Disclaimer: For the last time dammit, I don't own the X-Men!
Chapter 7
Rogue immediately jerked awake into a sitting position on the starched linen sheets. Her eyes winced in protest over the bright lights as her vision gradually adjusted to the room. She quickly took in the med lab before focusing her attention on its occupants. She stiffened in shock upon realizing that the Brotherhood and Acolytes were there as well.
Jean and Scott were in the far corner of the room; the redhead was holding a wet cloth to his forehead. Kurt was busy chatting with Pyro as they discussed their favorite doughnuts. The Blob, Toad, Pietro and Wanda were all surprisingly standing together and chatting amiably. Lance stood a little off to the side, glaring at Piotr who was leaning against the doorframe.
Her gaze dropped to her gloved hands and was shocked to see a slender bare hand linked to hers. Rogue raised her gaze to Kitty's bright blue eyes and smiled, squeezing her hand in affection. She then glanced to her right to see Remy's sleeping figure stretched out onto the bed next to her. She guiltily lowered her gaze, knowing why Remy wasn't waking up with the rest of them. Rogue spotted a young girl crying next to Remy's body, immediately recognizing her as the child from the warehouse. "Sugah, don't waste your tears for that boy, he'll wake up in a couple minutes, Ah promise," Rogue informed the young girl.
Penny immediately stopped crying and gazed at Rogue in confusion. "How do you know I just didn't mess up?" Penny sniffed, darting unsure glances between Remy's still form and Rogue's gentle smile.
"Because Ah kinda drained him right as you were waking us up. He'll be fine, don't worry," Rogue reassured the young, smiling down at her.
Rogue quickly hopped off the bed and approached Remy's slumbering form, gently brushing a stray lock of his hair out of his eyes before kneeling in front of the girl and asking "Are you the one who made me dream?"
Penny sheepishly nodded her head, confirming her role in everything. "Yah put me in a beautiful dream world. You must have an amazing imagination and be very powerful to be able to control that," Rogue complimented the young girl before rising and walking towards the exit.
"Rogue, like, where are you going?" Kitty asked, extremely worried that her best friend was moving around when she should really be in bed, not to mention shocked over her random display of affection for Gambit.
"Ah'll be in the Danger Room," she replied, "Ah'm okay."
"Rogue, you shouldn't be overexerting yourself in the Danger Room," Scott's firm voiced commanded from across the room.
"Unlike some people, Ah'm not weak. Ah can handle the Danger Room now. That dream was just one long cat nap for me," Rogue retorted back before leaving the room.
Scott darkly muttered something under his breath, crossing his arms in a huff and sending worried glances at Fred when all of the Brotherhood burst into laughter. He was a tad worried that Fred would share their… interesting time in the dream.
Watching Rogue exit the room, Kitty felt the events of the day finally begin to sink in. She looked at Penny who was leaning against an empty bed, slowly drifting off to sleep, and decided it was time the young girl took a much needed nap. Kitty wrapped an arm around the small girl's shoulders and led her out of the room, waving goodbye to its occupants. Kitty quickly tucked the girl into a comfortable bed in a guest room upstairs, placing a light kiss on the girl's forehead before exiting the room and trudging down the stairs.
A loud knocking against the door drew Kitty to the front door; who felt like she was doing everything today. Who led the rescue mission, Kitty; who befriended the young mutant and took care of her, Kitty; who was stuck answering the door because everybody else were downstairs in the med lab, Kitty. She jerked open the anger, she was not in the mood for this.
A tall, young man dressed in a wrinkled black suit casually leaned against the doorframe with a cigarette leaning out of his firm lips. Dark locks of unruly hair fell across his forehead, almost covering the dark blue eyes that stared at Kitty in amusement. Kitty slightly blushed upon realizing she had been ogling this gorgeous man in front of her. "Can I help you?" she shyly asked.
"I'm looking for Charles Xavier, is he here?" the young man smoothly replied in a rich, velvety voice, a slight British lilt accented his words.
"Yes, I mean, he lives here," Kitty began, her words slightly stuttering, "but he's not in right now."
"Bloody hell," the man muttered under his breath went to walk into the mansion, "well can I wait for him inside?"
Kitty abruptly slammed her hand across the doorframe, preventing his entrance. His slight aggression snapped her out of her lovesick stupor and adding firmness to her voice. "First off," Kitty began, plucking the cigarette out of the man's mouth, throwing it onto the ground and stubbing it out, "there's no smoking in here. Secondly, I don't know when Professor Xavier's going to return, so there's no point for you to wait inside. And thirdly, I don't know you, let alone trust you, so there is like no way you're getting into this house."
The man's eyes darkened in amusement as he admired the girl in front of him with new respect. "Then allow me to introduce myself, Pete Wisdom," he smiled, grasping her small hand in a slow handshake.
Kitty softly smiled at his attempt to be polite and replied, "Kitty Pryde."
Pete smirked down at the young girl in front of him. She had to be at least six years younger than him, but she was attractive. Wide blue eyes, a pert little nose, and small quirky lips made her simply adorable, and yet, sexy in some way. "So tell me Kitty Pryde," he smirked, pulling her closer with their linked hands, "since Charlie isn't in, I find myself with a free night. What are your plans this evening?"
Kitty's eyes widened in shock, she wasn't expecting this type of question from him. She couldn't believe it, not only were Lance and Piotr "fighting" over her all day, but this complete stranger had asked her out. She had to admit to herself, the mere thought of finding more out about this stranger did intrigue her. He was so mysterious, and mature, a true rebel… and she always had a thing for rebels. Lance and Piotr were great boys, but Pete was man, and that excited her. "Maybe," she coyly replied, leaning into his touch, "what do you have in mind?"
A seductive grin spread over his lips as he reached down and twirled of lock of soft hair from her ponytail around his finger, lowering his face even closer to her own. "How about we go out for drinks," he teased, fully aware that they wouldn't be served alcohol due to her age.
"Are you like insane," she huffed, crossing her arms in anger and turning her back to him, "I'm not of legal age to drink."
"Well then," he smiled and whispered in her ear, " how about I buy us some alcohol and we get drunk in my car?"
"Are you serious," Kitty asked incredulously, "it's three in the afternoon."
"It's after noon, that makes it okay in my book," he grinned and held out his car keys, jingling them in front of her, "why don't we then just drive around for a while and make it up as we go along."
Kitty peeked over his shoulder to spy a sleek, black convertible parked in the driveway. "You got a deal if I can drive," Kitty grinned up at the handsome man in front of her, holding out the palm of her hand expectantly.
"Oh, so then you are old enough to drive?" he teased, dropping the keys in her hand and gesturing to the car with his arms.
Kitty stuck her tongue out at him in response and closed the door behind her as she linked her arms with Pete and walked toward the car. He gallantly opened the driver's side door for her before getting in himself. "Buckle up," Kitty grinned at him, a dangerous glint appearing in her eyes.
"I don't wear a seatbelt," Pete replied, stretching out his legs and linking his hands behind his head in a relaxed manner.
"Don't say I didn't warn you," Kitty murmured under her breath and started the car, revving the engine in excitement.
Kitty winked at Pete before quickly shifting the car into drive and peeling out of the driveway. A faint, "Watch the Bloody Gate!" echoed from Pete's lips as the car whipped through the entrance gates and around the bend.
Back in the med lab…
"Mon dieu," Remy murmured, bringing his hands up to rub his temples as his eyes gradually opened, "what a headache."
"Remy," Piotr gasped, rushing over to his friend's waking form, "I am glad you have woken."
"Easy dere Colossus, give a homme some breathing space," Remy grinned, gently pushing the Russian's hovering figure away before pulling himself to a sitting position.
Remy's crimson eyes quickly swept over the room and wasn't the least bit surprised that Rogue was nowhere in sight. "Chicken," he muttered under his breath and hoisted himself off of the bed, leaning on Piotr for support, he was still a little dizzy, "please point Remy in de direction Rogue went."
Piotr merely raised his eyebrow at his friend's request, but complied and silently led the weak Cajun out of the med lab, facing him in the direction Rogue went. "Any suggestions where Remy should look first?" Remy hopefully asked, shaking his head once more and steadying himself on his own weight, ignoring the light-headiness he was feeling. "Danger Room," Piotr softly murmured in his thick, Russian accent, gently pushing Remy in the right direction.
"Merci mon ami," Remy smiled and proceeded down the hall, each step he took seemed to clear his mind as his steps became firmer and more solid.
"Where the hell does he think he's going?" Scott shouted and leaped off of the bed in anger when he spotted Remy, the enemy, walking down the hallway.
Piotr firmly stood in the doorway, blocking Scott's exit. Scott glared at the tall man in front of him and began to lower his red glasses. "Scott," Fred suddenly shouted, a twisted smirk forming on his small lips, "I would calm down if I were you. You must still be a little woozy from that dream, I remember everything clearly, how about you?"
Scott gulped at the hidden threat and slowly turned around and resumed his position on the bed, replacing the wet rag on his forehead.
Meanwhile, down a distant corridor in the mansion…
A lopsided grin graced Remy's face as he stared at the large, metal door with the label DANGER ROOM. "Of course dey label everything here," he muttered under his breath.
The door was completely sealed shut, there were no seams and no visible locks. The only apparent way to gain entrance into the room was by a hand identification scan. 'Dis will be harder den y' originally thought LeBeau,' his mind taunted as he peered at the impenetrable door. He was at the point of ignoring all other options and just kinetically charging the door when he spotted a side door merely four feet away from the intimidating Danger Room door.
The Cajun checked the side door to find it surprisingly unlocked. Grinning to himself, he stealthily slid through the doorway to find even more cute little labels, LOCKER ROOMS: Girls to the right, Boys to the left. "Unbelievable," he murmured as he breezed through the boys locker room, searching for an exit to the Danger Room muttering, "Wonder if dey label de toilets in dis joint…"
Rogue drew in a deep breath before charging at the mechanical objects in front of her. Kicking and punching, doing as much damage as she possibly could, knowing full well that the machines were always replaced. She was frustrated… sexually, mentally, and emotionally. It wasn't fair that she preferred the dream world to the real world. It wasn't fair that she was denied the pleasure to touch after briefly tasting it. She hated the voices that returned in her head, she hated her skin, and dammit, she hated the Cajun for making her want the unattainable even more. "Operation Acolytes," her firm voice ordered to the Danger Room computer. Instantly in front of her, Magneto, Sabertooth, Pyro, Colossus, and Gambit materialized to produce fake copies if the mutants. Even though the characters were fake they looked, acted, and even fought exactly like the real mutants. The computer even managed to make the opponents powers actually hurt the person training if they were hit by an attack.
Rogue zeroed in on Magneto first, even though her absorbing powers would be useless in practice against robots, this training boosted her combat and strategy skills. She soon broke into a sweat as one by one she took out the members of the Acolytes. By tricking Magneto to use his power against Colossus she knocked the Russian out. Using Pyro's stray flames to scald Sabertooth, Rogue finished the job by ramming a steel rod through the animalistic man's chest. Pyro was easily taken care of by slamming his head into the wall. But Magneto was the most challenging. Rogue had to abide her time and calculate his moves. In the end, she turned his own power against him resulting in a large, steel plate crushing a very still Magneto.
Rogue felt his stare from the shadows and knew that robot Gambit had been lurking there the entire time, observing her moves, looking for the best way to take her out. He came from the shadows and stepped directly into her view. In fact, he closed the distance between them, standing an arms length away.
She paused in her attack and studied the robot in front of her. He looked like Gambit, but he was the old Gambit. The Gambit in front of her was the enemy; this thing wasn't Remy. But then again, did she know the real Remy? Physically he was an Adonis as well as a joker, very protective of her, and god could he kiss. But she knew nothing about his past, about his likes, or about his family. To be fair, he didn't really know anything about her either. In fact, the only true things they knew about each other was learned from reading each others statistics during a mission. How did she know if the Remy in the dream world was anything like the Remy in the real world?
Rogue continued to peer at the robot in front of her, and when that slow seductive smile that screamed 'I know something you don't,' was directed at her, she felt something click in her mind. Whether it was the real, robot, or dream Remy, he knew how to get under her skin.
When the robot raised a charged card at her mockingly, Rogue jeered back, wrapping her hands around his throat and snapping his neck. "Session completed," a monotone voice echoed through the Danger Room.
Rogue smiled at herself, silently congratulating herself as she made her way towards the exit, she really needed a shower.
A steady clapping began to echo throughout the room as yet another Gambit materialized from the shadows. Rogue's eyes widened in disbelief and she vaguely wondered how much of her fight he saw. "Remind Remy never t' get on y' bad side," he teased and slowly made his way towards her.
Rogue awkwardly smiled at his remark and immediately clasped her hands nervously, the tense atmosphere hung over the couples heads. "Remy must admit chere," he murmured as he halted mere inches from her taunt body, "he was a little upset that y' weren't dere when he woke up."
"Ah needed ta work out. Ah missed my early morning session," she stuttered, not meeting his searching gaze and timidly stepping back from him.
"Bullshit," he murmured, once more closing the space in between them, "y're avoiding Remy."
"What if Ah am," she replied, raising her eyes defiantly to his smoldering gaze.
"Why?" he asked disbelievingly, slowly reaching out and grasping her gloved hands within his own.
"Remy," she began, having practiced this speech in her mind ever since she woke up, "Ah had fun with yah in the dream, but it was a dream. This ain't gonna work in the real world."
Remy's eyes hardened with each word she spoke, clenching his jaw in anger. She was the first girl in his like that he wanted to spend more time with and get to know. He didn't want a flimsy relationship with this girl; he had somehow become enraptured with Rogue. And she was just trying to brush it all off. Remy quickly pulled her against his body, running his black-gloved hands through her hair and resting his lips mere centimeters from her own. He smirked in satisfaction when he heard her breath hitch in excitement, feeling her rapid heartbeat pulse against his fingertips. "Dis ain't real?" he asked mockingly, leaning over to whisper his words in her ear.
Rogue couldn't hide the pleasurable shiver that rocked through her frame, the Cajun was using her treacherous body against her. "Lust ain't gonna cut it swamp rat," she replied sadly, tenderly running a gloved finger down the side of his face.
"Remy not talking bout lust, he's talking bout passion. Dere's something between us, y' feel it too don't y'?" he asked, frantically meeting her gaze, hoping her feelings were mutual.
Rogue's jaw slightly unhinged, she never would have guessed that he'd be so open with her about his feelings. "Yes," she murmured weakly, "but we won't last."
"How do y' know that if we haven't tried chere?" Remy responded, placing a soft kiss on her temple, using her hair as a barrier between her skin, "come on, lets give it a chance."
Rogue cracked a smile at his persistence and felt herself leaning into his embrace. "Alright then, we'll give "us" a chance," she agreed, linking her arm through his and leading him out of the Danger Room, "it'll be strained, us being on different sides and all."
"Remy's been getting tired of Magneto anyway, maybe he'll play de good guy for a while," he grinned, wrapping an arm around her shoulders, "just tink chere, if Remy be an X-Men wit y', he'll be living in de same house. Remy sure we can use dat t' our advantage."
"And what makes yah think the professor's just gonna let yah? We have standards yah know," she taunted back, feeling completely at ease with his arm around her.
"Chere, y' wound Remy. Everyone likes Remy, how could dey not?" he cheekily replied, sliding his hand down her back to briefly caress her rear.
Rogue jumped in surprise at his intimate touch. Grinning mischievously, she quickly grabbed his firm rear winking at him when she lightly squeezed it.
Laughing out loud at her forwardness Remy gently pushed her against the wall, kissing her neck through her uniform. Rogue abruptly lifted his chin to meet her serious gaze. "Lets just get one thing straight Cajun, if yah are with me, yah stay faithful to me," she ordered sternly, "now give me your word that yah will be faithful to me and understand that Ah will castrate yah if yah ever cheat on me."
In mock seriousness, Remy placed his right hand over his heart and replied, "Remy solemnly swear t' stay faithful t' his Rogue."
"Good," she grinned and once more began walking down the hall.
"Wait a sec chere, aren't y' gonna swear an oath of faithfulness?" he called after her retreating form, breaking into a jog to keep up with her as she approached the elevator.
Rogue merely smirked at him in response and pressed the button to close the door on his face. Remy stuck his foot out to stop the closing door and nimbly climbed into the elevator, his tall figure towered over Rogue's as he tapped his foot impatiently waiting for her reply. "Remy," she smiled, bringing his gloved hand to his lips and tenderly kissing his palm, "Ah would never cheat on yah."
He grinned at her, "Remy knows dat chere," pulling her into a loose embrace.
The elevator stopped at the dormitory level and the couple stepped out holding hands, silently walking down the hallway together, both afraid that this was merely an extension of another dream. "Ah'm gonna take a nap," Rogue trailed off as they stopped in front of her door, "wanna join me?"
"Remy would love t' chere… but maybe y' should take a shower first, y smell pretty bad…" he trailed off, patiently waiting for her infamous temper to show, she just looked so cute when she was mad.
Rogue grinned darkly and narrowed her eyes at his response, opening her door, stepping into her room, and slamming the door in his face, locking it firmly. "Oh come on chere," Remy pleaded, pounding on the door, "Remy was just joking. Let Remy in, he's sleepy."
The Cajun groaned in defeat at her silence, turning and leaning his back on her door, vaguely wondering if he's ever slept standing up before. Just as his eyes drifted close, the door was unlocked and opened; a gloved hand reached for the collar of his trench coat and jerked him inside of the room, firmly shutting the door and locking it.
The End
A/N: Ahh, I didn't really want to end it here, so yes, I'm almost finished with an epilogue. In it there will be even more Romy (of course), Kitty and her entourage will meet each other for the first time (talk about tension, who will Kitty chose?), and of course, I'm bringing Logan (once more) into my story.
Yep, my surprise character was Pete Wisdom from the comics. He was a great character and he was so cute with Kitty. If some of you don't know who is, I suggest googling him cause you fall for his character as well. Most of you are probably noticinga trend in my stories, I don't really like the angst in the Romy relationship. So of course, I try to make all of mine happy endings, I don't know if this take away from anything, but I much prefer the flirting couple to the fighting couple. Well, I'll update in a day or so...