It was a beautiful night in the big city as the snow rained down at a leisurely pace. Carolers sang happily while couples skated in Central Park with the big Christmas tree looming over them with joy and excitement shining through its many lights.

As others were shopping late in the night, a young woman walked over to a building labeled Worthington Towers as the doorman politely held the door open for her.

"Happy holidays." She said in appreciation as she walked in.

High in the building, a phone rang in the main office as mail slipped through the door.

"I'm not here." A young man's voice message said. "Leave a message."

The message was recorded as a woman started speaking. "Warren, if you're there, please pick up. Dad and I just wanted to say hi from London and let you know that we're thinking about you. Please call, dear. We're worried about you."

The young man in question, Warren, was sitting by the fire watching a news report. What drew his attention was the burning building that the reporter was standing in front of, with firetrucks in the background.

"Once again, we understand that a disabled woman is still inside this burning building." The news reporter informed her viewers. "Firefighters have made numerous heroic but unsuccessful attempts to reach her."

Frowning at the bad news, he walked out onto the balcony as he saw more firetrucks pass the building to reach their destination. Knowing that they wouldn't be able to save the poor woman, Warren took off his trenchcoat, revealing that he had angel wings on his back. Though you might think he was an angel, he was actually a mutant.

The wings began to flap as he was lifted into the air, where he soared through the sky to rescue the trapped civilian.

At the scene, firefighters were doing all they could to put out the fire while a pair were keeping a young lady from barging in.

"Please! Let me go!" She cried. "She can't walk! She can't get out! Let me save her! Please!" She pleaded in tears. "Mother!"

The woman who was trapped was unconscious in her wheelchair while the room burned around her.

When it seemed to be too late for her, Warren flew through the window, lifted the woman into his arms, and took off out of the wreckage. As the cold air stirred her awake, she gasped as she saw the streets below her before looking back up into Warren's face, who smiled at her, which made her do the same in return.

As her daughter was further blocked off from rescuing her mother, she ran off in tears, believing her to be done for. In the park, right across from the apartment complex, the mother was then placed on a park bench as the angel took off. Seeing her daughter in tears, she called out to her.

"Jamie! Here, honey! I'm over here!"

"Mom?" Jamie said in disbelief. Her sadness was replaced with delight. "Mom!" She raced over and embraced her in a hug. "How did you get here?"

"An angel, honey." Her mother answered as she looked to the sky with her daughter following her line of sight. "A real angel, with wings."


It was the holiday season at the institute, and everyone was socializing and relaxing in the living room. This was the day that most of the students would head home to spend the holidays with their families.

Kitty was opening a gift from Jean. Ripping off the wrapping paper and opening the box, she found a necklace with the gold letter K.

"Oh, it's beautiful!" Kitty said gratefully. "Thank you, Jean."

"You're welcome." Jean said as she watched Amara and Jubilee open their gifts.

"How cute." Jubilee said as she admired hers. "Thank you so much."

"I love it!" Amara praised. "You're so sweet. Thanks." She then giggled along with Jubilee as they saw Kurt come up behind Kitty and hold some mistletoe over them.

"Kurt." Kitty said in exasperation as she smacked away the mistletoe. "In your dreams!"

"All in the holiday spirit." Kurt joked as he puckered up his lips.

"Kurt, knock it off!" Kitty ran away as Kurt chased her, passing by Xavier and Logan.

"Come on, Kitty." The blue mutant begged. "Just one little kiss?"

"Kurt." Xavier warned, making Kurt look down sheepishly.

"Sorry." He apologized before leaving her alone.

Xavier shook his head at the antics of his students. "To be young again."

"Yeah." Logan stirred his cocoa. "Glad that's over with."

"You know, Logan, you're welcome to spend the holidays here with us." Xavier offered.

"Thanks, but I got some important things to catch up on." Logan said as he sipped his drink.

Rogue had finished decorating the tree when she noticed that a certain someone wasn't here. Huffing at him cooping himself up in his room, she marched up the stairs to confront her boyfriend.

Opening the door, she saw Danny lying on his bed as he lazily looked at the ceiling. She could feel his emotions, all thanks to the link she had with him. Though they got it under control with the help of the professor and occasionally Jean, they still couldn't help but sometimes pick up on the emotions the other was having. And these were some emotions she was getting from her boyfriend.

He was bitter, angry, and miserable. She didn't know why he was feeling these things at this time of the year, but hey, getting her boyfriend out of his funk was what she was here for.

"Merry Christmas, sugar." She greeted happily, hoping her good mood would bring out his, but it didn't work. Hopping on the bed, she laid beside him. "Hey, you all right?"

Danny nodded, avoiding eye contact with her. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"You sure?" Rogue asked. "I can sense your feelings, you know? You feel very subdued." She frowned in concern. "It's not like you at all."

"I'm good." Danny answered blankly. "I'm just a little tired."

"Oh." Rogue replied before she cuddled up to him and smiled. "Well, it's sure gonna be lonely around here when all these guys leave tomorrow."

"Yeah." Danny agreed, not picking up on her subtext at all.

Rogue sighed in irritation. Men could be so difficult at times. "But it could be fun, you know? Just us, the prof, Scott, Alex, and Mr. McCoy." Still no response. "Did I already say just us?"

"You did." Danny confirmed, making Rogue glare at him.

"Okay, what's wrong with you?" She demanded. "You've been like this all week. What's the matter?"

Danny could feel the emotions coming from Rogue. Annoyance, rejection, and the one thing that made him feel the most guilty. Concern. "I'm sorry, Rogue." He apologized. "I just..." He sighed, knowing that this would lead to more questions. "I hate Christmas."

"You hate Christmas?" Rogue asked incredulously. Color her surprised. She thought Danny was one of those people who really got into the holiday. "Why?"

"I, uh..." He didn't want to think about it. "I just do, okay? I don't want to talk about it." Sitting up, he faced his back to her before he realized Rogue was only trying to help and didn't deserve this treatment. "Look, I'm sorry." He said gently. "I didn't mean to act like a grinch. It's just hard for me to get into the holiday spirit."

Rogue placed her head on his shoulder. "I understand. But maybe this is the year that you finally do." She suggested before putting her arm around him. "After all, this is our first Christmas together."

"Yeah." Danny said, smiling for the first time today.


The next morning, everyone was heading off to the airport on their way home as they bid goodbye to the X-Men who were staying.

"Bye, Jean." Scott waved. "Have fun."

The students all left with Storm driving the X-Van and Ray driving the professor's Cadillac.

"All right!" Beast rubbed his hands together as he looked at the four remaining students. "Who's up for helping the professor and me install Cerebro's new security upgrades?"

"I guess this is his idea of how to have a fun holiday." Scott said sarcastically.

"Better than his attempt at making fruit cake." Danny bit out.


Warren was in the park, reading the Daily Bugle as it detailed his rescue of the woman from the fire. Throwing the paper away, he walked through the park, glancing briefly at a fountain with an angel statue on top of it, when he saw two men fighting over a briefcase.

"What did I tell you?" The owner cried as he tried to fight off the thief. "Let go! Let go! Let go!" Sadly, the thief was much stronger as he pulled it from his grasp and ran off. "Hey! Stop! Get back here, creep!" The owner demanded as he chased the crook.

Knowing that he had to do the right thing, Warren slipped off his coat, revealing his wings, and flew off after the criminal, unaware that he had just been seen by a man in a black trenchcoat and hat.

As the robber looked behind him, he saw his victim trip in the snow. He laughed, knowing that he had this in the bag, when Warren swooped down and lifted him up into the air.

"What is this? Put me down!" The thief panicked while the owner of the briefcase watched the scene in awe. "No, no! Don't drop me, please! This ain't possible." The thief was then placed on the top of a flagpole as he pleaded with the angel. "Oh, please! No! No! No! Don't leave me here! Please! I'll go straight! I'll go to church! Anything! Name it! Oh, please!"

The angel ignored him as he took the briefcase and flew off.

"He carried him off that way." The owner said to a patrolman on a horse. "I couldn't believe it. I mean, wings and everything. Wings, I'm telling you. It was an angel. A real angel!"

The patrolman just stared, obviously not buying this crackpot story, when the briefcase landed between them. The two looked up to see the angel fly past them.

"Look, it's him." The owner stated, excited that he had proof. "I told you. Just like I said, an angel."

The patrolman's eyes widened at the very scene. "Glory be, would you look at that."

Warren landed next to his jacket as he glanced around. Seeing that no one was watching him, he put it back on and continued with his day, not noticing the mysterious man observing him from behind a tree.


"In a story with a great holiday twist, a mugging was apparently thwarted in Central Park today by an angel." A news lady explained as footage was shown of the owner and the patrolman speaking to another officer. "Eyewitnesses claim a winged man flew down from the sky, capturing the alleged thief."

It then cut to the news lady interviewing Jamie and her mother.

"His wings were beautiful, and he was so handsome." The mother said.

The news spread around as people gave their thoughts on the angel. Some believed that this was the real deal and that they were being watched by a holy protector. These people believed it to be incredible, with some taking to the streets carrying signs that said Angels Among Us.

However, with believers came skeptics.

"And so, Dr. Johnson, you're saying these angel reports are just another kind of UFO sighting?" An interviewer asked.

"Yes." The doctor confirmed as three teens listened to the interview over the radio. "Stories like this quickly take on a life of their own, growing more exaggerated with each telling. Soon you find otherwise rational people seeing and believing very irrational things."

At the institute, Xavier was reading the news paper reporting on the activities of the angel as everyone shared their thoughts.

"Be not forgetful to entertain strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares." Beast quoted as he played chess with Scott.

"Shakespeare?" Xavier asked.

"The Bible." Beast replied.

"Indeed. Although I wonder if this angel is of the heavenly variety." Xavier pondered.

"What, you think he's some kind of demon?" Alex asked.

"Yeah, right." Rogue scoffed.

Danny merely stared at the fireplace, as the mention of demons brought back a traumatic memory. Staring into the fireplace made him feel like he was gazing upon the burning wreckage of the Nasty Burger. "You ever dance with the devil in the pale moonlight?" He mumbled to himself quietly, but everyone heard it.

"Is that Shakespeare?" Scott asked.

Danny shook his head. "No, it's from a movie."

"Actually, Scott. I fear he may be a mutant and that his activities will alert the public to the existence of mutants." Xavier said. "I was wondering if you could try and find this angel." He asked his students.

"You're lying." Danny stated.

"Excuse me?" Xavier asked.

"Professor, I saw you last week reading a paper about that Spider-Man guy fighting some punk in a rhino costume, and yet you didn't seem worried about him possibly exposing mutants." The hybrid pointed out. "What makes angel boy so special?"

"Okay, you got me." Xavier admitted. "I actually want to know whether he is a real angel or not."

"Really?" Danny asked, shocked that Xavier was actually unsure about whether this guy was real or not.

"Danny, I've always been a man of science." Xavier explained. "That was thrown in my face when you told me about that ghost named Technus and all the other creatures you encountered in your old town. Knowing that the supernatural exists has thrown me for a loop, and I can't help but be intrigued by the things that I once deemed make-believe." He then shrugged. "So, who's to say that this angel could actually be the real thing? I'm curious. So, could you go to the city to see if he's truly real?"

"Sure!" Rogue said excitedly, seeing this as a chance to get some alone time between her and Danny. "We could go. I'm going nuts just sitting around here." She gave a hopeful look at Danny, batting her eyelashes.

Danny couldn't say no to that face. "I wouldn't mind going."

"Alright." Xavier said. "Hank, could you compile a list of angel sightings with witnesses, addresses, that sort of thing? That should give these two a place to start."

"Yes!" Rogue cheered at being able to go out.


The two headed to the city to begin their search. First, they tracked down Jamie and her mother but didn't get any leads. Next, the two were harassed by a guy holding one of those Angels Among Us signs. Third, they interviewed the man whose briefcase was saved, but there was no luck from him either. Finally, they encountered the guy with the sign again, and they practically had to run to escape him.

The two took refuge in a diner as they decided to take a break.

"This hits the spot." Rogue said as she sipped her coffee.

Danny nodded. "Yeah, but I think the chances of finding this angel guy are pretty slim."

"I know, but at least we got out of the institute." Rogue pointed out as she saw that Danny was falling into his dreary mood again. "Hey, let's do something fun while we're here." She suggested. "What do you say?"

"Sure." Danny answered. "What do you have in mind?"

Rogue smiled. "Well, I saw this cool music store on Fifth Avenue, and you do owe me a gift."

Danny raised an eyebrow. "Who says I didn't get you a gift?"

"You did?" The southern goth asked. She didn't think Danny would have time, given what he appeared to be going through.

"Look, I may hate Christmas, but that doesn't mean I'm not getting my girlfriend a present." Danny said, feeling a bit offended that Rogue thought he wouldn't buy her something.

"Sorry." She apologized, realizing that she had touched a nerve. "I didn't mean to imply anything."

"It's all right." Danny replied as the two sat in silence. Rogue honestly didn't know what to do. She's never seen her boyfriend like this. It was like he was a completely different person.

"Do you believe in angels?" She asked, hoping to break the awkwardness.

"What?" Danny was caught off guard by the question.

"Well, you told me all about the ghosts you once faced." Rogue told him. "That guy in the metal suit—what was his name? Skulker, I think? And then there was that prison warden. Have you ever met an angel?" She leaned toward him. "Do you know if they're real?"

The young man just stared at her as she looked at him in concern.

"Danny?" She placed her hand over his.

"You want to know why I hate Christmas?" He asked out of the blue. The look in his eyes scared her. Those blue orbs, which could make any girl blush, were the windows to a soul that had truly seen something terrible.

"The first Christmas I can remember, I had a dog piss on my face, and after that, the holidays never got better." Danny confided. "And it was all because of my parents arguing over whether Santa Claus was real."

"Santa Claus?" Rogue asked, a bit taken out by that detail.

"Yeah, I know." Danny said, knowing how ridiculous it sounded. "They were weirdos. So early on, I already knew there was no Santa Claus. It was par for the course." He explained. "They start to fight, and it causes everything to go to shit."

He then listed all the things that went wrong at Christmas. "The Christmas dinner was brought back to life and tried to murder us. My dad ended up kicking one of my Christmas presents into the fire by accident. And let's not forget the time we were heading to the mall to do some last minute shopping and they weren't paying attention to the road and ended up crashing the RV. I spent that Christmas with my arm in a cast."

Rogue didn't know what to say. It explained why he was so cold at this time of the year. "I-"

"But that wasn't the worst." Danny cut her off as he started to look delirious. "The worst one." He tried to hold back his tears. "It was ruined before it even started. It was the beginning of December when he came."

"He?" She didn't know who he was talking about, but given how frightened he appeared, Rogue didn't want to know either.

"Yeah, him." The ghost practically spat out that word. "He came, and he took everything from me. My mom, my dad, my sister, and my best friends." His girlfriend watched as he teared up. "Everyone was all gone. Because of him. So, no, Rogue." He said facetiously. "I don't know if angels are real. But demons, devils, or whatever the fuck you want to call them, they're real. Because he was one of them."

Not wanting to be in here anymore, he stormed out of the diner, leaving Rogue to her thoughts. She sat there for a few seconds before coming out and finding her boyfriend at the curb, crying.

She sat next to him and embraced him, allowing him to finally let it out.

"I'm sorry." He sobbed as he felt awful for snapping at her. Here she was trying to make him feel better and he threw it right back into her face. "I didn't mean to be a jerk."

Rogue rubbed his back. "Hey, it's all right." She soothed. "You had an outburst. It happens." She had never seen her boyfriend cry. Danny always seemed like that guy who could take anything and never be hurt. So it was surreal in a way to see him so vulnerable. "If it makes you feel any better, I never really got into the whole Christmas thing myself."

Danny gazed at her through his tears. "You didn't?"

"Christmas was always lonely." Rogue admitted. "The only person I had was Irene, and even she was distant." She looked down as memories of being alone in her room came back, but she pushed them aside as she smiled at her boyfriend. "But I'm excited for this one. You want to know why?" She placed her arms around his neck. "Because I have you with me. Maybe this will be the Christmas that finally works for both of us."

"You really think so?" Danny asked as Rogue started to wipe away his tears.

"Yeah." Rogue kissed him. "I love you, Danny."

"I love you too." Danny grinned as the two held on to each other for support.


As Warren soared across the Brooklyn Bridge, he was watched by the mysterious man who stood on top of the bridge. Deciding to test the angel, the man raised a hand and, using his magnetic powers, made one of the trucks swivel out of control, causing a crash with one car teetering off the bridge as it was tangled in the suspension cables.

"Mom!" The little girl in the car cried out. "Help!"

As they were about to fall, Warren flew down to rescue them. "I've got you, honey." He comforted the girl. "Give me your hand." He grabbed onto her and lifted her out of the car before placing her safely on the bridge as he went to help her parents.

A cable snapped as the car's weight started to push it over the edge. Warren made his way to the driver's seat and opened the door just as the final cable snapped. The car plummeted into the waters below as Warren watched, holding the couple in his arms. He then returned them to their daughter

The crowd cheered as they surrounded the angel. Warren was glad that this time he was wearing a costume along with a mask to hide his identity. Magneto, deciding to show him how heroes truly get rewarded, used his powers to wrap one of the cables around his ankle.

"Mr. Angel?" The girl, Haley, asked as Warren bent down to free his foot, accidentally knocking her off the bridge with his wings as she screamed. Warren, seeing his mistake, dove down to catch her as the two fell into the water.

"Haley!" Her father cried.

"No!" Her mother shouted as well, as the two looked on in horror.

Warren rose out of the water with Haley in his arms before falling back in as a result of his wings having trouble flying when wet. Despite this, he pushed on and brought them both back onto the bridge.

"It's his fault." Magneto accused. "He knocked the girl into the river. I saw him."

"Yeah, I did too." A civilian said. "This guy's no angel. He's just some kind of freak!"

"Yeah, those wings aren't real, are they?" Another chimed in.

"No, stop!" Warren yelled as they tried to attack him. "Get back!" But they wouldn't back down so he had no choice but to fly away as Magneto watched on.


After the heart-to-heart, Danny and Rogue were at a store looking at some music when Rogue overheard a conversation between two girls.

"Did you see the news tonight?" One girl asked her friend. "They actually had pictures of the angel at that accident on the Brooklyn Bridge."

Rogue elbowed Danny and pointed over to the girls.

"I know." The other girl replied. "Can you believe it? He's for real! Or else it's some incredible hoax."

Danny walked up to the girls. "What happened on the Brooklyn Bridge?"

The two girls blushed at Danny's handsomeness, making Rogue put her arm around him, silently telling the girls to back off.

"What happened?" Rogue demanded as she glared at them.

"There was a crash, and the angel saved this family from falling off the bridge." One of the girls answered.

"But this girl fell into the water, and although the angel rescued her, she was taken to the hospital." The other one explained.

"Looks like we got another lead." Danny said to Rogue. "Let's go."

"Wait!" One of the girls cried.

"What?" Danny asked.

The girl grinned. "Are you single?"

"No!" Danny said to his girlfriend as he saw her pull off her glove to try and drain the girl. "We don't have time for this. Come on." He pulled her out of the store as Rogue made her eyes flash supernaturally for a brief moment, making the girls run in fear.


At the hospital, Haley lay in bed, unconscious, as her parents stood next to her.

"We'll take good care of her." The doctor promised. "Please, come with me now."

They left, with the father having to gently lead his crying wife out of the room. Haley was left all alone when a breeze hit her face. Standing beside her was Warren, who came in through the window. Guilt ran through him as he saw this girl unconscious, sick, and possibly comatose. It was all his fault. If he were more careful with his wings, none of this would've happened.

He then hid as he heard an orderly come into the room. Deciding it was time to go, he took the doctor's coat that was hanging from the coat rack next to him. He then ducked out of the room when the orderly went to close the window. As he headed out, he passed Rogue and Danny, who were talking to the doctor at reception, asking if they could speak to Hailey's parents.

"I'm sorry, you've just missed her parents." The doctor informed them.

"Do you know where we can reach them?" Rogue inquired. "It's very important."

"I believe they said something about praying at their church." He told them.

That wasn't helpful for the two since they had no idea which church they were at. As Rogue gazed around absentmindedly, she saw Warren walk down the hall, but what caught her attention was the feather that fell from the bottom of his jacket.

She pointed at him. "Danny, it's him!"

Warren looked back, saw he'd been spotted, and made a dash out of there.

"Wait!" Danny called. "We just want to talk to you!"

The hybrids chased after the angel, who threw a medical cart to try and slow them down before throwing off his disguise and flying out the window. This didn't stop the hybrids, as they looked around and made sure no security cameras or people were watching.

Seeing that they were in the clear, the couple cried out, "I'm going ghost." And once they were in their ghost forms, they flew off after the angel.

"Turn invisible." Danny ordered. "We don't want to spook him any further."

Rogue nodded as the two vanished from sight.


Warren had found himself in the rafters in a church, coincidentally the same one that Haley's parents were praying at.

The angel needed to think. It had been quite a day. Saved a lady from a fire, stopped a mugging, and accidentally landed a little girl in the hospital. He had people turn on him, and he had been spotted by those two at the hospital. He lowered his head as he offered a prayer to God to help Haley and her parents, if God would bother to listen to him, that is. Would the almighty creator see him as one of his own angels or a freakish imposter? Before he could ponder any further, he felt someone behind him.

Turning around, he saw a man in red armor wearing a spartan-like helmet float towards him.

"Who are you?" Warren asked. For a moment, he thought this was a real angel, or possibly a demon, given how frightening he appeared to be.

"Someone who used to be confused about what he'd become." Magneto replied as he moved closer to him, making the angel back up. "Someone living in fear and self-pity, wondering whether he's been cursed or blessed."

"Listen, I don't know what you're selling, but I'm not buying." Warren replied as he went to leave.

"Do you not realize what a wonderful gift you have?" Magneto questioned. "You can fly. You can do what everyone else dreams about. And yet, you live alone, hiding in shame. It needn't be so."

Warren was getting agitated as this man continued to speak. "I'm learning to deal with it."

"You think that by helping a few pathetic people, they will learn to accept you?" Magneto asked rhetorically. "You saw how quickly they turned on you today. Do you want to live in fear for the rest of your life?"

"No, but-"

"There are others like us, Warren." Magneto revealed to him. "I want you to meet them."

"What, some sort of club for weirdoes and freaks?" Warren challenged. "I don't think so." As he went to exit the church, Magneto summoned a candle holder and used it to pin him to the wall, but the mutant freed himself. "What is this?"

"This could have been easy." The master of magnetism told him. "Regrettably, you've chosen to make it hard."

"Actually, you're the one who chose to make it hard." A male voice chimed in.

Magneto was about to turn around when a punch sent him falling to the floor below. Haley's parents saw the commotion and ran out in fear.

Looking up, the elderly mutant saw both Danny and Rogue float above him.

"Well, now we know Magneto's still in business." Rogue said.

"You fools!" Their enemy shouted. "Have you learned nothing?"

"What are you doing here, Magneto?" Danny interrogated. "Shouldn't you be celebrating the holidays with your son?"

The mutant snorted at the very idea. "I have more urgent matters to attend to."

What Magneto didn't know was that the way he talked about his son with such indifference touched a nerve with Danny. He didn't like Quicksilver, but he couldn't help but feel bad for him as he thought of the mutant boy sitting all alone at home during the holidays with no father or mother to celebrate, having it all ruined because his dad thought his own business was more important. This angered him. No one deserves to be alone during this time of year. In that moment, Danny decided he was gonna make things right.

First, by beating up Magneto. He moved over to the man in armor and picked him up by the throat.

"What are you-" Magneto was about to demand before Danny threw another punch at his face. Then another. And another. Soon, he was beating Magneto to a bloody pulp as he unleashed all of his pent-up rage over the holidays on the mutant.

"Shut up!" Danny cried. "Just shut up, you poor excuse for a father! You liar! You bastard!"

On and on, the punching continued as Rogue tried to stop him, but Danny shook his head. "He needs to know."

"You kill me, then you doom the entire mutant race." Magneto let out weakly. He would never admit it, but he was frightened. He tried to fly away, but Danny went up into the air, grabbed him, and threw him back down.

"You don't care about the mutant race." Danny said as he floated in the air. Rogue, seeing him in front of the glass-stained window of the church, gasped in awe. At that angle, he looked like an angel. An angel filled with righteous rage.

Magneto glared at Danny for his insinuation. "How dare you!"

"I said, Be quiet!" Danny's voice echoed through the church, giving it an ethereal quality. He gave his enemy a look of contempt, which made Magneto shiver. His eyes were no longer green but pure white, with no pupils, making him look heavenly. "How can you claim to care about mutants when you don't even give a damn about the one that's your son?" He raised his hand, and Magneto found himself pulled into his grip as his hand started to crush his windpipe.

"Please, spare me!" Magneto pleaded.

"I will." Danny said. "But you must go to your son. I don't care what you do, but you're gonna spend this holiday with your family. That's what this time of year is about. Now go!" He threw him back down to the floor as he narrowed his eyes at the mutant. "And I'll know if you go back on your promise."

The old man got to his feet as he stumbled out of the church, but not before giving one last look of hate at Danny. "I won't forget this." He vowed. "I'll make you pay for this humiliation." His eyes then darted to Warren. "You as well, Warren. You think you're an angel. Well, you have yet to see how vengeful a devil can be."

"You're no devil." Danny scoffed. "I danced with the devil in the pale moonlight, and you are nothing compared to him."

Magneto left, leaving Warren and Rogue, who watched as Danny lowered himself down to the ground.

"Are you an angel?" Warren couldn't help but ask.

Danny couldn't help but chuckle as his eyes went back to green. "I wish."


The three were now in the hospital's waiting room. Warren gave a glance at the parents, who were waiting anxiously for word of their child's condition.

"I hope she'll be all right." He said before turning his attention back to Danny and Rogue. "I didn't mean to-"

Danny cut him off. "You don't have to explain anything, Warren. A lot of people owe you their lives." He gave the mutant a look of respect.

"So this Xavier institute of yours, what makes it any different from Magneto's pitch?" Warren asked. "I mean, suddenly, it seems like everybody wants me to join their organization."

"The difference between us and Magneto is that when you say no, we respect your decision and leave you in peace." Danny answered.

"Yeah, Magneto is nothing like us." Rogue agreed. "He's on a total power trip. We're just trying to fit in and make good use of our abilities."

"But we've learned to be careful because most people just aren't ready to deal with us yet." Danny continued. "They aren't ready to understand."

"Yeah, tell me about it." Warren said as he thought back to the people who tried to attack him earlier.

"Well, with Magneto on the loose, I suggest you keep a low profile." Danny advised.

They then saw the doctor come up to Haley's parents.

"Haley's awake." He revealed, causing the couple to hug each other in relief. "She's gonna be all right. You can see her now."

As the couple followed the doctor, Warren went after them while Danny and Rogue watched on.

"Do you think he'll come with us?" Rogue asked him, getting Danny to shake his head.

"No." Danny knew that Warren wasn't ready to join them. At least not yet. "He needs to figure out who he is first." The two then joined Warren outside her room, where they looked through the window.

"I saw him again." Haley told her parents. "In my dreams."

"Saw who, sweetheart?" Her mother asked.

"My angel." Haley answered sweetly. "He came to see me."

Rogue wiped her tears as Danny put an arm around her while Warren smiled.


"You know, sugar, that was pretty sweet of you. Making Magneto spend time with Quicksilver." Rogue said as they walked through the doors to the institute.

Danny just shrugged humbly. "Quicksilver may be a dick, but no one deserves to have the holidays ruined because of their parents."

"You know, when I saw you fighting him, you looked like an ang-" Rogue was interrupted by Xavier rolling in.

"Rogue, Danny." He greeted. "How did it go?"

"The angel was a mutant, professor." Danny explained. "We managed to stop Magneto from corrupting him and offered him a place here, but he still needs to figure out who he is first before he joins us."

"I see." Xavier contemplated the return of his former friend before pushing that aside. "Very good." He praised. "Though I'm a bit disappointed. I hoped it was a real angel."

Rogue couldn't help but laugh. "Don't worry, professor. We did find a real angel."

"You did?" Xavier asked interestedly.

She gestured over to Danny. "He's right over here."

Xavier's grin widened as he looked at Danny. "Of course, how foolish of me. I've been looking for angels all this time when I've been blind to the one standing in front of me."

Danny just blushed.


Pietro sat at the dinner table sadly. It was night, and all the other Brotherhood members were fast asleep, leaving him all alone. It appeared he would have another Hannukah without his father.

He then heard the front door open, footsteps approaching him, and finally a familiar voice.

"Hello, son."

Pietro looked up to see his father, bruised with a black eye, smiling down at him.

"Father." He said in shock. "What are you doing here?"

Magneto placed a hand on his son's shoulder. "I came to spend Hanukkah with you, Pietro. I apologize for my lateness. I had some business in New York."

"New York?" Pietro asked. "How was that?"

"It was all right." His father answered hesitantly. "Though, I did see something interesting."

"What?" Pietro inquired eagerly.

"An angel." He responded. And he wasn't talking about Warren.

And with that, everyone started to celebrate the holidays with their families.

Jean was shopping for Christmas trees with her parents.

Kitty was lighting a menorah with her parents.

Kurt had gotten off his plane and was greeted by his adoptive family.

Evan and his father were having a snowball fight while Viv and Storm were talking over some cocoa. As the two men were about to hit each other with snowballs, Evan's father raised a hand and nodded his head over to Viv and Storm. The two threw the snowballs at the ladies, making Storm shoot a whirlwind of snow back at them.

Logan was playing pool alone in a bar.

Xavier and Beast were sitting by the fireplace, drinking some cocoa.

Scott was heading back to his room after spending all day with his brother. Getting into bed, he bid his roommate goodnight.

"Good night, Danny." Scott said before realizing Danny wasn't in his bed. Shrugging, Scott drifted off to sleep, not knowing that Danny was in Rogue's room, cuddling in bed with her, fast asleep.


Danny was sleeping peacefully when he felt Rogue shoot up from her bed. "Wake up, sugar." She told him. "It's Christmas."

"What?" Danny said sleepily.

"Come on!" Rogue grabbed his arm and dragged him out of bed and down the stairs.

The two were now in the living room in front of the Christmas tree. Rogue grabbed one of the presents and shoved it into his hands.

"Open it!" She demanded excitedly.

Danny opened it and gasped in awe at what it was. Rogue had gotten him a model rocket kit. "You got this for me?"

"You did tell me you wanted to be an astronaut." Rogue replied, happy that he liked her gift.

"It's perfect." Danny said before handing his gift to Rogue. "Here, open yours."

Rogue tore off the wrapping paper and opened the box to find a brown bomber jacket. She put it on and admired it. "I love it." She placed her arms around her boyfriend. "Merry Christmas, Danny."

"Merry Christmas, Rogue." The two then kissed, and the rest of the day went off without disaster, much to Danny's joy.

For the first time in his life, Danny had a good Christmas.

And it was all thanks to his wonderful girlfriend.