Notes: I don't like this chapter. It's not my best and I'm sorry, but I can't rewrite it any better, God knows I've tried. This is one of those necessary chapters where things get tied up a little. Now that the fight's over, it's time for the talking. And yes, this means things are nearing the end. Enjoy and review!
Chapter Forty Two
Rogue glanced down at Jamie, placing a hand on the young girl's shoulder.
"You sure you're up to this?" she asked quietly. "If you're not strong enough, I could probably get in on my own."
Jamie smiled slightly. "Just don't get shot, I'm not up to both healing and time-shifting. Besides, I don't think the President would take kindly to you killing and or incapacitating a dozen or so Secret Service goons. You ready?"
Rogue nodded and Jamie raised her hands, biting her lower lip as she concentrated, forming thin tendrils of power that coalesced into a shimmering ball of power. Flicking her fingers, she forced the bubble to expand and swallow them, shifting them out of the river of time.
"You do realise that if there's not an open window, we're in buggered," Jamie said quietly as they walked across the street to the White House. "We won't be able to open any doors or move anything when we're in the bubble, it's physically impossible."
"We'll just have to hope for a bit of luck," Rogue replied, helping Jamie to climb the fence before quickly following her. They dropped down to the ground and walked slowly across the expansive lawn.
"Do you want me to stay when you talk to him?" Jamie asked, searching for an open window.
"Yeah, I'd rather not have to fight my way out if things go pear-shaped. Over there. And when did you start swearing?"
Jamie smiled shyly as they walked over to an open. "Envee's been rubbing off on me."
Rogue chucked dryly and slipped inside the window, holding out a hand for Jamie. They walked quickly through the corridors, stepping past motionless clerks and Secret Service agents.
The Oval Office was filled with people, most of them holding bits of paper or talking on phones. President Kelley was sitting at his desk, shifting through reports with a worried frown. Rogue looked at him for a moment, wondering about how the next few minutes would go. She felt like she was going into battle, tiny bursts of adrenalin spurting through her bloodstream, but this wasn't any battle she could win with strength and weaponry. This was unfamiliar territory, where violence wouldn't help. She needed her brains for this fight, and she wasn't used to that. she just hoped she was up to this new challenge. Because if she wasn't, then mutantkind was doomed. She sighed quietly and hoped this would go alright.
"Hands up and empty, Jamie, we don't want to spook them too much," she ordered, raising her own hands to show that she wasn't holding a weapon. Jamie mimicked her and flicked her fingers. Sound rushed back and people instantly began moving again.
The Secret Service agents reacted immediately, shouting and reaching for their weapons, two of them grabbing hold of the President. After a second they realised that Jamie and Rogue weren't making a move and hesitated.
"We don't mean to hurt anyone," Rogue said quietly, "But we need to talk to the President." She watched the men in front of her carefully, keeping her eyes on their weapons and fighting down the urge to draw her own gun. Having half a dozen people aiming at her kicked her battle instincts into action and she had to resist the temptation to shoot them down before they hurt her or Jamie.
"Identify yourselves, now!"
"My name is Rogue, and this is Jamie Phillips. We're mutants and we have come to petition for the release of our fellow mutants. Mr. President, you know who I am, but you don't know who Mitchell was. He lied to you, manipulated you, and we need to talk about that."
There was a moment of uncertain silence, before the President made a discreet signal to the men around him, waiting until they'd all relaxed a little before speaking.
"That was quite an entrance, Miss….?"
Rogue hesitated for a split second before saying, "Summers. Rogue Summers. And it was the only way we could get in here-you wouldn't have granted me a meeting if I'd called up and asked. Now, we need to talk."
"Very well."
Rogue nodded, looking around for a moment before sitting down on one of the sofas. She wondered where to begin, how could she possibly explain the situation truthfully and in detail, without talking for days.
"Mitchell hated mutants," she said after a minute, because that seemed like a good starting point. "I don't know why and I don't care, but he viewed us as dangerous, threatening monsters. We're not. We're just different. But he refused to see that, and so he made it his personal mission to have us all arrested and executed. My comrades and I have been fighting him because he was wrong. He lied to you, constantly, to get you to do what he wanted. He's dead now, by the way, as is his entire faction, and his main facility is closed off from time. And now you need to release the mutants because they're innocent. They haven't done anything wrong except be born with a few differences. We're not a threat, Mr. President, and we're not going to go away. You have to learn to live with us."
President Kelley was quiet for a long time, looking at her thoughtfully, and Rogue wondered what she would do if he said no. She couldn't force him to agree to her demand, and if he agreed with Mitchell, had let the insane man corrupt his thoughts… she just didn't know what she'd do.
"I have a few concerns, Miss Summers," he said after a few minutes. "You have to agree that some of the mutants out there are incredibly powerful-yourself included, the girl with the poisonous touch. And I believe your young companion can manipulate time. Such power is frightening and could do a lot of damage. And as it stands, we have no defense against them."
"What's your point?" Rogue asked sullenly, not liking the fact that she couldn't dispute anything he'd said.
"My point is that I cannot, in good conscience, release those mutants back into the populace, not without some way of protecting the rest of the country's citizens from them."
"I assume you have a plan."
"Yes. The Mutant Control and Defense Agency. It would be a way of policing the mutants, and of protecting them from hate crimes and bashings."
"Sounds like a good plan, good luck with that. And if that means you'll be releasing the mutants, I'm done here."
Rogue stood up to go, Jamie following suit, and had made it to the door before the President stopped her.
"I want you to be in charge of the Agency, Miss Summers."
Rogue froze, staring at the white wood of the door with wide eyes. She blinked, letting the information sink in for a moment. She hadn't expected that and she wasn't quite sure how she felt about the offer. She knew he had an alternative agenda, he'd been far too quick to agree with her, it was too easy. He should've fought with her, argued his case, not just given in after one little speech. He had a plan and she was a part of it, and she hated that. She was no one's puppet.
"I've been fighting for most of my life, Mr. President," she murmured after a long pause, not entirely sure why she was even speaking at all. She could just walk out, leave him to do whatever he wanted, ruin his plan, whatever it was. But for some reason, she stayed continued talking. "I've been used and manipulated, tortured and tormented. I've lost everyone and everything I've ever loved. I've sacrificed everything I had for my cause, even my humanity. And I'm tired of it. I don't want to fight anymore, don't want to lose anything else." Rogue closed her eyes, resting her forehead against the door.
"I just want to rest."
"I understand that, Miss Summers, but you are a highly unique individual. You have skills and talents that no one else does."
Rogue opened her eyes, turning to look at President Kelley. Her eyes flicked over Jamie, sitting quietly and patiently on the sofa, but she ignored her for the moment. "My Roses are nearly as good as me, and when they work as a unit, they are damn near unstoppable."
"Only if they have a good leader. Will they follow anyone else?"
It was a rhetorical question, they both knew the answer. Rogue sighed and looked away from his pointed gaze. Nearly five full minutes passed before she answered.
"I'll talk to my Roses," she said quietly. "If they accept your offer, I'll consider it, but the final decision will rest with me. I'll return in forty eight hours."