Thanks for all the reviews and keep them coming! The more the better. I'm such a loser, getting such a kick out of reading them. : ) It's like a flutter in the stomach, makes me so happy.
Warning: Updates may be coming slower bc since school's starting soon I'm going to be really busy and I have to study for these dang SAT IIs I have in October. Yeah, over achiever, I know, but I'd go crazy if I didn't prepare a little bit. Don't worry though, this story will not go unfinished.
Pyro-Panda, Karakin, enchantedlight, loneraven, epona04 (I wonder what a happy dance looks like), Weapon X 61--thank you all for reading and reviewing and liking my story! It makes all the difference. Freak87: glad you think the Rogue/Remy conversations weren't overdone. I was kinda wary about that azycat: yeah, lots of people agreed that Rogue and Gambit shouldn't fall into intense love right away. And you'll see the feelings develop all right. Zen Master White Dragon: Glad you think it's enjoying. Thank you for the criticism. And Remy is a questionable character--I try not to be too mainstream, though it's a fear of mine. Yes, can't stand those thick headed buffoons. I love how your review is a complete paragraph! : ) Wish I had more of those. Ishandahalf: You are so enthusiastic, I love it! If you think you're Romy obsessed... And no, Rogue is not about to fall in love with Remy right away. Girls who do that are so typical and Rogue is definitely not typical. That's why I think she's so cool. Again with the bunnies on crack! Sweety8587: I was going to have them play football but that would have been too typical--and I love ultimate frisbee. At least Rogue realizes Remy's a player so she won't fall into his traps, right? Yeah, I felt like slapping the idiot over the head too. Lance? Lance? Can't tell you! DumbBlondeBlue: Captivating? Oh, I'm so flattered you think so! And of course I'm going to get the romance in--but entwined within the plot otherwise, there's nothing interesting, don't you think? Splendiferous, great word choice. Flowerperson: doesn't have to be scary, only if you draw yourself into it--and of course read it at night! I think I should recommmend that, the effect is definitely better that way. :)
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The Professor and Remy spent a few hours locked away in his office. Everyone was told the Professor was trying to find out why Remy had not been reduced to a comatose condition after his attack. After strenuous mind probing the Professor did not find any mental barriers or psychic anomalies that could have provided immunity. It seemed obvious what they had to do. The Professor, Ororo, and Logan departed for Austria to meet with the Count Velkonnen. The plan was only to be gone for a few days but with so little information to work with, the students were warned of an extended absence. They jetted away from the Institute around seven o' clock, half an hour after dinner.
Hank returned to the Infirmary to run check ups on Lance's current condition. He was in a coma, like the other victims. Kitty stayed by his bedside, watching as Mr. McCoy worked on him.
"I'm afraid there's nothing we can do," he said, patting Kitty on the shoulder. "You can spend as much time with him as you like."
Rogue stood in the doorway, watching the sad expression on her friend's face. Despite the breakup, Rogue knew Kitty still had feelings for Lance. It was a pity their relationship hadn't worked out. With a sigh Rogue left the Infirmary. She wandered through the foyer, to the rec room, but found she wasn't in the mood for speculating with the others on this Wraith character. Frankly, the knowledge of Patricia Velkonnen spooked her. Their mutations were similar, except this woman was unfortunate enough to need absorption. She needed to kill others to survive. Rogue could not imagine living in such a way. Now the voices in her head made sense.
She's a monster--a vampire--like you!
She's coming! She's coming!
Don't let her take us...
Rogue wanted to know more. There was something about all this...why were her psyches acting up? How did they know about Wraith before Rogue herself knew? As if they could sense her, as if they knew she would come. Come after Rogue? Was she being targeted? But why, how, when? Nothing was certain.
And then there were the eight other victims and now Lance. And Kitty. Poor, poor Kitty. Rogue clutched the sides of her head, the voices bombarding her mercilessly in their panic. Knowing the facts about Patricia Velkonnen seemed to have alarmed them even more. Their shouts came to a deafening crescendo. They were afraid; they were so afraid.
She's here! She's here!
She's come! Don't let her take us!
Let me out! I can't stay when she comes!
You evil monster! You'll let her take us! You want her to take us!
"Chere? Y'all right, Rogue? Rogue!" Hands on her arms, holding her up. She was on the floor, she couldn't stop the pain. "Chere, tell me what t'do. Rogue?"
Screaming. The screaming would never end. But then Rogue opened her eyes and realized the screaming was not coming from inside her mind. It was coming from the rec room. A sharp pang of fear struck as her breath came in raspy gasps. She looked up at a pair of red and black eyes, confused. Then she shoved Remy away, screaming, "She's here!"
But he already knew. He looked in the direction of the cries. Then he turned to her, helping her to stand. "Y'okay?" he asked.
"Forget about it!" Rogue exclaimed breathlessly. She swatted his hands away and stumbled towards the noise, the voices her head unrelenting. She felt his hands on her arms steadying her as they both burst into the rec room. At first she didn't understand what she was seeing.
Bobby, Amara, and Ray stood by the large-screen TV in shocked fright while Scott and Jean tried desperately to calm a screeching Rahne. Rogue moved to rush forward but Remy held her back. "Nothing y'can do, chere," he said solemnly. His eyes were fixed on the scene, as if seeing something nobody else could.
"Stay away!" Rahne was shrieking, flailing her arms and legs, clenching her eyes shut then opening them only to scream again in horrible terror. "Get away from me! Get away! Get away!" Her once-soft brown eyes were wide like a rabid animal, gleaming with fear. She fought the air, trying to bat something away that wasn't there.
"Rahne, please!" Jean pleaded. "Calm down! Rahne--" She gasped when the girl knocked her aside with a flailing arm. She fell against the edge of a side table, hitting her head.
"Jean!" Scott left Rahne's side and helped the redhead off the floor.
"I'm fine," she assured him, turning again to Rahne. "We need Hank. Get Hank--"
Rahne's screams had suddenly stopped. Her mouth opened and closed in utterance of silent terror, eyes wide and horrified. She inched backwards slowly, whimpering, weeping. Her hands swatted at air and then she began to shake. She trembled from within, eyes rolling up in her head. For the longest time nobody knew what to do. Then with one final scream, she fell limp on the floor.
Silence.
Rogue reminded herself to breathe. Rahne looked so peaceful, like she was sleeping. She was no longer afraid.
Amara suddenly burst into tears and Ray wrapped his arms around her. Bobby had disappeared. Rubbing her head, Jean crawled forward, calling out to Rahne but receiving no reply. She closed her eyes and summoned her telephatic powers. When she opened them she shook her head sadly at Scott. "It's like Lance," she said. "There's nothing in there. She's been drained..." Involuntarily her gaze flicked in Rogue's direction.
The voices in her mind were silent. Rogue shook her head. "Ah didn't do it," she said. "Ah didn't do it. Don't look at me like that."
Scott looked at her in confusion. "Rogue, it's okay. Nobody's blaming you."
"What happened?" Hank demanded, entering the room with Bobby trailing behind. He saw Rahne on the floor, saw the frightened expressions of the students, and lowered his eyes sadly. "So it finally comes to us." He scooped Rahne up and left the room.
She will come for you, Tresallie Savara had said. Death comes to all.
Once word of Rahne's attack spread, the amount of foreboding and dread increased until nobody could feel comfortable being alone. With the Professor gone, along with two members of the senior staff, the students felt more vulnerable than ever. How could they fight an invisible foe? How would they prevent another attack?
Rogue locked herself in her room and sat on her bed, rocking back and forth with her knees pulled up to her chest. She felt connected to all this, like she had some answers. Wraith and her were the same, but different. There was an answer to this.
A tap sounded, coming from the balcony doors. Rogue's head snapped up. She frowned at the Cajun who stood outside. She slid off her bed and approached the doors, not opening them. "How'd you get here?" she demanded through the glass.
"Climbed from de roof," he replied with a shrug. He smiled as an offer of peace and tapped the glass panes, "Jus' t'see how y'were. Open de door, please, chere?"
Rogue sighed and flipped the locks, allowing him to enter. As he stepped inside she walked around him, out into the night. She leaned against the balustrade of her balcony and stared at the sky.
Remy raised an eyebrow, then followed. He sat up on the balustrade, tilted his head back to look at her. "Wanna talk 'bout it?"
"What's there to say?" Rogue asked, not being able to keep the edge out of her voice. She felt tense. She was scared for Rahne. She was scared for her friends. And the voices in her mind would not leave her alone.
"Y'were spooked, chere," he said. "Y't'ought somebody blamed you. Why?"
Rogue looked down, allowing her hair to fall over her face and shroud her expression.
"Don't wan' tell me, dat's fine," Remy said. "Jus' know it ain't healthy t'keep t'ings bottled up inside."
Rogue huffed, "Oh, 'cause you're so open with everything." She heard him sigh in exasperation and turned to look at him. The familiar flutter in her stomach made her feel slightly lighter. Always this affect when she was around him, and she hated it. Hated it and liked it at the same time. Remember he used you. He kidnapped and lied to you, made you think he cared. But it was so nice to feel something, something other than the emptiness.
"Feel like I should be explainin' N'Awlins," he suddenly said.
Rogue turned away, swallowing. Did he have to bring it up? "Ya already did. Ya needed help that ya didn't think you'd get unless you forced it. Ah understand completely. Like Ah said, ya did the wrong thing for the right reasons."
Remy sighed, hopping off the balustrade. He propped himself up by the elbows, standing inches apart from her. Wasn't he afraid of her skin? He looked at his gently clenched hands as he spoke, "Really was watchin' out fo'you. I saw what was happenin', chere. If y'didn't get away soon, y'were go'n' snap. Jus' turned out t'be a very convenient time t'whisk you off somewhere." He smiled crookedly, "Was fun fo'a while wasn't it?"
Rogue rolled her eyes though she smiled inwardly. She was confused. During the whole time they were together on the train, during Mardi Gras, at the Bayou, he had never been so forward. He had never flirted or teased, just acted like a friend, which she had enjoyed...not like now when he would take any opportunity to make her squirm in her own skin.
"We got stuff in common, you an' me," he said. "Don't t'ink I forgot our boat ride conversation."
Fireflies. Darkness. The gentle lull of the water. Rogue closed her eyes, remembering it. You an' I, we could write a book about it. Been down de same roads. She immediately snapped back to the present and glared at him. "Ah don't know what ya're after, Gambit, but you're not getting it," she huffed. She turned to leave.
"I saw her tonight."
Rogue froze, slowly turning to look at him. "What?"
"When y'friend was bein' attacked, I saw her."
"Who?" Rogue was almost afraid to ask.
Remy turned to look at him, his red eyes bright in the darkness. "De ghost. She was floatin' over her, holdin' out dose smoky hands...like when she went after me. 'Cept dis time, she saw me, looked right at me and laughed. She got one scary laugh, but she sounded like a young girl..." He shook his head as though confused by his own memories. "My only guess for why dis is? Maybe 'cause she tried t'get me but couldn't somehow, and now I can see her. Maybe she left a part o'herself in my head."
Rogue returned to his side and clasped her hands in front of her. "Ah don't know what to say to that, Remy. Ah don't know what any of it means."
"Scary stuff, non?"
Rogue wondered if she could tell him. What if he thought she was crazy? But then again, he was confiding, he was offering her a disturbing knowledge. "The voices in my head," she began, "they...uh...they know when..." She closed her eyes, feeling them reel.
"What? Can't be much crazier dan what I just told y'."
"They knew she was here before Rahne screamed," Rogue said in one breath. "They were afraid of her before any of us even knew about it...like they can feel her or they just know her or--Ah don't know..."
"S'all right, chere." He wrapped an arm around her shoulders, felt her stiffen.
"They're afraid of her," she went on, trying to shrug him off. He held on. "How are we supposed to stop her? Who's gonna be next, huh? What if it's Scott or Jean or Kurt or Kitty--God, we don't know how to stop her and the Professor and Logan are gone and..." She shook her head and stood still, ever aware of his arm draped across her bare shoulders. She felt his warmth through the sleeve of his shirt.
"S'okay to be afraid," Remy said gently. "We all are right now."
It felt so nice to be held. His warmth was contagious, flowing into her tense muscles, relaxing them, comforting. Rogue closed her eyes, forgetting about her skin. Suddenly it didn't matter that he had kidnapped and used her, that he was an untrustworthy lady's man. Maybe he was a good guy after all. Maybe he would stick around even after he healed, help the X-Men figure out all this craziness. Maybe...
"Y'still mad at me, chere?" he asked. When she shook her head he chuckled, "Didn't take much cajolin', did it?"
Maybe he would always be who he was: Remy LeBeau. Being reminded of that Rogue pulled away and moved back towards her room. "Thanks for checkin' on me," she muttered bitterly. She closed the balcony doors with a loud slam and locked them before waiting for his reply. Then pulling the curtains, she lay on her bed and closed her eyes, disgusted. Her friends were in danger and she was wasting energy thinking about some guy. She buried her face in her pillow and tried to force sleep.
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Post Notes: There it is, the first X-victim. So sad. Poor Rahne. Are she and Lance going to die? Why not, some of the other victims have. You must wait and see.
This chapter was altered slightly when I went back and reread it. I made the Rogue/Remy interactions more platonic. You should have seen what I had earlier, jeez, almost made me gag.
Next Chapter (coming in a few days): Unsafe