Caldecott County, Mississippi.
Rogue wasn't like most little girls. From an early age, she could see the difference between herself and the kids around her. While girls her age squealed at the sight of frogs and bugs, and had their mothers buy them frilly, pink dresses with shiny black shoes, she caught tadpoles in the puddles after a storm, and begged her mama not to throw away her torn, patchy overalls.
During the summer evenings, when mama would call to her from their big, white house on the hill, she would often be found half submerged in mud, Cody Robbins (the only other kid she approved of) by her side, just as dirty.
Wiping her freckled cheek and unknowingly smearing mud across her face, Rogue plopped to the ground and pulled her leg from the mud hole, giggling excitedly at the slllopp sound it made.
The mud hole was a frequent playground for the two southerners. The canopy of trees surrounding the hole covered them in dark shade, blocking off the glaring sun and keeping their mud wet and moist. Leaves from fall still littered their secret place, dead animals they would sometimes poke with sticks were hidden in the bushes. It was as if time in their special place stopped, like the elements and people kept away from this sanctuary.
In reality, their 'sanctuary' was old farmland that had been abandoned due to lack of crops. Trees and greenery had overtaken the landscape, and the small dirt road beside the field had long ago been replaced with highways and paved streets, leaving the little patch of land in absolute seclusion. It was even more convenient that it was located just down the hill of her home.
Rogue decided early on that if, for some reason, they were to lose their house, she would show mama and daddy this place, and they could all live there in the mud- happily ever after.
"Ah gotsta go, Cody. Dinner time."
The blond boy frowned and began swiping mud off of his own form. "Well, ah should prob'ly walk ya home, then."
He tried taking her hand in his, but she snatched it away and stuck her tongue out. "An' what makes ya think ah need your help? It's just over the hill-"
"Yeah, but it's dark, possum, ya never know what might be out there!" He puffed out his tiny chest and raised his head proudly. "Ah gotta come, ya might need protectin'!"
"Ah can take care of myself!" Her tiny feet scrambled up the steep hill, and she laughed when she heard Cody's heavy breathing right beside her. "You're as hard headed as a billy goat and as stubborn as a mule, Cody."
"Big kids gotsta take care of little kids, possum. It's my duty."
She rolled her eyes, deciding that it would do no good to remind Cody that he was only half a year older than she was. "Shut up. You're only doin' this cause ya know my mama made chicken and potatoes for dinner, and apple pie for dessert."
His ruddy cheeks turned pink and he glared at the laughing girl. "That ain't true! Your mama might be the best cook in Caldecott County, but ah really am just protectin' ya!"
Their bickering continued all the way up the hill, and by the time they reached the top, Rogue had her arms crossed over her chest and her little nose turned towards the sky.
"Aw, come on, possum, don't be mad! Ya know you're the best fighter this side of the woods! 'Member when ya beat the snot outta Tyler Harrison for pullin' your piggy tail?"
Her shoulders relaxed slightly, and she smirked. "Ah sho' did, which is why ah don't understand why you're always tryin' to 'protect' me!"
Wiping his filthy hands on his equally filthy shirt, Cody cleared his throat and stepped closer to his friend. "Well, cause a husband is supposed to protect his wife. At least, that's what my Pa says."
"But we ain't married," she deadpanned.
"Not yet, but we will be someday. 'Sides, if not ya, then who? Other girls are gross."
Dimpling, but trying to hide it, Rogue ducked her head. "Yeah, ah guess we kinda have to marry each other, cause we can't marry nobody else."
He grinned. "Yeah! When we're grownups we can play in the mud all we want, and not get yelled at!"
"And eat so much candy we puke!"
"And buy those new rollerblades, ya know? The ones in the General Store window?"
"Lord alive!"
A beam of light fell on the two children, and they looked guiltily up at Rogue's distraught mother.
"Darn it, gal, ah oughta tan your hide this time!"
Rogue and Cody snickered, 'cause all the kids in the county knew Rogue's mama was all talk and no spanking, and had never so much as swatted a fly. When Cody and Rogue had led the other neighborhood kids on an expedition through Rogue's immense backyard, they'd accidentally trampled her mama's lilies, and though she scolded and threatened and scolded some more, she never raised her hand, and even made all the kids cookies and lemonade after she was done lecturing them.
"You get your butt in this house right now, young lady. Ah'll have to scrub you raw to get all this off…" She scooped her daughter up into the air, and made a face at the smell.
At the mention of bath time, Cody decided to make himself scarce. "Well, ah oughta get home now…"
"Oh no ya don't." She apprehended the squirming boy into her other arm and headed towards the main level bathroom. "After ah put y'all in the tub ah'll call your mama and tell her where you are, kay hun?"
Minutes later, the two children grumbled and complained as she filled the tub with even more warm water and suds. The whining grew more persistent when the sponges came out and she rubbed them down mercilessly.
The front door slammed, and both Rogue and her mother looked toward the hallway with grins on their faces. Wrapping her daughter in a towel and telling Cody they'd be right back, mother and child rushed toward the foyer, where Nicolas stood, arms open and grin wide.
"Daddy!" Rogue was transferred from her mother's delicate arms to the burly arms of her father. "Daddy ah missed ya!"
Chuckling and burying his nose in his daughter's drenched, two-toned hair, Nick used his free arm to pull his wife close. He placed a kiss on her plump lips, love burned in his eyes.
"What's with the shape shifting, darling? You know how I like seeing my gorgeous Raven when I get home."
Rogue silently agreed with daddy. Her mama, her real mama, was beautiful, even more beautiful than the disguise she had to wear. As a toddler, Rogue understood that she had to have two mama's: one to show the outside world because they wouldn't understand, and her real mama, her real mama with stunning red hair and smooth skin the color of the sky.
Before she went to bed, mama would tell her stories about dragons and princesses in distress. She could become the princess, the dragon, and the shiny, white knight. Rogue didn't understand why such magic had to be hidden away, but she complied with her parent's wishes, and never even told Cody.
Raven laughed and winked at the giggling bundle in her husband's grasp. Her accent disappeared completely. "Well, someone came home all muddy again, and this someone had a friend just as muddy as she was. I called Martha and explained what happen, and told her that Cody was staying the night…again."
"You know," Fury said, tickling Rogue's underarms, "I'm beginning to think that boy gets muddy just to have an excuse to bathe with my little girl."
Mama and daddy laughed like that was the funniest thing in the world, but Rogue only frowned, not getting it. Why wouldn't Cody like bathing with her? New worlds could be created within the bubbles of the basin, and Cody was her best friend in the whole world, she liked taking baths with him, too. Just last week, Cody's mom had made them wash for an hour in the tub, and they'd made up a whole new game called slippery soap. Whoever held the soap for the longest got the other person's dessert that night.
"Speaking of Cody…" Mama took her back and blew Nick another kiss. "Ah better get back in there and dry that poor boy off!"
Nick chuckled softly and shook his head at his wife's false accent, and went upstairs to shower and change into his home clothes.
Just as Raven finished drying off the two friends, the doorbell rang and she frowned, wiping her hands on her apron. "Ah wonder who that could be?"
She told Rogue and Cody to stay in the bathroom, her heels click-clacked against the shiny, wooden floors.
"Oh, Bill! What brings you here?"
Bill smiled, blue eyes twinkling, and placed a chaste kiss on Raven's smooth cheek. "Martha wanted me to stop by and bring y'all Cody's pajamas and suit. We figured y'all would be takin' him to church tomorrow."
"Goodness, ah forgot all about the poor thing's clothes…you tell Martha ah said thanks. My old brain is goin' to mush on me."
He snorted, his blond curls bounced as he laughed. "You hush up, Raven Fury. You're just as pretty and young as ya were seven years ago, when you and Nick first moved down here!"
She accepted the compliment graciously, knowing that Bill Robbins was as innocent as a schoolboy in some ways, and despite being very handsome indeed, she knew that he was absolutely devoted to Martha, and would never even think about flirting. He was truly a nice, naïve man with no ulterior motives. Raven sometimes marveled at how open and trusting the people in the town were.
"Ah'll go get Cody dressed. Thanks again for bringin' these up, Bill."
"Don't mention it, ya tell that boy ah said to be good." Giving her one last kiss on the cheek, Bill turned from the door and went down the steps of the wraparound porch. She waited until his red truck revved to life before she closed the heavy door.
After getting her hair combed and braided (which she absolutely detested) and her nightdress slipped on, Rogue and Cody were placed in their seats for dinner. Much to her embarrassment, Rogue had always been small for her age and thus needed a booster seat to see over the table. Cody never laughed at her or made jokes, in fact, one time he told her to pretend that she was a queen, and that the booster seat was her throne.
He wasn't her best friend for nothing.
The two kids gulped down their chicken and potatoes, and plugged their noses so they could eat their spinach quickly, eager to finish dinner and move on to dessert.
"Y'all slow down," Raven reprimanded as she piled seconds onto Nick's plate, "that apple pie ain't goin' anywhere, and ah don't want ya gettin' sick."
"Too late, we're already done!"
Nick laughed heartily at his daughter's antics.
"Don't ya sass me, young lady." But there was a smile on her mama's face, and she went through the swinging door to the house's massive kitchen.
She came back to the dining room with two plates in one hand, and two glasses of milk in the other hand. Rogue and Cody's eyes widened.
"Careful honey," her dad joked, "I see some drool at the corner of your mouth."
"Daddy!"
"Leave these kids alone." She set a plate and glass in front of each of them. "They can't help it if they recognize good cookin'."
That night, after Rogue was tucked in and kissed on the forehead by both mother and father, and Cody was placed comfortably in a sleeping bag next to Rogue's four poster bed, the two friends groggily discussed their plans for after church the next day. Would they play in the mud again? Probably not, since mama had seemed so frustrated when they came home filthy. Mud wrestling would definitely have to wait until next week. What about swimming in the pond? No, it rained the day before yesterday, and everything would still be gross.
They fell asleep before a decision was reached.
...
Rogue hated Sundays, not because she was a bad kid, or didn't like listening to God, it was just that everything was so boring. The preacher, with his sweaty, trembling cheeks; droning on and on about something none of the kids there understood, and the pathetic church choir- made up of a bunch of old ninnies trying desperately to wheeze out a note. And to make matters worse, the air conditioning hadn't worked since before Rogue had been born, and the stifling heat of the brick building made everything nigh unbearable.
The preacher, the choir, the heat…perhaps Rogue could stand all of that, if it wasn't for the dang dress. If there was anything Rogue's young heart hated with a passion, it was getting stripped of her tank top, overalls, and bare feet, and getting stuffed into stupid flowery dresses and frilly socks and shiny black shoes. She would cry, scream, and throw a tantrum when mama woke her up every Sunday morning to comb through the tangled mass of curls that was Rogue's hair, and scream even louder when bows were tied into her curls.
Pouting still, Rogue swung her tiny legs back and forth beneath the wooden pew. She looked up at mama, hoping she'd see her misery and have mercy on her poor soul.
As usual, mama kept her attention on the preacher, a paper fan in her hand.
Sometimes, Rogue would sit and watch her mama, mesmerized by her pretty stature and the graceful way in which she did things. Her hair was always neat and smooth and pulled back into intricate chignons. Her church dresses always fit well and looked beautiful, like she'd walked off the cover of a magazine. The wrist-length gloves she wore to church never had smudges, and the different pairs of heels she wore were always clean and polished, no matter what.
Everyone always said her mama was the prettiest, and Rogue couldn't help but swell with pride.
When she was done watching mama, she would watch daddy. He always looked just as uncomfortable as she in his suit and neck tie. Sometimes he would fall asleep, but mama would always catch him and elbow him hard in the ribs.
When daddy didn't think she was listening, he would grumble to mama and ask her why they went to church when neither of them believed in God, and she would reply they did it to 'blend in with the community'. Rogue never understood that.
To ease their joint misery, daddy would often peek behind mama and make silly faces at his daughter, causing her to laugh uncontrollably into her hands. They were sure mama heard her giggles, but she would always just smile lovingly and continue listening to the sermon.
She and Cody could never get out of church fast enough. They would kiss their mama's cheeks and sprint out the door, the warnings of their mothers in their ears: 'If you get just one speck of dirt on those church clothes, ah swear ah'll…'
They never did anything, though, and Rogue and Cody always came home dirty. Eventually, their mothers packed extra clothes in their purses and forced the kids to change before they could play for the day. It meant more time in the church changing, but they didn't get scolded as much.
...
As it is wont to do in the south, time passed slowly and leisurely for the children. They played, they ate, they slept, they repeated. For years nothing changed. It was as if the south was untouched, like time and money and corruption couldn't soil it.
But nothing could stay the same forever, and eventually, things did change. The news started being filled with more and more images of mutants. Things like the Registration Act, which had never been discussed before, became household topic. Some sympathized with mutants, most did not.
But, despite the chaos in the world around her, Rogue remained a happy child, wrapped in the cocoon of her parent's love. She'd grown up in wonderful simplicity, in a small town where nothing bad ever happened. Of course, as she grew older, she had some puzzling questions that her parents always avoided answering: Why did daddy have to go on trips so often? Why didn't she know her grandparents? Were they dead? Why weren't there pictures of them? Why would mama always change the subject when asked about her past- where she came from, when she was born, what college she went to?
But these thoughts only seldom bothered the belle, and her parents knew her well. They bought her whatever she wanted, and at the sight of a new dress or an expensive cell phone she forgot all about her woes.
There were other, more significant changes that occurred. One day, a few months after her twelfth birthday, Rogue decided that maybe she didn't like bugs as much as she used to. A couple months later, she decided that playing in mud and dirt was too much of a hassle. When she turned thirteen and got her period, mama taught her how to shave and she decided she liked the way she looked in dresses and skirts.
Cody, who had been playing baseball for a while, didn't mind the change so much. He was actually proud to see Rogue sitting on the bleachers, her dress and long hair blowing in the hot breeze, her arms waving in the air, cheering him on. And at school, his friends always told him how lucky he was that the 'cutest girl in school' was his best friend.
For a year his friends pressured him, his parents pressured him, Rogue's parents pressured him, and finally, when they entered the ninth grade Cody, red-faced and stammering, held a bouquet of flowers in his shaking hand and asked her to be his girl.
She didn't answer him for a long time, and when he finally made eye contact with her, he saw that she was smiling.
"Well it took ya long enough, Cody Robbins. Ah was beginnin' to think ah'd have to wait forever!" And with that, she accepted the flowers and kissed him on the lips.
He'd thought his heart would explode.
After she kissed Cody, she knew they were meant to be. That she would one day marry Cody and they'd have babies and live happily ever after. Of course, mama always told Rogue there were other options besides being a wife and mother, but Rogue was stubborn, and a southern girl through and through. Where she was from, women didn't have careers of their own. The way her town thought was sexist and old-fashioned, but it was what Rogue grew up with; what she wanted.
...
During winter, when the air chilled and coats were needed, and she had to wear tights beneath her dresses and jeans with boots, Cody kissed her more passionately than he'd ever kissed her before. His tongue slipped between her lips, and instead of being grossed out, it made her stomach get all warm. She felt his hand go underneath her coat and rest on her developing breast.
Pulling only an inch or so away, Cody looked down at her and stared deep into her eyes. "Is this okay, possum? Do ya want me to stop?"
Blushing, and hoping she wasn't some kind of sexual freak, she shook her head and they continued kissing, Cody's inexperienced hand molding and caressing her chest.
Mama knew something was up as soon as Rogue stepped through the door. She took one look at her daughter's flushed cheeks and wild eyes, and told her to sit while she made some hot chocolate.
Raven placed a cup in front of herself and Rogue, her yellow eyes seemed to burn through Rogue's skull. "We can do this two ways: the hard way, or the easy way. So are you going to tell me what happened or do I have to use other methods?"
Rogue, who was closer to her mother than anyone else, had no problem telling her what happened: how Cody had put his tongue in her mouth and how she'd put hers in his and kind of liked it, and how Cody had touched her breasts and made her stomach feel funny.
She decided to leave out the part about them falling to the ground in a tangled heap and making out for an hour.
"My baby…" Raven rested her blue hand on Rogue's pale one. "My baby is all grown up." And then she proceeded to burst into tears.
...
On the night of Rogue's fifteenth birthday, she and Cody ate cake and exchanged gifts with her parents, and then snuck into his folks' bar and grabbed a half bottle of warm vodka and a few beers that had been in the fridge.
When they were sure no one was awake, they lay atop Cody's roof and got drunk watching the stars. Winter was in full swing, so they brought coats and blankets to wrap themselves up in. It was hard making out through so many layers, but they were drunk and determined, and soon, they grew warm enough to not need so many layers, just the blankets and their clothes.
After an hour, Rogue could tell something was different. Her head ached, but she blamed it on the alcohol.
Cody asked her blushingly if she could touch 'it', and she wrapped her hand around his manhood, fumbling in her inexperience. He came not too long afterward, and it was a scary yet thrilling experience. He kissed her some more, left purplish marks on her neck, and then asked her if he could touch her. She said she didn't know, he said he understood, and kissed her some more. She burned, she ached for something but she had no idea what she was aching for. She thought about telling Cody she'd changed her mind.
They'd been dating for a year; they'd known each other for their whole lives. Would it be so wrong to just let him touch her…there?
But before she could speak, the sun broke the horizon and she knew she needed to sneak into her bedroom before her parents woke up. He said he'd clean up the mess, and asked her if she was too drunk to make it home. She told him not to worry, but he did anyway.
He kissed her goodbye, and with utter sincerity in his sapphire eyes, told her he loved her. With tears in her eyes and a grin on her lips, she told him she loved him, too. They kissed once more, then she went home and climbed through her window: drunk, happy, but thoroughly unsatisfied. She cursed her shyness. Even though she strongly believed in saving herself for marriage, she was a southern girl through and through after all, the bible never said anything about hands…and maybe even lips- She went red with shame at the direction of her thoughts, because surely, most normal girls didn't think that way. Was she deformed? Was she some kind of nymphomaniac?
She slipped into restless sleep that night; the ache inside of her didn't ease when she woke up the next morning.
...
She'd been texting Cody one night in spring when she heard shouting coming from her parents' room. She stopped in the middle of the hallway, more than startled. Never had she heard her parents argue before. It had to be something serious, and it frightened her.
She crouched by the door and pressed her ear against the wood. She only caught bits and pieces of the conversation, but what she heard distressed her so much she had to put her hand over her mouth to keep herself from crying out.
"You knew this couldn't last, Raven! It was only a matter of time before he found us! This life…it was only temporary."
"What are we going to tell Rogue? That she has to leave her friends and all she knows because her parents fucked up and made a deal with a terrorist?"
She heard her father weep. "Rogue…she's in danger, too, isn't she? What have we done?"
There was a rustle of clothing, and she assumed her parents were embracing.
Her heart thudded harshly in her chest. None of it made any sense to her. Terrorists? Danger? What could they be talking about? Besides her mother's ability to change forms, her parents were the most normal people she knew. And now they were talking about leaving? What would she tell Cody?…Cody! What would he think when he heard all of this?
She dialed his number by heart and nibbled her lip until he picked up on the third ring.
"Possum? Why'd you stop textin' me? Ah-"
"Cody, ya have to come over here now."
"Rogue what's wrong? Have you been cryin'?"
"Just get over here," she snapped. "Park down the hill, sneak into my room."
"Ah'll be there in five minutes. Ah love ya, Rogue."
Her lip trembled and tears slid down her cheeks. "Ah love ya too, Cody."
...
Doing as she said, Cody parked his truck at the bottom of the hill, and he sprinted toward the house and climbed through Rogue's window.
"Possum?"
She appeared out of the darkness and threw herself in his arms, sobbing harshly.
"Cody it's awful! Mama and daddy are in some kinda trouble, we have to leave!"
His arms tightened around her, his mouth fell open. "What kinda trouble? Money trouble? Ya know my parents would be more than happy to-"
"No," she shook her head and wiped her eyes. "They said somethin' about bein' in danger, about makin' a deal with a bad man…" She shivered. This couldn't be happening, not to her family. They were normal, they were wealthy, and they were good people who loved each other! What kind of trouble could her parents possibly have gotten into? Why did they have to leave?
They didn't speak for a while, just held each other. "Ah won't let them," he said suddenly. "Ah won't let them take ya away from me."
She looked up at him, her green eyes hopeless. "What will we do then? They're my parents, Cody. If they wanna leave there's nothin' ah can do to stop them!"
"Run away with me." He gripped her arms and stared into her eyes. "Run away with me, Rogue. Ah have money saved up in my college fund, and your parents always put money in your bank account! Ah'll get a job, ah'll work twelve hours a day if ah have to!"
She ran her hands through his short, blond hair, and over his broad shoulders. He'd grown so much bigger than her over the years, when he held her like this, she felt so delicate; so feminine.
"Give me ten minutes to pack my things."
A grin spread across his face and he jumped into the air. "Yeeehaww!" He dipped her low to the ground and smothered her with kisses.
"Cody," she giggled breathlessly, "be quiet, they'll hear ya!"
He smirked bashfully and went to her closet, helping her retrieve the large suitcase from the top shelf. She shoved all the dresses, skirts, blouses, shorts, jeans, and shoes she could fit into the suitcase, and grabbed her makeup off the vanity and put that in as well.
"There," she said when he lifted her suitcase and went purple from the effort, "Ah'm ready."
They hopped out the window and landed on the soft grass below, and ran to Cody's truck with their hands still intertwined. He threw her bag into the bed of the truck and hopped in the driver's seat while she took the passenger.
"We have to stop by my place so ah can get some stuff, then we're on our way!"
She hooked her arms around him and kissed him heatedly as he drove. She couldn't help but be excited about this crazy, romantic thing! Her heart throbbed with the thought of leaving her beloved parents behind, but they'd understand eventually. And someday, when things cooled down, they could be reunited.
"Ah'll be right back." Cody ran up the steps of his house, leaving the screen door open behind him.
After sending a message to her mother's phone saying that she and Cody had gone out for dinner and a movie, and that she'd be home by midnight, the belle laid back to daydream. Visions of a romantic road trip filled her mind, and she could imagine their wedding day- maybe in Vegas, with him in a cheap, rental suit, and she in a second-hand white dress. It wouldn't matter how shabby they'd look or how badly the venue lacked in elegance, they would be in love, and that's all that mattered. She sighed…a little house on the corner, a brunette boy with blue eyes, a blond girl with green eyes, and maybe even another baby for good measure.
A sound in the trunk snapped her out of her reprieve, and Cody appeared beside her with a grin. "Ah gotta full tank, we're ready to go."
They pulled out of his driveway and drove until they hit the highway. Once there, Cody pulled over to the side of the road and pointed to the signs. "Where we goin', possum? Alabama? Louisiana? Arkansas? Tennessee?"
She bit her lip and tried not to squeal. "Can ya believe we've never left Mississippi?"
He chuckled. "We sure have a lot of traveling to do." His blue eyes seemed to melt, and he took her hand in his. "It's up to ya, possum. As long as we're together, ah don't care where the hell we go."
"Well in that case-" She kissed him on the cheek. "-let's get out of the south. Somewhere excitin' and far away, like California, or Arizona, or New York!"
He pursed his lips and tapped the steering wheel in thought. "New York, huh? Ah got a cousin who lives up there, he'd let us stay at his place 'til ah get a job."
She laughed and hugged him tightly. He revved the engine to life, and they began their journey north.
Westchester, New York.
Remy yawned sleepily, and silently wished it was possible to die of sheer boredom. He knew it'd be a bad idea to accompany Tiffany on one of her many shopping sprees, but she'd promised him they could stop by Victoria's Secret for some 'special' outfits, and so the Cajun had conceded.
Lingerie, no matter how see through and unique, was not worth three hours at the mall. He was hungry, and still a tad bit hung over from the night before, and wanted nothing more than to crawl into his bed and sleep, or climb into her bed and not sleep. Hell, he'd even join one of Logan's voluntary DR sessions if it meant getting to leave this place. Anything was better than lugging around twenty pounds worth of shopping bags and listening to Tiffany's constant chatter.
"…and I was like: oh, so just because I'm blond you thought I was dumb? Well give me Mr. Frumpkins back and we'll take our business elsewhere…"
Good lord, what was she talking about?
They reached the entrance of yet another perfume shop, and Remy panicked. He didn't think his poor nose would ever be able to smell correctly as it was, he wasn't going to put it through even more abuse! He had quite the perfect nose, at least, that's what the ladies told him.
"I'm gonna take a smoke break, d'accord?" He dumped all of her bags on the ground beside her, and gave her a peck on the cheek and a pat on the butt.
"What? You said you quit smoking months ago!"
He ignored his distraught girlfriend, and ducked into the sea of people. Sighing with relief, Remy maneuvered expertly between strollers, couples, and the occasional gaggle of girls that sent him winks and smiles.
He barely made it outside before lighting up a cigarette. He pulled the nicotine deep into his lungs, and closed his eyes when he blew it out. No one- not Stormy, or Jean, or Tiffany, or even Tante, could convince him of quitting. He'd tried it once, and it'd been a bad week for everyone. Dating someone like Tiffany required a 'sanity stick' every so often- every so often being a pack a day. If anything, he'd slowed down! A year ago, he was up to two packs a day, caused by stress from the Thieves Guild, stress and pressure from his father, and Belladonna- A soft vibration saved him from having to go through that thought process, and he answered his cell more than distracted.
"'Lo?"
"Remy? It's Joseph."
Gambit rolled his eyes. He hated it when people started a phone conversation with a question, and he disliked Joseph anyway, making the situation all the more awkward.
"What y' want? I'm busy." That was a lie, he'd been hoping all day for a situation such as this; when the X-men would need him and he'd be 'forced' to leave Tiffany, but Joseph didn't need to know that, and so Remy will make this as difficult for him as possible.
"There's been a call for help from one of Logan's old friends. Says someone's after him and his family, they already got to the daughter. The Professor doesn't know what to expect, so he's asking all of us to suit up and head down to Mississippi."
Mississippi, huh? That was pretty close to home…but then again, how long had it been since he'd gotten some clean, southern air?
"I'll be dere in fifteen." He slammed his phone shut and shoved it deep in his pocket. He'd been thinking of New Orleans and Belladonna and all he'd left behind, and now they had a mission down south. His Tante had made him superstitious as a child, and as he thought about the coincidence, a bad feeling filled his stomach.
He sighed, but got on his bike anyway. He was being foolish, and besides, he needed some time away from Yankees, northern food, and Tiffany…Tiffany was still in the mall. Shit. Well, it couldn't be helped, he had a mission to accomplish and she could call a cab to get home. He didn't think they'd be able to carry all those shopping bags on his bike anyway.
He couldn't help but smirk as he pulled out of the parking lot.
...
He donned his uniform and trench coat in record time; making it to the War Room just as Scott began his long, drawn out list of mission objectives.
Sometimes he wondered whose stick was shoved further up their ass: Scott's, or Joseph's?
They boarded the Blackbird, and Remy turned his phone off to avoid the nasty calls and messages he knew Tiffany was sending him. She was well aware of the X-men and his duties, in fact, she thought him running around in leather and beating up bad guys was sexy, but she would still not be pleased.
He'd take her out to dinner or something later and buy (steal) her something nice and she'd get over it.
He chose a seat next to the buxom Emma Frost, and she shot him a warning glare before turning back to her magazine. She pretended to dislike him; loathe him even, but only because he'd managed to seduce her in less than twenty minutes at the Christmas party the year before, and her ego still hadn't recovered.
"Y' look ravagin' as usual, Emma. Did y' do somethin' with y' hair?"
She shifted her position so she faced more toward the window. "Leave me alone, Gambit. Honestly, can't you ever let me be? Or will you keep gloating forever?"
Harsh words, but he still managed to convince her to join him in the back for some heated kissing and feeling up.
Northern Mississippi.
They only drove five hours the first night. They stopped at a gas station just as dawn broke, and ate their fill before passing out in each other's arms in the truck. They didn't wake up until noon the next day, and Rogue scolded herself for oversleeping like that. Mama and daddy were probably already searching for her, and if they'd traveled through the day…well, they might find where they were and catch up.
Rogue pulled a fresh dress, toiletries, make up, and a toothbrush from her suitcase. She freshened up using the leaky sink in the gas station, and felt much better after she did. Cody cleaned up too; they grabbed breakfast, and then continued down the never-ending highway.
The headaches began plaguing her again, and she was forced to rest her head against the window. Cody worried and asked her if she needed anything, she was in too much pain to respond. He did all he could do while driving, like passing her Tylenol and bottled water, and keeping the volume turned all the way down, even though she knew he loved listening to music while driving.
When they went through a McDonalds and ordered food, her headache dissipated and she could finally see straight.
They finished their meal and let the music blare loudly, singing and laughing and it was like a good, old fashioned road trip. They ran out of steam eventually, and sat in silence for a while, the music being the only sound in the truck.
He turned the volume down, and cleared his throat. "Do ya think ya should give your mama a call? Let her know you're okay?"
She looked down at her phone, which she'd plugged into the car charger earlier that day, and swallowed. "Ah don't know, Cody, it just feels too soon. Ah'm not sure if ah could say 'no' if she started beggin' me to come back."
He nodded in understanding, and wiped away the tear that slid down her cheek.
"Cody-"
They didn't even have time to scream before the truck toppled over. She looked to her right side in a daze and saw the door sparking as it skidded across the concrete pavement. She registered Cody's desperate cries and the screeching of metal. Blood obscured her vision and her senses began to fade away. She couldn't feel her wounds, though she knew she must have had many. She could no longer hear Cody, it was as if cotton had been shoved in her ears.
The truck stopped before she lost consciousness, and she saw a man through the windshield. He smirked, revealing fang-like teeth.
Using only brute strength, he kicked the side of the vehicle, causing it to turn right side up on all four wheels.
He came to her side of the car, and she was able to see him more clearly. His hair was blond and curly; his eyes were brown, but lifeless. Never had she seen eyes like his- so empty and cruel.
He reached his arm through the shattered window and ripped away the seatbelt from across her body. He then grabbed her by the arm and yanked her from the truck. She cried out.
If her arm hadn't already been harmed, he seemed willing to break it for her.
He held her up until she was at his eye level. "You've given ole' Sabretooth a lot of trouble, frail." His thumbnail grazed her cheek; she felt the sting of it, then the blood dripping down the side of her face. "But I have you now, beautiful, and you're gonna make me a very rich man."
As you've probably discerned, this chapter was more about introductions and background rather than action or substance. I tired my hardest to keep this chapter overly-light and fluffy, and to capture the mood of the south: the slow, unchanging ways and even some of the beliefs- aka Rogue's religious beliefs and her ultimate goal of becoming a wife and mother.
I'm sure Raven and Nick were quite different than what you were used to, but this life is not what it seems and Rogue will soon figure that out for herself.
Next chapter, things will go topsy-turvy and we'll begin to see Rogue shaping into the X-men: Evolution Rogue we all know and love. This was just a pre-story of sorts; a fluffy tidbit to show just how different Rogue's life will become.
Hmmm, I'm trying to think if there's anything else...Oh, yes! Updates- Originally, I wasn't going to start posting chapters for this until I finished brittle bones, but I wanted to see if any of the fans from the original TIAD were still interested, and maybe even some knew readers were as well, so don't expect updates to happen very often at first. However, if I see lots of reviews in my inbox, I might just make speedy updates possible...
Same story-concept still applies to this version, only I feel that I've matured (somewhat) as an author and I finally feel that I can do this fic justice (though I'm STILL not satisfied with this chapter, grrr!)
A loud and loving shoutout to Laceylou76, who greatly supported the first version of this and is now my wonderful beta for TIAD. Please enjoy.
Lovingly,
Merr2.
Review, please. :]