Prologue

21 years ago: Sidre

It was exactly like the dream.

Sidre Falon slid through A'Mirion, capital city of the kingdom of Sandoriel, smoothly dodging clusters of celebrating men and women who stumbled through the streets, singing, drinking and laughing. The scents of ale, pipe tobacco, roasted lamb and chicken and sugary sweetcakes mingled with the sweat of the revelers in the steamy heat of the night, turning her stomach.

Even so, her face placid, she continued toward the castle. The nearer she got, of course, the worse the crowd became. It wasn't every day a princess was born. In fact, the princess had been born a month before, but the royal family still followed the tradition of celebrating a Naming Day instead of a birthday. In the old ways, a family waited one month to see if The One would judge them worthy to keep the child. Once the month was up, the child was given a name.

Sidre nearly collided with a couple who stumbled to a halt in front of her. The man lifted up a small boy and pointed at the sky. "Watch, Jeran!" he said as the sky exploded into multicolored flame. The Fire Bringers were busy tonight, illuminating the sky in honor of the latest royal birth.

It truly was beautiful, but Sidre had no time to stop and admire the show. She had work to do this night. She stepped around the small family and continued on her way.

She'd been 13 when she began to Dream. As usually is the case, she didn't recognize her Gift at first. It was a small thing, then -- a dream about Aunt Joi marrying the mayor. When, nearly two years later, the event came to pass, she'd joked with her mother about trying to dream herself a husband. Her mother had laughed and suggested a number of likely candidates, but she began to quiz Sidre about her dreams after that.

Sidre knew she would have a Gift. It was always so, except for the Outsiders, who lived in the Barenian territory. It was impolite to speculate about Gifts until they appeared, but she'd privately hoped for her father's ability to fly. She'd stopped short of asking The One in her prayers, but she spent much of her childhood imagining what it would be like to soar across the sky like a bird.

The last thing she imagined, the last thing she wanted, was to be a Dreamer. Though the Gift was powerful, and often came with other, lesser Gifts, it was rumored that Dreamers could never have children. They almost never married, and they often went mad from the strain of their power.

Sidre pushed her way through a large crowd, wincing as a vulgar man took the opportunity to pinch her bottom. Another night, she would have paused to make him regret the action. Not tonight. She kept moving, tracing the path she'd followed in a Dream almost 11 years before.

Though she was nearly 40 years old, Sidre appeared much younger. She was tall and slim, her face only marked by faint lines at the corners of her eyes. Her hair was still the thick, dark brown that her Galdran had loved, so many years ago.

She'd been 15 the first time she had Dreamed a death. Stubbornly, she refused to tell her mother that she'd seen that the Widow Silas would soon die of old age. She told herself it was only a normal dream, that her true Gift would show itself soon. But when the old lady died in her sleep a week later, Sidre knew she had to do something drastic.

That afternoon, when she went on her daily walk with Galdran, she carefully considered what to do. Galdran was 18, strong and beautiful, with a wild edge that set her stomach fluttering whenever she saw him. Just having his hand closed around hers made her heart race. His mother was one of the Untamed, who lived in the Forest of Marn. Few ventured out of the forest, but Galdran's mother had fallen in love with a man from Sidre's village.

Despite the predatory gleam in his eyes when he looked at her sometimes, she knew Galdran's honor would keep him from asking her father for a marriage agreement before she turned 16, the customary age. But she was afraid she didn't have that much time.


When they reached their place, a small clearing in the woods, he grinned and pulled her into a kiss, and Sidre made her decision. This time he wouldn't leave her breathless and trembling from kisses and touches. She wouldn't allow it. Galdran's honor be damned, that day she was determined to become his lover.

After, of course, he all but ran to her father to ask for a marriage agreement. Her father suspected the truth, she knew from the disappointment in his eyes. But he agreed to the match, and Sidre married Galdran the following month.

They had been so happy, Sidre remembered, until the next Dream. She couldn't hide what she was when she Dreamed her own husband's death.

Sidre sighed, shaking herself out of the memories. She didn't have time for this. She darted down a side street next to the castle, moving quickly between people. Briefly tangled in a web of scandalously drunk young girls singing "The Maid from A'Fara," Sidre spied her cousin Lorin, standing next to a small wooden door in the castle wall.

She broke free of the singing girls and headed for Lorin. Her cousin was a cook in the castle, and she'd arranged months ago for him to meet her here. Sidre couldn't quite stop a sigh of relief. Things usually went the way she Dreamed them, good or ill, but if anyone could disrupt things, it would be Lorin.

Tall and thin, with a shiny bald head, he leaned on the wall whistling something she didn't quite catch and staring with rapt attention at the sky. Streams of color painted the darkness, and the crowd gasped as one golden light flamed into a sunburst, the sign of the new princess.

"Ahhhh," Lorin sighed dramatically, bringing a hand to his heart and gazing at the lights, making a point of not looking in her direction as she slipped in the door. A trifle overdone, she thought, but that was Lorin. She was just lucky he'd actually remembered to meet her.

Sidre sped through the halls of the castle. She'd never been inside before, but the Dream had shown her exactly where to go. The only people she met on her way were servants. Her plain gray gown and a purposeful stride convinced them she belonged precisely where she was, and woe to anyone who tried to stop her.

What seemed like hours later, but was probably only a quarter-hour, she arrived at the nursery. Praise be to The One, the hall was empty. Taking a deep breath, she pushed the door open and strode inside. An older woman, perhaps 60, stood at the window, fanning herself and watching the lights flash across the sky. The nurse turned, startled, as Sidre entered.

"Who--"

"I am here to relieve you," Sidre said briskly.

The woman looked confused, then frowned. "Mistress Aron did not say anything ab--"

"She rarely tells anyone anything," Sidre said, sighing. "She has other plans for you. She is right outside, why not ask her to come in?"

The nurse, still frowning, turned for the door. She made it two steps before Sidre crashed a vase on her head. Sidre swiftly examined the woman and, with a grunt, dragged her to the rug in front of the empty fireplace. She would be fine, but for a large headache, when she awoke.

Rubbing her hands together nervously, Sidre moved to the bassinet in the corner and looked gravely down at the princess. Her Highness Emmarie Rosa Danis Maron, Daughter of the Sun, stared at her with serious brown eyes. Tiny fists waved in the air, but the princess didn't make a sound.

"It is almost time," Sidre told her. "We only have to wait a while longer."

Despite her calm words to the infant, Sidre felt her heart racing. She knew the sounds of revelers singing and dancing, laughing and celebrating in the streets were covering up other sounds. More sinister sounds. She knew little of what was to happen, but she knew before the night was over the king, queen and their small son would be dead.

This night, she supposed, was the reason she'd been born. The princess must survive, and it was Sidre's responsibility to make sure she did. But not hers alone. There was another, and he should arrive at any moment.

At her very thought, the door to the nursery flew open.

He stood there, glaring at her, his sword clenched in his hand. Sidre forced herself to swallow, her throat suddenly parched. Despite his military bearing, it was obvious he was one of the Untamed. In his eyes she saw the ferocity that often skimmed beneath the surface of his people, and she prayed silently that the honor and duty that prompted him to wear the uniform of the King's Guard would stay his sword until she could explain. She had little time. They had little time.

"Captain Logan," she said smoothly, as though they were meeting at a social event. "I have been waiting for you."

---

Present: Jubilee

Something had to be done about Rogue, and obviously Jubilation Lee was the only woman for the job.

Jubilee sighed and tossed aside the latest issue of Cosmo. She shifted on the floor next to her bed, mentally weighing the pros and cons of drinking another bottle of Jolt Cola. She absolutely had to stay awake, for Rogue's sake, but it was getting harder to keep her eyes open every second. She glared at the aforementioned girl, snug in her bed, snoozing the night away while her roommate and best friend sat on the hard floor, debating whether or not toothpicks could really be used to prop her eyes open.


Jubilee transferred her glare to the other bed in their room, empty of its owner. Kitty Pryde, she knew, was probably in the throes of another mind-blowing orgasm -- and who knew Bobby Drake had it in him? -- while she watched over Rogue.

The three of them were among the few people left at the mansion. During the summer, any of the students who had somewhere to go deserted the place as soon as classes were over. Jubilee, Rogue and Kitty decided to spend their summer break from college together. They spent their days looking after the youngest kids in the mansion and their evenings planning a trip to the Bahamas in a few weeks and making use of their newly-minted 21-year-old IDs. Things had been going great, until Rogue began to wig out on them.

Three nights in a row her friend had been caught sleepwalking. In four years of living together, she'd never known Rogue to sleepwalk, so the first night had been kind of funny. Scott had led Rogue gently back into their room in the dead of night without waking her, and the next day her roommates had teased her unmercifully.

Jubilee frowned. The next night, Kitty had come back from a date with Bobby and noticed Rogue missing. She'd shaken Jubilee awake, and they'd found Rogue soundlessly wandering through the halls like a ghost, a slight frown on her face. Her eyes were wide open, but she obviously wasn't seeing anything. To say it was freaky was an understatement.

The night after that, Jubes had tried to stay awake and watch her roomie, but she woke just after 1 a.m. to find Rogue gone again. Without bothering to wake Kitty, Jubes had rushed downstairs, arriving just as Logan came inside. Jubilee wrinkled her nose. He smelled like he'd taken a bath in beer, but even the beer smell didn't cover up the sweat and cheap perfume. Ugh. She barely had time to wonder what Rogue saw in him before she remembered that her friend was heartbroken over the bastard's infamous liplock with Jean Grey in the middle of the rec room.

Up until that point, it was generally accepted at the mansion that Rogue and Logan were a couple, even if the two people involved weren't willing to admit it. They spent much of their free time together, trained together, went out together, ate together and bickered like an old married couple. They shared laughs and tears, and neither one of them dated anyone else. The only thing they weren't doing, as far as Jubilee knew, was having sex, and she had figured it was only a matter of time before they crossed that line. But that all changed after the Kiss Incident.

"Wolverine," she said coolly.

"Sparkle girl," he nodded. She knew very well he remembered her name, but he always called her that. Kitty was "cat girl."

She started, in the interests of standing up for her friend, to blast him for being out with some cheap skank when he could've had Rogue, when the girl herself glided into the hall. One glance told Jubes that she was sleepwalking again.

"Marie?" Logan looked surprised as she stopped in front of him. Jubilee was surprised, too. Rogue had done everything short of joining the Witness Protection Program to avoid him lately. With good reason, as far as she was concerned. He knew damn well that Rogue had feelings for him, and his indifference to those feelings was appalling.

Rogue tilted her head to one side and frowned. "It's getting late," she said. "They're waiting."

"Who?" Logan grabbed Rogue's arm. "Who's waiting, Marie?"

Rogue jerked, and Jubilee could see her come awake and the confusion cloud her face. The cold look she directed at Logan was, in Jubilee's opinion, a fraction of what he deserved.

"Hey, chica," Jubilee jumped in, "I guess you decided you wanted some ice cream, too?"

"Yeah," Rogue lied without a pause. Spending time with Jubilee had been good for her in that respect. Jubilee was a master at prevarication. "Let's go." Without another word to Logan, she'd headed for the kitchen. Logan was staring after her, confused, and for half a second Jubilee felt sorry for him. Until she remembered Rogue locking herself in the bathroom and crying for hours. The dog deserved whatever he got.

But Jubilee couldn't forget the odd moment in the hall, and she'd spoken to Rogue and Dr. Grey about running some tests to make sure there was nothing physically wrong with her friend. Rogue flatly refused to see the doctor, and Jean was hesitant to force anything on the younger woman. In a couple of days, Professor Xavier would be back from his trip to Washington, D.C., and Jubilee intended to have him check Rogue over whether she agreed to it or not.

Until then, she was standing watch. Or, rather, sitting watch. On an uncomfortable floor.

Jubilee reached for the alarm clock to bring it closer, noticing the way her hand was shaking. More Jolt Cola was definitely a bad idea. She did, however, have an extreme craving for the Frosted Cherry Pop Tarts she knew were hidden behind some crackers in the pantry downstairs. Unless Bobby had gotten into them. Ice Boy was toast if he'd touched her Pop Tarts.

Jubilee shot a glance at Rogue, who hadn't moved a muscle, and decided to make a run for it. She slid on her bright purple bunny slippers and crept out of the room.

She was gone for 10 minutes, tops, but when she returned, the room was empty.

"That is cheating," she griped at the empty bed. "I was only gone for a minute!"

Jubilee raced out of the room, heading for the hall, where Rogue generally seemed to pop up on these nocturnal journeys of hers. It was empty and silent. Thinking, she finished the rest of her Pop Tart while pacing around the hall.

Finally shrugging, she wandered the first floor of the mansion, listening for any unusual noises. Her uncharacteristic patience was rewarded when she heard a slight scraping noise to her right. She ran down the empty hallway, stumbling to a halt and nearly tripping over her bunny slippers. The door at the end of the hallway was slightly open.

She'd never noticed that door before, and she didn't have any idea where it led. She shook off an odd shiver of worry. Her bud was in there, doing God knows what, and she needed backup, stat. Jubilee yanked the door open, gaping at the stairs leading down, into a dark room. Pitch dark. No light whatsoever. Really freaking inky black dark. Anything could be down there. Waiting for a mostly-innocent 21-year-old girl to come down the stairs, within arm's reach.

"I ain't afraid of no ghosts," she sang under her breath. For all she knew, Rogue could have fallen down those stairs. She could be injured. Jubilee took a deep breath and plunged down the stairs, the "Ghostbusters" theme song running through her mind.

Once her eyes adjusted to the dark, Jubilee saw a large room, filled with boxes. A hallway ran to her left; where it led, she couldn't tell. If there was a light switch in the room, she didn't have enough light to see it. Which was certainly an irony she planned to mention to Rogue when she found her. Unfortunately, the girl was nowhere in sight. Which meant, Jubilee thought, either she wasn't down here, or she'd gone down the darker-than-dark hall.

"Girl," she muttered to her missing friend. "You owe me so big for this. We're talking shopping-spree-at-the-mall, all-you-can-eat-chocolate-bonanza, doing-my-laundry-for-the-rest-of-your-days debt here, babe."

Amazingly, Jubilee spotted a large, heavy flashlight on a stack of boxes. She picked it up, flipped the switch. And figured God must appreciate her altruistic activities, since the batteries were working, sending a nice, cheerful, bright light throughout the room.

The light improved her mood immensely, and she headed without hesitation down the hall. Several doors lined the hallway, but -- putting on her best Nancy Drew face -- Jubilee followed the footprints in the dust on the floor. This was apparently the one place in the mansion that the Prof didn't have cleaned 24/7.

Rogue's footprints went into the third door on the right. The door itself stood open. Jubilee sauntered into the room, prepared to dazzle her friend with her deductive abilities. Instead she nearly gave herself a heart attack as the beam of the flashlight reflected off something, momentarily blinding her.

"Holy COW!" she yelped, jumping back, managing to drop the flashlight in the process. As the room went black, she heard the flashlight rolling off somewhere. Perfect. Perfectly-freaking-perfect. "Uh, Rogue?" she ventured.

There was no sound in the room. This room was the darkest place so far, and her eyes weren't adjusting too well. All she could see was the big spot in front of her eyes caused by the reflection. Jubilee gulped, feeling nervous and a little ridiculous at the same time.

She started to speak again, when she suddenly began to make out a few objects in the room. The growing light was subtle, so it took her a moment to realize it wasn't simply her vision adjusting to the dark. As the room lit up, she saw that the light was coming from a large standing mirror, as big as the front door of the mansion, at least. The mirror itself wasn't the source of the light, but its frame was glowing with a golden light.

Rogue stood in front of the mirror, perfectly still, one hand touching the mirror's surface. Her black pajama pants and purple tank top had an orangey tint in the light. Jubilee could tell by one glance that her friend wasn't awake. Her face, reflected in the mirror, was completely blank, and her eyes were open. Jubilee wasn't close enough to tell, but she'd have bet money the eyes were empty, too.

Now, she figured, would be a great time to wake Rogue up. They could haul ass upstairs, and when the Prof got back in a few days, they could ask him about his wonderful glowy mirror hidden downstairs. And, next time, she'd find the freaking light switch first.

It was surprisingly difficult to force herself to step closer. "Rogue --" she began, ending in a gasp as her roomie stepped into the mirror.

One moment she was there; the next moment she seemed to merge with her mirror image and vanish.

"I will not pass out ... I will not pass out ... I will not pass out," Jubilee muttered. She absolutely hated those stupid heroines in books and movies who freaked out at the slightest bit of weirdness or danger. Jubilation Lee was an X-Woman. At least, she was an X-Woman in training. She lived for danger, excitement, weirdness.

Swallowing hard, Jubilee stepped toward the mirror and slid one finger along its surface, pushing through what felt like warm caramel. Gasping, she yanked her hand back.

The glow around the mirror began to fade, and Jubilee acted before she could talk herself out of it. She sent out a giant S.O.S. in her most screeching mental voice "ROGUE WENT INTO MIRROR DOWNSTAIRS! I'M FOLLOWING!"

As the glow nearly sputtered out, Jubilee took a deep breath, like she was going underwater, and jumped into the mirror.

---

Logan

Logan was brooding, and he was doing a good job of it. In fact, he was pretty sure there was no one on earth who could match him for brooding.

At least that's what Marie said. Used to say. When she was still speaking to him.

He sat on his bed, gripping a bottle of beer and glaring at the door. His thinking went in constant circles. He had to find a way to make her talk to him, so he could explain. He should stay away from her; she deserved someone better. And how dare she be mad at him anyway? She expected too much from him. But what if he'd ruined any chance he'd had with her? He had to find a way to make her talk to him, so he could explain. ...

And so it went.

It wasn't his fault to begin with. Well, hardly his fault.

He'd been flirting with Jean again. Mostly, he just did it to yank Scooter's chain, and because she was a damn fine woman. He actually liked her, which was more than he could say about most people. Plus, it was a lot easier than dealing with his feelings toward Marie. He knew she had feelings for him -- he hated how his heart sped up at the thought that she might even love him -- but he couldn't help but feel that he wasn't good enough for her. So he kept things on a friendly level with Marie -- mostly -- and flirted with Jean.

But since the mission to Donovan Laboratories, and her illness afterward, Jean had been acting a little strange. Still, when he'd asked her when she was going to leave Summers and have a taste of a real man, he hadn't expected her response.

She kissed him.

Now, once upon a time, this would've been great. It's what he dreamed of. Mostly. But it wasn't like he'd imagined at all. There was nothing in the kiss. She might as well have been kissing a rock for all the passion she put into it. And only he saw the tears in her eyes that she blinked back before pulling away.

He wasn't all that surprised to see Scott standing behind them, but he was jolted by the sight of Marie. She looked horrified, betrayed. Summers' face, on the other hand, was completely blank before he turned and walked out of the room without saying a word.

Marie shook her head and followed him, and that was the last he saw of her for two days. The girl had an uncanny ability to avoid him, considering his superior senses. And after that, the few times he managed to get her alone, one of her little friends would just "happen" to show up, sending him a scalding glare or making certain nasty comments under her breath. He wondered if they knew he could hear every word. Nobody had ever actually called him a "skank" before. At least, not that he could remember.

Jean had collapsed crying after the Kiss Incident, which is what the kids were calling it, and he'd spent an hour and a half holding her and letting her cry and talk everything out. Most of what she'd told him he couldn't repeat. It wasn't for him to tell anyone. But he could let Marie know that the kiss wasn't his idea and didn't mean anything.

He had to talk to her. Logan barely resisted the urge to throw the beer bottle, instead dropping it on his nightstand and rolling off the bed to pace the room. The only option open to him, really, was to grab her out of her room. He'd make her talk to him. He'd explain everything. Though, on second thought, maybe things were better this way.

Logan stumbled and fell to his knees as a blinding golden flash filled his vision.

He began to remember.

For years, all he'd remembered were bits and pieces. Images. Faces. Feelings. A bit of a song that made him feel ... something, and then he lost it. It was like trying to hold water in his hands. Impressions were all he got before the rest slipped through his fingers.

This was different. It was like a pipeline opened between the past and his mind, and it rushed back in, filling up all the empty spaces in his brain. His seventh Naming Day. The day Samuel fell through the ice of the river. His mother. The first time he'd seen A'Mirion. Samuel's wedding. The memories came, faster and faster, making him dizzy. Joining the King's Guard. Kissing Minna. The day ... the time ... his first ... They flew by so fast he couldn't grasp them all. It was too much. He saw Sidre. The cave. His promise.

He saw the bright golden light again, just before he passed out.

---

Jean

"ROGUE WENT INTO MIRROR DOWNSTAIRS! I'M FOLLOWING!"

Breathing heavily, Jean sat up straight in bed. She reached out for Scott before remembering, glancing over and sighing at the empty place next to her. She missed him. Though she knew it was for the best, she wanted nothing more at that moment than to rush down the hall to his new room and climb in bed with him. He would be warm and solid. Strong.

She needed him. Jean shook her head and pushed out of bed. It took her a moment to get a handle on what was wrong. For once, it wasn't the nightmare about suffocating at Donovan Labs. She almost thought she'd heard Jubilee yelling at her about Rogue. She sighed and rubbed her throbbing temples. Jubilee would be the death of her one of these days; she just knew it. As it was, Jean blamed her increasing number of gray hairs almost entirely on the girl.

Grumbling to herself, Jean slipped into a robe and padded barefoot down the hall. The girls' room was at the other end. Surprisingly, even when they'd graduated and started training for the team, all three girls had wanted to continue being roommates. Most of the others who stayed had their own rooms.

A good thing, too, she thought, speeding up as she passed Bobby's room. Certain sounds coming from that room obviously required some privacy. She wondered for a moment who was in there with him but quickly dismissed the question. That was one good thing about Jubilee. Spend a few minutes with her, and you'd know most of the good gossip in the mansion.

Jean frowned. Actually, the good gossip was probably at least a little bit about herself and Logan. And Scott. Now that was something she really didn't want to think about.

She was surprised to find the door to the girls' room wide open, and she felt a tingle at the base of her neck when she saw the room was empty. That strange feeling usually meant trouble. What had she heard Jubilee yell? She stood in the doorway, drumming her fingers on the doorframe and frowning. Rogue. It was about Rogue.

That answered the question about where to go next.

---

Rogue

She woke to cold feet on a rough stone surface.

Rogue opened her eyes, taking in the dim surroundings. She rubbed a hand over her eyes, but it still looked as though she was in a cave of some kind. To her right was inky blackness, but there was enough light coming from the mouth of the cave for her to see.

She felt cold, and slightly sick to her stomach. Leaning over, hands on her thighs, she took a few deep breaths and wondered how on earth she'd managed to get here.

It must have been the sleepwalking again. She supposed that as soon as the Professor got back, she was going to have to talk to him about it.

But that was later in the week. Now the problem was how to find her way back to the mansion. Her bare feet weren't sore at all, just cold, so she doubted she'd come far through the woods. But in which direction?

There was a slight sound from behind her, like the muffled sound of a zipper, and someone -- something? -- crashed into her from behind, throwing her to the ground. Tears bloomed in her eyes as one knee banged against the stone floor and her palms scraped the rock.

Automatically, Rogue rolled to her feet, slipping into a fighting stance.

Staring up at her from the ground was Jubilee, eyes wide.

Rogue relaxed, unclenching her fists and dropping her arms to her sides, rubbing the sore palms against her pants. "What'd you do that for?"

"What?" Jubilee just sat there, looking stunned.

"You knocked me down," Rogue complained, wincing at the pain in her knee.

"I -- um. The mirror."

"Well, that clears it right up," Rogue snapped. "What the hell are we doing here?"

Jubilee got to her feet slowly. She, Rogue noted sourly, didn't appear to be injured. Apparently Rogue had broken her fall. Though she did look a little odd.

"I'm going to -- ugh," Jubes croaked, rushing into the dark part of the cave before emptying her stomach.

Rogue sighed and rubbed at her knee. Maybe she'd hit her head when she fell. There was something going on, and Jubilee appeared as confused as she was. Was there such a thing as group sleepwalking?

"Jubes?" Rogue walked in the general direction of her friend's groaning. "You OK? I'm sorry I snapped at you."

She could barely make out Jubilee in the dark. She seemed to be kneeling on the ground, head down. "Hon," Rogue reached out, stopping short of touching her friend. Her gloves. She'd wandered off without them. If this kept up, she was going to have to start sleeping in the damn things.

"I'm OK," Jubilee said, lifting her head. "Could really use a breath mint about now, though."

Rogue shrugged. "I'm fresh out."

Jubilee got to her feet, and they headed toward the entrance of the cave. "Where are we?"

Rogue stopped. "I thought you knew. Wasn't I sleepwalking?"

"Uh, yeah, and then you pulled an Alice in Wonderland on me," Jubilee cracked, her voice stronger.

"Pardon?"

"I was following you," Jubilee said, shrugging. "You went downstairs, into the basement."

"I used the elevator in my sleep?" Rogue rubbed at her head again. She must have brain damage or something.

"No," Jubes said impatiently. "The basement-basement. It must be next to the secret X-men level or something. I didn't know it was there. It's for storage, I guess."

Rogue looked around the cave. Obviously she was missing something. "And it connects to this cave?"

Jubilee sighed. "No, babe, you're not listening to me. There was a huge-ass mirror down there, and you ... we went through it."

"We ... went through ... a mirror." Ah. Alice in Wonderland. Contrary to popular opinion, Jubilee almost always made sense. Sometimes that sense just took a little while to reveal itself. Still ... "A mirror? Jubes, I don't mean to be rude, but are you on drugs or something?"

"Hey, you're the one who started this whole thing," Jubilee said indignantly. "I'm just trying to look out for you, and you're going through freaking mirrors, and it feels like thick, warm ... something. Ugh. I will never get over how creepy that was. You don't remember any of this?"

"Maybe we'd better get back home," Rogue said slowly. Someone was crazy here, she just wasn't sure which one of them needed the straitjacket and padded room.

"Sure," Jubes said. "How?"

"Well," Rogue pointed toward the entrance. "Maybe we'll see our path and be able to re-trace it."

"Our path wasn't that way," Jubes said, pointing to the spot where Rogue had woken. "We came from there. I came from behind you, remember?"

"Well ..." Rogue frowned, walking to the side of the cave. There was an odd look to part of the stone. It was a rectangle-shaped section, in a slightly darker color. There were odd symbols carved along the edge of the section. Cautiously, she ran her fingertips along the stone.

Instantly, the symbols began to glow, and the stone changed consistency. It felt like it was melting at her touch. Startled, she yanked her hand back.

"What the hell is going on?"

To her credit, the words "I told you so" didn't pass Jubilee's lips. "I wish I knew. I mean, I'm up for adventure and everything, but this is a little different than sneaking out of the mansion to go to a rave, you know? We'd better get back."

Rogue shot a glance at the cave entrance again. Who knew what they would find out there? She had the strongest feeling of deja vu, and an odd tickling at the back of her mind. She almost knew why she had come here, but the reason slipped away from her before she could get hold of it. Maybe if she just took a quick peek outside, then returned to the mansion to get help. Logan would ...

Logan would probably be with Jean. Damn it. Damn him. She could investigate this on her own. She couldn't depend on Logan to do everything ... anything for her anymore.

"I'm checking it out," she told Jubilee. "I want to know why I came here. But you should go back home."

"I'm not leaving you," Jubilee said, jamming her hands on her hips. "And I'm not going back through that thing by myself."

"But you're sick --"

"I'm not sick," she argued. "I think that trip through the looking glass disagreed with me."

"OK," Rogue nodded. Maybe it was selfish, but she really didn't want to go by herself anyway.

They crept toward the entrance, neither sure why they were trying to be quiet. They'd been talking in normal tones all along; if anyone was outside it was probably obvious by now that someone was in the cave.

The light was bright compared to the dim interior of the cave, but Rogue noticed it was cloudy outside. And cold. Wherever they were, it sure didn't feel like summer. She shivered and ran her hands up her arms. Poor Jubilee was wearing shorts, but she didn't seem to notice the cold.

While Rogue hung back at the cave entrance, Jubilee wandered out into the clearing in front of them. The remains of a fire in the middle of the clearing and the condition of the ground indicated that someone had been camping there, but Rogue couldn't tell how long ago.

Strangely reluctant, she followed Jubilee outside, heading for the burned logs. She kneeled down in front of them, placing her hand a few inches away from the pile. She could still feel their warmth.

"This fire hasn't been out for long," she said quietly.

"Um, Rogue?"

Rogue got to her feet and turned, shifting into fighting stance again as she saw the stranger holding a long knife on Jubilee.

It was a girl in her late teens or early twenties, wearing a plain brown dress over her slim frame, with some kind of purse or bag slung over her shoulder. A belt held a sheath for her knife, and another knife was sheathed on the opposite hip. Her long blond hair was twisted into dozens of small braids, and her eyes darted between Jubilee and Rogue. Rogue thought she would be pretty, but at the moment she was scowling. Not an attractive look for her, Rogue thought critically.

"Step back," the girl said evenly, pointing the knife at Jubilee. Rogue noted that she seemed quite comfortable holding the knife. "Stand by your friend."

Rogue noted Blondie's eyes dart from side to side, clearly looking for someone. She watched as Jubilee backed toward her. She knew she could take the blonde, no problem, but she wasn't sure who else was around. Still, it was better to take out one of them if she could.

"Do not try anything," Blondie said sharply, drawing her second knife. "You would be dead before you took a step."

Rogue exchanged a look with Jubilee.

"Settle down, Barbie," Jubilee said. "If you make me nervous you might be swallowing sparks here in a minute."

A brief look of confusion crossed the blonde's face before it hardened again. "I will have your names," she said. Rogue couldn't quite identify her accent.

Her mind was turning over various escape methods, but she answered calmly. "I'm Rogue."

"Rogue." Blondie nodded and turned to Jubilee. "Name."

A woman of few words, Rogue thought. She should meet Logan. But he didn't seem that interested in blondes. Redheads were more his speed. She sighed. Even under knifepoint she couldn't stop thinking about the man. She needed therapy or something.

"Xena," Jubilee said. "Warrior Princess."

Rogue swallowed a laugh as Blondie looked Jubilee up and down, from her dark hair, over her Tweety Bird T-shirt and plaid boxer shorts, finally settling for a moment on the purple bunny slippers. "You do not look like a warrior to me," she said arrogantly.

"Looks can be deceiving," Jubilee said. "For example, you look pretty tough, but I don't think you can stop us from taking those knives away from you."

A grin crept across the blonde's face. Rogue felt a tug of familiarity. This girl reminded her of someone she knew, but who?

"Would you like to try? I have not had a good fight in days."

Rogue was tempted. The blonde obviously needed a good ass-kicking to give her some perspective. But maybe it would be better, after all, to get some of the other X-Men before exploring this place.

"We'd love to," Rogue said breezily. "But we really need to get going." She and Jubilee began to back toward the cave.

"Perhaps I could not get you with the knives," the blonde said calmly. "But certainly my friend with the bow will kill you instead."

Spinning around, Rogue saw a second woman behind them. And she didn't look happy at all to see them.

"Celeste, what are you doing?"

The tall, wiry young woman was glaring at Blondie, Celeste, apparently. She did have a bow, with an arrow loosely held in one hand and a quiver tied behind her like Robin Hood. In fact, she looked like she could be one of his merry men in her dark green pants and tunic. Short brown hair was cut pixie style, and the brown eyes were snapping at the moment.

"They came from the cave," Celeste said. Her sulky tone told Rogue she knew she'd done something wrong, but she probably would never admit it.

The second woman's eyes widened as she took in their appearance. Obviously, their pajamas weren't quite appropriate. Not to mention that they weren't warm enough. It couldn't be warmer than 45 degrees.

"You are freezing," the brunette said, compassion warming her face. Shooting another glare at Celeste, she disappeared through the trees and returned a moment later carrying two dark gray woolen cloaks. "Take them, please," she said, pushing them into their arms.

One bare hand came close to Rogue's skin, and Rogue jumped back.

The brunette had her bow drawn in an instant, eyes searching the clearing for a threat of some kind.

"You can't touch my skin," Rogue explained hurriedly. She didn't like to explain about her mutation, especially when she wasn't quite sure what was going on. But she didn't want to take any chances of the nice one getting hurt. She didn't trust that Celeste person at all. "It ... will hurt you. Nobody can touch me."

The brunette looked confused. "This is your Gift?"

"My ... gift?" Rogue and Jubilee exchanged a glance. "Well, I guess you could say that."

Celeste had moved to stand next to them. Rogue was relieved to see she'd sheathed both knives. "You cannot control your Gift?" Celeste asked, obviously disbelieving. Before Rogue could stop her, Celeste reached out and grabbed her arm.

The usual tingle of her skin began, eagerly reaching for energy to absorb, but it was as though something was blocking her power. Nothing happened.

Celeste let go of Rogue's arm. "She cannot control it," she laughed mockingly. "She knows nothing."

The brunette sent a warning frown Celeste's way and carefully draped the cloak over Rogue's shoulders. "It will be fine," she said reassuringly. "Sidre will help you."

"She is too old to learn," Celeste objected.

"Sidre will help her," the brunette said confidently. She turned to Rogue and Jubilee. "I am Risa. The charming one is Celeste. We have been waiting for you for five days."

"We were about to leave," Celeste said.

Risa rolled her eyes. "One of us was. Then she was going to wish she had never been born, when she returned home without what she came for."

"What --" Rogue cleared her throat. She was still reeling from the fact that Celeste had touched her. She seemed to know more about Rogue's power than Rogue did herself. "What did you come for?"

Risa glanced at Celeste before answering. "I believe we came for you."

---

Jean

Jean knocked softly on Logan's door, knowing his hearing would pick it up anyway. After a moment, she knocked again. When he didn't answer, she sent out a light searching thought. He was in there, all right, but something was wrong.

She opened the door and searched the room with a glance. Logan was on the floor, fully dressed, from flannel shirt to jeans to boots, passed out. Jean knelt next to him and rolled him onto his back. "Logan?"

She was answered with a weak groan.

There didn't seem to be anything wrong with him physically. She saw a couple of beer bottles decorating the room, but she'd never known him to pass out drunk before. Usually, his healing factor more than compensated for whatever alcohol he drank.

Jean brushed a hand over his forehead. His temperature seemed normal, too. "Logan?" she said again.

"Jeannie." Logan groaned again and opened his eyes. "What's goin' on?"

Jean blew out a relieved breath and sank into a cross-legged position on the floor. "I don't know. You were just unconscious. Do you remember what happened?"

He ran a hand over his face, then pushed himself into a sitting position. Suddenly, he gasped, and an actual, honest-to-God smile bloomed on his face. Jean stared in shock. She'd heard rumors that he smiled at Rogue like that sometimes. Geez. No wonder the girl was in love with him. His face was completely transformed. For the first time since she met him, he looked happy.

"I remember," Logan said excitedly. "I remember it all. It came back, all at once. I don't know ..." He stood up and began pacing the room, talking under his breath.

"Logan, that's wonderful," she said happily, standing up. "What do you remember?"

"I'm not from here," he said, frowning now. "Where's Marie?"

OK. Jean wasn't getting the connection there. But she'd never understood how his mind worked, anyway. "That's why I came here," she explained. "Rogue's missing. I had this strange ... feeling or dream. Jubilee was yelling about Rogue and a mirror --"

"The mirror." Logan looked almost panicked now. "She's gone back."

"What do you mean ‘gone back'? Gone where?" Jean wondered briefly if she was still asleep. Either that, or Logan had developed a drug habit somewhere along the way.

"I'd like to know that, too."

Jean spun around to find Scott in the doorway. She nearly sighed at the sight of him. It was the middle of the night, and he looked perfectly put-together, dark hair combed, black pajama bottoms and gray T-shirt not even appearing wrinkled. He was beautiful. Jean pushed away the thought and shrugged.

Logan was pulling clothing out of his dresser, ignoring them. Finally, he sighed. "I'm not from this ... world. Neither is Rogue."

Jean exchanged a look with Scott. They didn't need telepathy to know what the other was feeling: He's finally lost it.

"Logan ..." Jean began.

"Believe what you want, Red, but it's the truth." Logan pointed to his head. "Look for yourself."

Again, Jean looked to Scott, and she wondered in annoyance when she became incapable of thinking for herself. They weren't together; she couldn't depend on his help anymore. Before he could even respond, she went to Logan, framing his head with her hands. She'd gotten to the point where she was strong enough to read him without the proximity; it had just become more of a habit than anything.

Her eyes drifted closed, and immediately a rush of images sped through her mind. A slide show of Logan's life on fast forward, the pictures flew by so fast she could only grasp the edges of his experiences. And the feelings. Happiness, freedom, pride, anger, joy, love, jealousy-fear-anticipation-embarrassment-love-pain ...

Jean!

She felt Scott physically pull her away from Logan, but it was his mental cry that broke her link with Logan's mind. Trembling, she allowed herself a wonderful moment in Scott's arms before she pulled away. Logan was sitting on the bed, grinning at her.

"You remember everything," she said slowly. She'd never considered the impact of a lifetime's worth of memories crashing into his brain. No wonder he'd passed out. She'd been a moment away from fainting herself.

"Yep." Logan stood up and went to the closet, yanking out a backpack and tossing it on the bed.

Jean turned to Scott, who was watching Logan and frowning. "He's telling the truth, Scott. I don't ... I don't know where he's from, but it's ..." She trailed off and sighed. There was no way to explain it. It's different, she pushed the thought toward Scott, along with the feeling of otherness she got from the images.

Characteristically, Scott didn't argue. He trusted her, even after everything that had happened. Trusted her instincts, anyway. "What does this ‘other world' have to do with Rogue?"

Logan looked up from shoving clothes into his bag. "Marie is from my home, too. She ... we brought her here when she was a baby, for protection. I was supposed to protect her." The happy look that had been hovering on his face vanished. "I was supposed to protect her, but those government bastards got me, and I didn't remember her."

"Where are you going?" Jean asked. "What does the mirror mean?"

Logan sighed, zipping up the bag and tossing it over his shoulder. "There's a gateway from my world to yours. A device, nobody knows who built it or how it works. But on this end, it looks like a mirror. It has to be nearby."

"There are a lot of mirrors in the mansion alone, Logan," Scott said. "How do we find it?"

"We don't," Logan said, yanking the door open. He paused, looked back at the two of them. "Thanks for everything. You --" he nodded at Scott. "Don't let Red screw things up between you."

Scott nodded, and Jean rolled her eyes at the manly nonverbal agreement that was struck right before her eyes.

"Hold on, Logan." For the moment, Jean decided to ignore Scott. There were more important things to take of. "I'm going with you."

"No." Scott and Logan spoke in stereo, prompting another eye-roll. They would never believe how alike they were, no matter how often they had their "twin moments," as Jubilee called them.

"Rogue needs me," Jean said. "Don't ask me why, but I have a feeling."

Scott didn't waste time arguing with her. "If you go, I go."

"Shit." Logan stomped into the hall. "Dress for the outdoors. And hurry the hell up. I'll track the girls."

"Logan." He stopped and glared at her. "I think ... check downstairs."

As he nodded and took off down the hall, Jean slid past Scott toward the door. He stopped her with a hand on her arm.

"Jean ..."

"We have to hurry," she said quickly.

He started to speak, then snapped his mouth shut and ran a hand through his hair. It left a little tuft sticking up on the right side, where his hair was always just the tiniest bit stubborn. She loved that little rebellious patch of hair, though Scott daily tamed it into place. By force of a strong will, she didn't reach out and fix it for him.

After a moment, he spoke quietly in his "fearless leader" tone. "Stop by the girls' room and pick up some clothes for them, too. I'll leave the Professor a note, and I'll make sure Logan waits."

He left her standing there, hand half-raised to smooth his hair against her will.

"Stupid," she muttered, rushing from the room. She had a date with a magic mirror.

---

A'Mirion: Girl

The one they called Girl had a name once. Meri, she was called, but more often than not she refused to let herself remember the time before she'd come to the castle. The memories of her parents, her mother's laughter, her father lifting her up and twirling her around, only made her current situation more painful.

In brief moments of clarity she knew she wasn't sane; she'd overheard her parents talking about it when she was 10. Being a seer was hard enough; for one who came into her power so young the balance of sanity was even more precarious.

Her insanity was the only thing keeping her alive.

She thought she had passed her 13th birthday, but she wasn't sure. She lived in a small, cold room in the depths of the castle, only eating when she was forced. And from time to time, he would call her to him and demand to know the future.

She knew what Deven Maron was, how he leached Gifts from others, taking their lives in the process. He would take her Gift, her curse, as well. But he feared he would get her insanity, too.

So she lived.

Today, he wanted to know where he could find a healer. He had been searching for one of the Untamed for some time, someone he could steal healing power from. But she had something else to tell him instead.

"Are you listening to me, Girl?" he asked. His voice was even, but he was pacing around, tapping his fingers impatiently on his thighs. There was nothing remarkable about him at all. Average face, average body, average voice. But his ruthlessness and hunger for power had made him a king.

Girl, kneeling on the cold stone floor, began to laugh. "She is coming," she said softly, her voice rusty from disuse.

"Why are you laughing?" he stalked over to her, yanked her up by one thin arm. He pulled her long, straggly blond hair out of her face. "Who is coming?"

Girl pulled away and walked past Maron, apparently aimlessly. She came to a set of glass double doors and pushed them open before turning back. "The princess is back," she said.

Maron froze. "Emmarie is here."

Girl nodded dreamily, leaning against one door and breathing in the fresh, cold air.

Maron rubbed a hand over his chin. He smiled, and its coldness brought a shiver to Girl. She was glad she would finally be free of this man. Her job was finished.

"What is her Gift?" Maron asked.

It was Girl's turn to smile. "She will teach you to fly," she said, rushing to the balcony and jumping into darkness.

---

Jubilee

"This is so 'Star Trek'," Jubilee said quietly as they followed Celeste through the woods. Risa trailed a few paces behind them. Jubilee had offered to share the bunny slippers with Rogue, who was barefoot, but her friend had declined. She still seemed to be in shock from what was happening, and Jubilee couldn't blame her.

They weren't exactly prisoners, but Risa had told them she couldn't allow them to go back through the cave. She wouldn't give them much information, other than the fact that someone -- this Sidre person -- knew they were coming and sent Risa and Celeste to wait by the cave.

Risa answered everything with "You will have to ask Sidre," as if that cleared everything up. Which was still more than Barbie -- Celeste -- had told them. Any time they asked her something, she would just shrug or smirk at their ignorance. She seemed particularly put out when she found that Jubilee had lied about her name, though Risa had told her to get over it.

"What do you mean?" Rogue asked.

"Hello? Alternate universe? Obviously, we've encountered a warp core breach in the space-time continuum." She was glad to see a smile on Rogue's face. "If only Bobby were here."

"Why do you say that?"

"Well, he's a 'Star Trek' geek, big-time. He could figure out how to use the Prime Directive to repair the temporal anomaly."

Rogue laughed. "Jubes, how many Jolt Colas did you have tonight?"

"Um ..." Jubilee thought back. "Two. And a package of Skittles. And a Pop Tart."

Rogue raised her eyebrow, an eerie reflection of Logan.

"OK, two Pop Tarts. ... And a cappuccino and whipped-cream-filled chocolate-frosted doughnut."

"Ugh," Rogue made a face. "No wonder you puked back there."

"Dude, I was fine until I came through your looking glass."

"It's not my looking glass," Rogue muttered.

"But you were meant to go through it," Jubilee said quietly. "They were waiting for you, not for me. Where is this place?"

"I don't know," Rogue glanced around them. The farther they walked, the darker it got as trees pressed in on them from every side. Jubilee had been kicked out of Girl Scouts after making up obscene lyrics to the tune of "Make New Friends" and starting a petition for a shopping merit badge. All she knew was the trees were tall, probably really old, and making her feel claustrophobic. "But it feels ... familiar. I don't remember ever being here, but there's just something about it."

"Maybe one of your head cases was here once?"

Rogue looked startled, then cursed as she tripped over a tree root. Celeste stopped in her tracks and turned to glare at them.

"You must be quiet," she ordered softly.

"Why?" Rogue stuck her hands on her hips and glared back, but she kept her voice level with Celeste's. "Why do we have to be quiet?"

Surprisingly, instead of the usual smirk, they got an answer this time. After glancing back at Risa, Celeste said slowly. "There is an enemy camp nearby. We must pass without attracting attention."

Without any more explanation, she turned and continued walking. Jubilee noticed that Celeste's passing made no noise and seemed, to her untrained eye, to leave no mark. Obviously Celeste was a Girl Scout, or the alternate-universe version of one.

Jubilee leaned closer to Rogue. "We have enemies? That can't be good."

"Agreed," Rogue whispered. "I guess I'll have to give Barbie the satisfaction of following her orders."

"Life's a bitch, chica."

---

After the last glimmer of light vanished from between the leaves of the trees, the terrible two finally called a halt to the march. Jubilee felt certain her feet were both frozen solid and on fire. The many other aches and pains in her body paled in comparison. But she refused to complain because she didn't want Celeste and Risa to know how tired she was and because she knew Rogue's feet had to be in much worse shape. Yet her friend didn't utter a word of complaint.

Jubilee was an X-Woman, and she wasn't going to let some Star-Trek-meets-Robin-Hood bimbos best her. Still, she barely contained a groan as she sank to the ground beside Rogue.

Her friend gave her a weak smile. "OK, Jubes?"

"Never better," Jubilee said. "All I'm missing is food, water, a warm bed, twelve pairs of socks --" She gasped and jerked back as a small bag was dropped in her lap.

Celeste frowned down at her. "Eat. Even you cannot eat and speak at the same time," she said in a low voice.

Rogue chuckled. "You don't know her as well as I do."

Jubilee smacked her friend. "Way to stand up for me," she began before Celeste gestured at her to eat. Rolling her eyes, she opened the bag. "Yum."

"What is it?" Rogue asked quietly.

"Jerky of some kind. I think I won't ask where it came from." She grabbed a piece and started chewing on it, then passed the bag to Rogue.

The enemies were apparently still nearby, and Risa wouldn't allow them to have a fire. Still, Jubilee fell right to sleep after eating, wrapped in the cloak. She convinced Rogue that it would be safe to sleep next to her, back-to-back, to help keep them warm without taking a chance that she'd be zapped by Rogue's power.

Risa and Celeste were taking turns keeping watch; they obviously didn't trust Jubilee and Rogue to protect them. Which, in turn, was fine with them. They needed the sleep, anyway.

Jubilee felt that she'd just fallen asleep when someone shook her awake. Before she could say anything, a hand went over her mouth. "Be silent," Risa said softly. "We must go."

Rogue was already awake, standing next to Celeste, looking at something on the ground. Jubilee stood up quietly, rearranging her cloak around her shoulders. She crept closer. There was a person on the ground, a man. She came up beside Rogue. The man was unconscious; she could see him breathing, so he wasn't dead. He wore what looked like a uniform of some kind. A dark color, maybe, though it was hard to tell in the faint moonlight that shown through the trees.

Jubilee looked at Rogue, who leaned close to her ear. "Enemy soldier. Celeste knocked him out."

Jubilee began to feel uneasy. What if they were on the wrong side? She'd kind of assumed that the Good Guys had picked them up outside of the cave, but what if she was wrong? Just because they were looking for Rogue didn't mean they were on the right side.

Risa touched her shoulder. "We must go," she said again. Rogue and Celeste nodded in synch, and Jubilee shrugged. She hoped her bunny slippers were up to the challenge.

They'd been walking for 20 minutes, slowly picking up speed as the trail seemed to smooth out, when they heard sounds of pursuit behind them. Indistinct voices were yelling back and forth. It was difficult to tell in the forest, but they sounded too close for Jubilee's comfort.

Celeste began to jog in front of them, and Jubilee and Rogue exchanged a glance and followed suit. Suddenly, the blonde vanished from the trail. The two immediately slowed, picking their way carefully forward in case there was something they hadn't been warned about. Troll, werewolf, 500-foot dropoff, something like that.

At the same time, they both spied Celeste's arm off to the left side of the path, waving them to follow her. Carefully, they eased into the brush. Jubilee bit back a curse as someone -- Celeste, no doubt -- yanked her arm. A thin branch hooked her cloak and scratched her other arm, and she narrowly missed having her eye put out by another one.

She was shoved to the ground next to Rogue, who was huddling with her cloak wrapped around her, trying to untangle her long hair from the prickly bushes. Celeste slid down next to her, and Jubilee didn't know whether to be relieved or scared that she had both of her knives out.

Risa suddenly appeared out of thin air, wrapping her cloak around her and nearly melting into the brush. Maybe 10 minutes later, a group of men tramped past them on the path. They apparently weren't very good at searching, since they didn't look to the right or the left, only forward. They weren't very quiet, either. A herd of elephants would've made less noise.

Jubilee decided right then and there that soldiers that careless must be the Bad Guys. She started to stir, but Celeste clamped a hand, knife and all, on Jubilee's arm. Without taking her eyes away from the path, she shook her head. Jubilee looked over at Rogue, who shrugged.

They waited. And waited. Jubilee got a cramp in her hip. Still Celeste didn't move. Jubilee shifted, wanting to stretch her leg and hip. Her bladder began to nag. Celeste stared at the path. Just as she was about to stand up, permission or no, Jubilee heard something from the path.

It was barely there, a whisper of a sound. A breath, or a foot sliding slightly on the ground. She froze, cramp forgotten, though there was now a distinct possibility that she would pee her pants. Celeste adjusted her grip on her knives and shifted soundlessly beside Jubilee.

Suddenly, she could see a figure, a dark shadow of a person, through the brush. He was creeping along, studying the path and the forest on either side. Jubilee's heart began to pound. It was like the nightmare she'd had as a child, when a faceless bogeyman was chasing her, while she stood frozen, unable to move.

The shadow man came nearer, stopping to kneel down and look at the path. His head turned, and he looked right at her. She couldn't see eyes, but she could feel them digging into her, feel his sense of triumph at catching his prey. She wanted to yell, get up and blast the bastard, but her body wasn't cooperating with her.

It happened so quickly, she only had an impression. The arrow flew out of the brush next to her and hit the shadow man, who crumpled to the ground. Risa motioned for them to wait, then moved cautiously onto the path. After a few minutes of silence, she waved at them.

Jubilee let out a breath she hadn't remembered holding, and got to her feet. Rogue caught her when her cramped hip sent her wobbling. She waited for Celeste to make a snarky comment, but the blonde merely steadied her from the other side before picking her way out of the underbrush.

Jubilee and Rogue followed her, and all four knelt around the dead shadow man. Who was, Jubilee noted in surprise, just that.

A shadow.

She'd assumed that the low morning light had simply made the man look dark, but in fact his entire body was black and apparently hairless. He wore only a baggy pair of black pants and black boots, and there was a curiously rounded look to all his features. Strangely, as she watched, parts of his skin faded to a pale color, then back to dark.

"Who the hell was he?" Rogue asked.

"Donte," Risa whispered.

"Dante? That's his name?" Jubilee frowned. "Did you know this guy?"

"He is donte," Risa said. "It means, 'shadowed ones.' They are hunters, able to blend into any surroundings."

"Handy Gift," Rogue commented, standing up.

Celeste stood up, too. "It is no Gift," she said angrily. "It is no natural Gift. He was made, not born."

"What --" Jubilee began, only to be interrupted.

"The troops may return when he does not join them," Risa said. "We must go."

After gathering their things, and allowing time for a brief call of nature, the four set out along the path. This time, Risa disappeared in front of them, to keep an eye out for the soldiers. After perhaps half an hour, she returned, just as the path ended at an open field. The soldiers were nowhere in view, but Risa urged them to cross the field at a run.

Jubilee sighed and barely kept up with the rest. Bunny slippers weren't made to run, she decided, wondering how on earth Rogue was handling all this barefoot. She was dead tired, but there was something lovely about being out in the open again. The sun shone bright, warming her instantly, and the air seemed to be fresher, lighter out here.

She hadn't realized how oppressive the forest had been, and she wanted to laugh out loud at the free feeling bubbling up inside her. That was easily tamped down when she saw that Risa was leading them into another edge of the blasted forest. Her brief moment of happiness blew out of her in a wordless growl.

Rogue, right next to her, chuckled softly. "I second that," she murmured.

Celeste and Risa didn't even bother to turn and glare at them for talking or not keeping up; they simply vanished into the woods. After a minor hesitation, Jubilee followed them, Rogue bringing up the rear.

There wasn't even a path, just trees and bushes crammed impossibly close together, with scraggly underbrush filling in the empty spaces. Jubilee followed Celeste's movements exactly and found that there was a path of sorts, though it seemed to be carefully hidden and needed to be cautiously navigated. Easing between trees and brush, weaving in a distinct pattern and trying not to snag her cloak on anything, it took Jubilee fifteen minutes to cover probably 10 feet. It took Rogue a bit longer, when she got her hair twisted and tangled around a branch that almost seemed to come out of nowhere.

Jubilee helped her friend rescue the hair, grinning at Rogue's promises to hack the hair off at the first opportunity, and they joined the other two on the path. A blessedly wide, lovely, smooth dirt path. Jubilee braced herself for more walking, which wasn't a thrilling concept despite the nice path, but this time they had barely begun before a roaring sound started to build in the forest around them. A few minutes later, they entered a clearing with a beautiful, tall waterfall beating down into a small river.

The sun beamed down on the lovely scene, glinting off the water and adding a glimmer to the white foam of the waterfall. Rogue smiled at her, and she wondered if her friend was thinking of their planned tropical vacation. This clearing could've been a scene out of one of the brochures that she, Kitty and Rogue had been pouring over for a month.

Rogue moved past Celeste and Risa, who were talking in low voices, and nearly skipped up to the edge of the river, starting to kneel down. Jubilee rushed up beside her, laughing. Both girls froze, even their breathing cut off, as twin arrows flew at them from the direction of the waterfall and drilled into the ground at their feet.

---

Jean

As a child, Jean had fantasized about joining Alice through the looking glass. For years, she couldn't pass by a mirror without sliding a hand gently across the surface, sure that eventually she would find one mirror that was a portal into another world. A world of adventure and excitement and romance.

The reality wasn't nearly as pleasant as the fantasy.

Physically, she was fine, after a bout of dizziness and nausea, but she couldn't seem to shake the feeling of wrongness. It pressed in on her mind, throbbing and nagging in her head. She hadn't mentioned her feelings to Scott or Logan, but it was almost as though she were having a premonition of danger, though she'd never experienced such a strong one before.

As she trudged through the boonies after Logan, she tried to dismiss it as a looking glass hangover, but it lingered, whispering in a language she couldn't understand. Jean sighed and glanced back at Scott, who sent her a tired grin. The nausea had hit him harder than her, and she could tell by looking that he wasn't over it.

"Logan," she said softly, repeating herself twice before he turned back.

Logan had experienced no nausea, no dizziness, either because of his healing factor or because he was from this place. Either way, it was hard not to resent how ... healthy he looked when she felt like she'd been run over by a bus and Scott was a few minutes from the dry heaves again.

"What?" Logan was impatient. He'd barely been willing to wait for Jean and Scott to recover from the trip here before he'd had them off and running. He seemed to know where he was going; Jean only hoped that was really the case. She didn't have the energy left to worry about it.

"We need to rest," she said in the firm I'm-the-adult-and-I-said-so voice she used on the students when they got out of control.

She thought for a moment he would argue, but his eyes darted back to Scott, and he finally nodded. "You two get some sleep," he said. "A couple hours. I'll keep watch."

Jean wanted to ask what he was watching for, but she decided she didn't want to know. And when Scott curled up next to her on the cold ground, an arm lightly around her middle, she couldn't bring herself to push him away.

---

Rogue

Enough was enough, Rogue thought. She was in a strange world. She'd gone without sleep or real food, freezing her ass off and hiking half the night even though her bare feet had gone beyond simple pain at this point. She'd been chased by soldiers and essentially taken prisoner by a couple of young girls. Now she had people shooting at her?

"You cowardly bastards, get out here and fight like men!" she shouted, disregarding the danger and standing up, jamming her hands on her hips.

"Rogue," Jubilee gasped, tugging on her cloak like a little kid trying to get mommy's attention.

Rogue scanned the area around the waterfall, halfway expecting another volley of arrows. As she noticed what might be a ledge high up and to the left of the waterfall, it finally registered that Risa was laughing behind her.

"Nice shots, Thomas, Phillip," Risa called. "But I believe you have been challenged to a fight!"

Sure enough, a man's head poked through the wall of leaves around the ledge. He grinned down at them. "We are on duty right now, Risa Battim. Perhaps later!"

"You two, hush," Celeste hissed. "Have you forgotten who may be following us?"

Rogue rolled her eyes as Celeste and Risa started to argue again. At this rate, she'd be 30 before they ever got to meet the mysterious Sidre. "Ladies?" she said loudly.

Risa grinned. "I am sorry, Rogue. We love to argue so, sometimes we forget ourselves. It is this way."

Rogue exchanged a glance with Jubilee as Risa vanished into a thicket of leaves below the ledge. The girls sighed in unison and followed. If she made it through this adventure without poison ivy, Rogue thought, it would be a miracle.

Behind the cluster of leaves, a sturdy-looking rope ladder took them to the hidden ledge. It was wider than Rogue had imagined, with plenty of room for the two young men and several bags of supplies.

The man who had yelled at Risa grinned at the girls, who hadn't quite realized the power of his smile from below. He had an angel's face, with blond curls and blue eyes to match. Something about his grin suggested that there was a little devil in him as well. Before he could say a word, Celeste smacked him on the arm. "Are you here to flirt or to keep watch?" she asked.

The man's grin widened. "Jealous, Celeste?" he laughed. "You should know my heart belongs only to you."

"In your dreams, rat," Celeste snapped, but Rogue noted with interest that she was blushing. Jubilee smirked.

"I think she likes you, too, Thomas," Risa said, laughing.

Celeste hustled them away from the men and further along the ledge. After a few feet, it narrowed to half its previous width, but that still left plenty of room to walk. A few more feet led them through a mist of water and under the waterfall. Behind the waterfall, it was fairly dark and cool, but Rogue had little trouble following Celeste. She suspected that passing through at night would be another matter altogether, and yet she had the strange feeling that she had already done so. Shaking off the deja vu, she followed Celeste through a cavelike passage and out into a wooded area. A few minutes of walking led them into the sun again.

This time, they came out into a wide-open field, and Celeste picked up speed, charging through the grass. Apparently whatever enemies they were expecting were nowhere to be found. Rogue followed, spotting a cluster of buildings in the distance. She sighed silently. Maybe she could finally find out where they were. And get something to wear on her feet.

She would die before she'd ever admit it in front of Celeste, but her feet were bruised, cut and aching, and she wasn't even sure she could fit in her shoes if she had them. The good news was, the pain in her knee had seemed to work itself out rather than getting worse. Of course, who knew what would happen if she stopped for any length of time?

As if she could read Rogue's mind, Jubilee came up beside her and threw an arm around her shoulder. Rogue noticed that her friend was looking a little tired, but she still had her usual exuberance around the edges. "I think we're almost there, babe. I don't suppose they'll have a mall so we could buy some clothes?"

Rogue laughed. "They seem like a pretty mall-less society."

"That's what I figured," Jubilee sighed. "How do they even survive?"

"It boggles the mind."

Less than 10 minutes later, they came upon the village. Risa had told them it was called Fairfield, which seemed to fit. Now that they were closer, Rogue could see that it was bigger than she had imagined. The buildings, most of them made from stone, were lined along a dirt street that twisted past clusters of trees. She couldn't see how far back they stretched. Dozens of people walked the streets, along with several horses and a couple of wagons. At their end of the street, a wider area made what looked like a park. Smaller trees were arranged around the edges, and several wooden benches were grouped in the center. A group of women wearing long dresses waited for them there.

Rogue knew immediately which one was Sidre. She stood in the middle of the group, taller by several inches than the other four women, silver-white hair twisted into braids on her head. Her age would be impossible to gauge, though something suggested that she possessed years of wisdom. She wore a plain, brown dress and had her hands folded at her waist.

It wasn't her looks that convinced Rogue, however. There was an aura around her. Even standing perfectly still, just watching them, she had presence. A charisma. The feeling that this was the person In Charge.

Jubilee came to the same conclusion. Practically hopping, she jumped to a place in front of the woman. "You're Sidre, yes? I'm Jubilee. This is Rogue. We came through a mirror, of all things. We're starving, and tired, and we need some clothes, and we would like to know where we are." She paused and glanced back at Rogue, who shrugged. "Please," she added.

The woman smiled, and Rogue felt like the sun had increased by half. She reached out a hand and ran it down Jubilee's arm before moving to Rogue. "You are late," she said, still smiling. "Where is your guardian?"

"My ... guardian?" Rogue looked at Jubilee. "I ... ah. Well, the professor was my guardian, but I'm 21 now, so ..."

Sidre stopped smiling, and Rogue felt like a kid who'd disappointed her mother. She hated that feeling. "Where is this place? What the hell am I doing here, anyway?"

The older woman looked surprised, and Rogue had the feeling that was a rare event. Before Rogue could ask anything else, however, Celeste spoke.

"She cannot control her Gift, either," the blonde said, wisely keeping her personal feelings on the subject out of her voice. Rogue suspected that Sidre knew her feelings, anyway.

Sidre sighed, and for a moment Rogue saw her as older than she had suspected. "Celeste, your parents are waiting for you," she said finally. "And Risa, I know your brother will be happy you are back."

"Hmmph," Risa said. "Alyn no doubt has his head stuck in another book." Her voice sounded annoyed, but the look on her face said otherwise. There was nothing but love on her face, and with a quick squeeze of Rogue's cloak-covered arm, she raced off into the village. Celeste followed more slowly, casting a glance back their way before disappearing down the street.

Bitch probably wanted to hear how disappointed this Sidre was in Inadequate Rogue. Well, Rogue never asked to come to this freaky place, and she was sorely regretting that she hadn't returned home as soon as she woke up. Jubilee was right, they should have gone back for help.

"Are you finished?" Sidre asked politely.

"Finished?"

"Feeling sorry for yourself." Sidre raised an eyebrow at her, just like Logan would do. The thought made her angry.

"Excuse me?" Rogue growled. "I have no idea where I am. I'm cold and tired. My feet are killing me, I'm wearing my freaking pajamas and everyone seems to be harping on the fact that I can't control my skin. A fact of which I am well aware. If I seem a little upset, Get. Over. It."

"That's better," Sidre said, nodding. "Angry is better than pathetic."

"Path--" Rogue started to object, but Sidre turned away from her and motioned to the youngest-looking of the four women, probably in her 30s, standing by. "Abby, please take Jubilee to my house for a bath. See if you can find some clothing for her." For the first time, Sidre seemed to take in her whole appearance, bunny slippers and all. "And shoes as well, please."

"Uh-uh," Jubilee said. "Sorry, lady, we girls stick together."

Sidre smiled. "Do not worry, Jubilee. I must take your friend ... Rogue ... to our Healer before her feet become any worse."

"It's OK, Jubes," Rogue said softly. "I'm not going anywhere without you."

"Good. You're my one-way ticket home, babe," Jubilee said lightly. Though she still looked worried, she allowed Abby to lead her away.

Sidre took Rogue's arm. "I know you have many questions," she said briskly. "But they will have to wait. Once you have been Healed, I would imagine a bath and a bed will keep you busy until I can find out what is going on."

Rogue was suddenly too tired to argue.

---

Jubilee

A bath, hot meal and some sleep went a long way toward returning Jubilee's usual good humor. With her new perspective, she was able to see the pluses of going on a great adventure.

Or, one plus, at least.

A cute boy.

His name was Alyn Battim, and he was Risa's brother. He was about her age, and a dead ringer for a young George Clooney, minus the dorky "Facts of Life"-era hair. His hair, in fact, was one of the cutest things about him, a thick, straight, rich brown mess that flopped down over his brow in an unbelievably endearing way. And then there were his eyes, a melted-chocolate brown, remarkably intense as they stared into hers while he asked question after question about her world.

Rather than finding all that inquisitiveness annoying, Jubilee found it kind of intoxicating to have all that intensity focused on her. She couldn't remember the last time a guy paid that much attention to her. He was hanging on her every word, though she doubted he really understood half of what she was telling him. After all, how could one understand the true glory of The Mall without experiencing it oneself?

"And what is this ... pizza?" he asked, never taking his eyes off her face.

Jubilee laughed. "Alyn, you'll just have to come back with us for a visit. Experience it all yourself."

Risa, who was sprawled on the floor of Sidre's house next to them, laughed. "You are wasting your time on that one, Jubilee," she said. "He will barely leave our house. His books might miss him if he left."

"Risa ..." he said, laughter tingeing the warning in his voice.

"Besides," his sister continued. "He might have an adventure if he left home, and The One knows what a nightmare that would be!"

"Enough, sister," Alyn said, blushing in what Jubilee thought was an extremely cute way.

Jubilee grinned. It had been a while since she'd had a good crush.

It was certainly a distraction, something she needed since she'd discovered that her best friend was a princess. Here she'd been living with royalty all these years and hadn't even known it. Of course, neither had the princess in question.

"I'm a ... princess," Rogue said flatly when Sidre had revealed the truth.

"Yes."

"Do you suppose," Rogue had asked Jubilee pleasantly, "that they have such a thing as crack in this world?" Before she got an answer, she continued. "Sorry. Got the wrong girl. I'm from Mississippi. No princesses there."

"That may well be, Emmarie," Sidre said, stressing the name. "But the fact remains that you got to your Mississippi because I took you there. Along with your guardian." She frowned. "Although I do wonder what has happened to Captain Logan."

"My name is Rogue, and ... did you say Captain Logan?" She and Jubilee looked at each other. What were the chances?

"I do know a Logan," Rogue said slowly. "But he's not my guardian. He's ..." She obviously didn't know what to say about him.

Unfortunately, Jubilee did. "Dude, you've got the hots for your baby sitter! Isn't that a little ..." she trailed off as she remembered that Rogue was having major Logan issues at the moment. Open mouth, insert foot. And while you're at it, prepare to have your ass kicked.

Luckily, Rogue had more important things on her mind and simply rolled her eyes instead of pounding the snot out of her friend. Sidre gave a perfect description of Logan, down to the pointy hair and growliness, and even Rogue was convinced.

Sidre had taken Rogue with her to get supplies for a trip. Sidre was certain that Logan would be following close behind, and since she needed to visit someone in his home anyway -- someplace called Roan, in the Forest of Marn -- they were going to wait for him there. She still wouldn't say why Rogue had been taken away or why she'd come back. But she did promise that Rogue would learn to control her skin.

Jubilee had approximately a million other questions, and she wondered why Rogue couldn't see that they hadn't learned much more than they knew when they first showed up. Her mind was obviously preoccupied with the Logan concept and the thought that she would soon be able to touch. Jubilee had been accused of having an overly suspicious nature, but she couldn't help wondering if Sidre had told her those things specifically to keep her mind occupied. Obviously Jubilee would have to be the one who watched out for Rogue this time.

Of course, her track record in that department so far wasn't exactly stellar.

---

They left before dawn, and Jubilee leaned against Rogue, who was propped up by the wall, yawning. It was cold enough that their breath came out in clouds of vapor, but at least this time they were properly dressed. Both Rogue and Jubilee had flatly refused to wear dresses, choosing instead to wear tunics and slim pants like Risa, along with boots and the cloaks they had been wearing before.

Sidre and Risa were packing bags that Jubilee was sure she was going to have to help carry. That alone was enough to ruin the morning. Though Jubilee had hoped for an SUV, van or at least a wagon and horses, it appeared they were going to do more walking on this journey. Perfect.

"Rogue," Sidre said, apparently willing to use that name as long as the girl followed her own plans. "Please go fetch your cousin. She is late. Four houses down on the left."

Rogue straightened. "My what?"

Jubilee wasn't psychic, but she just knew what was coming next. Suddenly she understood why blondie looked so familiar. "Celeste. Your cousin." Sidre scanned their faces. "I thought she had told you."

Again, Jubilee had the feeling that Sidre was just playing them. She knew damn well that nobody was answering their questions with anything but "Ask Sidre." Rogue didn't seem to notice. Jubilee determined to keep an eye or two on Sidre. She didn't care for being manipulated.

"She's my cousin?" Rogue didn't sound as appalled by the idea as Jubilee would have been. But maybe the idea of having real family members who were like her was appealing. No wonder Celeste had been able to touch Rogue. She probably had the same power.

"I am," Celeste said coldly, appearing next to Risa, apparently out of thin air. "Or so they say."

Rogue ignored the frosty tone. "Were our parents siblings, then?"

Celeste sighed and turned her back on them, testing one of the bags for weight. Finally, she answered. "Our mothers were sisters, and your father was my father's cousin."

Rogue hummed to herself and sank back against the wall. Sometimes her friend was hard to read, but it was easy to see that Rogue was pondering her parents. Her real parents, not some jerks who kicked her out when she turned out to be a mutie freak. Rogue didn't talk much about what her life was like before Xavier's, but what little Jubilee knew wasn't very happy. Unfortunately, that was life for a lot of mutant kids.

Sidre gathered them together and handed out bags to carry. Jubilee found that the straps on the bag could be placed to balance the weight of the bag perfectly on her back. It wasn't too bad, though she dreaded setting out carrying anything at all. Again she wished for a good plane, train or automobile. But she got something better.

"Here, let me carry that," Alyn appeared beside her, smiling and tugging at her bag.

"Hold up!" she laughed, falling off balance and ending up in his arms. Technically speaking, she could have avoided the fall, but where was the fun in that? She found she enjoyed the position quite a lot, though she could do without Rogue smirking at her exaggerated clumsiness. She thought of flipping her friend off but decided not to risk it. She had no idea if Alyn -- or worse, Sidre -- would know what it meant.

Instead, she pushed herself out of his arms and smiled. "Are you trying to knock me down?"

The sweetie actually looked worried that she thought that. "Oh, no. I only was offering to carry your bag for you."

Before Jubilee could answer, Risa piped in from behind him. "Alyn, you get your own bag to carry."

It finally sunk in that Alyn was coming with them. Morning plus Jubilee did not equal quickness of thought. "You're coming with us? But what if we run into an adventure?"

Risa laughed, but Alyn looked perfectly serious. "I suppose you will have to protect me, Jubilation Lee," he said.

"Will do," she managed before Risa dragged him off to find his pack.

"Cute," Rogue said softly. "Do his arms feel as strong as they look?"

"Mmmm-hmmm," Jubilee hummed. "Stay away, girl. I'd fight you for that one."

Rogue snorted. "Do I look like I want sparklers up my ass? No man is worth that."

"Not even your guardian?" Jubilee snuck a look at her friend, who was frowning. "Don't you think it's odd that he was supposed to protect you, and then he ended up saving your life, like, multiple times? That's fate, babe."

"I don't know. This whole thing is just --"

Sidre clapped her hands and motioned to the road in the opposite direction from where they'd come. That was apparently leaderspeak for "let's get a move on." Sighing, Rogue and Jubilee fell in line behind Celeste, who was back to ignoring them. Rogue moved slightly ahead, leaving room for Alyn to walk next to Jubilee. Jubilee smiled at her friend's back, then turned to face a day of question and answer with Alyn.

---

They had quickly passed out of the town and into more grasslands, coming upon a house from time to time. The houses became more rare, finally disappearing altogether as they headed into a wooded area. This area seemed fairly well traveled, because the path was pretty clear and smooth. Whatever enemies they had were apparently not nearby, because they made no effort to be quiet. Risa and Alyn even sang for part of the way, their voices blending wonderfully, making Jubes wish she could carry a tune and join in.

They walked for two days, stopping for several short breaks during the day and for five or six hours at night. Jubilee would collapse the second they stopped, frankly pretty proud of herself for not whining. Not that she had much of a chance to whine, with Alyn peppering her with questions all day long.

He was a wonderful distraction, though, and she reassured him of that whenever he worried that he was annoying her. He offered at least 10 times a day to carry her pack as well as his own. She turned him down, though she was tempted to let him a few times. As long as Celeste was carrying her bag, Jubilee wasn't going to wimp out.

Near the end of the second day, they started to see houses in the forest. Most of them were wood, though a few used stone as well. Jubilee thought it was odd that she saw no people, but Alyn whispered that the Untamed -- the residents of this area -- kept to themselves and only made themselves known if they wanted to speak with you. Apparently nobody did. Sidre kept them walking too fast to stop and chat, anyway.

"This is where Logan is from?" Rogue asked, though Jubilee didn't think it was really a question.

"He is from the town, Roan," Sidre answered. "We will be there soon."

---

Rogue

The feeling was strange, almost as if the forest were welcoming her. The air felt familiar, loving, like it was embracing her.

Rogue took a deep breath and blew it out. She felt the remnants of Logan in her, trying to force his way to the surface. If she hadn't believed Sidre before, she certainly did now. This was where he was from. Her guardian.

She knew Sidre wasn't even close to telling them all they needed to know, but she had the feeling that she could trust the woman, and somehow she knew that trust was coming from Logan. Since Logan didn't trust many people, Rogue was willing to give Sidre some time before she demanded to know what was going on.

For now, it was enough to absorb the fact that she was from this place, and that she was going to be able to touch. And that she was a freaking princess. Rogue snorted, startling Celeste, who was walking beside her in a fairly companionable silence. Was there anyone on earth who was less like a princess than herself? She doubted it.

And then there was Celeste. Her cousin. Though she didn't really like her, Rogue could respect someone who could take care of herself. She doubted Celeste would've needed to have Logan almost die to save her. She probably would have kicked Magneto's ass, and knifed Mystique on her way out the door.

Sidre called a halt a few minutes later, conferring with Risa for a few minutes before calling to Rogue. At least she'd stopped calling her "Emmarie."

"You will come with me into town," Sidre said, not even attempting to make it sound like a request.

Rogue sighed. Trusting Logan's faith in this woman was wearing a little thin. She left her pack with Jubilee, who barely paused in her description of basketball to nod and take the bag. Alyn, Rogue was amused to note, was hanging on Jubes' every word, looking at her like she was a goddess or something. She bit back a grin and turned to join Sidre. It was about time Jubilee got lucky.

As they walked the short distance into town, Sidre spoke in a low voice. "I know you have many questions, Rogue. I promise to explain everything to you tonight. There are things ..." The older woman sighed, and when she spoke, her voice sounded almost defeated. "There are some things that you need to know. Only you."

Rogue nodded but didn't answer. Somehow, getting answers wasn't as appealing anymore.

---

Twenty minutes later, they came across a town in the middle of the forest. Rogue had no clear memories of this place from Logan, and she realized that she'd expected it to look like the Ewok Village from "Return of the Jedi." With a name like the Untamed, she'd expected Logan's people to live in huts and run around wearing loincloths or something. She allowed herself to imagine Logan in a loincloth and finally had to quit, as the picture was extremely attractive in a primitive way.

The town of Roan was just as modern as Fairfield, but much prettier. The homes and other buildings were made of wood, and they were nestled among the trees, looking as if they'd grown there. The trees were thinner in this area, and Rogue could see they opened to a large clearing ahead where the sun was allowed to peek into the forest.

Sidre led her along the road that wound around trees and houses. She obviously knew where she was going, so Rogue felt comfortable following her and trying not to stare at the people who streamed around them, ignoring the strangers in their midst. Rogue realized they probably already knew Sidre and didn't really care who she was. She revised that opinion a moment later as she realized the creeping feeling along the back of her neck meant she was being stared at. She twisted around but couldn't catch any one person staring at her.

There were a lot of people, dressed in the same kind of clothing worn in Fairfield, though fewer of the women wore dresses and more chose to wear pants. She couldn't blame them. Rogue studied their faces and tried not to make it obvious. There was something about the people that reminded her of Logan, but it wasn't anything specific she could point to. Perhaps she was just seeing something because that's what she expected.

Never assume. That was something Logan taught her when he was training her to fight. It applied to a lot of situations.

Sidre skirted the clearing, barely dodging the three kids who came rushing through from a path to the left. Rogue laughed as the little boy of about 5 crashed into her legs. She knelt down and set him back on his feet.

"You OK?" she smiled at him.

"M'fine," he said seriously, looking up at her with beautiful hazel eyes. "Did I hurt you?"

She swallowed a laugh. "I think I'll be all right," she said, just as serious. "Thank you for asking."

His patience apparently ran out as the two little girls playing with him yelled at him to hurry up. Sidre motioned impatiently for Rogue to follow and took off again. A moment later, they came to a large wooden building on the opposite side of the clearing. The sign at the front was written in a language Rogue had never seen before, but somehow she knew this place was an inn.

She followed Sidre inside, into what was obviously a bar and dining room. Though nearly everything in the empty room was made of a dark wood, the room still managed to look cheerful. The row of windows along the front of the building all had flowers blooming in windowboxes, and metal fixtures on the ceiling held rows of candles. Fire crackled in a large fireplace at one end of the room, and lovely woven tapestries hung along the walls next to the windows.

Rogue had only taken a moment to gape at her surroundings, but Sidre was already across the room talking with another woman. When she got closer, Rogue got a good look at the woman and nearly tripped. She was just about the most beautiful woman Rogue had ever seen, nearly 6 feet tall, with long, honey-blond hair and distinctly catlike eyes. As she moved forward to shake Rogue's hand, she seemed to slink rather than walk.

Rogue wondered if all the women Logan had known before were this beautiful. She sighed. No wonder he wasn't interested in a kid like herself.

The woman, Sara, was a widow who owned and ran the inn and was more than happy to set them up with several rooms for a few days. The place was pretty deserted at this time of year, so everyone would get rooms to themselves. After one of Sara's young sons was paid to go back and lead the rest of the group to the inn, Sidre disappeared somewhere. Rogue was tempted to wander around the town some, but she was suddenly very tired. She sank onto a bench in front of the fire and leaned on the table, waiting for the rest of the group.

A few minutes later, she'd started to daze, her eyes drifting shut. She snapped to attention as a bowl was set in front of her.

"You should eat something," Sara said kindly. "I hope you like stew."

"It smells great," Rogue said truthfully, taking the spoon that was offered.

Sara started to leave and then paused. "I would have known who you were," she said softly. Rogue imagined it was almost a purr. "You look exactly like your mother."

"My ... mother?" Rogue was surprised and horrified at the tears suddenly in her eyes. She blinked them away. "Did you know her?"

"When I was younger, before I married, I worked in the city. At a dressmaker's. I didn't know your mother, but I helped make many of her gowns." Sara smiled again. "She was so beautiful, and all the people loved her."

Rogue smiled but decided not to ask anything more. Sidre was likely to know more about her true mother, and she wasn't entirely sure she was ready to know, anyway. After all, her parents obviously were dead. The story didn't seem to have a happy ending, and she wasn't sure she wanted to hear it.

Rogue dug into the delicious soup, some kind of meat and vegetables. It seemed like it had been ages since she'd had a real, hot meal, and she found she was starving. When the rest of the group showed up a few minutes later, Rogue was on her second bowl, along with a thick slice of bread and some kind of ale to drink.

Jubilee took one look at her meal. "Oh. My. God. Real food!" she squealed, and grabbed Rogue's spoon. Risa and Alyn were laughing at her as she sat next to Rogue and started eating from her bowl. Rogue even saw Celeste crack a smile. She thought she'd fall of the bench from the shock of it.

Sara and another girl quickly served everyone, and Rogue took another bowl rather than try to retrieve the first one from Jubilee, who was ignoring everyone in favor of the food.

A girl could lose a hand that way.

---

An hour later, almost everyone had gone to bed, even though it was still early. Sara's dining room was packed with people, and Rogue and Jubilee sat on a bench in the corner just watching.

"Sidre says she needs to talk to me alone tonight," Rogue said finally.

"That ought to be a laugh-a-minute," Jubilee cracked. "Where is she, anyway?"

"I don't know. She disappeared a while back. Probably on some mysterious errand."

"You do know," Jubilee said slowly, "that she hasn't told us jack."

"I noticed that," Rogue said, chuckling. "It's annoying, but my inner Logan seems to trust her. We'll see what she has to say tonight."

"You'll tell me all, of course," Jubes said firmly.

"Of course," Rogue said mildly. Unless she had a reason not to tell.

They both saw Sidre come inside at the same moment. "Well, chica," Jubilee said. "It's time for me to go nighty-night. Talk to you later."

As Jubilee slipped away, Sidre motioned to Rogue. "Come," Sidre said in a low voice, drawing her back into the kitchen. Sara was still back there, and she nodded but didn't try to stop them from entering another room adjacent to the kitchen. It was a storeroom, but a small table and two chairs were crammed into the back.

After they squeezed themselves into the seats, Sidre wasted no time getting to the point.

"I've told you very little," she said. "This is because I will only have to repeat everything once Captain Logan and his friends arrive."

"Friends?"

"Yes, he is bringing two people with him," Sidre sounded annoyed. "I do not understand what is happening, but things are not going according to my Dream. That rarely happens, and I feel it will only complicate matters."

"Your dream?" Rogue was confused. For the moment, she put aside the question of who Logan was bringing. "Do you ... see the future?"

Sidre sighed. "That is my Gift, yes. I Dream of future events, and often they involve duties I must undertake. One of those duties was to take you as an infant, on the night your parents and brother were killed. At that time, I did not know what was to happen to them, but I knew they would not survive the night. I also knew, for the sake of this land, that you must survive."

"You knew my parents would die? Why didn't you warn them or something?" Rogue's voice raised, despite a warning look from Sidre. "You could've saved them!"

"Hush, girl," Sidre said sternly, and Rogue sank back in her seat. "You understand nothing. I could have warned them, but they would not have believed me. It is impossible to stop a death that is meant. When I was young, I tried once. ..."

Sidre sighed. "That is not the point. It was my duty to protect you, and that is what I did." She poured herself a glass of water from a pitcher on the table. "After your parents' death, your uncle, Deven Maron, took over the throne. Though a few suspected at the time that he killed your parents -- and most people believe that now, whether they say it out loud or not -- at the time he offered great comfort to the people. He spent a great deal of effort to find you, as well. But Captain Logan and I brought you here for a short while, and then we made it to the gateway."

"What is that thing, anyway?" Rogue asked. "How did it get there?"

Sidre shrugged. "I do not know. I first learned of it when I saw it in my Dream. As I said, things usually happen as I've Dreamed them. But things are different now. I knew you would return to take the throne back from Deven --"

Rogue sat up straighter. "Hold on. Take the throne? Why would I do that? I don't want a throne. I'm not a princess, I'm just a student!"

"You may not want to be a princess, and yet you are," Sidre said, obviously annoyed. "I would not wish to be a Dreamer, and yet I am. Deven cannot be allowed to continue his reign. It was for this purpose you were born. Perhaps it is my purpose as well. But things are different, and there is more to tell you."

Rogue nodded and slumped in the chair. This whole princess gig was really biting.

"You were to return months ago, and Captain Logan was to bring you. This is how I Dreamed it. I began to worry when you did not come, and that is why I sent Risa and Celeste to the gateway to wait for you. I am not sure what has changed, but I Dreamed again last night. Captain Logan comes with a man of dark hair and a mask of some kind, and a woman with red hair ... who has strong mental abilities."

"Scott and Jean," Rogue nodded again. "If they saw him leaving, they wouldn't let him come alone."

"The woman ... Jean," Sidre said slowly. "She is quite powerful, though she has not met her potential yet. I wish to wait for her before we try to teach you to control your power. Her Gift will be helpful."

Control her power. Rogue allowed herself a little hope. She had done meditation and exercises with the Professor for years but rarely let herself believe that they would work. It was too painful to find out they weren't doing anything but reducing her stress level a notch or twelve. But now, Sidre seemed to believe they would be able to help her.

"There is more," Sidre interrupted her thoughts. "I have Dreamed often of confronting Deven Maron. You must be able to control your Gift, because you must use it to absorb the Gifts of your allies. This is how he fights, and you must do the same. You must face Deven. You will defeat him. I have seen it. But ... my most recent Dream showed me something new."

Rogue found that she was holding her breath, and she briefly wondered if she was developing psychic powers, because Sidre's next words were no surprise.

Sidre took a deep breath, and Rogue focused her eyes on a drop of sweat that wound down the woman's forehead. When the words finally came, they echoed inside her head. "You will defeat Deven Maron ... but you will not survive the battle yourself."

---

Jean

Jean had lost track of how many days they'd been traveling, but in the few moments of sleep on the cold, hard ground she managed to catch each time they stopped, she dreamed of being stretched out on a big feather bed. With a bowl of chocolate beside her and a young Harrison Ford lookalike massaging her feet.

They'd stopped days ago at a village, but Logan had been in such a hurry to press on that he'd only let them have a few hours of sleep at the inn. Since then, he'd barely allowed 10 minutes here and there for them to rest. She knew he was worried about Rogue, and since she was worried as well, Jean didn't complain.

Not out loud, anyway.

From time to time, Scott would shoot her a little grin, and she knew he was picking up vibes from her, at the very least. Possibly entire words or phrases she was using to curse Logan as she plodded along. It kept her entertained.

They'd finally made it to a place in the forest that Logan knew, and the knowledge of the place seemed to relax him. He allowed them at least four or five hours of sleep that night. The strange thing was, there were houses nearby, and Jean could feel people around them, but they saw no one. When she mentioned it to Logan, he wasn't concerned.

"You won't see 'em unless they want you to," he said, his step not slowing.

Jean looked at Scott, who shrugged. On impulse, she sent him a thought: Great. A whole forest of Logans.

Scott grinned at her, and for a moment it was like nothing had changed. And she wanted so badly to go back to the way things used to be, but she told herself again that it was for the best. She was just doing what was best for Scott. With a sigh, she continued behind Logan.

At first, she thought her eyes were playing tricks on her when she spotted Rogue. The younger woman looked terrific, with her hair cut to a chin-length bob and more color in her face than Jean had ever seen. She wore a dark green tunic and pants, and she was holding a bow and arrow. Another woman, tall and slim with short brown hair, stood beside Rogue, speaking too quietly for Jean to hear and waving her hand at a scarecrow across from the girls. The straw man was obviously being used as a target, since three arrows were already sticking out of its chest.

Rogue nodded and drew the bow. Logan had stopped dead, watching, and Jean and Scott came up on either side.

Rogue stared at the scarecrow, then muttered something and let the arrow fly. Straight into the trees to the far left of the target.

"Shit," Rogue muttered, then laughed. "I'll maim someone this way. Probably someone on our side."

The other girl laughed. "I think you are right, Your Highness."

"Knock it off, Risa," Rogue said, shoving the bow back at her. "I told you not to call me that. Rogue. That's not too hard to remember, is it?"

"Ro ... Ro ... what was that again?" The brunette laughed again and threw an arm around Rogue. "Well, Your Rogueness, I believe we may conclude after three days that you will never learn the bow quickly enough."

"Sad but true."

"Jubilee, however ..."

Rogue sighed. "I know, I know."

"She is excellent. She has a true gift." Risa let go of Rogue and went to pull the arrows out of the scarecrow, and Rogue followed her.

Logan stood still. Jean couldn't believe that neither girl had noticed their presence. Especially Rogue. She usually had a Logan Radar that was better than anything the Pentagon could cook up.

Rogue groaned. "Don't remind me."

Risa laughed again. "I am sure she reminds you often enough."

"You have no idea."

"You know," Risa said slowly. "You could ask Celeste to teach you to fight with the knife. I have a feeling you would do well with one. After all, you and your cousin are much alike."

"Oh, now you're asking for a fight," Rogue said, jokingly. Then she froze, pausing only a moment before turning to face the three onlookers. She placed her hands on her hips and raised an eyebrow at them. "It took y'all long enough to get here."

Jean waited for Logan to answer, but when he didn't say a word, she spoke up. "We were taking the scenic route," she said lightly. "How are you? And Jubilee?"

"We're great," Rogue answered. If she was surprised to see them, she didn't show it. "We'd better get to the inn. Sidre's waiting."

Rogue's eyes lingered on Logan for a moment. "You remember Sidre, Logan?"

"How could I forget?" he replied, his voice low.

Rogue glanced back at Risa, who was watching them, her expression neutral. "Well, you're late, and she's mad."

Logan sighed. "Shit."

---

A bath and a short nap put Jean in a much better frame of mind. The idea that they were going to get answers soon also helped. In the brief moments she'd had to meet Sidre, she sensed that she was going to like the woman. After all, anyone who could get Logan to call her "ma'am" was just too interesting not to like.

Jean thought about changing into her only decently clean pair of jeans but opted for the deep brown cotton dress that someone had laid out beside her bed. The dress was simple in design and showed off her figure. Not that she was dressing up for anyone, even though Scott had promised to save her a seat at dinner.

She sighed, wondering when she'd developed multiple personalities. She really wasn't trying to play games with Scott, but it was easier to talk herself into doing the right thing when she wasn't with him 24 hours a day. Plus, the little voice in the back of her mind telling her that she was handling this wrong just kept getting louder.

She quickly french-braided her hair to keep it out of her face and pulled on the pair of soft leather boots that had also been left for her. They fit perfectly, just like the dress. Someone had a good eye, and she was betting it was Sidre.

Scott had, indeed, saved her a seat, and she took in his appearance with a grin. "I thought you'd be wearing tights or something," she teased.

"Hey, I'd look great in tights," he protested. "But this is all they had in my size." He waved at the neat brown pants and white long-sleeved shirt.

He looked great in whatever he wore, but Jean didn't say so.

As she ate, Jean watched their group, which took up an entire table in the dining room. The tall girl, Risa, was laughing and poking at a young man next to her, obviously a relative. He, in turn, was smiling down at Jubilee on his other side. Jubes, as usual, was talking nonstop. She, like Rogue, looked somehow ... healthier ... for their time spent in this world. Maybe it was the exercise.

Jean watched Jubilee lean closer to the young man and held back a grin. Maybe it wasn't only the exercise.

Rogue sat next to a blond girl whose hair was done up in dozens of small braids. Rogue had explained that this girl, Celeste, was a cousin, and Jean could easily see the resemblance there. The blonde was sullenly staring at the tabletop as she ate, and Rogue couldn't seem to keep her eyes off Logan, who was talking with the owner of the inn, Sara.

The woman was certainly beautiful, but Jean knew Logan's true interest in her was that Sara was his cousin, the last of his family left in this place. Rogue had been talking with Sidre when Jean and Scott witnessed their reunion.

Jean was tempted to tell Rogue but decided that interference on her part wouldn't be welcomed, by Rogue or by Logan. They were obviously in love, but since Jean had had a slight psychotic episode and kissed Logan that day, Rogue had avoided her and Logan had been nagging her to make things right with Scott.

Jean snuck a glance at Scott, remembering Jubilee's in-class summary of a Shakespeare play. "All Shakespeare is saying," the girl had declared, "is that love makes asses of us all. Or, you know, something like that."

Jean couldn't have said it better herself.

---

It was late, at least after midnight, by the time the group gathered again in the dining room. The tables were all cleared, and the other patrons were gone. The fire still burned bright, and Jean snagged a seat near its heat.

Sidre was back from wherever she'd disappeared to earlier, and she spoke with Sara before the inn's owner vanished upstairs. Another short conference between Sidre and Rogue, and they were ready to begin.

"OK," Rogue said briskly. "I'll start this. If anyone has questions, go ahead and interrupt me. We've got the dining room to ourselves for hours, if that's what it takes."

Rogue scanned the group, and ran a hand through her now-shortened hair. "So. My name ... my real name, is Emmarie Rosa Danis Maron. But I still prefer Rogue. My parents were the king and queen of Sandoriel, and they were murdered when I was a month old. The one who's responsible for their deaths is my uncle, Deven. He's now the king."

"Bastard," Logan muttered.

Rogue ignored him. "The night my parents and my brother were killed, Sidre and Logan took me out of the palace and hid me from Deven. Sidre ... Sidre sees things in her dreams, and she saw the mirror-portal thingie in the cave. They took me to our world."

Jean was concerned about Rogue. She was telling of bad things, horrible things, that happened to her and her family, but her voice was completely even, her face expressionless. Even if she couldn't remember her real parents, the thought of them being murdered should elicit some kind of emotion. Anger, sadness, fear. Instead, there was nothing.

Sidre spoke up. "We came out of the portal into a big room filled with furniture and other things I did not recognize."

"It was a warehouse," Logan added. "A place where they have auctions. It was in Mississippi. Sidre knew exactly where to take the baby ... Rogue. There was a couple who wanted kids but couldn't have them. Turns out, they didn't deserve to have kids, with the way they treated Mar--"

"Logan," Rogue said sharply. Surprisingly, he shut up.

"I returned home," Sidre said. "And Captain Logan was to remain in the area and keep watch over the princess."

"I stayed," Logan said. "But when she got a little older, I started traveling a little. I was only gone for a few weeks, a month at a time. I worked odd jobs, did some fighting. One day, some military types grabbed me, and next thing I know, I'm waking up in the middle of nowhere with no memory."

"When did you remember all this?" Rogue asked.

"When you came through the mirror," he said. "I felt it somehow. And I remembered. Everything about my life."

"Everything?" she smiled at him, the first expression she'd shown all night. "That's terrific."

Time seemed to slow as he smiled back at her, and Jean felt herself holding her breath. There was the sense that everyone in the room was doing the same.

After a moment, Rogue cleared her throat and shrugged. "So, that's it. Deven has to be stopped. I've got to do it, and anyone who wants to help is welcome. Sidre says we've got to get going on this. We're already late."

"What's the big hurry?" Scott asked. "He took over years ago. Why does this have to happen now?"

"He grows stronger every day," Sidre answered flatly. "He shares the same Gift as Rogue, but he uses it to steal the Gifts of others. He already has many more abilities than we can know."

"How is that possible?" Jean asked. "Rogue has absorbed power from Logan before, but it goes away soon."

Rogue cleared her throat again. "He kills the ones he steals power from. Sucks 'em dry, I guess. And then he gets to keep the power. Nice deal, huh?"

"He uses his Gift in other ways," Celeste added, surprising Jean. The blonde had spent most of the evening staring at the table or into the fire. This was the first she'd even heard the girl's voice. "He uses it to create monsters."

"The donte?" Rogue asked. "He made them? How?"

"What's a donte?" Logan interrupted. "What's that mean? 'Shadow' something, in the old language?"

"'Shadowed ones'," Sidre answered. "Deven has the loyalty of many of the Outsiders -- they call themselves Barenians now -- those born without Gifts. He proposes to bestow Gifts upon them, as if he were The One himself. Somehow he has managed turn his Gift the other way. As well as absorbing power, he can pass it on to others."

"The donte are the first ones he has twisted with his power," Risa added. "They have the power of camouflage and excellent tracking abilities. They have been trained to kill only. But the process has made them incredibly loyal to Deven and single-minded in their purpose. They are not quite sane any longer. They are very dangerous."

Everyone was quiet as they thought about what they'd heard. As the silence stretched on, Jean tried to process the information. It was a lot to think about, but the job of the X-Men was to fight evil, and it seemed there was someone who fit the bill right here. They would have to help Rogue, of course. Scott met her eyes, and even without her powers she could tell he was thinking the same thing.

"If that is all," Sidre said finally, "I must ask the ladies to meet in my room."

"One thing," Logan said. "Rogue's not fighting that guy. I'll kill the bastard myself."

"Logan, you don't know what the hell you're talking about," Rogue snapped. "Sidre saw it. I can fight his way. I have to fight him. The end."

"I don't care who saw what," he said angrily, standing up. "You are not fighting that guy. I won't allow it."

"Allow it?" Rogue stood up, too. "It's not your business what I do. You have no say in it."

"The hell with that! I'll tie your ass up and take you back through the damn mirror if that's what it takes to --"

"Enough!" Sidre hissed. "Logan, you are neither young nor stupid. Please stop acting that way. You of all people should understand duty."

Jean bit back a laugh as Logan flushed and actually shuffled his feet like a little kid being scolded. Scott didn't even bother holding back a chuckle.

"Emmarie Rosa Danis Maron," Sidre turned to Rogue, who crossed her arms in front of her and glared back at Sidre. "You are a princess, not some common girl off the street. The proper response when one shows concern for you is not anger."

Neither Rogue nor Logan answered her, and Sidre sighed. "This must be dealt with later. We have another matter to handle this evening. Ladies, my room. Gentlemen, goodnight."

Jean looked at Scott, who shrugged, then followed Sidre up to her room. It should be interesting to see what other matter Sidre had in mind.

---

Jubilee

Sidre had a larger room than Jubilee had, but it still felt tiny with six grown women crowded into it. Rogue hadn't said much since she got a public scolding from Sidre, and she leaned by the door with her arms crossed in front of her.

Jubilee knew what was on the agenda for this evening, and she wondered if it would work. It would be so cool for her friend to actually be able to control her power, and Jubes was praying that Sidre wasn't getting her hopes up for nothing.

After everyone was seated somewhere, Sidre explained why they were there. All mutants, it seemed, had some sort of psychic power beyond a normal human. Sidre herself had a secondary mutation that allowed her to link mutants' power together. It seemed to be related to Rogue's type of mutation. Sidre proposed that the women combine their power to help Rogue find the control switch for her Gift. Jean seemed intrigued by the idea and confident that it had a good chance of working.

Strangely, Rogue didn't seem bothered by the fact that Jean was around, and Jubilee was glad about that. One of the reasons only the girls were invited was that they would all be linked quite closely during the procedure, and Sidre felt it would be more comfortable without the men involved.

Sidre had them shove the bed to the side and sit in a circle. Rogue had Celeste on her left and Sidre on her right. Jubilee was between Sidre and Jean, and Risa took the remaining spot next to Celeste. They grasped hands, and Sidre asked them to close their eyes and clear their minds.

Jubilee closed her eyes, but clearing her mind was a lot harder than it sounded. Every time she tried to not think about something, she couldn't stop herself. She was suddenly reminded of a seance she and some friends tried to have in second grade. Alas, no spirits wanted to talk to half a dozen second-graders in the middle of the night. Jubilee chuckled, but a sharp squeeze on her left hand reminded her of why they were there. She tried again to clear her mind, settling for just focusing on the darkness behind her eyes.

What seemed like hours later, something began to happen. Something like a current began to flow through her body, not painful, but strange. She had to fight the urge to let go of the other women's hands. Though her eyes were closed, she started to see images. She heard Sidre murmuring on one side and Jean on the other, but she couldn't concentrate on what they were saying.

In her mind, Jubilee saw Rogue standing in front of her. They were in a long, dark paneled hallway lined with hundreds of doors in different colors and styles.

"Uh, chica?" Jubilee asked, but somehow it wasn't out loud but inside her head. Or Rogue's head. Or wherever the heck they were.

"Jubes!" Rogue said, then laughed. "What are you doing here?"

"I don't know. I was concentrating, and then, like, I'm here."

"This is my dream," Rogue said. "I have it a lot. I always know I'm looking for something important, but I can never find it."

"What is it?"

"I don't know." Rogue shrugged. "Wanna help me look?"

"I will," Risa said, popping out of nowhere next to Jubilee.

"Holy cow!" Jubes jumped and tripped, landing at Rogue's feet. Her friend helped her up, just as Celeste and Jean materialized.

"So, I guess it's a field trip," Jean said. "What are we looking for, Rogue?"

Rogue looked confused. "I don't know. I'd know it if I saw it."

"It must be a door," Sidre said as she appeared behind them all. "It is better if we find it quickly, before Jean and I tire."

The group set off through the hallway, sometimes randomly trying a door. Brown doors, blue doors, gilded red doors, purple and green striped doors. Some of them were locked, but most of them opened onto a scene from Rogue's life through the girl's eyes. It was strange to see someone else's life, but they only got brief flashes before Rogue would shake her head and move on.

One strange thing was that Jubilee found, if she concentrated, she could almost be inside one of the other women's heads as well. She felt how tired Risa was and that Celeste was frightened of something. Jean ... Jean missed Scott so much it was like losing a limb. She wondered what they could see about her. It was a disturbing feeling, and she forced herself to concentrate only on the hallway and not on her companions, which made it easier to focus.

Rogue, for her part, seemed intent on finding what she was looking for. She marched down the hallway, only occasionally pausing at one of the doors. Finally, they came to a set of slim off-white double-doors, and she stopped. "I think ..." Rogue said softly. "I think that's the one."

Jubilee reached for the handle, but Sidre stopped her. "Rogue must do this part alone."

Rogue's hand hovered over a doorknob for a moment before she twisted it and pushed one door open, stepping just inside.

They all saw it then.

"Sweet 16 and never been kissed."

This is what her friend Liz always says, teasing that edges into meanness that's only forgiven because they've been friends practically since birth. Liz knows about kissing, having had her first real kiss at 13. Now she dates a college boy -- community college, but it still counts the same, Liz says. "Counts for what?" Marie asks, but she never gets an answer.

But Marie is still just sweet and 16 and unkissed, and she wonders if that makes her a freak. It's not that she doesn't want to be kissed. She dreams of it and craves it without really knowing why. But apparently there are no boys who dream of kissing her.

Lately, she's been thinking of kissing David, and she thinks he's been doing the same. Something in the way he looks at her now speeds up her heart and makes her blush. She's known him for years, but somehow having him sprawled on her bed is different, somehow more exciting. On her map, she traces the path she hopes to follow someday. "...Niagara Falls, up the Canadian Rockies, and then it's only a few hundred miles to Anchorage," she says, all the time wondering if he's looking at her butt. And does she want him to look at her butt? Is she supposed to want that?

"Won't it be kinda cold?"

"Well, that's the point, stupid. Otherwise it wouldn't be an adventure," she says.

"When're you gonna do this?" he asks, smirking just a little in a way that used to annoy her but somehow now just makes her want to kiss him even more.

She stretches out beside him, close, but not too close. Kiss me, she thinks. "I don't know. After high school," she says. "Before college?"

He's flipped onto his stomach, close enough to touch, and she knows this is it. She tries to keep calm but thinks KISS ME KISS ME KISS ME. They exchange a few glances, and she tries to smile, tries to show him that she wants this.

And then he leans closer, and so does she, and their lips touch. It's almost funny, after all this time waiting, to find what it really feels like. It's strange and exciting, and it makes her heart race, but then something changes. Something's wrong she thinks, and so does David, and she knows this because she can feel him inside her head, and she pulls away.

Then she wishes she'd closed her eyes because the boy she'd dreamed about is convulsing, hurting because of her. She can't even form words, only a scream, and David's in her head screaming too, and neither one of them ever want to stop. She knows what she is. She's heard of mutants before. Even as she tells her parents it's not her fault, she knows. She knows she's killed him. She is evil.

"Stop," Sidre said sharply, and Jubilee jumped. She came out of Marie ... Rogue's memory, frightened at how she'd almost been pulled into it herself. A glance told her that Celeste, Risa and Jean had been similarly affected. Rogue was kneeling on the floor of the room, crying. "I just touched him," she sobbed. "I didn't mean to ..."

"Stop," Sidre repeated, and this time Rogue heard her. She looked back at Sidre standing in the doorway and then back at the room. She swiped at the tears on her face and stood up.

"Having a Gift does not make you evil," Sidre said firmly. "Only different. You must accept who you are and use your Gift for good. And you know you did not kill that boy. He recovered, but you did not. Do not be frightened of your power. Embrace it."

"How?" Rogue asked shakily.

"Say farewell to this room and its events. Shut the door behind you and move on," Sidre said simply.

Rogue wandered into the room, brushing her fingers over the bedspread, picking up a stuffed tiger and hugging it to her chest. She spent a few minutes in front of the map on the wall behind her bed, laughing softly before dropping the tiger on the bed. She came to the door, switched off the light and stepped back into the hall, shutting the door firmly behind her.

"So, that's it?" she asked.

"That is," Sidre said.

"How cheesy," Rogue laughed, and they all woke up.

---

Jean

Indecision was annoying as hell.

Jean stood outside Scott's door, arguing with herself. There were a number of reasons not to knock. It was the middle of the night. She didn't even really know what time it was, but it was still pitch black outside. She was tired and achy. She'd had a little wine. She was probably overly emotional, which was exactly the condition that had gotten her to this point. There was also the possibility that she might have been right in breaking things off with him in the first place, though not in keeping the real reason from him.

There was only one reason to knock, really.

She loved him.

Rogue's breakthrough had come an hour before. The women had all crowded around her, congratulating and hugging her. Sidre got a bottle of wine from downstairs for them to toast her with, and it turned into a little celebration. Jean was so happy for Rogue, who'd been sitting on the floor with a dazed grin on her face.

Jean remembered so clearly the feeling of freedom she had when the Professor helped her to finally get her power under control. The wonder of walking into a crowded room and not being overwhelmed by hundreds of minds was something she would hold onto forever. She imagined Rogue would remember this night forever as well. She wanted nothing more than to hug the girl, but she was afraid it wouldn't be welcome. She concentrated on finishing her wine instead, letting the other women's chatter and laughter flow over her.

A few minutes later, she nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard Rogue's voice right beside her. Only the fact that she was so exhausted could've kept her from noticing the younger woman's presence earlier. It took a moment for her to grasp what Rogue was saying.

"I still don't get why you kissed Logan," she said. "You love Scott. I felt how much you really love him. It's not going to go away. You need to fix things."

So, here she was. On the advice of a single 21-year-old girl. In the middle of the night. Exhausted and maybe a little bit tipsy from the wine she'd downed in Sidre's room. But Rogue was right; she needed to fix things.

If she could only make herself knock on the damn door.

At the thought, the door swung open, and Scott smiled at her. "You're thinking too loud," he said. "You woke me up. What's up?"

"Rogue can control her mutation," Jean blurted. It wasn't what she meant to say, wanted to say.

Scott looked surprised, then grinned. "No kidding? So, that's what this ladies night thing was about? That's terrific!"

"It is, isn't it?" Jean laughed a little. "She ... damn it. That's not why I came here. Scott, we need to talk. I can't take this anymore."

Scott pulled the door open further, and, if possible, his smile got bigger. "Well, finally. Hurry up and get in here before you change your mind."

---

Jean

"I'm not sure where to start," Jean said after a long pause, slowly pacing Scott's room. She ran her fingers over a small wooden table in the corner and turned to face him.

He was still standing by the door, legs spread slightly, hands clasped together behind his back. His Fearless Leader pose. He was obviously bracing himself for something bad.

She sighed and waved a hand at the bed. "Sit down, Scott."

After a moment, he nodded and sat on the bed, his back up against the headboard. "Start at the beginning," he said. "The Donovan Laboratories mission."

After another sigh, she began her pacing again. It was hard to think about that night. Professor Xavier had been in London when they'd received word of mutants being held captive at a facility in Boston. After consulting with the Professor, Scott decided the team should go in right away to rescue the prisoners.

Logan, Storm, Scott and Jean had taken the Blackbird to the facility. The sleek metal-and-glass Donovan Laboratories, on paper a testing center for cancer treatments, turned out to have a sublevel not shown on any blueprints and apparently unknown to all but a few of the lab's top executives.

The team had split up to search the underground level. Scott and Logan had found a handful of mutants, all drugged up and unable to escape on their own. Storm had found an office and had copied all the available files from the computer system onto a disc for them to study later.

Jean had found something else.

"I found the lab," she said finally. "Where they did their ... tests."

In her nightmares, she always saw the lab again. Cold and white, all sharp edges and professional neatness. No personality. No touches of humanity ... but also no touches of the darkness she would associate with those scientists who would experiment on someone just because they were a mutant.

"I was looking for notes, something to give me a clue about what they were doing, when I saw her." Adjacent to the lab was a small observation room with a girl, no more than 15 or 16, stretched out on a table. She was breathing, but her skin was deathly pale, making the bruises on her bare arms and legs stand out. Jean acted without thinking.

"I had to get her out," she told Scott. "She was so young, and they'd hurt her."

The girl hadn't even moved when Jean shoved the door open. She'd lifted the girl with her TK and carried her out of the room. Before she could contact Scott or take another look around the lab, the alarms started going off. She ran for the exit, bringing the girl along behind her.

Logan and Storm had taken out a couple of guards, enabling them to escape the facility and herd out the few mutants they'd managed to find inside. As they were taking off in the Blackbird, four black cars full of additional security personnel arrived, but they were too late. The next day's news was led with the story of a break-in at the lab that had ended in a mysterious explosion. The entire building was destroyed, and any hope of finding out more about the experiments was crushed as well.

"It wasn't until a few days later that I started feeling ill," Jean reminded him. "And I never connected it to the lab mission at all. You, Logan and Storm had taken Rogue with you to investigate that Friends of Humanity plot, and I just thought I was getting the flu."

Jean turned away from him and leaned her forehead against the wall. "Then I finally had a chance to look at the data Storm had copied from Donovan Laboratories' computer system."

"Hold on." Scott hopped up from the bed and stood behind her. "You told us there was nothing on the disk."

She took a deep breath and turned to face him. "I lied about it. There was plenty on the disk. When we ... when we get back you can look at it. They were developing a virus. They called it Project Void."

Scott's voice was even, but she could hear the anger just behind it. "Did you tell Hank what you found?"

"Partly," she admitted. "Because the Professor brought him in to treat me, he had to know what he was up against. But I didn't even tell him everything."

"Like?"

She took a deep breath. She felt like her whole life was riding on the next five minutes. "The true purpose of the virus wasn't to kill mutants ... but to ... sterilize them. To keep us from breeding."

"To keep ..." Scott trailed off. "Of all the ignorant bullshit. My parents weren't mutants. Yours weren't. My God, anyone could have a mutant child."

She laughed harshly. "Science based on ignorance. Or wishful thinking, I guess."

"But ..." Jean could see the exact moment the truth hit him. In fact, she could feel his shock inside her mind. "Oh, honey."

He was wrapping his arms around her a second later, and she swallowed the tears that welled up and burrowed into him. He felt so good, and she mentally called herself 10 kinds of idiot to deny herself his comfort in her pain.

He pulled back slightly, then took a full step back. "This is why you broke up with me?" he said hoarsely, and she realized he was close to crying himself. Crying for her, which blew her composure all to hell. Tears started sliding down her face, and she let them.

"I'm sorry. I guess I went a little crazy," she said softly. "It was too much to handle."

"That's exactly why you should've told me," he said sharply, yanking a hand through his hair. "The hard times are part of the deal, Jean. I can't believe you didn't tell me this."

She didn't know what to say. He was so right, and she couldn't even come up with an argument that didn't make her sound even more unbalanced. She'd just decided that he deserved someone who could give him children. As crazy as it sounded to her now, it made perfect sense at the time.

"You told Logan this," he said flatly.

Jean fought a sigh. Were they going back to this again? "That's totally different."

"Different how?"

"Well, for one, I completely fell apart in front of him, and it just came out," she said quietly. "But the main reason is, if I told you ... it would make it real. Make it true. Don't ask me to explain, because I don't really understand it myself."

He stood quietly for a moment, pounding one fist against his leg, and she knew it was touch and go. He could either stay angry, or he could --

"Well," he said, obviously forcing a lighthearted tone. She relaxed slightly. "It's about time you realized I only wanted you to make some babies for me."

"Scott --"

"Look," he interrupted, grabbing her hand. With his other hand, he thumbed away the tears on her face. "I know how much you wanted kids, hon. I'm so sorry. But you know there are plenty of kids out there who need a good home. And ... this virus was experimental, anyway. Doesn't mean it will work."

"I know. And I haven't had any tests run, either."

He smiled and pulled her into a hug again. "After the way you hound everyone else to get regular exams and not ignore potential problems ..."

"I guess I'm pretty much a hopeless basket case," she admitted. It had crossed her mind that maybe another side effect of the virus was temporary brain death.

"Not hopeless," he corrected her gently. "Never without hope."

He said it with such feeling, such certainty, that she believed him.

"It's been a long night," he said, pulling away again. Her heart sank. He was going to kick her out. How long would it be until things were back to normal?

He ran a hand through her hair, then tilted his head toward the bed. "Shall we?"

"Are we ... OK?"

Scott sighed. "I love you. You love me. Obviously we have some things to work through, but I want to marry you just as much as I have since the day we met. We can fix this. Plus, you know, I really miss you hogging the covers and snoring."

"I do not snore."

"You do. But that's OK. I think it's cute." He grinned at her, and she decided to let him win the argument.

For now.

---

Rogue

She was feeling a little reckless. A little like her time was running out.

Probably because it was.

Knowing you were going to die had kind of a liberating feel to it. After all, if most people found out they were going to die tomorrow, they'd probably do something they'd always been afraid to do before.

She probably should be asleep, but she was wired.

And touchable.

Rogue pushed Logan's door open and slid inside. She could hear him breathing evenly as she stood, waiting for her eyes to adjust to the dark. When they did, she headed for the bed. She had a moment of deja vu, remembering the night they almost killed each other. Since then, if she needed to wake him up, she'd always done it from a safe distance, just in case.

Not tonight.

Before she could change her mind, she was standing over him. She ran one deliciously bare hand up his chest before leaning down and placing her lips on his. She paused for a moment, just enjoying the feeling of skin on skin, mouth on naked mouth with nothing in between, before she nipped his bottom lip with her teeth and followed it with her tongue.

Just like that, he was awake and she was on her back with one solid, heavy Logan pressing her into the mattress. Which, she reflected, was a hell of a lot better than getting clawed.

"Hey," she said.

"He -- wait. Marie?" He sounded confused, and she giggled. Poor Logan. He automatically braced himself slightly on his arms, taking some weight off her.

"Mmmm-hmmm."

"What are you ... holy shit." Logan was staring down at her in shock. One hand was cupped behind her neck and the other was grasping one shoulder, bare in the tank top she was wearing. "I'm touching you."

"Mmmm-hmmm," she said again.

He slowly lowered his mouth to hers, as if giving her time to push him away. That was the last thing in the world she wanted to do. He started out gently, brushing his mouth against hers until she opened her mouth to him. Still, he kept it slow, deepening the kiss until her entire body was humming and she forgot how to breathe. This -- mouth against mouth, tongues sliding against one another, breaths mingling -- this was something that couldn't be replaced. Kissing through scarves was a pale imitation.

She murmured a protest as he pulled out of the kiss but quieted as he began to press small kisses on her face, her forehead, her eyelids. She moaned slightly as he moved to her neck, and again he pulled back. "I'm touching you," he said again, this time with wonder in his voice.

"Seems like," she said dryly, not sure where all her good humor was coming from considering that he was rolling away from her. Damn it.

She sat up and slipped off the bed as he rubbed his hands over his eyes and then just sat there, staring at her.

"What?" she said finally, embarrassed and suddenly uncertain. What had she been thinking, to just climb into bed with him?

"How did this happen?"

"Sidre," she said, twisting her fingers together and walking across the room to the door. "She got up in my head. All the girls did, and we just kind of found the on-off switch ... or door. Whatever. It's kind of hard to explain."

"You can touch," he said.

"I think we kind of established that," she said, then to her utter horror, she blushed. She hoped his enhanced vision wouldn't let him see her blush in the dark. She leaned back against the door. "Well, I guess I'd better, you know, go. Um, get some sleep."

He stood up and came to her. He touched her face with one hand, running the other down her arm and clasping her hand. "Stay," he said.

"Logan --"

"Stay. And sleep with me. Just ... sleep." She let him pull her toward the bed. She knew what she wanted, and sleep had little to do with it.

"I'll stay," she said, slipping away from him and stretching out on the bed. She grinned at him, fingers toying with the bottom edge of her tank top. "But no sleep."

He hesitated a fraction of a second before joining her. "You're the boss, princess."

---

Much later, as she snuggled closer to Logan and savored the feeling of his skin against hers, he kissed her head and spoke.

"Do you want to know about Jean? The Kiss Incident?"

She laughed a little. "I really don't. But there is something I wanted to ask you."

"Shoot."

"You said you remembered everything about your life before? I was wondering ... is Logan your real name?"

"Yeah," he said. "It's my family name. My last name, you'd say."

When he didn't continue, she poked him in the ribs. "So?"

"Hmmm?"

"So, what's your first name?" she asked.

"Oh. It's Hugh," he said. "After my great-grandfather."

"Hmmph. You don't look like a Hugh," she decided. "I'm still going to call you Logan."

"You can call me whatever you want, darlin'."

She grinned mischievously. "Anything I want?"

"Logan'll do," he said quickly as she laughed.

They lay drowsing for a few minutes before he spoke again.

"Can I tell you a secret?"

"Anything," she said sleepily.

"When I was a kid, there was a woman in Roan that the kids called ‘Old Anni.' Mom would always yell at us for calling her that, but then she admitted that Anni had been old even when Mom was a kid. Old Anni was supposedly a seer. Half the people thought she was a crackpot, but half of them said things she'd told them about their future came true.

"Well, my older brother, Samuel, and I snuck out one night and went to see Old Anni. I was about 11 or 12, so I wanted to hear about all these adventures I would have, how I was going to be a great warrior or something. Do you know what she told me?"

"Ummm. Something about having claws and wearing a lot of black leather?" Rogue murmured with a laugh.

"She told me I was going to marry a princess."

Rogue froze. "Logan."

He chuckled. "I'm not suggesting we run out tonight and get hitched, Marie. I'm just saying. It's funny that I ended up falling in love with a princess after all."

Rogue felt a wave of longing go through her. If she left now, if she ran away, she could have this. She could marry Logan, and they could live happily ever after with 2.5 kids, a dog and a white picket fence. And God knows how many people would die because of her selfishness.

"I love you, Logan," she said softly, thinking Please, make me leave this place.

Then he kissed her hard again, pulling her body over his, and she didn't think at all.

---

Jubilee

Something was obviously going on, and Jubes didn't like being kept out of the loop. Rogue and Jean, who hadn't even been speaking before the previous night, were suddenly whispering and giggling in the corner of the dining room by themselves. Jubes never thought she would witness the elegant and brilliant Jean Grey giggling, but the number of strange things happening just kept piling up lately.

Jubilation Lee wasn't one to waste time, or words.

"What's up with you two?" she asked, dropping down on the bench next to them.

"What do you mean?" Jean asked.

"You're being all ... giggly. Let me in on the secret," she demanded.

"Sorry, Jubes," Rogue drawled. "You're not part of the club yet. Or are you?" Rogue and Jean exchanged a Significant Glance.

"Which club are we talking about here? Narcotics Anonymous?"

"The Drunken Sluts Club," Rogue said, laughing.

"Well, technically, I wasn't drunk," Jean said.

"Neither was I," Rogue said. "But Tipsy Sluts Club doesn't have the same ring to it."

Jean laughed. "Good point." She looked at Jubes closely. "I don't suppose last night you crawled into bed with a certain cute guy we all know?"

"No!" Jubes blushed, which was downright annoying. "Why would you think I ... ohhhhhhh."

Now Rogue was blushing. Jean was just smiling smugly. Jubes glanced around the nearly empty room. "You guys got laid last night! No wonder you're in such a good mood this morning. Way to go."

"Uh, thanks, I think," Rogue said.

Jean suddenly froze, staring across the room. Scott stood in the doorway, grinning at her. Without a word to the other two, she got up and joined him, throwing her arms around him. After a moment, they headed upstairs. Jubilee was glad that they'd worked things out, but geez. Couldn't they keep their hands off each other for a couple of hours?

"Welllllll," Jubes drew out the word. "Lotta sex going on around here last night, eh? So."

"So?" Rogue looked at the ground.

"C'mon, chica. This is Jubes you're talking to. Details, girl! I want the dirt. Was it, you know, mind blowing? Was the Wolviemeister worth waiting for all this time?"

Rogue grinned, then bit her lip. "I don't kiss and tell, Jubes. I'll just say ... wow."

Jubes threw an arm around her. "Wow sounds good. I'm just ticked off that I missed out. You know, I pride myself on being at the forefront of trends. I guess I'm losing my touch."

Rogue hugged her closer, and it was great to not have to be extra careful of her friend's skin. "Can you imagine what Alyn would've done if you'd shown up at his room last night?"

Jubes laughed. "He'd probably have asked me to tell him about hockey or cheeseburgers again. I'm like his Google.com, his Encyclopedia Jubilanicca, that's all."

Rogue pulled back and smiled at her. "I don't think so, Jubes. I've seen the way he looks at you. There's definitely possibility for a Thing. I think he asks you all those questions just to have an excuse to watch you and listen to you."

Jubilee shrugged. "I don't know. I just think ... he's so different from the guys at home, you know? Like, not everything is about sex. He really wants to get to know me. That's kinda cool." Still, she added silently, it was a little insulting that he'd never even tried to kiss her or anything.

"Very cool," Rogue agreed. The front door opened, admitting Sidre and Logan. He turned and aimed a cocky grin at Rogue, who blushed again. "Though there's certainly nothing wrong with sex."

"So sayeth Drunken Slut Number One," Jubes laughed.

Rogue stood up and smiled down at her. "Just let me know when you pass the, um, initiation. We'll let you in the club."

Jubes watched her friend walk to Logan. She smiled at him but spoke to Sidre. Logan ran his hand over Rogue's shoulder and back before draping his arm around her waist. It was like he was just reassuring himself that she was there and she was OK.

For a moment, Jubilee pictured Alyn standing beside her, touching her that way. She sighed. She wasn't quite ready to join the Drunken Sluts Club yet, but she sure wouldn't mind a damn kiss.

---

Rogue

It was a long day, on top of very little sleep. Sidre was like a drill sergeant, ordering people around right and left. Supplies had to be purchased, organized and packed. Messages had to be sent. Fighting had to be practiced. Rogue had to work on controlling the strength of her power. Everyone, even Logan, rushed to comply when she gave orders. Logan caught Rogue yawning sleepily from time to time, and the wicked grin he'd give her worked like a jolt of electricity, keeping her going most of the day.

They planned to leave the next morning and travel to someplace called the Pendrell Valley, which was just outside the city of A'Mirion. There, they'd meet with the leaders of a group of soldiers and others who were in opposition to Deven Maron. The makeshift army would engage Deven's troops in a battle while their small group entered the city.

Rogue would absorb the Gifts of her companions and go to face Deven alone. Logan's arguments against this were largely ignored, by Rogue and by Sidre, but Rogue could tell he hadn't given up yet. She faced the possibility that she might have to use her power to knock him out before the fight. But she didn't want to think about that yet.

After dinner, most everyone headed up to bed. They would be getting an early start the next morning, and it would take several days to get where they were going. Rogue was staring into the fire and tapping her fork on the table when Logan sat down beside her on the bench and pulled her close. "Come to bed," he said gruffly, kissing her neck.

"In a few minutes," she said, turning to smile at him. "I want to talk to Celeste for a few minutes first, 'K?"

"Sure." He brushed a kiss across her forehead as he got up. "See you in a few."

Her smile faded as he headed up the stairs. After a few more moments of fire gazing, she went upstairs to Celeste's room and knocked softly on the door.

Celeste pulled the door open and just stared. Rogue stared back. Her cousin was wearing a long, white nightgown, and her blond hair was combed out of the braids she usually wore. She looked different, younger or softer somehow. It was easy now for Rogue to recognize the similarity in their features. But still a little strange.

"Hey," Rogue said. "Can I come in for a sec?"

Celeste looked surprised but waved her inside. She shut the door and turned to face Rogue, her hands nervously clasped in front of her. Rogue figured she was itching to hold onto a knife or something.

Before she could speak, Celeste suddenly said, "I want to cut my hair. Like yours." She played with the ends of her hair, which was past her shoulders.

Rogue was startled. "Oh. Well, be completely sure before you do it. It's not something you can take back after the fact."

"You do not like your hair?"

"I ..." Rogue sighed and ran her hair through the short cut. It still felt strange after years of wearing her hair long. "It took me ages to grow it out, and I kind of whacked it off in a fit of frustration. I'm not sure I really wanted it cut."

"Oh." Celeste went to the bed and sank down, seeming to relax slightly. "It looks ... nice. And not always in your face. But, if you do not like it, I'm sure it will grow out again soon enough."

Rogue sighed inwardly. It sure wouldn't grow out again before she died. Though, she remembered reading somewhere that hair continued to grow even after someone was dead. Shaking off that morbid thought, she sat down next to Celeste.

"I wanted to ask you something," she said. "When Deven's gone, who'll be in charge of Sandoriel?"

Celeste looked startled. "You will be named queen," she said.

Rogue winced. "I mean, if I can't rule, who would be the next in line?"

"Why would you not rule?" Celeste stood up. "What is going on? Something is not right, I feel it. And Sidre will not tell me anything!"

Rogue nodded for her cousin to sit down again. After a moment, Celeste complied.

"I can't be a ruler here," Rogue said carefully. "I may have been born here, but it's not my home. I don't belong here." True, as far as it went. Even if she would survive the battle, she couldn't imagine staying in this place.

Celeste was quiet, staring at the floor. Finally, she said, "My father."

"Your father would rule?"

"He is next in line," Celeste nodded.

"Is he ..." Rogue paused. "Will he be a good ruler?"

Celeste met her eyes and smiled, only the second time Rogue had seen her do such a thing. "He will be a great ruler," she said firmly. "He is smart and strong, but he is also compassionate."

Rogue smiled wistfully. "Good. I wish I could have known him."

"He is one of the commanders of the soldiers," Celeste said. "You will meet him in the valley."

"OK. Well." Rogue stood up and headed for the door. She didn't want to think about leaving this forest, much less getting closer to A'Mirion and her fate. "I need to get to bed."

"Before you go," Celeste said softly, almost shyly, "would you help me cut my hair?"

Rogue smiled at her cousin and wished she could have had a chance to know her better. "I'll cut it for you," she said. "But only if you tell me about your boyfriend."

Celeste gasped. "I have no boyfriend!"

"Oh, come on," Rogue teased. "That archer guy that was guarding Fairfield. The cute one. Thomas, I think? He was totally into you."

"Into me?"

Rogue grabbed the scissors Celeste offered her. "He likes you."

Celeste blushed. "He is always saying silly things to me."

"He's flirting with you," Rogue laughed and pushed Celeste into the room's only chair. "You should try saying silly things back to him."

"Oh." Celeste laughed a little. "I cannot even imagine what to say."

"Tell me what sort of silly things he says to you, and I'll tell you what to say back," Rogue suggested. "You're smart, you'll figure it out."

Celeste sobered and grabbed Rogue's hand before she could start cutting. "I am sorry I was so hateful to you at first," she said solemnly. "I felt angry because my father deserves to be king. He has such dreams for Sandoriel, and I thought you would ruin them."

Rogue blinked back tears, startled when she saw Celeste doing the same. "Damn it," she said, pulling her cousin into a hug. "This place is giving my tear ducts a workout."

Celeste hugged her back, tentatively at first, then harder. "I am glad you came here, cousin."

"Me, too," Rogue said, surprised to find that she meant it. She wasn't that thrilled about the dying part, but it was amazing to meet her real family and to finally be with Logan. And, hell, at least she'd go out with a bang.

"OK, look," she said, pulling back. "We've got to get this hair cut before Logan comes looking for me. And then, we'll be like twins."

Celeste grinned and nodded, sitting back down.

---

"What took you so long?" Logan growled sleepily as she crawled into bed. He pulled her back to him and spooned her in his arms.

Rogue stared into the dark, feeling Logan's body warming her through her nightgown. "You know," she said. "Girl stuff."

"Hmmm," Logan hummed, sliding a hand up from her belly to cup her breast. "We should get some sleep," he said unconvincingly.

She laughed softly and arched into him, her rear brushing his erection. "Yeah, I can tell you're real tired," she drawled.

"You could hardly stay awake today," he said. "You'll be exhausted tomorrow."

"Well," she said, rolling over and pushing him onto his back. "I guess you'll just have to carry me, then."

She hiked her nightgown above her knees and straddled him, rolling her hips into his, and was rewarded with a groan. "Is it a deal?" she asked.

"Deal," he said, laughing. "I'll carry you the whole damn way."

---

Jubilee

Jubilee was awake enough to be cranky, but that was about it. It was early enough that it was still dark out, and cold as hell. Everyone else seemed to be in a damn cheery mood, even Rogue. Logan had shown up this morning, carrying her friend in his arms, despite Rogue's laughing protest. He just kept saying he was going to keep his promise, whatever that meant.

Finally, Sidre sent them a disapproving look, and Logan put her down, but not without a long, deep kiss that had Risa whistling and a couple other people cheering. It just made Jubilee more cranky.

She pulled her cloak closer and huddled against the front of the inn as Alyn came up to her.

"Would you like me to carry your pack?" he asked politely.

"No."

"Oh. I would not mind," he said.

"I said no."

Looking worried, he leaned against the wall beside her. "Are you feeling ill, Jubilee? Perhaps Sidre could --"

"I'm fine, Alyn," she said tiredly. "I didn't sleep well is all. I don't feel like talking."

"All right," he said, sounding hurt. "I will leave you alone."

Jubilee sighed as he walked away. She didn't know what was wrong, but she was just feeling out of sorts. She was having nightmares about Rogue. She wanted to go home. She wanted Alyn to look at her like a girl, not an encyclopedia. And she wanted to not be freezing her ass off. Right now, she thought, she should be in Jamaica or the Virgin Islands, sunning herself on the beach. Or taking a nap in a hammock with a wonderful ocean breeze cutting through the heat and blowing over her.

"Hey," Rogue said, leaning where Alyn had been a moment before.

"Hey."

"You OK this morning? You look kind of tired."

"Gee, thanks," Jubilee said sarcastically. "It's the butt crack of dawn, Rogue, of course I'm tired."

Rogue chuckled. "Fair enough. But I noticed you chased Alyn off, too."

"I don't feel like playing Twenty Questions right now. I didn't sleep well."

"I'm sorry," Rogue said. "Insomnia or nightmares?"

"Nightmares, then insomnia," Jubilee said. "I keep dreaming that one of those donte things is killing you and Risa, and I can't stop him."

"Oh, Jubes, I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault."

"I know," Rogue said quickly. "I just mean ... you know, if anything happened to me, it wouldn't be your fault. Sometimes things are just meant to be."

That was like a jolt of caffeine for Jubilee. "What does that mean?" she asked, standing up straight. "Do you know something I don't?"

"Don't be silly," Rogue said. "I'm just saying, things happen. That's all."

Before Jubilee could ask anything more, Sidre called to Rogue, who looked awfully damned relieved to end the conversation.

Jubes pondered the possibility that her nightmares were happening because she was picking up vibes from her friend. She narrowed her eyes and studied Rogue and Sidre, leaning close together and talking. A movement to the side caught her eyes, and for a moment she watched Logan watching the other two women as well. He then looked straight at Jubilee and raised an eyebrow. She shrugged back at him. Don't ask me, she thought.

They set off a short time later, and Jubilee's mood didn't improve much. They were traveling on a wide, relatively smooth path, and at least the walking helped keep her warm. Most people sensed her mood and stayed away from her, but a few minutes into the journey, Alyn came up beside her.

"Jubilee?"

"Yes?"

"Have I ..." he hesitated. "Have I done something to make you angry with me?"

"No," she said. "You haven't done anything wrong."

He nodded and was silent for a moment. "Would you tell me more about your world?" he asked finally.

Jubilee sighed. "In my world, they have something called kissing. When boys and girls like each other there, they kiss. Do they do that here, too?"

He blushed. "Yes, we have kissing also."

She stared at him until he flushed even more. "What ..." He cleared his throat. "What else do you have in your world?"

Jubilee did a fair imitation of a Wolvie growl and sped up, away from him. Behind her, she heard Risa laughing. "She wants you to kiss her, idiot!" she said.

Alyn's response was lost as Jubilee moved ahead, next to Logan and Rogue, who looked like she was walking in her sleep.

Logan smiled at her -- an actual smile, not a smirk -- the first time she could remember him doing so. "He's just a slow mover, Jubilee. He'll get around to it," he said. "Or you could do like Marie, and just jump him. I promise he won't mind."

That earned him an elbow in the ribs from Rogue and a growl from Jubilee, but he didn't look too upset about it.

---

They were a day and a half into their journey, and Jubilee had finally regained her good mood. The exercise and the sun, combined with a night without a single nightmare, helped her bounce back. She even approached Alyn and started telling him about roller coasters before he could even ask.

Things seemed to be fine between them, but the way he looked at her was a little different now. More intense, more like he was trying to read her mind. She stopped in her tracks at that thought and looked over at him. "Alyn, I guess I've never asked you. What is your Gift?"

Risa and Celeste passed them by as he smiled down at her. Startling her, he reached down and tucked an arm around her waist and lifted her easily, pressing her into his chest. She kicked her dangling legs slightly and laughed.

"Like my sister, I have above-average strength," he said, not letting her go. "I told you I did not mind carrying your pack as well as my own."

"Hmmm," Jubilee said, on impulse sliding her arms around his neck. "I guess I should've let you carry it. But I guess I could use the ..." She trailed off as her eyes met his.

"I wanted to kiss you the first time I saw you, Jubilation Lee," he said softly. "But I did not want to offend you."

"I'm, um. I'm not offended," she managed.

He grinned and lowered his head.

"Hurry up, lovebirds!" Risa yelled at them. "We do not want to lose you!"

Jubilee groaned as Alyn set her back down. He started to take the bag from her back, but she stopped him. "I got it," she said, smiling. "I'm stronger than I look." Strangely shy, she held out a hand.

Alyn took her hand in his, surprisingly gently for someone who could probably break her in half, and they followed the others.

---

The donte slid through the forest, its darkened skin changing and blending with every sly step. It had picked up a new trail; it was the girl that HE wanted. Although it had different orders, the donte never forgot and it never gave up. The new target could wait; this one was the most important. HE had made sure that was known. The last one had failed, and twelve soldiers had been slaughtered because HE was so angry.

Not that the donte was concerned for the dead. It only knew that HE would be pleased to have the girl.

The donte wanted, above all, to please its master.

Jubilee tossed and turned in her sleep. "No," she said.

It made no sound as it slithered along, melting into the foliage. There were others with the girl. They would have to die, but the donte felt no concern. It must be done.

They had made a fire, and instinctively the donte shied back from it. It had vague memories of standing in the sun, standing in front of a fire before, but now it could barely stand the light. It saw a female, standing guard over the others, who were sleeping. This female was not the one, but she would have to die before it could get to the one it wanted.

"Risa," Jubilee muttered.

It crept closer, and the female with a bow saw it only seconds before one of its knives plunged into her chest. She reached for a knife of her own, and the donte moved to strike her, but then it saw, across the clearing, the girl it wanted. Absently, it snatched the first girl's knife while watching the other one.

She was wrapped in a blanket, with a man curled around her. It remembered the white streak in her hair, though it was shorter than in the image HE had given the soldiers. It glanced once more at the girl it had stabbed. Her skin was dead white and her breathing labored. The wound, combined with the poison on the knife, would kill her at any moment.

"NO!" Jubilee snapped awake and yelled. "Risa!"

There was dead silence in the clearing for half a second, then nearly everyone was on their feet, scanning the woods around them with weapons -- or claws, in Logan's case -- at the ready.

Risa stood in the middle, bow drawn. She was uninjured. "What were you three yelling about?" she asked, still peering into the forest around them. She glanced at Jubilee, then Jean and Celeste.

Jubilee looked at the other women in surprise. "You had the dream, too?" she asked.

"I have dreamed of the donte for three nights," Celeste said.

"I had the dream, too," Rogue piped up. "I guess I've just trained myself not to wake up screaming from nightmares."

"I dreamed of it, too, I guess," Jean said. "It's a dark creature that blends into its surroundings, right? But I only had the dream tonight."

"Me, too," Rogue said. She laughed a little and glanced at Logan. "But, um. I haven't been getting much sleep lately."

She and Jean exchanged a glance and small smiles.

"You were seeing my Dream," Sidre said quietly, and everyone turned to stare at her. She was sitting on a log beside the fire with her elbows braced on her knees. "I suppose the link we forged to help Rogue with her power is still somewhat intact. You saw what I Dreamed."

Risa swallowed hard and looked at the other women one at a time. Then she turned to Sidre, kneeling in front of her. "I am to die, then?" she asked quietly.

Sidre hesitated, and Alyn answered instead. "No, sister," he said. "We know it is coming now. We are prepared for it. Right, Sidre?"

Jubilee noticed Rogue watching the older woman closely. Sidre looked at each of them before sighing. All she said was, "We will be careful."

Which didn't mean a damn thing, as far as Jubilee was concerned.

---

Jean

The attack came the next night.

They were sleeping in shifts, or trying to sleep. None of them were really getting any rest. Jean was curled up next to Scott by the fire with her eyes closed. She hoped she looked like she was sleeping, but she was really keeping a psychic lookout on the whole camp. It was hard, tiring work, and she was grateful to have Scott close. Just being able to lean back against him and feel his arms around her helped give her strength.

She felt it the second the donte came within range. She was careful not to probe its mind because she didn't know what, if any, psychic abilities it might have. But even without trying, she felt its focus, its determination, its eagerness to please its master. She waited for it to come closer. It wouldn't be wise to let it get away.

Jean focused on the members of their group. When she had them firmly in mind, she thought now, and they sprang into action.

In mid lunge, the donte was caught by two arrows, a thrown knife and a set of adamantium claws. They'd decided ahead of time that Scott and Jubilee would only use their power if absolutely necessary. For good measure, Jean held the shadowed one in place with her telekinesis, but it was unnecessary. The creature was dead.

Logan insisted on cutting its head off before he would believe it was really dead. Jean supposed she didn't blame him. He was doing everything in his power to protect Rogue, and even if he hadn't experienced Sidre's Dream himself, hearing about it obviously spooked him.

"Sidre," Rogue said, expressionlessly watching Logan at his grisly task. "In the Dream, that thing was coming after me. That means Deven must know I'm here."

"Yes," Sidre said. "He must."

"How would he know that?" Logan asked.

Sidre shrugged. "We lost contact with our people in the castle more than a month ago. Until that time, he had no psychic abilities that we knew about. However, we have no idea what Gifts he has absorbed since then."

"I knew this was a lousy idea," Logan said, standing up. "I say we leave now. If he knows we're here, we're walking into a damn trap."

"We're not leaving," Rogue said flatly. "Well, I'm not leaving. But maybe you should go."

Logan glared at her. Jean figured she'd be peeing her pants if anyone gave her a look like that, but Rogue didn't back down. Finally, Logan growled and turned, popping the claws on one hand and swiping them across a large tree, leaving three deep, jagged gashes behind.

He stared at the tree, then pulled in the claws and turned back to Rogue. "I'm not leaving you," he said finally. The young woman nodded and then walked into his arms, where he pulled her tighter.

Jean let out a long breath and leaned back into Scott as the group scattered. "It's 'Days of Our Mutant Lives' around here," he said in a low voice just for her ears.

She laughed softly and rubbed a hand on her forehead.

"Headache?" he asked, moving to gently massage the back of her neck.

Jean sighed and tilted her head forward to give him better access. The man could melt her into a puddle with just a neck massage. There were actually no words in the English language to describe the full-body version. She'd tried, and failed, to explain it to Ororo before.

"I just have a really bad feeling," she said reluctantly. "Something is really wrong."

Scott pressed a kiss to the back of her neck. "It'll be OK. We'll just be careful."

She wished she could believe him.

---

The remaining days of their journey passed in a gloomy blur. The path they had been taking widened and morphed into a smooth dirt road, bordered by thick walls of trees on either side. They only passed a handful of people, and nobody seemed to be curious about them at all. The sun stayed hidden behind gray clouds, which roused themselves from time to time to drizzle rain on the group.

The closer they got to the valley, the darker the mood of their party seemed to get. Rogue, in particular, had almost retreated into herself. She didn't really speak to anyone but Logan and seemed to be specifically avoiding Sidre.

Jean noticed that Jubilee, typically, was an exception to the general bad mood of the group. She and Alyn had taken to holding hands as they walked, and she had turned the tables on him, asking about his world and his life. He didn't seem to mind much, though he now always positioned himself between Jubilee and Risa. It was as though he wanted to be able to defend either one of them if it came to that.

The days ran into one another, but a few days into their trip, they stopped at an inn and got a decent night's sleep in a real bed. Even better, the next morning they found that Sidre had purchased horses for them -- or conjured them out of thin air. It was sometimes hard to tell with her.

The horses allowed them to pick up speed, and the party reached the Pendrell Valley less than two days later. The road that they'd been following split into a Y, and Sidre slowed, leading them into the more wooded area to the left.

"We're surrounded by soldiers," Logan said casually. He didn't sound very concerned.

"We are on the edge of the valley," Sidre replied.

A moment later, a group of 20 soldiers wearing dark blue uniforms with no insignia or markings ringed their party. The leader exchanged a few quiet words with Sidre, who asked everyone to dismount.

The horses were led away, and Jean linked arms with Scott as they were escorted off the road and into the woods by a handful of soldiers. A few minutes later, they came into a clearing. It was only early afternoon, but a small group of men were gathered around a fire, apparently eating lunch. Three of them wore the same blue uniforms, and two were in normal clothing.

One uniformed man stood up. He was probably in his sixties, of average height, with snow white hair and a ruddy face. When he smiled, a moment later, it lit his entire face. He reached out and took one of Sidre's hands in both of his. "Sidre. You made it. Maron has increased patrols to the south; I was worried."

"We are fine," she said calmly, pulling her hand back.

"Did you find her?" he asked.

Without speaking, Sidre motioned to Rogue, who stepped forward silently and pulled away the hood that she'd worn over her hair.

Sidre had said Rogue looked very much like her mother, and Jean figured that must be the case, because the white-haired man gasped and dropped to one knee. The other men, who had remained sitting, exchanged a glance before following suit. They had no idea what was going on, Jean thought, but they had enough respect for the older man to follow his lead without question.

"Princess," the man said, bowing his head. "I am General Oliver Symon. I served your father, and his father before him. Now I offer my service to you."

Jean watched Rogue closely. Other than a small flinch, she remained expressionless before sighing quietly. "Please stand, General. Gentlemen. I gladly accept your offer of service," she said formally. "But please call me Rogue."

The General stood and exchanged a quick glance with Sidre. "Er, Rogue. Will you have something to eat?"

Rogue accepted for all of them, and two younger soldiers came into the clearing with bowls, spoons and cups for them. Moments later, they were all seated with bowls of stew in their laps.

Symon turned his attention to Logan. "Captain," he said. "I thought you dead. Or a deserter."

Logan froze, and without even trying Jean could easily feel his anger rising.

"He was taking care of me," Rogue said quickly, slipping one hand into Logan's. Her look dared the General to say any more.

The older man glanced at the couple, then at their linked hands, and laughed. "You did not let me finish. I thought he was dead until this one --" he nodded at Sidre -- "showed up at my cabin in the middle of the night with a story about saving the princess. I was in the castle that night. I know what that bastard Deven did. Er. Pardon the language, Princess."

"You're right," Rogue said evenly. "‘Bastard' doesn't quite seem bad enough for that son of a bitch. And it's Rogue."

The General chuckled but wisely let the subject drop as they finished their meal. Instead, he introduced the men with him. The two men in civilian clothing turned out to be leaders of the Barenians, those born without Gifts. Though many of the younger Barenian men and women had joined with Deven because of his promises, an even greater number were willing to join with the Gifted to fight against him. It seemed there was something the Barenians wanted even more than Gifts.

In exchange for siding with Rogue in the battle, they were asking for Barenia to become a country of its own when Rogue was named queen. Rogue, after a glance at Logan, quickly agreed to their request. As soldiers raced around to gather documents for them to sign, Jean wondered at deciding something so significant in an instant, though she sensed from Sidre and the General that the young woman had made the right choice.

And in half a second a 21-year-old reshapes a country.

Jean jumped slightly, then met Scott's amused look.

Could be worse, she responded with a grin. Jubilee could've been the princess.

His horrified look was response enough.

---

Rogue

She had been meeting people all day.

The valley was full of thousands of people camped in fairly tidy rows of tents, most of which flew colorful banners out front with different designs and family names stitched on them. Hundreds of fires burned; the smells of countless meals being cooked blended together and left a smoky haze over the entire camp. It seemed impossible that the enemy wouldn't know exactly where they were and what they were doing.

But Rogue's job, at the moment, was to encourage people. By her royal presence -- or some garbage like that -- she was giving the people strength. She wandered the camp all day long, enduring the experience of having people bow to her; the whole thing was surreal, as far as she was concerned. But she continued her meeting and greeting.

Military leaders, soldiers, more soldiers, cooks, doctors, stable boys; regular Barenians who were bakers and lawyers and blacksmiths; wives and daughters who were joining the fight or setting up a makeshift hospital that Rogue avoided like the plague.

She told a hundred people to please call her Rogue before giving up and grudgingly accepting "your highness" and "princess" and "my lady," of all things. She shook so many hands that she had to put on her gloves for fear that exhaustion would rob her of her control and she'd hurt someone. She politely and vaguely answered questions put to her, swiftly turning conversation after conversation back on the person to whom she was speaking.

Above all, she just wanted to crawl into a bed -- or a sleeping bag on the ground; she wasn't too picky -- and just let all of this pass her by. No thinking about what she had to do, no thinking that people she met today were liable to be dead in a couple days' time.

Logan and Scott had been away most of the day, working out battle plans with the General. Jean was helping with the hospital preparations. Risa, Alyn and Jubilee were practicing archery somewhere with some of the soldiers, most of whom were half in love with Risa already. Probably Jubilee, too, but she only had eyes for Alyn. Sidre had done her usual vanishing act, and Rogue didn't see Celeste again until late in the day, when her cousin walked up with a man.

He was in his forties, tall and lean, with blond hair fringed with silver and ice blue eyes. His tanned face was lined in a way that made Rogue think that he spent a lot of time smiling, though he was serious at the moment. Something in his bearing made her think of a cowboy -- a deceptively relaxed appearance covering up pure steel. Without thinking about it much, she stood in front of him and stuck her hand out to shake. "You must be Celeste's dad. Will Danis, I believe?"

He smiled, taking her hand but bowing slightly over it instead of shaking it. Celeste rolled her eyes. "A pleasure, your highness--" he ended in a grunt as his daughter elbowed him in the ribs. "Rogue," he finished.

Rogue laughed slightly. "It's OK," she said. "I've been princessed and your-highnessed to death already today."

"I was anxious to meet you," he said. "I am hoping that you will spend some time with my family after this is finished. It is your family as well."

Rogue felt suddenly choked up. "I'd ... I'd love that. I'd like to hear about my parents." She knew she wouldn't be around for it, but it was a nice thought, anyway.

"Are you all right?" Celeste grabbed her arm. "You look ill."

"I'm fine," she lied, stepping back. "Just tired is all. I need a little time alone."

Celeste and her father exchanged a worried glance but both nodded. She knew she was being rude and probably worrying them, but she tried to smile before she stumbled away.

Logan found her half an hour later, propped up against a tree and sobbing. She let herself be drawn into his arms, soothed by the nonsense words he was murmuring against her hair, and cried herself to sleep.

She couldn't have been dozing for more than a few minutes, but when she woke, Logan was leaned against the tree with her between his legs and cuddled into his chest. Embarrassed, she tried to push away from him, but he held her close.

"Tell me," he said.

"I'm just tired."

"Bullshit." His voice was hard, and she winced. She didn't want him to be mad at her. She felt like she was balanced on a high wire, holding stacks of plates in each hand. Just one more thing would send her falling into space. She needed him to help hold her up.

"Logan ..."

"Something's been bothering you, and it's time you told me." When she still didn't say anything, he continued, his voice strained. "Or did you lie when you said you loved me?"

"I do love you Logan." She sighed and leaned into him.

"Tell me," he repeated.

So she did. Turning slightly, she leaned her forehead into his chest and looked down, hiding her face from him and muffling her voice as she told him about Sidre's Dream, about what she had to do. His arms tightened around her as she spoke, but he didn't interrupt, and when she was done, he was silent for a few strained minutes.

Then she felt him relax and rub his cheek against her hair.

"No."

This time she succeeded in pushing away from him slightly. His face was set and stubborn, and the look in his eyes dared her to contradict him.

"No?" She laughed despite herself.

"I'm not letting you die. You should know that by now."

"Logan--" she started, exasperated.

"Sidre doesn't know everything," he said. "I'm not letting you die. Do you believe me?"

"I don't ... she said ..." Rogue didn't know what to think.

"Tell me you believe me," he said, his hands clasping her shoulders almost painfully. "If you don't believe it, I swear to God I'm hauling your ass back home. I don't care if everyone in Sandoriel dies."

She gasped. "Logan! You don't mean that!" She saw his slightly sheepish look and nodded. "What you mean is, you'll dump me back home and come back here to kill him yourself."

He didn't answer, but she could tell she was right.

"You think the future can be changed?" she asked.

"She Dreamed that Risa died," he said patiently. "So we were prepared. We changed what happened. Judging by her Dream, Deven's expecting you, but he's not expecting me."

Rogue thought about that for a moment, then gasped again.

"What?" Logan looked alarmed.

She grinned at him. "I've got an idea. It might not work, but it's worth a try."

---

"Absolutely not," Sidre said firmly.

The whole group had gathered in the large tent that had been set up for them to sleep in. No more cots were available, so the dirt and grass-covered ground was littered with the sleeping bags and pallets they'd been using on their journey. Rogue filled them in on Sidre's Dream and the plan she'd come up with and worked out with Logan.

Sidre quickly objected to the plan.

For once, most everyone seemed to ignore her. Of course, most of them hadn't gotten past the fact that Rogue thought she was going to die. In fact, most of them seemed to be a little pissed that they hadn't been told about the Dream from the beginning.

Particularly Scott. Everyone on the team jokingly called him their "Fearless Leader," but they all knew he took the responsibility very seriously. He felt that he couldn't do his job well if people kept things from him. Plus, in the years that they'd known each other, Scott and Rogue had fallen into a sibling-like relationship. She could tell he was hurt that she hadn't told him.

Jean could tell, too, obviously. Rogue watched as she ran a hand down his arm and grasped his hand. They exchanged a look, and he seemed to rein in his temper before he spoke.

"You should have told me."

"Us," Jean added.

"Us," Scott nodded. "We're a team, Rogue. We can't help you if you keep us in the dark."

Rogue's eyes dropped to the ground, and she felt Logan's hand close around hers, a mirror to the other couple. "I couldn't talk about it. I wasn't ready."

"This is why you asked me about my father," Celeste snapped. She'd been pacing around the tent like a caged animal the entire time Rogue had been speaking. Despite the cool temperatures, her face was flushed and she was obviously pretty angry.

"I didn't lie to you," Rogue objected. "Even if I don't ... even if I survive, I can't stay in Sandoriel. I don't belong here anymore."

"You did not lie, but you kept something from us," Risa said quietly. "You ... all of you saved me. Why would you not trust us to save you?"

"I wasn't sure it was possible," Rogue said. "Sidre ..."

"The Dreams are true," Sidre said firmly. She stood near the center of the tent, hands on hips. "We cannot change what is meant."

"Bullshit," Logan said.

"I second that," Scott added.

"This is a waste of time," Jubilee said. She had been uncharacteristically silent the whole time, and Rogue had nearly forgotten that she was there. When everyone was looking at her expectantly, she continued.

"I think we can all agree that Rogue should've told us everything." She aimed a hard look at her friend. "We will be talking about that later, chica. We can all also agree that we've already changed one of your Dreams, Sidre. How can you argue that?"

"I ..." The older woman sighed and sank onto a blanket. "When I was younger, I wanted to believe that Dreams could be changed. That I could change the future. I tried. My husband, Galdran -- I Dreamed his death. I tried to warn him."

"Oh, Sidre." Rogue crawled over to her and grasped her hand. "I'm sorry."

"He was working to clear an area of the forest with some other men of our town. I saw that he would be killed by a tree falling the wrong way. I do not know if he believed me when I warned him, but he knew enough to be careful. But, it was not enough."


Rogue wasn't sure she wanted to hear anymore. "You don't have to--"

"He avoided being killed outright by the tree," Sidre continued, her voice soft. "But he was still crushed. He lived for a week, painful week, before he died. He died anyway. When my teachers told me later that Dreams could not be changed, I believed them. I had to. Otherwise, I would have to believe that I could have saved him somehow."

Rogue exchanged a glance with Jean, who had put an arm around Sidre's shoulders. The pain in her voice had silenced everyone in the tent, and Rogue wasn't sure what to say.

"Well," Sidre said briskly, shrugging off both Jean and Rogue and pushing to her feet. "That is an old pain. We must deal with now. I do not know if your plan will work, but I do not have a better one."

---

Jean

She was thinking about pain and loss, and that was not the right frame of mind for what she was facing.

Sidre sat across from her, eyes closed, trying to focus, and Jean forced herself to do the same. She exchanged a glance with Scott, who tried to grin at her. It came out more of a weak smile, but she appreciated the effort. She knew he was worried about Rogue, as was she. They were trying to change the future here, trying to change Fate, maybe.

She looked at Rogue, who was completely relaxed, flirting with Logan in the corner. Well, Jean amended, she looked relaxed. That didn't mean she really was. A lot went on inside that girl that she never allowed to show. Jean smiled to herself. There were a lot of similarities between herself and Rogue, including pure stubbornness.

They weren't letting Rogue die.

She looked back at Scott, and he nodded. He'd obviously picked up on her thoughts, and she promised herself that she would work to better control her mental shields after this was over. For her sake and his, it wouldn't do for him to pick up every single thing she thought.

They were actually in the city of A'Mirion, had snuck in this morning without arousing any attention. Sidre had led them to a bakery owned by her cousin. In back of the store, there was a large storage building filled with baking supplies. It would be just enough room for their purposes, and Sidre said they were only minutes away from the castle.

General Symon's makeshift army was probably on its way toward the city at that very moment. Logan and Scott had spent time with the General when he was planning the attack. In fact, everyone involved was certain that major casualties could be avoided.

They estimated that half the troops in Maron's army were Gifted, and many of them were probably only afraid not to fight for him. The other half of the army would be made up of young Barenians who were only fighting for the possibility of being given a Gift by Maron. The Barenians in Symon's army cooked up a plan to carry their family banners into battle near the head of the battle lines. It was hoped that those who didn't really support Maron, or didn't want to fight their own family members, would make a hasty retreat from the fight.

Symon knew a number of the soldiers serving Maron were actively supporting him by fighting back any signs of rebellion and by recruiting Barenians and -- forcibly -- Gifted ones for Maron to steal powers from. Symon was very eager to take a crack at those soldiers, and he had been for years. Many of those who were joining him felt the same way, Jean knew.

The ultimate plan, of course, was to take out Maron himself. As soon as the soldiers on his side knew he was gone, there would be nothing left to fight for either way.

Jean closed her eyes and tried to clear her mind. She didn't know how long she'd been sitting, cross-legged, facing Sidre before she felt the other woman take her hands. Though her eyes were closed, she could tell the rest of the group, except for Scott, was forming a circle enclosing the two women, just like Sidre had instructed earlier.

She could feel the others around them, their minds, searching for a place of peace. Some, like Celeste, found it immediately. Others, like Jubilee, took a little longer. She could feel Scott, outside the circle, force his own mind to clear so he wouldn't interfere. Once Logan, the last holdout, seemed to finally relax and give in, the energy humming around them evened out.

The image of a frame, like a weaving loom, came into Jean's mind.

She wasn't, by nature, a crafty sort of person, and she wouldn't have had the first idea how to weave anything, so it must have come from Sidre. She felt tinges of amusement from the other woman, proving her right. You don't have to make a rug, just a connection between minds and powers, she told herself. Yeah, no problem. Child's play.

In her mind, she saw the image of the loom morphing into an image of herself and Sidre, their hands clasped. Mentally shrugging, she started with Rogue. Unsure of what she was doing, she reached out to the girl ... and ended up with a thick strand of deep green yarn. In her mind, she separated from Jean and became the Weaver. She threaded the yarn carefully between the hands and arms of her Jean-self and Sidre. When she sensed approval from Sidre, she turned to Celeste next. Rogue's cousin, with the same Gift, was represented by a strand of jade green. It was threaded across the human loom, intertwined with Rogue's thread.

The Weaver took threads from Alyn and Risa, a royal purple and blue; from Jubilee, not surprisingly, a bold golden strand; from Logan, a deep, dark red. The Weaver found she had enough power to even separate a flame red-orange strand from her Jean-self. She felt the objection from Sidre but added the strand to the twisted tangle of threads anyway.

It wasn't pretty, and it didn't look like any kind of rug or wall-hanging, but it was strong. She felt Sidre tugging slightly at the threads, but they were secure. For the time being, all those in the group would share their Gifts with one another.

The Weaver had done her job well.

---

Rogue

It's time.

The voice, Jean's voice, spoke in her mind, and Rogue opened her eyes. They still sat in a circle, holding hands, and everyone else was blinking and shaking their heads. Rogue let go of Logan's and Celeste's hands and stood up. She wobbled a little, but she felt different. Strong. She glanced at Alyn and Risa. She had their strength. Jubilee's power, too. Logan's healing. And Jean's power as well. That hadn't really been part of the plan, but it couldn't hurt, she supposed.

Scott came up and grasped her arm. "You OK?"

"I'm fine," she said. "Do you think they're all right?" She looked at Jean and Sidre, sitting completely still, hands clasped, eyes closed.

"They'll be fine for now," he decided. "At least I can make myself useful by guarding them until they come out of it."

She knew he was upset that he couldn't help out in the battle against Maron, but in the absence of visors for everyone, his Gift couldn't be shared with the whole group. Rogue looked around the room. Jubilee was holding Alyn up with one hand, and he was laughing at her. Celeste was trying out the telekinesis, floating a large bag of flour in the air.

Luckily, along with the Gifts seemed to come the knowledge of how to use them. Rogue wasn't thrilled about the idea of accidentally grilling someone on their side with Jubilee's powers.

Now, Maron was another story. She would enjoy frying his ass very much.

---

It took only a few minutes to get to the castle from the bakery. They'd pushed through the crowded streets, and nobody had given them a second look. Though the sun was out in full force, it was still cold enough that many people were covered in cloaks, and their group blended right in with the crowd.

Because they'd all received, in varying degrees, enhanced senses from Logan, they heard the faint sounds of battle long before anyone in the city knew anything was going on. Rogue saw a group of young children running, laughing through the street and prayed fervently that the battle would be over, and Maron dead, before any of the people realized what had happened.

The castle itself was so large that it couldn't really be seen from their location, but Celeste led them along a wall until she came to a small wooden door. A flick of Logan's claws got rid of the lock, and their party disappeared inside the castle a moment later.

Sidre had drawn them a map of the castle with the most up-to-date information she had. According to the most recent reports, Maron held open court in the mornings but dined alone at lunch in his room. They had decided that their best chance was to fight him then. His personal rooms were on the top floor of the castle, several stories up. The only other thing on that floor was a wing for his personal bodyguards, the King's Guard.

The group raced up several flights of stairs and through the door at the top. They hit a dead end and a hallway running left and right, just like Sidre's map. Rogue, Celeste and Logan headed right, the others went left toward the King's Guard wing.

Risa, Alyn and Jubilee had a job of their own to complete. Maron reportedly had ten personal Barenian bodyguards who served him in exchange for the promise of being given Gifts. Past bodyguards had become donte, and it was always possible that some or all of these men had become that. Or worse. It would be dangerous, but Rogue thought her friends had the edge in a fight.

King Deven Maron had, of course, more than one personal room in the castle. A study or office, a bedroom, a second bedroom for his mistress of the moment, a bath, a sitting room, and a personal dining room.

On the fringes of Maron's personal wing was a small room. According to the map, it was the secondary kitchen where the king's personal meals were prepared. Sure enough, a male cook and a female maid were in the small kitchen, flirting with each other, when Celeste, Logan and Rogue barged in. Celeste had the two knocked out and tied up before Logan even let Rogue all the way in the room.

Grumpily, she pushed him to the side and admired Celeste's handiwork. "Nice, cousin," she said. "You two wait here. Give Uncle D and me a few minutes before you bust up our party, OK?"

"Marie ..." Logan started, then sighed. "Watch your back."

She gave him a quick kiss, then slid out the door. Three doors down was Maron's dining room. Rogue took a deep breath, then pushed the door open. Closing it behind her, she stepped fully into the room. It was sparsely decorated, with stone walls and a nice ruby and black patterned rug over most of the stone floor. The table and chairs sat in the center of the room, with a larger stuffed chair and heavy wooden cabinet at one end by a fireplace. At the other end of the room, a set of stained glass double-doors led to what Rogue assumed was a balcony.

A man sat at the table alone. He looked young, younger than she would've thought he'd be, but his hair was iron gray all the way through. He was a little overweight, maybe, just slightly rounded around the edges. She knew it was a mistake to judge someone on a first impression, but he appeared fairly harmless, and she wondered if this was really Deven Maron. She suddenly realized that she stupidly had no idea what the man looked like.

His eyes flew to her and he pushed himself half out of his chair, resting his hands on the table. "Emmarie," he said softly, his voice pleasant. "I have been expecting you for some time now, but I only had the cook prepare--"

She'd stopped really listening when she knew, somehow, what was going to happen next. The enhanced sight she'd picked up from Logan zeroed in on the flash of a knife as it appeared in Maron's hand. She faced him with a bored expression and waited. The second he threw the knife, she waved her hand half-heartedly, and the blade flew into a wall instead.

"Really, now," she said, smirking. "Is that any way to greet your long-lost niece?"

---

Jubilee, Alyn and Risa easily dispensed with the five personal bodyguards they were able to find. After stashing the soldiers, knocked out and tied up, in a closet, they searched each room in the wing without finding another person.

"Let's head back," Jubilee said. "I have a weird feeling."

"What's wrong?" Alyn asked anxiously. Jubilee smiled a little. The fierce warrior she'd seen in the last few minutes was unfamiliar to her, but this Alyn she knew well. He was smack dab in the middle of an adventure and not necessarily thrilled about it.

"I just feel jittery or something," she said. "I don't know why, but --"

"Alyn! Watch out!"

Jubilee saw, almost in slow motion, a knife come out of nowhere and bury itself in Alyn's stomach. In her shock, it never occurred to her to use her borrowed powers to stop the blade. Alyn dropped to his knees in shock before falling to the ground.

Risa threw out her hand even as she yelled a warning and, using telekinesis, pinned the assailant to a wall. It was a donte. The creature snarled at them but couldn't move.

"Poison," Jubilee gasped, yanking the blade out of Alyn with a wince. The wound closed up almost immediately due to Logan's healing power, but she could see through the tear in his clothing that an odd purpley green color tinged the skin around the cut. Alyn was dead pale and sweating.

"It was poison!" Jubilee said, panicking. "It doesn't look like the healing power is taking care of it."

---

Deven Maron stood tall now and came around the table. "I rule Sandoriel, little girl," he smiled cruelly at Rogue. "No one gets in my way. I killed your father, I killed your mother, and even your bratty little brother. Though I sent someone to kill you, I am rather glad I get to take care of it myself."

"Charming," she muttered. Raising a hand, she started to send a plasma blast his way when she felt an invisible force pick her up and throw her against a stone wall. Her head slammed into the stone before she fell to the floor, and her teeth snapped together, catching her tongue and nearly biting it off. She rolled to her feet and spat blood even as she felt her tongue and head heal.

Maron, lighter on his feet than she'd expected, dodged to one side as she aimed a plasma blast at him. The plasmoid took out a nice flowered wall-hanging instead. Rogue belated hollered mentally at Logan and Celeste that now might not be a bad time to pay a visit.

---

Logan and Celeste were halfway down the hall when five men, dressed in blood red uniforms and brandishing swords blocked their path.

"I'll take the three on the left if you can handle the other two," Logan said.

"I will take three," Celeste answered. "You take two."

"Greedy," he said mildly. "Let's each take two, and whoever finishes first gets the last one."

"Acceptable."

---

Perhaps, Rogue considered, a good old-fashioned, strength-enhanced ass kicking might be just what was called for in this case. She spotted Maron ducking behind the large chair near the fireplace and headed toward him, dropping to the floor to dodge a blast of flame. Great. He was going all Pyro on her now.

She crawled toward his general location, gasping when she felt him mentally try to pick her up again. This time she pushed back in her mind, startling him enough that she was able to use the borrowed telekinesis to topple the wooden standing cabinet on the area where she thought he was hiding.

She heard a slight moan from that direction and got to her feet, carefully picking her way around the debris. Maron lay on his back, looking up at her. She was trying to decide what she should do next when he just disappeared. In the blink of an eye, he was gone.

"Wha--"

He was standing on the opposite side of the room by the door, smirking at her, apparently unhurt. She started toward him and found she couldn't move at all.

"You stupid girl," he said. "I knew you were coming."

She tried to move her legs or arms, tried to wiggle her nose. Nothing moved.

---

Scott paced nervously around the storage room. He wasn't necessarily expecting an attack from any quarter, but he had a lot of nervous energy ready to lash out at something. Anything.

He was worried about the team, especially Rogue, and he preferred being in the thick of the action to all this waiting and pacing.

Suddenly Jean and Sidre gasped in unison. He dropped into a crouch, peering into their faces. As far as he could tell, they were still working to keep everything together. Both women, he noticed now, were sweating, and Jean looked particularly pale.

He tapped his fingertips together, thinking. Should he try to wake them? The team in the castle needed their help, but he wasn't about to let anything happen to Jean. He'd been worried when he realized that Rogue's plan would rely so much on Jean's power, but she hadn't seemed concerned at all about it. Obviously, it was taking more of a toll on her than she'd let on.

Suddenly, he heard her inside his mind. She sounded afraid. We're losing it.

---

The poisoned knife flew off the floor where Jubilee had tossed it and into Risa's hand. Still pinning the donte to the wall, she threw the knife directly at its heart. Or where Jubilee assumed it would be if it still had one.

Jubilee had Alyn's head in her lap, and she was running one hand over his clammy forehead. "Risa," she said, suddenly realizing that she was crying, "I think he's dying. What do we do?"

Once she was certain the donte was dead from its own poison, Risa ran over and dropped to her knees beside her brother. She tugged a small blue bottle out of her tunic. Uncapping it, she motioned for Jubilee to hold Alyn still.

"You must drink this, brother," she said calmly. "Sidre gave it to me after she had the Dream. In case I was attacked by a donte. It should take away the poison."

Jubilee held his head still, and Risa poured the liquid down his throat. The two young women held onto him and waited.

---

Maron was in full Evil Bad Guy Lecture form.

"You come here, unarmed, with a handful of weak Gifts, and you expect to beat me?"

Rogue wondered where Logan and Celeste were.

"You are just as weak as your father was. He never deserved to rule, anyway."

This was getting boring. Rogue tuned him out and tried to gather her strength. She didn't know if the TK would work, but she had to try something. Experimentally, she pushed against the force that was holding her still. It pushed back, hard, and for a moment she couldn't breathe.

The door burst open, and Logan and Celeste rushed into the room. The snikt of Logan releasing his claws seemed to echo against the stone walls. In his surprise, Maron let his grip on Rogue slip enough for her to break free.

Logan lunged at Maron, who pulled his disappearing act, reappearing a few feet away as Logan stumbled into a wall instead.

---

Jean and Sidre gasped again, and this time their eyes snapped open and their hands slipped apart. Scott dropped to the floor beside them again, one hand on each woman's shoulder.

"We lost it," Jean said weakly, then fainted.

---

Celeste glared at Maron and raised a hand, obviously about to blast him. Nothing happened. Rogue figured her cousin had been frozen in place like she had, but a second later she felt it. The link between them all had been broken; their powers could no longer be shared.

Celeste took her turn rushing at the older man, who dodged her punch and sent a band of flames back at her. Celeste yelped as her sleeve caught fire, and she stopped, dropped and rolled just like they taught in school. Still, Rogue could smell the burnt flesh, and she yelled at Logan to help heal her cousin.

Maron was still ignoring Rogue and lifted his hand, probably to send more fire at Celeste and Logan. Rogue kicked his legs out from under him and clamped her hand on his bare arm. Half a second later, she allowed her power to start drawing from Maron, who wasn't prepared enough to block her assault.

She was immediately disgusted by what she found inside his mind. He was a horrible, evil person, and the thoughts and images she saw made her want to throw up. Sidre either didn't know or hadn't told how many people he had killed or how it made him feel. He enjoyed it. He envisioned himself as a god to those with no Gifts. By exterminating all those who had Gifts, he made himself all the more powerful.

She yanked her hand away in disgust and stood up. Maron rolled unsteadily to his feet and brought up his hand again. Before he could blast her with fire or anything else, Rogue lashed out with her foot, kicking him square in the chest. Maron stumbled backward, crashing through the glass double doors.

She followed at a run and feigned a punch. When he lunged away, she kicked him again, this time higher, under the chin. He tumbled back again and, to her shock, over the stone balcony. She rushed to the edge of the balcony, spotting his still body on the ground below.

Logan came up beside her and looked down. "Guess he never learned to fly," he commented.

Celeste leaned over the railing on Rogue's other side. "Too bad," she said.

---

Epilogue

Two months later: Jubilee

They had been back home for a month, and Jubilee had never been more miserable.

It was the middle of the night, and while everyone else was snug in their beds, she wandered the halls of the mansion, not even remotely tempted to raid the refrigerator or go out and find a good place to have a beer and dance. She was obsessing, as usual, about Sandoriel.

The mop-up operation after the fight at the castle took no time at all. Maron was a suspicious bastard who kept as few people nearby as possible. The actual army battle took a little longer, but it went much as the General had predicted. Most of the Barenians and a great number of the Gifted soldiers took off before the fighting began. General Symon's army had little trouble defeating the fighters who were left behind.

Alyn had quickly recovered after his dose of antidote, and all the other members of their group came out of the fight without so much as a scratch.

Jean had worried them for a while. Sidre said she'd seriously overtaxed herself by letting them borrow her telekinetic powers. Every time one of them used the power, Jean grew weaker. Finally, the task of holding everything together became too much for both of them, and Jean had collapsed. She slept for 18 hours and woke up feeling fine and brushing off anyone's concern for her health. When they got home, Jubilee heard her telling the Professor that she'd had a breakthrough with her Gift, that it was stronger than ever.

The people of Sandoriel had been thrilled to find out that their Princess Emmarie had been found, but they seemed equally happy when the princess herself crowned the new king of Sandoriel -- Will Danis, Celeste's father. That made Celeste a princess, and Jubilee admitted to being privately amused at how uncomfortable the attention made Blondie. Sure, she'd come through in the end, but that didn't mean Jubes had to bond with her or anything.

They spent almost a month in Sandoriel after the fighting was over, helping to settle things down and witnessing the birth of a new country as the Barenians finally got their wish. Rogue spent a lot of time with her long-lost family finding out about her parents and her country.

Jubilee spent every possible moment with Alyn, running errands for the king, ridding the castle of everything to do with Maron, helping people who were injured in the main battle, attending boring banquets and making out in every closet, nook and cranny they could find in the castle. Once Alyn caught on to the whole kissing thing, he threw himself into it passionately.

Eventually, the group retraced its path all the way back to Fairfield, Alyn's home. The night before they were to return home, Alyn finally made a move, and Jubilee joined the Drunken Sluts Club. But she didn't tell anyone, because it was too important, too personal to talk about. Too painful, now. She remembered at least 50 times a day how she'd twined her hand with his and whispered, "I love you."

He had pulled her closer and kissed her hard, but he didn't return the words.

And he didn't ask her to stay.

She would have, she knew. Given up everything she knew, given up the X-Men and her friends. Given up rock music and Pop Tarts and pizza, dancing and television and Matt Damon movies. She would've given up the damn mall, if only he'd asked.

She was afraid she was a horrible, evil person, because she could barely stand to be around her friends anymore. It was bad enough that Scott and Jean had disappeared two days after their return to the mansion and showed up a week later married. At least Jubilee was spared from having to attend a wedding.

But they were acting uncharacteristically newlywed-y. Every time she turned a corner in the mansion they were making out or just snuggling and gazing at each other like they had just started dating or something. At least, she thought grumpily, she and Alyn had the courtesy to hide in a closet for that stuff.

Things were still going great for Kitty and Bobby. Obviously they hadn't been so concerned for their missing friends that they didn't have time to have sex every five minutes and on every available surface. Or so it seemed from the extensive rundown of events Kitty insisted on sharing. At least she was spared the public displays of affection in their case. Kitty had moved into the room right next door to Popsicle, apparently so they'd have access to more flat surfaces for sex.

Some of Rogue's stuff was still in their room, but she'd all but moved in with Logan as soon as they'd come back. And Jubilee was happy for them. She was. Most of the time. But she felt if she had to witness Logan groping her friend under the dinner table one more time, she would gouge her own eyes out with her fork.

She was a little bitter.

As always, on her nighttime wanderings, she returned to the mirror. The professor had had it moved upstairs into a room connecting with his office. He was currently considering what to do with it. He was reluctant to destroy it, because Rogue had already told him she wanted to go back and visit sometimes. Yet he was understandably concerned about who might eventually use the gateway to come into their world. Still, Jubilee could tell that he was intrigued enough by the mirror that he would never get rid of it.

She would sit, sometimes for hours, in an overstuffed chair next to the mirror, just thinking. She could go back. She could make Rogue open the gateway for her, and she could go back to Sandoriel, track down Alyn and force him to love her.

She sank back into the chair and pulled her legs up, wrapping her arms around her knees. She knew it was impossible to make someone feel love, but she'd really thought he felt something for her. Jubilee closed her eyes and tried to remember every detail of his face. His smile. His warm eyes. The little line that he'd get on his forehead when he was trying to puzzle out what she was saying. The way his hair would flop down into his eyes.

The strange sound in the empty room had her bounding to her feet. Her heart sped up as she saw the mirror had begun to light up. It suddenly occurred to her that they were never sure they'd gotten all the donte out of Sandoriel. There were no records of how many had been created, so they had no way of knowing.

Jubilee sent out a mental warning to the professor and stood back from the mirror as a figure stepped out and into the room, looking around wide-eyed.

"Alyn?"

She watched in shock as he turned her way and grinned, dropping a large bag at his side. "Jubilation Lee."

She wanted to go to him but couldn't seem to move. "What ..."

"I wanted to see your world for myself," he said, slowly coming toward her. "But, really, I wanted to see you."

"Alyn --"

"I missed you, Jubilation. I tried not to love you because I knew you would leave, but it did not work. It is darker in Sandoriel without you."

She put her arms around his waist and buried her head in his chest. "You came to visit me."

He pulled back slightly. "I came to stay. I ... I mean, if you want me to stay."

She was actually speechless. But, typically, it didn't last long. "It just so happens, I've been looking for a roommate," she said.

"Well, I am your man, then." He grinned at her.

As he pulled her into a kiss, Jubilee decided she could live with that. She definitely could.

The End