Rogue closed her eyes as the cool breeze wove its fingers through her brown
hair, making the white streaks float playfully about her face.
She reveled in the amazing sensation of traveling through the air, unsupported and unassisted, the feeling of weightlessness indescribable.
In other words, she loved it.
She lingered on the word. ~Love.~
Right now she loved so many things---Ryan, the X-men, flying, Logan...
She'd never had so much love in her life before, always being cast out and abandoned in every situation, abhorred and disinherited by those she loved for what she was---a mutant.
Coming to Xavier's school was probably the best thing that had ever happened to her in her young life, being able to be herself amongst people with gifts like her.
No, on second thought, the best thing had been meeting Logan.
She remembered the way they'd met.
She'd felt excluded from the close-knit group of friends, being a total stranger and not having the best previous affiliations, so she'd withdrawn into herself, sitting down in dark corners to observe the activities and envy the happy people around her.
It hadn't helped that the woman whose psyche and powers she'd absorbed, Carol Danvers, had battled her mind for control of her body, making her even more hesitant to make attachments for the fear that Carol would gain the upper hand and would strike at all those who she'd bonded with to hurt her.
On one such episode she'd flown outside and attempted to end it all by drowning herself in the lake beside the mansion, tear blurred eyes making it hard for her to see her way.
Fortunately, Logan had been on the veranda, smoking a cigarette, and upon seeing her shoot in obvious distress to the lake, he'd ran after her and pulled her oxygen deprived body out of the water and revived her with an improvised form of CPR.
She'd sworn a blue streak at him for ruining her chances at dieing, breaking into tears halfway through and ending up in an embrace with the strange gruff-looking man.
They'd always been close friends after that, and on a mission to the Savage Lands, they became more than just friends, starting a new life in the untamed jungle wilderness.
A life they called Ryan.
She sighed as she thought of her newborn son whom she'd had to leave at the mansion.
~I hope he's okay,~ she thought, veering slightly in her flight to avoid a tall building.
~That was close! I better focus on the job before I go squat like a bug.~
After a while, she recognized the shape of the UN buildings, having visited them with Jean and Storm on a field trip for the younger students, years before when she'd been a teen of lesser digits.
She smiled at the thought of being so naïve and carefree.
Well...not exactly carefree.
Being a mutant in a mutant-hating world had deprived her of that many years ago, making her wary and forcing her to hide her skin from all who would touch her.
She frowned.
~My son will never have to be ashamed of what he is,~ she thought with conviction.
~He can be proud of being a mutant.~
She hovered close to the ground, scanning it carefully for signs of her friends, searching for the scorch marks of Pyro' s mastered flames, or the telltale ice slicks of Iceman's powers, amongst other things.
But there was nothing to be seen, save well-manicured gardens and elegant buildings.
She shook her head, frustrated.
~How could a whole group of people disappear so completely without leaving a trace?~ She wondered.
Then she spotted it.
She floated down to earth to examine the half-scorched ace of hearts that belonged to her fiancée, Remy.
Picking it up, she studied it carefully.
It was burnt around the edges, and there were four round charred spots on one side.
Turning it over, she revealed a large fifth mark.
~His fingers,~ she realized, running her gloved hands over the blackened and still slightly warm paper.
An idea occurred to her.
~Would it work?~
She yanked the glove off her hand and placed her fingers over the warm spots that Remy had semi-charged, praying to whatever Gods ruled above that the pull would begin.
She sighed in relief as thoughts foreign to her mind clouded her head, and the card beneath her fingers began to glow with energy as her borrowed powers put themselves to work.
Memories flashed before her eyes, telling her all she needed to know in a short period of time.
She gritted her teeth as through Gambit's eyes she saw the super speeding mutant known as Quicksilver run over her bubbly friend, Jubilee.
She relived Gambit's memories of seeing Mastermind overcome the serene weather goddess Storm with a simple illusion of being trapped in the rubble of her home with her dead mother as a mere five-year-old girl after bombs had raided her city.
She felt the agony as Mystique took on the form of Wolverine and with a well placed punch of her fist sunk three nine inch claws through Gambit's armor to his vulnerable side.
She witnessed the psychic Emma Frost effortlessly defeat Iceman, making him encase his teammates in a wall of ice as she commanded his panic-stricken mind.
She watched the chaos of the X-men's defeat, seeing the unconscious and half-dead bodies that littered the now-spotless cobblestone, seeing pools of dark blood and hearing screams split the frosty air.
And she heard the blue metamorph Mystique shout out orders and directions as to where to take her limp and lifeless teammates.
A snowflake floated down from the sky, landing on her nose and startling her out of the stupor she had fallen into with its cool wetness.
She shook herself mentally and took flight, plotting her enemy's deaths all the while.
+ + + + + +
"....have you checked on the hostages yet....might have woken up...you should...."
Logan groaned as his sense of hearing slowly returned, making the conversation fade in and out, like a fly buzzing to your ear and then away.
The sound of footsteps approached.
"Nope, none of them are up yet," The voice said loudly.
Logan listened until the footsteps had retreated before putting a hand to his throbbing head.
~Where the hell am I?~ He thought as the smells started to penetrate his nose.
He opened his eyes slowly, taking in his dark surroundings with confusion.
~A.barn? Some kind of warehouse?~
The first guess seemed to be the most accurate, as he blew a tendril of hay from his mouth and noticed that the floor was covered in it.
He heard someone sniffle behind him and he slowly turned his head to see the producer of the sound.
The young American Asian girl called Jubilee met his sight, tears rolling down her cheeks and her knees pulled up to her yellow pleather covered chest.
"Jubes?" He whispered, afraid of attracting their captors' attention.
"Wolvy," She hiccupped softly.
"You're awake."
She wiped her nose.
"Where are we?" Logan asked softly.
"I dunno," She whispered back.
"Dude, why are we whispering?"
Logan sighed inaudibly.
"We don't want 'em to know we're awake."
"Oooooooh," She said, comprehension dawning.
"And why don't we want 'em to know we're awake?"
Logan ran a hand through his unruly black hair impatiently.
~How slow is she?~ He thought, gritting his teeth.
"Kid, in any situation where you don't know what's goin' on, stay the way you were as long as possible till you figure things out."
Jubilee pondered this for a moment.
"So what's going on here exactly, dude?"
Logan snarled.
"Do I have to spell it out for you? I said, I * don't * know!"
Jubilee put on a mock-offended face.
"Wow, dude, like just chill, 'k? You're like way too serious man."
Logan slapped his forehead noiselessly.
"I can't * believe * you made it on the team, kid."
Jubilee looked outraged.
"Hey! I'm a great team player! * Aaaand * I'm * not * a kid, dude," She said with all the authority of her lifetime of fifteen years.
Logan snorted.
"You're right. You're not a kid. You're even less!"
Jubilee glared at the feral man.
"Hey, dude, you got a death wish or something?" She asked, pulling down her ski goggles.
"Cuz if you keep talking like that, I'll make you shit sparks for the next three months!"
She held up a blue-gloved hand in threat.
"I'm sure you will," Said Logan in a humorous tone.
"Okay dude, that's it," Jubilee said, getting to her feet.
"Let's hack it out right now!"
Logan grinned and popped a middle claw, holding it up at her.
"* Hey! * You don't flash the finger at Jubes and get away with it! Get over here, mister!"
"Cut it out you two," Said Scott dryly.
"Well well, I see our favorite one-eye is up an' at it," Shot Logan with a challenge in his voice.
"Yeah, whatever Logan, we've got more important things to deal with right now."
Scott scanned the hay-covered floor.
"Where's Jean?"
"Over here, Scott," A voice said softly from the opposite corner.
He crawled over to his red headed fiancée.
"Are you hurt?" He asked in a worried tone.
"No, thankfully, but my powers are out for a bit...that Frost woman blocked them temporarily."
He sighed with relief and frustration.
"Is everyone else here? Is anyone hurt?" He asked, getting his act together.
A tumble of voices replied in whispered tones, and after a few moments he ascertained that everyone was here and mostly uninjured.
"Remy be more worried about his cher," Said Remy softly, fingering the tear in his armor.
Logan felt a growl rise in his throat.
~She's mine!~ He thought, the Wolverine in him almost overwhelming his control.
~No, she's not,~ He rationalized. ~And it's your fault, bub.~
Jubilee glanced over at Remy, puzzled.
"Why r'ya worried 'bout Rogue, Remy?" She asked.
"She be havin' de baby with no one der to help her, non?" He said carelessly, lost in his thoughts.
Jubilee bounced up and down.
"She's having it now?! The baby?! And you didn't * tell * me?! * DUDE *! That is like so * not * cool!" She squeaked.
"Shhhhhh!" The room said, putting their fingers to their lips at the noisy yellow-clad Asian teen.
"Well sorr-eeeeeee!" Jubilee said, rolling her eyes.
"Is she really having it now, Remy?" Asked Kitty shyly.
He nodded.
"Oh, that's so wonderful," She said softly.
"You must be so proud."
At that moment Jubilee happened to glance at Logan.
"Wolvy, dude, stop it with the evil eye thing, 'k? It's like, totally freaking me out!"'
Logan growled softly.
"Riiiiight," Jubilee said as he glared at her.
"Okay, stop it, I'm warning you...."
She held up a hand, ready to paff the feral looking man should he pose a threat.
He shook his head and looked the other way, trying to gather his thoughts before he went animal on the penned-up group of battle weary X-men.
~Fuck, why didn't I tell her sooner,~ He thought sadly.
Jean noticed his sad expression and looked at him comfortingly.
Logan noticed her gazing his way and he felt his stomach flutter.
~Does she know?~
Jean picked up this thought.
~My powers must be coming back,~ She realized.
/ Rogue told me. I know you're the father, Logan. /
Logan looked uneasy.
* Please don't tell anyone. *
He lowered his hazel eyes to the hay-covered floor.
* I don't want anyone else to think I ~used~ her *
Jean caught his meaning and ruffled through the memories he offered.
She shook her head.
/ I understand. I haven't and won't tell anyone. The only other person who knows is 'Ro. She's sworn to secrecy./
Logan let out a sigh of relief.
He had been worried that everyone would find out and be outraged by the fact that he had misled a young girl, even thought he hadn't meant to.
He could easily imagine Jubilee's reaction to the identity of the child's other parent.
Jean hid a giggle behind her hand as she picked up on the Logan's idea of Jubilee finding out who Rogue had slept with.
~Thinking of parents, I should send Rogue a thought!~
She closed her eyes and concentrated on sliding into the correct mind, that of her super-empowered friend.
A moment later she opened them, startled, as she registered Rogue's presence to be just outside the building!
++++++
She reveled in the amazing sensation of traveling through the air, unsupported and unassisted, the feeling of weightlessness indescribable.
In other words, she loved it.
She lingered on the word. ~Love.~
Right now she loved so many things---Ryan, the X-men, flying, Logan...
She'd never had so much love in her life before, always being cast out and abandoned in every situation, abhorred and disinherited by those she loved for what she was---a mutant.
Coming to Xavier's school was probably the best thing that had ever happened to her in her young life, being able to be herself amongst people with gifts like her.
No, on second thought, the best thing had been meeting Logan.
She remembered the way they'd met.
She'd felt excluded from the close-knit group of friends, being a total stranger and not having the best previous affiliations, so she'd withdrawn into herself, sitting down in dark corners to observe the activities and envy the happy people around her.
It hadn't helped that the woman whose psyche and powers she'd absorbed, Carol Danvers, had battled her mind for control of her body, making her even more hesitant to make attachments for the fear that Carol would gain the upper hand and would strike at all those who she'd bonded with to hurt her.
On one such episode she'd flown outside and attempted to end it all by drowning herself in the lake beside the mansion, tear blurred eyes making it hard for her to see her way.
Fortunately, Logan had been on the veranda, smoking a cigarette, and upon seeing her shoot in obvious distress to the lake, he'd ran after her and pulled her oxygen deprived body out of the water and revived her with an improvised form of CPR.
She'd sworn a blue streak at him for ruining her chances at dieing, breaking into tears halfway through and ending up in an embrace with the strange gruff-looking man.
They'd always been close friends after that, and on a mission to the Savage Lands, they became more than just friends, starting a new life in the untamed jungle wilderness.
A life they called Ryan.
She sighed as she thought of her newborn son whom she'd had to leave at the mansion.
~I hope he's okay,~ she thought, veering slightly in her flight to avoid a tall building.
~That was close! I better focus on the job before I go squat like a bug.~
After a while, she recognized the shape of the UN buildings, having visited them with Jean and Storm on a field trip for the younger students, years before when she'd been a teen of lesser digits.
She smiled at the thought of being so naïve and carefree.
Well...not exactly carefree.
Being a mutant in a mutant-hating world had deprived her of that many years ago, making her wary and forcing her to hide her skin from all who would touch her.
She frowned.
~My son will never have to be ashamed of what he is,~ she thought with conviction.
~He can be proud of being a mutant.~
She hovered close to the ground, scanning it carefully for signs of her friends, searching for the scorch marks of Pyro' s mastered flames, or the telltale ice slicks of Iceman's powers, amongst other things.
But there was nothing to be seen, save well-manicured gardens and elegant buildings.
She shook her head, frustrated.
~How could a whole group of people disappear so completely without leaving a trace?~ She wondered.
Then she spotted it.
She floated down to earth to examine the half-scorched ace of hearts that belonged to her fiancée, Remy.
Picking it up, she studied it carefully.
It was burnt around the edges, and there were four round charred spots on one side.
Turning it over, she revealed a large fifth mark.
~His fingers,~ she realized, running her gloved hands over the blackened and still slightly warm paper.
An idea occurred to her.
~Would it work?~
She yanked the glove off her hand and placed her fingers over the warm spots that Remy had semi-charged, praying to whatever Gods ruled above that the pull would begin.
She sighed in relief as thoughts foreign to her mind clouded her head, and the card beneath her fingers began to glow with energy as her borrowed powers put themselves to work.
Memories flashed before her eyes, telling her all she needed to know in a short period of time.
She gritted her teeth as through Gambit's eyes she saw the super speeding mutant known as Quicksilver run over her bubbly friend, Jubilee.
She relived Gambit's memories of seeing Mastermind overcome the serene weather goddess Storm with a simple illusion of being trapped in the rubble of her home with her dead mother as a mere five-year-old girl after bombs had raided her city.
She felt the agony as Mystique took on the form of Wolverine and with a well placed punch of her fist sunk three nine inch claws through Gambit's armor to his vulnerable side.
She witnessed the psychic Emma Frost effortlessly defeat Iceman, making him encase his teammates in a wall of ice as she commanded his panic-stricken mind.
She watched the chaos of the X-men's defeat, seeing the unconscious and half-dead bodies that littered the now-spotless cobblestone, seeing pools of dark blood and hearing screams split the frosty air.
And she heard the blue metamorph Mystique shout out orders and directions as to where to take her limp and lifeless teammates.
A snowflake floated down from the sky, landing on her nose and startling her out of the stupor she had fallen into with its cool wetness.
She shook herself mentally and took flight, plotting her enemy's deaths all the while.
+ + + + + +
"....have you checked on the hostages yet....might have woken up...you should...."
Logan groaned as his sense of hearing slowly returned, making the conversation fade in and out, like a fly buzzing to your ear and then away.
The sound of footsteps approached.
"Nope, none of them are up yet," The voice said loudly.
Logan listened until the footsteps had retreated before putting a hand to his throbbing head.
~Where the hell am I?~ He thought as the smells started to penetrate his nose.
He opened his eyes slowly, taking in his dark surroundings with confusion.
~A.barn? Some kind of warehouse?~
The first guess seemed to be the most accurate, as he blew a tendril of hay from his mouth and noticed that the floor was covered in it.
He heard someone sniffle behind him and he slowly turned his head to see the producer of the sound.
The young American Asian girl called Jubilee met his sight, tears rolling down her cheeks and her knees pulled up to her yellow pleather covered chest.
"Jubes?" He whispered, afraid of attracting their captors' attention.
"Wolvy," She hiccupped softly.
"You're awake."
She wiped her nose.
"Where are we?" Logan asked softly.
"I dunno," She whispered back.
"Dude, why are we whispering?"
Logan sighed inaudibly.
"We don't want 'em to know we're awake."
"Oooooooh," She said, comprehension dawning.
"And why don't we want 'em to know we're awake?"
Logan ran a hand through his unruly black hair impatiently.
~How slow is she?~ He thought, gritting his teeth.
"Kid, in any situation where you don't know what's goin' on, stay the way you were as long as possible till you figure things out."
Jubilee pondered this for a moment.
"So what's going on here exactly, dude?"
Logan snarled.
"Do I have to spell it out for you? I said, I * don't * know!"
Jubilee put on a mock-offended face.
"Wow, dude, like just chill, 'k? You're like way too serious man."
Logan slapped his forehead noiselessly.
"I can't * believe * you made it on the team, kid."
Jubilee looked outraged.
"Hey! I'm a great team player! * Aaaand * I'm * not * a kid, dude," She said with all the authority of her lifetime of fifteen years.
Logan snorted.
"You're right. You're not a kid. You're even less!"
Jubilee glared at the feral man.
"Hey, dude, you got a death wish or something?" She asked, pulling down her ski goggles.
"Cuz if you keep talking like that, I'll make you shit sparks for the next three months!"
She held up a blue-gloved hand in threat.
"I'm sure you will," Said Logan in a humorous tone.
"Okay dude, that's it," Jubilee said, getting to her feet.
"Let's hack it out right now!"
Logan grinned and popped a middle claw, holding it up at her.
"* Hey! * You don't flash the finger at Jubes and get away with it! Get over here, mister!"
"Cut it out you two," Said Scott dryly.
"Well well, I see our favorite one-eye is up an' at it," Shot Logan with a challenge in his voice.
"Yeah, whatever Logan, we've got more important things to deal with right now."
Scott scanned the hay-covered floor.
"Where's Jean?"
"Over here, Scott," A voice said softly from the opposite corner.
He crawled over to his red headed fiancée.
"Are you hurt?" He asked in a worried tone.
"No, thankfully, but my powers are out for a bit...that Frost woman blocked them temporarily."
He sighed with relief and frustration.
"Is everyone else here? Is anyone hurt?" He asked, getting his act together.
A tumble of voices replied in whispered tones, and after a few moments he ascertained that everyone was here and mostly uninjured.
"Remy be more worried about his cher," Said Remy softly, fingering the tear in his armor.
Logan felt a growl rise in his throat.
~She's mine!~ He thought, the Wolverine in him almost overwhelming his control.
~No, she's not,~ He rationalized. ~And it's your fault, bub.~
Jubilee glanced over at Remy, puzzled.
"Why r'ya worried 'bout Rogue, Remy?" She asked.
"She be havin' de baby with no one der to help her, non?" He said carelessly, lost in his thoughts.
Jubilee bounced up and down.
"She's having it now?! The baby?! And you didn't * tell * me?! * DUDE *! That is like so * not * cool!" She squeaked.
"Shhhhhh!" The room said, putting their fingers to their lips at the noisy yellow-clad Asian teen.
"Well sorr-eeeeeee!" Jubilee said, rolling her eyes.
"Is she really having it now, Remy?" Asked Kitty shyly.
He nodded.
"Oh, that's so wonderful," She said softly.
"You must be so proud."
At that moment Jubilee happened to glance at Logan.
"Wolvy, dude, stop it with the evil eye thing, 'k? It's like, totally freaking me out!"'
Logan growled softly.
"Riiiiight," Jubilee said as he glared at her.
"Okay, stop it, I'm warning you...."
She held up a hand, ready to paff the feral looking man should he pose a threat.
He shook his head and looked the other way, trying to gather his thoughts before he went animal on the penned-up group of battle weary X-men.
~Fuck, why didn't I tell her sooner,~ He thought sadly.
Jean noticed his sad expression and looked at him comfortingly.
Logan noticed her gazing his way and he felt his stomach flutter.
~Does she know?~
Jean picked up this thought.
~My powers must be coming back,~ She realized.
/ Rogue told me. I know you're the father, Logan. /
Logan looked uneasy.
* Please don't tell anyone. *
He lowered his hazel eyes to the hay-covered floor.
* I don't want anyone else to think I ~used~ her *
Jean caught his meaning and ruffled through the memories he offered.
She shook her head.
/ I understand. I haven't and won't tell anyone. The only other person who knows is 'Ro. She's sworn to secrecy./
Logan let out a sigh of relief.
He had been worried that everyone would find out and be outraged by the fact that he had misled a young girl, even thought he hadn't meant to.
He could easily imagine Jubilee's reaction to the identity of the child's other parent.
Jean hid a giggle behind her hand as she picked up on the Logan's idea of Jubilee finding out who Rogue had slept with.
~Thinking of parents, I should send Rogue a thought!~
She closed her eyes and concentrated on sliding into the correct mind, that of her super-empowered friend.
A moment later she opened them, startled, as she registered Rogue's presence to be just outside the building!
++++++