"The Rogue Inside You"
by Brett White

Rogue is sitting in her room feeling very depressed and much like she has been lately. She?s looking at a photo album filled with pictures of the X-Men and her. Then the door creaks open.

GAMBIT: Hello? You busy chere?

ROGUE: Hmm? Uh, no. No...come in.

GAMBIT: I was thinking, we not been alone much since I came back...thinking maybe we could go out for a night on de town? Dere?ll be plenty of romance-

ROGUE: No.

GAMBIT: What? Chere, what is wrong?

ROGUE: Y?know, ah been askin? myself that lately. With Joseph?s death and our...situation, I?ve been thinking that I need to get a hold of mah life again. It seem like it?s been forevah since ah felt somewhat in control of my life. Ah don?t...ah?m not even sure about us anymore Remy.

GAMBIT: Really? This how you feel? I...this wouldn?t be some ?ittle part of me dat?s still trapped inside your mind now issit?

ROGUE: No. It?s not. Besides, ah?ve already got plans for today. So...ah gotta get ready.

GAMBIT: Oh well, then...I?m gone den. No needin? bein? somewhere I?m not wanted.

He leaves the room. Rogue walks over to her closet and pulls out her green X-Men outfit. But there?s something about this outfit?what? Then she remembers. It?s the costume she wore then. When she was evil. When she was an evil mutant. She shakes away the memory and puts the outfit on. She walks over to the window and opens it. The wind blows on her face, sweeping her long auburn hair behind her. Then she jumps out of the window and embraces the wind. Out of all the consequences she?s suffered from her powers, this is probably her favorite one. Her gift of flight was siphoned off of Ms. Marvel, and through her powers Ms. Marvel?s thoughts almost consumed the young Rogue. But this is another memory she decides to shake away.

She flies almost across the entire state of New York until she finds the meeting place. It?s been forever since she?s seen them, how will they treat her? Like the traitor that she was? As the enemy she has become? But all her fears are surprisingly turned to nervousness once she sees the glinting off of his metallic armor. Avalanche. Followed by the enormous mass known as the Blob. "What?s that?" she thinks as she hears a loud cough. The flame controlling Pyro who has become deathly ill. And lastly...

MYSTIQUE: Hello...Rogue. It?s nice to know you?ve come to your senses. I must say it was hard gathering these three again.

PYRO: She?s not gonna go bonkahs *koff* and attack us now is she *koff*?

MYSTIQUE: No. Are you?

ROGUE: I...no. Ah?m confused now. I need to...start anew ah guess. That?s why ah?m here.

BLOB: The brood?s an X-Man. Why would she trust us? An? why would she even wanna join us again?

ROGUE: Because ah need to...silence these urges. Ah?ve been getting these urges to touch someone...and in turn to be evil. I?ve denied them long enough, ah...ah want to become the rogue I was. I want to be Rogue again.

MYSTIQUE: Excellent...


To be continued...