Learning To Live Again
Revised Edition
Chapter 19, "Sickness Rising"


A/N: Note to those who have been reading this and actually reviewed (RandiRogue especially), I appreciate those little reviews a lot :) To those who haven't been reviewing, :( I'd like to hear YOUR opinion so this thing doesn't stink any worse than it already does. Flames? Praise? Other? I don't care! I want a few more reviews to make sure people are reading this little thing please!
/telepathic communication\
thoughts


*The Medlab, 2 days after the events in Chapter 18*
Rogue blinked, the light of the medlab being almost overly bright. Noticing no one around her, a very uncharacteristic grin took over. Sliding out of the bed, finally realizing that no moniters were watching her, nor was the collar around her neck. Ah guess that little trick worked...hehehe
Walking towards the door, the body shifted to make it appear as if Rogue had clothing on. As luck would have it, the others were all occupied with a game of baseball outside, leaving the professor alone in his office, and supposedly, Rogue alone in the med lab.
With purpose, Rogue headed up to her room and changed out of the medical gown into one of her much older costumes from back after she first joined the X-men. Grinning almost wickedly, she strides out of the room and towards the office of the professor. Pausing in front of a window that overlooks the baseball diamond where the other X-men are, she tilts her head, studying each of them in turn. Even Joseph managed to wrangle Beast into letting him get some fresh air, but as Rogue noted, he seemed to be avoiding getting too close to the diamond, obviously not in the mood for another hit to the head.
Soon, she resumed her path for the professor's office, looking vaguely at the things along the hall as she neared it. Composing her features, Rogue knocked on the door. When she had recieved a rather busy-sounding "Come in," Rogue did just that. The look on the professor's face was priceless. "ROGUE?! Are you even supposed to be up and about? I didn't hear that you had woken up."
Rogue took a seat in front of him before answering. "No one knows Ah'm up. That's why ya haven't heard about it. Until now."
There was something different about her voice he decided, but he couldn't quite pinpoint it. Deciding to stall, he leaned forward, concerned. "Are you feeling alright?"
Rogue simply shrugged. "Good as Ah could Ah reckon..." When the grin reappeared on her features, it was then, Charles Xavier knew Rogue was anything but alright. Rogue's eyes started to glow red, causing Xavier's hand to freeze before it could hit the emergency button on his hover chair.
"Rogue?" He questioned, recieving a negative nod in response. Then, he heard a voice he had hoped he'd never hear again speaking to him telepathically.
/Think again Xavier\
Chills ran down the professor's spine, as he sat shock still. The voice was that of the Shadow King. His hand managed to move again, hitting the emergency button. If he had thought her past look venomous, it was nothing. Growling low in her throat, Rogue's eyes narrowed. Hearing the other X-men running up the stairs, the Shadow King knew he'd have one shot at this.
"Professor!" Jean's voice rang out as the door burst open, but it was one second too late.
Rogue had fired one of Scott's optic beams directly at Xavier's hand.
The X-men stood frozen in place as everything seemingly moved in slow motion. The beam kept moving towards the professor's hand, and at the short range Rogue had fired it, left Xavier little time to move.
The last thing anyone remembered before another mysterious explosion happened was the sound of Rogue's voice in their minds screaming "NO!"