He was too old for this nonsense. Beyond old if he really thought about it. It was yet another failed mission for the Avengers that took them to Myanmar of all places. Two weeks of nothing but flared tempers, dead-ends and a complete waste of time. He seriously had to have a talk with Nick Fury about these wild goose chases that took him away from his family too often. Now sitting by his lonesome in a remote part of the quinjet, he was seriously thinking about revoking his membership with the famed Avengers.

The constant time away from his family was taking its toll on him and he just wasn’t up to dealing with the pissing contest of who was the strongest and better Avenger anymore. Iron Man, Captain America, Hulk, Thor…he just didn’t give a rat’s ass any longer and to be honest, he never truly cared. It wasn’t like he needed the funds, he and ‘Ro were a couple of thrifty spenders over the years and now had amassed a fortune. He knew he did it for the thrill, the adrenaline rush that came with getting the opportunity to fight bad guys, but in all seriousness, that thrill no longer reared its head whenever he was contacted to go and save the world or to retrieve some artifact or the other. He knew that he was happy and grounded in his life if that thrill was now replaced with the desire to continuously stay at home and spend his time being a loving husband, father and pack leader. Hell, the X-Men, his official team, were now hardly on call to save the world, so why the hell was he still putting up with this nonsense? As soon as he spoke to ‘Ro and Fury, he was going to retire from this clandestine lifestyle.

‘Ro. Just thinking about her set his soul to blazing as it always did. Thoughts of his mate always took him back to the beginning, when he had first beheld her. It had to have been some quirk of fate or some stroke of luck that had brought her into his life. Before her, happiness and love were never part of the equation that was known as his life. Before her, he was a mess of loss memories, rage, selfishness and instability. He was the consummate lone wolf, with little or no emotional attachments. And the words commitment and relationship weren’t even on his radar. Until Ororo, his wind rider, his alpha female, the love of his life.

She was everything good that was missing from his life and throughout the years, she had infused him with that goodness and the hope that happiness was possible for someone like him. She was the reason why he remained with the X-Men. She was the one who kept him at the mansion. She was the one who made him returned every time his wanderlust or his hunting of ghosts that would provide him with a sliver of his past, took him away. She was the reason the savage beast that warred inside of him for years was now calm and content. Quite, simply, Ororo was his home. Meeting the X-Men was the turning point for him, but Ororo was his salvation. Ororo and their children fueled his purpose in life, gave him that incentive to be the best man he could be.

But it hadn’t been an easy road to secure her and what they had together now. Loving her from the very beginning was easy, but revealing those feelings to her was the difficult part. Difficult because he was insecure about his ability to make her happy, believing that she would not and could not love a murderous animal like him. She was just too good, too intelligent, elegant, regal and caring for the likes of him. He had fought his love for her by doing the stupidest things. Chief among them was chasing the beautiful redhead Jean Grey, all along knowing that that was a losing battle. He was even the egotistical jerk that intentionally insulted, cursed at and picked fights with the other X-Men, hoping that Ororo would send him packing or in the very least, blast his adamantium-laced skeleton with electricity. He fought to no avail, because she had always seen the good lying underneath the rough and tough exterior. Not to say that she didn’t call him out on his crap, which she did all the time, but she had always treated him with the same respect she did everyone else.

After the years of struggle and denial, he had decided to heed the call of his beast and claim her. In doing so, she had forced him to see his worth as a man and a mutant. She had forced him to accept the happiness that he perpetually craved. His life was now complete, although he wouldn’t mind adding another to their pack. However, they were told that another was not a possibility for them. They were both dejected upon hearing this, but were still grateful for what they had been blessed with. Both man and beast were content and replete.

Logan smiled as he fished the wallet size photo of his family out of his uniform’s breast pocket. When he was away, he always kept one close to his heart. Yeah, many may have thought that the Wolverine had gotten soft with the titles of husband and father, but they didn’t know that it was those same titles that were his motivation to fight with ferocity and with everything he had. He protected those titles fiercely and passionately. On missions, they were his reasons to fight with the lethal proficiency he was known for. At home, they were his reasons for living and loving. The picture was a recent one taken just a few days before he was called away on this god forsaken mission. It was one of him, Ororo and their twins David and Rose, all huddled together on a lounge chair at the mansion’s annual Fourth of July party. Ororo had commissioned Kurt to take the family picture and surprisingly, it turned out to be a lovely photograph. Had it been six years already since he had been married and five since the kids were born? Damn! But time really didn’t wait for anyone. He was sitting on the chair with a child situated on each leg, his burly arms hugging them close. Ororo was kneeling behind him, her arms wrapped around his thick neck. The big grin on his face was a result of her whispering her love for him in his ear.

It should be a crime to be this happy, he mused. He never thought that he would have ever ended up with all that he had now. For as long as he could remember, even during the time that he was struggling to regain his stolen memories, he had never dared to believe that this would be his life now. He had never allowed himself to hope for a wife and children and if he was honest with himself, he never believed that he deserved a life like he had now.
As the jet continued its journey back to New York City, he thought about the past two weeks of wasted time. Time he could have been spending helping his wife in her greenhouse or fixing little things around the house. Time he could have been spending making it an unforgettable summer for his kids. He couldn’t wait to hold his wife and make love to her until they were both senseless. He couldn’t wait to hoist his little girl up in his arms and kiss her nose as she loved and get back to teaching his lil’ man the fine art of tracking. He turned to look down at the bag bearing the gifts he was able to snatch up while quietly slipping away to neighboring China. He had manage to get his hands on a traditional Chinese kite for Dave and a doll of a Chinese girl in traditional clothes for his Rosie. For his ‘Ro, he was able to get his hand on a few plants native to Myanmar. The Brymer’s thunia and the Persian shield. But the real prize for his Goddess was the antique jade Chinese medallion fourteen carat gold bracelet. Christ! He wish the jet would land already so he’ll be able to hightail it home.

He vaguely heard Luke Cage over the intercom informing them that they would land in less than ten minutes. He immediately became antsy, anticipation roaring through his veins. It was dusk when they arrived in New York City and once the quinjet landed in the hangar of the Avengers’ mansion, the Wolverine wasted little time gathering his possessions and making a beeline for his Jeep Wrangler, a birthday gift from his wife. Tossing his bags inside the back of the vehicle, he barely spared his teammates a glance and said goodbye to them before he took off. He was already debriefed on the jet, so he was free to get the hell out of there and home to his family.
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Ororo was like a whirlwind moving around the kitchen. She was busy finishing up her preparation of all of Logan’s favorites in anticipation of his arrival. The man himself had already called to let her know he was on his way home. She smiled when his gruff voice greeted her over the phone. His opening greeting of “Hey, sweet thing” had sent tingles coursing down her spine. She knew she would never tire of the way he made her feel.

She missed her warrior and the children missed their daddy. She smiled at the thought of being in his arms again and hearing that sexy voice murmuring his love for her. Two weeks was just too long to be away from her mate and going without his touch and body-numbing kisses. She was as giddy as a school girl awaiting his arrival. Anyone who saw her now or knew what she was thinking would think that she was still a newlywed and not fully into six years of marriage and the mother of five year old twins.

David and Rose would be the most ecstatic once she told them that their daddy would be home soon. Like her, they moped around the house and their daily lives when he wasn’t at home. It was as if Logan was the life force of their family, but he would be the first to tell you that was far from the truth. He more likened himself as their protector and champion. Ororo suspected that, after all this time, Logan still harbored a sliver of insecurity about their lives and future. But that was something she knew that was never going to change because experience had left him with many parting gifts and that was one of them. He had made great strides from the very first time he had joined the X-Men to their present time and the changes were evident. Their relationship was testament to that. Their relationship wasn’t an overnight thing or a fluke. It was one borne of mutual unconditional love, friendship, respect and loyalty. Their relationship remained the ultimate avowal of those things and so many more.

Logan had saved her from a lifetime of sorrow and loneliness. She had thought that all was lost after emerging from a dismal relationship with their one time teammate Forge. In the intelligent, handsome, debonair Forge, she had seen an opportunity for her eternal desires for a family and love to be realized. She thought she was in love and had found her fairy tale. But then, he had withdrawn his marriage proposal and ran off with another woman, which sent her into a period of despondency and self-doubt. In the end, she had surfaced from the debacle, burying all thoughts of love and family.

Then, Logan had arrived and she had known from their first introduction, she was in love, but not just any kind of love, but a primal, deep-sated love. The Canadian had resurrected her desires and over time had shown her that they were possible. She in turn, had set about showing him that he was worthy of love and happiness. The culmination of their feelings for each other came when he had revealed to her the home he had built for her and an admission of his love for her. Her own admission of love for him had set her then spiraling world right and she couldn’t be happier, grateful and in love. Suffice it to say, it was the catalyst that changed everything for them.

Their children were the by-products of what they both had fought for and build together. And she couldn’t wait to add to it. She couldn’t wait to let him know that they were going to add to their pack. She knew he would be overjoyed because all he had ever wanted and only dreamed of had come to fruition. When the twins had turned two years old, they had continuously tried for that new addition, but to no avail. A few tests later had revealed that she would more than likely never be able to conceive another child. Both she and Logan were devastated at the news because they had always envisioned themselves having a big family, seeing that they both didn’t have the warmth and love of siblings. They wanted to give what they didn’t have to Rose and David. They wanted to do their part in the expansion of the future generation of X-Men, as their friends and family were doing. Jean and Scott now had two children, Remy and Rogue had two and were expecting number three, Peter and Kitty were the proud parents of three and Betsy and Warren were preparing for the imminent arrival of their first one. Although devastated that it wasn’t in the cards for them, they were still beyond appreciative for being entrusted with the task of loving and caring for the two spirited ones they had.

Now, by some miracle, she was expecting their third child and there were no words to adequately describe how she was feeling. Gently caressing her still flat tummy, she laughed for the sheer joy of it.

“Mommy? Are you okay?” David’s voice rang her out of her reverie.

“Yeah mama. We’ve been standing here for a while and you didn’t even see us,” Rose pouted.

She turned to greet her children with a loving smile. Her son’s brows were furrowed and as always she was struck speechless at how much he favored his father. Her daughter’s expression was one of curiosity more than anything else.

“I am fine, my darlings,” she replied softly. “I was just thinking about something wonderful.”

“Bet ya Remy knows what his Stormy be tinkin’,” the Cajun smirked.

“Get your mind out of the gutter, brother,” Ororo retorted. Turning once again to her children, she addressed them, “Did you have fun at the water park today?”

The pleasure on their faces was her answer. She turned to face Remy, “Thank you for taking them with you today, Remy. I owe you one.”

“Doh mention it. Remy glad ta spend time wid his niece an’ nephew.”

Ororo walked over to the counter where she picked up a container. Handing it to Remy, she said, “Please give this to Rogue.”

“Wat be dis?” Remy asked, peeking into the container. “Ahh…her fav’rite non? Blueberry cheesecake?”

“Of course.”

“Ok. Remy gonna git goin’. Got ta help out wid the lil’ ones.” He bent his head to kiss Ororo on the cheek.

“Did you two thank your uncle for taking care of you today?” Ororo asked.

“Thank you, Uncle Rems.”

“Yes, thanks Uncle Remy,” Rose echoed.

“Ya both welcome. Au revoir.” Remy turned to exit the way he came in.

“Good bye, brother. Give Rogue and the children my love,” Ororo called out.

Remy nodded then disappeared into the twilight.

The kids’ excited chatter rang out after Remy’s departure. They were talking over each other, attempting to give their mother the rundown of their day at the water park. Ororo smiled, giving them her full attention. She knew that silently listening to them offered them security. She allowed them a few more minutes of chatter before saying loudly, “Alright you two, please go and clean up and get ready for dinner.“ Ororo turned to them, slyly, she added, “Your father should be here soon.”

The squeals that filled the room were those of pure elation. ‘Ro smiled, their joy filling her with joy. They continued their squealing as they ran upstairs to do their mother’s bidding.

Ororo bent her head and caressed her stomach lovingly. “Daddy will be home soon,” she whispered. “I cannot wait to let him know about you.”

Screams for her attention soon made their way down to her. Sighing, she made sure everything was fine in the kitchen, before she climbed the stairs to answer her children’s summons.
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The Wolverine took a deep breath and exhaled loudly as he parked the jeep in his driveway and stepped out of the vehicle. Damn, but it was great to be home. He grinned at the structure before him. He clearly remembered remodeling the decrepit cottage into the home that stood before him now. With the help of his friend, mentor and leader of the X-Men, Charles Xavier, he had undertook the unorthodox task of building Ororo this home as a way to show her how much he loved her and to bring her out of the despair and uncertainty that had threatened to overtake her life. His liberation of her was this home nestled on Xavier’s vast property. He had even gone so far as to have the road he just turned off of, the one leading to their home renamed for her, Goddess Drive.

After he had revealed the home to her, he had admitted his love and she had done the same, completely turning his world on its axis. Everything after that then fell into place. They were married, moved into the home and she had given birth to their children thereafter. He now had everything he had ever wanted. He grinned when he heard his children’s and his wife’s voices upstairs. The kids were excitedly telling their mother about the fun they had at the water park and Ororo, as usual, was patiently listening and offering her own two cents.

Grabbing his bags, he made his way to the front entrance. Quietly, he let himself him, sighing in relief that their elaborate security system was off and wouldn’t be spoiling his surprise. He made his way upstairs stealthily. He inhaled deeply on his trek up, taking in the variety of scents around him, especially the mesmerizing scent of his wife and the sweet scents of his pups.





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