Chapter Eleven
Their room was next to Storms and quite frankly, beautiful. Thanks to living with Remy for a year, Rogue was used to this kind of luxury these days but when she had first left Hydra, she would have thought this was a palace and she could still recognise how lovely it was.
"Dinner is in fifteen minutes," Storm said. "I wouldn't be too late or Kurt won't leave you anything." She had pointed out the dining room on their way up.
Once the door closed they put their backpacks down and collapsed on the bed, facing each other.
"You feeling okay, chère?" he asked. He had noticed how tired the professor and Jean had looked once they were finished.
"I'm a little tired," she said, "but honestly, I feel invigorated! I never realised how much noise there is in my head, until the professor started locking psychics away. He started with the loudest, so my head feels real quiet now."
"You didn't lock me away, I hope," he teased. "Although maybe mini-me would like a little bondage," he waggled his eyebrows suggestively and Rogue laughed.
"No. Actually I told the professor that you aren't to be locked away like the others."
That surprised him. "Really? You know, if mini-me is causing problems, you won't offend me."
"Mini-Remy is actually the only person that I like having up there. You're the only one who ever wanted to be absorbed, so your psyche is actually good company."
Remy smiled. "I'm glad to hear that, chère, but if that changes, believe me, I won't be upset."
"Thank you," she said, though she had no intention of ever locking him away.
"So what do you think of this place so far?"
"I like them. I mean we haven't met most of them, but the ones we have have been nice. I think we should give them a chance at least. Hopefully together we can figure out what this En Sabah Nur wants with me."
Remy nodded his agreement.
"So how do you and Storm know each other?"
"That's a long story but the short version is, I met her about 6 years ago, after she'd been de-aged by a mutant and forced to steal for him. I wound up in Cairo, Illinois for a job, where she was. I was 14, she had been reduced to about 11 years old. I saw her picking pockets, like you, and tried to befriend her. The guild had taken me in and Storm showed promise too, so I hopped they might take her in as well. Anyway, once she trusted me, she told me about the Shadow King, the mutant who was controlling her. He had made her younger so that she was easier to control.
"Eventually she stood up to him and defeated him, then I took her home with me, where my Tante Mattie created a potion to undo the magic the Shadow king had done. When she was back to normal, she left. I had no idea she'd ended up here."
Rogue smiled, liking these people a little bit more now that she knew they weren't all squeaky clean.
"I supposed we should head down to dinner if we want to actually eat anything," she said, sitting up. "This Kurt sounds like he's got The Blob's appetite."
As Rogue entered the dining room she spotted a blue figure with yellow eyes and she froze. Had the X-men betrayed her to Mystique?
The room fell silent as they noticed the newcomers and finally the blue mutant turned to face them.
"Oh, hello. I am Kurt, also known as Nightcrawler." He thrust his hand out to the pair.
Rogue relaxed when she heard his voice but the tension didn't completely leave her. Remy was about to reply and introduce them when Rogue cut him off.
"What's your power?" she demanded.
"I teleport," he grinned, not taking offence at her question. "Want me to show you?"
Rogue nodded. Mystique might be able to look like any of the students, but she couldn't replicate their powers. Suddenly Kurt vanished in a puff of smile, then reappeared closer to the table.
"See!" He grinned.
Just then the Feral man from earlier came in and waved a hand in front of his nose at the sulphuric scent in the air.
"Damn it, elf, I told you not to teleport in the dining hall."
"Sorry, Logan, I was just saying hello to our new visitors."
Kurt walked back over to them and guided them into the room, introducing people as they passed them. He pointed out Wolverine/Logan, Beast/Hank, Cyclops/Scott, Shadowcat/Kitty, Iceman/Bobby, Cannonball/Sam, Magma/Amara, Jubilee/Jubilation Lee, Wolfsbane/Rahne, Multiple/Jamie, Berzerker/Ray and Sunspot/Roberto.
Most people were friendly and said Hello in reply, some seemed a bit shy and just smiled, while Logan just grunted, and it didn't sound like a happy grunt. Then again, Remy had the impression that Logan's face might crack if he ever smiled, so maybe he wasn't actually being rude.
As soon as they were sat at the table, Kitty took over from Kurt, explaining all about the mansion and it's inhabitance. She talked incessantly while they ate but Rogue was actually grateful for that fact, since it saved her the trouble of being sociable. It wasn't that she wanted to be unfriendly, but she just wasn't used to mixing with others, and certainly never in a large group like this. When the professor came in to take his seat, he smiled warmly at them, pleased that they were integrating with the group.
The food, pasta, meatballs, salad and garlic bread, was served in large bowls that were handed around, making it a bit of a free for all. Storm hadn't been kidding about Kurt, who easily took the largest portion of anyone at the table,
"Don't mind him, he always eats like that," Kitty said. "I don't know how but he never puts on weight. I'm like, so jealous. I wish I could eat whatever I wanted."
When dinner was finished, everyone went their separate ways, but of course Kurt and Kitty teamed up to show Rogue and Remy around the mansion. Conversation was mainly between the two of them and only one or two word answers were occasionally required of Rogue and Remy. By the time the ended the tour in the rec room, Rogue was feeling tired and so they thanked their guides and headed to bed.
The professor caught them on their way, which is to say he telepathically asked them to come to his office. Remy found it weird to have someone in his head and said as much to Rogue, but she was used to hearing voices so she wasn't too bothered by it. She might have been upset at the invasion of privacy, but the professor and Jean must have seen the awful things she had done in her head earlier, and they hadn't kicked her out yet, so she was hopeful that they could accept that she had done awful things but wasn't actually a bad person.
At least, she hoped she wasn't a bad person. She supposed stealing wasn't exactly a virtuous living, but it wasn't like they stole from kids, or the poor, or from charities. Besides, she hadn't exactly been equipped to get a mainstream job, she hadn't attended school since she was 13 and obviously, didn't even have a GED.
The professor smiled as they entered. Logan and Storm were also in the room but it was the professor who did all the talking.
"I hope your room is satisfactory?" he asked.
"It's lovely," Rogue answered.
"Good. As much as I would like to discuss the memories you took from Mystique, we have all had a long day, so I suggest we meet tomorrow morning at 10am. Does that suit you?"
"That should be fine," Remy answered. Rogue just nodded.
"Good. Now, I don't wish to alarm you or make you feel trapped in any way, but I would like to suggest that you both, but especially Rogue, remain in the mansion grounds for the foreseeable future. It seems that Mystique does need you for whatever she is planning, and you will be safest here."
"You mean I'm a prisoner here?" she sounded angry and defensive.
"No, no, you are free to leave at any time, I merely want to keep you safe. If you wish to go out, I'm sure we can arrange for a few others to accompany you, just in case Mystique tries anything. I have little doubt that it won't be long before she discovers that you are here."
Rogue didn't answer. He was right but it still reminded her of being Hydra's prisoner.
"Anyway, please think it over, it is only a suggestion."
With that, they said goodnight and headed to bed.
Rogue's sleep was plagued with nightmares again and both she and Remy looked tired the next morning.
They both took long showers, then as they still had some time before the meeting, Remy turned the power inhibitor on so that Rogue could practice.
Her white hot anger at Mystique had allowed her to overcome the dampening field and use her powers on Mystique. Ever since then, Rogue had simply tapped into that endless pool of hatred and anger while she practised, and she was almost as good as Remy at using her powers now.
With the days practice done, they headed down to the professors office. As well as the adults, today there was also Jean, Scott, Kitty and Kurt present. Unfortunately it seemed that the X-Men knew little more about Apocalypse than Rogue and Remy did, but Hank was optimistic that now they had a name, En Sabah Nur, he might be able to uncover something new.
Rogue had decided to take the professor up on his suggestion and promised that she wouldn't leave the mansion alone, at least for a while.
The professor then offered Rogue and Remy a chance to train with the team in what he called the Danger Room. Since they sparred with each other daily, they had no problems training with someone new and besides, they might learn something. At the very least, they could practice their skills against new opponents.
With that decided, the others left while Remy, Rogue, Jean and the Professor remained to try and look through the memories that Rogue had stolen from Mystique.
That night, Rogue's dreams were as bad as the previous night but this time she saw more. Last night she had just been running from something but tonight, she saw who she was running from and realised why she was running. When she woke up in a cold sweat, Remy was already awake, having been trying to sooth her.
"I need to see the professor," she said.
"Rogue, it's 1 o'clock in the morning."
"I have to see him!" she insisted.
Remy didn't reply but left the room to see if he could find someone who knew where Xavier slept.
"Can I help you, bub?"
Remy turned back around to see the feral man, Logan, standing in his bedroom door. Even though Remy was naturally quiet, he must still have woken this man up.
"Sorry to wake you, but Rogue needs to see the professor. She says it's urgent."
Logan looked Remy up and down, sniffed twice, then nodded. "Meet us in the kitchen in ten minutes."
Remy nodded and returned to Rogue as Logan headed off down the hallway.
"I understand that nightmares can be frightening, Rogue, but I doubt what you dreamed was real."
"No, you don't understand, professor. My nightmares aren't really nightmares at all, they're bad memories of people I've absorbed in the past. They are real, even they if they aren't my memories."
Xavier nodded, accepting this explanation. "Then tell me what you saw?"
"It was Mystiques dream, her memory. First she was in some kind of lab, the kind that wouldn't look out of place in a Frankenstein movie. There's a boy being experimented on, well, more a baby. I couldn't see him but I could hear his cries. Next thing I know, we're running, being chased, and I throw the baby off a bridge into the river below."
Logan sat forward during the explanation, not liking where this was heading. "Do you know who the baby was?"
Rogue shrugged. "I can't say for sure, but... well he was blue, with yellow eyes and... he had a tail."
"Kurt," Logan barked.
Rogue nodded. "I think he may be Mystique's son."
"He was adopted," the professor said. "Found abandoned at the side of a river. If what you say is true, we are lucky he survived at all."
Rogue had her arms wrapped around herself, as if she was cold, so Remy got up and began to heat a pan of milk for hot chocolate.
"He deserves to know, Chuck." Logan said.
"I don't disagree, but finding out something like this could be devastating for him."
Rogue simply nodded. She liked Kurt, but she didn't know him well enough to have any kind of say over what to do with this information.
"Maybe," Logan agreed, "but of you're looking for a bright side, he'll also learn that he has a sister."
Rogue frowned. "Who- You mean ME?" it suddenly hit her. "We aren't related, just because that witch adopted me doesn't make her my mother!"
"And just because she gave birth to the elf, doest make her his mother, you at least have that in common."
"I- I-." She didn't know how she felt about that. Legally Logan was right, as Mystiques adopted daughter, she was Kurt's sister, but she didn't know how to be a sister. The only family she had ever known were Mystique and Irene, and that wasn't exactly a functional family.
Just then, Remy placed a mug of hot chocolate in front of her and she smiled gratefully at him as he sat back down beside her. Logan watched them closely, much as he had been doing since they arrived.
"It's late, we're all tired, maybe we should discuss this again in the morning," Remy suggested.
"Good idea," the professor agreed. He and Logan then headed back to bed, while Rogue and Remy remained in the kitchen until she had finished her chocolate. They didn't talk.
Remy didn't know what it was like to suddenly discover that you had a brother, but he did know what it was like to suddenly get a family. It had taken him months to adjust to his adopted father and brother, and even if he had wanted to, he doubted he could have put his feelings into words, which is why he didn't pressure Rogue. If she wanted to talk, he would listen but in the mean time, he would just be here for her, a silent comfort.