Flying. She was flying. Unhindered, unaided, simply her and the air. Rogue had had flying dreams before, but never any so realistic. The air was warm and welcoming. Landing in a meadow she began to run. The feeling of freedom was overwhelming. She couldn't run fast enough it seemed, and the meadow went on forever. Faster and faster; farther and farther. Suddenly a lone tree was before her, and at the speed she was going, she couldn't stop. Rogue slammed right into it. Then there was darkness.
Rogue got up, rubbing her forehead. The marble under her was cool, sending a shiver through her. Looking around, Rogue found herself in the hallway. The "tree" stood before her. A perfect cut column of marble. Rogue groaned. 'Great now ahm sleepwalking' With a growing headache, and a body full of pain, Rogue turned and slowly made her way back to her room.
*KNOCK**KNOCK* Bobby Drake opened his bedroom door and stopped in shock. There in his doorway was Rogue. "Hi Bobby." His mouth was open. "Can ah come in?" He blinked twice before nodding and taking a step back. Rogue walked in and he closed the door. Turning to face her he noticed she was dressed somewhat "unRoguelike." She had on tight dark blue jeans and a long sleeved black shirt that dipped low, revealing quite a bit of her chest. Her look was topped off by black boots, her trademark gloves, and a large bruise on her forehead.
"Rogue what happened?" he asked, feeling a bit panicked. He rushed over to her, but she stopped him before he could touch her without thinking. There were few people Rogue really respected and cared for, and Bobby was one of them. Since he had come to the institute he had treated her more like a normal teenage girl than anyone in her entire life. He even had a crush on her. He was a cute kid, like the little brother she never had. Okay, so she felt a little more for him than a brother, but not enough to do anything about it. Of all the guys in the house, Ray was the closest to her type. But it was still a nice feeling, being special to someone, and she adored Bobby for it.
"Bobby ah need a favor." "Sure," he replied. Rogue laughed, he had answered so fast, there was no way he could have even thought about it. She smiled at him and rumpled his hair. "Ah need ta borrow a hat." Bobby fixed his hair, a large smile on his face. "What kinda hat?" Rogue thought about it. "Ah don't know, something ta cover this bruise," she replied. Bobby practically dove into his closet. He came back with a black baseball cap. Rogue looked it over, then put it on, turning to look at herself in his mirror. It was a perfect fit; you couldn't even see the bruise, as long as she kept the hat on. "Thanks Bobby!" "No problem," he replied, walking up behind her, "But where'd you get that nasty bruise?" Rogue sighed. "It's kinda embarrassing." Bobby smiled. "Who 'm I gonna tell?" She smiled, she knew he meant it. "Well," she said, turning to him, "Lahst night ah went ta the kitchen for a snack, and ah kinda wasn't payn' attention, and ah ran into a wall." She faked a laugh. Lying to Bobby wasn't a good feeling, but she didn't want the prof to find out she'd had a relapse. Not that Bobby would tell him, but he wasn't so good at hiding his feelings. If she told him the truth he'd get worried about her, and for Rogue that would lead to all hell breaking loose. Bobby didn't laugh, he just shrugged. He knew she was lying, but why was her business. He just hoped that the bruise was a result of an accident and not something worse. She turned to face him. "So, how 'd ah look?" Bobby smiled. "You look great." Rogue smiled and grabbed his hand. "Come on, if we're late we'll have ta hear it all the way ta school." Bobby laughed as they rushed out of his room.
She was dancing. No she was flying. No, it was a little bit of both. The wind whipped by her as she spun and glided along. Her feet were weighed down. Her face felt cold, but the rest of her was warm. She felt at home, very comfortable, very safe, very confident. So it was a total surprise when something gave way underneath her and she fell, accompanied by a loud cracking sound. She was too surprised to cry out. Her arms lashed out, trying to grab a hold of something, but she found nothing. "Chelsea!" a woman cried out, her voice full of terror. The cold surrounded her and the only sounds she could hear was that of something sinking in the water, and the muffled crowd of voices of those above. Her arms were up towards the sky. She had fallen, and was thinking she was going to die. It got darker and colder. She kicked hard, but she was tied to anchors and they were dragging her down. Her lungs burned. She was drowning and now she knew she would die. Her limbs were on fire and she was exhausted. One breath. All she needed was one breath. But she knew once she opened her mouth there'd be no air. There'd be no more life. She tried to fight it once more with everything she could muster. There was a splash and she looked up. Hands reached out toward her and she strained to catch them. There was a bright light and suddenly her lungs felt as if they would burst. She opened her mouth and screamed, but there was no sound, only cold, unforgiving water.
The scream resounded through the halls of the mansion. Kitty awoke surprised, realizing the scream was from her room. However, she was so surprised she phased through her bed, the floor, and landed on the couch in the living room. Without thinking, she got up and ran back towards her room.
Logan had been in a deep sleep when he heard the scream. He knew that kind of scream, it was the scream of the tortured, and he was instantly awake as he suddenly realized the sound had come from somewhere in the mansion. Claws extended, he ran out of his room and towards the female dormitory. The scream had been female, that much he knew. Who had screamed, that he didn't know, but whoever had caused the scream was in for a world of pain followed by a quick, but painful death. As he rounded the corner he saw Jean, Jubilee, Rahne, and Amara in the hall. That left two options, Kitty or Rogue. He burst through the door to find Kitty missing and Rogue gasping for air as if she'd been strangled. The rage grew and he saw red. He sniffed, and even busted the doors of their balcony, but the only smells in the room were those of its occupants. He turned, angry and confused.
Rogue was crying hysterically now. Ororo ran into the room and went straight to Rogue. Seeing she was physically okay, she drew the girl to her, holding her tightly. Logan stopped. So if it was Rogue who screamed, it may have been a dream. But, then where was Kitty?
Kitty finally made it upstairs and began to push through the large group, ignoring their questions. She ran into the room and over to Rogue's bed. Seeing her, Logan released the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. He walked over to the door. Hank stepped into the room. He and Ororo exchanged sad looks, as she continued to comfort a sobbing Rogue. "Alright everybody back to bed," Logan said, stepping out of the room and folding his arms over his chest; his claws retracting with a *SNIK* The crowd outside began to protest, but Logan growled loudly and they began to retreat. As they made their way down the hall, he turned and went back into the room, closing the door behind him.
