Christmas Day. Westchester County.

The stockings were thrown from the chimney without care and it was obvious that St. Nicholas had already been there. They flew. They leaped. They hovered. They came to get their gifts.

All around the tree were packages of all sizes, shapes, and colors. Big ones, small ones, circular, and square ones. All with little white tags.

The mighty X-Men sat around the tree as if they were small children, hopping up and down in anticipation. The thought of gifts filled their hearts with joy.

They waited for the word; the word that would let them tear the decorated paper off the packages and reveal what secrets were held inside. Their bright eyes watched as Charles Xavier floated down to them. As his mouth opened, so were the gifts.

Ripping....

“By the goddess, look at the size of this box!”

... tearing....

“Chere, dat not yours! Look at de name! R-E-M-Y!”

... cutting....

“Sugar, that is ma gift!”

...yelling....

“Stormy, don’ step on me!”

... laughing....

“That is what you get for calling me ‘Stormy’!”

... smiling....

“Remy, you look as scared as a long tailed cat in a room full on rocking chairs.”

... until each had their own pile.

“You a barrel of laughs, Stormy,” the reformed thief, Remy LeBeau, remarked, “first you try to kill me under de tree, den all you give me is a box full of coal!”

Storm replied in a snide tone, “You have been bad all year... but I suppose that even you, deserve something on Christmas. Maybe there is something for you under the coal, Remy.”

The Cajun turned the box upside down and tumbled out along with a pile of coal were three video tapes.

“ ‘De best of Ed Wood’? You shouldn’ have, Stormy.”

“I know you had your eye on it and I was so proud of you when you did not steal it.... so I got it for you.” After a moment of thought, “And stop calling me ‘Stormy’!”

Remy smiled and nodded his head. Storm knew that he was only going to spend the rest of the day thinking up nick names far worse than “Stormy” but she smiled knowing he was happy.

“It’s good that ya got what you wanted this year, Remy,” Rogue added to the conversation. She lowered her attention to a red ribbon that she was now folding into various geometric figures.

“Eh, ma cherie, maybe I got a gift you’d really enjoy,” Remy whispered into Rogue’s ear as her drew her close.

As she felt Remy’s warm breath come closer to her she pulled away. “Remy, you know Ah can’t! Why do ya torture me like that?”

Before Remy could answer Rogue’s question Professor Xavier unknowingly interrupted, “So I suppose that’s the last of the gifts and in record time too.”

“Not just yet Charles, I have yet one to give.”

The voice that could send a chill down the spine of every man, woman, and child. Mutant and human alike. At one time he was the X-Men’s oldest and most deadly foe. Now without any memory of being that man, he joined the ranks of the very team he tried at one time to destroy. In the past he was known as Magneto, but now they call him...Joseph.

He wheeled around and looked into the emerald green eyes of the woman only known as Rogue, cursed with the power to absorb the memories and abilities of anyone by the slightest touch.

“Rogue, I have a gift for you that is not under that tree. It is not wrapped or in a box. The gift I have is the one thing you have been longing for, for most of your life, but you must trust me.”

Joseph pulled the fingers of his glove and set it aside. With his bare hand he came a millimeter away from her face then stopped. He could see she was fearful but once again in a whisper, “Trust me.”

The others waited on baited breath, not blinking, not thinking, only looking, watching for the fateful moment.

Would it work?