A series by November

Chapter 90: All is Calm; All is Bright

Shortly after Charlotte was born they moved to their new apartment in Pryde Hall. The new apartment had four bedrooms, a dining room, one and a half baths, a balcony, and a fairly large kitchen. It was positively palatial in comparison to the cramped suite they had been in.

Kurt had always creeped Logan out for some reason he couldn't define, but that ended on their moving day. While he and Scott carried boxes out and across the quad, Kurt teleported back and forth four or five times, each time carrying a box or two. Both apartments reeked of brimstone by the time everything was moved, but that was a small price to pay for the help. Logan had a newfound appreciation for the blue mutant who was so helpful with no apparent reason to be, and afterward they drank beer with Scott and Storm. So much bamfing back and forth tired Kurt out, and he fell asleep on their couch. Logan smiled and put a blanket over him. Maggie sweetly tucked his tail underneath it. She had loved Kurt from the beginning.

Hank was their next-door neighbor in a much smaller apartment, and Ray and Rakim were on the other side. Scott and Jean were across the hall but their place was not yet ready for them due to problems with the plumbing. Maggie ran happily around the halls of the new building, exploring. It was eight stories high, contained a gym, classrooms, and residences for tenured staff.

At Marie's suggestion Xavier commissioned a painting of Kitty to put in the lobby of the new building. Rogue had gone through both her and Jubilee's photos, looking for the best one. They chose one of the three of them at the top of the Empire state building, taken by Maggie's shaky three year-old hand. Marie and Jubilee were blurred but Kitty was smiling in the center, relaxed and happy.

Logan painted her that way, alone, with the sky behind her, warm amber highlights in her ponytailed hair, heart-shaped face framed by loose tendrils. He didn't let Marie see it until he was finished and when he did, she cried. It looked more like Kitty than the photo did and for a second she missed her friend so much it hurt physically. Now, anyone entering or exiting Pryde Hall via the main lobby did so under Kitty's smiling gaze and a plaque in her memory.

They settled into their new digs quickly. Though their schedules revolved around Charlotte and Freddy, who were thankfully in sync after a few days, they were spoiled by living in the school. There was always someone to take the babies: grandparents Charles and Mariah, "aunts" Jean and Jubilee and "uncles" Scott, Carter, Ray, and Rakim.

One day Mariah and Jubilee were in their apartment and arguing over who would get to watch the kids, when Logan and Marie looked at each other.

"Get the keys," she said quickly.

"Here's your boots."

"Hurry up, before they change their minds!"

Outside, it was snowing softly. They bundled up and stepped out into the quiet night. He took her hand in his and they walked their usual circuit around the grounds, around to the front gate, back around the greenhouse and duck pond, around the amphitheater and the old building, and out past the maze.

"Hey Bub," she finally spoke.

"Yeah?"

"We're like, married with children and stuff."

"I know."

"We're like one step away from a mini-van."

"Bite your tongue, woman."

"I'm serious, when did this happen?"

"Dunno." He grinned and put his arm around her.

Logan had loved Maggie from the start, from the first time she glibly said "hi Logan" with no fear of him, but he never quite felt that she was his. He always had a sense of not belonging to the family that she and Marie had forged together, of being an intruder. But having Charlotte dispelled all of those notions. Outwardly he was still the same serious, sometimes gruff, fiercely protective, sometimes funny Logan. Only he was aware of how profoundly fatherhood changed him.

But now everything was changed. His first goal in life was to protect the tiny little girl and the rest of his family. It made him see his whole life differently, and more importantly, see himself differently, even more so than marrying Marie did. He was now less focused on being Logan, Torture Survivor, and while the nightmares still came, that part of him was no longer in the forefront. He was Logan, Father, Husband, Protector.

More importantly, he had gone from being Logan with no memory of a past and not much hope for the future, to Logan with family roots: a mother before him, and a name he would pass on to the children after him.

The sudden context of his life, his own inclusion in the cycle of life and birth and death, was a wonder that was still hard for him to grasp. He'd never dreamed his life would be like this.

He was happier than he had ever been.

Maggie slowly warmed to Freddy but she was still devoted to Charlotte first and foremost. Her hair was growing at a staggering rate. At one month old, it was long and curly and almost down to her little bum. Maggie loved to braid it into elaborate updos, which Charlotte tolerated surprisingly well. Charlotte was a calm and affectionate baby who loved everyone around her.

At first Maggie eyed Freddy cautiously, looking at him all the time. Then in the first week of December, Logan caught her looking into the crib, talking softly to him, curiously touching his scaly skin. From then on she would occasionally hold him or play with him. Still, no foster parents were found.

Christmas was a riot of gifts and children and noise that came and went in the blink of an eye.

A blizzard fell on Christmas eve, blanketing the grounds in snow. During the day the children were out en masse, playing tag, sledding, throwing snowballs. Maggie and Gillian chased the boys around, bombarding them.

This escalated into a full-fledged battle of the sexes. War was waged on the tranquil-looking grounds, complete with snow forts and ammo piles. The older students remaining over the break taught the younger ones some of the battle tactics learned in Scott’s class, and he watched proudly from the window in the dining hall. Maggie was leading the girls’ side even though she was not the oldest. She came inside just before evening, cheeks cold-flushed and fingers numb.

“We saw you fighting out there, kid,” Logan said.

“Who won?” Marie asked.

“We did, of course.”

They put the babies down for a nap before the party. Freddy fell asleep first. His horrific cry had stopped, but he was still difficult to soothe. It was very unusual that he fell asleep first. Logan held Charlotte, swinging her gently back and forth as she cooed and gurgled. Finally he put her down.

Then he crawled into bed next to Rogue. He spooned close against her and she sighed contentedly.

“Think we might actually get to sleep?” she whispered.

“Hope so, darlin’.”

“Hey Logan.”

“Hmm?”

“I love you.”

“Me too.” He kissed the sensitive skin under her ear, and she closed her eyes and slept.

In too short a while they were awakened by the babies. Charlotte was cooing happily, Freddy was crying. Rogue nursed while Logan began to get ready.

He emerged from the bathroom in a towel. She raked her eyes appreciatively over him and smiled.

“Are your tits gonna stay like that?”

“God, no. I hope not.”

“They’re nice,” he said, stroking the nipple that Charlotte wasn’t suckling. It hardened and she shuddered.

“They’re sensitive. They hurt a lot. And I’m always leaking. It’s sticky.”

“Well, you look beautiful, darlin’”

“The upside is that I’ll be able to fill out my dress tonight,” she grinned.

The dress was an emerald-green number, a very simple sheath. As predicted, she looked dynamite in it. She put her hair up and was clasping her necklace when he came behind her and wrapped his arms around her.

“Hi.” he whispered, quietly so that Maggie couldn't hear.

“Hi.” She reached for her lipstick.

“I want you.”

“Hmm... me too.” His breath on her neck was bringing up goosebumps on her bare arms. She started to put on crimson lipstick but she faltered with a shudder.

“Ever do it under a Christmas tree?”

She raised her eyebrow at him in the mirror. “Can’t say I have.”

“Maggie told me that she wants to stay at Chuck and mom’s tonight.”

“No kidding.”

“Yep.”

“Why?”

“She hasn’t been sleeping well. The babies keep waking.”

“Aww. Why didn’t she say anything?”

“Dunno. But I’d like to come back tonight and rip that dress off of you and touch you all over.”

“Hmm,” she moaned.

“Until I make you feel so good you scream.”

“That can be arranged.” She pressed back against him.

“It’s a date.” He bit her ear.

“Is Mags getting ready?”

“Yeah.”

“Momma!” Maggie called just then.

“Yeah, baby?” Marie pulled away from Logan and went to check on Maggie, who was sitting in a purple dress in front of her mirror.

“What should I do with my hair?”

“Hmm. I know.”

Rogue went to the refrigerator and took out a white lily from the greenhouse. She knelt in front of Maggie and brushed her hair back. Her page boy had grown out and the new cut was a cute shag. “I was gonna wear this in my hair but I think it’ll look prettier in yours.”

“Really?”

“Absolutely.”

Logan poked his head into Maggie‘s room. “What’s Charlotte supposed to wear tonight?” he asked around the cigar in his mouth.

“Umm, green dress, white tights.” Logan laid Charlotte down and tried to put the tights on her. They didn’t go up all the way. He had no clue how they were supposed to go on and the little buckles on the shoes were giving him a headache. “Fuck,” he muttered. Charlotte cooed and smiled, flailing her arms.

“You didn’t hear me say that, critter.”

When Marie came into the room, Charlotte’s tights were nearly sideways and her shoes were on the wrong feet. Marie hid a smile. “Thanks for dressing her, hon.”

“No problem. What’s the Fredster wearing?”

“Umm, blue sweater.” Marie brushed out Charlotte’s curls. “Logan, look, her hair is almost as long as she is.”

“She’s only two months old. Nate was bald at two months, wasn't he?”

“I think I know why my hair was growing so much when I was pregnant. You’ve sired a very hairy child.”

“Hey, at least I know you weren’t fucking the milkman.” he grinned.

“Well, I may have been fucking him, but I had your child,” she said playfully, swatting his ass. “Do they even have milkmen anymore?”

“Who knows.”

Marie got two little barrettes from Maggie’s room. “Charlotte wants to know if she can borrow these.” Marie said. Maggie nodded.

By evening a foot of snow had fallen. The roads were barely passable and the party was attended mostly by residents. It was a less formal and more intimate gathering than in years past. They exchanged gifts among themselves.

At midnight Kurt led an evening service in the chapel. He had lined the path to it with luminaries that glowed on either side. The chapel was warm and inviting, its stained glass glowing prettily from within.

The service was quiet and simple. An air of peaceful quiet settled on them. Everyone felt it, even those who were not religious. Scott and Jean were there, Storm, Ray and Rakim, Matthew and Darla and Bobby. Jubilee was on a mission with John. Family, Rogue thought. Meridian seemed a long time ago, an inferior and not-quite real place that had never been her true destiny.

Kurt lit a candle, Storm and Scott lit theirs from his, and row by row they spread the flame to everyone. They sang “Silent Night.” Marie remembered the words to every verse from when she was a little girl. Logan held his candle in his left hand and touched Maggie’s hair with the other. She smiled up at him. He touched Marie’s face, and she smiled at him as she sang.

Maggie did go to Charles and Mariah’s afterward, and once the babies were fed and put to bed Marie came out of the nursery to find Logan butt-naked on a silk sheet with a bottle of champagne.

“Oh my god,” she said.

“So are you gonna join me or am I just gonna lay here looking like an idiot.”

She grinned. He did not look like an idiot. He was naked from the waist up, and from the waist down he was covered by the sheet. In the dim light his muscles were godlike. They made love three times.

In the morning Maggie bounded through the door, dragging Mariah. There was a tunnel between the new building, where the Christensens lived, and the old one, where Charles and Mariah still lived. They had no coats and had clearly come through the tunnel.

“Morning, Ma.”

“Morning, Logan.” She set an armful of presents down and kissed his cheek.

“Where’s Chuck?”

“He’s on his way.”

“Coffee?”

“Sure. Though I’m sure Charles will want tea.”

Marie put Charlotte and Freddy on a blanket under the tree. Charlotte reached toward a low-hanging bulb. “No no,” Marie said, moving her out of range. Charlotte smiled happily at her.

Charles wheeled in and Mariah helped him move to the couch, where she sat next to him. Marie moved his chair out of their way.

Logan had gone all out for Christmas. Marie urged him to concentrate his efforts on Maggie, as the younger ones wouldn’t remember any of it. He didn’t listen, so the babies had mobiles and stuffed animals and toys. But as she predicted, Charlotte was most fascinated by the curling ribbon from one of Marie’s presents, and Freddy spent the whole morning staring up at the tree lights with big eyes.

"Okay, Grampa's here, let's get this show on the road," Maggie said. Marie smiled and handed her her first gift, which was obviously a CD.

"Here's one for you, Chuck," Logan said, bringing a flat square package into the room.

"Well, I wonder what that could be," Xavier smiled. He loved Logan's paintings.

He and Mariah carefully opened it. The painting was of the grounds from the far northern border. In the foreground was the lawn that the kids used for soccer and football. The old mansion was there, and to its left, emerging from the trees, was the new building. The sky was blue and perfect, the colors a bit saturated and the brushstrokes impressionistic.

Charles titled his head to see the date in the corner. June.

"Logan, you painted this before the outside of the building was done."

"Eloise showed me the architect's drawings."

"That's amazing. It looks just like the real thing."

"It's a little more abstract than your usual stuff," Marie said. "The light looks kind of solarized."

"Okay," Logan said.

"This is wonderful, Logan. Would you mind if I put it in the foyer?"

"Sure."

On New Year’s Eve Rogue and Logan meant to stay up and toast but fell asleep before eleven-thirty. Of course, they woke up again several minutes into the new year, when the babies started screaming.

Three days into 2008, on a Wednesday, Jean, Storm, and Logan were in class. Rogue was home with the babies, getting ready to teach. Hank, Darla, and Matthew were in the lab. Xavier's voice came on the PA system.

"May I have your attention please. Will all A Team Members, B Team Members, and medical personnel come to the map room at once? Those staff teaching students may escort them to the rec room for an assembly."

Storm set down her chalk with a shaking hand and quietly said "you heard the man," nodding her head toward the door. Jean felt her blood run cold. Scott was already in the map room, had been for hours, five o' clock shadow growing rampant as he communicated with Jubilee and Bobby on the scene, planning and re-planning.

Something big was happening. Rogue looked at the intercom and swallowed as her heartbeat quickened, dread consuming her.