Chapter 8
Shortly after Logan and Fury left and Annalisa went back to bed (with Felix watching over her, much to her discomfiture), Marcus returned from his hunt.
"There you are, brother" Aro greeted him "Come, there is something we must discuss"
"I assume I missed something" Marcus responded
"Indeed you did" Aro replied and then told Marcus about Logan and Fury
"Why didn't you just kill them and be done with it" Marcus asked, with a long suffering sigh
"Because Fury is the head of S.H.I.E.L.D. if something happens to him, there are going to be a lot of questions." Aro answered
"S.H.I.E.L.D.?" Marcus repeated
"Yes, the USA's super secret intelligence agency" Aro explained
"Hmm," Marcus thought for a moment and then said "perhaps we can just let him assume that we're mutants."
Aro nodded, this seemed like the most likely course of action, but in his mind there was one problem
"We can't let them take Annalisa" Aro said
"Brother, you can't keep her imprisoned here; she's a grown woman now." Marcus responded
"I lost her once Marcus, I won't lose her again!" Aro shouted
"Will you really be losing her? You have a cell phone and we have the internet, you'll be able to stay in contact." Marcus pointed out but Aro shook his head
"It is not the same" he protested Marcus rolled his eyes as if to say 'whatever'. For a moment neither of them spoke and then Marcus asked
"Where's Caius, have you told him about this yet?"
"No, he and his mate are not to be disturbed" Aro answered
"Well, you should probably disturb him before Logan and Fury return in the morning, or he'll go ballistic" Marcus replied
"I know" Aro responded in a tired voice
Meanwhile
Fury was busy giving orders to his lackeys to station themselves around the perimeter while Logan was trying to talk himself out of going back and dragging Stripes out of there.
"Logan" Fury said, pulling Logan out of thoughts "Don't do it."
"Why not?" Logan demanded
"You'll be vastly outnumbered" Fury pointed out but Logan cut him off
"Yeah, what else is new?"
"Facing several mutants with unknown capabilities" Fury said but again Logan interrupted him
"They ain't mutants" he protested. Fury hadn't thought so but he wanted Logan's opinion, after all Logan was more familiar with mutants then he was.
"What makes you so sure?" Fury asked
"They all had the same pale skin, the same red eyes and sickeningly sweet scent; ya don't see that with mutants. Each mutation is like a fingerprint, unique to each individual. I don't know what they are, but they ain't mutants."
"Sickeningly sweet scent?" Fury asked, he had noticed the skin and eyes but the scent surprised
"Yeah, it was really bad…I almost couldn't get Stripes scent, it was really something" Logan answered
"If that's true, that's another reason why you shouldn't do it. If you can't track her, you'll be putting her in danger."
"I didn't say I couldn't track her!" Logan argued
"Do you want to take that risk? If this really is a hostage situation the moment they find out that their stronghold has been infiltrated the first thing they'll do is go after Rogue."
"I know that" Logan growled
"Then you should also know that if they get to her before you do; they'll threaten to hurt her unless you do what they want"
Logan glared at Fury, yet again
"And if it's not a hostage situation there is no reason it can't wait until morning when we know exactly where she'll be." Fury added
Logan's glare intensified, if possible but he didn't reply verbally because he knew that Fury was right but he didn't want to admit it.
Fury let Logan stew for a bit and then said "Come on Logan, if we do wind up having to fight our way out of here, we'll want to be well rested."
"Fine" Logan replied gruffly. While Logan sulked, not that he would admit to it, but if you asked Fury, Logan was sulking. Fury was trying to figure out a way to ascertain who or what these strange people were and more importantly if they were a threat to America's national security
Later
Early the next morning just before dawn, Caius came down from his chambers
"There you are Caius; we were just about to come fetch you." Aro greeted him
"Why, has something else gone wrong?" Caius asked
"Not yet but it could' Aro replied and then filled Caius in, on the previous nights events
"They're WHAT?" Caius shouted
"Caius calm down" began Marcus
"DON'T TELL ME TO CALM DOWN!" Caius yelled back "WHAT KIND OF MESS HAVE YOU GOTTEN US INTO?"
"Relax brother; it's not as bad as that. When they come, Annalisa will simply tell them, that she's staying here and that will be the end of it." Aro said
"What if she decides that she wants to go with them?" Marcus asked
"She won't" Aro replied
"How can you be so sure?" Caius asked suspiciously
"I have my ways" Aro responded. In truth, he did have a plan in place for such a scenario, one he hoped he wouldn't have to resort to.
Then Rogue and Felix came down the stairs and into the courtyard
"Good morning, Annalisa, did you sleep well?" Aro greeted her
"Yeah, how about ya'll?" In actuality, Rogue hadn't slept much at all, she was trying to figure out what she was going to do when Logan and Fury showed up but she wasn't about to admit to that
"Actually, Annalisa, we cannot sleep" Aro answered
"Really? Not at all?" Rogue asked and the vampires shook their heads
Before Rogue could reply, Santiago entered the courtyard
"Masters, our guests have arrived" he said
"Very Well" Aro replied "show them in"
Santiago nodded and left to go get them
About five minutes after that, Santiago re-entered the room, along with Fury and Logan
"You're early" Aro said
"I said we'd be here first thing in the morning, it's dawn, so it's first thing in the morning" Logan responded. True enough the sun had just begun to rise
"Barely" Caius replied.
Logan ignored him "Come on Stripes, let's get of here."
"She's not going on anywhere!" Aro yelled
"You have no right to keep her here!" Logan shouted back and unsheathing his claws
"I have more rights to her than you do; I'm her father!" Aro yelled even louder than before
"You really expect me to buy that bub?" Logan responded with a look that said, how stupid do you think I am?
"It's true, Logan" Rogue replied
"Look Stripes, I don't know what this guy has been-"Logan began but Rogue cut him off
"Aro didn't tell meh anything, ah've known since the first time I absorbed Mystique" she paused for a moment and then when no one spoke, she continued "Ah was born here, in Voltera, meh mom died in childbirth and then a couple of days after that, Mystique snuck in here and kidnapped meh, so she could use meh in her plans."
Logan didn't like this turn of events, the scenario sounded plausible, he wouldn't put anything past Mystique but there was one problem "If you've known for all this time, how come ya never said anything?"
Rogue hesitated…"I was…nervous, ah guess, ah didn't know what to expect"
"Ya still could have said something" Logan replied "If it bothered ya that much; I would have come with ya"
Rogue smiled at that "Ah appreciate that Logan, but ah also wasn't certain if I could convince Aro that ah wasn't lying to him" she said
"I'll buy that last one" Logan replied for a moment no one spoke then Logan said "I still think you should head back to institute. The others have been worried and it is the best place for ya"
"Oh, really?" Aro argued, unwilling and unable to contain himself any longer "I highly doubt that, most of the people in the area are afraid to go anywhere near her, they're probably happy that she's not there anymore. Besides, she has been there for two years and she's no closer to getting control of her powers that she was when they first showed up. Admit it, Logan and the X-men you don't care about Annalisa, you just want to use her as soldier in your little war with Magneto!" by the end, Aro was shouting again
"Don't you dare tell me I don't care about her!" Logan growled back, having correctly assumed that Annalisa was Rogue's birth name and he took a step forward
"Stop it both of you!" Rogue shouted "Look ya'll ah've been thinking about this all night and ah've made mah decision"
Both Logan and Aro turned to look at her. Rogue took a breath and then said "Ah'm sorry Logan, but ah wanna stay in Voltera"
"What" Logan replied unwilling to believe that he had heard what he thought he had
"Ah don't wanna go back to Bayville Logan. Ah mean things aren't perfect here in Voltera, like ah don't like having to wear clown clothes" she said gesturing to green outfit she was wearing that Sophia had picked out
"They're not clown clothes" Sophia interjected "They're the latest fashion; the best Europe has to offer"
"Wasn't talking to ya, by the way, ah still ticked at ya for goin behind mah back and buying more dang clothes" Rouge replied
"It's not my fault, you didn't get a reasonable number of clothes the first time, I mean four outfits, that's not even enough for every day of the week. If you had just listened to me in the first place, I wouldn't have had to do that" Sophia countered
"Ya still didn't have to buy the whole damn store" Rogue protested
"Oh, please" Sophia scoffed "I didn't buy the whole store…only most of it"
"Ladies, can we please focus on the matter at hand here?" Fury asked having gotten bored with all this nonprofit able clothes talk
"Right, even though life in Voltera ain't perfect, it's better than at the institute…honestly, ah was kinda considering leavin' before this" Rogue confessed
"Why Stripes?" Logan asked
"Because Logan, most of the x-men treat me like some sort of human bomb or something, except for ya, Kitty and Kurt, and if ah go back what am ah gonna do, nobody'll hire a mutant, ah got kicked out a community college when they found out ah was a mutant." Rogue had been planning to go to community college for two years and then transfer to a four year school; it was cheaper that way, even though she hadn't yet decided what her major would be. However, once mutants became known college wasn't an option. She wasn't the only one either. Jean had been ecstatic when she got her acceptance letter to Harvard Law School and then crushed when she got another letter saying they were now rejecting her application because she was a mutant. Jean had then reluctantly applied to Bayville community college only to be rejected despite being a straight A student. It was the main reason Jean was now and instructor at the Institute. "I can't just mooch of Professor X for the rest of mah life"
"It ain't gonna be like that forever Stripes" Logan replied "besides you aren't mooching, you're part of the team…but if you don't want to come back, I'm not gonna force ya."
Rogue smiled "thanks, Logan…for everything"
"Yeah, if you change your mind, let me know" Logan said "I'll come and get ya"
Rogue nodded "ah still have mah communicator, so if you guys get in trouble and need meh, just call meh, ah'll be there" she promised
"Ok, we'll keep in touch" Logan responded
"Logan, can you do another small favor" Rogue asked
Logan raised an inquiring eyebrow
"Let Kitty and Kurt know that ah'll ok, will ya?" Rouge elaborated
Logan nodded "Sure thing Stripes. Fury let's go" he said
"Actually Logan" Fury replied glancing at his pager "My office just contacted me, I have important business to take care of in Rome, so I'm afraid you'll have to find your way to New York."
Logan's face remained blank but inwardly he was getting really irritated that nothing was going the way he wanted it to.
"If you like, you can borrow our private jet" Aro offered the whole room turned to look at him "What, I'm a very generous guy" actually he was just very eager to get Logan out of Voltera
"Thanks, I guess" Logan said not really trusting Aro but also not seeing a better option
"Then it's settled good day to you all" Fury replied and left. He felt a bit bad about bailing on Logan like that. In reality, there was no important business in Rome; he just needed an excuse to remain in Italy without arousing any suspicions. He had to figure out, who these people were and what they were after, it was his job as the head of S.H.I.E.L.D. Besides, Logan was a tough guy, he could take care of himself
An: I did not die, but my computer did, it's taken forever to get it fixed but now I can (hopefully) start updating my fics again
