A/N: This is something I wrote a while back in response to a challenge made by Almudena from a Ro/Lo mailing list I was part of. Since I've been on a role lately, I figured I'd post this to see what the reaction was. The challenge I wrote this for was the following: "A discussion about sexual fantasies and why there are impossible to make true, in public and ending almost shouting."

I never posted it here and I just added some more dialogue to it tonight. I thought I'd toss it up here while I thought of the next chapter for Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. I do have a bit more of this story I can post if I get a positive response.

This story takes place just after Piotr sacrificed himself to cure the Legacy Virus. This is probably the closest fic I've done that fits in with the comic universe. Usually I stray a bit, but this doesn't tie in with any other fic I've done.

Enjoy!

Ororo sat by herself in the library, holding a picture album in her lap. Tears shimmered in her eyes but none fell. She touched one of the pictures and sighed deeply. Peter had Kurt on his shoulders and Kitty hanging from one of his arms. Those were good days. Simple days. Happy days, she thought bitterly. Standing, she slid the large photo album onto a low coffee table and walked to a nearby window. The sky was gray with clouds and the landscape looked as equally dreary. The leaves had fallen from most of the trees and the plants were all dead. It depressed her every fall when it began to turn towards winter. It was days like these that she missed Kenya most of all.

Logan walked by the library and was surprised to smell Ororo. Jean, Betsy and Rogue had all gone out to do some Christmas shopping and he had assumed she had gone with them. They almost always dragged her out with them and it was always amusing to see her when they got home. But he inhaled deeply and could smell the unshed tears she held back and it worried him. Ororo rarely cried.

"Ro?" Logan asked, slowly walking into the library. She didn't turn to greet him but she didn't tell him to leave either.

"I hate the winter." She declared softly. Ororo knew he had heard her words when she felt his gentle touch. His hand lightly squeezed her shoulder.

"Yeah, but spring is pretty good." He commented.

She looked down at him, slightly puzzled.

"Well, spring is yer favorite season and it can't happen without winter." Logan said with a crooked smile.

Ororo's eyes seemed to twinkle as she smiled. "I suppose you are correct, as usual, Logan."

"Damn straight." He nodded. "Now why aren't you out shopping with the other ladies?"

"I was smart enough to hide this year."

"It took ya long enough to figure that out."

She looked at him and stuck her tongue out. Surprised, Logan laughed loudly and patted Ororo on the back.

"Well said, Goddess."

"I thought you would enjoy that."

Logan shook his head in amusement and his eyes traveled away from Ororo. He glanced around the room, as he always did, and his eyes fell on the picture album on the table. Tilting his head slightly, he narrowed his eyes and focused on the picture Ororo had just been looking over. His eyes closed briefly, remembering that day clearly.

Ororo followed his gaze and he smelled a change in her. Depression again. It raised the hairs on his neck to know Ororo was off-balance and he also knew she wouldn't talk about it. Not yet, anyways.

"C'mon." Logan ordered, taking her hand. "If we can't talk about it, then let's go drown it."

"Excuse me?"

"Ya heard me." Logan replied flatly.

Ororo allowed him to pull her from the library and soon found herself in the kitchen. He pushed her gently towards a stool and she took the hint and sat down. Turning slightly, he gave Ororo a mischievous and playful grin. Ororo felt her heart skip a beat and he winked as he pulled out two tumblers from the cabinet. Logan then knelt down and began digging through one of the lower cabinets. Ororo kept silent and waited, curiosity getting the better of her.

"Ha!" He declared triumphantly. Logan stood with a dusty bottle of whiskey in his hands.

"Logan, it is only two in the afternoon!" Ororo stated.

"So? It's Saturday." He replied. Easily, Logan opened the old bottle and poured a good amount in each glass. He then grabbed some ice and tossed a few cubes in each drink.

"To Petey." Logan said, holding up his glass.

Ororo smiled sadly and clinked her glass with his. "To Piotr."

Logan took a large gulp from his glass but watched in amusement as Ororo tried to match him. As soon as she pulled her glass from her lips, Ororo coughed harshly and felt her eyes water.

"This is…awful!"

"Nah, this is good." Logan said, taking another drink. Not to be outdone, Ororo followed suit and slammed her glass down when it was empty. Logan chuckled as he placed his empty glass down seconds later.

"More?" Logan offered.

"Of course." Ororo said simply. "If we are going to drink, we had best do it correctly, no?"

"Now yer talkin' my language." He chuckled.

Thirty Minutes Later

"I miss him." Ororo said sadly. Her fingers slid along the rim of her glass.

Logan simply nodded. It had only been two months since Peter sacrificed himself and the pain was still raw.

"Why didn't you come?" The weather goddess questioned.

He immediately knew she was referring to the wake. They had held it at the mansion, like they always did when one of their own died.

"I dunno." Wolverine replied, pouring himself a large glass of whiskey. He drained the bottle and leaned down to find another.

"I had hoped you would attend." She said carefully.

"I couldn't." He said, bringing out another bottle of whiskey.

"You didn't come to the funeral either."

"It was too hard, seein' everyone else." He finally admitted. "I do better on my own with that type o'stuff."

"If only we could all say the same." Ororo said softly, sipping her whiskey.

Logan watched her carefully but he didn't have to have super senses to figure out her meaning. She had wanted him there and he never came. Logan felt as if he had failed her. The thought that he could fail her at all bothered him.

One Hour Later

"It's hard for people like us t'be happy." Logan said simply.

"You and I aren't all that different."

"How so?"

"We're both connected to nature in ways the others can't imagine." Ororo began, pouring herself a fourth drink. Logan tossed ice in her glass without her asking.

"Yeah, and we both had engagements go to hell in a hand basket." Logan added.

Ororo looked at Logan, surprised by his statement. How had he known about Forge?

"How did you find out?" She asked quietly.

"Darlin', if there's one thing that ain't sacred in this house, it's a secret."

She smiled at that and raised her glass towards him. Logan clinked his glass with hers and they both took a long drink.

"Do you think of her often?" Ororo asked after silence filled the room.

"It's not really like that." Logan replied. "M'iko's in the back of my mind most of the time."

Ororo nodded, hoping he would elaborate. She knew it was difficult for him to talk about Mariko. However, if he was anything like her, she hoped he needed to talk about her like she needed to talk about Forge.

After draining his glass, Logan continued.

"Mariko was the first woman I really loved since these." He said. Three claws shot out of his left hand and went back in a second later. The wound began healing just as he was pouring another drink. "Everyone thought I was in love with Jeannie, but I was more infatuated than anything. I didn't know what love was really like until I met M'iko."

"I know the feeling." Ororo commented.

Logan looked at the woman across from him. She was looking down into her glass with her hair falling around her face. She was beautiful, Logan thought, but everyone knew that.

"You and I feel primal urges." The African goddess suddenly said. The glass was to her lips as she said that.

"So does everyone." He replied, wondering where she was going with this.

"But not as strongly as we do. Can you deny the need to be outdoors when the wind blows through your window?" Ororo asked. Her hand gripped the handle of the whiskey bottle and the amber liquid soon fell into her empty glass.

"No." Came his simple reply. While he was surprised, Logan realized he shouldn't be. Of course Ororo would feel that urge, that pull, to be outside, just as he did. She was more connected to nature than anyone else he knew. It was ridiculous to think she couldn't feel it's pull on her.

"Sometimes I feel as if we're alone within this house." The weather goddess stated, slowly drinking.

"I always feel that way." Logan admitted.

Ororo found no words of comfort came to her, so she decided to sip from her tumbler instead.

Ninety Minutes Later

"We should go camping." Ororo declared, swaying slightly.

"Sure."

"I'm serious."
"So am I."
"Good." The smile that spread over Ororo's face seemed to captivate Logan.

"I know the perfect spot." Logan said, pouring whiskey into Ororo's glass and then into his own.

"We should bring the girls." Ororo declared.

"The girls?" Logan questioned. "Y'mean, Rogue and Betts?"

"Kitty and Jubilee." She replied.

"Oh yeah, 'cause that's a great combination." Logan sarcastically said.

"They're just jealous of one another, Logan."

"Jealous? Of what?"

"You."

"Yeah, sure." Logan replied, shaking his head slightly.

"Logan, you are surely blind." Ororo said confidently. "Jubilee is jealous that you will go to Kitty at the drop of a hat, but not to her. Kitty, on the other hand, is jealous of the overall relationship you have with Jubilation."

"What's that supposed t'mean?"

"You treat Jubilee as an equal, as an adult, despite her age." Ororo explained. "Jubilee is four years younger than Kitty yet she has been an adult for some time. Kitty, on the other hand, came to us as a child emotionally so we treated her differently. Would we have taken Kitty with us to rescue you from Omega Red, knowing the Hand was involved? Certainly not. Kitty was a member of the team, but only when it was safe."

"Jubes didn't come on that many missions."

Ororo sighed in annoyance.

"That isn't what I'm trying to say." She said, raising the glass to her lips. After she swallowed the burning alcohol, she looked at Logan with a serious expression. "It isn't about the number of missions they came on. It's all about how you treated them. Kitty looked up to you as a father figure whereas Jubilee looked at you as a partner. With that said, Kitty is jealous of Jubilee because you consider Jubilation an equal but not Kitty. Jubilee, on the other hand, is jealous of Kitty because you're there emotionally for her more so than for Jubilation."

Logan was quiet for a while. Ororo sipped her drink and waited for his response.

"Jubilee acted like an adult when I met her. Hell, she took on the Reavers with me and beat 'em." He finally said, his hand resting on the top of his glass. "Kitty was a scared kid in an ice cream shop."

"But they're both adults now." Was Ororo's only response. The subject was dropped after that statement as Logan drained his glass.

Two Hours Later

"Yer crazy." Logan stated, perfectly sober. Ororo, on the other hand, could barely stand. In fact, Logan was highly impressed that she was still speaking without slurring her words.

"Why am I crazy, Mr. Berserker-Mountain-Man?" Ororo asked, slowly sipping her glass of whiskey. They were close to the end of the second 750mL bottle and Logan found the entire situation utterly amusing. Granted, Logan had drank the majority of the alcohol, but Ororo was still holding her own. Most of the X-Women didn't drink, so he was impressed when she had drank six glasses of the strong whiskey and was still sitting tall.

"Now that should be my new codename." He grinned.

Ororo scowled at him. "As I was saying, you don't need to have sex if you're in love!"

"Sure." Logan rolled his eyes in a playful manner. He finished his drink and emptied the bottle into his glass without bothering with any ice. Ororo raised an eyebrow at him.

"Are you doubting me, oh mighty Wolverine?" She asked.

"Who, me? Wouldn't dream of it."

"You're being sarcastic!" She declared loudly.

"It's something I picked up from Jubes." He said, swirling the amber liquid in his glass. "But I do agree with ya, on some level. Fer instance, I never had sex with Mariko but I loved her."

"A-ha!" Ororo pointed her glass towards Logan, sloshing the whiskey around violently. It splashed onto the counter. "Then I'm right."

"Doesn't mean I didn't try." Logan added with a wink. "But that's another story altogether."

"You…you are such a…a man!"

"I'm glad ya noticed."

"You are so infuriating!" Ororo said, draining her glass. "Get me another drink."

"Yes, ma'am." Logan mock saluted her as he went digging into the cabinet again. "How's about some rum? We're all outta whiskey."

He looked over the counter to see what her reaction was and almost fell over. Trying desperately not to laugh, Logan stood up to see Ororo pouting fiercely and her arms crossed over her chest. She looked more like a little girl who couldn't get a candy bar than one of the leaders of a mutant team.

"No more whiskey?" She said sadly. "How utterly awful!"

"Aw, don't you worry. I'll fix ya something you'll like." Logan said through clenched teeth as he tried not to burst into laughter.

Ororo sighed deeply. "I guess that'll be ok."

Logan took her glass and quickly splashed some coke into it along with some ice. He then added a shot or two worth of rum and slid the glass back over to the weather goddess.

"Try that."

Ororo nodded and took a small sip. Her eyes lit up and she smiled at him.

"Now why didn't we start with these?" She asked, possessively holding her glass. "This is sooo much better than your nasty, dusty whiskey."

Logan rolled his eyes. "You have no appreciation for fine liquor."

"Hmmm. Perhaps." She agreed, taking a long drink.

"You might wanna slow it down."

"Logan, I'm the co-leader of the X-Men. I'm an African weather goddess. I'm an extraordinary thief." She began, again splashing her drink on the counter. "I think I can handle some drinks."

"Ok, boss." Logan held up his hands in defeat. "Don't say I didn't warn ya."

"Sooooo…" She trailed off, a devilish look in her eyes. "Tell me something, dear Wolvie."

"Don't you start with that 'Wolvie' crap, too. It's bad enough I got Jubes and Rogue sayin' it."

Ororo dismissed his complaints with a sip of her drink. "It's better than Stormy, so don't complain."

Logan chuckled but didn't say anything else as he drank a full glass of straight rum.

"Tell me something." She repeated.

"Maybe."

"What's the big deal with sex anyways?" Ororo asked, leaning forward slightly. Logan couldn't help but notice the low-cut shirt she was wearing. And now the great cleavage view he was getting.

"Whaddya mean?" He asked, filling his glass again.

"Why is it that people crave it so much?"

Logan raised his eyebrow at her and took a long sip. "I dunno. I guess because it's fun."

"Fun?" She repeated. "Fun? That's the best answer you've got? Fun??"

"Well, yeah, I guess it is." He shrugged slightly. "That and it's an instinct thing."

"Is that why you always go hunting for trampy women? For fun?" She asked, leaning closer again. She blinked and it took her longer than usual to open her eyes again.

Logan just looked at her and couldn't decide how to answer her. It was true, he wasn't going to deny it. The women he often went looking for weren't the highest-class ladies, but he also didn't think he would ever get questioned about them.

"It's all about fantasy." He finally replied. "About pretending they're someone else, I guess."

"Jean." Ororo stated. He could've sworn he saw hurt in her eyes, but the emotion seemed to vanish as he spoke.

"No, not Jeannie." Logan replied coolly. "Just other people."

Logan's ears picked up the noise of a car pulling up the drive and knew the other ladies had returned. It was Rogue's car, by the sound of the engine. A drunk Ororo would be tough to explain to them, but he had resigned himself to that fate when he opened the first bottle.

"But you cannot fulfill fantasies." Ororo said after thinking about it for a few sips.

"Oh?" Logan replied, finishing his drink. "Says who?"

"Says me!"

"And I suppose yer the one who would know about this kinda stuff?" Logan challenged, but in a friendly manner.

"Why wouldn't I be?" She replied, looking at him from over the rim of her glass.

"Well, yer a virgin."

Ororo's mouth hung open and the glass lowered slightly.

"No use in denyin' it, darlin'." Logan said, looking down as he poured himself another drink. "I can tell."

"So just because I am a virgin, I cannot have any say about whether or not a person could fulfill a fantasy?" She asked in a harsher tone. Logan didn't like where this was going and he instantly regretted mentioning her virginity. It was apparently a touchy subject. Then again, he mused, it probably would be for most attractive twenty-six year old women.

"Well…" Logan hesitated but he had already started down the path so he figured he would finish it. "Yeah. Yeah, I don't think you know what yer talkin' about."

He saw the anger flare up in her eyes. And then he saw it just as quickly disappear.

"I'll have you know, Logan, that sex doesn't matter when it comes to fantasies."

"Oh no?"

"No!" She stated, leaning back slightly. "After all, it's all about desires that can't come true. It's not about the physical act!"

At this time, Logan heard Rogue, Jean and Betsy walking towards the kitchen. He winced slightly as he heard them stop. He knew they were listening. And he couldn't do anything about it. If he got up to talk to them, Ororo would be horrified that they were there. Especially in her state, Logan didn't think she would accept any explanation that could possibly be offered for their presence.

"Desire and longing make up fantasies." Ororo demanded rather loudly.

"You sure know a lot about 'em." Logan couldn't help it; it just popped out of his mouth. He heard Jean and Rogue gasp in the hall and cringed slightly.

Ororo's mouth again hung open and, instead of yelling, she drained her glass and grabbed the bottle from him. She swigged from the bottle and glared at him. Logan grimaced slightly. She would be throwing up in no time, he was sure of it.

"And what would you know about true fantasies, Logan?" She asked. Her voice was raised slightly, but Logan could tell it was from the alcohol. He also heard Remy and Hank join the ladies in the hall. This was going to be bad.

"I have a feelin' yer gonna tell me." Logan kept his voice low, hoping she would follow suit. Of course, the liquor in her system didn't help his cause and her next words were louder than before.

"Don't get smart with me, little man." She warned as she swayed slightly. Her voice rose even higher with her next words. "But you try to fulfill them. It doesn't work that way!"

"How would you know? You've never tried." Again, mouth was speaking without checking with his brain. He wanted to bury his face in his hands and just crawl into a hole as he heard the crowd gasp again. This was the last thing he wanted.

"That's because I never could!" She said, standing slightly and holding herself up with her hands on the counter.

"Why not?" He was daring her. He was already in the doghouse. He figured he should go all the way. Remy cursed outside and Hank drew his breath in sharply. Bobby had just joined them and was getting a whispered update from Rogue. Then he heard Bobby curse. Not a good sign. Not a good sign at all. He had definitely gone over the line if Bobby wasn't joking about it. Not that he needed Bobby and the others to tell him that.

"Because each time we kissed, you treated it like a joke! Because you never gave me the chance!"

Logan dropped his glass and stared at her, ignoring the shattering of the tumbler as it rolled onto the floor. Ororo stared back at him, utterly horrified. Her face turned red from embarrassment and she stepped away from the counter.

"'Ro, what're you sayin?" Logan asked softly, stepping around the counter.

"No…nothing!" She sputtered, shaking slightly. Stumbling away from him, Ororo ran to the patio door and flew into the sky. The door slammed on its hinges, alerting the crowd outside that Ororo was gone from the room.

Logan watched her go and glanced over his shoulder as the kitchen door opened. Jean and Rogue walked in with Hank and Remy. Bobby followed them in along with Betsy. He could tell they were just as shocked as he was. And he could also tell the women were none too impressed with him at the moment.

"Not a word." Logan said, pushing by them. "Not a damned word."

So, what do you guys think? I have a little more written, but I don't know if I'll post it yet. I want to try and focus on my other stories before I do anything with this one. I might leave it as a one-shot…it depends on how much more I get done with my other stories. Anywho, please review!

PAF
Jubes