Hi everyone :)
Random recipe of the day; strawberry icecream with crushed white chocolate :P
HazleSilver: Fear not, for Remy returns in this very chapter.
silverbells: I know what you mean by the less than perfect chapter. Like I said, I really struggled with that one. The sudden compusure of Rogue is significant and will have an effect on the events of this chapter but it'll be later on when it really counts. It won't be just yet or even that soon but it will have a significant effect later on. Anyways, I hope this chapter is better. I, again, am not too keen on it but that might just be me.
enchantedlight: Glad you liked it. Here's the update :)
ishandahalf: Ooo, alone time with Remy, (drools).
Elle457: You ask for Real Remy, you shall recieve Real Remy :)
Clotterby: Yes, but if you come after me with a large knife, then how can I even finish the story? HAHA! YOU DID NOT THINK OF THAT DID YOU!...Sorry, got a little over excited :)
Freak87: I did the jump from last chapter to this chapter on purpose. Thought I'd try one of those techniques you learn about in English that famous writers use but I guess I didn't do it too well :) This chapter was set a few hours at the most after the last chapter so it's still the night time of the same day so no, no one would've had time to ask her about it.
adrenaline addict: The X-Men are always being picked on aren't they? It's a good thing they're more than able to pick back...O.o
CalliopeMused: You've never heard about the frog in the pond? Hmmm, interesting...Oh well. What's happened to the others is told in this chapter a little and more will be revealed as the chapters go on.
Chica De Los Ojos Cafe: The teachers, (excluding Kurt and Ororo) are with Xavier in Washington at the conferance. I did mention it in chapter 18 case you didn't pick it up.
texasgrrl: Logan and most of the other teachers are away at the conferance in Washington as I said in chapter 18.
chicita: I hate girly-wimp Rogue. She really bugs me. Everyone will find out eventually but not for a while yet.
jade: You reckon it was a cliffy? Hmm...Fair enough I suppose. Glad you liked everything though :)
firestorm13: Do ya mean with the collar on? I was going on the theory that because they're not part of her DNA, the collar wouldn't pick up on them. But I'm not a scientist so that might not make any sense at all :)
janey: The fates of everyone else will be revealed over the next few chapters. I'm struggling through the writer's block. I'm very stubborn :)
Karone Evertree: Glad you liked it. Lime/lemon refers to stories with more adult romantic content, lime being the less detailed stuff and lemon being full on description.
LucreziaNoin86: Glad to hear you're liking all the little touches. Hope you like this chapter just as much :)
Faerie Childe: Aww, cute name! Glad you're liking it :)
Friend to All: 19- Isn't that always the way? I believe that's called sod's law lol, (God I hope that isn't just an English expression otherwise I'll have probably just totally confused you)
20- Thank you for the encouragement and to answer your question, "the boss" returns this very chapter for a brief while :)
DemonicGambit: Lol, yeah, they really should. Hope you enjoy the update.
Thankies for the reviews. Very interesting thoughts as always :)
Many, many, many apologies for how late this chapter is. The writer's block has well and truely set in and I found this chapter a huge struggle. I've done my best for it but, as is probably obvious, this isn't one of my best chapters. Still, I hope none of you are too disappointed.
It is official. The lemon is wanted by the majority and, as much as I hate it, the majority have to be listened to, (by that, I don't mean I hate having to write the lemon, I hate how the majority is listened to. I prefer the minority though I'm not listening to them now because I wanna write the lemon :D). So, the lemon is coming soon...Not sure how soon though. Could be next chapter or the next or the next...Probably won't be after that. So, sometime within the next 3 or 4 chapters I'd say.
Captured. Everyone captured. Thrity students and two teachers, all handcuffed and collared. Unknown to the captors though, the school was home to thirty-three students and seven teachers.
The grim quiet which surrounded them was suddenly completely and utterly shattered by a black Mercedies skidding around the side of the school into everyone's view. All eyes were immediately on the dark vehicle as it sped to go right past the cluster of trucks, cars and vans and instead escape safely through the front gates...
"Rogue! The gates are shut!" Jubilee cried in dismay, leaning forward from the back seat of the car.
"Thank ya Jubilee, for stating the obvious!" Rogue replied, her eyes not moving from their hard stare at the outside world ahead.
"Maybe we should find another way out then." Jubilee suggested desperately.
"You know there isn't another way out." Kitty reminded, turning her head slightly to look at her friend. "Now sit back before you get hurt." She ordered, turning her head back to look out the window ahead at the vehicles they were fast approaching, some of which held their friends captive. Jubilee muttered a few choice words under her breath but did as she was asked and slumped back down on her seat. "You're not seriously gonna try and break through the gates are you?" Kitty questioned Rogue quietly enough so Jubilee couldn't hear.
"Ah know what Ah'm doin'." Rogue assured simply.
"All right." Kitty murmured, her tone grimly excepting.
As they approached the shut gates, Rogue began to concentrate as hard as she could on them, trying to force the bars to break with Magneto's power. However, they weren't breaking fast enough and by the time they were about a foot away, the bars were only slightly bent. Jubilee's scream filled the car and Kitty had covered her face with her hands, un-able to bring herself to look at the solid barrior they were about to hit. Acting through pure desperation and not thinking it out properly, Rogue used Kitty's power to phase them through the gate while she was still using her borrowed magnetism.
Pain rushed from Rogue's head and quickly consumed her whole body. The combined sounds of teenage screams and buckling metal easily drowned out her small pained gasp. She lowered her head, her eyes screwing shut in pain, and clutched the steering wheel tightly. But then, all of a sudden, the pain was gone and the familiar calming sensation that meant Head Remy was helping her took over. Rogue sent a silent thank you to him but got no reply. She didn't mind. She just figured he was too busy at that moment. She quickly opened her eyes and raised her head to see they were now in the street outside the school. Glancing at the rearview mirror, Rogue saw that the bars of the gate looked convincingly mangled.
"We're aht!" She gasped happily.
"You mean we actually got out alive!" Jubilee gasped in disbelief, her head shooting up and twisting around to look out of the back window.
"Why didn't I feel any impact?" Kitty mused curiously.
"Who cares! I'm just glad we got out alive!" Jubilee laughed in relief, turning back and slouching back heavily against the seat. Rogue let out a relieved sigh and released her death hold on the steering wheel. Her heart rate slowed and she allowed herself to relax slightly...And then she saw that they were being chased by three of the trucks they had seen before.
"Shit." Rogue groaned, her body tensing again as she leaned forward slightly. Kitty, having seen Rogue glance at the mirror, checked the side mirror to see the vehicles in hot pursuit of them. Jubilee, after seeing nothing ahead of them, twisted back around to look out the back window again.
"Oh c'mon!" Jubilee yelled in exasperation. She turned back and sighed. "Now what do we do?"
"Ah'm open to suggestions." Rogue murmured distractedly as she turned a corner sharply. No one spoke for several moments as each girl thought.
"We need to dump the car." Kitty spoke suddenly. "Then we'll need somewhere we can lay low for a while."
"Ooo, I know somewhere that'd be good for that." Jubilee said, leaning forward so that her head was between Kitty's and Rogue's shoulders. "There's an old run down factory not too far away. We can dump the car there and then there'll be plenty of covering to sneak away un-noticed."
"Ah dunno you guys...Ah don't feel raht abaht just dumpin' Cyclop's car." Rogue protested. Suddenly, the sound of gun shots reached them, causing Rogue and Kitty to wince and Jubilee to squeal fearfully. "On second thoughts, let's just go with your plan." Rogue agreed quickly.
"Good. Right, so where's the factory Jubes?" Kitty inquired, watching the road intently. A long pause. "Jubes?"
"Umm..." Jubilee hummed nervously, moving back to sit in her seat properly.
"Ah thaht ya knew where it was?" Rogue cried in frustration.
"I do know where it is!" Jubilee insisted indignantly. "I just don't know the exact location. I know the route though. Just follow my directions."
"Why don't we just pull over and let them arrest us now? It's save some time." Kitty muttered sarcastically.
"Don't be so negative." Jubilee scolded. "Have a little faith in me."
"Experience has taught me that it's usually safer not to."
"Safer!"
"Oops, sorry, did I say safer? I meant saner!"
"Jubilee! Which way am I going here?" Rogue interrupted the argument suddenly.
"What? Oh. Head into town. I know my way from there." Jubilee instructed. Rogue went to do as she was told and prepared to turn left. However, as she did so, Kitty noticed something on the road ahead that Rogue didn't; a stinger.
"Turn, turn, turn!" Kitty cried desperately, throwing herself at the wheel and turning it sharply. The car skidded 180 degrees, only narrowly missing the row of metal spikes. When they stopped spinning and came to a halt, Rogue took a moment to glare at Kitty. "You're welcome." Kitty said sarcastically. Rogue's glare only hardened but she said nothing to retaliate.
"What nah?" She asked irritably as she roughly put the car into gear.
"Go straight ahead. We can take the main road route." Kitty answered. Rogue nodded and sent them shooting off in the right direction. At the speed they were going, it didn't take them long to reach the main road which would take them into town. They were still being pursued by several army trucks and now also a couple of cars had joined the chase as well. They really couldn't afford to slow down for anything so that meant swirving dangerously around cars and running red lights.
"You know, it's ironic; we ran away because we were innocent but now we actually deserve to be arrested." Jubilee mused as Rogue swirved another car and the honking of a car horn faded into the distance. "It's kinda funny really."
"Oh yeah, it's frickin hysterical." Kitty muttered tiredly, making sure to keep her eyes on the road.
"I know the way now!" Jubilee exclaimed suddenly, totally ignoring Kitty's hurtful words and tone. "We need to go right."
"Kay." Rogue breathed, quickly turning right.
"Wait! What are you doing? I said go right!" Jubilee protested as they turned.
"This is right." Rogue told her.
"I meant my right!" Jubilee cried.
"Jubes, we're all facing the same direction. We all have the same right!" Kitty pointed out angrily.
"Oh...We should've turned left then." Jubilee corrected herself awkwardly.
"For crahin' aht lahd!" Rogue yelled furiously.
"Turn here." Kitty advised, pointing to the right. "We can double back."
"Fahne." Rogue grunted irritably in reply as she turned again.
"God Jubilee, how old are you and you don't even know your left from your right!" Kitty scowled at their friend as though she was a young child.
"Well excuse me for making one little mistake when we're driving at a thousand miles an hour on a crowded road because we're on the run from the cops!" Jubilee retorted angrily. "I'm sorry I can't be as perfect as you and Rogue are but I'm not a heartless ice queen!"
"Yeah, and you'll probably get us killed because of it!" Kitty shouted back.
"Will ya both just shut the Hell up!" Rogue yelled, joining the argument.
The car was suddenly filled with yelled accusations and angry insults and none of the girls were paying any attention to where they were going. After one particularly harsh comment from Jubilee to Kitty, Kitty turned herself back to face the front of the car. Rogue was looking around the side of her seat to better yell at Jubilee, only one hand on the wheel. Looking up, Kitty saw that they were headed straight for the corner of a building.
"Rogue!" Kitty cried urgently, her hands coming up to cover her mouth in horror.
"What?" Rogue gasped, taken aback by Kitty's tone, as she whipped back round to face the road ahead. She saw the on coming brick and all three girls let out frightened screams as Rogue stomped her foot down on the break pedal. For a few, heart stopping seconds, reality was a chorus of screeching breaks and frightened screams. Then it suddenly came to a head with the impact of collision, the sound of metal being crushed and the rapid hiss of inflating airbags. Then it was over.The three girls sat silent, stiff and opened mouthed, still trying to recover from the surprise and make sense of the past few blurry seconds. It wasn't for a couple of minutes that Kitty remembered their situation and regained her senses.
"You guys okay?" She asked.
"Yeah." Rogue replied, still sounding shocked and dazed.
"I'm alive if that's what you mean." Jubilee answered, trying to sound grumpy but failing and instead sounding suitably shaken.
"Good, then we need to get moving again." Kitty ordered, un-buckling her seatbelt and opening the door next to her. Rogue and Jubilee wordlessly copied her and left the car.
Once outside, they hurried away from the car and stood some way off. They found themselves just staring at the mangled vehicle, wondering wha they should do next rather than continuing to run away as Kitty had quite rightly suggested. They weren't given very long to think though, before three of the army trucks came into view to their side, coming at them down the road they themselves had just raced down.
No breath was wasted on words before the girls darted away in the opposite direction. Rogue and Jubilee were faster than Kitty and she found herself lagging behind slightly. She tried to pick up her pace but it was no use, she couldn't go any faster than she already was. Just as she was about to call out and ask Rogue and Jubilee to wait for her, three sharp pricks stung Kitty's neck. Her call came out as a weak, squeaky gasp and she fell heavily to the hard road beneath. They're attention summoned by Kitty's gasp, Rogue and Jubilee glanced over their shoulders to see Kitty laying completely still on the road a few feet behind them.
"Kitty!" Jubilee cried, skidding to a halt and then heading back towards her fallen friend. Rogue did the same and reached Kitty just as Jubilee took hold of her shoulders and sat the unconscious body up. Rogue knelt besdie her two friends and began to frantically search for anything which would account for Kitty's sudden sleep.
Then she spotted them; three small metal cylinders sticking out of the back of Kitty's neck. Rogue pulled them out sharply and glanced at them with Jubilee before throwing them away in disgust. Jubilee looked back down at Kitty while Rogue looked behind them to see that the trucks had stopped and soldiers were now pouring out onto the street. The sound of screeching tires behind her caused Rogue to turn again. More trucks were coming. They were boxed in...Trapped.
To her side, Jubilee suddenly gasped and slumped down next to Kitty on the road. Rogue instantly spotted the three cylinders in Jubilee's neck as the girl's hair slid away. She quickly pulled them out as she had done so for Kitty. Now only wanting to save herself and her friends for now at least, Rogue took a hold on both Kitty's and Jubilee's arms. Seconds later, the three had vanished from the area just as three tranquilisers hit the spot where Rogue had just been kneeling.
It was either really late or really early. Either way, it was no time to be awake, let alone fumbling around for the light switch in the dark while some psycho beats down your door with a battering ram. Fingers finally found the small button attatched to the wall. Light flooded throughout a stylish sitting room and revealed a very tired Remy standing at the door way of his bedroom, his eyes squinted to protect them from the sudden brightness. His hair was a dishevelled mess and his bare shoulders were slumped tiredly. His eyes had opened a little and were unfocused but still effectively conveyed his irritation at being woken so rudely and at such an hour. Dressed only in a pair of black pyjamas bottoms, Remy made his way over to his front door, all the while muttering French curses under his breath.
The banging grew louder as Remy got closer to the door. When he reached it, he threw it open, fully prepared to start yelling at whatever nutter it was. However he wasn't prepared for who it actually was. Standing in front of him was an exhausted Rogue, struggling to support her two unconscious friends. Remy could do nothing but stare at her in amazed horror as he noticed she was visibly shaking.
"Ah'm sahrry." She breathed shakily. "But Ah didn't know where else to go."
"No..." Remy murmured, breaking out of his shocked stupor. "No, don' apologise. C'mon, come in." He said, taking Jubilee from Rogue and then ushering her inside quickly. He shut the door firmly behind them.
"Ah need everyone available here nah!...No, this can't wait!...Because we're losing control that's whah!...Don't be difficult! Look, she's over exerted herself and she ain't got any time to recover...Get here and help!...Ya her friend! D'ya really wanna see her turn into a mindless pile of sludge?...What d'ya mean it ain't ya problem? Of course it's ya problem!...Don't ya dare cut me off! Don't ya dare...That bastard cut me off!"
"Excuse me."
"What?"
"We're here to help."
"Oh thank Gahd. It's abaht tahme someone came. Okay, exits one through eight are reasonably secure so Ah'll need ya to go support nahne and ten."
"Aye aye captain!"
...
"Idiots."
Okay, if you just totally don't get that last section, don't worry about it. You're not really meant to get it yet. It's one of those things where it makes sense once you know the end. I like trying new ideas and I thought I'd try this out, see if it works or not.
Hugs
Dream