Disclaimer: I have never owned, do not own, and never will own… though perhaps Stan Lee will adopt me and leave me all sorts of Marvel goodies in his will. Nope. Not going to happen.

Escalation

Part 2 of the Alternate X-Men Trilogy

Words: 2,255

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Chapter 1: Vacation Ends

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The two weeks were up.

The next morning, Xavier would be returning from Washington D.C. with the X-Men and the Junior X-Men in tow. Scott and Rogue would no longer have the whole mansion to themselves…

The two were making the most of their final evening alone together.

They ordered take-out to soak in the stillness of the mansion while they could. As soon as the other members of the household returned, the building's current serenity would be driven out by its inordinately active residents. Kitty, no doubt, would walk through all the walls without knocking. Pyro would bemoan, once again, the fact that the kitchen didn't hold a gas stove – a wise choice of appliance both Scott and Rogue felt. Jubilee – gregarious girl that she was – would be everywhere at once, picking up on tidbits of information that people did or did not say. That is, when she was not shooting sparks out of her hands and singeing the rugs.

And really, that just included most of the recent graduates. The X-Men, too, would add their own brand of liveliness/disturbance to the premise, particularly Jean and Logan in the midst of their recent public relationship.

So Rogue and Scott sat on the floor of the recreation room between the sofa and the coffee table, cartons of Chinese on the low, wooden coffee table. As it was the last night of their holiday, the two mutants wanted to share the perfect evening without leaving the grounds.

The tall, brown-haired man and the curvy young woman had planned the evening carefully hours before, almost as if it were an X-Men mission. As much as they enjoyed their spontaneous days, they wanted to get the most of their last evening alone. In the end, they chose to divide and conquer: Scott would take care of the food while Rogue would manage the location and atmosphere.

While he left the mansion to pick up their meal, the young woman began her contributions.

They would not be eating in the usual places. They had frequently eaten together at the kitchen island, occasionally at the kitchenette in one or other of their rooms, and sometimes at restaurants. They had never eaten in the dining room – the room was too large, too formal, too empty and still. It would only remind them of their absent friends, however much they dreaded the inevitable disturbances that came with them. It was eerie to be in that room alone.

The rec room, however, was ideal. It was comfortable and the two mutants had made it almost a second home for themselves.

When Scott and Jean's relationship began having problems in the spring, the man had taken to sleeping on the rec room couch at night. Then, during the vacation, Rogue had used the room for many of her daily activities – roller-skating, painting, dancing. And when Cyclops had returned from Washington D.C. early, the young woman had built an elaborate fort in the room. They wound up sleeping in it side by side.

The room held fond memories for them both.

Satisfied with her choice, Rogue set up the atmosphere. A couple of plain, unscented pillar candles found their way onto the coffee table. Then, hooking up her ipod to the stereo system, she queued it up to the playlist she had made earlier in the day. The jazz would be soft enough to encourage conversation while also filling up the silence.

The two mutants met for dinner outside of their new rooms, both dressed in a careful balance between comfortable and dressy. Scott wore a white button-down shirt over his black slacks. The collar and cuffs were un-starched, the first couple buttons left undone, and the sleeves rolled up nearly to his elbows. Rogue thought he looked magnificent. She had on a long-sleeved blue dress that cinched in at the waist and flowed out to her just above her knees. Beneath, she wore a pair of black tights that did amazing things to her legs. Neither had bothered with shoes.

Now, they were sprawled side by side between the couch and the coffee table, chopsticks clicking along with the music. Every now and then, the man and woman would clasp their bare hands for a few minutes at a time.

After Rogue's first successful experiment with touch, the two mutants had nearly a whole week to practice and improve her control. The final days of the vacation had been spent with pokes, handholding, pecks on the cheek, and one memorable massage. Rogue had never been so happy. The young woman could now sustain physical contact for a little over nine minutes without inflicting harm.

However, she had the sneaking suspicion that tonight was the moment in which their future would be decided. They had not yet defined what they were to one another – they were too busy enjoying the brief moments of contact or bantering back in forth. But, Rogue knew that they should define their relationship before the others returned. If Scott didn't bring it up that evening, she would.

Watching the young woman deliver another piece of sweet and sour pork to her lips, Scott broached the subject. "Rogue," he began. "I know I'm a stick in the mud sometimes, probably too old for you, and I used to be your teacher. Not to mention my recent failed engagement…"

Rogue's emerald gaze was glued on his face, though her face remained carefully impassive. Scott examined her expression closely. There was pleasant clenching in his chest as he realized that she was allowing him to unload. It was just like when he had arrived at the mansion a week early and she had listened to his tale without interruption. He had needed it then – desperately so. Just as he needed it now.

"But my feelings towards you—" He paused. "They're more than that of a teacher to his student. More than friendship. And certainly not platonic." Sneaking a glance at her eyes, he could have sworn he saw a flicker of delight. "I… I care about you a lot Rogue. I don't know how much just yet, but I'd be willing to find out if you are. Would you… Would you be willing to give a relationship a try?"

Rogue waited a few seconds to be sure that he was done speaking, then, raising her bare hand to his cheek, she tenderly stroked along his jawline. "I'd love to, Scott." She grinned. "Do you s'ppose this counts as a first date?"

Scott's eyes lit up behind his glasses, and his mouth formed a playful half-smirk. "Second or third, maybe. First? No." Cradling the hand she had placed upon his face, he lifted it slowly to his lips, pressing a few affectionate kisses to her smooth palm. Rogue's eyelids drifted halfway shut as a shudder of arousal overcame her. Lord! The man just doesn't know what he does to me!

Gently, the man released her hand and held himself still as the woman drifted her fingertip along his lips. It tingled pleasantly, and Scott had to remind himself of her inexperience to keep from pulling her onto his lap. He desperately wanted to overindulge all of his senses with her. But he would wait. He would control himself for as long as she needed. They would take the physical aspect of their relationship at her pace, although Scott figured a few small nudges on his part would not be unwelcome.

With that thought in mind, he let his tongue slip between his lips slightly, just enough to catch the pad of her finger. He kept his attention on her face to gauge her reaction.

There was a sudden inhale, her eyes going wide. Then, her green gaze turned dark, the pupils dilating rapidly. Scott nearly groaned. It appeared his conjecture months ago was correct: Rogue was much more sensitive to touch than most people.

If she was already this aroused, how responsive would she be later on?

Scott shook the though off. Her pace. They were going to go at her pace. Not his. No matter how much he wanted her. Pulling Rogue's hand from his face to rest in his own between them, he offered her a bite of lo-mein with his chopsticks. She opened her lips and allowed him to feed her, sending him a thoughtful smile as she chewed.

Rogue couldn't be certain, but reading into his actions, she believed he was keeping the physical progression of their relationship slow. The deep ache within her wanted to damn that idea to hell, but the woman appreciated his thoughtfulness. She knew she was not yet ready to leap into sex. Not emotionally. Not physically. And it meant a great deal that Scott recognized that.

Following his lead, she remarked, "I'm full. You?"

"Same."

"Then why don't we pack the leftovers in the 'fridge and clean up the room?" she suggested with a soft glance. His smile was her reply. Scott stood, extending his hand to her to help her up.

They carried the cartons of Chinese to the kitchen island then came back to the rec room. While Rogue unplugged her ipod and shut down the stereos, Scott blew out the candles and gathered them up to tuck back into one of the kitchen cabinets. As the two went back to the kitchen to shift the leftovers into the refrigerator, Scott realized, "We forgot about the fortune cookies!" Handing her one, he opened his own. Popping the tiny desert into his mouth, the man looked up at his… girlfriend. "So, what does yours say?"

"New opportunities and responsibilities will lead to success," she replied, reading off the slip of paper. "And you?"

"Your patience will be rewarded."

"You know, Scott," Marie slyly began, "back home we'd add on phrases to the end of fortune cookies. Silly little phrases. Sometimes it'd be like a vampire or in accordance with the prophecy, but the usual one was in bed."

Scott's eyebrows shot up. She was flirting with him. Heavily flirting with him. The kind of flirting that usually resulted in sex. And God help him, he loved it. He loved the way her voice got low and husky when she said in bed. He loved that glint in her eyes and the seductive curl of her lips.

"That," she continued, "would make your fortune: Your patience will be rewarded in bed."

Drifting his hand up her arm, he leaned close to her ear and remarked, "And what about those opportunities and responsibilities leading to your success in bed?" Scott could feel the brush of her curls as the young woman subconsciously leaned into his nearness and low voice. Regretfully pulling himself to a safer distance, he gave one of the brown curls a soft tug. Chiding her with a playful lilt to his voice, the man remarked, "You might not want to tease me too much, Rogue. I can give as good as I get."

Breathless, she replied, "Oh I hope so." Her cheeks heated up at her unintended response. The two chuckled lightly over her embarrassment.

It was gratifying for Scott to know he was not the only one thinking and looking forward to more blatant sexual encounters.

"Come on, dearheart. It's late." Scott lead her up to their floor, their hands entwined in spite of entering in overnight security codes or turning out lights as they went.

Standing outside Rogue's door with her, the man searched for words, but she beat him to it. "Charles and the rest will be back tomorrow," the young woman remarked softly. Her eyes turned worried. "If you wanted, we could keep us low-key for a little while to avoid more awkwardness." She sounded rather reluctant.

"Is that what you want?" he inquired softly, ducking to catch her eyes.

Just barely, Rogue shook her head. "Not really, no. But it'd be fine if you would rather."

"Well, I honestly don't see why we should have to hide," he reassured her. "I want this relationship with you to work, Rogue. And to do that, it needs honesty and some room to grow. Besides, you and I are the only ones that have a say in our relationship."

"Not even the Professor?" she teased, her expression much lighter.

Scott wrinkled his nose quickly. "I suppose there should be a certain deference to those in authority." Shaking his head gently and allowing a smile to shine down on the young woman, he continued, "But I highly doubt Xavier will have a problem with us." Left unspoken was that the rest of the X-Men and the Junior X-men might.

"Well, then I guess I'll see you in the DR at the usual time," Rogue said, her voice soft and slightly awkward, unsure how to end their date.

"That you will." Scott leaned down to press a quick kiss to the end of her nose, then he nudged his head lower, pressing his lips to her own.

Her lips were soft and full and oh so pliant beneath his own. As he pulled away from her lips, he noticed with satisfaction that the young woman was slightly dazed from his attention. "Good night Rogue."

"'Night," she whispered, blinking her eyes back into focus as she stepped into her room. Shutting the door mildly behind her, she jumped onto her bed, burying her excited squeals into the pillows. "Lord! That man is too much – and I bet he knows it too!"

Rogue fell asleep that night with a smile on kissed lips.

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