SquidgeWorld Archive

With a quiet sigh, Rogue pushed her Calc book away from her across her small desk and made a face at it. The basic stuff from the first two chapters mirrored what she had been studying back in her old high school, but the last two chapters went far beyond what had been expected of her before. And it was... confusing. Oh, Rogue knew that she was a smart girl and that given time, she would have no trouble picking it up, but she had entered Xavier's School for Gifted Children after classes had already been in session, and she was behind before she had even started. Now, mid-terms were coming up and she had to spend extra time in study to make up for it.

Thinking that maybe a short break would help, she pushed her chair back away from the desk and stood up. Muscles and bones in her back protested the sudden move. Curious, she glanced at the clock and realized that she had been sitting in that hard wooden chair all bent over her books for a little over two hours. She grimaced in distaste. Yep. A break was definitely in order.

Placing her hands behind her hips on either side of the small of her back, Rogue arched her spine backwards slowly. A satisfying series of pops and cracks sounded loud in her ears and her whole body quivered slightly in relief. Standing up straight and swinging her arms slightly to loosen her shoulders as well, Rogue walked over to her bed and picked up her long black gloves. Within moments, they were on, leaving only a slight band of skin along her upper arm before her black and green striped t-shirt covered her skin. Satisfied that she wouldn't accidently hurt anyone, she turned to leave her room.

The hallways of the mansion were quiet. It wasn't that everyone was asleep, but more that after a certain time of night, things quieted down. It was encouraged, even if it wasn't a steadfast rule. It was just that some people might be sleeping, while others might be studying. So, once the sun went down any and all rowdiness was only to be found at the indoor gym or the recreation room.

However, Rogue wasn't in the mood for a video game or even a game of foosball. Getting her adrenaline flowing wouldn't help her much when she went back to her books. So, when she reached the lower level of the school, she turned towards the kitchen area.

She turned the corner into the kitchen only to find that the room wasn't empty. Someone was already there. The lights were out, but the other student had their head stuck in the refrigerator and that dim light shone in a distorted triangle across the room.

"Ah guess Ah wasn't the only one ta want a snack, huh?"

The figure leaning into the refrigerator gave a sharp start and then fell forward into and then *through* the racks of food and drinks to land in a sprawl, half in and half out of the big white cooler. Rogue's heart leapt into her throat in fear.

"Ohmigod! Are you all right?!"

She wavered for a minute and then dashed over to grab the other student to yank her back out. When she leaned down to wrap her gloved fingers around the small ankles her hands passed right through. She gasped and stared at her hands as if she'd never seen them before. Suddenly, the figure wiggled and giggled and worked it's self free.

A young girl about Rogue's own age pulled herself up and dusted her pants off before looking sheepishly at her. A small smile full of humor and friendliness hid behind mussed up bangs and a deep blush.

"Sorry about that... but you shouldn't sneak up on a body, ya know? I almost peed my pants."

Rogue just blinked.

"Ah... Ah put muh *hand* through ya *leg*!"

The girl blushed harder and shrugged.

"Yeah. Sorry about that. I sometimes loose control when I'm startled. I didn't mean to, ya know... I just... it happens."

Rogue felt a wave of relief wash over her as she realized that it wasn't *her* that had turned into a... ghost(?)... but the other girl instead. Then she felt a wave of compassion. She had caused this girl to loose control of her power and she didn't even know if using it caused her pain. Rogue knew that most mutants didn't get hurt by their own gifts... but she herself was living breathing proof that it *could*.

"Ah'm so sorry ta 'ave startled ya like that. Ah didn' mean anythin' by it. Ah was just... lookin' for a bite ta eat. Are you all right?"

The girl flashed her a big smile and nodded her head.

"Yeah. I'm fine. A little dusty... but that's no big thing. Oh. I'm Kate Pryde. Everyone calls me Kitty."

"Ah'm Rogue. S' nice ta meet ya Kitty."

Rogue looked beyond Kitty to the big white refrigerator and raised one eyebrow in a soft smile.

"Anythin' look good in there?"

Ten minutes later found the two girls outside the kitchen at one of the small round garden tables with plates full of good old fashion 'taking a break from studying food'. They had each made a sandwich and grabbed a handful of potato-chips and a glass of soda. The cool evening air felt lovely and the food was satisfying. But it was the conversation that Rogue enjoyed the most. Kitty was open and friendly and she had a contagious giggle. They talked about classes and boys and music and their favorite t.v. shows. With a start, Rogue realized that it had been a long time since she'd had a girlfriend that she could confide in and share girl-talk and giggles with. It felt good to have that once again.

"Hey. What's that?"

Rogue looked down at her chest where Kitty was pointing. Slowly she reached down and pulled the shiny bit of metal up so that Kitty could see it better. It was a dog-tag on a thin ball-chain. Rogue turned it around so that Kitty could read what had been pressure stamped into the metal. It was a series of numbers and then below that, a name. Wolverine.

"Where did you get that?"

Rogue blushed lightly and smiled at the vision that rose up in her mind.

"It's Logan's... he gave it ta me before he left ta go up north. Ah'm just holdin' it for him till he returns."

Something in her face or her voice must have given her away because Kitty flashed her a devious grin.

"You're in love with him, ain't ya?"

Rogue blushed harder and glanced down at her plate. She'd never said it out loud before, but... maybe she needed to. Even if it was just to Kitty.

"Yeah. Ah am. Ah can't help myself. Ah love him."

Kitty's grin turned conspiratorial and she leaned over the table slightly.

"Do you think he loves you back?"

A little sliver of pain ran through Rogue and she turned her face slightly to look at the trees and their slowly changing colors.

"Yeah. He loves me... Ah know he does... But it's not the same kinda love as Ah 'ave for him. He looks at me and he sees a young girl. A child."

Rogue turned back to look at her new friend and matched her conspiratorial grin and her eyes sparkled.

"Won't he be surprised when Ah refuse ta stay a young girl? Ah *do* plan ta grow up inta a *beautiful* woman... one he *can't* resist."

They dissolved into giggles at that point and Rogue knew that she had just gained a supporter and possibly an accomplice in her mission to win Logan's heart. Already her mind was coming up with different scenarios and plans that Kitty could help her with in that regard.

Suddenly, Kitty tapped her gloved wrist with one hand and gestured across the school grounds with the other. Rogue turned her head to see what it was her friend was getting all excited about. She could see the shadowy forms of what looked like two boys walking along the garden path talking quietly. She was about to ask what was so special and important about that when one of them created three small palm-sized balls of flame and began to juggle them to the vast amusement of the other boy. The flames lit up the night around them and bathed their smiling faces with a ruddy glow.

"Hey... is that Bobby and Johnny?"

Kitty nodded enthusiastically and a big silly grin spread across her face as she sighed.

"Yeah... Ain't young love grand?"

Rogue wasn't sure she understood that reference, but she didn't really care. All she knew was that Bobby and Johnny were the first two people here that had bothered to befriend her and make her feel welcome.

"Should we call 'em over?"

"Nah. Leave 'em be. They don't get enough time to spend alone together between school work and practice. And they can't exactly get together in the dorms. I mean, no one has told them they *can't* be together, but... still, it's hard for them to, ya know, be *totally* out."

Rogue blinked in confusion as she tried to piece together was Kitty was saying... or implying. It didn't make any sense, Kitty made it sound as if...

"Ya mean that Bobby and Johnny are a *couple*?"

Kitty nodded and then seemed to stiffen up and she looked at Rogue with a wariness that hadn't been there before.

"You didn't know?"

Rogue shook her head.

"No. They never said anythin' ta me about it."

Kitty gave her a look that Rogue didn't quite understand, but had tones of protectiveness to it.

"Are you mad?"

"Yeah. Ah think Ah am. Ah mean, Ah'm *supposed* ta be their friend and they *never* told me."

Kitty relaxed a little, but she pushed the subject.

"No. I mean, are you mad that they're gay? Not everyone can handle that kind of thing."

Rogue snorted. She couldn't help it. She waved her hand through the air as if to brush that comment aside as ridiculous.

"Puh-leese. Muh poor old-maid Aunt Ruthie was pitied by the whole town for 'aveing never gotten married. Truth was... she was a happy lesbian livin' with three cats, two dogs and her lover Vivian. Muh momma always told me it was more important to 'ave a heart that *could* love then to 'ave a lover that the town gossip's thought was right for ya."

Kitty relaxed completely and turned to look out across the grass once more. Rogue followed her line of sight and found her two friends sitting under a tree together. They were kissing. It was sweet and beautiful and it made her desperately lonely for Logan. Kitty sighed.

"What?"

She turned to face her friend to see a look of longing and mild desire, then grinned.

"Those two are going to give me amazing dreams tonight. They're both so cute and they're *amazingly* gorgeous together."

Rogue giggled. Then she looked back across the school lawn to see Bobby run his fingers through Johnny's hair and their kiss deepened as they moved closer together in a sensual embrace. She sighed too.

"Ah know *exactly* what ya mean. Ah'm in for a night of dreamin' muh self."