“You do know what you’re getting yourself into with this hero crap, right?” he asked slowly, eyeing her as she looked out over the city she was supposed to protect. There was no denying the corruption that transpired in the growing city. The sounds of gunshots and screams rang through the night, breaking the silence. More disturbing than that was the absence of sirens wailing and the sound of police helicopters in the air, monitoring the streets.
“That’s a stupid question, Victor. Wouldn’t have expected it from you,” she replied with a drunken laugh. There was an empty case of beer between them and a half bottle of Victor’s favorite, Jack Daniels. She saw the lack of humor in his eyes, and forced herself to at least pretend sobriety. “I know exactly what I’m getting into. Hell, even the people are pretty much the same. Pyro’s the insufferable prick with the eternal stick up his ass. I’ve got the gung-ho, yes-sir cadet in Carol. Psylocke’s the lazy-ass telepath with the training that actually wants to do paperwork and thinks her shit don’t stink. Get her a bottle of hair dye and she’d be Jean all over again. Hell, I’ve even got my own bad-ass Wolverine in you.”
“Frail, you’ve really grown on me,” Victor said slowly, taking a swig of the whiskey. “But if you ever compare me to the runt again, I will cut your fucking tongue out just to shut you up.”
She laughed again, even knowing full well that he was perfectly serious. “Yeah, that isn’t the first time you’ve used that particular threat on me. Face it, Victor; you and Logan are more alike than either of you thinks.”
“You were close, weren’t you?” He could hear the affection in her voice as she spoke. He thought he had heard it before, on the rare occasion that she spoke of him, but he usually didn’t pay any attention. It was harder to ignore now that her tongue was a little looser. “You and the runt, I mean.”
She paused for a moment, her eyes twinkling with amusement at some far-off memory. He took the time to study her face. The moonlight made her pale skin glow along with the streaks of white she had gained at Ellis Island. Her eyes were bright and wide, almost too big for her face, her lips full and a little crooked. Her features should have been strange, but, for whatever reason, the total package worked for her. With the streaks in her hair, she looked almost angelic. Too bad he knew better.
“He saved my life,” she said abruptly. Her voice was even and cool, but he would have to be deaf, blind and stupid to miss the multitude of emotions lurking beneath her words. “And he promised to take care of me. He was my protector.”
If he had learned anything about the girl sitting next to him, it was that she didn’t need to be protected from the real world. The world should be protected from her. “You love him?”
She answered without thinking, without considering what she was saying. “More than anything.” Her words were automatic and it worried her that she would give the information so easily to the man next to her. “But it’s a secret,” she added hastily.
“Then why haven’t you called him?” Victor questioned, waiting patiently for her response. Normally, he would have steered the conversation in a totally different area, but, for whatever reason, he wanted to keep going with this. She was hurting inside and he wanted to take that pain away. She was the closest thing to a friend that he could remember having, the only person that he could trust with his back. “You going to let him know you’re okay?”
“Nope,” she retorted, stretching her legs out across the roof and snatching the bottle of whiskey from his hand. She took another swig, her eyes squeezing shut at the feel of the burn as the liquid slid down her throat. “He made it perfectly clear that he had no opinion on what I do before I left. And I doubt he noticed that I never came back, at least not right away. Besides, they all believe that I took the cure. I don’t need to burden them with the truth. And I really don’t need him showing up on my doorstep to find me drinking my liver away with you. If I called him now… I’m not ready for the questions and I was never a good liar.”
They were both silent for a moment, neither sure what to say next, neither wanting to leave the roof just yet.
It was Rogue who broke the stillness, but only after she swallowed two more mouthfuls of Jack. “I still have your abilities. Why?”
“Couldn’t really say,” Victor replied with a shrug. “But I will help you get used to them if you want. Just don’t go falling in love with me or any of that crap.”
She giggled lightly at his attempt at humor, thankful that he was trying to lighten the tension. “That’s me, alright. Gotta love those ferals. You really going to be my second in command?”
The smile his lips twisted into should have horrified her. There was something primal and bloodthirsty behind it. “Looks that way. You need someone on this damn team you can trust.”
“And I can’t trust any of the others?” She didn’t miss the cocked eyebrow he gave her; so reminiscent of another, but she refrained from commenting on it. “So Pyro thinks he would make a better leader, and even if she’s not now, Carol will probably be on the same idea about herself shortly. Military and all.”
“Not to mention Magneto’s bouncing baby boy. And the thief.”
“I ain’t too worried about Mr. LeBeau,” Rogue replied quickly, her southern accent becoming more pronounced. “He’s too busy trying to figure out a way to get into my pants to be worried about how to take my place.”
“They’ve all got a reason to want to take over as team captain, Rogue. Don’t forget that,” Victor said slowly, letting his words sink in. “Even the Summers boy might think it’s a great way to prove himself. Especially now that he knows who is brother was.”
“So I have a team I can’t trust except for you. It’s not like I could trust everyone on the last team I was a part of, you know,” she replied. She began to giggle suddenly, forcing Victor to look at her strangely.
“What’s so funny, Frail?” he asked, more curious than anything.
“I just realized something.” She giggled again, watching his confusion grow on his face. “We have none of the technology Xavier’s team has, but I can match each person up personality-wise. Victor, we’re the poor man’s X-Men.”
“If we are going to do this, I need to know now that I can rely on you as a team. That means I should be able to trust you with my life. At this point, I wouldn’t trust you to water my houseplant.” Rogue paused, hoping that they would understand what she was getting at. Victor's words from the night before were able to get through the alcoholic haze and really woke her up. She didn't trust anyone but him anymore. “There are going to be certain rules laid out right now. There will be no exceptions and absolutely no deviance. First off, you will start exclusively using codenames for the next month. We have to get used to calling each other these names in the field. All of you should have names already, so that shouldn’t be too much of a hardship, but there can’t be any slip-ups in the field. It can cost lives.”
Rogue paused again, knowing that her next rule was going to cause friction with at least one of her subordinates. “There will be no outside contact at all. If you have family that you have already contacted, let me know now. Otherwise, if you have not contacted anyone yet, do not do so. Letting them know that you are alive and where you are can be extremely dangerous for both your family and this team. We do not have the manpower or the funds to keep them safe. I cannot stress enough the importance of keeping your loved ones in the dark. This job is about sacrifice, people. And sacrifice was not meant to be easy.”
“You mean I can’t even call my mother to let her know I didn’t just disappear?” Carol asked slowly, standing from her place on the couch.
Rogue had been expecting this. “Exactly. I have no means of protecting anyone other than the people who will be on this team. If you had planned on contacting anyone, you should have done it right after arrival.”
Rogue could see the anger in the other woman’s eyes as she straightened her back. “What the hell gives you the right to make up these rules? Who put you in charge of this thing?”
“I did,” Mystique answered before anyone else could. She wasn’t going to be a part of the team, but she did agree to sit in on the meetings until everyone was a little more comfortable with their roles. It seemed as if it was going to be a while before that happened, though. “Rogue is the most advanced among all of you. She has the most qualifications and training, and she has learned how to not only work among other mutants, but also use their different talents to accentuate each other. Do you have a problem with that, Ms. Danvers?”
“Yeah, actually, I do,” Carol replied, turning her heated gaze on the shapeshifter. “The girl’s barely more than a child, and you’re putting her in charge of a team of powerful mutants. I doubt she’s had all that much training. I’m the only one here who has any military training and Pyro was your own cohort before all of this happened. I doubt she’s much of a leader. She can’t even control her abilities.”
Rogue had to work to keep her temper in check, since she could feel both Logan and Victor growling away in her head. But she had to admit that it was going better than she thought it would. At least Carol hadn’t tried to hit her or anything.
“Regardless of her lack of control, she is also the most advanced mutant among you. She has worked with some of the greatest telepaths in the world, and she is the only one of you who has three different leaders that she can call on for advice,” Mystique was practically fuming now, disgusted with the woman’s doubts. “And you have just proven why you cannot be trusted as this team’s leader. You have no respect for authority, and considering your background I am very hard-pressed to believe that you were discharged from the Air Force solely because of your mutation. I am beginning to wonder if you made it a habit of questioning your commanding officers.”
“Of course not!” Carol exclaimed, a look of horror washing over her face.
“Then why are you doing so now?” There was no answer to Mystique’s question, and, as much as it baffled Rogue to have the shapeshifter stand up for her, she also knew what it meant. Not only Mystique stood completely behind her, but Destiny and Psylocke as well. “Then shut that gaping hole in your face and sit your ass down.”
Rogue waited for a moment for someone else to comment, but no one did. She looked each person in the eye, letting them know that she was not going to back down. She also noted that, thanks to Mystique, the defiance in Pyro’s eyes had disappeared. Maybe, just maybe, she would be able to get through this. “Now, while it will be your job to listen and follow any directions I give you, it will be my job to keep you alive. You will answer to me and to Sabretooth, no one else. While Mystique backs me in whatever decision I have to make, you will not take orders from anyone else. Mystique already knows this. If something happens to me, Sabretooth will take over and move on from there.” Rogue continued to explain what they would be doing.
“We will start with a practice run one week from tonight. I already have attire on order and it should be arriving in the next couple of days.” While they would help anyone they came across, they would not be delving into the deeper workings of the city until she knew what her team was capable of and who would best work together. After that, the training would intensify until everyone was on the same level. She only hoped that it would go smoother than the meeting had tonight.
“I’m telling you, I’m fine.”
“Just stay put, I’m coming to get you. Mom and Dad have been worried sick. I cannot believe that you waited this long to call me.”
“I wanted to see what this was about first, and I think I want to stay. I just have one problem: the girl who’s supposed to be leading us, Rogue… I don’t trust her. I don’t think she knows what she’s doing, and neither does anyone else. Can you help me get her out of the way?”
“Give me a few hours. You said that this thing will be going down in a week, right? I’ll take care of it then, but I need you to get home, too. At least for a visit. Let Mom and Dad know you’re alive, please.”
“I’ll think about it. Just take care of Rogue for me, got it?”
It was three in the morning when he got the call he had been waiting for. He had kept that damn cell phone at his side at all times for the last week, going so far as to sleep with it by his head. Everything else had gone on much the same as before. The school had continued and those on the team continued to train. The only difference was that he had begun his own extensive training course.
If they were going to be a unit, he wanted to be sure that Jubilee, Colossus, and Angel all knew how to fight better than the others. He needed to know that they could fight dirty and if they got into a bind, they would be able to take care of themselves. Basically, he was training them to be soldiers. Mercenaries. Of course, no one knew about these training sessions. Everyone who noticed anything was under the assumption that his team was helping him design new programs and simulations.
“What did she say?” Logan asked quickly, sleep completely forgotten. “Does she know anything?”
“We need to talk, Logan,” Savannah’s voice held distinct urgency, though there was no panic. “Can you meet me somewhere in the city?”
He quickly named a place, knowing what he was doing and the consequences this could have, not only for himself but his entire team. Still, they needed to be there; they were all banking on each other and none had turned their back on the cause.
“You sure about this?” Savannah asked slowly.
“Yeah, just hurry your ass up,” he growled into the phone before hanging up abruptly.
He had everyone else sitting in the large library on the first floor while he waited for his visitor at the entrance. The others were being patient, but he knew that they were as nervous as he was. No one else in the building knew about this early-morning rendezvous, and he was intending to keep it that way.
He watched her pull into the drive slowly, winding her way up the pavement to the front doors. Getting out, he caught her scent, and the puzzlement beneath it.
“I’m still not sure why you wanted to meet here. Won’t you have a lot of explaining to do to the mistress of the house?” Savannah queried, her eyes droopy from lack of sleep.
He growled lowly at her lack of humor: he didn’t need this shit right now. “Just hurry up and come on. My team’s waiting, and they need to know what’s going on, too. I’d rather it came from you so that there are no questions later.”
“Whatever. Just let me grab my briefcase.”
“Listen up, kids. This is Special Agent Savannah Danvers. She’s the one who pointed me to the facility that Rogue was kept in. Her sister was in the same place.” Logan looked to his team. All three were sitting up straight, watching with complete undivided attention. He knew that, like himself, none had gotten any kind of sleep, but they were all on full alert. He was proud of all three.
“I received contact from my sister last week. It seems that Rogue did escape, and she is staying in a house just outside of the Las Vegas city limits. It seems that she is trying to pull together a team that will greatly resemble the X-Men, in order to protect the people and mutants of Las Vegas.” Danvers paused, letting the young people absorb the information. Looking at each, she realized that they were all little more than children, and she wondered why it was that they were expected to carry such burdens on their young shoulders. “My sister has informed me that they will be going on their first run in one week. She’s also afraid that the team is being pushed too hard and isn’t ready for this. She’s heard about all of you, and is hoping that you will come to intervene before someone loses their life.”
Logan waited for a moment, making eye contact with everyone. He knew the decision was unanimous and all agreed. “We’ll go, but we’re not intervening in anything. Rogue is capable of leading her own team. We just want to make sure that she’s all right, and if she does need help, we’ll be there for her. Hell, we might even be able to help her get this team ready. Do you know more about this team she’s putting together?”
“Not really, only that my sister feels she may be too young. She didn’t really specify the other mutants or even how many. I’m guessing about five or six.” Savannah didn’t want to tell them about the favor her sister had asked for. She wasn’t sure if Carol was right about Rogue.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Next Chapter!!!!!! Yeah!!!!!
Chapter End Notes:
Still got a lot more to go, so please keep coming with the feedback!!! Thanks so much to biohelix, especially with the computer and email problems we have been having lately.