Disclaimer: I do not own.
Author's Notes: The description here will probably be longer than the actual story! This is just a sweet lil' piece about the baptism of Ollie and Becca LeBeau, ROMY's kids from 'The End' and GeNext. Told from the POV of Gambit's older daughter, Honor. It's like three words long, so please review!
None Could Equal the Splendor
If I could tell the world just one thing, My hands are small, I know,
It would be that we're all okay.
And not worry 'cause worry is wasteful and useless in times like these.
I won't be made useless.
I won't be idle with despair.
I gather myself around my faith,
For light does the darkness most fear.
But they're not yours, they are my own.
But they're not yours, they are my own.
-Hands, Jewel
Logan pulled uncomfortably at his collar. It wasn't over an airplane or weapon or certain agonizing pain followed by certain death… No, he paled under the weeping face of a crucifix. He wasn't the only one made uncomfortable by a church: Papa had never been a fan of the Holy ways, either. And Rogue wasn't even Catholic. For all these reasons, Mr. Wagner agreed to waive the usual mass that preceded a baptism.
It was just the family: my parents, Rogue, Ollie and Becca in their fancy white outfits, and Logan and Tante Ro each holding an infant.
I wasn't the least bit surprised when Tante Ro agreed to be the twins' godmother. She was mine, too. I would've been more surprised if she hadn't agreed. But I was very surprised when Logan agreed to be their godfather.
When Rogue was still heavily pregnant and meaner than a hurt possum, she cornered Logan in the kitchen. While making sandwiches, she idly became talking about her unborn children: how they would probably be mutants, and have Remy's energy and her temper… And then she said they'd need godparents. Unlike most other children, the twins' godparents needed to be prepared to raise them. Because Rogue and Papa were X-Men, their lives weren't as secure as other people's. There was a very good chance someone would come after them. The twins needed godparents willing to protect, comfort and provide for them.
Would Logan mind taking that role?
He was as shocked as I was at her proposal. Although Logan and Papa could rely on each other, they bumped heads regularly. Recently, Logan and Pop had it out over a student named Foxx. She convinced everyone, including me, that she'd seduced him. Rogue was very pregnant, and her health was unstable. Everyone wanted Papa to make sure she was always as happy and comfortable as possible, and when Foxx showed up…
Well, we all wanted to beat some sense into my old man; Logan had less self-control than the rest of us.
Truth of the matter is Logan's a fighter. He's tough. He isn't someone you'd want to face in a fight, but he's always someone you want in your corner. That's why Papa wanted Logan to be their godfather.
Mr. Wagner's voice sang out in Latin as he blessed the water. Then he took a small cup and spilled a few drops on Becca's soft forehead. The water darkened her brown hair, as soft as duckling feathers. With impossible tenderness, Logan wiped the water away from her eye brow. She slept through it all.
Next Mr. Wagner blessed Ollie, who was sleeping in Tante Ro's arms. Little brother opened his dark-blue eyes and cried like a kitten begging for food: it was his fake, complaining cry.
All around us, the saints looked on with adoration. Eternal virgins and martyrs witnessed the washing away of Original Sin while outside, sin reigned. It was my hope that Ollie and Becca had a clean slate now, and maybe they'd be better than the people around them.