Disclaimer: I DO NOT own the X-Men or the song Question Existing/Existence by Rihanna.

Summary: Rogue takes the cure and some time later she finds herself questioning her past decisions. What will her thoughts lead her too?

Story: It Cures to Ails

Marie stood before her mirror studying everything from the outside to the inside. Today, all of the seniors and juniors were suppose to go to the beach. She was wearing a bathing suit she had bought in celebration of taking the cure. It was dark green with three slashes of yellow randomly placed on it. The bathing suit was boy cut shorts and tight bikini barely able to be called acceptable. About a week ago, she had stopped putting heat to her hair to let it be it's natural wavy self. Everyday she seemed to be getting compliments from one staff member or the other at the mansion, but they fell on deaf ears now.

Take off my shirt, loosen the buttons and undo my skirt
Stare at myself in the mirror
Take me apart, piece by piece
Sorrow decrease, pressure release

On the inside, life made no sense to her. She couldn't win. Thoughts ran around her muddled mind as she tried to figure out where she had gone wrong. Marie had honestly thought that her mutation was the key to all her problems. It was the reason why she had kept to herself while in the mansion, fearing that she would accidently hurt someone. Bobby and she couldn't be considered a real couple in her mind with such limited contact. Everyone feared her because of her mutation, right? The only logical choice she saw was to take the cure and remove the one obstacle that dictated her whole life, right?

I put in work
Did more than called upon, more than deserved
When it was over, did I wind up hurt?
Yes, but it taught me, before a decision, ask this question first

It had been more than a month now, since the cure, and she left sick to her stomach. Bobby had stuck strong with her for two weeks after the cure, before he gave into his attraction to Kitty Pride and cheated on her. They thought she didn't know, but the truth is she didn't know what to do. The students had gone from ignoring her to becoming hostile and giving her the silent treatment. A rumor was circulating around the mansion that the cure was contagious and that she was a traitor to all mutant kind. Staff members of the mansion tried to help, but they only made things worse. When she wasn't throwing herself into work, she couldn't help but think about how things went from bad to worse.

Who am I living for?
Is this my limit? Can I endure some more?
Chances are given, question existing
Who am I living for?
Is this my limit? Can I endure some more?
Chances are given, question existing

On various occasions, she had tried to show her peers that she was no longer the "vampire" of the mansion; yet, every attempt seemed to blow up in her face. Simple acts, like kissing Bobby in front of the others, didn't ease any tension. Plus with him cheating on her, it only made her appear stupid. Nothing was good enough for the young hearts of "Mutant High."

Take off my cool
Show them that under here, I'm just like you
Do the mistakes that may make me a fool
Or a human with loss

Sometimes she blamed Logan for her troubles. He had caught her walking out to take the cure, but he didn't stop her. Even the mental version she kept within her mind had stayed silent when she made her decision, unlike some. The thought that he had purposely let her walk into this Hell made her want to hate him. However, she knew it was her fault. After looking it over with her inner Logan, she knew there was no win-win situation for him either. Logan could keep her at the mansion miserable or at least let her try to gain some peace, even at the price of taking the cure. There wasn't a happily ever after in their vocabulary.

And with them a loss, round of applause
Take the abuse, sometimes it feels like they want me to lose
It's entertainment, is that an excuse?
No, but the question that lingers, whether win or lose

At her weakest, Eric would try to convince her to run to the former blue woman, Mystique. In his eyes, Marie could still be of some help to the Brotherhood with the various points of views and knowledge of others. He could see her being a person of power as long as she followed his orders. After particularly trying days, she had to push down the urge to try out Eric's theory of being wanted or at least needed somewhere; so far, the Logan within kept her feet from moving in the midnight hours.

Who am I living for?
Is this my limit? Can I endure some more?
Chances are given, question existing
Who am I living for?
Is this my limit? Can I endure some more?
Chances are given, question existing

The urges to just run were starting to overwhelm her. Dreams would be clouded with her just running away. It didn't matter that she couldn't see where she was running; all that mattered was that she knew it carried her farther away from this accursed mansion. Her inner Logan longed to be back on the road, to wander uncharted paths, and she wanted to indulge him and herself with that.

Dear diary, and to all them
Entertain is something I do for a living
It's not who I am, I'd like to think that I'm pretty normal
I laugh, I get mad, I hurt, I think I suck sometimes

Outside these walls, no one but the Brotherhood, X-Men, and government files knew about her. No one would question her appearance enough to find out about her past. She could live working one odd job to another. Life wouldn't be a fairy tale, but it would be bearable.

But when you're in the spotlight, everything seems good
Sometimes I feel like I have it worst
'Cause I have to always keep my guard up
I don't know who to trust
I don't know who wants to date me for who I am
Or who wants to be my friend for who I really am

The thought of one day being able to look in the mirror and see Marie was all consuming. No one at the mansion saw her as human. They pitied, babied, looked down on and struck out with verbal lashes at her. She had become the victim of the frustrations, confusion, and fear of the student body. To them, she was the living entity of all that was bad in the world. It was an existence she didn't know if she could stand any longer.

Who am I living for?
Is this my limit? Can I endure some more?
Chances are given, question existing
Who am I living for?
Is this my limit? Can I endure some more?
Chances are given, question existing

Her shadowed green eyes looked at her closet doors for a second. The sound of someone knocking on her door woke her up from her thoughts.

"Rogue! Hey, are you in there? Everyone is loading into the bus. We have to get down there before they leave." She heard Bobby yelling through her door.

Silently she put on her black flip-flops, slipped on her yellow Terry smocked cover-up dress (1), and opened the door to greet her boyfriend.

"I'm ready. Let's go!" She said with false excitement.

Bobby gave one of his infamous good-boy smiles as they walked down the hallways together. She looked up at his face trying to see at least some hint of guilt on his person, but none could be found. His world was at peace; while hers was tumbling down from all sides. Reaching her hand out she grasped his hand trying to will some of his content into her, but all she received was a frightened flinch. He tried to cover it up by coughing in his other hand while squeezing her hand.

Instantly, Marie thought of her closet. Thinking of her all ready packed bag that promised a new life. Absently she squeezed Bobby's hand back to reassure him she wasn't offended.

'Don't worry. After today, you won't have to worry about me and I won't have to worry about my sanity.' Marie thought to herself.

........The End........

AN: Hi Everyone, I want to thank you for reading. This is my first time posting an X-Men fan fiction, so I would appreciate hearing your thoughts on it. I have an idea to extend the story, but for now it's just a one shot. Hope you enjoyed it! =3

Oh, I saw this cute cover-up dress at Victoria Secret's site, so I'm just making it clear that I don't own that.

Disclaimer: I DO NOT own the X-Men or the song Question Existing by Rihanna.