Rogue sat one her bed, curled up, hugging her knees to her chest. In front of her lay a set of journals, each one carefully wrapped and packaged in a box. They were Irene's. Her inheritance. Proof that Irene really was dead. That the woman who had taken care of her for so long, raised her when she was a small child and protected her from her own powers, was really gone forever.
Rogue had received the legal documents announcing the mutant known as Destiny's death today along with the journals when a lawyer had shown up at her front door. She had signed off on all the paperwork, provided proof of identity and that had been it. It wasn't until she had opened the box and looked inside that what the lawyer had said had truly sunk in.
She wanted to cry. It felt like something that one should cry over. But instead all she could do was sit there. A small, detached part of her wondered how Irene had died. Was is natural causes or some mutant haters or had she gotten caught in one of the fights between Magneto and the X-Men? Was it a quick death? Or...not?
The lawyer hadn't known. Actually, he hadn't known much of anything and she had realized fairly quickly that questioning him was useless.
She knew that the others were outside the door to her room. Nothing could be kept a secret around here and the second the lawyer had shown up everyone had know what was up. Now they were all walking around on eggshells trying to decide if they should talk to her or just leave her alone for awhile.
Rogue smiled sadly, listening to the hushed voices. It had bee less than a year since she had finally broken down and bought herself a house. Those people out there were the reason why. Her old apartment just hadn't been large enough for the numbers of mutants that kept showing up at her place. And besides, it was nicer without having to worry about neighbors you shared walls with. It wasn't a huge place but it at least gave her more space to work with.
She had also finally begun to make some strides in controlling her powers due to those people. The old adage of helping others helps yourself turned out to be true. She had been absorbing so many different mutants in order to help them control their powers that she had been forced to take a look at her own powers. She still couldn't control her primary power of absorption but she was now able to control others powers better. She could, for short amounts of time, pull up the powers and memories of any mutant or human that she had ever touched. It made her feel like less of a liability when she went out to deal with mutant riots and such. She was able to better protect both herself and those that followed her instead of sitting on the sidelines until she could get close enough to touch the enemy.
She still wished that she was able to control her primary power but being able to control all the secondary powers had given her options that she had never had before. Her power no longer seemed like such a curse. It wasn't exactly a blessing but it was just one of those things that made her who she was. Rogue.
Rogue sighed. She was letting her mind wander. She knew that a part of it was because she didn't want to think about Irene, so in a defensive maneuver her mind was focusing on anything and everything else that it could come up with. She needed to get out and meditate for awhile. It was something Logan had taught her after she had lost control over the personalities in her head the first time. It calmed her emotions and gave her a certain clarity that she had found invaluable over the years, especially once she was out on her own. It was a clarity that she was in desperate need of right now.
Rogue grabbed her brown leather jacket, checked to make sure she had keys and her cell phone, and headed out. As she walked through the park towards her favorite spot she began to realize just how long it had been since she had gone back to the States. It always seemed like there was no time. But people had probably changed a lot over the years and it would be nice to finally be the one traveling instead of someone else.
Rogue got to her favorite spot, a small secluded area, almost completely surrounded by trees. It gave the illusion of being in one of the old forests that were so popular in myths and fairy tales. Rogue settled down on the ground and took a deep breath. Slowly she repeated the actions that Logan had taught her so long ago, letting go of all the worries and distractions of the world around her to focus on the calm of her own mind.
When she opened her eyes again, she finally felt a small measure of peace for the first time since she had heard the news. She still hadn't come to terms with Irene's death yet but this was at least a beginning. She no longer felt so shaky, like everything was on the verge of collapsing around her.
The trees around her swayed softly in a light breeze and for a second, Rogue looked around her in awe. A few delicate golden leaves were dancing across her path on their way to the ground and the fading sunlight cut through the cover to create brilliant streams of light which contrasted sharply with the night shadows beginning to appear from their daytime hiding places. It was scenes like these that captured Rogue's imagination and made her want to run home and draw. It amazed her that other people seemed perfectly content to ignore all these minor miracles of beauty that happened around them everyday.
'A evenin' this beautiful makes a girl think about playin' hookey forever.'
In a lot of ways, she blamed the art store for corrupting her. But she had been pretty fertile ground for that type of corruption, given her already gothic mentality. She was painting these days, nothing too special but good enough that she could sell the occasional piece to help pay her bills.
As she walked slowly home, she remembered the Institute and what she had been thinking about earlier. She should go back and visit. She was feeling guilty about not having seen Irene before she died. She didn't really want to think about the fact that other friends of hers might someday die without her ever seeing them again.
She was doing some mental calculations in her head trying to figure out if she could afford it. Maybe if she got one of the kids to look at ticket prices on-line for her she could find something in her budget.
By the time she actually walked through her front door she was trying to figure out what to pack and if she should bring people gifts. There were about five people plunked down in front of the tele, watching cartoons when she walked in. She almost laughed at their expressions when they turned to see her. All five of them were little more than kids, mutants whose parents had kicked them out of the house after their powers had emerged. She actually had collected quite a few kids like them over the last year or so. They came and went in her house, crashing where ever they could find space when they needed a place. In many ways she felt like some sort of weird, dysfunctional mother. She had set up house rules that they had to follow and the way they were looking at her now gave her the feeling that they had broken some rule and gotten caught. She had a pretty good feeling that some of the others who had been here earlier had told the kids to be extra good, or something like that, and not bother her. Apparently, now that she was home, they weren't sure how to do that.
"Hey." she said, giving them a small smile and trying to get rid of that 'deer in the headlights' look they were all giving her.
"Hey Rogue." Michelle said quietly.
"Um...hey, we heard about your friend. I'm sorry." Danny muttered, staring at the floor.
"Yea. That really sucks." Mick said, and Michelle, looking horrified at his words, hit him, "What?"
Rogue laughed, "Its okay, Michelle. It does suck. I actually was thinkin' of going back to the States. Maybe see some people that I haven' seen in awhile."
"You're coming back, right?" Sara, sitting on the floor, asked with an oddly panicky look on her face.
"Yea sugah. I'm not abandonin' ya all yet. I just...think I need a little vacation. So I was wonderin' if someone could give me that web site address for the cheap air flight tickets?" Rogue said hopefully.
Danny sighed and stood up, "It'll be faster if I just do it for you."
Rogue reached over and hugged the boy around the shoulders, "I was hopin' you'd say that."
Danny shrugged off her hug and, muttering under his breath about inept, computer illiterate adults, walked over to her laptop and flicked it on. Once the thing was booted up, Rogue watched as the boys fingers became insubstantial and disappeared into the computer. Things flickered too fast across the screen for Rogue to make any sense of them. Danny was the reason that she no longer understood what was on her computer. All she knew was that it was the fastest thing she had ever seen and that it never seemed to crash on her. She had asked him once but had been so overwhelmed by the answer that she had decided that it was better just to let him do whatever he wanted. As long as she still could get her e-mail and use the word processor, she was happy.
A few seconds later Danny called her over, giving her airline prices that were better that anything she had hoped for. She had him book her a seat for a flight leaving the next week and pulled out her phone to call work.
Luckily, she had worked at the art store for so long now that the owner was more than willing to give her time off, especially once she explained that her foster mother had died and she wanted to go back to the States for awhile to see her family. It was the closest thing to the truth that she could say with out having to go into a lot of confusing details.
The next phone call was actually to the Professor. She wanted to let Xavier know that she was coming home and see if she could beg a ride from Logan to her hotel. But somehow, after hanging up the phone she had been convinced to stay at the Institute. Logan had simply refused to drive her to a hotel after the Professor had offered her a room at the school. She wasn't sure whether to feel irritated at having her plans so easily thwarted or happy that the Professor and Logan were so willing to have her stay at the school again.
She walked into her room and pulled out her old army duffle bag and began to make a checklist of what she needed to do before she could leave. She was going to have to pick up a few gifts for her old friends before she left. There were a few other things for herself that might make packing easier. She would also have to get someone to watch her house for her and make sure if anything happened that people here had her phone number and the Institute's number.
Thinking about her phone made her suddenly think of Remy. Should she tell him she was going to be back? Who was she kidding, he would find out. That was one person who always seemed to be in the know. There was no way that she could expect for him not to find out that she was in the States. Alright then, next question. Did she want to see him? Of course. They were friends. Really good friends. How could she not want to see him. So what if he still worked for Magneto. Well, maybe it wouldn't be such a good idea to see him if she was staying at the Institute. Not that he would do anything but people might take it the wrong way. So...Did she want to see him? A definite maybe.
Rogue laughed at herself.
'Be honest.' she chided herself. She was scared. Scared that the Remy of the e-mails and phone calls was just an illusion that would pop the moment she dealt with him in person. Scared that he really was as wonderful as he had been on the phone and in all the e-mails. Scared that if she actually saw him in person that all those feelings that she had buried wouldn't stay buried.
The rest of the days seemed to just fly and before she knew it she was on a plane headed back to New York. In first class. Which was very interesting. And something she would have to talk to Danny about when she got back home. The boy's mutant power made him one of the best hackers in the business, allowing him to play with the electronic pulses themselves that made up the computers people used and sometimes he used his ability to 'help' out others. Since the tickets had all been ordered on-line she hadn't seen them until she arrived at the airport to pick them up. She had a pretty good feeling that her upgrade to first class was evidence of Danny's helping.
Rogue leaned back in her huge seat and stretched without hitting anyone else around her. This was defiantly better than flying coach though. Maybe she wouldn't yell at Danny after all. Just then the stewardess came and offered her a choice of red or white wine in a real glass, not some disposable plastic thing. Rogue smiled as she twirled the stem of the glass in her hand.
She decided that she was just going to give the boy the benefit of the doubt and assume he just found a great deal on tickets and never ask him. After all, she didn't want the kid to think she didn't trust him.
Rogue pulled out one of Irene's journals from her carry-one bag. She had grabbed them at the last minute, figuring that it would give her something to read on the plane. Now she opened the oldest one and began to read. It started when Destiny's powers were first emerging and she was losing her sight. A powerful combination that reinforced something Rogue already knew. Mutants rarely got their powers for free. They always paid some price for them. She had lost the ability to touch, the Professor had lost the ability to walk, Scott to see. And Logan had lost the ability to age and die. It had been that realization that had helped her to deal with her own powers. She realized that she wasn't the only one who had paid for her "gift" and she wasn't even the worst off. The Moorlocks had taught her that.
Rogue became engrossed in her reading. Irene had always been so quiet about herself and her past. There were things in her journal that Rogue had never even guessed at before. But every once in awhile, the writing would change. The older the journal the more of the strange language it was written in until the last few journals were completely written in it. Rogue didn't understand what language these entries were written in but she decided to check it out. If nothing else it would give her something to do.
When the plane finally landed, Rogue was more than willing to get off. It seemed like ages since she had stood up and walked around. Not to mention she was starving. First class or not, airline food was airline food and therefore inedible.
When she got off the plane she glanced around, unwilling to admit that she was looking more for a Cajun than a Canadian. She had decided to try and surprise Remy by being home. When she had talked to him, she had been very careful not to tell him he plans. She knew that he had picked up on there being something up but she hoped he hadn't figured it out. Still, it wouldn't have surprised her to see him waiting for her in the airport.
But there was no sign of him. Instead Logan appeared and she gave him a hug. He growled at her, knowing she was only hugging him because it was such a non-Wolverine thing to do, but hugged her back.
"Hey Stripes. Lets go grab your other stuff and get out of here." Logan said.
"Can we grab some food? I'm starving." she asked as she watched the baggage carousel for her duffel bag and suitcase.
"Sure. What did you want?" Logan said, snatching the duffel bag as it traveled by.
"Something horribly unhealthy and American." Rogue replied, grinning.
"No problem. I know just the diner." Logan chuckled.
Rogue sighed and took another sip of her Coke. She was so full. Logan had taken her to a small mom and pop diner. The food tasted so good you knew that it was probably going to clog up all you arteries before you even left the place. It had been just what she needed. She and Logan had spent the time in comfortable silence, each of them devoting their full attention to their food.
She let Logan pay the check and casually walked towards the van Logan had been driving.
"Don't even think about it Stripes." Logan growled from behind her.
"Aw. But I haven't driven in so long." Rogue said with a small pout.
"All the more reason that I'm not going to let you start now." Logan said, hopping into the driver's seat. "Besides, do you even remember what side of the street we drive on here?"
Rogue glared at the older man as they pulled out of the parking lot, "Fine. Maybe I just won't give you your gift then."
"Gift?" Logan said, cocking an eyebrow at her.
"Yea. I got ya a gift." Rogue said, smiling.
"What kind of gift?"
"What do you mean, what kind? The good kind."
Logan sighed, "So when do I get this gift?"
"When you let me drive."
"So never then."
"Logan." Rogue said, whining slightly.
"You can drive when I'm not in the car." Logan said.
"Yea, I knew ya loved me sugah." Rogue said, grinning.
"God help the poor fools on the road." Logan muttered too softly for Rogue to hear.
Rogue looked at the Mansion as they drove up the drive. It had been so long since she had seen this place that she had once called home. In so many ways, it still was. This is where the people that she had considered her family lived. But now she had another family in England. A family, that if anything, was actually weirder than the X-Men.
But hey, what's a family without a little weirdness?
As Rogue got out of the car she was given the slightest warning as the air displaced behind her before she was wrapped in a hug.
"Kurt!" she cried out in surprise.
"Vhat?" Kurt said, pulling back with a huge grin on his face.
"Careful with the hugging there. I don't want to be fuzzy." she said, smiling to take the sting out of her words.
"But everyone loves the fuzzy." Kurt said.
Before she could say anything, Kitty was there, hugging her. Then the Professor was at the door and Hank was standing next to him. Jean and Scott appeared from around the side of the house. Ororo wasn't far behind. Even Jamie, looking a whole lot taller than she had expected, came to welcome her back.
It was all a little overwhelming. With all the people surrounding her she began to worry about contact. Logan noticed her checking to make sure she was all covered and pushed the others away.
"Alright, you can all say hi to Stripes later. I want to get rid of these bags of hers. Popsicle!" he yelled at Bobby, "Grab that last bag and bring it up."
The others, unwilling to argue and knowing they'd get to talk to Rogue later began to disperse. Rogue picked up her carry on and followed Logan into the Mansion. She actually got her own room this time. She was lodged with the adult staff of the school and couldn't have been happier.
Bobby came up and set her suitcase on the bed. When Logan's back was turned he gave her a small hug and dashed out before he was told to do anything else. Rogue chuckled and Logan turned around to look at her.
"So, do I get that gift now?"
"Keys." Rogue said, holding out her hand.
Logan pulled off a set of keys from the others and tossed them at her, "Those are for the Jeep. Try not to kill anyone."
Rogue grinned and pocketed them. She turned back to the bed and opened the suitcase that Bobby had brought up for her. Inside, instead of clothes, were a number of carefully wrapped packages. She rummaged through them until she found the one she was looking for and pulled it out.
It was a stuffed wolverine. She had come across it one day and been holding on to it trying to figure out when to give it to him. And cluched in its cloth claws was a package of very nice cigars.
Logan took it and laughed, "You are lucky I like you Stripes or I'd have to kill you."
"You'd try." Rogue said, saiding with her hand on her hip.
"You keep that fantasy of yours kid. I'm going to go smuggle these into my room." Logan said.
Rogue lay down on the bed and sighed. Damn, but she was tired. She closed her eyes for a second, trying to get up the energy to unpack some of her things.
Kitty phased her head through the door to Rogue's room to see her curled up on the bed among her suitcases.
"She is totally out of it." she said, turning to Kurt.
"Damn. I know she got us gifts. I want to know what."
"Guess we'll just have to be patient."
"But I don't wanna be patient! Patience is a stupid vitue." Kurt whined as they headed towards the kitchen.
"Yea." Kitty said, pulling out the ice cream while Kurt got a couple bowls.
AN: Hey! So I think I've actually got a pseudo-plot for this story all planned out. If you are a comics fan you probably already got it figured out. This was a little shorter than the other chapters but I liked the way it ended. Anways, thought I'd do a couple shout outs since people have been so awsome about reviewing this.
Bunny Moon - Yes ma'am!
Gentryfey - Yep. Obsidian Butterfly by Lauell K Hamilton is the correct answer. I like that series a lot. Actually, I saw a lot of similarities between the Edward/Anita relationship and the Logan/Rogue one.
DBZpunkchick - hee. Not exactly the fastest update ever but I try.
LizE - Thanks. I'm always a little worried when I start messing with characters that people won't like what I'm doing so its nice to hear that I haven't screwed things up too badly yet.
ishandahalf - hey you! I see you all over the place. I think its really col that you actually like this story. That means a lot. I will be putting in a LOT more Romy-ness. Promise. Probably in the next chapter. Actually, I'm expecting those two to be the main characters. ::crosses fingers:: God knows my stories tend to not always do what I want them to.
Mary - thanks! That is really cool of you.
dragonmage - thanks for that. In a lot of ways, that second chapter was more like a summary. I was thinking about writing it all out but realized I wanted to do other things with the story instead. But I still wanted all that background and time to pass. I'm really glad that people didn't hate it. I was kinda worried.
Rogue4787 - Thank you! I totally understand what you mean. I;m really glad that you did end up liking chapter two. It was a huge experiment for me, something that I've never done before in my writing and I was really wondering if it worked. This chapter was a lot lighter than the last one, even with Irene's death. And somehow I ended it with ice cream again. Don't ask me, I just write this stuff.
Yumiko - hee. Thanks. I'm kinda a hopless romantic at heart but don't tell anyone.
Loup Garou42 - yeppers. The book that I was talking about was Obsidian Butterfly. I wasn't sure if anyone would recognize it or not so major kudos to you. And to be honest, I stuck this in the X-Men:Evo section because thats where I got the idea but Destiny's journals are from the comics. I hope they work out in this universe.
Caliente - ::blushes:: thank you. I'm really amazed that no one yelled at me for rushing through all that background. You are just too cool.