The kid was gone when they went to the infirmary. The Professor had stepped out momentarily to answer a call and apparently, the kid bolted. Jumped right out the window and fled into the woods behind the school. Piotr, Bobby, Kitty and Kurt were sent to look for him while Logan, Warren and Scott stayed to help the Professor with Rogue.
She eyed them warily from the leather couch in the Professor's office. All three men stood stiff and quiet in front of the Professor's desk, waiting for him to return to the room. She had woken up in there and heard the infirmary was busy today. That no one was allowed in. Since X-men rarely got hurt, and she remembered being able to stop the attacks before they had hit the men, the possibility of the infirmary being extremely busy was unlikely.
Suspicious.
She continued staring at them, her hazel eyes never leaving their faces as the men fidgeted. After a long moment of silence, she finally spoke. "What's going on?" Scott let out a strained chuckle. "The infirmary's busy and we wanted the Professor to check on you-" She waved that away and asked again. "What's going on?" Logan let out a sigh and scratched the back of his head. When he remained silent, Rogue raised an eyebrow. "One-eyed's right. We just wanted to have the Professor check on you-" She let out a sigh, cutting him off before she turned away from them.
"Lying to me isn't going to make things easier on you guys." she murmured, staring out the window. It was so much easier to think now. She had won and the other personality seemed to have just disappeared. She could breathe easier and she could feel easier.
She was her own again.
She let out another sigh and turned back towards the men. "So, are you going to tell me, or am I going to have to ask the Professor?" She asked and watched as the 3 men winced. Warren elbowed Logan and Logan elbowed Scott in return. He let out a sigh and she saw his jaw working, clenching and unclenching. "Ask the Professor it is-"
"We think MJ was the reason behind your…episodes." Scott interrupted, waiting for her reaction. She was too tired to have one, so she just kept staring at him. "And?" she asked after a moment. "He's…kinda…sorta…" Scott hesitated. "Escaped." Warren muttered, turning to look anywhere but her. Rogue furrowed her brows. "You think that he's working for Magneto?" she asked. Scott shook his head. "We think he was doing something with his telepathy to throw you off. We're not entirely sure yet, and the Professor wants to speak with him. Kurt, Bobby, Kitty and Piotr are out looking for him. The Professor wanted to see you too, though."
"Then why isn't he here?" She asked and Logan shrugged. "Charles has got a couple things to take care of first."
She nodded and closed her eyes, tired. She heard rustling, and opened her green eyes to watch as Scott came walking over. "We can ask the Professor to do this another time if you're too tired." he whispered as he crouched in front of her, brushing back a white strand. She shook her head. "Might as well get it over with now." She said, yawning. Scott nodded his head but remained crouched in front of her, watching. She smiled and reached over to pat the space next to her. Scott looked down and smiled before standing up to take a seat.
She felt the humming of a headache brewing but was trying to push the pain back as much as possible. She closed her eyes again leaned towards Scott, his shoulder pillowing her head. It was a moment later when they heard the soft, quiet breaths of her sleep.
Scott sat staring at her for a long moment before he spoke. "They didn't find him, did they?"
"No, One-eyed, they didn't."
"So what now?" Scott asked, looking at the men. Logan shrugged. "Whatever the Professor has planned. We don't exactly know what role MJ played in Rogue's 'episodes'. It's not like the kid ever talked the 4 weeks he was here."
"I don't even remember seeing the kid much." Scott murmured, deep in thought. "He stayed in his room most of the time. Only came out every so often." Logan said, walking over to sit on the armrest near Rogue's shoulder. Warren began pacing, his mind working. "Did he ever go to see Rogue?" He asked the other two men and Scott shook his head. "Someone was always with her, and if they had seen MJ doing some funky stuff, they would've told the Professor."
"So, what now? We just wait for the kid to come back and do this to her again?" Warren asked, finally taking a seat in a corner of the room. "We find out exactly what MJ was doing to her." A voice answered from the doorway. All 3 men turned and watched as Charles moved into the room, Ororo ever at his side.
He nodded towards Rogue and said "If she permits me, I would like to riffle through her thoughts."
"Do you think she'll let you? There's a lot going through there right now." Scott said, his eyes never wavering from the Professor. Charles pursed his lips and opened his mouth to speak.
"If it lets him figure out what's wrong with me, I'm ok with it." A small voice said. Scott turned and saw Rogue's hazel eyes watching him sleepily. "Are you sure?" He asked, and she watched as his face changed, going from grim to something lighter, something close to tenderness. She nodded and lifted her head off his shoulder. "I want to know what he did to me too." she murmured, rubbing sleep from her face. The Professor continued deeper into the room, moving until he stopped in front of her. "You are sure?" he asked, and again she nodded. "I want to know."
The Professor nodded slightly and raised his hands. "I want you to clear your mind, Rogue. Clear your mind of everything." She nodded and closed her eyes, listening to Scott's breathing to calm her down. "You're going to feel me pushing and I don't want you to fight me. Just clear your mind and let me through. Just clear your mind." he murmured and after a couple of minutes, she felt it. The pushing and prodding. She tried not to fight it, but it became increasingly worse. Images and memories flashed through her mind, personalities mixing as the Professor continued. She reached out both hands, the pain almost unbearable. One hand wrapped around Scott's while the other hand gripped the armrest of the leather chair.
"What's happening?" Warren asked, jumping off his perch on the other side of the room. He watched as Rogue began wincing, her body shaking violently. The Professor in turn had a sheen of sweat covering his forehead. It had only been a couple of minutes since the Professor started, but already Warren had a bad feeling about this. "What's happening to her?" Warren asked again, moving quickly over to the pair. Logan's arm shot out and stopped him, his voice low when he spoke. "If you do anything to break the connection right now, they both could die."
"How can you say that and sit there and watch them!" Warren shouted, his arm outstretched. Logan glared at him. "You think I want to be just sitting here? Calm down and stop it! She can hear everything you're saying and you're probably scaring her!"
Warren clenched his jaw, wanting to say more but not being able to get words past his lips. Instead, he turned away from the scene, not being able to bear watching her suffer.
Scott's face paled, the slim fingers in his shaking so hard he thought she might snap. Suddenly, Rogue let out a scream. Her eyes shot open, the green luminous before she collapsed over into Scott's lap. Charles let out a grunt and opened his eyes, lowering his shaking hands. "well?" Scott asked, cradling Rogue's head in his lap.
The Professor closed his eyes a moment before he spoke. "I…am not sure. Something is blocking me…and if I were to break the block…Rogue could die."
"then…?" Scott let the question trail off. Charles shook his head. "she's tired, Scott. Bring her to her room and let her sleep. We'll try again another day." he began moving, ending the conversation. Ororo followed him out the room and the door closed with a click, the sound resonating through the quiet room. "That was…weird." Warren murmured before walking over to the pair on the couch. He bent, his hands itching to touch the sleeping mutant. "Something's wrong, One-eyed. The Professor…" Logan stopped, unable to continue. Scott turned to look at both men. "The Professor knows something and won't tell us. It must be something…bad." Scott's statement was followed by silence, each man contemplating something different.
What was happening to Rogue?
"So what now?" Warren asked, staring at Rogue's serene face. Scott shrugged, turning Rogue to place her comfortably in his arms. "For now? We follow what the Professor said. She's tired, and she needs sleep." He stood up, walking towards the door with her in his arms. The other men followed wanting to keep an eye on her. The door clicked shut, finally leaving a silent room.
The leather chair sizzled, the small image of a bird branding itself into where Rogue's hand had been.
X
Rogue gazed around, the calm waters of Alkali lake throwing her reflection back at her. She glanced up when she heard the crunch of shoes on the gravel and saw the familiar redhead. "You're late." Rogue murmured, turning around fully.
Jean watched her with sad eyes, her mouth remaining stubbornly closed. "I haven't seen you in a while. What's changed?" Rogue asked, knowing it was probably useless. Every other time, Jean had never spoken. Jean never did anything really but stand there. Last time, she had gotten Jean to say "no", but it had only ended up confusing her more. That was more than a month ago. Granted, she head been passed out most of it, but even then, Jean showing up now had to mean something. Right? There was something the redhead had to say-
"Danger." she whispered, and Rogue's body jerked when she heard the small, familiar voice. "Danger?" Rogue repeated, stepping closer to the young women. Jean nodded, and her brown eyes shone with tears. Rogue squinted, making sure her eyes weren't playing tricks on her. Jean was crying.
Rogue remained speechless, surprised at the difference between her last visit with Jean and now. Jean could show emotions. Jean could speak…more or less.
Jean was…Jean.
"Danger…to…you." Jean fought to get the words past her lips, her body visibly shaking from the effort. "what danger?" Rogue asked, closing the gap between the two women and reaching out her hand to grab Jean's. "what's a danger to me?"
"Danger…to…you…Be…careful…Not…human." Jean reached out, grabbing Rogue's bare face. She jerked back, waiting for the usual pain. "Be…careful…too…powerful…" Jean held on, her hand cold. Rogue began shaking, scared to the core. "What's too powerful?" She whispered, her green eyes never leaving Jean's brown ones. "Watch…him…protect…him…" Both women fell to their knees, Jean crying while Rogue stared, waiting for something to make sense. "Please…be….careful…Marie!" Jean shouted and Rogue felt herself being picked up. She tried to keep a hold on Jean, screaming when her hand slipped. She flew upwards, higher and higher, her body getting heavier and heavier. She broke through a barrier, and the last thing she remembered was seeing a bird, shrouded in fire.
X
She woke up with a scream, her body shaking violently, covered in sweat. Her throat closed suddenly, cutting off her air supply. She began clawing at it, trying to get air to her lungs. She bolted up, gagging as her head became lighter.
A glint brought her eyes to the balcony windows. If she had air, she would've screamed.
The young boy stood there, watching her with black eyes. She recognized him as the telepath they had found at Alkali. What was his name? What had they called him? MJ? She continued clawing at her throat, the pain dimming as black spots began to cloud her vision. Somehow, she knew it was him. He was causing it.
She closed her eyes, desperately trying to concentrate as she pictured the mental hallway. She didn't notice as doors flew open, powers being released one by one. Rain pounded against the windows while lightening flashed in the sky. Her body coated over with metal while her fists plunged into the bed with superhuman strength. She didn't notice it, though. All she focused on was what she needed from the hallway. She ran, looking for the one power that could help her.
The power she had obtained that very afternoon.
Xavier's name shone harshly on the wooden door. She grabbed the handle and threw it open, taking control over the Professor's powers.
His telepathy.
Her eyes shot open and the green focused on the young boy. She pushed and the pressure on her throat lessened. She pushed more and watched as MJ stepped back, her telepathy throwing him off. Finally, the pressure on her throat disappeared and she took in a breath, her light headiness decreasing in small increments.
MJ raised his hands, his fists pounding on the glass doors, fighting to get in. The occasional flashes of lightening threw his face into focus. It was contorted, the features misplaced and distorted. She fought back vomit as she continued pushing, willing the Professor's telepathy to win the battle. She fought, gripping the blanket hard enough to turn her knuckles white. She focused, her eyes a green so bright, they seemed to glow in the dark room.
She felt it when he stopped, his telepathy fading to be replaced by something more violent. A flash of lightening showed her his small smile, his teeth an ugly brown. She watched, horrified when his mouth opened to an unbelievable size. His hands slammed against the glass, and she heard the crack as it split across her room. A terrible roar seemed to shake through her, the origin being the little boy. She slapped her hands over her ears when she heard the scream, it's pitch piercing the glass even more.
The window shattered, glass spears flying towards her as MJ stepped into the room. He had made it a couple of steps before Rogue felt the burning behind her eyes. She let the optic blasts loose, the red slamming into MJ hard, throwing him off balance. The spears faltered before falling, glass shattering even more as they landed on her floor.
She jerked her body, her eyes closing as Scott's powers stopped. She opened them again and heard the hum as the metal coat on her body seemed to respond to Magneto's power. Shapes began taking form from Colossus's coat, and with satisfaction she watched as they began hurtling towards MJ. He screamed again when the first one hit him, but by the fourth one, the child was thrown out the window. She heard the bump as his body hit the ground, and felt shivers up her spine when she heard the inhuman groans. There was a terrible screeching before it all became silent, the rain hitting her carpet being the only sound.
She jerked again, the mental hallway fading as the powers began to fade, going back into their respective rooms. She remained sitting in her bed, the tattered room the only signs that had battle had even happened. She sat still, her mind still not being able to comprehend what just happened. Was that was Jean had meant by danger? Had she meant the little boy?
She jumped when she heard pounding on her door, Scott's voice jumbled among others. She turned, sliding off the bed before standing up. Her knees gave out and with a shriek, she fell, gasping. There was more pounding and the door broke open, Scott leading the herd as they all filed on. "Rogue? Rogue!" Logan shouted, his eyes taking in the destroyed room. "Here." She muttered, hoping they heard her. She began shaking, the last 5 minutes finally sinking in. Scott found her first and she lost her breath when he slid next to her, crushing her body to his chest. Over his shoulder she saw the rest of the mansion looking around her room, noting the destruction.
Noting the devastation. She closed her eyes, realizing she wasn't even safe in her own room. They could still find her. They could still kill her. She wasn't safe anywhere. She began to shake harder, fighting tears.
Scott began whispering, his voice strangled and weak. "You're safe. I'm here. You're safe." He repeated the one phrase over and over again, and somehow it comforted her.
She was safe.
She wrapped her shaking arms around Scott, holding on to him.
She was safe with Scott.