Disclaimer: Blah, blah, blah I don't own 'em...blah, blah, blah...I'm not making any money. I am using the characters of DBZ and XMen: Evolution for my own evil purposes! Mwahahahahahahahahackcoughchokedie

/lalala /- characters thoughts.

( lalala )- I wanted to add something of my own.

/ lalala/- character's inner voices

"Do we have a plan...at all?!" Gohan screeched.

Sitting around the table at Capsule Corporation the Z-team had been deep in thought for how exactly to get Piccolo back. Well...some of them had been deep in thought the others had either fallen asleep or were busy playing thumb wars.

"Ha! Beat you again old man!" Oolong triumphantly jumped from his chair and pranced around the room, conveniently waking Yamucha and Pu'ar.

"So, do we have a plan yet?" Yamucha asked as he quickly wiped the drool from his face. The right side of his head was matted and looked like an odd half Mohawk.

"No...not yet." Gohan slumped.

Goku got up to stretch and patted Gohan on the head, in a fatherly reassuring gesture. He walked to the window, using all the power he could muster to come up with something. Then, the gears started to turn. Goku's face lit up and he turned around excitedly, "I could use my instant- teleportation!"

Bulma seemed to think about this, "I don't foresee a problem, only that Piccolo had a hard time getting through the dimensional rift unfazed. You saw him, talked to him; you know he wasn't exactly healthy afterwards."

"Well, yeah. But I'm way stronger than Piccolo."

Facevault "Yeah, I know, but you could still get hurt! Chi-chi would have my head if I let anything happen to you on my watch!" Bulma stood up as well and went to the kitchen to get a glass of water and clear her mind.

"I don't think it's a bad idea actually Kakorotto. Which is saying something for you."

"Vegeta! When did you get here?" Goku asked.

Vegeta leaned up against the doorway and coolly replied, "I've been here the whole time. It's not my fault you were busy sleepy instead of finding a way to get back your so-called friend."

"Oh shut-up Vegeta!" Gohan glared then flew out the door. He had to get a breath of fresh air.

"What's his problem?"

"Piccolo's been gone for almost two months. How would you feel if it was your mentor stuck in some unknown place and couldn't get back home?" Tien asked.

Vegeta knitted his brows. "Kakorotto, is there anyway I could learn how to use that instant whatever thing to get through the portal?"

Goku turned, "I suppose. I couldn't teach you everything, but I could probably teach you enough to focus on one person. Yeah maybe, why?"

"I need someone to fight with, verbally. I need someone of at least some degree of intellect and unfortunately Piccolo is the only one I can do that with. I'm starting to get bored and annoyed."

Goku smiled, "I think Piccolo would take that as a compliment."
"Two months."

"That's how long you've been here?" Scott asked in the breakfast room.

"Yeah." Piccolo sipped at his glass of water.

"Is it hard being away from your home?"

Kitty was sitting at the table eating a bowl of Honey-Nut Cheerios, Scott currently drinking a glass of orange juice, Jean eating a piece of peanut butter toast, and Kurt eating a unhealthy portion of Cocoa Puffs. Piccolo answered, looking out into the snowy January morning, "Yes, and no."

"Come on children, you have to get to school. You'll be late." Ororo hurried into the breakfast room and shooed the kids out.

"Piccolo, come to school with us! You're our age! Come on!" Kitty called back as she was being pushed through the door.

Piccolo didn't answer, just looked out the window.

When all the kids were gone, "Why don't you go with them? You've been saying you wanted to know about this world." Logan leaned against the door, looking in from the den.

"I would, but I don't want to give myself away. It is difficult to control my strength like that."

"Think of it as another challenge - just something else to overcome. I can get all the paperwork in; you can be an exchange student form Japan here for only a little while. It's really no problem, kid."

Piccolo frowned at the "kid" comment, "When do I start, old man?" (1)
"Children, this is Ran Fujimiya (2). He is an exchange student from Japan. He will be staying with us for a little while. Please make him feel comfortable." Mrs. Hart said. "You can go ahead and sit down Ran."

Ran Fujimiya is none other than our friendly neighborhood green Namekian, Piccolo. Beast made him a device similar to Kurt's to mask his appearance in public. A far cry from his "Post-boy" days (3), Scott and Kurt fixed him up with some trendy clothes. A tight-fitting back t-shirt, loose faded jeans, Timberlakes, and spiked his hair. All in all the man looked good! He took his seat in the back of the class, next to Scott and Jean. This was his first high school class, ever. And he was absolutely terrified.

"Alright class, turn to page 342 in your books, and begin reading the Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Coleridge. Ran you may have to catch up."

Piccolo looked down at his book. Read? / Do I know how to read? I can't remember. Suddenly I've lost all memory of this. / He flipped open his book, looked at the numbers on the bottom of page and finally found 342. / Oh yes. I remember now. These are like the books Gohan is always trying to weasel out of reading. I wonder what's so hard. /

By the end of the class, Piccolo had the entire thing finished, and was currently twirling a pencil in his fingers. He never noticed all the looks he was getting from the girls.

"He's so handsome!"

"Hot! Hot! HOT!"

"Does he have a girl-friend?"

"Asian guys are so cute!"

"I thought Asians were supposed to be short."

"Yeah, but... well, look at Yao that basketball player from China."

"Point taken." (4)

And all the death threats from the boys.

"Look at him, all smug like that!"

"He's so getting it after school."

"He's even stealing our look!"

"Since when are Asian guys taller than Americans anyway?!"

"Coming in here, trying to steal our girls."

"You don't have a girl Fred."

"...Shut-up! I might have if he had never shown up!"

The bell had rung and the class was getting up to leave. Piccolo gathered what little supplies he brought with him and followed Scott and Jean to their next class, gym.

"Hey Raaaaan! Where are you running off to!" laughed Fred and his gang of minions.

"That's not how you pronounce my name. It's Ran with a long 'a', not ran as in past tense of the verb to run. I suggest you pay more attention in Mrs. Hart's English class." Piccolo yelled as he ran out onto the soccer field.

Fred just looked confused. "Well, you can't beat me at soccer! I rule at this game! Or do you people call it football?"

Piccolo knitted his brows and thought back to what Jean had told him, "I believe football is soccer in Britain and Mexico, not the United States."

"Oh shut-up and try to get past me!"

"Not a problem." Piccolo smirked.

Fred took position at the goal, and Piccolo at the goal line. Piccolo weaved and zigzagged across the field. Fred was trying to watch, but found it difficult to keep up with him. Soon Piccolo turned into a blur and the ball like a bullet, launched form the ground in to the goal without Fred ever making a move to stop it. When time slowed down for Fred to realize what happened, he looked at the hole now in the back to the goal net and scratched his head.

Nearby, watching the game was a shadowy figure - the Principle at the high school. / Magneto will be terribly interested in this. / His eyes glowed yellow as he walked off across the parade field, back to his office.
"So how was your first day of school?" Logan grinned.

"It was surprisingly enjoyable. Stop grinning you old windbag." Piccolo smirked back. He laid his books on the bed and flung himself onto it. "Who could guess school could be this tiring? Yet, I don't feel physically exhausted, not in the least, just drained. Do you get that feeling?" He looked over at Logan, paused, "No...I suppose not."

"Whatever kid." Logan looked over at Piccolo, laid out on the bed, with his arms above his head. / Stop it! He's not into that sort of thing.

He did call you lover the other night.

Maybe he didn't mean it. He was sleeping after all.

You're such a pessimist. You know you want him.

I know that! I've known that since I first laid eyes on the man.

Do you love him?

...Maybe, I don't know! I haven't had the best of luck with love.

Oh stop it! You're such a cry baby!

How dare you say that!

Think about it, he's been looking at you a lot lately, right?

Yeah.

And he turns he head real fast so that you think he hasn't been staring you, right?

Yeah.

And he called you lover!

But...

No but's, go talk to him.

I can't.

Well you better think of something because he's trying to talk to you! /

"Logan!" Piccolo was sitting up in the bed, looking straight at Logan.

Startled, Logan turned, "Huh? What? Yeah?"

Smirk, "Is there anything to do around this place? I can't stand not being active." Piccolo fidgeted and glanced out the window at the newly falling snow.

Logan picked up on this, "Well, we could go take a walk if you want. The snow's still powdery."

Piccolo continued to look outside, a forlorn expression on his handsome vulpine face, "I've never been out in the snow before."

Logan walked over to the bed, and said with surprising gentleness, "We'll just have to change that now won't we?"

When Piccolo looked over at Logan, he got a strange stirring in his chest. He didn't know what it was, but it persisted as they dressed for the cold, and again when they began walking through the school grounds out into the snow-covered forest.

It was truly magnificent. Snow blanketed the entire forest in sheets of pure white. Piccolo could see his breath as they walked and couldn't help a small smile to escape the confines of his mouth. Logan couldn't stop looking at him. / He's so beautiful. If a man such as he can be called so. /

Piccolo closed his eyes and lifted his face toward the falling snow, letting the small droplets land on his nose and tongue. It was all Logan could do not to grab him right there, but he resisted. / He would freak out on me. I just know it. / Logan dropped his head sadly, and watched his feet make foot prints in the snow as they walked further and further into the forest.

When Piccolo had dropped his head back down to watch where he was going, he noticed Logan walking in such a way as to scream out his sadness. He looked closer at Logan's face, realizing he wasn't really looking at anything anymore. / Why is like that? Does he not enjoy my company? / Piccolo frowned. / Why would anyone? But still there is something about him. /

Piccolo turned his head to look back at Logan, realizing, in the chill of forest the red hue beginning to form on his cheeks and the manly stubble eternally present on the man's chin. Piccolo smiled at this. / The man would have a five o'clock shadow at seven in the morning!/ Piccolo memorized the way Logan's hair fell about his ears, watched as a stray lock dared to fall into it's masters eyes. Logan quickly secured it back into its rightful position, noticing the Namek's gaze at last. Piccolo quickly turned his head, as he has been accustomed to doing for the past month and tried to act as if his attention were riveted on the bark of a nearby tree.

/ See! I was right wasn't I! He IS looking at you!

No he isn't. He's looking at the trees, just like he was before.

You know it. I know it. HE knows it! Why won't you accept it and make a friggin' move!

I can't!...

What are ya?...chicken?

I ain't chicken!

Your favorite color is yellow, ain't it?

I like yellow with blue. With Blue!/

His conversation was cut short when Piccolo decided to stop and sit on a nearby rock, jutting out of the ground, covered with snow. "I thought this was a great place for a breather."

Looking around, Logan could see why. It was a clearing circled with trees so white a person couldn't tell where one began and another ended. The only problem was Logan had no idea where they were. / I can just sniff my way back, no big problem.

This is perfect! How much more romantic can you get!

Wha?

You're in a secluded area. It is surrounded by beautiful snow-covered trees. He's sitting there just waiting for something to happen!

I can't just walk over there and kiss him!

Why not?

You just don't do things like that!

Well, it is cold. You could offer to ...warm him up.

...That's not bad.

I know, you can thank me later./

Logan rolled his eyes, and looked over at Piccolo, who indeed was sitting there, just watching the snow fall, occasionally shivering. / Okay Logan, it's now or never./

"Are you cold?"

Piccolo looked up from his rock, "No."

/ Shit! Um what to I do?/

"But you're shivering."

/ What? Where did that come from?/

Piccolo seemed to think about this and after a moment's hesitation, "I suppose I'm a bit chilly."

Smiling to himself, Logan sat next to Piccolo on the rock and draped his heavy coat around Piccolo's shoulders, careful to keep his arm around them as well.

They stayed like that for what seemed like ages until they both turned to each other and said simultaneously,

"Maybe we should head back." "It's getting kind of late."

They would have chuckled had they not been staring at each other. / I think I'm going to fall./ Logan thought as he looked deep into Piccolo's dark onyx eyes, getting closer and closer to Piccolo.

/ How did I never see his eyes? They are...so.../ Piccolo thought as he too drifted closer and closer to Logan.

It was that cold night in January, in that secluded place that Piccolo and Logan finally found each other, in a kiss.

Little did they know someone else had found them as well. A dark man, with a dark purpose. (5)

Sorry about the whole not getting this thing out when I said I would stuff. This has got to be the longest chapter I've ever written! I have been dreading this chapter because I have never written a romance before, and I didn't want to disappoint anyone. I hope I haven't. This marks the beginning of the end. I want to go ahead and wrap this baby up before I head off to college, otherwise it may never be finished. I just had to makes sure I had enough of a middle before I got started on the end. 'Til next time!

1. I just love that "old man" and "kid" stuff! You know they would be doing that to each other!

2. Weiss Kruez!! Ran and Ken all the way baby!

3. Does anyone else remember the episode when Chi-Chi made Goku and Piccolo go get a driver's license? Piccolo was wearing that ridiculous "Post-Boy" t-shirt.

4. Actual conversation between my friends and me.

5. I just recently watched Aladdin again. I know I know, I'm getting too old to be watching Disney movies. Hey, I'm only 18! What can I say, it's a Disney classic!