Author's Notes: Thoughts are signified by 'these'. Emphasis, telepathic conversation and the voices in Rogue's head are in italics.
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Rogue couldn't help but flinch when Mystique leaned down to help her up.
Mystique sighed and said gently, "There is much to explain, but first we need to get you somewhere safe. Will you allow me to help you?"
Somehow Rogue gathered enough strength to speak. "You will tell me why you let things happen the way they did?"
Mystique's yellow eyes seemed to dim slightly, but she nodded. "I promise."
Rogue nodded her assent and didn't react this time when Mystique leaned over her. But instead of simply helping her stand, Mystique picked Rogue up and carried her. When they left the alley, Mystique shifted forms into a burly man so no one would think it strange that someone practically the same size as her was carrying Rogue. With silent motions of her hand, Rogue indicated the directions to her apartment.
By the time they were inside with the door closed behind them, Rogue was wishing she had a more destructive power. Her head was splitting, and she had an intense desire to destroy something, to smash something to smithereens. The voices of the three thugs were still all yelling at her, and she wished very strongly for mental ear plugs. Mystique set her down on the worn sofa that had come with the apartment, and Rogue tried to focus on the woman who had adopted and then abandoned her.
Somehow Rogue knew having Mystique there was helping her keep the voices at least somewhat at bay, that if the shapeshifter hadn't appeared when she did, given Rogue something else to focus on, her own mind might not have been able to stay at the surface. She didn't want to know what 'she' would be capable of if one of the other voices, especially the mutant-hating human ones, took over.
Mystique moved to the small kitchen area of the apartment, once more in the form Rogue remembered from the time she had called the woman 'Mama'. Rogue watched quietly as Mystique made her a cup of tea.
Silence reigned until after Rogue had taken a few small sips of the steaming chamomile-flavored liquid. She set the cup down gingerly on the small table near the sofa and leaned back to study Mystique. She looked so much different from the scaly creature who had barely spared Rogue a glance when she was imprisoned by Magneto that it was almost hard to believe they were the same person.
Mystique's blue skin was now smooth, unblemished. Her red hair no longer looked like a glued-back butch cut, falling softly to her shoulders, a skull emblem resting at her widow's peak. She was also dressed, which was a marked improvement in Rogue's mind. The form hugging halter dress with separate front and back flaps to the skirt somehow managed to look elegant on Mystique, and her skull belt and thigh high white boots added just enough attitude to the ensemble. Rogue wondered if the gloves Mystique wore were just in deference to her skin, or if Mystique really liked having every accessory she could.
The voices got louder suddenly and Rogue's vision swam for several long seconds before Erik pushed his way to the forefront.
Listen to Mystique, he said lightly. Do not blame her for what I did. I am sorry, my dear, there is so much I have done to you that I could never begin to make up for.
'Keeping the others quiet is a good start, Erik,' she reminded him gently of how much he had helped her so far. 'I'll let you know if I think of something more.'
Anything, he promised.
Mystique sighed and Rogue's gaze flew to her face.
"Erik..." Mystique corrected herself when Rogue frowned at her, "I mean, Magneto... Magneto is a very powerful mutant. We both hate humans for various reasons, and we both believe in the supremacy of mutants. And I think he could truly be a great leader for our kind." Mystique sighed again, "But that doesn't mean I would ever let him hurt you. If I'd had my memories, I would have asked him to find another way..."
Mystique trailed off and Rogue shifted slightly, "Do you know what happened to our memories?"
"I can't be sure until I can speak with Magneto again, but he knows a mutant that goes by the name Mesmero who can alter memories. I believe Irene and I chose to alter yours so no one would hurt you because of us. The affects of Mesmero's ability starts to wear off when confronted by true memories, so I knew when I came back I'd be able to get you to remember. I can only assume that Magneto erased you from my memory when he decided you'd be useful in his plan. He did keep our contact to a minimum while we were holding you right before the Statue of Liberty."
Rogue nodded her understanding and asked, "But how was I able to touch until David kissed me? I know my mutation was active before I lived with the D'Ancanto's; I remember that and a little more."
"I used a serum that suppresses the X gene temporarily. It's only usable once because the body builds up an immunity to it, and I thought I would be back with you before it wore off. I am sorry for that as well, maybe if I hadn't hidden your mutation you would have been safe longer."
"It's alright, Mama," Mystique's face lit up when Rogue unconsciously used the endearment she had previously. "If my mutation hadn't come back when it did, I never would have met Wolverine and the X-Men never would have known to save me."
Mystique lowered her gaze momentarily.
When she looked up again, Mystique said softly, "I suppose I owe them a lot as well."
"We both do," Rogue agreed.
Now that she had the answers she felt were most important, Rogue was suddenly swamped with exhaustion. The voices were slightly quieter... Erik's doing, she knew... but there were still too many of them.
"Are you okay?" Mystique asked, concern evident in her tone.
Rogue shook her head slowly, "I need to find a way to get them out."
Mystique stood and moved to join Rogue on the couch, pulling the younger woman into her arms. Mystique ran a soothing hand over Rogue's head and down her back, showing Rogue a maternal affection she hadn't realized she'd missed until now. Quiet tears slid down Rogue's face as her mother held her. Mystique let her cry, making soothing noises every once in awhile.
When Rogue was all out of tears, she had to struggle to sit up. She was so weary.
"Rogue... may I call you Marie again?"
Rogue blinked and smiled shyly, "Only if it's okay for me to call you Mama."
"Of course, my daughter," Mystique said with her own soft smile. "You should get some rest while I pack up your things."
"You're taking me with you?" Rogue couldn't help but feel her spirits lift at the thought of not being alone.
Rogue had survived fine on her own since leaving Xavier's school, but that didn't stop her from being lonely. And to know that Mystique wanted her not for the powers she had, but for the connection they had once shared, meant a great deal.
Mystique shook her head slowly, "No, Senator Kelly suddenly having a mutant ward would be too far out of character. I need to continue my work in Washington D.C. for now, but before I go back I want to take you to the Brotherhood House."
"The Brotherhood?" Rogue echoed.
"Magneto's group."
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Rogue stared out the helicopter window, watching the scenery to stay awake. She was still slightly in shock at having agreed to go to the Brotherhood's mansion. Not only was it one of Magneto's bases of operation (though granted he was in a security prison facility with no immediate hope of escape), but it was located in North Salem, just minutes away from Salem Center, where the X-Men were headquartered.
Mystique had told her that if Rogue felt uncomfortable in the mansion, she would find Rogue another place to live when she got a few days free from her masquerade as Senator Kelly. But the mansion had a secure connection that Mystique would be able to use to call her once a week, and there were only a few people living at the mansion. Sabretooth had taken off after his defeat at the claws of Wolverine, Toad was gone and Magneto was in jail. The ones left at the mansion did not have seniority in Magneto's organization.
Rogue wasn't sure how she felt about meeting those who did live there. Were they as anti-human as Magneto? Rogue had never had support from humans in her life that knew her secret, her own father included, but Sara and Ernie had been good to her in New York City. Rogue wasn't out to kill all humans, and she wasn't sure she could stand to live with people who felt that way.
Calls had been made to both Sara and Ernie, in part to quit her jobs, and also to let them know she was okay and would contact them again when she could. Sara had taken a bit more convincing, and Rogue had been shocked when Mystique had agreed to talk to Sara over the phone in her true position as Raven Darkholme, Marie's mother. Sara had evidently berated Raven for leaving Marie with her 'father' and forcing Marie into a situation where she would have to live outside the law. But Raven had taken it well, promising the other woman that she would never abandon her daughter again.
The helicopter slowed significantly, and Rogue focused on the mansion whose heli-pad they would soon be landing on. It was remarkably similar to Xavier's mansion in design, though it appeared to have a few more wings.
The interior, however, was much different. This was a true mansion, obviously never designed to be a school and dormitory. There were large rooms Rogue saw in passing as Mystique led her to her new room; a kitchen, living and sitting rooms, libraries Rogue knew she would soon be haunting, and bedroom suites.
There were two young men in one of the sitting rooms, arguing about something. The taller of the two, also much heavier muscled, said something in a language Erik told her was Russian. Suddenly, the other young man, who'd had hair Rogue could have sworn was silver despite his youth, was gone. Was his mutation invisibility? She shrugged and kept following Mystique. She was sure the other woman would tell her all she needed to know about her new housemates.
In one hallway, Rogue noticed an elevator that appeared to only go down.
"Is there another Cerebro here?" she asked.
"No," Mystique answered. "We have a Danger Room, various gyms to work out in and an engineering room, but no Cerebro. After all, we don't have a Charles Xavier to use it; it would have been a pointless expense."
Rogue nodded and made a mental note to ask her mother for instructions on the use of the Danger Room here. It had been too long since she'd had a proper workout.
What the hell are you doin in this place, kid? If you're lonely, go back to Chuck's.
Though Rogue was surprised at suddenly hearing her Inner Logan again, she quickly answered him, 'No.'
Marie, he growled warningly.
But Erik snapped at him to keep quiet and the two men faded into the recesses of her mind, still arguing.
The room Mystique led her into was in a quiet wing of the house, and was bigger than Rogue's entire apartment. It also had a full in-suite bathroom, a large sized spa tub... a dramatic improvement over the simple shower stall that had been in both her apartment and her shared room at Xavier's... beckoning her with a long, warm soak. Mystique noticed Rogue eyeing the tub with longing and smiled indulgently.
"Why don't you relax and then get some sleep?" Mystique suggested gently. "We can talk more in the morning, and I'll show you around before I have to leave for my afternoon meeting."
Rogue was afraid of sleeping alone when the voices were so strong, but she was sure Mystique had other things she had to take care of. She smiled and nodded, surprised when Mystique pulled her into a hug.
Mystique kissed the top of Rogue's head and assured, "I'll be right next door if you need anything."
"Thanks, Mama."