Ch. 5 The Great Pulse Race
Lunch the next day found Rogue basking in the cool shade of an oak tree that rested just on the periphery of the school quad. Most of the rest of X-squad were at the mansion to help with some last repairs, engaged in extra-curricular activities, or just flat out absent at the moment. Rogue didn't mind though. Lunch with her friends often proved more stressful than she let on. They wanted her to talk, laugh, horse around, and in short to be a normal teen that wouldn't kill people by accidentally touching them. Nor could she hold their inclusion against them. They all meant well, and genuinely liked her, but she knew they were afraid of her because they went out of their way to prove they weren't.
Only Kitty and Kurt seemed genuine in their shows of affection. If only lunch could be just the three of them. She stifled a sigh and admonished herself to stop falling into a depressed slump. Life wasn't so bad more to the point her life wasn't so bad. She had friends; people who cared enough to give their lives for her. How many other teens, especially teenage mutants, could say the same? Not many and it was worse now than it was before.
Every night brought a new wave of anti-mutant rallies, and sometimes worse. Two nights demanded forays into the city. But it was no longer to stop the Brotherhood or foil one of Magneto's plots, or even to fight the Sentinel robots. No, now they ventured into the city, dressed in their sleek uniforms, veins pumping blood and adrenaline, and their formidable powers ready to be summoned to save mutants from the "norms".
Rogue closed her eyes in an attempt to block out the latest scenes of carnage: a young girl torn from her Mother's arms by a mob. The team had rescued the girl and managed to leave only minor wounds on the rabid crowd. The restraint needed by her, Scott, Jean, and Kurt to leave only a few scratches had bordered on monumental. The family was at the Institute for now as they and X-men waited in the hopes that the sporadic violent uprisings would calm.
And in the midst of all the chaos was the safety net of routine. Classes, danger room sessions, and even the occasional pool party at the mansion had kept all the X-kids sane. Rogue sighed heavily, never noticing the shadow that crept along the ground towards her as the screams and visages twisted with an unreasonable hatred faded into the black shadows of her thoughts.
Gambit saw the pained look on her gentle face. The dark make-up only accentuated the expression of hurtful memories on her features. Her shoulders slumped in despair and near defeat as she leaned her face into one gloved hand. He knelt, as soundless as his shadow, and for the first time in a long time, he did not know what to say.
"Rogue?" His soft voice soothed over her frayed nerves and the sense of absolute solitude found itself swept away with the gently spoken word.
"Why?" Her voice rough. The single word voiced a singular accusation. "Why'd 'e do it, Gambit? Why'd Magneto start a war?" He sensed her pain so deeply that it could have been his own.
"Man's g't 'is reasons, Cher." He crouched next her, just back behind her shoulder. The position allowed him to study her without being observed in turn. Though by the way her gaze was clearly turned inward in a search for answers, she wasn't going to be looking at him anytime soon anyway. "'Sides best Ah figure it, war gonna happen..period, betta it be on our terms, non?"
"This can' be th' onlah way," She squeezed her eyes closed as if by that one action she could will it all to stop.
"Don' know if i' be de only way, Cher. But Remy t'ink it pro'ly de best way." He expected her snap at him for that, but instead she pulled her knees up to her chest and looked out over the quad. Those clover colored eyes searched the face of each of her fellow classmates in yet another attempt to divine some sort of truth. He felt her thoughts turn inward and pain in her lessen as she truly considered his words instead of dismissing them outright.
"Ah don' know," She said after several long minutes with a shake of her head.
"Cher, dis pro'lem ain't gonna be solved by the likes o' y' n' Remy durin' lunch," His tone held a gentle humor and Rogue decided to allow him to steer the conversation in another direction. He was right after all brooding wouldn't help.
"Ya are right there, Cajun," She responded in a lighter tone as she stretched her legs out in front her and leaned back against the tree again. Her head canted up and to the left to look at him. The smile slid across his lips slowly and Rogue felt the cloud of social climate slip away. How did he do that? Make the world right with a halfhearted joke and a smile?
"So 'bout that lunch…" His words trailed off and Rogue prompted him with an arched brow that asked the question with more eloquence than any words, "Y' wan' join ole Remy?" His head jerked back towards the parking lot.
"Sure," Those fire-eyes lit up with anticipation, "Ah'll jus' ride off t' gahd knows wherah with a guy tha' tried t' blow meh n' mah teammates up, n' who works fo' a man bent on war. Yeah, sure, whah not?" She smirked as that anticipation, so quickly kindled, doused with her words.
"Cher, Ah," He started only to be stopped as she raised her hand and shook one finger at him in a gentle scold that caused his brows to shoot up in surprise.
"Ya wanna have lunch with me, Cajun?" He nodded slowly as his mind whirled in an attempt to figure out just what she was up to now. His attempt was thoroughly unsuccessful as she reached into her bag, and then promptly handed him half of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
"Y' kiddin' Cher," He deadpanned. She had to be joking. Peanut butter n' jelly on the school lawn was not exactly the ambiance he wanted. Though whatever hope he harbored that she was in fact teasing him found itself dashed into a million tiny pieces when she took a bite of her half and set an opened Coke between them.
"Oh," she turned around and dove into the bag one more time. Gambit tried to peer over her shoulder as, like all men, he wanted to know just what she kept in a bag that seemed more like a bottomless pit that went to an alternate dimension filled with random gizmos and gadgets. Between them fell a baggie filled with potato chips as she smiled at him. He read her expression and the emotions that rolled on the surface of her thoughts. The message was clear, if he wanted to be near her, he was going to have to abide her rules. It was a challenge, a warning. His eyes met her own with a smirk as he took the first bite from the sandwich. He accepted the challenge.
He sat next to her and groaned inwardly as she scooted just a bit away from him. It looked like an unconscious action on her part. But Gambit found he had a hard time reading her, and couldn't be sure. For now, content to watch her, Gambit leaned back on one arm his long, lean form stretched out over the grass and he grinned at the furtive glances at him she tried so hard not take and even harder to conceal. Then it was his turn to try and not stare. She'd taken her gloves off to eat the sandwich and now sought to free each digit of stray peanut butter or jelly. Gambit did not know you could envy a sandwich condiment until that moment.
He realized, albeit distantly, that she wasn't intending to drive rather strong urges racing through him. In fact, she seemed oblivious to his presence at the moment. She didn't look at him with coy eyes or make a great show of the simple gesture, but it was enough to send his thoughts racing to such depths of impurity that would send a devout man to confession for hours on end. He bit back a groan as she tugged her glove back on, and forced his blood to cool. It was not often a girl got under his skin with such a small thing. In truth, Gambit could not really remember the last time it had happened so swiftly.
"Cher," It came out far huskier than he intended. She blinked, both startled and wary of the tone in voice, yet she loved it too. He leaned forward and Rogue saw the hunger lurking just underneath the surface of his eyes. Her breath caught as that gaze dragged down to her lips and he lifted one gloved finger. The rough leather pressed into her skin, just at the corner of mouth and swept upwards in a slow, languorous motion. "Y' misse' a spot."
His hand dropped, the small drop of peach jam on her mouth forgotten by both of them. Breathing became hard for Rogue, and she wondered with the part of her that seemed to observe everything in a detached way, if a person heart could really beat itself it out of the body. She pushed both her hands into her lap and clasped them tight together. A struggle began. She wanted to touch his face, even with gloves, to feel the pressure of the contact, and to feel the heat of his skin slowly seep into the leather covering her fingers and palm.
Gambit made no move to or away from her. He let himself sink into the depths of her emerald eyes even as his own red gaze pulled her into him. The soft sweet kiss of her breathes against his lips made for exquisite torture. He reached out with his empathy and gently teased the beginnings of her curiosity and desire, and was rewarded with a small shiver running through her.
They both lost awareness of the quad. Even the cool spring breeze that ruffled his hair into further disarray did not attract her attention. Gambit forgot about the rock digging into his hip, and ignored the leaves that fluttered in between them. Time slowed, then stopped. Rogue's fingers started to untwine themselves in her lap as her courage, or reckless impulse, she was not sure which, urged her just to touch his…………..
BRIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGThe lunch bell blared and Rogue jerked back to herself as if she'd been burned. Reality rushed back. Kids talking, laughing, and on occasion shouting invaded her ears, and the noise seemed painful at first. Her hand fell back to her knees as coherent thought took a moment to catch up with the space-time continuum. A soft flush invaded her cheeks as she murmured an apology and started to dart off to her next class. Gambit grabbed her hand to stay her for a moment.
"See y' in math, Cher," His only answer was another one of her strange haunting smiles. His hand dropped from hers at the sight of smile, beautiful and sad at the same time. In that moment, Remy wanted nothing more than to see her smile, a real smile, free of everything but pure joy. If these small half sad expressions lit up her face, he knew she would be radiant with one so uninhibited.
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Rogue eyed the door to her Math class in the way one might look upon a rabid passel of suddenly animated furbees. She wanted to run away. No small amount embarrassed by her rather..ahem...brazen display in the quad, the last thing she wanted, no the last thing she needed to see was a Cajun grinning his secret grin. Rogue held her books to her chest as if they were a magic shield that would protect her from…herself. Even though she tried through the last two classes, she could not place the blame solely at Gambit's door.
No, she'd enjoy their little picnic more than she had anticipated. In truth, she had only suggested that he join her, because she thought he'd leave. But he surprised her, oh yes he did, and now she felt at a loss. What to do? Encourage his advances? No, No surely they weren't advances, why would he? 'Don' mean ya don' wanna think they are girl.' Leered that inner voice. Rogue scowled and took a deep breathe. No time to ponder deviously handsome men, when another math tardy would bring Logan's wrath on her head. That scared her more than the butterflies the Cajun stirred, very active butterflies, with wings made of fire, fire that shot through her…. 'STOP IT!' She screamed in her head.
Somehow during her little mental wandering, Rogue had made it into math and to her seat. She did not need to look to know Gambit wasn't next to her. Nor was he anywhere else in the class room. 'Good,' she thought. But if it's good why did a small pang of loss stir within her. Rogue made a great show of interest in pre-cal book and tried to ignore everything else around her. Until something brushed her shoulder. She looked and felt a relief she wouldn't show as Gambit winked and tucked a note just under her book.
Hi. That's all it said.
Within a matter of moments the two engaged in the first great note war. Somehow during the written conversation the two silently challenged each other to see who would get the last word…err… note in before the class bell rang.
Rogue watched the clock. 5…4…3…2…1. With the grace and speed a plains cat would envy, Rogue dropped her final note in Gambit's hand and darted from the room. It was childish, it was silly, but it had been fun.
Gambit watched as she darted out with a smirk on his lips as he opened the note…
…Bye…
He chuckled as he strolled out of the class, and for the first time, he paid no attention to doe eyed gals batting pretty long lashes at him
Rogue hopped into the passenger seat and headed back to the institute with Jean and Kurt a slight grin on her face that caused the two other occupants to exchange puzzled glances. Kurt was about to ask until he saw Rogue frown and reach into bag.
A torn piece of notebook paper caught her attention. In one fluid motion she opened it.
…Better luck next time, Cher. …Remy…
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Katrina5 – Their first meeting is rather calm. Heh. Kinda like two fighters sizing each other up with feints. Any way hope you like the two new additions!
Aro- I know the first few were short, but I felt it was needed at the time. Thank you!
Sweet –chick3 – And so they meet! Enjoy and thanks!