Thanks to:
LadyEvils – I'm doing some of the chapters a bit out of sync and some of them don't happen because of the changes in line-up – the next chapter is based on an episode though!
Steph14Wales – hey, you know my obsession with Evo! Never use your own words when a line from Evo will suffice!
Furygrrl – that was the fastest I've ever updated! There's more nasty Jean in this chappie and loads in the next! There won't be any Dark Phoenix, but by the end of the fic, you might wonder … (lol!) Destiny will make an appearance and she does check in via phone in this one. Thanks for the review!
X00001 – thanks for the review! Hope you like this one!
DemonRogue13 – stalking chapter! Hope you enjoy!
Lyranfan – oh yeah, Risty will turn up at some point later on. Thanks for the reviews!
Rogue14 – Thanks for the review!
Mats Forsen – Jean ain't changing – I'm having too much fun writing about her evilness! Thanks for the review!
Raphaella – Thanks for the review! There's gonna be a lot more surprises yet…
Terror – shadowed past won't be showing up here – YET! Only because Rogue hasn't touched Mystique. But I haven't ruled it out for the future…
UniversalAnimeGirl – I hadn't planned on the Mystique/Jean confrontation until so many people asked for it! I'm sure Mystique would prefer Rogue to be a lesbian, based on her comic book, and I'm not planning to have the Darkholme family secrets revealed just yet. And it's gonna get more complicated!
XX-Goth-Gal – Thanks for the review! It was a happy sniffle, trust me. And Jean is heading for a headache, quite different from the show…
This is only gonna be a short chapter, coz I'm actually supposed to be studying for an exam (Ha! Yeah, right). The next chapter will be longer though. Also, this is the first chapter I wrote directly onto the computer and was not in my original story plan; so let me know what you thought!
Disclaimer: I don't own X-Men: Evolution or anything associated with it. I can't think of anything amusing to say here. Please make something up.
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"Eeew! It's that creepy Goth kid again." Taryn slammed her locker shut and glared at Rogue, who was lurking behind her own locker and watching the group. "Is she stalking you or something?"
"Yeah Jean, what's up with her?" Amy wound a strand of hair around her finger and looked curiously at the redhead. "I know you guys live in the same house and all, but she hangs around you all the time. Doesn't she have any friends of her own?"
"She's OK," said Jean, glancing over at Rogue, who had realised she was being talked about and was busying herself in her locker.
"She's weird," said Taryn firmly. "Anyone would think she had a crush on you!"
The three girls laughed and Rogue flushed, closed her locker and hurried off in the other direction. Jean was glad. She would have just given Rogue a crush on Blob if she'd known the girl would follow her around like a lost puppy.
"Anyway." Taryn smiled coyly. "I was thinking of asking Scott Summers if he wants to come to the movies this weekend."
"Totally Hollywood in those shades," said Amy dreamily.
"You are joking," said Jean in disbelief. "Scott Summers? He's such a loser!"
"He's cute!" Taryn frowned at Jean. "I know you guys at the Brotherhood Boarding House don't like the kids at the Xavier Institute, but Scott's cool."
"He's a total jerk," insisted Jean. "Amy, back me up here!"
Amy stared vacantly at Taryn for a moment, a glazed look in her eyes. "Jean's right. Summers is a loser. All those Xavier kids are weird. You should steer clear."
"You changed your mind in a hurry, just because Jean doesn't like him," replied Taryn, stung. "If anyone's weird, it's those boys that she lives with. And the girls! That creepy Goth hanging around all the time and Little Miss Valley Girl who's so pleased with herself…"
"They're not that bad," said Jean, scowling at Taryn. "And Summers is a loser."
"You're right," said Taryn, rubbing her forehead and gazing into the distance. "I don't like Summers. He's trash. And those shades! Who does he think he is, Brad Pitt?"
"I knew you'd see things my way in the end," said Jean, just a touch too smug.
"Hey babe." Duncan strolled up behind her and put an arm around her waist. "Ready to go?"
"Sure." Jean went with him, waving at the two girls as she left. "Duncan, I was thinking we could…"
"Uh, Jean?"
Jean sighed as Rogue appeared in front of them. "What?"
"Well, uh, I thought about getting a film out tonight and I just wondered if there's anything you wanted to see."
"No, nothing I wanna see."
"Yeah, and she'll be home late," added Duncan. "So stop hanging around and get lost, freak."
Rogues face fell as the couple walked past her without another word. She'd thought Jean liked her, as a friend if nothing else, but with her clique laughing earlier and now not sticking up for her when her dick boyfriend called her names made her wonder…
Why would she want to stick up for you? They're right, you're a freak and she's the most popular and pretty girl in school.
Dejectedly, she hung her head and walked slowly out of the school, not noticing the student stood outside one of the classrooms, watching her through yellow eyes.
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Jean arrived home late. Kitty and Lance were laughing at something on the TV, Blob was dozing on the couch, Toad was drawing on his face in Magic Marker and Pietro was still out on a date. Rogue was sat on a chair in the corner and looked up as soon as Jean walked through the door. "Hey, you have a good time?"
"It was alright," replied Jean disinterestedly, going straight up to her room. She could not cope with Rogue that night. She slammed her bedroom door and threw herself onto the bed, not pleased when some one knocked.
"What is it Mystique?"
Mystique entered the room and glared at Jean. "I saw what happened at school today, with you and Rogue. What did you do to her mind?"
"Exactly what you asked me to! I got rid of her crush on Summers and now she has a reason to be loyal to the Brotherhood!"
"You made her crush on you!"
"Yeah, I did. I thought you of all people wouldn't mind that."
"It's not the crush I mind. It's the way you treat her at school, the way you and your friends laugh at my…at Rogue."
"Your Rogue? Your Rogue?" Jean jumped off the bed, eyes blazing. "That's been the trouble ever since she got here! I'm the one who brings the most to this team, me! But all you think about is your little Rogue. Well, she's my Rogue now and there's nothing you can do about it!"
"How dare you speak to me like that! If it wasn't for me, you'd be living on the streets, scrounging for food, unable to control your powers…"
"I can barely control them now! You've been no help at all!"
"You ungrateful…stop that!"
Mystique rose into the air, seemingly of her own accord, and floated backwards out of the room. She grabbed onto the doorframe to try to stop herself, but her hands were wrenched loose and the door slammed shut in her face. For a moment she glared at the door, too furious even to breathe, before she heard a noise from her own room. Her phone, ringing with the tone she used only for Irene's calls. Gritting her teeth, she stormed into her room and answered.
"This had better be important."
"You just had an argument with Jean."
"I thought you were supposed to see the future, not the present."
"If you ever listened to your messages, I foresaw this an hour ago. My premonitions for Jeans future are becoming somewhat…vague."
"I don't care about her future. I want her out of my house!"
"No! If she goes, the whole Brotherhood will go with her – including Rogue."
"Rogue would not turn her back on me. Not after everything I've done for her."
"Without Jeans intervention, she would already have gone to the X-Men. And right now, Jean is making sure that if she goes, everyone goes."
"She's altering their minds?" Mystique gripped the phone more tightly. "I will kill her. Now."
"Raven, no! You can't. She's a child and invaluable to our cause. I can see two pathways, one where the Brotherhood leave and another, where they stay. But you will have to make your peace with Jean. If she controls the Brotherhood, it can only lead to ruin."
"I have to make peace with her? Do you know what she has done to Rogue?"
"I know. But without her, we would already have lost Rogue. This is the only way Raven. Swallow your anger."
"Destiny, you had better be right."
Mystique terminated the call and went back to Jeans room. She was furious, barely able to unclench her fists and bring her emotions under control. Only the knowledge that Irene was never wrong in her predictions made her knock at the closed door.
"Go away Mystique. I've nothing more to say to you."
"I came to tell you that I think you were right to change Rogues mind in that way." Was this what raising teenagers was like? She was glad she'd never bothered with it. "I accept that it was necessary."
"You do?" The door opened of its own accord and Jean looked at her curiously.
"I know this was the only way to keep Rogue with us." Mystique entered the room cautiously. "I wish you would be nicer to her at school. She can't deal with the person she trusts most laughing at her."
"Yeah. I know." Jeans expression showed some shame. "It's just that I've had so many headaches recently and Duncan and Taryn think it's funny when she follows me around and sometimes I just can't deal."
"Why not just go into her head and make her turn around and leave?"
"It's hard with Rogue, I told you. All those other personalities."
"Try. We don't need to alienate her. If she discovers our deceit…"
"I know. I'm sorry. I don't know why I'm like this lately."
"Don't worry. Just keep your temper in future. I don't hold Rogue in higher regard than you. She is merely more volatile and needs careful handling."
Mystique left the room and gave in to her urge to clench her hands into fists. Jean Grey was going to pay for this someday. She didn't care how long it took, she would have her revenge.