PRE-A/N: Jeeze. It has been one hell of a past week. Computers have not been my friend, and then was having not goodness going on. Grr. Added to that, I'm packing up to move into my dorm room (four hours away!) so, I'm trying to get all of this story up before Saturday. Cross your fingers, folks.

-PomegranateQueen: Thank you (bow), thank you (bow).

-Rogue4787: Thanx! We love that you think we're funny. You should see us in real life...(wince) then again, maybe not.

-Ish: The "true American fashion" bit was all Panther, but I'll pass along the message. But, iddn' it the truth? (subliminal message- vote for Kerry- subliminal message)

-TheDreamerLady: (holding up award for getting put on fav list while weeping hysterically) Thank you! Thank you! You like us, you really like us!

Disclaimer: yadda yadda. On with the story.

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Remy walked out of Hot Topic a new man-dressed-as-a-woman. He'd seen the black light, and it was good. He felt enlightened, free, as if-

Hey, Rogue was walking into Spencer's. Threatening Bobby. Oh, here comes Bobby, looking frightened, but Rogue was still in the store. Remy grinned and decided to go show off his new-found goth knowledge.

As soon as he walked in, he spotted Rogue looking at the glitter lamps in the store window. He strode toward her, swinging his hips the way you had to in heels, or risk the humiliation that Remy had been subjected to for the first part of the day. Rogue saw him coming toward her and inwardly groaned. Just what she needed. Of course, Remy picked up on this mood shift and grinned. God, it was fun pissing her off!

"'Lo, chere."

Rogue barely acknowledged the greeting and went back to perusing the lamps. Remy had the absolute desire to wrap his arms around her waist and start the first stanza of "Your Best Nightmare" by London After Midnight- which Hot Topic Tawnie had informed him was one of Rogue's favorite songs while they were at the club-in a low murmur. Instead, he reached around her and picked up a lamp with green liquid, and silver glitter floating around in it.

"Dis'n'll match yo side o' de room 'n' clash well with Kitty's pink bed stuff," he said, not bothering to tell her how he knew what their room looked like.

Rogue studied it a moment. She kinda liked it. He had a point, damn him. Still, she figured it was better not to let him know she knew he had that point. "Why should Ah pick that one? There's a glowin' skull lamp ovah on the othah side o' the store."

Remy glanced over at the cheesy lamp she'd motioned to. He couldn't imagine that in anyone but a necrophiliac, or a Hamlet-obsessee's room. He was really hoping that Rogue was neither. The one was creepy, the other was just way too dramatic, even for him.

"Oui, but I t'ink dis'n caught ya eye more."

Rogue raised her eyebrows and nodded slightly. "Ya got back one o' the points ya lost earliah." She held up a finger when Remy started to smirk. "But ya lost a lot o' points."

"Lemme pay fo' dis," he said, hefting the lamp still in his hand.

"Ah'll pay fo' it mahself," she said, taking the lamp away from him and settling it in the crook of her arm. She had to smirk, though, at the irony. "Not like it's eithah of our money really payin' fo' it, anyway."

Remy bowed slightly and motioned to the cash register. Rogue shrugged and then shook her head.

"Ah ain't quite done lookin' yet."

Down the mall a ways, Sam was still being stalked, despite Rogue's warning to the girls. He sighed in annoyance and turned around. "If ya gonna stalk me, at least pretend ta be quiet."

The girls all giggled non-apologetically.

"So?" Amara asked eagerly. (A/N: As so many of you are.)

"So, what?" Sam crossed his arms in front of his chest.

"You. Roberto. Lots of squishy feelings," Jubilee clarified. "What are you going to do about it?"

"What are y'all talkin' about?" he snapped, as if he didn't already know perfectly well what they were talking about. "Why should Ah do anythin'? What'd Ah do if Ah was ta do somethin'?"

"Well," Rahne said, "you could approach it scientifically."

The rest of the group looked at her in confusion.

"Mum's a scientist," she reminded them. "We've had this discussion already."

"Whatta ya mean 'scientifically'?" Sam asked suspiciously.

Rahne cleared her throat and became very business-like. She'd seen her mother address conventions of other geneticists in just this way. "The logical thing to do would be to conduct an experiment. First, we create a hypothesis: you'll enjoy kissing Roberto."

Sam tried to jump in with a quick denial, but Rahne cut him off.

"I'm not saying you will, just that that's the hypothesis. Next, we do the experiment. You need a control, and an experiment for the opposite effect. This means that you should think about how you feel not being kissed, then get a kiss from a girl. After that, you get a kiss from Roberto and make an informed decision based upon the data that you've collected."

The girls did a little golf-clap in appreciation for that explanation, while Sam sulked.

"You have to admit, Sammy-boy," Tabitha slung an arm around his shoulders (A/N: Yes, she's there too), "it's a good idea, and it'll definitely help you make the right decision. I mean, think about it. If you're not...you know, gay? Well, then you won't enjoy lockin' lips with 'Berto, will you?"

"That's the theory," he grumbled.

"You'll never really know unless you, like, take the plunge," Kitty said.

Sam continued to sulk for another minute before mumbling, "Y'all know Ah hate ya, right?"

"To the depths of your soul!" Tabby grinned, grabbing the Kentuckian's bare shoulders and smacked her mouth on top of his in a deep kiss. Any male that had at least a 30% straight affiliation would have melted to the floor right there in the mall. Sam looked very surprised, and even impressed, but he was not a pile of Jell-O.

"Well?" Tabitha asked once she'd pulled away.

"Impressive," Sam nodded. "Ah don' think Ah've evah had someone else's tongue that far back in mah mouth before."

"Alright! Off to find 'Berto!"

The expedition trooped off in search of the solar boy who had scampered off. They finally found him at the fountain in front of JC Penny's- talking with St. John. The rest of the Brotherhood fanned out around them. $%$%$%$%$$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%$%%%$%$%$%$%$

POST-A/N: And I bet you guys thought they'd never get here! Well, here they are.