Please enjoy
Chapter Fifteen of
Taunting Repartee- RM'd
Misfire
A little later that day, Rogue sat in a nice casual restaurant within a booth large enough for the five of them: Emma, Gryadon, and Kurt sat on one side of the booth, while she and Logan sat on the other. To say that Kurt was over the moon to learn they had an older brother was an understatement. He nearly forgot to grab his image-inducer on the way out, and had to 'port out of the car for it. Twice. One look between the four of them as they entered the restaurant and there was an unspoken agreement that mentions of sides and allegiances wouldn't spoil lunch. They weren't here to recruit Kurt and Rogue had already declared she wasn't making a decision today.
As Logan had elected to drive them to the restaurant, separate from Emma and Graydon who had traveled in their rented car, now that they were seated, it was Kurt's first real chance to engage their brother. She could tell Kurt was just waiting for the chance to speak. But he had managed to hold back while the waitress took their drink and appetizer order, Graydon and Emma had ordered several appetizers to share at the table to get them started.
"I have so many questions!" Kurt said gleefully.
"Shoot," Graydon said, unable to keep a grin from his face. It seemed to irritate Logan who had settled into a carefully neutral, but still somehow disapproving, face.
"I don't know where to begin. I want to know everything," he said.
"Everything, huh?" Graydon laughed. "Hmm, okay," he said as he tapped his fingers against the table as he thought. Rogue smiled as she recognized the rhythm. "So, I was born," he said as she and Emma laughed. Kurt quickly joined them. "Mom and Dad moved around a lot for work. I bounced back and forth between 'em, ya know, depending on who was working," he said as Kurt nodded along. He stopped speaking for a moment as the waitress brought their drinks. She and Kurt had gotten sodas, Emma a glass of wine, and Graydon and Logan Blue Moon beers. "If I wasn't with them, I was with Irene," he continued.
"Rogue's foster mother?" Kurt asked.
"She was the nanny first," Graydon said, a hint of disdain. Rogue and Emma shared a look, both of them understanding what prompted his tone. "After I turned eight," he continued, "Amelia Vought's home opened and-" he said as Rogue felt a vague sense of familiarity at the name.
'I know that name. Where do I know that name from?' Rogue asked herself before she gasped as she felt her mind pull her in.
Rogue saw a flash of a woman with brown hair and eyes smiling down at something. The woman was spinning around in a circle. She was going so fast; Rogue could barely make out the scenery behind her; it was all a green and blue bur. It seemed as though she was holding something in her arms. It was only when she heard a baby laughing that she realized the woman was holding her.
"Amelia," Irene's voice called out from the distance. "Dinner time," she announced as the woman stopped spinning.
"Do you hear that, Anna-Marie? It's time to eat," Amelia said as she tickled her. Rogue felt herself laugh as she was carried towards a large brown and red house. "Are you hungry?" she asked with a smile before a strange yet welcomed sensation overtook her. She grinned in anticipation, holding out her tiny hand in front of her watching, with wonder-filled eyes, as she and Amelia turned into vapor. Rogue felt herself enveloped in warm mist as they flew across the grass, up a stone path, and up to a window pane the vapor squeezing between the tiny crack before settling on the floor of a kitchen.
She blinked and her hand reformed as they were now in a kitchen. She giggled wildly as she waved her newly formed hand in front of her face.
"Must you teleport with her?" Irene asked, disapprovingly.
"She loves it," Amelia said as she felt herself hiked up further on Amelia's hip. "Don't you Anna-Marie?" she asked.
"Again, again," her tiny voice called out before Amelia kissed her cheek, she felt herself irrupt into a fit of giggles at the contact.
"She's barely two, Amelia. It cannot be good for her," Irene argued.
"You worry too much," Amelia said dismissively. "She's fine," she said before Amelia lowered her to the ground. Rogue ran over to the table and climbed up onto the chair she normally sat in. She stared up at the young boy she was always seated next to, as the two older women continued to argue, though she had stopped paying attention to them.
"Gray, I turned into water," she whispered to him.
"Amelia's powers are pretty cool, huh?" he whispered back with a grin.
"Ah-huh," she giggled as she noticed the small balls of cheese on Gray's plate. None had been put on her plate yet. He smiled as he saw her looking, and picked one up, and got into position, holding his arm back as he aimed. She giggled as she fought to keep her mouth open wide.
"No playing with your food," Irene reprimanded from the other side of the kitchen.
"Aww," Rogue said. Gray shrugged at her before popping the piece of cheese in his own mouth.
"Rogue," Logan said as she felt a hand on her shoulder. Rogue's eyes shot open as she felt Logan shaking her right shoulder slightly.
"I'm- I'm back," Rogue said; Logan stopped shaking. Rogue glanced around the table to see a series of concerned looks directed at her and their appetizers present on the table, an assortment of fried food; mozzarella sticks, chicken fingers, onion rings, chips with some kind of dip and loaded waffle fries. She stared at the carb heaven spread before them while she regained her composure. "Sorry," she said, making a mental note to revisit the memory later. Her training with Magneto focused on the Fragment's memories. She'd never done a deep dive into her own. Something she intended to rectify, given what she had just seen, though she wasn't sure when. "I'm okay," she said quickly.
"What was that?" Emma asked.
"My, ah- eclectic memory's kinda a double-edged sword," she said, quoting Magneto's words from their training sessions as she reached out and took one of the small plates. "I have a perfect recollection of everything that's ever happened to me," she said as she started to load her plate with a few of the options. As soon as she did, Kurt grabbed a plate and started to do the same. She knew how hungry he was and that he had only waited not to seem insensitive. "But it ain't like I'm fully conscious of all of my memories all the time," she explained as Emma, Graydon, and Logan all started to take food as well.
She noted her brother and Emma were stripping their gloves off to enjoy the finger food. She elected to grab her fork, so as not to change an accidental absorption.
"Sometimes I'll hear something familiar and I'll ask, 'hey, where have I heard that name before?' My mind boots up the answer and I get sucked inta it. Sometimes just thinking about the past pulls me inta a memory," Rogue explained.
"Double-edged sword indeed," Emma agreed as she and Graydon shared a concerned look.
"Wait, is that what happened in the car the other day?" Kurt asked, his mouth half full of chicken.
"Ah-huh," Rogue sighed as he swallowed.
"I'm sorry, I didn't know," Kurt said.
"It ain't your fault," she said, smiling at her little brother. "And I didn't mean ta interrupt the story. Ya wanna keep telling it?" she asked Graydon.
"You were a baby when we lived at Ameila's. I can stop talking about it if it's gonna keep-"
"No, it's a good thing. The only way I'm gonna get control over my powers is through practice. This counts," she said with a shrug and a smile. "Really, I'm fine," she added, trying to make her brother feel better.
"Okay, if you're sure," he said and she nodded at him encouragingly, grateful everyone had begun enjoying the food and that the conversation would resume "So, yeah, Amelia's opened, Irene took a position there and I went with her," he said, sounding as if he was recapping what she had missed.
"And it was weird, right?" Kurt asked. "Since you weren't an orphan living in an orphanage?"
"Yeah, maybe not a typical place to raise a kid whose parents are both alive but it was also kinda nice sticking in one place for a while. I got to go to the same school for more than a year, and keep the friends I made. I wasn't always the new kid anymore. It was a nice change," he said. "Plus, ya know, at Amelia's there were a ton of kids my age. It wasn't just school," he said.
"How long were you there?" Kurt asked.
"About three years, give or take," he answered.
"What happened after that? When did they adopt Rogue?" Kurt asked.
"That was ah- Nineteen-eighty-eight," he said, looking away from them all, as he took a bite of a chicken tender. It looked as if he was doing math in her head, ensuring he had stated the correct year. "I was eleven. You were four," he said pointing at her. "Yeah, that's right," he said a nod to himself. "Mom and Dad made it official, got married, and adopted Anna-Marie. We moved down south to Mississippi. I started the sixth grade, which wasn't too bad. I wasn't the new kid cause we all started sixth grade at the same time. Rogue just turned four in August so she started Pre-K. Things were good for a few years, really good. We were all happy for a while," he said.
"Until they got divorced?" Kurt asked.
"Yup," he said dryly. "But things were good before that. We did normal stuff, went to movies, had family dinners and holidays. Irene always had this rule: one sport, one instrument. I was into baseball and then football in high school and I played the drums in the school band. Rogue played soccer and softball most of her life. She played piano for a while, until-" Graydon started to say before he laughed and Rogue rolled her eyes knowing what was about to happen.
"Until what?" Kurt asked as Emma gave her a smile.
"Okay, great story. So one night Mom comes and picks me up from football practice. We go home. Rogue's like six years old at this point. We walk in and Rogue and Dad are watching an old Twisted Sister concert on tape," Graydon said.
"Twisted Sister?" Kurt asked.
"It's a rock band," Logan grunted, his first contribution to the conversation. "A pretty good one," he added before he took a swig of his beer. Rogue kept herself from looking at Logan, he didn't need another reminder of how similar he and Sabertooth were, not when he had just been given one.
"Keep going," Rogue said instead to her older brother.
"So, me and mom walk into the living room," Graydon started to say as he began laughing again.
"Yeah?" Kurt asked with a smile on his face.
"And Dad and Rogue are jumping around the room, both of them headbanging like crazy to the song 'I Wanna Rock.' Me and Mom are standing there in the doorway for a full minute, just watching 'em. Imagine Anna-Marie, six years old, in her pj's running around, jumping from couch to couch, in and out of our dad's arms, screaming at the top of her little lungs, 'I wanna rock,'" he said as Kurt laughed. She couldn't help but look up at Logan and saw even he had a small begrudging smile on his face. He gave her a nod, before taking another swig of his beer.
"Excuse me," Logan said as their waitress was passing the table. "We're gonna need two more of these."
"Sure, hun," she said. "Do you want any entrees or are you sticking with those apps?" she asked.
"I'm gonna get a cheeseburger," Graydon said.
"Oh, me too," Kurt said.
"I'm good with a burger," Rogue said.
"Make that four," Logan added.
"Anything for you, hun?" the waitress asked Emma.
"I guess I'll get the house salad," she said, almost automatically.
"Emma," Graydon said, giving her a look. "Your parents aren't here. Neither are your sisters. Do you really want a salad?" he asked her. Rogue watched a beat pass as Emma considered it.
"Five burgers, please," she amended, looking at their waitress before Logan tilted his head back, finishing his first beer before placing it on the table.
"I'll go put those in," the waitress said as she grabbed the empty bottle.
"Thank you," Graydon said. "Okay, so right after that line in the song, there's an echo, where someone screams 'Rock," and that's what dad was doing," he continued his story, as Rogue could almost hear her dad's voice in the back of her mind along with the music. With conscious effort, she held the memory back and stayed present in Graydon's retelling. "He was holding his fist in front of his face, growling the word, 'rock,'" he said while doing his best impression of their dad. "I can never get my voice low enough," he lamented as he picked up his beer. "Bet you could," he said, gesturing towards Logan.
"Yeah, that ain't happening," Logan said dryly.
"Worth a shot," Graydon commented before he sipped.
"It's alright. I am getting a picture in my head," Kurt told him with a smile.
"Cool," he said before he leaned in. "So, if ah-," he said, his voice getting softer. "If Mom ever asks if I told you this story, I stop there, got it?" he asked as Rogue rolled her eyes.
"Got it," Kurt said with a nod. "So, what happened next?" he asked excitedly.
"So," Graydon laughed. "Me and Mom are looking at them, they're looking at each other. They both have their backs to us, so Dad still has no idea we're watching. He's completely caught up in the moment. So, I'm looking up at Mom, she's trying not to laugh. So, I asked her "Do you want to join them?" She said 'no,' like it was beneath her. No problem, we go back to watching 'em," he said before he took a sip of his drink.
"Okay," Kurt said.
"Then Mom looks back at me and asks 'Why? Do you?' she asked. And I say, 'Yeah, a little, it looks fun,'" he said, quoting himself while shrugging, mimicking the body language he used that day. "'It does look like they're having fun, doesn't it?' Then I say, 'ya know, they already closed all the curtains, Mom. No one's ever gonna know about this, unless we tell people.' Mom's looking at me, with the most intense," he said as he leaned in toward Kurt, "serious look in her eyes. She holds out her hand and says, 'to the grave?'"
"And what did you do?" Kurt asked.
"I took her hand and shook. Which is why you can never tell her I told you. My life, your hands little brother," Graydon stressed jokingly.
"You literally tell the story every chance you get, Gray," Rogue pointed out while rolling her eyes.
"Yeah," he huffed. "And I make everyone promise not to repeat it," he said as Emma laughed.
"Oh my god," Rogue said as Kurt held out his hand
"The family secret is safe with me," he declared proudly.
"Good man," Graydon said as they shook hands.
"Yeah, I'm telling her," Logan deadpanned.
Rogue blinked as Emma and Grayson all shared a glance before they looked at Logan.
"What?" Kurt asked.
It became apparent to all three of them, in the same instance as they took in the look on Logan's face that he was joking, and they all simultaneously burst into laughter. God, how many one-liners had her dad delivered just like that? How many times had he had them all rolling?
"Can you imagine?" Emma laughed. "Mystique returns as leader of the Brotherhood for a fight of epic proportions," she said dramatically. "Meanwhile, Wolverine's running up the battlefield screaming, 'about what your son said,'" she joked as she wagged her finger disapprovingly. More laughter followed that, even Logan was chuckling.
"No, Mystique, your other son," Rogue said, adding to the joke.
"Both to them, honestly," Emma added as the laughter continued.
The joke was only interrupted when their server came to clear away the finished appetizers and serve their main courses. The server placed one beer each in front of Logan and Graydon. After the server had left, Graydon handed the second beer to Logan.
"Thanks, kid," he said.
"No problem. I spent a good chunk of my childhood watching my dad pile 'em down and I don't think I've even seen him buzzed."
"Healing factor," Logan quipped with a shrug.
"Yeah, really wish I got one of those," Graydon lamented, as Emma reached over and squeezed his hand comfortingly. Kurt looked at her questioningly.
'Gray's human,' she projected into his mind and she watched him process the information.
"Hey," Kurt exclaimed. "If I'm going to get in trouble with Mother, can I at least hear the end of the story?" he asked, feigning exacerbation to get them back on topic and take Graydon's mind off of it.
"Sorry, sorry," Graydon said, gesturing apologetically toward Kurt. "Okay, so me and Mom wait for the chorus to come around again, right?" he asked as he grabbed the ketchup bottle and applied some to his burger. Kurt nodded along with him as he did so. "As Anna-Marie is screaming 'I wanna rock,' me and Mom leap over the back of the couch into the living room, just in time to scream 'Rock' with Dad," he said as he picked up his burger, the rest of them having already started as they listened to the story. "It was perfect," he said before he bit into his burger.
"It really was," Rogue admitted with a smile, she took a deep breath and pushed back the memory yet again. She was actually doing really well. "We were all dancing. I was jumping back and forth between Mom and Dad," she said.
"Having the time of her little life," Graydon added.
"It was fun," Rogue said defensively. "I think I loved Dad's air guitar the most," she said.
"Man, he can shred," Graydon said.
"Ah-huh," she said before they both took a bite of their food. "You're air drumming is good too," she said after swallowing.
"I've been playing since I was seven," Graydon shrugged modestly. "Dad just wanted backup," he said and Rogue laughed at that. There were so many things they could reminisce about.
"You should finish the story," Rogue said.
"Okay, okay, so, we're having fun, the song ends, Mom and Dad kiss," he said.
"Gross," she and Graydon said simultaneously before laughing together again as she picked up a French fry off her plate.
"And Rogue looks up at me and says, 'I wanna rock,' with the biggest smile on her face. She was adorable as a kid. I don't know what happened," Graydon teased looking directly at her and before she could remind herself they were in a public place, old habits crept up on her and she threw the fry at his face. He opened his mouth and angled his face slightly and the fry went directly in. She and her older brother shared a look as he chewed.
"Three points," she exclaimed happily as he held up three fingers. They both stood, leaning over the table, and gave each other a high-five.
"What just happened?" Kurt asked, perplexed.
"Kurt, listen to me," Emma said as she leaned forward to look at him, over Graydon. "Under no circumstances are you to give either of them popcorn. They will spend hours trying to feed each other from across the room and make a terrible mess every time... Hours," she repeated.
"Got it," Kurt said with a nod. "Give them popcorn," he said and all three burst into laughter. "I think I would be very good at this game," he said.
"Oh, then we're definitely playing," Graydon said before Emma cleared her throat. "Okay, maybe not today. We do have a flight to catch. But maybe during our next visit," he said.
"You're coming back?" Kurt said excitedly. She looked at them hopefully as well. With Magneto trying to recruit her, maybe he would fund more trips?
"Not sure when yet. But it'll be soon," Graydon promised and her- no, their -little brother beamed.
"What happened next?" Kurt asked.
"Anna-Marie runs up to Dad, tugging at his pants, and says, 'again?' Dad's laughing and he's all like, 'Not that song, munchkin, but you know what's coming up next, right?' She says, 'We're not gonna take it.' And Mom is looking at my Dad like, 'how many times have you done this, that she remembers the order of the song?'" he said as she, Emma, and Kurt all laughed. "Our Dad's trying to play it off, like 'not that many times. Ya know, once or twice," he said, mimicking a nonchalant tone. Which even got a chuckle out of Logan.
"And then I completely blew his cover," Rogue said. "'So many times, momma,'" she said, quoting herself, pitching up her voice to sound younger.
"Anna-Marie," Graydon said, trying his best again to lower his voice. "What did we say about getting Daddy in trouble with Momma?" he said, clearly quoting their father.
"Hmm, so many times?" Rogue asked in her high-pitched voice.
"No, the other one," Graydon said.
"Don't?" she asked, her eyes flaring with amusement.
"Yeah, munchkin, don't," Graydon said next and Kurt and Emma laughed more. "I'm just sitting on the couch at this point, watching them. The next song starts and without missing a beat, Anna-Marie grabs Mom and Dad's hands and starts dancing. They're all getting into it again. She gets me off the couch. We're having a blast. We get to the chorus and Dad and Anna-Marie start singing different lyrics."
"What lyrics?" Kurt asked as she and Graydon looked at one another. She watched her older brother take a breath and knew he was expecting her to join in.
"We're not gonna take it. No, we're not gonna take it. We're not gonna take piano lessons anymore. We're gonna take bass lessons. We're gonna take bass lessons. Or guitar lessons, whichever Momma will agree to," she and Graydon sang in union.
"Mystique was so mad," Rogue said next. "You're corrupting our daughter," she quoted mockingly. "Dad just said he was making me more awesome," she grinned proudly.
"We have excellent taste in music," Graydon said.
"Ah-huh," Rogue said before she high-fived brother again. "Anyway, that's why I have a bass," she said, finishing up the story.
"No, no, no," Graydon said, shaking his head. "You're not leaving out the best part of the story," he said.
"Ya mean the most embarrassing part?" she said dryly.
"Oh, I have to hear this. Please embarrass her," Kurt said as Emma, Graydon and even Logan laughed.
"So, Mom and Dad are arguing," Graydon continued, despite her protests and the look she was fixing him with as she crossed her arms over her chest. "And she walked up to Mom and said, 'Momma, I wanna rock. Please let me rock," he quoted, hamming it up. Kurt and Emma laughed while she felt her face blush. "Oh man, we all lost it," he said.
"I wish I had been there," Kurt said, but without any rancor. His voice didn't reflect it, she knew Kurt. He had to be feeling a combination of jealousy and remorse. She shook her head as she dismissed her embarrassment. This lunch wasn't really about her. At least it wasn't supposed to be.
"Yeah, me too, little brother," Rogue said, smiling at him. Kurt's eyes met hers and she found nothing by warmth within them. Logan continued to watch the group, he and Emma letting the separated siblings take the lead.
"Hey, ah, so do we know why he wasn't?" Graydon asked tentatively. She watched Kurt's eyes light up with hope.
"Mystique's Fragment is one of the ones I have trouble controlling on my own. I haven't looked at her memories yet," she said. "Sorry," she said looking over at Kurt in apology and explanation.
"It's okay," he said, but he sounded disappointed.
"Kurt, as soon as I know something, I'm gonna tell ya," she promised as she heard Logan let out a short grunt.
"Thanks," he said, smiling at her again before she looked over at Logan. He shook his head slightly, before taking another sip of his beer, polishing off another bottle.
"Should I just call her?" Graydon asked, taking both her and Kurt by surprise.
"There's still the other issue to contend with," Emma reminded them both.
"Right," Graydon said, drawing out the word.
"I probably have the answers we need in my head already," Rogue said. "It'll take some time but we're more likely to get the truth by relying on my powers then hoping Mom won't try ta put a positive spin on things," she said, swiftly shifting, searching through her mother's memories to the stop of her list of priorities. "I've been meaning to get ta the more difficult Fragments. So, yeah," she said with a decisive nod. "I'm on it," she said looking at her brother.
"Thanks, Rogue," Kurt said.
"And I'll see y'all were telling the truth when I get to that memory of hers," Rogue added.
"The compromise was a good one," Graydon repeated. "If you still want to read my mind, I don't mind," he said.
"If I can't get ta to the truth by the time y'all visit again, I'll take ya up on it," she decided.
"Cool," Graydon said as she felt Logan's eyes on her. She looked up at him and saw his eyebrow raised slightly. She knew he wanted more details. She gave him a nod, silently promising to fill him in later. He nodded back at her before they both turned back to their meals. Kurt continued to ask Graydon question after question about their upbringing. She was feeling a little mental fatigue from holding back her memories, not much, but enough that she felt zoning out for a few minutes wasn't the worst idea. If she wasn't paying attention she couldn't be pulled into the memories Graydon was referencing. She could recharge a little while her brothers were occupied and just enjoy her burger before it got cold.
It was a pretty good burger. There was a perfect amount of cheese, the lettuce was crispy and the patty itself juicy and flavorful. Focusing on it, and it alone, was actually fairly relaxing.
"Are you alright, darling?" a voice asked.
"I'm fine, Risty," Rogue said automatically as she reached for her drink. She blinked as she looked up at Emma. "Sorry," she said, rolling her eyes at herself. "I'm okay, Emma," she said.
"If you say so," she said as Rogue took a sip of her drink before looking back over at her brothers.
"So, we used to jam out in the garage," Graydon said, answering whatever question Kurt had just asked. "It was me on the drums, Anna-Marie on bass, Dad on the guitar and Mom sang vocals. Man, we used to confuse the neighbors," he laughed.
"Why?" Kurt asked.
"Imagine hearing incredible guitar riffs, the literal voice of Pat Benatar, my okay drum playing and someone trying really hard to strum a bass," he said before Emma and Kurt laughed.
"I could barely hold the damn thing up," Rogue laughed.
"She was tiny. It was hilarious," Graydon said.
"Momma was all like, 'see this is a bad idea,'" she said, quoting their Mom. "But I didn't care, I refused to go back to piano lessons. Dad said I'd grow into it and I did. I ain't half bad now," she said.
"It was great," he said, smiling as she could see their old garage in her mind. The instruments were all set up. Wires running and down the floors, pulled into amps and power stirpes. Their dad running back and forth between her and Gray giving them tips on how to use to improve their playing.
Rogue did her best to hold back a sigh as she pushed back her memories. A part of her really missed those days, back when her family was still together. And sure she could relive the memories anytime she wanted, but recalling how happy she used to be only made her heart sting with longing for her childhood.
She blinked. Not that she wasn't happy at the institute…
"I think you could be happier," Erik's voice played in her head.
She shook her head as she took a breath. Even if she did say yes to Magneto, even if she did go and live with Graydon and Emma, it wasn't like Kurt was coming with her. There'd still be a trade, one family for another, one version of happiness for another. But as long as she was on the fence, these get together would be a regular occurrence, right?
She blinked. That was an interesting thought.
Magneto would encourage it as a reminder of what she had to gain from joining him. The Professor would have to tolerate the presence of his enemies to avoid an ultimatum. Kurt would get to know their older brother, something that shouldn't have taken so long to happen and she wouldn't have to sacrifice anything?
'Wait,' she thought, going over as much of the information as she could to accurately consider this. She didn't want to rush a decision, something she'd made clear to everyone. But was it actually advantageous if she stalled? 'Yeah,' she thought, amazed. 'Realistically how long would Prof and Erik tolerate that?' she asked herself.
The Professor understood why she had to keep the door open, appear interested. As long as she stayed an X-Men and fought for his dream, he had no reason to force the issue, right?
And Erik, well she was seeing him tonight, wasn't she? They would continue to work on her powers and spend time together… alone. The way he preferred it. If she was being honest with herself she preferred it too. Erik had been helping her for months. He clearly wasn't going to hurt her or kidnap her. He'd had so many opportunities and had only endeavored to assist her. No, she was safe with him.
The others, the X-Men, they were his enemies and if confronted he had to act appropriately, right? He didn't want to hurt Jean yesterday morning. He had only defended himself from attacks and left as quickly and peacefully as he could once discovered. As long as he wasn't discovered there wouldn't be an issue.
'No, that's right. That makes sense,' she thought.
The only thing she needed to worry about was how could she sneak into Erik's old room without causing suspicion? She already told the Professor she wouldn't sleep in there anymore. That was only yesterday. So- she could ask Erik, he might have some ideas.
Okay, that was tonight's problem. For now, she really should enjoy this while she could. With that, she took a breath and turned her attention back to her brothers.
"Do we have any other family members I should know about?" Kurt asked. "Cousins, or grandparents, maybe?"
"Just our Uncle Jimmy," Rogue answered as Logan coughed next to her. "But don't feel too bad," she said as she looked at Logan, to see if he was okay. He was holding his beer in his hand. She guessed some had gone down the wrong pipe? "I haven't met him either," she finished as Logan made eye contact.
"I'm fine," he grunted as he looked away, staring out the diner's window.
"Uncle Jimmy's our dad's younger brother," Graydon said. "I only met him recently," he added.
"Seriously," Rogue exclaimed as she saw a look of confusion on little brother's face. "Kurt, we've been hearing stories about our Uncle Jimmy our whole lives. I've been wanting to meet him since I was a kid," she explained before turning back to Graydon. "So, what's he like?" she asked excitedly.
"He's like Dad. Just shorter," Graydon grinned as Emma laughed. Oh great, Emma got to meet him when she hadn't? How was that fair?
"Come on, Gray," she whined. "Ya gotta give me more than that," she exclaimed as he just looked at her with his arms crossed over his chest, his usual stance when he was gearing up to tease her. "Where did ja meet him?" she asked regardless before she felt her eyes widened. "Oh my god, did Dad take ya on the birthday trip last year?" she asked. She heard Logan growling beside her, but dismissed it as only to the sentiments that Logan had for their father. This was huge, she needed to know more.
"What's the birthday trip?" Kurt asked.
"Every year, like clockwork, our Dad visits Uncle Jimmy on his birthday for their annual wrestling match," Graydon answered.
"He always said we were too young to go," Rogue complained as she eyed her brother with jealousy, folding her arms over her chest herself, copying his stance. "I'm so mad right now. That's so unfair," she said as she watched Emma and Graydon share a look before Emma laughed a little under her breath.
"When's his birthday?" Kurt asked.
"October twentieth," Rogue said before Logan started and let out another low growl. Rogue blinked as she looked over at him, confused why he was having such strong reactions.
"Look, Anna-Marie," Graydon said, drawing her attention. "I get that you're jealous, but there's really no reason for it," he said.
"Ah-huh," she said unconvinced.
"What's so great about Uncle Jimmy?" Kurt asked.
"Our Uncle's name is James Howlett. Him and our Dad are both war heroes," he explained.
"Really?" Kurt asked.
"Yeah, they served together in both World Wars. Canadian Special Forces," Graydon said.
Rogue blinked before looking up at Logan and as he looked down at her. The world shifted, and gravity made the final pieces fall into place for both of them at the same time.
'No way. No way' Rogue thought, astonished, as she considered what their father had told them about their Uncle. It all made so much sense to her. No wonder she gravitated towards Logan, a part of her must have known. "Dad never told me what county y'all fought for," she said, almost apologetically. "I was a kid, I just assumed it was for the U.S.," she explained with a shrug. She listened to Logan let out a sigh at that.
"It ain't your fault, kid," he said before he downed the last of his beer.
"Hey, so ah?" Graydon interrupted. "How bad is the amnesia, Uncle Jimmy?" he asked as she saw Kurt's eyes widened, as he finally understood what was happening.
"Don't call me that," Logan said through gritted teeth.
"Sorry," Graydon said, holding his hands up in an apologetic gesture. "Uncle Logan," he corrected, which prompted another growl from Logan as he returned the empty bottle to the table. "You want another one or something stronger?" Graydon asked.
"I'm fine," he grunted in response.
"And I am absolutely stuffed," Emma said, moving her half-eaten meal to the middle of the table before looking at Graydon. "I don't think I could eat another bite. We really should head to the airport soon."
"Already?" Kurt asked, disappointed, that their meal was coming to an end.
"Sorry, little brother," Graydon said as he wrapped his arm around Kurt's shoulder and pulled him into a half hug. "We'll plan better next time and have a few days in Bayville, not a few hours," he promised.
"Okay," Kurt sighed.
"Don't worry about the bill," Emma said as stood up, grabbing her gloves and gesturing to her to stand. "Lunch is paid for. Our treat," she said as she slipped her gloves back on as Rogue stood. "Come here, darling," she said as she pulled her into a hug. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Graydon and Kurt, standing, hugging one another, with a lot of manly back thumping. "We love you very much," she said as she squeezed her tightly.
"Love you too," she said before they broke apart and she gave her older brother a similar hug.
"Call anytime, okay?" he asked. He offered a hand to the seated Logan who after a long, steady look, gripped that hand and shook it firmly.
"Thanks, I will," she promised as they departed from the table. She threw her arm around Kurt's shoulders as they watched the pair excuse themselves from the restaurant. "Sorry, it was so short," she said.
"It's okay," he said as Logan stood.
"Let's go home. I need ta talk to Chuck," Logan grunted before he stalked toward the exit.
Rogue felt the urge to comment, to comfort her Uncle, but that thought alone stopped her in her tracks. There was context she didn't have, a decades long rivalry and details that came with such a long feud she had no knowledge of. She guessed, he probably wanted the Professor to poke around his head, find proof of Graydon's claim. But there was no doubt in her mind, none-what-so-ever. They were family.
Around 6:50pm Rogue was back at the institute and in Magneto's old bedroom incredibly frustrated. Her mother wasn't cooperating. Not at all. She just spent the last few hours trying to get into her mind and gained nothing for her effort.
'Come on,' she screamed within herself as she pulled and pulled at her Mom's Fragment. Nothing, still nothing. She couldn't get in. It wasn't fair; it wasn't right! It was her mind after all.
Kurt had already been in such a depressed mood as they left the restaurant. She'd even offered to skip training and just watch TV with him. But Kurt had known she intended to use her powers to help him gain insight into his past, she saw the entire thought process in his eyes. Why else would he have lied and said he wanted to be alone? She had given him the biggest hug before heading up to this room and now to have nothing to show for it?
Well maybe, she should switch gears and try to find something out for her Uncle? Should she try to get into her Dad's head and-
She took a deep breath as attempted to pull Sabortooth's Fragment to the front of her mind. She heard a low growl emanating from the recesses of her mind as he fought against her. It was even worse than her mother. A violent, 'no,' erupted in her mind, which caused her heart to race and her breath to quicken. She swiftly ceased her attempt as she laid back on the bed, trying to gain control over her breathing.
She clearly wasn't getting anywhere with either of them. But what else was she supposed to do? Where else could you find answers?
A stray thought reminded her she still had homework to complete for Monday, but she dismissed it. This was so much more important. Maybe she should skip dinner and keep training?
No, she wanted to see how her Uncle was. And maybe the Professor could help her with her mother's Fragment? She wanted to ask for his help, truly. But what if he saw something he wasn't supposed to? Magneto would have to have his memories erased again and-
She felt a violence shiver run down her spine.
No, no, she needed to get control over her powers and the Fragments in her mind. She needed to handle this herself. She just wished she had something to tell her little brother or her Uncle. Something to show for the afternoon.
'Skills such as these take time to cultivate. Strive for success, but do not lament the process,' Erik's words from their previous training sessions. She took a deep breath, finding comfort from his words. As long as she was making an effort, she was moving in the right direction. That was what mattered.
'Okay,' she thought with a decisive nod before she got up from the bed. She just needed to get dinner over with and she could continue her search.
