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Impromptu- Chapter Three:
Procession
Sunday December 21th 2002: 6:05 am
The next morning, Rogue woke with a start as she felt the X-Jet returning to the mansion, docking in the hanging. She let out a yawn as she scanned further, feeling her uncle aboard and he seemed mad. Trying to hold back a yawn, Rogue felt how tense he was, his fists were balled, every muscle in his body seemed stiff, like he'd gotten profoundly bad news. She guessed his and the Professor's outing had brought up some negative emotions and unsettling memories.
"Shit," she muttered under her breath, realizing her sheets were thoroughly soiled. The last thing she wanted to do was add to his fury and what if-
Rogue scanned the entire mansion. It was early. Her mother and Mr. McCoy should still be in bed- but they weren't. She could feel Mr. McCoy was in the War Room, at the helm of the computer system. She felt a second pair of feet, upon the metal flooring, standing next to Mr. McCoy. But that individual didn't have an ounce of metal on them. Mystique, definitely.
Was something going on? But Scott wasn't in the room. No, he was-
Scott, Kurt and Freddy were all asleep in their beds. If there was some kind of emergency, wouldn't they have woken all of them up too?
Unless this was a private matter just regarding her Uncle? Maybe she was overthinking this and it wasn't any of her business?
Either way, she was up and she may as well get her laundry done. And maybe take another shower.
Sunday December 21th 2002: 6:20 am
Rogue was in the shower, washing shampoo out of her hair as she felt the Professor and Wolverine converge in the War Room. He still seemed pissed as they were crowded around Mr. McCoy and the monitor. She swifty finished rinsing the soap out of her hair and decided to make the rest of her shower a quick one. She had no idea if they would be called to help deal with whatever was going on.
Better to be dressed and ready.
Sunday December 21th 2002: 6:45 am
As Rogue was tossing her sheets in the washer and dispensing detergent into the machine, she felt the group migrating from the War Room to the Professor's office. Mr. McCoy was now carrying a laptop, which had a set of headphones pulled into it.
'What the hell is going on?' she asked herself as she turned the settings of the machine on.
She turned Erik's senses back to the Professor's office and-
Were they arguing?
Her uncle's arms were moving about, how he usually got when he was agitated. Her mother was sitting on the couch, the imprint on the couches springs indicating her location. She seemed tense too. Barely any movement, just sitting. Mr. McCoy, as far as she can tell, was standing stoically by the Professor's desk. He held the laptop against his side, calmly. And the Professor's hands were elevated, as if he was holding them up in front of himself, in almost making a placating gesture.
Not that she could be 100% sure of any of that. She wasn't in the room itself, merely guessing based upon the small pieces of Intel at her disposal.
Sunday December 21th 2002: 7:08 am
Rogue sat in a cushioned chair, just outside the laundry room. The argument, if it was that, seemed to be over. Mr. McCoy had set up the laptop on the Professor's desk and now-
A chair had been moved to the head of the Professor's desk. And as the others headed toward the exit, her uncle took the seat, placing the headphones over his ears to listen, or maybe watch something?
Rogue blinked as she heard the washer go off. Time to put her stuff in the dryer.
Sunday December 21th 2002: 8:15 am
Rogue sat on the floor, in the laundry room, her feet laid outstretched in front of her as she leaned back against the door, Les Misérables in her hands. The Professor, Mr. McCoy and Mystique had relocated to the kitchen, and coffee had been made. Her uncle was still in the Professor's office, sitting at his desk, headphones over his ears, as tense as he had been all morning. Scott was awake, reading at his desk. Kurt and Freddy were sleeping in.
She heard the dryer go off and stood. Checking on her sheets, they were still a little damp, so she restarted the machine.
"I've got another hour," she signed.
Not that she had anything better to do. They clearly weren't being called for any type of mission. She debated, going down to the kitchen, maybe getting some of that coffee while there was still some in the pot.
"No," she sighed again. Knowing what she needed to do. She took a deep before heading off in the directions of Scott's bedroom.
She blinked as she felt the Professor's watch raise up, indicating his fingers were on his temples, that he was using his telepathy. Her uncle's fingers moved onto the trackpad of the laptop, clicking on something, before he looked up from the computer.
As Rogue walked through the halls of the institute, getting to Scott's door, she felt the both of them return to what they were doing; the Professor to his coffee and her Uncle Jimmy to whatever he was watching/listening to?
She shook her head dismissing it. Weird timing, that was all.
She reached up and knocked on Scott's door.
"Yeah?" he asked.
"It's me," Rogue said. "Could we talk? Please?" she asked. Rogue felt him hesitate before standing up.
"Hey," he said, opening the door. "What's up?" he asked awkwardly, he looked like he was debating opening it all the way, asking her to come in.
"I'm sorry about last night," she said, before he could make up his mind.
"Huh? What are you sorry about? I'm the one who-"
"No, you didn't do anything wrong. I was really aggressive and moving way too fast for ya. I'm the one who was wrong and I'm sorry," she said.
He just kind of stood there for a long moment, like he didn't know how to respond to that.
"I just came over to apologize to ya. You don't have ta say anything. You don't owe me anything. That's it," she shrugged. "I'm sorry," she said before letting out a sigh. She turned to leave, to give him the time and space she should have the night before.
"Hey, wait," he said, and she felt his hand on her wrist, gently tugging at her to face him. She willingly turned, glancing up at the red sunglasses that covered his eyes. "I liked what we did last night. I just- I think I liked it too much," he said, a smile tugging at his lips. "Could we- could we try that again?" he asked. "Maybe go a little slower?" he asked.
"I-" Rogue parted her lips to speak and- She had a date with Erik that evening. Scott had only been a- "Scott, be honest with me and I'll be honest with you, okay?" she asked and he nodded in agreement. "When we were kissing last night, did you wish I was Jean?" she asked.
Scott let go of wrist and took a step back from her, almost in shock.
"I thought so," she said, at least, having a confirmation. "But the truth is, Scott, you ain't the only one who was pining after someone else," she told him.
"What?" he asked in utter shock.
"I am so sorry," she said again. "What I should've said last night was that you need ta call Alex and Jean. You've been pushing 'em both away and damaging those relationships. I know you're feeling lonely. I have too, but we shouldn't use each other while we're apart from the person we actually want," she shrugged. "Not that you ain't cute. I've always thought so," she said with a small smile.
"I am so confused," Scott muttered.
"Yeah, I know, that's my fault and I'm sorry," she said.
"Stop saying that," he exclaimed. "I've always thought you were cute too," he said, his cheeks blushing. "I- I didn't think you wanted anything like that and then last night happened and-" he said. "Jean's not here," he said, taking another step toward her. "Whoever it is you're thinking about, they're not here either," he said, taking her hands in his. "We are," he said strongly, squeezing her hands. "Isn't that what matters? Shouldn't we make the most of that?" he asked, leaning in closer to her. Rogue pulled her head back an inch, ensuring he couldn't close the distance.
"Duncan's an idiot. The only one who can't see that is Jean. But eventually she will. Ya just haveta give her some time," she advised.
"I don't know if Jean's coming back," he said.
"Of course, she's gonna come back," she said, squeezing his hands. "This is her home. The X-Men are her family. She's going for teachin'. Just like you are. It's the same end goal," she said, pulling her head back a little more, keeping his hands in her. "But Jean's always been perfect. Perfect daughter, perfect student, perfect athletic, perfect X-Men," she listed before she blinked.
"Ya know what? I take it back," Rogue said, staring up at him again. "Maybe Jean does know that Duncan's an idiot. Maybe that's what she likes about him and with him she gets ta be an idiot too. Maybe he's the only one she doesn't have ta be perfect for," she reasoned, putting herself fully in Jean's place, trying to feel what she would be feeling, coming to that conclusion.
Scott pulled his hands back as he clearly considered that, his head was lowered slightly, clearly not looking at her anyone, but considering her words.
"I need to apologize to her," he said.
"Yeah, ya do," she agreed with a nod.
"I-" he said, a little flustered as he closed his bedroom door behind him and started to walk. "Thanks, Rogue," Scott said, turning to look at her.
"You're welcome," she said softly, nodding at him encouragingly to go find a phone. He smiled before he turned to leave. She blinked. "And don't forget to call Alex," she called out.
"Hawaii's six hours ahead of us," he called out from further down the hall. "I'm calling him this afternoon," he said.
"Good luck," she shouted, right before he turned the corner.
"Thanks," he shouted back.
Sunday December 21th 2002: 9:05 am
Rogue was back in her room, as she finished putting the sheets back on her bed. Scott was sitting in his room, at his desk, with the phone against his ear. Rogue smiled at that, heartened she'd done some good afterall.
'It shoulda been last night,' she reprimanded herself. 'Okay,' she thought, letting out a sigh. 'No more holding back when tryna help people. This position, the one I've made for myself, I'm respected, trusted. I can't take advantage of that again. I can't mess up like I did last night,' she told herself. 'Let's be real, the only one I really want is Erik. No more pretending that ain't true,' she thought. 'Fuck normal,' she reiterated.
She blinked.
'I need ta tell my Mom I talked to him,' she thought with a groan. "Fuck," she moaned annoyed, pulling her head, knowing that was the correct course of action. She'd promised she wouldn't go running back to him and that was exactly what she'd done. She didn't regret it, but she did have to own up to it.
Scanning the mansion, she knew the Professor, Mystique and Mr. McCoy were all still down in the kitchen.
"Let's get this over with," she muttered before heading out of the room. She blinked as she felt the Professor's wrist lift up again, his fingers back on his temple. That was twice now.
She slowly closed her bedroom door behind her, as she felt her Uncle, still in the Professor's office, click to stop whatever he was doing again.
Why would they be motorting her whereabouts? It had to be a coincidence, right? Unless she was the emergency?
"No," she muttered as it hit her. She'd given the Professor the card with Erik's cell phone on it. They could have set up some kind of trace to track ingoing or outgoing calls. It would've been meant to protect her, to see if Erik was still trying to sway her away from the X-Men. But if there was an alert then that meant they already knew she'd called him.
She turned right back around and marched back into her room.
'Why did I go into my room?' she asked herself and calmly walked over to her dresser and pulled out a sweater. 'What do I do, what do I do?' she asked herself, panicking internally as she pulled the sweater over her head. 'What the fuck is Uncle Jimmy listening to?' she shouted in her mind and felt her face go beat red. 'No, no, no, no, no,' she chanted. 'FUCK!' she screamed.
Was that what they were arguing about this morning? If they should listen to the recording? Who was going to listen to it? Her uncle had been chosen for some reason.
God, if they were willing to do that, then the Professor may as well read her mind. Where was the boundary? Where was-
She blinked.
"Oh," she said, a calming breath leaving her as she realized what the plan was; the compromise they'd reached before informing her of what they knew. At least she hoped it was the plan. If it wasn't, it would be by the time she's spoken her mind. "Yeah, okay," she nodded to herself, feeling her face return to normal, before heading out of the room.
Sunday December 21th 2002: 9:11 am
Rogue took her time, heading down the hall that led to the main stairs. She felt the Professor, definitely, communicating that to her uncle who was standing and rushing out of the room. She felt him running down the hallway and Rogue bent to her knee, untying and retying her shoelace to give him a few moments to beat her to the kitchen.
Once she felt him rejoin the others, she stood and calmly turned the corner, getting to the main stairs.
Sunday December 21th 2002: 9:14 am
Rogue entered the kitchen, to find a series of troubled expressions greeting her, the Professor, Mystique and Mr. McCoy all seemed to be filled with a sense of apprehension. While her uncle just looked like himself, he wasn't happy, but he didn't seem as pissed off as he was earlier this morning. Calm. He looked calm.
"Morning," Rogue said before she walked over to pour herself a cup of coffee. She blinked. "Uncle Jimmy, ya want a cup too?" she asked, knowing he had only entered the kitchen a few minutes before her. She forced herself to look over at him and directly in the eyes. If they couldn't do that, this plan of theirs was doomed from the start.
"No, I'm alright, but thanks," he answered, holding her gaze. She lifted the cup up to take a sip, taking it black.
"Anna-Marie, how are you this morning?" the Professor asked.
"I'm okay," she said, forcing her gaze away from uncles to look at the Professor. "But I kinda did something dumb last night. I've been ruminating on it all morning. And I don't regret it, but I also know I need ta own up to it," she explained before taking another sip of her black coffee.
"That sounds like a mature and level headed response to what we might call a lapse in judgment," the Professor said kindly, sharing a look between the other instructors in the room. "Perhaps-"
"Alright," Uncle Jimmy said, cutting him off. "Enough pussyfooting around," he said, crossing his arms over his chest and Rogue turned her gaze to his, once again looking him directly in the eyes. "No bullshit?" he asked.
"No bullshit," Rogue agreed. "Do you need more time to listen to the recording?" she asked. The others may have been shocked, but her uncle wasn't.
"You know?" the Professor asked, bewildered.
"Chuck, she put two and two together," her uncle grunted. "Like she always does," he said.
"Okay, but I did realize I needed ta own up to this before I figured out y'all already knew. I don't know. It feels important that y'all know that," she said.
"And now we do," the Professor said warmly.
"Baby," he mother sighed, speaking up for the first time. "We argued about who was going to listen to the recording. It should have been me but-"
"You've got those psychic blocks in place," Rogue finished, with a slight shrug. "If you listened to it. It would be permanent and if y'all were willing ta do that then Prof might as well read my mind," she said.
"Which I am not. Your privacy will be respected," the Professor said.
"However," Mr. McCoy interjected. "Based on the short exchange we heard, until the overt nature of the call was apparent and I turned off the recording," he explained and Rogue gave him a grateful nod, "it was clear that you require a sounding board to address your queries," he said.
"Someone who isn't Magneto," Mystique added, her eyes narrowed.
"And y'all decided on Uncle Jimmy," Rogue said, shifting her gaze to her uncle, "cause Prof's been poking around your head so much, after we've talked, he can scrub your mind," she said.
"Without viewing the memories in question," the Professor clarified. It was implied, but still, she appreciated him clearly agreeing to it. "Yes, that's the compromise we reached," he reconfirmed.
"Thank you," Rogue said earnestly. "And I'm sorry," she said, looking up at her uncle. "This is- this is gonna be torture for you," she empathized.
"Kid, you've done the same for me," he said and Rogue blinked.
"Thank you," she repeated before a thought occurred. "So? Am I, like, going all the way back and telling you everything that happened between me and Erik?" she asked before she took a sip of the coffee.
"Yup," he grunted.
"Do you have enough alcohol for that? Or are we taking a ride first?" she asked next before taking a final sip of her coffee, finishing the contents of the mug. Her question was met with a hearty laugh from Uncle Jimmy.
"Eat something and meet me in Chuck's office," he ordered. "If we gotta take a ride today. We'll do that later," he elaborated.
"Okay," she agreed with a nod. "Thanks," she said again.
