Rogue's Kiss

Back at the Institute, Logan had just entered the garage in full uniform. He headed for his bike and saddled on. He didn’t even turn his head when he said, “don’t even think about trying to stop me, chuck.”

The Professor was sitting he dhe doorway, the strain of the last couple of weeks showing in his face, dark bruises under each eye showing that sleep evaded him. In his arrogance he had thought he would be ready for anything when he had started the X-Men. Life always showed you who won in the end though.

“What do you mean to do?” was his simple question. His voice was very tired and he let it show.

Logan huffed through his nose and said he didn’t know.

“All I know is that Spyke is dead, Rogue is on the run, Storm is after her and Nightcrawler is with him. I just cant stand here and do fuck all!” he snarled jamming his helmet on his head.

Xavier understood fully what the man was feeling. All these children and friends were his responsibility; he should be doing something but was this the right course of action?
The question became even more complicated when a voice trying to sound tough said, “I’m going with you.”

Xavier turned in surprise. He must be tired. He didn’t even feel Kitty come up behind him. She was in full uniform.

“Half-pint,” Wolverine growled. “This is not even being discussed. Go back into the house and wait for me to come back.

“No.” Kitty said with a little tremble in her voice.

“Kitty, please…” the Professor began.

“NO!” she screamed. It echoed of the walls of the garage in the surprised silence of the two men. Tears were streaming down Kitty face, her voice was choked with sobs but her body remained rigid and her eyes steady.

“You don’t understand,” she began. “Rogue is out there alone and I have to help her. She came to me first and all I did was scream my stupid head off. I need to try and, like, help her somehow. I know Ororo went out to kill her and I know Kurt is with her. I can reason with Kurt, make him see this is wrong…” Kitty was running out of steam. “Please…”
The two men looked at each other, a wordless conversation not of telepathy but just eyes. Both new that this had been hardest on Kitty, being the closest to Rogue both before and after she died.

Xavier silently wheeled his chair back from the garage entrance. Logan sighed and said, “alright half-pint. Come on.”

Kitty smiled gratefully at the Professor before getting on the back of the bike. When Logan passed her the helmet she gave him a weird look.

“You know I can, like, phase if we crash,” she pointed out.

“Look,” he said giving her a dangerous look. “I have metal in my head, you don’t. Either you put this helmet on or your not coming.”

Kitty put it on.

Logan and Xavier exchanged nods before they took off into the night hunting. Xavier thought about how often he had preached tolerance and how Ororo had always been beside him on these things. But now something she didn’t understand had killed her flesh and blood and she wants it dead no matter if the killer is a friend lost in some new world of night.
Xavier’s heart broke a little when he thought of just how more simple hate was.


Back at the clubs things weren’t going so well. Storm was slowing parting the crowd in front of her as she advanced as if leading a whole army. In reality it was only Kurt behind her in black sweats and holding a sword. He had always jokingly said he was a deadly swashbuckler but never believed him.

Rogue had slowly back up against the wall furthest from the two, knowing the meant to kill her. She didn’t need to read their auras to know that. Merci, on the other hand, was just watching them advance with one hand on her hip. “Who are they?” she asked.

Choking on the words a bit she replied, “they used to be my friends.”

Merci looked genuinely sad when she said, “friends never last into the second life, kid.”

No, that couldn’t be true. Rogue screwed up all her courage and came off the comforting wall and slowly walked towards her teammates.

“Ororo, Kurt, listen to me,” she began. “You don’t want to do this. I’m sorry about Evan, I couldn’t stop it…”

“SILENCE!” Storm yelled. Outside great thunder claps boomed, shaking the whole building, all the people who had stayed to gawk started clearing out of the exits. Soon the two vampires and two mutants were alone.

Tears started to stand out in Rogue’s eyes. “Ororo…please…” at that a lightening bolt shot right through the ceiling of the club above Rogue, bringing pieces of steel and plaster down on her. The bolt scoured her back in an agonizing jagged line of fire before she was buried.

Rain came down through the great hole the bolt had opened up, falling on the pile of debris that covered Rogue. Merci turned furious blue eyes on Storm, who looked back at her calmly.

“You bitch!” Merci screamed. Storm didn’t have the time to raise her hands before a red streak came at her, punching her in the face, sending her off her feet and to the floor. Merci was about to move in again when an arc of steel came at her head that she barely ducked. Kurt swung at her again and again screaming at her to go back to the hell that spawned her. When Merci would use to her speed to get in close, Nightcrawler would simply port behind her and swing again. He was as good with a sword as he bragged and Merci was on the run.

Storm had recovered from the punch and was about to join the fray when the wreckage from the ceiling began to shift and Rogue emerged, clothes tattered and back bloody. Storm sent a lightening bolt from her hand this time, which Rogue managed to dodge when Storm felt a stabbing pain in her shoulder. She looked down and saw a bone spike stabbed into her shoulder. Evan’s bone spike.

The fury exploded in Storm filling the room with her power. Tornado winds filled the tiny space with lightening bolts flying all over the place. Deadly white eyes picked out Rogue in the chaos and channeled it all at her sending wind and electricity at her in full force. It was like getting hit by five trucks, Rogue’s body slammed against the far wall, denting it. Her broken body fell to the ground, ruined and half conscious. She looked up at Storm with sad eyes. Finding no remorse she knew she was about to die.

A cold smile crossed Storm’s face, one hand a blue ball of power raised high ready to strike.

SNIKT!

Two adamantium blades bracketed Storm’s slender neck. The third still in its housing, the threat clear.

“Hello, Logan,” Storm said as if it were a normal everyday meeting in the halls. She didn’t drop the charged hand though. “To what do I owe your presence?”

“You need to power down, ‘Ro,” he said quietly. Kitty had sneaked around the side and was kneeled over Rogue, checking her injuries, a lot were already healing.

“You know I cant do that,” Storm said reasonably. “This thing has to die.”

“That ‘thing’ is Rogue. Your student!” Kitty shouted at her. Ororo just looked back with dead eyes.

“You don’t understand, child,” sadness in her voice as if explaining the concept of ‘life isn’t fair’. “Rogue died two weeks ago. All this is a monster. It killed my nephew, your friend. It has to die.” With that the charged had raised higher. Kurt was about jump in and port Logan away when Merci caught him in the back of the head because he wasn’t paying attention.

“Ororo,” Logan’s voice very dangerous. “Please don’t make me do this!”

Storm carefully turned her head and looked at him and realized he would really do it and let the power go.

The claws were retracted and Storm calmly walked away from them, waking Kurt with a little bolt.

“It doesn’t have to be this way,” Logan said.

Storm turned once and said, “Yes it does. This is now a war and you have chosen your side and I have chosen mine.” She looked at Rogue on the ground and added “I will see you dead.”

Both her and Kurt walked away from them and X-Men for good.

Rogue slowly got to her feet. When Kitty tried to hug her she pushed her away and walked over to Merci. She was defeated. Storm might as well have killed her. She couldn’t go back to the school and risk killing again.

Her head was down as she said to Mercy, “please take me away from here.”

Merci nodded and took her arm. Kitty was about to scream for them not to go when they vanished in twin streaks of black and red right through the hole in the roof.

“NO!” Kitty screamed sobbing. Logan held her as she cried. “It can’t end like this! It cant!” she wept.

Logan, looking out the roof thought that it was far from over.