Chapter 2

Things were finally starting to come together. Rogue got moved to the early shift at the diner and finally earned enough money to buy her own motorcycle. She used what mechanical expertise she had to soup up her bike as much as she could, although she lacked the necessary parts to do so as much as she wanted. Her apartment now had things like a bed, linens, towels, and a stocked kitchen complete with cooking utensils.

As soon as Rogue had enough cash, she entered her first race and put down the highest bet she could afford on herself after the entry fee. The odds against her were insultingly high, but Rogue just told herself that it would make her victory all the sweeter. And she had to win. She had a lot of money riding on it.

She waited at the starting line while her replacement walked out in front of them. She watched while the girl raised the flag and then waved it down. Rogue and her competition took off. Like all the racers, Rogue had previously travelled the route by daylight with some of the other guys. Knowing she wanted to race, a couple of them offered her some tips about various parts of the course, although the course was known to change from time to time in order to evade the police. Rogue had put together a strategy, but now that she was in the race, the thrill of the high-speed ride sent all of her planing out the window (or the helmet, as the case may be). The other riders ceased to matter. Money and stakes were no longer a concern. She was having fun!

Rogue was a little disappointed when she crossed the finish line, because that meant the ride was over. Her disappointment was short lived when she realised she was the winner of the race. She quite smugly collected her winnings; both the pooled prize money and her bet.


Rogue smiled at the kittens in the window of the pet store. There were three domestic short-hairs, two busy tackling each other while the third was drinking from its water bowl. She would have loved to get a pet, but pets were not allowed in her rented apartment.

Reluctantly, Rogue moved away and continued down the corridor of shops. Her place might have been small, but somehow it always felt large when she was home. Perhaps she was just too used to living with other people. If she got a roommate she could probably afford to have a better place and have some company, but Kitty's actions turned her off the idea. Regardless of the number of people she had gotten to know, she didn't really consider herself close to any of them and she liked it that way. If she didn't get close, she couldn't be betrayed, and she had had quite enough of being betrayed.

Idly, Rogue wandered into a toy store and she smiled to herself. It had been a long time since she last had any toys. After her parents died when she was four, Rogue had been adopted by Mama - later she found out 'Mama' was Mystique - and Aunt Irene. For years the only non-educational toy she had was the teddy bear she had owned when she was adopted. It mysteriously disappeared not long after her tenth birthday. Rogue was never entirely certain if she lost it on her own, or if Mystique had a hand in it.

Rogue sighed as she drifted into the aisle where the soft toys were on display. When she was thirteen she had come home from after-school activities, all excited because Cody had finally worked up the nerve to ask her out, and found the house was locked up. No one answered her knock. Irene should have been home, but she wasn't and Rogue had no way in. She ended up sitting on the doorstep for a couple of hours before working up the nerve to go next door. They tried ringing, but there was no answer. Rogue stayed the night and when there was still no sign of life the next morning, the police were called. There was nothing to say what had happened and Rogue ended up with her foster parents who disowned her the same day they found out she was a mutant.

Her eyes fell on a plump little teddy bear with shiny, beaded eyes, a cute face and soft brown fur. Impulsively she took the bear to the counter. She had been on a winning streak at the races lately and was in the mood to be indulgent.


"I got him," Baz gloated as he joined his friends in the bar.

"Got who?" asked Gary.

"That little mutie who keep scavenging in our neighbourhood," Baz said, rather pleased with himself. "He won't be scavenging anywhere now."

Rogue kept her face impassive as she took a swig from her beer. The guys weren't beneath buying her one occasionally, and Tony pretended not to notice.

"All right," said Joss, lining up his shot at the pool table, "one less mutie to contaminate the gene pool. So, Rogue, about that date tomorrow night; pick you up at eight?"

"I don't recall ever agreeing to a date," Rogue replied blandly.

"But you –"

"You just assumed I'd agree to go with you."

Gary laughed and Joss glared at him.


Rogue shot up in bed, panting heavily as the last vestiges of a long-forgotten nightmare faded away. It had been at least a year since she last had any nightmares about mutant experimentation from either Logan or Magneto, and she certainly hadn't missed them.

Slowly, Rogue lay back down on the bed, feeling very small and alone. Her apartment seemed so foreboding in the dark. She tossed and turned, attempting to get back to sleep, but the dream had made her too anxious to slip back into sleep. In the end, she reached out for her teddy bear, which lived on her bedside table. It was just the right size for cuddling and her only source of comfort right now.


One Tuesday morning, just shy of the breakfast rush, Rogue was momentarily distracted from her work by a news headline that started playing on the lone television. The trigger word had been "mutant" and was swiftly followed by "signs that the 'cure' is wearing off." Rogue didn't register a thing after that. She was too busy mentally screaming every expletive she knew. No, no, no! Absolutely not! She was not going to go back to not being able to touch anyone again.

"Marie? Yoo hoo, Marie?" said Lisa.

When the waitress got no response from Rogue, she waved her hand in front of her face and giggled when Rogue jumped.

"Oh sorry," Rogue said.

"A million miles away?" Lisa asked with a grin on her face.

"Yeah, a bit."


"They never should have stopped making the 'cure'," Joss declared. "They need to start making it again, and force all the muties to take it."

"I have a better 'cure' right here," Baz said, patting his side where he kept his gun.

Rogue said nothing and just looked at her beer. It was a good thing that she had Wednesdays off because she had no intention of leaving here anything short of completely smashed.

"Yeah!" Carlos cheered. "By the way, can I have all your bottles when you're done?"

"More Molotov cocktails?" Owen asked, looking amused.

She should have realised that the weird dreams and nightmares she'd been having was a sign her powers were returning. She should have.

"You can never have too many fire bombs," Carlos replied gleefully

"One of these days you're going to fire bomb the wrong place," said Frank sagely. "And it's going to bite you on the ass."

She liked being able to wear whatever she wanted. Damn... she'd have to give up her job at the diner. Not that Rogue had any intention of being a waitress forever, but she wanted to quit on her terms, not because of the impracticality of trying to wait tables while wearing gloves. That was a disaster in the making right there.

"Nah," Carlos replied. "There's no such thing as a wrong place to fire bomb."

"What about... the gas station?" offered Owen. "It's a little hard to fill up your bike if all the fuel is on fire."

"But think of the massive flames!"

She might have chosen not to get romantically involved with anyone (unless she counted Joss' advances as 'romantic'), but that didn't mean she didn't want all the other forms of touching: hugs, handshakes, brushing by someone in the street or as drinks were passed or whatever the case may be.

"Can I get another?" Rogue asked, pushing her empty beer bottle towards Carlos.

"Absolutely," said Carlos, standing up. "Anyone else? No? Be right back."

"You okay, Rogue?" asked Joss as he looked at her in concern.

"Lousy day," Rogue replied.

"I bet I know a way to cheer you up," Joss said, waggling his eyebrows suggestively.

Right, sleeping with a violent mutant-hater, brilliant idea. Almost as brilliant as hanging out with three violent mutant haters. How was that for a cheap thrill? Yes, Rogue was 'friends' with people who she couldn't be entirely certain wouldn't try to kill her if they learned the truth about her.

"You're just asking to be smacked again," Owen said with a smirk.

"Whaddya say, Rogue?" asked Joss, ignoring Owen while he slipped his arm across Rogue's shoulders. "You, me, my place. Or yours. I'm not picky."

Maybe she should sleep with Joss. Who knew how much time she had left before she became untouchable again. Perhaps she should make use of the time she had and do it. Then, just for kicks afterwards, she could say:

"I'm a mutant."

Wait, she didn't just say that aloud, did she?

"Come again?" said Joss, blinking at her.

"I'm a mutant," Rogue repeated, mentally blaming the booze for her slip of the tongue and wondering how she was going to get out of this one.

"No you're not," Joss said.

Rogue giggled and leaned into him.

"Ask me what my mutant power is," she said.

Maybe she should have though through her plan to get wasted a bit more.

"What's your mutant power?" Joss asked warily.

"It's not obvious?" Rogue asked. "I make men fall desperately in love with me."

All but Baz laughed. Baz just shook his head.

"Right," said Gary, playing along, "and you had to take the 'cure' because all these men were just following you around all the time."

"Exactly!" Rogue replied with a grin. "So nowadays I can only make men weak at the knees."

"You cheat in fights, don't you?" Owen said.

"Frequently," Rogue said cheerfully.

"What's happening?" asked Carlos, joining the table and passing one of the two beers over to Rogue. "Your beer."

"Thanks," Rogue replied.

"We were just discussing Rogue's mutant power of making men weak at the knees," Gary said.

"You're not serious," Carlos said.

"Of course not," said Joss. "She was just turning me down again. One of these days, Rogue -"

"It's not something to joke about," Carlos said. "Muties are a menace to society."

"And you're not, arson-boy?" Rogue demanded.

"Hey, I just burn crap," Carlos retorted. "Some of these muties can walk through walls."

Rogue knew that Carlos was only spouting one of the many excuses used to justify mutant registration and termination, but he did have to pick Kitty's power, didn't he? So when Rogue's only response was to drink her beer, Carlos figured he'd won a point.


Rogue was curled up in her bed, cuddling her teddy bear with its tear-soaked fur. Stupid 'cure' wearing off. There was a phrase for that; "false advertising". She should have realised that it was too good to be true. She should have known she'd just get betrayed again.

Rogue choked out another sob as she clutched her bear. This was going to be her life, wasn't it? She was never going to be able to trust any one. She was always going to be on her own, with a teddy bear for a best friend. What did it matter that her powers were going to come back? So what if in a few months to a couple of years she'd never be able to touch anyone ever again? It wasn't like she was letting anyone get close to her now. At least she could touch her best friend without hurting him, powers or no powers.

Eventually Rogue fell asleep, and woke up late Wednesday morning with a throbbing headache. She stayed in bed for at least another hour before she finally got up.

Rogue was just starting to feel human again when there was a knock at her door. Reluctantly she got up, pulled her dressing gown around her and leaned on the frame as she opened the door up a crack.

"Oh hey Joss," she said, opening up the door wider.

"New course this Saturday," Joss said, holding up a sheet.

Rogue nodded and let him in. Joss set the map down on the table to go over the course with her. His finger traced over the bold black line on the map while they talked, and his free hand slowly wrapped itself around her waist.

"Wanna go for a ride?" Joss asked.

"Yeah, sure," Rogue replied. "Just give me a minute to get dressed."

Not long thereafter, Rogue and Joss were on the road. They travelled the new race route and made note of the checkpoints before Joss took it upon himself to escort Rogue back home. He hovered at her side while she unlocked the door.

"Well," Rogue said, lifting her head to look at him. "I guess I'll see you on Sat-:

Rogue got no further before she was interrupted by Joss' lips on hers. She was rather startled to realise just how eagerly she responded to his kiss and it took her a moment before she came to her senses. She wasn't going to sleep with someone she knew would betray her unless he had a dramatic change of heart about mutants. Rogue pulled away.

"You know what you need, sugar?" Rogue said softly.

"You?" Joss suggested, pressing into her.

"A girlfriend," Rogue replied slyly. "Maybe then you'll learn to keep your hands off me."

"You know you want me, Rogue," Joss replied as he watched her enter her apartment. "You know you do."

"Keep dreaming, lover-boy," Rogue answered and shut the door in his face.

Rogue leaned against the wall as she heard Joss leave and put her fingers to her lips. She was going to miss that. Maybe she should sleep with Joss. Maybe she should sleep with a few guys, just to get as much skin contact and variety as she could before her powers came back. Go out with a bang, as it were.

Rogue snorted and walked into the kitchen. No. She still had her dignity. She hadn't played the whore before and she wasn't going to start now.

She opened up the fridge and reached for a beer. As her fingers curled around the bottle, Rogue frowned. Why did she have beer in her fridge?

Oh that's right. She asked Owen to pick some up for her.

Rogue opened up the bottle and brought it to her lips before she stopped again. Why on earth did she want beer at home anyway? She was a purely social drinker. Beer was just a prop she used when hanging out with her riding buddies.

Still, she took a swig all the same before setting the bottle down on the counter. Wasn't even good beer anyway. All this American stuff was far too watered down. Give her a good Canadian brew any day.

Rogue paused.

"Logan," she hissed.

Although she couldn't hear Logan or any of her other voices, she knew he was there. His voice must have been just loud enough to be heard on the subconscious level. It made sense that Logan would be the first voice for her to notice too; she had more of him in her than anyone else.

Rogue frowned to herself. What had they said on the news? It could take months, possibly even years, for the 'cure' to wear off depending on dosage and batch. Well, she was not going to take her voices giving her subliminal instructions. They were just going to have to learn to keep their opinions to themselves.

Rogue poured the beer down the sink. Maybe she won't be able to touch anyone again, but she sure as hell wasn't going to let the voices of those she had rule her life. How she was going to fight subliminal messages she had no idea, but she had to start somewhere. She contemplated pouring the rest of the beer in the fridge down the drain as well, but she hated the idea of wasting the money and decided to leave them for guests.

Well, if she ever had any guests.


"He's hot," said Lisa, gesturing to a new customer who'd just sat down.

The breakfast rush was just getting started and Rogue rolled her eyes at what she considered to be Lisa's catch cry.

"If he tips well, he can be as ugly as all hell for all I care," Rogue replied.

Lisa rolled her eyes. "You and money. Is that all you ever think about?"

"Actually, this morning I'm kinda wondering why everyone's been going overboard on the deodorant," Rogue said.

"They are?" Lisa asked. "I can't say I've noticed."

Rogue shrugged as the bell rang and she picked up the plates for one of her tables. It wasn't just the deodorant, everything seemed to smell extra strong today. The coffee, the salt, the grease, she'd even wonder if the garbage had been taken out recently if she hadn't done it herself. She was personally amazed that the people sitting around the toilets weren't being repulsed; Rogue was greatly relieved her section was nowhere near them.

Rogue announced the order and handed out the plates, then she made her way over to "hot guy"s table.

"Mornin' sugar," she said. "What can I getcha?"

She then proceeded to ignore his blatant checking out while he gave his order. If it got her better tips, he could flirt with her to his heart's content. Wasn't like it was going to go any further than that.

As the diner filled up with more and more people, Rogue really started feeling overwhelmed by all the smells. It wasn't just the smells either; everything was louder and brighter. She could hear every mouthful of food being eaten, every whirl of the EFTPOS machine, every flush of the toilet. Worse was that no one else seemed to notice. Everyone carried on as if everything was normal and she was the only one having a nasty case of sensory overload. It quickly became an effort to keep her temper in check, to say nothing of remaining polite to the customers.

In the end she ran to the staff toilet and locked the door. She sat down, shut her eyes tight and covered her ears. Even that was painful because she could hear the blood running through her veins. She didn't think she could last the remaining two hours of her shift at this rate. She mentally begged everything to shut up and go away.

Then the slightest whisper. What the words were, Rogue wasn't entirely certain but she knew the voice was Logan's. At that moment everything made sense. It was like the incident with the beer, only somehow she'd managed to tap into Logan's enhanced senses. She tried to grab his psyche's form in her mind, but it was like trying to grab air. In the end she succeeded in pushing him away into a little box, like a wind blows confetti.

Then, it was silent. She could opened her eyes and see without being overwhelmed by light and colours. The toilet no longer smelt like a sewer. Rogue took a few deep breaths, washed her hands and went back to work.