Author's note : Okay, I don't now jack about police procedure, so just deal with it, K, though should anyone with such knowledge read this, an email with correct procedure would be appreciated that I might correct the err. Thanks!
Author's Thanks to you : Thank you all for the reviews, they just make me all warm and fuzzy
inside! And no that isn't the heartburn!
Reborn
Chapter Seven : Dark Horizons
"Do it again!" Jubilee cried, clutching her 'Wolvie' doll to her chest.
"No." Logan replied gruffly, Remy and Rogue snickering behind him.
"Again!" Jubilee cried, adding a defiant air to her voice, her bottom lip sticking out.
"I said no Darlin', an' I mean no." Logan replied, adding a commanding tone to his voice.
A mischievious twinkle filled Jubilee's eye, a glint that Logan had seen many a time before in Remy's eyes during countless Danger Room sessions and battles where he was about to pull an ace from his sleeve. Logan had thought he knew Jubilee well enough, though he never had to deal with a two year old version of the teenager he had grown to love like a daughter. Realization hit him too late as Jubilee filled her lungs, belting out a fierce scream that caused great pain to Logan's heightened senses. In a futile attempt to silence the toddler for a moment to reason with her, he clamped a hand over her mouth only to be bitten.
"For flaming crying out loud!" Logan cried, pulling his hand back and then covering his ears.
"Jubilee hon! Quit screaming!" Rogue yelled, earning silence from her daughter who merely looked to Logan smugly.
Logan looked to Jubilee, letting a growl rumble from his chest, yet as with her former self, she only giggled at his attempt to appear fierce. With a sigh, he swallowed his pride and took in a breath, while Jubilee squealed with delight knowing she had won, waiting to join in as the first verse was sung.
"I'm a little Wolvie"
"Short and Stout"
"When I loose my handle"
"I scream and shout"
"When I get all steamed up"
"Ya better watch out"
"Cause it'll be over"
"Soon as the claws pop out!"
Jubilee squealed with delight afterwards as she jumped up and hugged Logan, while Remy and Rogue snickered. They knew they still had to work on Jubilee's biting habit, but figured that Jubilee would probably find out soon enough from Logan that his patience wore thing quickly, and that her little tricks would not work. Heading back to the firepit, Remy checked on the hotdogs, while Rogue tended to the pitcher of Lemonade needing to be made. From over the hill, Emma and Bobby soon emerged, with a colourful pair of figures following, known to all as Artie and Leech.
"Jubilee!" Leech cried, running up to the toddler who ran as fast as her short legs could carry her.
Leech picked up Jubilee and spun her around, having grown from the thirteen year old boy to a strapping seventeen year old youth. Artie made a psonic holographic image of the toddler Jubilee, wearing a yellow trench coat and fireworks streaming from her hands, earning a giggle for his effort. Emma and Bobby smiled, then ushered their wards back to the picnic that had been arranged. Monet and Warren still had yet to arrive, bringing a few others of the X-men who would be able to attend the family picnic that had been planned for today.
"And how is my Goddaugther this day?" Emma asked, taking Jubilee from Leech who then grabbed Artie and ran off to arrange a game of football.
"Am fine! Unca Wolvie sang Am a little Wolvie!" Jubilee squealed, earning a big smile from Emma as she found a new taunt for Logan.
"He did, did he? Oh, did Daddy get that on video tape?" Emma inquired, tickling Jubilee before sitting down on the picnic table.
"Not dat Logan know it, but check in de tree when he not be looking, you be finding a toy dat dis t'ief hid there." Remy remarked from the firepit, a wry grin on his face.
"Your price Mr. LeBeau?" Emma inquired.
"Dat you babysit Jubilee tonight. Her mommy and I got some catching up ta do, if you be knowing what I mean." Remy replied, Rogue turning a lovely shade of red while letting thoughts of the lingerie drift out freely for the telepathic Emma Frost to catch.
"Oh it would be my pleasure, do have a good time. You hear that Jubilee? You get to stay with Auntie Emma and Unca Bobby tonight, as well as with Cousins Artie and Leech." Emma announced, Jubilee letting out a cheer, knowing that Emma would spoil her rotten.
During this exchange, Logan quickly walked off with the boys, challenging either of them to a game of football, needing something to take his mind off of 'I'm a little Wolvie', while too not being able to just rid off to the nearest bar and beat up the first stooge that decided to think they were man enough to take on 'The Short, Hairy Guy'. What Logan soon realized during the game was that Leech had come along way since his youth, using his mutation to his full advantage by disabling Logan's enhanced senses, which in turn left Logan disorientated. Artie passed plays to Leech when Logan had his back turned, allowing the boys came out on top, while leaving Logan finding a bar brawl was even more appealing.
"De soup, it be on! Come and get it!" Remy called out, bringing a plate full of hotdogs and hamburgers to the table, while Rogue carried a tray of toasted buns.
As the extended family sat down for dinner, the sun slowly set off in the distance, unveiling a night
of fireworks for the Fourth of July, marshmallow roasting, stories, songs, and star gazing. In the end
the couples broke off, laying down on blankets and enjoyed the peaceful moment, while the LeBeau's merely
enjoyed watching as Jubilee slept form the days activities. Artie and Leech took to exploring
the heavens with the telescope Hank brought when he eventually showed up, tutoring them on their
astoromy. Finally as fatigue fell over the group like an encompasing shroud, the familes headed
to their homes.
Logan woke up with a kink in his neck, and an annoyed expression as he found himself in a bed with frilly comforters and lace pillows. Darting out of the bed, he recalled the night prior and with a sigh of relief he recalled he had joined Emma and Bobby, returning to their home that Rogue and Remy might enjoy a quiet evening alone. Stumbling from the room in his boxers, he made his way down to the kitchen, following the rich aroma of coffee. Mid way though, he heard an odd, yet familiar noise. Singing. Listening closer, he found to his horror, it was his singing.
Racing to the living room, any thought of coffee dispelled by the sheer horror of the nightmares that twisted through his mind, he found Emma sitting in a rocking chair with Jubilee in her lap, watching the television. Looking to the screen, he caught a wink from Emma as she rewound the tape to the mind numbing scream Jubilee had cried out to gain his compliance.
"I'm a little Wolvie."
"Short and Stout."
"When I loose my..."
Suddenly blessed silence fell, while Logan's face grew red as he looked to the former White Queen of the Hellfire club. Upon her pristine lips, a quirked smile rested as Jubilee sung to herself, oddly enough bringing a smile to his lips as the wheels in his head slowly worked without the blessed coffee to grease them.
"How?" Logan asked.
"Am a little Wolvie!" Jubilee cried, looking to Logan and imitating popping claws, then slashing at imaginary foes.
"I have my means. Such a lovely copy don't you think? Oh I do wish I could be there when Charles recieves the original." Emma remarked, tickling her Goddaughter, who in return growled at her, sounding more like a kitten snoring.
Logan paled as he thought of Scott finding the video in the mail, playing it immediatly and bursting out into laughter, sending copies over the internet to the extended X-familes of the world. While they all knew he had a soft spot, he had gone his entire life without singing a single nusery rhymn, let alone one in which he was the main focus. Any holiday from this day forth, with the exception being any from an invation to a LeBeau gathering, would be promptly avoided from this day forth, knowing all too well a chorus of X-people singing 'I'm a little Wolvie' would greet him at his arrival.
"Yer evil." Logan growled, then walked off to the kitchen.
"Is Auntie Emma Evil?" Emma inquired of Jubilee with a smile, ticking her and recieving a giggled yes for her effort.
"Auntie Emma Evil!" Jubilee cried out, Logan yelling his agreement from the kitchen.
"Good, because being too nice is droll and boring. And Auntie Emma will have to teach you that." Emma giggled, kissing Jubilee on her forehead as she set the toddler down.
"So long as you don't get her into that whole 'Eurobondage Fetish' of yours, I don't care." Bobby remarked with a smile as he leaned against the door, promptly getting attacked by 'The little Wolvie', immediatly feigning injury for her effort.
"You haven't complained yet Robert." Emma retorted with a sly smile as Bobby got 'clawed' by Jubilee.
"Hey! What we do in our own bedroom isn't anyone elses business!" Bobby cried out as Jubilee bounced on him, tickling him as Logan walked back from the kitchen.
"Ya better keep it that way popsicle." Logan remarked gruffly as he patted Jubilee on her head, taking to sitting on the sofa and turning off the video.
"Emma!" Leech cried out from the foyer, drawing the attention of all in the room.
Bobby picked up Jubilee, starting to walk towards the foyer, only to be haulted as a thought from Emma asked him to wait in the living room. As she got up and walked to the foyer, drawing her robe tight about herself, she was greeted with the sight she had picked up from the mind of Leech, two officers with grim expressions upon their faces. As she neared, she shooed away Leech, who returned a defiant look to the curious glances from the Officers.
"Miss Emma Frost?" The taller female officer asked, while the shorter male took a few steps back.
"How might I help you?" Emma inquired, hiding the sense of dread that threatened to fill her voice with the brief images that flashed through the officers unrestrained thoughts.
"Is there a Jubilation LeBeau in your custody?" The officer asked, looking weary.
"Yes, might I inquire what this is about?" Emma inquired further.
"Early this morning there was a fire at the LeBeau household. I'm...I'm afraid I must inform you that neither occupants survived the inferno. At this point it looks like arson, though that will be up for the fire chief to decide upon. At this point, we would like to place a cruiser out front just to keep an eye out, incase this is..." The officer paused, looking to Leech.
"A Mutant Hate Crime?" Emma finished, earning a nod from the officer, while too picking up on honest sympathy and only eager curiosity towards Leech's mutant status.
"Were there bodies recovered?" Emma inquired, drawing upon an icy exterior to hold for the time, until the tears that threatened to overtake her melted it.
"Yes, we will need someone to identify them of course." The officer remarked, earning a weak nod from Emma.
"I shall have Logan go, he was a close friend of theirs, and is the Godfather of Jubilation." Emma replied, her icy exterior faltering as a single tear rolled down her cheek.
"I am dreadfully sorry for having to bring such news. Your family has my condolances." The officer replied, then leaving as Emma gave a nod and slowly shut the door.
Emma quickly passed on the information, leaving Artie and Leech to amuse Jubilee while the adults tended to the matters at hand. Logan raced to his room, quickly getting dressed, anger and rage threatening to overtake him, yet needing to know the truth before he let it happen. He knew Emma had chosen him for a reason, that his enhanced senses could pick up any sign of deception in this horrid act. As he returned moments later, throwing on his cowboy boots, he found Jubilee standing in the hallway, a sad expression on her face.
"Unca Wolvie, why Auntie Emma sad?" Jubilee asked, and in that moment Logan realized that Emma was leaking her emotions to the household.
"Yer Unca Wolvie is sure as heck gonna find that out Darlin'. Now play nice with yer cousin's till I get back, 'n I'll take ya out fer ice cream." Logan replied, hiding his anger from one that did not need see it.
"Mint chip pwease?" Jubilee asked, her eyes growing large.
"O' course Darlin'." Logan whispered as he got down on a knee, pulling Jubilee into a hug as tears of his own threatened to take hold at the innocent expression in her sapphire blue eyes.
Silently Logan got up and walked to the door, turning back to find Jubilee standing in the hallway, waving to him as Artie and Leech stood over her, sad expressions on their faces. Giving the trio a nod, he walked out the door and made his way to his Harley, driving off into the rising sun.