disclaimer: All recognizable characters are owned by Marvel, except Jenny who is MINE! (though I have been known to share if you ask nicely.) I expect to make no money off this fic. Dammit.

Human and the Demon
by Dizi

Chapter 16

"Mmm, looks like I'm washing dishes this morning." Jenny put her arms around Kurt's waist from behind and rested her chin on his shoulder while he stirred the pancake batter.

"Only if zat is vhat you vant to do." He gave her a quick kiss. "You do not vork here anymore."

"I like to help." She hopped up to sit on the counter. "Though I do love watching you work."

Kurt grinned at her. "Zen you can vatch. You haf much to do today."

"That'll mostly be fun. It shouldn't take long to get Lacy settled. Then we're all going to see Claude."

"Vhat color are you going to get your nails?" He watched her looked consideringly at her bare fingernails.

"I'm not sure. Think I'll leave it up to him and let it be a surprise. He's also going to set me up with his boyfriend to get my hair fixed." Jenny touched her newly shortened locks self-consciously.

"What? Ya don't think I did a good job?" Logan walked in and went straight to the coffee maker, grunting at it when he saw he had to wait for it to finish.

"I take the fifth." Jenny smiled sweetly at him and batted her eyelashes.

"Huh." He straddled a chair and watched the easy manner between the two. "So yer not mad at me then? Neither of ya?"

"Ve are not going to speak of it." Kurt said firmly before Jenny had a chance to reply. "Zere is no fault for anyone."

Logan merely raised a brow and got up to get a cup of coffee as the machine dripped for the last time. He thought there was enough fault to go around.

Picking up Kurt's wrist, Jenny checked the time. "Where's Scott? He's usually already here."

"He was workin' on the bird 'til late last night an' 's probably sleepin' in." A lot a people'll be sleepin' in, he thought, since Jeannie warned ever'body yer in here. But he had wanted to test the waters and came anyway.

"That's strange." Jenny shrugged and hopped back down. "I'm gonna check my room one last time for stray stuff and look in on Lacy. Be back in a bit."

"Take your time, I vill keep it varm for you."

Once Logan knew she was out of earshot, he turned to Kurt. "No ring on her finger."

Kurt hesitated, pouring batter into the pan. "It vas a mistake to speak of children. She zinks zey are important to me now."

"But ya ain't givin' up." Logan guessed.

"Nein, but it vill take time to convince her. I vill vait." He tested the edge of the pancake, then flipped it over. "You knew about her problem?"

"She didn't tell me if that's what ya think, but she knew that I knew." He sighed. It wasn't easy knowing things others didn't. "I could smell it. She's the only female in the place that don't have a period. Couldn't help but notice, an' it's kinda nice not havin' to worry 'bout mood swings like with some I could name."

"She zought you had told me vhen you told me ze rest." Kurt took up the pancakes and poured more batter into the pan. "She feels guilty for not telling me herself."

"I shoulda made sure what all she wanted ya to know an' I didn't. She ain't the only one feelin' guilty." Logan admitted tightly. He felt that he'd failed both of them.

"It was no one's fault, but a continuation of ze earlier misunderstanding. I should have eased her into ze idea of marriage and now vill have to vork harder to do so." Kurt paused. "I do not believe it vill be quick."

"Yeah, well, better you than me. I ain't got that kinda patience."

"She is vorth ze vait."

They were quiet for a few minutes while Kurt filled the platter with breakfast. Staring at the ceiling, Kurt suddenly asked, "Ze othzers are staying avay?"

"Yeah, they ain't wantin' ta get in the middle if yer patchin' things up, but that ain't gonna last once they smell that bacon ya got over there." Logan gestured to the pan ready to go into the oven.

A gleam in his eye, Kurt suggested, "Perhaps ve should show zem everyzing is fine."

"Looks like ya got a plan."

Deliberately, Kurt put the pan in the oven. "If you vill cook ze rest of ze pancakes, I do."

Sighing heavily, Logan got up from the chair. "Nobody better complain 'bout anything bein' burnt if they know what's good fer 'em."

By the time Jenny came down the stairs Kurt had everything ready. It wasn't much but was specifically designed to make Jenny smile and show everyone - including her - that all was normal between them.

At the first sign of the ladies coming down the stairs, he pressed the button on the remote control and the beginning strains of "Can't Take My Eyes off of You" by Franky Valli started playing.

With a soft smile, Jenny took the hand he held out to her. Both forgot everything else as they became immersed in the music and the dance. They moved perfectly together, their feet doing intricate steps. As the tempo increased he spun her out and back, her laughter ringing throughout the hall. They ended with a flourish to applause from the residents who had surrounded them when they hadn't realized it.

"Wow, that was so cool. Can you do that with music that isn't old?" Jubilee asked.

"Where your romance, petite?" Remy shook his head slightly and cocked it to the side. "Not de music dat important but de feeling."

"That was so beautiful." Jean said dreamily.

Resting her head on Kurt's shoulder, Jenny whispered, "You choose the strangest places to dance."

"Any chance to put my arms around you, liebchen." He teased.

Not too many of the pancakes were burned. The majority occurred when Logan went to watch the show and didn't take the pan off the stove. Ororo made more.

The trip to Jenny's house was fairly quick and it took little time to put Lacy's clothes in the closet. More excursions were quickly planned for more of whatever else she might need.

Then it was off to the salon. Though Jenny rarely went for long without having her nails painted - always by Claude - the others didn't often take the time and, like Jubilee before her, Lacy had never been to a professional salon. Claude exclaimed over her, saying he knew exactly what to do for her and she should leave everything to him, then carefully put her in a seat near a vent to keep any fumes away while Jenny beamed at him.

Then, with a wailed, "My dear, your hair! Oh, your nails will simply have to wait." he whisked her off to Steve's station in another room.

Half a minute later, everyone could hear an exclamation of "Oh my God! Your hair!"

With a disgusted look, Jubilee muttered, "It's not like Wolvie's a hairstylist or nuthin'."

They were all quickly settled and a while later Kitty started the conversation with the topic that was on all their minds. "So, any ideas on why Jenny won't marry Kurt?"

"They care deeply for one another." Ororo mused, carefully looking over the rainbow of polishes for the one she wanted.

"Like, duh!" Jubilee rolled her eyes. "Didn't you see that dance this morning? It's, like, soooo obviousl"

"Ah've nevah seen 'em dance like that before." Rogue had been leery of coming the first time but Claude had just pulled out a pair of gloves and said someone with hands like hers should have beautiful fingernails. "They usually look like they're playin' but this mornin' they looked serious, even if they were havin' fun."

"I think it was. I didn't look," Jean said primly, "but I could feel that Kurt was serious about it."

"It was clear he was making a statement." Betsy confirmed. She had picked out a lovely lilac color, purple definitely being her color. "And no, I didn't look either."

Ororo sadly lowered her eyes. "He was, of course, showing us that his feelings had not changed."

"Which doesn't answer the question." Kitty gestured wildly with one hand causing the manicurist to frown at her. "If they love each other why won't she marry him?"

"Don't look at me, I can't get Wolvie to talk." Jubilee muttered darkly, put out about it.

"It most likely has to do with her past." Jean was seriously considering the french tips. "Everything bad for her seems to come from there."

Ororo frowned, disagreeing, "I do not believe Jenny to be so insecure about her appearance as to refuse for that reason alone."

"Ah only know whatevah the reason is, she was real tore up last nahght, could hear her cryin' a mile away," Rogue interjected her own observation. "So it's gotta be somethin' new or somethin' she hasn't told us. An' there's somethangs you just can't tell everyone."

"Has she perhaps spoken to you, Lacy?" Betsy realized the other woman hadn't yet contributed to the conversation.

Looking up, she blinked in surprise. "You've all known her much longer than me. I have no idea why Jenny won't marry Kurt."

"Because I can't give him what he wants." Jenny was standing in the doorway, quietly listening to them. They all looked at her in embarrassment, having been caught talking about her.

All but Jubilee, that is. "What do you mean?"

"I can't have children." Jenny sat in her usual seat, and Claude squeezed her hand in sympathy as he started examining her fingers. After the night before, or early morning, she felt more comfortable saying the words, but still didn't look directly at any of them, including Claude. "No children, no family, no marriage."

"But I'm sure Kurt doesn't care, he loves you." Kitty protested, the others nodding agreement.

"I care." Jenny said firmly and repeated. "No children, no family, no marriage."

"You are being stubborn." Ororo accused.

"Maybe," Jenny shrugged, "but it's how I feel, and I'd really rather not talk about it anymore."

"Perhaps Kurt does not feel the same way." Ororo guessed shrewdly.

But Jenny didn't answer and, though it was obvious they all had more questions and opinions to voice, they respected her wishes, dropping the subject.

After an impromptu stop at a fudge shop near the nail salon, where Jubilee ate a whole pound of the confection, they returned to Jenny's house. Logan arrived only a few minutes later to take Jubilee back to school. Leaning out the window of the moving jeep, she waved and shouted back that someone better call her when the baby was born.

Grunting, Logan resigned himself to riding with a teen on a sugar high the whole way to Massachusettes.

It didn't take long for Jenny and Lacy to get into a daily routine. They got along so well they didn't have to plan, it simply seemed to work out. Living with her put Lacy in a unique position to see Jenny and Kurt's relationship progress.

He was again walking her home nightly. They spent all her days off together. He was attentive, constantly showed his feelings in little ways. He cooked dinner. He did things around the house like taking out the trash. Went grocery shopping for them, brought Moonpies and flowers - enthusiastically donated by Ororo - but mostly Kurt was simply there and part of their lives, waiting.

The mansion's residents who had become close to Lacy frequently would stay with her while Jenny was gone at work. Being so close to Zelig's due date, they were concerned about leaving her alone for long periods. Kurt, of course, was there the most and Lacy began to wonder when he spent time at the mansion.

When she asked he just smile and told her he was waiting.

He spent the night at Jenny's house. Jenny spent the night at the mansion. They danced in the moonlight in her backyard, baked cookies for the residents of the newly rebuilt shelter, went to dinner, movies and plays.

And Kurt continued waiting. He never once pushed her to accept his proposal. As he'd promised, he waited. Patiently, deteminedly, with the ring box always on his person or in his hand, toying with it.

Jenny knew it and frequently said he was driving her quietly insane. She found herself often reminding him that they were not getting married. Everyone found it vastly amusing and wondered when the 'quietly' part would come in.

After discussing it thoroughly, Jenny and Lacy finally admitted they had absolutely no idea what was needed for the nursery and turned to their friends for help. So, Jean, Ororo, and Kitty took them shopping - Betsy said babies weren't part of her milieu. A whole new world opened up for all of them and it took several trips before they were able to decide on a teddybear motif and the furniture with assorted paraphernalia they all felt they could not live without.

Now they had everything, they just needed someone to put it all together. Luckily, Jenny knew just who to ask.

"Loooogaaann..." she wheedled over the phone.

He grunted back at her. "Whadda ya need me fer? Yer gonna have Slim, Popsicle, an' Gumbo."

"But you did a great job on the border in the bathroom." She said enthusiatically, giving Lacy a thumbs up. "I don't trust them to do as good a job."

Glad she couldn't see his face, Logan gave in. "Weeelll... alright."

"Thank you!" Hanging-up before he could say anything else, like add conditions, Jenny and Lacy high-fived. "Yes! Everything'll be perfect, you'll see."

"And just in time." Lacy agreed, glad it hadn't been her to ask Logan for anything. He was scary. "He'll be here soon."

So, while Jenny was at work and Kurt took Lacy to the mansion, Scott, Bobby, Logan, and Remy arrived to paint the room, hang the borders, and - with much cursing, arguing, and threats of bloodshed - put the furniture together. It took two days and the ladies spent the night at the mansion to keep Lacy out of the fumes, but when it was done the men proudly displayed the results.

Jenny and Lacy acted appropriately, oohing and ahing, all the while holding back their amusement and collapsing in a fit of laugher after the guys had left. The room was great, exactly how they had pictured it. The men had even put the baby's things in the drawers. The funny thing was that they had done the wrong room.

And still Kurt waited.

to be continued

note:
xmenloganfan- Thanks! More to come!
CaptainTish- Yeah, I'm pretty proud of myself for doing that. The 'breakdown' occurred in the chapter before, "Nobody Told Me". It's Jenny's pov and features Bobby and Logan.
GothikStrawberry- Sometimes people just can't let something go. Especially when they think it for the other person's good. That's Jenny right now. Or then. Whatever. (And yes, that's how you say it.)
Elizabeth Robbins- Yes, they do. But, well, it'll be a few chapters (and another short story or two).
afreddiefan- Yes, it is. I'm thinking of it like 'passive resistance'.
Jinxeh- For some women once they've had a hysterectomy they don't feel complete, like part of them is missing. Jenny isn't in a bad way but she does feel it that she can't give Kurt children of his own. She thinks it's important to him but she also feels a lack in herself. And my family is like that too in a way (with grilling). My mom always wants to bar-b-que in the little bit of winter we get. In the summer she says it's too hot.
Shorty McGee- Did I make it too obvious? Or did it just seem too soon for them to be settled? Really thought I'd throw you on that one. Btw, what did you mean by 7-10yrs for "The Decision"?
B Oots- It'll come! I promise! And I'm not teasing like with the Jubilee thing (sorry about that).
S- You and Shorty! You were the only ones not fooled. Oh, well. Might not show it so much, but I can see them taking in mutant teens from the shelter before they're ready to go on to the school. Kinda give them a taste of real home life so they understand what it's all about, you know? If I don't show it, you can picture it too.

Okay, I didn't really talk about it before because "Contemplating the Future" actually should have been posted between 16 and 17. But I did it early because I have another short story which goes between these two which I'm posting next and didn't want to do two shorts between chapters, but it's there for ya. "Work Related Issues" is a little touch on Harry and Jenny, and I'll it post on Wednesday.

Next chapter! Zelig's birth.

Thanks for reading and the support,
Dizi