Disclaimer: I don't own X-Men Evolution. The story and characters belong to their creators and not to me. No matter how desperatly I would love to have a certain Cajun for my very own.

New Chapter guys, thanks to those who have reviewed so far.

ishandahalf: Thanks for a second review. I'm glad you like the closeness between Rogue and Logan.

attila the hun:If you think I made Professor X look like a badguy look what I've done to Albus Dumbledore in my Harry Potter story "Betrayal on High" When I sayEvil Dumbledore in the story description I meant it. Glad you like the story and I hope to hear from you again.

Lady Godiva: Thanks for the review. I promise that Rogue won't go back. As for the happily ever after with a certain red eyed Cajun,now that is a definite possibility. I'm not sure exactly how Iwant to do it yet though. I have ideas so stick around to find out.

Now onwith the story

Rogue's eyes fluttered open as she felt the bus slow before stopping completely. She peaked over the edge of her seat and looked toward the front of the bus. There weren't too many people onboard and the ones that were on were standing and stretching. Rogue looked around at the people closest to her and saw another girl a couple of seats ahead of her. She caught the girl's attention and spoke.

"What's going on?" She asked sleepily. The girl smirked.

"You just woke up I take it?" Rogue nodded. "That's cool, the bus is stopping for gas and the driver just informed the passengers that we had about 10-15 to stretch, buy food whatever." Rogue looked out her window and noticed that the bus had stopped at a small restaurant/gas station.

"Thahks." The girl nodded and grabbed her purse before heading off the bus. Rogue followed close behind her and stepped off the bus. She immediately noticed that wherever it was it was warmer. The knowledge that she was slowly heading south brought a smile to her face and she stretched. Several hours of napping in a cramped bus seat had made her sore but it was a good kind of sore. She was happy about the fact that she had finally made up her mind to leave the Institute and pursue a new life.

When she had finished warming up her muscles she walked into the rest area. She used the bathroom then headed for the convience store part of the stop and browsed the shelves. When she finally headed to the counter she had a small pile of junk-food and a couple bottles of water. When she had paid for the food she shoved the food into her backpack and headed back out to the bus.

The other girl had already returned and she acknowledged Rogue as she got back on the bus.

"Are you going home?" She asked. Rogue was surprised by the sudden question and didn't answer for several seconds but quickly got a hold of herself and forced herself to answer.

"Nat really, I don't have ahh family ta go back ta. I grew up in tha south and I missed it." The girl nodded.

"I'm going to visit my dad. He and mom got divorced a couple years ago and I go see him two or three times a year. I'm sorry I bothered you. I was just curious as to why you were traveling alone."

"It's nat a problam Ahh just didn't expect ya ta talk ta meh." She smiled weakly at the younger girl. "Ah hope ya enjoy seein your dad." The other girl thanked Rogue and Rogue made her way back to her seat. When she was comfortable she unzipped her backpack and pulled out a bottle of water and a bag of chips. It wasn't the healthiest breakfast she had ever enjoyed but at the moment she didn't really care. She only had a limited amount of money and she knew that her first priority when she got to New Orleans would be to find a place to live and a job to support her. She checked her watch and realized that it was about 11:00 am. She had been on the bus for several hours now and the further she got from Bayville the more her optimisms grew.

With a sigh she picked dug her cell phone out of her bag and dialed a number. She had forgotten to inform the restaurant that she worked at that she would be leaving and the owner would no doubt be pissed. Rogue had been a good employ though so she hoped that her boss would understand.

The phone rang a couple times before someone picked up. Rogue recognized the voice on the other end as Julia Michaels, the woman who owned the restaurant.

"Hia Julia, It's Rogue."

"Oh Rogue dear how are you? Will you be in to work tomorrow?" Rogue sighed.

"That's what Ahh called ta talk ta ya about. Ahh got a call from a family friand of mahn and ahh have ta go back ta Naw Awlins for a few months. Ah'm sorry it's such short notice but it's an emergency or Ahh would have let ya know in advance." The woman was silent for a second as she digested what Rogue had told her when she finally spoke she seemed concerned.

"I understand dear. You take care of yourself. If you decide to get a job while you are down there you can use me for a reference." Rogue smiled.

"Thanhks Julia, Ahh appreciate everything."

"No problem dear. You just take care of yourself."

"Ahh will Ahh promise." The two women said goodbye and Rogue ended the call. The news that she would be able to get a recommendation made her even more at ease about leaving and she relaxed in her seat. After a few seconds thought she dug into her bag and pulled out the MP3 player that Logan had gotten her for Christmas earlier that year. Thinking about that occasion brought a soft smile to her face.

Christmas had always been a hectic time at the Xavier Institute and Rogue had expected everything to go as it had always gone. The students who had families who still cared about them would go home while the ones who didn't would stay and give small gifts to each other. That the only mutants that Rogue knew were Kurt and a couple of the younger mutants.

Most of the others who stayed were the new kids that Xavier had taken in. She hadn't even gotten up to pass gifts with the rest of the household. She had been perfectly content to stay in her room and avoid everyone. She had given Kurt his gift the night before so she was surprised when she heard a knock on her door.

She had gotten up and answered to find Logan waiting in the hall. She had stepped back to allow him entrance and he had her taken her silence as permission to enter. When she had closed the door he pulled out a wrapped gift from inside his jacket and held it out to her. She had accepted it with shaking hands and quickly tore the wrapping paper off. She had been more then a little shocked to find a rather nice Mp3 player with a song capacity of about 10 hours.

Rogue had stared at the gift in disbelief before turning disbelieving eyes to Logan.

"Thanhk ya." Suddenly what he had given her suddenly became clear and she threw her arms around his waist. He had hugged her back and when they finally pulled apart he was smirking.

"Don't tell ANYONE who gave that to you Stripes. I don't want to suddenly be viewed a charity case. I don't like these new kids anymore then you do and if they suddenly view me as the bearer of gifts then I loose my ability to whip them into shape." Rogue had grinned at that comment. It was a genuine smile, the smile that she saved for when something truly touched her and his gift had done just that.

"I promise." Logan had ruffled her hair affectionately before leaving as quickly as he had arrived.

Rogue had spent the rest of the afternoon transferring a substantial portion of her music collection onto the portable music player.

Rogue relaxed back into her seat as she slipped the headphones over her ears and relaxed. She eventually fell asleep again and awoke several hours later. A quick glance out her showed her that the time was sometime in the early evening. A glance at her watch revealed that it was about 7:00 pm. She had been on the road for almost twelve hours and the realization amazed her. She checked the map she had snagged from the rest stop and unfolded it. She studied it for a few minutes and estimated that the bus would probably reach New Orleans sometime in the early morning or afternoon.

About a half an hour after she wok up the bus pulled off the road at another rest stop. Rogue stood and stretched while her eyes scanned the bus. While she had slept a few more people had gotten on but the bus was still nowhere near full and Rogue still felt comfortable with the amount of people who surrounded her. When the driver opened the bus doors Rogue made her way off the bus and stretched more thoroughly. Her muscles were complaining from sitting for so long but the pain was worth it.

When she had finished stretching she surveyed the rest stop. There was a gas station, small picnic area, and a couple of restaurants. At the site of food Rogue's stopped growled and reminded her that she hadn't eaten all day. She shifted her backpack to her other shoulder and made her way toward the McDonalds that stood at the opposite end of the station. She noticed that several of the other passengers were also going in that that direction and any fears that Rogue had of being left behind were gone.

She remained in the restaurant to eat but did so quickly before returning to the bus. She watched as the other passengers slowly started to trickle in. Finally the driver got back on and picked up the speaker phone.

"I just wanted to inform everyone that we will be switching drivers for the second half of the trip." When he had finished a young woman stepped up beside him and waved to the passengers before taking the mike. She introduced herself and the other driver left. When the last lingering passengers had claimed their seats the bus took off and Rogue made herself comfortable in her seat.

She noticed that in addition to the driver the bus had added a few more people as well. She stayed awake for a couple hours and eventually decided to pull out a book and try to read. That kept her interest for a while but eventually the fact that it was night outside lured her to sleep once again. The bus stopped again in the middle of the night and Rogue stretched but chose not to leave. When it came time she settled once again. At some point during her last sleep cycle she had stretched out over the seat beside her and it made for a much more comfortable ride. She curled up once again and finally fell asleep.

When she woke up once again it was just starting to lighten outside. With the dawn her hopes rose and she smiled as she adjusted the volume on her Mp3 player. In just a few hours she would arrive in New Orleans. Those hours flew by and in what seemed like no time the country and suburbs began giving way to the houses and buildings of a city. When the driver announced that the bus would be reaching the station in 20 minutes Rogue felt like bouncing up and down but restrained herself.

She watched eagerly as the driver expertly drove through the small streets of the city and Rogue couldn't help but be marveled by the unique culture that rose up around her. By the time the bus finally stopped she wanted to get up and run down the streets in order to take in everything she could as quickly as possible.

She looked at her watch which read 1:00 pm. It was the middle of the afternoon on a Tuesday which meant that the small shops and boutiques would be open for business. Rogue took a deep breath and calmed herself. She didn't have time to shop, at least not immediately. She had to find a place where she could stay till she found a job and permanent residence.

With a plan in place she grabbed her backpack and shuffled behind the rest of the passengers to the front of the bus. She then waited impatiently as the driver started removing the luggage from the compartments. Because Rogue had gotten onboard first she had to wait a while but the sights, and smells of New Orleans were enough to keep her entertained. When she finally had her bag she made her way over to the ticket counter and spoke to the woman behind the counter.

"I'm looking for a cheap hotel where I can stay for a few days." Can you recommend anything for me?" The woman looked her over as if to judge her age before nodding. She picked up a blank piece of paper and started making notes from a directory on her desk. She handed the piece of paper to Rogue.

"This is a list of some of the cheaper hotels that are close. Hopefully you can find something. We aren't in the middle of a major tourist time but rooms can be tight for no reason." Rogue thanked the woman and took the list. She scanned it over and after thanking the woman a second time left the station.

It took her a couple hours and a couple wrong turns for her to finally find a place that had a room that she could rent. It didn't look like the most well kept place but it wasn't about to fall down either. With a sigh she made her way into the lobby to speak with the clerk. The young woman looked up as she entered and gave her a bright smile.

"Welcome ta Naw Orleans Miss. Do ya have reservations?" Rogue shook her head.

"Ahh was hopin ya would hava ahh vacancy." The woman nodded and opened her registry.

"How long will ya need tha room for miss?"

"Five days at least, mahbe more if Ahh can't find a job and place ta stay quickly enough." The woman nodded.

"Seems ya are in luck. We do have a room. It will be 40 a night." Rogue grimaced. 5 nights would be 200 but she really didn't have any choice and she had already tried several other hotels.

"Sounds good." She removed her wallet and gave the woman the money. The woman began filling out the registry and asked her for her idea to finish the paperwork. Rogue handed her the I.D. with a sigh. She didn't like the name that was on the I.D. but she really hadn't had a choice. She had used Darkholme for the last name and Rogue for her first. It sounded okay but she still hated using Darkholme for anything.

The woman finished her registration and handed Rogue her I.D. and a key to her room.

"If the key is not returned at check-out you will be charged." Rogue thanked her and went upstairs. She found the room easily and slipped the key into the lock. The door opened easily and she looked around. The room was on the second floor and was much cleaner than she had expected. A small TV sat on table and a phone sat on the bedside table.

With a sigh Rogue locked her door before dropping her duffle bag and backpack on the bed. All the walking she had done earlier that afternoon had worn her out and she desperately needed a shower. She dug through her bag and got a set of clothes that she could wear while she was alone. She then headed for the bathroom.

Much to her surprise the bathroom was actually rather large. It was clean with fresh towels hanging above the toilet and a large bathtub that was calling her name. She quickly locked the door, stripped and filled the tub with hot water. This would be the first truly hot bath that she had had in months and she intended to enjoy every second of it.

As she relaxed in the warm water she considered her plan of action. She had to find a job and an apartment as soon as possible but for tonight she wanted to enjoy the city. A couple of months before she had left Bayville she had decided to have a fake I.D. made up and she had paid to make sure it was a damn good one. She had used it several times to get into clubs and she was confident that it would work here.

After a long wonderful bath she finished up and stepped out of the tub. She wrapped a towel around her waist and grabbed the hair dryer that the hotel had provided. She dried her hair and got dressed. When she was finished she went out into the main room. After clearing off the bed she stretched out and relaxed. It was about 6:30 so she set the alarm for 8:00 and curled up to sleep. She would have a long night ahead of her and she planned to enjoy every second of her newly claimed freedom.

Chapter Three done guys, I hope everyone enjoyed. Please review.

Next Chapter: Rogue goes out for her first night of freedom.