Disclaimer: I do not own, nor am I making any money from the X-Men
characters. Thank you to Corrinth for the use of her character Dr. Ilehana
Xavier. I do own Blaze, and appreciate authors not using her without
asking.
A/N: Reviews always welcome!
Scene 21
It was the early hours of the morning when Blaze left her allotted suite of rooms and headed down the hall to Storm's quarters. It seemed Garthen had been planning for their arrival for some time. The wardrobes were full of clothes in the right sizes, even if all the clothes were the same colour; frost-white for Storm and to Blaze's obvious dismay flame-red for her. Her actual comment had been something along the lines of "Eugh! I can't wear red! I look like a man-obsessed librarian!" Storm had only replied that perhaps it was in case the Amentha struggled to remember who was who to which Blaze had snorted her laughter.
Now, finally, the whole house was silent and with any luck Storm and Blaze could talk without being overheard. Blaze didn't have to wonder if Storm was still awake, she could almost feel the other X-Man on the edge of her senses. In fact, that was one of the things they had to talk about. Ever since they had arrived, or more precisely met the other two ring-carriers, their senses had gone into overdrive. Where as before feelings both young women had been experiencing only vague empathic, now every change of mood in the house was proclaimed as if by a man with a loudspeaker.
The door to Storm's sitting room opened silently, revealing Ororo Munroe sat artistically in an oversized chair still dressed and wide awake. Blaze came and sat besides her friend, after shutting the door without a whisper of a sound.
"You look worried, Storm."
"I am. The Professor still hasn't tried to get in touch. I keep thinking maybe something's wrong." Ororo shook her head slightly as if trying to drive those thoughts away.
"What could be wrong?" Blaze asked. "Its more likely that something's right. If there were a problem, someone would have contacted us by now, if not the Professor then Vixen. It's far more probable that the X-Men trust us to do our job and find out what's going on here. And that they don't want to put us in danger by getting involved."
"Do you think we are in danger?" Blaze frowned slightly, was Storm scared? She certainly couldn't detect any fear from her friend the way she had from the woman on the plane.
"I'm not sure. I know I can't feel anybody wishing us harm. Garthen seems harmless, if a little eccentric. And the other girls..."
"I know," Storm interrupted, the tone of her voice the only clue to the soul-searching she was undertaking. "Its like we already met or something. But its strange because..."
"Because neither of us felt that same recognition when we first met." Storm smiled at her friend who finished the sentence for her. Blaze continued. "The question is how far do you want to take this? How long do you want to stay?"
"We still have no answers." Ororo considered. "Lets get some sleep, and see what tomorrow brings..."
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In a briefing room way below the school that once again began morning lessons, Gambit worked alone scouring through various notebooks and scribbles retrieved from Blaze's room. Nightcrawler had been helping until he was due to take his Religious Studies class. Cyclops too had been working as the Professor asked on trying to track down the elusive Garthen Doking. His conclusion as he left to take a class was that the man simply didn't exist.
Whilst reading and re-reading Blaze's puzzling notes on ancient writings, lost tombs and untranslatable runes, Gambit heard the door swoosh open and someone knock gently on the wall. He turned to see the young brunette with the white streaks to her hair that had been with Blaze when the X-Men raided Jacobi's lair five months ago. She smiled, offering a tray of soda bottles and various snacks. Under her arm she carried several textbooks and a ream of paper.
"Hey, I'm Rogue. I thought maybe you could use some company?"
"Gambit knows who y'are, chère." The Cajun returned her smile and accepted a bottle of soda. "But y'sure your lil' friends wont miss you in class, if you locked away down here with me?"
"I got study period," She replied sassily, making herself at home by another workstation across the room. "An' an eight page essay from Cyclops on military aircraft to write. He says if I wanna fly the blackbird, I gotta know where it came from........." She shrugged and sat down with her back to the Cajun. She really had no idea why she was here. She could easily have written the essay in her room, or the rec. room, or anywhere. She didn't have to be here. And who was this Cajun anyway to make a big deal out of her still having lessons at the school? He wasn't that much older than her, was he? Feeling his unusual eyes on the back of her neck, she opened her first textbook and commented "So what's a swamp rat like you doin' with a classy lady like Blaze anyhow?"
"Swamp rat?" She could hear the laughter in his voice. "Gambit kinda like that chère. But I wanna know what a pretty gal like you is doin' in a place like this?" Rogue could tell he was avoiding talking about Blaze, but she didn't blame him.
"Its a long story." She replied, not sure that she wanted to talk about her arrival at Xavier's School either.
"It gonna be a long mornin'........." Was Gambit's only reply. With a sigh Rogue obliged, launching into her own story as she worked on Cyclops' killer essay.
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A while later, Gambit put down the notebook he had been scanning and turned to his companion. Rogue took a last swig of rather flat soda and started to scoop up her work, her story told. As she stood, Gambit stood too and crossed the room to her.
"So, what would happen if Gambit touched you?" He asked quietly, eyes narrow and dark. Rogue met his gaze with slight fear she couldn't place and a flush of excitement.
"Don't. I don't wanna hurt you." Her sweet southern tones barely made a whisper. He ignored her warning, reaching out with a finger to brush a strand of white hair away from her face. Suddenly she could feel her power kick in, drawing Gambit's energy into herself, dragging his power out of him and into her. He gasped involuntarily, but didn't pull away.
"Rogue, you in here? Wolverine said........." Bobby! Rogue pulled away from Gambit and glanced guiltily towards her boyfriend. Iceman glared at the pair, hurt and anger both equally visible in his expression. Without a seconds warning he was across the room and pushing Gambit manfully away from Rogue, slamming him into the wall. Gambit's head slammed against the plaster, Bobby's fist slammed across the other young man's chin. Rogue screamed for Bobby to stop, but he didn't, he couldn't! The door slid open again and Wolverine was on Bobby in a breath, pulling him away and pinning his struggles.
"If you don't want Ilehana's claws sunk into you, you'll leave the Cajun alone. She's not spent so long patchin' him up for you to go knockin' him down Bobby Drake." With a sudden movement Bobby wrenched himself free of Logan's grip and headed out the door. Rogue instinctively ran after him, calling his name.
"I thought I could trust you, Rogue!" He turned slowly to face her. "But it looks like I was wrong! Its over, just..........stay away from me........." He stalked off like a wounded tiger, crestfallen and broken hearted. Rogue choked back a sob as a strong hand rested on her shoulder, supporting her. Thinking it was Logan; she turned to bury her tearful face in his chest.
"It okay chère," A soft voice, definitely not Wolverine's, comforted her. "There be plenty more rats in the swamp........." Embarrassed by her mistake, Rogue pulled sharply away from Gambit, and ran sobbing down the corridor.
"Well done, Cajun, you aimin' to break all the girl's hearts round here?" Wolverine snarled at Gambit as Rogue disappeared. For once, Gambit couldn't think of a clever reply.........
A/N: Reviews always welcome!
Scene 21
It was the early hours of the morning when Blaze left her allotted suite of rooms and headed down the hall to Storm's quarters. It seemed Garthen had been planning for their arrival for some time. The wardrobes were full of clothes in the right sizes, even if all the clothes were the same colour; frost-white for Storm and to Blaze's obvious dismay flame-red for her. Her actual comment had been something along the lines of "Eugh! I can't wear red! I look like a man-obsessed librarian!" Storm had only replied that perhaps it was in case the Amentha struggled to remember who was who to which Blaze had snorted her laughter.
Now, finally, the whole house was silent and with any luck Storm and Blaze could talk without being overheard. Blaze didn't have to wonder if Storm was still awake, she could almost feel the other X-Man on the edge of her senses. In fact, that was one of the things they had to talk about. Ever since they had arrived, or more precisely met the other two ring-carriers, their senses had gone into overdrive. Where as before feelings both young women had been experiencing only vague empathic, now every change of mood in the house was proclaimed as if by a man with a loudspeaker.
The door to Storm's sitting room opened silently, revealing Ororo Munroe sat artistically in an oversized chair still dressed and wide awake. Blaze came and sat besides her friend, after shutting the door without a whisper of a sound.
"You look worried, Storm."
"I am. The Professor still hasn't tried to get in touch. I keep thinking maybe something's wrong." Ororo shook her head slightly as if trying to drive those thoughts away.
"What could be wrong?" Blaze asked. "Its more likely that something's right. If there were a problem, someone would have contacted us by now, if not the Professor then Vixen. It's far more probable that the X-Men trust us to do our job and find out what's going on here. And that they don't want to put us in danger by getting involved."
"Do you think we are in danger?" Blaze frowned slightly, was Storm scared? She certainly couldn't detect any fear from her friend the way she had from the woman on the plane.
"I'm not sure. I know I can't feel anybody wishing us harm. Garthen seems harmless, if a little eccentric. And the other girls..."
"I know," Storm interrupted, the tone of her voice the only clue to the soul-searching she was undertaking. "Its like we already met or something. But its strange because..."
"Because neither of us felt that same recognition when we first met." Storm smiled at her friend who finished the sentence for her. Blaze continued. "The question is how far do you want to take this? How long do you want to stay?"
"We still have no answers." Ororo considered. "Lets get some sleep, and see what tomorrow brings..."
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
In a briefing room way below the school that once again began morning lessons, Gambit worked alone scouring through various notebooks and scribbles retrieved from Blaze's room. Nightcrawler had been helping until he was due to take his Religious Studies class. Cyclops too had been working as the Professor asked on trying to track down the elusive Garthen Doking. His conclusion as he left to take a class was that the man simply didn't exist.
Whilst reading and re-reading Blaze's puzzling notes on ancient writings, lost tombs and untranslatable runes, Gambit heard the door swoosh open and someone knock gently on the wall. He turned to see the young brunette with the white streaks to her hair that had been with Blaze when the X-Men raided Jacobi's lair five months ago. She smiled, offering a tray of soda bottles and various snacks. Under her arm she carried several textbooks and a ream of paper.
"Hey, I'm Rogue. I thought maybe you could use some company?"
"Gambit knows who y'are, chère." The Cajun returned her smile and accepted a bottle of soda. "But y'sure your lil' friends wont miss you in class, if you locked away down here with me?"
"I got study period," She replied sassily, making herself at home by another workstation across the room. "An' an eight page essay from Cyclops on military aircraft to write. He says if I wanna fly the blackbird, I gotta know where it came from........." She shrugged and sat down with her back to the Cajun. She really had no idea why she was here. She could easily have written the essay in her room, or the rec. room, or anywhere. She didn't have to be here. And who was this Cajun anyway to make a big deal out of her still having lessons at the school? He wasn't that much older than her, was he? Feeling his unusual eyes on the back of her neck, she opened her first textbook and commented "So what's a swamp rat like you doin' with a classy lady like Blaze anyhow?"
"Swamp rat?" She could hear the laughter in his voice. "Gambit kinda like that chère. But I wanna know what a pretty gal like you is doin' in a place like this?" Rogue could tell he was avoiding talking about Blaze, but she didn't blame him.
"Its a long story." She replied, not sure that she wanted to talk about her arrival at Xavier's School either.
"It gonna be a long mornin'........." Was Gambit's only reply. With a sigh Rogue obliged, launching into her own story as she worked on Cyclops' killer essay.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
A while later, Gambit put down the notebook he had been scanning and turned to his companion. Rogue took a last swig of rather flat soda and started to scoop up her work, her story told. As she stood, Gambit stood too and crossed the room to her.
"So, what would happen if Gambit touched you?" He asked quietly, eyes narrow and dark. Rogue met his gaze with slight fear she couldn't place and a flush of excitement.
"Don't. I don't wanna hurt you." Her sweet southern tones barely made a whisper. He ignored her warning, reaching out with a finger to brush a strand of white hair away from her face. Suddenly she could feel her power kick in, drawing Gambit's energy into herself, dragging his power out of him and into her. He gasped involuntarily, but didn't pull away.
"Rogue, you in here? Wolverine said........." Bobby! Rogue pulled away from Gambit and glanced guiltily towards her boyfriend. Iceman glared at the pair, hurt and anger both equally visible in his expression. Without a seconds warning he was across the room and pushing Gambit manfully away from Rogue, slamming him into the wall. Gambit's head slammed against the plaster, Bobby's fist slammed across the other young man's chin. Rogue screamed for Bobby to stop, but he didn't, he couldn't! The door slid open again and Wolverine was on Bobby in a breath, pulling him away and pinning his struggles.
"If you don't want Ilehana's claws sunk into you, you'll leave the Cajun alone. She's not spent so long patchin' him up for you to go knockin' him down Bobby Drake." With a sudden movement Bobby wrenched himself free of Logan's grip and headed out the door. Rogue instinctively ran after him, calling his name.
"I thought I could trust you, Rogue!" He turned slowly to face her. "But it looks like I was wrong! Its over, just..........stay away from me........." He stalked off like a wounded tiger, crestfallen and broken hearted. Rogue choked back a sob as a strong hand rested on her shoulder, supporting her. Thinking it was Logan; she turned to bury her tearful face in his chest.
"It okay chère," A soft voice, definitely not Wolverine's, comforted her. "There be plenty more rats in the swamp........." Embarrassed by her mistake, Rogue pulled sharply away from Gambit, and ran sobbing down the corridor.
"Well done, Cajun, you aimin' to break all the girl's hearts round here?" Wolverine snarled at Gambit as Rogue disappeared. For once, Gambit couldn't think of a clever reply.........