The Customs of Mistletoe

Snow was falling gently from the steel grey heavens on Christmas morning. Logan had awoken to this sight out of his bedroom window and regarded it with large confusion. Last night, the weather report had informed New York that it wasn't going to be a white Christmas. Yet now it was coming down thick and fast, and it looked like it had been doing so for a while. Logan pushed himself away from his bed, making his way to the TV on the wall. He turned it on, flicking through the stations before a news channel appeared. Good timing, for a weather forecast had just come on.

"Bad news folks," said the woman with a shake of her head, "Christmas day and not a spot of snow, temperatures are averagely higher than previous years and – "

Logan switched it off, staring at the black screen for a moment before he made his way to the window. Down on the grounds below the mutant students of the school were happily enjoying the snowfall. Many snowmen filled the lawns, with a few trenches dug out as a snowball fight commenced.

He turned away from the window, grabbing his shirt from a chair. He'd have to go and inspect..

And there was the answer. As he came upon the second floor balcony, he saw Storm stood out against the stonewall, head tilted upwards to watch the falling snow. It slowly twirled around her most enchantingly before it drifted off into the breeze. Logan pushed on through the doorway, his feet trudging on through the thick snow. Storm must have heard him arrive, for she turned with a smile to greet him.

"Good morning, Logan. Merry Christmas."

But Logan just went straight onto the subject, "Storm, you do know we ain't been forecast for any snow?"

"Yes," said Storm with a mysterious grin, looking quite pleased with her work. "I just thought the children would like to see some snow on Christmas day."

"What if someone sees?" asked Logan, raising an eyebrow, "Ain't it gonna look a lil' weird?"

"Oh, Logan," said Storm idly, brushing off his concerns with a wave of her hand, "It's on the back lawn.. no one will see. Don't be such a Scrooge. It's Christmas, the children love it." She walked toward him slowly, gesturing inside, "Come on.. we can go and take a look at the cooking, and maybe there'll be some presents for you."

Logan look disgruntled, but obliged, heading out of the snow and into the mansion. The double doors were pushed open and the pair hurried inside and quickly closed the doors to as to not let much snow come into the corridor. Then suddenly a delighted squeal came out of nowhere. Logan quickly turned round; staring as Jubilee and Kitty stood in one of the classroom doorways practically jumping up and down, pointing at something above their heads.

Storm and Logan slowly looked up, for their eyes to meet a bright piece of mistletoe pinned above the doorway.

"Aw, you've got to be kiddin' me," Logan muttered under his breath.

"Jubilee," said Storm in a reproachful tone, looking back to the younger mutant, "That wasn't there when I walked through the doorway this morning. Did you put that there?"

"No," replied Jubilee, very falsely. Seeing Storm and Logan's unmoving stares, she quickly buckled, "Alright, maybe I did, but it's just to get the Christmas spirit flowing, y'know!"

The younger pair watched them expectantly for a moment, before Kitty added unhelpfully "Well, go on!"

Logan stared at her, "What?"

"I think she means the mistletoe."

"I don't even celebrate Christmas!"

"Uh! Miss Munroe, I'd be offended by that," chimed Jubilee, "It's like he's trying to avoid kissing you!"

"I never said that," argued Logan.

"Miss. Munroe, I thought you'd be up for some festive cheer."

Logan sighed quietly, shaking his head slowly. He would make this quick and brief, and that was it; then he was going upstairs to sulk for the rest of the day. He did console himself though; there were worse people he could meet under the mistletoe. He lifted his eyes upon Storm, and was not amused to see a subtle smirk gracing those same lips he was being forced to kiss. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Jubilee and Kitty giggling to themselves delightedly. Logan refrained from rolling his eyes as he swiftly gave her a peck on the lips. "Happy now?" he grunted to the women there, then turning and swiftly making his exit to the chorus of jeers from Jubilee and Kitty about terrible kisses.

Storm just chuckled quietly to herself. She knew Logan wasn't the most festive person, nor probably one for exploring the customs of mistletoe, but he had kissed her, so he wasn't an entire spoilsport. She shook her head to herself, turning and departing the scene in her own direction to go and tend to the cooking of the Christmas dinner.

Having being forced into a kiss against his will, Logan had returned to his room to sit and sulk to himself. It wasn't that he disliked Christmas; it was what came with Christmas. It was a time to spend with family and look back over good times. He didn't really have either, and it was a painful reminder of what his life could have been without Weapon X. There was nothing wrong with sharing a kiss under mistletoe either. But he didn't enjoy doing it under the scrutiny of amused teenagers. And now he was actually concerned if whether he had offended Storm by giving her such a rushed and reluctant kiss.

He grunted quietly to himself as he pinched the bridge of his nose, his contemplation broken when a loud thud hit his window. Logan threw his head up, staring at the snow which now trickled down the outside of the leaded glass. He pushed to his feet, stomping towards the window and throwing it open.

"Oi!" he growled down at the children gathered on the lawns, who all began laughing as they backed away, despite the considerable distance between them. Logan snarled loudly at them in warning, slamming his window shut and trudging back towards his bed, which he flopped down onto heavily. He let out a sigh, as he lay sprawled on his back, bringing a forearm over his eyes as he tried to numb out the chorus of Christmas carols rising from the floor below.

Uncharacteristically, Logan jerked awake to find his bedroom in darkness. Alarmed that he had actually fallen asleep in the daytime, he quickly pushed upright to check the time on his watch through the weak light through the window. It was early evening and downstairs there was a noticeable throb of loud music drumming up through the floorboards. Logan swung himself off of the bed, getting to his feet and sauntering on downstairs to inspect the festivities.

The music grew louder as Logan descended the grand staircase; his hand passing down the oak banister, the spindles of which had been entwined by glittering red and green tinsel. The corridors of the mansion were deserted of life, seemingly all but him gathered in the main hall to celebrate with each other. He was only passing the landing of the second floor when he paused, turning his head to glance out through the diamond leaded window. Snowflakes still gently brushed up against the window. Contemplating, Logan glanced further up the corridor, turning from the central foyer and navigating deeper inside until he reached the very doorway he and Storm had been presented with mistletoe in. Logan was pleased to see the mistletoe had since disappeared, no doubt being used by Jubilee and Kitty to garner unsuspecting males during the Christmas party. His hand went to the doorknob, slowly opening the door. He stepped towards the threshold, stood peering out at the darkness. He continued to advance outside, allowing his boots to slowly crunch down upon the fallen snow as he made his way towards the edge of the balcony, where a thick layer of snow had gathered on the stone wall.

Despite his earlier words, he had a certain affinity for snow. It reminded him of Canada, of home. He felt much more comfortable, despite the harsh, cold environment which it presented. Logan slowly lowered a hand to the sparkling snow on the wall below him, allowing his fingertips to caress the freezing texture and leave gentle grooves in the packed mass. A subtle smile graced the contours of his lips, dark eyes lifting to study the shadows of the horizon once more. The snow was falling peacefully, light and graceful in it's dancing plight from the still heavens.

But then, all of a sudden, the snowfall was stirred, as if by an angry blizzard and all flew at him. He gave a surprised shout as he lifted his arms to shield his face, body abruptly attacked by a momentary blast of freezing cold wind. It had stopped as quickly as it had started, and Logan peered over the top of his arms uncertainly to see the snow drifting by peacefully once more. He frowned, arms finally lowering. Suspecting, he peered over his shoulder, and his deductions were proved correct as he found Storm stood in the doorway, her arms folded as she leant against the doorframe.

"So this is where you're hiding," she said, a gentle smile on her lips.

Logan slowly turned, absently shrugging his shoulders. "Not really hidin'," he replied quietly, peering towards her as he noted her specially formal attire for the Christmas party that was still noisily kicking off below them. One would call it foolishly exposing for the winter season, but when Christmas was involved, it was acceptable. Logan agreed with this as he found his eyes inspecting the way the soft violet silk caressed the flow of her torso. He cleared his throat quickly before dragging his eyes back upon hers. "Why are you up here, anyway?"

"Looking for you," explained Storm as she pushed off the doorframe and made her way through the snow towards him. "This morning was the last I saw of you. Where've you been all day? I know you're not one for a party, but I thought you might at least show your face instead of avoiding us."

"I fell asleep," Logan told her in all honesty. "I was on my way down now. Anyway, same could be said for you. You're slinking away to find me."

Storm smirked somewhat as she stopped by his side, looking out at the snowfall which still fluttered from the clouds at her wish. "I just needed a break, that's all," she said as she folded her arms to protect her from the cold.

"Mm, sure you did," replied Logan, turning with her. His eyes scanned her for a moment, noticing as she folded her arms. "Why are you stood out here?" he then asked with a frown. "You're shivering." He placed his hand on the bare skin of her shoulder, feeling the gentle goosebumps.

Storm quickly glanced towards him as he hand met her shoulder, now turning to face him. "I told you. I came here to find you. I'll be fine, I can handle extreme temperatures."

There was an accepting nod in response from Logan, who hesitated before he spoke again. "Look, about earlier.."

"Forget about it Logan," Storm quickly interrupted to save him from apology. She smiled as she saw him quickly glance towards her. "Jubilee and Kitty picked the wrong man to play their tricks on."

Logan tilted his head as he spread a wolfish smirk, "Did they pick the wrong woman too?"

"Well," began Storm, shrugging her shoulders, "I'm open to some fun for the festivities. I just didn't think it was very fair on you."

Logan matched the shrug, glancing down for a moment. "Nah, I wasn't bothered by it really. Sorry for giving you such a rubbish kiss though," he peered back up at her with a small grin. "Jubilee and Kitty didn't like it."

"They weren't the ones being kissed," replied Storm, a coy expression flickering across her face as she turned towards the low wall to gaze out at her creation as it fluttered from the night sky.

Logan cocked an eyebrow as she turned from him, his hands driving into his jean pockets as he stood back and watched her almost thoughtfully. Perhaps she had a few drinks down her. That'd explain her increased sociability. But then again, Logan couldn't smell it on her, and he always trusted his senses. "And what do you mean by that?"

"Why, nothing at all, Logan," said Storm without looking at him, but Logan knew she was smiling.

"Y'know.." said Logan softly, stepping towards her and returning his hand to her shoulder, "I'm doubting myself here. Maybe we both need some confirmation."

Storm casually glanced over to him, "Confirmation of what?"

"That I'm not a rubbish kisser," he said with a smirk, his hand still on her shoulder. Meanwhile, his eyes were taking a trail about her face again, studying every mocha contour below the ivory fringe that drifted in the breeze. His topic abruptly changed without him being aware of what he was saying. "You look really nice tonight, 'Ro."

He enjoyed her quiet peal of dainty laughter, a mixture between modesty and delight. "Well, thank you," she replied in honesty, her smile somewhat bashful. "You look dashing yourself. Such an effort," she teased, eyes observing the attire Logan usually wore.

"Oh, yeah, I picked this out specifically for Christmas," Logan responded falsely, a grin marking his lips.

"I can see that," Storm quipped right back, her laughter sounding once more to Logan's ears. Afterwards, gentle silence fell between them, in which Logan continued to watch Storm as though he was trying to work something out. His fingers had been subtly caressing the smooth skin of her shoulder, off the silk strap of her dress. The snow continued to fall about them, drifting as peacefully as they felt with not a stir in the wind.

"You don't always need mistletoe for a Christmas kiss, do you?" Logan asked her quietly, closing in just a little.

Considering, Storm shook her head slowly, "No, I don't think so." She matched Logan's smile as he brought his lips towards hers for the second time that day, this time allowing them to meet long enough to feel the texture of each other's lips. With no purposely-placed mistletoe hanging above them, and no giggling teenagers spying from a doorway, Logan didn't feel quite so pressured. That morning's kiss had only been brief, but it had left him with a taste for more. And now, under the soft moonlight he was able to have more and hold her in his arms.

Logan felt Storm's body move closer to his, her warmth coming with it as she continued to kiss him. Their lips brushed against each other slowly, testing their opponent out with a tender caress. The snow about them automatically began encircling them, becoming a delicate whirlwind of snowflakes that danced in an entwining spiral. There was a briefest contact of tongues, which met with an electric frolic to then smoothly explore the other before the pair separated, each panting softly and feeling taunted by the tantalisingly brief connection of their tongues. They both held close for a moment, enjoying their close proximity before Storm straightened to gaze up at him.

Logan lifted a hand towards her face, brushing the startling white locks from her cheek with his fingers. He then spoke, ever so softly, with words to brighten yet another smile on the lips he had just kissed. "Merry Christmas, 'Ro."

Storm chuckled softly as she gazed up at him, "Merry Christmas, Logan. And just so you know - you're not a bad kisser."

A Christmas one-shot! Merry Christmas to all my readers!