Of Queens and Demons

Author's Note: If you haven't already noticed the change of title and change of content in chapters 8 to the present chapter, you should probably read this. Otherwise, continue to the fic.

Basically I got too antsy with the story and jumped the gun so to speak. I wanted to go back and change some things, focusing especially on some team bonding between Emma and several of the X-Men. Hellfire will definitely play a big part in this tale, but not quite yet. Sorry for the fake out!

Oh, and sorry about the sudden title change. I wanted this story to explore the tensions between Rogue, Jean, and Emma, but obviously it has become more Rogue/Emma-centric. I figure “Of Queens and Demons” is a better fit than something applicable only to Jean and Emma.

Anyway, on with the show!

X X X

When Tony Stark dropped the ladies off at Xavier Institute, the first thing Rogue feared was punishment. It didn't matter that they were dragging back a passed-out and injured X-Man. Since they had run into trouble by ditching the group and disobeying Storm, she was sure Xavier would be furious. To deter a severe X-beat-down, she begged Tony and Alison to accompany them inside. At least then the adults would believe their story if they had some witnesses to back it up.

“Where on earth were you children?” Storm demanded when she opened the door. “We've been waiting for hours. Scott and Jean said you never even made it to the mall.”

Thunder cracked in the distance, and her eyes glowed with unspoken fury. Several of the mutants ducked behind Rogue or Alison, but when Storm saw Emma gathered in Tony's arms, her expression softened. The impending storm dissipated, and she went from angered goddess to concerned mother.

“Hank!” she called inside. “Hank! Come quick! Emma's unconscious.”

Then she turned to her charges and glared, fury not necessarily forgotten. “Well? Get in. All of you.”

The slight buzz that had allowed the team to make some quick and out-of-character calls had completely faded by now. Sober as Sunday, Kitty, Amara, Tabitha and Rogue shuffled behind their guests. Beast took Emma from Tony and took her to the infirmary as Ororo ushered everyone else into Xavier's office.

“Professor,” Kitty began once inside, feeling guilty immediately when she saw her mentor's deep frown. “We're so sorry for everything. We shouldn't have-”

“Hush, Katherine,” Charles interrupted. He folded his hands together, thinking. Of all the X-Men, Rogue seemed most affected by the incident, as she was visibly trembling. He turned to her. “Rogue, tell me what happened.”

“Well, um, Emma decided that we should go dancin' instead of goin' to the mall-”

“Tell me why Emma is unconscious and why you all are wounded. All the remaining details can wait.”

“Sorry,” she muttered. “In all honesty, Professor, I'm not sure what happened. I was just mindin' my own business when this weird lady came up to me and tried to... I dunno... do *somethin'* to me. Then a full-on fight broke out.” As if it were the most important part of the story, she added, “The weirdest part is that my power didn't work on her.”

“Did this woman give you any hint to her identity?” Charles pressed.

“She said her name was Selene,” Rogue replied. “That was all. But I think she knew Emma somehow because she called her by name.”

“If you don't mind, Rogue, I'd like to see what happened from your perspective. Will you allow me to enter your mind?”

She blushed. “Only if everyone else gets out.” Nevermind the fact that Xavier would know she was sleeping with Emma Frost. Charles had read her mind once before, when she was trying to sort out Mystique's residual memories. It hadn't been a pleasant experience, and she sure as hell wouldn't enjoy baring her mind in front of five other people – two of whom she had just met and really didn't like.

“Very well,” he agreed. “Kitty, Amara, Tabitha – please escort our guests into the lounge. Rogue and I require a little privacy.”

“Like, sure, Professor.” Kitty phased through the door while the others walked out the old-fashioned way.

Once they were alone, Xavier motioned for Rogue to sit in front of him. She complied, and squeezed her eyes shut tightly. “Don't be afraid,” he said softly. “If you resist my influence, I might hurt you.”

“Okay,” Rogue said, “but maybe you could help me relax? I mean, after all that happened...”

“Say no more.” He closed his eyes and projected a deep sense of calm into Rogue's mind. When her fingers, which had been curled into fists, finally relaxed and rested on the armchair, Xavier scanned his pupil's mind.

It was hard to get to what he wanted. Rogue felt the need to hide things, and ironically enough a guilty mind is the heaviest projector. But Xavier wasn't surprised to see images of Emma Frost at first. His students sometimes seemed to forget that he was the world's greatest telepath. He already knew about Emma and Rogue sleeping together. He'd known about it for some time. And while he wasn't necessarily pleased with the development, he had concluded that the potential benefit of such a relationship, especially for Rogue, outweighed the possible risks. On the other hand, he wasn't very pleased to find out about Emma's “lessons,” but now was not the time to confront that issue.

Rogue's mind was always extremely difficult to read. Xavier had long suspected it had something to do with the psyches “sharing” her mind – traces of all the people she had absorbed over the years. It was like reading multiple minds. Sometimes he would discover a memory that did not belong to Rogue at all. However, because the memory he sought was a recent one, it only took a few minutes to reach.

Her mind had been slightly impaired by the alcohol, so the events had a certain haze to them. Still, to Xavier it was clear as day. The enemy, a tall dark-haired woman, called herself Selene. But the professor didn't know much about her, and he didn't know what to think of her powers. Clearly, she had some sort of special telekinetic ability as well as psionic powers, yet there was a strange non-mutant signature to some of her movements. This was especially true when Selene used her telekinetic power to animate inanimate objects like the floor. It wasn't mutant. And it certainly wasn't human. It was almost as if the woman was utilizing some kind of magic...

After witnessing the conflict, he realized why Rogue deemed it so imperative to tell him about her power not having any effect on the woman. Selene had a power similar to Rogue's... some kind of life-force absorption. Unlike Rogue, however, she could absorb energies from a good distance, and her power did not wear off after a few hours. All the mutants she had drained at the club were dead. Of that he was certain. But what fascinated Xavier most was that Selene's absorption power hadn't worked on Rogue either.

Rogue had said that Selene knew Emma. This statement and Rogue's memory led Charles to conclude Selene was somehow connected to the Hellfire Club – which forced him to discard his original assumption that he had finally found the mysterious mutant he had warned his pupils against. Unless, of course, they were somehow connected.

But considering the woman's strange power and her unusual interest in Rogue... could the mysterious mutant have some sort of connection to Rogue as well? 'Perhaps Mystique might know,' he thought with a frown. 'Any association with Rogue would have to go back to before she joined the X-Men.'

Of course, it was highly unlikely that Mystique would cooperate, even if Rogue's life was in danger. Besides that, she'd surely want compensation – monetary or otherwise. This was exactly why Charles Xavier despised terrorists. They never had normal motivations, so you could never tell when one would turn on you.

“Thank you, Rogue,” Charles said quietly, breaking the psychic link. “You may open your eyes now.”

Rogue breathed a sigh of relief. “That it?”

“For now.”

“Can you tell me anythin'?” she asked anxiously. “Like, who she was or why she approached me? How she knew Emma?”

“I apologize, but I know nothing more than you,” the professor replied. He had several hunches, but nothing that would set her mind at ease – only worry her. “Perhaps Emma could shed some light on the situation, but for now please join everyone in the lounge. I will do my best to investigate this matter.”

Rogue nodded and stood, turning toward the door. Then she paused and shot her mentor an anxious look. “Um, we're not... in trouble are we?”

“Emma's health is my first and foremost concern.”

She sighed and exited the room, knowing that his cryptic response probably meant kitchen detail for at least a month. In the lounge, the other mutants were gathered around Storm. Amara had suffered a few cuts and bruises for the battle, so the weather witch applied some of her homemade balm to the injuries.

Most of the students avoided the area, knowing not to get involved in other people's business. But Rogue could spy a few of the younger mutants eavesdropping by the staircase. She made a face at them. Didn't they have anything better to do?

“Is Emma going to be all right?” Tony asked. He stood awkwardly behind the sofa with Alison pressed close to his side.

“Dr. McCoy is tending to her at the moment,” Storm answered coolly, careful not to touch Amara's cut as she wound the bandage around her elbow. “He thinks that she is suffering from mental exhaustion. She probably just needs some rest and plenty of fluids.”

“Well I wanna know who the heck that crazy lady was!” Tabitha demanded. “She threw poor Amara into a wall. Believe me, if we stuck around, I would've knocked her 'til next Tuesday.”

“Well, I *did* melt her skin off,” Magma returned, wincing as Storm tied another bandage around her left wrist.

“What I would like to know is why you all decided to go off on your own when I explicitly stated that you stay with Jean and Scott's group,” Storm chided, tying the strip of cloth a little more tightly than necessary. “Things aren't the same anymore. It's dangerous for mutants to be anywhere alone. The X-Men are a *team*. If you had been at the movie like the others, none of this would have happened.”

No one had a response to that, especially Tony and Alison, who felt like they were in the middle of an awkward family fight.

“We're really sorry,” Kitty finally offered, for the fifth time since they had returned.

“I'm going to have to speak with the professor about this,” she continued. “I just don't know what to do. Emma should have known better. She is your teacher, not your drinking buddy. I'm very disappointed in her behavior.

“Now, Alison, was it? And Tony?” Storm addressed the guests. “You're not injured, are you?”

“No ma'am,” he replied, then turned to his girlfriend. “Are you okay, Ali?”

She shrugged. “Yeah, I feel fine. That woman wasn't attacking us, after all. I'm just glad we were able to help you guys get out of there.”

Suddenly Jamie Maddox, who could no longer contain his enthusiasm and curiosity, interrupted the meeting by leaping from the staircase with a gigantic grin. “Ali? Alison Blaire?!” he cried. “I knew it! I knew it! You're Dazzler, aren't you? I'm totally your biggest fan! I own all of your CDs – even the cassettes!”

Ali blinked when Jamie bumped into her and split into three separate but equally energetic boys. “Uh... yeah, that's me,” she said with a nervous laugh.

“Can I have your autograph?” Jamie felt around his pajama pants for a pen or something. When he found nothing but lint inside his pockets, he decided to move on, though his clones pressed. “But what are you doing here? You're not a mutant, are you?”

Rogue looked to Dazzler, who nodded slowly. “Yeah, I am. But please don't tell anyone, okay?”

“Sure!” Jamie was more than happy to oblige. “Hey, does that mean you're joining the X-Men?! WOW! This is SO cool!”

“Jamie Maddox!” Storm snapped. “Go to your room immediately! You and the younger students should be in bed by now.” She added loudly, “And that goes for the rest of you. Don't think I can't see you up there.”

Jamie pouted, but knew enough to listen to Ororo when she gave orders. “Sorry,” he muttered, then smiled again at Ali. “I hope to see you again. Man, I can't wait to tell all the kids at school that Dazzler was at my house!”

“Uh, I'd feel better if you kept it our little secret,” she returned. When Multiple and his two other selves had retreated, Alison shifted uncomfortably. “Tony,” she whispered. “Can we get out of here? The less people who see me here the better.”

He nodded and cleared his throat. “Excuse me, Miss Munroe, but if there's nothing else I can assist you with...”

Storm nodded. “Thank you very much for bringing my charges home safely. Please let us know if there is anything we can do in return.”

“It's no trouble,” Tony said. He fished a card from his back pocket and handed it to the dark-skinned goddess. “Here's my number. I'd appreciate any update on Emma's condition. We're old friends.”

“Of course. Let me show the both of you out.” She glanced behind her. “The rest of you can return to your rooms. We will decide what to do about this once Emma's feeling better. And don't forget that Logan sessions start tomorrow morning, irregardless of what transpired tonight.”

The mutants groaned at the reminder and shuffled off to bed.

x x x

“Welcome back, Mistress Selene,” said a young woman, taking the Black Queen's coat in her arms. “About that information you requested...”

Selene turned to another attendant, accepting a goblet of wine from the mousy girl and promptly dismissing her. She drank deeply. At first she had been outraged that she hadn't been able to secure Emma or her intriguing friend. But now she counted her blessings that she had run into Frost at all. After she left Hellfire, no one had been able to find her, and Selene had all but given up hope. Even her own sister, Adrienne Frost, had no idea of Emma's whereabouts.

Of course, Selene had instructed her underlings to keep searching. But no one had dreamed that Emma would join the X-Men! Laughter tickled her throat. How ridiculous – the only place they hadn't thought to look was at Xavier's School for the Gifted. Recognizing that ghost girl and living lava lamp from various news bits concerning the group of naïve and idealistic vigilantes, Selene was quite impressed by Emma's intelligence. When running from a group of baddies, wasn't the best approach to shack up with the do-gooders? Surely no one expected Charles Xavier to welcome a woman who enjoyed brandy and the occasion pole-dance into his innocent little X-Men.

And what a treat it was to meet Emma's little pet, the sullen brunette with the strange streak of white. Seeing her steal that other mutant's power set her mind churning with exciting ideas. Selene could steal the life force from others and become stronger and younger because of it, but Rogue could steal other things – mutant powers and even the memories of how to wield them. She could only imagine what else the girl could take.

“Mistress?”

She blinked, returning to the present. “Never mind that. I require no information. I know exactly where Miss Frost is.”

“You do?”

“Yes. In fact, I had a run-in with the wench this evening.” She gestured to her torn suit, which was little more than a few strategically placed strips of fabric thanks to Rogue's borrowed electricity and Amara's magma blasts. “She's apparently been staying with the X-Men.”

“The X-Men?” the woman asked, giving a strange little shudder. “Why would she be with them?”

“Why indeed, my dear Tessa.” Selene smiled to herself knowingly. “Whatever her reasons are, Emma couldn't have prepared a better offering to the Black Queen if she tried. Frost, you are a genius! That school is a veritable mutant buffet that I can hardly wait to sample.” True to her words, she licked her lips in anticipation.

“Do you need anything tonight? Perhaps I can fetch you a different outfit or -”

“I trust you've procured a sacrifice for me,” came Selene's sharp reply.

Tess shook her head, earning a terrifying glower from the Black Queen. “I'm sorry, Mistress. I've been so busy helping Shaw that it slipped my mind.”

“Well?” she bellowed. Really, some people forgot who was boss around here. “What are you waiting for! Go fetch someone this instant! And if you ever forget your duties again, it will be from you that I'm feeding!”

“Yes, Mistress,” Tessa murmured. She turned to leave, knowing that she should obey Selene or else suffer the woman's sadistic tendencies. However, she'd have to brave Selene's moods now if she didn't want to be punished later. It seemed like she was nothing but the Hellfire's punching bag these days – what with the tension between the Black King and Queen. Loyal assistant indeed. “Pardon me, but... Shaw wished me to relay a message. He requests your presence in his study.”

“I'll go see him now. Now scat, girl! I better not see your peasant face until you have something worth my time!”

Tessa scurried off, presumably to procure “food” for her mistress. Selene watched her retreat, noticing that the weak little girl seemed more terrified than usual. Although Tessa had proven a loyal and, excepting slip-ups like this, efficient servant, Selene often had misgivings about the young mutant. That sliver of apprehension usually manifested itself in mistreatment, especially since Selene had a strange penchant for terrorizing young women. Still, Tessa had never given Selene any real reason for mistrust. Perhaps after all these years, Selene was suspicious of anyone. After all she'd been through, Selene just how dangerous trust could be...

She dismissed these thoughts, retreating to her bedchamber to change into a simple black gown, which was different from her usual bustier, panties and thigh-hight boots. Even though she had drained several mutants at the bar, Selene was exhausted. Hopefully Tessa would bring back a treat to brighten her spirits, but until then she did not have the patience or energy to put on anything complicated.

Shaw was in his office as Tessa had indicated when Selene rapped lightly on the door. She heard a shuffling of papers before a voice called, “Come in.”

Sebastian Shaw sat in an over-stuffed armchair, his shoulder-length brown hair pulled back into a ribbon. He wore a Victorian-style ensemble that might appear unusual to anyone not initiated into the Hellfire's Inner Circle. Their organization had a long history, dating before even the Victorian period, and Shaw's choice of wardrobe reflected the group's insistence on tradition. Most of the men wore similar clothing, while the women strangely preferred to run around in little more than underwear and a cape.

Selene wondered if Sebastian would be surprised to discover that Selene had been around before most people wore clothing at all. The members of the Inner Circle knew that Selene was an ancient creature – she'd never let them forget it – though no one knew exactly how old she was. After all, a woman never shares her true age, especially when she doesn't look a day over twenty-eight.

“You wanted to see me?”

He fidgeted in his seat. Selene suspected that one of the swine hanging around had heard her conversation with Tessa and passed the information along. Well, if he knew she had found Emma, then Selene was determined not to let on.

“It's about Emma...”

“You're still thinking about that trash?” she sneered in reply.

“Pierce kindly informed me that you've been unhappy with my leadership ever since I allowed Emma Frost to escape.”

Allowed? As if Shaw had a choice in the matter – Emma had up and disappeared. And as for for Donald Pierce, she thought, he could always be counted on to play both sides. The bastard wasn't even a mutant. If Selene had her way, he'd be the first to go. White King my ass, she silently swore.

“If you have a problem with the way I'm handling things, I'd appreciate it if you'd come to me directly,” Sebastian continued aggressively.

“Oh, of course.” Selene's lips curved into a serpentine smile. “I would never dream of questioning you, Sebastian. And I'm sure that you will restore my trust in you by recovering our missing Queen – or finding a suitable mutant to take her place.”

He froze. Insults he expected – threats perhaps. Selene might even call a meeting to tear him apart in front of the entire Inner Circle. The Black Queen was rarely kind – in fact, she had made a name for herself by being the most ruthless member of Hellfire. And Shaw wasn't blind to Selene's “secret” dungeon, nor the various “pets” she kept at her feet. He had long suspected Selene was preparing for mutiny, and her sly graciousness only confirmed it.

“Yes,” he replied carefully. “Regan is contacting leads on Frost as we speak.”

“Well, then, it sounds as if I have nothing to worry about.” She bowed slightly, giving Sebastian even more room for mistrust. Selene never bowed to anyone. People bowed to her. She was, after all, a self-proclaimed goddess. “If you don't mind, I have some matters to attend to before I turn in...”

Shaw nodded in mock-understanding. “Good night, Selene.”

“Good night, Shaw.”

She closed the door behind her, smirking. 'How lucky I found her first – and dessert to boot. It's as if the universe is paving my path to becoming divinity. It won't be long until the pieces are in place to claim the throne for myself.'

x x x

“Kitty, watch out!”

Shadowcat blinked as a circular saw just barely cut her torso in two. “Geez! Wolverine must be, like, really pissed to make us train this hard after what happened last night.”

Tabitha dodged a laser, then threw a time bomb at its source. “It's like he *wants* us to die.”

“I told ya kids that training starts this morning,” Logan growled from the control room. “No excuses. You runts better stop yapping and pay attention.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Boom Boom moaned. She still hadn't woken up – even after two cups of coffee. Half-asleep, she wasn't the greatest asset to the team. “Jeez. He's such a buzz kill.”

“Amara!” Jean yelled, struggling to keep a large slab of ceiling from crushing her – thanks to Tabitha's terribly-aimed time bombs. “A little help here!”

Magma abandoned her task of reducing robots to liquid and ran over to her red-haired teammate. She used a blast of fire to burn through the material, letting the rest of fall to the right and left of them.

“Thanks for the assist,” Jean said gratefully.

“It's not over yet,” Cyclops warned. “Wolverine just upped the level.”

“Sadist!” Rogue swore, sucker-punching the robot who was trying to slice her into bite-size bits.

“Hey, guys!” Iceman called from atop a ice-slide. “Check this out! Mutant bob-sledding!”

He proceeded to slide down his creation like they did in the Olympics, but unfortunately, the Danger Room wasn't about to let him horse around. Wolverine turned on a flame-thrower and cut Bobby's track short. He promptly fell on his ass.

“Ouch!”

“If this was a real fight, we'd be done for,” Kitty complained, phasing through a series of throwing knives.

“We already got our asses handed to us in a real fight,” Rogue reminded them, sending a robot flying through the room with a round-house kick. “And it was seven to one.”

“Less talking, more fighting,” Wolverine bellowed from above.

“He really isn't a morning person,” Kurt commented, jumping from one robot to another and ripping out its computer interface as he ported. “I'm already vorn out, and it's only been twenty minutes.”

Cyclops avoided a blow from another robot, decapitating it with a massive optic beam. “Next week we're supposed to spar with Storm's team. So we need to step up our game.”

“Of course Mr. Leader couldn't live with himself if we lost to the other team,” Boom Boom mumbled. She definitely wasn't having any fun. After taking some serious beatings from robots and lasers, Tabitha realized just how weak her mutant power could be. And her time bombs had actually proved troublesome rather than helpful, as some debris had fallen on her teammates. She wondered how Amara was holding up. After all, she was still sore from last night's battle.

But Tabitha wasn't alone. Nearly everyone was having problems. It was difficult to focus on the task at hand when Wolverine kept sending more distractions at them. The goal, of course, was to reach the control room and end the simulation by “eliminating” the source, Wolverine. But it was easier said than done. Nightcrawler tried to teleport there multiple times, only to find himself falling back to to earth after taking a hit from the lasers meant to keep them away.

“Our 30 minutes are almost up,” Cyclops informed his team. “We need to get to that control room as fast as we can.”

“Yeah, well Kurt and I already tried,” Iceman replied defensively. “The security is pretty tight up there. You got any better ideas?”

“Actually, I do.” He looked to Jean, who nodded, understanding his intent. “I say that we send Shadowcat up there. She can phase through the lasers and get through the glass faster than any of us.”

“Like, no freaking way! How am I supposed to get up there? Angel's on the other team, remember?” She snorted. “And Kurt already tried to 'port me up there, but we all know how effective that was.”

“Sorry, Kitty, I tried my best,” he said with a shrug.

“I'll levitate you up there,” Jean offered.

But Shadowcat wasn't sold on that idea. “No offense, Red, but... are you, like, positive that you have enough control to keep me in the air? I don't want to end up like Bobby.”

“It would be better if I could find something to steady you with,” Jean admitted. “I still haven't mastered telekineses.”

Rogue dodged another flame-thrower attack. Her watch beeped. Four minutes left. If they didn't hurry, they'd never complete this mission. Emma was always telling Rogue to make a place for herself on the team rather than waiting for Jean or Scott to create a place for her. Sure, no one in the room had telekineses. But they were forgetting one very important detail – Rogue essentially had all of their powers under her arsenal.

“I think I have an idea,” she said suddenly. “What if I took some of y'r power, Jean? That way I could help you control Kitty's trajectory. We'd levitate her together.”

Jean hesitated. Rogue's suggestion was actually quite good, but she still felt uneasy about letting the girl drain her powers. How would Rogue know when to let go? What if she took too much? Jean knew that she'd been able to drain others without knocking them unconscious, but even if Jean was still awake, would she have enough strength left to get Shadowcat to the control room?

“What do you think, Scott?” she asked cautiously. Maybe it was better to let the leader decide.

He thought for a second. Wolverine was not letting up. He kept sending wave after wave of robots and weaponry. “It's pointless to keep fighting things down here. We need to get up there. And I think that if we have a shot, we should take it. Rogue's suggestion might work.”

“All right,” Jean conceded. She extended a hand to her teammate. “Just... don't take too much, okay?”

“Like I want you in my head,” Rogue shot back a little angrily. She touched a bare finger to Jean's for a few seconds – just long enough to take a portion of Jean's telekineses.

“Okay, Kitty,” Jean said after she had recovered from the unpleasant sensation, “are you ready?”

“Like, as ready as I can be,” she said nervously. “Just don't drop me, okay? You too, Rogue. I know where you sleep.”

As Rogue and Jean focused of levitating Shadowcat, Cyclops turned to the remaining X-Men. “Our top priority right now is to make sure Kitty reaches that control room. Kurt and Bobby, I need you guys to focus on keeping the stuff above ground from blocking Kitty's ascent. The rest of us need to make sure Jean and Rogue aren't interrupted. So that means taking out anything that moves.”

“Roger that,” Iceman said, already sliding away.

“Magma, can you create a barrier around Rogue and Jean?”

Amara shrugged. “I'll see if I can make a wall around them, but I can't promise that it'll be pleasant.”

“How are you doing up there, Kitty?” Jean asked.

Kitty yelped when Jean's broken concentration caused a minor hiccup, which Rogue was quick to smooth out. She phased through a laser and narrowly missed a flame-thrower to the face. “Oh, I'm just, like, peachy. Considering Mr. Logan's trying to murder me and all.”

“Two minutes!” Cyclops shouted. “Iceman! Kurt! We need you to help Kitty!”

“I'm trying, man!” Bobby returned, freezing two laser guns. “But there's just too much to deal with!”

“It's okay guys,” Kitty said. “I'm almost there.”

Unfortunately, Jean was losing steam. “How much do you weigh, Kitty?” she groaned. “You're getting really heavy.”

“Thanks a lot!” Kitty huffed. “I'm on a diet, you know!”

“Just keep goin',” Rogue encouraged. “Me and Jean are tryin' our hardest down here.”

“All right, all right!”

Kitty was a mere inch from the glass when Wolverine unleashed a massive laser attack on the poor girl. Luckily, she managed to phase her way through the onslaught, and reach the control room. But once she was inside, Kitty was surprised to discover that the simulation wasn't over.

“You're gonna have to go through me first, kid,” Wolverine said, guarding the computer panel.

“Oh, I'll go *through* you all right,” Kitty retorted, phasing through him. She solidified for a moment to hit the cancel button on the keyboard, abruptly ending the simulation. “Going through things is what I do best!”

“Yes!” Cyclops celebrated from the ground as the aggressive robots suddenly shut down. “We made it with seconds to spare. Good going, team!”

“Thanks to your quick thinking,” Jean said to Rogue. “I wouldn't have been able to do it without your help.”

Rogue blushed. She wasn't used to receiving compliments, especially for using her deadly power. “It's no big deal,” she replied. “I probably wouldn't have thought about it if it wasn't for Emma trainin' with me. She really encourages creativity in battle.” And in bed, Rogue added silently.

“Oh, by the way, how is Emma?” Jean inquired, careful to not let anything more than curiosity and concern come through her tone.

“She was still sleepin' when I got up this mornin'. But I think Beast said she's doin' better...”

Kitty phased back down to ground zero, inserting herself between the her friend and roommate. “I was thinking about visiting her later, if you want to come with, Jean. I made her some matza ball soup. It's, like, Jewish penicillin.” Rogue bit back a comment about how terrible Kitty's cooking was. “But I definitely need a shower first. I smell like Toad right now.”

Scott approached the group. “You did great, Shadowcat. And Rogue, that was just the solution we needed. You really are quick on your feet.” He met Rogue's eyes awkwardly, then looked away. “I'd say that's the second time you've saved my hide.”

“Yeah, well, you've helped me out a bunch too.” Her cheeks grew even redder. “I probably wouldn't have joined the team if you hadn't been so... persistent.”

He opened his mouth to reply, only to be interrupted by Tabitha and Magma.

“Hey, Rogue, do you know how Emma's doing?” Boom Boom asked. She lowered her voice, afraid that Mr. Logan's animal senses might pick up the next part. “Or what our punishment is for... you know?”

“I don't know anythin', sorry.”

Scott raised an eyebrow. “That's right. You weren't at the theater last night. I heard someone attacked you...”

“It's a long story,” Rogue said. “I'm sure you can ask Jamie all about it. He was spyin' on us all night.” She sighed. “If we're done, I'm gonna get outta here before Wolverine decides to keep us all after class for extracurricular Danger Room sessions.”

Cyclops nodded. “Sure, Rogue. Let me know how Emma's doing.” An image of Rogue and Emma making out flashed across his mind, but he pushed it away. All that was a dream – probably brought on by Jean's comment about the two of them together. Scott wasn't completely oblivious to the beauty of his other female teammates, but he wasn't about to lose the best thing that had happened to him over raging hormones. “Um, you know, everyone's pretty worried about her.”

“I'll tell her you said that. I'm sure she'll be glad to know.” With that, Rogue waved good-bye to her fellow X-Men and slipped out the door.

x x x

Author's End-Note: Okay, I swear this will get better. Again, not my favorite chapter... I'm just trying to do some character development here. More violence, sex, and Hellfire will be coming soon, I promise. Also, if you have time to spare, please click that little review button. Your comments, even negative will not only help my writing skills, but also help light a fire under my ass to update! :)