Dismal Angel 2010 - Episode 10
Chapter 5: Divided Opinions
"Almost positive!" Rogue fumed as she paced the pedestrian walkway of the hanger beneath the mansion's grounds, "Almost positive that Remy could have been the only one to have stolen the research!" she growled.
"Hank really said that?" Kitty asked, she found it a little hard to believe Hank would blame someone without looking at the facts or finding proof first.
"YES!" Rogue stomped angrily back and fourth, "ALMOST POSITIVE," she repeated, angrier still, "isn't that just another way of saying he's not SURE but he's just pinning it on Remy anyway?! I mean there isn't any real evidentiary support to that theory that Remy stole the research…"
Kitty was sitting upon the rail cordoning off the walkway from the landing strip, watching her best friend pace wildly back and fourth over the path with a look of extreme contempt on her face. On one hand, Kitty wanted to back Rogue up one hundred percent that Hank had to be wrong about Remy stealing the research, but on the other hand, Kitty also knew from past experience that Remy was possibly the only person any of them knew to pull of such a tricky thing as to steal the research and get away with it.
Kitty felt torn, but finally made a comment, "But Hank doesn't just make wild accusations, we've known him, like, forever," she said, "You know as well as I do he just doesn't point the finger, he assesses the situation and comes up with theories."
"Well this isn't a theory, THIS is an accusation, and it doesn't seem like he assessed the situation enough to really have a right to accuse Remy at all," Rogue folded her arms stubbornly, her head spun around and she glared at Kitty, "and why the hell are you defending Hank when Remy is your FRIEND, you're meant to be defending Remy, not Hank."
Kitty looked away, "I know that," she sighed, "and I also know that Hank is ALSO my friend," she frowned a little, "I'm not going to take sides here Rogue, I'm just suggesting the possibility that maybe Hank is right," Kitty shrugged, she then looked at Rogue, "Maybe he did do it…"
Rogue turned away, temper flaring, she tried to remain calm but it was increasingly difficult. She'd spent so much time blaming Remy for everything that had ever went wrong in her life and ignored her own responsibility in her problems that now she realised it was finally time she defended him despite she had to admit to herself it might be possible.
"I touched him, Kitty…" Rogue looked to the floor sadly, "If he had been out for revenge or something, or intending to pull off this stunt for money…then…I don't know, I should have felt that from him, surely."
"Remy's good at hiding his emotions, Rogue," Kitty confessed softly, "he's good at bluffing. I mean when he was running from us and we caught him he was acting like a smart ass like nothing changed, and then when you attacked him in the confinement cell he made jokes – I would have NEVER even figured that he was a manic depressive, Rogue…"
Rogue raised her eyes to Kitty momentarily, then looked away once again.
"And if he could hide that even from you – and you touched him – god knows what else he could easily hide…" Kitty added, "but…I'm not saying he did this to be hateful…or even did it for money...I mean…isn't it possible…he maybe could have done it out of fear, Rogue…" Kitty said, "what if someone was making him do it…?"
Rogue thought back to the dream again, shivering slightly, she hugged herself insecurely, and leaned against the wall.
"Lately he had seemed…detached, and edgy, and I always got the indication he was worried about something…when he was here he wanted his criminal record cleared as quickly as possible so he could get the hell out of here, it was almost like he thought…someone knew he might be here…like he was scared of being found," Kitty became aware of the distant drone of one of the Red Eye Jets as it was approaching the Hangar area.
Rogue turned and gazed towards the sliding doors which were still sealed shut tightly, the Red Eye was not yet close enough for landing, but her heart skipped slightly knowing that the professor would soon be home and some of this might be resolved
"I just figured maybe he was trying to get away from you, that being around you was maybe hurting him emotionally or something," Kitty confessed, "never assumed for one minute there might be something else to this…edginess he had about him," she explained. "And...as for him doing it for revenge? If that were so why would he reach out to us, Rogue?" Kitty asked, "Why would he reach out to me, and tell me he was depressed…you don't do stuff like that if you're going to screw someone over and steal something from them…even if you're trying to trick them into trusting you…you just don't tell them your weaknesses…"
Rogue nodded, beginning to become slightly more at ease with Kitty's assessment than she had been with Hank's. Kitty was right, why would Remy tell her about his depression if he planned to steal from Hank, it would have made more sense to stay quiet.
"Rogue, I know Hank…and he doesn't have anything against Remy…I think maybe Hank is just…maybe a little sensitive because it was HIS work, his research, y'know?" Kitty suggested, "it was important to Hank, and…so much time and effort and work went into it, you have to understand how much it meant to him…and that just having someone to blame right now is his way of dealing with it."
Beginning to understand just a little more, Rogue decided Kitty just might be right, "I guess…"
"Hank hasn't slept – NONE of us have – and emotions are running high in this place right now, this is the kind of thing that's left us all knocked for six…it's understandable how accusations could be made…god knows, tomorrow we could all be laughing about this," Kitty stated.
Rogue sighed unhappily, "until Remy is safe, I don't think I'll be doing much laughing."
The Professor had arrived and in a whirlwind of information Kitty and Rogue had allowed him to access their minds quickly enough to find the facts. Once he'd done this, he rushed away at once to find Hank and learn all he could about the clone, whilst Rogue filled everything in to Logan and Ororo who had also arrived back.
"I agree with Hank," Logan said, he lit a cigar as they were now in the kitchen, the sun had risen up over Bayville and the walls of the kitchen were tinted gold with its' light, "there's somethin' up here, and I definitely think the Cajun is behind it all, this whole thing has Remy LeBeau's stink all over it," he exhaled smoke through his nostrils, leaned his back against the nearest counter and folded his arms.
Rogue and Kitty had explained everything they could
"But it doesn't make sense to think he did it out of revenge," Kitty said flatly.
Piotr Rasputin and Ororo Munro were also sitting at the kitchen table with Rogue and Kitty, they were all sharing their opinions on this situation, everyone seemed to be coming to a different conclusion, which Rogue was very uneasy with.
Piotr glanced towards Kitty, his eyes spoke of something that had only been shared between them both, and Kitty suddenly remembered once again what he'd told her about his cousin seeking Remy out and finding him in Paris for an unnamed Man. Kitty felt it wasn't her place to mention it to everyone else, so she remained silent, and listened as the others spoke.
"Ororo, what do you think?" Rogue asked, looking at her desperately, hoping Ororo would at least fall onto Remy's side and not agree with the others there was foul play.
"I think…" Ororo took a careful sip of her hot coffee, then continued, blue eyes directly on Rogue, "that if Remy was indeed intending to get revenge on all of us, then he would not have befriended Kitty once again."
Kitty gave a firm nod, "That's what I figured."
"Also," Ororo continued, "Remy wouldn't have trusted anyone if this were merely some plot for revenge – yet he trusted Kitty, he took her into his home, despite she could have called the police on her himself."
"That reminds me," Kitty clicked her fingers, "the night the police found out where he was, me and Remy had just gotten into the apartment, coming back from my parents funeral," she explained, "when we got in the place had been ransacked – and none of his stuff had been taken – which suggests to me that it WASN'T done by normal criminals," she folded her arms.
"Possibly," Logan took another puff of his cigar, he glanced towards Rogue, "what was this you mentioned about a dream?" he asked, referring to something she'd said quickly whilst trying to explain all the details of the last twenty-four hours.
"I had a dream that I was running from someone, and I was scared, and I woke up, Jean helped me access the dream in my mind and it was Remy's memories, from a time I accidentally touched him when we were outside McDuggins," Rogue's green eyes narrowed as she pictured it in her head once again. "He was running from some guy, some guy who could…I don't know…have you guys ever seen that movie 'Terminator 2: Judgement Day'?" she suddenly asked.
"Yeah," Logan snorted, thinking this was a rather absurd question to ask at a time like this, "what's that gotta do with anything?"
"Whoever this guy was, I think he had a power like the T-2000…he could…I don't know, mutate into liquid metal or something…"
"Shapeshifter?" PIotr asked, "the robot in that movie was a shapeshifter, he could imitate objects and humans of equal size."
"I don't know exactly," Rogue shook her head, "all I know is…I saw liquid metal coming through the keyhole, then on the floor, growing in this massive puddle, it looked like it was…breathing or something…and then…then he ran to another room, a bedroom, there was a bed against the wall…"
"That was where I slept when I stayed with him," Kitty nodded, listening closely.
"The window was shut and he couldn't open it, when he turned to the door there were…silhouettes there…but red eyes…I can see them SO clearly in my head…and then this very cold voice…said 'you know what you have to do'.
"Do you know what he had to do, though?" Ororo asked.
Rogue shook her head, "No…all I got from the dream – or his memory of it – was that he was scared, and he knew that this guy – whoever he is – was bad news. This was a guy who he'd worked for before I think…and whenever he worked for him it meant trouble…"
The X-Men in the room all suddenly became aware that the voice of Professor Xavier was ringing out loud and clear in their very own minds.
{X-Men, please, at once come down to the war room for an emergency meeting.} "Sounds like Chuck might have found somethin' out," Logan stated, "now lets go find out what the hell is goin' on exactly."