I'd like to start by saying thank you, thank you, and a thousand times thank you to everyone who has taken the time to read and to support this story by either leaving reviews or adding it to favourites or alerts. A special thanks for everyone who has stuck with this story from the beginning. I have to say that after publishing the first chapter, I wasn't expecting much of a response, and probably would have written until the ideas went dry and left this fic hanging, but all of you who showed me that you liked this story inspired me to finish it. This is the first-ever multi-chapter story I've actually completed and except for a few little parts that I wish I would have done differently, I'm proud of it. So here is the last instalment; enjoy it, and leave a comment if you have the time.

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

Deconstruct to Reconstruct: Epilogue

By the time they got back to the institute, Logan had completely healed. It turned out that after he was shot, Logan mustered up enough strength to activate the emergency homing beacon on his communicator alerting the others back at the mansion that there was trouble. Jean and Scott arrived just after Anna had called the police and she told them all about Gus' powers. Fortunately, since Gus was in extreme pain and unaware that there was anyone else on the way, the nullification field emitted by his powers didn't extend further than the back room of the bar. Jean was able to use her telepathy from outside the room to knock him unconscious, thereby turning off his powers.

Anna stood under the hot spray of water trying to wash away the tension and residual adrenaline that had built up over the events of the evening. Shaky hands scrubbed at her scalp as she resisted the urge to crumble into a mess of tears and sobs again. She felt bad about just leaving Jerry there. She had no idea if he would be alright, or even survive. Scott had assured her that he was going to be just fine and that it was better for them to leave before the police arrived. She felt even worse about all of the people who got dragged into this mess because of her. She should have just stayed on her own to begin with. Even if Gus had found her and wound up killing her, at least no one else would have been hurt in the process. She shut off the water and reached for a towel to begin drying off. She wrapped the white, fluffy terrycloth around herself and paused at the mirror. Purple marks were starting to surface around her throat; they would be a dark, angry purple by tomorrow. Sighing, she stepped out of the bathroom and into the bedroom. She dressed in a pair of gray sweatpants and a matching hooded sweatshirt. Her gloves remained on the dresser as towelled off her hair.

A knock sounded from her door. "Just a minute," she called as she put the towel down and pulled on her gloves before opening the door. In the doorway stood Remy dressed in black sweatpants and a white, long-sleeved shirt, and, Anna noticed, black, leather gloves on his hands. "Hey," she stepped aside as a non-verbal invitation.

"Hey," Remy replied as he moved into the room. "How are you doin'?"

Anna shrugged, "Still coming down I guess. It's hard to believe that all of that really happened."

He nodded and studied her for a moment. She was still visibly shaken. Her hands would tremble when they moved, and her voice was hushed and unsure. His eyes focused on her neck, and without realizing it, his fingers reached up to the faint blotches that marred the porcelain skin there. Anna's breath hitched a little at his proximity and the sudden surge of butterflies in her stomach causing Remy to retract his hand as the sound woke him from his momentary daze. "I'm sorry," he murmured.

"It's alright," Anna tried to brush it off.

"I'm glad you're alright," Remy started again. "When I heard those gunshots I was worried you were on the receivin' end of them." He looked at her again, trying to read her face.

"Yeah, instead it was someone else put in danger 'cause of me," her arms crossed and she caster her head down.

"Anna…"

"No, if it wasn't for me, then Jerry and Logan wouldn't have gotten all shot up and you guys wouldn't be cleanin' up after me!"

"And then what? What would have happened to you?" he kept his voice even despite his urge to shake some sense into her.

"It doesn't matter," she shook her head and met his eyes. "It would have all stayed between me and Gus and no one else would have been hurt because of it."

"Chère," he took a step closer and placed a hand on her shoulder, "Logan's healin' factor's made him as good as new, and the prof checked in at the hospital on Jerry and he's gonna be fine."

"That's not the point! If Jean hadn't managed to come knock him out, Logan's healin' factor wouldn't have kicked in and he would have died. Hell, who knows what he could have done to you if…" she trailed off with a choked sob.

"Anna, listen to me," he gently gripped her other shoulder and levelled his eyes with hers, "it all could have happened, but it didn't. Right now, everyone is alright. I saw with my own two eyes what he did to you; homme's not right in the head. All he wanted was to control you, and if he couldn't, he would have killed you." Tears were rolling freely down Anna's face. Remy pulled her against him, "And I would never be able to forgive myself if I ever let a fils de pute like him do that to you."

"But what if he comes back for me, Remy?" she spoke in a hoarse whisper. "I just know that even if I manage to get a divorce from him that it won't keep him away. They won't keep him in jail forever."

"As long as I'm around, he ain't settin' a foot anywhere near you again," he rubbed his back to soothe her. "And now, the rest of us are prepared for him. We'll know how to stop him if he ever comes back." He held her until her sobs quieted.

~oOo~

Later that afternoon, Anna found herself in Professor Xavier's office. Her fingers twisted and knotted nervously as she sat in the high-backed, leather chair in front of his desk. "Good afternoon Rogue," he began with a calm voice and kind smile. "How are you holding up?"

Anna shrugged, "I'm just glad that mostly everyone's okay."

Charles nodded and continued, "I know that it's a little soon to be discussing this, but anytime something might involve some type of legal process, it's best to get things started as soon as possible." Anna nodded to indicate that she understood. "You don't need to make any decisions right now, but I would like to lay out all of your options so that you have time to think about what you would like to do." He paused for a moment, and steepled his fingers under his chin. "You will have the option to press charges if you wish. I believe that the bar owner has already decided to, but if you do as well, it would only help to build the case against Augustus." Anna said nothing and only nodded again. "Then that brings into question what you would like to do about your marriage."

"I do want a divorce eventually, but I can't exactly afford the legal fees to get that done right now," she replied.

"You needn't worry about the costs, dear. I would be more than willing to assist you and offer you the services of my legal team."

"That's very nice of you, but it would be too much…"

"Nonsense," Charles interrupted her, waving his hand. "As a matter of fact I insist. The more ties you sever with your husband, the better off you'll be."

"I suppose you're right, but I really don't want to be a burden. You've all done so much for me already," she tried to reason.

"Believe me when I say that it is my pleasure to give assistance where I can," he responded. "Now, have you given any thought to what you're going to do next? Your records indicate that you haven't completed high school yet. Would you like to work toward getting your diploma?"

"I'd like to," she answered. "It doesn't feel too good to be a drop-out."

"If you like I can arrange correspondence courses for you so that you won't actually have to attend school. I imagine it would be a little uncomfortable to be stuck in classes with students a few years younger than you."

"I'd like that, thank you," she grinned a little.

"And of course you are welcome to stay here as long as you need to, or as long as you want to," he stated with that kind smile of his again. "There will be no pressure to join the team of course so you won't have to attend training sessions, but I recall you and Logan making arrangements for some self-defence lessons to begin next week." Anna nodded. "Well then, that's all we need to discuss for now. Take some time to think and get some more rest."

Anna stood, but before she turned to leave she said, "Thank you Professor, for everything. Y'all have been so kind to me without really knowin' me."

"Rogue, as I've already said, it's my pleasure."

"Anna," she said. At Xavier's furrowed brow she explained, "Rogue sounds too much like a superhero code name. I like to go by Anna."

"Very well then, Anna," the smile returned to Charles' face, "I'll see you later." With that, she left his office.

~oOo~

Gus sat on the cold floor of his cell, seething while rubbing at the power dampening collar around his neck. He couldn't believe that she managed to slip through his fingers like that. He'd almost brought her back to where she belonged. When he got out of here, she would be sorry. Footsteps approached his cell and he looked up to see the guard stop and stare at him with contempt. "What the fuck are you looking at?" he spat.

The guard unlocked the cell and stepped inside, closing the bars behind him. "Oh, nothing, just a wife-beating, piece of trash." Gus leaped up, fists primed to pummel the guard, hesitating when he noticed that the guard's eyes change from brown to all yellow. The guard grinned and he melted away to reveal a red-haired, blue skinned woman. "What? Aren't you going to say hello to your mother-in-law?" her voice dripped with sarcasm. She grabbed his wrists and kicked him in the gut, causing him to crumple to the ground. Calmly, methodically, she crouched down next to him and pulled his head up by his hair. "I'd like to say that I'm going to teach you a lesson for everything you've done to my daughter," Mystique moved behind him and placed her hands on either side of his head. "I'd like to say that you'll be sorry for taking advantage of a vulnerable, young girl so that you could break her down and control her," she leaned in closer and whispered the next part in his ear, "but I'd rather make sure that you never lay a finger on my Anna Marie again." In one swift movement, a sickening crack echoed off the concrete walls and Augustus Richter fell limp. Mystique rose and took one last look at him before shifting into a snake and slithering between the bars and out of the jail.