Christmas 2013: Rogue

[Ferguson]

Rogue sat in a chair at the table, looking out the window at the stone she had put in place for Sam. It had been over a year now. She looked down at the magazine on the table and turned the page as she took a bite of her apple. It was empty and quiet in the kitchen. Just how she liked it. She glanced up at the ceiling then back down at the magazine without even blinking.

It wasn't empty for long though. Jean-Paul came in on a mission, and that mission was to cook some pasta as he was definitely running low on carbs and such and that was one of the quickest pick-me-ups he knew how to make. He was in and to the stove before he realized he wasn't alone. He glanced over, nodding to Rogue though she wasn't someone he had spoken too too terrible much. "Hello there."

Rogue looked up with just her eyes. Why was someone here? She managed to nod back though, "Hey."

Oh yeah, that's why not many of his year knew Rogue too well as far as Jean-Paul knew, standoffish and monosyllabic. Still, silence, it had to be filled! "Um, would you like some pasta?"

"Nope." Rogue held up her apple and waved it a bit without looking up at him again. Maybe he would go away soon without saying much more to her...

"Ah, all right then." Rogue 1, Jean-Paul 0. I'm definitely losing at this. Unfortunately he had to actually wait for the water to boil before he could even put his pasta on to cook so Rogue was going to be stuck with him for a while. "So what are you up to?"

Rogue closed her eyes and took a slow deep breath then opened them and closed her magazine all at once, finally fully looking up at him. "Nothin' now."

"Okay then." Rogue was definitely getting some side-eye for that. "I'll just stay over here then. Won't interrupt your stoic mopery anymore. Don't mind me."

"Ain't mopin'. Readin'." She took a bite of her apple and opened the magazine back up to make the point.

"Right, fine." Siiiide-eye. "Anything interesting?"

"Nope." Rogue took another bite of the apple then tossed it past Jean-Paul and into the garbage can. "Ain't y'all gonna get out tha pasta f'r when tha water's boilin'?"

"I had considered it. It generally doesn't taste near as nice if you skip that step." He watched the apple sail over, not sure what to make of this person at all.

"Then y' should do that then." Rogue got up and went to the sink for a glass of water, avoiding walking directly under where Sam had died.

The side-eye was now looking more than a little perturbed and Jean-Paul moved noisily to get the mentioned pasta out.

Rogue filled the glass and drank as she looked blankly out the window over the sink. She waited for a moment to see if he would quiet down then turned to look at him, "Could y' do that with a lil more respect f'r tha other people in tha room? In other words: Quietly?"

"Are you really going to school me on politeness? Really?" Yep, there came the stink eye. Jean-Paul poured the pasta in as loudly as anyone could manage. "Pardon me for attempting to get to know someone I hadn't had the chance to talk to all this time. Be unresponsive all you want but if you're about to try to lecture me on that it's the pot and the kettle I believe."

"Ah've not done a damned thing ta get in y'all's way'r bother ya at all. So don't y'all turn this 'round an' try ta make it like me bein' quiet an' not real social is tha same thing as y'all disturbin' tha peace with tha loudest bag o' noodles ever."

"Oh no, you haven't been a snooty thing over there at all. Never you mind, I've no intentions of bothering you with any company ever again. You don't need to worry a thing about pleasantries from me."

"Since when has anyone ever had a problem with a person keepin' ta themselves? An' where tha hell do ya get off talkin' back ta staff that way?"

"I'm sorry, I wasn't aware you graduating meant I had to take shit from you" He reached over, grabbing a napkin and holding it out for her. "I assume you intend to wipe."

"Sugah, it ain't shit ya takin' from me. 'Cause Ah didn't bother yall. It was y'all who bothered me." Rogue glared at the napkin and wanted to step up to get in his face but hesitated as it meant she'd have to cross the kitchen under the spot she hated and wouldn't. "Why don't ya use that ta clean up tha mess ya makin' from tha water boilin over?"

"Oh, so now you're going to tell me when I'm bothered? This must be why I see you alone all the time, too unpleasant to be tolerated." The mess was cleaned up in speed, Jean-Paul gaining his spot right back, arms crossed and just waiting for her.

"Why tha hell does it bother ya that Ah like ta keep ta mahself? It's mah business. Not y'alls. An' Ah'd thank ya kindly ta remember that."

"Keep to yourself all you want, when you're rude about it, however, don't be surprised when I'm rude right back. And I had always heard southerners were supposed to be hospitable."

"If y'all'd left me alone, Ah wouldn't had ta be rude ta make ya do so." She smirked, "We're plenty hospitable, sugah. But we're also some o' tha meanest when ya piss us off."

"Maybe you should invest in a sign. I imagine Penny has a spare chalkboard." he smirked right back.

"Maybe y'all should know not ta poke a sleepin' bear."

"I'm terribly sorry, I mistook you for human. I see I was in error."

"Yeah, there's where ya wrong. Ah ain't been 'human' in a while. But if y'all would listen when people talk an' whisper 'bout mah bad moods in tha halls, ya would know that."

"I tend not to listen to gossip." He arched an eyebrow at the human debate though but decided that was another discussion. "Maybe you should take midol for that and people won't have to whisper."

"Ah don't give a damn if they whisper so long as they leave me alone." She glared, "This ain't a Midol problem anyhow."

"My apologies again, I'm still sure they make a pill for you. Maybe a few."

"Ain't no pill in tha world can get rid o' this an' Ah don't want it gone anyhow. So thanks f'r ya opinions, but now ya should just leave well enough alone an' eat ya lunch."

"And what is 'this'? Have the voices you use to keep you company in your head had a mutiny or something?" He stepped out from what he didn't realize was his protective zone, back to the stove to tend his food.

"Ah tried ta warn ya politely not ta backtalk me. Shut ya trap 'fore Ah shut it f'r ya."

"Oh yes, staff violence, I'm sure [i[that's[/i} tolerated."

"Ah really don't give a shit what's tolerated an' haven't in a little over a year. Like Ah said: if ya listened ta what people say, y'all'd know that."

"Oh, I'm sorry, as it turns out my existence here hasn't revolved about learning about you and you can be well assured it won't after this."

"Good. How 'bout we keep it that way an' start now?" She moved back to sit at the table again, sidestepping around the spot on the ceiling once more.

Jean-Paul, not knowing about the spot at all, saw that as her avoiding him entirely. "What? Am I so repugnant you have to walk around me? Afraid I'm going to wig out and dump the pasta water on you or something? I have better social grace than that though I suppose it's a novel idea to you."

Rogue looked completely confused about that and stared at him in silence for a moment, "What?"

"I believe I insinuated your social charms are primative and might involve you going 'Me am Smashy!'"

"They ain't primative. Ah just don't care much f'r people. That would include y'all by tha way. In case ya were wonderin'."

"I can't imagine too many people care for you either. I can't imagine how with this evidence."

Rogue glared at him silently for a minute then turned and looked out the window at Sam's stone, ignoring Jean-Paul.

He wasn't looking at her as he got his plate together. "I'll be sure to warn any innocent person away from talking with you. You can thank me however you like."

"That'd be grand. Thanks. Now if there's nothin' else ya needed?" She gestured at the door for him then looked back out the window.

"Well, maybe I thought I'd eat in the kitchen." He looked up, giving her the smartest of looks.

Rogue looked at him fully and gave him a blank face. "Well, maybe Ah thought y'all'd keep ya word an' get out o' mah hair."

"I don't see that you have any say over where I eat. Or is that why the ceiling had to be patched?"

Rogue felt her heart stop for a second and her eyes burned with angry tears as her jaw clenched. "Shut ya trap."

"Pushed someone's head through and just left them there kicking 'Noo, I'm sorry, I'll never make a joke about your hair again!'"

With that, Rogue dove over the table, tackling Jean-Paul to the ground, "Ah said shut it!" She slapped her bare hand to his face and held it there.

What in the sheer fuckery? Jean-Paul did not understand this. There was bitchy and then there was flat out crazy. There was no doubt which this was but it should just be a quick zip over...oh...well...that was a problem.

"Ya cain't run away from me if Ah want ya t' be gotten. Ah fly just as fast as ya run. Remember that."

What the fuck? No she doesn't. Oh...wait...now she would. That's right, that's what she did. Jean-Paul's thoughts were slowing down pretty swiftly along with his struggling.

Rogue grinned as his eyes closed and his body went limp. He was still breathing so that was good. Then she realized where she was and she zipped over away from it, pressing herself to the wall and breathing heavily. Rogue closed her eyes and tried to slow her breathing just as she got all of his memories in her head. She slammed up a wall as fast as she could, not wanting to deal with it just at the moment.

When she felt like she'd stopped shaking from being under the spot on the ceiling, she went back to her seat and was glad to see him still on the floor. Good. Gained her silence for a while. She opened her magazine back up and started reading where she'd left off.

Jean-Paul simply slid down flat onto the floor, completely out and limp as can be.

Rogue finished the article and went to the fridge to get some grapes, glancing over her shoulder at the lump on the floor before going back to her chair with a bowl of the aforementioned fruit.

It took a good while for Jean-Paul to move, rolling over and curling up into a ball, piecing together what exactly had happened with a deep grumble.

Rogue blinked at the noise then frowned with a sigh. Damnit. He woke up sooner than she wanted. "G'mornin'."

He sat up, rubbing his face and looked up at the voice. Oh lovely. "So you're who does that."

"Who else did ya think did it?"

"I didn't really think it important enough to ask around. Didn't figure I needed to research everyone's powers in the school."

Rogue zipped over to the sink, got him a glass of water and set it as close to him as she could manage without getting under the spot, then went back to sit down.

"Well now ya know."

"Thank you." He took the water. "Handy powers, that, though I suggest you don't use it to get over the quarantine border, doesn't work."

"Ah don't leave tha mansion much, so no worries there." She nodded at the water, "Welcome. Ya gonna leave me alone now?"

"It might take me a moment." He answered quite truthfully, still firmly seated on the floor. "Well, at least I'm not cuffed and with some nude tiger girl in the back of a truck again."

"Maybe ya shoulda been more careful then."

He arched an eyebrow high at that. "Really?"

"Yeah really. Disable tha tech 'fore ya go in. Or take someone with ya who knows how if y'all don't."

"Except for the part where nobody knew it existed?" He tested, then arched an eyebrow. "...you know that now, hmm?"

Rogue sighed, "That's why ya always check everything 'bout the place ya goin'. Case tha place. Even tha city borders. Every single nook'n cranny."

"And we're supposed to magically know what it looks like too, eh? I'll keep in mind to be magic next time."

"Anythin' that looks suspiscious... Or even if it doesn't... Check it out." Are these new kids learning nothing in their training classes?

"I'm so terribly sorry to have failed you." His eyes rolled hard again. "If only your powers worked in reverse so I might be as flawlessly perfect as you."

"Ah never said Ah was perfect. But ya really should pay attention in class. 'Cause that was a rookie mistake."

"And exactly how does one case 'out of the city' without being picked up for nosing around anyway? Teach me, kemosabe."

"Well obviously ya know how not to. So maybe Ah should just let ya try again an' see if ya can do it better."

"I could always watch and learn."

"Sure ya could. If ya had any interest in bein' around me. So why don't ya just go off an' find someone who can show ya how that ain't me so y' don't have ta be 'round mah 'unpleasant' self. An' don't worry 'bout ya powers. They'll be back in 'bout an hour'r so, give'r take a few minutes."

"Oh dear, have I wounded your delicate senses?" Picking himself up off of the floor, Jean-Paul just grabbed a loaf of bread, deciding he deserved it.

Rogue laughed, "Oh hell no. Ah ain't that delicate, sugah. But thanks f'r tha laugh."

"Then sound less butthurt about it." He opened the bread up, eating away.

"Butthurt? Really?" Rogue rolled her eyes, "Sugah, get a new vocabulary."

"I find it quite accurate for your general demeanor from what I've seen of it. I use the word that fits the situation."

"Mah general demeanor is mah own ta decide what word best describes it. An' Ah choose anti-social. So unless ya need help with ya powers, which Ah know ya don't, do us both a favor an' stay out o' mah way."

"The school is both of ours to inhabit. I've no intentions of purposefully crossing your path but I'm certainly not going to go out of my way to avoid it either."

"That's all Ah can ask. An' that ya learn how ta make pasta in a quieter manner."

"You're probably hungry if you take on my powers in the same state as I had them at that moment. bread?"

Rogue arched an eyebrow at him offering her something to eat. "What's wrong with it? Stale?"

"Nothing wrong with it. It came from the supply truck two days ago."

She sat there for a moment before taking the proffered bread and taking a bite. "Thanks."

"If you'd take a peek into the memories you'd see I generally don't like letting people go hungry, after all. You're welcome."

"Ah know ya don't. But ya also ain't that fond o' me."

"I'm not fond of a lot of people." he shrugged, taking a few more slices.

"Me neither. Join tha club." She took another slice and got up to get some peanut butter to put on it.

He couldn't help but laugh at the idea of that as a club. "Sort of defeating the purpose in a roundabout way."

"Yeah, but who tha hell cares?" She got the peanut butter, avoided the spot to get a knife, and sat back down at the table with her treasures. "Peanut butter?"

"Point there." he nodded. "Yes, please."

Rogue spread the peanut butter on the piece in her hand, held it out to him and took another slice for herself.

After spreading some on that slice, she folded it in half and looked at him, sizing him up. "Sorry."

"Yeah, sorry as well." He admitted between bites of his sandwich. "I have a...thing when I think I'm being snubbed."

"So Ah noticed. Ah have a thing when people won't lemme 'lone." She glanced up at the ceiling, "Also have a thing 'bout that. If ya wanna know, ask someone else."

"I'll be sure to." he nodded.

"But we'll just not mention it at the moment."

"Smart man." She made them both another sandwich then covered her hand with a napkin and stuck it out to shake, "Truce?"

He easily reached over and shook the hand. "Truce."

[Ferguson]

Jean-Paul stepped out, still pulling tinsel out of his hair as he pulled his coat on, looking up quite happily at the little bit of snow that was coming down. "Mmm, fantastic."

"Me? Oh I know, but thank you for the compliment," a voice issued from above him. Darren was sitting on the low roof above the patio, legs swinging over the side, a box next to him and smoking a cigarette.

Rogue walked out from the back of the garage with her own box and lifted herself up onto the roof a few feet from Darren. "'Lo, Jean-Paul."

He tilted his back and up farther, looking up to see Darren. "You're quite welcome. Hello, Rogue. How goes it out here?"

Darren grinned savagely, "Coldly, apparently," he tapped the box with his elbow, "I've been asked to do the outdoor lights, I guess the skunk here was asked to help ... either that or she just wants to try an annoy me ... or she could be minding her own business but this is Roguey we're talking about so probably not." He took another pull, "What brings you out into the oh so seasonal weather?"

"Ah'm hangin' lights o' mah own accord, Darren. An' Ah've been mindin' mah own business a lot f'r tha past year if ya hadn't noticed." She pulled out lights from the box and looked down at JP, "Gonna help'r just stand there lookin' at us?"

"The seasonal weather brings me out but I suppose I might as well come up and help. I can look at scores of people." He smirked, flying himself on up. "I suppose it does make sense to have the fliers do the lights now, doesn't it?"

"Yep, and those immune to the cold in my case," he took a final drag and flicked the stub away, "and with you we'll probably get it done extra fast now." He made no move to take any lights out.

Jean-Paul didn't go for the lights but he did go for the light staple gun. "I'm just all around useful."

"Oh yeah. Y'all're plenty useful. At givin' me headaches." She passed him some lights to hang.

"See, for absolutely everything." He just grinned, starting to hang where he was. "As well you should know. Had any chats with your head-friend?"

"Now, now Roguey, you being a naughty girl and bad touching the students?" Darren scolded mildly, "setting a bad example there," he grinned as he took out another cigarette before offering the packet around.

"Every chance Ah get, Dar." She smirked and took a cigarette as she looked over to Jean-Paul, "Several. He's very annoyin'. Cain't get him ta shut up really."

"You really shouldn't be surprised." He gave her a wide, completely insincere smile. "Maybe he'll be helpful."

Darren tisked and rolled his eyes, pocketing his cigarettes again, "Y'know one of these days you're gonna bad-touch once to often and they'll kick you outta here, toots," he warned with a wave of a finger before using it to light his smoke, "So JP ... recovered from the near flambeing?"

"Oh yeah, recovered quite nicely. This wasn't the first time I've been knocked out by an angry butch girl."

Rogue passed more lights to JP, 'accidentally' elbowing him hard enough to knock him off his feet and hopefully to the ground. "Hey, they knew when they hired me that anyone who talks 'bout Sam gets a beatin'."

The ground was going to be a bit of a stretch as far as getting Jean-Paul to hit. Instead he just hoovered off of the roof, stringing the lights around. "Helps to warn the new people as to who Sam even was ahead of time though. And I never brought him up at all, just a poorly crafted ceiling. It does make me wonder how many times various places of this school has been rebuilt...should I be worried?"

Darren snorted, "Oh yeah, I forgot Rogue doesn't do the whole rational thing," he nodded, still making no move to help the two with the lights, "maybe she figured that it left such a 'psychic impression'" he did air quotes, "that even non-psychics should be able to pick up the fact that it happened." He gave JP an unhappy smile, "A few semesters ago there was this kid ... he couldn't control his powers at all and they were some fucking freaky powers, let me tell you! Upshot of it is that Rogue's fiance Sam was killed in an explosion in the kitchen."

"Murdered, Darren," Rogue said blankly as she grabbed her own staple gun and started with a new strand of lights.

"Well, may there be no more explosions then." He pulled a face, definitely wanting to avoid all such things. "Any other horrors I should know?"

"Tons."

"Comforting."

"Well there's the cylon in the basement that's been taking courtship lessons off Edward Cullen, but you're probably safe from her ... then there's Wade ... let's just leave that at that ..."

"Danger? Oh I all ready know Danger." He chuckled. "Reed is mildly obsessed with Danger...and by mildly I feel I should knock just in case."

"Wade's his own breed o' horror." Rogue flew along the side of the roof stapling the lights up. "But he ain't really dangerous."

"Oh, and there's Leech up in the attic, he has the power to neutralize all mutations, so don't try flying around him," Darren scratched his chin thoughtfully, "But apart from that ... I mean, you don't need warning about Adam and his stabby-stabby do you, you guys already know each other."

Rogue shuddered at the mention of Adam and the memories that brought up from JP's psyche.

"Yeah, all ready know Adam." Jean-Paul answered, giving Rogue a look. "Oh what are you shuddering at?"

"... Oooh, I recognize that shudder, that's the 'foreign memories uncomfortable sex-act' shudder," Darren grinned, "You mean Twitchy McLeprechaun finally got laid?"

"Hey, no parts of my sex-act memories deserve a shudder." He defended himself. "She should be glad for the free porn, I'd think."

Rogue gave Darren a glare and then turned to Jean-Paul, "Ah ain't glad f'r nothin', thanks. Ah've been real a-sexual lately."

"That doesn't mean you can't recognize quality when you remember it."

Darren snorted, "Hey, could be worse Stripes, at least you haven't inherited any sexual fantasies that involve you from him," he pointed at JP with his cigarette, "So ... morbid curiosity here, what is Adam like in the sack? Either of you can answer this by the way."

"...I'm going to go with an apt pupil. I swear he studied for it."

"... Studied?" Darren frowned at the though of how you 'studied' for such a subject ... was it unfair of him to suspect that Cessily was involved?

Rogue arched an eyebrow at Darren, "Why? Have y'all heard o' any sexual fantasies that involve y'all from someone ya 'hived' with?"

"Of course, how else would I be able to recognize that particular twitch," Darren took his cigarette out of his mouth long enough to poke his tongue out at her.

"...are you the school perversion oracles somehow? Because that sounds like warnings I'd be able to appreciate more." Jean-Paul plugged in a new string of lights, continuing on. "And I can't be the only one that thinks the word 'hived' just sounds dirty in this context, right?"

"I'm serious about the studying though. I'd not be surprised if he hasn't gotten himself a notebook and is taking notes from everything he can find on the internet...I should be more worried than I am."

Rogue blinked at Jean-Paul then turned to look at Darren for a second then back to JP. "Yes we are."

She took another strand of lights and kept going along the roof, "With Darren, hived is just as dirty as it sounds an' then not so much at tha same time."

"The vulcan mindmeld I'm cool with talking about, the hiving not so much, especially given the current situation," Darren sighed, taking a final drag and flicking the end away as he turned to JP, "I may have this ... zombie drone power y'see ..."

"...yeah, that doesn't sound near as appealing as it did a minute ago." He pulled a face. "I think I've all ready had my fill of zombie drones."

"Yeah, well Ah ain't so cool with talkin' 'bout Sam bein' possessed an' then combustin'. So now we're even."

"Yeah, but if you're going to start bad-touching people for referring to it without even knowing about it, you're gonna half to start talking about it sooner or later," Darren shrugged, "I mean, I haven't life-drained you for bringing it up, have I?"

"Will the two of you quit getting off topic with life-draining or essence sucking or whatever? Stick with the good bits now." He hovered back, giving their decor a critical eye. "I suppose doing this won't draw the inky tentacles right to us, yeah?"

"... Naaah, I mean, they're all in the city right? Why'd they be out here?" Darren said confidently ... but he still found himself scanning the grounds nervously ...

"Maybe the not-actually-undead don't like Christmas cheer...or maybe they'll associate it with some sort of meal."

Rogue frowned and looked behind her cautiously, "Ah don't want them ta associate it with a meal... Ah like them not likin' Christmas a lot better..."

"Well ... what do you guys wanna do? Take 'em down?" Darren took out another cigarette and lit it.

"Why don't you take 'em down since y'all ain't even helpin' ta put 'em up?"

"Well, it's not like we won't know until we light them up."

"Well, I say light 'em, we could do with some cheer around here I guess and if they do attract the Star-spawn ... we've proved we can handle them more that once."

Rogue blinked at Darren, "Y'all're certifiable, y' know it?" She sighed and kept stringing the lights though until she got to the edge of the roof. "Plug 'em in, Speedy Gonzales."

"I'm not sure if I object to the rodent suggestion or the geographical confusion most." He did go to plug them in though, smiling up at what they had created. "None too shabby."

"Yep, I am Stripes, but at least I have a shrink for it," he winked at her before blowing out a stream of smoke, "Mmm ... nice work guys, looks really nice."

"Good. Y'all need it." She hovered back from the roof and put her hands on her hips and gave a sharp nod. "Perfect. Y'all wanna help me do tha rest o' tha house? Figure Ah'll line tha windows too."

"Why not? It's certainly better than camping out in the recroom waiting for something to do."

Darren sighed, "Yes, I am totally the only person here who needs a shrink," he shrugged, "Yeah sure, might as well use 'em all up."

'More than likely the whole place needs something."

"Alright then. Let's get this done an' get inside. Ah'm gettin' cold." She hefted her box under her arm and headed to the side of the house, not bothering to wait for the boys.

Jean-Paul fought down the temptation to bring snow along just to get her colder, following Darren on inside and shutting the door behind him. Beyond the fence came and interested murring sound as a finger reached out into a tentacle, wrapping around one of the bars.