Authors note: Thanks for the lovely reviews, everyone! Could someone tell
me how to do Bold/Italic HTML here on FFNet please? I wanna put titles and
thoughts, but they always come out looking the same. And by the way, for
those who were asking, the Ace of Spades is one of Gambit's trademark
cards, I think. I didn't wanna do the Jack of Hearts, because that'd be
too cheesy, and the Joker, well, it didn't fit :)
* * * * *
~Three Months Later~
Rogue was sitting in her History class, bored almost to death. Sighing, she played with her pen, drew some cartoons on her work, but nothing would relieve her boredom. Now and again, she listened to what Storm was saying, though she didn't understand a word and it went straight over her head. When the lesson was finally over, she was the first to pack up her stuff and leave.
Once outside, she headed down the corridor towards her dorm room. That was the last lesson of the day, and now she was ready to kick back and relax. This was her final year at Mutant High, as Bobby called it, and then she wouldn't have to do any more studying. Although leaving the School was an option, she was almost sure that she was going to remain and join the X-Men full-time.
In her room, she threw her books down on her desk and collapsed onto the bed. Opening a draw to the side of it, she rummaged around and pulled out the card Gambit have given to her three months earlier. Although his memories were fading away, she still had thoughts of him now and again. She hadn't told anyone about their last encounter and had kept the playing card hidden. Tracing the shapes on it with her finger, Rogue remembered his face, his eyes, his hair as if it had happened just a minute ago. 'I wonder what he's doing now', she thought to herself.
A knock at the door interrupted her thoughts. She quickly put the card back in the drawer. "Who is it?" she called out.
"Its Bobby."
She got up off her bed and made her way towards the door. She opened it and greeted him with a smile. Although they were now broken up, lately they'd tried to get back to being friends. Succeeding too, slowly but surely.
"Hey," she said. "What's going on?"
"The Professor wants to see us downstairs," he told her. "Some kind of emergency."
She frowned and closed the door behind her. Then the two teens made their way down the hall towards the elevator. Once they reached the lower levels of the mansion, they headed towards the briefing room. The other X-Men were already inside, and looked as though they'd been waiting. Rogue and Bobby took their seats as the Professor started talking.
"We've picked up a disturbance in Washington D.C," he told them. "A band of mutants are attempting to infiltrate a factory on the outskirts. Although I can't get a clear reading on their brain patterns, police reports state that the metal fencing seems to have been manipulated to allow access to the property."
"And in some language that's English?" Logan asked, after a long pause.
"Magneto and his crew are breaking into a factory in D.C," Bobby translated for him.
"Thanks, kid."
"No problem."
Rogue smiled to herself at the short exchange, and then got back into the meeting. Magneto was breaking into a factory, and he wasn't alone. That meant Mystique, Pyro and Gambit would be with him. Gambit. She may have to meet the Cajun in battle again, only this time she probably wouldn't be able to win as easily.
"I want you all to go to Washington in the Jet, and stop them. I will attempt to guide you using Cerebro, but always be on your guard. Magnus doesn't go into a situation blind, he will have a plan."
"Ok, everyone," Cyclops said, taking charge. "Suit up and be at the Jet in fifteen minutes." Then everyone rose from their seats and headed towards the door towards the uniform room. Bobby and Rogue walked together, and were joined by Scott. "You two stick together, Magneto may think you'll be easy targets."
"No he won't," Rogue stated. "He'll strike where he can do the most damage." Both Cyclops and Bobby stopped to look her. Only just realising what she had said, she bowed her head sheepishly and also stopped. One of the many people she had in her mind was Magneto, and sometimes it seemed as though her thoughts were not her own. It was usually annoying and embarrassing when something like that happened, but on occasions, such as this one, it proved useful.
She continued to walk toward where her uniform was stored, smiling to herself. She was smiling because one of the people in her head had just reassured her. 'Don't you worry, cherie,' it said. 'You'll do fine.'
* * * * * * *
John leant against the wall and smiled to himself. This was too easy. Magneto had removed the wire fencing and disappeared inside, while Mystique, disguised as a guard they had just taken out, was going to turn off the alarms. That left himself and the Cajun to do the rest of the dirty work - take out the rest of guards.
He looked down at his wrists, and then opened his hand. This turned on the flamethrower strapped to his back, and now he had some fire to work with. In addition to teaching him more about his powers, Magneto has also equipped with a more potent source of fire than a simple lighter. However, he still had his most prized possession in his pocket, just in case. Concentrating, he shaped the flame into a sphere and bounced it along the floor like a tennis ball, grinning as he watched it travelling along. His fun was disturbed by a charged playing card exploding in the ball's path, breaking Pyro's control over it.
"Cut it out, kid," Gambit said, a little annoyed. "We ain't here t' play ball, we're t' do a job."
Annoyed, John stalked away, he could easily take out some guards by himself. He didn't need Gambit's help. Hiding behind a pillar, he ignited the flamethrowers, shaping the fire into an arrow. Then he peered out from behind the pillar and shot the arrow towards one of the security guards. The man cried out in fear as the fire headed towards him, and stared in shock when it stopped right into a face and curled to form a ring. The ring slipped itself round the guard's neck, and started circling his throat. Pyro emerged from behind the pillar, and headed towards the guard, with a maniacal grin on his face. Fun was over, now he had to do his job - make sure this guy didn't give them any trouble.
Suddenly, a small ball of ice flew past John's ear and hit his fire ring, destroying it. The guard, now almost screaming with fear took the opportunity to run away. Fuming, John turned round to face his old school friend, Bobby Drake. Now calling himself Iceman. Anger twisting his features into an ugly visage, he pointed his arms towards Bobby and sent two fire ropes at him. Iceman raised his own arms and turned them to ice, smiling as they dropped to the ground. Then he made his way towards John, intent on a fight.
That suited Pyro fine.
He threw a punch at Bobby's face, but the X-Man ducked and twisted to end up behind him. Placing a hand on John's flamethrower, Iceman quickly turned it into a block of ice. Then he grabbed both of Pyro's arms, wrenched them behind his back and turned him round to face a new threat.
John's eyes widened as he saw Rogue making her way towards them. She was smiling slightly while removing her gloves. Once she was within range, she placed her bare hands on either side of his face and smiled one of her innocent yet deadly smiles. He gasped as he felt all his energy draining out of his body and into her. Then all he saw was darkness.
* * * * * *
"Not bad," Bobby said, with a grin as John collapsed in his arms.
"Thanks," Rogue answered, replacing her gloves. "Now I have some firepower." They both paused and giggled at the accidental pun. "Ah'm gonna go help Logan, you ok here?"
"Yep," he replied. "Got everything under control." She smiled and started to walk away.
"Rogue, wait!" Bobby called out. She turned to look at him, and then caught something he threw at her. Examining the object, she grinned as she recognised it as John's lighter. "What use is fire power without the fire?" he added.
She smiled in appreciation and then walked away in search of Wolverine. She paused to ignite John's lighter and created herself a ball of fire, so she could be ready. She continued to walk with it hovering below her palm. A few feet away, she could hear the sound of metal scraping against metal, it had to be him. But then she heard a cry of fear coming from another direction, and decided to answer it.
In front of several delivery trucks, she noticed one of the guards pinned against the wall with some sort of staff. As she peered round a crate, she saw Remy - Gambit - holding him in place. Looking down to make sure her fireball was still active, she stepped out from behind the crate and directed the fire towards him. It whisked past the Cajun, making him release the guard and immediately turn in her direction.
"Roguey," he said, grinning. "Where y' been all dis time, chere?"
Rogue ignored him, and instead made herself another two fireballs, hovering them above her hands. She began to approach Gambit, and was surprised when he backed away. He wasn't afraid, but her borrowed powers obviously made him reconsider the situation.
"Why are you here?" she asked, almost no emotion to her voice. She wasn't in the mood for playing anymore. Gambit didn't respond, instead he pulled a card from his pocket and charged it. She raised her arm and threw a fireball at him, knocking the card out of his hand, setting his glove on fire in the process. He quickly pulled it off and then cradled the burnt flesh. The card that he had dropped exploded behind him.
"Why?" Rogue repeated, splitting her remaining fireball into two. "Ah'm not in the mood for games, Cajun. Now tell me." She resumed walking towards him, now he was backing into one of the trucks. If she could trap him there, that'd take him out of the fight and give the X-Men an advantage.
Suddenly, she felt her power draining away and looked down to see both her fireballs flickering and shrinking. In almost no time at all, they were gone. She had lost Pyro's power. And that meant that he was probably awake. She scowled and picked up a small beam of steel as a weapon. Gambit had lost his bo-staff, so she still had a slight advantage. She resumed walking towards him, until she was at the top of the ramp. Gambit was right at the back of the truck, still with a grin on his face.
"I'm not gonna ask you again," she threatened. "Why are you here!?"
Before he could answer, she was pushed hard from behind. Gambit rushed forwards to catch her, delving into her pocket and removing John's lighter while he was close. He spun her into the side of the wall and threw the lighter to Pyro, who was standing in the doorway. She recovered quickly and grabbed Gambit's coat as he made his way to the exit. Using all her strength, she pulled him into the wall beside her. John, still outside, closed the doors and threw the latch, locking them both inside. Now she couldn't see a thing.
Regaining her bearings, she looked around, trying to adjust her eyes to the lack of light. Once at school, the power had been cut and the whole place was in darkness. That was just a few days after the Liberty Island incident, so with Logan's powers, she had helped to sort out the problem. But now, she only had her own power, absorption, and that wasn't a great deal of help when she couldn't see a thing. She was locked in a tight space with an enemy, not the best situation in the world.
"Just you and me now, chere," a voice said from behind her. She turned and tried to grab him, but she only felt thin air. She felt something move behind her, and turned round again. She saw his red eyes glowing in the dark a few metres away.
Rogue removed her gloves and threw them to the floor. Then she started towards the two red circles, her fists clenched and ready to fight.
* * * * *
~Three Months Later~
Rogue was sitting in her History class, bored almost to death. Sighing, she played with her pen, drew some cartoons on her work, but nothing would relieve her boredom. Now and again, she listened to what Storm was saying, though she didn't understand a word and it went straight over her head. When the lesson was finally over, she was the first to pack up her stuff and leave.
Once outside, she headed down the corridor towards her dorm room. That was the last lesson of the day, and now she was ready to kick back and relax. This was her final year at Mutant High, as Bobby called it, and then she wouldn't have to do any more studying. Although leaving the School was an option, she was almost sure that she was going to remain and join the X-Men full-time.
In her room, she threw her books down on her desk and collapsed onto the bed. Opening a draw to the side of it, she rummaged around and pulled out the card Gambit have given to her three months earlier. Although his memories were fading away, she still had thoughts of him now and again. She hadn't told anyone about their last encounter and had kept the playing card hidden. Tracing the shapes on it with her finger, Rogue remembered his face, his eyes, his hair as if it had happened just a minute ago. 'I wonder what he's doing now', she thought to herself.
A knock at the door interrupted her thoughts. She quickly put the card back in the drawer. "Who is it?" she called out.
"Its Bobby."
She got up off her bed and made her way towards the door. She opened it and greeted him with a smile. Although they were now broken up, lately they'd tried to get back to being friends. Succeeding too, slowly but surely.
"Hey," she said. "What's going on?"
"The Professor wants to see us downstairs," he told her. "Some kind of emergency."
She frowned and closed the door behind her. Then the two teens made their way down the hall towards the elevator. Once they reached the lower levels of the mansion, they headed towards the briefing room. The other X-Men were already inside, and looked as though they'd been waiting. Rogue and Bobby took their seats as the Professor started talking.
"We've picked up a disturbance in Washington D.C," he told them. "A band of mutants are attempting to infiltrate a factory on the outskirts. Although I can't get a clear reading on their brain patterns, police reports state that the metal fencing seems to have been manipulated to allow access to the property."
"And in some language that's English?" Logan asked, after a long pause.
"Magneto and his crew are breaking into a factory in D.C," Bobby translated for him.
"Thanks, kid."
"No problem."
Rogue smiled to herself at the short exchange, and then got back into the meeting. Magneto was breaking into a factory, and he wasn't alone. That meant Mystique, Pyro and Gambit would be with him. Gambit. She may have to meet the Cajun in battle again, only this time she probably wouldn't be able to win as easily.
"I want you all to go to Washington in the Jet, and stop them. I will attempt to guide you using Cerebro, but always be on your guard. Magnus doesn't go into a situation blind, he will have a plan."
"Ok, everyone," Cyclops said, taking charge. "Suit up and be at the Jet in fifteen minutes." Then everyone rose from their seats and headed towards the door towards the uniform room. Bobby and Rogue walked together, and were joined by Scott. "You two stick together, Magneto may think you'll be easy targets."
"No he won't," Rogue stated. "He'll strike where he can do the most damage." Both Cyclops and Bobby stopped to look her. Only just realising what she had said, she bowed her head sheepishly and also stopped. One of the many people she had in her mind was Magneto, and sometimes it seemed as though her thoughts were not her own. It was usually annoying and embarrassing when something like that happened, but on occasions, such as this one, it proved useful.
She continued to walk toward where her uniform was stored, smiling to herself. She was smiling because one of the people in her head had just reassured her. 'Don't you worry, cherie,' it said. 'You'll do fine.'
* * * * * * *
John leant against the wall and smiled to himself. This was too easy. Magneto had removed the wire fencing and disappeared inside, while Mystique, disguised as a guard they had just taken out, was going to turn off the alarms. That left himself and the Cajun to do the rest of the dirty work - take out the rest of guards.
He looked down at his wrists, and then opened his hand. This turned on the flamethrower strapped to his back, and now he had some fire to work with. In addition to teaching him more about his powers, Magneto has also equipped with a more potent source of fire than a simple lighter. However, he still had his most prized possession in his pocket, just in case. Concentrating, he shaped the flame into a sphere and bounced it along the floor like a tennis ball, grinning as he watched it travelling along. His fun was disturbed by a charged playing card exploding in the ball's path, breaking Pyro's control over it.
"Cut it out, kid," Gambit said, a little annoyed. "We ain't here t' play ball, we're t' do a job."
Annoyed, John stalked away, he could easily take out some guards by himself. He didn't need Gambit's help. Hiding behind a pillar, he ignited the flamethrowers, shaping the fire into an arrow. Then he peered out from behind the pillar and shot the arrow towards one of the security guards. The man cried out in fear as the fire headed towards him, and stared in shock when it stopped right into a face and curled to form a ring. The ring slipped itself round the guard's neck, and started circling his throat. Pyro emerged from behind the pillar, and headed towards the guard, with a maniacal grin on his face. Fun was over, now he had to do his job - make sure this guy didn't give them any trouble.
Suddenly, a small ball of ice flew past John's ear and hit his fire ring, destroying it. The guard, now almost screaming with fear took the opportunity to run away. Fuming, John turned round to face his old school friend, Bobby Drake. Now calling himself Iceman. Anger twisting his features into an ugly visage, he pointed his arms towards Bobby and sent two fire ropes at him. Iceman raised his own arms and turned them to ice, smiling as they dropped to the ground. Then he made his way towards John, intent on a fight.
That suited Pyro fine.
He threw a punch at Bobby's face, but the X-Man ducked and twisted to end up behind him. Placing a hand on John's flamethrower, Iceman quickly turned it into a block of ice. Then he grabbed both of Pyro's arms, wrenched them behind his back and turned him round to face a new threat.
John's eyes widened as he saw Rogue making her way towards them. She was smiling slightly while removing her gloves. Once she was within range, she placed her bare hands on either side of his face and smiled one of her innocent yet deadly smiles. He gasped as he felt all his energy draining out of his body and into her. Then all he saw was darkness.
* * * * * *
"Not bad," Bobby said, with a grin as John collapsed in his arms.
"Thanks," Rogue answered, replacing her gloves. "Now I have some firepower." They both paused and giggled at the accidental pun. "Ah'm gonna go help Logan, you ok here?"
"Yep," he replied. "Got everything under control." She smiled and started to walk away.
"Rogue, wait!" Bobby called out. She turned to look at him, and then caught something he threw at her. Examining the object, she grinned as she recognised it as John's lighter. "What use is fire power without the fire?" he added.
She smiled in appreciation and then walked away in search of Wolverine. She paused to ignite John's lighter and created herself a ball of fire, so she could be ready. She continued to walk with it hovering below her palm. A few feet away, she could hear the sound of metal scraping against metal, it had to be him. But then she heard a cry of fear coming from another direction, and decided to answer it.
In front of several delivery trucks, she noticed one of the guards pinned against the wall with some sort of staff. As she peered round a crate, she saw Remy - Gambit - holding him in place. Looking down to make sure her fireball was still active, she stepped out from behind the crate and directed the fire towards him. It whisked past the Cajun, making him release the guard and immediately turn in her direction.
"Roguey," he said, grinning. "Where y' been all dis time, chere?"
Rogue ignored him, and instead made herself another two fireballs, hovering them above her hands. She began to approach Gambit, and was surprised when he backed away. He wasn't afraid, but her borrowed powers obviously made him reconsider the situation.
"Why are you here?" she asked, almost no emotion to her voice. She wasn't in the mood for playing anymore. Gambit didn't respond, instead he pulled a card from his pocket and charged it. She raised her arm and threw a fireball at him, knocking the card out of his hand, setting his glove on fire in the process. He quickly pulled it off and then cradled the burnt flesh. The card that he had dropped exploded behind him.
"Why?" Rogue repeated, splitting her remaining fireball into two. "Ah'm not in the mood for games, Cajun. Now tell me." She resumed walking towards him, now he was backing into one of the trucks. If she could trap him there, that'd take him out of the fight and give the X-Men an advantage.
Suddenly, she felt her power draining away and looked down to see both her fireballs flickering and shrinking. In almost no time at all, they were gone. She had lost Pyro's power. And that meant that he was probably awake. She scowled and picked up a small beam of steel as a weapon. Gambit had lost his bo-staff, so she still had a slight advantage. She resumed walking towards him, until she was at the top of the ramp. Gambit was right at the back of the truck, still with a grin on his face.
"I'm not gonna ask you again," she threatened. "Why are you here!?"
Before he could answer, she was pushed hard from behind. Gambit rushed forwards to catch her, delving into her pocket and removing John's lighter while he was close. He spun her into the side of the wall and threw the lighter to Pyro, who was standing in the doorway. She recovered quickly and grabbed Gambit's coat as he made his way to the exit. Using all her strength, she pulled him into the wall beside her. John, still outside, closed the doors and threw the latch, locking them both inside. Now she couldn't see a thing.
Regaining her bearings, she looked around, trying to adjust her eyes to the lack of light. Once at school, the power had been cut and the whole place was in darkness. That was just a few days after the Liberty Island incident, so with Logan's powers, she had helped to sort out the problem. But now, she only had her own power, absorption, and that wasn't a great deal of help when she couldn't see a thing. She was locked in a tight space with an enemy, not the best situation in the world.
"Just you and me now, chere," a voice said from behind her. She turned and tried to grab him, but she only felt thin air. She felt something move behind her, and turned round again. She saw his red eyes glowing in the dark a few metres away.
Rogue removed her gloves and threw them to the floor. Then she started towards the two red circles, her fists clenched and ready to fight.