A series by November

Chapter 44: On the Economics of Cookies

"Happy Day Before Your Birthday, Momma!" Maggie cried just before she bounced on Rogue’s sleeping form.

"Oof." Rogue blinked awake. "C’mere you little booger!"

It was their favorite ritual. "I’m not a booger!"

"You’re a crusty yellow little booger!"

"I’m not a booger!"

"Naw, you’re my sweetie. I love you." She wrapped her arms around Maggie and pressed a flurry of kisses to her face.

The team was dispatched without a hitch. Rogue was none the wiser. As far as she knew it was the standard pick-up-a-scared-teen-mutant run. A street-clothes mission, with just her, Scott, Storm and Hank.

She had went down to the gym just before they left. Logan was bench pressing. She shooed him over. "Hey," she whispered.

"Hey." He wiped sweat off of his forehead.

"I got called out. I just wanted to tell you something before I left."

But they had been interrupted by Scott, who told her they had to leave now. She glared at Scott. So did Logan. She was going to tell him that she loved him. Now it would have to wait.

Rogue shifted restlessly in her seat and wished she was at home. Tonight she was going out with her friends. She hadn’t seen Leah in way too long. Or Rakim, who had been in the city with his boyfriend.

And tomorrow. Storm had agreed to let them have the greenhouse for the night. Xavier, perhaps using his telepathy, or perhaps in cahoots with Storm, invited Maggie to have a sleepover with Gillian tomorrow. She made a mental note to thank him.

Tomorrow. She was going to give it all to him, and him to her. She couldn’t stop thinking about it. Happy Birthday to me, if I don’t go up in a blaze of pure ecstasy. But what a way to go.

She turned toward the window of the Blackbird. They were flying high above the clouds.

The radio crackled. Above the noise of the engine she could barely make out Xavier’s voice. Then Scott’s, much louder, over the intercom. "The mission has been aborted, we’ve been called back."

"Is everything okay?" Rogue asked, yelling to be heard.

"Everything’s fine. The kid is on his way here with the grandmother."

She was secretly glad.

They deplaned, and walked the hall to the elevators. They went up to the higher levels, and though Rogue had hit her floor, Scott pressed one.

The elevator doors opened, and there was Logan with flowers and a crowd of her friends and a painted banner that said "Happy birthday, Rogue!" She grinned and squealed. No one had ever thrown her a surprise party before. Rakim was there, Carter and Sherry and Art and Leah and Jubilee.

The next day she woke with joy in her heart and glitter in her hair, to the sound of a knock on the door.

She stumbled out into the living room and saw a stranger there.

"Marie... D’Ancato?" He asked. Her brows furrowed. No one called her that. But then she saw the white box.

"Flower delivery. Enjoy."

Rogue grinned and took the flowers to the kitchen counter.

"What’s that, momma?"

"Someone sent me flowers."

"Who?"

"I dunno." she lied. She was trying to keep from smiling.

"Can I see?"

"Sure." She lifted Maggie up onto the counter and opened the box.

Inside was a spray of purple flowers. All different shades of purple. Exquisite.

"Oooh, pretty!"

"Aren’t they? Wow."

"Who are they from?"

"Well, let’s find out." She picked up the white envelope.

Dark block letters on the white card.

Happy Birthday, baby.
--L

Despite all her intentions of keeping a poker face, she shrieked like a schoolgirl.

"What is it, Momma?"

"I’m just really happy."

Maggie reached for the card and before Rogue could snatch it back, she sniffed the card. "These are from Logan."

Rogue took back the card and tried to hide her burning cheeks by rooting under the sink for a vase.

"And how do you know that?"

"Cause I can smell him."

Rogue arranged the flowers in the vase. First she put a single violet orchid spray into a bud vase and gave it to Maggie. "This one’s for you."

"Pretty. What’s it called?"

"It’s called an orchid. And if you change the water every few days, it will stay alive for a long time. So, Magster, you can smell people?"

"This card smells like Logan."

"What other people can you smell?"

"Well last night you came home and you smelled like Logan too. Especially your lips. But you smelled like Jean and Jubilee too."

Oh, god, she thought. I’ll never get one over on this child.

"That’s a neat talent you got there, kiddo. Most people can’t do that."

"I know. I’m a mutant." Maggie said very seriously.

"Yes you are, sugar. A very cute mutant." Marie made a mental note to have Xavier retest her. She lifted her up from the counter and set her down on the floor.

"So Mags, do you still think Jeannie’s gonna have a baby?"

"Yes."

"Did you tell this to her?"

"Yes."

"And what did she say?"

"She asked me how I knew."

"Did she say it was true?"

"She said maybe."

"It would be nice for you to have someone to play with, wouldn’t it?"

"Yeah."

"Mags, can I ask you a question?"

"Yes."

"Do you like Logan?"

"Yeah. He draws good."

"Yes, he does draw well." Rogue said, trying to figure out to say what she wanted to say.

"When are you gonna marry him, Momma?"

"Um, Maggie, it’s a little bit early to be thinking of that."

"No it’s not."

"Well, yeah it is, but would that bother you?"

"I don’t want you to marry anyone." Maggie grinned.

"Why not?"

"More cookies for me."

Marie lunged for Maggie and grabbed. "You’re a silly little girl, you know that?"

"Yep."

Rogue laughed. "Well if I made cookies like I always do, and Logan made cookies too, seems to me there would be more cookies to go around, right?"

Maggie apparently didn’t catch her analogy.

"Yeah, right. Have you ever seen Logan eat?"

Later, there was another knock on the door. "Come in," Rogue called from the kitchen. It was so nice to be able to leave her door open. She made a mental note to tell Maggie to never do that if they moved off campus.

It was Jean. "Happy Birthday, Rogue." She put a prettily wrapped gift on the counter.

"Oh, thanks, Jeannie. Hey look, I have to apologize for anything Maggie might have said."

"It’s okay. She didn‘t tell me anything we didn’t already suspect."

Rogue smiled. "Are you ok?"

Jean smiled, a bit flustered. "Yeah. Just - it was unexpected."

"Is this a good thing, Jeannie?"

Jean smiled. "Yeah. It Is. A little sooner than I wanted, but yeah."

Rogue hugged her friend close. "Congratulations, honey."

"Thanks. Hey, open up your present already. And what‘s up with the gorgeous flowers?"

"What do you think?" Rogue smiled, eyebrow up.

Rogue ore the paper off of the box. It was an amber bracelet.

"Oooh. It‘s gorgeous. Amber?"

"Yeah. Scott picked it out, actually. In the village."

"Oh, it’s beautiful. I love it." She put it on. "I’m gonna wear my yellow dress today to match. So, how does Scott feel?"

"Oh, he’s bouncing-off-the-walls happy. I, however, am scared out of my mind."

"I bet. Well, your secret’s safe with me."

"I appreciate that. I don’t want to tell anyone until the second trimester."

"Who else knows?"

"Scott, me, Maggie, apparently. Hank because he did the ultrasound. Maybe Charles but he won’t say anything."

"I mentioned to Logan what Maggie had said. But I’ll tell him to keep his lips zipped."

"I appreciate it."

"Maggie, come in here!" Rogue said.

Maggie came in and Rogue lifted her up onto the kitchen island. "Hi Jeannie. Am I in trouble Momma?"

"No, sugar, you’re not in trouble. But you’re gonna have to keep the baby a secret, okay?"

"Okay."

"I mean it. You can’t tell anyone."

"Okay. I’m sorry."

"It’s okay, honey, you didn’t do anything wrong," Jean said, stroking Maggie‘s blue hair. "We just want it to be a surprise for a little longer, ok?"

"Okay."

Rogue put Maggie back down. "Go play, okay."

"Okay."

"Hey, Jeannie, I’m sorry, about all that. You didn’t come over to be grilled by me."

Jean got an evil grin. "No, I came over to grill you. What gives?" Despite the promised dish, Jean had been away at a conference and she and Rogue never had a chance to talk.

"Everything. Oh, god, I’m so damn in love," Rogue jumped up and down.

"Wow."

"Its... it’s been impossible not to trust him. I’ve tried."

"He’s madly in love with you too, Rogue."

"Oh? How do you know this?" Rogue teased. Everyone knew that Jean would never knowingly violate telepathic etiquette.

"Please, it’s obvious. And I resent your implication." Jean winked to show that she was joking. "The whole damn mansion knows it."

"I’ve never felt like this before, Jeannie. I feel like I could have a heart attack from joy alone."

"I know that feeling."

"We’re lucky. So, how does Scott feel about us?"

"Oh, he’s thrilled. He actually has a lot of respect for Logan. You do know that there was a bet going on for a long time?"

"A bet! Get the fuck out! And Scott won?"

"No, no one won. We all thought you’d be together months ago."

"You bet on us too?" Rogue shrieked.

"Of course I did."

"You little bitch!" she grinned.

"So what happened to the pool?"

"Jubilee has it. I guess she needs to give everyone’s money back. The bet was when you guys would be having hot monkey sex, and I quote."

"And nobody bet this far ahead?"

"No. I think the most anyone bet was Xavier at six weeks."

"Xavier bet too!?"

"Everyone bet, honey."

"Well, it hasn’t happened yet, so I think Logan and I should get the winnings."

Jean laughed. "That’s fair. So - tonight?"

"Oh yeah." Rogue smiled and narrowed her eyes.