Surprises

by Rajana

A sequel to Christmas: At their wedding Logan has got a lot of surprises for Max

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SURPRISES

By Rajana@gmx.de

Disclaimer: I don't own anything. James Cameron and Charles Eglee created Dark Angel. I'm just using their characters and am not making any money from it.

Spoilers: Season one

Rating: PG

Pairing: M/L, S/K

Category: Romance

A/N: It's all your fault, you told me to keep writing. I never planned on writing a sequel for "Christmas", but here it is. It could have been a stand-alone story but it fit so perfectly into the utopia I had created that it's really more a sequel. Please consider reading "A Real European Christmas" before. If you don't want, you should know that Max and Logan visited his grandparents in Europe and came back as a couple.

Since "Christmas" ends with "Shorties in Love" and this starts some when after "I&I&A Camera" just imagine that more time passed in between those episodes than it did on the show.

Special thanks to Kasman for betaing. She fought her way through my "real English". Thank her that you don't have to :-)

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"Cindy, please!!" Max begged, "Will you please stop worrying about my nails and finish whatever you're planning for my face? And let Sarah do the hairstyling, please!"

"Okay, okay. Just thought you wanted to be pretty for your man," Cindy grinned.

Max shot her a sharp look. "Honestly, I think I'm pretty enough. He's seen me so many mornings without any make-up or manicured nails at all and he still loves me, so I think he'd be more shocked than pleased to see me with tons of make-up and nail polish today. And we don't have the time anyway!" she almost cried, looking at her watch.

Cindy nodded and put down everything she had in her hands and had planned to apply to Max's face - somewhere. Then she looked at her friend and said, "You're right. You're pretty as you are. Just do me a favor and put on some mascara, will you? I promise I won't torture you anymore."

Max nodded and took the mascara, carefully applying the color to her eye-lashes. When she was finished she looked in the mirror and smiled at the two women behind her. Sarah put the last hairpin in her hair and nodded and so did Original Cindy. Sarah had done a great job with her hair and Cindy as the self- appointed beauty expert had tried to color her like a painting, but thanks to Max's own interference the result was only a light make-up, emphasizing her eyes and making her happy glow shine even more intense.

"You look fantastic", Sarah said.

"Even though I still think you should have bought the veil," Cindy told her.

"I know that's your opinion, but Sarah and Steven told us so much about European wedding traditions that we've decided to hold on to some of them. And one is that the veil is bought by the bride's brothers and sisters. Since this is not gonna happen here as my only brother is someone I don't see very often and is sure as hell not happy that I'm going to marry Logan, I'll go without any veil."

"And why shouldn't I? Be happy, I mean?"

Max heard a well known voice ask from the door behind her and turned around. She couldn't believe what or, more importantly, who she was seeing there.

"Zack!?! What are you doing here? Where have you been?"

"Logan's."

She stood up and went over to her brother. They hugged and Max asked, "Logan's? What have I missed here?"

Zack smiled and stepped in. "Hey Cindy! Hey Sarah!"

"Hello, Zack! Did you sleep well?" Sarah asked and Max looked even more surprised.

Her brother ignored her completely, "Yeah, I did. Logan's guestroom is very comfortable, Thanks for moving out."

"No problem."

Max looked from Zack to Sarah and back. "Okay, is somebody going to fill me in here?"

Zack smiled at her, "We came here yesterday and met at Logan's. I talked almost the whole night with him, so don't be mad if he's a little tired today."

"You talked to Logan?" Max asked, the look of surprise never leaving her face, "The whole night? Is he still alive? You sure you didn't kill him or anything?"

"He's fine, Maxie. And he's okay by me. If you've got to get married at all, he's the best choice you could have made."

Max looked at her brother, still surprised but overcome with the good feeling of relief. She loved Logan from the bottom of her heart and she would never have hesitated to marry him, but until now she'd been sure it had meant breaking up with Zack, but now Zack was standing there in front of her, telling her it was okay to marry Logan. She thought that somebody should punch her really hard, 'cause it felt as if she was still in her bed and dreaming. What a nice surprise, she said to herself, just before Zack continued, "Oh, and I've got something for you. Well, we've got something for you," he corrected himself.

"What is it?" Max wanted to know, "And who's we?"

The door opened a second time and a man and a woman came in. It took Max a second to realize who she was seeing. But when it hit her, realization hit hard. "Syl! Krit!"

"Hey, little sister," Syl said and hugged her, Krit following her example.

"What are you doing here?" Max asked and earned two laughs.

"Oh, we can leave if we aren't invited," Krit kidded.

Syl added, "But you won't get to know what's in the box then."

Max smiled and said, "Can't stand that. So you better stay. It's for me?"

"Sure."

Krit handed her the card fold box and remarked, "Somebody told us you'd like to have this."

When Max opened it, she found the veil she'd tried so many times because it matched the dress so perfectly, but which she had decided not to buy because of this tradition of which Sarah and Steven had told her. Silently she hugged her brothers and her sister and then Cindy.

"You knew it all and didn't tell me?"

Cindy smiled, "Sorry, Boo, but I had to promise."

"You know that it's okay, right? It's so cool that they're all here."

Sarah took the veil out of the box and asked, "Do you mind?" holding it up and starting to fix it to Max's hair. Max nodded and sat down again, watching Sarah's work in the mirror. When she stood up again, everyone was smiling at her and even Max had to admit that she liked what she saw in the mirror.

Cindy was the first to break the spell that seemed to have hit them all. "Come on, guys, we've got to hurry, I think the groom's already waiting for us. And we don't want him to think his bride won't appear."

Max nodded, "Yeah. I don't want him to be gone when I appear. I've had enough surprises for today." She followed Zack outside, not noticing his wide grin, her surprise now being swapped for suspense and anticipation. She was going to church to get married. As soon as she stepped through the front door, she suddenly turned around and ran back. A minute later she was back at the car, explaining to the questioning faces, "Forgot my shoes! I wasn't going to get married with bare feet."

They all got in the car Logan's grandparents had somehow rented and soon arrived at the old church where the wedding was supposed to take place.

Sarah led Cindy, Syl and Krit to their places while Zack stayed with Max who was getting really nervous. "Where's Logan?" she asked nobody in particular, "We're supposed to meet here to walk to the altar together. He's not asking me to go there alone, is he?"

Zack answered her question, "No, he's not. He asked me to walk along the aisle with you. A little change in plans, if you don't mind. Logan will be waiting for you." Max looked at her brother, now noticing the small grin that was trying to find its way out, but she had no idea why. She nodded, "Of course I don't mind. Logan and I wondered if we should call Lydecker to do the bride's father's job but decided against it. I think the bride's oldest brother is the best choice under these circumstances. Thank you, Zack."

He nodded and ordered everyone to take his place. The music started to play and Max watched the children with the flowers disappear behind the door until the music changed and it was time for her and Zack to enter the church. The doors opened again and Max saw all the well known faces, smiling at her. Smiling? No, they were grinning, trying to hide it like Zack had done. What was happening here? Where was Logan?

She searched the whole church for Logan and finally spotted Bling a little to the right in front of the altar, Logan standing next to him. It was as if the whole world moved all of a sudden and then stood still. Completely. Max stopped in the middle of the church, looking at Logan who was stepping in front of the altar at the end of the aisle, looking at her with a smile on his face. She felt Zack's hand on her arm, trying to pull her further, but her world was standing still and she felt unable to move. There was a sense of wonderment and unreality to the whole scene. Logan was standing there, waiting for her. Standing!! He had even walked a few steps. Zack increased the pressure on her arm and made her continue their way down the aisle, Max not seeing anything except Logan. When Zack placed her hand in Logan's, the tears that she had been trying to keep in from the moment she had spotted him finally started to swell out. Not caring for traditions right now she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tight, needing to feel him close, as if he'd disappear any minute. He answered the hug and kissed away the tears from her cheeks.

"You are so beautiful, Angel", he whispered in her ear and made her smile. He held her tight for another minute, then asked whispering, "You okay?"

Max nodded and even though she had thousands of questions, she knew it wasn't the time right now. The priest told them to sit down and both did, Max remembering that at the rehearsal yesterday there had only been one chair at the front of the church, but then her thoughts drifted back to Logan.

The priest started to talk, but even with her genetically enhanced abilities she wasn't able to focus on anything more than the man next to her.

She looked at him, for the first time since entering the church, really seeing what he was wearing. A black suit with a gray vest underneath, and a gray tie, matching the color of the vest. His hair was spiky as usual, but he had shaved cleaner than she'd ever seen him before, and boy did he look good. He still held her hand and she was happy about that. Like at home only a short time ago, she couldn't get rid of the feeling that this was only a wonderful dream and that she'd wake up any second and find herself back at Manticore. But Logan's hand was real and so was everything that had happened today. Zack had come and brought Syl and Krit - that was more family she'd ever hoped for - and Zack had told her that Logan was fine by him. Logan's grandparents had come and of course the Jam Pony guys.

When they had started to plan the wedding, Logan had reminded her of her idea to only marry somebody in secret, that weddings were a public humiliation, but she had only laughed at him. She was so sure of Logan that there was no need to hide a marriage just in case it didn't work. It would work, that's why they had invited all their friends. They hadn't invited Margo, whose behaviour had deteriorated considerably since the death of Jonas. Only Bennett and Marianne represented the Cale family. Yeah, Zack and Syl and Krit had been a big surprise, but Logan standing in front of her, hugging her and walking to the chairs hand in hand with her had far surpassed that. She had never walked hand in hand with Logan anywhere and she had no idea how he had been able to do it.

The priest kept talking, only interrupted by a few songs they had chosen and Max was hoping that her ability to multitask would at least pitch back in when she was asked to do something. So she let her mind keep wondering around. Logan. She had never in her life loved somebody as truly and deeply as she loved him. When he'd asked her to get married, she hadn't hesitated a second. So much had changed since Christmas.

Logan couldn't stop looking at his beautiful bride next to him. She was smiling at him as if she was from another world and he smiled back, knowing that for today he was the happiest man on the planet. He should have been tired as he had been up talking with Zack all night long and had practiced walking the whole morning, but getting married to Max was so overwhelming and exciting that he wasn't. Today she truly looked like the angel she was. The crème colored dress left her strong arms and shoulders naked and it shimmered in the light. The skirt that was tight on her hips but got wider closer to the ground complimented her great body and made her look like she had just stepped down from her cloud. Her face had never shown so many emotions, he had never seen her let her guard down in front of so many people and compared her to the woman whose tough ass attitude he had once criticized. It was hard to believe that this was the same person.

For today, she was his princess - he had to protect her from all evil, he thought, but corrected himself a moment later. No, not for today, but for the rest of his life.

When the priest told them to stand up and asked them to repeat his words, both were still lost in their thoughts, their mouths going on autopilot and doing what they were told. Max stared up into Logan's eyes and showed the first sign of mental presence when they were asked to change the rings and his fingers suddenly seemed to have grown, but of course she managed. She wrapped her arms around him once again, when the priest declared them husband and wife and allowed them to kiss, and he put his arms around her waist and kissed her with all his emotions.

Max didn't know if there were any reactions, she could only smile at Logan. After the priest had blessed them, Logan took her hand and slowly they walked down the aisle, and out of the church to where Logan's car was waiting for them - decorated as usual with the dust and grime of post-Pulse Seattle - with Bling in the driver's seat.

Only in the car did Max wake up from the hypnositic state she had been in and asked, "Where are we going? Weren't we supposed to wait for the others? Take pictures and stuff and then walk over to your place?"

"Yeah, that's the plan you know of, but we're not gonna celebrate at my place - which is our place by the way", he told her. "I'm sorry it's not horses, but I didn't want us to get shot, riding in an open carriage through post-Pulse-Seattle. I promise the inside of the car is as clean as it can be."

Max smiled and leaned her head against his shoulder. "You know, even an X5 has a limit to the number of surprises she can handle on any one day", she explained.

Logan wrapped his arm around her shoulders and smiled. "Sorry Max, but getting married should be a once-in-a-lifetime-experience and I really wanted it to be special for you. That's why I arranged some changes."

"It is, Logan, be sure it is. But I'm still in shock because of the first batch of surprises. First: How did you persuade Zack to come and even bring Syl and Krit? And second: How did you get him to make his peace with you? And third and much more important: Why are you walking? This is so cool, Logan!"

He smiled at her happy face and kissed her. "Questions one and two will stay my secret, but question three: courtesy of our crazy friend Phil. I'm afraid it's only half as cool as it looks, I'm still paralyzed and it feels strange to walk without knowing where you put your feet. Not to mention the mechanical failures. I've no idea how long the exo is going to work as it has shorted out several times already.."

He wanted to continue speaking of the problems, but Max interrupted him, "Stop talking. It's cool, okay?" She smiled at him, knowing that despite all his talking he was more than happy to be back on his feet, feeling it or not. "It's cool that you were standing in church and that for the first time I had to look up to kiss you. We have to practice that."

"I think that can be arranged, Mrs. Cale", he said and conjured up one of the happiest looks on her face he'd ever seen.

Max Cale. Yeah, that was a good name. The best she'd ever had. And the last. No more changing of names to cover her tracks. Mrs. Cale. Now that was cool. Kissing Logan she asked, "Where are we going? What's wrong with having the party in your apartment?"

"Our, remember?" he smiled and answered, "Nothing's wrong, we thought it could be done better. With the great weather and everything..."

"We? Who's we?"

Bling turned around in the driver's seat and said, "Max, will you please shut up? Just relax and enjoy what's gonna happen, okay?"

"Sorry, must be my feline genes," she laughed and leaned against Logan again. "So tell me, what's the thing with you and Zack? Don't tell me it's a secret. He appeared at my place today, telling me you were okay by him. What did you tell him?"

"We talked about a lot of things. At first the four of us, with Syl and Krit - did you know they were a couple, by the way ?- and later only him and me. He's a good guy, carrying all the responsibility for you and the others even though nobody ever asked him to. He loves you, maybe even more than a brother should, but he loves you enough to let you lead the life you've chosen."

"And we both have made clear that leaving Seattle isn't an option and that this life can only be us together, right?"

"Yeah. He's asked me some stuff on EO and how you've helped me there and I think he's being honest when he says it's okay."

"Huh, I agree on that." She hesitated a moment, then said, "So Syl and Krit are a couple? I thought something like that when they came in, but I wasn't sure. It's a good feeling to know that we're not so different, isn't it? You know, to know that we all need to hook up with someone.. like Charlie and Tinga and Syl and Krit... and like us."

Logan smiled at his wife next to him. "Yeah, like us. Thanks for marrying me and not running."

"Thanks for asking."

Bling stopped the car in front of a small house in the suburbs of Seattle, then jumped out to open Max's door. When she got out, careful not to ruin her dress, she saw that all the people who had been in church had followed them. She wondered for a moment how Logan had managed to get sector-passes for all of them but decided that he had his sources. The man she loved stepped next to her and for the first time she noticed the whirring of the exoskeleton. He put his arm around her and lead her through the door Bling had opened.

The house wasn't very big but homely and comfortable and Max wondered who'd live here when it suddenly came to her mind. The sports pictures everywhere, some trophies in the living room they were walking through - it had to be Bling's house. They had never visited him at home as he'd spent most of his time at Logan's place anyway, but from all she could see here she was sure it could only be Bling's.

He opened a door - or actually it was more like a huge window - to the back yard and stepped aside to let Max and Logan proceed to the terrace. Max couldn't believe what she was seeing. The garden was beautiful and well tended, even though not much could be seen of the lawn in the middle. Two white tents, decorated with red and white flowers stood on either side of the lawn, the gap between them filled with chairs and tables for the guests to sit down to eat.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Cindy who was coming to her for a hug. "Hey Boo, I wish you all the luck in the world, I think you found yourself a good man. If not, tell me and I'll put the smack down on his ass."

Max laughed, "Thanks, but I think I can take care of Logan myself."

"I know, just make sure he makes you happy."

"I promise I will," Logan interrupted and Cindy turned around to hug him.

"I know you will, I was just dogging you."

All others followed her example, hugging and kissing and giving presents, while Bling was busy getting drinks for everyone from the tent on the right. The photographer took some pictures. Then the next task was finding their places at the tables, where placecards had been set. Max stayed at the terrace and surveyed the scene in front of her.

"Like it?" Logan asked next to her.

She turned to face him. "Of course, I love it! I can't believe this is all for us."

"It's for you, my little princess," Logan smiled at her.

"It feels as if I'm going to wake up and find it was all a dream," she tried to explain, but Logan only hugged her.

"I promise no one will take this away from you," he laughed.

When soft piano music started to play, Max turned around and saw a DJ in a corner of the terrace which was obviously supposed to be the dance floor for tonight. She waved casually at the DJ she remembered from Crash, but he came over and wished the couple good luck.

Eventually, when most people were seated, Logan showed Max the way to their seats, at a table right next to the path surrounding the lawn in the middle of the garden. She smiled when she saw that they shared the table with Logan's grandparents, Bling and Zack and Krit and Syl. There wasn't much space at the table for all of them, it had surely be planned only for six people to sit there, not eight, but nobody seemed to care.

Logan made sure that even the last guests found their places, and breathing deeply, decided against giving the little speech he had prepared. He had felt forced to do so, it's the grooms job to say at least a few words, but his fear of speaking in public made itself evident the moment he stood up. He thought about if for the few seconds he needed to step behind his chair and then decided against it. This was his wedding after all and he was not going to embarrass himself. So he only told the guests that the buffet was waiting for them in the tent on the left hand side and that they should keep their speeches to themselves until after dessert.

After this announcement most of the guests stood up, and headed over to the tent, but Max and Logan stayed seated with Syl and Krit and Max finally got a chance to ask some questions.

"Where did you two meet again? You haven't been together since 09, have you?" Max wanted to know.

Both shook their heads and Krit answered, "No, we haven't. We met up in a Casino in Vegas about four years ago and stayed together. Zack wasn't very happy about it, but we made it clear that two X5s don't attract much more attention than one and that we could take care of each other. He's still not totally our opinion, but I think he's given up on us now."

"You're still living in Vegas?"

"No", Syl said, "That's just a nice place if you need some money. There's not much left of the great casinos, but you can still play cards there."

Max chuckled, thinking of the night she and OC had won 15 thousand dollars to save Sketchy. "Yeah, you can make a lot of money with playing cards."

"How did you and Logan meet?" Syl wanted to know and made Max and Logan share a look and smile.

"She broke into my apartment, trying to rob me," he explained and earned a laugh.

"That's nice," Krit said, but before they could continue talking about robberies and gambling, Sarah and Steven came back and they had to change the topic. Within the next minutes they were able to speak in such a way as not to tell Logan's grandparents too much but on the other hand exchange information about the last years and were only interrupted when Bling came back with another bottle of wine.

He put it on the table and asked, "Max, don't you think it's time to get something to eat?"

She looked at him, a little confused, but nodded. "Yeah, why not?"

When she started to get up, Bling proposed, "Logan, why don't you stay here and keep up the conversation? We can get you something."

Logan agreed, knowing by the tone in Bling's voice he better do as he was told. So he raised an eyebrow and nodded, "Sure."

Max and Bling went over to the tent and when they were queuing, Max asked quietly, "Is he overdoing it?"

Bling nodded, "Yeah. So my attempt to get him stay seated wasn't as smooth as I hoped, huh?"

"Smooth enough", Max laughed and started to fill her plate and another one for Logan.

When they were ready to leave, Bling stopped her. "Max?"

"Yeah?"

"Take care of him, will you? This exoskeleton is a great thing, but - to be honest - I'm a little scared. I don't know what effect it will have long term, there is no similar case, nobody has any experience with circumstances like this. Not today at least. I wish all my patients could have an exoskeleton for one or two hours a day, it'd be perfect to help the blood circulation and maybe even stop the muscles and bones from degenerating, but Logan's been running around on it ever since he got it working yesterday. Get him to slow down, please."

Max nodded. "I will take care of him. But not tonight. He should do what he thinks is right, only for tonight, okay?" she said, knowing how much this day meant to Logan.

Bling nodded.

When they came back to the table, Zack, Syl, Krit and Logan were comparing notes about growing up without parents and even though Sarah and Steven were listening, they didn't realize that the parents of the X5's hadn't simply died like Logan's. Max, who realized first that this was a topic which would cause Sarah some distress, handed Logan his plate and sat down. She interrupted by asking Zack how long he'd stay.

"Only for tonight. We're going back late tonight." When he saw Max's disappointed expression, he added, "Come on, Maxie, you know it's better this way."

Max nodded sadly, but Sarah, who of course didn't know the real reason, didn't understand and asked, "Why so soon? From what I know, you haven't seen each other for a while. Wouldn't it be nice to spend some more time with each other?"

Shrugging, Max answered, "Yeah, it would be, but Zack's right, it's better this way."

Sarah still didn't understand. "Why?"

Zack replied this time. "We argue a lot, that's why. It's always great to meet for an evening or so, but after that... no, better not risk it."

Nodding this time, Sarah continued eating and Max glanced at Zack, who turned the conversation to safer topics.

When everybody had finished dinner it was on Steven to stand up and draw the attention of all present by clinking his spoon on his glass.

"Logan said if we've got something to say, we should wait till after dessert. Well, I've waited and even though the food was great, I've still got something to say. For those who do not know me, I'm Logan's grandfather. My wife and I live in Europe and that's why we are especially happy to be here today. When Max and Logan visited us for Christmas - you might all remember it, 'cause that was the holiday they came back from as a couple - my wife asked me if I'd think we'd be invited for the wedding. Of course we were only kidding back then, but today there's no more kidding; and that's a really good thing. When I met Max I had a good feeling about her right from the start, being quite sure she was the right one for Logan - even though they were still in the 'we are not like that' phase. She's got enough strength to beat his skinny ass every once in a while, right Bling?"

Logan's friend smiled and nodded.

"And even more love to make him happy for the rest of their lives. And Logan on the other hand, has never cared more for someone. When he came to visit us I could tell right away that something was bothering him, but it took us a while to figure out what it was. Turned out he had asked Max to join him but she hadn't wanted to come. Well, she followed and you know the rest. I'm sorry to say I was right with my premonition at the time of Logan's previous marriage. I really hope I'm right this time too. But this is definitely Logan's last wedding and I say that to you all here now. So raise your glasses everybody, may they live happily ever after!"

A few other people had something to say, starting with Bling, who spoke about the uselessness of pep-talks around Logan and his disbelief when he'd heard Max and Logan were going to marry; next Original Cindy, who was sad that Max would finally leave their apartment, but happy for the newly-wed-couple and told everyone that she'd kill Logan if he made Max quit her job at Jam Pony; and finally Bennett who even quoted the "They crossed paths by fate but became partners by choice"-line from Logan's toast at his own wedding.

The DJ started to play dancing music when the speeches were over and Max turned to Logan, sitting to her left, thinking about the long conversation they had had about opening dances in wheelchairs. "Any changes in this particular point of the evening?", she asked.

"No Max, no changes for the dance. I think I made clear that I'm not going to open the dance in the chair and I'm not going to do it with the exo either. Walking is one thing but dancing a totally different story."

Max nodded and kissed Logan quickly, "That's whack and you know it, however, this is your day too." She turned to Bling, "So, are you willing to do your job, best man?" she asked him.

Bling jumped up and bowed. "Of course. If the groom is not going to dance with his beautiful bride, I'm more than willing to take his place."

Laughing they went to the terrace and started the first dance.

A lot of guests joined them and when the second song was over, Max found herself suddenly in great demand as a dance partner. Everybody wanted to dance with her and she enjoyed being with her friends and family.

It was Original Cindy who stood next to the DJ when the music stopped and who started to shout. "Everybody, could you step aside? We need some space here." Everybody stepped back and gave Sketchy and Herbal the chance to put two chairs in the middle of the dance floor. Max was a little confused, but sat down when she was told to do so. The Jam Pony gang started a little quiz with her in which she had to guess what was in packages she was given and had to find the most unusual excuses for not showing up at work. Normal, who was supposed to be the referee was in a good mood today and had to laugh at Max's attempts to explain how and why she had put her sector pass in her socks and the socks in Logan's washing machine and now the sector pass was ruined and she couldn't come to work. Even though that wasn't her weirdest excuse.

Logan tried to help her, but was told to shut up - his task was to come later. And it was. When Max was told she had well done her job - well - well enough - Herbal and Sketchy brought a huge square stone, made of bricks. They put in on the floor in front of Logan and handed him a T-Shirt. Logan took it, asking, "What's this?"

"A shirt," Cindy explained.

"Oh really?" Logan replied, smiling.

"You better put it on, 'cause what you need is inside the stones. Here are some tools, you'll have to 'hack in'."

Logan stared at the tool-box, then at Cindy and over to Max. He started to laugh but did what he was told. Unfolding the huge shirt he put it on and made Max laugh. The t-shirt said, "Sorry, I'm married".

Max knew she could maybe have broken the stone with the hammer within less than half a minute, but this was Logan's task and he was supposed to do it. Of course he needed longer and stone chips flew around as he kept working on the stone.

Everybody was curious to find out what was in the stone. Logan said, "It can't be big, it's only stone, doesn't seem as if there's any space in between the bricks."

Cindy laughed when he thought about throwing the whole thing on the ground from the highest position he could find. Bling responded that he still needed his house.

Eventually, Logan said, "I think I can feel something. Feels like paper."

And paper it was. Logan pulled finally pulled a small slip of paper from between the bricks. He unfolded it and read out loud. "You did it. Unbeknownst to you we've taken your wedding cake hostage. You've now freed it. Bon appetit."

Bling brought in the huge cake and Max had to smile when she saw that the couple on the top was sitting on a motorbike. Bling asked, "Ready to cut it? Logan promised me nobody would jump out of it."

Together with Logan she cut the first piece and shared it with him. "Yummy," she laughed at her husband who had managed to get some chocolate on his nose. She swept it away with her finger and let him lick it clean before she kissed him. They stepped aside for the other guests to enjoy the cake and slowly went back to their seats.

Only Krit and Syl were still sitting at the table, staring at each other smilingly.

"Hey, what's up?" Max asked.

"Nothing, we were just thinking about weddings and marriage and everything," Syl replied.

"Any plans?" Logan wanted to know, but they shook their heads.

"No, not yet. You're gonna dance with me, little sis'?" Krit asked and Max nodded. Together they went to the terrace, leaving Logan and Syl behind after giving them a short good-bye kiss.

Max danced with a couple of men before she realized that Logan had left the table and was nowhere to be seen. Looking out for him, she eventually refused a further dance and started to actually search. In the bar tent she only ran into Steven, who asked, "Hey, want a drink?"

"No, thanks. I'm looking for Logan. Have you seen him?"

"No, sorry." Steven took the glass and started to walk out until Max stopped him.

"Steven?"

He turned around, looking at her questioningly.

"Thank you. Thank you for talking to Logan that night, thank you for telling him I was the right one for him and thank you for this great day. I know that you and Sarah had a big part in all the surprises."

Logan's grandfather looked at the petit brunette in front of him, smiling at him in her beautiful wedding dress and he was sure she was truly one of the most gorgeous women he'd ever seen. He opened his arms, carefully not to pour his wine down Max's dress and pulled her close in a hug. "You're more than welcome. Just make sure Logan's happy."

"I will," she smiled, "Need to find him though."

She left the tent and went to their table where only Syl was sitting, watching Krit dance with Original Cindy. "Hey Max!"

"Hey! Did they all leave you alone?"

"Yeah, Logan's grandparents were dancing, Zack is talking to some guys in the buffet tent and Original Cindy persuaded Krit to dance with her. She seems to be having fun."

"She is. We shared an apartment before I moved more or less in with Logan. She knows about us."

Syl looked surprised. "You told her?"

"I had this encounter with a group of south African soldiers - an implant makes them stronger than anything Manticore's ever created. They held OC hostage and I got her out, using one of their implants. Turned out that the implants don't work very well with X5 genes, you should really not try it. Logan had to short circuit it - not a nice thing. Cindy saw it all and when I became conscious again, I told her the truth. She deserved it."

"It must be good to have a friend like that. I've never told anybody about us."

"Me neither. Before I met Logan that is."

"How did you tell him?"

"He figured it out. When I took out his bodyguard without breaking a sweat and jumped out of his window like Rocky the flying squirrel, he got a little suspicious. He had heard rumors about our escape and checked for my barcode. It was him who told me that it was 12 of us that escaped. Do you know where he is, by the way?"

"I don't know. He went off with Bling a couple of minutes ago. So what it's like to be married?"

Max laughed. "Could you ask me that in a few days? I haven't really found out yet. Until now it's just been a wonderful day with all my friends and my family, who I usually never get to see."

"I like Logan. He's a nice guy."

"The best. And I need to find him. Sorry, but maybe I can persuade Original Cindy to let Krit come back."

"I'm sure he's not going to leave me for her," Syl said and made Max smile.

"You really can be sure of that." She told her sister and stood up, walking towards the house. She hadn't even reached the terrace when she saw Logan coming around the crowd that was moving to the music.

"Hey!"

"Hey! Where have you been? I was looking for you," she asked, but Logan didn't answer.

He pulled her in his lap instead and Max became conscious only now that he was back in his wheelchair. "How are your legs doing?" she wanted to know, wondering that she'd gotten so used to seeing him in the chair that she hadn't noticed his change of position right away.

Logan glanced at her before he answered. "I don't know. Maybe they'll tell you why they started to spasm."

Max wasn't in the mood for the self-pity and the bitter tone in his voice, so she smiled, looked at his thighs and patted them. "Okay, so hello Logan's legs? Can you hear me?... Well, that's good. Just wanted to know how you're doing... A little exhausted? Not used to be walked on? I understand... that's why you started to tease him a little? Okay, now you guys get some rest, stay calm and let me and Logan enjoy the rest of the evening. Do you mind if I sit here? No? Great." Raising her head to face Logan she smiled. "Overheard?"

"Yeah, overheard." He was smiling, too. "How comes you always make me smile?"

"Don't know. But today there's just no space for bad mood and worries."

"Okay, no more worries," he told her and gave her a kiss. "Are you going to dance with me?"

Max looked at him surprised. "Dance with you? Ain't you the guy I had this long discussion with and who told me he wouldn't dance tonight? Because of people staring and stuff?"

Logan smiled. "Yeah, that was me, but I kind of changed my mind. Somebody told me people would be staring anyway because of me being the groom, so I decided that if I can dance with my girl at a New Year's party, I can do it just as well on our wedding day. Bling pointed out that I was being silly and that I should get over myself."

She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek, smiling. " Thanks to Bling, then. Of course I want to dance with you."

"Then get up," he told her and so she got up and followed Logan to the terrace where she occupied his lap again. She loved to dance with him, loved it ever since their first try at that party in Europe, but today was special as it was their wedding. She was dancing with her husband.

When they returned, Max realized that Syl and Krit were looking surprised but didn't know why. Not thinking about it she removed the chair Logan had been sitting on and sat down on her old one, taking her glass which was still filled. Logan stopped where Max had taken away the chair and snapped the brakes before he filled his glass from the bottle of wine that was standing on the table. "Do you want something, too?" he asked, looking at Syl and Krit.

Krit nodded and Logan poured some wine in his glass but Syl didn't react to the question and asked instead, "What happened to your legs?"

Max became conscious that Logan must have been wearing the exoskeleton since he'd met them, that's why they had been so surprised.

"I was shot in the back about one and a half years ago," Logan explained.

Krit almost spit his wine. "One and a half years ago? But you've been running around the whole day."

"Yeah, because I was wearing a newly repaired machine which allows me to walk, but I figured out today that it's is definitely no cure," he told them and Max knew he was again angry and embarrassed at the spasms which had forced him back into the chair. Also she knew how much he hated talking about the side effects of paralysis and wondered if she should try and change the topic.

"That's why you left with Bling, right?" Syl asked. "Because you were having problems with your legs?"

Logan nodded. "Yeah, that's why we left. To get me back in the chair."

Max could sense the tension in his body and carefully reached out her hand to caress his neck. When he turned to her he smiled and leaned over for a kiss.

Krit and Syl looked at them, then at each other. "Now I understand what the whole scene in church was about. You hadn't known he would be walking, that's why you stopped while the wedding march was still playing," Krit spoke his thoughts out loud, then glanced at Max.

"Yeah. I didn't know he'd be walking. Haven't seen him up in a while.," Max commented and provoked another question.

"You two met before Logan was shot?" Syl asked.

"About two days before," Max answered. "But why do I get the feeling that we keep talking about us the whole evening?"

Krit grinned. "Because it's so much more interesting."

Syl looked at him, curiosity showing on her face. He smiled encouragingly and Syl turned back to Logan.

"Shot in the back? How did that happen?" she wanted to know. "Well, you only have to answer if you're okay with it. I know it's not a very polite thing to ask."

"I'll survive it. I married Max, remember? And I already found out some time ago that diplomacy was definitely not part of the Manticore curriculum," he laughed, then continued, "I was trying to protect somebody. A witness."

"Did he survive it?"

"Yeah, she did. And got her daughter back, thanks to Max." Logan explained wondering about the question.

"So it was worth it?" Syl commented, the question implied by her tone.

Logan looked astonished. "Worth it? I've never thought about it that way. When I woke up in hospital I thought they had both died and I felt horrible about it. They had put their lives in my hands and now those same lives had ended and mine was over too. Didn't change much when I heard they were still alive."

"What kept you going?" Syl asked.

Logan shrugged. It felt strange to talk about it with somebody other than Max, 'cause he never had, even with her. But it was okay. This was a big part of his history, and would have a strong effect on his present and future, so for today it was okay. He had everything he ever wanted. A job he liked, no need to care about what Jonas and Margo would say and the most beautiful wife he could imagine. And he'd gotten over himself now to some extent, and for today, he felt okay talking about this with Max's family. Not so long ago, he would have clammed up and changed the subject. It was a sign of his growing acceptance of himself that he now felt able to do this.

So he answered, "The routine in hospital, I think. I was weak and didn't fight against anything. When I came home, Bling who forced me to go on living for the next weeks. Then Max came back, and it got a whole lot easier in some ways, but harder in others. She made me want to go on." He smiled and squeezed Max's hand. "Something to look forward every day. She really changed my attitude."

Max smiled back. "Took you sometime to figure out that your life wasn't over," she said.

Logan grinned. "Yeah, sometimes I'm a little thick-witted."

"I love you anyway," Max whispered in his ear and kissed him. Still smiling he kissed her back and whispered, "I love you, too."

"And now, what's so interesting about it?" Logan asked Krit.

"See me and Syl? X5 and X5. Same background story, almost the same CV, same physical abilities. And even though I don't want to offend you - just look at you. You are different."

Logan sighed. "Oh, I understand. It was what kept me from starting a relationship with Max for almost a year. Our different social backgrounds and especially our different physical abilities."

"A year?" Syl asked.

"Until the famous holidays in Europe everybody at this party has heard different rumors about. Had to drill it into his head that I fell in love with him, not his physical abilities;" Max told them.

"But with your stubbornness it shouldn't have been a problem," Krit teased her.

"Me and stubborn?" Max passed on to Logan. "I'm nothing compared to him."

"Okay, I have to admit, I can be stubborn. So what?"

Max laughed and kissed him. "Nothing, everything's fine."

Logan said, "I don't want to sound like I'm running away from a discussion, but Krit, don't you think we should get our girls something to drink?"

Looking at the empty wine bottle he nodded. "Sure. Any special wishes?"

"More of that wine," Max answered, "And some water, I'm thirsty."

"Juice," Syl added and explained, "I have to do the driving."

Krit nodded and followed Logan who had already started to wheel to the bar-tent.

Syl watched them leave and said, turning to Max, "I can't believe he's paralyzed."

Max shrugged. "That's life. Couldn't believe he was walking today." She hesitated a moment and asked, "What about your earlier comment? Does that still count?"

"About Logan? Of course that counts. He is a nice guy, and now that I know about this I think he's even more admirable. You really love him, don't you?"

Max nodded. "More than I ever thought I could. He's changed me, has changed my life, has changed everything I knew. Even though it took me a while to figure it out"

"Because of the wheelchair?"

"No, for me it's never been about the wheelchair. It's only been about him and me and the differences between a genetically engineered soldier and an underground journalist who thinks he can change the world."

"Manticore wasn't big at teaching on enthusiasm or altruism, " Syl said.

Max nodded. "No they weren't. But Logan has enough enthusiasm for all the people in Seattle and kind of infected me." She told her sister, thinking that she still wished he'd done it faster, so maybe she could have protected him from Bruno Anselmo. But like he'd told her the first time they'd talked about it - he didn't think that way. It wasn't her fault.

"Dreaming?" Syl woke her.

"Thinking of old times."

"It's never been important for you? I can hardly imagine being together with somebody who's not... well... improved, and you decided that the man of your life is the one who can't even walk. That's hard to believe, at least for me." Syl tried to explain.

"I never needed a man I could go cat-burgling with, I need somebody I can trust completely, who knows me and still loves me and somebody who's clever enough to know how to get along with me. I used to have a boyfriend, well it was actually more a heat-founded one-night-stand, who told me I was like a fog-bank or something. He didn't understand anything about me. With Logan he understands where I'm coming from. He knows who I am. Why did you decide to get together with Krit? Because you can do physically challenging things with him?"

Syl grinned and said, "Kind of.." Laughing she continued, "No, of course not. That's not what a relationship is about. You're right, it's more about mental aspects, like the same ideas, the same thoughts, understanding each other."

"That's why I chose Logan."

"And here he comes, "Syl said, watching Krit and Logan coming back.

They had brought the ordered drinks and put them on the table. They continued talking on "softer" topics like everyday life and where to get the best food and things like coffee these days until Max stood up and kissed Logan on the cheek. "Back in a minute."

She went to the house to find the restrooms and when she came back she ran into Zack.

"Hey!"

"Hey Max! I've been looking for you. Haven't danced with my little sister yet."

Max smiled, "Oh, we can't have that." Zack lead her to the terrace where they started to move to the music.

Eventually Max said, "Thank you Zack. Thanks for having been my big brother and taking care of us all the time. And thanks for accepting Logan and my decision to marry him."

"I'll always be your big brother, Maxie. It might now be officially Logan's job to take care of you, but if you two need help, just call me, " he answered smiling, reaching in his pocket and handing her a small piece of paper.

"Your contact number?" Max asked surprised. "Thank you. Have I been a good enough soldier to get this?"

"Good enough. Just take care and stay as you are, little sis' " he said and turned around, leaving the dance floor. Max knew this meant good-bye for now and so she slowly walked back to the garden, while she read the number and quickly memorized it. Passing an empty table with a burning candle, she burnt the paper in the flame to make sure nobody else would find it. Lost in her thoughts about Zack and their difficult relationship since they had met again, she stared into the crowd of dancing people until Syl and Krit came to say their good-byes, promising to meet again soon.

Max watched them leave and waved another good-bye when Logan stopped next to her. "You look as if you need cheering up."

"Zack gave me his contact number."

"He did? Cool. Come on, there's no need to look so sad. No time for worries today, right? You're going to meet them again soon, I promise. And now it's still our wedding. Let's go and have some fun."

Max nodded and followed him. They kept talking with other guests until Bling and Original Cindy told them it was time to leave. After all it was their wedding and supposed to be followed by their wedding night, cliché or not.

When they got home, Logan, back on his own two feet and using the exoskeleton, opened the door. Max wanted to go straight in, but he stopped her. "Hey, stop! Dare you cross the threshold! That's my job - to carry you over."

"Carry me?" Max asked. "I can hardly believe this exo-thing is carrying you, I'm not gonna trust it with me in your arms."

"Okay, I'm not going to carry you. Wheeling over the threshold okay with you? You've trusted my chair more than once, haven't you?"

"Yeah, I have, but Logan - it's an apartment - and what's more: a wheelchair accessible one - there isn't a threshold at all, if I remember correctly. They're built like that."

"You do, " Logan smiled, "But that's not the point. Me husband, you wife," he laughed, putting on a fake caveman voice, "I'm getting you over the threshold, whatever the technique that might be necessary. Wait right here." With that, he went back to the car for the wheelchair.

When he returned, Max laughed and sat down on his lap, letting him wheel them into the apartment and then to the bedroom. There he stopped in front of the bed and with strong arms lifted her from his lap and placed her on the bed, where he leaned forward to kiss her.

"When I told you after Bennett's wedding that you were the most beautiful woman there, I thought no-one could ever look more beautiful, but today I had to change my mind. You look even more beautiful than in that red dress. I can't believe you're my wife," he told her.

"I can't believe I'm married at all, " she said. "I feel like calling Manticore and telling them that one of their super soldiers just became the wife of Logan Cale, super secret cyber-journalist. I'd really like to see Lydecker's face."

"It's just another step on your way to leading a normal life," he told her. "It's not the first thing you've done that would make Manticore rethink their X5 programming which is not worth a penny, if you ask me."

"But I don't ask you," Max smiled. "I only ask you to come over here and pull off your clothes."

Logan transferred to the bed and told her, "When I saw you wearing this incredible dress, I found it hard to believe that I was going to be the one to unwrap you."

"Oh yeah, but you are," she laughed.

* * *

Later that night she yawned and asked, "I'm going to get something to drink. Want something from the kitchen?"

"No thanks" he said, "But if you're going anyway, you could bring your wedding present."

Max looked at him surprised. "Oh no, Logan. We agreed on not giving each other wedding presents, and you already did so much to surprise me today. Don't tell me there's more! I already feel stupid as it is."

He hugged her and said, "No, don't worry. You'll find it in the oven."

Max sighed, but nodded and headed to the kitchen. Logan heard her opening the fridge, then the oven. A little yell followed and she appeared back in the bedroom, her present in her hand. "Chocolate Muffins! That's so sweet!"

"I knew you'd like it. Come back here."

Max nodded and crawled back under the sheets next to him, placing her glass of water on the night-stand and the muffins next to her in the bed. She handed Logan an envelope and said, "This was on the kitchen counter. It's got your name on it."

"A letter?" Logan asked surprised and took it, while Max started eating the muffins. He opened it and recognized Steven's handwriting. "It's from Grandpa."

"Dear Logan,

I've been trying to write the toast I want to give at your wedding but I have so many things to say that I cannot say out loud at a wedding, but which I want to say to you. Some of them just don't fit into a wedding toast - at least that's my opinion - the wedding toast should be light hearted and only a little emotional. So that's why I'm writing this letter to you.

I hope you've found this on your wedding day and not in the morning as there are things I'd like you to know today.

The first thing I want to say is that you did the right thing. Marrying Max is the best thing you have ever done. Done for yourself. I know you still want to save the world and being back here in Seattle I know why, but you can't save the world if you're not happy yourself. Let Max make you happy, you deserve it.

You've had a hard time and I'm sure there will -no doubt- be more hard times in the future, but there is no need for you to drown in self pity. Max will be there to pull you out and help you wherever she can, but she needs you too. Make sure that you make her happy too. It's important that you trust each other completely - it's necessary to be able to help each other. I can only give you little advice for a good marriage as every relationship works differently, but there are some essential things. Be honest with each other, never stop what you started that night after Christmas. Don't run away from problems, they'll find you again every time. Try to solve them and make sure they never stand between you. And one thing that worked well with your grandmother - never go to bed angry. There will be quarreling and bad words - there always is - but make sure you've settled the differences before going to bed otherwise, you won't get much sleep anyway.

The last thing I want to remind you of is something that's not important for you today, I'm sure, but what will come up sooner or later. I know you're not happy about being paralyzed and I'm sure nobody would, but don't give yourself such a hard time. The last weeks you seemed to be fine with it, but now I'm sure it was only because of the chance of getting the exoskeleton to work. I saw your face when you walked in the living room yesterday and even though I was happy for you, I knew it wouldn't be easy. The exoskeleton, as I'm sure you have realized by now, is not a cure. It's must be hard for you to accept that knowledge. There is something you need to consider, though. What if the exo breaks and you can no longer repair it? It's only a machine. What will you do then? Or what if you can't use it for some other reason? Don't live your life depending on it.

You need to find your place Logan, the place in this world you're content with. Your happiness should not depend on the ability to walk. It must come from within you.

If you're going to wake up someday and still be dissatisfied, do me a favor and don't make the same mistake you made before. Always remember that Max went to church today to marry you, not knowing you'd be able to walk. She'd have married you all the same in the wheelchair. I'm sure she loves you, there's no reason to feel unworthy or whatever may come to your mind. Just love her back.

I'm sorry we've got to go back tomorrow, but I hope we'll meet again soon. We're happy to have been able to be here for your wedding. Make sure that you visit us as soon as possible.

Steven"

Logan stared at the second last paragraph and read the same sentence over and over again. "She'd have married you all the same in the wheelchair." He had been working on the exoskeleton in secret for weeks to get it running and had been so focused on the task of having it repaired for today that marrying Max while sitting in the chair hadn't been an option anymore. But of course Steven was right. Max would have married him all the same.

The realization hit him like a shock. Max, who had stopped eating her muffins, moved closer to Logan, knowing something was wrong. She could almost see the clouds inside his head.
When she placed her head on his shoulder and wrapped her arm around his chest, she could feel the tension in his body.

For another moment Logan stared at the letter, then silently folded it and put it back in the envelope and together with his glasses on the night stand before he wrapped his arms around Max.

Max waited until his breathing became more even and he seemed to relax a little before she asked, "Everything okay?"

He didn't answer at first and Max felt him hiding his face in her hair before a quiet "Okay" left his lips and he inhaled deeply.

"Only okay?" Max asked and raised her head to look at him. "It's our wedding night and you're only okay? Do I have to talk to Steven about that letter? No time for worries today, remember?"

A small smile appeared on his face and vanished again within seconds. "No, you don't have to call Steven. He wanted me to read it today because he thought it was the right time. And I think he was right."

"So what did he write?" She wanted to know but remembered her good manners a second later. "Only if you want to talk about it, that is."

He kissed her quickly and told her, "Aren't we supposed to talk about everything? We're married after all."

"Yeah, we're married. I really like that."

"He wrote that you'd have married me even if I hadn't been walking today."

Max looked at him. "That such a new idea for you? That's your biggest surprise of the day? Can you imagine how many surprises I had today? Zack and Syl and Krit and the party at Bling's house and so on. I didn't even know you'd be walking! How could I not have married you?"

"I know. I just realized that I did all this work on the exo just for myself. That I want to be able to walk only for me," he replied.

A teasing comment about his altruistic nature and this egoistic attitude came to her mind, but one look at Logan and how difficult it had been for him to admit this, told her it was better not say it out loud. "What's so bad about that?" she asked instead. "It's okay to want things for ourselves."

"That's what I'm trying to figure out. That it's okay to want something. Problem is that I'm not really convinced."

"Convinced?"

"That it's okay to want something for yourself. Especially if you know you might never get exactly what you want," he tried to explain, hoping she'd understand.

Max smiled at him. "Logan, It's okay that you want to walk. If Logan Cale told me he didn't want to walk anymore, I'd call the paramedics. That's not you, it would mean you had given up the fight. I'm sorry this exo-thing didn't work the whole evening, but I'm sure it'll get better. Look at Syl and Krit, they were completely surprised when they found out you couldn't walk."

"Syl and Krit? I still prefer your face in church, " Logan laughed and Max smiled back at him.

"Yeah, must have been a pretty sight. The bride stops in the middle of the aisle 'cause she's so surprised to see her groom."

"I will never forget your face, " Logan told her. "You were smiling when you entered the church - which makes me assume that you and Steven are telling the truth - and when you saw me, you looked surprised and so happy." He hesitated a moment, then continued, "Happy for me, I think."

"Happy for us. Oh God, I actually cried in the middle of the church. I love you, Logan. And I'm so glad you married me."

"Me too." He pulled her close and snuggled his head in her hair again.

After a moment he whispered in her ear, "I think heaven must be missing an angel. She's here in my bed."

A/N: So did you like it? Please leave me a review. Thanks.