A/N Well, there goes my update schedule. My bad.
The search for active hate groups resumed, though the results were much the same as before. Kitty couldn't find anything, neither could Gambit, which made them all think this group was very organized, and very good at staying off the radar. They weren't giving up, Storm stressed that, but they also knew there wasn't much they could do. They didn't know what the warning was that the mutant wanted to give them, they didn't know who was attacking mutants and they didn't know why. Still frustrated, Storm had to keep the search from consuming mansion life, though they would still search. Odds were the more confident the group got, the more careless they would get.
The next morning, Rogue woke up in a foul mood. She didn't speak to anyone, and if she did, it was with very short and clipped and sentences. Bobby, annoyed, took her ignoring him to heart and ignored her right back. She didn't normally behave like that toward him, but he didn't put much thought into it. And later that night, instead of remembering their anniversary, Bobby left in a huff to the rally. Rogue retreated to her room with a book.
The next morning, Rogue woke up in another melancholy mood. She lay in bed for awhile, thinking everything over. Maybe she wasn't being fair. Maybe Bobby had just made a mistake. Rogue swore and swung herself out of bed. Either way, she had to go talk to him. She quickly got dressed and made her way to his room to make peace. She knocked once and let herself in. It wasn't quite what she was expecting.
Bobby lay half under the blankets, though the half that was exposed wasn't wearing anything. Neither was the redhead curled next to him. Rogue slammed the door behind her, jarring the two awake.
"Rogue?" Bobby muttered sleepily. He then took in his situation and started stuttering. "R-Rogue, I...I…I…"
"Some monster truck rally, huh," Rogue said coldly. The redhead just sat with the deer in the headlights look on her face. "Did you know he had a girlfriend?" Rogue asked. The girl shook her head. "Okay, then I'll send a giant FUCK YOU to you, Bobby." She turned and yanked the door open.
"Rogue, wait!" Bobby yelled and jumped out of bed, blanket wrapped around his waist.
"I don't want to hear it," Rogue said. She slammed the door so hard that glass all around the room shattered. Bobby ran out the door and followed her out.
"Rogue, wait please!" He tripped on his toga and fell. Rogue kept walking, leaving other curious residents to see a half naked Bobby on the ground, with the redhead woman in one of his blankets, poking her head around the door.
Gambit and Logan made it to the scene at the same time. They both needed only a glance to figure out what happened. Gambit swore loudly and Logan glared murderously at Bobby, who backed away slowly, blanket still around his waist. Gambit stopped Logan from moving forward, knowing that he would reduce Bobby to nothing but a pile of goop. Instead, Gambit sent a charged card Bobby's way.
He jumped, trying to shoot ice to stop the card and lost the sheet in the process, also missing the card. Gambit's card hit above Bobby's left hip and exploded, leaving a huge burned patch. He yelped, and Gambit and Logan exchanged evil smirks. Gambit turned to go look for Rogue, but Logan stopped him.
"Let me."
Rogue wasn't in her room, though Logan didn't really expect her to be. She wasn't on the roof or lawn. He went to check if her car was there, and he found her in the garage, sitting on the hood of her garage. She looked the other way when she heard him come in. Logan leaned against the bumper, and the car sank considerably.
"What's up kid?" he asked.
"Nothing," she said. Her voice was thick and he'd have been able to tell she was crying even if he hadn't been able to smell the tears.
"Gambit blew up Bobby, if that helps."
Rogue choked out a laugh. "It does a bit," she admitted. Logan put an arm around her and pulled her closer. She leaned into him and he saw her tearstained face. He had a sudden surge of rage for Bobby. He rubbed her shoulder and they sat in silence for awhile. Eventually her tears slowed and stopped.
"So what're you gonna do?" he asked.
"I don't know," she said. "I just…I'm absorbing it right now."
"Okay," Logan said. "It's understandable. But you do deserve better. I'm not saying I'll care about you any less if you stay with him, but I might respect you less."
"Me, too," she said. One thing she could count on what the hard and honest truth from Logan. "I just need some time."
"Okay darlin', you know where to find me if you need me." He left her to her thoughts.
Rogue knew she had to kick Bobby to the curb, they were done. Someone who loves you should never hurt you that badly. They should never hurt you at all. Yet here she'd put up with pain at his hands, time and time again. Why? Because if she had left him, she'd be alone and didn't know if anyone else would want her. Who want to start a relationship with an untouchable woman? As soon as she thought it, she was even more pissed. Why had Bobby wanted to be with her in the first place? The answer was simple, he's cared about her. Or, she thought he had.
Rage jumped up in her, drowning her sadness. She was angry, no, she was pissed. How dare he? How dare he take advantage of her? How dare he make her feel like she could do no better? No, that was her fault, that was her settling. No more. She stalked to the other side of the garage, driven to action.
Gambit couldn't sit still any longer. He'd let Logan talk to her, then given her space when he'd said that's what she had asked for, but eventually he couldn't wait any longer. He popped down to the garage to see how she was doing, and had to keep himself from laughing out loud. There were engine parts in a pile in the middle of the floor, with Rogue under the hood of Bobby's car. She tossed another part behind her.
"What's dis?" Gambit asked.
"This is my breakup present to Bobby," Rogue called over her shoulder. Gambit grinned as she systematically dismantled Bobby's engine, piece by piece. "The deal is, I am going to hide every damn part. If he can find them all, I'll put it back together for him."
"Dat's generous, considering what he did."
Rogue snorted. "Not really. I'm giving you and Logan each a piece and I'm pretty sure you both will keep them from Bobby." Gambit laughed.
"Yo' can count on me." A few minutes later, Rogue threw the last engine piece rather roughly and turned. Gambit took in her red puffy eyes and tear stained face, and shaking constitution. "Oh chère…" He took the two steps and pulled her into him. Where with Logan she had silently cried with misery, she sobbed loudly and angrily into Gambit's shoulder, body wracking almost painfully.
"Goddammit!" she screamed. "Goddamn him!" What's wrong with me? No, I know what's wrong with me, I'm untouchable, and who would want that? But that's no excuse, that, that, that ass!"
Gambit rubbed her shoulders and held the back of her neck as she expelled every angry or self loathing thought. To his surprise, she let him hold her. When she pulled away, her face looked oddly empty.
"I'm done," she said. "This isn't my fault."
"No, it's not," Gambit agreed. "Want help hiding de engine parts?" A ghost of a smile flitted across Rogue's face.
"Sure."
She and Gambit spent the better part of the morning hiding the parts of Bobby's precious car's engine. Hiding places included the roof, garden, and Gambit ingenious little hidey hole in the hollow knot of a tree. She saved the alternator for Logan, the catalytic converter for Gambit and had Gambit hide the spark plugs inside the hollow curtain rod in Bobby's room. They finished up their sabotage when they ran into Bobby himself coming out of the kitchen.
"Rogue, there you are! I've been looking everywhere for you!" Bobby called. He marched toward her but she took a huge step back, putting her hand out.
"Have you? Because we've been around."
"Rogue, please, we need to talk," Bobby pleaded.
"So talk."
Bobby looked at Gambit. "Can we talk alone?"
"No. You forfeited any right to be alone with me when you cheated on me," Rogue said coldly.
"Rogue, it was an accident, I'm so sorry!" He moved toward her again.
"Don't touch me!"
Bobby froze again. "Rogue, every time I saw you with him-"
"Don't you dare blame this on my friendship with Gambit," she said, voice dangerously low.
"That drove me to it. I snapped! Plus you were being so cranky, especially lately…" He paused as Rogue's eyes narrowed dangerously.
"Cranky? You want to know why I was cranky? Tell me Bobby, what was yesterday?"
"Uh, Thursday?"
"Our three year anniversary."
The weight of Rogue's words hit him. "Oh…" He'd cheated on her on their anniversary.
"I'm done with you Bobby. Maybe someday I'll find someone who actually loves me." She turned and walked the other way, but turned around a few feet off. "Oh, there's a note on the hood of your car that you probably want to read." She and Gambit left Bobby scrambling to the garage.
Dinner was an odd event. Bobby sat alone and often glanced over at Rogue who was sitting with Jubilee, Gambit, Kitty, and Pete. Jubilee didn't mention seeing a timing belt in the back of the fridge. Kitty didn't tough the plug wire taped to the bottom of the table. While officially, mutual friends continued to be mutual friends, it was obvious who they knew had screwed up. Bobby sat alone and unhappy, and there was no doubt in anyone's mind that he deserved it.