100 Situations - Rogue/Pyro T2 Prompt #72: Lost
Title: Renewal (5/?)
Fandom: X-Men (Movie)
Characters: Rogue/Pyro
Prompt: #72 - Lost
Word Count: 906
Rating: PG-13
Summary: A new year begins as an old friendship is renewed.
Author's Notes: The X-Men aren’t mine; they belong to Marvel and 20th Century Fox.
Post X3, has spoilers. Cheers to scatterhearts.
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4
Written for 100_situations
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Marie couldn’t help but stare. It was a long time before she was able to speak, and as soon as the words left her mouth she’d known they sounded contrived. “Oh, John. I’m sorry.”
He raised an eyebrow, his expression still angry. “Are you?”
She nodded, crawling across the floor to kneel in front of him. When he tried to look away, she held his face in her hands, keeping his head still. “Yes, I am. No one deserves to be cured against their will. Like you said, I chose to take the Cure.”
He bared his teeth, unable to keep the venom out of his voice. “How could you be so fucking naïve? It’s only a matter of time before they force every mutant alive to take it.”
She opened her mouth to reply but his face suddenly crumpled as tears started to streak down his cheeks.
“How can you stand it? How can you stand to be human?”
She shifted, holding him to her as she stroked his hair. “Because it means I can touch. My mutation was never like yours. It was never going to be something I could control.”
His body trembled as she held him. She murmured comforting noises, continuing to stroke his hair.
He took a gasping breath. “I saw the man I believed in-my leader-get cured by the fucking X-Men so they could stop him. I was outside that clinic when you were taking the fucking Cure. But this isn’t me. I didn’t need curing, I didn’t want this.”
Marie’s heart ached at the sound of his anguish. She had never seen him so broken, or so lost. She couldn’t reconcile the willful John she knew, with the broken John she held in her arms.
“But when they let me go, you were the only person I wanted to find.”
She sucked in a breath, holding it as she waited to see if he’d say more. He shifted in her hold, moving so that his head was in her lap. He gripped one of her hands, turning it and inspecting it as he took deep breaths. She used her free hand to stroke his brow, unable to keep herself from wanting to touch him, comfort him. His skin was warm under her fingers.
“Even after two years I could never stop thinking about you. I hated you when I knew you’d taken the Cure. I thought it had been for him that you’d done it.”
She frowned, not daring to raise her voice above a whisper. “But?”
He finally looked up at her, his eyes red from crying. “He’s not here, is he? You told me at the restaurant he’d never fucked you. So you can’t have done it for him, right?”
She sucked in a breath at his earnest tone, and the utter desperation on his face. She finally shook her head, stroking his brow again. “I never did it for him. I did it… I did it for moments like this.” She lightly tapped his brow so he understood what she meant.
The hand that he was still holding, he raised to his lips. He held her gaze as he turned it and kissed her palm. “I can’t do this without you, Marie. I can’t be human without knowing that you’ll…” He trailed off, disgust at his own weakness starting to show.
She shushed him. “You don’t have to say anything more.” The phone on her desk started ringing. “Shit, I’m sorry.”
She helped him to sit up, then raised herself up to grab the phone. “Malone and Roberts Accounting.” She looked at him as she listened to the voice on the other end, watching him carefully. “Yes, she is. Can you please hold while I transfer you? Thank you.” She pushed a couple buttons on the phone. “Hey, you’ve got a client on line two. Robert Jackson. Oh, um, also do you think I could have the afternoon off? Something’s come up… Yeah, personal… No, just this afternoon… Thanks, I really appreciate it… Line two.”
She hung up, kneeling down again so her eyes were level with John’s. “We’re going back to my place, okay?”
He smirked. “Thought you’d never ask.”
She lightly smacked him in the chest before standing. “Don’t be getting any ideas, Johnny.”
He got off the floor, stepping in close to her. “I just cry in front of you, and bare my soul, and you still won’t sleep with me?”
Marie started to blush, averting her gaze. “I’m not saying I’ll never sleep with you. Just not now, not like this.”
He tilted his head, watching her. “Not like what?”
She shrugged, moving to grab her bag. He gripped her arm, pulling her back to him.
“Not like what, Rogue?”
She looked up to find his sadness replaced with anger. “I’m not going to be able to make everything better with a fuck. It doesn’t work like that.”
He released her arm, running a hand through his hair. “I never asked you to fix anything. I just can’t do this without you. And I’m not looking for a pity fuck, or some quick fix. I…” He looked away. “Never mind.”
She bit her lip, the heat starting to course through her body again as she looked at him. She took him by the hand, leading him to the elevator. He altered his grip so that his fingers laced through hers.
_____________________________
Fandom: X-Men (Movie)
Characters: Rogue/Pyro
Prompt: #72 - Lost
Word Count: 906
Rating: PG-13
Summary: A new year begins as an old friendship is renewed.
Author's Notes: The X-Men aren’t mine; they belong to Marvel and 20th Century Fox.
Post X3, has spoilers. Cheers to scatterhearts.
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4
Written for 100_situations
_____________________________
Marie couldn’t help but stare. It was a long time before she was able to speak, and as soon as the words left her mouth she’d known they sounded contrived. “Oh, John. I’m sorry.”
He raised an eyebrow, his expression still angry. “Are you?”
She nodded, crawling across the floor to kneel in front of him. When he tried to look away, she held his face in her hands, keeping his head still. “Yes, I am. No one deserves to be cured against their will. Like you said, I chose to take the Cure.”
He bared his teeth, unable to keep the venom out of his voice. “How could you be so fucking naïve? It’s only a matter of time before they force every mutant alive to take it.”
She opened her mouth to reply but his face suddenly crumpled as tears started to streak down his cheeks.
“How can you stand it? How can you stand to be human?”
She shifted, holding him to her as she stroked his hair. “Because it means I can touch. My mutation was never like yours. It was never going to be something I could control.”
His body trembled as she held him. She murmured comforting noises, continuing to stroke his hair.
He took a gasping breath. “I saw the man I believed in-my leader-get cured by the fucking X-Men so they could stop him. I was outside that clinic when you were taking the fucking Cure. But this isn’t me. I didn’t need curing, I didn’t want this.”
Marie’s heart ached at the sound of his anguish. She had never seen him so broken, or so lost. She couldn’t reconcile the willful John she knew, with the broken John she held in her arms.
“But when they let me go, you were the only person I wanted to find.”
She sucked in a breath, holding it as she waited to see if he’d say more. He shifted in her hold, moving so that his head was in her lap. He gripped one of her hands, turning it and inspecting it as he took deep breaths. She used her free hand to stroke his brow, unable to keep herself from wanting to touch him, comfort him. His skin was warm under her fingers.
“Even after two years I could never stop thinking about you. I hated you when I knew you’d taken the Cure. I thought it had been for him that you’d done it.”
She frowned, not daring to raise her voice above a whisper. “But?”
He finally looked up at her, his eyes red from crying. “He’s not here, is he? You told me at the restaurant he’d never fucked you. So you can’t have done it for him, right?”
She sucked in a breath at his earnest tone, and the utter desperation on his face. She finally shook her head, stroking his brow again. “I never did it for him. I did it… I did it for moments like this.” She lightly tapped his brow so he understood what she meant.
The hand that he was still holding, he raised to his lips. He held her gaze as he turned it and kissed her palm. “I can’t do this without you, Marie. I can’t be human without knowing that you’ll…” He trailed off, disgust at his own weakness starting to show.
She shushed him. “You don’t have to say anything more.” The phone on her desk started ringing. “Shit, I’m sorry.”
She helped him to sit up, then raised herself up to grab the phone. “Malone and Roberts Accounting.” She looked at him as she listened to the voice on the other end, watching him carefully. “Yes, she is. Can you please hold while I transfer you? Thank you.” She pushed a couple buttons on the phone. “Hey, you’ve got a client on line two. Robert Jackson. Oh, um, also do you think I could have the afternoon off? Something’s come up… Yeah, personal… No, just this afternoon… Thanks, I really appreciate it… Line two.”
She hung up, kneeling down again so her eyes were level with John’s. “We’re going back to my place, okay?”
He smirked. “Thought you’d never ask.”
She lightly smacked him in the chest before standing. “Don’t be getting any ideas, Johnny.”
He got off the floor, stepping in close to her. “I just cry in front of you, and bare my soul, and you still won’t sleep with me?”
Marie started to blush, averting her gaze. “I’m not saying I’ll never sleep with you. Just not now, not like this.”
He tilted his head, watching her. “Not like what?”
She shrugged, moving to grab her bag. He gripped her arm, pulling her back to him.
“Not like what, Rogue?”
She looked up to find his sadness replaced with anger. “I’m not going to be able to make everything better with a fuck. It doesn’t work like that.”
He released her arm, running a hand through his hair. “I never asked you to fix anything. I just can’t do this without you. And I’m not looking for a pity fuck, or some quick fix. I…” He looked away. “Never mind.”
She bit her lip, the heat starting to course through her body again as she looked at him. She took him by the hand, leading him to the elevator. He altered his grip so that his fingers laced through hers.
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