The next morning, she woke up.
Considering the fact that she thought she was going to be dead, being able to open her eyes to the weak filter of sunlight brought her a level of comfort she couldn't describe.
Gambit had kept his promise.
She wasn't sure what the feeling was that was growing inside her but she immediately squished it. There was no use in getting attached to someone when she was going to die in the end anyways.
She got up, choosing to ignore the solitary chair set up next to the bed and instead made her way over to the bathroom.
She grimaced when she saw her reflection in the mirror, wondering if there was some way to try and hide the dark circles and mask the puffiness she was sure the others would notice.
She let out a small sigh, turning on the faucet to splash cold water on her face. After she dried off with a towel, she went on a hunt through the cupboards, trying to find makeup to fix the mess the crying had created. She found what she deemed a sad excuse for concealer underneath a pull out drawer. She shrugged, figuring it was a better option than any other ones that presented themselves at that moment.
When she was done and satisfied with the result, she let out another sigh and squared her shoulders.
It was time to face them.
She mentally prepared herself for the fight she knew would ensue as she made her way down the stairs.
The first thing that hit her was the smell of bacon.
The second thing was that for the first time since she'd been here, the house was blissfully quiet.
She reached the end of the staircase and stood there confused, not entirely sure what she was looking at.
The living room, usually filled with the noise blaring from the TV and constant chatter, was empty. Where she expected the rest of the Sins, there was only silence.
She heard whistling coming from the kitchen and curiously cocked her head to the side to try and catch the tune. She smiled despite herself at the choppy version of Twinkle Little Star and made her way over to the swinging door.
Pushing it slightly open, she peeked through and saw Gambit at the stove, whistling away as something sizzled deliciously in the pan.
She stepped farther in, choosing to lean against the doorjamb when he made no indication of his knowledge of her presence.
After a few moments, she concluded that he couldn't cook to save his life. Oil squirted everywhere and every so often the tune of Twinkle Little Star was broken by a curse word or two.
She let him burn himself one more time before she spoke, interrupting his song.
"How can you not know how to cook bacon?"
The tongs clattered as Gambit jumped before turning around to face her with a shrewd look.
"Do you always sneak up on people, Cherie?" he asked, bending to pick up the tongs from the ground before running them under cool water to clean them.
"Only when they're as clueless as you are." She replied, unfolding her arms before walking over to where he stood. She grabbed the tongs out of his hands before she turned towards the stove. Reaching out, she lowered the temperature and watched with satisfaction as the bacon cooked instead of burned.
Gambit had moved away behind her, grabbing a stool at the side table before settling comfortably in to watch her cook.
After a few moments of silence broken only by the pop of the cooking bacon, she said, "Thanks."
He didn't need to ask her to what she was referring to, already aware that she was showing her gratitude for still being alive.
He just shrugged before saying, "I told you you aren't going to die. The Superiors would be stupid to let you go."
She nodded, accepting the truth. She finished cooking the bacon and was already cracking open an egg before she asked, "Where is everyone?"
Gambit reached over, grabbing a piece of bacon and biting it before he answered her.
"Day off today. They're just running around now."
"And you?" she asked, flipping an egg over before glancing over at him. He shrugged, waving the piece of bacon in the air before answering, "I felt like staying in today. You understand."
She nodded, because she understood the need for privacy. She seasoned the eggs, flipping them over one more time before she lowered down the heat.
"So, how did you get so bad at cooking?"
He grinned. "Let's just say my mother's southern skills weren't picked up by me."
She grinned back. "You should learn how. It's an important skill."
She glanced up, expecting a witty retort, but found him staring at her curiously. When he continued to stare at her with that red gaze of his after a quiet minute, her smile faltered.
"Don't do that." He said softly.
This time, a look of confusion came onto her face. "Do what?" she asked, turning off the stove as she slid the eggs onto a plate.
"Don't stop smiling. It was a nice sight."
She chuckled uncomfortably, sliding the plate over to him and said simply, "eat."
He chose to ignore dismissal of his wish, deciding instead to not push the subject. It was nice seeing her smile at least once. Some people knew when to fold a losing hand, and this hand was already played out as much as he could get from it.
He scooped up a bite of egg and raised an eyebrow at the sheer deliciousness of the breakfast she had provided.
"Where'd you learn how to cook?" He asked, scooping up another bite.
"Mostly the mansion. I cook all the time with Warren…" she let the sentence trail off as she caught herself not using the past tense term. She chastised herself silently, almost wishing she would be more careful. "I used to cook with a friend all the time." She remedied.
"This Warren guy, he is important to you?"
"Was important to me." She brought attention to the past tense terminology once more.
"Not anymore though?" Gambit pressed. She shrugged, piling the pots she had used to cook in into the sink and turning on the faucet.
"Was that supposed to be an answer?"
"That was supposed to be a 'drop the subject'." She told him, a hint of finality in her voice.
"Why? Why not talk about him?" Gambit asked, deciding that this would be the time to push.
She slammed her hands on the counter, rattling the dishes in the sink, before staring at him with eyes as sharp as knives. "Why do you care about how I felt about Warren?"
"Remy just wanna know if you still have feelings for him."
"Why does it matter? It's not like it makes a difference to me and my situation right now."
"Remy would just like to see how much competition I have."
She snorted, relaxing visibly before she backed away to lean against the opposite counter. She crossed her arms, a reflex she developed as a way to guard herself, before she said with a very terse tone.
"Don't waste your breath or your time Gambit. I told you, I have no interest in a 'boyfriend'."
They stared at each other for a long time, the silence only broken when the front door opened with a loud bang. There was shouting from one of the Sins for everyone to gather into the living room. Gambit glanced past her at the kitchen door before he stood up from the chair, bringing the empty plates to the sink. He placed the dishes in and then turned to face her. He leaned in, and with an arrogance only brought on from being raised it the south, he said confidently, "Remy always liked a challenge," before sauntering out.
She rolled her eyes, flicking a finger towards his retreating back before following him.
Sunfire was in the middle of the living room, a small bag in one hand and what looked like a radio in the other. He was shouting into the radio, some foreign language that she couldn't understand.
"What's going on with you two?" Kestral asked her as she walked out of the kitchen. "Nothing, what's going on with Sunfire?" she rebutted, walking over to sit next to Kestral on the couch. She pointedly ignored Gambit when he made a sound and instead glanced over at the other Sins.
"Apocalypse was spotted. Sunfire is talking to a contact right now to try and pinpoint his exact location."
Every fiber in her body turned on edge. "Apocalypse?" she asked and Cable nodded for confirmation.
"When?"
"A couple of minutes ago. The Superiors sent us a signal and right away Sunfire got a call."
"What's the gameplan?"
"Do we need one?" Dazzler asked, reaching inside the closet for something.
"For Apocalypse? Yeah, we do." Rogue answered just as smartly as the question was asked. That only got her a side glance from Dazzler before she pulled out seven bags from the closet. She threw a bag at each of the Sins.
Rogue caught hers with a confused look, turning towards Kestral for an answer. "Just wait for it." He whispered to her.
She opened her bag hesitantly and her confusion only deepened when she pulled out a blonde wig and a black suit.
Sunfire clicked his phone shut, throwing it onto the table with a loud clatter as he caught his own bag from Dazzler
Each of them pulled out a black suit almost similar to the ones the X-Men used.
"Am I missing something?" She asked aloud, raising the wig and her own suit.
Sunfire let out a sigh of exasperation.
"It's our cover genius. Being who we are and where we're from, we can't be seen and recognized." He opened the bag in his other hand, rifled through it and threw each of them a package.
She caught hers easily, opening it to reveal a purple mask.
"Masks?"
"How we cover our faces." Dazzler explained as if she was talking to a child.
"How come I am the only one with a wig?" she asked and held back the urge to roll her eyes when Gambit replied, "Because blonde would look oh so tragic on dear Remy."
"You're hair is too recognizable. Sorry Rogue, but you have to put that on every time you go outside." Polaris said softly, a look of sympathy on her face. Rogue looked around at the other's suits and masks.
"Do the colors mean something?" she asked, raising Kestral's light blue mask for emphasis.
"We're the Seven Sins. Each one represents our fatal flaw. We thought it would be a good way to make out mark." Sunfire answered, putting on his own red mask.
"Red for Anger." He explained, with what she noted was a tone tinged with bitterness.
"Light Blue for Sloth." Kestral said with a lopsided grin, taking his mask back from her and putting it on.
"Green for Envy. But it's also my favorite color." Dazzler said, tying up her long hair in a ponytail before tying her own mask into place.
Polaris placed her own mask onto her face before she explained her color, "Yellow. For Greed. If wanting a better future counts as Greed."
"Orange for Gluttony." Cable said simply, opening his own box and flipping it to drop the mask out onto his palm with a look of what she could only describe as absolute pride.
"Pink for lust." Gambit said disdainfully, and she could only imagine why he didn't agree.
"And last but not least…" Sunfire trailed off, waiting for her to finish the sentence.
She pulled the mask out of the box, fingering the intricate designs of her own mark of power.
"Purple. For Pride."
Hey guys! So, not to make excuses but I really am so sorry for the large hiatus I took. When they say college is busy...BELIEVE THEM.
But I am back at it! I decided to show a little preview of the next chapter in each of my updates, so, enjoy!
Preview:
"You remind me of someone I used to know." Warren said softly, not taking his blue gaze off of her.
Behind her mask, her face paled. She curled her fingers, trying to hide her shaking fear of her sudden termination.
But it wasn't just fear.
There was hope.
Hope that maybe finally…finally she might be able to hold him one more time.
Not as Pride.
But as Rogue.
She let out a laugh she hoped sounded natural and nonchalant.
"I get that a lot," she began, "I guess I just have one of those faces." She finished smoothly, hoping he would just let it go.
Praying that he would push.
"That would be perfectly fine, except I haven't seen you face." He said just as smoothly, his hand reaching for her mask.