December 20, 1975

Lorna looked out the window. It had started snowing. She smiled. The idea that it would be cold didn't bother her. She had chosen a dress with sleeves that went down to her wrists for a reason. It was the fashion now, but she had known that there was a high chance of it snowing in the middle of December.

The music started and Lorna stepped out of the Institute. She watched as every face turned towards her, but she kept her eyes to the end of the aisle where Alex, her soon-to-be-husband, waited for her.

Her hands felt cold as they held the bouquet of white flowers that Moira had collected for her. It had a few sprigs of forsythia in it. She had almost cried when she'd picked out the flowers in the store. It felt as though her mother was with her.

They were all delicate blossoms, but she knew that they would be able to survive the cold for a few minutes. She had asked for a simple ceremony after all, and that meant it would be quick.

Lorna walked alone. She had thought that it would hurt less that her father wasn't walking her down the aisle. There was still pain though, pain that he wouldn't be with her on her wedding day. She tucked it away. It was still her wedding day, and she was still going to be happy.

Her new life seemed to stretch out before her on either side of the aisle with Alex at the end. She walked past Moira and Charles. David sat next to his mother and Kurt sat in her lap. Both were securely bundled up. Lorna would never forget how it felt to see Kurt for the first time. Moira had wordlessly shown him to her, a perfect mixture of the woman who had hated her and the man who had helped raise her.

She hadn't said anything about it though. What good would it do? She wasn't going to get the answers she wanted from Azazel from his son. He was Moira and Charles's son now, and she had to think of him like that.

The rest of the X-men sat with them. She had been with them for a few months training, but she hadn't gone into the field yet. She hadn't even decided on a codename yet. Even so, the team's hostility had lessened. It was making things easier.

Annie sat further down. She had gotten along well with Annie for several months, as soon as she had started listening to her doctor's instructions. She had asked her to be part of the wedding party, but Annie had politely declined. Someone had to watch Terry, as well as Sharon, Hank's daughter.

Hank was a groomsman, along with Sean and Scott. Lorna had felt nervous when she had met Hank and officially met Sean, but Alex had smoothed out the meeting. Hank and Sean seemed to be open to her, and she was grateful. It meant more than she could say to be welcomed.

Carly stood as her matron of honor on the other side in a blue gown. She had instantly become friends with Lorna, even if she'd seemed a little wary of her at first. Lorna could hardly blame her for that. She was the only member of her wedding party: everyone had to watch children and she still had few friends.

As she reached the altar Alex held his hand out. She grasped his hand and handed her bouquet to Carly. Alex smiled and pulled her veil away from her face. His hands engulfed hers, their warmth banishing the cold.

"Dearly beloved," the reverend said, "We are gathered here today to celebrate the joining of this man and this woman."

Alex felt his breath freeze in his lungs, not because of the cold, but because of the woman in front of him. She was a vision in white, her green hair curling around her shoulders, her veil looking like the strands had frosted over. It took everything in him not to kiss her before the end of the ceremony.

"Marriage is a most honorable estate," the reverend said, "created and instituted by God, signifying unto us the mystical union, which also exists between Christ and the Church; so too may this marriage be adorned by true and abiding love."

Alex rubbed her hands and she smiled at him.

"Alexander and Lorna, as you dedicate yourselves to one another," the reverend said, "we are mindful of the presence of God around us."

Alex cleared his throat, suddenly feeling nervous. He still couldn't believe this was happening.

"Lorna," he said, "A year ago I would have never believed that this could happen. But...now that it is..."

He laughed, feeling the words get stuck in his throat.

"I used to believe that you could only get one miracle in your life," he said, "And I thought that I'd had mine when I found my brother. But now...now I think that sometimes you can get two."

He gripped her hands tighter with one of his hands. He let go with his other hand and took the ring from Scott. Still gripping her hand he slipped the ring on her finger.

"I will never leave you," he said, "Never. Because I never want to be anywhere else but with you."

Lorna smiled. He could see the tears in her eyes.

"Alex, you've changed my life," she said, "We've been through a lot together, but I wouldn't change any of it. Thank you for helping me through the most difficult time in my life, for understanding me when no one else did."

It still ached to remember how she had been after she had come back to the Institute. She had stayed focused during the day but had nightmares at night. Alex had held her, talked to her, tried to make her feel welcome in her new home. Although he had no love for her family, he knew that she had made a difficult decision.

"You told me once that no matter what I was feeling, I still knew who I was. I just needed to find my way," Lorna said, "Thank you for standing by me when I did that. And now I get to be with you forever."

She smiled a few tears trickling down her cheeks. She wiggled her fingers from beneath his and took his ring from Carly. The metal was cold as she slipped it onto his finger, but he had never felt better.

"I can think of no better way to spend my life," she said.

Alex knew he was grinning like a fool, but he couldn't help it.

"For as much as Alexander and Lorna have consented together in holy wedlock, and have witnessed the same before God and these witnesses, and thereto have pledged their faithfulness each to the other, and have pledged the same by the giving and receiving each of a ring," the reverend said, "by the authority invested in me as a minister of the gospel according to the laws of the state of New York, I pronounce that they are husband and wife together, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. You may now kiss the bride."

Alex moved forwards and gathered Lorna in his arms. He had a moment of feeling her arms around his neck before he kissed her. The crowd burst out into applause, and he smiled against her lips.

"You came too."

Erik glanced over his shoulder at Angel. She seemed to be swallowed in the coat that she was wearing. It was like she was trying to hide beneath the folds of the fabric.

He shrugged in his own coat and turned away from her. Below he could see Lorna leave the small altar, her hand tucked firmly into Alex's. He'd watched with pain as she'd walked down the aisle alone, felt a deep ache in his heart when she'd consented to be the wife of one of his greatest enemies.

"I think she's happy," Angel murmured, "That's important."

He didn't bother to look at her. He wondered if she knew that he knew she'd let Lorna out. Angel was the only candidate when it came down to it. He supposed that it didn't matter anymore. Erik knew his daughter. One way or another, she would have found a way out.

Erik was still angry at her though. He would probably be so for the rest of his life. He'd just find more subtle ways to punish her.

"Aren't you going to say anything?" Angel asked.

Erik took a deep breath.

"Angel, today my daughter has officially bound herself to Alex. She's his wife now," he said, "She has not only left my side but taken on a new name. From what I understand this day is normally difficult for parents."

He clenched his hand into a fist.

"But today she's also tied herself even tighter to the X-men, the people I fight," Erik said, "She has already rejected us, but now she's rejected any chance of a future with us. And because of that I'm standing up here, watching from a distance, instead of walking her down the aisle, instead of being with her today."

He glanced at Angel.

"I am feeling many, many things right now," he said, "But I'm not going to put them into words for anyone, least of all you."

Erik turned away from Angel. He stared at Lorna until she disappeared into the Institute with Alex, the rest of the wedding party following them for what he supposed would be the reception. Amidst the throngs he could barely make out Charles. He gritted his teeth. How come Charles was able to attend his daughter's wedding and not him?

"If you'd come, she would have welcomed you," Angel said.

"If that's true, then why didn't you go?" Erik snapped.

Angel looked down.

"A little bit of shame I suppose," she said, "Shame that I didn't see what she was going through sooner, didn't try to help."

Erik snarled and turned away.

"It doesn't matter," he said, "She's not my daughter anymore."

"That's not true," Angel said.

He glared at her. Although she faltered she still spoke.

"You're her father," she said.

Erik shook his head and cast one last look at the Institute where his daughter was celebrating her wedding. He turned away and stormed off. At least Angel was right about one thing: Lorna had looked happy.

It was a bitter comfort.

Lorna walked out onto the library's verandah as the snow continued to fall. It was loud in the ballroom, but it was quiet in the library. She needed a moment for everything to be quiet, now that she could afford to let it do so.

She had tried to avoid being alone for months now. Lorna knew that no good could come of her having nothing else to do, having an opportunity to think about what she had left behind. It hurt, and she imagined it would hurt for the rest of her life.

However, she had been given a new family. They would never replace her old one, but this family had needed her attention. She had tried to throw herself into her new life, show herself that she could move on. Although she felt the absence of almost everyone she had ever loved pained her keenly, she had rebuilt. She had been taught never to wallow in self-pity.

Lorna looked out at the snowy woods around the Institute, blanketed beneath the starry sky. She could still remember burning the purple and red coat that had marked her as a member of the Brotherhood. Lorna had sat and watched the ashes from that fire blow into the night sky until they'd become one with the stars.

For so long she'd thought that the coat she'd worn had represented her true colors: the colors of her father and his cause. Now, looking out over the snowy fields, white swirled with green, she saw that there were other colors that meant more to her now. She was no longer a member of the Brotherhood: she was an X-man now.

"Lorna?"

She looked behind her. Alex was standing in the doorway. His tie had come undone at sometime during the night and the top two buttons of his shirt were undone too. He'd probably done it himself during the dancing. Lorna knew how much he hated formal wear.

He walked behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Is everything alright?" he asked.

Lorna smiled.

"Yes," she said.

She looked up at the stars. One showed brighter than the rest and she smiled.

"I was just thinking," she said.

"What about?" he asked.

Lorna leaned back further into his embrace. He was always so warm.

"You know there's a star in the sky, brighter than the rest, that used to guide people as they travelled?" she said.

"Yeah," he said, "The North Star."

He pointed.

"That one, right?" he asked.

"Right," Lorna said, "It's also the magnetic north you know."

"Interesting. But what about it?" Alex asked.

Lorna's smile widened.

"I was just thinking," she said, "When I officially join the X-men, I know what my codename will be."

"Really?" he asked, "What?"

She turned back and wrapped her hand around his, pulling it closer to them so both his hands were once again wrapped around her.

"There's another name for the North Star you know," she said.

Alex leaned closer so that his lips brushed up against her ear.

"Which is?" he asked.

She closed her eyes.

"Polaris."

A/N: Usually this is where I'd make the joke about my long author's note, but I think that I've exhausted that over the past few fics. This one I'm going to try and keep short. This fic has been quite the ride. It's actually extended out for more chapter than I thought it would, but I believe that it's actually one of my favorites.

Alex/Lorna have been one of my favorite pairings for a long time. I'd considered writing a story with Lorna being raised by her father as part of the Brotherhood for a while, and I decided to include it in this particular series. I usually have most of my stories in a series vaguely plotted out in my head before I start writing, but this one was almost completely plotted out by the time I started writing it.

I've often said that Magneto wasn't such a bad father, as villain fathers go, and he seems to really love his children and grandchildren in the comics. However, even when Lorna was taken in by Magneto in 'House of M' and 'Wolverine and the X-men,' she gravitated towards doing the right thing, even when she was at odds with her family. Her loyalties have always been shown to be strong, but her convictions stronger. It makes her a perfect match for Alex's hard-headedness.

As for the next story in the series, it's the second to last story and it's going to be called 'Blood Brothers.' The story will focus around David and Kurt as they grow up in the Institute. Look for it in two weeks.

Now, shoutouts! I'd love to thank the ever faithful Princess-Amon-Rae, whylime, Fanatic4Fiction, and Knight of Wings! Also, thanks to everyone who reviewed but doesn't have messaging enabled!