Chapter 1: The Day before Halloween
The vivid golden glow of the sun pierced the parted curtains of the window of the X-Mansion while the fresh fall air filled the room and added a nippy chill. The air, which had been warmer the previous day, woke up the skunk-haired Southerner from her rest. A muted moan of detest escaped from Rogue's lips, the beautiful mutant reaching a glove-less hand to reach up to her neck while her large naked breasts brushed against the sheets of the mattress from her slight stretch against the bed. It was the earliest she had woken up in a while, especially without her alarm clock, which she had completely forgotten to set before she had gone to bed.
Rogue smacked her lips tiredly as she pushed her naked form up from the bed and stretched her arms up into the air in a long stretch. But she quickly had her eyes double-open when she felt the assaulting cold hitting her nipples and breasts, which caused her to grab the blankets and yank them back onto her body.
"Geez," the Southerner tiredly murmured to herself, "looks like Jack Frost is at it again with the temperature regulation. Either that or Bobby is havin' some fun. Can't tell which since they both have control over the cold."
The X-Man clenched the surrounding blankets against her nude body and slid her feet over the bed, her feet landing right into her wool-laced slippers, something that brought a smile to her cherry-red lips. For a moment, she smelled something familiar. Extremely familiar. And she cast her hypnotic jade eyes down. Her cheeks became tinted with a rosy shade as she moved the blankets away from her body just a little to expose her lower nudeness below. There, she saw her stiffness reaching proudly to the chilly air with a ghostly white coating. Upon further inspection below, she noticed her pink slit was also a mess with the same substance.
"I musta been dreamin' 'bout something good," she laughed to herself. "But why can't Ah remember what it was?"
Rogue had been eagerly awaiting the arrival of Halloween, as she always considered it one of the most enjoyable times of the year. What made it all the better was that many mutants who had outward appearances affected by their mutant genes could go out and enjoy themselves without fear of someone becoming frightened by their presence. Such was the case of Dr. Hank McCoy, known around the X-Mansion as the Beast because of his unsightly outward appearance of blue hair and other slight inhuman traits.
She just wasn't expecting it to be so cold.
Shivering, Rogue lugged herself towards the bathroom of her dorm room. She then dropped the blankets straight onto the floor, the cold nip brushing against her round bare butt before she reached for the doorknob and pulled it to open the bathroom. Rogue washed briefly, making sure her dick and slit were perfectly clean, turned the water off, and left the bathroom before wandering over to her dresser. The Southern mutant gathered her sunflower yellow halter-top and bellbottom jeans before slipping them on.
Once her morning wood had subsided, Rogue was out of her room and headed to the lounging area of the X-Mansion. She saw a jovial Beast and a surprisingly not-so-grumpy Wolverine adding the finishing touches for Halloween night. This included a few pumpkin lamps and a large candy bowl.
"Y'all really been gettin' into th' Halloween spirit, ain't ya?" Rogue said to them with a playful little smile on her lips.
"Mornin' to ya, Rogue! Didn't hear any punches this time, so I'm guessin' you won't be needin' an alarm clock replacement!" Logan quipped teasingly.
"We have been working for hours upon hours trying to finish our decorating," said the Beast with the excitement of a child. "But at last, we have finally achieved what we had set our minds to."
"It's rare to see you smilin', Mr. Grumpypuss!" Rogue stated as she threw her arms into the air for another long stretch. "But it's still a nice change of pace."
"What can I say?" replied the regenerative mutant with a not-so-subtle smirk on his lips. "Always had a bit of a weak spot for Halloween. It's my favorite out of all the holidays since it's the one year I can scare the pants off small children without being labeled a monster."
While Rogue knew full well that Wolverine had a soft spot for little tykes, she also knew that he was a bit of a prankster. Maybe not on the same level as Deadpool or even Spider-Man, but he still loved the occasional practical joke or two. While an adult on the outside, he was a child on the inside.
"Well, ain't you a sweetheart! Just try not to scare e'm too bad, 'kay?"
"Hey," Logan briefly gazed towards the Beast, "now, if I was this guy, I might be a little worried. But I'm not."
Beast feigned offense at the remark.
Rogue brought a hand up to her mouth, yawning hard for a few minutes. She didn't smell any coffee, which led her to believe that no one had even made any yet. That or they had already consumed all the pot and left her none. And boy, was she in dire need of some coffee.
"Anyone make coffee yet?" She asked, glancing between the two men.
Logan looked at Beast, then Beast at him. The two of them just shrugged their shoulders, which was followed by the Beast apologizing for the lack of coffee.
Rogue shook her head at the two. Then just walked off toward the kitchen area to make another pot.
It appeared to be one of those rare days. One of those rare days where she had a darn hard time waking up. She had been stuck in a hazy mental fog since the first second she had woken up, but it had still yet to lift itself from her. But at least once she had a pot of coffee made, the black lava would jolt all her senses into place.
In the kitchen, she went through the pantry and went over the coffee, promptly reaching for the bag nearest to the right: a medium blend coffee, which was her personal favorite.
Remy, or Gambit, was a pretty big coffee fan as well, although she once saw Logan out-drink him in a coffee contest. She blamed Remy for her fondness for chicory coffee. Although, admittedly, she hadn't had a cup of that in a while. And while it was tempting to brew a pot, regular ol' medium ground with no herbs or spices added was her current craving.
She reached to the box of coffee filters on the counter, pulling one out. Then came filling up the pot to the desired amount of water, pouring it in the reservoir, putting in the filter, and filling it with coffee.
Rogue leaned forward against the counter and brought a fist up to her face, lightly shoving it against her cheek. Her lips turned upside down while she watched the pot impatiently.
"Maybe I should buy some instant coffee," she thought out loud to herself, exhaling while she tapped her other hand on the porcelain countertop. "This really ain't one of those days where Ah feel like waitin'."
"Good morning, Rogue." A gentle, fatherly voice hit her ears.
Rogue turned her head to the side to meet the eyes of Professor Charles Xavier, the bald, wheelchair-bound telepath who was their mentor and the founder of the X-Men.
"Mornin' Professor."
"You seem extra tired today," he noted. "The mission must have taken a lot out of you. I know Scott has been running a few of you ragged lately. I've been meaning to talk to him about that."
Rogue's eyes started closing again right as he said that. But she forced them back open, the revitalizing aroma of the brewing house-blend coffee filling her nose.
"He's just tryin' to be a good leader," she said.
"I'm aware," Charles responded. Despite his slightly sharp facial features, Professor Xavier had a relatively calm voice. His laid-back and fatherly personality had won over many mutants. "But I still believe he has been pushing you all too hard. You need more time to rest."
"Professor, you know probably better than Ah do that upset about Jean," Rogue stated. "She means th' world to 'im."
Professor Xavier sighed and closed his eyes. His golden-colored hover-wheelchair shifted so that his back was to the younger mutant. He brought his hands up to his lips in a gesture similar to one saying a prayer. "I wish I could help more," he melancholily thought out loud.
"For now," she watched the coffee pot in almost uncontrollable anticipation, "all we can do is try to keep his mind on other things."
"If only things had turned out differently..." he dropped his hands back down to the armrest of his floating wheelchair. "I keep replaying the images over and over in my mind. Wishing there was something more that I could have done to prevent the situation."
"Just keep an eye on Emma." Rogue shifted her eyes from the filling coffee pot back to Charles. "Ah know she means well, but... Her solution to th' problem ain't right."
Charles nodded in complete agreement, turning the hovering wheelchair back to face her. "When you see someone clearly in pain, it is difficult not to use your power to use your power meaningfully. But even if it brings another comfort? It is abusing our powers and deceiving others."
"You told me you once considered the same idea."
"I did," he admitted, voice falling slightly in tone. "But I shunned the thought quickly from my mind. Living an illusion... What a terrible thing."
"Let's get on a happier subject!" she suggested. Rogue reached for the pot of coffee now that it had filled and grabbed a coffee mug from the cabinet. She poured the steaming liquid into the ceramic mug and handed it to Charles, then reached up and pulled another ceramic mug down for herself and poured herself a cup of java.
"Halloween." He suggested.
"You gonna dress up, Professor?"
"I considered it..." he said with a smile. "But, no. I'm too old for that."
"We're all too old, Professor," she countered, chuckling. "Well, except Jubilee and a few the others, I guess."
"On the contrary," he lifted the mug of coffee to his lips, "you're quite young."
"An' Logan an' Beast?" Rogue grinned.
Professor Xavier knew he had lost this argument. Logan was the oldest out of all of them, and Hank was older than most of them, as well.
"In defense of Logan," he took a slow sip, "I think somewhere deep inside, he still has a bit of a child dwelling inside him."
Rogue had been eagerly anticipating her horror movie binge all the way back from September.
Rogue pulled the tape from its cardboard sleeve and walked toward the wooden entertainment center. She gently pressed her tape into the VHS player and walked back toward the bed, seating herself. Reaching her hand to the bed, Rogue gripped the blocky, hard plastic remote and clicked the rectangular button that said play. She kicked her feet up on the edge of the bed and brought her hands behind her head, leaning into the pillow of her bed.
Her collection of VHS tapes was respectable, even if they didn't nearly muster up to the quantity that the living room area of the mansion had.
The FBI warning popped up on the screen, then came the movie previews with narration from the usual deep voice. And then the movie started, 3D letters flying onto the screen detailing the cast and crew.
The movie started with a man and woman in a coffee shop talking together while holding steaming cups of coffee. They were discussing recent killings that had just started happening in their town. The man cracked a joke, and the woman pretended to be offended but then laughed. And then their discussion cut away from talking about murders, shifting into a conversation about their daily lives.
The scene changed, cutting to a nude couple in bed, having sex.
She always enjoyed a good ol' horror flick. But the one issue was... Things like this. Here on the screen, the girl was riding away while moaning with increasing breaths. That stirred Rogue's bulge.
Thank goodness she had recently gotten her own TV. The thought of being lounged on the couch with a raging boner in front of her other teammates? The thought was nothing short of mortifying. She could even picture their faces in response to seeing her rod.
The sex scene ended, ending with the girl in question impaled through the back and her bleeding body landing on the chest of her sweetheart below. The teenage male screamed, then the knife came down, slicing him in the neck. He gurgled with blood flowing from his mouth. Then he was dead, too.
If there were more scenes like that, well, minus the killing, she was probably going to end up in the bathroom to scratch that itch.
The movie panned in on the dead bodies of the couple and then switched to the next scene, which opened up with a zoom-in on a big oak tree with red leaves.
Rogue picked up the blocky remote from her bed and pressed one of the rectangular-shaped buttons, resulting in a click. The tube tv paused, and she threw her arms up in the air in a heavy stretch, then tossed her legs over the edge of the bed and stepped onto the floor.
As invested as she was in the movie, her feet needed a short walk. That and she wanted to go check in on Jubilee and see how she was feeling.
Rogue walked to the door, shutting it behind her, heading off into the hall.
The poor girl! It was one of the worse times for anyone to get sick. It was just a day before Halloween, and here Jubilee had caught a cold.
The sound of coughing was hitting her ears already. They started as soft, but the coughs gradually grew until turning into a loud, hacking cough that really pulled on the sympathy.
"Good thing Ah keep mah immune system so strong," Rogue mumbled to herself, drawing nearer to the young mutant's dorm.
After a bit more walking, she was in front of Jubilee's room.
She knocked on the door, to which she was met with a faint: "Come in!"
She pulled the door open and entered the room.
"Howdy," she greeted the younger female.
She looked toward the direction of the bed, where Jubilee was all bundled up. Jubilee was so dressed up in blankets that the only thing that stuck out was her head.
"Oh, hey, Rogue." She rolled over onto her side, facing the other. "Have you been celebrating Halloween? Man... I'm major bummed out about this cold thing. You know I love this holiday."
"Don't go gettin' yourself riled up now," Rogue gently scolded her. She reached for the office chair by Jubilee's study chair and pulled it to her bottom. "You got to conserve your energy. Ah know how ya feel, though, Ah been there before."
"This is so lame, though. " Jubilee pulled the pillow over her head with a whine.
Rogue's butt lowered into the chair. The older mutant leaned her hands over the backrest, chin resting on top of her hands.
"Just try to think positive thoughts, okay? It'll be over before you know it. You're a tough girl.
Jubilee removed the pillow from her face and looked at Rogue, beaming. "You always know just how to perk someone up, Rogue. You and Storm have always been great at that."
"Ah just want ya to get better," Rogue said, spinning around slowly in the chair.
"What are you going to do today?"
"Probably laze around, watch more horror movies, figure out what kinda pie Ah should make, then hit the recreational area for a workout," answered Rogue.
"Mmm, pie!" Jubilee swept her lips with her tongue and rubbed her stomach in a quick circle under the blankets. "You've always been great at pies. I'm a huge fan of your Mississippi mud pie. You're totally awesome at pecan and apple, too."
"Sugah," Rogue lifted her head from the tip of the chair's backrest, "if ya inflate mah ego anymore, it's gonna pop like a bubble."
Jubilee responded with a lift of her brows and a cheeky grin.
"Well," Rogue lifted herself from the chair. "I should probably go finish mah movie. After that, Ah think Ah'll fix up you some soup. Oh, an' can't forget th' pie."
"Okay," Jubilee rolled back onto her back. "It was fun talking with you."
"Always, sugah." Rogue extended a hand, waving. "Now, rest up."
Rogue pushed the rolling chair back into place at the desk, then headed for the door and walked out, shutting it gently behind her. She saw Logan, who was in his brown sherpa jacket and yellow button-up shirt. He glanced at her for a second, then slowly knocked on Jubilee's bedroom door.
Seemed she was going to be having plenty of company and attention.
Rogue returned to her room and clicked the movie back on.
The sex scene she had seen earlier appeared to be the only one in the movie, surprisingly. She wasn't gonna complain, though; she was enjoying the film and its kills. The female lead was decently likable as well, and it was a change of pace seeing a busty blonde surviving for as long as she had been; considering most films killed them off quick.
Eventually, the movie ended, and the credits rolled.
Rogue couldn't help feeling a little cheated out of the film. She wasn't expecting the lead to die. But boy, did that gal go out with a bang.
Now it was time to head to the kitchen and make that soup she promised Jubilee. It was the least that she could do to help speed up the girl's recovery. Maybe a side of vitamin C tablets with a big glass of apple juice wouldn't be a bad idea, either.
(While this first chapter may seem a little short and bland, the second part has a lot more going for it. I apologize in advance if the first chapter wasn't the best!)
