"Hey, Hank," Rogue said, stepping into the lab and looking around. "We on our own tonight?"
Bobby had made it a habit the last couple of weeks to help out in the lab. Helping out usually consisted of lazing about, asking questions, and in general being a nuisance. Rogue was starting to resent Bobby's presences. Her time with Hank was spent learning, probably the closest she would ever come to any type of higher education.
Hank let her help with experiments and discussed results and scientific problems with her like she was a colleague. Not that she would ever be at Hank's level of understanding. She was sure half the time he was only talking through his thought process, but it was nice to be learning different things from what Logan taught her.
Bobby put a damper on that. Always asking questions about the most inane things. And in the middle of a discussion to boot. She was fully on board with Logan's assessment and had begun to steer clear of Bobby whenever possible.
"Our lackluster assistant has as yet to make an appearance," Hank stated looking over the rim of his glasses, giving her a sympathetic smile. "We might be in for a tranquil evening."
"Good, I was hoping to run a test tonight."
"Hmm." There was amusement in Hank's tone. "What hypothesis are you trying to test?"
Rogue knew her tests and experiments were child's play compared to what he did. After many hours in the lab, they both recognized that she was more suited to helping him assemble his contraptions. Yet, he always indulged her, happy to foster her scientific curiosity.
"Wolverine's been insisting that my scent changed and..." she paused, trying to explain it properly.
"It did. Several weeks back," Hank interrupted her thoughts, not looking up from the microscope. Even though his senses weren't on Wolverine's level, he still picked up on far more than most.
"Oh." Now she really was at a loss for words. She and Logan had been sexually active, very active, but children had been the furthest thing from her mind.
Hank sat up, ignoring his work for the first time. "Is your cycle regular?"
"Never has been," she replied, turning away, cheeks flushed. She better get used to these conversations, there would be more in the near future.
"Experiencing any nausea?"
"Uhm..." She's pretty sure meatloaf from supper didn't count, meatloaf had never been on her list of good foods. "I don't think so."
Hank returned his attention to the microscope. "I'll be finished momentarily. Then we'll do a blood test, it will be more accurate early on."
"Sounds good," she said, letting Hank complete his work without further interruption.
Rogue set about the task she had started several days earlier of updating the supply closet inventory sheet. There would be time later to daydream about possibilities. She and Logan would also need to have a serious conversation about raising a child in the underground facility.
A few minutes later she heard Bobby enter the lab and start up one of his usual talks. She wondered if she could hide out in the closet all night until Logan returned. Immediately she felt guilty for leaving Hank alone to deal with Bobby.
Noting down the level of the glycerine on the clipboard, Rogue became suspicious at the sudden silence from the lab, followed by the skid of a chair on tile and a thud. She'd spent enough time in the Danger Room to know the sound of a body hitting the floor.
Stepping from the storage closet, she came face to face with Bobby. Hank's blue form lay on the floor beyond the lab table, Bobby dropped an empty syringe and pulled a second one from a pouch on his belt. He smiled that charming smile that made some of the girls sigh.
"Hey, Rogue, I'm kinda tight on time here. If you cooperate no one will get hurt." He was still smiling like he'd just asked her to sit by him at supper.
Of all the sneaky, low-life things to do, taking Hank out like that. She had no idea what Bobby's plan was, but she wasn't keen on finding out. Without returning his smile, she threw the large brown bottle of liquid at his head.
Bobby raised his hands to deflect the bottle, it fell to the floor and shattered with a loud crash. She took two quick steps to catapult herself up, sliding across the lab table and kick him in the chest with both feet. He staggered back and dropped the syringe, trying to keep from slipping in the liquid from the broken bottle.
Rogue spared a glance at Hank. His chest rose and fell, at least he was still breathing. "What did you give him?" she demanded.
Bobby shrugged carelessly. "Don't know. They told me someone his size would be out for hours." He then raised his hands up in fists like they were in a boxing ring.
She smiled politely as she imagined giving him a roundhouse kick full of combat boot upside his pretty face. However, Logan taught her better than to open too strong when she didn't know her opponents abilities. Letting him advance and throw a couple of fake blows, showed her that as with everything else he was mostly bluster.
Watch here, it's all in the chest, Logan had told her more than once. Sure enough, Bobby telegraphed his thoughts and pulled a classic left jab followed by a right cross. She evaded the first and stepped outside the second punch, driving her fist into his stomach then a downward kick to the front leg holding all his weight. With a gasp of pain, he fell down on his knees.
Rogue knew she didn't have much time before he recovered and she didn't want to play games. If she could render him unconscious, she could get help and let Ms. Frost find out who "they" were and get Hank some medical attention.
Think, girl, think. Use what you have. If only she had one of the weapons Logan was training her with. Or...she whipped off the cloth headband that held back her hair. It would have to do.
Bobby was taller and heavier than her but she was used to training with Wolverine who was even taller and heavier; she knew she could handle this. She used his leg as a step, then advanced further up to loop the headband around his neck. Pushing off, she twisted her body and flipped over to tighten the fabric around his neck.
She was glad he had enough sense to flow with her, she only wanted him knocked out, not dead from a snapped neck. They landed with him face down and Rogue kneeling on his back, cinching up the headband. He was gasping for breath when she felt the temperature drop. He was turning to solid ice beneath her and she could no longer tighten the material to render him unconscious.
Rogue felt him shift as he reached back to throw her off. She rolled away, landing behind one of the equipment carts. Logan had been taking it too easy on her lately, she was already fatigued. She closed her eyes focusing, there was a reason for that and if he and Hank were right she needed to come up with a less physical plan.
Peeking around the edge of the cart she saw Bobby stand up completely formed of ice like a sculpture. He began to walk toward her position and she pushed the cart at him, hoping it would give her a few extra seconds to make it to the entrance of the lab. She wasn't sure she could take him without using her mutation and she didn't know what that might do to a developing mind. No, she wouldn't take that chance. It would be best to retreat and get help.
Timing it close, she sprinted for the door only to have the floor underneath her feet turn to a sheet of ice. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Bobby using more ice to send the cart careening in the opposite direction. At the same time, the ice began to grow upward and block the doorway.
Using the ice to her advantage she grabbed the edge of a lab table, swung around and propelled herself toward the lab's blast room. Bobby changed direction in pursuit, vaulting over a table on a ramp of ice. Rogue twisted again, her trajectory altered slightly and she slammed the blast door button, ripping it from the wall as she went by.
She skated through the opening, going low to slide under the rapidly descending door. The ice that formed on the threshold to keep the door open shattered, sputtering across the floor in all directions. Standing up, she peered back out the small window to where Bobby was beating the switch box trying to force the door to work.
The blast door should keep her safe for quite some time, all she had to do was to out wait him. He would exhaust himself trying to freeze the door. Besides Logan would be back before Iceprick ever made his way into the room.
He was coming to the same conclusion and she merely shrugged in amusement as he narrowed his eyes at her. Then like a child, he began to throw a tantrum complete with objects being hurled around. It was only due to the fact that lab was isolated from the rest of the facility that no one had been drawn to the commotion yet.
At last, Bobby's anger seemed to have slackened and he looked around the room in frustration. After a minute he calmly walked over to Hank's prone form and kicked him until Hank was flat on his back. Rogue watched in dismay as Bobby formed a spear of ice from his hand and held it to Hank's chest.
Bobby looked at her with raised eyebrows, questioning her ability to wait him out. He glanced back at Hank and extended the spear point further until blood welled up on Hank's chest. She only hesitated a second before opening the blast door.
No matter what Bobby thought, Logan would find her. There was no doubt in her mind of that. And then there would be hell to pay.
They were already about a mile away in the forest and Bobby took no notice as Rogue shuffled her feet and broke branches leaving a trail anyone at the facility could follow. He'd used zip tie cuffs to bind her hands in front of her. Now he just seemed to be blindly traipsing around the woods.
When he'd cuffed her, she'd studied the plastic and knew that given a few minutes she could have them off. The control collar was another story. It would take a little more time and examination. What she wouldn't give for an adamantium claw to slice through it...and another item she thought eyeing Bobby.
His whole plan appeared to be to walk with no idea where they were headed. They'd changed directions several times because he'd lost his way. He kept looking around for a marker of some sort.
"You don't have to do this." When she got him talking he slowed his pace even further.
"Yes, I do." He looked behind them before continuing on. "They want you and not me. That's all I need to know."
"If we go back, Mr. Summers will help-"
Bobby cut her off, "What? So I can live in a hole in the ground. No way." He paused, then pulled her to the right where a light had flickered. "You're my ticket to the good life."
Rogue saw the others, two of them to be exact, flanking them on both sides. Bobby was completely unaware of their presence but was finally sure of the course he was on. They entered a clearing occupied by three armed men. In the distance, she could make out a helicopter. This had gone from bad to worse.
She wanted to tell Bobby that he was in over his head and didn't understand the situation. These men weren't here to give him anything. Though she doubted he would take her word for it.
A flashlight was shined in her face and the lead man signaled to the two that had come up behind her. Bobby let them take her. He waited impatiently, looking at the man with the flashlight expectantly.
Only when the little group turned to leave, forcing Rogue to walk with them, did Bobby speak up. "Hey, what about me?"
"We don't need you," the leader said over his shoulder.
"Trask promised me money," Bobby yelled, the agitation clear in his voice. He was making a fool of himself and Rogue wanted to tell him to shut up, to leave well enough alone.
Bobby began to angrily stomp after them. The leader of the group didn't even stop. "Ross, give him what is owed him."
Rogue saw a cruel smile curve Ross's lips. She didn't need to watch to understand what Bobby's part in all of this got him. She had more important things to worry about as she was marched toward the helicopter.
A single shot, muted by a silencer, didn't even cause her to flinch. Her own survival and that of her child were occupying her thoughts now. Rogue's only goal was to stay alive until Logan came for them.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
Thanks to Nebelwerfer24 for the hand holding on the fight scene.
*Slight warning, if you like Bobby, don't read this.
*Slight warning, if you like Bobby, don't read this.