Eh voila, it is the next chapter!

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Rogue rolled over, her fingers curled around a fistful of dewy grass, she sighed contentedly and then it hit her, dewy grass? She bolted upright and looked around, a light, lilac greyish mist was pooling around her, she could barely see above it. Once again she had been laying in front of her own tomb stone, which despite the fact that she had already experienced it she still found it rather disturbing. Especially since she wasn't even dead yet, I mean, come on, she wasn't even eighteen.

She began to walk around, having a bit of trouble seeing through the thick cloud of dense mist. She saw a clearing where the lilac substance was thinnest and headed for it. She found another grave, a new one.

Evan Daniels

Mutant Spyke

Oh no! Not Evan too, for every grave she saw there was a mutant missing and it wasn't just coincidence that said mutants were on the grave stones either. Rogue groaned and rubbed her head, all this thinking was going to drive her crazy one of these days.

Groan

Rogue spun around, it was the monster from last night, dead skin hanging off it, flapping in the none existent breeze, "Okay, that," she pointed at it, "that right, that is creepy."

It advanced reaching out one shrivelled, bone revealing hand and groaned again, Rogue was frozen to the spot, her legs weren't working. "Now you stay away from me you hear?" she shouted but the creature either didn't hear her or was merely ignoring her, she gulped.

She was about ready to scream, it had almost touched her and then she stepped back, turned and ran. Looking over her shoulder, she saw the thing hunched over on all fours bounding after her, lumps of dead matter falling off it in sickening clumps to land with a wet splat on the ground.

Rogue screamed as she looked up to find herself looking at another creature, "Girl must die," it moaned, Rogue paled and ran to her right, more of them were crowding her from the left, then she saw Amelia.

The other girl was standing in a clearing, there was no mist near her, Rogue jumped behind her, "Are they coming?"

Amelia just looked at her; then looked up, the creatures had surrounded them from all sides, one made to step towards them and as soon as its foot left the mist it shrivelled and turned to dust, leaving only a decaying stump, "Eww," Rogue moaned looking away.

Another creature jumped at them but dissolved to ashes before it could get near them. Amelia waved her staff of bones and the mist flew back, there safe space enlarging, "Like, thanks Amelia," Rogue said taking in a sigh of relief. Amelia smirked, it looked creepy, she held out her hand.

"What?" Rogue was confused but Amelia just pointed at Rogue's hand, "Oh I see," she lifted her hand and let Amelia clasp it in her own.

Rogue, can you hear me?

"Amelia?" the other mutant nodded; telepathy? "Are you some kind of telepathic?"

Soul speaking, I can't talk through a dead body.

"I get it, sorta, what am I doing here?"

Goodbye Rogue was Amelia's reply as more creatures, bigger this time began to crowd them, the mist rolling back into place, Rogue began to sweat, her eyes snapped open and she watched the shadows playing across the ceiling in the room she used to share with Kitty.

---Near Danger Room---

"Aw come on Cannonball," Jamie Madrox whined, sometimes it really sucked being the youngest in the X-men, well, in any group for that matter.

"Look, Jamie, we've told you this a thousand times already, you cannot train with us," Cannonball, also known as Sam Guthrie, growled through gritted teeth. If this annoying little pest didn't quit his whining or even shut up soon he would have to cannonball him into next week.

"Chill out Sammy," Roberto drawled from where he stood in the opening to the danger room, the door having been opened by him about a minute ago, "let's get to work."

"Does that mean I can join in?" Jamie pleaded hopefully.

"No," Roberto and Sam said at the same time, the two older mutants high fived each other and left poor Jamie standing dejectedly in their wake.

"That is so unfair, they think just because they're older than me they can push me around," Jamie mumbled sulkily, he kicked the wall. "Ow," he yelped and at the same time managed to turn into triplets.

"Why me? Why did I have to be the youngest?" he mumbled some more as he jumped into the lift and headed up to his bedroom.

He ransacked his draws, pulling them out so viciously he managed to wrench one of the handles off. Groaning in frustration the small but aggravated boy put the knob back on and, unable to find anything with which to amuse himself, left the mansion with intentions to visit the local park.

Nice plans they were too, he planned to go take a look at the skater area that Evan was always babbling on about, Jamie liked watching Evan board, he was good. But Evan had said about he admired some people from there so Jamie was hoping to catch some action. Then he would take a short cut by the lake to the other side of the park and come out near his favourite ice-cream store.

Yes, that sounded about right.

Well they were good plans, nice one, he intended to follow them through to the end, but there was one minor problem.

He never got to the ice-cream store, or the skater park, he didn't even reach the park, because before he could get there he was clobbered around the head and knocked out cold.

"Did I have to do that?" Andrew asked looking down at the small, crumpled kid on the pavement before him, lucky no one else was around; he could be locked up for GBH and child assault and attack without motive.

"Yes, now come on, every second we waist could be a disaster," Mystique snapped sharply glaring at the other mutant.

"Alright, alright," Andrew complied picking up the lifeless, but breathing, Jamie Madrox. "Disaster for you at any rate," he grumbled as Mystique stepped through their still open portal, he only hoped she hadn't heard him.

---Brotherhood Boarding House---

"Hey did you guys here?" Lance asked walking in the door.

"Here what yo?" Todd asked as he hoped off the kitchen table in pursuit of a fly, Lance screwed up his face in disgust.

"Stop that you disgusting toad," Lance ordered, "And anyway, the X-men are disappearing," he snapped his fingers in front of Todd's face, "just like that."

"Really yo?" Todd asked and Lance nodded.

"How long did it take you to figure that one out knuckle head?" asked Pietro as he appeared out of nowhere, however, there were some floating papers and garbage on the stairs so they figured that's where he'd come form.

"Since Kitty disappeared, I been hearing them yap about it in the halls at school," Lance explained looking proud of himself.

Pietro looked put out; he thought he'd been the first to know, what with Evan's disappearance and all.

"Hey, I thought we weren't allowed back at school no more, yo," Todd looked confused, nothing unusual there.

"We're not," was the only reply Lance gave as he swept out of the room and up the stairs.

"What's his problem yo?" Todd asked hopping onto the kitchen counter where he snatched a fly that was buzzing around Pietro's head.

The speed demon flinched, "Do that somewhere else," he groaned as he grabbed a carton of milk out of the fridge. Practically empty though it was he wouldn't drink what was left anyway seeing as seventy-five percent of it consisted of green gunk.

"Is there nothing decent around this place?" Pietro grumbled tossing the carton at the maggot infested garbage that never seemed to get emptied, "Toad empty the garbage," he barked.

"Like, what's eating him?" Tabitha asked as she waltzed in past a departing Pietro, Todd just shook his shoulders and heaved the junk out of the kitchen and out of the front door.

"Hey Pietro," Tabitha yelled up the stairs, in no time at all the speedster was standing by her side smirking as always. "Are these disappearances part of daddy-kins plot?" she asked, Pietro shook his head.

"Not as far as I've been told," and then he was gone, Tabitha sighed, sticking her hands in her pockets, she kicked open the door.

"Like where you going yo?" Todd asked as she passed by him.

"Out," with that, she threw one of bomb balls over her shoulder, Todd hurriedly leaped out of the way just as the mini explosive went off.

She passed by an ice-cream stand while she was walking through the closing town, she bought a mint chocolate chip and continued walking.

"Hey there, any for me?" she almost jumped but instead turned calmly, one hand still in the front pocket of her torn jeans.

"Help yourself," she replied walking up to him, he grinned and slipped his hands into the back pockets of her jeans pulling her over. "Ah," she yelped as he tugged her forwards, her lack of balance caused a small amount of ice-cream to land on his nose.

"Um…" he went cross eyed, looking at it, she giggled.

"Let me get that," she licked it off and he grinned at her, liking the ice-cream.

"Yum," he said.

"Definitely," she replied taking another lick herself, before offering it up to Andrew once more.

"Hey Andrew," she caught his attention.

"Yeh," he replied taking another long lick at the ice-cream which was rapidly becoming nothing more than a chocolate-rimmed cone.

"You know anything about the X-men disappearing?" she felt him stiffen and she saw the worried look in his eyes.

"What gave you that idea?" he asked.

"Well Lance and the guys were going on about it and I wondered if you might know something, you know, if bucket head is behind it or not?" Tabitha elaborated finishing off the rest of her ice-cream.

"No, it's not Magneto, I don't actually know what's it's about," he replied and Tabitha sighed, taking a bite out of the ice-cream cone.

"Okay then, want some?" she asked waving the tail end of the crunchy container up to him. He bit it, accidentally bighting the top of her finger too, "Hey, you did that on purpose," she snapped.

"Guilty," he blushed.

"You'll pay for that one mister," she chuckled playfully, tucking one of her bombs done his shirt.

"Aaah!" he yelped, jumping backwards and trying to get it out, then it blew up, it wasn't strong enough to do damage but it singed his stomach.

"Aw come here you big baby," she beckoned him over. He grinned and disappeared through a portal, "Andrew?" she called out.

"Gotcha," he called as a pair of strong arms wrapped around her waist.

"I know you have," she turned around and kissed him.

---The Institute---

"Hey Rogue?" Andrew called out stepping out of one of his portals into Rogue's room.

"Andrew is that you?" Rogue asked sticking her head out of her en suite bathroom door.

"Yeh it's me," he replied and grinned slightly, Rogue came out in a bathrobe and a towel around her head like turban.

"What's up?" she asked looking at him fidgeting from one foot to the other.

"Oh nothing," he brought a book out from behind his back, "Just thought this might make for interesting reading.

She took it form him, "Thanks," she looked at the title 'Spirits of today and tomorrow' "Andrew I don't…" she looked up but he had gone, "Oh well, might as well humour him."

Changing into a pair of loose pyjamas she climbed into bed and settled down for a good read.

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Review responses :

Star-of-Chaos - I thought it was funny, my friend gave me a picture of a chibi Gambit doing just that, it's just so cute.

Godess of revolution - Yes there will be more Romy, lots more next chapter. As for Amelia...she's downright evil, but Mystique's the main enemy in this story.

anda - Don't worry, there will be and I'm glad you like it.

roguewannabe29 - 'clad in a fluffy white towel and a creamy coloured one wrapped around her head' I did mention two towels. But don't worry, there will be a nice dose of Romy next chapter.

plague - lol One will surface, hope you re enjoying the story.

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Next chapter features a night club...oh the possibilities! Definitely lots of Romy.