A/N: First things first—an apology to SorrowRain. I didn't mean to skip your review, and I promise to never never NEVER do it again. Forgive me?
Yumiko: I promise that you WILL eventually see where the stones lead.
Gub-man: I have no intention of making Rogue leave the X-men….but who knows? Maybe my Muse will force me into it.
And now, on with chapter 3!!!
Aside from her encounter with the man with the dead eyes, Rogue's school day was extremely uneventful. There was a career assembly last period, giving her time to focus on the Keystone problem. The man hadn't given her any indication on where to start looking, which meant that, as far as she knew, the stone could be on the other side of the world. Somehow she doubted that this assignment would be as easy as her last one.
When the assembly ended, Rogue followed everyone else out of the building, heading for Jean's SUV. The redhead was already there, along with Kitty.
"Where's Kurt?" Rogue asked as she climbed in.
"He is, like, totally walking Amanda to her car!" Kitty said excitedly.
Rogue rolled her eyes. "Yippee," she said in a monotone. Kitty made a face at her.
"Well I think it's sweet."
"Whatever."
Kitty opened her mouth to respond, but at that moment Kurt appeared next to Rogue, accompanied by a loud *bamf.*
"Sorry I'm late," he said. "I vas busy."
"So Ah heard." Rogue turned to the window, watching the road speed by. Her thoughts immediately turned towards the problem of the stone. She knew of a store at the Bayville mall that was a front for black market trades. It was as good a starting place as any.
"Hey, Jean, would ya mind droppin' me off at the mall?" she asked.
"Why do you need to go to the mall?" Jean asked. Rogue waved the question aside.
"Oh, there's just somethin' Ah need ta do. It's for a…project." Jean seemed to consider it for a moment, before finally agreeing.
As soon as Jean let her out at the mall, Rogue began looking for the least crowded path to the store. It wasn't easy. She weaved between large mobs of people, every now and then checking to make sure her gloves were in place. After about ten minutes of this, she reached her destination.
It was one of those high maintenance jewelry stores where you could buy a ring for more about as much as a house. There were glass cases everywhere, holding everything from necklaces to earrings to engagement rings. All of them seemed to include some type of diamond. Rogue wandered around, hoping that, by sheer luck, the Keystone would be there. It wasn't. Disappointed but ready to give up, Rogue went over to the counter.
The man behind it had the classic "snobby rich dude" look. Long nose, beady eyes, and an expression that clearly said "I am way more important than you."
"May I help you?" he asked in a bored tone, as if he didn't know why she was wasting his time.
"Ah'd like to take a look at some of your…other….merchandise." she said.
"Miss, I don't know what you are talking abou—" he stopped short when Rogue laid four five hundred dollar bills down on the counter. He took the money, and then led her into a back room.
This was where the store did its illegal trading. There were several tables with jewelry of all kinds, as well as paintings, sculptures, and bags containing what could only be drugs.
"Is there anything in particular you are looking for?" he asked.
"It's a diamond with a gold letter K on it." she said as she began searching through the jewelry.
"Then you can quit searching—we do not have it. I would remember seeing such a jewel."
"Well do you know where Ah can find it?" He pondered for a moment.
"There is a pawn shop just a few blocks from here. It may have what you are looking for."
Fifteen minutes later Rogue walked through the door of a small pawnshop. It was a cluttered little room filled with odds and ends. Several piles of clothes littered the floor, while a shoe rack dominated the far wall. An old wooden rocking chair sat in one corner, flanked on either side by floor lamps that had obviously seen better days. In the midst of all the chaos there was a small table holding some fairly decent looking pieces of jewelry. Rogue studied them all carefully, but none fit the Keystone's description. Finally, Rogue decided to ask the saleslady.
The woman was short and plump, and walked with a bit of a waddle. Her gray hair sat on top of her head in a tight bun. She had on a faded blue dress that had several rips in it, much like the clothes piled around the shop. When Rogue approached her, she was busy trying miserably to straiten the rack of shoes.
"Excuse me," Rogue said. The woman put down the pair she was holding and turned to Rogue.
"Well hello dear," she said. "How can I help you?"
"Ah'm lookin' fer a diamond with a gold letter K on it. You seen it?" The woman nodded.
"A nice young boy brought it in a few months ago," she said. "It was on a silver chain, like a necklace."
"Do ya still have it?" Rogue had to fight to keep the anticipation out of her voice.
" 'Fraid not, dear. It sold a few days later. I'm sorry." Rogue's heart fell into her stomach. At this rate, she'd be lucky if she found the stone by next year.
"Do ya know who bought it?"
"Well, yes, but I don't think I'm supposed to tell you. Why is this so important, anyway?"
"It belonged to mah mom," Rogue lied. "After she died, mah dad had to pawn some of her jewelry to pay fer the funeral." Rogue looked down in mock grief, and pretended to wipe her eyes.
"Don't cry, dear. I'll tell you who bought it. Just give me a minute to check my records."
She walked over to a counter that was so covered in junk that Rogue hadn't noticed it, and began sifting through piles of paper. She came back holding a tiny yellow slip.
" 'Ms. Darla Young,'" she read. " '279, Lakewood Drive.'"
"Thank you," Rogue said. She started walking toward the door. As she stepped outside, she heard the woman call, "I hope you find your mother's necklace, dear!"
It took Rogue two bus rides and a half-mile walk to get to Ms. Young's house. When she arrived at the driveway, she was greeted by two overly excited black labs. They licked her hands, beat her legs with their tails, and barked happily.
"Get offa me ya crazy mutts!" Rogue tried to push them away, but it was no use.
Apparently the dogs could be heard inside, because the front door opened up and a tall, blond woman stepped out. She took one look at Rogue's plight and shook her head exasperatedly.
"Doodle! Virgo! Come!" The two dogs immediately abandoned Rogue and made a b-line for the woman, who put them both inside. Rogue walked up to the porch.
" Excuse me," she said. "Are you Ms. Young?" The woman nodded. "Ah was hoping' you could help me with something. Do you have a necklace with a diamond decorated with a gold K?"
Ms. Young shook her head. "No, why?" Rogue proceeded to tell the woman about her poor, dead mom, and how the sales lay had directed her here.
"Sorry to tell you this, but it sold at a garage sale two weeks ago, to some people who used to live down the street."
"Where do they live now?" Rogue prayed it was somewhere nearby.
"England."
A/N: And the plot thickens! Wow, this is my longest chapter so far. The first two look much longer on word than on FF.Net.
I'm trying to change my account so that I can get anonymous reviews, but right now FF.net won't let me. Sorry to anybody who tried to review but failed.
Barbra Ruiz: Sorry if I got your name wrong, my mom accidentally deleted your e-mail, so I'm doin' this by memory. I really appreciate you going through all the trouble of e-mailing me, it means a lot. Thanks.
Thanks to everybody who reviewed! Guess what? If you review this chapter, you get a free holowatch!