Disclaimer: Don't own anything except Blaze and other random original
characters. Ilehana Xavier and Danielle appear courtesy of Corrinth, the X-
Men and their world appear courtesy of Marvel.
A/N: Reviews and comments are always welcome.
Scene 12
"Can I see her?" Rogue asked sheepishly, not meeting Storm's eyes as the older woman came out of the infirmary room where Blaze lay recovering. It was more through precaution than from any real medical need, the infirmary was the safest place for Blaze at the moment whilst her powers came back sporadically and she was lacking in control.
"Of course." Ororo confirmed. "But be careful. If Blaze's powers start to run away from her, get out of there quickly" Rogue nodded sombrely, looking at the door with caution in her eyes. She didn't quite know what sort of reception she should expect from Blaze, but she just had to do this. Rogue entered the room.
Blaze was sat up in bed, looking pale but otherwise well. Only when the fire elemental's big brown eyes met Rogue's did the southern girl gasp at the change in the normally friendly Englishwoman. There was so much anger red raw and oozing behind her eyes. Why? What was Blaze holding against Rogue? It had been Rogue not Blaze who had prevented the two of them from ever getting along through Rogue's distrust of the former thief. Now the table turned, and Blaze's unabashed hatred cut Rogue to the core.
"What are you doing here?" Blaze's voice was hot and hard but even toned. Rogue gulped and resolved to come forward.
"I just wanna see how your doin'." Rogue began. "Storm says you're havin' a rough time with your powers comin' back after I........." Her voice tailed off, but she wouldn't look away from Blaze. She wouldn't let Blaze know she was a little afraid.
"You just want to alleviate a little of the guilt you're struggling with." Blaze replied, proving she knew exactly why Rogue was in the room and showing how much she distained that weakness. "You detest me because I'm a thief. But I've never stolen from you, and certainly never stole from you in the way you have now stolen from me."
Rogue snapped, something in her wanting to slap the self-centred girl in front of her, so wrapped up with her own little life. Containing the impulse in a way that Blaze never would have been able to she knew, Rogue put her hands on her hips and spoke back angrily.
"You know what Blaze, you're right. I did come down here to try an' put some guilt to one side, but it ain't mine. The one thing I remember about touchin' you, more than anythin' else, is the wave of guilt an' self-hatred I got from you." Rogue stepped forward at that to stand like a lioness over a kill as Blaze's anger shifted to mild panic. What did Rogue know about her now? "I don't know what you've done Blaze, but I know you think that there's no forgiveness for you after it. I know its bad, an' I'm gonna figure it out, figure you out. An' you can rest assured that if you've done anythin' to hurt the X-Men or Gambit I'm gonna........."
"Stop talking about something you don't understand, child." Blaze recovered herself enough to cut Rogue's speech short. Fire danced in ribbons about the room, making Rogue glance about nervously. Was Blaze about to lose it?
"I'm not much younger than you Blaze. You think you're so grown up, just how old are you anyway?"
"I'll be nineteen in two months." Blaze filled in, knowing that despite Rogue's words, the truth about Blaze's age would still knock the younger girl a little. She was right, Rogue looked shocked that Blaze was really only Scott and Jean's age. Resolving to stop Rogue looking for trouble, Blaze gritted her teeth to be straight with the girl. "But I've been surviving on my own, on the run, a wanted criminal in a foreign country since I was fifteen years old. Stuff like that will make you grow up much faster than any high school kid." Blaze threw sarcasm to cover what was actually jealously of Rogue's chance to go to school, but Rogue seemed unaware even of the insult.
"What did you do?" There was awe in Rogue's voice, and Blaze dropped her eyes as she realised the trap she'd put herself in. She could do nothing now but fill in the gaps, and then let the X-Men judge her as they would. Chances were they couldn't think any worse of her than they already did anyway. And Ilehana? Or Gambit? What would they think of her? Did any of it matter anymore? Suddenly Blaze knew what she had to do.........
"I killed my family." Rogue went white, suddenly feeling very ill. So that was why she'd been swamped with guilt when she'd touched Blaze, the guilt she still couldn't shake was the guilt of a murderer? "My powers are too strong, too dangerous." Blaze continued. "When they first developed I burnt down my home and killed my parents. I've not been back to England since."
"Rogue," Professor Xavier's voice came from the doorway. Rogue wondered how much he'd heard, how much he already knew. "Could you leave Blaze and I alone please?"
"No problem Professor." Rogue was only too glad to be given an excuse to leave; she was shaking from head to foot. Who would have thought it? Blaze on the other hand prepared herself for what she knew was coming, a royal ticking off regarding her actions in the fight from the founder of the X- Men. She was not disappointed.
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"It worries me," Charles Xavier addressed his senior team with a frown, dark eyes troubled under his worried brow. "That Magneto could read so many of the X-Men so well he knew exactly what to offer to turn us against each other. That he knew the majority of us would give anything for the chance, however fleeting, to be normal."
He paused; letting his words sink in as around the room so many of the team looked ashamed and sheepish, including Scott, Jean, Storm, Beast, Kurt and Rogue. Ilehana was silently fuming, arms folded across her chest in a defensive posture that kept out even Logan. Not that Wolverine was in a much better mood himself, picking up quickly on what was irritating Vixen and wearing a deep scowl.
"So," Scott tried to break the uneasy silence by changing the subject. "What's going to happen to Blaze now? I mean can we trust her after what she did? What if she does it again, protects one of our enemies and puts one of the team in danger?"
"Blaze is leaving," Ilehana snapped, voice cold and sarcastic. "That is, if she has your permission Scott?"
"Only to take Stifle home." Storm was quick to point out as the younger team members looked a little shocked. "The Professor has tracked down her family in England and Blaze knows where they live."
"You just don't get it, do you?" Ilehana growled. "Blaze hasn't been disciplined since she was a child. She wont accept that any of us has the right to tell her off for doing what she thought was right, protecting her friend. You let her leave right now and she wont be coming back." Vixen's eyes met her father's identical ones as she concluded her speech. "And who can blame her, when this is the kind of mistrust she'd be coming back to........."
A/N: Reviews and comments are always welcome.
Scene 12
"Can I see her?" Rogue asked sheepishly, not meeting Storm's eyes as the older woman came out of the infirmary room where Blaze lay recovering. It was more through precaution than from any real medical need, the infirmary was the safest place for Blaze at the moment whilst her powers came back sporadically and she was lacking in control.
"Of course." Ororo confirmed. "But be careful. If Blaze's powers start to run away from her, get out of there quickly" Rogue nodded sombrely, looking at the door with caution in her eyes. She didn't quite know what sort of reception she should expect from Blaze, but she just had to do this. Rogue entered the room.
Blaze was sat up in bed, looking pale but otherwise well. Only when the fire elemental's big brown eyes met Rogue's did the southern girl gasp at the change in the normally friendly Englishwoman. There was so much anger red raw and oozing behind her eyes. Why? What was Blaze holding against Rogue? It had been Rogue not Blaze who had prevented the two of them from ever getting along through Rogue's distrust of the former thief. Now the table turned, and Blaze's unabashed hatred cut Rogue to the core.
"What are you doing here?" Blaze's voice was hot and hard but even toned. Rogue gulped and resolved to come forward.
"I just wanna see how your doin'." Rogue began. "Storm says you're havin' a rough time with your powers comin' back after I........." Her voice tailed off, but she wouldn't look away from Blaze. She wouldn't let Blaze know she was a little afraid.
"You just want to alleviate a little of the guilt you're struggling with." Blaze replied, proving she knew exactly why Rogue was in the room and showing how much she distained that weakness. "You detest me because I'm a thief. But I've never stolen from you, and certainly never stole from you in the way you have now stolen from me."
Rogue snapped, something in her wanting to slap the self-centred girl in front of her, so wrapped up with her own little life. Containing the impulse in a way that Blaze never would have been able to she knew, Rogue put her hands on her hips and spoke back angrily.
"You know what Blaze, you're right. I did come down here to try an' put some guilt to one side, but it ain't mine. The one thing I remember about touchin' you, more than anythin' else, is the wave of guilt an' self-hatred I got from you." Rogue stepped forward at that to stand like a lioness over a kill as Blaze's anger shifted to mild panic. What did Rogue know about her now? "I don't know what you've done Blaze, but I know you think that there's no forgiveness for you after it. I know its bad, an' I'm gonna figure it out, figure you out. An' you can rest assured that if you've done anythin' to hurt the X-Men or Gambit I'm gonna........."
"Stop talking about something you don't understand, child." Blaze recovered herself enough to cut Rogue's speech short. Fire danced in ribbons about the room, making Rogue glance about nervously. Was Blaze about to lose it?
"I'm not much younger than you Blaze. You think you're so grown up, just how old are you anyway?"
"I'll be nineteen in two months." Blaze filled in, knowing that despite Rogue's words, the truth about Blaze's age would still knock the younger girl a little. She was right, Rogue looked shocked that Blaze was really only Scott and Jean's age. Resolving to stop Rogue looking for trouble, Blaze gritted her teeth to be straight with the girl. "But I've been surviving on my own, on the run, a wanted criminal in a foreign country since I was fifteen years old. Stuff like that will make you grow up much faster than any high school kid." Blaze threw sarcasm to cover what was actually jealously of Rogue's chance to go to school, but Rogue seemed unaware even of the insult.
"What did you do?" There was awe in Rogue's voice, and Blaze dropped her eyes as she realised the trap she'd put herself in. She could do nothing now but fill in the gaps, and then let the X-Men judge her as they would. Chances were they couldn't think any worse of her than they already did anyway. And Ilehana? Or Gambit? What would they think of her? Did any of it matter anymore? Suddenly Blaze knew what she had to do.........
"I killed my family." Rogue went white, suddenly feeling very ill. So that was why she'd been swamped with guilt when she'd touched Blaze, the guilt she still couldn't shake was the guilt of a murderer? "My powers are too strong, too dangerous." Blaze continued. "When they first developed I burnt down my home and killed my parents. I've not been back to England since."
"Rogue," Professor Xavier's voice came from the doorway. Rogue wondered how much he'd heard, how much he already knew. "Could you leave Blaze and I alone please?"
"No problem Professor." Rogue was only too glad to be given an excuse to leave; she was shaking from head to foot. Who would have thought it? Blaze on the other hand prepared herself for what she knew was coming, a royal ticking off regarding her actions in the fight from the founder of the X- Men. She was not disappointed.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"It worries me," Charles Xavier addressed his senior team with a frown, dark eyes troubled under his worried brow. "That Magneto could read so many of the X-Men so well he knew exactly what to offer to turn us against each other. That he knew the majority of us would give anything for the chance, however fleeting, to be normal."
He paused; letting his words sink in as around the room so many of the team looked ashamed and sheepish, including Scott, Jean, Storm, Beast, Kurt and Rogue. Ilehana was silently fuming, arms folded across her chest in a defensive posture that kept out even Logan. Not that Wolverine was in a much better mood himself, picking up quickly on what was irritating Vixen and wearing a deep scowl.
"So," Scott tried to break the uneasy silence by changing the subject. "What's going to happen to Blaze now? I mean can we trust her after what she did? What if she does it again, protects one of our enemies and puts one of the team in danger?"
"Blaze is leaving," Ilehana snapped, voice cold and sarcastic. "That is, if she has your permission Scott?"
"Only to take Stifle home." Storm was quick to point out as the younger team members looked a little shocked. "The Professor has tracked down her family in England and Blaze knows where they live."
"You just don't get it, do you?" Ilehana growled. "Blaze hasn't been disciplined since she was a child. She wont accept that any of us has the right to tell her off for doing what she thought was right, protecting her friend. You let her leave right now and she wont be coming back." Vixen's eyes met her father's identical ones as she concluded her speech. "And who can blame her, when this is the kind of mistrust she'd be coming back to........."