My Heart in Your Hands
by Princess of Monkeys
Chapter 16
Just went and saw Texas Chainsaw Massacre.... I've never seen a more frightening movie in my life. I screamed so much I thought I was going to lose my voice. Hopefully typing and posting a few chapters will help take my mind off it so I don't have nightmares...
Disclaimer: Sue me, and I'll sic the flying monkeys on you.
Everyone assembled by Scott's convertible, talking and joking about extra weekend party time or complaining about their lack of plans.
Rogue was one of those in the lack of plans category- sure, she was meeting up with Remy again, but that wasn't exactly information for the public record. She sighed- before Risty had disappeared, she'd had plans for nearly every Friday night. Before the Sentinel mess, she and Risty used to sneak into Duncan's almost weekly keggers to heckle the drunk people. Neither of them drank- Rogue was always scared she'd forget not to touch people, and Risty had never explained her reasons. But they'd always had a great time- drunk people were hilarious to make fun of.
On the rare nights when Duncan wasn't partying, they'd gone downtown to their favorite coffee house and listen to poetry readings or local bands playing for open mic night. But Rogue hadn't been back since Risty had disappeared- that place was their hangout, and it felt too strange to go there alone now.
She shook her head, determined not to think depressing thoughts. Looking around, she saw Amara on her cell phone, presumably calling the Institute to get a ride for the new recruits, and it dawned on her why they were all standing around together. Safety in numbers. The new mutants were younger and less experienced with controlling their powers, and were less able to avoid resorting to their powers when provoked. With their positions at school being so precarious, even one person using powers in a fight would be enough to get them all expelled.
She looked around again, catching both Bobby and Ray's eyes, and flashing them an evil grin. They both looked visibly scared, and huddled together in conference, hurriedly trying to figure out a way to bribe Rogue into not ratting them, out to the Professor.
Ororo finally arrived in the van, and the older team piled into Scott's car. While everyone else excitedly discussed an upcoming concert, Rogue leaned her head back against the seat and let her mind wander. It had been one strange lunch period- she had never in a million years expected to be able to just sit down and talk with Remy like that. She had told him things no one else knew about her- and it didn't really bother her.
In her mind's eye she saw him again, sitting under the tree with her, listening to her with an intent, earnest expression on his face. He had really listened to her, been interested in what she had to say. It was a revelation- maybe there was more to him than she thought.
There had been something subtly different about him, too, and she puzzled at it, until she finally figured it out- he wasn't wearing his uniform. It was the first time she'd seen him in casual clothes. It was a little bit surreal- made him seem more human, more normal. Less like an enemy Acolyte, and more like just another person. _I guess even Acolytes get a day off here and there,_ she thought, trying not to laugh. Somehow, she couldn't imagine any of the rest of them taking a day off- especially not Sabretooth, or that crazy guy with the flamethrowers.
She spent the rest of the ride amusing herself by imagining the things the other Acolytes would do on a day off. When they arrived back at the Institute, the teenagers went to drop off their stuff and get snacks, and then immediately split up into their work groups. During the reconstruction process, instead of having training sessions, they all honed their talents in different ways. The construction firm was living up to its reputation for discretion and speed, but there were plenty of things the students could do to speed the process up even more. Aside from mundane tasks like painting rooms and attaching doorknobs, there were things which mutant powers were uniquely suited for, like telekinetically lifting antennas onto the roof, or melting a walkway into solidity.
The Professor believed that having the students help out made them feel like the house was their home, not just a place to stay. They felt more a part of it, more like they belonged in it. Living in a mansion could be daunting, especially to those who came from poorer families, and he wanted all his students to feel like it was equally theirs. He wanted them to always view the mansion as home, and their teammates as family. In striving to create a family atmosphere, he gave all of them permission to decorate their rooms to suit their individual tastes, and provided all the students with a personal allowance. It was also the reason he insisted on communal meals and chore rosters- these were all normal, homey things, and even though his students had extraordinary powers, they needed to have as much of a normal, ordinary life as possible.
When he had first brought up the idea of having the students help in the rebuilding process, Rogue had been less than thrilled. _Great, physical labor,_ she'd thought, wondering how her particular mutation could be useful in the world of construction. But surprisingly, her powers had been extremely useful. Since all it took was a simple touch, she could take in someone's powers, and lend an additional helping hand in almost any project. The only disadvantage was in absorbing so many memories- sometimes, when she'd been involved in lots of different projects and had absorbed lots of different people's powers and memories, her mind would become so full that she'd momentarily forget who she was. It was like her own thoughts and feeling would get lost in the chaos. It made her head hurt so much that sometimes she understood Lance's addiction to painkillers, and it frightened her a little bit, to lose her own self even a little bit, but she refused to tell the Professor. He'd just make her stop, and then she'd just be sitting on the sidelines with her useless mutation once again.
Luckily, this had been one of the easy days. She'd been down in the ruins of the Danger Room, working with some of the new recruits to move out the biggest pieces of broken machinery. The only power she'd had top borrow was Roberto's solar induced super strength, and his memories had been safe, happy ones of winning soccer matches.
As the sun started to go down, repair efforts ceased, and there was a mad dash for the showers. Rogue wandered inside at a leisurely pace- there would be plenty of time for her to take a shower later, since she wasn't going out until much later in the evening. She passed Scott and Jean standing in the hallway; as she walked by, Scott was hanging up the phone. She heard him tell Jean "That was Alex- he got stranded in Mexico City- some surfing competition. His parents are on some vacation cruise and he can't reach them, so I said I'd bail him out. I better get going if I want to make the next flight out." As she turned the corner, she heard Jean telling him to be careful, and she rolled her eyes. _Scott's brother is such a moron!_ She'd only met him a couple of times, but he'd never struck her as being particularly intelligent.
As she walked down the long hallway to the elevators, she looked around, glad the mansion was being rebuilt so quickly. Hopefully, she'd be able to ask the Professor if she'd be able to have a room of her own.
Collapsing on the couch on the rec room, the headache that had been quietly lingering all afternoon suddenly increased in intensity, nearly blinding her with pain. Flashes of memories swirled in her head, and she groped for the bottle of painkillers she'd left on the end table. A memory of Fred's danced its way across her tortured brain, and a sudden cracking noise came to her hears. She'd definitely found the pill bottle- it was crushed in her hand. Entire body shaking, she managed to get a few of the tablets out of the mangled body, and swallowed them dry.
Hands clenched into fists, her body curled up into a little ball in the crook of the couch, she willed the stray memories away. She repeated "Ah am not losin' mah mind" over and over to herself until she finally passed out.
by Princess of Monkeys
Chapter 16
Just went and saw Texas Chainsaw Massacre.... I've never seen a more frightening movie in my life. I screamed so much I thought I was going to lose my voice. Hopefully typing and posting a few chapters will help take my mind off it so I don't have nightmares...
Disclaimer: Sue me, and I'll sic the flying monkeys on you.
Everyone assembled by Scott's convertible, talking and joking about extra weekend party time or complaining about their lack of plans.
Rogue was one of those in the lack of plans category- sure, she was meeting up with Remy again, but that wasn't exactly information for the public record. She sighed- before Risty had disappeared, she'd had plans for nearly every Friday night. Before the Sentinel mess, she and Risty used to sneak into Duncan's almost weekly keggers to heckle the drunk people. Neither of them drank- Rogue was always scared she'd forget not to touch people, and Risty had never explained her reasons. But they'd always had a great time- drunk people were hilarious to make fun of.
On the rare nights when Duncan wasn't partying, they'd gone downtown to their favorite coffee house and listen to poetry readings or local bands playing for open mic night. But Rogue hadn't been back since Risty had disappeared- that place was their hangout, and it felt too strange to go there alone now.
She shook her head, determined not to think depressing thoughts. Looking around, she saw Amara on her cell phone, presumably calling the Institute to get a ride for the new recruits, and it dawned on her why they were all standing around together. Safety in numbers. The new mutants were younger and less experienced with controlling their powers, and were less able to avoid resorting to their powers when provoked. With their positions at school being so precarious, even one person using powers in a fight would be enough to get them all expelled.
She looked around again, catching both Bobby and Ray's eyes, and flashing them an evil grin. They both looked visibly scared, and huddled together in conference, hurriedly trying to figure out a way to bribe Rogue into not ratting them, out to the Professor.
Ororo finally arrived in the van, and the older team piled into Scott's car. While everyone else excitedly discussed an upcoming concert, Rogue leaned her head back against the seat and let her mind wander. It had been one strange lunch period- she had never in a million years expected to be able to just sit down and talk with Remy like that. She had told him things no one else knew about her- and it didn't really bother her.
In her mind's eye she saw him again, sitting under the tree with her, listening to her with an intent, earnest expression on his face. He had really listened to her, been interested in what she had to say. It was a revelation- maybe there was more to him than she thought.
There had been something subtly different about him, too, and she puzzled at it, until she finally figured it out- he wasn't wearing his uniform. It was the first time she'd seen him in casual clothes. It was a little bit surreal- made him seem more human, more normal. Less like an enemy Acolyte, and more like just another person. _I guess even Acolytes get a day off here and there,_ she thought, trying not to laugh. Somehow, she couldn't imagine any of the rest of them taking a day off- especially not Sabretooth, or that crazy guy with the flamethrowers.
She spent the rest of the ride amusing herself by imagining the things the other Acolytes would do on a day off. When they arrived back at the Institute, the teenagers went to drop off their stuff and get snacks, and then immediately split up into their work groups. During the reconstruction process, instead of having training sessions, they all honed their talents in different ways. The construction firm was living up to its reputation for discretion and speed, but there were plenty of things the students could do to speed the process up even more. Aside from mundane tasks like painting rooms and attaching doorknobs, there were things which mutant powers were uniquely suited for, like telekinetically lifting antennas onto the roof, or melting a walkway into solidity.
The Professor believed that having the students help out made them feel like the house was their home, not just a place to stay. They felt more a part of it, more like they belonged in it. Living in a mansion could be daunting, especially to those who came from poorer families, and he wanted all his students to feel like it was equally theirs. He wanted them to always view the mansion as home, and their teammates as family. In striving to create a family atmosphere, he gave all of them permission to decorate their rooms to suit their individual tastes, and provided all the students with a personal allowance. It was also the reason he insisted on communal meals and chore rosters- these were all normal, homey things, and even though his students had extraordinary powers, they needed to have as much of a normal, ordinary life as possible.
When he had first brought up the idea of having the students help in the rebuilding process, Rogue had been less than thrilled. _Great, physical labor,_ she'd thought, wondering how her particular mutation could be useful in the world of construction. But surprisingly, her powers had been extremely useful. Since all it took was a simple touch, she could take in someone's powers, and lend an additional helping hand in almost any project. The only disadvantage was in absorbing so many memories- sometimes, when she'd been involved in lots of different projects and had absorbed lots of different people's powers and memories, her mind would become so full that she'd momentarily forget who she was. It was like her own thoughts and feeling would get lost in the chaos. It made her head hurt so much that sometimes she understood Lance's addiction to painkillers, and it frightened her a little bit, to lose her own self even a little bit, but she refused to tell the Professor. He'd just make her stop, and then she'd just be sitting on the sidelines with her useless mutation once again.
Luckily, this had been one of the easy days. She'd been down in the ruins of the Danger Room, working with some of the new recruits to move out the biggest pieces of broken machinery. The only power she'd had top borrow was Roberto's solar induced super strength, and his memories had been safe, happy ones of winning soccer matches.
As the sun started to go down, repair efforts ceased, and there was a mad dash for the showers. Rogue wandered inside at a leisurely pace- there would be plenty of time for her to take a shower later, since she wasn't going out until much later in the evening. She passed Scott and Jean standing in the hallway; as she walked by, Scott was hanging up the phone. She heard him tell Jean "That was Alex- he got stranded in Mexico City- some surfing competition. His parents are on some vacation cruise and he can't reach them, so I said I'd bail him out. I better get going if I want to make the next flight out." As she turned the corner, she heard Jean telling him to be careful, and she rolled her eyes. _Scott's brother is such a moron!_ She'd only met him a couple of times, but he'd never struck her as being particularly intelligent.
As she walked down the long hallway to the elevators, she looked around, glad the mansion was being rebuilt so quickly. Hopefully, she'd be able to ask the Professor if she'd be able to have a room of her own.
Collapsing on the couch on the rec room, the headache that had been quietly lingering all afternoon suddenly increased in intensity, nearly blinding her with pain. Flashes of memories swirled in her head, and she groped for the bottle of painkillers she'd left on the end table. A memory of Fred's danced its way across her tortured brain, and a sudden cracking noise came to her hears. She'd definitely found the pill bottle- it was crushed in her hand. Entire body shaking, she managed to get a few of the tablets out of the mangled body, and swallowed them dry.
Hands clenched into fists, her body curled up into a little ball in the crook of the couch, she willed the stray memories away. She repeated "Ah am not losin' mah mind" over and over to herself until she finally passed out.