The boys dropped Rogue off at her English class, almost bulldozing a trail through the choking crowds of students.
"Scary abnormal girl walkin'!" yelled one of the Poser's friends as Rogue walked past.
"Scary bitch! Everyone pray for mercy!" the Poser himself added. They crossed themselves and chuckled.
Rogue sighed and looked at the boys, who were standing way back. She gave them a pointed Are you going to stick up for me? No? Didn't expect you to. sort of look, then turned to the Poser and his minion. Time to nip this thing in the bud, she thought tiredly.
"Abnormal scary bitch, huh? Well, who on earth'd wanna be normal, may Ah ask, if bein' normal means bein' like you?" she asked loudly. Rogue began to walk away, but turned back for one final jibe. "And Ah think it's pathetic that you guys have to get your material from Nineties teen movies. If you've got half a brain between you, try and come up with somethin' original, hmm?"
Rogue walked away from the posers and from the Brotherhood boys, to her desk in the fourth row with several people looking at her half-interestedly. Now... which Nineties teen movie was it again? Rogue had a vague memory of finding a "Scary bitches!"... thing in a teen movie intensely annoying because she loathed the characters who did it, but she couldn't for the life of her remember which movie it was.
She sat down and saw a shadow fall across her books. "I'm glad someone finally told them off," said a low voice. "I'm just sorry it wasn't me."
Rogue looked up to see Scott Summers standing over her. "They had it comin'," she said evenly. She looked on in faint dismay as Summers put his books down on the empty desk next to her. "Hey, Mr Considerate. Ah could be savin' that seat for someone, y'know." Rogue glared.
Behind his shades, Scott Summers blinked deliberately. "Excuse me, is this seat taken, Miss Adler?" asked Summers with a hint of a smile.
"No."
She watched him settle himself in the seat and was surprised when Summers turned to speak with her. "Did you get your grade back for our Shakespeare bit, Rogue?"
"Yeah."
"How'd you go?"
Rogue sneered. "B plus." Try to top that, ya giant leapin' nerd. Politely, she asked, "You?"
"A minus. Acting isn't really my thing, after all." Summers shrugged. Rogue, who considered herself to be an all right actress, wanted to kick him. Him and the teacher who'd graded them.
She wrote herself a memo in her notebook. Note to self: Rogue, what are you doing? You don't talk to X-Men. You don't, OK?
For a few moments she thought. Wonder why Summers doesn't like Matthews? You'd think they'd be really good friends. And it isn't as though Matthews is infringin' on Summers' chick territory. Shitloads more girls like Summers than they do Matthews, and Ah can't say Ah blame 'em. At least Summers doesn't have yellow hair and black eyebrows. Now, that is just wrong, havin' yellow hair and black eyebrows.
Plus, she continued, Summers is so boring it's kind of perfect for him. You can rely on him to be boring no matter what the weather. Matthews- he'd throw his own mother to some alligators if it meant he could score with someone like Jean Grey or make some money out of it. Freaky black-eyebrows bastard.
"Matthews calls me a scary bitch to mah face. We know that. So what's your beef with him?" Rogue asked, looking sideways at Summers.
"We have a score to settle," Summers said darkly. His eyebrows furrowed and she knew Summers was glaring at the Poser.
... The dumbest thing of all is, he probably has a killer glare behind those crappy shades, Rogue thought in exasperation.Rogue Adler allowed herself to smile very, very slightly. Oh, what the hell. "We should talk," she said softly.
"We are talking."
"No- Ah mean-"
"Later, Rogue, OK? It looks like the teacher's gonna be late, and I'm taking advantage of that. I have some stuff to finish."
Rogue glowered. Of all the nerve! "There ain't gonna be a later, X-Geek," she said in a low voice, and when he shot her a sharp look she was innocently writing in her notebook.
Sometimes Ah really am the biggest fool, Rogue thought. She wrote that one down so she wouldn't get too big for her boots.
She didn't pay attention in that class, instead pouring out her thoughts to her notebook. Rogue would need a new one soon, but that wouldn't be a problem because she still had birthday money left. Summers was a real dick not two seconds ago, you wouldn't believe what he said to me... Can't believe the amount of homework I have for tonight, as if I don't have enough on my mind already... Hope that little girl isn't still lying behind that clothes rack at the Bayville Galleria... The boys are getting on my nerves. They always expect me to back them up no matter what, but the second the Loser, the Poser or the Ditz starts in on me they're running scared, the wusses. They could crush the ones I've mentioned like bugs if they'd just get off their asses, and do they? Nooo. I'm not worried, though. I can take care of myself. But it'd be nice if they at least wanted to look out for me.
The period ended, and Rogue scooped up her things, leaving her notebook open on her desk. She was suddenly aware of a source of heat right next to her.
"What is it, Summers?" she asked bitchily, looking up at him. Dammit, why did he have to be so tall? You couldn't look him in the face unless you were a frickin' giantess like Jean Grey.
He smiled pleasantly. "I see my name," he stated, pointing down.
Rogue didn't understand. Then-
"You absolute fuckbag," she exploded, using a word Fred sometimes called the other boys under his breath. Rogue grabbed the notebook and went to stamp on his foot, but Scott pulled it out of the way nanoseconds before collision.
Stupid Summers and his stupid reflexes! "And don't think for a moment Ah'm forgivin' ya for- for-" Rogue yelled at his retreating back.
"See you tomorrow, Rogue," he called, laughing.
Don't think for a second Ah'm forgivin' ya, Summers, for makin' out like you're anythin' less than a boring loser X-Geek, thought Rogue viciously. Then she blanched and finally made a face. Oh, that's nasty. Ah just thought the words 'makin' out' in the same sentence as the word 'Summers'. That is nasty.
She stood very still, watching him leave the classroom. But no wonder, she thought in disgust. Look at that stupid way he walks, like he's try'n'a get me to check out his ass or somethin'. What a creep. Her gaze fell to the floor, then travelled up slightly to see Scott Summers and his attention-seeking ass walking straight out the door. Rogue gave a growl of frustration and silently died from embarrassment when she realised it sounded like a dreamy sigh.
At lunchtime, Rogue went looking for the Brotherhood boys. When she saw them relieving some freshmen of their lunch money she suddenly knew she didn't want to sit with them. So with her luxury copy of Dracula and her lunch Rogue set off in search of someplace to be alone.
There was a grassy area near the back of the school with a bunch of trees. She had sometimes gone through it when she had walked the last part of the way to school, back when Mystique used to give her rides. The sunlight felt warm, felt good on her face and Rogue felt so much better at being all alone she almost considered removing the baggy semi-transparent top she was wearing. Sunbathing seemed the most attractive prospect in the world. She had a black tank top on underneath, after all, so she'd be decent-
Decent, but not safe. God, Rogue, are ya some kind of idiot? Shaking her head at her own flights of fancy, she settled down under a tree. As a kind of self-punishment she picked out a spot with an awful lot of shade, so she felt a little cold. She adjusted to the temperature quickly, though, and read one of her favourite parts in the book- the part where Lucy Westernra had a stake hammered through her heart.
Chilly, she thought, imagining for the millionth time in her life the genteel Lucy Westernra biting the throats of little children. Lucy turned into a real bitch once she died. Rogue had for many years referred to the characters by their first names. She had used to reference the book so many times around Irene that Irene called the characters by their first names as well.
She tried not to think of Irene. Ah'll get to call her this week. Right now is mah alone time. Nothin' gets between me and mah alone time.
But something did.
Rogue wrinkled her nose at the acrid stench of brimstone that pervaded the air. Oh, gross! "Huh? Ugh..." she mumbled, and turned her head toward the source of the odour. A stairway in the side of the building led down to what must be the school basement. Rogue left her novel at the foot of the tree and walked to the top of the steps, taking in the bitter smell with distaste.
Smoke was curling its way up the stairs and Rogue froze as she heard someone moving around down in the basement. Ah feel like Nancy Drew, she thought dryly as she made her way down the stairs. "Who's there?" Rogue called forcefully.
BAMF. Another powerful wave of brimstone washed through the dank, suffocating air of the school basement, and Rogue choked. "Oh, that's gross," she whined, putting her hands on her hips.
With a bit of cleanin' up, this place'd be a nice readin' room, Rogue thought, staring around. Just bring a light and somethin' to sit on, and Ah'm set. Heh. ... Hey, what's that?
A door marked STAY OUT was at the far end of the room. Rogue's curiosity overcame her, and she headed towards it. She had just reached it when-
BOOM.
Rogue dived aside as an explosion rocked the basement. A mushroom cloud of flame and smoke erupted out of the STAY OUT door, which swung wildly ajar, and a blue blur flew out, into a pile of boxes.
Mystique? thought Rogue as she recovered, glancing up at the ceiling to check it wasn't about to collapse. No- it's Wagner! Christ, why didn't Ah guess?
Rogue rushed over, concerned. Which is perfectly understandable. He might be a blue-furred assassin freakboy, but Ah don't wanna be poppin' anyone's shoulder back in. If he's OK, Ah'll split. If he's not, Ah'll split. Yeah. Yep. Absolutely.
None of this actually came out of her mouth. What Rogue said was, "Hey! Hey, are you OK? What happened?"
Wagner's eyes fluttered open, and Rogue was relieved to see he appeared unharmed. "Uh, lab.. booby-trapped," he mumbled in his thick German accent.
"Lab?" asked Rogue, raising her eyebrows. This I gotta see. She left Wagner on the boxes and tiptoed through the ashy doorway.
It wasn't anything spectacular. Just a bunch of outdated computers. But the idea that anything booby-trapped could be underneath as boring a place as Bayville High was extraordinary. There must be a big secret to this stuff. "Whoa," Rogue murmured.
The computers were shattered, crackling electrical currents surging from them every now and then. "Whatever this stuff was, it's thrashed now... except for this." Rogue was referring to a device sitting out very innocently. She picked it up and examined it, and heard Wagner come up behind her.
"What are you doing in here?" he asked shrewdly as Rogue tensed, realising she was alone with a dangerous X-Man.
Time to put him in his place. Sneering at him, she scoffed, "Huh! Look who's talkin'. At least Ah didn't blow the place up."
Wagner glared, then snatched at the device. "Hey! Let go of that!" he yelled. Kurt Wagner grabbed hold of it, and the two mutant teenagers tussled over it for a few seconds. He was surprisingly strong for such a wiry boy.
Rogue narrowed her eyes. "Back off, blue boy," she said in a hard voice. "Who says you're in charge here?" Ah'll show him!
With a burst of strength, Rogue hauled the machine out of Wagner's grasp. The force caused her to stagger backward, and as she tried to retain her grip on her prize something- happened. Humming, the device lit up with power and shot something like a huge pink bubble at the teleporting mutant. It consumed him; he gave a shout of surprise and then- nothing. The bubble disappeared and so did Wagner.
Numb, Rogue clung to the machine for support before realising that- she was holding onto the machine for support. She heard herself gasp involuntarily and chucked the device away from her. There was a small crash as it hit the floor and Rogue stepped forward, slicing her hand through the place where Wagner had been standing. Some shiny residue hung in the air, but apart from that there was nothing.
It sunk in. Oh mah... God. Ah... Ah think Ah just killed a guy. Ah just- killed someone. Oh mah God.
"He's gone!" Rogue whispered in horror.
Ah just killed a guy!
- - -
DISCLAIMER: X-Men: Evolution does not belong to me. It is the property of Stan Lee, Marvel Comics, the WB, whoever you like. Not me. If it were mine, I would make the characters give loads of interviews to the press.
NOTES: Before anyone says it, I come from Australia and I have British heritage. So when I write favourite or all right, these aren't considered spelling mistakes where I come from. Now, I'm trying very hard to keep the American expression in this story on target. I don't think I'm doing a bad job, exactly, although at times the characters talk too much like Australians. I suppose we all talk alike now, because American culture has taken over the world and Aussie girls at my school can be heard saying that things are wack, that it is their bad or even that they are going to go out flossing with their peeps, yo.
Um, no, I actually exaggerated that last one. But can I just ask something? You know how American rappers call girls shorties? Well, what do they call them if they're tall? My friends and I constantly giggle over our favourite mental image of a weedy rapper guy hitting on a very tall, gorgeous, Tyra Banks type in a club and beginning his seduction with, "'Sup, shortie?" and her (offended) replying, "Who the fuck are you calling shorty?" and drop-kicking him. Shortie. That's a crack-up.
(And no, I have never in my life been referred to as a sheila. Sheila is a girls' name, not a gender.)
Guess what? You know that reply to the Eamon song by Frankee, how it's called Fuck You Right Back and its acronym is F.U.R.B.? I think it'd be hilarious if they changed it to Fuck You Right Back, Yo so the initial could be F.U.R.B.Y.!
... What? What do you mean, you don't know what I'm talking about? Furby! You know, the weird little interactive toys that looked like hybrids of owls and kangaroo rats? The ones kids used to take to school back in the late Nineties and annoy the hell out of their teachers with? (That's what happened at my school, anyway. My best friend's Furby was locked in the cupboard with someone else's Furby and the two Furbies spent the whole lesson 'talking' to each other in Furbish, heh heh.)
Right. Now that I've successfully offended every single American on the site, I can say some non-offensive stuff. Expect about a chapter a week from now on, because my holidays are ending soon. I know I said I was going to try and finish Season One, but I've been really busy with my friends. We saw The Stepford Wives. Excellent movie, that. Everyone go see it, now. I mean, the exchange, "Only castrating Manhattan career bitches wear black, now is that what you want to be?" "Ever since I was a little girl." definitely wins the award for My Favourite Movie Line/Exchange of the year. (Back when Shrek first came out it was, "Some of you may die, but it's a sacrifice I am willing to make.")
I'd like to plug one of my new favourite XME authors, Rurouni Tyriel. His fics are beyond incredible- they have just the right mix of action, humour, angst and romance. They are heavy with Jean/Scott, Tabby/Amara, Sam/Rahne, Evan/Callisto, Kurt/Amanda, Lance/Kitty and a little Rogue/Remy, though, so I'd be hesitant to check them out if I didn't like those pairings. I personally recommend Nightmares. It is just about the scariest XME fic I've ever read. I also particularly recommend Nullification and Annihilation.
Are you finding good XME fan music videos hard to come by? They have amazing ones over at http:alternate-evolution/media1.htm. My favourites would have to be the Ascension trailer (because I'm completely addicted to it, basically), The Impact of Rage (Rogue/Kurt/Mystique-centric video, which needless to say I loved), the one set to What's This from The Nightmare Before Christmas (because it's absolutely hilarious) and Get the Party Started featuring the Bayville Sirens (because me, my little brother and my little sister are all completely addicted to it).
Also, I am figuring out a Tabitha fic and maybe a Wanda fic. I am planning a Mystique fic to coincide with later chapters of this here story, and a big slightly AU project for when this story is finished, or maybe before. All while writing my novel. I'm a busy girl, but I love writing more than anything in the world.
The Nineties movie Duncan and his friend got their material from is The Craft. The Craft will feature again in a distant chapter.
I own a humungous hardcover book, lovewolf44, called the Ultimate Guide to the X-Men. In it, it says that Pietro and Wanda Maximoff grew up in an Eastern European country called Transia. I am pretty sure it doesn't exist in the way Asteroid M doesn't exist, but there's just something wonderful about English being Wanda and Pietro's second language. Don't ask me to explain it. My novel, since you asked, isn't really anything special. It's just a sarcastic variation on your normal teen fiction where all the principal characters are students at an Australian, single-sex, Catholic private school and they swear far, far too much. If I ever do get it published, I shall have to put in the author's notes: To my school- apologies, but you really were asking for it.
Terminatrix T-X,I am honoured you nearly cried at the last chapter... as twisted as that sounds. But thank you for being so honest, it was really touching. I am not familiar with that song, but I'm pretty sure my older sister has a Dixie Chicks album lying around somewhere. If so, I'll give it a listen.
Wow! These are possibly my most ramblesome notes ever! Are you proud, ishandahalf?