Still Holding Out For You
By Lady Trunks
Part 20

syrenwytch- You know, you're not the first one to ask me about the dress. But I will definitly describe it in a later chapter (unless Rogue really does die...). That's what I get for taking the easy way out and not describing clothes. And I'm happy that you thought that it was sad. I wasn't sure if it was. But I love that song, and I'm glad you like it.

Raphion- Personally, I'd rather have Jean die to. I don't think there's going to be some miraculous recovery, but you never know. It seems like now I'm making it up as I go along. And I'm glad someone thought it was sad.

J.Dax- Fluff-ily ever after?? I'll see what I can do. And I'm glad I managed to get it to fit. And I didn't even have to kill Rogue... yet.

Rogue Le Beau- No pressure? You tell me that and then no pressure? ^_^ I actually got an idea as I was not writing (even though I was supposed to have been) last night that will make the ending better than what I had planned... I hope.

Ellen- Another person who thought it was sad. Yay! As for your question, I'm not at liberty to divulge that as of now (sounds serious... ^^). But we should know soon.

DragonBlond- It really does work, doesn't it?? ^^ I'm glad the song managed to fit in. And I'm going to tell you my secret for updating, but you can't tell anyone... That doesn't read it here that is. The secret is *leans over and whispers* Pixie Stix. ^^ Shhh, don't tell. And you better hurry up and update or I'm going to be at the front of that mob with Pitchfork in hand!! ^_^

X-DarkHorizon-X- Thank you. ^^ And please, don't go nuts. Even though knowing you're dislike of cliff hangers after this chapter... I can't be held liable, right?

Lucky439- I'l try to do it before I start my next fic. It will be a welcome change from updating every day. You never did say if you prefer romantic or humor. I can go either way, it's up to you. Oh, and I reread Morality Monckys yesterday, and I'm going to say it again. I love that fic. ^_^

Mori- You're welcome. And I'm glad that it was a little angsty. I would hate to have to change to the genre now. ^^ I have the feeling that if Rogue dies I'm going to have a lot of angry reviewers ready to destroy me.

DisturbedRouge- I really, really tried. It wasn't as sad as I wanted, but sometimes somethings better than nothing. And I understand if that made absolutly no sense. ^_^

Roguechere- I loved it. But now that you mention it, it was definitly without my beloved Speed demon. I assumed that he was in the part that you didn't send... And if not, let me at least believe that he is until you have it finished so I won't go obsessing about it. It was cute??!! Cute!! I have failed my mission as a writer and must now go where all failures go (It's somewhere over by Disneyland). Naw, I can live with cute. ^^ And though I strongly believe that Pietro can do *anything* I can't just have him kiss her and she wakes up. It's been done. Anything worth having is worth killing for, um, no, fighting for. Yes, fighting for. And I'm glad you like the little Toddikins. He's so cute!!

HoneyBug16- Not all of my fics end up Rietro... Oh wait, yes they do. ^_^ But I can't help it, I love the pairing so much. When I think about pairing her with someone else I feel like I'm betraying the other Rietro fans. And as for reviewing your fic, I thought it was about time. You should be mad at me for not doing it before.

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The next morning silence reigned in the dining room as everyone continued to worry about their injured teammate. It was a sharp contrast to the customary lively banter that would occur during a typical morning.

"Has anyone seen Pietro?" Lance asked everyone as he walked into the dining room, breaking the quiet. "I went to check on him last night and he wasn't in his room. I checked in there this morning and he still wasn't in there."

There was a unanimous no from everyone there. Lance took a seat with the rest of the students and they all proceeded to eat their breakfast in silence. The Professor entered the room, causing everyone to look up in hope that there had been a change for the better in their friend's health.

"How is she?" Kurt anxiously voiced the question they were all wondering.

Professor Xavier sighed and shook his head regretfully. "There hasn't been any change."

Kitty spoke up. "I had a question. You said yesterday that Rogue couldn't absorb Logan's healing factor because of the powers she had absorbed?" The professor nodded. "Well, wouldn't she be able to absorb him after it wears off?" The others looked at Kitty in amazement at the rare show of insightfulness. Noticing the looks, she shot a scorching glare at them. "I'm not an idiot." The others quickly looked away, deciding it was best not to argue with someone who could reach inside you a rip your still beating heart from your body.

"Typically, yes. Unfortunately, Rogue remained in contact with the mutant woman for an unprecedented amount of time."

"And?"

"Rogue's powers are rather complex, and mostly untested due to the seriousness of prolonged contact. The longer she touches someone, the longer she possesses their powers. Theoretically, with long enough contact, she would be able to permanently absorb the person's psyche as well as their power."

"So what your saying is that she might have that psychos powers forever?" Kitty asked, a shocked expression on her face.

"Not just her powers, but also her mind."

The room once again fell to silence as they contemplated this new complication.

"Did you try to scan her mind and see if you can help her wake up?"

The professor shook his head. "Rogue's always had mental blocks that make it hard to read her mind. The added telepathy power reinforcing them makes it impossible to get through them without her granting the access. And for a psychic to force their way in would only cause more damage."

"If she did permanently absorb this woman's mind, will it stop her from waking up from her coma?" Scott asked softly.

"It's possible. But Rogue is strong we must trust that she'll get through this situation. This is one thing that she'll have to do on her own."

"Have you told Pietro this?" Kitty asked, imagining what the boy's reaction would be.

"No. I'm not sure that that would be a wise decision right now. He is troubled enough as it is." Professor Xavier said, not mentioning how the boy had been asleep by Rogue's side when he had gone to check on her earlier.

Everyone nodded in agreement. No one noticed the silver-haired boy standing in the doorway listening to the conversation. And no one questioned the sudden rush of air that signaled his departure.

~~~

At that particular moment, Rogue (or at least Rogue's psyche) was lost. Everywhere she looked there was only a black void that stretched on endlessly all around her. She vaguely realized that this couldn't possibly be real, if for no other reason than the absolute silence. She fought to remain calm but was having little success. If there was one thing she hated it was darkness. Not that she was scared of the dark (and she would happily mutilate anyone that said she was), but the uncertainty of it bothered her to know end. She hated not knowing if something was near her, not being able to protect herself. It was about control.

She desperately tried to figure out where she was, and remembered the last actions that she could recall. The last thing she remembered was fighting that woman, maintaining contact to absorb her power as long as she could, up until they had hit the ground. No, that wasn't quite true. She had actually stopped absorbing her right before that, although she had still been in contact. For some reason her powers had stopped working. But why?

Rogue pondered the question before the answer came to her. As soon as she realized the implications though, she wished that she hadn't. The only way it would have stopped is if there was nothing more to absorb. Which would mean that she had completely absorbed the woman's mind into her own, which meant that she would have been dead. If not physically then at least mentally. Either way, the end result was the same. Rogue was a killer.

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Would that be considered two cliff hangers? In one chapter? And I know how much everyone hates them. Bad, LT, bad. But I blame the frog. Or the Toad if you want to be technical.