"Weihnachten!" Bamf. "Weihnachten!" Bamf. "Weihnach-" Bam. "Guten Morgan, Papi." Kurt teetered and caught himself with his tail before he wound up on the floor. He really hoped he wasn't as tall as he was going to get, because he felt just a little silly being almost seventeen and being dwarfed by his father. It didn't occur to him to worry too much about banging into him. Too much sugar in him for that.

"Kurt... It's not quite five yet."

"It's still morning. It's been morning since midnight. That's the rule."

"Have you been to bed?"

"...Yes. When Mama sent me. I stayed for three hours."

"I think you were seven years old last time you did this."

"And I was too short to reach the cookies, then." A few smudges of confectioner's sugar on his fingers made further elaboration unnecessary. Fur held the stuff like nothing else. His grin faded a bit as he gave that a moment's thought. "Did I wake you up?"

"No, you woke up your mother and she passed along the favor. She's getting dressed."

Kurt guiltily turned his gaze to the floor. "Sorry. You guys can go back to bed. I have plenty to do. I'm going to send Christmas emails to everyone from school and I might need to fix the star again and I could bring in some more firewood..."

"We're up, Kurt." said his mother, coming down the stairs with a grin almost as silly as her son's. "Tell me, how many people is that for you to send season's greetings?"

He fell into step beside her, reveling in how happy she was. He'd done them more good with his news from the last few years than he felt like he'd managed in his whole life before that. Just listing off the friends he'd made and the places they lived seemed like enough to chase away the sleepy fog of waking up before dawn. He gladly kept chattering as he set the little porcelain baby in the creche, ported up to the ceiling to adjust the star just a few millimeters, carefully ignored the presents under the tree with all the self-possession almost seventeen years had wrought.

Not being able to go to mass or join extended family with their little blue goblin in tow had resulted in a hodgepodge of traditions in the Wagner family.

Kurt helped his mother bring breakfast out once he'd finally run out of cheerful reassurances that life as a real person was as good as he'd always hoped. He collapsed in silence between his parents on the couch. It was a bit of a tight fit these days, but Papi threw an arm around him and he managed to find a position that wouldn't put his tail to sleep. Sipping spiced and oversweetened coffee (he didn't really need so much sugar now, but he hadn't wanted to correct Mama), the last doubts fell away.

Finding out about his biological parentage (well, half of it) had thrown him into confusion. He'd desperately wanted answers and he'd expected to find some kind of new, exciting connection there. The truth was supposed to fix things. But all he'd gained from Mystique was a new and exciting landscape of empty hopes and ugly questions. He still wanted answers. Maybe he even wanted a relationship not based in combat.

But there'd been nothing missing.

Kurt went from almost nodding off (of course, after he'd had sugar and caffeine and the sun was creeping up he was tired) to raising his mug into the air in a lopsided salute. "God bless us, every one!"

"Huh?" His mother raised a sardonic eyebrow.

"Sorry. Kitty had me watch the movie before I left."

Some things never change. A truce, a crop of earnest students, a hopeful new world... None of it could really keep Magneto placated for long. And he was a man who appreciated minions.

Todd had almost been honored to be brought along. He'd figured he was probably there to be the scapetoad, or maybe just canon fodder, but this was important shit. Mutant enhancement stuff. He was still sore about missing out the first time around and to hear the rumors it hadn't worked out all that great, but it could still be cool, being extra-toad. And it was pretty depressing to hang around Bayville and watch all the light-up snowmen twinkling for everyone else. That was definitely a big factor in agreeing to this stupid trip.

He'd regretted it plenty after traveling at hellish speeds in a big metal ball. Everyone else said you couldn't even feel the motion, but Todd relied a lot on being aware of balance and space. Anyone would be clumsy with a spine like his, and the fact that spent a good half his time not flat on his face was the miracle. He knew when he was moving, and at speeds most aircraft couldn't handle.

He'd regretted it even more when he'd discovered his job was getting up the walls to scout, working on the theory that ice wouldn't be that big a problem. It wasn't for sticking, but he thought his fingers might just break off.

"Freakin' Magneto," he muttered as he crested the wall. And then, because that wasn't satisfying enough, he added in as close as he could get to a snotty, cultured voice, "No, I'm not gonna use my powers, 'cus professor Baldy or some other ass might freakin' notice on a stupid freakin' computer. ...Suck up." Though he almost resented the implication that Cerebro wouldn't even bother with detecting a little Toad-slime even within a "high-priority monitored perimeter," whatever that was supposed to mean. Heck, he didn't even know where they were on the whole freakin' globe. The Himalayas, probably. Sure felt like it.

Todd didn't have the head for geography that might have tipped him off about the chances of a castle topping Mount Everest.

He'd been assured there wasn't any working security here, and that the inaccessibility of the area would have kept out the sparse locals. Of course, if they were sure of that they wouldn't have needed a scout, would they?

The space between the wall and the castle was covered in about three feet of snow (or, approximately, one crouched Todd, yuck). It looked kinda weird and creepy, but how was the approach to a castle with a secret lab supposed to look?

He had trouble getting the door open and eventually just wriggled in through the crack he could manage. "Hella rusty, yo." Maybe scouting meant he was supposed to be quiet. He wasn't in the mood.

Inside was way creepier. Todd could recognize that something had been lab equipment, and while the glass and plastic was just dusty and gross, what had been metal was falling apart. He still hadn't been fired on by secret magnet-laser cannons, but he suspected it might be a matter of time.

Sure, it wasn't like you could trust Pietro to not be a total dick and just use his powers anyway, and Wanda was a lady and all, and no one was gonna let that freaky Pyro guy near delicate equipment. But the refrain of why-me kept up steadily with every hop.

Right. Creepy lab stuff, not much sign that anyone had been here since, like, microwaves were invested or something, and no scary surprises. Not that were set off by a skinny teenager poking around, anyhow. Back to base.

Todd was hopping back down to the woods side of the wall when his walkie-talkie crackled to life. The theory was that the more primitive technology wouldn't attract attention. Todd had decided not to point out that anyone could tune into those channels if they felt like it. No one listened to the Toad. He just hoped the locals all spoke Himalayan.

"Change of plans, Toad. Hightail it back to base. Or... whatever it is you do."

It was probably a bad idea to be amused at what the crappy speaker did to Pietro's voice. "Was headed that way already, yo."

"Didn't do a very good job, then, didja? Father says hurry."

He sort of wanted to punch Pietro in the mouth every time he said faaaaather.Oh, well. "Hurryin'. Whatevs."

He mostly ignored the annoying little demands from the speaker as he did his best to hurry. Snow like this would have been a lousy medium for anyone to move in. Todd was swamped every time he hit a drift and even tried to just walk for a while. But that was just as tiring. Three miles, they said. More like three... million miles. He'd be wittier when he wasn't dying of hypothermia.

He was nearly there, and ready to be happy to ride a mach-five hell marble back to Bayville, when a little whining hum from somewhere ahead sent him into a panic. They wouldn't have, would they? Sure, he was disposable. He was along because he barely counted as having powers and someone needed to go check the place out. He was Toad.

But they wouldn't go that far, right?

When he arrived back in the little clearing where he'd left everyone, out of breath and feeling a cold that had nothing to do with winter, it was deserted. Not even an empty ball. The only sign that anyone had been here was a note stuck on a weird-shaped icicle.

Had to book it pinged by radar should be canned goods and fuel at the castle good luck with the generator its got ceramic parts i guess Wanda says she hates you back in a couple weeks when it dies down byebye

Yeah, Pietro did tend to write the way he talked.

"Aw, babycakes, you couldn't put in a good word for me? I'd of got here in another five minutes." Grousing quietly helped him pretend he was just indignant. Indignant and not ditched in the Himalayas in the middle of winter by what was supposed to be his team.

Todd lasted about an hour hiding out in the creepy-ass castle. He had found food, and was more willing than most to count beans and spam as edible. He'd even dredged up a couple cans of kerosene that didn't seem to have sprung any leaks. He figured if all the liquid dinosaurs had lasted a million years underground, they'd probably be good in a can for a decade or two. So he probably wasn't gonna die.

But he was pretty sure he'd go nuts. Even if Pietro had just been messing with him and they'd be back soon. Something about a giant, empty, mad-sciencey castle mysteriously didn't work for him. He felt like he was gonna get dissected. Snow was better.

And it was kinda nice out when he didn't try to move too much. He'd actually gotten some good loot out of agreeing to come. The coat was a lot more solid than any he'd owned before, and the stupid hat and mittens were doing their job. The icy woods were pretty in a way that a city boy didn't get a lot of chances to appreciate.

He didn't even worry about getting lost. It wasn't snowing, and the sky was clear, so he could just follow his own footprints back.

In fact, once he'd clambered up a tree and chilled a while, he almost started to feel cool about things. He wasn't gonna convince himself it was a sign of trust that they'd buzzed off without him, but maybe it'd be nice to have time to himself. He never liked having people around for the holidays. Or, well, in general. He'd gone to that ski lodge the one time. Maybe the snow here was deeper and the mountains plain freakier than anything you'd see in New York (even if you counted the state, which Todd, as a native of the City, really didn't). But he'd be cool.

When it started to get dark, he slid down the tree and turned back toward his super creepy bat motel. And found himself staring down a huge, canine muzzle and a mountain of black fur.

Hedy was getting on in years, showing plenty of gray and slower than she'd been in her youth. She spent a lot more time sleeping by the fireplace these days than patrolling the yard for intruders. But if anything would rouse the old fire in the Belgian shepherd, it was having her boy back. The dog had been born blind, and fearlessness in the face of nighttime and no trouble with blue fuzz had made her an ideal protector. And smell was more than enough to tell her that he was bigger and happier now, but still her same old Kurt after all this time. And now he was allowed to go running with her. It was beyond an old dog to guess why that might be, but she didn't care.

She'd left him behind a little ways, since he was inclined to cheating at chase now in a way that smelled like rotten eggs. He was trying to be sneaky now, but she always knew where he was.

But here was a new smell, a person smell, if a weird one. And strange people were not allowed near Kurt. That was the biggest, most important rule of all. When the person-smell landed in front of her, she pulled her teeth back and summoned up the most fearsome growl she could manage.

The person-shape obliged her by screaming.

Kurt was pulled from his cheerful stalking pursuit with an unpleasant jolt. He'd promised to stay out in the deep woods for just this reason. You couldn't teach an old dog new tricks, like not menacing anyone she didn't consider pack before they got close enough to spot the blue kid. And even if she was down a few teeth these days, she could definitely scare someone. He was more worried about Hedy getting hurt, really. She was getting delicate in her golden years.

But he couldn't port in front of some poor hiker. Kurt ran full tilt, kicking up a sheet of snow behind him and bending so low his inducer was a little confused by it. As soon as he could see the black dog and someone in a coat, he started babbling. "Entschuldigung, entschuldigung, es tut mir leid," he managed breathlessly. "Hedy! Bist du ein böser Hund." Which she clearly didn't believe, going ahead with growling. While wagging her tail. She'd never been great at menacing.

All nonsense to Todd, and not very relevant with the hellbeast growling at him. But he did peek up from under his stupid hat. And oh what the hell. "...Fuzzy?"

Kurt stopped mid-scold. His first thought was that he just got no vacations, ever, apparently. Then that it was pretty low of the Brotherhood to harass people on Christmas. On other continents. Then that that was pretty messed up. Didn't they have families? Then it finally penetrated that the Toad looked as surprised to see him as he was to have the slimeball crawl up a few kilometers from his verdammt house.

With a touch of melodrama (because no occasion was too serious, was it?), Kurt dropped onto the snow carelessly enough to give his tail a jolt. He covered his face in his hands and muttered, "Go ahead and eat him, Hedy."

Unfortunately, since Kurt hadn't run or poofed away, which was what the rules generally demanded, Hedy was too confused to keep being scary and went to lick his face instead.

Todd blinked a couple times, debating bolting into the trees and never being seen again. "You, uh, why do you got a bear, dawg?"

Kurt peeked out between his fingers, looking as disgruntled as his good-natured face would let him. "Hedy was twenty-five kilos at her best. Remind me to introduce you to a leonberger someday."

Knowing about as much about metric conversions as Eurasian mountain ranges, Todd had nothing to say to that. The giant bear-wolf did look a little less intimidating now that she seemed more interested in eating blue boy. Or sitting on him. Yeah, that worked. "Um..." Todd did not appreciate dogs. He went ahead and backed up a step. "So, uh, say I was curious. Where are we right now?" It wasn't like anyone's opinion of him could get worse.

"Seriously?" Kurt straightened up a little more, eyeing him with more confusion than hostility now. Seemed to be a real question. "Wow. Um, you're in the Bavarian Alps." After a moment's pause, he thought to add, "In Deutschland."

Which explained why the elf had been talking alien language to him at first. Boy, Germans sounded angry all the time. Maybe it was no wonder they were always invading stuff with submarines.

(What Todd had and had not retained from his academic career was unpredictable and usually rested on what was explodey.)

"Awesome. Um, so, I'm... gonna go now." What else was he supposed to do? Todd turned to hop off, hoping that landing in his own faceplant-prints would make the trip easier.

"Oh, hold on, Toad," Kurt said irritably, finally standing up. "I'm not about to find the Brotherhood on my doorstep and just wish you a merry Christmas. What are you doing here?"

"Doorstep?" Todd looked around in honest confusion.

"I'm a few kilomet- Never mind." He didn't think he was being pumped for information, because who would give the Toad that job? But might as well show some common sense. "How is it that you don't know what country you're in and yet you're practically in my back yard? On Christmas." He couldn't help adding the last part.

Todd sighed, decided he didn't owe those jerks anything, and quickly spilled the story. He was paying close enough attention that even in the fading light he saw the Crawler's face suddenly go from annoyed to blank when he got to the part about the castle.

A moment passed in silence when he was done. Fuzzy's voice was oddly flat, and the effect was as unsettling as the castle as the dark gathered around them. He could only really see outlines, and memory supplied the gleaming eyes under the illusion. "Magneto sent you to look at a castle near here?"

To Todd, that was the most normal part of the story. Magneto. Scary castles full of science just seemed like they were in that guy's line. Some people were into football or the Weather Chanel or lady shoes. Magneto was into scary castles.

"Where is it?"

The weird softness in Furball's voice made Todd less reluctant to talk. That and spite. "Up that way? I came downhill pretty much the whole way."

"You're pretty lucky, then," came the response. he could swear it was getting darker. "Everyone around here knows to stay away from there. The cliffs are unstable and every road anyone's tried to put in gets washed out. Can't even hike up, usually. Compasses are pretty... Oh."

Well, if Kurt had known to look when he still lived here, if he'd had the time or the guts to think about it... Logically, it couldn't be very far away, could it? Not for a baby to have survived shooting down a river. Kurt stood up slowly, resting one hand on Hedy's head to quiet a concerned whine. "Show me."

"Uh, whoa, now, that ain't a good idea, yo." Todd might have done it if he weren't being so creepy and it weren't pretty much night now. He was going to have trouble finding his way back at all with just a trail in the snow to follow. "It's, uh, too late, and... And won't your folks be lookin' for yah?"

Kurt immediately felt several layers of guilt, the most immediate being that he'd absolutely been ready to walk out on them. Not just on Christmas night, but when they were barely comfortable with his going off their land with his inducer. "You're right. Tomorrow."

"Kay," Todd said before he'd thought about it. He was used to obeying anyone who sounded that authoritative. He wouldn't have thought the freak had it in him. Always seemed like one of the wussier X-geeks.

And besides, he could probably figure something out by tomorrow.

"I'll meet you here, I guess?" With some effort, Kurt was sounding more normal. Quiet, but the whispery monotone was gone. "Wait, how are you finding your way around? Experienced hikers get lost in these woods." One of many things that had kept him in the house during daylight hours, and nearby after dark.

"Followin' the Toad Road, dawg." Todd jabbed a thumb over his shoulder at the odd trail he'd left.

"That's going to be snowed over," Kurt observed.

"Hey, lookit the sky. Ain't a cloud in it."

"Welcome to the Alps, city boy," Kurt scoffed with something approaching his usual good humor. He didn't really have anything against Toad, after all. He was pretty much a nuisance at worst. It was mostly shock that had made him so crabby. "No one wants to find a Toadsicle come spring."

"Ew, man." Todd tried not to look worried. "I'm cool."

"That's a lie." Kurt closed his eyes, gathering courage for the decent thing to do. "You want to follow me back home?"

He opened his mouth to immediately agree, then thought better of it. Between getting lost and freezing and intruding on a happy family around a Christmas tree, he'd pick the messy death anytime. Nice as being warm sounded... "Nah, don't hate you enough to make you explain this shit to your family. Take the bear an' head home. I'll be here tomorrow. Afternoon or somethin'."

Trying to shake the idea that he was about to be responsible for a frozen teenager if he didn't press the issue, Kurt shrugged. He really didn't like that idea either. "Okay, if you say so. Uh... be careful. People around here, um, might kind of know to look out for mutants."

"Gotcha," Todd said, accepting the warning and all the baggage and issues that came unspoken with it.

Kurt scratched Hedy behind the ears and turned to go. "Uh, Merry Christmas, Tolansky."

"Sure thing, blue boy," was the only reply.