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"Ororo are you sure? I've spoken with Senator Kelly's offices and they are more than willing to accommodate you during the fall after graduation." The Professor said taking a sip of hot earl grey tea. Ororo nodded and offered the Professor a reassuring smile.

Jean sat at a respectful distance from them sorting through the travel arrangements for the school.

"I'm positive Professor. I'd much rather finish my internship over the summer. There will be other, vacations" The Professor smiled thoughtfully. "I've always admired your forethought Ororo. You make considerable choices."

"Coming from the most powerful telepath in the world? I'll take that as the ultimate compliment," she replied. "As well you should," he said. "Very well. Of course you are more than welcome to spend you summer here to complete your internship. Professor Logan will be in residence as well."

Jean looked up at the Professor from the papers in her lap. Logan wasn't going?

"I can take care of myself" Ororo assured him.

"Yes of course. I have every confidence in your ability. It is Logan's ability that strikes my concern." Ororo and the Professor shared a laugh. The Professor was always more casual with Ororo than he was with the other students. Often times he treated her as a daughter, rather than a "student". Jean couldn't understand why. She had been there longer then Ororo and had years on her as well. Years that she didn't even want to consider. Yet her relationship with the Professor wasn't nearly that close. Well, what do you expect? Ororo is the academy golden girl Jean thought.

The Professor looked over at Jean as if sensing her thoughts. Jean looked away embarrassed. It was absurd to be jealous of a teenager. A very smart and, overwhelmingly beautiful teenager.

There was a knock at the door and Logan entered, "You wanted to see me Chuck?"

"Ah, Logan just in time," The Professor said rolling his wheelchair towards him. Logan's eyes swept the room. Jean glared at him **We need to talk**.

Logan furrowed his brows "No we don't. And stay outta my head. You might not like what yah see." His tone was harsh, cruel and emotionless. Jean gathered the papers in her arms and excused herself from the room. Ororo watched the exchange in silence. So that's what was wrong. He and Dr. Grey were fighting.

The Professor spoke before the silence in the room became uncomfortable. "As you know the remainder of the staff and the student body will be spending the summer in Saint Thomas. I will in fact be visiting my offices on the west coast. You will be left in charge of the mansion, and Ororo will be staying on as well."

Logan looked at Ororo in surprise and she smiled back at him nervously "You won't even know I'm here," she promised. Logan opened his mouth to speak but the Professor continued "Ororo has an internship in Senator Kelly's office this summer," he explained. "I trust you don't have a problem with this arrangement?" the Professor added but it didn't sound like a question. Logan bit his tongue. He supposed it would be alright. From what he could tell Ororo wasn't much of a talker and didn't cause any trouble...and if she did feel the urge to carry on any useless teenage conversation he'd simply make a trip Harvey's Pub.

"Sure," Logan replied but his face read otherwise.

The mansion was eerily quiet. The Professor and the students had left hours ago. Professor Logan had mumbled something to her before he left to do God knows what, so she had the house to herself. Scott had left 10 messages on her voicemail. All of which she deleted without listening to. She was sure they all said the same thing. Don't be upset with me. I'm only trying to protect you and blah, blah, blah.

Ororo didn't need protection. She could protect herself. All she wanted was to be normal and treated as such. To once in her life not be looked at like a freak. She was going to prove to everyone that she could exist in "their" world. And not only would she exist, she would thrive. She had her first day at the Senators office in the morning...Drastic times called for drastic measures.

With that thought Ororo ducked her head under the running water in her bathroom sink and rinsed the black dye out of her hair. Once her hair was rinsed clean, she looked in the mirror and immediately mourned her platinum blonde locks. She looked like a completely different person. Not at all like Ororo Monroe. Maybe that's what she needed to do...become someone else.

Logan bit the cigar between his teeth and reached into the refrigerator for a beer. Harvey had refused to serve him another one seeing how he had already consumed three pitchers. Some guys didn't understand what it meant to have a high tolerance for alcohol. Although Logan knew he'd never be able to be fully inebriated he was more than willing to try.

Logan tossed his jacket over the counter, cracked open the beer and downed it faster than any man should have been able to. He reached for another.

"I think maybe you're an alcoholic Professor Logan," Ororo said from the kitchen door Logan looked up at her in surprise, beer spilling over his lips and onto his shirt. He cursed. How was it that she kept sneaking up on him? The truth was that he had almost forgotten that she was there, as she had promised he would.

"Sorry" she said making her way to the cabinet to grab a bag of pretzels. Logan looked her over for a moment frowning, "What's wrong with yer hair?" Ororo touched her hair which she had blown dry and pulled into a pony tail "You don't like it?" she asked. "No, I don't," he said simply and popped open his second beer.

Ororo was a little taken aback. She hadn't expected that kind of reaction. It was almost embarrassing. Did it make her look ugly? Perhaps she had always been ugly, and the dark hair just proved a point. "I know it's a little dramatic."

"I'll say," Logan agreed quickly sitting at the bar that overlooked the rest of the kitchen. Ororo frowned. He didn't have to be rude about it. "Goodnight Professor Logan," Ororo said shortly. Then she turned back towards the door with the pretzels under her arm. "It's Logan. Just call me Logan. Okay kid?" he said his voice thick with impatience.

Ororo turned to him her irritation matching his own "Alright. And it's Ororo. Not kid." Logan nodded "Fair enough." Ororo stood there for a moment, her eyes locked with is. They were so intense it made her heart beat faster. Unsure of what to do next she gave a small curtsy before saying "Goodnight Logan," and then she was gone.

Ororo rolled her eyes as she climbed the stairs to her room. Did I just curtsy?"What would make you do something like that?" he asked. Logan's voice startled her so suddenly that she tripped on the final step at the top of the staircase. Thankfully she was able to catch herself before falling and turned to him with a wry smile hoping he hadn't seen the brief display of clumsiness. He had, but he didn't comment on it or even look as he were about to laugh. If it had been Scott he probably would have joked her about it. Ororo shook her head, trying to get a hold of herself, and mask her embarrassment. What had he asked her?

Once they got past the awkward silence, they were soon sitting in front of the fire place in one of the many common areas of the mansion. Logan had suprisingly brought in extra snacks of cookies, and chips, and Ororo had built a makeshift bed of pillows on the floor.

They had been talking for hours it seemed. Or rather Ororo had done most of the talking and Logan listened offering a word in here and there. Logan was surprised by how much he was enjoying her company, despite the fact that he had planned on ignoring her completely. Somehow, they fell into a natural rhythm, one that he hadn't had the pleasure of discovering in the setting of a classroom. What was even more surprising that that she didn't spend the entire time talking about boys, hair, and makeup. She actually didn't talk about any of those things. She talked about her internship and what she wanted to do with her life. The struggles she was having with the idea of being "normal".

"So what do you think Pro-I mean, Logan?" Logan arched his eyebrows. Was she asking for his opinion? That was a shock. Most kids just wanted a passing grade. "I think yah should do what wayh wanna do. What are yah? 15? 16?"

"18," she corrected proudly. "Right. You've got yer whole life ahead of yah."

Ororo rolled her eyes a gesture she seemed to be doing a lot of lately…What is wrong with me? "I never took you for the cliché type" she said. Then she laid down on her side and propped her head up with one hand.

Logan watched the fluidity in her movements. She was wearing a nightgown that went past her knees but didn't do anything to cover her long shapely legs. She was athletic yet with curves that made it undoable that she was a woman, or rapidly becoming one. Her breasts were full and sat up high on her chest. Her neck was smooth and slender…. skin the color of warm caramel. He found himself looking at her mouth as she rolled her tongue across her bottom lip. It wasn't until he met her piercing blue eyes that he realized that he had been staring and she that she had noticed.

Blood flushed to his face as Logan turned his attention to the fire. "Think it's time tah go tah bed kid. You've gotta early start remember?" he said standing to his feet. Maybe he had drunk more than he should have. Since when did he start checking out little girls?

"Yeah," she said getting to her feet. Logan couldn't help but watch as she did. This was no little girl. Even though he was taller than she was, she was still taller than most girls her age. There was a maturity about her that seemed to exude itself in the way she talked and the way she moved. Why hadn't he noticed it before? Maybe because he wasn't supposed to. She's your student idiot. Don't get any fancy ideas.

Besides she'd never be interested in someone like him. Girls like Ororo had tastes that ran more toward jock straps like Scott Summers. And even if it didn't...it didn't matter, because there was a line you just didn't cross, and he was extremely too close to crossing this one. Either that or he already had and hadn't even noticed. "I had fun Logan," she said unexpectedly. "You were very… accommodating."

"Anytime," he offered. As they cleaned up the snacks and pillows Ororo felt the rubber band holding her pony tail snap loose and her long hair came tumbling down around her neck and face.

Logan watched as it fell and simultaneously faded back into its beautiful shade of platinum blond. Her dark hair simply melted away.

Ororo looked at her hair and sighed running her fingers through it to toss it out of her face.

Logan barely contained his laughter. Ororo's eyes narrowed "You think this is funny don't you?" she said her hand on her hip.

"Extremely" he replied.

"I can't seem to win for loosing. So much for being normal" she concluded, and made her way to her bedroom. "Ororo," Logan said softly. She turned to him at the door. "Normal is a matter of perspective. Just be yourself. You can't get any more normal than that." "How poetic of you Logan."

"I have my moments."

Ororo smiled and turned to leave again. "If it's any consolation," he said stopping her again. "You're beautiful no matter what color your hair is."

This made her smile harder than she had planned to "Thanks. Goodnight," she said and then she was gone.

Logan waited until he heard her bedroom door close before he moved. Perhaps this summer wouldn't be a complete disaster. Logan inhaled deeply taking in the smell of vanilla perfume that Ororo had left behind. It reminded him of cake or sugar cookies baking in an oven. He liked it, and the smell stirred something deep within him that detoured into the thought of making love to the beautiful mutant… The though momentarily consumed him drawing heat towards his groin. SNIKT! Logan shook his thoughts ejecting his claws. The initial pain of the blades piercing through his skin distracted him from the dangerous path he had begun to follow...but only for a moment.





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