Warning: Seasonal delights, developing friendships and Magneto's antics...
It was the following day and Scott had agreed to accompany Rogue to town. It was as packed as he had predicted but Rogue was a nifty creature, ducking through crowds and diving near-by any bargains she could easily pick up. Scott had to marvel at her tenacity.
"You're getting an awful lot. Are they all for yourself?"
She eyed him distractedly and shook her head. "Mah mother always said you should never go to a house empty handed."
"The others will understand, you know. No-one expects you to buy them anything."
"That's what Ah told Kurt and Kitty but they already bought gifts for me. Ah'm almost done. Go grab a coffee or something if you're bored. Ah don't know why you decided to come with me."
He reeled back at the petty-tone she'd thrown at him. After Rogue had left them for the evening the night before, he had been talking with Llogan and the Professor. Both men were concerned that she shouldn't be out and about too soon but they were since learning how stubborn she really was. Scott found he felt duty-bound to offer to accompany Rogue, much to Logan's relief. Although there were many things he would willingly do for the kids, going to town in the days leading up to Christmas wasn't one of them. Rogue had seemed surprised when Scott asked if she still wanted to go and that he would go with her.
Now though, he was regretting his offer. "If you're almost done then I'll wait for you."
She shrugged. "Then stop complaining!"
He would have replied that he wasn't complaining, but she had already left the area. Half an hour later, the bags were in the car and they had settled into a small café for some much needed nourishment. Scott had suggested Rogue catch a table, whilst he ordered and paid for their food. He felt that today would be a good time to get to know the latest member of their team, without any extra interference.
He waited until they were sitting down before trying to think of a suitable conversation. He didn't know why but there was something about the girl's presence that had him verbally redundant. She was distracted and his methods of catching her attention went unnoticed. It wasn't a feeling he enjoyed. As team-leader and in the field, he was used to others listening to his command, or following Jean, who often took on the role of his second in command.
"So, I..."
His words were cut off by the arrival of their sandwiches and then conversation was unnecessary. He overheard the people nearest them talking about a disturbance this morning.
"Could have sworn the guy had wings..."
"You gotta lay off the booze. Next thing you'll be saying the bridge pulled itself apart."
Scott's instincts were already in motion. He was torn between checking it out and getting Rogue back. Rogue had other ideas. She'd seen a local church and wanted to call in and light a candle for her mother. She'd felt bad that in all the chaos of late, she'd missed her birthday and the timing was provident. Scott was in agreement.
"Do you mind if I meet you there? I need to check out something."
She shrugged in reply, her mind focused on the church. As she pushed open the heavy doors, there was a great sense of peace and tranquility. There were candles in the church's alcoves and it was dimly, but beautifully lit. Rogue tiptoed down the side aisle, dropped a coin in the donation point and picked up an unlit candle. She watched the flames dance as the two wicks collided and she was temporarily transfixed.
She didn't notice someone was already in the nearest pew she'd selected and she said a quick prayer. She heard deep breathing nearby. Taking a quick look over her shoulder, she spied the form starting to shake, as the doors opened simultaneously, revealing an bolt of energy, followed by none other than Magneto. The figure beside her rose up, shaking off his jacket to reveal a pair of pure white wings.
She felt the atmosphere shake as metallic based objects attacked the angel, trying to fence him in. He dodged the assailants but Magneto was persistent. There were more footsteps as Scott entered the church, shooting a thin blast at the metal head himself distracting him as the metallic items struck Angel's wings, only to be deflected back to their puppeteer. The result was that Magneto crashed to the floor, leaving Rogue with enough time to approach, remove her glove and allow her fingers to reach out and touch his face. There was only a momentum of time before Magneto regained strength, sending a pulse of energy to knock her backwards, before he followed in heavy pursuit. Scott approached but before he could speak, Rogue composed herself and allowed the powers of Magnetism to guide her. She followed Magneto's wake, keeping an eye out to the hurdles he left in his wake.
She was so close to making contact and stopping him, when one of his hurdles proved less than stationary and nearly sent her crashing into the many buildings in downtown Bayville. She was dazed and the attack left her to plummet to the ground, before a firm pair of arms swooped her upwards before she touched the ground.
She didn't want to spoil the moment by saying something purely cliché.
He left her without a word and once Scott had ascertained she was okay, well apart from the oh-so normal lack of attention span, they returned to the Mansion. The good mood didn't last, as there was a welcoming committee awaiting them. The Professor was concerned, Hank was looking them over for any injuries and Logan was grumpy.
The Professor sat them down in his office.
"I understand that you had to act quickly but this kind of behaviour affects us all and can be used against us."
"I'm sorry Professor, I only left Rogue to check in on the incident that happened earlier."
"You should have kept us informed."
"It won't happen again, Professor."
Whether he realised that Rogue hadn't said anything, the Professor now turned to her. "What do you have to say about tonight's events?"
"Ah'd say Scott and Ah did what you want us to do. Use our powers for good. Magneto was the aggressor. Scott and Ah played to our strengths, causing as minimum damage as possible. Could it have gone smoother? Probably. But we did what we could, drawing on the limited resources we had to offer." She shrugged. "Ah know Logan is probably a little salty that he missed the fight, but if it had been any of you there in that moment, what would you of done?"
She eyed her father directly and Charles frowned. It was a stand-off between father and daughter, probably the first of many. The Professor was clearly pleading for understanding, whilst Rogue was comfortably justified.
There had been very little reaction to the Professor's confession, the night before and now, one worried that this situation would affect any interaction, whilst the younger, who was used to teenage conflict, felt it was the typical struggle between parent and adolescent.
"Ah see." Came her eventual answer.
Charles had not known what to expect, but it was much more than that paltry reaction.
"I think it would be best if we both took a few days to think this development over. You should know that my door is always open, whenever you're ready."
He'd left her then, eager for a response but dreading it all the same.
XxX
Things were quiet for a couple of days as Rogue was occupied sorting through her things. Scott had tried to help but his ideas didn't mesh with hers and she had to send him away, making him regret the offer. He consoled himself with several seasonal sessions in the Danger Room. Logan was always ready to do extra work outs. Even Hank took advantage of the extra time training. Meanwhile the Professor had suggested Rogue start 'gentle' training to see what they were working with. Logan was the obvious candidate but Hank had his skill-set too. He'd agreed to help her catch up with her school work after New Year's but found no harm suggesting reading material.
Between Logan's training and Hank's tutoring, Rogue had very little time to think about the glorified elephant. She knew the Professor wanted an answer. Hell, he deserved an answer.
She knocked on his door on the evening of the 23rd and asked to talk.
XxX
When Christmas Day dawned, everyone present did their level best to ensure that it would be a good day for all. There were some presents to be exchanged in the morning before food preparation was due to start.
Rogue had the bag of pre-wrapped and un-labelled gifts.
"It's pot-luck. If you don't like what you got, you can swap it, or choose another present to unwrap, as long as you help me wrap up the rest and not let the others know."
The result was a flurry of different wrapping and generic gifts, like toiletries, chocolates or, in Logan's case, a Christmas jumper depicting a reindeer who'd clearly been at the egg-nog. Rogue did her best not to laugh, even when Logan put it on and found it fit well.
"You don't have to wear it Logan. I won't take offense."
"It's fine Kid."
"Well okay, don't blame me later when you've been at the beer."
He snorted. "Like I'd do that."
She found he sounded especially gruff and was convinced he was trying to hide that he may have been touched. Both Hank and Scott received toiletries. The brand was quite a well-known one and had been in the sale. It wasn't their worst scent either. The Professor's gift was an box of chocolates, that had also been reduced to a more reasonable price.
"They're lovely Rogue. Thank-you."
She smiled awkwardly.
When there was only a small bundle of presents left under the tree, the Professor motioned them to Rogue. "I believe those are yours."
She went over to them, thinking that these were the ones the others have left. She felt self-conscious being the only one opening but told herself to get over it. Several of the presents were generic items like body lotions - of which she was very grateful. The various incidents and lack of decent washing facilities had caused her skin great damage. Logan's healing powers had gone some way in repairing that, as well as spark regrowth of her hair. But those were temporary measures. There were a couple of vouchers to music and clothes shops, as well as notes of welcome. It was a little bit much.
The last present was signed from the instructors. She felt the box shake as she opened the wrapping. The box wasn't sealed. She caught the Professor's eye.
"We needed to set it up for you. I think you'll find it has everything you need."
As she pulled back the wrapper, she found a phone. It was the latest model, charged up and ready to go. She switched it on, finding all the contacts and pictures she thought were lost to Sabertooth's wrath, were restored. Someone had even gone through her photos to find a picture of her mom. She looked up, going over to the adults present and giving them a brief hug. It was as awkward as she had imagined. Though Logan managed to cease the influx of emotions.
"Alright, that's enough sentimentality. We're glad you like the phone."
The remainder of the day passed in a flurry of decadent indulgence and a surplus of action movies and random infomercials. Rogue went to bed with a good feeling of wellness and strange sense of hope for the future.
The feeling carried her through the next few days and even when she began her study and fitness sessions. By the time the others returned and the New Year was in play, Rogue had become a fully fledged resident of the Xavier institute. Whilst she couldn't admit to being an overly-happy person, she was content in her situation, although it would take some time to adjust to the new personalities.
Kitty and Kurt were both curious and filled with lighter emotions and experiences. Jean Grey was 'practically perfect' and while she tried to think of her as an acquaintance, the furthest she got was 'potential team-mate'. Scott was generally stand-offish, when he wasn't enjoying the team-leader role he'd more than earned over the years.
She felt more comfortable with the adults. Ororo was someone people gravitated to. Someone to depend on and trust whole-heartedly. Hank was the kindest man she'd met in a long time and you could always expect honesty from Logan.
As for the Professor? It was difficult to see him as a father-figure, but during their last talk, he seemed to understand that right now, she didn't necessarily need a father, she needed consistency. Stability. He promised to take on the role as mentor and friend, providing she follow the same rules as everyone else did, lest she want to create confusion. There had been enough of that, and as a final flourish, before the agreement was accepted, he suggested a course of therapy be undertaken.
Which Rogue agreed to full-heartedly.
XxX