A Thief in the Night

Disclaimer: I do not own any Marvel characters, I just use them shamelessly and don't call them the next day!

This fic was written as a spin off from "Need" and takes place during and after the final chapter. For more extensive background than what is here, please read.


Rogue dropped her shoping bags as soon as she made it through the door to her hotel room, groaning from the relief of the weight she'd been carrying. She hung up her coat and made her way to the bathroom, dropping items of clothing as she went. Then she turned on the hot water in the tub and began running a bath. She returned to her bags, clad in only her underwear. She sifted through them till she had sorted out the items that fulfilled her immediate needs. Bubblebath, chocolate, and fuzzy slippers. She also eyed the pink and white striped bag from the lingerie store. On a whim, she picked it up and brought it into the bathroom with her and lay it on the countertop next to the sink.
The hotel that Warren Worthington III had sprung for was pretty fantastic. It had a king-sized bed, a large bathroom with lots of soft, white lights, and a large tub. Rogue uncapped tottlottle of bubblebath and poured a liberal amount into the stream of water that poured out of the faucet. The musky scent of the bubbles was pleasant and sensual. She never went for the floral scents. It wasn't her style. But she didn't like the heavy perfumes either. Flowers were too happy and girly. Rogue hadn't felt like a little girl since she'd come into her powers, and the heavy perfumes reminded her of older women like Destiny. She didn't belong to either group, so she stuck with the soaps and bubblebaths and didn't bother much with the perfume. Not like anyone got close enough to smell her anyway.


Rogue shed her undergarments and slid into the frothy bubbles. She winced then sighed as the hot water closed over her skin in a way that was almost painful. She liked it that way. With few exceptions, she spent all of her days with her skin closed off from the rest of the world by layers of clothing that kept her friends safe. In the privacy of her hotel bathroom, she could remove all barriers. Her skin was allowed to feel, and the more intense the sensation, the more she liked it. Until she found a better solution, the hot water was the best that she could do. She washed her body thouroughly and shampooed her hair. Then she shaved and used a tiny stiff bristled brush to clean her fingernails and toenails. It was amazing how much dirt one could accumulate when one was digging through the wreckage of her home.


Rogue closed her eyes and leaned back against the edge of the tub. She wanted to soak away her stress from the past twenty-four hours. She knew she was handling it pretty well. Her life had taken much more surprising turns than last night, and she'd dealt with them just fine. She'd only been living with Kitty in their new apartment for six days when Lance Alvers decided to get all Fatally Attracted to her roomate and cause a localized earthquake that destroyed their apartment and an entire corner of the building where they lived, she could deal with that. Warren, their landlord, had put them both up in a hotel and given them a lot of emergency funds to replace some of their more necessary posessions. In fact, they'd spent the day shopping like maniacs. And they weren't going to be homeless for long since the young billionaire was graciously going to offer them the same ridiculously cheap rent that they'd been paying at the other apartment for a much nicer place.


Kitty had loaned her some phasing powers to help get the neighbors out during the attack and overextended herself, nearly suffocating under a pile of rubble. Rogue could handle that too. Kitty, afterall, was okay. Kurt had gone into the wreckage after her and teleported her to safety. In fact, her freind and adopted brother were probably 'celebrating' their current physical health in a very physically healthy way at this very moment. She could deal with that too. She loved them both dearly and would try really hard to be happy for them without resentment. Right now, she had nothing more to do than soak in a tub that she didn't have to share, put away her new clothes, and lounge around watching HBO. It was a Friday night, and she didn't have to go to the Institute tomorrow. She was a free agent. Albeit a lonely one.


Rogue glanced at the pink bag that seemed to beckon to her from across the bathroom. Kitty had been teasing her in the lingerie shop, but on a whim, she'd bought something that might change things for her. She didn't dare to hope; there was no one to hope for at the moment. A pair of red on black eyes flared up in her memory and she pushed them away. She needed to stop thinking about a certain charming Cajun who was more trouble than he was worth. Pulling the drain with a puckered toe, she got up out of the tub and stepped onto the thick bathmat. She rubbed her wet head with a towel briskly, getting out most of the water, then she ran another over her body. After her skin was dry, Rogue picked up the bag from the counter. Sighing, she pulled out the contents.


"For Christ's sake, Rogue." She said to herself. "It's not like you're committing to anything. You're just trying the damned thing on." She opened the plastic package and pulled out the black, sheer bodystocking. It had been expensive, so it was probably pretty strong. It was simple and elegant. It had long sleeves and a high neck and would cover her feet completely. She unzipped it carefully, trying not to snare the fabric. There had been others that could be pulled on, but they hadn't covered enough. And besides, they were made just like pantyhose. This was a silk and nylon blend. It didn't have the same give to it as regular hosiery, it wouldn't stretch as well, but it definitely had a smoother feel. When she eased the thin fabric up her legs, she noted that there was an opening at the crotch that was virtually invisible if she was standing up. It might come in handy some day. For now, she may have found something that would allow her to swim in the pool at the mansion without worrying as much about bumping into someone else.


Once Rogue had zipped the garment up the back, she wiped off the mirror and looked at herself. She looked pretty good. It clung to her curves but stretched enough to allow freedom of movement. But then, it would defeat the intended purpose of the stocking if one couldn't move properly. She chuckled to herself, picked up one of the ts, as, and draped it over her head, rubbing her still-damp hair. She would need to dig out her new hairdryer from one of the bags, but it beat going to bed with wet hair and waking up in the morning looking like a Sasquatch. She walked over to her bags, still rubbing the towel over her hair. She bent at the waist and began rummaging through her things, trying to find the dryer. Through her parted legs, Rogue caught sight of a large, dark form reclining on her bed. Even from her upside down perspective, she recognized him.


"What're you doin' here?" She she snapped, turning around and falling into a defensive stance. From the bed, Remy LeBeau gave her a slow smile. He stared openly at her. His eyes fell between her legs.


"Gambit just admirin' de view, Chere." Rogue flushed automatically. Knowing that he'd had a pretty good 'view' when she'd bent over. She automatically covered herself. And backed up till her backside hit the bureau.


"You filthy pervert." She said angrily. "You horrible, disgusting…..Swamp Rat!" She spat the last two words at him. He only laughed and unfolded his long body gracefully from the bed. He stood and walked toward her slowly, hands outstretched in a peacemaking gesture.


"No reason to be modest. When a lady got a beautiful form, s'a crime to cova it up so completely." He wore his trademark trenchcoat, but she saw no armor underneath.st sst snug, dark clothes and his usual gloves. His reddish hair fell over one eye when he tilted his head in appreciation.


"So did you just come for a show, Cajun?" She asked, regaining her composure. "Cause it's over, now." The big man shook his head. His gaze turned serious. Or at least as serious as possible for Gambit.


"Heard 'bout last night and de trouble yo' pretty roommate had wit Avalanche." His expression softened a tiny bit. "Just wanted to make sure you were okay." He reached out a hand and ran a gloved finger over her cheek. Rogue didn't remove her arm from across her breasts to slap it away. It was too pleasant a sensation. He'd always had that effect on her from the first time they'd met. She didn't understand why. He was hardly a man she'd trust with her heart.


"Ah'm fine, Gambit." She said softly, then, she looked at him curiously. "So you were just in the neighborhood and thought you'd stop by for a friendly chat?"

"Sometin' like dat." He said, dropping his hand back to his side. "I tole you back in Nawlins' dat you'd have people looking after you. Just keeping a promise to a pretty lady."


"Well Kitty and Ah didn't get hurt, and Alvers is in jail, so now you got what you came for." She turned away from him. It was painful to be near him sometimes and know that there was no chance.


"Know you okay. Saw you in de mall." He grinned. "Heard what you said to your friend." Rogue stopped blushing and went pale.


"What did you hear? Where did you see us?" The grin grew wider.


"Saw you havin lunch and couldn't help but overhear yo conversation." He said.


"Sure, you couldn't" She said, feeling miserable and humiliated. During the afternoon of shopping, she and Kitty had spoken frankly about their more private thoughts and Rogue had admitted to unwelcome feelings for the man who stood before her. She'd also predicted that her current state of viginity was going to be a life-long sentence. She hoped he hadn't heard all of it.
"Also saw you in de lingerie shop and I must say," he paused and whistled, looking her over. "Gambit's glad you bought dis li'l getup."


"Get out, you bastard." She said, feeling tears of humiliation burn her eyes. It was too much to have him standing so close and mocking her feelings. "You've had your fun, now get the hell out." Her voice shook with anger. "And quit stalking me." A traitorous tear slipped out of her eye and only made it part of the way down her cheek before it was caught by a gloved fingertip.