Eri-Sama: Again, I still don't own the recognizable characters, but when
you see someone new, it's mine unless I say otherwise. Again, still rated R
to be on the safe side, tilde (~) chains are still indicators of flashback.
I apologize for not updating sooner, that third part was tough on me, for
some reason. The title is for more than what happens in the story, I'm also
kind of on a tangent from my original plan, but I'll be back on track soon
enough.
Would love some reviews, good or bad, as long as it will help my writing.
Steppin' Out
"I see Congress passed a bill in record time." The President read through the wording of the Mutant Registration Act thoroughly, but quickly, knowing he didn't agree with it. He was a fence sitter on this issue, he had friends he knew, or at least suspected, were mutants, yet he also had a reoccurring nightmare of being attacked by a blue mutant for the past year. He always worried about that gap in his memory around that time, wondering if another mutant was responsible for the loss of info, even wondering whether that mutant would have manipulated his thoughts so that he'd believe all mutants weren't bad.
When he finished reading the bill, he returned to his desk and unlocked the drawer on his left, removing a stamp and an inkpad. He smiled, actually enjoying this part of his job, for once, and struck the paper with it, leaving a clear "veto" printed near the bottom left corner.
He handed the copy to his assistant. "Feel free to let this be known to any and everyone who might ask. It's been a while since I could directly challenge Congress and not worry about my conscience." The assistant promptly left the office and the President alone with his bodyguard.
"Mr. President, if I might speak freely."
"Yes, Mr. Booren, feel free."
Booren looked around, then spoke. "I think, Mr. President, you made the right decision, but this issue may never be solved peacefully." The President looked at Booren carefully, looking almost amused. Booren cleared his throat uncomfortably. "I'm sorry, Mr. President."
"No need to apologize, Mr. Booren, I am in complete agreement with you. To me, it feels a lot like ongoing conflict in the Middle East, both sides feel threatened enough by the other that they fear the only way to exist is to do away with the other." The President started to leave the office and walk down the hall, waving off other who wished to speak with him about his most recent decision. He didn't speak to Booren until they were in another room, well down the hall from his office and after the door was shut.
The President began to speak again. "I just want to make it clear to the stronger side that I don't support anything resembling a revocation of a mutant's human rights, even if they aren't what the rest of us would call simply human. But, tonight, I will prepare a speech for the morning press conference I have yet to schedule to let the American public know exactly what I feel, what I think, the same thing you've expressed to me today."
***
Quite a bit of remodeling had been done over the past year, now the kids were either paired off or three to a room. Rogue, as a junior member of the team, got to have her own room, but when another female around her age joined the team, she'd have to share. For now, she liked being by herself. She decided to take a break from the tension now that it was all over. Everyone left in the mansion wandered back to their own rooms after the news came through. No one knew how to react to the President's veto of the Mutant Registration Act, but they were a bit worried about the emergency session Congress called. It would truly be just that, an emergency, if Congress were to meet between the holidays. All anyone could do was wait.
Rogue decided to write in her diary. She only started to keep it since she moved into the mansion. Most of her entries were dreams, nightmares, and most of those had to do with Magneto. They were all really intimate things she believed actually happened to him. She began to write "December 2nd, 2003. The president veto'd that MRA thing. Congress will probably meet and override his veto; I don't know what will happen after that. The tension around here has died down a little; the Professor told us that the act itself wasn't meant to harm mutants.
"Other than that, I still worry about Bobby. I'm pretty sure that whatever we had between us is over. Logan, on the other hand, seems to actually be interested in me. The other night, he and I were on patrol, he sneaked up on me, asked me if I was all right and we walked the grounds together, just talking. It's funny, I don't think I could even remember what we were talking about if I tried, but it seemed important at the time. I've always had feelings for Logan, but, well, he's so much older than I am, I never thought much of them. Bobby used to, especially when he came home last year. I do admit, I was very bouncy and very happy to see him again. So, this morning, I got up for breakfast and he met me in the hall, like he was waiting for me. It all seems a little strange; I can't think of any other explanation for his behavior.
"I had another dream about Magneto this morning, too. It was really vivid." While she carefully formed the letters and words in her diary, Logan, again, crept through the hall and through her door, just watching her movements. She was on her stomach, face resting on her hand, legs bent at the knees, feet kicking back and forth, occasionally hitting the wall to her left. Rogue's diary continued "He was. being intimate with this woman, she had long blonde hair, the most pronounced figure I've ever seen and Magneto was. afraid of her, yet I think he believed he was in love." She paused in her writing, thinking she heard something. She quickly rolled over, turning onto her side and saw Logan standing in the far corner and jumped, hitting the wall with her elbow.
"Hey, kid, calm down, it's just me." He smiled at her, hands up in an attempt to look harmless. Rogue sat up and rubbed her elbow, pouting at him. "Aww, don't make that face at me, let me look at your elbow." She scooted to the edge of the bed and he sat next to her while she lifted her arm for him to see.
"Theyah's nothin' wrong with it, see? Ah just hurt it a little, that's ahwl." She turned to face him, curling one leg up and under her. "Now, care to explain why you're lurking in the shadows of a kid's room?" Rogue found herself looking into Logan's eyes and felt herself leaning into him, or he into her.
Logan cleared his throat. "Well, I thought maybe you were bored. I walked by and saw you kicking your legs in the air and I thought that maybe you and I could go out. You know, only if you're not busy." He, of course, wasn't shy about this, but his lack of contact with women left him a bit clumsy with words.
She bit down on her lower lip before she smiled at him. "Where'd ya have in mind?"
"Pool hall? Bar?"
"I'm too young to get into a bar or a pool hall."
Logan chuckled. "Well, maybe dressed as you are, they'll think you're too young. What, you're 18 now, aren't you?"
"Well, yeah, but I still can't get into a bar."
"Maybe not a bar on this side of the border." He flashed her a grin and stood. "We'll take Scott's car, I'm sure he won't mind. Pack an overnight bag just in case, okay?" Rogue just sat there, gaping at his back, but got up after he left to change and throw some things in a bag. She tore a piece of paper from the back of her diary and scratched out, "Going to Canada with Logan, If we're not back by Sunday, start worrying. -Rogue" On her way out she stashed her diary in her hiding place, pulled her hair out of her face and bounded out of her room to meet Logan down the hall.
Would love some reviews, good or bad, as long as it will help my writing.
Steppin' Out
"I see Congress passed a bill in record time." The President read through the wording of the Mutant Registration Act thoroughly, but quickly, knowing he didn't agree with it. He was a fence sitter on this issue, he had friends he knew, or at least suspected, were mutants, yet he also had a reoccurring nightmare of being attacked by a blue mutant for the past year. He always worried about that gap in his memory around that time, wondering if another mutant was responsible for the loss of info, even wondering whether that mutant would have manipulated his thoughts so that he'd believe all mutants weren't bad.
When he finished reading the bill, he returned to his desk and unlocked the drawer on his left, removing a stamp and an inkpad. He smiled, actually enjoying this part of his job, for once, and struck the paper with it, leaving a clear "veto" printed near the bottom left corner.
He handed the copy to his assistant. "Feel free to let this be known to any and everyone who might ask. It's been a while since I could directly challenge Congress and not worry about my conscience." The assistant promptly left the office and the President alone with his bodyguard.
"Mr. President, if I might speak freely."
"Yes, Mr. Booren, feel free."
Booren looked around, then spoke. "I think, Mr. President, you made the right decision, but this issue may never be solved peacefully." The President looked at Booren carefully, looking almost amused. Booren cleared his throat uncomfortably. "I'm sorry, Mr. President."
"No need to apologize, Mr. Booren, I am in complete agreement with you. To me, it feels a lot like ongoing conflict in the Middle East, both sides feel threatened enough by the other that they fear the only way to exist is to do away with the other." The President started to leave the office and walk down the hall, waving off other who wished to speak with him about his most recent decision. He didn't speak to Booren until they were in another room, well down the hall from his office and after the door was shut.
The President began to speak again. "I just want to make it clear to the stronger side that I don't support anything resembling a revocation of a mutant's human rights, even if they aren't what the rest of us would call simply human. But, tonight, I will prepare a speech for the morning press conference I have yet to schedule to let the American public know exactly what I feel, what I think, the same thing you've expressed to me today."
***
Quite a bit of remodeling had been done over the past year, now the kids were either paired off or three to a room. Rogue, as a junior member of the team, got to have her own room, but when another female around her age joined the team, she'd have to share. For now, she liked being by herself. She decided to take a break from the tension now that it was all over. Everyone left in the mansion wandered back to their own rooms after the news came through. No one knew how to react to the President's veto of the Mutant Registration Act, but they were a bit worried about the emergency session Congress called. It would truly be just that, an emergency, if Congress were to meet between the holidays. All anyone could do was wait.
Rogue decided to write in her diary. She only started to keep it since she moved into the mansion. Most of her entries were dreams, nightmares, and most of those had to do with Magneto. They were all really intimate things she believed actually happened to him. She began to write "December 2nd, 2003. The president veto'd that MRA thing. Congress will probably meet and override his veto; I don't know what will happen after that. The tension around here has died down a little; the Professor told us that the act itself wasn't meant to harm mutants.
"Other than that, I still worry about Bobby. I'm pretty sure that whatever we had between us is over. Logan, on the other hand, seems to actually be interested in me. The other night, he and I were on patrol, he sneaked up on me, asked me if I was all right and we walked the grounds together, just talking. It's funny, I don't think I could even remember what we were talking about if I tried, but it seemed important at the time. I've always had feelings for Logan, but, well, he's so much older than I am, I never thought much of them. Bobby used to, especially when he came home last year. I do admit, I was very bouncy and very happy to see him again. So, this morning, I got up for breakfast and he met me in the hall, like he was waiting for me. It all seems a little strange; I can't think of any other explanation for his behavior.
"I had another dream about Magneto this morning, too. It was really vivid." While she carefully formed the letters and words in her diary, Logan, again, crept through the hall and through her door, just watching her movements. She was on her stomach, face resting on her hand, legs bent at the knees, feet kicking back and forth, occasionally hitting the wall to her left. Rogue's diary continued "He was. being intimate with this woman, she had long blonde hair, the most pronounced figure I've ever seen and Magneto was. afraid of her, yet I think he believed he was in love." She paused in her writing, thinking she heard something. She quickly rolled over, turning onto her side and saw Logan standing in the far corner and jumped, hitting the wall with her elbow.
"Hey, kid, calm down, it's just me." He smiled at her, hands up in an attempt to look harmless. Rogue sat up and rubbed her elbow, pouting at him. "Aww, don't make that face at me, let me look at your elbow." She scooted to the edge of the bed and he sat next to her while she lifted her arm for him to see.
"Theyah's nothin' wrong with it, see? Ah just hurt it a little, that's ahwl." She turned to face him, curling one leg up and under her. "Now, care to explain why you're lurking in the shadows of a kid's room?" Rogue found herself looking into Logan's eyes and felt herself leaning into him, or he into her.
Logan cleared his throat. "Well, I thought maybe you were bored. I walked by and saw you kicking your legs in the air and I thought that maybe you and I could go out. You know, only if you're not busy." He, of course, wasn't shy about this, but his lack of contact with women left him a bit clumsy with words.
She bit down on her lower lip before she smiled at him. "Where'd ya have in mind?"
"Pool hall? Bar?"
"I'm too young to get into a bar or a pool hall."
Logan chuckled. "Well, maybe dressed as you are, they'll think you're too young. What, you're 18 now, aren't you?"
"Well, yeah, but I still can't get into a bar."
"Maybe not a bar on this side of the border." He flashed her a grin and stood. "We'll take Scott's car, I'm sure he won't mind. Pack an overnight bag just in case, okay?" Rogue just sat there, gaping at his back, but got up after he left to change and throw some things in a bag. She tore a piece of paper from the back of her diary and scratched out, "Going to Canada with Logan, If we're not back by Sunday, start worrying. -Rogue" On her way out she stashed her diary in her hiding place, pulled her hair out of her face and bounded out of her room to meet Logan down the hall.