FYI:

~Personal Thoughts~

~"Inner Voices"~

ESP

%The Written Word%

[Flashback]

"Normal Conversation (Duh)"

ROGUE

Ah slowly woke up tryin' ta clear mah head. ~What's today? The twenty-third. Damn, Ah still don't know what Ah'm gonna do for Remy for Christmas. Betsy an' Brian are practically strangers an' Ah could find somethin' for them even.~ Ah looked across the room an' saw Betsy still sleepin' under her purple bed covers. ~That girl an' her purple.~ Mah eyes then drifted across ta Kitty's bed an' Ah collapsed ta the floor in shock.

"Kitty?" She was sittin' cross-legged on her bed in her pink pajamas like nothin' was wrong.

"Like duh, who else would it be?"

"But, ya…ya in Illinois. Ah just talked ta ya the other night. When did ya get back?" Ah tried ta stand up but mah knees were knockin' so bad that a flopped back down onta mah bed. Ah continued starin' at her. ~But how?~

"I like never left. I've always been here silly."

"No, ya left with Piotr an' are celebratin' Hanukkah with ya folks." She stood up an' crossed over ta mah bed where she sat down next ta meh an' placed a hand on mah shoulder. Ah couldn't feel her hand restin' there at all.

"I've like been here the whole time." She tapped mah forehead with a finger as she gave meh one of her silly grins.

"Ah never told ya that ya were in mah head. How'd ya know?"

"It's like kinda hard to keep from me since I'm like in your head."

"Ya not real then? This is ta weird." As Ah blinked mah eyes Kitty changed from bein' in her pajamas ta wearin' her usual capris, pink sweater, an' sandals, despite the fact that it was the dead of winter.

"No, I'm real, it's just like no one but you can see me." Betsy stirred an' sat up in her bed rubbin' the sleep from her eyes.

"Luv, who you talking to?" Kitty shook her head at meh before Ah answered.

"Nobody." ~There's no way Ah'm gonna tell people Ah'm seein' thin's. They already think Ah'm crazy.~ She opened her eyes and stared straight at Kitty before screamin'.

"Who the hell are you?!?! Rogue who is she?" Kitty looked as shocked as meh that Betsy was freakin' out.

"Ya see her?"

"Of course I see her. She's sitting right there on your bed." She continued ta stare at Kitty her face contorted in fear. ~Ok, this is gettin' even weirder then before.~

"Betsy, she's not real, Ah don't think. She's in mah head, ya shouldn't see her."

"Tell that to my eyes, she's sitting there plain as day, luv."

"Of course, I'm like real. Well, like as real as a psyche can get." ~Why all of a sudden am Ah seein' mah psyches an' not just hearin' them. Who's next boys?~ Neither Remy or Logan answered meh which was kinda scary since Remy always had an answer.

"You're a psyche. You mean you're one of the people Rogue absorbed?"

"Duh, I'm Kitty. You must be Betsy." Betsy nodded in astonishment. Both of us were tired an' probably hopin' we were dreamin'.

"Ok, Ah understand why Ah can see you, but why does Betsy?"

"Betsy's like a telepath, right? Maybe she's like tapping into your head."

"I didn't think I was though. I mean I just woke up, I'm too tired to do stuff like that." Kitty shrugged her shoulders.

"I like don't know any other reason then." Ah shook mah head tryin' ta figure out what was goin' on.

"But why can Ah see ya all of a sudden. Ah mean, Ah could always hear ya an' talk ta ya, but this is in a league of it's own."

"Yeah, it's kind of weird getting outside of your head. Like, I feel light as a feather." Ah saw she still had a hand on mah shoulder an' realized Ah still couldn't feel it there.

"Kitty, Ah don't think ya do weigh anythin'. Ah can't feel ya at all." She frowned as she patted mah shoulder but unlike a ghost, she didn't go through meh.

"Like you feel real enough to me." ~That's 'cause Ah am real! She's not, so why can Ah see her?~ Betsy had moved off of her bed an' had slowly walked up ta Kitty an' Ah. She put out a hand ta touch Kitty an' gave a small squeal when her hand went straight through her. "Like weird. She can go straight through me, but you can't." Kitty looked from Betsy ta meh with as much confusion written onta her face as ours had.

"What's wrong? What's going on in here?!?!" Logan came runnin' inta the room with a worried expression. Betsy pulled back an' stood there with her mouth gapin' open. ~Please tell meh that's the real Logan.~

"Wolvie, nothin's wrong. We just saw a spider, that's all." He gazed at meh but the worry left his face. He obviously didn't see Kitty sittin' on the edge of mah bed or else he would have freaked out a little too.

"That's it? That's the reason you two girls were carrying on like that?"

"Yeah, can you believe it, luv? We're both terrified of a little spider." He shook his head as he walked back out of the room.

"All right boys, back to your rooms." Ah could just barely hear him out in the hall talkin' ta Remy an' Brian.

GAMBIT

"All right boys, back to your rooms." I tried t' look over Logan's shoulder t' see int' Rogue and Betsy's room and see what the matter was. I'd heard t'em say somet'ing 'bout a spider but t'at didn't sit well wit' me. ~Sorry, but I can't see Marie being t'at afraid of a spider.~

"I just want t' talk t' her."

"Now's not the time, Gumbo."

"Why not?" Brian was helping me t' gang up on him which sometimes, but not always, worked on Logan. T'is time it worked 'cause he growled under his breat'e as he walked down de hall. I ran int' de room t' find Marie an' Betsy bot' staring blankly at a spot on Marie's bed. "Bets are you alright?" Betsy slowly nodded her head as if she were in shock. I went t' sit down next t' Marie but before I could t'ey bot' grabbed at me forcing me t' stop.

"What's de matter wit' y' two?"

"Don't sit down there, luv."

"And why de hell not?"

"Kitty's sittin' there." I looked at Marie who continued t' stare at de spot where I had gone t' sit. ~I don't know what Cherie t'inks, but t'ere ain't no Kitty sitting t'ere.~

"Cherie…"

"Ah ain't crazy. Betsy sees her ta."

"I'm not so sure what I'm seeing anymore." Brian had placed his hands on her shoulders t' help her stay standing on her feet. I wasn't sure what I should do since de place next t' Marie was obviously taken by an unseen Kitty. She heaved her shoulders up in one large sigh as she pulled her eyes away from de spot where she had been concentrating on.

"She's gone, she just faded away." Betsy was in complete awe at whatever had happened unseen by Brian and me.

"Ya might as well sit down now." I did and immediately put an arm around Marie's shoulders. She started crying as she t'rew her arms around my neck and cried int' my chest like t'ere was no t'morrow. "Ah don't have a clue as ta what's goin' on anymore. Remy, Ah'm scared."

"Shh…it's gonna be ok, Cherie."

"Ya don't know that! Don't ya get it, ya in mah head ta. What if ya come out next, won't that be a li'l weird havin' two Remys." She pulled back and I looked her in de eyes as she yelled at me. ~Oui, t'at would be a li'l weird.~ I felt completely useless while she was t'is distraught. ~She's t' scared and confused t' talk straight right now. She needs t' calm down, but how?~ It hit me like a ton of bricks t'at just fell ont' my head. ~Empathy, y' dim wit.~ I stared int' her eyes trying t' pull out some good t'oughts t'at would make her happy and calm her down. "What are ya doin'. Stop that."

"Non, y' need t' calm down." Her sobbing slowed and she started t' breat'e regularly again. "Now tell me what happened."

"Kitty, she was here, but she wasn't really." ~T'is might have been a mistake asking Marie. Maybe I should have asked Bets.~ "It was Kitty's psyche, Ah could see her. Now Ah no longer just hear them in mah head, they're comin' out, they're real." Her green eyes shimmered wit' de unfallen tears t'at t'reatened t' spill over any second. She fell back int' my shoulder crying. I looked over her t' Betsy for furt'er explanation.

"I don't know why, but I could see her to. I think it was because of my telepathy, but she was nearly as real as could be, but when I went to touch her, I went straight though her." She t' was babbling and not making much sense. ~Merde, t'is ain't going t' be easy.~

Rogue, Remy, Betsy, and Brian, please see me right away in my office.

PSYLOCKE

~This is to weird, I knew the girl had psyches in her head I could sense them…but when did psyches start coming out like that?~

"I hope that we all might find some answers now." We were sitting in the beautiful office of the professor's again. This time I was no longer concerned with the artwork that adorned the walls but my new friend who was quickly turning into a ball of mush in her chair. She hadn't stopped sobbing since we left our room and the only thing that seemed to be keeping her from collapsing was Remy's tight grip on her. The professor glanced at each of us quickly as we shifted nervously in our seats. I flicked a few purple locks back over my shoulder as he stopped to gaze at me. "Betsy, maybe you can tell me what you saw."

"Honestly I don't know what I saw, luv. There was this girl sitting on Rogue's bed and she claimed to be Kitty. She looked real enough, but when I went to touch her, my hand went straight through her." ~What am I supposed to say? I saw a ghost, but it wasn't really a ghost, because the girl's still alive, she's just nearly a thousand miles away.~

"Betsy I can understand your confusion but I need to know everything if I'm supposed to be able to help." I stared at the elderly bald man wondering was it possible for him to even help.

Only if you two will let me.

My eyes widened with surprise as I heard him in my head. Rogue did the same and straightened up for the first time that morning.

"Why could Betsy an' Ah see her but nobody else could?"

"The Kitty you saw is a psyche, something that exists only in your mind. I believe that telepaths are able to see your psyches as well because of the telepathic connection." Rogue's eyes grew wide with fear and understanding.

"But why is she so real? Wouldn't something like that be wispy and ghost-like?"

"Sometimes, but it seems that Rogue's psyches are extremely strong if they are able to project themselves like this."

"It's part of mah evolvin' ain't it? Ah mean before Ah couldn't even understand them, they were all just screamin' in mah head, an' now they're so real, Ah can't tell them from the real person."

"Your evolving would explain some of this." ~Why only some of it? Shouldn't that explain everything? But it still doesn't explain why I could see her when I wasn't trying to tap into Rogue's head.~ The professor was looking straight at me which made me squirm a little more in my seat. "Betsy, I know you would like some answers as to why you could see her as well, but I'm afraid that I simply don't have them." ~That's encouraging.~

"But how can Ah tell the psyches from the real people now? Ah mean other than askin' people if they can see them standin' there. The last thin' Ah want is people givin' meh more pityin' stares 'cause Ah'm the freak who can't control her powers."

"This isn't happening because you don't have control, Rogue. You have almost complete control over your powers now and have come leaps and bounds since you've joined us. I believe that with time you'll be able to easily discern between the two." Rogue nodded as she stood up to leave.

"Thanks Professor, Ah think Ah'll be ok now."

"Alright, but if you need anything Rogue, don't be afraid to ask me." Remy quickly stood up beside her and took her hand in his giving it a comforting squeeze.

"Y'll be fine, Cherie. I won't let anyt'ing happen." She gave him a withering gaze as she quickly strode out of the room leaving him to stand there. "Was it somet'ing I said?"

"I'm afraid that no one is capable of stopping Rogue's psyches from coming out other than Rogue herself. She's going to need a lot of support and new training now." Remy looked out the door where Rogue was disappearing around a corner and sighed.

"T'is is going t' be a long break." He left turning in the opposite direction that Rogue had gone in. ~Aw luv, why'd this have to happen to you?~

GAMBIT

"Come on where de hell is it?" I was in Rogue's room 'borrowing' Kitty's computer for a li'l project of mine.

"Remy, what are you doing, luv?" I jumped out of de chair like I'd been shot.

"What are y' doing here, Petite?" I turned t' find Betsy standing in de middle of de room wit' her hands folded across her chest as she stared down at me.

"This is my room. I should be asking you the same question." I looked back at de computer guiltily but put a charming smile on my face before turning back around after turning de computer off.

"Just some checking, Petite. T'at ok wit' y'?" She continued t' glare at me as I went t' sneak out de door.

"Would it really make any difference if it wasn't, luv? Besides aren't there other computers you could use in this big of a place?"

"Non, not really."

"What about my other question?"

"Oui, t'ere are ot'er computers but t'ey don't come wit' pretty girls telling y' t' get off." I smiled at her charmingly but she gave a glare as I bowed and stepped out of de room. ~T'at was close…almost afraid it would have been Marie, t'en my surprise wouldn't have been half as good.~ I fingered de case in my inside pocket as I walked briskly back t' my own room. ~Speaking of Marie, where did she get t' after all t'at. I haven't seen her all day.~

ROGUE

"Stripes, are you okay?"

"Ah'm fine, just let meh alone." Ah was sittin' outside on a bench just tryin' ta get away even though it meant freezin' mah ass off. ~Why's Logan gotta come an' bug meh now?~

"I'm not trying to bug you, I just thought you might like some company out here." Ah looked up ta see Logan standin' before meh wearin' his usual black shirt an' scuffed up jeans. Ah was wearin' jeans, sweater, an' a coat an' was still freezin'. ~Ah don't care if he's got healin' powers or not, he's gotta be cold.~ He sat down next ta meh an' put an arm around mah shoulders an' tried ta give them a comfortin' squeeze an' failed. Ah never felt it.

"Oh mah God, get away! There ain't no way Ah'm gonna start talkin' ta mah psyches like this again!"

"Stripes…"

"Why don't y' let Remy try, Messieur?" Remy seemed ta materialize before mah eyes as Ah stared wide-eyed at mah two psyches. He too seemed ta be ill dressed considerin' the foot of snow on the ground. He wore his old Acolyte uniform that was made of silk and was nothin' like the one the professor had given him upon joinin' the X-Men.

"No, both of ya, go away!"

"Non, Remy ain't leaving his Cherie like t'is. It's t' cold for y' t' be outside."

"An' how would ya know?"

"Well…"

"Ya don't 'cause ya ain't real!" Ah stood up an' ran past them tawards the institute gates. Ah hadn't gotten far when Remy materialized yet again in front of meh.

"Marie, stop." He caught mah shoulders an' Ah jerked ta a stop. ~Holy shit! How'd he do that? He's not real, he's just a psyche, he can't stop meh, but he is.~

"Don't call meh that." Ah glared up at him seethin'.

"Would y' prefer River Rat t'en?" He tilted his head ta the side an' gave meh one of his best cocky grins.

"Ya make meh sick, ya know that?" He continued grinnin' as his hands moved down from mah shoulders ta mah waist.

"Remy's been waitin' for his chance t' make y' see how he really feels 'bout y'." He leaned down as if ta kiss meh an' Ah panicked. ~Ah can't kiss a psyche, can Ah?~

"Ah already know how ya feel about meh though. Ya already told meh." He stopped an' looked at meh thoughtfully for a moment.

"Non, I haven't." ~He's right, Ah absorbed him before he ever told meh that.~

"This is ta confusin'!" Ah turned an' ran away back up ta the institute. Ah pushed mah way through the doors an' when Ah looked back outside Ah saw no sign of either psyche anywhere.

"Cherie, what's wrong?" Ah turned around an' looked at Remy standin' at the bottom of the stairs lookin' at meh worried. ~Don't they ever give up!~

"No, stop followin' meh. Ah just want ta be alone!"

"Cherie, it's me." He put a hand on mah shoulder an' Ah felt it. The warmth from it seepin' inta mah frozen body an' Ah felt like Ah could just cry as Ah threw mah hands around his neck. He patted mah back tryin' ta calm meh down. "It's ok, I've got y'."

"Oh, thank God ya real. Remy, it's just ta weird for meh ta even try ta explain. Ya here, but ya also out there somewhere, but only Ah can see him."

"Shh…it's all gonna be ok. I'll see t' it." He brushed a few loose strands of hair back behind mah ear an' softly kissed mah cheek.

"No ya can't, nobody can." He cupped mah chin in one of his hands an' tilted it upwards.

"De professor and I bot' believe y' can. I'll do whatever I can t' help, Cherie." He leaned down an' kissed meh again on the lips. Ah felt his tongue push through as he played with mah bottom lip. Ah allowed mahself ta get lost in his arms as Ah tried ta forget what had just happened.

"Stupid computer! Damn it! Just shut down already!" Ah was sittin' in front of Kitty's computer after talkin' ta her an' Kurt again. Of course Ah didn't mention the whole psyche incident 'cause Ah'd never told either of them 'bout bein' able ta even converse with mah psyches so seein' them now would really throw them through a loop. ~Ah shouldn't feel guilty. What good would it do for them ta know anyway? Ah mean, they're both miles away an' can't do anythin' but worry.~

"Like calm down. Here let me see. Usually it like just takes a little help." Kitty had appeared at mah shoulder an' was attemptin' ta phase her hand through the CPU. Ah blinked a few times as the computer obediently shut down an' the screen went blank.

"No, ya ain't real. Ya can't do that kinda stuff."

"Like, this computer always gave me trouble. That's like how I always had to deal with it."

"No! Ya ain't real. Leave meh alone an' stop torturin' meh."

"I'm like sorry, but what did I do wrong that you don't want to see me?" Kitty looked at meh with her eyes brimmin' over with tears as she looked at meh confused.

"Don't ya get it? Ya not real. Ya just a psyche in mah head, a small piece of a whole person Ah once touched." She looked hurt as she slowly dissolved inta the thin air around her. Ah sighed in relief that she was finally gone.

"Rogue, are you okay, luv?" Ah whipped around in mah chair ta find Betsy standin' in the doorway. "I've been looking for you everywhere. Where've you been?"

"Ah'm sorry Bets. Ah just needed ta sort some thin's out." She shook her head and laughed.

"Don't even start the habit of lying to me. I'm a telepath for God's sake, I know you've been with Remy nearly all afternoon."

"So why'd ya bother askin'?"

"Needed you to think about the question so you'd think about the answer." She shrugged her shoulders as she plopped down on her bed an' picked up a cd.

PSYLOCKE

"Hmm…J Lo or Eminem?"

"Ya want mah opinion? Eminem."

"Alright luv." I popped the CD into a boom box and did my best to sing along. "This looks like a job for me, so everbody just follow me…"

"Rap's not really made for singin' along."

"Oh come off it already! You know you want to join in. Na na na na na na. Na na na na na na na na. This looks like a job for me so everybody just follow me. 'Cause we need a little controversy and it feels so empty without me!" Rogue shook her head but couldn't help but smile as I dragged her onto her feet and paraded her around the room. Remy appeared in the doorway an' watched as the two of us as we bobbed around the room like two idiots.

"Am I interrupting somet'ing?"

"Nope." She took his hand in hers as she continued singing along off key with me. "Na na na na na na. Na na na na na na na na. This looks like a job for meh so everybody just follow meh. 'Cause we need a li'l controversy an' it feels so empty without meh!" I grabbed the pillows of my bed and tossed one of them at Rogue's head. She ducked just in time but it hit Remy smack in the face. She pulled away laughing as Brian showed up in the doorway looking a little dazed at the scene before him. Within minutes the four of us had a full-fledged pillow fight going on.

"That was great!" I flopped down onto a bean bag chair and gasped for air. Brian collapsed neatly onto the floor next to me in his perfect little way as Remy and Rogue collapsed onto her bed equally out of breathe. "Is this place always this much fun?"

"Only when Jean an' Scott don't spoil all the fun." She was grinning though and gave Remy one last smack with her pillow before tossing it aside. "Can ya believe it, tamorrow's Christmas Eve already. Before ya know it we'll be back in school."

"Oui, back t' crappy lunches, teachers wit' bad accents, and…" He shuddered before finishing his thought. "mat' homework."

"Oh, poor baby. Ya'd think ya never live through it."

"Y' don't know how bad it is! De teacher is terrible and de only reason I'm scraping by is Piotr."

"Like Ah said, 'poor baby'. It's not like ya ain't got easy classes ta. Ah don't even have art."

"Oui, and I miss y' sorely during art class. It'd be much easier wit' a model." He was giving her one of his grins that let you know his mind was deeply buried into the gutter.

"Ya perv!" She pushed him off the bed so that he landed on his back at the end of the bed staring up at her.

"What y' go and do t'at for?"

"Think 'bout it for a li'l while, Sugah. Ya'll figure it out."

"I guess we should be letting you girls get some sleep." ~Brian to the spoil-sport rescue!~

"What would I do without you brother."

"Obviously not sleeping much." He and Remy left us to repair our pillows and get some sleep before the sun came up announcing another day.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

So what do you guys think? For me it was only a matter of time before Rogue started seeing her psyches and I wanted Betsy to share in the freakiness since she hasn't been to involved in my plot line to much. (Like moving in and causing chaos in a relationship isn't being involved. Lol) Well, I have to thank one of my bestest friends for a gift idea that I'll be using. She kind of inadvertently gave it to me when she and her boyfriend exchanged gifts for their 2 year anniversary (By the way, 'Congratulations on two years!'). I'll kinda retell the tale later on through Rogue and Remy. It's a hoot; well, at least I think so. By the way Samm16 this kinda goes with your idea of reminding the giftee of the gifter, so thanks!

THANK YOU ALL SOO MUCH for your help on Suck n Blow's name. I like the idea of Kings too! What are the some of the things you have to do when you pull a face card? I might use that in my story too if I like the rules enough.