Logan and Marie: Turning 21; Saturday night - Sunday morning

[x-traction.livejournal.com]

Logan takes Marie out for her 21st birthday. Its just a normal night out on the town with Marie trying to match Logan drink for drink.

Logan knocked on her door, once, before opening it and walking in. "Hey there, birthday girl!" he said with a real smile on his face. "You ready to forget these geeks and go have a good time?" he asked, leaning against her doorway.

Marie was just putting the finishing touches on her makeup. “Definitely,” she said while grinning at Logan’s reflection in the mirror. She had carefully picked out her outfit…a tight red top with a black leather mini skirt and knee-high boots… after all, how many times does a girl turn 21? She had even dyed the white streaks in her hair red to match the top. She slipped on her gloves as she turned to face him. Suddenly feeling self conscious, she looked away and asked, “Whatdya think?”

Logan paused to give her outfit the consideration it deserved. "You look good." he said after a long moment. "You look like a girl who wants to go have a good time. So let's quit jawin' and get goin'." he grinned, holding out the keys to one of the nicer rides down in the garage. "Any place in particular you want to go?" he asked her.

She smiled at his response, feeling her confidence rise again. “Ah figured Ah’d leave that decision up to you,” she said and began heading to the garage. “After all, you’re the expert, not me.”

Logan nodded at that, and turned to head down to the garage. "Think you can dance in those boots?" he asked her once they were both in the car and on the road.

She gave him a disparaging look, as if to say ‘Are you serious?’ “Of course. Ah bet Ah can dance circles around you.”

"No bet." he said with a chuckle. "Not much for dancin'." he said, but after about a half-hour of driving he pulled into the parking lot of one _gigantic_ club. "Hear this is where all the kids like to go." he said, somewhat embarrassed. He could hear the bass from out here already, and the place stank. But this wasn't about him, it was about her. "You ready for this?" he asked her, suddenly serious.

Marie's face lit up as she saw the club Logan had picked. She had expected him to pick one of the little hole in the wall bars he favored…and while generally, those kind of low key places were fine with her, she really wanted to do her birthday _right_. She knew that this kind of place was not his forte and gave his arm a quick squeeze, her way of saying thank you.

"Ah'm more than ready.” Making sure that her sleeves and gloves overlapped, she got out of the car. She just knew that this night was going to be fun and she felt so full of energy that she basically dragged Logan to the doors of the club, looking forward to getting carded.

Logan let her pull him along, hoping that this place was telling the NYC smoking ban to fuck off. He wasn't sure he was going to make it with a fully-alert nose. The line wasn't too horrible to get in - the club was big enough and it was early enough that the bouncers weren't giving folks too hard of a time yet. He was surrounded by boys and girls in not-much-at-all who apparently swam in perfume. He felt a dull ache begin behind his eyeballs, one his healing factor wasn't able to do anything about. Overstimulation sucked. Once they were inside, he involuntarily winced at the blast of noise that assaulted his ears.

The entire club seemed to be throbbing to the beat of the music coming from the speakers. Even though it wasn’t overly crowded inside, Marie still felt a little nervous but she knew Logan wouldn’t let her get in trouble. Leaning to speak directly into his ear, she asked, “Ready for round one?” Without waiting for an answer she sashayed over to the bar.

Logan could get into that action. He followed her up to the bar, smirking despite himself at the attention she was drawing. Him, he may as well have been invisible. Suited him just fine. Besides, he had to go introduce the girl to the joys of chemical intoxicants.

Marie was oblivious to the stares she was evoking. She just felt happy to be out like a normal person. Tonight, she was not going to think about the X-Men or powers or being a mutant. This was just a night out on the town with her best friend. “So is there any special drink Ah should have for turning 21? Hopefully something that doesn’t taste disgusting?”

Logan pondered that one for a second. "Whiskey sour for the lady, beer for me." he told the barkeep. He then slid over a nice fat stack of bills, and grinned at the barkeep. "My friend here's turning 21. Whatever she wants, she gets. That runs out tell Marie here and I'll make sure you get more."

The bartender was quick and telling him that Marie was turning 21 made him extra generous with the liquor. Winking at her as he handed her the whiskey sour he said “Next shot is on the house for the birthday girl.”

She cautiously took a sip of the drink, and then smiled at Logan. “Good choice,” she said before taking a heartier swallow. She waited for him to take a few swigs of his beer before yanking him onto the dance floor.

Logan just grinned at her before chugging half his beer in one mighty swallow. A good thing, too - as soon as he took the mug away from his mouth Marie dragged him out into the swirling mass that constituted the dancefloor. Interesting moves on some of them - apparently the sex-standing-up approach was quite popular. Not that Logan had any intention of Going There with Marie, but still. He did his best to keep up with her and not totally humiliate her - his long-forgotten combat training served him well.

While most people would just think Logan was dancing a little stiffly, Marie noticed that his dance moves looked suspiciously like some of those he used while fighting. She was enjoying herself immensely and watching Logan out of his element was just icing on the cake.

Logan’s beer was long gone by the time Marie finished her first drink. Heading back to the bar to get another (since this was a birthday with a mission), she was cut off by a cute guy who handed her a drink. “Happy birthday…and if you want a real dance, I’m right over there,” he said before rejoining his group of friends.

Logan caught the guy's comment and just shrugged slightly as he went up to grab another beer. She seemed to be happy, and that's all that really counted. On his way back from the bar he leaned in close so she could hear him. "Have a good time." he told her and then cuffed her very lightly on the shoulder.

“That’s what Ah’m doing,” she replied before starting to dance again. A couple hours and who knows how many drinks later, Marie was no longer steady on her feet. Slinging an arm around Logan, she had a silly grin plastered across her face. “Ah’m havin’ such a good time. You having a good time? Ah’m having a good time.”

"It's all good, darlin'." agreed the stone-sober Logan. She was flushed and she was beginning to sweat out the booze, which was probably a good thing, all things considered. "Watch the gloves." he warned, tugging her left glove towards her elbow without touching her skin.

She pouted. “But Ah’m hot. Too many clothes.” She tugged at her sleeves, resisting the urge to roll them up over shoulders. She was having difficulty staying focused and suddenly demanded “More dancing” while pulling Logan to the center of the dance floor. While she may not have been able to walk in a straight line, she still was able to move surprisingly well on the dance floor and was drawing a fair amount of attention.

Logan did his best to keep up with her - however many she'd had, it hadn't thrown off her balance or rhythm much. "Looks like you got a fan club, darlin'." he told her, noticing the particular young man - the "real" dancer - watching Marie move with a hungry eye. He didn't like it much, but it didn't matter what he liked. He wasn't her father, husband, or lover. "I know it's hot but you also know why you need to keep your gloves on."

“Thas why they’re still on.” Her training to keep those gloves on and her skin covered was so ingrained that it didn’t matter how intoxicated she got they weren’t coming off in public, at least intentionally. The club had gotten a lot more crowded since their arrival and even inebriated she knew that meant she needed to be careful. The good thing about the alcohol was that it chased all the serious thoughts that usually went along with that line of reasoning out of her head and Marie lost herself in the music again.

While dancing, she had let her guard down and wasn’t focused on her surroundings. She was dancing with Logan and then suddenly she felt a hand grab hers. Next thing she knew, she was dancing with the guy who had been eyeing her all night. And he was _not_ dancing at a polite distance like Logan.

Logan blinked as Marie suddenly shifted partners to the guy who'd been giving her the hairy eyeball all night long. And by the looks of it he was either looking to wear her like a stole or else he was really, really jonesing for a one-way trip to oblivion-land for a little while. Logan knew that Marie wouldn't much care for that, but he couldn't do anything. Not here, not like this. So instead he resolved to stay out on the floor and keep a very close eye on her. If he saw skin he was going to have to do something drastic.

The guy was a good dancer, even if he was a little close for comfort. After a couple songs, Marie thanked him and tried to take a step back. But her partner didn’t seem inclined to let her go and instead pulled her closer. Crap. She couldn’t push him off her because with the amount of alcohol in her system she didn’t know if she could control her strength. She tried to slip out of his grip, but he had her firmly in his arms and was not letting go. Thankfully, her gloves and sleeves were cooperating and no skin that had been covered was sneaking out.

Logan, not too far away, had seen enough. He walked up to the kid and jabbed an adamantium-coated fingerbone into the guy's shoulder. "'Cuse me." he said politely. "I think the lady wants to try her luck elsewhere."

The guy’s eyes widened and he quickly backed off, but not before slipping Marie his phone number. At the sight of him retreating, she breathed a sigh of relief, which turned into a yawn. Now that she had stopped moving, it was almost as if all her energy had evaporated. Leaning against Logan she mumbled “Sleepy.”

Logan didn't stagger under Marie's weight. "One more for the road, kid, then we're gone. You hungry?" he asked her as he supported her and walked them both to the bar. "Keep the change." he told the barkeep, and then ordered himself one last shot for the evening.

“Waffles!” she declared, not understanding why she had the sudden craving for them. The bartender gave her a concerned look, but relaxed when it was obvious that Logan was taking care of her. She was glad Logan was there because she couldn’t tell which of the four doors she was seeing was the exit to the club…funny how they put that many doors in a row.

Logan helped her outside and poured her into the car before getting in himself and pulling away from the club. The cool night air was like pure orgasmic joy to Logan - no body-stink, no bodywash, just regular ol' humanity-stink. MUCH better for him. "How many do you reckon you had, kid?" he asked his companion as they drove to the Waffle House.

Marie rolled down her window to feel the breeze against her face. She was still hot and it was getting harder to resist the temptation to strip off her gloves. She held up her hands and began counting, “One, two, six, three, five, ten, eight, fifteen.” She nodded firmly, seemingly very sure of herself. “Fifteen,” she repeated.

"That's a lotta booze, darlin'." he commented, neutrally. He cracked a smile now, she'd tear him in half. "You still want those waffles?" he asked her as the Waffle House came into view. "Nice big heap with strawberries?"

She started bouncing in her seat chanting “Waffles, waffles, waffles, waffles.” As soon as Logan parked the car she jumped out and ran, a little unsteadily, into the Waffle House.

Logan followed along after her at a far more sedate pace. The waffles weren't going anywhere. And best of all, they had a bathroom in case Marie decided that alcohol and strawberry syrup didn't mix. "Come here, kid." he said, nudging her away from the rather good-looking boy she was giving googly eyes to. "Waffles."

Marie was easily redirected to a booth in the corner. She babbled on about nothing and everything, her topics swiftly changing. As soon as the waitress set a plate of waffles in front of her, she fell silent and began digging in to the waffle topped with strawberries and whipped cream.

Logan just watched her eat. He wasn't all that hungry and waffles weren't exactly his thing. Instead, he ordered steak and eggs. May as well get some real food while he was watching Marie shovel her waffles in.

Marie looked at Logan with a satisfied smile once she polished off her waffles. “Much better.” She then downed her water in one gulp.

He just grinned at her and sedately played with his steak and eggs. The steak was crap, but he was expecting that. Enough A1 might even make it palatable. But the reason he kept coming here is that they gave tabasco. Logan was entirely too fond of tabasco. He dumped a cheerful bit of the bottle all over his eggs and then set to. "How you feeling?" he asked her around bites.

Marie couldn’t seem to stop grinning. “Ah feel good.” Struck by inspiration, she began singing, “Ah feel good…na na na na na na …Ah knew that Ah would na na na na na na na…Ah feel nice…na na na na na na na…like sugah and spice…na na na na na na na.”

Logan had to fight to keep from rolling his eyes. "Marie." he said, in a very attention-getting sharp tone. "Please don't sing. I know you feel good, but really."

Marie covered her mouth, recalling that her off-key singing was probably grating against Logan’s ears. “Whoops,” she said while still grinning immensely.

"Yeah." he said in agreement, finishing up his chow. "Night's still young." he said. "You're not quittin' on me, are ya darlin'?"

“No way. Ah can do anything you can do.” She stood, swaying just a little bit. “What’s next?”
"You think so." he said, making it not-a-question. "Fine." He paid for their food and then herded Marie back out to the car. "Let's go find out what Marie likes." he said with a grin as he took the two of them to a new bar. One of the quieter hole-in-the-wall places he tended to favor.

Marie was relieved to see the next place was one that had seats…standing was still a little difficulty. As they walked in, the barkeep nodded to Logan, seeming to recognize him, but raised an eyebrow at her. Looking at her outfit, she realized she was a bit overdressed for this kind of place. Attitude, she reminded herself, sauntering over to the bar. “Two beers.”

Logan nodded to the barkeep and took a stool next to her. "Girl's twenty-first." he told him, prompting a chorus of "Happy Birthday!" from the regulars. Soon enough, various drinks and shots began to appear - gifts from the other patrons.

Marie inwardly grimaced at the sight of all the alcohol. She really didn’t think she was ever going to drink again after this night. Forcing a smile on her face, she began drinking.

Logan kept up with her - sticking mostly to either beers or boilermakers. She got to experience quite the gamut of highly embarrassingly-named drinks. The Sex on the Beach she didn't blink an eyelash at, nor the Long Comfortable Screw Up Against The Wall, but the Blowjob got a quirked eyebrow. "I don't name 'em, darlin'." was all he said.

She just rolled her eyes at him, while taking the last shot in the manner instructed, managing to do without choking. “You just wanna get me drunk and put ideas in my head,” she teased.

“Been there once. Not doin' it again." he told her as gently as possible. He downed his prairie fire and grinned as he felt the heat slide down his throat. "Besides, I got you the Jaeger. Think that one's from Tony down there." he said, then shifted his gaze. "You tryin' to put ideas in the girly's head?" he taunted the forty-something at the other end of the bar. At the enthusiastic nodding and thumb's up, Logan just growled - but he smiled while he did it. "Ignore him - he's harmless."

She grinned at Tony and waved, then turned back to Logan. Serious for a moment, she told him, “Of course not again. We know better now.” Then, as only possible when drunk she immediately became giddy again. Standing up she said, “Ah think you need more dancing.”

"I don't think I need more dancing..." he said, then let her pull him off his stool. "You're still an asshole, Tony!" he called over her shoulder to Tony, who just flipped him the bird by way of response. Seems that somebody at the bar had a sense of humor, as the jukebox felt compelled to give them nothing but syrupy slow numbers.

Marie was thankful for the slow songs, which allowed her to exert less energy and just kind of lean against Logan and sway back and forth. She was definitely done drinking for the night. In fact, she was probably close to done for the night, but there was no way she was telling that to him. It was funny, she always felt like she was competing with him and she didn’t even know why or for what.

Slow-dancing with Marie was something along the lines of exquisite torture. While he couldn't remember anything previous to Weapon-X, his memory was just fine from then forward. And he knew every inch of her, what she liked and what she didn't, and it was getting somewhat warm and uncomfortable in here, wasn't it?

Unaware of Logan’s inner torment, Marie snuggled up against him. Her only thought was that Logan was _comfortable_. Nuzzling her face into his chest, she began mumbling something incoherently.

Now she was fightin' dirty. Disengaging himself from her, he led the two of them back to the bar and got her to plonk her butt on the chair, at least for a little while. "Not a good idea, darlin'." he said, ordering and quickly downing another beer to try to put the internal fires out.

She cocked her head to one side and looked at him quizzically. “What’s not a good idea?” she asked, her words coming out a little slurred.

Logan looked at her and then ordered himself something a little stronger than just a beer. When it arrived, he downed it in a single long swallow. "Dancin' like that." he said after he'd cleared his throat.

It took her a few minutes to make the connection. “Ohhhhhh. Oh. Oh.” Then she started giggling, though she wasn’t quite sure what she found so funny. For some reason it was getting harder for to look at Logan like that anymore.

Well, at least Marie was a giggly drunk. That made things easier. He passed her another drink and took one for himself as well. He was willing to let her laugh if it meant she'd get it out of her system.

The more she drank, the heavier her eyelids became. After a couple more drinks, she could barely manage to balance on the stool anymore.

Looks like her time had just about come. She was definitely slouching, and he had to push her back onto her stool at one point. "All right, darlin', I think it's time to call it a night." He tried to offer himself as a support, but she was having so much trouble standing upright he took the easy way out and threw her over his shoulder - coincidentally exposing her bottom to just about everyone in the bar. Logan, cheerfully oblivious, carried her out of the bar and put her gently into the passenger's side of the car.

Marie let out an indignant squeak when Logan picked her up and fussed at him while he carried her out, threatening him and all he held dear. Once settled into the car, she had a fleeting thought that she was probably going to be the talk of the bar for a few days and was hopeful she wouldn’t be running into any of the regulars again. Reaching over she poked him in the ribs. “One day Ah’m gonna sling y’ over my shoulder, see how ya like it.”

Logan grunted as she poked him in the ribs - his bones couldn't be broken, but she was more than a little drunk and forgetful of her own strength. "Time to put you to bed, kiddo." he told her as he started the car. He didn't envy her the hangover she'd undoubtedly be sporting tomorrow. He was also regretting now composing her attire a little better when he put her into the car - her skirt, not the longest of things by any stretch of the imagination, was riding dangerously high. He had to remind himself very, very sternly that he was the responsible one right now and that he Was. Not. Going. There. Again.

“Bed,” she parroted nodding enthusiastically. Bed sounded marvelous right about now. She was still incredibly hot…leather just did not breath. She considered taking her gloves off, then thought better of it. Peeling off her boots instead, she didn’t think about the fact that putting her feet up on the dashboard while in a miniskirt was probably not the best of ideas.

Logan glanced over at Marie just after she put her bare legs up on the dash and then resolved to keep his eyes very, very firmly on the road in front of him. That's just the ticket. Ignore the nose which tells you she's good to go. Ignore the hormones that are conspiring with his nose. Just to make his life a little easier he cracked a window to get some fresh air.

Marie rolled her sleeves up, continuing to try and cool herself down. One more look at Logan and then she drifted off to sleep for the remainder of the drive back home. Waking up as he pulled the car into the garage, she looked over at him and said accusingly, “No over the shoulder.”

"Then you can walk like anyone else." he said agreeably. He climbed out of the car then walked around to her side to help her out of the car. "Don't forget your boots." he told her. The walk back to her room was long and slow, but she really wasn't up for anything quicker than that.

Logan opened the door and escorted Marie into her room, keeping her from tripping over the doorframe. She threw her boots in a corner upon entering her room and immediately began stripping off the offending leather skirt and gloves, her remaining control having fled upon seeing the comfort of her bed. Logan was barely able to shut the door to her room before she gave a peep show to anyone who happened to be wandering by in the hallways.

Logan, however, stayed inside her room and enjoyed the rather impromptu show. "Sleep well, kid. Happy twenty-first." He really needed to stop doing this to himself. Once she was down for the night, he went and got her trashcan from her bathroom and put it next to the bed. Leaving her for a few moments, he went and fetched the gigantic bottle of aspirin and left it and a gallon of water in her room for tomorrow. He'd definitely have to go and check up on her ... later in the morning.

----------------

Many hours later, Marie awoke with a splitting headache. What is that noise? Marie grabbed her head and groaned at the elephants who seemed to be doing a tango in her head. She looked around bleary eyes until her gaze fell on the water and a bottle of aspirin. Dumping several into her hand, she downed the pills and finished a quarter of the water in her first sip. Taking a deep breath, she downed another significant portion of the water.

Logan arrived not a few minutes later than that, letting himself into her room without so much as a knock. Out of consideration, he made as little noise as possible as he moved across her room to kneel down at her bedside. "Mornin', birthday girl." he said quietly. "How do you feel?"

She was thankful for his consideration but couldn’t help glaring at him. “…’s not fair. Ah wanna new head.”

"Can't have it." he said, grabbing one of her chairs and planting himself into it. "Welcome to the Morning After."

“When does it stop?” she groaned while pulling the covers over head.

"Depends. I've never had one myself, but I'd say after how much you had ... couple of hours. By lunch you should be fine." he said with a small smile. The mention of food just might be enough to tip her delicate system, and he hooked her trashcan with his foot just to be absolutely sure.

Marie fought the feelings swirling in the pit of her stomach. She was _not_ doing that in front of him. Pulling the covers down just enough so her eyes could peek out she gave Logan the stare he knew to mean, “You should die a hundred horrible deaths.”

Logan returned it with the "You want my mutation, you can have everything else that goes with it" look that she knew so well. "Hear Lorna's outdoing herself today. Burgers on the grill, hot Italian sausage, maybe some french fries..." he said.

Now he was just being cruel and evil. "Ah think Ah'd rather have some toast…and more aspirin. Remind me why Ah thought Ah should match you drink for drink?"

"Because you're an idiot?" he replied cheerfully. "But luckily for you you're an idiot with some dry white toast for breakfast." he said. "Give me ten, and try not to throw up on the sheets." With that, he stood up and headed out of her room.

As soon as Logan left the room, Marie dragged herself out of bed and splashed water on her face. Looking at her reflection, she shuddered. Obviously, taking off her makeup had not been a priority last night…or changing into proper sleepwear. Scrubbing her face quickly and pulling her hair back, she changed into a loose t-shirt and jeans. She slipped on a pair of gloves and then dug through a drawer until she found a pair of old sunglasses. Putting them on, she sprawled across her bed to await her breakfast.

Logan returned relatively quickly, bearing a stack of dry white toast, another gallon of water, and a cup of coffee for him. "Here ya go, kid." he said, noticing that she'd actually bothered to somewhat pull herself together. A good sign, he thought. "Chow down."

“Ah could get used to this kinda service,” she said while winking at him.

Logan just looked at her, but didn't say anything. He just sipped his coffee and watched her eat. He even brought a bag with him for disposal of the dishes and whatnot. "Drink more water." he urged her.

She just smiled at him and chugged the rest of the gallon. “Thanks for taking me out last night…it was a perfect birthday. Even with this blasted hangover.” Luckily, she had youth on her side and was bouncing back rather rapidly.

"You're welcome." he said, leaning back in her chair. "How much of it do you remember?" he asked curiously.

“Um…lets see…” she said closing her eyes. “There was the club…lots of drinks…dancing. Oh god, if only Ah had pictures of you dancing, Ah’d have blackmail for life.” Her eyes fell to a slip of paper on the nightstand and she laughed. “There was that guy. And then…Ah wanna say waffles? An’ then more drinking…and then somehow Ah got back here. Did Ah miss anything important?”

Logan shrugged. "You got the high points." he said. "And yeah, you jonesed in a big way for waffles. And you sang."

“Ah most certainly did not,” she said in mock outrage.

"Sure did. Speaking of blackmail..." he said with just the hint of a smirk.

She responded to that in the only way possible…by throwing a pillow smack dab at the center of Logan's head. And then she quickly dove behind her bed before he could manage to throw it back at her.

Logan took the pillow and held onto it. She'd emerge at some point, and then he's get her for that little assault on his mug.

Marie spotted something white on the floor and waved it in the air while calling out “Truce!”
Logan blinked as Marie waved a bra in the air at him. He tossed her pillow onto her bed and then nodded to her. "Truce."

When Marie realized what she was waving in the air, she turned beat red. There was only one way she would be able to live this down. Quickly gathering the three pillows that had fallen on the floor, she stood and threw them in a quick barrage at Logan. Hopping over the bed, she slung him over her shoulder and set him outside the door to her room. Rapidly retreating, she shut the door behind her before dissolving into giggles.

Logan was too busy laughing to properly defend himself. "What happened to truce?" he asked once he could breathe.

“Ah owed you that from last night, sugah,” she managed to say between giggles. And then humming ‘I feel good’ to herself, she crawled back into bed to get a little more sleep.

Logan picked himself up and left Marie to clean up the coffee stains all over her pillows - he was holding his coffee when she slammed him and then turned him upside down. Whistling to himself, he wandered back to his room.