Chapter Twenty One

Kar was on guard duty when Rogue returned. After Chalice had left, they'd decided to take turns making sure Remy didn't try and leave, so Kar was currently standing by the window, watching as Remy flicked through a gun magazine that been on Rogue's dresser. The Cajun hadn't made any indications that he was planning to leave, but the Roses were nothing if not obedient, and Rogue wanted him to stay put, so they'd make sure he did.

The door opened and Kar raised an eyebrow when Rogue walked in, looking a little calmer than when she'd left.

"You can leave, Kar. Thanks."

Kar nodded and walked out, closing the door softly. Rogue looked at Remy and sighed, shrugging off her coat and leaving it on the floor.

"How did you know what Chal and Xavier did?" she asked, sitting on the edge of the bed, next to Remy's feet.

"She told me."

"Why?"

"So I could tell you."

"So you weren't in on it?"

"Non."

Rogue nodded thoughtfully, chewing her bottom lip and staring at her hands. She believed him, he wouldn't have denied it if he was guilty. He would have admitted it and accepted whatever punishment she decided to deliver. She was glad he was innocent, she needed so desperately to have a couple of beliefs remain intact.

"You said you knew where the Agency was located? At least, the part of it that's in Bayville."

"Oui."

"I want you to show me. Now. And then you're going to tell me everything you know about it. And then you're gonna leave."

Remy blinked, he had not been expecting that. He waited for an explanation, but Rogue just continued to stare at her hands. So after a few minutes he gave up waiting and said, "It'd be better to go tomorrow, cher. They have tighter security at night."

Rogue nodded. "Tomorrow it is then." Then she stood up and left. It took more force than she liked to close the door and shut him away.

The Roses were still in the living room. Michelle was half-sitting half-lying on the sofa, rubbing at her temples and looking around half-blind. She whimpered when Rogue entered and huddled down, wrapping her arms around her body. Everyone else was sipping coffee, or tea in Jamie's case, and they didn't say anything as Rogue sat down on the floor in the corner.

"Remy and I are going to see the Agency tomorrow morning," she said quietly. "Jamie, you'll be coming with us. Everyone else, I want you to spend the day training, because if circumstances permit, we'll be infiltrating the Agency tomorrow night. I'll go over the plan in more detail tomorrow evening, but the basic idea is to get Jamie and Selene to some computers so that they can find out where the Headquarters is located. I also want you to pull up a list of personnel in the building, so that I can assassinate every important figure there, just so that there's no chance of escape. This is what we've been working for, people. We've fought, bled, cried and killed for this. Let's not screw it up."

Silence reigned for a moment before Selene said, "Uh… okay. What should we do now?"

Rogue took a deep breath and let it out slowly, closing her eyes and resting her head against the wall. "Whatever you want. Just… do whatever."

Envee immediately announced a Movie Night. Rogue smiled wearily as Kar and Selene got the popcorn and drinks, while everyone else argued on the first film to watch. It eventually came down to a choice between Scream and Top Gun.

"You've seen Top Gun a hundred times!" Kar complained, settling back down again and putting a bowl of popcorn next to him.

"And you've seen Scream a hundred times!" Selene countered. "Honestly, you'd think you'd get bored of it!"

"Like you get bored watching Tom Cruise? At least Scream has a decent plot, instead of some pilot whose mate dies halfway through the film and about the 'forbidden love' with his instructor-type person!"

"A decent plot? It's all about some pretty girl running around screaming trying to avoid getting cut up by a sicko in a ghost mask who happens to be her boyfriend!"

"Precisely, that's a decent plot!"

Rogue listened to them bitch and argue until they eventually decided on Scream. Move Nights were always eventful, everyone had such different tastes and that led to many arguments, but Rogue enjoyed it. It reminded her of her days as an X-Man, when they'd fought over movies, chores, games and everything else.

A relieved sigh caught her attention and she opened her eyes to see Michelle slowly uncurling from her tight ball, blinking and looking around. Her face was pale, her eyes a little wide, but other than that she looked fine. Rogue frowned, wondering if she should apologise for the pain she had unintentionally caused her friend. Before she could make up her mind Michelle spoke.

"Don't worry about it," she said quietly, looking at her leader with concern. "Just… I'm here when you wanna talk."

Rogue noticed the wording, when and not if, and nodded gratefully. Someday, she would want to talk about this, and the knowledge that Michelle would listen was comforting.

"Oh look, he can fly a fighter jet, he's sooo special," Kar grumbled under his breath, munching on handful of popcorn.

"Can you fly a fighter jet?" Selene asked archly.

"Can he shoot electricity from his hands?"

"Children," Ivy said in a warning tone, and they shut up.

Rogue smiled, drawing her knees up to her chest and resting her chin on them. It wasn't quite the home the Institute had been, but it was close, and at that moment, there wasn't a single place she'd rather be.

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The building looked very ordinary. Rogue hadn't been expecting a great big flashing sign announcing it to be A Bad Place, but looking at the completely ordinary building was somehow disappointing. Occasionally people would go in and out, and they were perfectly ordinary people dressed in perfectly ordinary clothes other perfectly ordinary people wore to work.

Rogue frowned, looking at it from where she was laying on the roof of a building across the street. It just seemed so… plain.

"Where's the easiest entrance?" Rogue asked in a whisper, and Remy shifted slightly beside her.

"There isn't one, cher. The only way in is through a window, which are bolted shut at night, complete with electronic alarms, and the front door, which gets the same treatment."

"What are the guard shifts like?"

"Two men stationed outside the door from nine to six. One man patrols each floor every half hour, they check each room and secure all the windows. You'll have to be very good and very quick. And some luck wouldn't hurt."

Rogue didn't say anything, silently forming a plan. The guards were no problem, Jamie could probably disable the electronic alarms, if she was able to get a direct link-up to the system, and Envee could take care of any physical locks. Security cameras would be a bit trickier, but if they knew where they were and could avoid them they should be alright. They couldn't just disable them because that would alert the security staff to their presence.

"Alright, let's go back," she whispered, wriggling backwards until she was out of sight of the Agency building and then walking down the fire escape. Remy was behind her, a constant, reassuring presence, and she hated him for it, for the fact that he could still make her feel so safe.