Author's Notes: this is sort of a sequel to "Everything Important". Actually, it's more like a prequel and a during-the-middle-of-quel. I wrote this because Lychee Loving keeps dropping hints that she wants to see more. Also a talented fan artist named ladynorthstar (check out her tumblr page) did some art for her version of this AU that got me thinking. I shamelessly stole at least one of her ideas.

SCENES FROM A MOST UNUSUAL FAMILY

"You're not my mom," were the first words that Daken said to Ororo. He was scowling so hard that his eyebrows formed a savage and uncompromising 'V'.

It was a creditable performance for a five year old boy.

"I know," was Ororo's calm reply.

Daken - so utterly sure that he was going to get a stronger response - blinked in surprise. Logan, lurking in the background, tried to hide his smile. His son had no idea what he was getting into...

Then Ororo crouched down and carefully ran a hand through Daken's Mohawk. It wasn't a haircut. It was part-and-parcel of Daken's mutation.

Daken frowned at the familiarity, but didn't otherwise object. Some part of his hind-brain was suggesting that maybe he shouldn't get too pushy with this particular woman.

"I had hair like this once," Ororo said thoughtfully.

Daken became even more surprised. So surprised that he forgot to be truculent - which was a fairly rare phenomenon.

"Really?" he said as he studied Ororo's glorious waterfall of lustrous white hair.

"Really," Ororo said as she got to her feet. "By the way, do you prefer your hot chocolate with or without marshmallows?"

"Uhm..." Daken hesitated. He didn't want to admit that he didn't have a clue what a marshmallow was.

"I hate marshmallows," Logan interjected calmly.

"Lots of marshmallows," Daken said with complete certainty, refusing to look in Logan's direction.

A few minutes later, Daken was sure that he'd found the food of the gods. He was so happy that at first he didn't notice that Logan's hot chocolate also had marshmallows in it. Eventually, he did notice. That was when Daken first faced the horrifying possibility that there might be people in the world actually smart enough to fool him. And he was living with two of them.

A Month Later...

"Ororo showed me this," Daken said, just before he handed Logan a photograph.

Logan took the picture and examined it. Then he smiled. The photo was a little worn around the edges, but it showed Kurt, Logan, and Ororo. Ororo was standing between Kurt and Logan - she was noticeably taller than both men - and they had their arms around each other. Ororo had her Mohawk and was dressed in a rakishly punk set of black leather.

Logan nodded as he tried to suppress a cherished memory of undressing Ororo from the outfit she was wearing in the picture.

In recent years, Ororo's dress style had become more conservative. Now, she tended towards long, colorful, African-style skirts; usually with a plain white blouse. Expressive jewelry that ranged from simple and inexpensive to exotic and very expensive often completed her outfit.

Come to think of it, Logan liked undressing her out of that as well.

Well... when you got down to it, Logan just really liked to undress Ororo.

"I like her hair," Daken said quietly.

"You've got good taste," Logan replied as he handed the photograph back to Daken.

"When was that?" Daken asked.

"A long time ago," Logan answered. "Ororo and I were full-blown X-Men in those days. That picture was taken just after a tangle with the Brood."

Daken frowned at the unfamiliar word. "The what?"

"The Brood. Alien critters. Sort of like vicious bugs, but a lot bigger. They're the scourge of whatever part of the galaxy they turn up in. And they were about to move into our neighborhood."

"You fought them?" Daken said interestedly.

"Yep."

"Will I fight them someday? I mean... if they come back?"

Something clenched in Logan's stomach as he looked at his son's face.

"That's a decision you can make when you get older," Logan finally responded.

Daken seemed to pick up on Logan's mood. He nodded soberly, but said nothing else.

It was the most civilized conversation the two of them had ever had.

A Half-Hour Later...

"Ororo?" Daken said quietly.

Ororo was unloading some groceries from the truck. Daken was giving her a hand. Logan was getting his gear together - he had to go to work.

"Yes, Dak?" Ororo asked distractedly.

"I was talking to Dad about something. And I think I said something that bothered him."

Ororo put a bag on one of the porch chairs. "What were you talking about?"

"Fighting the Brood. Dad said you and he and Uncle Kurt did that once."

Ororo winced and then shook her head. "Actually we did that more than once."

"I asked Dad if I would fight the Brood someday."

Ororo stopped, frozen in mid-motion. Daken recognized the look that was now in her eyes. It had been in his father's eyes just a little while ago.

Suddenly concerned, Daken took Ororo's hands in his own and asked. "Mom, what's wrong?"

Ororo came back to Earth. Then she pulled Daken to her and held him very close.

"We do not want you to ever fight something like the Brood," Ororo finally said very tensely, "but someday there might not be a choice."

Daken hugged Ororo back. Hard.

"It's okay, Mom," he said - almost desperately. "It's okay. It was just a question."

Ororo let go of Daken and then wiped her eyes. "Help me get the groceries inside. Your father has to go to work."

It took everyone a while to realize that Daken had finally started calling Ororo "Mom".

Two Years Later...

"Are you my mother?" were the first words Laura spoke to Ororo.

"Yes," Ororo and Daken said simultaneously.

Laura was nestled in Logan's arms. She glanced uncertainly from Ororo to Daken.

"I'm your brother," Daken added firmly.

"Why are you here?" Laura responded warily. She seemed a bit uncertain of the "brother" concept. And perhaps somewhat disapproving.

Daken thought that over for a moment. "I think I'm supposed to take care of you when Mom and Dad aren't around."

Laura seemed a little skeptical about that, but she didn't voice any objections.

Logan put Laura down and said, "Why don't you show Laura around the place, Dak?"

Daken nodded and held out his hand. Laura looked at it suspiciously for a moment, but then took it.

"Dinner in an hour," Ororo said calmly. Then she bent over and kissed both kids on top of their heads.

An Hour Later...

Daken and Laura walked into the cabin's living room. They were covered in leaves, pine-needles, and dirt. And their clothes were torn. A young black bear that wasn't much bigger than Laura was with them. There was a tattered length of rope looped around the bear's neck and Daken was holding the other end.

The bear looked confused. Not unhappy or angry, just... confused.

"Can we keep him?" Laura asked excitedly. Daken nodded his head in eager agreement.

Logan peered over the edge of his newspaper at the bear. He didn't seem to have anything to say.

"He's alone and he needs a mom and a dad!" Laura continued earnestly. She seemed absolutely certain about what she was saying.

Dinner Time...

Dinner for Logan and Daken was the usual - meat, with a side of meat, lightly garnished with meat.

In a show of feminine solidarity, Laura helped Ororo finish off the salad. Actually, Ororo appreciated that a great deal. However, as soon as the green stuff was gone, Laura's appetite also became decidedly carnivorous.

The bear was sitting outside on the porch. He wasn't tied up, but didn't seem inclined to go anywhere. He was contentedly munching on a half a cabbage, a bell pepper, and a left-over cheeseburger.

A Year Later...

The bear didn't exactly live at the Logan residence, but he did stop by every now and then to cadge a free meal (he still liked cheeseburgers) and play with the kids. And since he made a point of staying in the area, the bear made a pretty good guard dog. Or guard bear.

When Dr. Henry McCoy finally got around to visiting Logan and Ororo's little backwoods cabin, he was a bit surprised to meet the family companion.

"You named him Hank?" Hank-the-person said as he and Hank-the-bear exchanged long looks. Hank-the-bear obviously had no idea what to make of Hank-the-person. However, any possibility of trouble was limited by the fact that Hank-the-person was actually bigger than Hank-the-bear. It also helped that Hank-the-bear was at the moment giving Laura a ride on his hirsute back. Hank-the-bear was always on his best behavior around the kids. He liked them.

Just to make the comparison between the two Hanks even more congruent. Daken was riding on Hank-the-person's shoulders.

Logan was having a hell of time keeping a straight face.

"It was Daken's idea, Ororo explained.

"He reminded me of you because you're both all furry," Daken said helpfully from his perch on Hank-the-person's shoulders.

Hank-the-person threw back his head and began roaring with laughter.

Hank-the-bear snorted, turned ponderously, and took Laura with him deeper into the woods.

Humans were weird.