"We keep running into complications." Harpoon said darkly, leaning back in his chair. His employer looked back at him with dead, soulless eyes.

               "Complications." He said, repeating the word almost mockingly. His eyes took in the slight shiver that his most ruthless killer displayed, and smiled sadistically. Turning his sight to Vertigo, his trusted right hand woman, he raised his eyebrow, her signal to speak.

               "Master, the X-Men were more of a problem than we ever anticipated. Blockbuster and Riptide were killed…again." She said, with a hint of annoyance in her voice.

               "So you were all defeated, my strongest army, defeated! By mere mutants?!" Sinister rose from his seat in the shadows and glared at the remaining group. Smiling coldly he nodded his head slowly, as if listening to some silent advice. "Perhaps I am using the wrong group. Failure is like a disease. It proliferates itself like a fungus and glides through the ranks, making a victory almost impossible. I will start over. But not right now.  Much later..' He turned to his team. "You're terminated."

               Arclight looked back at him in shock. "You're firing us?" No one was able to answer as a beam of some sort passed through their bodies, shutting down their internal systems. Sinister looked on without compassion, and as the door to the right opened, four of his servants pulled the dead bodies out of the chairs.

               "You go through clones quicker than anyone I know." Melinda said, crossing her arms as she stepped into the soft light.

               "I don't know how you tolerate me." Essex said dryly, settling back into his seat. He watched with interest as his chief scientist perched herself on the table, her short sapphire skirt settling high on her lap. "Is the next batch ready?" He asked, letting his finger travel the graceful line of her calf, making his way to her thigh.

               "Of course. You have a visitor. He says he has information on the X-men." She took the pin that was holding her long blond hair up and shook it out. "He says he could be very valuable to us. For the right price…"

               "Really…I think he could wait ten minutes."

                                                                                          *

               Ororo opened her eyes and  yawned, stretching languidly as she frowned, looking around the room. She smiled as her eyes alighted up on a familiar sight, and she sat up silently, biting her lip to keep from saying anything. Logan was fast asleep, mouth slightly open and she could almost swear she saw a drop of drool threatening to slide down his cheek, which was lying against his shoulder. He looked adorable… and rumpled.

               Wondering how long he had decided to play sentry, she cleared her throat softly and watched Logan start, sitting forward quickly and unsheathing his claws. He blinked, clearing his line of vision and let his sense of smell gather information for him. Nothing in the way of a threat…sheath claws. Although his mind wasn't totally awake at this moment, his body obeyed his instincts, allowing his claws to retreat.

               He wasn't in the room alone, someone smelled familiar. That was when "Logan" kicked in, wide awake. "Ro?" He croaked, clearing his throat and stretching.

               "How long have you been there?" She asked, smiling against the rush of emotion she felt whenever she heard him say her name like that.

               "Since you got here and I woke up. How long have you been just sitting there?" Logan took a hesitant step forward and stopped by the foot of Ororo's bed.

               "Not long…I vaguely remember what happened…" Her hand twisted itself in her blanket, and she sighed and shrugged her shoulders. "I know you'll fill me in."

               "Yeah, they'll be plenty of time for that. Just hold on, I want you checked out by Jeannie. I've got some stuff to do. Behave until I get back." Ororo's eyebrow raised in surprise as she watched Logan walk to the door.

               "Behave?" She said incredulously.

               "Yeah woman. Stay in the bed until Jeannie gives you the go ahead to leave. Trust me, I'll find out if you didn't." Before Ororo could say anything, Logan was out the door.

               "Who does he think he is?" She said aloud to the air, a small breeze stirring in the windowless room. "As if I were a small…" Trailing off, she finally noticed the large dent in one of the stainless steel walls.

                                                                                          *

               'This isn't normal.' Logan thought grimly as he tore through the back streets near Greymalkin Lane towards Salem Center. How in the hell could one woman get under his skin so much in such a short time? Since when did the plans he made for the future include her?

Leaning into the curve he let his mind wander over the recent week. He kept a tight vigil at Ororo's bed at all times, only leaving to relieve himself. After the first three days worry began to
gnaw at him, and his only dreams were of her. And nothing particularly spectacular happened in them. He'd walk into a room and she'd smile, the one smile that would sap the rage out of him and curl
his toes at the same time. Or when he'd come in from a day of teaching the kids some simple moves and she'd have a lunch that would satisfy even his appetite. Just things to show she cared.

               He wasn't used to this. Being happy when someone did something for him. Or even having someone do things for him on a regular basis. Saying thank you didn't seem enough, or having her
back in any fight she had…Ororo Munroe deserved the sky she flew in, the wind she commanded and the rain she could cause to fall.

                Logan sighed and shrugged his shoulders. He would give her something that had a fraction of her beauty, inside and out… something fit for a goddess….even if that meant he went shopping. `Why couldn't something fall out of the sky and keep me from making an idiot of myself?' He thought, pushing the bike
beneath him harder, the sun lowering itself behind the line of trees.

                                                                                          *

               Howard Graham looked up as the quaint little bell tinkered, alerting him to another potential customer. Turning on his bright yet cold smile to sell, he stepped from behind his shiny glass case to greet the…The smile wilted without warning, and Howard's prized control slipped. The dirty boots to the roughly worn most likely not designer jeans, almost threadbare flannel jacket and denim overcoat…hideous hair…no money there.

               "I'm sorry sir, the bathrooms are for customers only." He said, sniffing delicately as he took quick steps to shield his clientele from this haggard sight. Logan looked at the skinny man in the expensive pinstripe in front of him with a slight gleam in his eye.

               "I am a customer." He yanked the cigar out of his mouth and walked around the nervous man, causing a middle aged blond woman to hurry to the other side of the room. Logan hid his smile as he looked down in the glass case in front of him, intent in his search.

               "Are you now." Howard allowed a haughty little laugh as he walked behind the display case. "You won't be able to afford anything here. There is no layaway plan." Logan looked up briefly, nose flaring, before moving on to the necklaces. His patience was wearing thin, but he kept his goal in mind.

               "I don't need no layaway bub."

               "Everything in that display case is worth more than two thousand dollars. I sincerely don't think you can afford it. If you continue to waste my time, I will be forced to call security." Howard leaned across the glass to sneer into his face. In a blink of an eye Logan reached out and grabbed the Armani collar of the small shopkeeper and lifted him from the floor.

               "Look. I came in here to buy something, you don't want my money or something?" Logan reached into his jacket and brought out a roll of bills, all in thousand dollar denominations. Howard's eyes squinted with fear and glee at the money. "Ever since I walked in here you made it seem I wasn't fit to piss on the front steps. Now if you don't get out of my face, I'm going to rearrange it so that you have to breathe through your puckered asshole. And I want that one." He pointed into the glass.

                                                                                          *

               "He just left so quickly." Ororo shrugged and laughed. Jean smiled at her through the mirror as she put the last emerald bead on her braid.

               "I'm sure he had a good reason. He didn't leave when you were unconscious. He had to have a super bladder. How do I look?" Jean stood up from the vanity so that Ororo could look her over. The white haired beauty nodded as she took in the tall redhead's outfit. Black leather sharp toed boots with dark blue flared jeans showed off her best friends killer legs, and the midriff baring hunter green wrap around shirt contrasted beautifully with her long fire hair, two braids woven by Ororo's expert hands framed her porcelain face, emerald beads on the end.

               "Absolutely beautiful."

               "I agree." The girls turned to see Scott walk into the room. He hesitated playfully, sinking to his knees at the sight of his wife. "Are you my date, fair maiden?" Jean rolled her eyes and walked over to him, bending to give him a quick kiss.

               "I was waiting for Brad Pitt, but you'll do. Come on, we'll be late for the concert." Ororo laughed as Jean lugged Scott to his feet and out her door. "Bye 'Ro, see you in a few hours."

               "Have fun!" She watched as they raced down the steps to the attic floor, running to the elevator. Ororo smiled and leaned back, looking up at the skylight. Sitting up, her stomach fluttered and she suppressed a laugh. Logan was near... she couldn't see him, but she could feel him.

               "Hey darlin'. Jean and Scooter just ran out of here, did you get checked out?" He asked as he walked into the room like he owned it and her.

               "Um…yes. I have a clean bill of health…where have you been?" she asked, swinging her feet off of the bed and rising to her full height.

               "Don't get angry darlin', just had some business to take care of now that you were safe and awake." Logan held up his hands in surrender. Ororo looked at him strangely.

               "I am far from mad, mostly curious. Hungry?" She padded past in him quiet, barefooted steps, taking his hand and leading him back down the stairs through her mini greenhouse.

               "Yeah, I am actually. So what did Jeannie say?"

               "I'm fine, just needed the rest. My body took care of the poison. Hank wants to check me out himself when he and Cecelia get in." Ororo smiled back at him as they stepped into the elevator, Logan pushing the first floor button. The doors swooshed shut, and the quiet hum of the motor was the only sound inside the small room. Slowly he wound his arm around the slender waist Ororo, pulling him against him. "I missed you so much."

               "While you were sleep?" He teased, causing her to laugh.

               "Sure, why not." The doors opened yet again, the hall lights darkened, and Logan and Ororo stepped out into the calm silence. Padding past classrooms and offices, they made their way into the kitchen, where she playfully pushed Logan into a chair before walking to the refrigerator. "What do want?"

               "Nothing in there. Jubilee convinced the Prof to let her try out her Home Economics project on the dinner crowd." Ororo blanched as she lifted the foil from the surface of what appeared to be some sort of casserole.

               "I'm guessing it was a big hit."

               "Darlin', there weren't enough bathrooms in the place." She sighed and promised herself she wouldn't laugh as she shoved the unnamable mass aside and dug further. "I think she's started a fasting trend. Even old Chuck refused the second helping that Jubes so proudly tried to dish up."

               "Did she try her own dish?" Ororo pulled out her sprouted wheat bread from its untouched perch and snagged her veggie mayonnaise in the same swipe.

               "No, she's domestically impaired, not stupid." That tore the laugh from the weather witch's throat, and she stifled it quickly, placing what she found beside the cutting board on the counter. Logan smiled as he watched her work, content for the first time since she was injured.

               "So what else happened while I was sleep?" She asked, quickly slicing a tomato and onion. He closed his eyes and leaned back, balancing carefully, enjoying the creak of the chair as it tried to accommodate his heavy skeleton.

"Let's see…" Logan let out a long sigh and let his eyes travel along the swirled pattern of the ceiling. "Bobby froze St.John's pillow."

"Again?"

"He was still using it."

"Ah." Ororo opened the top cabinet and produced two bamboo spears, quickly stabbing them through the two halves of the sandwich.

"Yeah, so that was a mess. But St.John managed to put a three hit combo on him later that day during defense training. A right hook, an uppercut, and a jab to the chest that left a scorched handprint on Icy's shirt."

"Good for him." Ororo sat the rather large sandwich in front of the love of her life and sat down beside it, munching on a pickle.

"Boy was showing off." Logan said gruffly, wondering which to devour, Ororo or the sandwich.  Hunger won out, since he had sadly slipped into the habit of Ororo fixing meals for him, it wasn't in him to cook anymore.

"I'm sure you set him straight."

"Threw him against the wall." He smiled, showing all of his sharp canines, and the bits of food that clung to them.

"How very attractive. Beating up young men and revealing half masticated food." Ororo closed her eyes and smiled.

"Oh yeah, I'm too sexy."