Disclaimer: None of this belongs to me.
43-Partnerships
"Whoa-o-oh! You—you're the one for me, and I—I'm the only for you!" The singer belted out her song, singing directly from the heart. As a result the crowd screamed even louder. Pink smoke filtered onto the stage as the stage lights began to flicker for added effect. Dancers appeared and the singer began a choreographed dance before launching into another verse of her song.
Kitty screamed along with the rest of the fans. Beside her Kurt was shifting from foot to foot nervously. First of all he didn't like pop music, and secondly, he was afraid someone would bump into him and break his image inducer and reveal his true self. Of course, Kitty wasn't concerned about it; she figured Kurt could easily teleport before anyone noticed the blue fur. Well, that or they would think Kurt was part of the show.
"Kurt, isn't this amazing?" hollered Kitty clutching Kurt's arm tightly. "The Dazzler is so totally my new favorite singer. I have to get the rest of her CDs!"
Kurt grimaced. He had a suspicious feeling that he would be the one buying the said CDs and then end up listening to them with Kitty for the next three months straight. Girls were quite possibly the most confusing creatures on the planet. He didn't know what Kitty saw in the Dazzler anyway. She was another willowy blonde with blue eyes—the same mold as every other bubble-gum pop singer who had graced the scene since Britney Spears. The songs all sounded alike to him—the dancing was emphasized way too much—and he really wasn't attracted to blondes.
"Thanks for getting these tickets tonight—it's the nicest thing anyone has done for me in a long time." Kitty gave Kurt a peck on the cheek before turning back towards the stage to scream some more. Kurt sighed, wishing he hadn't encouraged Kitty to stop listening to Michael Bublé last week. The Dazzler was his new least favorite singer of all time.
With a long face Kurt turned his attention back to the stage, praying fervently that the show would end soon. He wasn't sure how much longer he could last without trying to kill himself.
Onstage, the Dazzler was starting another song. This one just as bouncy and bubbly as the last one, but this time around something was different. The tips of her fingers began to glow, and then sparkle. As she pointed her finger out at the crowd, light seemed emanate towards the fans, bathing them in a bright light.
All around him Kurt could hear people murmuring—some in awe, others in confusion. The Dazzler's hands were flashing like a strobe light in beat to her music…and many fans were beginning to realize that it wasn't a special effect.
"She's a mutie!" exclaimed someone from behind Kurt and Kitty. Kurt sucked in his breath as he reached for Kitty's hand. Judging by her reassuring squeeze, she had heard the same thing. They had to get out of there, and soon. The crowd was beginning to rumble—and not in a positive way. Tugging on Kitty's hand, Kurt led the brunette towards the side of the outdoor arena. Behind them fans were picking rocks up off the ground and hurtling them at the stage, trying to hit the Dazzler. Kurt cringed as the music cut off suddenly. Apparently the riot was forming faster than he had thought it would.
"Kurt!" cried out Kitty stopping the German teen in his tracks. "We have to help her!"
"I knew you were going to say that," muttered Kurt. Kitty grinned in triumph as Kurt clutched her hand tightly. In a puff of smoke they appeared in the middle of the stage where a frozen Dazzler stood trying to make sense of the growing discord in the crowd. Her blue eyes blinked in surprise as Kurt offered her his hand.
"We're here to help you," he stated matter-of-factly. "You're endangering yourself as long as you stay here."
With wide eyes the Dazzler glanced back and forth between her angry fans and Kurt and Kitty. Without a word she grabbed his hand, clutching it like a life preserver. Seconds later the trio was gone.
The X-Mansion:
"Is she all right?" demanded Kitty anxiously. Professor Xavier smiled at his student, raising a hand in the air to silence her. Kurt rolled his eyes, but there was a hint of worry in his own eyes as well.
"Miss Blaire is going to be just fine. She is calling her parents to let them where she is."
"Is she going to stay?" asked Kitty, her eyes lighting up at being friends with a pop-singer.
"For the time being. Now, if you don't mind, I have another matter to take care of." Xavier chuckled as he wheeled himself down the hallway and into his study. Sitting at his desk was Moira, with a very strange expression on her face. "Moira, what can I do for you today?"
Moira chewed on her bottom lip for several long minutes before speaking. "I'm not sure where to begin, Charles. There's a lot on my mind."
"Please begin wherever you like…I have as much time as you need or want," replied Xavier gently. Moira nodded thoughtfully. Just as she was about to begin, however, the door to the study burst open.
A woman with short brown hair entered with a wild look in her brown eyes. Both Moira and Xavier stared at her in shock. After a temporary silence the woman spoke. "You have no right to raise my son without me, Charles Francis Xavier—and if you insist on keeping him cooped up in this…this mansion of yours then I am moving in!"
"Hello, Gabrielle. It's nice to see you too," murmured Xavier recovering from his bout of shock.
Meanwhile:
Rogue paced back and forth beneath the grove of trees, rehearsing what she wanted to say over and over again in her head. She was getting ready to tell Logan the truth. He had a right to know, and Rogue desperately wanted to spend time with him…or did she? Rogue groaned in exasperation. She wished her mind would stop switching thoughts on her. She was tired of second guessing herself day after day. The others were beginning to notice her tired eyes and lack of response when spoken too. Rogue was becoming too much of an introvert.
Plopping herself down on the nearby bench, Rogue gazed up at the sky. Nearby birds twittered happily, their song turning into something of a trance that mesmerized the southern belle. Dark thoughts began to flicker inside her head. Thoughts of power and control; thoughts of killing all the X-Men while they slept. Rogue gasped as she shook herself out of that last thought. She gripped her head as a sharp pain jolted through her brain. Rogue tried to catch her breath as she doubled over on the bench with a loud roaring sound in her ears.
A pair of strong arms gripped her shoulders lightly, and a gentle voice coaxed Rogue back to a pain free reality. Looking up with beads of sweat on her face, Rogue came eye to eye with a very worried Bobby.
"Are you okay?" asked Bobby helping Rogue straighten up on the bench.
"Ah…Ah don't know anymore," murmured Rogue bringing a gloved hand up to her forehead. She began to shake, her body heating up at the latest breach in her mind. With a look of concern Bobby reached an iced hand towards Rogue's forehead, gently touching it. Seconds later Rogue's breathing returned to normal, and her body stopped shaking. The heat subsided as Bobby drew his hand away.
"I'm worried about you, Rogue. Why won't you let anyone help you?"
"Ah don't know if anyone cahn help meh," said Rogue, her eyes darting down to the ground at her feet. Bobby sighed and leaned back in the bench. The pair sat like that, in a comfortable silence before Bobby spoke up.
"You have to learn to trust me, Rogue. I'm your friend, remember?"
Rogue nodded, and then cleared her throat. "Thank you," she whispered hesitantly. "Ah know Ah'm not the easiest person to try ahn deal with, but it's nice that you're tryin'."
Bobby grinned back good naturedly. "Yeah, that's me, the good guy. You better remember that too…I'm always here for you."
Rogue smiled back. "Ah will."
"Good, now how about we sneak off grounds and give you a breather, huh? I know Logan grounded you for a week after dealing with the Brotherhood the other day, but I figure you can use a break from the constant vigilance from all the doctors and adults breathing down your neck to check for any new battle wounds."
"You're willin' ta help meh sneak off grounds?"
"That's what friends are for, aren't they? Now, are you coming or what?" Bobby stood up and offered his hand to Rogue. The brunette tucked a strand of white hair behind one of her ears and placed her hand in Bobby's. She really did need a break from the mansion again. Just an hour ago she had been contemplating learning how to fly—without wings again. She was still avoiding Scott who had found her perched on the window sill the last time. Rogue simply didn't have a good excuse as to what she had been doing.
And Kurt was also watching her like a hawk. He had caught her watching the stove fire instead of dishes. The teen was convinced his sister was a closeted pyro, and he refused to let her anywhere near the kitchen by herself anymore. Quite honestly, some of the things Rogue did nowadays disturbed her to no end—as well as embarrassed her. Rogue was beginning to wonder what life would be like in a bubble just to protect herself from…well, herself.
Bobby led Rogue over to the garage, looking every which way to be sure no one was watching as they entered. Inside the garage Rogue was ushered over to Scott's old red convertible. She got in as Bobby slipped the car keys out of his pocket. The car started up without a problem, and the two teens were quickly speeding down the driveway, towards the main gates that had been left open.
As Bobby steered onto the open road, Rogue began to relax. A drive was exactly what she needed. The wind in her hair, no sound but that of the car engine, and the bright sunlight shining down on her skin, which was beginning to darken with all the time she spent outdoors. Yes, nothing could ruin her day now.
Four Hours Later:
Rogue muttered under her breath in a mixture of French and German as she silently followed Bobby through the foliage. Her day had been ruined—all thanks to spotting Avalanche, Colossus, and Psylocke heading in the direction of the army base. Of course Rogue had ordered Bobby to follow them. Upon seeing the enemy she had decided a real down to earth ass kicking would make her feel ten times better than ever.
Now, however, as the two teens made their way to the chain link fence that separated the army base from the outside world, Rogue was beginning to rethink her lapse in judgment. The small band from the Brotherhood had disappeared into the base almost twenty minutes ago—and Rogue wasn't ready to launch a full scale attack on the army. Of course, if she was thinking clearer she would conjure up an image of the base in her mind and teleport inside…wait, that wasn't right. Rogue couldn't teleport—only Kurt could.
"I see them…and I think they have someone," hissed Bobby, waking Rogue from her thoughts. The brunette edged closer to Bobby and peered through the bushes to glance in the direction he was pointing in. Sure enough the familiar form of Lance could be seen, with the large visage of Piotr right behind him. Betsy followed at a cautious pace…and there was another, petite figure following her. Rogue frowned as she tried to zero in on the fourth figure.
Her frown deepened as she noticed the searchlight of the base inching closer to the departing Brotherhood. With a shake of her head and a smirk on her lips, Rogue watched as the light revealed the escaping figures to the army. Sirens sounded out as the Brotherhood group began to run. Some break-in and break-out—whoever had planned this mission had sucked at their job. Insects, the lot of them were Rogue's immediate thoughts.
Rogue cringed as bullets pounded off Piotr's metal body. Directly beside him Lance was making the ground rumble as Betsy produced her purple blade to slice through the raining bullets. Bobby groaned in annoyance as the light centered on a blonde girl with blank looking brown eyes cowering behind Piotr.
"We should probably help them—they'll never get her out alive," he stated.
"You read mah mind, sugah. Why don't ya ice things over for a bit, huh?" suggested Rogue straightening. Bobby nodded and the two teens headed over to the chain link fence. Taking a deep breath Bobby placed his hands on the fence, watching as ice began to form. The ice flowed down the links, making the chains brittle enough to snap into various little pieces.
Rogue stepped through the broken fence and gave a sharp whistle. Lance turned around in surprise, a smile tugging at his lips. Betsy also turned, but her eyes flashed in anger at seeing Rogue. The southern teen tilted her head calmly. "Did y'all plan ohn standin' there all night, or did ya wanna escape before the army catches ya?"
Piotr gave a sharp nod, his eyes breaking away from the fast moving jeeps headed in their direction. "We go!" he ordered loudly. Betsy frowned but turned to run, Lance hot on her heels after he sent another quake in the direction of the humans.
"Meet back at the car," said Bobby before stepping forward with icy hands. Rogue pursed her lips thoughtfully as eyes caught sight of the girl that had been rescued from the base. Without thinking she motioned for Piotr and the girl to follow her. The girl was important to her cause. Humans would fear her just like she had feared the Nazis—when had she feared them?
Rogue growled under her breath as the trio crashed through the bramble in a fast escape. Every now and then she would sneak a peak back at the pair following her, and noticed the facial similarities between them. Of course…it all made sense. Rogue slowed her pace slightly, a plan formulating in her mind. It would be ironic, of course, but oh so brilliant, as well as cruel. But Rogue needed the trust of the X-Men if she was to ever break free of them…she needed complete trust, and this would be perfect. It was an opportunity she could not pass up.
"Where are you leading us?" demanded Piotr as they paused to catch their breaths.
"The mansion, where else?" retorted Rogue acerbically. Of course, she had no intentions of bringing Piotr back there…she needed leverage against him in the future. That's the way a true leader worked…but since when did Rogue want to be a leader?
"We aren't going there!" snapped Piotr grabbing Rogue's arm to twirl her around to face him. "I won't go back to them!"
"Ah wasn't askin' ya to…but d'ya honestly think Mags will care for your sister after what she's been through?" shot back Rogue.
"How could you possibly know what my sister has been through?"
"Juggernaut was there for a while too…trust meh, sugah, that boy ain't been right since. The only one who cahn help your sister out is the Professor—ahn you know it."
Piotr lapsed into silence. "I do not trust you. Magneto has said you are the enemy. You are a traitor."
"Well ten points ta meh—Ah've always wanted ta be the enemy. Look here, buddy, either you start thinkin' straight or Ah'll make ya think straight. Look at your sister—she needs professional help…ahn don't give meh that bullshit that Mastermind cahn do it. That one ain't right in the head either."
"How do you know about him?"
"Ah have mah ways."
"Leave Illyana and me—you are no help to us?"
Rogue snorted. "Sugah, ya ain't leavin' with that girl. Ah am." Just as Rogue had anticipated Piotr fell to the ground in a frozen stupor.
Bobby stepped out from behind the tree shaking his head. "What the hell were you thinking, riling him up? You don't stand a chance against him, Rogue."
"Ah know, but Ah had a feeling that ya were ohn your way. Cahn we go now?" Rogue turned away and began walking towards the hidden car as Bobby scooped the blank faced blonde into his arms. Rogue continued to amaze him to no end, but he was also starting to suspect that there was a lot going on in that mind of hers that even she didn't know about.
At The Same Time:
"And to our newest member—Dr. Nathaniel Essex—welcome to the Hellfire Club. You are now among the elite of the elite!"
Wine glasses clinked together after a polite applause. The man in question smiled appreciatively, his black and gray face studying the people around him diligently. He knew the rules of the game. No one was to be trusted in the Hellfire Club.
Standing off to the side of the elaborate party, a woman with long blonde hair and ice blue eyes played with her glass of champagne. Things were moving along nicely. Everything was going according to plan—soon all that she had ever desired would be hers.
"Gloating, are we?" teased another female voice. The voice belonged to a woman with dark black hair, and the strangest color of red eyes.
"Go screw yourself, Selene. I'm not in the mood for your paltry games," snarled the blonde.
"Bitchiness doesn't become you, Emma; it makes your face take on a most dreadful shade of purple. Please continue." Selene chuckled to herself as she walked away, leaving Emma behind to fume.
"Damn that woman to hell. Who does she think she is, anyway?" Emma downed the rest of her champagne before leaving the party behind. Her high heels clicked along the marble floor as she made her way down the hall. Making sure no one was watching, Emma slipped inside a large oak door, softly closing the door behind her.
"I've been waiting," murmured a male voice. Emma put on a winsome smile as the man's arms wrapped around her waist.
"I hope I've been worth the wait," she tittered playfully.
"Always." The man nuzzled her neck before asking, "What took you so long?"
"A new member was inducted tonight—I had to be there because I'm one of the four in charge. How was your day? I haven't seen you in ages now that you're campaigning for the Senate. You need to schedule more playtime or else you're going to get very lonely."
"I'd be more than willing to schedule you in every evening so long as you took the pains to actually show up."
Emma rolled her eyes as she broke away from her lover. "You know I can't do that, Gray. I have a society to run—I have a school to open—and I have a war to plan. Remember, you're the one who asked me to help you start a war between humans and mutants. How can I do that when you're coddling me all the time?"
Graydon Creed ran a hand down his face before speaking. "War between humans and mutants will be the only thing that will get either me or Kelly elected—your society is the perfect way to manipulate our kind in seeing how bad the mutant problem has become."
"I know, so just leave everything to me, darling. I'll take care of everything," said Emma coyly. She allowed Graydon to wrap his arms around her waist, their lips meeting as her mind drifted away.
Manipulation was her specialty. Only she, Emma Frost, could convince a shady human into thinking she was normal…and she had no intentions on ever letting Graydon find out that she was a mutant, and that the Hellfire Club was a mutant society. She needed him, just like he needed her.
Elsewhere:
Irene's sightless eyes peered over at the doorway as she heard her front door creak open. She didn't have to see to know who had entered her apartment.
"I was wondering when you would arrive," said Irene simply.
Mystique snorted. "You're a damn seer, Irene. Since when have you needed to wonder about anything?"
"I won't do what you want me to do."
"You haven't even heard me out yet."
"It's too dangerous, Raven. She's too dangerous. Working with her or even for her would be the end of me. I've seen my future, Raven, and if I stick around Rogue for much longer I'll die," replied Irene evenly.
"She's my daughter…I will not let any fucking prophecy swallow her up," snapped Mystique angrily.
"There's a chance she will destroy the Apocalypse—and then more problems will arise. Raven, you have to understand, your daughter is a danger to everyone around her—including herself. I don't see peace and tranquility in her life for a long time off."
"Irene, I need you—Rogue needs you. I know she doesn't trust you, but the least you can do is watch her, guide her from afar. Pass messages to her using my guy. I have Gambit trailing her in order to be sure nothing happens. Please, Irene, we've been friends for so long…don't turn your back on me now," pleaded Mystique with her heart in her throat.
Irene sighed. "Very well."
The X-Mansion:
Rogue trudged upstairs towards her bedroom wearily. It was well past her bedtime—the Professor had kept both her and Bobby up questioning them on the events at the army base. The girl they had found, Illyana, was doing better. She was sleeping down in the infirmary until further notice.
As she passed the second floor hallway window Rogue stopped suddenly to peer out into the early morning sky. For half a second she swore she saw a burning ball of fire in the air, but then within one blink it was gone. A frown fastened itself on Rogue's face as her heart began to race. It wasn't possible…it couldn't be…and yet, deep inside Rogue knew it was. She could feel eons of hatred building up inside of her—yearning to break free to join the fire ball.
Rogue pushed the window open and stood with her elbows leaning on the sill. Inside her mind she could sense the growing discord developing. It was almost as though her mind could feel the prophecies starting up. Yes, the prophecies. There were two of them—and they were still waiting for the right time to come. That time was now.
"Why aren't you in bed, Stripes?" demanded Logan gruffly. Rogue half turned to greet him. Despite his gruff exterior she could sense his worry. Rogue was becoming a regular magnet for trouble these days…she couldn't blame him for worrying, she was worried too. If for all the wrong reasons.
Would she complete things in time? Would she find peace with herself one day? Would she ever let Logan know she was his daughter? Would she ever be free from the confusion inside of her? Would she lose her mind? Was death imminent in her future? Would she ever get the power part of her thirsted for?
"Ah'm headin' that way," murmured Rogue glancing back outside. Logan peered out as well, but didn't see anything worth looking at.
"Right. Come on, kid, you've had a long day. You need your sleep." Logan placed a hand on Rogue's shoulders and began to lead her in the direction of her room. Reluctantly, Rogue tore herself away from the window.
Her plans…whatever they were…could wait until tomorrow. She had a feeling tomorrow would be a big day. And those were the type of days Rogue lived for.
A/N—Shorter, uneventful, and I'm not quite sure I liked parts of it, but still very important to future events. Thanks for reading.