Mississippi

"Rogue? Oh Rogue my child welcome home." Shakily the woman stood and held out her arms stepping forward Rogue rushed into them and the two women broke down crying at their reunion. When they had calmed down rogue guided Irene back to her chair while blind eyes dried from tears of happiness. "Rogue, darling what brings you back here?" Her hand was rested on her foster daughters hair, gently stroking it, and while they spoke neither seemed to note the fact that skin was touching skin. "Oh God, it was all my fault Irene, it was all my fault that she died and they were all blaming me and talking about me and I couldn't stand it anymore and I missed my brothers, and I missed being me and I just thought that it would be better for everyone if I left." Rogue was sobbing again when she finished her heart-wrenching speech, showing just how much pain she was in, she never cried. Destiny murmured soothing words to her daughter as she wondered what had gone wrong from her vision. Noticing that Rogue had fallen asleep, obviously exhausted from the last few months she laid her down on the chair, covered her with a blanket and moved into the kitchen.

Picking up the phone she dialled a number and waited for the answer. "Hello." A male voice answered, and Irene paused for a few seconds before she spoke, thinking. "Hello? Look who the hell is this?"

"Todd, it's Destiny."

Westchester

"How the fuck could you blame her for that?" Logan roared at the three teenagers cowering in the chairs before him. She was your roommate, your girlfriend. How could you do that to her?" They were blatantly terrified of the man before them, to scared to answer, and he didn't improve matters when he slammed his claws into the wood panelling a few scant millimetres away from Bobby's ears. Jubilee, making a vain attempt to sound nonchalant cracked her gum and spoke to Scott who was standing by the door. "Mr Summers, you've been here. You've seen what she's been like; always quiet, ignoring everyone who speaks to her. And we can blame her because it's her fault. Bobby was there, he saw it, she landed the plane where it got stuck, and if that hadn't happened Jean wouldn't have had to get out and die. You lost you fiancé Mr Summers, you can't say that there isn't a part of you that doesn't blame that skunk haired freak." She cracked her gum again when she'd finished, a smug look was on her face because she believed that he would agree with her. She wasn't expecting the beam of red energy that slammed into the wall behind her, knocking her forward off her chair. Startled she looked up into the stony face of Cyclops. "Don't talk about Jean like that Jubilee, do you think that Jean would have blamed Rogue? No, she wouldn't. Rogue couldn't have landed that plane anywhere where the same think wouldn't have happened, the ground was soft and the weight of the plane sunk it."

"Well why did she have to try and play the hero anyway?" That came from Bobby. "If she'd have just stayed where we were everything would have been alright.

This time neither Scott nor Logan were given a chance to yell at him, instead Storm took her turn. A lightning bolt hit the legs of his chair, and a mild electric shock was sent through him, just enough so that he could feel the pain. "If Rogue hadn't moved the plane everyone would have died. We could never have got back to where we left the jet in time." Her voice was like thunder and she truly looked like her namesake.

The teenagers were terrified now; Jubilee and bobby were still making noises about how it had been her fault, and how everyone in the school knew it, even though every word they said made their teachers faces grow grimmer and the Wolverine's angrier. Kitty however had listened to their words and was starting to comprehend just what they had done to the girl who had been her best friend. Tears glistened in her eyes as she realised that there was truly nothing that could have gone differently, Jean's death was an accident. But before she could say anything the professor rolled in with Kurt behind him. Surveying the scene before him he came to the conclusion that he was going to do absolutely nothing about it. He had sensed the pain in Rogues mind for those few brief seconds, pain caused by his students, these three in particular. They deserved everything they were given in his opinion, except maybe Kitty; he could feel her growing regret and understanding.

Turning his attention back to the X-men, "I have found a rough location for her, she is in Mississippi, the general area of Caldecott County I believe. That was where I sensed her the first time. But she locked me out of her mind before I could find a definite location. That is what we must ask her when we find her, how she could lock me out." He paused for a few seconds, pondering that issue. "But you should be aware that she may not be there anymore, that was several hours ago, and I sensed a great need to move around in her mind, like yours Logan."

"I'll go and prep the jet." Scott left the room as soon as he had said that. Rogue was a quiet, shy girl who always seemed to be holding herself back because of her skin, like he did because of his eyes. Although he never spoke to her a great deal he used to go into the library to grade papers while she was doing homework and they just sat there for hours in companionable silence. She was holding secrets about her past he was sure of it, probably something to do with how she had thrown the professor out of her mind.

Logan, Ororo and Kurt moved to follow him. Rogue may have been quiet and shy but she had manoeuvred her way into all of their hearts, especially Logan's, and when he found her he didn't know whether to destroy his image and hug her or kill her for being stupid enough to run off.

When they reached the hangar they found the jet ready and waiting. "I've got the coordinates of where the professor sensed her." Scott told them while the other three strapped themselves in. "Logan could you find her scent even after a few hours. If you can then we'll just follow that until we find where she is, or where she's been." Nodding at the affirmative grunt from Logan the basketball court opened and the jet flew into the sky.

A few hours before, Irene's house, Mississippi

"Destiny, what you doing calling us up yo."

"Call me Irene Todd please, and can you get the rest of the boys together and put this on speakerphone, I have something to say that I think you all should hear." She waited while he put the phone down, and jerked it away from her ear at the sound of his yell and the thundering sounds that responded to it.

"HeyReneywhat'sup?" That was Pietro.

"Rogue is here boys."

That silenced them, she could here the shock emanating from the othr end of the line.

"Whatsshedoingthere?Isshealright?"

"What's up yo? I thought she was at some school."

"What's the matter with her Irene."

"We can tell something's wong."

They all spoke at once, and kept on repeating their quetions, not giving her a chance to answer until, "SHUT UP!!", that was Lance, "Irene?"

"Thank you Lance, Rogue ran from the school. One of the professors died last onts and she has been blamed for it. Rogue had to fly the jet or no one would have got out alive but the ground was soft and the plane stuck. Jean, I believe the name was, she got the jet out of danger but died while doing so. From what I can understand the students all blamed Rogue. She misses all of you, she needs you. She has a destiny to fulfill and she cannot do that while she is battling this pain. She cannot do it without you."

There was silence and Irene hoped that Rogue's necessary departure hadn't led to the Brotherhood wanting to sever their ties with her, no matter how much they still cared about her.

"Pietro, run down to Irene's and pick up Rogue. Go, Now!" There was a startled silence and then an audible rush of air. "Todd, go and sort her room out, make the bed and try and get rid of the dust."

"On it yo."

"Fred, you and me are gonna go shopping. Get all her favourite stuff in. Sounds like our girl needs cheering up. Irene, Pietro should be there in about half an hour. He on't go too fast 'cause he'll need the extra energy to bring her back."

Then all she could hear was the dial tone. Hanging up her phone she smiled, Rogue was really going home now.

Approximately two hours later the door bell rang and Irene came face to face with the X-Men.

The occupants of the small town of Caldecott whispered behind their hands at the strangers wondering through their town. A tall clean cut brown haired man with red sunglasses, a tall chocolate skinned woman with startling white hair, a man with a foreign look about him, blue hair, and colourless tattoos that just raised his skin all over what they could see, and a man with untamed hair who seemed to be growling and sniffing! Like a dog trying to find a scent.

They left the town at the end of the main street and started to go down one of the paths leading to the old houses. The animalisticone in the leadlooked as if he was heading to the Adler place.

"Logan, would you please try not to attract so much attention from the locals." Scott spoke through gritted teeth, all he got in reply was a grunt and an abrubt change of direction. Rolling his eyes behind his shades he followed, and he was followed in turn by Kurt and Ororo who were talking quietly, with Kurt absentmindedly fingering his image-inducer.

About fifteen minutes after they left the jet they came across a house that Rogue's scent disappeared into. Knocking on the door they were mildly surprised when it was answered by a woman who was obviously blind, taking into account the sunglasses, the off-centre gaze and the white cane in her hand.

"Ah, you must be the X-Men, please come in. I've been expecting you." They stepped past her into, each wondering how she knew who they were when she couldn't see. Once she closed the door she accurately led them into a sunny conservatory and asked them to sit down. The wicker table was filled with an assortment of biscuits and cakes, and there was a teapot with five cups. Asking Ororo to pour the tea and telling everyone to help himself or herself she settled onto a chair, asking the tea she was offered and holding it on her lap.

"Before you ask where Rogue is let me first tell you that she left my house about an hour ago." Holding up a hand to forestall any questions or exits she continued. "Please allow me to tell you everything that you need to know about Rogue before you rush off and try to find her.

Rogue is my foster daughter; she lived here with me from eight years to thirteen. Before that she lived with her mother. Her powers first developed when she was eleven years old, it was understandably a very traumatic experience for a little girl, although Rogue was already extremely mature for her age due to the circumstances of her life, the battles, physical and mental she had been involved in. I doubt she would have coped if it hadn't been for the son of a friend of mine. He looked after her, took her under his wing. He became her big brother in everyway but blood. They got matching tattoos on their shoulder blades, the Chinese symbol for family.

When Rogue was thirteen and Pietro was fourteen they had to leave Caldecott and move into a house in New York with three other mutants, Lance, Todd, and Fred, the house was run by Rogue's mother and it was a place for them to train their powers.

About two years after they left they realised that they were being trained to fight against normal humans. As they didn't believe in that the five of them ran together, on the way the other three got the tattoos as well.

Eventually Magneto caught up with them, he and his Acolytes fought them and severely injured Rogue. She told her brothers to go ahead and she would find them eventually. Reluctantly they did.

That took place in Canada, which I believe is where you met her Logan. Rogue's injury was mental, all the psyches in her mind were let loose by a telepath and the whole time she has been with you she has been working on rebuilding the walls, trying to regain the control she once had over her skin. She had just achieved it when the disaster at Alkali Lake took place."

Throughout her story her audience remained quiet, trying to reconcile this dangerous sounding girl with their Rogue. "I can give you the address she will be at with her brothers, but I have to warn you that rogue is back now, she will be different that the girl you knew." Nodding the X-Men took the address and left. Too shell-shocked to do anything else.

Meanwhile, a rundown apartment in the centre of New York city.

Four teenage boys and a teenage girl were sitting at a table loaded with food, they were laughing and joking, and Rogue was gloveless. The Brotherhood were truly back together.

Pleas review people, please!  