A.N. I hope to continue this series throughout December and am trying to write ahead a few days to stay on top of it. Hopefully it will work out and we will all have fun with it. I absolutely love reading reviews and hope you will share your impressions of the chapters with me. No flames, please. Also, I realize this is focused on Christmas rather than other holidays of the season, but that's how I chose to write it and if it offends you perhaps you'd be happier reading something else.

Disclaimer: I know this is legally necessary, but really... do any of us think I own these characters?

The Advent Season – December 3rd

The next morning Logan stood outside her door wondering what was going on. It was closed. In the entire time she'd lived on this floor he'd arrived each morning to walk down to breakfast with her and her door had never actually been fully shut. He knocked and heard a faint shuffling sound followed by her muffled voice calling out, "Just a second, hon!"

His lips quirked up at that. Only she would have the guts to call him something like 'hon'. When she opened the door, all his humor was wiped away in an instant. "What's wrong?" he demanded. Marie's cheeks were flushed and her eyes were glassy. Her nose was a little pink, too.

She sighed deeply as though she'd been anticipating those exact words. "I'm fine, Logan. I've got a tiny case of the sniffles, that's all." He watched as she pulled her hairbrush through those shiny strands he loved to touch.

Eyes narrowed, he came to stand behind her so they could still look each other in the eye while they talked. "I bet it was one of the rug rats," he told her reflection. The Marie in the mirror rolled her eyes.

"Logan, it's nothing. Stop overreacting, okay?" She placed the brush on her dresser and grabbed his hand. They went to practice their daily ritual involving locating that day's door. For the first time Marie found it first.

"There it is," she said with a little less enthusiasm than she'd shown other mornings. Logan had been watching her more closely than he had the calendar and it was clear to him that her happiness was forced rather than being her normal, natural good cheer. She reached up and tugged the flap gently open. It was a milk chocolate tree. "Open up, Logan. This one's for you, remember?" At her reminder, he recalled yesterday's decision to give him the next milk chocolate piece they uncovered. He obediently parted his lips and let her slip the treat inside his mouth.

For the barest instance her bare fingers grazed his lips, which she discovered were surprisingly soft even while firm. Rogue jerked her hand back and quickly apologized while reaching for her gloves. He grabbed her wrist before she could accomplish her goal, however. "Marie, stop it. There was no pull. You've got some control now." He waited for her to look up at him. "I'm not afraid of you. You know that."

Her jerky nod was all the response he received at first. "Ah… Ah know. It's just… Well, it's been so long and it was a shock, that's all."

All his frustration with her limitations came out in one deep sigh. He tugged her to him and held her close, rocking her like a child for several minutes. She breathed deeply of his scent while her face was buried in his chest, finding the comfort and peace his presence always gave her. When he drew back slightly, his hands rose to cup her face, thumbs stroking her skin. "You know that you can always touch me, darlin'. It'll never not be okay. You got that?" She nodded trusting up at him, but he could still sense her unease with his touch. He knew she still feared she'd hurt him. "I mean it, Marie. I was okay with it before the cure, while the stupid serum was working, and I'm still more than okay with it now. Nothing's changed. We always have been and always will be just plain 'ol Logan and Marie." This was the most serious she'd ever seen him. The most intense. And that was really saying something because it wasn't like Wolverine was known for his lighthearted attitude.

"Ah know you mean it." He studied her intently for another few minutes before finally releasing her and handing her the gloves she'd been after. While she tugged them on they began discussing their plans for the day. She'd just gotten done telling him that she was going to help the little kids with some more decorating this morning and then find something to do this afternoon. "What about you?"

"I've got to enter some new scenarios for the Danger Room, and then I'm free until the afternoon. Furball talked me and Scooter in helping with the lights outside."

"You shouldn't call them those names, you know," she chastened absentmindedly. It was an old argument and one they both knew they'd never stop debating. "That should be fun. The lights, I mean."

"Yeah, I'm a regular Christmas elf, Marie," he retorted sarcastically.

They were pouring their coffee by now. "Oh, stop it. You know, I think you enjoy this time of year more than you let on." She eyed him skeptically. "I think this whole Scrooge thing you've got going is a big scam." She smirked and left him glowering after her while she went to load a plate with some breakfast.

Several children and older kids spoke with her as she made her way around the food and back to her seat beside Logan. He watched her progress and was ready when she arrived back at his side. When he saw that she'd gotten him a plate with everything he would have wanted loaded onto it, though, he couldn't force the blistering reply to her sass from his mouth. She was the only one who'd ever bothered taking care of him aside from occasional medical care which was usually unnecessary and unwanted. Marie watched out for him and treated him like he was just a man, though, in ways that nobody else ever did.

After they'd eaten, they went their separate ways, but hearing her sneeze as she departed, he grew concerned all over again.

After finishing the tree, she rooted through the seemingly never-ending stacks of boxed decorations and opened a few at once. Gathering her decorating acolytes around her, she told them, "All right, y'all, now the really fun part starts. Y'all can use anything you find in these boxed to decorate the doors in the dorms, okay?" Enthusiasm lit their faces and they joyfully started digging though the tinsel, garland, bows, and so on.

The already loud crew increased their volume until Bobby and John had to come out of their rooms to figure out what in the world was going on. Rogue, who'd heard about the unexpected call from Mr. and Mrs. Drake inviting their son home for the holidays for the first time since they'd discovered he was a mutant, ran to hug him carefully. "I heard about you going home… that's great, Bobby!"

He nodded and got a little embarrassed. "Yeah. You always said they'd come around eventually and you were right." He still got awkward around her, even though they'd stopped being a couple a long time ago. Jubilee said it was because he'd never completely gotten over her, but Rogue was sure it was some kind of weird misplaced guilt. That was exactly the kind of thing Bobby would think of in this situation. Whatever the issue was, she tended to ignore it and continue acting as she always had during their friendship.

"So, when do you leave?"

He gestured to the packed bag on his bed, "In a few hours, actually. I won't be home until the 30th. I wanted to have New Year's here and besides, I think it best not to linger too long this time. It is my first visit in a few years after all." He chuckled wryly, "I may be wishing I'd kept it even shorter! I'm trying to give it a fair chance to work, though."

She nodded sagely, "It'll be fine. The first few days will be rough, but I bet it'll be like old times before you know it. I hope you have a safe trip and remember, you just call if it's too terrible and we'll jet on down there and get you." Her grin let him know she was kidding about that as she didn't think he'd feel that way at all.

John had joined them, after dodging a wad of flying tinsel being thrown by the kids who'd started a fight with the decorations. "Yeah, maybe I can fireball some more cops!"

Bobby rolled his eyes while Rogue dashed off to bring peace to her little savages once more. "You sure you don't want to come?" Bobby offered to his friend one more time. The two had become close again after all that had happened and John had returned to the fold.

They watched Rogue turn one boy upside down to tickle him while she laughed just as hard as her victim. "Nah, but thanks anyway. Someone's got to keep an eye on her and I wouldn't want to miss out on any good Wolverine-Cyclops fights." Bobby agreed and reminded John, "I'll be calling every once in awhile for updates."

John just nodded and laughed as the children turned on their favorite teacher's assistant and tackled her to the ground to tickle her like crazy. "I believe a rescue op is needed," he commented before waving to Bobby and walking away.

"All right now! Lay off, you guys. You know you gotta be careful with Rogue," then he saw the fleeting stricken look on her face at the reminder of her dangerous skin. He winked at the little people surrounding them, "She is a girl, after all, and you know how 'delicate' they are!"

The battle between Rogue and the children turned into one of the sexes and before she knew it, they'd flung tinsel and garland all over the hallway and were all panting with the effort. "What the - !" Logan appeared on the scene and surveyed the chaos with amazement. "Do I even want to know?" he finally asked.

"Pyro said Rogue was delicate 'cuz she's a girl and we beat the tar out of all those dumb boys 'cuz of it," piped up one tiny girl with curly blond hair.

One brow rose in reaction, but that was all. Rogue was blushing beet red and began brushing the clinging silvery strands from her sweater. "Let's get this stuff cleaned up and you can finish decorating after lunch… IF you can behave, that is. I'm not cleaning up a mess like this again. Understood?" She gave all of them her 'I'm serious… you're gonna get it' look.

Solemn nods all around, even from Pyro. "Yes, ma'am!" She reached over to slap him with a gentle smack in the back of the head. "Cut it out, you idiot!" He laughed and marshaled the troops to clean.

Logan watched her and saw that her eyes were even glassier than they'd been this morning and then he heard her rasp out a hacking cough. It took a minute or two for her to regain control and she sniffled then kept picking up bows and fake poinsettias. Logan took them from her and grabbed her elbow in one hand. "You, young lady, are going straight to the medlab while Pyro takes over the midget patrol."

"Logan, stop it!" She weakly yanked her arm, but he was unrelenting. "I have promises to fulfill here. I'm not going to let the professor down and I'm not going to disappoint these kids, either."

The pair squared off as they'd done so many times throughout their acquaintance. "Rogue, I'm not screwing around here. You are sick and getting these kids sick, too, isn't going to do anyone a bit of good. Do you really want to be responsible for them feeling like crap during Christmas?" Seeing the defeat as her shoulders shrunk, he tacked on, "The Flamethrower can handle it. Right Fireball?"

Logan hadn't even looked around, but all eyes were glued on them anyway so John knew Wolverine was waiting for an answer from him. "Yeah, I've got it Rogue. You go on. It's all under control."

"But the kids, Logan…" was her final attempt.

The feral turned and spying the little blond again he beckoned her to him with one finger. He squatted down to meet her closer to her level. "You want Rogue to not be sick and to feel better, right?" A solemn nod set fair curls bouncing in response. "And you understand that she probably needs to see the doc to get better fast?"

"O' course!" A tiny hand planted on one cocked hip as she remarked in scathing tones, "I'm not a baby, you know!"

His lips quirked, but he maintained his composure… barely. "No, I can see that you aren't."

Her blue eyes squinted to ensure his sincerity before the tiny girl pivoted to hug Rogue's knees and demand. "You do what he says, Miss Rogue. He'll take good care of you and you have to be better fast so we can do carols and cookies and all that other stuff you talked about, 'kay?"

Logan had already been bemused by the similarity between the little girl's actions and attitude and his Marie's behavior. Seeing the warm, tender light on Marie's face as she smiled at her miniscule mimic had his heart stuttering inexplicably. "Okay, Mandy. I'll go with him."

"Good," Mandy insisted, "and you'll do what he tells you to?" She wanted to leave no loopholes.

Rogue's brows shot up at how firm the youngster was being. "Well," she hesitated. Her eyes shot to John, who was no help and was obviously very amused, and then to Logan whose superior expression would normally have her spitting bullets except right now she was too tired and her head felt like it was stuffed full of cotton making it hard to concentrate long enough to get good and mad. A defeated sigh preceded, "Fine. I promise to obey Mr. Logan."

Little Mandy twirled to issue Logan's orders as if she were a drill sergeant. "You'd better go now before she changes her mind."

Unable to keep his laughter in, he agreed with her and tugged Marie with him towards the elevator.