Chapter 8: Carol
The monitoring equipment at Rogue's bedside beeped rhythmically. Her vital signs were normal, there was even a level of brain activity. But Rogue would simply not wake, or respond to any physical stimulus. Professor Xavier sat by Rogue's side, frowning as Dr. McCoy read back his report. The other handful of students present that day were there too. Scott and Jean listened carefully while Kurt comforted a distraught Kitty in the corner.
"It was totally his fault.. He touched her, I saw!" Kurt could only look forlornly at the floor. Jean searched her mind for an explanation.
"Professor, is it possible that someone else in Rogue's mind is causing this?" Jean was aware of the other side effect of Rogue's absorption.. a copy of the person's psyche. They had helped Rogue practice to repress them until they faded away, and had seemed to have an amount of control over them. But she was unaware of Carol and her permanence in Rogue's mind. Xavier looked at Rogue thoughtfully.
"It is possible that absorbing Gambit caused another entity within her to react violently, thus causing Rogue to lose her control over her borrowed powers..." Xavier didn't mention Carol specifically.. it was Rogue's business. "I will attempt to probe Rogue's mind to see if there is any such entity keeping her consciousness subdued."
Calmly, Xavier closed his eyes and concentrated. He could clearly 'see' Carol in Rogue's mind, feeling her stalking to and fro like a caged tiger. He attempted to make light contact, before being forcefully repelled. He opened his eyes.
"It's almost like its defending itself.." He paused. "Would someone get the door? Mind the windows."
Remy was quite surprise when a sniffling Kitty opened the door he stood in front of. He'd contemplated whether it would be better to use the door or come quietly through a window, and bam, his answer was delivered... along with a vicious slap. The Cajun grinned, he was wearing his trenchcoat and boots, but also had a white ribbon laced into his hair.
"Well well, i's Remy's favorite French student."
Kitty just slapped him again, and Remy sighed. He grabbed her by the waist and threw her over his shoulder like a child, only to have her phase through him. He walked in anyway, the door slamming before she rushed up and jumped on his back, intent on knocking him over, though it didn't work.
"Cheri, jus' say where de girl is... Remy ain' here ta make trouble..." Kitty blinked and dropped off of his back, coming around front to stop his forward motion.
"You mean you came back for her! How romantic! Everyone is going to love this!" Before Remy could get a word in edge-wise she had him by the hand. He was drug through the mansion to the room where they had Rogue, and was greeted with less-than-friendly looks from Scott and Kurt, even Jean looked a little less inclined to be nice. The Professor had that same knowing smile that always seem to grace his features, and Beast just kept on with his work. Kitty grinned and went on at a mile a minute.
"You guys! Don't worry, he's a good guy again! He came back for Rogue! He loves her so much, just look what he did with his hair! Isn't this so romantic? It's like so romantic I could just die!" Remy blushed and grinned, then put a hand over her mouth.
"Dat's about enough out o' yo', Cheri..." Kitty phased through his hand and went to stand with the others, still smiling brightly as she does. Remy glanced at them again and approached her bed. "How she doin', Prafessah?"
Xavier settled back into his wheelchair as he thought of a way to explain it. "To speak plainly, it's as if her consciousness is being held hostage by another psychic entity." He looked at the other students carefully before deciding to reveal the whole truth. "Its name is Carol, a mutant Rogue was forced to absorb during her imprisonment in Trask's laboratory. Rogue absorbed her completely, and Carol died. Her body, any way. Rogue had told me that Carol seemed dormant.. until now. As I said before to my students, her absorption of you, Remy, caused Carol to react violently. Carol's psyche completely eradicated the copy of yours. She has become almost territorial, and I fear she may try to eradicate Rogue's consciousness as well, and claim a new body."
Well, there it was, completely out on the table. The Professor clasped his hands before him. He could not be sure whether Carol was a mutant - she'd been dormant before, and now he couldn't concentrate on her long enough before she attacked him again. He'd just have to fight back.
Remy frowned as he looked down at her and dropped to his knees next to the bed. His shoulders sagged heavily, and for once, Remy was completely without his confidence. He always carried himself with a surety that made him such a good con man, and made him so likeable and charming. He seemed so vulnerable now, and even Scott's expression softened slightly. Remy looked up at the Professor and sighed.
"So, den, i's Remy's fault, non?"
Xavier, being the great man of reason and forgiveness that he was, gave Remy a reassuring smile.
"You must not blame yourself for this. You had no way of predicting the events that have occurred. I'm sure if you did, you would have prevented it, would you not?" Xavier looked at Rogue again, not needing to hear Remy's answer to know it. "Accidents happen, and you must forgive yourself, as I'm sure she would."
Remy nodded a bit and looked back to Rogue too with a heavy sigh. "Yo' is da smahtest man Remy eva' meet... He do wha'ever he can ta help, yo' jus tell Remy wha ta do an he do it..." Kitty squealed and covered her mouth, bouncing on her tiptoes excitedly.
Xavier looked over at Remy, smiling at his offer and pouncing upon it.
"Well, I'm sure I'll need someone to take care of Rogue while the children are at classes." He folded his hands in his lap. "We've kept your old room for you."
Remy blinked, then looked away awkwardly. "Well... Sho', Remy could do dat, simple... jus'... Um... Remy rat'er yo' jus' listen ta his mind, if dat's all right..." Xavier nodded and watched Remy closely, then smiled. Remy, of course, needed Xavier to keep a psychic eye on the Morlocks, to make sure they were all right while Remy was here.
"That's no problem at all, Remy."
The Cajun smiled. "T'ank yo', Prafessah... Remy 'preciate it."
Xavier gave him a kind smile.
"And thank you. Kitty, if you'll show Mr. LeBeau back to his room.. And the rest of you. We've had a long day. I'd like to be alone with Rogue. I'm going to try my best to wake her. Jean, stay behind if you would." Xavier turned his attention inward, closing his eyes as he mentally prepared himself. Meanwhile the other students and Dr. McCoy filed out of the room, Kitty excitedly leading Remy by the hand again.
Remy stopped Kitty once they were nearer the common room.
"Whoa dere, Cheri... Remy know where his room is... He still owe yo' some lessons en Francais, non?" Kitty jumped and nodded.
"Yea! And then we can talk about Rooogguuee." She drew the name out in that perfect grade-school tone that kids always used to tease each other about liking people. Remy sighed and took a seat on the couch while she went to get her book.
There were a few other students there, including Bobby and Jamie, though after the Iceman did a bit of quiet orchestrating Remy was left alone. He didn't really mind, he figured news would have spread quickly and that he wouldn't be trusted right away. C'est la vie. It wasn't long before Kitty was back and her next French lesson started up.
Jean walked around and sat at the other side of Rogue's bed, patiently waiting. Xavier once again probed into her mind.. And found Carol once again. Another light attempt at contact result again in a violent reaction, so Xavier took the initiative.. He wasn't the most powerful psychic in the world for nothing. He forced his psyche on Carol, slowly adding pressure until she cracked... He spoke direcly into her.
~Who are you?~ Rogue's back arched off the hospital bed and Jean stood quickly to pin her shoulders down, looking at the professor worriedly. Rogue spoke.
"She trapped me here. I'm a prisoner, just like the rest." The voice was Rogue's, but the accent wasn't. Xavier questioned again.
~What others?~
"They are here, all of them. They are sleeping now. I made them sleep."
~And are you making Rogue sleep?~
"There is no Rogue here."
Xavier paused. ~Don't lie to me, Carol.~
Rogue's breath became ragged and panicky.
"There is no Rogue here! She's dead! SHE'S DEAD!"
Jean fought to keep Rogue's thrashing body from striking out, sending an urgent telepathic cry for help. Xavier broke his contact with Carol and attacked her full force.
Remy smiled and nodded. "Da's it, Cheri. Yo' been practicin', ain' yo'? Usin' da tips Remy give yo', righ?"
Kitty nodded eagerly, a wide grin on her face, so proud she was doing better in her French. "Yea! Like, they totally helped! The teacher almost freaked when she heard me! It was great!" She giggled and Remy chuckled along.
"Well, yo' sho' doin bettah." Kitty nodded again and scooted a little closer to Remy.
"So, um, let's take a break now, ok? Now, tell me all about what happened with Rogue! Like, what happened when you guys disappeared on campus, and why'd you leave? Someone said they saw you sneaking into the girls' dorms, or out, somethin like that, so, what were you two doing? I promise I won't tell anyone!"
Remy blinked and sighed. "Nuttin' happen, Cheri. Remy jus' had ta apologize aftah losin' his tempah on dat walk... dat's where we was when we 'disappeahed'."
Kitty sighed and pouted. "Well, at least tell me why you hooked up with those freaks who attacked everyone!" Remy frowned and flicked her square in the forehead, making her blink, not quite sure what happened.
"Dose people dey attacked t'ink yo' a freak too, Cheri. De Morlocks jus' wan' ta be in peace, but dey keep gettin' killed by dose mutant hatahs." Kitty blinked again, then laid back with a heavy sigh.
"Fine, I'm sorry... So, if nothing happened with you and Rogue, then, like, why are you back?" Remy chuckled.
"I's Remy dat shoulda been payin bettah attencion, he no see when Leech stop makin' da othah powahs stop."
Kitty sat forward again, curious. "You mean it was one of them that did it? And you actually touched Rogue without getting hurt for awhile? Wow! That's like, a first! I bet she loved it!"
Remy blushed and looked away. "When did yo' chil'en get so nosey?" Kitty giggled and shrugged.
"Just what makes me special I guess!"
Carol, whatever type of mutant she may or may not have been, couldn't withstand Xavier's attack for long, which resulted in a sort of psychic knockout.. similar to what Jean did to Rogue earlier. With Carol subdued, Xavier was allowed to see past her and into the back of Rogue's mind. The other entities - weaker - seemed dormant, and Rogue's psyche itself seemed to have lost its way...
Gently, Xavier coaxed it forward, while at the same time pushing Carol further back.. They couldn't afford to have her take control again before Rogue woke up. Xavier opened his eyes. The monitors beside him recorded an increase in brain activity. Rogue was dreaming, and her consciousness was restored. Jean looked at the Professor hopefully.
"Will she be alright?"
He smiled and returned her hopeful look.
"She is simply resting now.. By morning she should be as good as new." Well, as close to new as having Carol would allow her. "Come, we'll let her sleep, and it is getting late."
Remy softly closed the door to Rogue's room. He knew he shouldn't be there, he should be in his room like a good little boy. He had a problem with authority, though, and always found himself on the wrong side of it. Though, the guilt had a bit to do with it too. He carefully searched the darkened room for a chair and pulled it up next to the bed. With a sigh he leaned back, watching her in the dim lights of the monitors. Eventually he would doze off, but he'd watch her as long as he could, just like he said he would.
