing of the past already? Or was this even a relationship? She tried to deny it, but the facts remained. A cold feeling overtook her.

He used me.

She sat up and gazed down on his sleeping form, his peaceful face, free for once from expressions of pain from his nightmares.

The bastard used me.

She got up wearily and walked to the water, shivering as she stepped in to wash herself.

He used me. The thought played itself over and over again in her head as she collected her clothes and put them on, not paying attention to her surroundings, not noticing the people slowly creeping up on her. She saw at the last minute and tried to scream, but it was too late.

The Xavier Institute for Gifted Children
16:45 (4:45 pm)
Day 3

"I'm starting to worry about them, Scott."

Cyclops made no reply as he gazed at the blank graph on the screen in front of him.

"Do you think they ran into engine trouble?"

Cyclops cleared his throat. "It's always possible."

Jean frowned. "I tried a search with Cerebro, but I couldn't reach them..."

Cyclops turned around and looked at Jean. "That could mean they're unconscious..."

"Or even dead..." Jean finished for him. "But it's also possible that they entered an area that has power blocks like we were discussing last night."

She thought about the rumors that had been circulating around lately, of machines that could make it impossible to use any kind of mutant power in whole areas.

"I wonder if they found anything," Jean said thoughtfully.

Cyclops shrugged.

"It's just so odd, how everything just cut off. All the signals, everything, just vanished."

He nodded.

"We could go investigate it," Jean suggested. "If there was a crash of some sort, they're more than likely to be alive, what with Rogue's invulnerability and Logan's healing factor."

Cyclops sighed. "You're right, Jean. We should go search for them. Go get Storm and meet at the Blackbird in fifteen minutes."

Magneto's Headquarters, The heart of the Savage Lands
18:06 (6:06 pm)
Day 3

"Master, we have brought the intruders as you have asked."

Magneto turned away from the great arched window looking out to the Savage Lands and faced the small green frog-like man kneeling before him. "Excellent. Have your confirmed their identities?"

A nasty grin spread over the frogman's sickly features. "They're from the X-men. They go by the codenames Wolverine and Rogue."

Magneto stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Ahh. Yes. Wolverine would have the adamantium implants in his skeleton?"

The frogman nodded.

"And the other has absorbing powers on skin-to-skin contact, am I correct?"

The frogman flicked his tongue out and retrieved a passing by fly before responding. "Yeah. The file said she's also got some kind of super power thing going on. She can fly too."

Magneto stretched his arms out and summoned a large metal object, his helmet, to him. "Good work, Toad. They will prove useful in my plan."

Toad grinned nastily.

"Restrain them and put them in the secure room. I wish to have a little talk with them."

Toad bowed. "Very well, sir. I will do it immediately."

Magneto turned back to the window as Toad hopped away. He smiled as he placed the helmet on his head. "They will prove useful," He said to himself. "Very useful."

"Rogue..."

Rogue moaned and rolled away from the sound threatening to wake her up from her ignorantly blissful drug-induced sleep.

"Rogue...Rogue...Rogue..."

She finally sat up, rubbing her eyes.

"What?" She mumbled thickly.

"Rogue. They've got us."

She struggled to put Logan into focus. "Who's got us?" His image gradually became clearer.

"I'm still not totally sure, but I gotta gut feelin' this is Magneto's doin'."

She shook her head, trying to remember the past events of the day. "That's right, we were surrounded..."

Logan nodded.

"Where were you, shugah?"

He swallowed. "I...we...don't you remember?"

Rogue started to shake her head, but then it all crashed back to her. "We...we slept together, didn't we?"

Logan dropped his gaze to the ground.

He used me. The thought returned and pulsed through her veins like fire. The bastard.

"Look...Rogue...I didn't mean to...make you think we..."

She looked at him.

He knew. Somehow, he knew what she was thinking.

"Make me think we were what?" She said coldly. "Make me think we were in a relationship?"

Logan grimaced. "I didn't mean...I...didn't mean to use you..."

She smiled bitterly. "Ain't that what they all say." She snapped.

He growled menacingly. "Look Rogue, I'm telling the truth. I didn't mean to, and I'm sorry. But..."

Rogue turned away. "Ah've heard enough. Just figure out how to get us outta this dump and maybe ah'll leave you a lil' bit of hide to heal with."

Logan sighed in frustration and studied their surroundings. They were in a small cell made of brick, enclosed by metal bars with a large wooden door beyond.

He popped a claw and rapped on one of the bars. Adamantium, he thought with a snarl. Figures.

He walked over to the only little patch of light, which came from a candle stuck in a candle bra fastened to the wall, next to a barred window. He gazed out through the bars and saw nothing but darkness until his senses grew accustomed to the absolute lack of light. He was able to make out that they were a good distance off the ground, seemingly in a corner tower.

"Powers still out, Rogue?"

She didn't bother to turn. "Whaddaya think, bonehead? If ah had em, Ah'd be outta here before you could say lickety-split."

He growled and massaged the knuckles on his injured hand.

They stayed silent for a long while. "Ah can't believe you would do that to me, Logan." Rogue whispered finally.

He left the window and started pacing around the cell. I can't believe it either, he thought. But I did it.

"Ah thought you were a good person. Ah guess ah was wrong."

He dropped down beside her. "You're right. I'm not a good person. I'm a rotten good-for-nothing-bastard." He snarled.

"You think I want to hurt you? You're my best friend, Rogue. But I guess not anymore if you think I wanted to use you!"

Rogue opened her mouth to reply but was cut off as the scraping of a key in a heavy lock was heard. "Wha-"

The door opened.