Recap: Kurt teleports himself and Rogue to the Brotherhood house like Rogue asked. They're they find Destiny like Rogue thought they would. Rogue asks Destiny for help locating the Professor, Destiny says she can't do that. Destiny tells Rogue that the people who attacked the Morlocks were not Vampires, but that the people who did attack them work for the same people the Vampires work for. She also says the person who has kidnapped Magneto and the Professor and who ordered for Rogue to be kidnapped is also the same person. Destiny explains that the person who is taking mutants is experimenting on them. That the person is experimenting on the Professor and Magneto and wants to experiment on her. Destiny tells Rogue that when she told Mystique to warn her about Gambit and Joseph it was because both men have a secret that is making them do bad things, but they both love her and want to protect her. Destiny reveals that the Vampires, as well, have their own hidden agenda and that is that they want Rogue as blackmail bait for their freedom. Destiny says that the Vampires will also want to keep Rogue safe because she has Vampire-Like qualities. Destiny also tells Rogue not to be afraid of her new powers of knowing what is happening to other people in her sleep as it is just her powers evolving, but to be wary and stay away from the purple cloud in her head. Destiny then says it's late and she has to go. Rogue tries to get her to stay, but Kurt and Rogue are attacked by two Vampires. Kurt is knocked out and Rogue is left to face the Vampires alone. She manages to slip off her glove and touch one of the Vampires, then dives to touch Kurt and teleport them both away. The other X-Men, at this time, are in the sewers after having been attacked by the have lost Scott, Joseph, Bobby and Evan and only Logan, Storm, Jean and Emma are left. The remaining X-Men, led by Logan, being to walk around the tunnels to try and find their way back to the mansion. Rogue teleports to the Morlock tunnels. She calls out for the other X-Men but they don't answer. She teleports to the X-Van but doesn't find them there either. Rogue then teleports to just outside the mansion, being too tired and weak to teleport fully into the mansion. Where she lands though, she watches the mansion blow up. Joseph ends up finding Rogue where she teleported though. Rogue cries in Joseph's arms, but then she questions him and why and how he knew to be here. Joseph tries telling her he was ordered to go back to the mansion. He then tries getting her to drink more tea. Rogue refuses it and catches Joseph out when he starts to say the X-Men were attacked and that's why he came back instead. Joseph snaps at Rogue when she clicks on and doesn't believe him. He declares that he's trying to keep her safe even if that means by drugging her. Joseph attacks her wit metal. Rogue, in panic, teleports to a train station and hides in the cargo. She passes out from tiredness of using Kurt's power and blood lose from the Vampire's attacking her earlier and Joseph's attack.

Chapter 18

Jean's deep gasp filled the air. The four remaining X-Men stood stunned as they looked at the burning mansion. It had been destored again.

"The children." Jean said.

"What in heavens name happened here?"

Logan growled, "Looks like sabotarge."

"Who do you think could have done this?" Asked Storm.

"I don't know. But what I do know is that," Logan breathed out a sigh, reckongising a pattern of reaccorance. "We gonna search for survious."

XXXXX

The rugged stop was what woke Rogue up first. Rogue opened her eyes, but instantly closed them as dizziness overtook her. She want to roll over and bury her head down into the ground to make it stop hurting, but she doubted that would help. Besides all her muscles ached and the first wave of nassia was too much for her to even attempt to move. As the first round faded, though another one was close behind it, Rogue turned over on her side and hissed in deep pain. When she opened her eyes and looked down at herself, all was blured imagies, but she remembered a lot of the attack.

The train shuck again, and Rogue remembered where she was and what she was doing. Wincing her eyes in pain, Rogue rolled over again onto her front. It was hard to move with the metal still wrapped around her body and the blood lose did things to her head. She waited a moment as she got her barings, before slowly coming to stand on two shakey feet. Rogue fell into a crate, but she was glad she did. It was easier to stay up right this way. Rogue made her way towards the door, and using her unbroken hand struggled to get the door open.

When it did open, mid daylight burned Rogue's eyes. Rogue had to keep pushing forwards though and stepped out of the crate. Only to fall flat on her chest. Rogue moaned in pain as sharp stones struck and pirced her skin. But she couldn't let this stop her. In her subconsious that kept her going Rogue knew she had to get up and get away from the train tracks before someone found her. In a struggle again she got to her feet.

"Hey, what you doing over there?" Came a yell and a man was running towards her. In instint Rogue began to ran. She didn't know where she was going, but she just ran.

Once she was far enough away from the train, Rogue found a side ally and slid down the wall. Her insides hurt and so did her outsides. Rogue could feel herself fading fast and only one thing came to mind. That one thing made her struggle to get back up and struggle to walk down the side allie. Rogue stopped just before she came into bourbon street. It took her a few moments, but Rogue remembered where she was from Gambit's memory and she remembered how to get to his home from memory. And from Gambit's memory Rogue also knew that she wouldn't be able to make it there without passing out.

She was trying to think of something else. Something to help her. She needed help. Where could she go for help?

Then her answer walked right past her. Bourbon street was busy, but she reconized Henri LeBeau anywhere now thanks to Gambit. She remembered from Gambit's memories that he and a few cousins of there's would always go down to Madi's cafe for tea and a catch up.

Rogue watched as they entered Madi's cafe which was oposite where she stood. Rogue tried to think how she would be able to actually get to Henri and ask him for help without becoming a public disterbance what with blood and metal pouring and wrapped around her.

Gambit's memories helped once again, and Rogue turned around, beinging to take some quiet back allies in which she could hide in the shadows and get across to the other side. When Rogue did come closer to the cafe, she was approaching by the back enterance. She thought this was more useful anyway. There was a woman stood at the back of the cafe, leaning against the cafe wall while smoking a cigarette. Rogue knew her from those red curly locks that she was Madi. Rogue winsed as other images came to mind from Gambit's memory that she didn't want to know about or see. When those thoughts were pushed away, Rogue decided Madi would have to do. She stepped out from the shadowed allieway and approached Madi.

Madi gasped, her eyes expanding as she saw the state Rogue was in.

"Your Madi, right?" Rogue asked, then coughted afterwards.

Madi was frozen. "Madi?"

"How do you know my name? What in God's names happened to you?"

"Madi, ah need you to go get Henri for me please."

"Pardon?"

"Ah'm a friend of Henri's. Please go get Henri LeBeau. Ah need his help." And no longer being able to hold herself, Rogue fell to her knees.

There were hands around Rogue's shoulders that kept her up right. "oh my. You need an ambulance. What-"

"No!" Yelled Rogue, as much as she could yell that was. "No ambulance." She couldn't risk making a scene and having Joseph track her down somehow. She just needed Gambit. He knew all about disapearing and stuff. He'd be able to help. "Henri."

"I'll...I'll get em for ya then, just hold on. Hold on girl."

And the hands helped lean her against the wall before leaving her. It felt like forever before Madi came back with Gambit's brother Henri.

"Mon Deui. What's happened here?"

Rogue opened her eyes. Henri, Gambit's older brother, stood tall above her, now bending down to gently tilt Rouge's head. "Call an ambulance." Henri told the girl who dissapeared again.

"No." Rogue gasped, struggling through her pain. "No hospitals. Can't risk being found. Where's Remy? Remy." Rogue choked.

"Remy? Remy's not here petite." Henri said.

"Remy. I need Remy. I want Remy. Need his ."

"De ambulance can help ya-"

"No. I... I need Remy."

"Sorry petite, but like I said he ain't here. What you need him for anyway?"

Rogue looked away. Her body burnt with pain and her eyes were filling with tears. "He... He said he'd be there for meh... Be there if ah needed help. Said... Said his family would be there. The thieves."

Henri seemed taken back. "You? Your this Rogue?"

Rogue nodded her head. "I can't go to the hospetal. Need Remy."

"You ain't gonna make it in dis condion cher. You gonna need medical attention-"

"No. Please, help me."

Henri stood up and Rogue felt abandoned as he looked down at her. "I can't petite. I can't do anything for ya 'cept get ya to the hosptail."

"No. No wait..." Rogue tried to think of something, anything she could say to get him to listen to her. Then it hit her. "Life debit."

"Excusemoi?"

"A life debit. Y'all owe me a life debit. For savin' Jean-Luc and Remy. Y'all owe meh. I call on the life debt. You gotta help meh now. Please. Please don't take me to a hosptial. Hide me. Please. I'm in trouble and I need help."

Henri swollowed down hard and thought it over. In the end he nodded his head and said "alright then cherie. Have it your way."

Rogue was confused when Henri turned around and walked straight back inside. She felt abandoned again, but soon Henri came back with a few other thieves Rogue knew from Remy's memory and soon she was surround by them. Rogue didn't remember much as she finally passed out.

XXXXX

Wolverine, Storm, Jean and Frost had been searching all morning with no look. The longer it took the more hope was lost in ever seeing the others alive again, or finding their bodies.

That was until they heard a yell. "Hey." Yelled Angel as he sored down from the sky and onto the ground before them. "Angel." Each other the X-Men cried as they ran over to him.

"Angel what happened? What's going on?" Questioned Logan.

"We don't know what happened ourselves. All we know is that the top of the mansion expolded and some of the rubble feel on top of us."

"Wait, us?" Storm questioned. "You mean to say that there are more of you alive?"

"Yeah, we're all good and well Storm. Well." Angel scratched the back of his head. "All except Joseph."

"Joseph." Jean questioned.

"Yeah, he came back just before the bomb or whatever went off. He told everyone that we were in danger and just to stay low in the very deep lower levels. He went up and as soon as he went up the stairs the bomb wet off. Me and Hank tried to save him, but the rubble just pilled on top of him and ontop of us. It blocked us from each other. Me and Hank were the worst to get hit by the rubble and we got out OK. But Joseph... We haven't unearthed his body yet."

All five X-Men hung their heads down.

"Where are the others?" Angel questioned.

"Logan patted Angel's shoulder. "Best if we tell everyone. This... This ain't gonna be pretty bub."

It took him a moment, but then Angel understood. "Oh... Well, we can get in through a little gap down the side of the cliff. Come on. I'll help you's down."

XXXXX

Gambit got home early the next day. He'd been driving madly to get back to New Orleans day and night with brief stopped and was very tired. His tiredness turned to shock as out popped a load of thieves, bombaring him as he moved into the mansion.

"Remy who's de fillie?"

"Remy what you do dis time?"

"Remy where've you been?"

Gambit only heard a mumble of noise as his cousins questioned him.

"Wait. Wait. WAIT!" He finally yelled. All went silent. "Would someone please tell moi what on earth y'all are moaning about?"

"Dat be the fillie son." Gambt lost all his anger and confidence as he saw Jean-Luc coming down the stairs. it was a shock to see him anytime. It took a moment to recall what Jean Luc had just said, but when he did Gambit squinted his eyes and said "Huh?"

"You've had a visitor while you been away boy. One who you've brought down south before ta help out against the rippers. She's here in ya bed with some very nasty cuts. So Remy, what trouble you been up to dis time?"

Gambit still looked confused. "There's a fillie in moi bed? Please tell moi it's not Belladonna."

"No son. Dis be the girl who's been on your mind ever since she left us. I believe it's de Rogue if I'm correct."

"Rogue?" Gambit grapsed, then his tired brain put two and two together of what Jean-Luc had been saying. A girl badly injured lay in his bed. Rogue was badly injured and in his bed. "Rogue."

Gambit hurried pasted his cousins, passed his father on the stairs and ran to his room. Without knocking he entered to find three people surrounding his bed.

He looked to his brother Henri and his wife Merci who looked back at him with quite worried eyes. Then he looked to tante who blocked his view of the person in the bed. When Tante turned around there was a look of anger on her face. "And where have you been boy?" She barked."Dis poor girl had not stopped calling out for ya and gone to so much trouble of being 'ere, yet you're not here. Remy LeBeau, I thought I brought ya up with better manners." Barked Tante Mattie.

Gambit ignored her and slipped inbetween them to look down at the still girl in his bed. "Rogue." Gambit gasped. She had large claw marks across her face which were bandaged up by Tante Mattie, and the rest of her body was hidden under one of Merci's nightgowns. He guessed she was injured more over the rest of her body. Slowly he sat down on the edge of his bed and reached a hand out to Rogue's bare check. "Rogue." He muttered as he gently stroked the back of her very pale check with the back of his gloved hand.

He looked up to Tante Mattie. "How is she?" He asked.

Tante had a bad look on her face. "She's alive. I did the best I could for her child." Tante placed a hand on Gambit's shoulder. "Now we just gotta wait till she wakes up. Come on now. Leave her alone to rest."

Gambit was in two minds. One, he wanted to argue against Tante. Two, he knew not to disobey her so followed her out slowly. Henri followed him and Merci stayed behind, sitting besides Rogue. Gambit watched Rogue's sleeping body, as her chest rised and fell, right up to when Henri closed the door.

He wasn't expecting the punch he recieved next. Gambit was knocked to the ground.

"Pere!" Yelled Henri as he stepped between them.

"What you doin' goin' 'round tellin' guilde secrets boy?" Yelled Jean-Luc.

Gambit rubbed his jaw, feelings the hands of his cousins pulling him back up to his feet.

"Dat's enough now Jea-Luc. You saw for yourself. De girl needed help and you-"

"I don't care if she'd been stabbed fifty times in the chest. She doesn't be-"

But before Jean-Luc could finish that sentence, Gambit had punched him in the face. His anger and rage that his father would be so cruel and dishearted, escpecially to the woman he... Rogue. "You vile, fifthy-"

"Don't you dare use that language with me boy!" Yelled Jean-Luc as he got up and lauched himself at Gambit. Both of the boys had to be held back by the cousins.

"That's enough both of you! Now stop this or so help me you two don't wanna know what I'll do ta ya both. Der's a girl in der that's not well as it is and she could do with gettin' some sleep without the both of you two fightin' outside her door. Both of you get down those stairs now! We'll deal with dis in de meeting room."

Gambit and Jean-Luc did what Tante said, though glaring at each other. When they were in the room Jean-Luc started by saying. "So, you went running back to her, huh? Ya woman? Or is she just another lay?"

Gammbit was trying to restrain his anger. "Rogue and me ain't like that. Not one bit. We're friends. Dat's it. And yeah. I did go see her, but not during all of moi trip. Ya don't need ta know where I've been Jean-Luc, or what I've done. You just need ta know dat I'm still of thief and still workin' for ya. Which I am."

"You spilled guild secrets! You know how much trouble dis has caused?"

"No. Enlighten me?"

"Do you know who she coulda told?"

"She wouldn't have told anyone. Wouldn't have had the time to. She's been busy."

"And you know dis how?"

"'Cause I've spent the past few days with her and I know her character."

"You never truely know someone boy. Never can truely can trust someone."

"Den why even trust de thieves with guild secrets? Do you realise how stupid you sound? Besides, even if I didn't tell 'er she would have probably known or found out somehow."

"What do you mean she would have known?"

"I mean-" Gambit stopped, remembering why he hadn't told his father fully about Rogue's powers. "What I mean is dat she's a cleaver woman and she has a way of finding stuff out."

Jean-Luc squented his eyes at Gambit. "She can't leave dis house till we know she hasn't already done damage to dis guild! Or till we know she won't say anything."

"She ain't a prisoner Jean-Luc!"

"Not right now she ain't. She's too broken to even stand up right-"

Gambit went for Jean-Luc then and was stopped by Henri and another cousin. "What's the matter boy?" Said Jean Luc.

"Jean-Luc, stop dis!" Yelled Tante Mattie.

"Why Tante? Why'd the girl even end up in such condition anyway? You said you've been with 'er dis past few days Remy." Jean-Luc stepped closer to his son who was still being held back. "What happened to her son? Or more, what did you do to her?"

Gambit tried going for him again, but he couldn't."What's wrong boy? Your bad luck her the woman you love?"

"I didn't know!"

"You lie!" Yelled Jean-Luc. "You knew she was in danger, but you left the fillie. And you say I have no honour."

Gambit put his head down. "...I thought she was safe."

"Well, obviously that ain't happened, has it."

"Jean-Luc." Tante hissed and he silenced as he saw his son looked utterly defeated by everything. A ring of pity silenced him.

"...I left her with her family. They should have protected her. I told her who to look out for. I tried to help her... But den he found me again." Gambit looked up with red eyes filled with anger and tears. "He found moi again and he used me again! He told me one last job. One last job then that'd be it."

Gambit put his head down. Jean-Luc saw now how distroyed his son was. "Remy, what's happened?" He asked concerned.

Gambit shuck his head, refusing to tell them what he'd done. He looked up to them again. " I got it pere."

"What son? What did you get?" Questioned Jean-Luc.

"I got the control. I got the switch that'll turn off the bomb in my neck. I'm finally free."