Author's Note: I may feel the need to smash your heads in with really
obvious metaphors. Beware.
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Remy's Words to Live By - "Never, and I mean never, eat four chili cheesedogs before bed."
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"Ppthaw!" Rogue woke spitting out cat fur. The culprit, an orange tabby, leapt obliviously down from her face onto the floor. The belle glared down at it. The creature had two names: 'Bellbottoms', for no obvious reason by Lorna, and 'Damn Cat', by Remy. The latter was by far its most common name.
"Damn you, furball. Ah was sleepin', you fluffy moron." She said peevishly. Why the hell didn't Lorna take care of her own cat? Instead, everyone else ran about feeding him, cleaning up his litter box and doing other odd chores that the scrap of dog-bait left for them.
That scrap of dog-bait looked up at Rogue with huge, round eyes. "You probably want me to feed you now, right?"
A meow seemed to confirm the answer.
"Well, Lorna wants ya to have Purina or Fancy Feast or somethin', but you can suck it up and have what everybody else is having." Rogue said, plotting on ways to sneak a less than desired breakfast beneath the table.
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"I dunno, Remy, it just seems like she's avoiding it." Said Bobby. The Cajun shrugged. Drake continued. "I mean, she never says 'I love you', she never wants to kiss me, she never seems to think of me as anything but her toy or repairman - are you laughing at me?" Bobby glared as Remy tried to suppress bitter laughter.
Remy looked at him playfully, smirk running across his face. "Non, just thinkin'. You t'ink you have a screwed relationship?" He said self- deprecatingly.
"Wait till I tell Rogue you said that!"
"You wouldn't."
"Would too!" Bobby punched Remy in the arm jokingly. Seeing that his companion didn't share his enthusiasm, his face fell. "Well then, I guess we're the two un-kissed dudes."
A shrug, but it came with a smile.
Bobby decided to start up a less sensitive subject. "So, I heard the Saints lost. Again."
Taking the teasing in his stride, Remy blew it off. "I never liked baseball anyway."
"It's football, you doofus. What do we call them now, the Louisiana Aint's?" The younger man continued. The other didn't seem to mind all that much.
"Oh, well, dat's how much I know about sports."
Bobby quickened his pace. "Wait up, you've got longer legs than me!"
A more-than-obvious roll of the eyes. "Oh, and dat makes all de dif- !"
Bobby winced as Remy tumbled down the stairs. A loud yelp signaled for him to look at his friend. "Remy, y'okay?"
"Damn it!"
"Remy?" Bobby took a closer look down the stairs, where Remy had cupped his bleeding nose in his hands. It didn't look like anything life- threatening.
"Damn it!" Bobby thumped down the stairs after him. Now that he knew his companion wasn't fatally injured, he could laugh about it as much as he wanted.
"Aww, did Mistah Male Supah Model of the Year get a boo-boo?" He dodged a badly aimed kick. Remy glared up at the stairs.
"Which idiot left a pair of loafers in de hallway?"
Bobby decided to further press the thief's buttons. "It's all fun and games until someone gets hurt. Then it's hilarious."
If looks could kill.
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Even for Kurt, Bellbottoms was a test of patience. For the fourth time that month the damn thing had taken a dump on a bed, and as usual, Kurt was left to clean it up as the other shied off to do random tasks. A few choice words flitted across his mind, but he decided against them.
Of course, Bellbottoms was a master of disguise as well. How could you hate such a fluffy, loving little creature? It rubbed against Kurt's leg, purring dynamically.
Wondering about the validity of Bobby's excuse that he 'had to go save the dodos', Kurt, brought down yet another pair of sheets to the laundry room. From the washing machine there emanated a meow. Kurt removed a furry mass from the machine, wondering how it had magically reappeared there from by his feet. Maybe the cat could teleport too.
Kurt placed the fuzzy burden in the bathroom, along with a clean litterbox. Bellbottoms protested. Kurt put down some food and water to go with it. Still the feline cried out.
"What more do you want? You have food, water, a bathroom and light, and you can hide here so no one hates you!" He said almost fiercely.
The thing seemed capable of an accusing glare. Kurt shut the door on it.
No, he thought. Being able to hide in peace wasn't enough for anyone or anything. The poor cat just needed some love. Like Kurt. He didn't want to spend his entire life hiding his appearance, he just wanted acceptance.
Maybe the cat did too.
Sighing theatrically, Kurt opened the door and started to pet the striped bundle.
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"I deserve a kiss for this." He said matter-of-factly, tousled brown hair hanging just above his eyebrows as he poked his head out from under the bed. For the umpteenth time, he was fixing the bed. For some odd reason, it kept caving in.
"No, I don't think so." Lorna said to her 'boyfriend' with equal quaintness.
"Oh, c'mon, my breath isn't that bad." Bobby crawled out from under the bed.
Irately, "I said no, Bobby."
"C'mon, Lorna." He said, equally annoyed.
She turned her back to him. "If we kiss now we'll both be in pissy moods and it won't be worth it."
Bobby couldn't believe he was hearing this again. "That's what you always say."
"Well, it's true."
Bobby slumped onto the bed. "Well, how bad could it be? `I mean, I'm pretty sure neither of us has Rogue's kiss of death."
Lorna's brow furrowed and her green hair beginning to rise with static. "I said no, Bobby."
"Why not?" He'd heard this too many times before.
"Because."
His face started to redden. "Because what, Lorna? Because I'm not Alex? God knows you'd be sucking my tongue off if I were him!"
A shudder of age ran through Lorna. "Don't you mention him." She said with deadly intent.
Bobby stood up, eyes narrowed. "Why, Lorna? It's because I'm sloppy seconds, isn't it, ever since Alex ran off with -"
"Don't you dare mention him! Don't you ever mention him again!" Lorna turned to him, rage emanating from her entire body, eyes glowing. Bobby looked taken aback, then straightened.
"You know what? I don't think I want to be sloppy seconds." Now it was Bobby who turned, and walked out. Lorna stared after him, halfway between wrath and shock. What had just happened there? Had he just left her?
Outside the room, Bobby rushed through the halls. He didn't want to cry, he was a big boy, but Lorna had played that game for too long. He loved her and she acted like it was nothing. That wasn't the way to a healthy relationship. Not when Alex still hovered in their silences.
Out under the dogwood trees, in the frigid cold, Bobby sternly told himself he wouldn't cry. He would just get over it. He wouldn't mope, wouldn't complain, wouldn't talk it over. For God's sake, he wouldn't cry.
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"Rogue, mein schwester, is that you standing there all alone?" Kurt walked up behind her and stood with her on the balcony. "You'll catch a death of cold."
Rogue smiled. She didn't plan on staying out there long, what with her long-sleeved yet light shirt and her skirt and leggings.
"What are you looking at?" Her half-brother asked.
"Well, Ah'm trying to see what's up on the road." A sour look crossed her face. "Damn these dogwood trees. Ah can't see what the hell is going on! Ah can't see the road!"
"Then why don't you look at the sunset?" He said simply.
She looked up at it, beautiful reds and golds playing across the clouds. "Ah guess Ah just never thought about it."
"Hmm. Shall we watch it a little while longer?"
Rogue grinned at him. "Ah'm cold. Can ya wrap an arm or tail 'round me or somethin'?"
He obliged, wrapping his arm around her waist. They swayed slightly together, like the dogwood trees in the wind.
"Guess there are advantages to fur." She said softly, dreamily, watching the sun play with colors that mocked even the greatest of painters.
She'd never let anyone else hold her like that. Not anyone, not even Remy. There was a special connection there Raven's children that could never be severed.
After a few minutes, the sun decided its game was over and ended with indigos and cobalt. They returned each to their respective rooms, where Rogue saw to her delight that Remy had made the beds that morning, and Kurt found Bellbottoms sleeping on his couch.
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Remy's Words to Live By - "Never, and I mean never, eat four chili cheesedogs before bed."
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...
"Ppthaw!" Rogue woke spitting out cat fur. The culprit, an orange tabby, leapt obliviously down from her face onto the floor. The belle glared down at it. The creature had two names: 'Bellbottoms', for no obvious reason by Lorna, and 'Damn Cat', by Remy. The latter was by far its most common name.
"Damn you, furball. Ah was sleepin', you fluffy moron." She said peevishly. Why the hell didn't Lorna take care of her own cat? Instead, everyone else ran about feeding him, cleaning up his litter box and doing other odd chores that the scrap of dog-bait left for them.
That scrap of dog-bait looked up at Rogue with huge, round eyes. "You probably want me to feed you now, right?"
A meow seemed to confirm the answer.
"Well, Lorna wants ya to have Purina or Fancy Feast or somethin', but you can suck it up and have what everybody else is having." Rogue said, plotting on ways to sneak a less than desired breakfast beneath the table.
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"I dunno, Remy, it just seems like she's avoiding it." Said Bobby. The Cajun shrugged. Drake continued. "I mean, she never says 'I love you', she never wants to kiss me, she never seems to think of me as anything but her toy or repairman - are you laughing at me?" Bobby glared as Remy tried to suppress bitter laughter.
Remy looked at him playfully, smirk running across his face. "Non, just thinkin'. You t'ink you have a screwed relationship?" He said self- deprecatingly.
"Wait till I tell Rogue you said that!"
"You wouldn't."
"Would too!" Bobby punched Remy in the arm jokingly. Seeing that his companion didn't share his enthusiasm, his face fell. "Well then, I guess we're the two un-kissed dudes."
A shrug, but it came with a smile.
Bobby decided to start up a less sensitive subject. "So, I heard the Saints lost. Again."
Taking the teasing in his stride, Remy blew it off. "I never liked baseball anyway."
"It's football, you doofus. What do we call them now, the Louisiana Aint's?" The younger man continued. The other didn't seem to mind all that much.
"Oh, well, dat's how much I know about sports."
Bobby quickened his pace. "Wait up, you've got longer legs than me!"
A more-than-obvious roll of the eyes. "Oh, and dat makes all de dif- !"
Bobby winced as Remy tumbled down the stairs. A loud yelp signaled for him to look at his friend. "Remy, y'okay?"
"Damn it!"
"Remy?" Bobby took a closer look down the stairs, where Remy had cupped his bleeding nose in his hands. It didn't look like anything life- threatening.
"Damn it!" Bobby thumped down the stairs after him. Now that he knew his companion wasn't fatally injured, he could laugh about it as much as he wanted.
"Aww, did Mistah Male Supah Model of the Year get a boo-boo?" He dodged a badly aimed kick. Remy glared up at the stairs.
"Which idiot left a pair of loafers in de hallway?"
Bobby decided to further press the thief's buttons. "It's all fun and games until someone gets hurt. Then it's hilarious."
If looks could kill.
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Even for Kurt, Bellbottoms was a test of patience. For the fourth time that month the damn thing had taken a dump on a bed, and as usual, Kurt was left to clean it up as the other shied off to do random tasks. A few choice words flitted across his mind, but he decided against them.
Of course, Bellbottoms was a master of disguise as well. How could you hate such a fluffy, loving little creature? It rubbed against Kurt's leg, purring dynamically.
Wondering about the validity of Bobby's excuse that he 'had to go save the dodos', Kurt, brought down yet another pair of sheets to the laundry room. From the washing machine there emanated a meow. Kurt removed a furry mass from the machine, wondering how it had magically reappeared there from by his feet. Maybe the cat could teleport too.
Kurt placed the fuzzy burden in the bathroom, along with a clean litterbox. Bellbottoms protested. Kurt put down some food and water to go with it. Still the feline cried out.
"What more do you want? You have food, water, a bathroom and light, and you can hide here so no one hates you!" He said almost fiercely.
The thing seemed capable of an accusing glare. Kurt shut the door on it.
No, he thought. Being able to hide in peace wasn't enough for anyone or anything. The poor cat just needed some love. Like Kurt. He didn't want to spend his entire life hiding his appearance, he just wanted acceptance.
Maybe the cat did too.
Sighing theatrically, Kurt opened the door and started to pet the striped bundle.
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"I deserve a kiss for this." He said matter-of-factly, tousled brown hair hanging just above his eyebrows as he poked his head out from under the bed. For the umpteenth time, he was fixing the bed. For some odd reason, it kept caving in.
"No, I don't think so." Lorna said to her 'boyfriend' with equal quaintness.
"Oh, c'mon, my breath isn't that bad." Bobby crawled out from under the bed.
Irately, "I said no, Bobby."
"C'mon, Lorna." He said, equally annoyed.
She turned her back to him. "If we kiss now we'll both be in pissy moods and it won't be worth it."
Bobby couldn't believe he was hearing this again. "That's what you always say."
"Well, it's true."
Bobby slumped onto the bed. "Well, how bad could it be? `I mean, I'm pretty sure neither of us has Rogue's kiss of death."
Lorna's brow furrowed and her green hair beginning to rise with static. "I said no, Bobby."
"Why not?" He'd heard this too many times before.
"Because."
His face started to redden. "Because what, Lorna? Because I'm not Alex? God knows you'd be sucking my tongue off if I were him!"
A shudder of age ran through Lorna. "Don't you mention him." She said with deadly intent.
Bobby stood up, eyes narrowed. "Why, Lorna? It's because I'm sloppy seconds, isn't it, ever since Alex ran off with -"
"Don't you dare mention him! Don't you ever mention him again!" Lorna turned to him, rage emanating from her entire body, eyes glowing. Bobby looked taken aback, then straightened.
"You know what? I don't think I want to be sloppy seconds." Now it was Bobby who turned, and walked out. Lorna stared after him, halfway between wrath and shock. What had just happened there? Had he just left her?
Outside the room, Bobby rushed through the halls. He didn't want to cry, he was a big boy, but Lorna had played that game for too long. He loved her and she acted like it was nothing. That wasn't the way to a healthy relationship. Not when Alex still hovered in their silences.
Out under the dogwood trees, in the frigid cold, Bobby sternly told himself he wouldn't cry. He would just get over it. He wouldn't mope, wouldn't complain, wouldn't talk it over. For God's sake, he wouldn't cry.
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"Rogue, mein schwester, is that you standing there all alone?" Kurt walked up behind her and stood with her on the balcony. "You'll catch a death of cold."
Rogue smiled. She didn't plan on staying out there long, what with her long-sleeved yet light shirt and her skirt and leggings.
"What are you looking at?" Her half-brother asked.
"Well, Ah'm trying to see what's up on the road." A sour look crossed her face. "Damn these dogwood trees. Ah can't see what the hell is going on! Ah can't see the road!"
"Then why don't you look at the sunset?" He said simply.
She looked up at it, beautiful reds and golds playing across the clouds. "Ah guess Ah just never thought about it."
"Hmm. Shall we watch it a little while longer?"
Rogue grinned at him. "Ah'm cold. Can ya wrap an arm or tail 'round me or somethin'?"
He obliged, wrapping his arm around her waist. They swayed slightly together, like the dogwood trees in the wind.
"Guess there are advantages to fur." She said softly, dreamily, watching the sun play with colors that mocked even the greatest of painters.
She'd never let anyone else hold her like that. Not anyone, not even Remy. There was a special connection there Raven's children that could never be severed.
After a few minutes, the sun decided its game was over and ended with indigos and cobalt. They returned each to their respective rooms, where Rogue saw to her delight that Remy had made the beds that morning, and Kurt found Bellbottoms sleeping on his couch.