BIRTHDAYS

A year after Professor Xavier put together the new team, Kurt and Logan found out that Ororo didn't know her birthday.

"You must understand, I was very young when I was orphaned in Cairo," she explained to them. "Then I wandered a great deal. All I remember about my birthday is that it is in the summer."

"But you were born here in the States. In New York city, right?" Logan asked thoughtfully.

"Yes," Ororo replied in a surprised voice. "Why does that matter?"

Logan and Kurt just looked at one another. Then they left without another word, leaving a clearly puzzled Ororo behind.

Fortunately, the clerk at the New York Department of Health was a reasonable and fair-minded man. And Kurt was a persuasive talker. And Logan could pack a tremendous amount of menace into just looking at a person. So a few rules got bent.

That evening, Kurt and Logan handed Ororo a copy of her birth-certificate. If you'll forgive the expression, it was like hitting Ororo with a thunderbolt. For the longest time, she just stood still and silent as she ran her fingers over the document. She traced her parent's names. Read the address where they had lived. And memorized her birthday.

"Thank you," she told them softly, her eyes glittering with tears.

That was the first time she kissed either of them.

And that was when they realized that Kurt could blush.

Years later, Logan realized that the day they celebrated Kurt's birthday wasn't his real birthday.

"Margoli - my adopted mother - just gave me a birthday," he explained to Logan.

Logan nodded. That made sense.

"No regrets?" Logan asked.

Kurt shrugged, gave Logan his usual affable smile, and said, "No. Why should there be?"

Logan nodded his head again, while reflecting on the fact that the elf was a lousy liar.

That night, Logan picked up a phone and dialed a number that he hated to call.

"Hello?" Mystique answered warily. Logan absently noticed that her voice hadn't changed much. Some things never seemed to change - like Death, Taxes, and Mystique.

"What day was Kurt born?" Logan asked brusquely.

There was a long silence. Then Mystique asked, "Why do you want to know?"

"I figure Kurt should know. Right now, he celebrates a birthday that Margoli gave him."

"What's wrong with that?"

"Nothing, but I figure he should know when he was born."

"He actually told you that he thinks about his real birthday?"

Logan sighed, "No."

"Oh," Mystique sneered. "Then why should I bother?"

"Oh, I don't know, darlin'... hey, maybe he should remember you for something besides abandoning him."

"Fuck you, Logan!"

Logan snorted into the phone, "Been there. Done that. Got the mental scars. C'mon, sweetie. This isn't about you and me. It's about Kurt."

Mystique was silent for a long moment. Then she quickly reeled off a date and hung up the phone.

Logan told Kurt the next morning at breakfast. That was the first time Kurt kissed Logan.

"Don't ever do that again," Logan said once he got over the shock.

Then Ororo kissed Logan. And Jean. And Betsy. And Jubes. Even Rogue smiled broadly and gave Logan a quick peck on the top of his head.

"On the other hand, this part is okay," Logan growled thoughtfully.

He looked warily at Scott.

"You can go to hell," Scott grumped. And that made Logan's day almost as much as Kurt's huge grin.

More years passed. And then Logan finally got his memories back.

Almost all of his memories. He still couldn't remember his birthday. Logan was pretty sure it was in the winter, but besides that he couldn't pin it down any further.

Kurt and Ororo spent a night and a day pumping Logan for everything he remembered about his early childhood. Then they vanished.

"When they get back, I'm gonna have to kiss Kurt. Right?" Logan asked Jean worriedly.

Jean smiled at him, "If you don't, then I'll have wasted the price of a brand new camera."

"I want a copy of that picture!" Rogue yelled. Other voices chimed in.

Logan sighed.