DISCLAIMER: The x-men aren't mine. But Marie is. And that makes me feel all warm and fuzzy.
Gambit leaned over and took a large bite out of Rogue's ice cream sandwich. She was watching Bobby and one of the students drag Hank into a haunted house ride. Bobby had bumped the image inducer that Hank was wearing earlier in the day and he had gotten the bright idea to add their own special touch to the ride. After failing to get Kurt's help, they had moved on to Hank. Rogue looked around for Marie, but couldn't find her either. She went to take a bite out of her ice cream sandwich and noticed that a large portion of it was missing.
"Cajun?"
He put on an innocent face. "Oui, chere?"
"Go get me another ice cream. This one is ruined."
"Got any money?"
"No."
He shrugged and walked off towards the concessions stand. She turned back to the ride, leaning over the railing in front of her. Hank had finally given in, and he, Bobby, and Pierre1, the student, were climbing into one of the cars. She looked up at the top of the building and was surprised to see Marie dart from behind one of the large metal letters towards the back of the building.
"What the hell?"
She turned around to see if Remy was coming back yet, and noticed a group of teenagers sitting at a picnic table. One of the guys winked at her, and she rolled her eyes. She turned back to the ride just in time to see a small cluster of kids run screaming from the emergency exit. She laughed, not noticing the teenager who had walked up next to her until his hand was nearing her face. She reached up and grabbed his wrist, spinning to face him.
"Can Ah help you?"
"I think you can." He winked again, and she tightened her grip, making him wince. She continued to tighten her hold on him until tears started to form in his eyes. He choked out, "Let go, you psycho bitch" and she smiled.
"That's more like it. Get lost." She pushed him away, and he ran back to the table, where his friends were laughing.
"Like mot'er, like daughter. You pick dat up from Raven?"
She peered around a nearby trashcan, where Gambit was sitting, leaning against the railing and eating an ice cream cone.
"How long have ya been sitting there?"
"Only since right before de little man got shut down."
"Didja get mah ice cream?"
"Oui." He held it up and tossed it to her. She caught it and started to unwrap it, pointing to the haunted house ride.
"Marie went in there, too. Ah don't know what she's up to, though."
"Maybe Remy should go check it out."
"Ah don't want to miss this either."
She threw the wrapper in the trash and headed towards the ride, and Remy followed, shoving the rest of the ice cream cone in his mouth. When they reached the ride, the attendant waved them on without checking their wristbands or noticing that Rogue still held her ice cream sandwich. The bar slid down, locking them into the car and the ride jolted, starting to ease down the track. It turned a corner and they were sent into a large, long corridor. Small displays on either side of the track lit up, revealing skeletons playing the piano and shooting craps. Remy yawned.
"Bored yet, chere?"
"Oh, yeah." She grabbed the bar and pulled it up, not even hesitating as she forced the mechanism open. They hopped out of the car and onto the platform, where another set of skeletons were playing blackjack. Remy sidled up to the table and grabbed one of the hands, looking at it thoughtfully before turning to the skeleton dealer.
"Hit me."
Rogue slapped him on the arm.
"OW! Dat hurt, chere!"
Henry stiffened. "We have company."
Across the tracks, an evil looking snowman shifted positions slightly to peer down the dark hallway. Another dark figure stepped from shadows that barely existed and hopped off of the platform, landing on the tracks with a thud. It stepped out of the way seconds before the car came down, the restraint bar bent upwards. All three men looked at the car as it passed. Hank turned to the two who were now both standing on the platform across the tracks.
"Either Piotr somehow got out of 'kiddie-land' duty, or Rogue is here."
She floated silently along the top of the tunnels, watching everything that happened. She had seen her parents enter and she could see everyone else's positions. She smiled a little bit as Bobby stepped back into the icy scene he had created. A car full of teenagers distracted her momentarily, and she lost track of Remy and Rogue. A scream from further up the tunnel let her know where they had repositioned themselves. She floated silently down, landing on the shoulders of one of the ice sculptures. It looked up at her before smiling.
"Marie. You joined the party."
"I couldn't resist."
Hank stepped out of the diorama across the tracks.
"Was that your handiwork on the cart back there?"
"Nope. The parents are about."
"Out past curfew?" the ice sculpture quipped.
She slid down his back and grabbed a hold of one of the neighboring statues, breaking the arm off of it with little effort.
"Oops."
Bobby nodded and went back to his human form. "Roger that."
Beast grinned. She was a lot like her mother. Another car turned the corner and Marie signaled to them to step down.
"Watch and learn." She floated up to the ceiling and hovered, waiting for the car to reach her. When it did, she lowered herself slowly and hung upside-down, her hair falling and giving her the look of horns, and her red eyes glowing in the dark. Sure enough, the occupants of the car screamed. She laughed maniacally and flipped down, landing on all fours on the front of the car. She snarled at them and leapt off just before the car turned the corner. Floating daintily, she perched herself on the edge of the platform, putting on her best impression of her mother.
"And that, boys, is how it's done right."
Remy had suggested that she help him scare some of the riders before they went to find the others, and she was more than happy to oblige. They stood on the tracks, waiting for the car to come. The lights on the platforms turned on, and the cart turned the corner. Rogue put out her arms and stopped it, lifting it up just enough for it to unlatch from the conveyor belt. She looked up at the people inside, and Remy came up behind her. All that they could really see were her hair and his glowing eyes. He grinned and charged up a card. The flare illuminated the tunnel just enough for them to be able to see just how scared the passengers were. The petrified looks on their faces were enough to make Remy retract the charge and Rogue set the cart back down. The watched it slowly edge away, as the riders continued to whimper.
"Ah don't think that Ah've seen anyone that scared since that time that Jean caught us—"
"Oui. Remy's used t' dat kind of reaction, but dis is crazy."
They both thought for a minute, before coming to the same conclusion.
"Marie."
They backtracked and boarded an empty car, hoping to catch the pranksters in the act. Rogue pulled out a red bandana that she happened to have with her and covered her hair. Remy put on a pair of sunglasses that he had stolen from Scott, lest the glow of his eyes be noticed.
"Whaddaya t'ink, chere? Boston?" He whispered.
"Sounds good." She replied then cleared her throat, speaking loud enough for anyone within the walls of the ride to hear. "Man, Johnny, this ride is wicked retahded."
He stifled a laugh and replied. "Yeah, Mel, but it's nice and dark." He started to tickle her and she rolled her eyes and giggled in a voice that was most definitely not her own. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw something move in the tunnel ahead, and leaned in as if he were kissing her and whispered "Bobby is up ahead." She laughed and nodded, whispering to him "I smell Pierre, on the right just short of the platform." Sometimes, she had to admit, Wolverine's senses were a good resource to tap into. He nudged her and got ready to jump out of the car. He raised his voice again just loud enough for the rest of the team to hear.
"Hows about we give ourselves a little tour of this thing? I hear one of these platforms is a motel…"
Up above, Marie was about to get sick. She hadn't been able to find either of her parents and had returned to scare another car of riders, but instead had to listen to this couple coming onto each other. The woman had just agreed to bail out of the car with the guy, and she wasn't too sure that she wanted to go through with trying to scare them. She gave the others the signal to wait out on that car and watched as the two opened a door that led to the adjacent platform. Within seconds, she was hearing sounds that she knew for a fact were not programmed into the ride. She landed softly back on the platform and made a face at Bobby, who had his head pressed up against the wall. Hank came up beside her.
"Shall we move onto another ride? Or break this disgusting display up in a manner that will undoubtedly prove to be embarrassing for all parties involved, present company excluded?"
Pierre stepped out of the shadows. "You really have to ask that question?" He grabbed Beast and jumped down into the tracks. "We'll go around this way, on my signal, head through that door."
Marie nodded and slapped Bobby. "Pay attention, pervert."
He grinned. "I was!"
Pierre and Beast made their way to the other side of the platform, keeping low, unable to see what was happening on the platform itself. Marie, however, had lifted herself up once again and was looking directly at what was designed to be a pool hall, but was being used as something quite different. "At least they found a sheet to cover up with", she thought to herself. She lowered herself back to the ground and seconds later, Pierre whistled. She and Bobby burst through the door at the exact second that Beast and Pierre vaulted onto the platform. They were all surprised as a flurry of movement met them and next thing they knew, they were bound by a rope that Rogue was holding tightly around them, and Gambit was pointing a pool cue at Marie's head.
"Bang, you dead."
1Pierre Truffaut, code name "La Nuit", is a member of the X-Statix. His power is the projection of a dark, cloak-like aura, which is mostly used for stealth purposes. He first appeared in X-Force #116, published in 2001.
A/N: Sorry for the long time no update thing. I'll try to make sure it doesnt happen again. Review. Maybe that'll help :-)