Paint by Numbers
Chapter 4
A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed! Dark-Bat, I read your story "Shiny" and I loved it! Especially Illyana's conversation with Kitty and Kurt and Mikhail wearing an apron and cooking pancakes. Both amusing, but in very different ways.
Rahneman, I read your antiLance League story and couldn't stop laughing. For some reason, it only seems fitting that Pietro get taken down by a taser. And there will be a Lance/Piotr fight in this story eventually, just not for a few more chapters.
Thanks to Dark Whispers, The Rogue Witch, Nie Starwhistler, Kitrazzle Fayn, Lladyred01, ishandahalf,
*B, Dahiem, Trickster's-Lulaby, and anyone else I forgot for their reviews!
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"Tell me again why we're watching this movie?" Lance asked as he followed Kitty into the living room of the Xavier mansion.
"Because it was between this and "The Sound of Music," and you consider this to be the lesser evil," Kitty reminded him, popping the DVD in and grabbing the remote.
"Oh. Right. "Casablanca" may be 70 years old and in black and white, but at least they don't spontaneously burst out into song."
"Well....like, actually, they do. But it's only one song. And it's the French National Anthem, so at least it's educational!"
"Great. I really wanted an educational film," Lance grumbled.
"Maybe you would have a better time if you, like, stopped complaining. I know I would." Great, Kitty thought, the date has barely even started, and already I'm annoyed with him. I've been doubting our relationship so much lately, I really need tonight to go well.
"Why can't we watch the movie I picked out?" Lance whined, interrupting her thoughts.
Kitty rolled her eyes before forcing a smile on her face. "Because "Seven" isn't exactly a romantic date movie."
"What are you talking about? There's a whole subplot just about the detective and his wife," Lance argued.
"Yes, but the wife gets her head severed off and it's sent to her husband in a cardboard box."
"And that makes him sad. That's love," Lance mumbled through a mouthful of popcorn.
"Sad? That's like, a totally generic emotion. You're saying that as long as you're "sad" when someone dies, it means you love them? I was sad when Boxer died in "Animal Farm". Doesn't mean I loved him."
"That's because Boxer was a pig," Lance told her patronizingly.
"Actually, he was a horse," Kitty mumbled as she stared at her boyfriend, who was continuing to scarf down the popcorn with his mouth open. Although you and Boxer both seem to share a common way of chewing food, she thought, disgusted. How hard is it to close your mouth when you eat?
"What?" Lance asked, noticing her staring at him with a look of annoyance. "Oh sorry, want some?" he asked, offering her the popcorn bowl.
Kitty shook her head no and looked away, and the two of them sat for a few moments in an uncomfortable silence that was broken only by the sound of Lance's chewing. A few seconds later, the unspeaking couple were interrupted by Rogue, who came stomping into the room, closely followed by Gambit. She looked as irritated as Kitty felt.
"Hi guys! What have you been up to?" Kitty asked brightly, relieved to be able to turn her attention away from Lance and his damn chewing.
"Chere and I were spending a wonderful evening together," Remy told her smoothly.
"You followin' me around all night doesn't count as spending time together. Ah think the legal term is stalkin', Rogue grumbled, but Kitty could have sworn she saw her smile, just for a moment.
"We were just about to start "Casablanca." Do either of you want to join us?" Kitty asked, hoping that having other people in the room would ease some of the tension between her and her boyfriend. But judging from the way Lance was glaring at her, she didn't think he was too happy to have their date interrupted by a couple of interlopers.
"Why would I waste time watching hommes romance filles onscreen when I could be doing the same thing in real life?" Remy asked playfully.
"Good point, Remy. Guess I'll see you later then," Lance said, happy to see him go.
"If he's goin', then Ah'll stay," Rogue said, plopping down on the empty loveseat.
"Stay?" Lance asked, his smile fading once again. "And watch some sappy, boring-"
"Who said I'm going?" Remy interrupted. "M'be I watch and pick up a few pointers, non? Not that I need them, right chere?" the Cajun asked flirtatiously as he slid into the empty space next to her.
Rogue just snorted and looked away.
Remy seemed to take this as his invitation to move a little closer to her. But before he could try another line, he was distracted by a familiar fire and brimstone *bamf* as Nightcrawler teleported in.
"Ahh, I was wondering where all the snacks had gone," Kurt exclaimed as he grabbed a bowl of chips off the coffee table.
"Food's in here, and apparently so is everyone else" Lance mumbled to himself
"We were just about to watch a movie. Ya in?" Rogue asked her brother.
"Of course I'm in. There's food," he explained to her as he took a seat in the empty armchair.
"You know Kurt, you could just take all the food to the kitchen and eat it there," Lance said hopefully.
"I could," Kurt nodded, pretending to think about it. "But I won't. Hey Peter! You can stop raiding the kitchen! Snacks are in here!" he called to his friend across the hall.
Piotr wandered in casually, wearing an undershirt covered in old paint stains that Kitty though nicely displayed his muscles. His face darkened when he caught sight of Lance.
"Turns out I'm not all that hungry Kurt. I think I'll just go upstairs and read," he said gruffly.
"C'mon, stay!" Kitty pleaded. "We're all watching "Casablanca," she added. "Have you ever seen it?"
"If he has, he probably didn't like it," Kurt told her. "He's hated every movie I've ever shown him, and they were good ones, too. I mean, who doesn't like James Bond or Austin Powers?"
Peter shrugged sheepishly. "For some reason I have a strange aversion to all stories about British spies."
"Well, if you've never seen a movie you liked, then you should definitely watch this, 'cause Casablanca's like the mother of all movies," Kitty told him encouragingly.
"Kitty," Lance murmured in her ear, "I don't want him here. Tell him to-"
"Hey Lance!" Kurt whispered, tapping him on the shoulder. "I finished the chips. Do you want the bowl? You can use it as a new helmet for your uniform," he said, deadpan.
Lance said nothing, but responded by making the ground below him rumble.
"Stop it!" Kitty hissed, slapping him on the arm. "If you can't behave, then just go home. You can be, like, so immature sometimes." Then she turned her attention to Colossus. "Peter, you are not going to go sit in your room alone like a hermit. You are going to sit down and watch the movie with the rest of us," she ordered.
"Look, there's an empty seat next to Kitty. All settled?" Rogue asked, as Peter squeezed himself onto the couch next to Kitty. Their thighs and shoulders touched, and Kitty could feel the muscles in his leg tighten nervously. "Now," Rogue continued, "Can y'all just shut up? The movie's startin'."
Usually, "Casablanca" would entrance Kitty from the moment the Warner Brother's logo popped up until "Louis, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship." But tonight, she was distracted. Lance had his arm possessively around her, but she was more interested with how warm and comfortable it felt to have her leg rest against Peter's. And she couldn't help sneaking glances at his face to see how he was reacting to the movie. If Lance noticed any of this, he didn't say anything. But he did keep a tighter grip on her shoulder than usual.
Finally, the end credits rolled, and Kurt flipped the lights back on.
"I liked it," Lance said.
"You did?" Kitty asked him, surprised.
"Yeah. Sure, the girl gets distracted by another guy. But in the long run she figures out that her husband was the only one who could make her happy. Her affair with the other guy was just a phase. I mean, she barely even knew him. In the end, the husband wins."
"Were you watchin the same movie we were? Nobody won. Elsa has these two great guys after her, and all she does is string them along. Ah don't see why they think she's so perfect. The woman is weak. In the end, she never even makes a decision, she let's Rick make it for her. If she really loved either of them, she'd have made a real choice. She probably just liked all the attention. Reminds me of Jean," she muttered, making a face.
Kitty shifted uncomfortably in her seat at Rogue's comments, but stayed quiet.
"Both hommes reminded me of myself. I'm a mix of both hero's best qualities" Gambit proclaimed.
"Ah'd say you're more like Louis," Rogue corrected him. "A sneaky, untrustworthy thief. Plus, ya speak French."
"Dat I do. And an excellent thief I am. Hearts are my specialty," Gambit replied, smiling flirtatiously at his favorite southerner.
"It's getting late, Lance. I think it's time for you to go," Kitty whispered to him as Rogue and Remy continued to banter.
He nodded. "Walk with me to my car?"
Lance's jeep was parked on the main road as he refused to leave it inside the mansion's gates, afraid that that Scott might use it for target practice. During the trip to the car Kitty was uncharacteristically quiet. Lance had been around her long enough to know that this was never a good sign. In his general experience, it either meant that she had eaten her own cooking again and was about to hurl, or she had bad news that she didn't want to share with him. He had a sinking feeling that whatever was upsetting her had nothing to do with her stomach, and everything to do with their relationship. This was not a conversation Lance was particularly looking forward to, and he knew the best way of manipulating Kitty out of this mood was to play the good boyfriend for a few minutes and pretend to talk about "feelings and all that crap."
"How about next Friday we watch "Braveheart?" It's got blood, guts, and romance. It's even educational," he told her.
"No," she said in a flat tone. Lance, realizing that his usual subtle manipulation wasn't going to cut it this time, went in for a new approach.
"Ok, we can get something else. Anything for my girl. That's how much I love you."
"Lance, I meant that I.... you said you loved me!" she said, taken aback.
"Yeah, I guess I do."
"But you've never said that before," she told him despondently.
"I should have. Now that's a no on Braveheart then? Why don't you pick. Just, no singing. And color would be a plus. What are your thoughts on "Star Wars?"
"Look, Lance, I really think we need-"
"To get one of the original three episodes? No Phantom Menace Attacking Clones crap? No problem. Is "Empire Strikes Back ok with you?" She didn't respond, and just kept looking away, not meeting his eyes. "Did you hear me? Kitty?"
"I don't want to be Elsa!" she blurted out.
He looked at her like she was insane. "What the hell does that mean?"
"It means that I don't want to be some weak girl who leads two guys on and is too afraid to ever make a real choice!"
"A choice?" he exploded. "A choice? I'm your boyfriend, Kitty. You shouldn't even be at a point where you think there's some kind of choice to be made!"
"I know, but I am," she said quietly, looking down at her feet. "We both knew this was coming sooner or later."
" I didn't think you were fooling around with another guy behind my back! But this probably isn't the first time, is it? What else have you done? Have you and Nightcrawler been messing around the whole time we've been together? Or what about you and your precious Mr. Logan? The two of you have always been so "close". Or maybe you and that kid that always follows you around? Yeah, the one who makes duplicates of himself?"
"Lance, don't be gross," she snapped. "You're mad at me, I get it. So take it out on me. But don't drag my friends into this and start spewing this...this ridiculous trash about them! You want to know what I've been doing with Peter behind your back? Talking! That's it! And that w-"
"Talking?" he asked, laughing as though that was the most ludicrous thing he'd ever heard. "You expect me to believe someone as slutty as you would just-"
"God, Lance, you're vulgar! And I am not a slut!" she forcefully declared.
"Yeah, not with me, but you must be with the rest of them. Or do you expect me to believe that they like you for your sparkling personality? Or maybe it's your conversational skills. But that's only if they like to listen to endless lecture about important things, like why the mall is like, so the best place in the world, or how purple is totally the new pink, or how you're upset because your rich parents would only let you buy the black pair of boots, not the black and the brown," he mocked.
"And you wonder why I picked Peter over you!" she muttered scornfully.
"Fine. You want to dump me, your boyfriend, who loves you,"- Kitty rolled her eyes- "for some Russian tin can that you barely even know-"
"I know him!" she shouted vehemently. Lance glared at her with a look of pure disgust on his face. Then his eyes rolled partially back into his head, and the ground directly around Kitty started to shake.
"Lance, stop it," she ordered. The earth beneath her only shook harder, and Kitty was afraid that he was going to send out a quake big enough to crumble the mansion along with everyone in it. She lost her balance and tripped, but protected herself by phasing through the dirt. In her intangible form, she easily navigated her way underground and pulled herself up behind Lance. "Stop," she said firmly, putting her hand on his shoulder. He jerked away and turned to face her. "Please?" she asked.
For a moment, the rumbling only grew fiercer. Then, abruptly, it stopped. Kitty breathed a sigh of relief and looked over at Lance, trying to read his expression, but his face was hidden in shadow.
"Lance, I'm...." she trailed off, desperately trying to think of something deep or insightful to say.
"You're what?" he prompted irritably.
"I'm sorry. I know, it's a stupid thing to say, but sometimes only a stupid thing seems to fit." He still didn't respond. "Ok, I guess I'm, like, gonna go. See you around. Bye."
"Kitty?" he asked as she started walking away. "Can you just do one thing for me?"
She stopped walking and turned around to face him. "Sure. Anything."
"I know you and Captain Communism are all chummy now and everything, but do you think you could wait awhile before you hook up with him or anyone else?" he pleaded.
The look in Kitty's eyes showed that she clearly was not in favor of this idea. "Lance, I can't," she told him quietly.
"You said you'd do anything," he told her accusingly. "Were you lying to me- again? I'm not asking for much, just a few weeks," he wheedled.
"If this is some kind of game, some kind of trick, part of a plan to get back at me....."
"No trick, no game. I just want some time for my ego to heal. It's a little bruised right now. I think you owe me that much" he said forlornly.
"Fine," she caved, "I won't start dating him for a few weeks," Kitty said gloomily.
"Promise?" he asked.
"Promise."
"What's your definition of a few weeks?" he questioned.
"Three weeks."
"Four," Lance told her.
"Don't push it," Kitty told him, shaking her head.
Lance nodded. "Ok. Bye, I guess," he told her, as he climbed into his jeep. Kitty held up her hand to wave bye. She waited until his car disappeared around the bend before she trudged back to the mansion. Since she was technically hostess for tonight's little get together, it was her job to clean up the mess they had made in the living room. From the looks of it, everyone else had gone to sleep while she and Lance were having their little scream fest. She suspected none of them bothered to help clean before they went to bed, so she was surprised when she went inside and found Colossus in the living room, cleaning up all the m&m's Kurt had been pelting at Rogue off the floor.
"Peter, no. This is my mess. You don't have to help me," she told him
"I don't mind. I like helping you."
She made a weak attempt to smile, which, to Piotr's credit, did not go unnoticed.
"Are you alright, Katya?" he questioned, concern in his voice.
"Yeah, I'm ok. Just tired. It's real late y'know, and I still got to put this stuff in the dishwasher," she said, motioning to the bowls on the coffee table.
"I'll do that. You just turn off the lights and go to bed."
"No, Peter, it's my responsibility. I'll do it."
"Nyet. You got to order me to watch the movie earlier, now I get to order you to go to sleep." She nodded in agreement, too tired to argue.
He gathered up the dishes and left her alone in the room. Kitty wanted to run after Piotr and tell him what had happened, about all the cruel thing Lance had said about her, about how guilty she felt for hurting him. Mostly, she just wanted him to hold her in his safe arms and tell her that she was a good person. But she didn't, because she knew that if she did, if she placed herself that close to him, she would never be able to keep her promise to Lance. Kitty turned off the lights and flopped down on the couch, aimlessly flipping through channels, hoping to take her mind off reality. It didn't work. She threw the remote down on the couch and put her head in her hands. Three weeks. She finally broke up with Lance to be with Peter, and now she had to wait another three weeks, all because she felt too guilty to tell her ex-boyfriend no. Kitty was happy to have broken things off with Lance, but with this promise she felt like she still wasn't free of him. She just felt so tired.
Piotr was about to walk up the stairs to his room when he noticed the dim blue light of the t.v. spilling into the hall from the living room. Rubbing his eyes, he padded across the hallway to go turn it off.
"Kitty?" he whispered from the doorway, noticing her chestnut colored hair spilling over the top of the couch. When she didn't answer, he treaded softly over to her.
"Kitty?" He asked again, shaking her gently.
She eyes blinked open, looking confused. "What happened? Is there a sale at the mall?" she asked sleepily.
Peter chuckled. "No, not today. I'm going to help you up to your bed, alright?"
She nodded, still only partially awake. He picked her up and she instinctively placed her arms around his neck and snuggled up to his strong chest. Cautiously, Piotr made his way up the stairs to her room and lightly placed Kitty into her bed.
"Peter?" she mumbled groggily.
"Shhh," Piotr whispered. "Rogue's still asleep," he explained, glancing over his shoulder at Kitty's roommate, who had rolled over in their direction.
When he turned around he saw that his Katya was once again under the enchantment of the sandman. He stared at her soft face, illuminated by the pale gentle glow of the quarter moon that came streaming through the windows. In his eyes, she was as lovely as Briar Rose, the sleeping beauty personified, and for a moment he was tempted to play the role of the prince and breathe life into her with his kiss. But Piotr Rasputin was an honorable man, and he knew he had neither the permission or the right to such an personal act. Instead, he leaned down and placed a tender kiss on her forehead. "Goodnight, Katerina," he whispered in her ear, before tearing himself away.
As Peter turned to walk across the room, Rogue quickly squeezed her eyes shut and for a second time that night pretended to be asleep, waiting until she heard the door close and the faint creaking of the old wood in the hallway before daring to open them again. She lifted her head up off the pillow and looked over at Kitty, who was still sound asleep, an look of utter contentment on her face. Rogue smiled, amused, suppressing the familiar flash of jealousy and sorrow that raged inside her every time she saw two people touch, focusing instead on imagining the look of joy her roommate would have on her face tomorrow when she told her what she had witnessed.
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Thanks for reading! Leave a review, it can be my Christmas present! Anyway, I'm not sure how long it will be before I post the next chapter, so here's some hints about what's coming: Lance won't be in the next few chapters, but in time he will return. Christmas is coming up for the mutants (I realize that the seasons aren't really matching up, since they had a pool party in the last chapter, but I'm from Southern California, so I lack a basic fundamental understanding of the four seasons. It was 89 degrees today in my city, and I was cold.) Oh yeah, and my favorite comic character of all time will be making a "little" appearance. Anyway, if I don't post before the 25th, have a Merry Christmas, or a Happy Christmas, or a Happy Hanukkah, or a Happy Boxing Day, or a Happy-Get -A-Lot-of-Presents-in-Return-for- Spending-A-Day-With- A- Horde- of- Dysfunctional- Relatives-Whose-Names-You-Don't-Remember-Day (I celebrate that!) or whatever you choose or am forced to celebrate.