G'Day.
I just started a new job, so yeah, my time was a little filled up for a bit there, but fear not! This is probably the longest chapter I've ever written! Whoo! This is also the very last bit of stuff I'm gonna be taking right outta the comics. Which is good, cause I was really getting kinda bored doing it. That and I wanna move on to bigger and better things then the whole Madelyn Pryor thing, cause I really have no idea how that ended and Jean came back. I have one issue where she's dreaming (I think) and Cyke's taking off all her facial features and placing them on Jean, and I really hated that part. Madelyn kinda grew on me, much more so then Jean. But enough about that…
Okay! Who read the new X-Treme X-Men?! ARGH!!! I threw the thing across the room. If I wasn't hopelessly optimistic I'd stop buying them. What the hell was with the Storm/Gambit thing!? Seriously! What the hell!? I'm really hating these new ones! : Totally not impressed! Hrumph! (I really needed to get that out, my room mate hates X-Men, and likes it even less after I kinda, hit her when I threw that issue. Oooopssss)
Anyways! Shout out time!
Summers2004: omg…. That was the longest review I've ever had…. And yeah, I see your point. There's a hint or tow of Ro/Lonessness in this chapter, but I'll leave it up to you guys to decide what I should do with them, since I'm not all that sure.
Ishy: G'Day
That's it for now, like I said, to everyone else, drinks are on me! But y'all better be ready to hand over ID! Since I'm a Canuck though it's 19, not 21 like in 'some' places. '^_^'
Disclaimer: I own nothing except everything.
Once again a lot of stuff is taken right out of the comic. Since I have no idea how Dazzler and Longshot really show up, I made it up.
I Never Knew
Chapter Five: Comfortably Numb
TheWalrusWasPaul
~*~
Rogue and Gambit were in the hall way trying to absorb all that had happened. New York city had just been destroyed, and the Starjammers were no more. The Avengers, the Fantastic Four, SpiderMan, all gone, their best chances for help, wiped out by Phoenix.
"What happens now?" Rogue asked, her voice smaller then he was used to hearing.
He sighed and ran a hand through his long hair, "I dunno chere… but I-" he froze in mid sentence and quickly straightened up, falling into an attack stance. She followed suit, not seeing whatever it was he was reacting to.
"What is it?" She asked, moving to his side.
He waved a hand at her, motioning that she should be quiet. She was about to ask him again when suddenly Peter and Storm came flying out a door, Colossus slammed into Rogue, knocking her backwards. Thankful for her super strength she brought them to a stop before they fell over the banister.
Gambit had three charged cards in his hand before another move was made, he watched as Storm caught herself in mid air and whipped around to face the door. There was Phoenix, smirking at them. Without a second thought, Gambit let the cards fly.
Instead of the fire he was expecting to deflect them, a beam that looked remarkably like Cyclops's eye blast destroyed the explosives. He reached into his duster for more, but was caught off guard by another beam and knocked off his feet.
As he hit the ground he saw Kurt teleport just above Phoenix, only to be blasted by that same red beam. Kitty was next, she dove for Phoenix as Lockheed distracted her. The poor girl gasped in shock as they phased right through the banister and began to fall to the ground. Only Kitty's phasing ability kept them from crashing onto the hard ground.
"They are heading for the Danger Room!" Storm cried as she flew at top speed in the direction of the training room, the rest of the team, with the exception of Peter who was out cold, right behind her. They all rushed into the room, only to have the floor give way. Logan and Remy began a freefall while Rogue and Storm hovered in midair for a moment.
Logan's cry of, "Cripes!" brought them back to the present.
"What the-?!?" Rogue asked, shaking her head, trying to clear it.
"The room has generated a facsimile of the Savage Land!" Strom shouted as she recognized the jungle which she and Rogue were floating above. "Rogue--catch Gambit! Leave Wolverine to me!" with that Storm turned and dove after the short Canadian.
Rogue frowned, she could have caught Wolverine too… She pouted for a second before she caught sight of Remy, falling to what looked as though could be his death.
She sprang into action and flew as fast as she could towards her friend, catching him just before he hit the tree tops. She looked down at him and offered a weak smile.
"Nice timin' chere…" he grumbled as he clutched her hand in a death grip.
She shrugged, "Better late then never right Sugah?"
He rolled his eyes but said nothing as she flew upwards to where Storm and Logan hovered. They seemed to be deep in conversation, and Rogue tightened her grip on Remy's hand, unintentionally gripping it a little harder then he would have liked.
"Ow Rogue!" he cried out.
"Sorry…" she muttered half heartedly.
Gambit watched her face, she was jealous. Great, the Canuck, she just had to go and fall for the Canuck… Not that he was jealous or anything, because that would mean he had feelings for her, which he definitely did not! Really, he didn't! The very idea was absurd! Why anyone would-
Merde.
That was the only word running through his mind at the moment. He shook his head-glad Rogue's attention was almost completely focused on Wolverine and Storm- in a vain attempt to clear it. What was wrong with him? He raised his free hand to his head, maybe it was an after effect of that last blast Phoenix had shot at him, or any reason other then he was thinking clearly. He couldn't be thinking clearly, it wasn't possible! He was Remy LeBeau, he didn't fall for any woman! Let alone his friend that he couldn't even touch!
This couldn't be happening to him! He wouldn't let himself fall for her! Not after what happened with Belle. He'd sworn to himself that he'd never let himself be that vulnerable again. 'Don't trust anyone', his father's words echoed heavily in his mind. Trust only led to pain and he'd had more then his share of pain, thank you very much.
But then why couldn't he get her out of his head? Her, Rogue, his best friend! This was driving him crazy! He didn't want this! He was finally in a place where he could make his own decisions! Live his own life, the way he wanted to! Not according to his father, or the Guild's code. It had been his choice to join the X-Men and fight the good fight. Even if at first it hadn't been much more then a convenient way to escape, the dark shadows looming over him. He was now finding that the longer he hung around the X-Men, the more they began rubbing off on him. He wasn't as stupid as Cyke, he didn't believe that humans and mutants would ever be able to live together in peace, but he believed in it more then the violent solutions others were presenting.
Then again, if he was making his own decisions, he supposed he could choose to fall for Rogue. That thought appealed to him, he'd never been able to chose who he fell in love with. That was probably why his past relationships had ended so badly, now that he thought about it. A slow smirk appeared on his face, Rogue would be a challenge, since her inability to touch left her very uncomfortable with the idea of a relationship.
"Don' nobody knows how Gambit loves a challenge…" he said to himself without thinking.
Rogue looked down at Gambit, one eye brow arched, "Did ya say somethin'?"
He turned red and shook his head, "non."
She shrugged and set him down beside Wolverine, who was speaking to Storm, "This ain't Jeannie's style, Storm, she can create personal, private realities with her own thoughts, why bother using Xavier's gadgets?"
"Maybe she ain't as high-an'-mighty strong as we thought Wolvie." She said, not noticing Gambit's frown at the nick name.
"Perhaps, or she wishes us to think so, to give us false hope." Storm went quiet for a moment, trying to decide what to do next. She inhaled deeply and turned to Logan, "Find her trail, Wolverine, lead us to her."
He nodded and gestured for Gambit to follow him on the ground, while Rogue and Storm followed in the air. Remy turned to the women and gave a mock bow before dashing off after Logan. They disappeared into the dense forest, without a second thought. Gambit was hard pressed to keep up with Wolverine, not that he'd ever let on.
The two men wadded through the thick bush in silence, until Logan spoke up. "Whatever's goin' on between you and Rogue bub, make sure it stops." He said as he cut down a tree with his claws.
Remy jumped out of the falling tree's way less he get crushed. "Quoi?" he asked, confused, "She's my friend homme, though I don' know it's your business."
Logan turned to face the Cajun, "I'll say this once and once only bub, so pay attention. I've been to the bar with you plenty o'times, I know what you're like. Goin' from girl t'girl, mabbe you didn' notice, but Rogue ain't exactly just another skirt. You pull that crap with her and it's gonna mess her up worse then she already is." He pointed his claws at the younger man, "And if that happens, yer gonna have to deal with me."
Gambit frowned and pushed Logan's arm aside, "I can' do whatever I want 'Wolvie'." He said, "Y've got no right t'order me around. Rogue's not helpless y'know!" he was about to say more when suddenly a laser struck Logan in the back of the head, knocking him out cold.
Gambit whipped around, to find the attacker, but was too slow, there behind him was Phoenix. Staring at him in the strangest manner, was the only thought he could manage before his world turned black.
~*~
Rogue and Storm were flying over a field of poppies, chasing the running Phoenix. Storm was firing bolts of lightning at her, missing each time, it was almost as though Phoenix knew what Storm's plan of attack was. There was a brilliant flash and suddenly Storm was falling to the ground.
Rogue dove after her, catching her team mate before she could hit the ground and be seriously hurt. She slowly lowered herself to the ground in front of Phoenix, "Time for our rematch, sweetheart." Her voice was cold, and her eyes narrowed. She was really getting sick of this woman, and now that she was the only X-Man left to fight she wasn't about to go down easy.
She was about to set Storm down when there was a flash of red light and the poppies at Rogue's feet exploded into dust. She dropped Storm and tried to see through the dust to find Phoenix. The dust was just beginning to clear when a wave of sleepiness came over her. Rogue fought it as long as she could, but it didn't take long before she let out a small moan and fell to the ground, dead asleep.
~*~
*POP!*
Rogue slowly opened one eye, grimacing at the bright light that invaded her still groggy eyes. She blinked a few times and mumbled something that had she been fully awake could have been considered a question.
Her eyes flew open as she felt her hand being moved, her bare hand. She screamed in protest as she felt skin beneath her fingers. She didn't have time to think of anything, before her powers kicked in and her mind shattered. There were too many images, memories from lives, people, others, there was nothing about her that was her anymore. She couldn't find Rogue anywhere, only these new strangers. Panic was beginning to overtake her, when suddenly there was a calm and gentle voice amidst the chaos. The soothing voice told her how to restore order to her mind, told her how to sort out the other emotions and find herself once more.
Everything finally began making sense, the person they'd been chasing through the mansion hadn't been Phoenix! It had been Cyclops all along! She felt angry at being tricked in such a way, angry that she hadn't know it'd been a trick all along.
Slowly she calmed down and began focusing as the voice told her to. She sensed the other X-Men enter the room, she could feel them, hear their thoughts. Logan's animal nature, Storm's calm leadership, Remy's loving friendship, they were all there. She felt their apprehension as they caught sight of whom they considered Phoenix.
The knowledge of how to use these new powers came to her and she opened a mind link with the other X-Men. 'You're not facin' Phoenix, X-Men.'
"That's Rogue's voice!" Remy said, "How she doin' dat?"
'Ah'll nevah tell Swamp Boy!' she laughed in his mind, before becoming serious once more, 'it's Cyclops, can'tcha see?! We've been suckered!'
"How to we know this ain't a trick?" Logan growled.
There was a flash of golden light and a familiar voice entered the room, "Because little man…the trickster's right behind you." They all turned to see Dark Phoenix floating in the entrance way, a bird of fire surrounding her. She looked angrily down at them and Cyclops was the only one to find his voice.
"No dice, Mastermind. The game's over. Your Phoenix can no more fool us…"
Phoenix cut him off, "Brave words my love." Her power crackled around her.
The other X-Men, Kitty, Peter and Kurt, chose that moment to rush into the room. They took their places behind Scott as he shouted at Phoenix once more, "You're an illusion, a fake! You can only hurt us if we let you." He sounded so sure of himself.
Phoenix looked at him, "Ahhh-" she fired a blast of fire at him, which he stood in the middle of. Not hurt in the slightest.
"See?!" he cried out.
Phoenix was not to be deterred however, "But suppose, from the heart of the supposed illusion, there comes, a most deadly piece of reality?" she fired another blast towards him, but this one carried with it another sound. Almost like a gun being fired…
Before anyone could think on it too much Storm took action, she raised her arms in the air and suddenly a tempest, unlike any the X-Men had ever seen before filled the room. Peter and Kitty dove for the Professor's bed. Peter covering both the girl and their teacher.
Gambit tried to stand his ground but fell to the ground, he couldn't stand up to the strength of the winds and rain. It was too much. But if he let himself go completely, what would happen? He managed to get a grip on a beam, but knew he couldn't hold it for very long. His fingers were already starting to slip when a pair of slender arms wound their way around him.
"Ah've gotcha Remy!"
"Rogue!" he called, he opened his eyes for a moment to find her in front of him, holding him in a death grip. Her eyes were closed tightly against the wind and rain. She managed to open them briefly and look at him.
"Ah won't ya go." Her voice was quieter that time, and he had to struggle to hear her over the storm.
He wrapped his own arms around her, pulling her to him in vain. "Rogue…"
They clung to each other, their breathing labored against the force of the winds. None of them could survive this much longer, even Rogue with her invulnerability was beginning to suffer. She hugged Gambit to her tighter and buried her head in his chest, hoping they made it out of this in one piece.
Suddenly the winds and rain died and the person responsible for the whole mess, revealed. There in the corner of the room was a rather dirty looking old man that Rogue recognized as Mastermind. It had all been an illusion, New York, the Starjammers, they were all safe and sound. Mastermind had if nothing else, excellent control over his mutation. She didn't release Gambit right away, and was – for some reason- happy that he held her too. His grip on her was as tight as he could make it, the storm had greatly weakened him, and yet he refused to let her go. They held each other as they watched Scott breath life back into Madelyn's lungs. The poor girl had been through so much…
Rogue sighed and rested her head on Remy's shoulder as the girl woke up and embraced Scott. It was a touching scene, but for some reason, Remy found his attention drawn elsewhere. He ran a hand through Rogue's soaking wet hair and wondered why.
~*~
'Okay!' she thought to herself, she'd been clenching and unclenching her fists for almost an hour trying to get up the nerve to approach him. 'Ah can do this! Ah'm an X-Man fer cryin' out loud!' with that thought in her mind, Rogue took one last deep breath and began to maker her way towards him.
She'd been planning this out in her mind, exactly what she would say to him, an eloquent speech that was sure to melt even his heart of stone. But when she suddenly found herself faced to face with him, all that she managed to croak out was a simple;
"Hiya Wolvie, nice day." She could have kicked herself.
"Yeah." He responded, taking a long drag of his cigar, "Looks like 'Roro had a hand in it though." Storm had promised Scott that the weather for his wedding would be perfect. Not a single cloud in the sky. The wedding would begin in less then three hours, and there had never been such a perfect day for a wedding.
She nodded and decided to try again, "there was somthin' Ah wanted t'talk t'you 'bout…"
He tossed his cigar away and turned to face her, 'Look ace, we both know what yer getting' at. So let's just get this over with."
Rogue's face turned bright red. "How do ya know what Ah 'm gettin' at?" her voice a mix of curiosity and anger.
He pointed to his nose, "Kid I can smell it comin' offa ya."
"Smell what?"
He said nothing, but gave her a long hard look and realization dawned on her, causing her eyes to go wide. Being this close to him was causing her body to respond in ways that she was helpless to control.
"Sorry kid, but it wouldn't work out." His voice was much more gentle then she was used to hearing.
"Why not?" she somehow managed to croak out.
Logan sighed, "I need touch Rogue. I couldn't be in a relationship without it." He turned away from her, "I'm sorry."
Rogue felt like the Hulk had just punched her in the gut. She couldn't breath, all the colour had drained from her face. She felt her whole eyes beginning to water, not once in her whole life had she hated her mutation so much. Not once.
"Ah understand…" she said, keeping her voice devoid of emotion. "And yer right, who would evah want t'be in a relationship without touch?" she slowly backed away from him, turning around and preparing to fly away, "Thanks fer remindin' me." With that she took to the skies, leaving Logan alone and feeling sad. He couldn't fel ashamed, she was asking him to be someone he wasn't. He knew precious little about himself as it was, he wasn't about to change that. He turned away from where she'd been standing and went to find Ororo, he needed someone to talk to…
~*~
The moon was just beginning to rise and the air to cool, birds were returning to their nests and children to their beds. The night owls were beginning to emerge, shivering in the waning summer nights. The cold suited her just fine, the cool stones from the wall upon which she sat numbed her almost completely. She'd let her invulnerability drop down to nothing, wanting to be numb. 'Comfortably numb…' she thought, smiling without humor as the line from Pink Floyd's song rang in her ears. It fit though, she was comfortably numb, it had been her feelings that had made her uncomfortable enough to seek refuge out here on a well hidden section of the wall that surrounded the Xavier Institute for Gifted Youngsters.
'Gifted', she would hardly call herself gifted. Her 'gift' forced her to live a life without human touch, a life without ever knowing the caress of a lover's hand across her skin. It wasn't fair. There were times when she wondered if it was really worth going on, if this life she'd been forced into was worth seeing to its conclusion. But those times were rare, she really did love her life, loved her friends and the ideals she now fought for.
"It still ain't fair…" she muttered to the dark sky as she hugged her knees to her chest, thankful that the wall was wide enough to accommodate the position. Falling off would have completely ruined her mood.
"No one said it would be chere."
She groaned and closed her eyes, hoping that if she didn't look at him, he'd go away. Luck was not with her that night, for the unwanted visitor hoped up onto the wall beside her without a sound. "Leave me alone Remy…" she said softly, "Ah ain't in the mood t'play." She growled, angry that he would seek her out this way. Couldn't he just let her be?
"Who said I was playin' chere?" he asked, pulling a cigarette out of his coat pocket, he was dressed in his usual uniform, he must have changed out of his tux already. He lit it and inhaled deeply, savoring the small rush it offered.
"Ah ain't in the mood." She said again, her voice much colder this time. She turned a cold glare in his direction, "Now let me alone."
He shook his head, keeping his eyes on the stars. "You and me both know you don' wanna be alone."
She growled at him and lowered her knees, preparing to take flight when he suddenly grabbed her wrist. The movement caused her to lose her balance and they fell off the wall, landing in a heap. Rogue had been on the bottom, which was good, the ten foot fall wouldn't have done serious damage to Gambit, but better safe then sorry.
"You idiot!" she exclaimed, glaring up at him. "Just what do ya think yer doin'?!"
He looked down at her, holding her wrists above her head with one hand. He wasn't foolish enough to think that he could keep her there should she choose to struggle. "Tryin' t'talk to you." He said, his face dangerously close to hers.
"Git offa me!" she said as she continued to glare at him, pretending to not be affected by the smell of his cologne, or the way his body was pressed into hers.
He shook his head, "Non Rogue, you need to talk t'someone bef're you do somet'in' stupid. I won' let you go 'til you tell me why you didn't come t'de weddin'."
She could feel his breath on her neck as he spoke, a shiver over took her as she turned her face away from his. "It's not yer business." She said, the passion gone from her voice.
"Oh I t'ink it is…" his free hand came to rest on her cheek, he stroked her gently with his thumb. "Rogue, you're my friend an' I care 'bout you chere…I have a right t'know what's wrong."
Rogue closed her eyes in pain, "Friend… " she repeated softly. "That's all Ah'll evah be t'anyone…" tears were beginning to leak from her tightly closed eyes. "Just a friend, Ah can' be anythin' else…" a sob racked her body, "No one wants a woman they can't touch…no one!"
Remy looked down at her, she was right. All the times he'd spent joking around with her, teasing her, flirting with her, it had all been a cruel joke to her. "Rogue… I…"
"Don't bother." She spat, still not looking at him, "Ah know what you'll say, the same thing he did!" another sob escaped her, "'Sorry Rogue, I can't be in a relationship without touch,'" she said, mimicking a northern accent. "Men, yer all the same…" her face was streaming with her tears by now, yet she still refused to look at him.
He ran his thumb over her cheek once more, drying her tears, "Dat's not true Rogue." He said in all seriousness, his thumb began stoking her lips, parting them, learning their shape. "Whoever said dat t'you needs his head examined…" he looked down at her, his eyes glowing, "Dey were a fool, any man would be lucky t'have your love…"
Her eyes opened when he touched her lips, something inside of her began to burn. No one had ever touched her this way, no one had bothered. "Remy…" her voice was suspicious. If he was playing her…
"Chere…" he stared into her eyes, barring his soul to her freely and completely. There could be no room for doubt, "You need to know… Rogue I-"
Whatever he had been about to say was cut off as a blinding flash of light lit the area. They moved apart and shielded their eyes as suddenly they were not alone. Before them was a man and a woman, he was tall with long blond hair and the brightest blue eyes Rogue had ever seen. The woman had short strawberry blond hair and blue eyes that were sure to knock men off their feet. They stumbled as they caught their balance and blinked a few times, trying to adjust to the sudden darkness.
"Now where are we?" the woman asked, shaking her head. She was clad in a blue body suit that had one short sleeve and a long glove on one side, and a long sleeve and short glove on the other. In the middle of her chest was a large yellow star, around her head a red ribbon that hung just past her shoulders and fluttered in the cool breeze.
The man shrugged, his black jacket reflecting what little light the night offered, its high collar covering most of his neck. He wore matching black pants and knee high boots. On his jacket was the same star the woman wore, a sash covered with pockets lay across his chest. "I don't know Ali…" he said, looking around, "Dark though…"
"Oh!" the woman exclaimed, noticing Rogue and Gambit for the first time, "What luck! Natives!" she quickly extended a hand to the pair, "My name's Alison Blare, or Dazzler and this is Longshot. Could you by any chance tell us where we are?"
~*~
OH MY! Longshot and Dazzler! Wait…. Didn't Rogue have a thing for him?! 0.0 Oh no! Poor Remy! What's gonna happen next?! When I write it, I'll let y'all know! All I can tell ya is it involves a de-aging machine, and better ratings for Mojo! 0.0 what am I talking about?! Find out next time on 'I Never Knew'!!!
…..
So very shameless….
See ya on the flip side,
TheWalrusWasPaul
REVIEW!!!!!!!!!!!!