WizardFlower: Thankee much, and here you go.

ScruffyLovin: Good to hear! I've always thought the relationship needed more fleshing out, although this seems to be turning into a piece about all of Rogue's relationships.


Rogue considered herself a rather sensible person. She'd been woken up by alarm clocks in the past. Some of them had been pretty damn loud, too. She had no problem with alarm clocks. Alarm clocks were useful when she needed to wake up early. And she had been expecting to wake up early. See, being woken up by an alarm clock at six in the morning, while a bit unusual in her schedule, wasn't a big problem for her.

Being woken up by Justin Bieber, however, was too far.

"Oh whoa,

Oh whoa,

Oh whoa,"

No. There was no. Goddamn. Way.

"You know you love me, I know you care,"

Rogue rolled over in her bed, beating back the grogginess in an attempt to find the source of the noise before it went any farther.

"Just shout whenever, and I'll be there,"

No.

"You are my love, you are my heart,

And we will never ever ever be apart."

Please, no.

"Are we an item? Girl, quit playing,"

The bridge neared, and Rogue stuck her head under her pillow.

"We're just friends, what are you saying?

Say there's another and look right in my eyes,"

Was that Kitty? Singing along?

"My first love broke my heart for the first time,

and I was like..."

Oh God, please don't do it.

Kitty was already out of bed and actually turned it up as she sang.

"Baby, baby, baby oooh,

Like baby, baby, baby nooo,

Like baby, baby, baby oooh,

I thought you'd always be mine (mine,)"

"Shut that off!"

"What?"

Rogue hurled her pillow across the room, missing Kitty's bedside but glocking the wall pretty good. "Oh my God, turn it off!"

"Why? It's Justin Bieber!"

"Yeah! Turn it off!"

Kitty stopped her cheerful twirling and just looked at Rogue.

"Turn it off!"

"Okay, fine! Jeez. You have, like, no taste."

Rogue sighed in relief.

"Come on," Kitty continued. "The others are probably already up, and Logan gets, like, totally scary when people get up late."

At the mention of Logan, Rogue found the grogginess receding much more quickly in favor of curiosity. What exactly was it Logan did here? What exactly did everyone do here? Rogue had never really heard what it was the Institute taught; was it like a school, but for mutants? For their powers and stuff? How else would the X-Men have all those weird costumes and learn to fight like that? Rogue had been the only one of the Brotherhood that was really interested in learning martial arts, and even with Mystique's guidance she knew well enough that she could never take on Scott Summers or Jean. Was this where they had learned all that?

A knock on their door drew her out of her thoughts, and Rogue realized that she hadn't gotten out of bed. The southern mutant quickly kicked off her covers and tried to stand up, but her sheets ensnared her and she tumbled onto the floor as Storm––no, it was Ororo now––opened the door and peered in.

"Oh, Miss Munroe!" Kitty gasped, hurriedly kicked the clothes on the floor under the bed. "Um, good morning."

"Good morning, Kitty," the weather witch replied, eyes crinkling in amusement. "There is no need for that… yet. Room check is not for another three days. I am merely here to speak with Rogue."

"... Oh, uh... okay."

Ororo nodded and turned to the disheveled young woman who was still on the floor. "We usually train first thing in the morning," she informed Rogue. "While you will not be required to participate today, the Professor was wondering if you might wish to observe what our training consists of."

"Uh… sure?" It didn't come out as confidently as she would have liked, but Ororo didn't seem to mind.

"That is good to hear. We begin in ten minutes."

Ororo stepped out of the room and closed the door behind her. Kitty turned to give a sullen look at Rogue. "Man, you are, like, so lucky. They wouldn't let me sit out unless I had, like, pneumonia or something."

Rogue didn't really know what to say to that, so she just nodded and picked herself up from the floor and disentangled the sheets from her legs. Ten minutes. Huh. That wasn't a lot of time straight out of bed. Rogue wasn't really in a position to complain, though, and so she just yanked open her duffel and pulled out her shampoo.

"Come on, Rogue," said Kitty, who was somehow already pulling on that weird black and purple costume. "There'll be enough time to shower after the training session, so just put your clothes on."

Rogue gritted her teeth. Something told her that she and Kitty were not going to get along very well. Nevertheless, she wasn't going to argue, so Rogue quickly stripped out of her pajamas and slipped into a pair of faded jeans and a green turtleneck. Her gloves were on the dresser by her bed, and she pulled them on and took a stance next to Kitty, who was in the process of putting her hair up.

"Okay, ready?"

"Are you?" Rogue snapped.

"Hey, no need to get mad! Let's go."

The two girls made their way out of their room and down the hallway, where Jean was waiting for them.

"Good morning, Rogue. Good morning, Kitty," she said with a wide smile that somehow did nothing to lighten Rogue's mood. She found herself mentally scoffing at the older girl's costume; what on Earth was the point of mixing black with lime green? Was it supposed to look like a canary? 'Cause she sure as hell couldn't see it blending in. To anything.

"Morning, Jean!" Kitty replied.

Rogue grunted, but Jean didn't turn down her smile. Great, was she going to be smiling like that the whole time?

Running footsteps alerted the three girls to the approach of Scott.

"Rogue!" he exclaimed when he reached them. "Hi!"

"Oh, um… hi." Why was her stomach flipping? Oh, no, no––she was not going to blush. Her expression remained carefully neutral aside from the small smile she gave in return.

The air stretched and snapped with a quiet bamf as the blue one appeared in their midst, and Rogue coughed and waved her hand to clear the smell of bad eggs.

"Ugh, do you always smell like that?"

"Hey, it's not like I can help it!" Nightcrawler exclaimed. "I vas up late, no time to walk."

"Where's Evan?" Jean asked the group in general.

Scott growled. "Man, if that kid's late again Wolverine is going to be peeved."

"Ja, and ve'll be ze ones he gets mad at!"

Their irritation was interrupted by Spyke streaking down the hall, skateboard in one hand and helmet half on. Rogue raised an eyebrow. He was bringing a skateboard to training? What kind of training were they doing? And for that matter, where were they going to do it?

"Sorry," Evan said breathlessly.

"Alright," Rogue cut in. "So we're all standin' in the middle'a the hall. Where exactly is this 'training' supposed to be?"

There was a moment of silence as everyone looked at her. Rogue suddenly regretted saying anything, especially when Jean gave her another million-watt smile that seemed even more condescending than the last. The redheaded girl turned and gestured to the wall.

"Through there."

Rogue blinked. "Huh?"

Jean placed her hand on the plaster, there was a soft mechanical whir, and then the wall opened. Rogue blinked again, and then blinked again to make sure she was seeing what she was really seeing.

The others filed into the round room beyond the wall, and Rogue stumbled after them dumbly. The wall hissed closed, and Rogue gasped when the floor began to move.

"Wait, this is an elevator?"

Scott gave her a smug smile.

"You guys have a hidden elevator?" Oh man, that was so cool. Holy crap, they had a hidden elevator. Rogue was getting much more excited. A hidden elevator was pretty damn cool, but if she was any judge of distance they were going beyond the first floor and were now somewhere underground. What was underground that was so important that they had to hide the elevator?

Her breathing was short when the elevator came to a gentle stop. The door opened, and it was the blue one that stepped out first and took a theatrical bow.

"Velcome to ze Xavier Institute, ze lower levels."

Rogue might have been annoyed anywhere else, but right now there wasn't a thing in the whole damned world that could break her awe. The hallway before her was made of metal, sheet upon sheet riveted and welded together like something out of a sci-fi show. Rogue stepped out of the elevator with everyone else, but had to mantain a brisk walk to keep up when they set off down the hall. There were doors along either wall, but the group passed each of them without a second glance. The end of the hall came to a T, with another one stretching in either direction. They seemed to be making their way to a huge door, where the Wolverine––in his black and orange costume, so she didn't feel weird about thinking of him as Wolverine rather than Logan––was waiting for them beside the unmistakable shape of a wheelchair.

"There ya are," the Wolverine growled. "Yer late."

"Sorry," Evan said. "My fault."

"Right, well I ain't gonna wait for ya any more." He turned and hit a keypad on the wall, and the door groaned open. Rogue wasn't at the best angle to see what was inside, but she was cut off before she could follow the X-Men over the threshold.

"Not yet, Rogue," the Professor said. "You are not required to participate today. The Danger Room can be less than friendly to those that do not know it. Perhaps you would like to watch first?"

"Uh, right. Okay."

"Splendid." The Professor nodded to the Wolverine, who went after the X-Men. The doors closed loudly, and Rogue was left alone with Xavier.

"The control room is this way," the Professor said, wheeling down one of the halls. "I daresay it will provide a better view."

Rogue trotted to catch up. "Okay."

This hallway was not straight, as Rogue had assumed, and instead curved steadily to the right. They came to another elevator, about the same size as the first, and stepped in.

"So, Rogue," the Professor began conversationally as the elevator began to rise. "How was your night?"

"Uh… alright, I guess."

"Well, that's better than nothing."

"Yeah…"

"Kitty was quite elated by your return."

So he knew about her little trip. "Yeah, she was." A pause. "Look, Professor, I wasn't runnin' away or nothin', honest, I was just––"

The Professor held up a hand.

"Rogue, you do not need to explain yourself. You are our guest, not our prisoner. You are not obligated to stay; even if you had wished to return to the Brotherhood, that is hardly something we could tell you not to do."

Rogue looked at the Professor. Not just glanced, but really looked at him. That was the same thing Logan had said. The night before, she hadn't been quite sure what to think of the statement, but coming from the Professor, it seemed… softer. More passive. And the offhand nature made it sound so natural, as if it really wouldn't be a big deal if she wanted to leave. She was sure the Professor felt her watching him, but he didn't mention it. Besides, they were already coming to a stop.

The doors slid open to reveal a circular room, rather small in comparison the others in the Mansion and really not that much bigger than the room Rogue herself had slept in. It was surrounded by what looked to be control panels instead of walls, above which were windows, and beyond those were… wait, mountains? Rogue walked up to one of the windows and peered out, but this really didn't do anything to explain what it was she was seeing. Yes, there was a forest, and they appeared to be far above the ground. Which didn't really make sense, since Rogue was pretty sure they were underground. And in New York. And this looked way too much like Canada.

"What." It was more of a statement than a question, but when she turned back to the Professor he was smiling.

"We are still underground, Rogue. We are still in the mansion."

"There are trees."

"No there aren't."

Something was very obviously amiss, so she just gave the Professor a flat look.

"It's a hologram," he informed her.

"A hologram?"

"Yes. A projected image. Those trees you are seeing are not real. They are simply appearances. An illusion, if you will."

"A hologram. What, like Star Trek?"

"In a way, I suppose." The Professor wheeled up beside her and gestured downwards, where she caught sight of two brightly-clad X-Men. Then, a second later, she caught sight of two more dashing through the trees.

"What are they doing?"

"Training. From what I understand, they are attempting to claim a flag hidden somewhere in the trees."

"Why?"

"To learn to work in tangent with one another. Teamwork is the backbone of what we do, and the Danger Room is meant as a place of exercise and the advancement of skills."

"Huh." Rogue didn't really have much more to say. She was standing over an underground forest for Chrissake. With holograms and sci-fi nonsense that you only saw on TV. What was she supposed to say to that?

The Professor chuckled, and Rogue wondered if he'd heard her. If he had, he said nothing of it, and instead pulled away from the window.

"I have something else I would like to show you, Rogue," he said. "Though it is elsewhere."

It took a few steps before Rogue was able to tear her eyes away from the window and follow him back to the elevator. The second trip was also awkwardly silent, and after a bit of glancing around Rogue's eyes landed on the control panel.

"Uh, how far down does this place go?" It was as good a conversation starter as any.

"At the moment? No more than six levels, although there are the makings of more that we've simply not found the time to work on yet."

"Wow, that's… that's a lot."

"Indeed," said the Professor proudly. "We have enough space for a great many things, and if we need more than we can built it. Building up has its limits, but the limits of building down are much farther away."

"Yeah."

And again the silence descended, dragging Rogue's eyes this way and that, dragging them anywhere but to the Professor beside her.

The elevator came to a gentle halt.

"Here we are. This way, Rogue."

They emerged into a room rather than a hallway, though there was a door on the far side. The room appeared to be a weird meeting place, with a large oval table in the center surrounded by chairs. Everything was either made of metal or simply gray, aside from the occasional flashing lights of technology and what looked like a shoebox on the table, so the entire thing still looked like a spaceship.

The Professor led her to the table and to the box on top of it. Rogue looked at it curiously; it was square and about the size of a computer, but was otherwise unremarkable.

"What is that?"

"An offer," the Professor replied, pushing the box towards her.

Rogue blinked at him, then at the box and took it gingerly. It had a weight to it, but wasn't overly heavy. Leveling a curious look at Xavier, the young woman put her ear against it and shook it, drawing an amused smile from her chaperone.

It sounded like cloth, but there was something else there, too. Oh, screw it. Rogue tore off the top, and a waterfall of black fabric tumbled into her hands. Rogue put the box back on the table, then gasped when she shook the item out.

It was a uniform. Black spandex, like the other X-Men, but different. There was a dark green chestplate and pads on the shoulders, plastic-like and malleable under her fingers.

"An interesting material, that," the Professor said conversationally. "Touch it gently and it is flexible, but strike it and it becomes hard. I wouldn't recommend testing it out against a bullet, but it will protect you from a great deal of force."

"Me?" Rogue asked dumbly. "You… this––this is an X-Man uniform. Isn't it?"

"Yes, Rogue. And it is yours, if you want it."

"Mine?" She looked back at the uniform. "You… you want me to be an X-Man?"

The Professor folded his hands in his lap and smiled kindly.

"But––but I'm one of the Brotherhood. I can't––I'm not like you. Why?"

"You were one of the Brotherhood," the Professor corrected. "And if you wish to be one again, you are within your rights to leave this place and return to them. But you are welcome here. This is an offer, Rogue. You are not obligated to wear that uniform."

"No! No, I––I want to. If it's okay, I mean––I'd like to. Wear it. Be here."

His smile didn't change, but he nodded. "That is indeed good to hear. I hope…" He paused, then dipped his head apologetically. "One moment, please."

Rogue watched as he closed his eyes and steepled his fingers. A moment passed, and then his eyes were open and his hands were back in his lap.

"The others are finished," he informed her. "Would you like to join us for breakfast?"

"I––uh, yes sir."

The Professor actually laughed. "There is no need for formalities, Rogue," he said, wheeling back towards the elevator. "You do not need to use such an honorific."

She grabbed the torn box and hurried after him, trying to somehow get the uniform back inside. It didn't work, and the Professor had been right about the chestplate; it kept getting tougher whenever she tried to manipulate it, and by the time the elevators closed she had given up, simply folded the thing and put it on top of the box.

"We prefer to think of each other as a family rather than a unit," the Professor continued. "Yes, we train to work as a team, but learning to live with each other outside of the Danger Room is just as important. We want to be your friends, Rogue. All of us."

Friends. The word sent a thrill down her spine. Friends with the X-Men. With Scott Summers. It had been the forbidden fruit ever since she moved to Bayville, a fantasy she'd pushed out of her mind at Mystique's demand. But the reality of it… it felt surreal, riding this elevator in the depths of their stronghold, among them without fear of a fight.

The elevator opened, and the other X-Men were in the space in front of the Danger Room door. Spyke was in a heated discussion with Scott and Logan was scolding Nightcrawler, but Kitty saw their approach and waved to Rogue excitedly. Rogue subconsciously pulled the uniform closer to her chest. Kitty's words from the night before were ringing in her ears, almost blocking out the sound of the Professor calling for attention. The words that just a week ago had seemed silly to think about, almost like a fairytale, now pounded in her thoughts like a drumbeat. Kitty bounced over, saying something about breakfast and looping her arm through one of Rogue's. Scott smiled at her. Kurt bumped into her and apologized quickly. Logan gave her a nod. The ease, the companionship, it was almost dizzying.

You're part of the family now.


edit: I'm sorry, but I think that this is going to be the last chapter after all. I tried to write more, I really did, but I just didn't have any more in me. Not for this one, at least. That doesn't mean I'm not writing, though; I'm in the middle of the first installment of another fic that I hope will be a bit more cheerful than this one, and will definitely be longer, so keep your eye out.