A/N: OKAY, I HAVE A FELLING THAT THIS CHAPTER IS GOING TO SUCK. ANYWAY, THANKS FOR THE REVIEWS. I HAVE AN IDEA NOW ON WHO SHE'S GOING TO FIGHT BUT ANYWAY, IT'S VAGUE SO I WON'T TRY TO EXPLAIN IT. I'D LIKE TO THANK ICY FLAME FOR THE ICNREDIBLY LONG AND DETAILED REVIEW AND TO EVERYONE ELSE WHO HAS BEEN REAL NICE AND DIDN'T FLAME ME. LOL. THANKS FOR YOUR IDEAS. HOPEFULLY, WE DON'T RUN OUT OF THEM BEFORE THE GOOD PART. OKAY, HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER. HOPE IT DOESN'T SUCK THAT MUCH.

~*~

"Are you okay?" Pietro asked quietly as he and Rogue sat around the kitchen table.

She was uncharacteristically quieter than usual as she stared into nothing. She hadn't said a word to him since Mystique came home and they had a shouting fest for the rest of the afternoon.

Then everything just grew silent and Mystique walked to her room and Rogue sat down, looking stunned.

No one knew what happened or what was said since they all left to give the feuding mother and daughter some space. And it scared all of them.

"Huh?" Rogue asked as if not hearing him. Nothing seemed to make sense, even what Pietro was saying. It was as if the world was going by in a flash and she couldn't quite catch up.

"I said, are you okay?" Pietro repeated. He knew the answer but still her had to ask. They were all worried about her. He was worried.

Rogue shrugged as she took a sip of her drink. "Do I look okay?" She asked, her voice losing it's hint of sarcasm.

Pietro narrowed his eyes, watching her carefully. "No. You look like you just got the shit beat out of you." He answered.

"Basically." She whispered somewhat dejectedly.

"She beat you?" He asked, shocked.

She forced a small smile on her lips. "No. She told me something." She answered.

"Oh. So, was it bad?" He asked.

Rogue nodded, falling silent again. "Very bad."

"You want to tell me about it? Everyone's curious on what happened. I mean, we all expected this to last a few days but you two aren't even talking to each other. It worries us that this is happening this way." Pietro declared.

"We're okay. And we aren't going to kill each other any time soon." Rogue answered. "We called a truce sorta-like me and Wanda. It's temporary." She chuckled, evading giving him the answer.

"Oh." Pietro whispered.

"I'm going to bed." She said standing up. Rogue walked towards her room quietly while Pietro sat by the table, looking after her.

She stopped short and turned. "Pietro, what would you do if your mother told you that you have a choice between bringing the end of the world and saving it?" She asked quietly.

Confusion and worry crossed Pietro's face as he tried to make sense of what she had just asked him. "I don't know." He answered.

"Neither do I." She whispered as she disappeared to the second floor.



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Rogue slept silently as the shadows crept around her, moving outside her window. The whispers were low as they circled the house.

Suddenly she woke up with a cold feeling around her neck, startling her.

"What the-"

"Sorry, Rogue." Scott said apologetically as he looked down on her, tightening the metal chain around her neck.

"Get off me!" She yelled as she threw him across the room. She tried yanking the chain off but if wouldn't come off. The more she struggled, the tighter it was around her neck.

"You're going to pay for this!" She said as she tried to use her powers. Kurt, Jean, Kitty and Evan were all in the room with her, looking hesitant and afraid but ready to attack her if the opportunity arises.

Suddenly, a searing pain ran through her head as she winced, falling on the ground, clutching her head in agony. She felt out of breath as she resisted.

"What did you do?" She demanded angrily as tried again but nothing came and every time she tried to use her powers, she was engulfed by more agony.

"That chain around your neck stops your power. It reflects it back to you so don't try anything. When you use it, it'll cause you pain. I suggest, you don't struggle." Scott declared grimly.

"Like hell, I won't." Rogue said as she stood up weakly, ready to fight them.

She could hear crashing outside her room, explosion and a lot of yelling. "What do you want?" She asked angrily as she tried to stand up straight but her knees felt weak from the shock administered to her.

"You." Jean said, pointing a finger at her.

Rogue glared at Jean, her anger and hatred for the girl increases each minute.

"Rogue, we're sorry but we had no choice." Kurt said apologetically.

"Shut up, you traitor!" She yelled angrily at her brother. "You are no longer my family."

Jean and Scott approached her but she ducked, kicking and punching them as she did so.

"I may not have my powers, but I can still beat you." She hissed as she kicked down her door. She ran outside her room and saw that the house was in flames and everyone was running around and fighting.

Magneto hovered, watching them patiently with Xavier by his side.

She could see that they were outnumbered and they were easily losing. The Acolytes along with the X-men were too strong for all of them too fight.

Wanda was knocked unconscious on the ground while Lance tried to protect her and fight Gambit at the same time.

"I can't use my powers!" She yelled to Mystique who asked her to do something already.

Mystique groaned, ran over to her and they both stood back to back, fighting of the x men, who were attacking and defeating them with ease.

Juggernaut easily grabbed Rogue by the neck as he flung Mystique through the wall with his arm. Rogue tried to fight back as she struggled for air. "I'll snap you like a twig." He hissed as she passed out.

The X-men and Acolytes retreated as they carried Rogue's limp body back into their jet and flew away.

"No!" Pietro yelled angrily as he ran after them.

"Pietro let them go!" Mystique ordered sternly as she stood up from the ruble on top of her; the rest of them regrouping, carrying those who were unconscious. Mystique looked back at the house and frowned as if it was the one thing that mattered the most at this moment. It was torn, worse than before. It was catching fire easily and nothing was left to salvage.

"That is your daughter out there! How can you let them take her?" He yelled furiously.

"I know who that is." Mystique said quietly, glaring at him.

"What do we do now, yo?" Todd asked as he hopped after Mystique who was leading all of them back to the house.

"We wait and we see what happens." She answered, her smile sinister, hiding a secret that only see and the rogue knew of.



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Rogue struggled as she laid on the cold floor, the brace around her neck attached to a chain in the wall.

"Some way to treat your guests." She mumbled. She was sure that the professor was watching, presumably through the glass door.

"If you had just listened to the professor in the beginning. Then this wouldn't have happened." Scott said as he stepped out of the darkness.

"Well, well, if it isn't Xavier's number one lackey." She hissed as she glared at Scott.

"I am nobody's lackey." He retorted.

"Are you sure about that?" Rogue asked. She watched him curiously, an odd amused expression on her face.

Scott didn't answer.

"How long have I been here?" She asked, looking around the room that didn't seem to end.

"Two days." Scott replied. "Rogue, we don't want to hurt you but the professor said-"

"I don't care what Xavier said. He lied. Your girlfriend should know. She's been planning this with him all along. Xavier's first student." Rogue scoff as she stood up to face Scott.

"We're not doing anything wrong. We're trying to protect you from hurting everyone, and yourself." He insisted.

"You're trying to protect yourself alright but for all the wrong reasons and from the wrong person." She said.

"I'm on the good side. You were once too." Scott declared. "You still have a chance to come back."

"I believed I was on the good side. I was told that I was." She whispered.

She was playing mind games with him. He could see. She was doing it like the professor had warned them.

"We're not deliberately doing this to hurt you." He insisted firmly. "Do you think that Kurt would hurt you because he wanted to? He had no choice. The professor told us you were the last key. The key that would release Apocalypse and as much as we care about you, we just can't let you go."

Rogue smiled darkly. "Kurt doesn't understand. Neither do you."

"You're talking in riddles." He said irately.

"Why don't you make a guess then? Wait, let's ask the professor. I'm sure he knows." Rogue laughed as if mad.

"She's losing it." Jean declared as she, Kurt and Kitty walked into the room.

"I'm the sanest and most clear minded person in this room." Rogue laughed again, ignoring Kurt's presence. "You're all fools. You two especially." She said as she glared at Jean and Scott.

The door swooshed open and Professor and Logan walked in, first shrouded by the darkness and then appearing into the light.

"Hello, Rogue." Xavier said darkly as he approached her, still in his chair.

"Xavier." She grinned as she tilted her head, watching Logan curiously. "You want to share something with us Wolverine?" She asked; her voice lighthearted as if she was enjoying this.

Jean watched her suspiciously.

Logan sniffed the air around him, frowning as he caught her scent. "This isn't Rogue." He growled as he stepped closer to Rogue who stood proudly in front of all of them.

"Big boy's catching on." She snickered, her voice returning to its original sound.

"Mystique!" Scott hissed with frustration.

"That's right." She laughed. "Remember this Xavier, my daughter and I will always be a dozen steps ahead of you." She said darkly as she stepped as close as she could to Xavier.

The professor shook his head in disgust and anger, enraged that they had been fooled.

"And you're already too late." Mystique said in a sing song voice as the ground shook beneath all of them.

~*~

A/N: OKAY, I KNOW IT WAS HORRIBLE BUT I HAD T GET IT GOING. ANYWAY, GIVE ME MORE IDEAS. IM PRETTY SURE YOU KNOW WHAT MYSTIQUE MEANT WHEN SHE SAID THAT THEY WERE ALL TOO LATE.