Logan agreed,and left Rogue to fight with Scott over what to do about her car thievery-Bob was there to mediate,and surely would work something out.

He was still pumped full of adrenaline-that fight had just barely whet his appetite for action-and from the vibe and pheromones he was getting off of Helga,she felt exactly the same way.

They were barely half way down the hall when she tackled him.

She quite literally jumped on him:she planted her mouth over his and wrapped her legs around his hips,nearly knocking him over with the sheer force of her smashing into him.

In fact,she must have opened the door he crashed back into with her tail,because suddenly he was stumbling back inside, fighting to both breathe and keep his balance.The back of his legs hit something and he fell backwards,but luckily it was a bed,so he didn't crack his head open.

Finally letting up so he could breathe,she straddled his hips and smiled down at him,tail flicking against his leg."Think we're going to get a real chance to kick some ass soon?"

"We'd better."He realized he didn't know whose room this was.Was it his?They all kind of looked alike if no one bothered to personalize it."But what about Bob?"It wasn't that he didn't want her-hell no-but Bob was just not the guy you wanted to piss off.He was far more of a threat than any 'League' could ever be.

She grabbed his t-shirt and simply ripped it off,tossing the fragments of cloth aside as she grinned down at him,the smile on her deep green lips feral and almost evil,as if she really wasn't sure if she wanted to sleep with him or kill him."What about the old man?"She replied,and she leaned down to kiss him,but at the last second she bit his cheek-hard.

He cried out as he felt her sharp teeth break his skin,and tried to throw her off,but she had wrapped her tail around his legs,so while she hit the floor he went right after her,landing right on top of her.

"Gonna punish me,Logan?"She cooed smiling,licking his blood off her teeth.

"You're sick,"he gasped,as he felt her tail snake between his legs and tug at the back of his jeans.

She was sick,and Bob's girlfriend,but damn it if something about her didn't drive him crazy.Growling low in the back of his throat,he kissed her hard,and she dug her claw like green fingernails into his back as her tail wrapped around his thigh,clinging so tightly it almost cut off blood circulation.But just almost.

It was amazing how quickly they both forgot about Bob.

"Are you gonna give me a lecture too?"She wondered,as soon as they entered the well lit,cavernous kitchen.

It had to be big to feed everyone on the grounds,and it was-Bob had never seen such large stainless steel refrigerators before in his life.They were like walk in meat lockers.

"No,I think you've been punished enough,"he admitted,noting that all potentially reflective surfaces,including the metal bodies of the refrigerators,had been scuffed until they were no longer reflective at all.Why?Were some mutants so sensitive about their appearance that they would rather not see themselves until they were prepared to do so?

"Don't remind me,"she groaned dramatically.Scott had told her as soon as school was back in session,she'd be doing extra work focusing on the law and ethics-frankly,the idea scared the shit out of Bob.The poor girl would need an i.v. full of No Doze..She got a soda out of one of the smaller fridges,and said,with great hope,"Maybe there won't be a school anymore."

"I wouldn't count on that."

She shrugged as she opened the can and leaned against the refrigerator door facing him (maybe there was a vampire at this school...but there were so many windows...)."So why are you following me?"

"I just wanted to tell ya you should probably avoid absorbing demons from now on.You got lucky today,but next time you might not."

"How'd I get lucky?"She asked."You wanna know how these guys think?"She shuddered,and he didn't think it was an act."He was actually thinking about eatin' our eyeballs."

"You got lucky because you did manifest their strength-homicidal urges not so much-and there were no negative side effects. You most likely won't get the powers of the next demon you grab.In fact,they might get you."

"What do you mean?"

"Psychic demons.They could invade your mind,and your power being what it is,it would be difficult to get them to leave."

"What do psychic demons look like?"She wondered.She wasn't at all put off by his warning:in fact,she probably viewed this all as a big lark.No wonder she liked Logan;she had a sense of his own feeling of invincibility.Maybe she'd absorbed him once too often.

"Anything.Some exist in host bodies,so you'd never realized you got one until it was too late."

"Are you a psychic demon?"She wondered,a mischievous twinkle in her still Ressik red eyes.

"No.That doesn't even begin to cover what I do."

"But you're something like that,right?I mean,you just talked to that guy and he just froze.Even when Logan splattered those guts all over him he didn't move;it was like he was paralyzed by the sound of your voice.The Ressiks knew that too."She had a sip of her drink,then added,"Logan told me in the car you messed with people's heads,but you weren't a telepath.What does that leave?"

"A lot,"he replied cryptically.

There were pans hanging around an eave over a butcher block island in the center of the kitchen,and belatedly he realized several had reflective surfaces.She must have caught a glimpse of herself in one because she began walking towards them curiously,although her spine stiffened in such a way that she was obviously shocked by what she thought she saw.

As she neared,he assured her,"You look fine."

When she looked into a large aluminum skillet,her eyes were blue once more,and the scales were gone:she was back to looking like a normal teenaged girl."That's really weird,"she began,idly tracing a hand down her throat."I thought I saw..."

"What?"He asked innocently.

She frowned at her own image in the big silver pan,and asked,"Did I just have red eyes and somethin' on my face just a moment ago?"

"Red eyes,yes,but they've been fading since we left the club,"he lied shamelessly.But he knew he was very good at it,and she would never know."And I didn't notice anything on your face."

She scowled at her own reflection,believing him over her own eyes-which was typical when it came to his suggestions. "Huh.I guess having one in my head is more of a pain than I thought."

"Ressiks are pretty foul.I consider myself lucky not to have access to their minds."

She nodded,seeing the wisdom in that."But it's so weird...I don't understand most of it.Just the urges,mostly."
"To break things?"

"Yeah.And hurt people,bad..."She looked away from both her reflection and him,glancing instead at one of the high oak cupboards lining the right side wall."I really wanted to start killing them.I've never felt that way before."

"Never?"

She paused,but didn't dare look back at him.She stiffened so much it was as if her spine had been suddenly fused to a broom handle."What,you think I'm lyin'?"

"I think you reined the impulse in too well for that to have been your first time experiencing them.And I know Ressiks well enough to know they're intensely psychotic."He thought he knew the answer,actually,he just wondered if she knew it.

She made herself move,open the cupboard and pretend to look for something to eat."Yeah,they're pretty wiggy."

He waited as she pretended to search for a mysterious edible something among all the other edibles,and finally,she asked. "How well do you know Logan?"

"Well enough to know there's a dark part of him that would love to kill,but he doesn't indulge in it."Much would have been honest,but he decided not to share that with her.It wouldn't be helpful."You still remember that part,I guess."

She glanced over her shoulder at him,nodded,letting the cupboard door fall shut."Yeah.For a moment,I thought I was gonna lose it,and I thought it would be fun to lose it ,you know?With the Ressik in control I got a rush off hurtin' 'em...but it was like this residual Logan part kicked in.I knew if I ran with it I'd probably regret it later."Her lips twisted in anguish,but her eyes shown with something between avarice and lust."But I really wanted to."

He nodded in understanding.Probably the only people around here who could understand that desire was him and Logan (Helga never really saw the point in holding back)."It's okay to want to,Rogue.The only problem is when you start to do it."

"Could you do it?"

"What? Kill people?"

She nodded,her eyes still shining with that dark hunger,the lingering Ressik that would probably bury itself in her subconscious.Luckily,Logan was buried in there too,and would surely help her beat it down."By talkin' to him,like you did to that guy.Could you say 'you're dead',and have it actually happen?"

"I could.I don't,but yes,that's always an option."

There was a moment when she seemed to be carrying on an argument with herself in her own head,and then she asked,"How do you not do it?When you have the power to?"

He had a feeling that,even here,Rogue felt alone and different from the other mutants around,all except Logan,and there was a reason for it beyond the fact that he was the first person to show her any genuine kindness.That reason,which maybe even Xavier hadn't figured out,was a dark,quasi-misanthropic rage buried deep inside her,a rage that Logan openly grappled with every hour of the day ( and besides,how much of that black rage was instigated by Logan's own horrific memories that she glimpsed/experienced/watched?).Fear kept her from indulging in it before,but she was no longer afraid."I've lived a long time,Marie,"he said,reverting to her given name."I've seen a lot of things.You have to forgive people-and certain demons-their basic stupidity.Remember they don't know what you do,they haven't experienced what you have,and,even if they have,some people just prefer to take their rage out on others,but that is by no means an excuse for you to indulge in it as well."He then gave her a dark,conspiratorial smile."And besides,always remember making these stupid asses continue to live with themselves is the worst thing you could ever do to them.Of all people,you should know most people dwell within their own private hells -and it is a far,far crueler thing to let them continue existing in it than to give them the release of death."

He was standing facing her,his back to the window so the sunlight behind him created a shadow that stretched between them like an incomplete bridge,broken only by the butcher block island between them.After a moment of  the shadow of him cloaking her face,making the white streak in her hair luminous against the brown background of the rest of her hair,she smiled slowly,her evil smile mimicking his own.

Rogue could be very dangerous if she did indeed go rogue,and yet no one talked to her about the flip side of her mutant powers:the drive to consume,annihilate,destroy.That side existed in all of them,to some degree;but,in mutants,it could take on a frightening literality.But it wasn't something that Xavier's people chose to talk about,at least not to a girl as young as her.Yet someone had to talk to her about it.If you did not acknowledge your dark side and learn to 'own' it,it could destroy you-and,in the case of mutants,everyone in the vicinity.And since Logan wasn't here,why not him?He wasn't a mutant,but he was a demon-close enough.

After a moment,she said,"You should teach here.You'd be fun."

"What would I teach,Subversion 101?I mean,the kids would love me,but I'd be booted out so fast by the staff my feet would never touch the ground."

As if on cue,the kitchen door opened,and a rather dour faced Jean came in.Rogue's smile died a hasty death,and she rolled her eyes."Don't start,"she said,like a teenager to her mother.

"I wouldn't know where to begin,"Jean replied,her voice a blade made of ice.As soon as Jean was inside the kitchen,Rogue made a quick break for the exit,leaving out the door she just entered through.Jean was out right after her,and Bob followed,just to make sure there were no brain splatters on the wall.

"Go to your room and stay there until I say otherwise,"Jean said,to Rogue's retreating back.

The girl spun on her heels and gawked at Jean like she had just lost her mind out her ears,and was playing with it like clay. "Huh?You're going try to ground me?You're not my-"

Bob gestured frantically behind Rogue,running his hand across his throat in a cutting gesture and silently mouthing the words,"Just go.It will be fine,but go for now."He could have forced the issue,but he thought he had established enough of an outsider rapport with Rogue she'd accept his judgment as readily as she'd accept Logan's.

He couldn't tell her,but he thought some of Jean's anger had absolutely nothing to do with Rogue at all.

Rogue looked at him sternly and rolled her eyes again,but by the way her slim shoulders sagged he knew she was going to relent,and she did."Fine.I ain't got nowhere else to go anyways."

As she stalked sulkily off down the hall,Jean wheeled on him,suspecting he was doing something,but by the time she faced him his hands were firmly clasped behind his back:he had anticipated her move before she had anticipated his.He bet that didn't happen a lot.

"Scott told me what happened."

"No,he showed you what happened,"Bob corrected her."You read his mind,yes?"She looked slightly taken aback,and he quickly added,"It's okay.I do that with people I know too.Showing is a lot better than clumsy words sometimes."

"I thought you weren't a telepath."

"I'm not,but I can still see things in other people's minds.Usually not for long,because I'm usually too much of a shock to the system.Except Logan-his healing thing even adapts to me,which is pretty cool.I usually can't get in normal people's heads for any length of time."

"Logan qualifies as normal?"She said it before she realized it,and as soon as it fell out of her mouth her brown eyes widened in exquisite guilt.

But he just smiled kindly,knowing it really wasn't meant as a slur against Logan;it simply revealed who she was really mad at. "I meant Humans,Jean-I usually can't get into Human minds without doing damage."

She nodded,swallowing back some of the guilt as she ran a nervous hand through her red hair,deciding to go on as if she had never said that."Yes,I saw.And what I want to know is why you're accusing the Professor of having some part in this,and why you told Logan and he withheld the information from us."

"Contrary to popular opinion,Logan is not dumb-he put the information together himself.He confronted me about it before we left for the club,so I don't see how he could have told anyone else about it.And I'm not accusing the Professor of anything.Ask him;he probably has no choice but to tell you now that Logan forced my hand.Not that I exactly fought him.The Professor should tell all of you,but you know how guilt can ride a person."

Her dark brows drew down in confusion."What does the Professor have to be guilty about?"

Bob shrugged."Complicity,I suppose.Although I'm guessing he feels like a fool,and that has to sting worst of all."

Her painted lips curved down in a frown."Do you ever talk in a non oblique manner?"

"Not really."

She rolled her eyes and shook her head,looking,for a moment,just like Rogue in manner if nothing else."Where is Logan? I'll ask him."

"Logan's...er...busy with Helga.You know,I've been meaning to have a look at your underground headquarters,maybe you could give me a brief run through-"

But she turned and walked away.

"Where are you going?"He asked,quickly catching up.

"To find Logan.I don't see how he can give her a tour anyhow,he barely knows it himself-"

Bob quickly placed himself in her path,forcing her to stop abruptly."Jean-may I call you that?-he's not exactly giving her a tour. Helga has no real interest in structures unless she gets to tear them down."

A little knot gathered on the bridge of her nose,where her sinking brows almost met."Then where are they?"

Bob sighed,aware this was going to go down extremely bad in the Jean Gray camp."You know,I could put this in delicate terms,but we're all adults here,right?Helga's had a thing for Logan ever since she met him-she likes us dark,kick ass types-and what Helga wants Helga always gets,one way or another.Trust me on that.And they both get worked up after a fight,you know, gotta burn off some steam-"

"What are you saying?"She demanded,but the slightly horror struck look on her face told him she already pretty much knew.

"You're gonna make me say it,aren't you?"He asked,slightly exasperated with her.If she could just acknowledge a few things, she wouldn't have to go through all these machinations."They're going at it like bunnies.Slightly violent bunnies. Happy now?"

For a minute she just stared at him in open mouthed shock,like he'd just punched her grandmother in front of her.Then,when she found her voice again,she said,"Your girlfriend is...with Logan,and you don't care?"

Now there was a silly question.Hardly worth getting her voice back for."Why should I care?They're both adults,and frankly it takes some pressure off me.Helga can get pretty wild after a fight,and at least he has that regenerational capability-I don't. Besides,I think Logan could use a good-"

"You're insane!"She charged,stomping around him and back down the hall.But even she stopped because she didn't really know where she was going,and turned to face him,anger and jealously colliding to make her flustered."How can you just ...look the other way while your girlfriend screws around on you?"

"Well,I'm not the type who gets off on watchin'."He knew he shouldn't have made that little joke;she probably didn't realize it, but her hair was starting to frizz out,little strands pulling away from her neat mane and fanning out,all due to the unconscious telekinetic energy that was starting to leak out from her in her anger.Emotions could make you do funny things. "Jean,it's just sex.It doesn't have to be the end of the world.Sex without commitment can be kinda fun,you know."

"But she's your girlfriend!And I thought Logan was your friend."

"Again,yes.Look,I'm a commitment oriented kind of guy-I'd rather not admit how many times I've been married,because I sound like Liz Taylor,although for the record I never married her.But Helga's not:love and sex are two very different things to her,and I have no problem with that.Whatever makes her happy.At the end of the day,I know she loves me,and I love her.End of story."

She continued to glare at him,her eyes almost glowing with hate,although he knew it wasn't aimed at him.It was bad enough that she disliked Helga (well,she shouldn't have pinned her against the wall,but Helga didn't have to call her all those names);it was worse that Jean really wanted to be screwing Logan's brains out,but could hardly even admit that to herself.She didn't know what to say,or how to say it,but clearly she was appalled at their open lifestyle choice."You're..."She fumbled for words, the static electricity dying enough that her hair fell back down to almost normal."You're sick.The both of you.All of you!"

He almost felt bad for Logan;she was really going to be giving him the absolute zero cold shoulder for a while,and she'd never tell him why.As she started storming off again,he couldn't help but say after her,"It's better to know where you stand than to love someone for all the wrong reasons."

That made her freeze in her tracks,and slowly turn back towards him.She looked genuinely confused,and maybe just a tad threatened."What does that mean?"She demanded,but he could see in her eyes she really didn't want to know.Which was okay, because he wasn't going to tell her anyways.

He leveled a serious look at her,wondering if she would ever really know."You'll find out,Jean.And the sooner you do the better for all parties involved."

Her eyes widened slightly."Is that an accusation?"

"No."It was the truth,whether she wanted to deal with it or not."Now,would you mind if I go have a look around your super-secret lab?I need to know what kind of weapons you've-"

But she wouldn't let him change the subject."Tell me what you mean."

"You know what I mean.Can we please just move on before this gets ugly?"

She stared at him,the anger flaring anew,and he got a sense of what she was going to do before she did it."Freeze,"he said,and she did.It had occurred to her to drag the thoughts out of his mind,or at least try,forgetting in her anger that not only would she fail but possibly give herself a cerebral hemorrhage as well.He felt somewhat irritated at her,but hell,she was just as much a confused kid as Rogue,she just didn't know it."You will think about this later,rationally,but right now you're going to let it go, and distract yourself by showing me headquarters."He then let her go psychically,having never touched her physically."Shall we go?"

She blinked rapidly,and for a moment looked slightly baffled,as if she knew her train of thought had been derailed but not how or why."Yes,I suppose,"she agreed warily,not quite over her anger but not consumed by it either.

"Great,"he said,meaning it."Because I'm pretty sure the bad guys will be bringin' the party to us soon enough."

And that was a truth even she couldn't deny.

Well,maybe not to everyone.

The guy who called himself Devore was standing on the balcony overlooking the new,cleaned up version of Times Square, smoking a cigarette that smelled weird,kind of like cloves and water logged tobacco,turned back to them as Black repeated, trying hard to keep shock from his voice,"Two million dollars?"

Devore was the largest Japanese guy Tony had ever seen,and for whatever reason he wore a well tailored suit so grey it was actually silver,with a bright blue tie so vivid against his white shirt you'd think it was a joke.But there was no humor in this man's broad,intense face,and no levity in his strutting,cocky walk,every bit as assured as Muscles,but even more proud of it. The fabric of his silver jacket stretched so tight across the back of his broad,muscular shoulders you'd think it was another man's coat.Maybe it was.

Devore's dark,almond shaped eyes scanned the room,where Kelso sat near the door of the suite and the ever hyper-kinetic Reddick didn't pace more than he lurched across the room,bouncing on the balls of his strange feet like he was engaged in a crazy dance,and Black sat draped casually over the sofa,trying to pretend the offer hadn't shocked the shit out of him.

Devore smiled,but it was more of a leering smirk,his lips like thin,pink worms squirming on his sallow face.

"Absolutely.Deliver us Logan alive you'll get it in cash.Of course,he has to still be breathing,but the good news is that freak can take a lot of damage and still survive."

"Who do you work for?"Black asked,clearly sensing a set up of some sort.This was too damn good to be true.

Tony glanced down at the surveillance photo of Muscles a/k/a Logan,and wondered what was so fucking special about him. Even if you sliced him up and sold him by the pound down in Chinatown,he'd never be worth two million.

"He's government,"Reddick said/hummed/buzzed,his arm jerking out spasmodically towards Devore."The piece's he's wearing under his jacket is government issue."

No one else knew he was wearing a piece.

Kelso stiffened and seemed to go for his piece,but Devore gave him a disdainful glance that could have curdled milk."Don't even think about it."

Tony remained sitting casually at the desk,pretending to look over the bios of the so called 'X Men',his piece resting casually in his lap,since he had pulled it the moment Devore came to visit Black's suite.Kelso was new to the business,but Tony had been a bag man for several years,and knew the unexpected was rarely ever good.Reddick,smelly demon or not,must have felt the same way,as not only had he spotted the piece first,in spite of those thick black glasses covering his eyes,but Tony had noticed his throat working shortly after Devore had come in,the flesh almost rippling like the surface of a disturbed pond.He was ready and waiting to spit acid on Devore and put him out of his misery after a short but definitely brutal death.But as quick as he was sure an acid spitting Reddick was,Tony knew better than to ever trust a demon.He wondered if a bullet would be enough to take him down.

"Government,"Black hissed,as if the word was somehow poisoned."I thought Operation Arsenal was closed years ago."

"It was,and I assure you we have no interest in Xavier or his people;whatever you wish to do with them is no concern of ours.In fact,we do appreciate the League's efforts in keeping mutants in check.But we want Logan."Devore said,entering the suite but not bothering to shut the balcony door behind him.The traffic noise was a constant low level thrum in the background,the smell of exhaust and various effluvia that the street cleaners couldn't quite contain almost swamping the smell of Devore's bizarre cigarette."Also,there is to be no word of this deal.The government-in whatever capacity-"

"Black Ops,"Reddick rasped,stopping his bizarre Saint Vitus's dance to loom between Devore and the door.Although it would take almost four Reddick's to equal the width of this extremely muscular man,they were the same height,and Devore would have to take at least a split second to draw his gun-Reddick would have his face melting off by then,and Reddick clearly knew that.

Devore gave him an amused once over,but the way his lips became tight and bloodless seemed to indicate he got it:Reddick was an unknown demon with unknown abilities,who could,in all probability,kill him first. As cocky as he was,Devore had no interest in trying his luck."Whatever you wish to call it.We don't wish to be associated with the League in any way,and if we are,well,the League becomes as endangered a species as mutants."

"Is that a threat?"Black said coldly.No one in this room took well to threats,except Kelso,who often didn't know when he was being threatened.

"No,a statement."Devore replied,with almost no irony at all.Like most government guys,any irony or humor had been pounded out of him a long time ago,held down and drowned in conformist bureaucracy.

Hey,he liked that-he'd have to remember to write that down later.

Black accepted that with a casual nod that hid his deep thinking on the matter."Fine."

"I'm glad we have an understanding,gentlemen,"Devore said,clearly not meaning a word of it.He was only glad he was going. "And a deal."He took what looked like a business card out of his pocket and handed it to Black,still under the intense scrutiny of Reddick,which was clearly starting to unnerve him.From what Tony could see from his vantage point,half way between the balcony and the door,it was a plain oatmeal colored card,with a single phone number on it.No name,no address,no nothing; just a number."When you have Logan,call us."

Devore started for the door and paused,waiting for Reddick to move aside,but the demon only did so (very reluctantly) at Black's nod of assent.But he continued to watch the pseudo G man as he went out the door,pausing only to add,"Oh,and you may want to look out for his claws.I can't tell you how many good-and not so good-men we've lost that way."

"Claws?"Tony repeated,hastily flipping through bio print outs,looking for any mention of claws.

Shit-who was doing the research around here?

Man,they sucked.

**

He came off as some genial Aussie good old boy,and certainly the aura he gave off-that undefinable feeling she unconsciously measured everyone by-was warm,powerful but very friendly.

But it was that power she didn't trust.

("I don't know what he is,"Logan said."He smells like power.")

All she smelled when she got near him was his cologne,very faint and,much like him,very pleasant-but it seemed calculated somehow,a studied pose.He was hiding a danger inherent to him,to his power,a danger that still threatened to seep out his pores;a danger Logan could smell,and yet chose to ignore.

How did anyone know he was ignoring it of his own free will?

She watched him carefully as she took him through a tour of their headquarters:he was extremely knowledgeable,and none of their supposedly 'top secret' technology surprised him in the least.In fact,he asked her if they had a couple of things she had never heard of in her life.The fact that they didn't have weapons bothered him ("Not even a grenade launcher?"He asked, shaking his head in disbelief),and he offered to have some 'zapped in',an offer she flat out refused.They didn't kill;it was the last resort of all possible last resorts.