Katie, Not Kate

Chapter 9: Mr. Logan's Simulation

The next morning, Logan woke up in the teacher's lounge well before Katie did, though he didn't make a move to wake the exhausted little girl still asleep on his chest. Instead, he just shifted slightly so he had a more comfortable position and waited her out — not surprised in the least when Kurt came in to check on them before Katie was up.

Kurt looked a bit tired, and Logan didn't press — he'd heard his friend teleport in a few times during the night to check on the two of them; that was how the blanket around Kate's shoulders found its way into the teachers' lounge in the first place. Kurt seemed mostly content to just sit there with them and wait with Logan, watching the little girl sleep with one hand resting on the side of Logan's neck, though it was plain to see the Elf was upset with this latest turn of events — he missed Kate awfully, and another delay was weighing on him heavily.

The three of them sat in silence for a long while before Kurt looked back at Logan and gave his friend a tired smile. "Thank you, Logan — for taking care of her," he said softly.

Logan just nodded his way — unwilling to even risk speaking to wake her up.

"We're going to try again in four days," Kurt told him, still speaking at a soft enough whisper that he was sure Katie couldn't hear — though of course Logan could. Logan just watched him to hear more, hoping that Kurt would buy the hint and keep talking.

"Until then, Wiccan isn't allowed to use any magic. At all." Kurt met his friend's gaze. "And this time, it will work." He sighed, leaned back, and shook his head. "It has to."

Logan just nodded his friend's way but didn't say anything else, looking down to the exhausted little girl on his chest as she slept on through the early morning.

It wasn't long after that before, at last, Katie started to wiggle a little and stretch out. She opened one eye sleepily and saw Kurt, which just got a tired little nod before she looked over to check and see if her guardbody was awake, too. When Logan gave her a little smile, she very sleepily grinned at him. "Hi."

"Mornin, Punkin'," he said quietly. "You sleep okay?"

She nodded and started to rub her eyes. "Can we watch a movie?" she asked sleepily. "I don't wanna play today."

"Sure, kiddo," Logan agreed. "You wanna eat first or just go right to movies?"

Katie considered her options for a long moment. "Froot Loops first," she decided.

"Not in the mood for coffee yet then, eh?" Logan teased before he shot Kurt a look meant to try and tempt his best friend into a smile.

She wrinkled her nose at him. "Coffee's gross."

"You say that now," Kurt told her, unable to quite resist the urge to smile at her reaction to coffee. "Wait until you're older. You'll love it."

She stuck her tongue out at Kurt. "Nu-uh. It smells funny."

"Oh man, of all the commentary to miss with Jubes' documenting," Logan grumbled, which just had Kurt chuckling under his breath.

Katie climbed down off the couch and pulled on Logan's hand. "Come on. You can have smelly coffee while I have Froot Loops," she decided before she very determinedly led the way out of the room.

When they got down to the kitchen, Scott and Annie were already at the table just chatting with each other easily, though both of them turned their attention to Katie as soon as the other three made their appearance. When Katie started to push her chair to the counter to get herself some cereal, Annie came over to offer her help. "Would you like me to pour you a bowl?" she asked kindly.