Okay... so it's been yeas since I wrote any DA fic, but having trawled round the net and eventually found the DAR site, I couldn't resist having a go at their St Valentines Day Challenge. Be warned - pointless fluff ahead - definately ML (as if it could be anything else!)

I'm not one of those writers that begs for reviews - so review if you want, don't if you don't - not bothered, just hope someone finds it readable!

Chapter 1 - Saint What?

Max POV

So… the whole city just went crazy 6 weeks ago for some stupid occasion called 'Christmas' and now there must be some other meaningless occasion on the horizon 'cause I'm hauling ass on 50 runs a day and the pile of packages in Normal's cage just ain't getting any smaller.

Before the pulse, not many people cared about Friday 13th, but some people got really weirded out and superstitious since it happed… like Original Cindy telling me it's bad luck to leave the crib without blotting and re-applying lipstick at least twice!

Me? Given the givens I'd rather leave the 'not walking on the cracks in the sidewalk' and 'black cats crossing your path' to the people who have less to worry about than being found by the secret government agency that designed you, brainwashed you, trained you to kill and now want to hunt you down because you left without so much as leaving them a thank you note in a cute red envelope on their head psycho's desk.

Maybe I'll swing by Logan's after work and see if he will fill me in as to why the whole world seems to have gone Hallmark crazy again!

"Bip, bip, Missy miss. These packages don't just deliver themselves!" Normal punctuated each syllable with a bang of his clipboard against the side of a bank of lockers. Original Cindy raised an eyebrow and continued to file her nails.

"I'm. On. A. Break!" she turned back to Max, "So, anyway, the gurl was FINE! Hair down to here. Legs up to there. Wonder if she has a date for tomorrow?" Max could tell by the look on Cindy's face that she was lost in a mental image of her and the girl in question doing things that girls do together when they do girls instead of boys. Normal gave up and walked back to his cage throwing the occasional insult at any messenger passing.

"So? What's the big dealio 'bout tomorrow anyway?" Max casually enquired as she threw a dirty tank top into her backpack that had been the source of the sweaty smell coming from the bottom of her locker.

"You cannot be serious, boo! Don't be telling Original Cindy that you ain't never heard of St Valentine's Day?" Cindy put down the nail file and stared at Max.

"Uh, I guess." Max shrugged her shoulders and leaned back against her locker and checked her pager which had just started to bleep, "Is that bad?"

"Bad? Boo, you gotta get your ass over to Roller Boy and get him to explain 'cause Original Cindy got a date to fix."

"Ok. Catch you later OC," called Max as she made her way over to the payphone and dialled the seven numbers that were permanently etched into her memory.

"Yeah?" Logan answered on the first ring, as always.

"Hittin' ya back for blowin' up my pager"

Max finished work and made her way over to Logan's apartment. There hadn't been an Eyes Only emergency or news of Max's siblings, Logan just thought that after a day filled with bips and parcels that Max would like to relax and have dinner cooked for her. The hazy sun that had filtered through the smog earlier that day had now been replaced by a dull, grey drizzle and she was soaked to the skin by the time she arrived. She travelled up to the penthouse in the elevator and quietly let herself into the apartment.

Logan looked up from his computer has he heard the squelching noise of Max's boots on the wood floor. He sat back and waited for her to appear round the corner.

"Dontcha just love Seattle in the springtime?" Logan mused as Max came into view.

"Yeah! About as much as I love the thought of Normal in his Tighty-whities!" Max replied as she dropped her sodden jacket on the floor. She kicked off her boots and hopped about as she struggled to remove uncooperative damp socks. Logan watched the removal of Max's clothes with interest as she proceeded to peel off her wet sweater and pants, leaving her in vest and panties which he was pleased to note were matching. Max cleared her throat and looked at Logan with a raised eyebrow as he tried to push the thought of peeling off the matching underwear with his teeth out of his mind.

"I thought X-5's didn't feel the cold?" Logan enquired as Max began to rub at the rapidly forming goose bumps on her arms.

"Rain. Feline DNA. Not a good combination."

"Uh. Yeah. Sorry. Water's hot and there's fresh towels in the…" he trailed off as Max padded off down the hallway to the bathroom. He heard the shower start up and gathered up the pile of wet clothes Max had left behind. He headed to his utility room and threw them in the dryer, then made his way to the kitchen to check on dinner. 'Culinary miracles r us. Better get cooking!'

Logan was busying himself stirring contents of pans and chopping when Max finally returned from the shower. She stood at the island in the kitchen and watched Logan as he worked. Logan smiled as he saw her and noted how good she looked in one of his over-sized sweatshirts.

"So. What's the delio on this Saint Val-whatever day, tomorrow?" Max asked as Logan put the finishing touches to their dinner.

"It's St Valentine, and you really don't know?" Logan stopped what he was doing and stared at Max.

"It never came up before. So?"

"No. I'm just… surprised. You being so… And it's the day for… Huh! Who'd have thought?" Logan smirked to himself and finished loading food onto plates.

"Are you going to tell me, or not?" Max looked annoyed as Logan carried the plates on his lap to the dining table. Max followed and sat down opposite. They began to eat when Max asked again, "So, St Valentine's day. What's the what?"

"Well," began Logan, "St Valentine is the patron saint of lovers. It's a tradition that you send a card and maybe a gift to the person you love." He watched Max's features warily. "And if you love someone but don't want them to know who you are, you can send whatever you're sending anonymously."

"Well, that explains all the parcels, especially the ones with no return address." Max looked confused, "But why would you not want the person to know?"

"Um. Maybe… er… the person sending is unsure if the person they're sending to feels the same." Logan could feel his cheeks starting to redden. 'Maybe I should cancel that delivery I ordered for tomorrow'

"But that's just dumb. I'd want to know if someone loved me. It's just stupid that you wouldn't know who it was so you wouldn't know if you loved them back!" Max shrugged and carried on eating.

The St. Valentine's Day discussion was left at that as Max told Logan about the antics of the Jam Pony crew that week and Logan told Max about the latest developments on the Informant Net. They finished their meal and Logan went to the dryer to retrieve Max's clothes, folded them and left them on the dining table as she cleared the dishes. He took their wine glasses and set them down on the coffee table in the lounge where Max joined him.

"So Logan, You out with some girl tomorrow, like the rest of the male population?" Max enquired as she entered the lounge and sat on the arm of a chair.

"Uh. No. Actually I was thinking if you didn't have a date maybe you could come over here and we could celebrate the holiday together, 'cause… you know… it might be a little… awkward if all your friends have dates and you're the gooseberry." Logan hoped that she didn't detect the mild panic he could feel rising slowly.

"Kinda like an anti-date?" ventured Max, "Yeah, that would be cool. You make dinner, I'll bring dessert, you got yourself a deal!" Logan let out the breath he hadn't realised he was holding and grinned.

"Deal."