Notes: Apologies for the long wait, my muse was off on holiday.

Chapter Thirty Three

The Roses were tense. Every day, the watched the news with fearful expressions, listening to the grim reports as more and more mutants were arrested. The list went from the hundreds, to the thousands, and the number of mutants killed during capture was depressingly high. Twenty-four hours after the President's statement, and it was estimated that only one per cent of mutants remained free.

Most of them had fled to Chalice's club, seeking refuge in what was commonly referred to as the mutant underground. She hid them, risking her own safety many times, and still managed to remain hidden from the authorities. She no longer stayed at her club, it had been raided already by the authorities, and her staff sent her the desperate mutants. She had reluctantly contacted her uncle, Sebastian Shaw, and, to her great surprise, he agreed to help her.

The Roses were relieved that they didn't have to worry about the other mutants, and instead focused on their up-coming mission. They spent most of their time working-out, and practising with their weapons. They rarely left the house, not wanting to run the risk of someone recognising them and outing them as mutants. When they weren't training, they were going over the information Jamie had managed to gather. They all made sure to get plenty of sleep and eat good, nutritious food, even Kar and Envee.

After two days, the mood in the house had sky-rocketed from tense to suffocating. It wasn't just the pressure of the mission, it was that they had all been cooped up for too long with no release. Envee, especially, was being a problem, as she had just gained control over her new power and wanted to go out flying. She was also getting restless, she wanted to have fun, and in Envee-speak that meant get in a bar fight. When she threw a glass across the room at dinner, Rogue decided that enough was enough. After dinner, she called a meeting and looked at them for a moment.

"We leave tomorrow morning at eleven sharp," she said, looking at her Roses. "I don't have to tell you how important this is, and we all have to be at our best. But I know you guys, and I know that you don't reach your best by solid training and not leaving the house. So, tonight is yours. Go out, have fun, get in fights-" she threw an amused look at Envee, who grinned back. "You can do what you want, forget about tomorrow, just make sure you're ready to go at eleven. Getting at least three hours sleep would be appreciated, but I know you guys can function on less. So go, scram. Enjoy tonight because… well, it might be your last."

Envee chuckled. "And with that motivating speech, let's go!" She jumped up and flew out the open window, twirling around as she gained height.

"That girl's hopeless," Selene muttered, standing up with Alistor. She looked at him and smiled, slipping her hand in his. "Walk?"

"Sounds good."

They left, and were soon followed by Ivy, who wanted to go out and have fun in the nearby woods, and Jamie, who wanted to go to the library. Kar went off to do whatever it was he wanted.

Rogue watched them leave, thinking about how unique and indivudal each of her Roses were, and yet how they all fit together faultlessly. A bunch of misfits, a group of people with very different personalities, who melded together to become an unbeatable team of powerful fighters. And more than that, they were friends. In another universe, a world where they weren't Dark Roses, they probably wouldn't have given each other two seconds. And yet, the experiences they shared, the responsibilities they carried, forged a bond between them that was stronger than concrete. If any one of them was in trouble, they would all risk their lives to save that person. Even Ivy, though she wouldn't admit it, would willingly risk her neck for her teammates. She was proud of that, proud of her Roses, and she hoped that she wouldn't fail them.

-

She'd never meant to hurt Rogue. Rogue was her best friend, a woman she respected and valued greatly. She was so honoured to be the auburn-haired girl's friend, honoured that she was trusted with seeing the real her. But… she'd thought she was doing the right thing.

Okay, she hadn't, she'd known it was wrong, known that Rogue would hate her for it, but she'd had to do it. Every mutant in the world depended on her success, depending on her not flinching in the face of death. And so she'd done what she had to, had betrayed her friend and destroyed the trust they had built between them. She regretted it, yes, she'd do anything to repair the damage, but she wouldn't change what she had done. It had been necessary, and she still believed that it was.

Chalice sighed and pushed her streaked hair out of her eyes, staring at the folders before her. She was tired, she hadn't slept since the President had made his declaration, and there was still so much that needed to be done. She had to find all the mutants that were still free, get them some place safe, try to get a few of her people into where the captive mutants were and ensure that things weren't too bad, had to get the things that Rogue needed, had to make the final arrangements with her friend in Australia, and on top of it all she had to deal with her Uncle at the same time.

There was a headache starting right between her eyes, a small, pulsing ball of pain that promised to become truly irritating as time went by. She let her pen slip from her fingers and pressed the heels of her hands against her closed eyes. She was way too stressed at the moment, she needed a vacation, a long one, a quiet island somewhere with no one around for miles. Mmm, that sounded nice. Alas, duty called and she picked up her pen again, opening the nearest folder and scanning its contents.

A mug of coffee was placed next to her elbow, the rich smell immediately getting her attention, and she looked up to smile at Remy.

"You work too hard, cher," he said quietly, watching her with serious eyes.

"Yah, but this needs to be done. Thanks for the coffee."

Remy smiled and shrugged one shoulder before moving to stand behind her. He put his hands on her shoulders, just resting them there for a moment before he began a very gentle, very relaxing massage. Chal groaned, letting her eyes drift shut as the Cajun slowly worked at the tension in her body.

"You have the hands of a god sometimes, Remy," she murmured tiredly, and heard him chuckle.

After a few minutes, she shrugged his hands off and opened her eyes. She reached out and took a grateful sip of her coffee and looked at Remy again.

"I gotta get back to work. But… don't go too far, okay? Might need those hands of yours again later."

Remy winked at her and left the room, quietly closing the door.