Disclaimer: I don't own the X-men. So blergh.
AN: This is my first ever attempt at fanfiction, so reviews would be greatly appreciated.
Let me know if it's worth continuing this. ;)
Section one: Departure.
A chill wind wrapped around the three figures in the darkness, lifting scarves and hair to whip about wildly. The rush of snowflakes it carried got caught and tangled in their garments and clouded their vision.
One of the figures, a young brunette, skipped almost gleefully along the pavement, her booted feet crunching in the fresh gathering of snow.
"I like, can't believe its snowing, right before the holidays!" she grinned at her companions.
A boy with a German accent, ran forward a couple of steps to catch up, his friends good humour was infectious.
"Ja, I know! Too bad its on the last day of school. Ve could've gotten a few days off." He absently kicked at the snow sending up a shower of the thick powder.
"Rogue, would you like, cheer up?" the brunette whined, turning to look at the final figure who was trailing a good few steps behind the other two.
Rogue looked up, her auburn and white hair glimmering in the orange glow of the streetlamps. She frowned slightly, her own Christmas spirit decisively smaller than that of her friends. Once again they were all heading home to their families for the holidays, something she didn't have the option of doing. This time though she would be the only student to remain at the institute since Scott was visiting his newly discovered brother, Alex.
Still, she didn't want to put a damper on everyone else's joy, so she was keeping quiet for their sakes.
They finally reached the elaborate mansion they called home, or a second home for most, and made their way through the double doors. The hallway had been decorated lavishly with tinsel and lights, giving the normally spacious area a cosy feeling.
Stamping the snow from their boots, the trio made their way to the rec room, looking in awe at the enormous tree in the centre. Several Jaime's were scurrying round it adding finishing touches here and there, whilst Jean was hovering near the top, star in hand.
Rogue closed her eyes briefly. What was the point in them putting in all this effort? They were all leaving tomorrow anyway. She mumbled something about an early night and took off for her room before anyone had a chance to try and get her to join in the festivities.
Kitty and Kurt shared a worried glance and made their way over to the small gathering of teachers by the fire, removing coats and scarves as they went.
"Ah, Kitty, Kurt, you're back. Where's Rogue?" Professor Xavier asked, turning his wheelchair to look at the pair curiously.
"She like, went to her room." Kitty said with a sigh. "She's so totally not into the spirit of things this year."
"Maybe she's just disappointed that you're all leaving tomorrow. After all it won't be much fun for her here on her own." Hank, the resident blue doctor put in.
Kurt nodded enthusiastically at that, "Ja, but ve already asked her if she wanted to come home vith us and she said no." He looked a little downtrodden, "I kind of vanted her to meet my family… you know, introduce zem to my sister, so ve could finally spend a Christmas all together."
Kitty patted her friend on the back sympathetically. She knew how much it would've meant to Kurt if his sister could've joined him for Christmas. Unfortunately Rogue seemed to be under the impression she'd just be in the way, and no amount of convincing was going to change that.
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Rogue shed her outdoor clothing quickly and flopped down onto her bed. Three weeks! Everyone was leaving for a whole three weeks. What was she going to do for all that time?
She'd considered accepting Kurt's offer, even considered Kitty's proposal... but she would just feel awkward and out of place. And why should they change the way they traditionally do things, just for her? No, it was better if she just stayed here.
She must've fallen asleep, 'cause the next thing she knew she was being woken by someone shaking her. "Wha..?" she mumbled sleepily, opening her eyes to find an excited Kitty hopping up and down beside her bed.
"I said get up, Rogue!" She looked at the older girl disapprovingly. "Did you like, sleep in your clothes?"
Rogue realised she had, in fact, fallen asleep still dressed, but didn't bother to answer the question since it wasn't really required. "Wasn't mah door locked?"
"As if that'll stop me," Kitty laughed, waving the idea off as if it meant nothing. "C'mon, we're leaving later and everyone's exchanging gifts!" With that, the excitable girl ran out of the room, phasing through the door as she went.
Rogue sighed and dragged herself out of bed. After having a hot shower and redressing, she made her way down to the rec room where everyone was gathered. There was already wrapping paper everywhere and she kicked her way through it as she settled herself beside the tree. She'd gotten a CD from Kurt, a really nice off the shoulder green top from Kitty, as well as a frilly pink top which was Kitty's idea of a joke. Rogue's horrified face upon opening the pink atrocity had the valley girl in giggles for the next hour or so.
Scott had given her a belt with two rows of metal studs along it, and Jean had also given her a CD.
Rogue'd given out similar gifts to the others, their tastes in styles varying dramatically.
She allowed herself to enjoy this farewell party, laughing with the rest of them and smiling whenever someone gave her an 'are you okay?' look.
Eventually though, the cars started pulling up to take everyone away. Both Kitty and Kurt volunteered one last time to have her stay with them, but she declined, and they went on their way.
Within a few hours everyone had left, the last car driving out of the gates, leaving Professor Xavier, Hank, Logan, and Rogue standing on the doorstep waving them off. Shivering, they went back inside for mugs of hot chocolate.
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After a while Rogue tired of the boring conversations and escaped to her room. She was planning on listening to her new CD's for a bit and then getting some sleep. However, the second she entered the room she knew something was wrong.
There was a cold breeze drifting through the bedroom, courtesy of her open window. The window she would never open on a day this snowy and cold. The window she made sure was locked.
A shiver ran down her spine as she stood cautiously in the doorway, almost wanting to leave the light off in case she saw something she didn't want to see.
Still, she flipped the switch and filled the room with light. Everything looked in place, but she knew he'd been in. The faint smell of cigarette smoke that lingered was enough to tell her that.
It was probably safe to assume he was gone, but one can never be too careful, so she quickly checked under the bed, her closet and the on suite bathroom. He wasn't there.
She sighed with relief and gave the window a firm tug to close it, sliding the lock into place again. The resulting gust of air made something flutter on her bed, catching her eye.
It was a note. She picked it up uneasily, tempted to throw it away without reading it first. But she couldn't, the curiosity was too great. She tucked a stray strand of white hair behind her ear and let her gaze sweep over the scrawled message.
'Left all alone, cherie? Such a pity. But don't worry, Gambit will keep you company. You dreamt about him last night, non? You talk in your sleep. Belle rêves.'
She balled up the paper in her fist and threw it forcefully across the room. This was getting too much, why couldn't he leave her alone?
It had all started not long after he kidnapped her in the summer. She'd come home from school to find notes and the occasional playing card under her pillow or in the book she was reading. It wasn't much, and at first she was slightly flattered, if not a little weirded out. However, things had intensified once she'd been given her own room since he no longer had to be careful of Kitty spotting the notes before they were read by Rogue.
Then one day he crossed the line from flattering to creepy. She walked out of the shower to find somebody had roughly drawn out a playing card in the fog on the mirror, and written the words, 'Lookin' good!' beneath it.
Later in that week she found a playing card in her underwear draw, and decided she'd had enough. She fed Logan some lie about her window rattling and asked him to fit a secure bolt across it. He didn't look convinced, since her window was pretty sturdy, but he fitted the bolt, his eyes begging her to share the real problem. She didn't.
She'd caused so much trouble for these people already, she just couldn't bring herself to ask for their help yet again. Besides, Gambit had never actually threatened her so she should be able to handle it herself, right?
She sighed heavily and flopped down on her bed, scrubbing a now bare hand over her tired eyes, smearing her makeup in the process. She'd had her suspicions that he watched her sleep sometimes, but having him admit it was nerve wracking. And with so few people in the mansion, it would be that much easier for him to sneak about.
Maybe she should have gone to stay with Kurt after all. She certainly didn't like the idea of being alone in the student's wing for the next three weeks.
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Just outside the mansions grounds, a man was perched in a tree, his worn brown trench coat flapping freely in the wind. His gloved hands clutched a small tv screen which was receiving pictures from the tiny camera he'd hidden in a certain southerners room. He watched her find his note and throw it away, a slow grin spreading over his face.
His eyes burned red as his fingers lightly trailed over the screen.
Yes, this would be a Christmas to remember.
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