Disclaimer: I do not own X-Men Evolution or its characters.
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When Rogue arrived, Pietro was already in class as usual, though he was not in his usual seat. Instead, he was across the room, surrounded by a flock of barbies, much like Remy had been. In fact, he was sitting in Remy's old seat, next to Taryn. Rogue made her way to her desk, a small worried frown on her lips. Why was he-- she knew why the moment the question began to form in her mind. She had done the very same thing to him. She knew how much Pietro disliked Remy, much like how he knew she hated Taryn and her cronies. Yet she had still gone with the cajun. She stared hard at her desktop, feeling terribly guilty. She needed to talk to him.
Pietro grinned and laughed, posing for the benefit of the girls around him and shamelessly flirting with Taryn. They had, predictably, shown a bit of aversion because he was known to be a mutant, but with a bit of persistent smooth talking, he convinced them that he was worth their time. So there he sat, basking in their attention when Rogue entered the classroom. She had looked surprised when she saw him and where he sat; she seemed like she was feeling a sense of loss, and Pietro could not fight the smug grin that appeared on his lips. Served her right. He gave Taryn a line and she giggled, just as Gambit came through the door. Remy met the speed demon's smirk with a wink, strolling casually to Pietro's old seat, next to Rogue. He was flaunting his hold on her, his claim visible by the green scarf that rested around her shoulders. Pietro narrowed his eyes, swallowing the lump that grew in his throat and disguising the heavy jealousy he felt with a purr towards his female audience. He did not care, no. He was not going to show that he cared, at the very least. If she wanted to ruin her life, so be it. He tried to protect her, to save her, but she just spit it back up in his face. And he was not going to lay around while she walked all over him. It was her loss anyhow.
Remy landed in his seat with a flourish, reaching towards Rogue to tickle her neck gently through the scarf. Seemed to him that Pietro had cut his losses; which was just as well, he did not want competition anymore to get in the way.
"Mornin' chere," he murmured, hesitating when she flinched away from his touch and did not look up at him. His tone became soft, hesitant as if picking up on the touchy moment. "Y' doin' okay?"
"Remy..." She pursed her lips, trailing off, not knowing what to say.
"S'okay, petite. Y' can tell Remy."
"It's Pietro..." she whispered, her eyes flickering over to where Maximoff was sitting and then back down to her desk again. "Ah messed things up with him."
"Oh, chere-"
"Ah need ta talk ta him, Remy. Ah hurt him, an' Ah need to mahke sure he'll be okay, that we'll still be friends."
"Chere, didn' I tell y'? Didn' we already talk 'bout dis? It isn' y' fault, it's his."
She lifted her eyes to his, flashing. "Remy, Ah cain't jus' give up on him lahke that!" She lowered her gaze again. "Ah know what ya said, an' Ah know what ya mean, Ah understand. But... Ah cain't jus' give up on him. He's good inside, Ah know it, jus' lahke ya."
Remy opened his mouth to argue, but found he couldn't. Pietro. Good inside, just like him. More like, not like him. He gave Rogue a convincing smile of admissal. "Eh bien, what d' y' wan' t' do?"
"After school, could ya tahke meh to th' brotherhood house?"
*****
"Ma belle, d' y' wan' Remy t' go in wit' y'?" She shook her head from where she stood, on the steps to the brotherhood house. He had driven her there on his motorcycle as soon as school ended, before almost everyone else had even gotten to their cars.
"No, Remy. Don' wait up f' meh either."
"Mais-"
"Don' worry. Ah can walk home if nothin' else. An' Ah won' be in danger heah." He glanced at her skeptically and she smiled. "Don' worry. Trust meh, Remy, Ah can tahke care o' mahself."
He grinned, readying his bike to take off. "S'not y' he worry 'bout. Remy fear y' wreak havoc on de boys."
Rogue laughed. "Off with ya already, swamp rat. Thanks f' th' ride." He nodded, winking at her before speeding off down the street. She sighed as she finally turned towards the house, looking up at the decrepit walls, looking as if they barely held themselves up. She chuckled slightly, feeling as if her mind could relate.
She did not have to wait long before Pietro arrived, before the other brotherhood members, due to his speed. He came to an abrupt stop in front of her, surprise crossing his stormy blue eyes. "Rogue? What are you doing here?"
"A-ah..." she stuttered, stepping back as she searched for what to say. Suddenly, all the words seemed to have disappeared from her vocabulary. "Ah mean..."
Pietro chuckled, tapping his foot impatiently. "What is it, Roguey? Spit it out already." His eyes were dark, accompanying a bitter smirk that had overcome his expression of surprise. "I haven't got all day."
"Ah... Ah came ta... ta get mah pillow back," she finished lamely, staring sheepishly down at the toes of her shoes.
Pietro arched his eyebrows, zipping up to stand next to her, grinning. "Is that all? Why didn't you say so? Be back in a jiffy." With that, he sped into the house and back down again, presenting her pillow. "Thanks, by the way. It was kind of you to let me borrow it." He paused. "Thank you for thinking of me." His voice dripped with sarcasm. "I can very easily say that it served its purpose and that I no longer need it. Nor want it." Rogue swallowed, understanding his subtle references. He was not just talking about the pillow by the word 'it.' "So you can take it away." He pushed the pillow into Rogue's arms, zipping back inside the house before she had a chance to respond. He was about to shut the door in her face when she stopped him, holding her foot in the way.
Rogue stared down at the pillow for a moment before lifting her gaze to Pietro, her tone plaintive. "No, wait, Pietro... Ah wanted ta talk ta ya... Ah was hopin'-"
"Yes, well, sorry, Roguey. Your time is up. I'm a busy man, see." He pushed her foot out of the way, shrugging. "And hopes get dashed all the time, besides." Suddenly his voice took a more sinister tone. "Why don't you play kissy-face with Gambit? You seem to like to do that so much."
Rogue dropped her pillow, reaching forward to slam open the door and catch his forearm, an indignant look on her face. "Excuse meh?"
He tugged his arm free, nonchalantly dusting off his elbow as he lifted his eyes slyly to look at her. "What? That's all you want to do, isn't it? Isn't that all that matters to you?"
"No, Pietro, it's not like that!"
"No? Seems to me like you were really into his body the last time I saw you."
"Pietro!"
He smirked darkly at her, his voice dripping with venom. He could not stop. "You can't deny it. You were all over him!" He stepped forward almost threateningly. "You wanted him all along, didn't you? Didn't matter what I had to say, did it? Didn't matter that he was so blatantly a womanizer. You chose to be blind to that. You chose to be deaf to my warnings. You didn't listen to me, yet you called me your best friend. Bullshit!"
"No, Pietro-"
"No, no? No, it's not just physical? Then what is it, Roguey?" He emphasized his nickname for her mockingly. "What is it? What about him that attracts you so much? It can't be how good and sweet he is. Trust me, I know all about how lacking he is in that area."
"Pietro, listen, please, he-"
"No, Rogue, you're going to listen this time. You do whatever the fuck you like. When you come crying back to me, I reserve the right to say 'I told ya so.' And you will come crying back to me. I know Gambit, no matter what you say. No matter how many dates you've been on, no matter how well you think you know him, you don't. It's all a lie. It's all a game." She shook her head disbelievingly, and he continued with a sneer. "I don't fucking care if you don't believe me now. But you will."
There was a moment of silence before Rogue dared to venture, "I didn't come to talk about him, Pietro."
The speed demon laughed. "You didn't? Well, what did you want to talk about then? Us?"
"Well, yea-"
"There is no 'us', remember? You rejected me. Yet you opened up your heart to that cold-hearted Acolyte, further throwing our friendship away." He zipped to her side, sardonically brushing his hand through the tips of her hair. "Which reminds me, you never answered my question. What is it, Rogue? What about him do you love?" He zipped to her other side. "Is it his moral standing, his righteousness? Does he fight the good fight for you?" He scoffed. "Or maybe it's the fact that he is a dirty thief? A womanizer? You like that? I never woulda known, Roguey." He laughed bitterly. "So, what is it? What is it, Roguey?" She did not reply. "Damnit, Rogue. What is it?" His voice softened suddenly. "Why him, and not me?"
Rogue met his eyes at those words, and again, she found she could not answer the question they posed. She could not answer for the pain they revealed. But then Pietro shut the walls down around his heart, and his eyes became cold and emotionless once more. Without another word, he left her side and entered the house, slamming the door in her face.
Rogue stepped back, stunned, stumbling slightly over the steps and falling into a heap onto the ground. She saw a tear drop down from her eye, darkening a spot on the dirt below her and she clenched her fists, willing herself to stop. Swallowing the lump in her throat, she pushed herself up and began to trek home, mindlessly clutching her pillow. Her mind was numb; she could not think, did not want to think, about anything. Oh, Pietro.
Pietro clenched his jaw as he watched her leave, her movements robotical. Closing his eyes, he turned away from the window, speeding up into his room. He was going to move on. He was going to get over her. Grabbing the phone, he took out a slip of paper that rested loosely in a pocket of his backpack. Dialing the numbers that were written there, he cradled the phone in his neck before a distinctively feminine voice came on the line.
"Hello, Taryn?"
~~~~~~~
Major fall-out between Rogue and Pietro. I don't like how parts of this is written. But I don't feel like revising or changing. Taryn was actually going to be physically present, but as I was writing it, she wasn't doing much. And I figure it's quite out of character for her to be silent, at least how I portray her.
I'm going to get complaints, I know, about how the mutant haters take to Pietro. But just deal. I, being the author, grant Pietro the ability to sweet-talk most barbies like Taryn and her cronies. Much like Remy could if he wanted to, though his skill is not just for barbies but for 'higher' women too. Like Rogue. ;)
I don't like this chapter. I think I got used to writing fluff stuff.
Also, as a note, keep in mind how fast Pietro tends to talk. I don't want to slur allthewordstogetherlikethisbecause, simply, it gets too damn confusing. So that's how he gets all those words in without Rogue interjecting.
Also, forgive the language.
I'm sleepy, so I can't rant real well. Just be glad I finished another chapter. This way, the sooner I get to further the plot. Up next, more Remy falling for Rogue. and then Remy falling in love. and then... I just want to get there already. So sleepy...
*falls asleep* zzzZZZzzzZZZzzz
(Rielyn :-p)
note: it's been a few days since I've finished this... but ff.net won't let me upload it. WTF? Maybe it doesn't like my writing. So, sorry this arrived so late, not my fault!