A/N: I finally updated on time (well I was a day off) but still, YAY!
"Come in Marie." The Professors voice echoed from inside his office. I stood up from the couch I had been sitting on and walked inside.
The Professor sat in his usual spot behind the desk, his fingers linked as his hands rested on top of the desk.
"Good Morning Rogue." He smiled politely, motioning for me to sit in one of the large spacious seat in front of him. Smiling nervously, I sat down. "Now, I understand Jean did not explain why I asked you to come today?"
I nodded, watching as Professors eyebrows knitted together.
"Now, I don't know how to say this Rogue, because I don't want to install a sense of false hope…."
Wait. Is he saying what I think he's saying?
"I think I may have found a way that we could try to suppress your skin."
I froze in my seat, trying hard not to raise my hopes. I had tried before and had been made to give up after too many disappointments. "How?"
"I was thinking about what you did at the base, with the mental kinesis that you achieved when kidnapped by Magneto. I was thinking that if you were able to use mental kinesis to separate your skin mentally from your mind, we might be able to control you skin. But it's not guaranteed…"
Staring out the window, I saw Bobby and Jubilee walking together (well Jubilee was hobbling), their hands entwined. My thoughts immediately went to Remy and him wanting to kiss me.
"Let's try it."
.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.
"Now concentrate on your breathing."
I closed my eyes and reached into the glass bowl. Inside, a rat sat waiting, a small space on its back shaven, exposing its pale pink skin.
Breathing in, I touched the rat's skin, concentrating on the sound of my breath and envisioning a sheer barrier covering my skin. I reached down and ran my finger over the smooth fur of the rat before wrapping my hand around it and picked it up.
I lifted the rat out of the container and stood waiting for a reaction. Suddenly, an ache ran through my head, followed by an immediate feeling of hunger and fear.
"It's not working!" I screamed dropping the corpse of the rat in disgust.
"Now Rogue, calm down." The Professor said as he once again narrowed his eyes in thought. "It doesn't make sense," he mumbled quietly to himself. "If you were able to achieve a complete mental kinesis…" his voice drifted off.
Ignoring his mumbling, I sat down in one of the chairs, a lump in my throat and the cold feeling of disappointment in my stomach. Grabbing my gloves from the nearby table, I put them on and headed for the door.
"Thanks anyway Professor," I said, reaching for the door handle. As I began to turn it, the Professor voice rang out.
"Wait a moment, Rogue."
I spun around, ready to rebel against any wish for more testing, but his eyebrows were knitted together and his two index fingers rested on his temples. He was talking to someone mentally, so I waited until he had finished.
I watched him as he finished and a small smile came across his face. Behind me, the door began to open and Remy's face appeared.
"Oh, is Remy interrupting some ting?" he asked, moving back outside the door.
"No, no Remy, come on in." The Professor waved him inside. "I just need to test a theory."
I shot the Professor a look.
*What the hell is he doing here? * I demanded as I pulled the gloves back off my hands.
"I believe that Marie is able to perform mental kinesis, but only when her emotions are at a peak." Professor X turned to me. "Remy has some slight empathic ability that we can use to amplify your emotions to a point where your emotional state would be similar to that of what you felt while with Magneto."
I looked at Remy to confirm what The Professor had been saying. Remy didn't even look at me as he nodded solemnly to the Professor. He simply sat down on one of the giant sofas and bowed his head, his eyes closed tightly.
I was about to question both the Professor and Remy when a flood of emotions came over me, so strong I stumbled over to a chair to sit down.
"What are you doing Remy?" I asked.
Remy came and stood beside me. "Don't worry; it's just a bit of emotions. They can't hurt you."
Remy gently put his hand on my shoulder and I turned back to the Professors as he began to speak. "Remy, concentrate on just one emotion. Rogue, when you feel this, concentrate and remember what we tried before."
I closed my eyes and began to concentrate, just waiting for the emotions. My nerves were getting worse and I began to shake all over. I began to hyperventilate and had the uncontrollable urge to throw up. My eyesight blurred in and out.
"Oh shit, wrong emotion." I heard Remy's voice say and my nerves disappeared. Opening my eyes, I stared at Remy, who had a frightened expression across his face.
"Shit," I said breathlessly.
"Are you alright Marie?" he whispered.
I took a deep breath and smiled softly. "Just a bit of nerves right?"
Remy stood back up, a reassuring smile on his face. I looked over at the Professor, who had sat silently watching.
"Try again?" I asked.
The Professor nodded and I closed my eyes. Once again, the flood of emotions came but they soon narrowed down to one. I felt a feeling of happiness that spread through my body, making me feel warm and safe. After a few seconds, the Professor's voice came through.
*Now concentrate Rogue. *
As he spoke the words, I ignored the feelings of nausea and began to dive into my mind, willing my skin to remove itself. After feeling the floating sensation, I opened my eyes and to my relief, I was still in my body. Reaching for another rat, my eyes locked with Remy's. I paused and took his offered hand instead.
I stared at his hand in mine for ages, waiting for my skin to take affect. But it didn't. I exhaled loudly; unaware I had been holding it. I looked up at Remy and a smile that mirrored his spread across my face.
My chin began to tremble and I knew that tears were coming. As the first one trailed down my cheek, Remy wiped it away with his free hand. Jumping up, I hugged him, kissing his cheek over and over. Remembering the Professor, I raced around behind his desk and embraced him. The Professor seemed to sputter in surprise as I kissed him on both cheeks.
"Thank you." I managed to stutter.
The Professor smiled fondly at me. "We still have much to do before you have control, but this is definitely a start."