Wicked Game

DISCLAIMER: don't own the x-men ...


~'~'~'~'~'~

Logan knocked on the professor’s door and entered.

“Ah, Logan, Jean, have a seat”, he motioned for them to sit down at the opposite side of the desk.

“Charles”, Logan said warily as he sat down. Jean glanced at him before turning her attention to the professor. He looked calm.

“Do you know why I’ve called you to my office?”

Logan shrugged. “No, but I’m beginning to think I’ll regret not sneakin’ out when I had the chance …”

“Yes, well, what I’m about to tell you both, and Storm, Scott and Kurt when they arrive, might change that, or at least I think it will to some extent.”

“Charles, what are you implying?” Jean asked.

“Nothing new under the sun I guess, but I felt I had to share it with you guys.” He smiled when there was a knock on the door. “Ah that must be the others.”

Storm entered, closely followed by Scott.

“We got your message”, Scott said and glanced at Jean for a moment before concentrating on the centre of attraction. He crossed his arms, looking all serious and thoughtful.

“What’s going on Charles?” Storm stepped closer to the desk and placed her hands on it. She glanced at Logan and said, making it sound important. “You, I want to talk to afterwards.”

“There have been some rumours floating around … the kind that may be just another false alarm.”

“…or not, right?” she said eyeing him.

“Exactly. It concerns Magneto and his so called entourage, the Brotherhood.”

Storm buried her face in her hands for a moment. “Oh my god, he’s not …”, she began but the words faded.

“I don’t know where he is, as expected he’s shielding himself from me, I’m afraid.” He patted her arm absently.

“So what are the rumours about then?” Jean asked.

“Any rumour connected to Erik contains a potential threat, Jean. I felt I had to pass the info on to you all, so if …”

“You want us to be prepared for anything, right?” Scott asked, which earned him an amused and mocking sound from Logan. He glanced in Logan’s direction and snorted.

“Would you mind, and stop polluting the air for just five minutes or is that too much to ask?” Scott sneered at Logan.

As a reply Logan took a deep drag and blew the smoke in Scott’s direction, looking utterly satisfied. “Would you mind shutting up? No? Well, then get off my case.”

The professor sighed audibly. “Gentlemen, please … Yes you’re correct, Scott, when it comes to our archenemy, yes, unless you want to jeopardize everything.”

The air suddenly whirled, and a second later Kurt was sitting promptly at the professor’s desk, smiling and flashing pointy teeth.

Charles cleared his throat and greeted him with a smile. “Kurt, glad you could make it. I was just filling everybody in on the situation with Magneto.”

“Magneto?”, Kurt answered and frowned.

“Precisely”, Charles said, nodding to them.

“Do you know vhat he vants?” Kurt said, the German accent coming out heavy as he spoke.

“I’m betting on control”, Scott said with a dry voice.

“Yes, Scott, that too.”

“What else?” Logan asked wearily.

Charles studied Logan for a while before he spoke, voice low as he let it fill Logan’s mind, yet the wariness was still detectable. “You know what he wants, Logan. It’s never just about control when it comes to Erik. He’ll always want more than that, more than power over me, Cerebro, the world. You know what it is, don’t you? …” He let the words trail off, eyeing Logan closely. The room seemed almost too silent all of a sudden. Too crowded.

Logan stared at Charles for a moment, not giving away what the professor had just said in his head, and put the cigar between his teeth and took a more than unhealthy drag. He blew a smoke ring, before speaking, his voice thick with fury when he did, and sounding very much like growling.

“That fuckin’ bastard … well I’ll kill him if he comes anywhere near one of us again. So help me god, I’ll rip his fuckin’ heart out if he or someone from that damned brotherhood tries to pull something … I will rip it out and force him to eat it.” He stared past the professor, looking out the windows. He was going to kill Erik if he showed up, no matter what reason might bring him to the mansion. His fingers ached with the need to slit Magneto’s throat for what he had done.

“Okay, you’ve made your point, and you have my permission to do whatever you please, but don’t kill him before I’ve had the chance to talk to him. If it ever gets to that point, I mean. Just don’t kill him right away, Logan.”

Logan shifted his gaze and looked Charles in the eyes, letting him know he was serious about what he said. “Whatever you say, but mark my words, Magneto is mine to kill, he owe me his death.”

“Ease down a bit, Logan”, Jean said softly, resting a hand on his arm.

“Don’t tell me to do that Jean, you don’t know what the hell you’re asking of me. Erik is already a dead man, it’s just a pity that I can only kill him once”, he said, hoarse voice as it came out between his clenched teeth. He stared angrily at her for a second before shaking her hand off of him. He didn’t want anyone touching him now, and her least of all.

“Stop that Logan, what the hell’s the matter with you and all this sudden craving for slaughter?” She looked at him frowning, arms crossed.

“Yeah, tone it down a little, man, you’re scaring her”, he heard Scott say.

“I won’t change my opinion in that matter, Jean, so don’t be like that. And you”, he snarled, facing Scott, “shut the fuck up, or you’ll be one whimpering Scotty boy in about thirty seconds, and another thing – don’t ever tell me what to do, got it, Cyclops?” He made no attempt to withhold the mockery in his voice.

Scott glared at him, seemingly grinding his teeth to dust. Good, he should know his place, Logan thought and turned his attention to Charles again.

“Just remember what I’ve said, be careful and stay alert. If you see anyone you don’t recognize, someone acting suspicious then call me, okay?” He eyed them one at the time, making sure they all knew how serious he was about it.

“Well, then, you can leave to tend to your … whatever it was you were doing”, he said and smiled at them.


~’~’~’~’~’~


“So”, she heard a male voice saying, “what is a girl like you doin’ out here, all alone?”

Rogue didn’t have to raise her eyes to know who it was, she more than recognized the taunting voice as belonging to Pyro. She had no plan of taking the bait, he seemed to be present whenever there was a chance to be annoying, to spite, and cause trouble, of any kind. That was John, alright, a pain in the butt. Cute, but a real pain in the ass. When she made no attempt to acknowledge him, he slumped beside her on the bench. Oh, he was behaving like an obtrusive paparazzi of some kind, he simply had no idea where to draw the line.

“Sweet Rogue, always so serious”, he said in a low, mocking tone, “you waiting for someone perhaps?”

“No, and leave me alone”, she answered, smiling, because she knew how disturbed he’d bee about that. She made sure the smile never reached her eyes though. Just making a point.

“Now, now, is that the way you talk to a friend? I came to offer you some company”, he said, pouting.

“You’re not my friend, John, and for you information, Ah don’t want your company.”

He pretended to search the grounds, looking in different directions, and shrugged. “Hey, I’m not seeing anyone else around, so I guess you’re stuck with me. That isn’t so bad, now is it, baby?” he grinned at her, while flipping a cigarette lighter between his fingers. “Bobby doesn’t have to know.”

“You shouldn’t play with that”, she said, not looking at him. Instead she let her eyes wander. It was a sunny day, extremely hot, as usual. The kind of day you shouldn’t have to worry about anything, a day to just relax, a day for cold drinks and beer, and no worries. No pain.

“Why not? I am fire, remember?”

“And kids who play with fire … well, you know what they say about that. Look, just leave me alone, alright?”

“I like a little fire, Rogue. Don’t you love it, when it burns?” he said, voice low, as he slid an arm around her waist, grabbing her hip. “Someone told me you like it rough.”

“Let go of me!”

He gave a laugh, to the point of being sultry, and squeezed her thigh with the other hand. “You know, I can call that fire beneath I know you’re hiding, don’t be so freakin’ uptight, honey.”

“Let go of me, you asshole!” she said, voice thick with disgust, but there was also a thread of fear underneath it all.

“Rogue, baby, you –“, he began before someone grabbed him by the shoulders pushed him of the bench.

“Are you so blind a fool, you cannot see that you’re making the lady uncomfortable?” a male voice said, a rich, deep and utterly masculine sound.

Rogue turned her head. She nearly gasped as she laid her eyes upon her ‘saviour’. He was tall and well built, not too muscular, more extremely well proportioned, with a broad chest and sort of a slim waist. He was dressed in loose fitting combat trousers and nothing else. No shoes, no shirt, just pants. They hung low on the hips, showing his flat, smooth stomach. A tattoo, the shape of a giant cobra, slithered around his torso. It made him seem dangerous, but as he moved around the bench to face her, he moved with elegance, almost catlike, in a most unnerving and sensual way. He looked every bit a predator, just like what the tattoo was portraying. Black hair spilled around his face, framing it, making a nice contrast to his pale skin.

“I overheard some of the things that were said”, he said looking down at her.

His eyes were the greenest she had ever seen, green and black, and they looked almost unnatural, to the point where she had to simply look away. The power flowed from him, making her nervous. He just stood there studying her, making no attempt to sit down.

“Thank you”, Rogue finally managed to say.

“I just did what had to be done”, he said, lips twitching into something close to a smile. “He won’t bother you again.” He knelt in front of her, forcing her to meet his gaze. “I’m Naja.”

“I’m Rogue”, she said, smiling. Oh, he was absolutely gorgeous, she thought, almost feeling dizzy looking into his eyes. “Your name … it’s unusual … Ah mean, Ah think it’s beautiful …”

Naja smiled. “I get a lot of questions about that, it’s okay, I don’t bother answering them”, he said looking down at his tattoo. “Naja means Cobra, not just a particular one, but all of them. It’s Latin by the way.” He shrugged and eyed her intently.

“Oh, so is that your ability then, too?”

“Am I a mutant? Yes, yes I am. I’m a shape shifter.”

“Let me guess, a Cobra?” she said and smiled. It was nice to have a normal conversation for a change. Nice too meet a stranger, well he obviously wasn’t a complete stranger, but a newbie at the mansion. She’d heard his name mentioned by Storm a couple of times. It felt good to be around someone without shielding herself.

“Yes, a Cobra”, he said and sat down Indian fashion. “So what’s with the gloves?”

“It has to do with mah ability, it’s just for precaution.”

“How so?”

She gave a laugh, it came out with an edge of bitterness to it, but if he was bothered he didn’t show. “You see, it’s mah skin. Ah can’t touch another human being without draining them of their life force. Of course it can be a good thing, to be able to prevent someone from doin’ something illegal, or if Ah’m in a fight, then Ah just have to touch their skin for a period of time and …”

Naja nodded slowly, looking thoughtful. “I can’t imagine how that must be like.”

“No, no one can. Everyone keeps telling me what a marvellous power Ah have, but Ah don’t see it that way. Ah think it’s a curse, an awful thing to be trapped with, and Ah hate it. Ah hate it so much, Ah can sometimes hardly breathe.”

“Well, you can learn to live with it, learn to control it, I really do believe that. I’ve met people with similar abilities, mutants that can drain someone of their life force, power, will or whatever. You can learn to control it, Rogue, but it’s up to you if you want to”, he said gently, giving her a reassuring smile.

“Ah don’t know … I just don’t know”, she said staring past him. She wanted to, she really did, but she was all out strength, the sheer force of will, to do it. There were so many things she had hoped for, too many she had longed for, and still did. Things she couldn’t have.

There was someone coming towards them, a woman with incredibly long black hair, dressed in a dark green halter neck vinyl cat suit, and matching knee-high stiletto boots to go with it. The energy virtually radiated from her, and as she got closer, Rogue just watched her. The woman displayed strong Hispanic features – olive skin, yet pale, two dark almost black eyes, and full lips that were just meant for kissing. In fact, she oozed of sexual energy. A beauty, powerful and ruthless. That last thought had struck Rogue as she sought her eyes, but they weren’t looking in her direction. She halted behind Naja, putting hands on her hips.

“I’d have appreciated it if you’d let me know you’d planned on studying the surroundings today.” Her voice was low, the words came out slow, sounding seductive, but there was something else, an insinuation of anger that made Naja get up and face her. The motion was so fast Rogue flinched.

“I do what I please, I am not your slave, Ana”, he said quietly, the displeasure highly noticeable in his voice.

She gave a laugh, throwing her head back, before she placed her hands on his shoulders. “Oh, but you are”, she said, close to moaning, and caught Rogue looking at them. “And I don’t share.” She licked the side of his neck, not taking her eyes off of Rogue.

Naja grabbed her wrists, but it only seemed to make her enjoy it more. She pressed herself against him, grinding him with her vinyl clad legs. The whole thing made Rogue lower her eyes, she felt like she wasn’t supposed to be a part of this. However, Ana seemed to want that, and that scared her.

“What did I tell you?”

“You weren’t always this boring, Naja”, she said, pouting, looking at him before turning her attention to Rogue again. “You’ve never been into the public way of it so I can understand if you’re reluctant now.”

“Don’t push me, Lilith-Ana, you don’t want to do that. Not here.” He said harshly, pushing her away from him.

“Then will you at least introduce me to your friend?” Ana made that last word sound like something it wasn’t.

She sat down next to Rogue, a little too close for a complete stranger. The look on her face as their eyes met was curious, incisive, her lips barley parted. The gaze was very intensive, almost craving, sort of.

“Stop that, Ana!” Naja said sharply.

She turned her head to him so slowly it was like watching a replay on TV of something. Rogue had to blink, she felt … awkward … like she’d just woken up, though she knew she hadn’t.

“Sorry about that, Rogue”, Naja said, frowning slightly. “This is a friend of mine, Lilith-Ana.”

Ana arched an eyebrow at him, crossing her arms beneath her breasts, making them even more visible than Rogue thought was possible, wearing a halter like she was. It was a lot more than decent. But Ana seemed comfortable in the whole thing, she didn’t even sweat from what Rogue could see.

“So, Rogue, we haven’t met before, have we?” she said casually, offering her hand.

Rogue reluctantly shook Ana’s hand. The other woman’s fingernails were long and coated with black nail polish. She was the most beautiful woman she had ever seen, luscious and dramatic, and very well aware of it. With a presence like that, she nearly made Rogue feel like she was choking on it, and it was daringly close to intimidating. For a moment Ana let her gaze sweep across Rogue’s body, eyeing her almost like a cat about to jump her prey.

“Ana”, Naja said warningly, and laid a hand on her shoulder, gripping it hard enough that the skin became white before turning into red. She didn’t seem bothered by it. “I told you to stop pestering her, or have you forgotten that already? And where’s your sister by the way, I thought the two of you were inseparable.” He squeezed her shoulder a little more, emphasizing the last few words.

Ana glanced at him and made an exasperate sigh. She crossed her legs, stretching one over the other in one deliberately slow motion. “She’s still asleep, Naja. As you might remember, you and I aren’t as nocturnal as her.”

Naja nodded, taking his hand off of Lilith-Ana’s shoulder. “Well, we should be off, Ana”, he finally said.

“Yes, yes we should.” She leaned in closer to Rogue. “Just don’t be afraid to talk to me, girl, if you feel the need to. I’m a very good listener, or so they say”, Ana said, making her voice sound like velvet, moist and warm against her skin.

Rogue shivered and stared at Ana, not knowing how to respond. She met Naja’s eyes, he simply stood there, arms crossed over his bare chest, waiting for Lilith-Ana. His face gave away nothing, there was something flashing in his emerald eyes though, but she couldn’t what.

Ana got to her feet in one smooth motion, it was extremely feminine, but there was also that slithering elegance to it that Naja had. She smiled intimately at Rogue, letting the tip of her tongue slide along the lips. Suddenly there was a look of uncompromising possessiveness in her face, a thread of ruthlessness flashed across it, as she put a hand around Naja’s back.

Rogue stared after them as they walked towards the mansion. She had no illusions about Ana’s unsaid threat, and intentions. She had better stay away from Naja, and it was only as they’d left that she realised, feeling slightly uncomfortable, that she hadn’t even said one word to Lilith-Ana and still being offered to call for some serious talk.