The walls were the same rich, dark wood with a glossy finish. The furniture, from the desk to the four-poster bed looked like antiques in a modernized way that only a lot of money could buy. A part of her that she thought she left in Mississippi noted the thick linens and started figuring the cost of the entire yardage. Xavier really was trying to kill her with kindness. Love. This. Line. But I love every other line in this chapter as well, and no less deeply. It's so rare, so magnificent, for *every* sentence in a fic, in a book, in anything to be perfect. Every paragraph is beautifully crafted,every scene is detailed without boring the reader with lengthy descriptions--a whole setting laid out in a handful of words that stick in our minds. It's incredible. You're a genius.

Jubilee is done fantastically. In character and original at the same time. Like everyone, I love the "wouldn't pee on you" thing.

Am very much continuing to enjoy BadassLogan. He's so sexy when he growls--I'd let him decorate the walls with *my* insides....That creepy? >clears throat

Author's Response: Not creepy at all. I think everyone here would just let Logan do what he does best. We'd just hope that he does it shirtless...at the very least.

Another brilliant chapter full of quotable lines, but since I can't just retype all 2700-plus words here, I've narrowed it down to a few that really stood out...

It can’t be a coincidence that the hall is empty.

Chills, Sahara, actual chills slithered up and down my spine when the genius behind that line hit me. YOU HAVE THOUGHT OF EVERYTHING! Literally, everything, that could possibly be going through her head. How do you do that?

He does the sniffing thing again, taking a long hit of her this time, which reminds her of every fluid she’s caked in.

I practically got whiplash when you flung me from where I thought that sentence was going to where it actually went, but the surprise was so damn good, I'll happily pay the chiropractor bill myself.

I have a few ideas about what's really got Logan stretching his self-control to the limit and I will be fascinated to read how you portray that inner battle, especially if you stick to Marie's POV through the entire story.

“Wouldn’t pee on you if you were on fire... My dad used to say this about folks he thought were deserving of it. (He also had a variation that went 'Wouldn't give you enough piss to take a pill if you were dying...', but the fire thing is so much more immediate.) Oddly enough, Jubes and my dad have something else in common -- an inability to pull their punches for the sake of appearances. I'm going with the theory that Jubes is just Jubes and drama is all part of the brightly colored package.

I am SO looking forward to more... --Wendie

Author's Response: ALl hail Review Queen Wendie! May the Mighty Wolverine keep her in good health! (crowd responds: "here, here!"). Chills? Really? Oh mess, didn't know I was capable of that. I dunno if I thought of everything, but I'm really, really trying to avoid plotholes, which is why I've been sitting on these first few chapters for like a month. Hmm, where did you think the sniffing was going to go? And what do you think is really stretching Logan's control? Can't say I've ever heard the piss/pill scenario, just "I wouldn't piss on you if you were on fire", but I amended it in the chapter a bit. Yes, I had that intention for Jubes, but I'm rethinking what I want to do with her - I desperately want to avoid writing her as a caricature instead of a character, y'know? rnrnThanks for this :D

Logan is just a pissed off old Wolverine - nothing to be mad about.

And Jubes is just great :)

Author's Response: Yeah, he's a grumpy one, isn't he? I'm trying to a Logan who's worked out some of his impulse/temper issues by the time Marie shows up. He's still our favorite berzerker, but maybe he doesn't shoot as many times before asking questions now ;)