Cold
November winds whipped through Logan's hair as he
stood quietly, admiring the woods around him.
Autumn was in its final calling days and the
ground around his feet was littered with leaves
in shades of red, gold, and orange. He always
liked to talk a walk in the forest around the
Mansion this time of year - not one of his half-wild
ramages, but a quiet, reflective stroll. Take in
nature's beauty. Marvel at another year gone by.
Being
able to smoke a cigar without having Ororo giving
him the evil eye was big plus as well.
It
was the crunch of leaves that told Logan he was
no longer alone, and his hand almost
automatically formed a fist, until he caught a
certain scent. A mixture of herbal shampoo, axle
grease, cinammon, and bubble gum. A tight grin
passed his craggy face, but he remained silent.
Jubilee
strolled into the clearing, moving to stand
beside him. Logan looked her over critically. The
hair was longer, but still styled the same. The
slender body clothed in jeans, a dark red v-neck
shirt, the multi-colored scarf setting off her
pale skin, and a long black leather coat that
came to mid-thigh on her. He nodded his head once
in approval. "You grew up on me."
A
wry smile crossed her lips. "Young people
have a tendency to do that, Canucklehead. What,
did you want me to stay thirteen forever?"
"Maybe.
At thirteen you wouldn't have run off without a
good reason," he retorted, blue eyes
twinkling.
"What
can I say? Seems to run in the family," she
replied, one dark eyebrow raising. The two looked
at each other for a long moment before Logan
closed the gap between them and enveloped her
into a tight hug. Jubilee bit her lip, wrapping
her arms around Logan's middle. Something close
to a sigh of relief seemed to pass both of their
lips.
"I
missed ya, kid."
"Missed
you too, Wolvie..."
Logan's
smile widened at that and arm in arm they started
back towards the Mansion. Logan's expression
became thoughtful after a moment.
"Hey
kid? You're not about to get all mushy on me for
Gumbo, are ya?"
Jubilee's
eyebrow quirked again and she spoke calmly.
"I'm only going to say this once,
Canucklehead - No Chance In Hell."
"You
sure about that?"
"Positive.
Absolutely no mush here. There's more of a chance
that you'll become the Queen of England then
there is of me turing into one of those kinda
girls who swoons at the sight of her man bringing
her some trinket."
At
that moment, Remy strolled through the front door
of the Mansion. A light layer of dust covered his
dark blue sweater and jeans, and he looked as if
he had been rumaging around in the attic. Which
he had been. In his hands he carried a light blue
shoebox, beaten up beyond all repair, and he had
a triumphant look on his face as he ambled
towards the duo. With an almost regal air, he
handed the box over to Jubilee. "For you,
mon p'tite. Now, I will take my kiss."
Jubilee
took the box dubiously as she glanced from the
smug thief to Logan. For his part, the shorter
man simply shrugged. "Don't ask me kid. I
just got him to stop talkin' about teapots."
Remy's
expression changed from smug to embarrassed as
both of Jubilee's eyebrows rose. She turned back
to her lover. "Teapots?"
Remy
coughed. "It is a long and complicat'd story,
Jubilee...somethin' that you would have ABSOLUT'LY
no interest in. It is borin', tedious..."
"...and
it involves skipping," Logan supplied with a
little smirk.
"Stop
tryin' t'HELP, Logan," Remy growled, then
gestured again to the shoe box, his cocky grin
returning. "Open it, open it! I've waited a
long time to give this to you."
Jubilee
muttered under her breath as she lifted the shoe
box cover, moving the aged paper aside carefully.
"Gee, thanks sweetie. Always wanted an old,
beat up pair of -- sapphire earrings and matching
TIARA??" The rest came out in a squeak as
she stared at the contents of the box. The
jewelry glittered in return.
Remy
crossed his arms over his chest, taking on a mock-superior
air. "Oui. Now Mme. Lee, I do believe you
owe me a birtday kiss. After all, y'did say it
would take the tiara and earrings, non?"
Jubilee
looked down into the box, then at Remy's half
joking, half hopeful expression. Then down at the
box again. Which promptly tumbled to the ground
as Jubilee leaped onto Remy, pressing her lips
firmly againist his. Remy stumbled backwards for
a moment before recovering. He wrapped his arms
around her waist, returning the kiss
wholeheartedly. Logan just coughed.
"Uh...huh.
Yep. Feelin' that third wheel feelin'. Excuse me
kids, I'll just take this," he said as he
lifted the box off the ground, heading back
towards the Mansion without a backwards glance.
"Back inside the house. Yer both a little distracted
right now."
They
didn't answer him. He hadn't expected them to. He
strode up to the front door, still chewing on his
cigar. As he stepped into the foyer, he heard a
delicate cough coming from the open study door.
He turned and faced a stern faced Ororo. She
tapped one foot on the ground, looking pointedly
towards his cigar. "Well Logan, what do you
have to say for yourself?"
Logan
lifted one shaggy eyebrow, before a slow,
smirking smile came over his face. He took the
tiara out of the box, tilted it at a rakish angle
on top of his pointy hair, and said, with a
completely straight face, "Long Live The
Queen."
Still
smoking his cigar, the tiara glinting in the hall
lights, he ambled off towards the kitchen and a
cold beer. Ororo stood stunned for a moment,
before simply shaking her white-maned head with a
sigh. "I do not want to know. Bright Lady, I
simply do NOT want to know."
She
closed the study door behind her, effectively
cutting off Logan's barking laughter.
*****
~THE END, for now. Adieu, my
friends. 'Till next time
