Title: Under The Stars
Author: IndigoNight
Summary: They say the most magical meetings happen at night. Well, one night, Rogue, tired and slightly depressed, wanders out to gaze at the stars, when she meets a certain boy. This boy tells her the story of another beautiful girl a long time ago, who met a different winged boy, and fell in love.
Feedback: Yes please, yay reviews!
Pairing: Rogue/Angel
Disclaimer: I do not own X-men or the characters I'm just borrowing them for fun.
Spoilers: Nope, not really
Rating: PG due to like, one curse word.
Warnings: None that I can think of.
Author's Note: So, I have a friend, a very dear friend, called Rayne Storm. So, the other day, Rayne was upset about something, and he called me, and he said "Indigo, you should write me something cute. I don't care what, or what pairing, or how random it is, but write me something that's pure fluff." So that's what I did. And here it is. Sorry that it's a little strange and random, but Rayne said it's the best thing I've ever written. And therefore, this fic is dedicated to him. So, please review and tell me what you think. Thank you.
Enjoy!
Rogue sighed, and laid down in the thick, cushiony grass that blanket the front lawn of Xavier's Institute For Gifted Youngsters. The sun had long since set and the sky was a blaze with countless stars, all was quiet. The rest of the students had long since gone to bed, but Rogue had no interest in sleeping, because sleeping brought dreams, dreams of what she didn't have. Dreams over love, of happiness, of everything she didn't have. But she wasn't thinking about that now. It was a nice night.
So she stretched herself out on the grass and gazed up at the stars, marveling in their beauty. But, as she lay, despite her best attempts to keep them at bay, depressing thoughts once more pushed their way into her mind.
She sighed again, and was surprised to hear her sigh echoed by another voice. She turned her head sideways to find herself staring at a lithe, well-muscled, bare torso shining in the moonlight.
The boy turned his head sideways too, gazing at her. "Hello," he said, his voice was soft, and slightly husky.
"Hi," she answered back shyly, tearing her eyes away from his perfect chest. They happened to land then on the pair of huge, pearly wings spread out across the ground beneath him.
"Nice night," he said, turning his face back up to the heavens.
"Yeah," she agreed, mimicking him.
"Cygnus and Virgo are bright tonight," he observed.
"Sure," she agreed again, not at all sure what that was.
"See," he pointed to the sky above their heads, which was completely covered in tiny pinpoints of light.
"No," Rogue answered bluntly.
"Here," he said, sitting up and moving over so that he was sitting right next to her, he leaned in close, they're heads only inches apart, he pointed again, "Right there, and over there." This time Rogue found two clusters of stars, one to their left, the other to their right.
"Oh, those," she said.
He laughed, a warm, throaty sound that, oddly, made her feel safe. "Have you ever heard the story?" he asked, grinning sideways at her.
Rogue shook her head.
"They say," he whispered, putting an intentionally secretive air into his voice, "That once, a long, long time ago, in the time of the ancient Greeks, there lived a young maiden. Now this maiden, was no ordinary girl, they say that she was the most beautiful girl that ever lived. Some swear she was even more beautiful than Aphrodite herself. You do know how that is?" he paused in his tale, looking seriously at her.
Rogue nodded. She wanted him to continue the story, something about his warm voice drew her in, holding her captivated, and longing to hear him speak more.
"Good," he said, and continued, "Well, this girl, she was quite beautiful. Every man longed to make her his wife. Day in and day out men would come to suite her, but she wasn't interested. No, this girl, her only love was the night, when she would sneak away, to her own special, secret place, where she would lay and gaze at the stars all night long.
"This was how she lived, ignoring men by day, and gazing at the stars by night. Until one day, she came to her secret place, and found it was no longer secret. There was a man there, but this man, he was different from all the other men. He was quiet, shy, and a good deal more handsome than the others, in her opinion anyway." He paused slightly at this point, and Rogue didn't miss the slight, cheeky smile that crossed his lips, even though he wasn't looking at her.
"Was he an angel?" she asked quietly, following his lead and turning back to stare at the stars.
He glanced at her, but she pretended not to notice. "No," he answered softly, "But he did have wings."
"What did the girl do?" Rogue asked curiously.
"She marched up to him and demanded that he leave," he answered, grinning, "But the boy didn't listen. He just laughed, and told her that if she wanted him to leave, she'd have to give him a kiss."
"Did she?"
"No. She pushed him into the nearest lake."
Rogue laughed, "I think I like this girl," she said.
He laughed too. "But the next night, he was there again."
"Did she push him in the lake again?"
He laughed again, "No, she ignored him. She laid down in her usual spot on the grass and gazed up at the stars, eventually even forgetting he was there. He just sat there and watched her.
"The next night, the same thing happened, then the next, and the next, and slowly, they began to speak to each other. He made her laugh, she amazed him. And slowly, bit-by-bit, they fell in love.
"Each night they would lay there, together under the stars, and each morning, he would leave before the sun rose. She would beg him not to go, ask him to come home with her, meet her parents, but every morning he would refuse, and disappear into the shadows."
"I bet she got really mad at him," Rogue said thoughtfully, "I would have."
"She did," he agreed, "She got so angry, that she started to ignore him again."
"Good for her," Rogue said.
He smiled slightly, "But that made the boy very sad," he said, his tone slightly admonishing.
"Well, he deserves it," Rogue said, pouting teasingly, "He should have stayed with her. Every good boy knows, the girl is always right."
"The boy learned," he defended, "In fact, it only took one night of her refusing to speak to him before he agreed to stay with her after the dawn. But he warned her, that he had a reason that he left."
"What?" Rogue asked, "Did he turn into a monster or something by daylight?" she was joking, but he answered her seriously.
"Not exactly. So they sat and watched as the sun rose. When at last the sun had full crested the horizon, the boy let go of his love and stood back. And there, right before her eyes, he turned into a swan."
"A swan?" Rogue asked dubiously.
He nodded.
"The boy was a swan?"
"Yes."
"What'd the girl do?" Rogue asked.
"Well, she was quite surprised, of course," he replied, "Then she asked him to take her away with him, up to heaven, as she was now convinced that he was a god."
"A god?" Rogue asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Well, yes, such things were common in those days," he replied, looking very serious.
Rogue just laughed, "Ok," she said, "Why did she ask that?"
"Because, you see, her parents, knowing nothing of her love, had decided that it was time she married, and since she had shown no interest in any of the men, they'd chosen for her," he explained, "But he swan boy wasn't a god, and he could do nothing to help her."
"That's sad," said Rogue.
"It is," he agreed, "They were both misfits, outcasts. She was too beautiful to belong among mere mortals." Why did Rogue feel a shiver travel up her back when he said that, it wasn't like he was looking at her, with those serious, piercing blue eyes or anything. She glanced over out of the corner of her eye, shit, he was.
"And the boy," he continued, "Fit in with neither the humans, or the birds, being part of both."
"So, did they run away?" she asked, "They wouldn't just accept that she had to marry that other guy, would they?"
"No, of course not," he said, his eyes dancing. He was laughing at her, she realized. "No, instead, they begged Zeus, the king of gods to help them."
"Did he?"
"In a way," he said, "They were so in love, that he couldn't bare the thought of seeing them parted, so he put them in the sky. Hence the stars."
She stared at him for a long minute. "You made that up," she accused.
He grinned at her, "Or no, I promise you, its very real, and it did happen, a long time ago," his eyes were still dancing, he was teasing her.
"Well, you enjoy your joke," she told him coolly, standing up and brushing off the grass and particles of dirt which clung to her jeans, "I'm going to bed." And with that, she marched off.
But try as she might, she couldn't stopping thinking about him as she entered her room and crawled into bed, not even bothering to change.
His eyes, so blue, dancing with concealed humor as he watched her, enthralled by his story. His solid chest, his wings flexing, shining in the moonlight.
Stop it, she told herself firmly, thinking like that will only lead to disappointment.
But then she sat bolt up right as she felt a cool breeze blowing across her and she realized her window was open. She got up, and walked over to it, surprised, and yet again, oddly, not at all surprised, to find him there, settling easily onto her windowsill.
"Come to make fun of me some more?" she asked crossly, even though her heart was pounding against her ribs.
"Oh, I would never make fun of you," he said, but his eyes were dancing again.
"Well, what ever you came for, I'm not interested in talking to you anymore," she said, crossing her arms over her chest and turning away from him, her lips set in a determined pout, "I don't even know your name."
"Give me a kiss and I'll tell you," he whispered, his breath ghosting over the back of her neck and making her shiver, but not with cold.
"I'd rather push you in a lake," she told him, but she couldn't stop the smile that spread across her lips, ruining the glare she shot at him.
He just laughed.
"Tell me your name," she insisted, trying desperately to hold onto the last remains of her pout."
"Kiss first," he said, shaking his head.
She turned and pranced over to him, glaring determinedly, and pushed him gently, just enough so that he lost his balance on the windowsill for a moment and had to flap his wings quickly to prevent himself from falling. His grin never once faltered.
"You're annoying," she told him.
"And you love it," he replied cheekily.
She stepped forward to push him again, but this time she tripped, and before she knew it she was in his arms, gazing deeply into his eyes. He leaned forward, and she didn't pull away. Slowly, their lips met, and held as they savored the taste of each other.
At last, the broke apart, both grinning.
"My name's Warren," he whispered.
"Rogue," she whispered back, "Now, if you'll excuse me, its late, and my mother taught me not to have strange boys in my room late at night. So, I'll see you tomorrow?" she asked, a bit dubiously, "You aren't going to turn into a swan or anything, are you?"
"No," he laughed, "How about breakfast?"
"Can't wait," she breathed. And with that, he gave her one more, quick kiss and flew away. She watched him go until long after he was gone before returning to bed and pulling her blanket up to her chin, closing her eyes.
And for once, Rogue wasn't afraid to dream of love.
So let the moon
Shine softly on the boy I long to see
And maybe when he dreams
He'll dream of me