It had been a year since Marie's mind had been purged of the last remnants of Magneto, his deception and manipulation of her mind and emotions left her feeling broken and distrustful of herself. That distrust bled into her relationship with Logan, they spent several months having near daily counselling sessions with the Professor before Marie could trust herself enough to tentatively move back into the family home. It was a couple of months more before Logan could coax her back into their room, and their bed.
The first morning she had woken up spooned in Logan's arms, being cradled lovingly as he slept beside her, she had cried, waking him to her tears. At first Logan had panicked, apologizing for pushing her too far, too fast, but when she had finally been able to speak, she had assured him she wasn't sorry. Not for being back where she belonged. She poured her heart out to him that morning as they held each other, telling him how much she had missed him, missed them, how sorry she was for the time they had lost.
That day, Logan began to court her again. Jubilee had even moved in with them for a while, babysitting the kids nightly so Logan could whisk Marie away for 'dates'. They did everything, from cheesy rom-com movies, to nights in noisy fight bars, dinner in the moonlit park, a greasy roadside diner, a fancy restaurant that Logan had to pull out his old suit just to get in the door of. They learned each other, all over again, and every morning woke up in each other’s arms, and greeted the day to the noisy choir of their children's delighted coos and giggles.
Life was good again, almost perfect in fact. There was just one thing missing.
--
"Hey Jubes," Marie greeted, as she stepped into her best friends now empty classroom.
"Hey Roguey, what can I do for you this fine day?" Jubilee asked, flashing her friend a grin.
"Actually, I came to ask you for a favour, could you watch the kids tonight, through into tomorrow morning?" Marie asked hopefully.
"Through the morning?" Jubilee queried, shooting her friend a sly grin.
"Yeah," was all Marie replied, her own soft smile telling Jubilee her own lecherous thoughts were most definitely on the right track as to why the pair would be occupied so long.
"Of course I can, all I expect for payment is full disclosure of all relevant details on the morrow," Jubilee declared, laughing when her best friend rolled her eyes exaggeratedly before agreeing.
Next, Marie tracked down Logan. He was in the gym, training with Emily, who was soaking up her daddy's instruction in all things martial arts. Logan had insisted she learn to defend herself, and that he had to be the one to train her, so far it was paying off, though they had had to tell her off once for using her new skills against her 'best friend', Oliver. Privately, though mostly just to rile Scott, Logan had offered to train Oliver and Nicholas as well, you know, so that next time they were in a fight with a little girl they wouldn't lose so spectacularly. Scott had just glared at him and walked away to go console his son.
Danny was occupied rolling yoga balls around the room but hurriedly left off that task to make a run for Marie when she entered. He giggled madly when she tossed him in the air, and then snuggled with her a while until Logan and Emily finished their practice session.
"I yield!" Logan exclaimed dramatically, as Emily 'pinned' him in the final exercise.
"You shouldn't trick daddy," Emily told him, torn between looking proud of herself and being mad at her daddy's coddling. "I didn't pin you, you're too strong for that, you shouldn't lie that I win," she insisted.
Logan grabbed her by her ankles and promptly picked her up to hang her upside down, well out of her short little arms reach to rain any kind of blow on him. He lifted her until she was as close to his eye level as he could get her when she was still upside-down. "Would you still want to fight with me if you never got to win?" he asked with a grin, watching as the little girl struggled fruitlessly trying to get out of his grip.
Eventually she deflated, and hung limply from his arms, before pouting and admitting, "Prob'ly not."
"One day, you'll be big enough and strong enough to almost beat me, for now, I'm just teaching you the moves you'll need to know to one day be able to do that," Logan explained, as he turned her back up the right way. "Then one day, when you're big enough for the self-defence classes at the school, you'll really be able kick Ollie's butt."
Emily giggled as Logan sat her down on the seat beside Marie, who frowned disapprovingly at his comment before kissing the little girl.
"Guess what," Marie said, mainly to Emily, given Daniel couldn't really speak yet. "Mommy and daddy are going out tonight so you two get to have a sleepover with Aunty Jubi, all night," Marie informed the little girl.
"Where you going?" Emmy asked curiously, as she mimicked her father in wiping sweat off her brow and neck with her towel.
"I can't say, it's a surprise for daddy," Marie informed her cheekily, noting Logan's ears perk at that comment. Emily noticed too, and giggled as if she was in on some great conspiracy.
As Emily moved, at Logan's instruction, to put away the extra mats they had used, and Daniel was loosed to go back to pushing around the giant balls, Logan stepped up behind Marie, growling softly as he held her close.
"So... where are we going?" he pressed, moving his lips over her neck, hoping to soften her up to spill her surprise.
"Be ready to go at seven and you'll find out," Marie replied, turning in his arms so she could return his kisses.
Their impromptu make out session was interrupted by a muted slapping sound, followed promptly by Daniel starting to wail.
"I didn't mean to!" Emily cried, as she rushed to her baby brother, and tried to help him up from where he was sprawled on the ground.
"What happened?" Marie asked gently, trying not to laugh, and trying not to spook Emily, given she was the only one of the two who could tell them what happened.
"I was showing him how to kick the ball, and it bumped into him, and he fell over," she explained, lip trembling as she tried to hug her still waiting brother, telling him again she was sorry.
"It's alright Em, he's little, he's going to fall over a lot as he grows, that's why babies are soft, so they bounce when they fall," Logan said with a chuckle, ruffling her hair and offering her a hug. Danny had recovered quickly once mommy picked him up and put him back on his feet, now it was Emmy that needed the tending to. "But he's a little small yet, and lacking in balance for kicking balls, give him another few months and then we can start teaching him that, but with smaller balls," Logan instructed, grinning when Emily's response was to giggle and ask him if she used to fall over lots when she was little.
From there they went to the showers, and then on to find the kiddos an afternoon snack.
--
They left the kids at the mansion, to have a slumber party with Jubilee, in the teachers’ lounge. Jubilee had offered to 'make a night of it', and take Oliver and Nicholas off Jean and Scott's hands so they could have some alone time too. Then she had commandeered every spare sheet and blanket so they could build a blanket fort to camp in. They were going to pop popcorn and watch 'scary' movies as well, though Scott insisted on approving the movie selections - while Logan stood behind him rolling his eyes and calling him names, just loud enough for Scott to hear but not the kids.
"Well I'm sorry for not wanting to have to put up with weeks of nightmares like after the last time Jubilee showed the kids a movie," Scott and Logan were bitching at each other as the couples headed out.
"Maybe if their dad wasn't such a pansy ass, and could actually do a decent job of 'scaring away monsters', you're turds wouldn't be afraid of the dark, and what was wrong with the last movie anyway, me and Em watched it again a couple of weeks later, the scariest thing in the movie was the talking dog, and only because it was butt-ass ugly," Logan countered with a smug grin.
"Not according my four-year-old," Scott scowled.
"Aww, what was Nicky scared of?" Logan asked, earning another glare from Scott, who had already wasted enough breath telling him to stop using that nickname for his son - it didn't help that that was what Jean called him too.
"It doesn't matter," Scott replied.
"Of course it does, we should know what each other’s kids are afraid of, just in case," Logan answered.
"You know, you're right, what's Emily afraid of?" Scott countered cockily.
Logan paused, frowning in thought for several moments. "I hate to say this Scooter but I can't think of a damn thing; hey Marie, what's Emmy scared of?" he turned to ask the woman in question.
"Well... she used to be afraid of the garbage disposal, but that was a long time ago, before she tossed a spoon into it, um, and she freaked out over that stick bug the first time she saw one, then she tried to eat it, also a long time ago though... I don't know, I can't think of anything," Marie replied, feeling just a little bit bad for Scott that she just proved Logan's point.
"Okay then, my kid's afraid of nothing, now what was so terrifying to Nick that he had nightmares after a kids movie?" Logan demanded, smug grin still firmly in place. Scott sighed, and mumbled something under his breath. "What was that, even I couldn't hear you?" Logan queried.
"He was afraid of the fairy," Jean replied, trying not to laugh herself. Poor little Nicky was such a sensitive soul, and Logan was probably right that he could use some toughening up, but he was her baby, and yeah, she spoiled him.
Logan just stared between the two of them for a minute before he cracked up laughing. "Oh, that is hilarious, a fairy, your kids afraid of a fairy, god help you when his teeth start falling out," he said with a chuckle.
"That was kind of the problem," Jean added, "Ollie lost his first tooth, and we told him to put it under his pillow for the tooth fairy, well, Nicky didn't believe us that fairy's existed, even when the tooth turned into money 'by magic', then when he saw the fairy on the movie he decided they must be real, because it was in the movie, and he became convinced the tooth fairy was going to come and steal all his teeth," she finished with a snigger.
"Yeah, I'm not convinced we should tell Emmy about the 'tooth fairy'," Marie shared with a grin.
"Aww, you afraid she'll be scared too?" Scott grumbled grouchily.
"Oh no," Marie responded, "I'm more worried she's got so much of her dad in her that she'll go and knock some other kids’ teeth out so she can cash in." And the two couples headed for their respective cars laughing at the thought - it wouldn't hit Scott until later that Marie was probably right, and it would probably be his boys she came after. Maybe Logan was right, it was time to start teaching the little kids some self-defence.
The Wolverine & Rogue Fanfiction Archive
Barely Legal Since 2000