X-men Evolution Fan Fiction ❯ Starting Today ❯ Chapter 16

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“How is she, Chuck?”

“Mentally and emotionally exhausted, Logan. Her heart and mind have been pushed almost to the breaking point. Two of the people she cared about most have betrayed her. And on top of that, her powers are evolving. It seems to be that she can now access the powers of anyone she's ever absorbed.”

“I thought something funny was going on when she blew up that robot the other day. She shouldn't have been able to hold on to the Cajun's powers that long.”

“From what I was able to tell when I was in her mind, she's been able to call up her borrowed powers for awhile now. The psyches have been a slow but steady buildup. Mystique and Destiny were the final blow. I just wish she had let us know what was going on.”

“You know how she is, Chuck. Wants to handle everything herself.”

“Yes, I know. Rather like someone else here I know.”

“Heh. I suppose you're right. So what do we do now?

“I'm not sure. That depends on when Rogue decides to wake up.”

“Wish I could get my claws on that blue bitch...”

“Getting angry is not going to solve anything, Logan. And remember that regardless of what she's done; Raven is still the mother of two of our students.”

“Some mother. Speaking of which, has someone told the elf yet that he has a sister?”

O-o-o-o-O

It was the best of days.

It was the worst of days.

Kurt didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He supposed he could do both, but it was a question of which he should do first or longest.

He had a sister. Not by blood, but family nonetheless. Not only that, his sister was one of his teammates; someone he had grown to care for very much as a friend, despite her somewhat prickly exterior.

His sister was lying comatose in the medlab after their mother broke her heart and helped cause her to trash a concert hall and most of a city block. At this point no one was sure when she would wake up.

He couldn't quite believe it when Storm had taken him aside and explained what was going on. Just when he thought his mother could stoop no lower by throwing him off a bridge, she had to prove him wrong with this. To take a child in only to use and betray her, over and over, he wondered which one of them had gotten the better deal. It hurt a little that Rogue had been chosen while he had been abandoned. But maybe getting thrown off that bridge wasn't such a bad thing after all. At least he had ended up with a family that loved him. But Rogue did have family now; she had the X-Men, and she had him.

What would Rogue think of all this once she woke up? Would she mind having the Fuzzy One as a brother? He didn't think so, she had never seemed to mind his appearance before, but one never knew. He could show her though; he could prove to her what good family could be, even if it's blue and fuzzy. He'd help heal the heart their mother had broken and be the best brother anyone could ask for.

He lay back on his bed, his earlier inner conflict resolved as a tear rolled down over the sad smile on his face.

O-o-o-o-O

It had to have been one of the longest days of his life. After a night spent staring up into the darkness, unable to sleep, Remy had gotten up at dawn and headed over to the Institute. He spent the day hidden in the trees on the edge of the property, watching for some sign that she was awake, that she was okay. If he saw no sign of her by tonight, he would break in and find her. As much as he'd love to just walk up to the front door, he wanted to be able to leave with all his limbs intact. It would be amusing if he did though, he could just imagine the hissy fit Cyclops would have if he came knocking. If there was any man that was just begging for an enema, it was Scott Summers.

Sitting up in a tree all day left plenty of time for a man to think, though. About change; how to make a change and whether he was ready for it. All it took was an image of his chere, lying hurt in someone else's arms while he stood there helpless to answer the second question. He was ready for it; he had to be. He didn't know what kind of future he faced, but if it didn't have a pair of green eyes tied into it then it wasn't worth bothering with. It was the how part that was bothering him.

Asking Rogue to join the Acolytes was out of the question. Even if she wasn't purely goody-goody, he couldn't see her being a “bad guy”. Besides, Mags was acting a little creepier than normal lately, hiding away in his office for hours on end and talking on the phone to someone he never gave a name for. Whatever Magneto was up to, he doubted it was anything good and he definitely didn't want Rogue involved if and when any shit went down.

That left him joining the X-men. He almost laughed for a moment. Remy LeBeau, a good guy? He could see it now; him sitting at the breakfast table with Cyclops and Jean Grey. Yeah, right. The people at Xavier's would never accept someone like him. He was a professional thief and worse. The last breath he took in this life would just be let out again in Hell. Who would trust Le Diable Blanc? Rogue does... That little voice in the back of his mind whispered. “Ah but Rogue is smart, and has excellent taste in hommes, non?” He murmured to himself, a tiny smirk playing on his lips. He couldn't say as much for the rest of her teammates. Would she still trust him if she knew everything, though? He wasn't sure, but he had to get himself into a better position to be with her before he could find out.

He didn't think they'd just invite him in out of the blue, but what if he could offer them something? A trade was something he could understand, and was good at. What could he offer them though? Mags head on a platter? Appealing as that thought was, he figured info would be his best bet. As weird as Buckethead was acting, he just HAD to be up to something. He was being awfully close-lipped about whatever he was planning though; it wouldn't be easy to dig up info and keep his own designs hidden. But what was Remy, if not the Prince of Thieves? He'd buy himself a place among the X-men, and be with his Rogue.

It was getting late now, and still no sign of Rogue. He waited until it looked like the mansion had settled down for the night, and was starting to work on a plan to get inside when he heard the roar of a motorcycle and saw Wolverine head out through the gates of the Institute. Well that certainly made things a little easier. It being a Saturday night, he figured the older man was probably heading out to a bar; he doubted drinking was condoned with so many kids around.

There were only two places he figured Rogue would be; either her room or the infirmary. Crossing his fingers he hoped to find her in her room, because the thought of her lying in a hospital bed made him hurt. Having already gone over the mansion's layout back at the base, he was quickly past the fence and security system and climbing up to Rogue's balcony on the second floor. Xavier's defenses weren't bad, but they were easily bypassed by someone like him. Once he'd made it onto the team, maybe he'd offer Xavier his considerable knowledge and experience with security.

Finding the balcony door unlocked, he quietly slipped into the room. He could only hear one person breathing, and from mental layout he had of the room it had to be the roommate, Kitty. Having adjusted for the dark, he looked around and saw he was correct; the girl was lying in her bed across the room fast asleep, a stuffed dragon clutched in her arms. Smiling a little at the quaintness, he looked over to the other side of the room and saw Rogue's bed looking depressingly empty. Inwardly he sighed and started for the bedroom door. The infirmary then, or medlab, as he remembered Rogue calling it. Quiet enough to make a mouse jealous, he made his way downstairs and into the medlab. He found her in a private room and what he saw made him want to cry.

Her face was scrubbed clean of makeup, but she was still almost as pale as the stuff she painted herself with every day. She lived; her chest rose and fell with her soft breathing, but there was nothing else there. She seemed empty, a shell of herself lying in a hospital bed. Even the sleeping retain some sort of expression, but she was just...blank.

There was a chair next to her bed and he sank into it, glad for his gloves as he took one of her bare hands. He had rarely seen her without gloves and took the moment to admire the tiny hand in his, the room dimly lit by a nightlight and the glow of the monitoring equipment nearby. Other than the fact that she chewed her nails, her hands were flawless, unmarred by calluses or the abuse of everyday living. A side affect of wearing gloves every day. He knew she wasn't appreciative of it though; she saw it as a reminder of her separation from the world. He stroked her fingers softly; wishing he could feel what he was sure was very soft skin. Something so untouched by life was bound to feel richer than velvet. He sighed again.

“Her last conscious thoughts were of you.”

Startled, Remy jumped up at the strange voice and turned; three lit cards already in his hand. Sitting in his wheelchair in the doorway was the founder of the X-men himself, Charles Xavier.

“Please Mr. LeBeau, relax. If I meant you any harm I wouldn't have sent Wolverine away from the mansion to allow you a way in.”

“You knew I was out there?”

“Your mental shields don't allow me to read your mind, as I'm sure you know, but I was still able to detect your presence on the property.”

Remy uncharged the cards in his hand but remained standing, still wary.

“So you in the habit of letting the enemy into your house, m'sieur?”

“Normally, no; but I don't think you quite fit the description of an enemy in this case, do you?”

“Rogue is not my enemy, and I am not hers.”

“I didn't think so. Please, sit. I didn't come to stop your visit.”

Remy sat down and immediately took Rogue's hand back in his, holding it like a talisman for luck.

“So why are you here, m'sieur?”

“Apart from the fact that it would be rude not to a welcome a guest, I thought you would like to be apprised of Rogue's condition.”

Remy wasn't quite sure what to make of this, but nodded and glanced down at her drained and empty face. “Chere, she don't look too good.”

“She's mentally and physically exhausted. She hasn't woken since her collapse last night. Removing the psyches from her mind was very taxing, and then she had just had great emotional stress that drove her over the edge. But you knew that, didn't you?”

“Oui. Knew about the blind femme from Magneto's file on Rogue, but didn't know about Mystique being the purple haired girl until last night.”

“It gets worse Remy. May I call you Remy?”

Remy shrugged at first, then nodded.

“Thank you. From looking over Rogue's memories that she took from Mystique, it's been discovered that Mystique is Rogue's adoptive mother. She and Irene Adler adopted her when she was a child.”

Remy looked surprised, then muttered several French curses under his breath, his eyes glowing with anger. “How come you didn't know about Rogue's guardian?”

Xavier sighed. “I had my suspicions, but I couldn't prove anything. A mutation like Ms. Adler's is very hard to detect, and I didn't want to upset Rogue if my suspicions were unfounded. In hindsight I should have dug deeper.”

“Oui.” Remy spat out, then glanced back down at Rogue, his gaze softening.

“But what of you, Remy? While in Rogue's mind I was able to see some of her memories regarding you, and it is obvious to me that the two of you are...close. Do you intend to stay with Magneto? I can offer you a place here if you would prefer to leave his service.”

Remy thought it over for a minute. Should he let Xavier know of his intentions? It was tempting, but he didn't know yet if he could trust Xavier, and if the Professor let slip info to his students that ended up getting into the wrong ears, it could cost the thief his life. Magneto was anything but forgiving towards traitors, or would-be traitors. No, he couldn't show his hand yet. Later though, when he had something concrete to give...

“Thanks for the offer Prof, but like I told Rogue I have a contract with the man; what kind of thief would I be if went around breaking contracts? It be bad for business Besides, I heard about what happened with Avalanche. You may welcome a former Acolyte, but I don't think the rest of your students are so forgiving. Je suis desole, but for the moment, I must decline.”

Xavier sighed. “I'm sorry to hear that Remy. Please understand that if you ever change your mind, a place will always be open to you. A distance like this can be hard on a relationship. I will let you visit a while longer; I just ask that when you leave, please use the front door.”

“What about m'sieur Wolverine?”

“He will not be returning for several hours. You should be quite alright.”

“Thanks”

Xavier turned and wheeled silently out of the room. Remy was impressed and thankful at the same time at the trust the Professor was showing him by allowing him to remain with one of his students unwatched. He turned back to Rogue and spoke quietly. “Your professor, he always this trusting? It's good for him that I mean no harm here, otherwise he'd have some trouble on his hands, non?” He waited for a moment, half hoping for a response, then sighed.

“Why don't you wake up Chere? You make this poor Cajun so sad. I wanted to help you; would have given anything to help you, but I couldn't. You can't do that to me again. Can't scare me like that again, I don't know if this heart could take it. I know you can't hear me but, je t'aime Cherie. Je t'aime.” His free hand stroked her hair softly. “You need to wake up soon Rogue. Someone here loves you. Need to show you. Don't know if you'll still want me after everything I'll tell and show you, but if there has to be anything separating us I would rather it just be cloth and not secrets.” Remy laid his head gently on the pillow next to her and closed his eyes, just listening to her breathe.

Remy opened his eyes. Looking at the clock across the room, he realized that he must have dozed off for a little while and that almost an hour had passed. He sat up and looked at Rogue. There was no change in her; she was still empty, lost in her own mind. He pressed a kiss into her hair. “Gotta go now. Need to wake up soon, you hear me? M'sieur Manilow was right; this thief can't smile without you.”

Sadly Remy got up and made his way out of the medlab and left the mansion, this time using the front door as requested.

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