The More Things Change
Author: RoguesKnight
Disclaimer : The characters in this story do not belong to me. I wish they did, their lives would be happier and so would mine since I wouldn't have to worry about a mountain of debt once I finish college. They are the property of Marvel Comics, 20th Century Fox, Mutant Enemy, Joss Whedon and are protected by a slew of lawyers. I'm just borrowing them for a bit and will return them, relatively, unharmed.
Summary: Sequel to Uncommon Knowledge, so you might want to read that one first for background. Buffy the Vampire Slayer/ X-Men the movie cross over. Set post Chosen and X2. What happens when a certain one-eyed carpenter receives an unexpected call from an old friend?
Rating: PG-13, for language and situations at least. May change as story progresses. *************************************************************************** **
Rogue sat in silence on the couch in the common room of Xavier's Institute for Gifted Youngsters, her gloved hands resting in her lap. To her right was her boyfriend, Bobby Drake, better known to the students and faculty as Iceman, randomly flipping through the channels of the large screen TV in obvious boredom. The casual observer might have caught on to the underlying tension in the room and deduce that the young couple was on the outs with each other; the more observant students at the institute might even chalk up the chilliness of the room to Drake's "gift". The reality of the situation was that the recent events in Boston and Alkali Lake had put a tremendous amount of strain on everyone involved and though life had slowly began to return to normal, or as close to it as life at the institute came, for some it was taking longer than for others. Rogue, who had just begun to really open up to others had quickly shut herself off again, taking to bundling herself almost from head to toe. Bobby's attitude had taken almost as drastic turn, gone was the carefree joker of the students and in his place remained a man almost as cold as the ice he created. As a result, the two's relationship had become increasingly tenuous, with little things often blossoming into arguments that grew into screamfests complete with slamming doors and tears.
Flip. * Another channel another five seconds before he changes it again * Rogue thought bitterly, glancing at Bobby from the corner of her eye. * Why didn't I notice how impatient he was before now? Always trying to move our relationship to the "next level" * She shut off her thoughts before she could give herself an honest answer to the question and tried to focus on the screen. It was, after all, easier than trying to strike up a conversation with the subject of her thoughts. An immaculately made up anchorwoman sat behind a standard news style desk that could have belonged to any network, trying to maintain a professional demeanor.
" Violence erupted in several cities around the nation this afternoon," the anchorwoman intoned monotonously, " in response to the President's recent address to the nation in which he called for an attitude of compassion while a committee is convened to investigate the recent mutant attack that left several, mostly the elderly and very young, dead as it swept the globe. The "human rights" group known as the Friends of Humanity have claimed responsibility for every disturbance and a statement from the group's headquarters promises more violence until the government passes the long debated Mutant Registration Act or finds a more permanent solution to the "Mutant Problem".
A sharp crack filled the silence of the room, drawing Rogue's eyes from the screen to her companion. Bobby's eyes flicked from the screen to the now broken and thoroughly iced over remote control in his hand and finally met Rogues. The clear blue eyes she had once loved to gaze into were now filled with disgust that matched the frown frozen on his face. " It's bullshit," he growled, " Once again we get blamed for everything. Odds are that the President's committee will completely overlook the fact that it was a human organization that was inadvertently responsible for that "attack". It was humans who wanted to kill not only us but every mutant on the planet just because we're different and we're still the bad guys. What next, torches and pitchforks? Jealous, pathetic, losers..." he trailed off and it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out just where his thoughts had settled.
"Bobby." Rogue tried, reaching out to him, physically and metaphorically, "It's not their fault, not all of theirs anyway. There are some decent humans.Ah mean people." She absolutely hated referring to people without mutant abilities as humans, it wasn't as if mutants weren't human too. That kind of us versus them thinking reminded her all to well of Magneto. Unfortunately, as more often than not, her words fell on deaf ears as Bobby pushed her gloved hands away, standing up angrily.
" Save it Rogue," he snapped, " I'm so sick and tired of you taking their side in things, trying to be little miss peace maker. If you honestly think you're filling in for Dr. Grey in some way you're sadly mistaken." Without another word he stormed out of the room, leaving Rogue alone with her thoughts.
She knew that he was still hurt by his family's reaction to the revelation that he was a mutant and the Ronnie's call to the Boston Police but his comment about Jean was just uncalled for. After the Liberty Island incident, as it was officially called by the authorities, Jean Grey had been the first person other than the Professor to reach out to Rogue. She had understood Rogue's feelings about Logan and had helped her to deal not only with them, but with the memories she'd absorbed from him. In the months between Logan's departure and just as sudden return, the redhead had become something of a surrogate older sister for Rogue. After Scott and Logan, Rogue had been the most affected by Jean's sacrifice at Alkali Lake. * If only Ah hadn't crashed the jet * She thought morosely * If Ah had had any idea of how to fly, maybe she wouldn't have had to do what she did * She was pulled out of her thoughts by the sound of the news returning from a commercial. * Ah should just shut that off, get out of the house for awhile. Clear my head.* Rogue pushed herself off of the couch and made her way over to the TV slowly, trying to wake her legs back up. Just as she was about to press the power button an item caught her attention.
"..has seriously damaged the southern California town of Sunnydale," the same anchorwoman from before was saying, " for more on this story we go live to our Tom Marshall live from what remains of the town. Are you there Tom?"
" I'm here Candy." A dark skinned reporter answered as the scene changed to a stretch of lonely highway surrounded by desert vegetation leading into an enormous hole in the ground, " Damaged is putting the fate of this town lightly. There is nothing left of this once quiet area of California. It appears that a gigantic sinkhole has opened up underneath the town and swallowed it completely as you can see" The scene shifted suddenly to an aerial view, obviously from a news chopper. " Seismologists have estimated that the center of the crater is located at what once was the town's high school. They're puzzled however, as to how it formed as the rockbed around the area is fairly solid and undisturbed, it's almost as if a mouth has just swallowed the town and perhaps all of its residents. Rescue crews have been dispatched, and though they have found no bodies as of yet, it's still too early to know the exact death toll of this catastrophe".
The scene switched back to the anchor desk, but Rogue didn't even notice, something about that story had triggered memories deep inside her unconscious and she was trying to figure out just what they meant. * Sunnydale..why does that name sound familiar? * she wondered. Images began flashing across her mind.fangs.fear.dust. Still more images.a boy.dark hair.comfort.understanding.a motel room.until finally a name registered in her brain. Xander. In a flash Rogue flew from the common room, her feet pounding along the corridors of the institute as she neared her destination, dodging the occasional student with deft grace and ignoring the strange glances she got along the way. Finally she reached the solid oak door to Professor Xavier's office and opened it hurriedly, rushing inside without waiting for an invitation.
As usual Professor Charles Xavier sat behind his desk, his hands resting on top of it, folded together peacefully, and smiling as if he'd expected her. Perhaps he had. Being the world's foremost telepath it was highly likely that he'd caught her desperation long before she'd reached his office. The serenity of his posture and expression was enough to make her calm down a bit and she even felt a little foolish just barging in unannounced. Trying to organize her thoughts, Rogue ran a gloved hand through her hair, pushing a few strands of permanently white hair back into place, and looked around the office. It was only then that she realized that she wasn't alone with the Professor. Both Logan and Scott were in the room as well and her heart gave a tug as she could only guess what, or rather who, the three men had been talking about. Logan at least acknowledged her presence with a curious lift of the eyebrow. He was attired in his usual rough style, black leather jacket over a black and red plaid shirt, dark blue jeans, and dark work boots. All that was missing was his customary cigar, she suspected out of respect for the Professor, and his dog tag. She realized with a start that she hadn't noticed him wearing it since Alkali Lake. Scott, on the other hand, didn't react at all. He was dressed in a preppy red polo shirt with khaki pants and leather loafers. Covering he eyes, however, was his visor. He'd become harder after the Alkali Lake incident, and almost always wore the visor unless absolutely necessary, it was a constant reminder of what he'd lost there.
Rogue was broken out of her thoughts by the Professor's gentle voice, " Is there something we can help you with Rogue?"
" Ah can come back later Professor. Ah didn't mean to interrupt anything important, Ah guess Ah just got carried away. It's not that pressing really." She blushed. Even though she'd hated her mother's trying to teach her to be a proper southern lady as she grew up, some things just stuck with her and deference to her elders was one of them.
" No, it's quite alright Rogue," came the calm reply, " After the incident with Stryker and his men, we've been considering how best to increase security here. Scott and Logan were just having a difference of opinion on exactly what that would entail and managed to get me stuck in the middle of it." He smiled, " And as I'm quite sure that that particular issue is far from resolved, I'm sure we'll have another opportunity to discuss it. If that's alright with you gentlemen." He added, almost as an afterthought. The other two men nodded their understanding and left the room without a word. " Now Rogue," Charles said again, maneuvering his chair out from behind the desk and rolling up next to her, " how can I help you?".
" Ah need you to read my mind," She stated simply. At his questioning glance she explained about the newscast and her life before she ended up at the institute, opening up more than she had in the almost two years he had known her. " Ah was kinda hoping you could read my mind so you would know what Xander feels like and not have to go searching through every one in California to find him. If he's still alive that is." She added uncertainly. Charles nodded slowly, while he was reluctant to enter others' minds, let alone use cerebro after what Stryker had nearly done, Rogue's concern for the young man who had saved her life and shown her a different side to humanity was almost tangible. Closing his eyes he quickly scanned her mind, searching out only the relevant information. After a moment, he opened them and smiled.
" From what I've found, I don't think it will be too hard to locate Mr. Harris if he's still among the living. You certainly have a knack for finding the strangest men to befriend," Professor Xavier said to a visibly relieved Rogue, " Why don't you come down with me to Cerebro and we'll see what we can find?". His anxiety over using the device vanished almost immediately as he picked up on the rush of joy coming off the young woman that preceded the hug he suddenly found himself enveloped in.
" Thank you Professor, thank you!" She smiled and almost pranced to the door, full of nervous energy. Even the sound of the Professor's amused chuckle as he wheeled his way past her to the elevator couldn't diminish her hope. As she followed behind him Rogue wondered how she could have possibly forgotten Xander and all that she'd learned from him about the real reality of the world. * Ah guess Ah just got so caught up in the whole tension between humans and mutants that Ah didn't think about the fact that we weren't the only ones with an interest in the fate of the planet * She thought, standing quietly next to the Professor in the elevator. If he had read her mind, he didn't say anything.
Moments later Rogue stood anxiously behind the Professor in the reconstructed Cerebro room. " Just don't move" He instructed her, as he lowered the helmet into place over his head. For her part, Rogue had no intention what so ever of moving, she still wasn't exactly sure what it was she was seeing when the room seemed to explode outward and the wall in front of them was replaced with a map of California. She understood the white lights along the map were humans, but it was unnerving just how detailed the images were as they floated past her. As the Professor focused his search the map seemed to grow larger, swirling inward until just the image of a young man floated before them. His back was turned, and he was a little more muscular than Rogue remembered, but there was no doubt in her mind that it was Xander. A moment later the image disappeared as Professor Xavier removed the helmet.
" He's in Los Angeles," he said holding up a hand to forestall any questions, " Working for a Detective Agency based out of the Hyperion hotel. Here's the number," he scribbled down a number on a pad of paper he'd had inside his suit jacket and handed it to Rogue. " Why don't you give him a call, and don't worry about the long distance charges, talk as long as you want." The words were barely out of his mouth before Rogue disappeared, a quick * Thank you Professor! * floating back to him.
Disclaimer : The characters in this story do not belong to me. I wish they did, their lives would be happier and so would mine since I wouldn't have to worry about a mountain of debt once I finish college. They are the property of Marvel Comics, 20th Century Fox, Mutant Enemy, Joss Whedon and are protected by a slew of lawyers. I'm just borrowing them for a bit and will return them, relatively, unharmed.
Summary: Sequel to Uncommon Knowledge, so you might want to read that one first for background. Buffy the Vampire Slayer/ X-Men the movie cross over. Set post Chosen and X2. What happens when a certain one-eyed carpenter receives an unexpected call from an old friend?
Rating: PG-13, for language and situations at least. May change as story progresses. *************************************************************************** **
Rogue sat in silence on the couch in the common room of Xavier's Institute for Gifted Youngsters, her gloved hands resting in her lap. To her right was her boyfriend, Bobby Drake, better known to the students and faculty as Iceman, randomly flipping through the channels of the large screen TV in obvious boredom. The casual observer might have caught on to the underlying tension in the room and deduce that the young couple was on the outs with each other; the more observant students at the institute might even chalk up the chilliness of the room to Drake's "gift". The reality of the situation was that the recent events in Boston and Alkali Lake had put a tremendous amount of strain on everyone involved and though life had slowly began to return to normal, or as close to it as life at the institute came, for some it was taking longer than for others. Rogue, who had just begun to really open up to others had quickly shut herself off again, taking to bundling herself almost from head to toe. Bobby's attitude had taken almost as drastic turn, gone was the carefree joker of the students and in his place remained a man almost as cold as the ice he created. As a result, the two's relationship had become increasingly tenuous, with little things often blossoming into arguments that grew into screamfests complete with slamming doors and tears.
Flip. * Another channel another five seconds before he changes it again * Rogue thought bitterly, glancing at Bobby from the corner of her eye. * Why didn't I notice how impatient he was before now? Always trying to move our relationship to the "next level" * She shut off her thoughts before she could give herself an honest answer to the question and tried to focus on the screen. It was, after all, easier than trying to strike up a conversation with the subject of her thoughts. An immaculately made up anchorwoman sat behind a standard news style desk that could have belonged to any network, trying to maintain a professional demeanor.
" Violence erupted in several cities around the nation this afternoon," the anchorwoman intoned monotonously, " in response to the President's recent address to the nation in which he called for an attitude of compassion while a committee is convened to investigate the recent mutant attack that left several, mostly the elderly and very young, dead as it swept the globe. The "human rights" group known as the Friends of Humanity have claimed responsibility for every disturbance and a statement from the group's headquarters promises more violence until the government passes the long debated Mutant Registration Act or finds a more permanent solution to the "Mutant Problem".
A sharp crack filled the silence of the room, drawing Rogue's eyes from the screen to her companion. Bobby's eyes flicked from the screen to the now broken and thoroughly iced over remote control in his hand and finally met Rogues. The clear blue eyes she had once loved to gaze into were now filled with disgust that matched the frown frozen on his face. " It's bullshit," he growled, " Once again we get blamed for everything. Odds are that the President's committee will completely overlook the fact that it was a human organization that was inadvertently responsible for that "attack". It was humans who wanted to kill not only us but every mutant on the planet just because we're different and we're still the bad guys. What next, torches and pitchforks? Jealous, pathetic, losers..." he trailed off and it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out just where his thoughts had settled.
"Bobby." Rogue tried, reaching out to him, physically and metaphorically, "It's not their fault, not all of theirs anyway. There are some decent humans.Ah mean people." She absolutely hated referring to people without mutant abilities as humans, it wasn't as if mutants weren't human too. That kind of us versus them thinking reminded her all to well of Magneto. Unfortunately, as more often than not, her words fell on deaf ears as Bobby pushed her gloved hands away, standing up angrily.
" Save it Rogue," he snapped, " I'm so sick and tired of you taking their side in things, trying to be little miss peace maker. If you honestly think you're filling in for Dr. Grey in some way you're sadly mistaken." Without another word he stormed out of the room, leaving Rogue alone with her thoughts.
She knew that he was still hurt by his family's reaction to the revelation that he was a mutant and the Ronnie's call to the Boston Police but his comment about Jean was just uncalled for. After the Liberty Island incident, as it was officially called by the authorities, Jean Grey had been the first person other than the Professor to reach out to Rogue. She had understood Rogue's feelings about Logan and had helped her to deal not only with them, but with the memories she'd absorbed from him. In the months between Logan's departure and just as sudden return, the redhead had become something of a surrogate older sister for Rogue. After Scott and Logan, Rogue had been the most affected by Jean's sacrifice at Alkali Lake. * If only Ah hadn't crashed the jet * She thought morosely * If Ah had had any idea of how to fly, maybe she wouldn't have had to do what she did * She was pulled out of her thoughts by the sound of the news returning from a commercial. * Ah should just shut that off, get out of the house for awhile. Clear my head.* Rogue pushed herself off of the couch and made her way over to the TV slowly, trying to wake her legs back up. Just as she was about to press the power button an item caught her attention.
"..has seriously damaged the southern California town of Sunnydale," the same anchorwoman from before was saying, " for more on this story we go live to our Tom Marshall live from what remains of the town. Are you there Tom?"
" I'm here Candy." A dark skinned reporter answered as the scene changed to a stretch of lonely highway surrounded by desert vegetation leading into an enormous hole in the ground, " Damaged is putting the fate of this town lightly. There is nothing left of this once quiet area of California. It appears that a gigantic sinkhole has opened up underneath the town and swallowed it completely as you can see" The scene shifted suddenly to an aerial view, obviously from a news chopper. " Seismologists have estimated that the center of the crater is located at what once was the town's high school. They're puzzled however, as to how it formed as the rockbed around the area is fairly solid and undisturbed, it's almost as if a mouth has just swallowed the town and perhaps all of its residents. Rescue crews have been dispatched, and though they have found no bodies as of yet, it's still too early to know the exact death toll of this catastrophe".
The scene switched back to the anchor desk, but Rogue didn't even notice, something about that story had triggered memories deep inside her unconscious and she was trying to figure out just what they meant. * Sunnydale..why does that name sound familiar? * she wondered. Images began flashing across her mind.fangs.fear.dust. Still more images.a boy.dark hair.comfort.understanding.a motel room.until finally a name registered in her brain. Xander. In a flash Rogue flew from the common room, her feet pounding along the corridors of the institute as she neared her destination, dodging the occasional student with deft grace and ignoring the strange glances she got along the way. Finally she reached the solid oak door to Professor Xavier's office and opened it hurriedly, rushing inside without waiting for an invitation.
As usual Professor Charles Xavier sat behind his desk, his hands resting on top of it, folded together peacefully, and smiling as if he'd expected her. Perhaps he had. Being the world's foremost telepath it was highly likely that he'd caught her desperation long before she'd reached his office. The serenity of his posture and expression was enough to make her calm down a bit and she even felt a little foolish just barging in unannounced. Trying to organize her thoughts, Rogue ran a gloved hand through her hair, pushing a few strands of permanently white hair back into place, and looked around the office. It was only then that she realized that she wasn't alone with the Professor. Both Logan and Scott were in the room as well and her heart gave a tug as she could only guess what, or rather who, the three men had been talking about. Logan at least acknowledged her presence with a curious lift of the eyebrow. He was attired in his usual rough style, black leather jacket over a black and red plaid shirt, dark blue jeans, and dark work boots. All that was missing was his customary cigar, she suspected out of respect for the Professor, and his dog tag. She realized with a start that she hadn't noticed him wearing it since Alkali Lake. Scott, on the other hand, didn't react at all. He was dressed in a preppy red polo shirt with khaki pants and leather loafers. Covering he eyes, however, was his visor. He'd become harder after the Alkali Lake incident, and almost always wore the visor unless absolutely necessary, it was a constant reminder of what he'd lost there.
Rogue was broken out of her thoughts by the Professor's gentle voice, " Is there something we can help you with Rogue?"
" Ah can come back later Professor. Ah didn't mean to interrupt anything important, Ah guess Ah just got carried away. It's not that pressing really." She blushed. Even though she'd hated her mother's trying to teach her to be a proper southern lady as she grew up, some things just stuck with her and deference to her elders was one of them.
" No, it's quite alright Rogue," came the calm reply, " After the incident with Stryker and his men, we've been considering how best to increase security here. Scott and Logan were just having a difference of opinion on exactly what that would entail and managed to get me stuck in the middle of it." He smiled, " And as I'm quite sure that that particular issue is far from resolved, I'm sure we'll have another opportunity to discuss it. If that's alright with you gentlemen." He added, almost as an afterthought. The other two men nodded their understanding and left the room without a word. " Now Rogue," Charles said again, maneuvering his chair out from behind the desk and rolling up next to her, " how can I help you?".
" Ah need you to read my mind," She stated simply. At his questioning glance she explained about the newscast and her life before she ended up at the institute, opening up more than she had in the almost two years he had known her. " Ah was kinda hoping you could read my mind so you would know what Xander feels like and not have to go searching through every one in California to find him. If he's still alive that is." She added uncertainly. Charles nodded slowly, while he was reluctant to enter others' minds, let alone use cerebro after what Stryker had nearly done, Rogue's concern for the young man who had saved her life and shown her a different side to humanity was almost tangible. Closing his eyes he quickly scanned her mind, searching out only the relevant information. After a moment, he opened them and smiled.
" From what I've found, I don't think it will be too hard to locate Mr. Harris if he's still among the living. You certainly have a knack for finding the strangest men to befriend," Professor Xavier said to a visibly relieved Rogue, " Why don't you come down with me to Cerebro and we'll see what we can find?". His anxiety over using the device vanished almost immediately as he picked up on the rush of joy coming off the young woman that preceded the hug he suddenly found himself enveloped in.
" Thank you Professor, thank you!" She smiled and almost pranced to the door, full of nervous energy. Even the sound of the Professor's amused chuckle as he wheeled his way past her to the elevator couldn't diminish her hope. As she followed behind him Rogue wondered how she could have possibly forgotten Xander and all that she'd learned from him about the real reality of the world. * Ah guess Ah just got so caught up in the whole tension between humans and mutants that Ah didn't think about the fact that we weren't the only ones with an interest in the fate of the planet * She thought, standing quietly next to the Professor in the elevator. If he had read her mind, he didn't say anything.
Moments later Rogue stood anxiously behind the Professor in the reconstructed Cerebro room. " Just don't move" He instructed her, as he lowered the helmet into place over his head. For her part, Rogue had no intention what so ever of moving, she still wasn't exactly sure what it was she was seeing when the room seemed to explode outward and the wall in front of them was replaced with a map of California. She understood the white lights along the map were humans, but it was unnerving just how detailed the images were as they floated past her. As the Professor focused his search the map seemed to grow larger, swirling inward until just the image of a young man floated before them. His back was turned, and he was a little more muscular than Rogue remembered, but there was no doubt in her mind that it was Xander. A moment later the image disappeared as Professor Xavier removed the helmet.
" He's in Los Angeles," he said holding up a hand to forestall any questions, " Working for a Detective Agency based out of the Hyperion hotel. Here's the number," he scribbled down a number on a pad of paper he'd had inside his suit jacket and handed it to Rogue. " Why don't you give him a call, and don't worry about the long distance charges, talk as long as you want." The words were barely out of his mouth before Rogue disappeared, a quick * Thank you Professor! * floating back to him.
