Fanfiction Archive

Chapters: 1/1
Fandom: New Mutants (Comics), X-Men – All Media Types, Marvel (Comics), Marvel 616
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: Kitty Pryde/Illyana Rasputin
Characters: Kitty Pryde, Illyana Rasputin
Additional Tags: Domestic Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Romantic Fluff, Holidays, Nostalgia
Summary:

Two times that Kitty and Illyana made sweets together in the kitchen during the holidays, once as teenagers, and once again as adults.

“You know,” Kitty said, gazing into the pot she was stirring. “Last year around this time, I ended up fighting a demon.”

Outside the big window of the kitchen, snow was falling on the mansion grounds.

Illyana glanced out at the falling snow , her blond hair falling in a curtain around her face as she rested on her folded arms.

“No shit?” she looked up with a wry edge to her smile “me too.”

Kitty turned and gave her a wan smile, “Guess we’ve got that in common. Hey can you get me the marshmallow fluff off the counter?”

“Yet another thing.” Illyana hopped up with a stretch and walked over to the countertop with a hum.

She was dressed simply today, heavy cable knit sweater…some tight jeans…cozy, for a cozy night in.

“What was the guy you fought like? Nasty? Big teeth and claw?”

“I think it was a girl, actually,” Kitty said, shaking her head. Her ringlet curls tossed back and forth on her turtleneck. “I didn’t ask what it would prefer me to call it though. I was too busy almost dying. But it was this weird boney, scaly thing with a huge head and a long tail.”

The marshmallow container was sitting on the counter where Kitty had left it, along with a large amount of chocolate she’d had illyana break to pieces with her.

“ahhhh.” Illyana grabbed the marshmallow container, peeking into it with a little sniff as she walked over “I was going to ask if it was just Wolverine. But if it was girl…” She shook her head and tutted in her thick Russian accent.

“She sounds like fun, if you ask me.”

The marshmallow container smelled almost overwhelmingly sweet. Kitty held her free hand out for it as she stirred.

“In hindsight, it was definitely my ‘welcome to the rest of your life’ moment,” she mused. “Anyway, Wolverine was in Japan at the time. You can have a taste of this before I use it if you want by the way.”

Illyana looked at her dubiously. For some reason, she hesitated, almost awkwardly as she looked into the tub of marshmallow.

“When isn’t he in Japan nowadays?” she said with a soft snort as she balanced the small container back and forth in her hands.

“Welcome to the rest of your life moment, huh?”

Kitty shrugged and accepted the container from her, scooping all of it into the pan and stirring it furiously. She offered Illyana back the spoon, with a significant amount of marshmallow still on it. “I guess. Heh, I’ve probably told this stupid story before anyway.”

Illyana stared at the spoon for a moment before she took it and gave it a tentative lick.

“It hasn’t gotten old. And if you told it to me when I was just a dumb baby, I’ve long forgotten it.”

WIth a look of muted delight..she popped the spoon in her mouth and leaned on her arms again. “Don’t you miss giving me storytimes?” was…what she meant to say. It came out a little muffled by the spoon.

Kitty chuckled a little, glancing back at her to see her with the spoon in her mouth. “you’re gonna have to say that again with less marshmallow.”

She saw the young mutant flush as she pulled out the spoon and pointed it to her with a trace of a pout on her face as she swallowed it. “…I said don’t you miss giving me storytimes, Pryde.”

She sniffed, tossing her hair over her shoulder as she pushed the spoon towards her again “…that was nice. I never had anything half that sweet in Limbo.”

“Of course I miss story time,” she said, “I just… started to worry that my story was insensitive…” She took the spoon back. “Can you bring me the chocolate now? You can have a piece of that too.”

Illyana picked up the bowl, bringing it over…this time she didn’t hesitate in popping a piece in her mouth with a satisfied hum.

“Don’t tell the others, but…I really, really like sweets.” she said, this time thankfully after swallowing and placing the bowl of chocolate pieces next to Kitty.

“…insensitive?” she laughed “what…you think I will go ‘wait a minute! do you mean **Janice’ta** from down down the street?’ ”

“How could you beat up my neighbor, Kitty? No wonder she never came back to water her hellish petunias.”

Kitty laughed and shook her head. “Damn, Illyana, I meant insensitive to you not to demons. I couldn’t care less about what they think. I am definitely racist against them.”

She took the bowl of chocolate and slowly tipped it into the mixture, stirring.

“You’re going to break their evil little hearts talking like that.” She said with a dry laugh, watching her work with her chin on the back of her hand once more.

“Don’t worry about me, Kitty. I promise…nothing bothers me.”

She winked , before she quickly asked “so what are you making, anyway? Not a cake, I’m sure.”

“Nothing bothers you,” she snorted, and gave her an amused side eye. “Uhuh. I’m making fudge. You know, everybody’s in that “festive” mood around this time, and it’s not really my thing… but I like the cooking.”

“it’s not my thing either. ” She mused as she slid closer, scooting the chair so she could peek inside the pot as Kitty worked. “…it’s not like it’s New Years yet, anyway.”

She was quiet a moment before she said “…I should learn how to cook less practical things. Like fudge.”

“You’re learning right now, right?” Kitty offered. “You can help me make the next batch.”

“It’ll turn out terrible.” Illyana drawled “cursed by my infernal hand. Do you want your friends to be cursed by Evil Fudge, Kitty?’

“What if I say yes?” she asked. “Hold still I don’t want to burn you with the pan.”

Saying that, she carried the hot pan over to where her dish was, and started pouring creamy liquid fudge into it.

Illyana stood still as the liquid pooled onto the dish, watching it pour with her watchful blue eyes.

“if you say yes, I’ll put double the curses into it.” she said with a grin “I love cursing things.”

Kitty giggled, scraping the last of the liquid out with a spatula and smoothing it over. “Lets do one cursed batch at least, then.”

“don’t blame me if one of the X-men turns into Toad.” Illyana smirked as she stretched out her arms “show me the steps. I will curse your fudge for you.”

She laughed, putting down the dish, and put her arms around Illyana’s shoulders. “Sounds like fun.”

Illyana flushed, and Kitty could feel her grow just a few degrees warmer as her arms draped over the sorceress’ shoulders.

“Any suggestions? I could curse Wolverine to lose his ability to swear?”

“He’d start calling things “bologna” instead of bullshit?” she giggled.

“…..Yes.” Illyana grinned widely “and say some old timey ‘confound it’ instead of dammit. Do you like this idea?”

“I fuckin love it,” she giggled, flushing a little. “That would be so funny– could– could you actually do that?”

She looked at her hesitantly.

Illyana put her finger to her lips, her face still flushed a gentle pink as she nodded “mm hmm….I could. It’s just a simple spell. A curse on the language centers of the brain, da? Simple. It could wear off in 24 hours, if I didn’t put much effort into it.”

Kitty giggled nervously, hanging off Illyana’s shoulders. “We shouldn’t….. but…..”

“but you’re tempted, aren’t you?” she said with a slightly smug tone, leaning back into her “come on Kitty. Walk on the dark side with me.”

She grinned, “like that movie you forced me to watch.”

She leaned her face against Illyana’s and grinned. “Well, it’s not like it would hurt anything. Let’s do it.”

Illyana let her cheek brush against Kitty’s, giggling excitedly as she nodded “alright…alright…We are lucky, it does not need much in the way of physical components. Just spellcraft, chanting and maybe a sigil in the Fudge itself.”

“Got it,” Kitty grinned. “That means it won’t interfere with the recipe. So– are you ready to learn?”

She nodded once, relishing the brief touch of their skin, before she turned towards her.

“Show me the dark magic of fudge, Kitty…and I’ll have Logan swearing like a nun in no time.”

“which is to say.” she grinned “not at all.”

---

Outside the big window of the kitchen, snow was falling on the mansion grounds.

Kitty glanced out from where she was stirring at the stove, at the bunch of kids in the yard who were building snowmen, hurling snowballs at one another, and generally causing chaos while Emma Frost and Logan stood back and watched, each trying to avoid the other seeing the nips they were taking from their respective drinks.

Kitty chuckled and glanced over at where Illyana was sitting, eating a spoonful of marshmallow fluff.

“Busier around here nowadays than when we used to do this, huh?”

Illyana said something…utterly unrecognizable…through a mouthful of marshmallow fluff, nodding in agreement.

So much had changed since then. From the simple things like codenames and costumes…to major things, like the shifting of alliances and the rise and fall of nations.

But here they were again, sitting before the falling snow as Illyana watched the children play.

She paused for a moment to take the spoon from her mouth.

Kitty giggled. “You’re gonna have to say that again, hon. Also, I’m gonna need the marshmallow. What’s left of it.”

It was hard to gauge how long it had been between them. Between alternate dimensions, timeshifts, dream realities, resets– death, resurrection…. Who even knew how to judge?

But here they were, again.

She smiled at Illyana, just glad to have her there.

Illyana passed her the mostly full carton with a snort “I wouldn’t eat it all. I’m not a demon.”

She grinned , and flicked one of the black-iron ‘horns’ that protruded from her head “mostly.”

She’d crawled out of hell itself to come back. Kitty knew that better than anyone…and with her own struggles, it was a miracle in and of itself that they were both here , intact.

“I was saying…Frost sure started collecting the little brats when I wasn’t looking. I feel like we’re babysitting nowadays.”

“X-sitters.”

Kitty laughed, taking the carton from Illyana and shaking her head. Her short, curly hair danced around her ears. “In hindsight, we really should have known all Emma wanted to do was be around a bunch of kids.”

She dumped the marshmallow into the pan and started stirring.

Illyana brushed her hair over her spiked shoulder…the armor rarely left these days. Like a permanent fixture adhered to her body, matching well with her collection of scanty and daring leather numbers she’d taken to wearing after her resurrection.

She watched Kitty with a small smile, before she leaned on the counter. “It explains a few things, da? Like how she kept trying to coerce you and Doug to join her little school.”

She barked out a laugh “she’s got that mom energy, I think.”

“Mom energy,” she chuckled. “Yeah, that’s exactly it. She’s got mom energy. Not like us.”

She finished stirring and flashed Illyana a bright grin. “We have annoying kid energy. Still.”

Illyana snickered even more, her smile a mirror of Kitty’s “We’ve held onto it through the years, despite it all.”

She nudged her shoulder. “Eternal thorns in Frost’s side…annoying as the day we were born.”

Kitty nudged her back, and turned to kiss her cheek. “And never an ounce less annoying. Bring me the chocolate? Man… remember the first year we did this?”

Illyana flushed, and turned to grab it with a smirk “yes, actually…it’s one of the clearer memories of that time.”

She passed the bowl over. “I was so damned excited for sweets…and Logan was so mad when that curse finally took effect.”

She chuckled as she etched a small sigil into one of the pieces of chocolate with her armored fingernail before tossing it in the bowl too. “…and you were looking pretty adorable in the light of the window. Not half as cute as you look now, though.”

Kitty flushed, and put a hand on her hip. “Oooh, you minx. And I can’t even properly get you for that while I’m stirring.”

She dumped the chocolate in and grinned. “The funniest part of Logan being mad was it made him sound like a cartoon.”

“Now you know why I chose this moment.” She winked “it was a tactical decision. I’m invulnerable while you’re busy cooking.”

the sorceress of Limbo giggled, shaking her head “confound you, you bologna sons of fishes! Frick!”

Kitty cracked up laughing at the memory, and splashed a little of the bubbling mixture on the side of the pan. “No, ‘yana, come on!” She couldn’t help it though. “The look on his face….”

“He was livid.” Illyana grinned widely “I thought he was going to filet me for SURE. Like ‘this is finally the moment I make an enemy of the x-men’. ya know?’

“I was convinced we’d both be sushi,” she giggled. “But then he just started laughing. I couldn’t believe it.”

“Neither could I.” Illyana shook her head “that early…I didn’t even think the man was capable of it.”

“Me either,” she grinned. “But it kinda makes more sense in hindsight. Like with Emma, I guess. Can you bring me the other pan?”

“Dad energy.” Illyana smirked as she rustled around for the pan.

“Big fuzzy dad energy.”

“I wasn’t gonna say it, but you’re right,” she grinned, turning around carefully with the hot pan that she was still stirring, as Illyana brought the other. “Damn, is that the same pan we were using back then? It’s held up.”

“I think so.” She held it up “maybe it got rejuvenated in one of the time slips, da? or maybe it’s a skrull.”

She wiggled it in her hand with a grin “Dare you pour fudge on it to find out?”

“Well you cursed the fudge again– don’t pretend you didn’t, Ms. Rasputin– so if it’s a skrull it’s in for a bad time. So let’s pour away.”

“oh no.” Illyana grinned at her “i didn’t think you’d notice~”

She shook her head as she held the pan still. “Your powers of observation are getting better, Katya.”

“Can’t help it,” Kitty grinned, pouring the liquid chocolate into the pan. “I just keep getting more and more ninja. I’m like 78% ninja by weight now.”

“How long until you’re total ninja?” Illyana asked with a smirk.

“I can relate. I keep getting more evil. More demon. 99% by now. Pure evil. I am sorry for this.”

She laughed, and set down the empty cooking pot, taking the now full pan out of Illyana’s hands. “You are not. But you’re not sorry, either. As for how long, ehhh, I give it until hell freezes over. So probably like next month or something.”

Illyana shook her hand out, before leaning on the counter with a smirk.

“I’m never sorry. It’s part of the 99% evil. More proof I’m afraid.”

She grinned widely. “I think hell froze over last week actually. It’s why it’s snowing, don’t you know?”

“Oh you brought it with you then,” Kitty laughed, setting the fudge down on the other counter to cool, before going and slipping her arm around Illyana. “I’m sure all the kids will say thanks.”

“I did.”

Illyana leaned into her arm with a slight flush and a smirk “what can I say? That 1% of me that’s still hanging on wants to give the little brats something to smile about.”

She sniffed “maybe it means they will lay off next time I am forced to play school teacher for them, yes?”

Kitty leaned on her, and started to twirl a lock of blond hair around her finger. “If they don’t, I can give them some ninja lessons instead.”

Illyana hummed, leaning her head towards her with a sly smile “I think if they don’t appreciate dark magic lessons…they may be too jaded even for ninjas, Kitty. Teach me instead. I can add a stupid soul katana to the armory.”

“Oh I just meant hitting them with a stick when they’re wrong,” Kitty drawled. “but a soul katana does sound fun.”

“Ah, and here I thought you were suggesting we give them swords and teach them to do flips and such.” Illyana said dryly, a smirk on her face as she looped an arm around Kitty.

“That is what the art of the ninja is, boiled down…right? That is what Betsy told me.”

She giggled “if you think so. It’s settled. I can split my soul a little more. What’s one more time, right?”

“As long as you give it to me for safe keeping again.” She smiled a little and leaned her cheek against Illyana’s.

Illyana closed her eyes as Kitty’s cheek warmed hers, her arm curling tighter around her.

“Your heart’s the only one I trust to hold tight to my soul, Kitty.” she murmured “there’s nobody in the world I’d rather entrust it to.”

Kitty squeezed her, her chest tightening a little as she sniffled. ‘yana…” She pulled her closer. “I’m just so glad to have you back, you know?”

Illyana rested her head against her shoulder, her unarmored fingers curling against Kitty’s side as she breathed steadily…maybe to stop from crying.

“I didn’t think I’d get to come back. I’m glad I did. Even with…all of that. Everything we had to go through.”

Kitty swayed with her, wrapping her arms around her back. She nuzzled her hair, murmuring, “Even with all we had to go through, ‘yana. And here we are again, making fudge in the same damned pan.”

“Who’d have thought.” Illyana whispered as they gently swayed in the kitchen “through the Beyonder…the magical apocalypse…Apocalypse…M-Day..”

“this pan’s still there, good as the day we used it when we were dumb kids…and it’s making another batch of ‘evil fudge’ for us to pull the same tricks with…”

She laughed softly “the more things change…”

“The more they stay the same?” Kitty chuckled. “I like that. But I like it when some things change, too.”

She leaned in, and pressed her lips to Illyana’s.

Illyana kissed her back, gently pressing into the soft kiss.

Some things had changed…when they were younger, she never would have dared chance a moment like this.

They both dared now, holding each other for a long moment. A warm embrace in the warm kitching. Kitty’s lips lingered on hers, hesitant to pull away.

Illyana’s fingers traced her back, delicate and gentle as can be, her lips soft against Kitty’s despite the sharpness the years brought to the rest of her features.

She was hesitant to let it end too, kissing her with warm affection by the warmth of the stove.

When their lips finally parted, Kitty nuzzled her cheek against Illyana’s. “I love you, you know.”

Illyana was flushed, her smile genuine as she nuzzled her face back against hers. “I love you too…with all the love in my cold dark heart.”

She joked about it…but she meant it too. Even with a fragmented spirit, she’d known she’d loved Kitty for a long time…even back when she couldn’t say a word.

Kitty curled her fingers in Illyana’s hair and smiled at her. “I know.” She leaned her forehead against Illyana’s for a long, gentle moment.

Then she grinned impishly at her. “Come on, let’s go pass out some cursed fudge to the kids.”

“Gabby’s going to love it when she suddenly can’t swear anymore.” Illyana said with an amused smirk, her fingers reached up to tease the short locks of Kitty’s hair in turn.

“She might be just as loud as her ‘old man’ when she gets pissed.”

Kitty giggled, leaning into Illyana’s touch. “She might be. She might not laugh though.”

“I think we’ll laugh enough between us to make up for it.”

She closed her eyes for a long moment, just relishing the touch before she said “What’s a X-mansion Holiday without us raising a little hell?”

Kitty kissed Illyana’s fingers. “It just wouldn’t be the same.”