Epilogue

Jubilee smiled as Jean came into Logan's room, silent on the plush carpet as she sat on the edge of the bed. Jubilee had been up for a while, staring at the ceiling as nothing had caught her attention on TV. Logan slept beside her on the couch, quietly snoring into a pillow, exhausted from helping her practice walking outside the night before.

Jean held up a cloth bag she carried, an emblem on the front bearing the Xavier school name. "They sent you gifts ... but this time they're going-away gifts since you'll be leaving here in a few days." she whispered, handing her the bag. "There's more in the hallway that you and Logan can look at."

"No, I..." Jubilee began to hand the bag back, but her curiosity got the better of her. Opening the fold, she realized it was a purse type bag that bore the school logo and held many shirts for her; each one a tank top for a color in a rainbow, tiny butterfly's decorating the chest. The six shirts were rolled into little cylinders in the bag and Jubilee pulled each one out, laying them on the bed carefully. Unbuttoning the front pocket in the bag, she pulled out notes from her friends, each one meaning to go with a gift.

Dear Jubes,

Hope you're feeling better. These are going away gifts from us for two occasions, your leaving Gen-X and the X-Men. Miss Frost paid for it all (just so you don't feel guilty) and sent it up here. My gift is a bag of shirts. The bag is for our school and the shirts are for every color of the rainbow and they all have a butterfly on the chest to represent freedom. Enjoy them and come visit sometime! I miss you!

Love Paige

Logan opened his eyes at her joyful gasp; he turned over on the couch and grunted something in the way of 'what's this?' at the pair on the bed.

"I got presents." Jubilee announced, pulling out another note, this one from Angelo. She unfolded the blue paper and looked at Logan. "It's okay. Jean said there's more in the hallway, so could you and her bring it in here?"

"Sure." Logan stood and rubbed his forehead, heading into the hallway as a shout from Bobby came from his room on the left side, where Jubilee could see a box blocking his doorway. Yelling about being trapped, Jubilee laughed at him and Logan carried in the heavy object, cursing as he stubbed his toe on the door.

Dear Jubica,

So glad to hear you're up and at 'em chica. I miss you around here; no one's around to play tricks with. Anyway, we heard about your going for a little trip and we thought we'd get you something for a going-away gift. Mine's a pack of some gross stuff (like the one you gave me for my birthday) that you can use to play with. Also, I'm sending a necklace. Paige said that wasn't special enough, so I bought the pieces and made it myself (don't tell the guys I do crafts). Hope you let us see you again sometime.

Love ya,

Ang

Jubilee got up from the bed and opened the top of the box, seeing that it contained all the gifts from her friends, not just Angelo's. Pulling out a smaller box, she found five squishy, sticky balls of different colors inside and a bag of candy he had once deemed as 'disgustingly sticky and sweet.' The necklace was in an envelope inside the box; a beautiful bone pieced choker with stunning turquoise beads between them. The leather wound around in twist, the pieces pulling it into a braid. Taking another note, she read it hungrily, impatient to see what she'd gotten and how much her friends cared about her.

Jubilee,

It's Jono, sunshine. I wanted to send a gift that would mean something to you, but, truth be told, I couldn't find anything. Well, anything that Frosty'd let me buy :). I am sending you a cute blue seahorse Beanie Baby I found, since I know it matches some of your other gifts, but the real present is an album I made to give to you (see the back). Every single picture we had that had you in it is in there. Well no, that's a lie. Everyone that means something is in there. I hope you like it and think of us.

Smiles,

Jono

Picking up the seahorse, she curled the toy's long tail around her finger and took out the album. Flipping through the pages of the album, tears began to fall from her eyes, happy this time, not sad. Jubilee smiled and a thin laugh escaped her throat as she got to the last page, where a Chippendale's dancer picture was pinned to the inside cover. A note from Jono read, 'I know you and Paige watch this sort of thing. ;)'

Jean chuckled, glancing at Logan as he looked at her. Impishly smiling, Jubilee slammed the album shut and put it behind her on the bed. "I'll look at that gift later."

Dear Jubilation,

I do hope that this letter finds you in better health than when we were last told of you state. Paige has provided us with the information about her visit to Westchester and came up with the idea to make you feel better through gifts, which she has said you love to receive. My present to you, Jubilation, is a doll that I found in a store Paige insisted I go into. I had told her it reminded me of you and that I refused to buy it, but she provoked me so I did. She has also made the pair of hideous clothes it is wearing to match your own. I really must insist once again on your adjusting your fashion statement. May you enjoy this gift and visit us sometime when you feel it is necessary.

Sincerely,

Monet St. Croix

"Jeez Louise, she even writes stuck up. Oh well, I know she misses me somehow." Jubilee put the letter aside and picked up the doll in a case in the box. The doll was a stuffed China rag doll, thin and small with shoulder length straight black hair and blue eyes. The outfit was her Gen-X costume, red and gold with the yellow raincoat over it and the tiny X necklace shining from around her throat. It really did look like her, she thought as she smiled.

Logan took it from her as she picked up another letter, sitting it on the couch back with Bamf. Two of his favorite people in the world, Nightcrawler and Jubilee, reduced to doll size. The thought scared him as he turned around and focused on her face again.

Dear Jubes,

I asked to have my present be seen last and they agreed. I couldn't think off hand of anything to get you that you didn't have or the others weren't getting you, so I thought of things that you might have and want another of. I know you don't wear baseball caps, but to match the shirts Paige gave you, I thought I'd give you a bucket hat with the school emblem. Then I got to thinking about how you'll probably go to Canada with Wolverine when you leave, so I got Frost to buy you a matching jacket. I hope you'll wear these gifts and think of all of us, because we miss you a lot.

Hope you're better,

Ev

Logan pulled out the blue-green, fleece lined windbreaker and held it up for Jubilee and Jean to see, the gold and black Xavier school logo shining on the back. The hat was the same color, as was the bag Jubilee noticed, and all of them matched to be a set. Smiling happily, she stood and gripped Jean's hand as Logan helped her pull on the jacket and then she yanked the hat over her hair and slung the bag over her shoulder, laughing as she posed for the pair before her. The jacket fell past to her thighs and closely resembled Sean's Celtics jacket, but Jubilee brushed that fact aside and laughed.

"I look beautiful!" she exclaimed in a whisper to Logan, giving him a hug. Jean began to fold up the box before noticing one last gift at the very bottom. It was a small plastic package of hair clips, each set of two a different Sailor Moon character and another package held a kid's necklace of Hello Kitty, Pekkle and Kerropi, three Japanese cartoons by Sanrio; Jubilee watched them all the time with the a few other members of the school. A note was pinned through the plastic reading that it was from Penny, but that she hadn't written a letter, only pointed it out for her at a store.

"Well darlin', ya got enough presents to last ya 'til Christmas?" Logan sat back down on the couch and Jubilee smiled happily, curling up next to him. She grabbed a sticky ball from the box from Angelo and began to roll it in her palms, feeling the gooey texture.

"Here, throw this against the ceiling." she handed a ball to Logan and another to Jean, who tossed the ball up to meet the white stucco. The ball smacked to the ceiling and hung suspended to it, waiting the fall with a sticky plop. Jubilee tossed a purple ball at the wall and it slowly rolled down to meet the floor, where Jean smiled, picked it up and threw it back at the young girl.

"Now, J, these ain't gonna be all over my jeep when we leave tomorrow, are they?" Logan rolled a blue sphere in his hand, squeezing it and watching it return to it's shape.

"No...what makes you say that?" she smiled evilly as Jean excused herself and Logan tickled her sides, smashing the ball against her forehead. "Never, I swear."

Logan sighed and picked Jubilee up in a fireman's hold. "Let's go get some breakfast. Ya can tell the others what ya got and then we can pack up some stuff to leave tomorrow."

(Written by Nova Zion)

TO BE CONTINUED IN THE SEQUEL, ANOTHER CHANCE TRIP