Disclaimer: I do not own the X-men…unless you count the many many comics I own…or the writings in which I use the X-men…or having Stan Lee's soul in a mayonnaise jar…nope, don't have ownership of the X-men.
Author's note: I am finally back!
Undreamt Of
On children and paint
Dear Diary,
Evah wonder what happens when yah try to paint a room with tha help of seven munchkins? It ain't pretty. Ah'm just thankful I survived…and that this place has some wonderful hot watah heaters…
Rogue leaned back from her book. There was most certainly a hell where several children wielded paint brushes, she had been there today. They had all started on Dreeny's room. She had chosen a wonderful color, a deep, deep lilac that was almost a midnight blue…it had looked just as wonderful in her hair and on her pointy little ears when Kurt decided to turn too quickly…He had, of course, smacked Johnny right across the face. Johnny retaliated by lifting the paint tray above Kurt's head, then accidentally losing control of his powers…
Between the two, they had started a paint fight that everyone was a part of. It had ended when all the paint miraculously stopped flying around the room and hit the walls squarely, coating every inch perfectly. Dreeny had stood in the middle of the room, green, glowing words in the air around her, mumbling. She collapsed after the paint was applied. That effectively stopped the war.
Sarah had trooped of to her own room to "paint by herself", Maggy and Thomas thought hat was a great idea…Johnny and Kurt went to the kitchen for lunch…Rogue lightly stepped across the painted floor and felt Dreeny's pulse, it was normal. And even as she checked it, Dreeny's eyes fluttered open. "Momma? Momma can you see the stars I did?"
"Stars shugah?" Dreeny pointed to the ceiling, and sure enough, hovering in miniature was the Milky Way. It looked perfect. "How did you do that shugah?"
"I don't know momma…I just saw the way I wanted it and told the light…" she shrugged helplessly.
"It's ahlright if yah can't explain…why don't yah get washed up?" She nodded and stood up.
An interesting colored boulder across the room took that moment to unfurl it's lilac bespeckled wings "Is it safe to come out?" Justin glanced around the room, holding an entirely paint-free Raven.
"Yes, it's safe to come out"
"Raven and I are going to my room…call if you need us…"
* * * * *
After a quick shower herself, Rogue went to the kitchen to check up on Johnny and Kurt. To the male mind, there are many mysteries…one of the main ones… "Can two pounds of meat fit on half a piece of bread?" was never meant to be answered…especially in Rogue's kitchen. Especially when both culprits were covered from head to toe in still wet paint. Two yanked ears later, the two were off to the showers.
She could hear twin giggling coming from down the hall…their doors opened to reveal the twins, grinning from ear to ear, and finished with their rooms. Inside, it looked like two paintbrushes, wielded by completely insane gods, were used…each with a different color. Lines of slime green trailed around strokes of Indigo blue in a heart stooping and eye searing manner. It was almost modern art…as well as completely impossible. There was no way the children could have reached the ceiling…her eyes trailed upward to see a sickening, slimy smiley face on the ceiling.
Rogue closed her eyes and then looked at the twins "Are both rooms done?" She asked in a mostly normal voice. The twins nodded. "And how did you reach the ceiling?"
Maggy nudged Thomas in the ribs and he spluttered "If Justin is allowed to fly, we can too…"
Rogue sighed, she could just imagine the flying tag game they were playing while painting the two monstrosities. "Get cleaned up and you can go eat"
* * * * *
Sarah was quietly and quickly painting her room, an interesting shade of not-pink mauve. She had a step ladder to reach the top of the ceiling and did not seem to require any help, Rogue left her to it.
Meanwhile the two boys, Kurt and Johnny, still dripping form their hasty showers, where waiting in the hall "Can we paint our rooms now????"
"Of course, of course…" A team of three was much more effective than a team of eight. Johnny's room was done in a little over an hour, a forest green. Kurt's paint on the other hand, was dripping slowly off the brushes. It looked clear with a tint of green… "Shugah, I think they mixed this wrong, we may have to get yah some more paint…"
"Don't worry Mom…it's supposed to be like this…" Kurt called out as he and Johnny kept enthusiastically painting. "You'll see…"
The paint went on like clear nail polish, leaving almost no evidence of being painted, Rogue's misgivings grew…When the room was finished, Kurt and Johnny eyed the room then conferred among themselves. Rogue only heard snippets of their conversation "…sure, yeah…do it, can't hurt…just a test…" Kurt walked over to the door while Johnny drew the curtains. With a wrist gesture worthy of a showman, Kurt flipped off the lights. The entire room glowed in the sudden dark, as did the three painters. The boys walked around, inspecting their work and breathed a "cool" in unison. Rogue shook her head and grimaced.
* * * * *
Dinner was rather uneventful, as all the children seemed worn out, but happy, after the dishes were done, they each stumbled off to their own works of art and collapsed in exhausted slumber. Rogue headed to her room and heard Justin talking to Raven as he tucked her in "…of course I like it! It's beautiful, you did very well…" Rogue stepped in the room and watched "You sleep well now, I'll be here" Justin gently kissed raven's hair then stepped away from the crib. He gave Rogue a good night hug and went to his own bed.
Rogue went to kiss Raven, but something was nagging at the back of her brain…she ducked her head under the mobile and pecked Raven's cheek, then it struck her Mobile? I didn't get her a mobile for the crib… It was a delicate glass web of dangling crystals rainbows…and completely unfamiliar. She stood and stared for a moment, then walked to her book shelf. She retrieved her diary from the row of leather bound volumes and started to write.
* * * * *
…all in all, I can't say I hate painting…I just nevah want ta paint another room in this house. That is an idea though…painting for a lesson for the children, right after I get all the school books they'll need. I think they'll like having canvases. And Dreeny does magic, the twins fly, and Raven…I don't know. Sometimes I wondah if ah took on a bit much here…alone…
She stopped as the ink began to blur and smudge where her tears hit the pages, then continued.
…Ah think ah need to get control of mahself, ah can't keep breaking down like this…ah just wish…Ah'm sorry diary. Ah'm going tah bed before ah soak you through.
Rogue
She closed the cover and sniffled a bit, then showered and went to bed.
* * * * *
Back at the Xavier Mansion:
Emma sat across from Xavier in his cozy little office. "These are the reports on those children you found Charles, their potentials. I am asking you to release them to my school for training; you are equipped for children so young here."
Xavier leafed through the reports and glanced at Emma, she seemed worried. "Why?"
"You can see what they will be Xavier, all alpha mutants, all strong enough to potentially level a city…can you honestly tell me they shouldn't be trained?"
"They are children. They are living their lives as children; someone I trust is caring for them all."
"Someone you trust? They aren't here?"
"No."
"You foolish man…how could you let that happen? Let them slip out of your hands…"
"I did not own them."
"Fool" Emma stalked out of the office, anger showing in every manicured inch.
Xavier sighed and leaned back in his chair. On his desk was a letter from Rogue and the children to the team. He picked it up and placed it in a small black box, along with the first letter she had left on his desk and the reports. "Forgive me Rogue…it's for the children's safety…." He checked all his files, pulling all information on rogue and the children, and their current address. When it was all in the box, he went to his book shelf. The left one shifted an inch to reveal a plain brick wall…a wall with one loose stone, big enough for the box.
* * * * *
That's it for this chapter! Thank you all for waiting for my computer to get back online! For some reason, the school computers did not like ff.net…
