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Glaring Decipher

Chapter Four

Magneto had his back to the class, as he had just dismissed them. He picked up the eraser and started to clear his notes from the board. The chattering of his students filled the air as he heard them start to depart the room. He honed in, however, on Rogue's voice when she became to speak.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Nothing's wrong," Rogue said.

"Rogue, what was that about?" Scott Summers asked.

"Nothing really. Just a little misunderstanding, that's all," Rogue said. "Magneto and I talked it out in the hall and cleared it all up. I thought- well, I was wrong," she said.

"Rogue," Kitty Pride started to say: her voice concerned.

"What did you think?" Jean Gray asked.

"It doesn't matter, I was wrong," Rogue said. "Look, I'm- I'm a little embarrassed about it, okay. I made a mistake: a stupid little mistake. But Magneto was really understanding and he promised not to mention it again. After last time, with Miss Jones, I think I might actually get punished this time if Prof gets involved. So, can ya all just not mention my outburst in class today? Please?" Rogue asked.

"Sure, Rogue," Scott Summers said.

"Yeah, totally," Kitty Pride said.

"But you're okay?" Kurt Wagner asked.

"Everything's fine. Really," Rogue added.

"Okay, if you're sure?" Jean Gray started to ask. There was a pause. He assumed Rogue must have nodded.

"We're going go to the common room to watch a movie. Want to join us?" Jean Gray asked.

"Nah, I gotta get some stuff done before tomorrow. Ya 'all go on without me," he heard Rogue comment.

"Okay, see you in a bit, Rogue," Kurt Wagner said. Magneto put down the eraser as both he and Rogue watched the rest of the students leave the room. Rogue walked up to the door, as though she was going to leave, but to his surprise she closed it instead. Magneto walked out from behind the desk and moved to stand in front of it: as he had the day before. He watched Rogue turn to face him.

"Yes?" he asked her as they made eye contact again.

"You asked me to stay after class before," Rogue said.

"Yes, I did, before we talked… Is there anything else you would like to say to me?" he asked. He watched her open her mouth to speak before closing it again. She broke his gaze: looking away from him. He watched her lick her chapped lips. The girl was nervous, but why? "Rogue?" he asked after a moment.

"How do you talk to people, knowing that you know how they're gonna react, and not feel like some evil manipulative mastermind?" she asked him before she made eye contact again. He raised an eyebrow at the question. The girl was getting more and more interesting with each passing second. He had so many questions.

"Is that how you feel?" he asked. "Like a manipulative mastermind?" he asked.

"Yeah," she sighed. "Most of the time," she added.

"Why?" he asked.

"You heard," she said dryly.

"Because you told a lie?" he asked as he folded his arms across his chest. "The conversation was between us, my dear. You were correct earlier: you do not owe anyone an explanation. Despite having no responsibility to do so, you put their minds at ease. Hardly a crime worthy of debasing yourself over," Magneto said.

"Maybe," Rogue sighed as she sat down on one of the desks in the front row. Her eyes were on the floor.

"What else?" he asked her.

"It's complicated," Rogue answered.

"I am hardy a simpleton," Magneto said. Rogue smiled at that, for a moment. The smile faded quickly.

"It- it didn't use to be so bad. But the more people I've absorbed, the more I know about everyone. I know how they think. I know how they're gonna react to situations. I sit in a room, I listen to the conversations and, half the time, I know exactly what's gonna come out of everyone's mouth before they do. I try to get involved, but when I do, I- I feel like anything I say is gonna move the conversation in a certain way- and just- it-it's hard to explain-" she said she broke off before she rolled her eyes at herself. "I don't know why I'm-" she said as she started to walk towards the door. He could not let this conversation end. He quickly moved from the desk and grabbed her arm.

"Try," he ordered softly as he moved in front of her: blocking her path to the door. He watched her look down at his hand on her arm. She watched her try to take a deep breath: but found that she was shaking. He had never seen this reaction from her. "I'm not going to hurt you," he told her gently as he loosened his grip on her arm. He didn't release her completely though. "You do not need to be afraid of me," he said as he rubbed her arm with his thumb: a calming gesture. However the girl gasped. The look in her eye was highly intensified as her gaze focused on his thumb. He knew he should stop, this touch his of being far less than innocent, but this reaction was so different from what he had seen of her before, he could not help but wish to explore it. With his free hand, he grabbed at the cuff of his shirt and pulled it over his fingers. He then moved his covered hand to her chin and tilted her face upwards until they made eye contact again.

"You shouldn't," he heard her whisper.

"What shouldn't I do?" he asked as he kept her gaze. The look in her eye: he couldn't bring himself to turn away. He had to discover its' meaning.

"Touch me," she muttered.

"I'm not afraid of your powers," Magneto said. Rogue rolled her eyes as she broke out of his hold.

"You don't even know what my powers are. No one does," Rogue said bitterly as she walked away from him.

"That doesn't need to be the case, my dear," he said as watched her.

"Yes, it does," she said strongly.

"Why? What would be so horrible about your capabilities being pubic?" he asked.

"You don't understand," she yelled.

"But I would like to," he told her strongly. "I will not tell anyone, if that's what you'd prefer. I believe that I can help you, Rogue, but I can't do that if I do not understand what you need help with," he said. He heard Rogue let out a bitter laugh.

"You don't even understand why this is so fucked up, do you? You're the reason I had to start keeping these secrets," she yelled at him.

"I'm-" he started to ask himself. "Because you knew the whole time," he realized: voicing his discovery out loud. "You did whatever you had to in order to not give any reason to prolong my stalking. Keeping it from me meant hiding your capabilities from everyone," he uttered amazed.

"After I started, it just snowballed," she yelled. "I've so told many lies and lies by omission. Once it comes out, I don't think anyone in this house will ever be able to trust me again. And it's your fault. But, yeah, you're the one who can help me," she said bitterly.

"Then tell Charles the truth," he told her.

"You were dead for four months and I didn't say a word," she said. "The fuck was I waiting for?" she asked.

"You were frightened. There was still the possibility that I was alive. You knew that and chose to be cautious. Charles can't fault you for that, especially when you were correct," he told her.

"He might kick you out," she said.

"That is my problem to resolve, not yours," he said. "Charles is far easier to maneuver than a telepath with his skills should be. When he first offered me this position, instantly, I thought of what I could do with it," he said.

"Slowly, try to instill your ideology into the course?" she asked rolling her eyes.

"How did you know?" he asked.

"It's you, teaching a course on strategy: it's only a matter of time before you start quoting Machiavelli," Rogue said. He chuckled at that.

"True," he said with a smirk. "My point is, I'll be able to handle Charles. I won't be going anywhere," he said.

"What if you're wrong? What if he kicks you out because of me?" she asked.

"I would not hold you responsible," he told her.

"But it would've been my fault. You won't get to teach all of us anymore. There's no other school like this. You'd be isolated from the most organized and influential group of mutants, because of me. Prof will go into full drive protection mode. Conversations like this would be over. And that curiosity of yours, about me, won't be satisfied. Not by a long shot. What would you do? Honestly, in that situation what would you find yourself doing?" she asked.

"…I'd probably start stalking you again," he admitted: knowing she already knew the answer.

"No shit," she exclaimed. "I don't want that. I want you to be where I can see you," she told him strongly.

"That's won't happen, my dear. I can control Charles," he told her.

"I ain't willing to take that risk," she told him. "I'd rather things stay as they are. I know how to handle this. I won't go back to you stalking me," she told him.

"Very well," he said. "We will not involve Charles unless you feel safe enough to do so," he said. He watched let out a sigh as she moved to sit on one of the desks again. He moved to sit on the desk next to the one she choose.

"But the more time passes, the worse it's gonna look," Rogue said as she looked up at him. "I know that, but- I can't," she told him. "I won't," she said. "I won't take that risk," she told him.

"Then, it seems to me, that I'm only one you can talk to," he said. He watched her eye widened for a moment.

"Hate setting traps for myself," Rogue said.

"I meant what I said, I'm not going to hurt you," he repeated as he placed his hand on her clothed shoulder.

"That's not what I meant. I ain't afraid of you hurting me. Not while you're living here," she said.

"But if I leave, you're afraid I might?" he asked.

"I don't want to tell you my fear. If you haven't thought of it already, I don't want to give you the idea," she told him. He smirked at that.

"I can respect that. It's very wise of you not too," he said.

"But there's the trap. If we keep talking, you're gonna get to know me better. Thoughts you've never had are gonna pop up and half my fears might be realized because I gave you the ammo to use against me," she told him before she moved her gaze to the floor.

"I understand your hesitation, my dear. But the alternative is you continue this path alone. Correct me, if I'm wrong, but you seem to have a desire to talk about it. You don't want to be alone any longer, do you?" he asked as he saw tears forming in her eyes.

"No," she said sadly. "I'm tired of being the only one who remembers these conversations," she told him as quickly wiped a few tears off of her face. He raised an eyebrow at that.

"I will gladly talk to you," he told her.

"I know," she said as she remade eye contact: another tear rolled down her face. He grabbed at the cuff of his sleeve and pulled it over his fingers again. He moved his covered hand to her face and wiped the tears from her cheeks. He watched her face flush as she avoided his eyes. The girl wasn't use to this kind of contact: her reactions made that clear. It drove his desire to coerce such reactions from her. Gloves, he was going to need to purchase a pair.

"The other day in class when you said that you had déjà vu," he started to ask as he moved his hand to her chin and titled her face upwards. "What did you mean by that?" he asked as he watched her eyes widened as she sucked in a breath. He watched her breaths come fast, before she broke away from his hold again: almost jumping off of the desk.

"This was a bad idea," he heard her muttered panicked as she ran for the door. He followed after her. "I shouldn't have opened up to you," she said as she reached for the door knob. "I knew it was a bad idea, but I-" she said as he came up behind her, her back touching his front, and put his hands on her shoulders.

"But you need someone to talk to," he started to say as she froze. "You've been alone in this far too long," he said.

"It can't be you," she said.

"You said you wanted to be friends," he pointed out. She didn't comment. He just listened to sound of both of them breathing for a long moment. "You know where to find me if you change your mind. I don't have to mention the déjà vu again, not yet," he said. "You can pick the topics we discus, my dear. I'll try not to pry on subjects you would rather avoid," he said.

"Do you really think you can help yourself from asking?" she asked. He chuckled at that.

"I'll try," he said. "It more than most people get from me," he told her darkly.

"That's true… okay," she said after a moment. "You're still gonna let me know whenever were in the same room together, right?" she asked. He ran his hand down her arm and took his right hand in his. "What are you-" she started to ask as she turned her head towards him slightly.

"Let me show you," he whispered in her ear. He used his abilities to move the two rings she was wearing underneath her glove. He heard her let out a gasp as he slowly turned the rings around her middle finger and thumb. "Keep wearing at least one of these and you will always know when I can see you," Magneto said as she glanced down at her hand. He watched her take a deep breath as her face flushed. "Unless it makes you uncomfortable?" he asked.

"No," she said quickly. "It's just different," she told him breathlessly as he rubbed his shoulder with his thumb. "I ain't used to someone touching me so much," she said. "You can't even tell they're turning," she commented before he could speak.

"Convenient for both of us, my dear. No one will be the wiser," he told her as he continued to slowly turn the rings and rub her shoulder. His eyes widened with excitement as he heard her let out a soft moan.

"I should go," she said quickly. "I have homework," she said as she opened the door and raced out of the room. He let her go.

"I am most certainly going to need to a pair of gloves," he said to himself with a slight chuckle.