"So, you and Warren?" Rogue asked Jubilee who was sitting next to her up against the dark, oak headboard of her bed. After Rogue had told her friend the truth earlier that day about all that had happened with John, she had stayed with her for the rest of the day. The two of them had lain about on the bed talking about everything and anything, only leaving the bedroom once to wander down to the kitchen and grab armfuls of snacks, sodas and Jubilee's sandwich monstrosity, the ingredients of which made Rogue gag.
The sun had long since set and Rogue was no longer expecting Logan to return, but truthfully it didn't bother her. Jubilee had made it her mission to cheer her up and had succeed wonderfully, she had laughed more throughout the day than she had in the last four months combined, and it felt good. As the hours went by Rogue found herself feeling lighter and happier, the events of the previous night feeling further away with each laugh her friend provide her with.
"He's like a prince from a Disney movie" Jubilee replied, stuffing a worryingly large amount of peanut butter covered popcorn into her mouth, which was at least more appetizing than the peanut butter covered nachos she had been shoving into her mouth earlier, proving Rogue's theory that there really wasn't anything Jubilee wouldn't try with her favourite spread. "He's so bloody charming, he's like that dancing prince from Sleeping Beauty, what was his name again?"
"Prince Philip."
"Yeah that's the one! Warren is just like Prince Philip." It was a miracle that Rogue could understand a word Jubilee was saying with the speed of which she was packing food into her mouth between words.
"So you like him then?"
Jubilee rolled her eyes "No Rogue, I hate the guy who is the living embodiment of the ridiculously high standards Disney gave us for men." She dipped another nacho into the XXL peanut butter jar that was balancing precariously on her lap, making Rogue cringe in disgust.
"I don't think my standards for men came from Disney, I think given my track record they came from those horribly, dramatic Lifetime movies my mother used to watch while she did the ironing." She mumbled back at Jubilee, who snorted in amusement.
"It's not all bad, you dated Bobby and he's Mr All-American boy next door."
"Yeah and look how well that turned out, I just ending up hurting him." Rogue responded, looking down at the messy feast of snacks they had made on her bed, there was a single jalapeno brushing against her thigh which she picked up and quickly bit into, enjoying the instant burst of favour on her tongue.
"Oh Rogue enough, I get you did a pretty shitting thing and you feel bad, but it was months ago and Bobby is fine. Really he is, I personally think he has a bit of a thing for Kitty now anyway, not that it will do him much good what with her date with Peter going so well last night." Jubilee snapped at her.
"He's only fine because he doesn't know what I did, if he knew he'd hate me!"
"Yeah probably. But that doesn't mean he wouldn't be okay, it just means that the two of you wouldn't still be friends, but that would be his choice. Just as it was yours not to tell him"
"Do you think I'm wrong not to tell him?" Rogue asked, her voice wavering with uncertainty.
Jubilee stopped eating, her own doubt clouded her features. She pressed down on the nacho she held between her forefinger and thumb until it cracked. "I don't know, I get what you're saying about it only hurting him at this point, you're not together, you and John aren't together, and John's gone. But I can't say if it's the right thing to do because I just don't know."
Rogue sighed heavily "Me neither."
…...
Rogue woke with a sharp gasp, her chest rising and falling in a heavy pant, it almost burnt as the short bursts of air surged down to the bottom of her lungs. She swallowed down a painful lump in her throat, her tongue darting out to dampen her dry lips. The darkness of her bedroom a stark contrast to the bright flames of her dream, hot tears began to race down her flushed cheeks, a broken sob ripped itself from her throat.
It was the same dream as always that haunted her every night, screaming mutants, furious infernos and Pyro standing in the centre of it all with crazed eyes. It got worse each night, the screams grew louder and the fire fiercer until she could feel the flames eagerly lapping at her skin, scorching hot and excruciatingly painful and all the while Pyro smirks at her, his eyes lit with lust as he watches the fire devour her.
Sitting up Rogue reached over with trembling fingers and switched her lamp on, her eyes blinked rapidly to adjust as the room lit up slightly, the glow of the lamp casted shadows in all corners of the room.
I'm scared of him
The thought was jarring and unwelcomed but utterly true she realized. She was scared of him, it would be easy to say she was just scared of that side of him Magneto's angry pyromaniac, as though it wasn't the same person. But it was John Allerdyce, the boy who would teased her and cause butterflies to erupt in the stomach, who was now burning down buildings with innocent people inside. John is Pyro, simple as that, and while she didn't want to accept it, that didn't make it any less true.
Rogue sluggishly climbed out of her bed, dragging her feet along the carpet as she wandered towards the windows, she desperately needed fresh air to clear away the nightmare from her head. She pulled the thick drapes open and awkwardly fumbled with the window's latch until it jerked open with a groan. The cool night air hit Rogue's face immediately and she closed her eyes in appreciation, sucking in deep breaths until she felt something near calm.
The mansion's gardens were beautiful at night, they took on a serenity that could never be found during the day, not with the loud bustle of students flooding the greenery. Rogue's eyes slowly opened and she peered out into the mansion's surrounding grounds, taking comfort in the still presence of her home, until she saw it.
Out of the corner of her eye, the refection of someone stood behind her in the window. Her breath caught in her throat, her eyes widening as her entire body went rigid. Fear travelled up her spine like sharp ice prickles, making goosebumps erupt all along her skin. Rogue opened her mouth to scream as the figure moved quickly towards her, the cry barely made its way past her lips before a large, thick arm circled around her waist and a large black gloved hand covered her mouth, muffling the rest of the scream. She struggled desperately against the figure's hold, kicking her legs out and thrashing violently around, looking for a way to break his grip on her.
Rogue's eyes widened when she felt a sudden sharp sting in her upper arm, reminiscent of the shots she had as a child, only far more brutal. Within moments her limps began to feel heavier, her struggle ceased and her eyes began to droop. A moment later the world went black.
…...
The short, frighten scream echoed throughout the halls of Xavier's mansion, jolting Logan from his fitful sleep. He shot out of his bed, tossing the sweat covered sheets away from his body. He didn't need to wonder where the noise had come from, he knew that scream, he would know it anywhere, God knows he had heard it enough times to know it by heart. That kid had a serious talent for getting herself into life threatening situations.
Logan ripped open his door and raced down the empty hallway, barely wincing at all as his claws slipped out from between his bruised knuckles with a satisfying snikt.
When he reached her bedroom door he wasted no time to see if it was locked and broke it open with one firm kick, wood splintering and he charged through. The moment Logan entered the sharp smell of Ketamine invaded his nostrils making him cringe.
"Rogue?!" He called out frantically, his hazel eyes rapidly searching the room for clues as to what happened, seeing nothing but the open windows.
"Kid?!"
"Logan?" Came Storm's panicked voice from behind him "Logan what's happened? What's going on?"
Logan didn't answer her though he just sunk to his knee in front of the window.
…...
It seemed as though it had been a lifetime since the three of them had just hung out together. Though the was no way it could have been, they hung out every day, they must had done so yesterday, but for the life of her, she couldn't remember if they had, it didn't feel like it. The whole atmosphere was steeped in a strange nostalgia and longing.
They were lounging about in the rec room, Rogue was sat comfortably on the sofa next to Bobby with her legs thrown up over his lap as he sipped on a soda and John was stood opposite them, leaning against the pool table, flicking his lighter open and shut. The clicking sound it made, that she had found so annoying when she first met him, she now found comforting.
"I've missed this." She said softly, suddenly certain that it had been a lifetime ago that the three of them had been together.
Bobby laughed, the sound was harsh and almost cruel, it was so unlike anything she had ever heard come from Bobby's mouth before.
"You did this." He stated "It can never be like this again, and it's because of you"
Rogue nearly flinched at the bite in his voice, her eyes flickering over to John, who smirked at her as he began to manipulate the flame his lighter produced.
"I never meant for any of this to happen" she whispered, a pain was spreading in her chest that felt familiar despite its suddenness.
"It's not all her fault" John said to Bobby as the flame between his hands grew larger.
"No I suppose not, I always knew you would leave one day. Do something stupid."
Rogue glanced between them as they stared emotionlessly at one another.
"It's time to wake up." Bobby spoke evenly, not taking his eyes off of his former best friend.
She frowned confused "What?"
John tore his eyes from Bobby and stared down at her "Rogue you need to wake up now"
She opened her mouth to speak but the sound turned into a cry as John launched the ball of fire he had been playing with at her.
Rogue groaned loudly as her eyes struggled to open, once she finally managed to blink away the fogginess from her glaze she immediately wished to close them again.
