Chapter 8, "Deny"
By: RogueBHS
A/N: I have to admit to my fans that this story was in the making back in December of 2002. A few might ask why I didn't post this back when it was started then. Well, I was also working on my Rogue website (which is currently down, as my host didn't have space for me any more), and thought I'd put this on my site first and mention it on FF.net to generate a little interest from the readers of my Arc and Evo stories. That fell through thanks to Randi telling me that she really liked it. LOL. I wanted to see if she was the only one who thought so, and I found out that she's not. This isn't a longer chapter than the others, but also there is a clue to the identity of the reader down at the bottom of the page, as well as notes to the reviewers. I have to state here that as of last chapter, Rogue DOES have her original powers. Obviously a few missed the reference to Cody. Oh well! Hope you enjoy!
I've been following this Cajun rascal for three damn hours now, and my feet are finally starting to hurt. He must have noticed he's being followed, and is probably trying to loose me, but my eyesight is one of my better senses, thank god. I glance around me, thankful that the sun is starting to go down, with it dark, I can take to rooftops and watch him from there, rather than following on the ground where I could be seen. I pause when he does, but before his eyes have a chance to find me, I'm asking a man what time it is, suprising the man, and hopefully throwing off swamp boy a bit.
My eyes may seem to be on the man I'm talking to, but the second the Cajun moves again, I'm ready to start up again too. I make sure to dwadle a little now, occasionally looking in shop windows and things like that to keep it from being so obvious that I'm following this guy. When he finally stops at a house, and knocks, I pause, watching him out of the corner of my eye. He steps inside, and I can't help but curse. If he goes out a back door, the mission is blown to pieces.
Glad I've always been good at climbing trees, I work my way through the middle limbs of the many trees in the yard, and glance down at the back; no door. Good. With no trouble, I'm back in front of the house, with around 30 seconds to spare. He walks out, a package tucked under his arm, and I'm curious about what it might be. We start walking again, and I have to wonder if this guy has extra endurance or something, cause he isn't slowing down in the least.
Its not even half an hour later when he stops at another house, this one much nicer than the last, and before he can open the door, a man is standing there, tall and proud. He speaks to the guy I've been following in Cajun French, and I manage to understand every word. The man is curious as to why Remy...Is that his name?...is getting back so late with the package. Remy grins that deadly grin again, and shrugs, saying that he had a few other stops to make along the way.
The older man looks directly at me, and the fact that I'm looking that way must be a point against me, because he frowns. He looks to Remy again, and lowers his voice as he asks the Cajun a question. Remy turns to look for me, and from my new position, I can see him squint and look around, as does the older man. It had taken me all of 2 seconds to get in the tree behind me, as that's the amount of time it took to grab a limb and swing up. Not too hard...not for me at least.
When they enter the house, I smile, then jump down after waiting a few seconds to give them time to get the door closed. I stick around casually, and walk over to a flower stand and purchase a yellow rose for Nanna. She loves the smell of them, and she had defended me against Momma the other day when I accidently absorbed someone. I don't know what I'd do without either of them, I really don't.
Remy? Rogue once tailed him through New Orleans? Its a wonder he hasn't recognized her even after all this time. Hood or no, Rogue's face would be easy enough to reckognize I imagine. And Jean-Luc seeing her but never reckognizing her either? Curious...very curious. The most curious thing is the way Rogue makes it sound as if she was, at least at one point in time, very adept at "blending in," yet she doesn't bother with it now, even when we're on missions. Now, her way is to all but announce what we're up to...she never struck me as the subtle type.
A/N cont. : Here's the clue for the reader of Rogue's journal--
The reader IS male.
Granted that doesn't narrow suspects down much, but hey, its a hint! Now, notes to my little reviewers! But first, I must say THANK YOU to all of those who have been doing so...even if it was on an irregular basis.
RogueRemy: If you want to E-mail or AIM me to see if you got the author right, go ahead. Also, thanks for the compliment on how I portray the relationship between Rogue, Mystique and Irene. I've always seen them as close...after all, Rogue wouldn't have stuck with them if they hadn't treated her right. :)
ishandahalf: I never said Rogue and Remy don't know each other when they meet later, but the reasons for Gambit never saying a word on it are pointed out next chapter. So yes, more wonderful Rogue-Remy scenes next chapter...after all, she hasn't done the full job yet. ;)
Neurotic Temptress: You're guess on Rogue's age is partially right. I've got Rogue at around 15 or so, and Remy is 19, giving them some age space to play with. I'm not going with the general Marvel timeline where Rogue's powers showed up at age 12/13, so that probably threw a lot of people off. And Remy? Oblivious of a pretty younger girl following him? Never...;) LOL. Just keep reading, the hows and whys will be revealed as the story continues, obviously.
Lucky439: It seems either A) this story is REALLY good in your opinion or B) you just don't feel like typing much in the reviews because your vocab has been limited to : "So cool" and "Awesome" throughout the short duration of the story. LOL. But I don't mind! :)
Randirogue:: Well, I must say I appreciate you reviewing since you've been so busy lately...heck, I haven't seen you on in nearly 3 weeks I think. Ack! No wonder my muse refuses to work. LOL. J/K. You've already guessed the reader correctly, so for now, part of the mystery is gone, but don't worry, I plan on messing with your head again soon enough. Hehe. Glad you're enjoying this story!
All other reviewers: Thanks for reading and reviewing, hope you continue to do so!