Constant Craving

CONSTANT CRAVING CHAPTER FORTY-THREE (NC-17)
Disclaimers Apply

A/N Goddess Foxfeather, Mad Queen of Plotbunnies, Kristen and Lucas are waiting for the package I sent...watch 'em or they'll abscond with it... Vampyre: is he still raiding the fridge? InterNutter, TC and Maxwell Pink will have my everlasting thanks and praise for archiving this monstrous fic. Readers/Reviewers: Homestretch here people...finish this, a forward fling (hee hee hee Reimars...) and then the next one in what seto bto be a spawning universe... all stemming back to InterNutter's springboard for FOREVER (blame/thank her! LOL) And the ducks are finally out of the underwear drawer. I threw my mistletoe wreath at them and they ducked (heh), then fled. The platypi, however, are missing...which worries me greatly. The Killer Kitties(tm) are still taking a breather-send get well wishes via the ducks (they can be trusted with mail, oddly enough).




Rahne stared out the bay window in the kitchen glumly. Despite her best efforts earlier in the evening, Jamie had still resisted any below-the-waist exploration and she was half- mad with trying. _Is it me? Am I that unattractive? Do I smell weird or something? _ She sighed and tucked her knees under her chin, watching the shadows shift under the pale light of a waning moon. A brass glint caught her eye near where her feet rested and she noticed Kitty's menorah a near duplicate of the one in the study window, the candles long since burned out. A gold foil wrapper from the chocolate coins Kitty had used to show Kurt's sisters how to play dreidel1 glinted as the white-yellow moonglow fell into the kitchen. Rahne sent it flying with a flick of her fingers, feeling instantly guilty because she knew how hard Kurt had worked first to dirty the kitchen while preparing dinner for Kitty, then to clean it after they had all eaten. _I'll get it later...I don't want the Elf to tear me a new one for messing up his nice shiny floor. _ She could hear Logan pacing the upstairs hallway, his heavy tread undisguised as was his wont when he felt comfortable. He had been at it for over an hour, since Storm had slammed her door, startling everyone downstairs. They had scattered soon after, Tabby still not present. Finding himself in danger of being alone with Rahne, Jamie had made excuses of being tired and hurried to his room, leaving his girlfriend alone as soon as Jean left the rec room. _Story of me life...alone in the dark. Not even a full moon to bay at for theatrical effect. _ The trees shadowing the yard shifted with a breeze, sending fingers of dark across the moonlit kitchen. A spike of desperate bravery made Rahne stiffen her spine and she smacked her hands together in a decisive gesture. _That's it. I'm not some fucking damsel in distress, moping after a man. Jamie's waking his ass up and we're going to talk* now. * _

Logan slid into the shadows between rooms as Rahne stalked past him, her eyes showing her true nature and glinting wolfishly. He wanted nothing more than to be alone and possible throw someone through a window. A nice, big plate glass window, preferably on the second or third floor of a building. And he would certainly like the throw-ee to be Sabertooth. Storm had told him in no uncertain terms that if he were to continue being reticent about his feelings, she would abstain from further physical contact with him. _I've gone through dry spells before...women do that sometimes... _ He sighed harshly. _'Ro ain't just another woman, though. She's Ororo...she's a goddess...how the Hell can I fix this? _ He hated feeling helpless. In fact, he could count on one hand how many times in his memory he had ever felt truly helpless and each time involved women, namely Kitty and Storm. _Half-Pint...that was an extenuating circumstance. You don't take a man's daughter and expect him to feel in control of things... _ Kitty's brief abduction by Mao hao had just about driven Logan to a fit omblimbling madness, his forced adherence to the image of Wolverine the only thing that kept him from breaking down in the dead of night. Storm, though, inspired a different sort of helpless feeling. She surprised him with her virginity, her candid attitude towards sex and the absolute lack of artifice she presented. He felt as if he had been given a chance to be pure, to wash away the years of pain and false words that had layered over his soul, the doubt and hate and cheapness he had felt when confronted with women, the secret kernel of self-loathing when he went to bed with another dyed, made up barfly or biker girl, one of the women who always flocked to him like flies to honey. _I'm a fucking idiot sometimes... _ He stared at her shut door, his keen ears picking up the sound of Storm preparing for bed, humming to herself. He knew she had to be in the small sitting area to be heard so clearly. _She's watering her plants now...she's wearing something that rustles. _ Her light steps passed the door and he rested his fingertips against the wood, debating knocking or jusitiniting until the morning.
"Waiting?" Rahne asked softly, just over his left shoulder.
Logan did not jump but he glared. He had been so intent on Storm that Rahne's presence went virtually unnoticed. "Why aren't you in bed?"
"Because it's barely nine and I'm not sleepy..." Rahne sighed. "I won't tell anyone you're lurking outside S's r's room if you don't tell anyone I'm going to see Jamie in his room..."
"You got a lot of nerve, kid," Logan growled. Rahne merely raised a brow and tapped her foot in askance. He sighed and rolled his eyes. "Fine, but don't expect this to be a habit...and I want you outta there in half an hour, got it?"
"You gonna check or something?" she asked, backing away with a half-smile on his face.
"Don't press me..." Logan watched as Rahne knocked on Jamie's door and waited, then announced herself softly. The door opened slowly and Logan had a glimpse of Jamie's wide eyes before Rahne slid past him and into the room, the door shutting with a faint snick behind her. _ If she can do it, I can do it_... " 'Ro, it's me. Open up."
"No." Her voice was close to the door.
_She must have been listening...how did she know I was here? _ "I'm not gonna beg here. Just let me in. I want to talk."
"I'm tired of talking tonight, Logan. We can talk in the morning."
" 'Ro..."
'Logan, please. I'm tired, I am getting a headache, and I need sleep. We can talk in the morning."
Logan sighed roughly and let his head fall against the door. "You're the only woman I'd do this for, 'Ro, but please let me in..."
There was a long pause and he felt a pang of hope. "No. I will see you in the morning, Loga" He" Her footsteps faded from his hearing behind the door and Logan felt like a fool, but he could not be mad at her. He knew he had hurt her with his truthfulness but it could not be helped. _Tomorrow...fine. Tomorrow, I'll make her understand... _

"Be careful! Lift that end...there...thanks!" Jean and Kitty struggled under the weight of the telescope Scott had let them borrow, the Wagner sisters bringing up the rear of the convoy.
"So that was really _your _ star?" Erik asked around a yawn.
"Yep-Scott gave it to me..." Jean still blushed at the memory, not for it's sensuality for it really had none other than innocence, but for the tenderness of the moment and the revelations it brought her.
Katja sighed. "How romantic...I'd die for a boy to give me something like that."
"You'd die if a boy looked twice at you," Anja said coolly. "And Kurt's friend back home doesn't count!" she added quickly. "He looked at anything with breasts..."
"Doesn't explain why he looked at Katja," Erika sniggered.
"Be nice!" Kitty said at the same timeja sja snapp"Loo"Look who's talking!" Silence fell as they entered the darkened house, Jean and Kitty struggling with the telescope as the Wagner girls shot glances full of sibling jibes at each other.
"I got it from here, Kitty..." Jean levitated the telescope out of her hands and smiled. "I love being telekinetic sometimes..."
"Why didn't you just do it that way the whole time?" Erika asked.
"We don't like tuse use our powers," Kitty explained. "It's easy to become very dependent on them, which makes it easy to slip outside the Institute and accidentally do something freaky where people might see and wouldn't understand."
"So I like to do things manually every once in a while," Jean finished, walking behind the telescope and guiding it up the stairs. "I don't know about you girls, but I'm ready for bed. See you guys in the morning!"
Kitty nodded. "Thanks for the chocolate, by the bye..."
"Happy Chanukah, Kit!" Jean disappeared around the bend in the stairs with a wave, leaving Kitty and Kurt's sisters alone in the foyer.
"Is it hard?" Katja asked after a moment.
"Is what hard?"
"Being a mutant..." Katja winced as Anja elbowed her in the ribs. "What? It's a valid question!"
"It's okay...I don't mind being asked..." Kitty chewed on the inside of her lip for a moment before responding. "Sometimes it's harder than others, but it's the only way some of us know how to be."
"Like Kurt..." Erika offered. "He's always been blue and fuzzy..."
"Yeah," Kitty smiled, "like Kurt...other people, most of us here, actually, didn't know we were mutants until we were about your age, Erika. Some even later...most of us knew by the time we were thirteen."
Anja nodded thoughtfully. "Beast said puberty seems to trigger the mutation into activity."
"Yeah, that's about when it happens for most of us. Like, here's your first period and if that wasn't bad enough, you grow wings or something!" Kitty laughed, hiding the years of fear and pain that rose to the surface whenever she thought of the emergence of her own powers and the downfall of her family that resulted from it.
"Ugh...I think one is bad enough without the other," Katja groaned.
Erika asked shyly, "Does this mean you and Kurti will have mutant babies?"
The question did not startle Kitty as she thought it should. Instead, it made her smile. "Well, odds are heavily in that way, yeah. If yoke, ke, in the morning I can draw you a chart that shows how this sort of thing is passed down..." Katja and Erika murmured politely, but Anja looked desperately interested. "Okay, then....First thing tomorrow morning."
Katja stifled a yawn and said "Well, I think we're off to bed. You coming, Kitty?"
She shook her head. "I'm gonna wait up for...for a while." A knowing glace passed between the girls and the unspoken ..._for Tabby _ was left silent. The girls trickled upstairs, though, Kitty deciding she would be more comfortable in her sweatpants at least, changing before heading back down the hall. As she passed Kurt's door, she paused. _Wouldn't hurt to say goodnight... _ Her soft knock brought a quick response. He flung open the door and squeezed out into the hall, not letting her see into the room behind him.
"Katzchen!" he said happily, almost too brightly. "What're you doing?"
"I was about to go watch some telly...I wanted to say thanks for dinner..." Her raised brow conveyed just what sort of thanks she was offering.
Kurt bit back a groan. He could not let Kitty into his room, not while he was in the midst of..._things _ ...with Scott. "Well, you're welcome. It's not exactly what I wanted to give you, but..."
Kitty pressed a finger to his lips to stem the babble. _Something is up _ ... "I loved it. You're a great cook...if I keep eating your cooking, I'll be the sif a f a house by February!" Kitty stepped closer, pressing her body against his and feeling his natural response to her nearness press against her abdomen. "So...want _your _ Chanukah present?"
"I'm not Jewish," he said dumbly, berating himself mentally for having to do this.
"Duh. Kurt, do I have to spell it out for you?" Kitty sighed, leaning back. "I. Want. You."
"I thought you were going to go watch t.v."
"No one is downstairs...we can be quiet..."
The door behind Kurt opened part way and Scott stuck his head out. "Which track off of....oh, hi, Kitty."
Was it her imagination or did Scott look suspicious. "Hi..." She pulled away from Kurt and said calmly, "I guess playing with Scott is more interesting than what I was offering. Night..."
Kurt watched her go with a whimper. "I am an idiot."
Scott sighed. "At least she's not telekinetic. Jean's been trying to get my attention for the past twenty minutes...do you know how hard it is to concentrate when someone else is...er...making _things _ come to attention? It's bad enough that a breeze in the wrong direction makes it hard to walk but a girlfriend insistent on attention...man, you're just lucky..."
Kurt felt vaguely amused and nodded. "Go see Jean before you hurt yourself...I'll finish making the CD. I'll bring yours back in the morning."
"Thanks, man...I was in fear for my health there for a few minutes..." Scott passed Kurt a handful of CDs and added, walking somewhat uncomfortably from the room, "Kitty will love the CD, man...don't worry about that!"
"I'm just worried she's mad about just now...but I had to finish this before the morning!" Kurt sighed. "Go...you look like you're about to rupture something!" Scott was gone in a flash, leaving Kurt with a handful of CDs and the dim notion that Kitty would really understand once she knew why he rejected her advances. _We've got forever to sleep together...but I only have one night to make her CD! _

Kitty was certain she heard a noise from the downstairs study. It was well past midnight and Tabby still had not returned. _Great...she's sneaking in through the window or something... _ She knew full and well that it could not be a robber-the security system would have gotten them before now. That did not rule out another mutant like Pietro or even worse-Mystique-trying to make an entrance. Kitty picked up a pool cue as she crept towards the study, the noise now a muffled thumping, almost rhythmic, she noted. Creeping on silent feet, Kitty paused just outside the door and listened intently. The thumping continued and she was now sure she heard a gasp. _Fuck...there* is * someone in there! _ Taking a deep breath, she phased herself and the cue through the door and flipped on the light. "Gotcha!"
"Gah!" Jamie cried, falling to the floor and multiplying to four. Rahne made a yelp of surprise and scrambled to pull her clothes on even as Jamie covered his nudity with his hands.
Kitty stared for one endless moment and then cried, "I didn't see anything! I didn't see anything!" and phased out into the hall. She clutched her chest and gasped, "I saw _everything _ !"2
Numbly, she propelled herself back into the rec room, her face flaming red with embarrassment. _Well...I guess Jamie got over his fear of intimacy _ ...She hid her face in her hands and ignored the scurrying footsteps that lead from the study and up the stairs. _Geez...now I know how Rogue felt when she caught me and Kurt... _ She almost missed the sound of the mudroom door opening slowly and closing with barely a click. A change in the air made her look up to see Tabby, poised in the kitchen doorway and looking uncertain which way to jump.
"What're you doin' up, Shirley Temple?"
Kitty sighed, forcing her discovery to the back of her mind for the moment. "Tabby, we need to talk. Now."

1 All together now Dreidel, dreidel, dreidel... It's a game where you spin a top and depending which Hebrew letter it lands on you either get or give gelt (those chocolate coins in metallic foil) or just do nothing... Gambling for kids. Ain't it great?
2 Stolen from Dracula: Dead and Loving It with Leslie Nielsen.