Chapter 45

"If ya want to keep that hand, I suggest you get your mitts off my beer, bub!"

I pull my head back from the fridge and find myself greeted by a disgruntled Wolverine standing in the doorway to the kitchen, one of his hands raised with the claws out pointing at me. I defiantly snatch two cans from the shelf anyway. "Ah come on, Logan. 'Tis the season for giving after all."

"Yer confusing Thanksgiving with Christmas, and me for someone who likes ya and wants to give you anything. Now hands off!"

I sigh as I push the door closed, beers balanced in my other hand "Logan, even if I thought you'd actually go through with it, you really think you could hurt me? Last month, Bullseye tried to blow my head off with an adamantium bullet and all it did was annoy me for a second."

He scowls "I'd still enjoy trying."

I roll my eyes and silently hand him the second beer I took. He stares at it for a moment before accepting it and popping it open with one of his claws. "Fine, just because it's the holidays. So, you got all the kids downstairs breathin' again?"

I pop open my own can, taking a sip before answering "As far as I can tell, I'm surprised there weren't more of them, actually. Were there really not more parents who wanted to bring their kids bodies home with them?"

Logan scoffs bitterly "Bub, in case you ain't noticed it yet, most of the kids at this school have gotten a pretty raw goddamn deal. A lot of families were probably relieved that their mutant kids got offed so they could stop thinking about them completely. What, your folks were the open-minded types?"

That's a good question. "I'd like to think they were, but long story short, my mutant powers didn't kick in until I was already an adult, and... well, they weren't around to see it. I have no idea what they would have thought on it." They're still alive as far as I know, but considering they're in another universe entirerly, it's pretty academic. I have no idea what they'd think about all of this, but they were never the bigoted type.

"Then yer one of the lucky ones" Logan says, draining the rest of his beer in one chug "We got a few kids here who's parents still wants 'em, but they're in the minority. For the rest, if they're lucky, their families just disown 'em. The REALLY unlucky ones have parents trying to kill 'em. Fer better or worse, the X-Men is their family now."

There's really nothing for me to add to that. We stand in silence for a moment, before Wolverine gives me a curious look "So, you and She-Hulk, huh?"

I barely manage to keep myself from doing a spit take "How did you-" He taps the side of his nose with a smug smile. Oh, right, super senses. "Yes, fine, me and She-Hulk, Mr Nosy. Not that it's anyone elses business."

"Caine's gotta be a tough act to follow."

Oh, he did not just go there.

.....

"You know, it's really not very nice to leave a girl by herself at a party like this"

Jens arm hooks around mine as she walks up to me. I give her an apologetic smile "Sorry, I wasn't planning on ditching you, but the Professor had some... holiday work left for me to do before this could be a proper Thanksgiving."

She looks sombre for a moment "Yeah, Ororo mentioned something about it, that it was the victims from when the Purifiers attacked the school? Did everything go okay?"

I shrug "As good as it usually does, they all came back with no issues that I could tell, and as far as I know, those were the last victims that needed to be brought back. I already brought back all the kids who were buried at the school. I've officially erased all the Purifiers "achievments"."

"Good work, Magic Man" Jen smiles and gives me a kiss on the cheek as we begin walking back towards the party, only to find our path blocked when a disgruntled Emma Frost suddenly steps in front of the door to the living room, giving me a look that could freeze over Hell.

"Um... can I help you, Miss Frost?"

She responds by grabbing me by the jacket and begins pulling me into the living room, much to Jens annoyance.

"Hey!"

"Stay out of this, Walters!" Frost drags me away from Jen, leading me through the crowded living room before finally stopping near the fireplace where many of the students have gathered. "Look what you've done!"

The hell? "Miss Frost, I have absolutely no idea what you're-" I'm interrupted when Frost silently points towards the group closest to the fireplace, and I finally get what's gotten her riled up. "Oh."

Standing slightly apart from the others is Ellie, dressed in an uncharacteristically festive dress, and with her is Michael, who's currently working every bit of charm he has on her, if her laughter is anything to go by. Even from here, I can make out the slight blush on her pale skin.

Strange, I seem to remember her being gay in the comics. Or maybe it was just that Deadpool movie?

Frosts cold voice brings me back "This is your fault, fix it!"

Seriously? "Miss Frost, I can't say I expected this either, but I'm not Michaels father, if you have such a problem with two teenagers flirting a bit, bring it up with him."

"You're the one who invited him!"

"Is everything okay here?" Jen finally catches up to us, cutting off my response.

"Yeah, it's fine, Miss Frost is just feeling a bit overprotective towards one of her students" I nod towards Michael and Ellie, and Jen quickly catches on, giving Frost a teasing smirk.

"That's all? I would have thought she'd be used to it by now, considering she has those blonde quintuplets to look after, she must be fending off teenage boys with a shotgun."

Frost scoffs in annoyance "The Cuckoos can take care of themselves, trust me. The boys around here have learned to keep their dirty little thoughts to themselves for the most part, but Ellie is too young for this, and I don't approve of it one bit!"

Before we can discuss the "problem" any further, there's a sound of someone clearing their throat at the end of the room, and the conversations die down as everyones attention is turned towards the double doors, where Professor Xavier is standing.

"Sorry for interrupting, but before dinner is served, I'd like to introduce someone to all of you. This year, we have much to be thankful for, all the work of one man, though I do not believe any names need to be mentioned. People we thought were lost to us forever were returned to us, something I truly believe we cannot ever repay fully, but there is one other person who many of you here probably never knew existed, but who was lost all the same, for the longest time. It was only recently that someone pointed out my own folly, that I could have brought him back myself if I had only managed to see past my own fears and foolishness. It's a mistake I can only hope might someday be forgiven."

He steps to the side, allowing a young man with a truly bizarre hair standing straight up, to walk into the room. He looks pale and thin, like he's only recently recovered from a long illness, and his thick sweater can't quite hide how skinny he is.

"I'd like for you all to meet David Charles Haller. My son."

Legion gives an uncertain smile, waving awkwardly to the guests "What's up?"