I'm BA-ACK! (Hide the children)
Disclaimer: Who the hell owns XME anymore? Marvel? Certainly not me. This is a plot bunny that just wouldn't go away. Hope it brings you some amusement.
This starts around about the end of the series (except Rahne and Jubilee are back at the Institute, obviously).
Italics in parentheses indicates telepathy.
(page break)
(Case Zulu! Case Zulu! Rogue, Kurt, Storm, Beast, Logan, Case Zulu!)
(I hear you, Jean…I've got Rahne, Sam, Jamie and Jubilee.)
(Jean, Kitty and I have Amara and Bobby)
(Jean, no one else was around, but I'm clear.)
(Got Sparky and Sun-boy. Wait, I see Storm…)
(Jean, Logan and I have Ray and Roberto.)
(Everyone: Scott, Evan and I have the Professor. You all know what to do…take care of each other. See you…when we see you.)
And that was that. Distressed, Jean reluctantly let go of her contacts with her teammates' minds. That would be the last time she spoke with any of them for a long while, maybe forever for some of them.
Please, God, keep them safe.
Scott, sitting in the pilot's seat of the jet, looked over at Jean in concern almost as soon as the thought crossed her mind. Their bond was a source of comfort, as always, but this situation almost immediately negated the soothing effect.
(I'm sorry.)
Jean smiled sadly. Just a few days ago, Scott's progress in instigating a telepathic conversation would have made her elated. After all, it was a major bit of the evidence in favor of her and the Professor's theory that all people were psychic…and could tap the ability if they worked at it. Now, though, the thought of the Professor and their research only served to fill her eyes with tears.
(Oh, Scott…they'll be all right, won't they? They're trained, I-I…)
(Yes, they are trained. All of them know what to do, and they aren't completely devoid of resources. It's going to be OK.)
Funny how his telepathic voice always managed to make her feel hugged. Infusing more hope into her thoughts, she stood from the co-pilot's seat and kissed his cheek.
(I'm going back to check on Evan and the Professor.)
(We'll be at Muir Island in a half hour, give or take.)
(OK.)
Past the main seating center, Jean walked into the cramped sickbay and nearly laughed at the scene before her. Although the Professor's being unconscious wasn't at all amusing, Evan's attempt to bandage his own arm was.
Clearing her throat, she stifled another laugh when Evan jumped. The bandage wrapped so carefully unrolled swiftly, making him curse. Then he looked up at her, worry evident in his eyes.
"Did everyone make it out?"
"Yes. Would you like some help?"
"Sure." As Jean took a seat across from him and began to re-bandage the gash on his arm, Evan studied her.
"We going to Muir Island?"
"Yes. We'll be there in thirty minutes."
"They're going to be fine, Jean."
She looked at him for perhaps a second before re-focusing on the other gashes adorning his arm and shoulder.
"I know."
"Seriously," Evan ducked his head to catch her eyes, "there will be some amazingly crazy road trip stories to hear, you know?"
Jean laughed. It felt…odd. Should she really be finding things funny when her friends were on the run? She met Evan's eyes squarely.
"Yes, there will be. Thank you."
He smiled and tapped the neatly bandaged wounds, "No problem. And thank you, too."
"You're welcome," She swiveled to look at the Professor, who was still quite unconscious on the small sickbay cot, "Has there been any change?"
Evan shook his head, "Nope. I did the usual stuff-temperature, blood pressure…it was all normal. He just…hasn't woken up."
Jean glanced at him sidelong.
"He's going to be fine, Evan."
"Good. We need him…look, I'm probably more help with the jet than with the," he waved his hand in the air, "telepathy stuff."
"It's OK. Go talk to Scott, he could use some company."
"Right."
Evan departed, and Jean felt Scott's wry amusement at the younger man's awkward attempt at 'supporting' him.
(Be nice. He's worried…we all are.)
(The Professor?)
(I'm going to go look for him right now.)
(Make sure you can get out.)
(Of course.)
(Be careful.)
(That too.)
Jean relaxed into a cross-legged meditative posture and went about clearing her mind. Through all the worry and chaotic emotions, she focused on the two constants in her life: Scott and the Professor. Carefully setting Scott aside, she followed her image of the Professor, hoping against hope to find him safe and sound.
(Hmm…page break. Go with it, eh?)
Rogue cursed fluently under her breath as she steered the jeep down a moonlit stretch of highway somewhere in Georgia. At this point, they didn't have a destination, just a goal: to not get killed or captured. Translated: keep moving at all costs.
She flicked a glance to the back seat, to see Sam and Jubilee still asleep leaning against opposite windows. Rahne's wolf form was curled on the seat between them, her head resting in Sam's lap, Jubilee's hand curled in Rahne's fur.
Rogue's gaze shifted to the passenger seat, expecting to meet the sight of a slumbering Jamie. However, he was wide awake and watching her through the shadows in the car.
"Hey, Jamie. Go back to sleep, OK?" She spoke softly, determined not to wake up the rest of the kids. Let them sleep, to get out of this living nightmare as long as they could.
"Where are we?" Jamie's tone was equally quiet, but with a drowsy tremulous quality attainable only by the awoken young.
"Georgia, kiddo. Seriously, try to sleep." Please sleep, she thought with desperation. Don't make me be the strong, responsible leader right now. Not yet.
"Rogue?"
She managed, barely, to conceal her wince.
"Yeah?"
"Is everyone else going to be all right?"
Oh God. "Yeah, kiddo. We're all gonna be fine." Liar, the cynical part of her said smugly. Shut up, she thought fiercely…at herself.
"Are we going to stop for breakfast soon?"
"Once we reach Atlanta. In an hour or so." She said, trying to forestall any more questions.
It wasn't going to be that easy, apparently. In a heart wrenchingly concerned voice, "Aren't you tired? You're still bleeding, a little."
Absently swiping at the semi-oozing cut over her eye, Rogue had to smile at his concern. "I'm OK. Thanks for asking, though."
"Welcome…" His voice trailed off, and a quick glance to her right confirmed that he was asleep again.
After a few miles passed in silence, Rogue let herself ponder the impossibility of the situation. She was on the run with four kids in tow. Four mutant kids. And at least one of them could rather spectacularly lose control of his powers at any moment. Hell, she could rather spectacularly lose control if she had to employ her powers.
Case Zulu was the absolute last resort plan for a reason, she mused. The older people were supposed to grab any of the younger kids they could and run for it. Somehow in the confusion, she'd ended up alone with four charges. This wasn't going to work, how could she be expected to keep them safe?
A muted whimper interrupted her thoughts. Jamie slept on, but the rearview mirror showed a quivering Rahne, obviously in the throes of a nightmare. Poor kid.
Stretching an already sore shoulder to the limit while also trying to keep an eye on the unfamiliar road, Rogue reached behind her and stroked Rahne's furred back. The touch served to waken the wolf, who shifted back to human almost immediately. Disturbed by the motion, Jubilee and Sam made almost identical grunting noises and turned more toward their respective windows.
Holding her breath until she was sure neither of them had woken, Rogue met Rahne's gaze in the mirror. The younger girl's eyes welled with tears, but she angrily rubbed them away.
"Where are we?"
"About thirty miles north of Atlanta, Georgia. Are you OK?"
"I could ask you the same thing. You're still bleeding."
"Yeah, head wounds bleed a bit. I'm all right."
"Are we, ah…going anywhere in particular?"
"Right now? Atlanta, Georgia."
"Thanks." The sardonic rejoinder made the corners of Rogue's mouth quirk up in a smile.
"Sorry. It's been a long night."
"No kidding."
"I'm going to stop and find us some breakfast in Atlanta. Also, we need to get supplies."
"And showers."
Rogue laughed, prompting Rahne to smile back at her, "Yes, and showers."
"I don't want to go back to sleep." Rogue shot a glance at the mirror, unpleasantly unsurprised by the solemn turn to the conversation.
"Do you want to sit up here?" She gestured at the empty seat beside her.
"Yeah." Rahne commenced to crawl over the seat and settle herself between Jamie and Rogue. Idly she flicked at the radio controls, looking over at Rogue for permission.
"Go ahead, but keep it quiet. I want them to sleep as much as possible."
"Okay." After a second or two, the radio was playing classic rock, but the two girls otherwise rode in silence until they were through most of the suburbs of Atlanta. Rogue pulled the jeep into a twenty-four hour grocer's parking lot, and killed the engine.
Rahne and Rogue surveyed the surrounds, including three separate fast food places and a chain coffee shop.
"So…Starbucks or McDonald's?" Rogue queried.
Rahne eyed her speculatively, "Do you really want to give Jamie coffee?"
"Right, McDonald's it is." Rogue unbuckled her seatbelt and turned around to shake Sam and Jubilee awake. They both came to rather groggily, Sam surreptitiously swiping at the drool on his face. Rahne had gently prodded Jamie out of sleep, and Rogue was given the daunting prospect of four people looking at her, waiting for instructions.
Instructions on what we're going to do now, now that we're homeless, friendless, basically helpless…Rogue ruthlessly cut the thought off, choosing to focus instead on the immediate problems of money and food.
"All right, we're going to go to McDonald's and get some breakfast. I have to get money out of an ATM, though. So…everybody out of the car, we'll go to the grocery store."
Thankfully the four kids were too subdued by their recent ordeal and the early hour to do much more than troop after her. Although a wayward glance or two was cast their way (five kids in semi-raggedy clothes, two of them showing the marks of a fight), they were allowed to enter, use the money machine, and leave two hundred dollars richer without comment.
Fifteen minutes later, they were all ensconced in a booth at Mickey D's, chowing down on Egg McMuffins, hashbrowns, and pancakes.
Jubilee was the first to bring up their predicament.
"So…what do we do now?"
Rogue sighed inwardly, and set aside the last of her McMuffin. Contemplating their prospects was enough to make her lose her appetite rather swiftly. Jubilee's question had put her right back in the same spot: all eyes on her. Great.
"Well…we're going to find someplace to stay. We have plenty of money. The card I used at the ATM is linked to a numbered Swiss bank account that isn't traceable at all to the Institute."
"Are we going to stay here, in Atlanta?" That was from Sam, who seemed to have finally woken up with the application of food.
"No. I don't think we're far enough away yet." Rogue looked at the four of them, one by one. On each of their faces she saw the same expression. Exhaustion could only push back the emotional response to their situation for so long. To keep them safe, she had to keep them on the move for the time being…as much as she could tell they longed to stay in one spot.
"We're going to head west now. I'm thinking a bigger city, someplace we can blend in," Jubilee snorted, and Rogue turned a reproving eye on her, "relatively speaking."
"Vegas?" Jamie's suggestion, of course.
"I was thinking further away. Seattle further away."
Her charge's reactions to the prospect of a cross-country road trip were…varied, to say the least. Jamie was excited, mostly because he was thirteen and running on a weird emotional high antithetical to the low of last night. Jubilee was gleeful, as she'd apparently been to Seattle before. Sam and Rahne, however, got right through to the practicalities.
"Three thousand miles? Can we do that?" Couched in Rahne's soft Scottish accent it sounded even worse.
"We have to. First, though, we're going to find a hotel room for the day. If we drive at night, then Sam and Jubilee can drive as well. That'll increase the amount of time we can travel." From their expressions, she was revealing brand new ways of looking at the situation. So maybe this leader thing wasn't all that hard after all…
"Actually, before the hotel room, we find a Wal-Mart. C'mon."
The search for a Wally World didn't last long. After another ATM draw, they came out of the store with three full sets of clothes apiece, some groceries and toiletries, basic medical supplies and (at least in Rogue's case) a splitting headache.
She was intensely pleased when they pulled up in front of a Day's Inn and she prepared to leave the jeep and go get them a room.
"Uh, Rogue?" Jubilee, again. This was getting old, fast.
"Yeah?"
"Shouldn't we go to some small out-of-the-way motel? Hide a little more?"
Do not snap at the child because it's been an exceptionally long time since you've slept, "We're hiding in plain view, Jubes. It's better to use a commercial outfit where we're just another group of customers then a owner operated gig where we might be remembered."
"Oh."
"Yeah."
Later, when she was seated on one of the beds in their hotel room waiting for her chance at the shower, Rogue thought about the plan she'd come up with more or less on the spur of the moment in a McDonald's. It wasn't a bad plan, all things considered.
It was the execution that was getting to her. The sheer, overwhelming terror of being responsible for these kids was going to give her…well, more white hair than she already had. Speaking of…
Rahne stepped out of the bathroom dressed in clean jeans and a green T-shirt, to the sight of Rogue and Jubilee sorting through boxes of hair dye on the bed. Sam and Jamie were on the other bed dividing their attention between the TV and apprehensive glances at the girls.
"Hair dying party?" Rahne asked.
Rogue smirked at the discomfited looks on the boys' faces. "Yep. My white streak has to go. We have enough boxes if you'd like to dye yours as well."
"Maybe. Brown would probably be less noticeable then red, huh?"
"Probably."
After the hair dying was over, everyone piled on the bed and worked through a quick lunch of microwave Hot Pockets. Thank God for modern conveniences in hotel rooms.
Sweeping crumbs off the bedspread, Rogue turned to her charges.
"Okay, Jubilee and Sam, you two might end up driving tonight, so get some sleep. I need to sleep too. Rahne, Jamie, keep an eye out. Watch TV, eat snacks, just don't leave the room and don't answer the door or the phone."
Rahne and Jamie sat in the two chairs provided for the small dinette area. Both were desperate to discuss the events of the night before, but watching over their teammates while watching crappy daytime television just didn't seem to be the right time or place.
In the end, they avoided talking. An uncomfortable silence hung over the room until it was time to wake everyone at five so they could find dinner and continue running for their lives.
(Yet another page break. Anyone help me out here?)
Well, please leave a review full of praise. Or constructive criticism, take your pick. Flamers will be mocked shamelessly.
There will be more action in the next chapters, along with more explanation of just why the X-Men abandoned the Institute. Plus, meeting old friends. Always fun!