Chapter 4

That LeBeau kid was going to be trouble.

It was bad enough that he insisted on flirting with Jean and every other female in the mansion. It was even worse that he could swipe Scott's favorite shirt and then convince everyone that it was his own. But when Remy had charged one of the cornflakes in Scott's cereal this morning just to watch the cereal explode and cover him with milk, Scott had to put his foot down.

"This is outrageous!" he said, the white liquid pouring down his face. Jean and Ororo were desperately covering up their laughter. Remy just leaned casually against the counter, one eyebrow cocked in amusement.

"Just t'ought y' should get more calcium in y' diet, mon ami," Remy said, flashing the smile that had Kitty and Jubilee wrapped around his pinky. "Only lookin' out f' de Monsieur."

"Ororo?" Scott looked pleadingly at the regal woman who had successfully controlled her laughter.

"I am sure Remy meant no harm. You will not do it again, will you Remy?"

Remy grinned at the look of outrage on Scott's face. "Anyt'ing f' m' Stormy," he said, swooping up her hand to kiss it.

"I have told you not to call me that," she protested with a small smile. "Do try to behave."

Remy gave a slight bow. "I'll do m' best, chere." Picking up his bow staff, Remy slid out of the room gracefully, his trench coat softly grazing the kitchen floor.

"You're too easy on him," Scott admonished. Ororo looked at him with a slight smile on her face.

"And you try too hard to turn him into the good soldier." Scott opened his mouth to protest, but Ororo continued, cutting him off. "Remy was raised under a different code of ethics than you, Cyclops. You will never convince him of the importance of obedience. You must trust that while he indeed is a rebellious child in many ways, he is also very loyal. He will never let you or anyone else down. You must trust he will do that."

"Storm is right," Xavier said, wheeling into the room. "I've never encountered anyone quite like our Cajun friend. We must be open and accepting of his choices. He will become a valuable asset to the team, as he possesses skills that none of us are adept at, save Ororo. He can get us into places that others cannot."

"I would feel better if he did something around here," Scott said, his protests only minimal now. "He's too old for school. Perhaps he could help one of the teachers out with their classes."

"That's an excellent idea, Scott," Xavier said. "You could use some assistance in your mechanics class."

"Hey, whoa, I didn't mean me," Scott said quickly. "I mean, there are lots of other teachers he could help like Ororo or Hank."

"I agree with the Professor," Jean said. "Maybe working together will help the two of you reach an understanding. Plus, Remy seems to enjoy vehicles."

"Only because he's stolen my bike more often than Logan has," Scott countered.

"Then he obviously knows something about the make-up of a motorcycle," Jean said, smiling at her fiancé's frustrated look.

"Then it's settled." Xavier clasped his hands together. "Remy will start helping Scott with his classes starting tomorrow."

"Great." Scott slumped down in his seat, frustrated, just as Lorna entered the room, looking haggard and tired. The woman's light green curls hung limply against her pale face. "You look at bad as I feel right now," Scott commented as Lorna reached for the coffee pot.

"Mmm," she said," not really paying much attention. Ororo gave her a sad look before exiting to join her class. Lorna rubbed her eyes. "That's what I get for letting Bobby talk me into watching 'The Exorcist' before I go to bed. That movie always scares the heck out of me. I had horrible dreams all night long."

"Do you want me to cover your geology class?" Jean asked, placing her hand on Lorna's shoulder. Lorna shook her head.

"I'll be alright. Just remind me to never watch movies with Bobby again. I think that boy's on a mission to drive me up the wall."

"He's lonely," Scott said. "Half of his friends just left him. One of them was his girlfriend. That would be hard on any guy."

"Has anyone heard from Logan?" Jean asked suddenly. "Maybe he's had some luck finding them."

"Logan has not been in contact with us for a while now," Xavier said. "I do believe that if he had found Rogue and St. John, he would have brought them back here. I fear something may have happened to our two renegade students. There are many groups out there that would love to get their hands on two young, powerful mutants. I just hope Logan finds them before anyone else does."

-----

"St. John, ah swear to holy hell, ya'd bettah not have swiped mah leather jacket again!" Rogue banged her fists on St. John's bedroom door, the steel denting under her hand. Raven had learned very quickly that she needed to reinforce the apartment with someone as powerful as Rogue living there. Under Raven's watchful eye, the two young mutants had evolved from scared runaways to virtually indestructible powerhouses. Rogue had especially changed. The child grew more rebellious everyday, even challenging Raven's own authority from time to time. While she frowned disapprovingly on the outside, Raven inwardly beamed. 'These are my creations.'

Neither child was aware that Raven, the overbearing companion to their beloved Irene was actually the mutant known as Mystique. Irene and Raven had kept that fact carefully hidden from the two, Rogue especially. 'It is too soon,' she had told Irene. 'We must gain their absolute trust first.'

Irene had never approved of Raven's choices. Whereas the shape shifter had a natural inclination towards infiltration and terrorism, the mild Irene was more of a pacifist. She was not of the Xavier belief that mutants and humans should live openly and peacefully; rather Irene felt that the humans had no place in mutant affairs. She would have preferred living in total secrecy.

It was only Irene's love for Raven that kept her allied with the terrorist. The two had met many years before, when Irene enlisted Raven's help in tracking down information. The two women had fallen in love and been together ever since.

Either Rogue and St. John didn't notice the relationship between Irene and Raven or they didn't care. As far as they knew, Irene was the only one with any mutant powers. Raven was just there to keep them in check. Surely they suspected something was off about her, but so far, neither child had asked.

There was a loud smashing sound as Rogue tore down yet another door. The girl was almost as destructive as Sabretooth had been. With no Professor X or Cyclops to keep her controlled, Rogue was finally exploring the full range of her powers.

The only power she hadn't explored was her wonderful energy absorption abilities. This was of some concern to the metamorph. Rogue still insisted on wearing her gloves everywhere. It was pracically 90 degrees outside and here she was, wearing full length black gloves to stop her gift. With her powers, Rogue was virtually unstoppable. There was nothing she couldn't have, nor take. Carol Danvers was proof of this. Had Mystique possessed one tenth of Rogue's powers, she would have ruled the humans years ago. Yet, this young girl was still so concerned about protecting the people around her that she wasn't living for herself. 'Let other people worry about themselves,' Mystique thought. 'If they're stupid enough to let her touch them, they deserve what's coming.'

Mystique would have to do something about the girl's reservation. She had every intention of making sure the girl lived up to her name.

-----

Mrs. Remy LeBeau. Kitty Pryde-LeBeau. Katherine LeBeau.

Kitty scribbled the names furiously in her notebook, ignoring the lecture Professor X was giving on physics. How could she be expected to concentrate on classes when there was someone as gorgeous as Remy in the same building?

Jubilee glanced over at Kitty's notebook and smirked. Kitty, noticing her friend's interest, slammed the notebook and glared at Jubilee. Great. Jubilee would never let her live this down.

A note landed on Kitty's desk. "Me-OW Kitty. Can't knock your taste in men," the note read. "I'm sure Remy will love to know that he has a new member of his fan club."

Kitty angrily wrote her reply. "You tell him I like him and the entire boys dorm will find out exactly who was stealing pairs of their underwear."

"That was research," Jubilee's reply said. "Illyana and I had a bet on which guys wore boxers and who wore briefs."

Girls, if you're going to pass notes, do try to be less obvious about it.

The two girls shrunk in their seats as the Professor gave them a mental warning. 'Sorry Professor,' they thought, almost in unison.

The class continued with Kitty glaring at Jubilee while Jubilee only smiled sweetly in return. Once they were dismissed, Jubilee looped her arm through Kitty's and skipped happily. "It's too bad Rogue isn't here to see that fine specimen of Cajun man meat. He is so her flavor too."

"Have you heard from her or St. John lately?" Kitty whispered so the other students couldn't hear.

Jubilee shook her head. "St. John doesn't call anymore. Ain't it just like a man? Last I heard, they were staying with a blind mutant and her girlfriend up in the city. He seemed to like it alright." Jubilee shrugged.

"Hey Kitty," Bobby said, joining them, "Ready to go to mechanics class?"

Jubilee stopped and gave her friend a strange look. "Mechanics? Kitty, didn't you opt out of that at the beginning of the year because you didn't want to get greasy?"

"Haven't you heard?" Bobby asked. "The female quotient of that class has tripled ever since Scott took Remy in as his assistant. Everyone's been telling Mr. Summers it's because he's such a great teacher. He actually buys it too."

Jubilee laughed as Kitty flushed. "Forget art class," she said, "I'm going to the mechanics class too. It'll be worth it two see Mr. Summers and Remy try to work together. Plus, I have to keep my dear Kittycat in line."

-----

The class turned out to be as interesting as Jubilee had hypothesized. Remy, showing off for the suddenly expanded female population, showed the class the most efficient way to hotwire a vehicle, much to Mr. Summers' annoyance. The lesson plan was virtually forgotten as the two men spent the bulk of the class arguing over who knew more about engines. Mr. Summers boasted that he could repair a jet engine, while Remy countered that he could probably steal it. The class ended with several female students requesting "private tutoring" with Remy.

Mr. Summers wasn't the only person less than enamored with Remy. Bobby was none too happy when he found Remy going through his photographs. "Who's de belle femme?" Remy asked, holding up a picture of Rogue. "I would've remembered seeing dis one around."

"That's Rogue," Bobby said, snatching the photo back. "She was my girlfriend."

"Was?" Remy cocked an eyebrow. "Y' let de petite go, mon ami?"

"I didn't let her," Bobby said, putting the picture in his drawer, "She took off with St. John a while ago. Hasn't been back."

"Left y' for another homme?" Remy put his hand on Bobby's shoulder. "Never had a girl leave me, but I sympathize."

"She didn't leave me, she left because she had to." Bobby clenched his fist, fighting back the urge to freeze something.

"Course, mon ami," Remy said. "Still, y' can't tell me y' not jealous dat she left wit' de homme and not y', neh?"

Bobby quietly excused himself, hands twitching. He didn't like thinking about Rogue and St. John. He knew better than to think that his best friend would move in on his girl, but it still hurt that she left with him instead of staying at the mansion with Bobby. He didn't care about what she had done; he just wanted her back.

Some of the other students weren't so forgiving. Jubilee had gotten into it with more than one student who called Rogue a turncoat. Bobby had decked a guy for likening Rogue to a Brotherhood member. "She's not like that!" he'd said, "She'd never turn on us!"

A few weeks had passed now and they hadn't returned. For all he knew, Logan hadn't found them either. Few students mentioned Rogue anymore, although she had been the topic of choice for a while. Bobby was fairly sure Jubilee had some idea where they were, but she wasn't telling anyone. She too seemed resigned to the idea that they weren't coming back.

Kitty was one of the few people Bobby could talk to these days. After Rogue and St. John left, it was Kitty who kept him grounded. They spent many nights talking and consoling each other. These days, however, Kitty was so busy stalking Remy that she didn't have time for Bobby. Kitty had fallen prey to the older boy's charismatic smile.

So, once again, it was Bobby against the world.

-----

"I mean it, girl. I won't ask again."

"Get out of my home, Victor."

Rogue awoke to the sound of voices arguing. One of the voices she recognized as her hostess, Raven. The other voice was a male voice that sounded uncannily familiar.

"My boss wants those files and I know you have them."

"Your boss is not my concern. There's a reason Erik gave those files to me and not you. I won't give them to you."

Rogue snuck down the hall and peered around the corner. Raven stood in the living room, her hands on her hips, glaring at the taller man. With shock, Rogue took in the man's appearance. "Sabretooth..."

With one swift move, Sabretooth grabbed Raven by the neck and lifted her up, Raven's feet flailing under her. "Our past doesn't mean a damn thing to me. Now, tell me where... oof!" Rogue slammed into his side, knocking Raven free of his grasp.

Sabretooth snarled and jumped back to his feet, looking for the person who slammed into him. His eyes settled on the girl with the white streak in her hair, who stood, fists closed, ready to strike again. "Just when I thought old Mystique didn't have any more tricks up her sleeve."

Rogue's brow furrowed in confusion. "Mystique?" She didn't have time to say anything else, as Sabretooth launched himself at her, unaware of the strength she had since gained. Rogue caught him easily and, to his surprise, lifted him and threw him right out the apartment window.

Rogue walked over to the shattered window to look at the ground below. Sabretooth was laying on the ground, surrounded by broken glass. A couple of spectators walked up to him to see if he was alive, but before they were close, he was up on his feet. With a last growl at the apartment window, Sabretooth took off down the street.

"He'll be back," Raven said, smoothing her hair down. "We'll have to leave this place and go elsewhere." She tried to walk down the hall, but Rogue blocked her way, a glare on her face.

"What did he mean about Mystique?" she asked, unaware of St. John and Irene who had just walked up behind her.

"What's going on?" St. John asked, bleary-eyed.

"Raven, show them," Irene said. Raven was silent as St. John and Rogue looked at her. Then, in front of their eyes, the dark haired woman morphed into her true form - that of the blue-skinned Mystique.

"Cool," St. John said, his eyes fixed on Mystique. Rogue's reaction was not nearly so calm.

"Ah shoulda known somethin' was off about ya! Ya tricked me once and ya went and did it again! Ah oughta throw you out that window too! Can't trust any of ya!" Angrily, Rogue took off flying, exiting through the window she had thrown Sabretooth out of.

"Rogue!" St. John said, running to the window. Irene came up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder.

"She'll be back," she said simply. "Give her a few hours."

St. John nodded, then slowly made his way back to his room. Once he was gone, Irene and Mystique took a seat on the couch.

"Was it wrong to bring them in, Destiny?" Mystique asked, taking Irene's hand. "The girl will never join us now."

"On the contrary," Irene replied. "She will be back. She may have hated the Mystique that once tried to kill her, but now that she's lived with Raven, she has a very different opinion of you. You will become a mother to her, replacing the one that turned her out. She will become your daughter."

"You are too optimistic, Irene," Mystique said. "I love no one but you. I never kept Graydon or Kurt as my children. Why should this girl be any different?"

"Because she is more like you than either of your biological children. Graydon Creed is an angry man who will one day rise against mutants, whom he blames for his lonely life. Kurt is a far more peaceful child who will achieve his destiny saving those same people who hate and fear him. Graydon has your anger. Kurt, your dedication. Rogue has both. She is a bold and independent girl who acts purely on impulse. She keeps everyone at an arm's length, but is fiercely loyal to those she accepts as family. She is more your daughter than anyone."

Irene patted Mystique on the knee before standing. "Give her time, Raven. You are much more important to her than she realizes right now." Irene left the room, leaving Mystique behind to quietly ponder her words.

-----

He smelled him before he walked in the bar. The scent was a mixture of feline and blood scents that gave off a putrid odor to Logan's sensitive nose.

"Whiskey. Don't care what kind." Sabretooth.

At present, the man stood at the bar, waiting for the bartender to get his drink. Logan sat in the corner with his beer, watching as the patrons kept a polite distance from the brutish man.

Sabretooth sniffed the air as well, catching hold of Logan's familiar scent. Looking in his direction, Sabretooth snarled. Then, grabbing his drink, he stalked towards the corner table.

Logan calmly puffed his cigar, exhaling the smoke as Sabretooth stood in front of him. "I didn't invite you over, bub." Almost as soon as the words exited his mouth, he picked up on yet another distinct scent emanating off his opponent. "Where is she?" Logan growled dangerously.

"Your little charge put on some muscle," Sabretooth said. "No wonder Mystique's so interested in her."

Logan's eyes narrowed. "You're lying," he said. "She knows better than to go near Mystique."

"Suit yourself, pal," Sabretooth said, leaning forward on the table. "All I know is that little skunk stopped me from shredding Mystique into kitty litter. Maybe you don't know her as well as you think you do."

With a loud snikt, Logan's claws extended. Several of the patrons ducked behind their tables, expecting the two men to engage in a battle. Logan took a step in Sabretooth's direction before stopping and retracting his claws. "You're not worth it, bub. We'll settle this later."

Shoving the man out of his way roughly, Logan stormed out of the bar. 'He's got to be lying. Marie wouldn't...'

Logan was torn. Assuming Sabretooth wasn't lying, he had two options. One, he could continue searching for himself. When he found them, he would promptly finish the job he'd started with Mystique by gutting her thoroughly. Then, he would drag Marie back to the mansion. Option two involved going back to Charlie and enlisting some help with his search.

As annoying as the thought of Scott's inevitable gloating was, Logan knew he had a better chance of finding Mystique and Marie faster with some help. The mansion it was.

-----

Rogue returned to the apartment unceremoniously by dinnertime. John had been trying to get details of why she left out of Mystique, but the metamorph told him nothing. He eventually let the question go, asking Mystique if she could morph herself into Nicole Kidman briefly. 'Teenagers,' Mystique thought, with some amusement.

Rogue was still fuming when she came back. As dinner was set on the table, she gave Mystique death glares, letting her know that she wasn't above repeating the Danvers incident. Mystique glared back, silently telling the girl to try her best.

Rogue carefully eyed the stew Mystique placed in front of her. Cautiously, she scooped a spoonful up, pausing to examine the contents.

"It's not poisoned," Mystique hissed as she went to get the iced tea pitcher.

"Ah don't know that," Rogue countered. "For all ah know, ya could be tryin' to poison me."

Mystique set the pitcher down in front of Rogue with a thump, then leaned over and looked directly in the girl's eyes. "Believe me," she purred, "If I wanted to kill you, I'd have done it by now. I prefer a nice brutal fight to poisoning. Where's the fun in trying to kill someone if they don't fight back?"

"Anytime, anyplace," Rogue said, lifting out of her seat to meet Mystique's eyelevel.

"Sit down, both of you," Irene said sternly from her seat as St. John looked on with some amusement. "You're both acting like children. Mystique, stop antagonizing Rogue. Rogue, let it go. It's been months."

"She tried to kill me!"

"And you've almost killed someone too," Irene said. "We've all made our mistakes. You two can settle your differences another time. I will not stand for the two of you fighting in my presence."

Rogue and Mystique silently glared at each other from their seats. St. John stifled a laugh. Mystique eyed Rogue's glove-covered hands silently.

"Take those ridiculous things off," Mystique said, snatching for Rogue's hands. "You shouldn't wear gloves at the table."

Rogue instinctively drew her hands back, but Mystique was too quick for her. In one fluid motion, she pulled them off and tossed them on the counter. "Are ya tryin' to make me hurt ya?"

"Stop whining," Mystique ordered. "Does Xavier really have you that distrustful of your powers that you feel like you have to hide yourself?"

"That ain't fair, he..." Rogue began.

"You have the potential for limitless power!" Mystique slammed her hand against the table angrily. "There is nothing in the world you can't have, nothing you can't take! Yet, you waste it. There is nothing more disgusting than wasted potential. From now on, you will not wear gloves in my presence, unless absolutely necessary."

"Who gave ya the right to order me around?"

"You don't like it? There's the door." Mystique stood up. "I don't care how powerful you are or what you can do. When you are in my home, you will treat me with the respect I deserve. So long as you give me this respect, you will have a place to stay. You may be able to kill with a touch, but I am a trained assassin. You wouldn't last five seconds, invulnerable or not."

"Ah ain't gonna be one of your Brotherhood members."

"Who said I was going to ask you?" Mystique cocked an eyebrow. "Perhaps if I had found you before you went to Xavier's, I could have made something out of you. Look at you now. You're weak and scared of your own gifts. A Brotherhood member never second-guesses themselves. Never. We celebrate our gifts. We don't pretty them up so the public can digest them, like Xavier. You, a Brotherhood member? You don't know the first thing about what it takes."

She was lying through her teeth. After all, deception was her specialty. Rogue was the ideal Brotherhood member - passionate, powerful, and above all, willing to fight. Mystique was fully aware of this. She wasn't ready for Rogue to realize this, however.

The words struck home, although Rogue pretended she didn't care. "What do ah care, anyway," she muttered, pushing her spoon through the stew.

St. John was quiet for once, silently eating his dinner. Mystique, having lost her appetite, carried her bowl over to the sink. After disposing of the remnants, she turned to face the table. Irene's unseeing eyes were fixated on her, glinting eerily under the lamplight. She wore the look she donned whenever a vision hit her. Soon, she would retire to their room to record her premonitions in her diaries before she lost them. Mystique once asked her why she kept the diaries if she couldn't read them, but Irene only cryptically replied that they would be valuable one day. Mystique thought it was foolishness, but then again, you couldn't argue with a precognitive, could you?

-----

Sabretooth stalked through the hallways of his employer's base until he reached the laboratory. The sterile white room contained literally hundreds of DNA samples collected over the years.

"So you don't have the files," his employer said, more as a statement than a question. The pasty man stood at his table examining a particularly interesting sample gathered earlier. "No matter. The Brotherhood is not my interest at the moment. Tell me, Sabretooth, have you heard of a man named Charles Xavier? I have come into the knowledge that his private boarding school hosts a phenomenal amount of mutants. This school could have far more to offer than the Brotherhood could."

The scientist set down his sample and stood to walk over to his file cabinets. "The school operates under total secrecy," he continued, flipping through a rather thick file. "Virtually no one is aware of it's existence, yet it has a rather sizable student body. Fascinating, really."

He shut the file and set it down on a table. "I want their medical records. I want any and all information on their faculty and students. One Dr. Henry McCoy is employed there as school physician. I am sure his notes will make for interesting reading. You will bring them to me, Sabretooth. I have particular interest in the mutants known as Polaris and Gambit. Take a few of the Marauders with you. They've been getting restless lately."

"Yes, Sinister," Sabretooth said, excited by the possibility of wreaking havoc.

"And Sabretooth?" Sinister said, smiling broadly to reveal his pointed teeth. "Do not fail me again."

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