Carne Vale

CARNE VALE CHAPTER ELEVEN (NC-17)
Disclaimers Apply


A/N Goddess Foxfeather, Queen of Mad Plotbunnies, nice to hear from you. Literally. ;) Joaquin and Billy are hiding. They fear I'm going to try and translate them. InterNutter, TC and Maxwell Pink, I'll catch some beads for you Tuesday in honor of your archiving. :) Readers/Reviewers: Laissez les bonnes temps roulez, as Remy would say! Almost Mardi Gras, not like I'm counting...*g* The Killer Kitties(tm) are too quiet...I'm nervous.




"Okay, we have to be sneaky!" Rogue whispered.
"But not _too _ sneaky...we'll look suspicious!" Kitty added.
Amara snorted and straightened from the crouch she was in as part of the huddle. "Like we don't already, skulking around like the Scoobies on a slow day."
Rogue glared. "I have a lot of stress in my personal life right now. Work with me here. Kitty says Logan's going out of town with Storm, the Professor is off on some recon to DC and that leaves us here with Beast. Now, I love Hank but he's not exactly known for his protective abilities."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Amara sniffed. She had developed a soft spot for the good doctor, somewhat against her will, and felt moved to defend him against Rogue's assessment.
"All she means," Kitty sighed, "is that Beast has other things to do rather than lurk around like Logan does, always on patrol. But I really don't think Mystique is going to pull anything."
Rogue rolled her eyes. "Fine, whatever. It's just really fishy that we're getting a strange visitor, Pietro slipped that Mystique is looking for Tabby-why isn't she gone, by the bye? I just don't want to get caught with our pants down!"
Amara groaned under her breath. "Fine, fine. We'll check out this woman and if she's even a little weird, we'll take her down. There, you happy?"
"Very." Rogue grinned viciously. "Now, where's Jean and Jubilee?"
Kitty shook her head. "Jean said to leave her out of this-I think she and Scott are off in secret anyway. He seemed like he was in a preemptive good mood. And Jubilee is in her room. Sulking."
"Ah...Belladonna around?" Rogue asked casually, leading the small group down the hallway towards the elevators.
"Why? You want to suck her into this, too?" Amara asked, pressing the button for the first level of the basement.
"No, just want to make sure Jubilee isn't going to commit murder while we're not up here to stop her."
Kitty snorted. "Belladonna made Remy take her into town in search of powder. She's still angry the airline lost her makeup kit. She'd never flown before and seems to think it was a personal vendetta or something."
"Ah. Brilliant. Okay. Ready?" Rogue straightened her shoulders, stiffened her back and marched resolutely forward as the doors opened. Kitty and Amara exchanged mildly amused but mostly apprehensive looks and followed her at a more relaxed pace. Rogue drew up short two doors down from the guest room currently being inhabited by Tabby, who was allegedly sound asleep. "Here's the plan...me and Amara draw her out and Kitty, you go in and see what you can find!"
"Why me?"
"One word-phasing. If she comes back in, you can get out without being noticed."
'Theoretically," Amara noted with no small amount of derision.
"If she gets caught, we'll just tell the Professor she had a relapse to her wonky days from earlier in the year."
"Gee. Thanks. I think." Kitty sighed. "If I get caught, I'm telling Todd everything I know about you and Pietro," she added darkly.
Rogue looked suddenly panicked before she regained her cool demeanor. "Too late. He knows."
"Oh?"
"Later," Amara whispered. "It's a story."
Rogue sniffed haughtily and walked to the door behind which the mystery woman was unpacking. None of them had seen her yet, coming in as she did during the afternoon shopping trip. Beast had told them all that she was a special guest, not to be harassed or annoyed in any way, but Rogue could not be detracted. She and Amara elbowed each other like children, debating who would actually knock, as Kitty hid to one side, to be obscured by the door when it opened. Rogue ended up losing the elbowing match and knocked firmly. The door swung open and Rogue stepped back, smiling brightly. "Hi! We didn't get a chance to meet earlier! My name is Rogue and this is Amara. We live here and just wanted to say hi and see if you needed anything."
"Oh." The woman sounded startleittyitty thought. Kitty prepared herself to phase as Rogue took another step back, joining Amara a few feet from the door. "Um, Rogue, you say?"
"Yep. Rogue by name, Rogue by nature." She sounded cheerful but those who knew her could detect an underlying tone of nervousness in her words. "And this is Amara."
"That I got...Hi. Um, pardon my forward nature, but are you girls mutants, too?"
Kitty noted with a small amount of surprise that the woman seemed nervous herself. However, as soon as the lady stepped into view, Kitty fell back through the wall.
"Yes, in fact, we are," Amara supplied coolly. "Would you like a tour of the place?"
"Hank...Doctor McCoy, that is, showed me some of the house earlier."
"Oh?" Which parts?" Rogue asked, walking away backwards, leaving the woman no choice but to follow at the risk of being rude.
As the trio disappeared down the hall, Kitty pulled the door to and made haste, pulling open drawers and cabinets, sure not to disturb anything that she could not put back exactly the way she found it. _Damn it...not even a driver's license. But if she's from the City, she may not drive. Damn it. Hello hello hello... _ A thick sheaf of papers was tucked neatly inside a dresser drawer, peeking out from beneath three pairs of socks, each neatly rolled into balls. Kitty skimmed the first few pages, feeling her eyes widen as she realized the nature of the content of the packet. _Data on mutation...DNA analysis, theories...Oh, my God! This isn't just research...this is life's work. _ She suddenly looked up guiltily, as if expecting Logan to be staring at her disapprovingly from the door. _Okay, work fast. I don't know how long they're going to be gone. _ She hurried to the desk and flipped on the gooseneck lamp for a better look at the packet, skimming through the pages and looking for key words and phrases. It did not take her very long to realize that she would need to either make a copy of the document or steal it for a thorough examination and she did not have the wherewithal to do either just then. A noise from Tabby's room next door gave her the final push she needed and Kitty quickly replaced the papers and rearranged the socks over it as she had first seen them, then phased herself down through the floor, hitting concrete of subbasement one with a dull, painful thud as she passed out of phase. Absently rubbing hip,hip, she ran to the elevator and hastened to the main floor in search of Rogue and Amara. Out of breath, Kitty checked every room until she found Bobby and St John, red in the face and hair mussed from an obvious make out session on the couch in the rec room. "Rogue?" she panted. "Amara? Where?"
Bobby smirked. "I translate Kitty to English...Where are Rogue and Amara?" Kitty nodded and took another panting breath, making a mental note to jog more.
St John said, "They were taking that lady to see the Danger Room...why?"
"Later! Thanks!" Kitty panted, already running towards the Danger Room.

Belladonna was, for once, off kilter. She had never seen anything like the Danger Room before and Remy's comfortable stride unnerved her. He had been in here many times, she knew, and obviously had some anger to work out. She was not sure if she wanted to be around for it. "Remy, I think I'm goin' ta bed now..."
"No, stay," Jubilee's voice lilted over the speakers. "I was just about to run a sim and I think it'd be a nice way for us to get to know each other..."
Remy visibly jumped at the sound of her voice. He had thought she was in her room, and he had half hoped and half feared that she was crying over him in there. As his brief shock wore off, Remy experienced a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. "Jubilation, don' do dis...you know it ain't de way..."
"You can play, too, Remy." There was a muffled sound as if she were coving the mic and then she came back again. "Rogue and Amara are coming down, too. Play nice, guys. We're being watched. Our guest wants to see us run the sim." Sure enough, Remy could see a strange woman, olive skinned like Amara, though, he noticed, a bit darker, with curly hair escaping from a bun. She looked like he felt-apprehensive and a little frightened. He exhaled a barely discernable sigh of relief as Kitty's head hoved into view in the window.
"Hey," she said brightly over the speakers. "I'm gonna watch, okay?" She saw Remy nod as the girls came into the room and felt, rather than heard, their guest's sigh of relief that she was not the only witness. Kitty bit her lip, watching as Jubilee circled Belladonna as if she were merely looking for the best place to start. "Belladonna," she called over the speaker, "are you sure you want to do this?"
Feeling affronted at having her skills called into question, the Cajomanoman responded, "I jus' as much a mutant as any y'all1"
"That's not it," Kitty said tiredly, already knowing that this was going to end badly on some level, "It's just...oh, Hell. Just watch out. The sims we run can be very dangerous. We're training, not playing."
Jubilee grinned like a shark. "Think of us as a team. In fact," she said brightly, loud enough to be heard in the control room, "Let's get into teams!"
Amara even seemed a bit put off by Jubilee's sudden behavior. "Um, there's five of us, not enough for even teams."
"Well," Jubilee said, "How about me and you on one team, Rogue, Remy and Belladonna on the other? Sort of a South Will Rise Again thing?" Before anyone could agree or disagree, Jubilee called "Start sim, J. Lee version twelve, overlay with..." she paused, grig evg even more evilly than before, "Wagner techno mix five."
Remy could not contain the shudder that ran through him. He hated techno and Rogue's gagging noise attested to the fact she was no big fan herself. The room shifted, becoming a warehouse-like setting, projections becoming crates and boxes, hanging chains dropping from the ceiling to further add to the fun. The music was loud and almost irritating, but Jubilee took advantage of the disorientation of the group and leapt for an outcropping bar, flipping neatly to stand on the narrow surface. "Here we go," someone whispered near Remy, sounding like Rogue but he was not too sure since all his attention was focused on Jubilee and Belladonna. Bel pressed her lips together in a thin line and stepped back, raising her hands in preparation for attack. Rogue and Amara had disappeared in the warehouse setting and Jubilee was just waiting, taunting them almost.
"Come on, guys!" Jubilee crowed. "We don't want our guest to be bored!"
Belladonna grinned, then laughed. A nearly visible shock wave spread through the Danger Room, knocking Jubilee from her perch. The Asian girl yelped and let loose a spray of plasma balls as she fell, the glowing lights hanging in the air like strange Christmas ornaments. "Jubilee!" Rogue hissed from the darkness. "You okay?"
"Never been better!" she panted. Remy followed the direction of her stare and saw Belladonna in the midst of a veritable sparkly cloud.
"Merde!" he bit out, flipping his bo staff to it's full length and knocking Belladonna in the back of the knees with it as he dove to one side. The woman cursed as she hit the ground, Jubilee snapping her fingers a moment too late to harm or even stun the blonde. The pafs exploded in zzlizzling array and when he finally could see again, Jubilee was gone. Amara dropped from above and sent a small fireball careening between the Cajuns. "Dis be too much!" Remy snarled. "Kitty, shut it off!"
"I can't!" came the panicky reply. "She has it locked."
"You're the computer genius! Override it!" Rogue called from somewhere within the room. She had not thought out this part of the tour well. While covered enough for casual contact, she was not nearly well enough protected for a Danger Room bout. She huddled down behind one of the crate-shapes and waited. _Ain't comin' out unless I have to...Last thing I need is for Belladonna to swim around inside my head! _
Jubilee's voice sing-songed "Kill, kill, hate, hate, murder, maim and mutilate! Go team!"2 A moment passed and she said, "Just kidding...I might stun ya a bit, but I ain't killin' ya..." This was followed by a sparkly rain and Remy's growl.

Up in the control room, Kitty could not believe what she was seeing. Belladonna had found her bearings and was advancing on Jubilee. The others had fallen back and were watching, waiting, from various points in the room. Remy edged towards the two combatants but paused at a safe distance, ready to leap in if need be. Jubilee's fingers spread in preparation for another spray of pafs, but Belladonna's voice stopped her. "You really can't leggo, can ya?" the Cajun asked softly. Jubilee's hands fell to her side in sise.ise. "It over wid me an' Remy...has been fo' a while now...if he still love me, he never left Nawlins, no matta what de Guilds say."
Jubilee shook her head defiantly. "If he didn't love you still, he would've told me about the fucking marriage."
"Oh, I am so sick o' dis!" Belladonna snarled. "Shut up!" This last was shouted, another shockwave rattling through the Danger Room, making even Kitty's teeth clench.
"Can't you stop it?" the mystery woman asked nervously. "They're going to keacheach other?"
Kitty officially panicked. "Logan and the Professor are gonna kill me!" Closing her eyes tightly and cringing, she stuck her hands into the control boards, phasing and shorting out the electrical components. The older woman shrieked as Kitty made a strangled noise of guilty panic. Below them, Jubilee shouted as the Danger Room returned to it's normal, gray self. The doors to the control room flew open and Beast, Kurt, Scott and Jamie thundered in, asking questions, demanding answers. "I'm sorry!" Kitty cried, flinging herself away from the controls and into Kurt's arms. "I had to do it!"
Beast roared "Silence!" A deathly hush fell over the rooms. "What the Hell happened here?" Haltingly, Kitty told what she had seen, the older woman adding details. "Please come up here immediately," Beast snapped over the mic to those in the Danger Room.
Kitty sniffed back her tears of panic and looked up at Kurt. "You've got something on your forehead."
"Ashes, Liebes," he sighed. He hated himself at that moment. He had only just returned from Mass to hear the alarms going off that there was trouble in the Danger Room (which they now knew to be Kitty shorting out the system). He was ready to fight only to find his arms full of Kitty and his mind going to near-mush. All he could feel and think about was the fact she was pressed entirely against him, her breasts heaving with barely contained sobs and her body shaking in nervousness. He reacted strongly and quickly, faster than normal, he knew. It was like his body was anxious to make his spirit break its promise to God. With a slight groan, he pushed Kitty away enough so that his reaction would not be readily noticed and tuned back in to what Beast was saying.
"I want all of you to return to your rooms. Kitty, we'll speak later. Cecilia," he addressed the guest, "I am truly sorry..."
"No, Henry, it's okay...I think it was just teenaged passions run out of hand," she laughed weakly. "What's the chance of me getting a cup of tea, though?"
"I'll fix you some nice chamomile..." Beast fixed a glare on the students. "Bedrooms, now!"
Kitty extracted herself from Kurt's arms with a twinge of regret and shuffled past the adults. She caught up to Rogue in the hallways and whispered, "I"ve got things to tell you. I'll come to your room around midnight!" before dashing ahead to her own room, her nervous energy finally spilling over.
Kurt brought up the rear, contrite and upset. How readily he had forgotten the pure thoughts that filled his head during and after Mass, he chided himself. _All it took was Kitty throwing herself at me in fear and I'm thinking lustful thoughts. This is wrong...I'm being tested. I must be...What the Hell...er, heck...can I do? _ He sighed painfully as he let himself into his room and shut off his holo. The ashes still decorated his fur and he stared at the smudged cross glumly. _Ich kann mich kontrollieren. Ich bin eine verantwortungsvolle Person und meine Beziehung zu Kitty besteht aus mehr als nur Sex. Ich schaffe das.3 _ Somehow, though, he knew that the next forty days would be far from easy.

A/N-next chapter, Todd and Rogue talk, Kurt has more frustrations (fun ones...*g*), Pietro gets snarfy, and Tabby goes off like a rocket.
1 I know, I know...she's technically not a mutant and technically doesn't get her powers till much later in the comicverse, but here, she's a mutant and knows Remy is. She also knows that the others are, too.
2 Thanks to Jubilee (Amichan) for that one...*g*
3 I can control myself. I am a responsible person and my relationship with Kitty is more than just sex. I can do this (thanks, Foxfeather!)