6/27 Instance: Guys and Dolls

[Slarti]

Timelined later the same night as 'Newsnight.'

Rogue: Having not been able to stay asleep too long without being haunted by nightmares, Rogue had come down to see if there was anything on TV that could get her mind off of it. She was partly thankful that they were her own though and none of Remy's. Even though she hated her memories, she hated her subconscious diving into other people's more. After about an hour or two, she had drifted back off.

Rogue: She was laying on her back on the couch, a frown growing ever deeper on her face as her mind replayed what had happened that night on the park bench. Her body twitched some and she whimpered in her sleep, her breathing harsh and heavy.

Bobby: Bobby quietly closed the back door, standing in the hall for a moment to listen to the silence. It wasn't that late, but late enough for most people to be in bed, it seemed. He ran both hands through his hair, rubbing his face. Time to get some sleep.

Bobby: Lorna would be long asleep by now, so no worries on waking her. He started down the hall to the stairs and paused at a sound from the rec room. Maybe people were still up after all. He should know better than to look, since he knew what people did in that rec room at night. He'd done it too, after all.

Bobby: ....all the more reason to look.

Rogue: Every time, the nightmare played the exact same way as it had in real life... Until it got to her being able to get free. In the nightmare she didn't have any of her powers. She was helpless against these men. Each time the blade sliced at her shoulder she tried to get away in vain, knowing she would only feel pain and the hot blood seeping through her shirt.

Rogue: Rogue couldn't breathe in her dream and in her still unconscious state on the couch her breaths were growing more ragged and shallow. The boss mouthed the word 'doll' but all she could hear was her heart thundering in her ears as he got himself free of his pants.

Bobby: Bobby decided a compromise was to clear his throat loudly before looking, but when he popped his head around the corner all he saw was Rogue alone on the sofa. The light from the television flickered over her, and he took a few steps into the room. "Hey Roguey, up a little..."

Bobby: As he got closer, he could see she was asleep, and whimpering slightly. She twisted, panting and he sighed. Christ, would they all always have nightmares? He leaned down to her, repeating her name softly. No response. His hand hovered over her for a moment until he decided. "Hey, Doll. Wake up." Bobby shook her shoulder gently.

Rogue: Rogue took in a sharp breath at the shake, only hearing the word doll before throwing all her strength into a punch at the man leaning over her, still caught in between her consciousnesses. She pushed the person away and quickly flew up to hover above the couch, heart still beating heavily, a choked sob escaping her before she could get control of herself.

Bobby: "Jesus! Rogue!" Bobby iced up even as he hit the floor, feeling like a horse had kicked him in the chest. Her punch had mostly caught his shoulder, but the shock and sickening crunch of bone matched the shock of biting down on his tongue. He rolled to his side with a groan, still cursing and still iced.

Rogue: Rogue blinked at her name and her eyes widened as she fully woke up and her mind registered what she saw, "Bobby! Ah'm so sorry!" She flew down to him and knelt on the floor beside him, gloved hand hovering over his arm. "Ah had no idea... Ah'm sorry! Ah didn't mean ta!" She just kept shaking her head. If it hadn't been Bobby, who could heal himself, she could have seriously injured somebody... Or killed if she hit them right.

Bobby: "Ugggh, it's all right." Bobby cringed slightly at her hand and sat up, shifting back to flesh and blood and spitting out a mouthful of slushy blood and his barbell. He scooted to brace his back against the sofa, drawing up his knees to rest his arms there. "Are you all right?" His voice was muffled when he let his forehead fall onto his arms. That had hurt.

Rogue: Rogue winced at the sight of his barbell being spit from his mouth along with what looked like the equivalent of a cherry slurpee. "Ew. Sorry, again... It ain't alright, it's far from alright, Ah shouldn'ta done that." She stayed where she was and just watched him for a minute, lip caught between her teeth and her hands wringing each other in worry and nerves. "Ah'm ok... Ya want somethin'? Aspirin or anythin'?"

Bobby: "I'm fine." Bobby sat silently for a moment, then let his arms drop and relaxed, head flopping back against the sofa. "Really, I'm fine," he said, rolling his head to the side to look at her. He tried a smile. "You so were not okay though..."

Rogue: Rogue made a face at his smile. "Hold that thought..." She got up and went to the kitchen for some paper towels for his mouth and the mess on the floor. Coming back in she gave a shrug as she handed them over, kneeling to clean up the mess. "Ah had a nightmare. It happens."

Bobby: "What?" Bobby ran his tongue over his teeth. "Oh." Taking the towel from her he wiped his mouth. "Anna," he started, moving a little closer and putting a hand over hers to stop her nervous cleaning. "We all have nightmares, but... we can't give in to them. Not to the point where we do... this." He gestured at the sofa."

Rogue: She left her hand under his, keeping her eyes trained on the mess as she spoke to him. "Bugsy, Ah'm fine. Ah guess it just carried over inta y'all wakin' me up an' Ah thought it was real..." Rogue chewed her lip and looked to the opposite side of the room. "Might not have been mine anyway..."

Bobby: He swallowed at that. "Even more so then... if it's mine, or Vic's or LeBeau's... you gotta deal with that so it doesn't hurt you." Bobby sucked at his teeth. "You ... you have to know how dangerous it can be when nightmares carry into reality. You've gotten that memory from both of us."

Rogue: Rogue sighed and dropped her head, "Yeah, Bobby. Ah know that. An' Vic's memories have faded... Y'all're comin' close." She shook her head, "So it's not y'alls." Anna cleared her throat and looked back up at him, "Ah should get this cleaned up 'fore it stains..."

Bobby: Bobby pulled her hand back and froze the blood solid, then scraped across the carpet to pop the liquid from the fibers. "So, if it's not ours... it is yours." Using the towel she'd given him he picked up the chunks, plucking the bar from the mess. He crumpled the towels and looked at her.

Rogue: "Never said that. Remy touched me real recently after we got done sparrin'... Could be his." She took the towels from him and gave him a small grin before lifting easily to her feet and walking to the kitchen to toss the trash. Rogue stood at the sink for a moment to take a quick breath and try to compose herself. She walked back in the room and smiled at him.

Bobby: "Jesus, you know when you say that it almost sounds like you're knocked up. 'Could be his.'" He ran his hand through his hair, bracing himself on the sofa to get to his feet.

Rogue: Rogue closed her eyes and took a breath, knowing Bobby hadn't meant that to hurt her. "If only that were possible." She walked past him and sat back down on the sofa, staring at the floor as she curled against the arm. "What're y'all doin' up so late?" Change of subject was good.

Bobby: Shit. "You know what I mean..." Bobby sat on the sofa beside her, leaning forward to look at her. "Even if it is his nightmare, it's not good for you." He sighed gustily, giving in for a moment. "I was just taking a walk."

Rogue: "Yeah, lucky f' y'all Ah already feel so bad 'bout breakin' ya Ah cain't bring mahself ta get mad 'bout that comment..." She shrugged. "A nightmare's a nightmare. No difference who's it is if it's in mah head, is there?" Rogue just looked at him, "Takin' a walk." She arched an eyebrow, but didn't comment further.

Bobby: "Yeah, a walk." Bobby cleared his throat, picking at a warn spot on his jeans. "Yeah, I know. I'm sorry." He turned the bar over in his fingers and pocketed it. "No, no difference, but I'm still right that it's not good, Doll." He rubbed the arm tucked around her legs.

Rogue: Rogue cringed at the nickname and blew out a breath to try and keep herself from shuddering. She loved the nickname, there were just times, like now, where it was hard to handle. Because of one lousy asshole, she can't fully enjoy an inside joke with her best friend. "Maybe so, Bobby. So, where'd ya go?"

Bobby: His hand stopped its motion when she froze for a moment. "I went walking. Thinking." Bobby didn't want to push her, but... "Hey, we're friends, right?"

Rogue: "Completely an' totally, hun." She arched an eyebrow and looked over at him, "Y'all weren't thinkin' 'bout backin' out of tha weddin' were ya? 'Cause, gotta say, Ah'm lovin' bein' best 'wo'man."

Bobby: "Huh?" His nose wrinkled in confusion. That was a leap. Bobby shook his head. "Oh, no. No way. Where I was going with that? That if we're completely and totally friends then we should be able to talk to each other. About anything."

Rogue: "That's true. So what were ya thinkin' 'bout? Everythin' ok?" Turn the tables a bit, maybe he'd forget? She tried a small smile, "Ah won't tell anybody anythin'. Promise."

Bobby: "I'm great." Anna had clearly forgotten she was talking to the master of distraction. Bobby ducked his head, leaning in enough to catch her eyes. "Except the weirdest thing. My friend tried to punch me through a wall and now won't tell me what's really on her mind... or why she almost flinched when I touched her. Or why her temperature's off. I'm guessing from nerves."

Rogue: Rogue had to laugh a bit, "Gee, hun, that is a bit odd. Which friend was this?" She wasn't able to hold her face for long before screwing it up and looking at him from one eye. "Did Ah break anythin'? An' yes, Ah know ya fine now 'cause ya iced."

Bobby: "Um, probably." He rolled the shoulder in question, then shrugged. "I'm not gonna say it didn't hurt, but it's okay." He raised an eyebrow at her expectantly and slouched back into the sofa. "So..."

Rogue: Rogue winced, "Ah'm sorry darlin'. Glad ya can fix yaself... So... Ah don't even wanna touch on how creepy it is that ya can tell mah temperature." She gave him a broad grin.

Bobby: Bobby matched the grin. "Thank you. It's still off by the way." She seemed to be convinced he had the attention span of a gnat. "So, how much longer we gonna dance around this?"

Rogue: "How much longer ya gonna be askin' me questions 'bout it?" Her smile weakened considerably as she watched his face. Rogue sighed and brought her hands up to scrub her face. "Ah punched ya 'cause ya called me Doll."

Bobby: He snorted before he could stop himself. "A simple 'hey, that's an annoying nickname' would have sufficed, babe."

Rogue: "No, Ah love tha nickname. Ah do..." She shook her head and took a deep breath before looking up at him. "Ah just had a real bad guy call me that when Ah was gone... An' Ah was dreamin' 'bout him. Guessin' Ah thought y'all were him 'fore Ah woke up fully."

Bobby: "Bad guy?" Bobby sat up, knee starting to bounce as he added up her reactions in his head. "Shit, Anna, what'd he... I mean, he didn't... he couldn't... could he? I mean..." He made a face. "Son of a bitch."

Rogue: Rogue closed her eyes and let him go off about it. "He didn't touch me, sugah. If that's what ya thinkin'." Ok, lie. "Well, at least not with his skin on mine."

Bobby: "Well, good..." He let out the breath he'd been holding, reaching over tentatively to squeeze her hand. "What happened? I mean, it might help to talk about it, y'know? I have a hard time picturing how some sleazoid could sneak up on you."

Rogue: "Ah was asleep an' there were three of 'em. Woke up ta 'em on top of me an' it took a minute f' mah brain ta kick in an' tell me Ah could handle it." She kept her eyes closed but squeezed his hand back, "Ah talked ta Remy 'bout it already, an' Ah've been dealin' with it fine on mah own lately."

Bobby: "I'm sorry." Bobby hesitated for a moment before he shifted to put his arm around her. Suddenly her behavior when she first got back made a lot more sense. "It's good you told him then if it's helped. I'm glad you told me."

Rogue: Rogue scoffed at that before she could stop herself. "Do ya know what happened, Bobby? Besides three bad guys an' one of 'em callin' me 'Doll'? Ya a smart guy, ya've probably drawn conclusions right?" She leaned into him and laid her head on his shoulder.

Bobby: "I can guess. You were a woman. Alone. I can also gather you weren't sleeping at the Ritz." His lips compressed into a flat line. She might hate her powers, but they had to have saved her in more than one way. "I hope you kicked their asses."

Rogue: "Also scared tha livin' shit outta 'em. Was thankin' God they were wearin' gloves though..." She wrapped her arms around him and cuddled in closer. "Tha boss, tha one that called me doll, he didn't get far 'fore mah mind an' body caught up ta one another, so Ah don't know why it's still freakin' me out so bad. Don't think he's ever gonna be able ta have kids though..."

Bobby: "Well... I guess fear isn't always logical." Bobby let her get close, chewing his lip, then snorted softly. "Good. Fucker that would do that is getting off light losing his nuts."

Rogue: "One that was cutting off mah air an' tryin' ta cut me with a knife, which lookin' back is damned hilarious how he reacted when it didn't work, broke his arm when Ah threw him off." She snorted at the mental picture. "Broke boss man's ribs too, so he didn't get off too light... Though if Ah ever run inta him again, he most likely won't see tha next day."

Bobby: "That's..." He didn't know what to say. "I see now why you freaked when I kissed you on Halloween." She had been very lucky, he decided, but now wasn't the time to start another discussion on her powers. "We'll have to work on giving you back some good memories for that nickname then, eh?" Bobby tugged on a lock of her hair playfully.

Rogue: "Totally. Though, Dollface don't bother me one bit." She laughed some and picked her head up to smile at him. "Ah need all tha good memories Ah can get, sugah." Rogue squeezed him in a gentle hug then let go and gave him a look, "Ok, Ah spilled mah guts... Y'all's turn. What were ya needin' ta go on a walk ta think 'bout?"

Bobby: Bobby returned the squeeze and slid back into his boneless slouch. "Nothing much. I just decided to enjoy the nice warm night." He flashed his teeth in a not-quite smile.

Rogue: "Nice..Warm..Night." Anna arched an eyebrow. "Are ya nuts, Bugs? It's freezin' outside." She shook her head and gently shoved him in the shoulder. "Loony."

Bobby: "Hey, just fixed that." He clapped a hand to the shoulder, giving her a real grin and a wink. "Hey, it's 26 degrees, that's just short of sweltering." He glanced back at her. "And it's normal now."

Rogue: Rogue rolled her eyes and shoved him a bit harder, "Maybe Ah wanna see if ya can fix it a second time." Her grin faded a bit, "Fixed it... Wait, that means Ah broke it, doesn't it... Bobby, Ah am so sorry." She chewed her lip. "Yeah... Normal. Loony sounds better. Ya remind me of a cartoon character anyway. Just with a higher sex drive."

Bobby: "Hey, maybe Tex Avery is my real daddy." Bobby wolf whistled, waggling his eyebrows. "Besides I meant you were normal... until now. Don't worry about the shoulder." He thunked his head back against the cushions and rolled it to the side to watch her. "Think it was a broken collarbone. That's not so bad even if I couldn't fix it."

Rogue: "Oh. Heh, yeah, Ah totally wasn't even thinkin' 'bout me." She rolled her eyes, "Not so bad. Sure. Y'all woulda hated me f' tha whole length it'd take ta heal it if ya couldn't fix yaself." Rogue watched him for a moment, thinking over what she said. "Makes sense why Vic told ya ta look after me now..."

Bobby: He blinked, processing that. "...why? Because you can't break me?" That earned her a chuckle.

Rogue: "Ah do tend ta get fairly physical f' somebody who can't touch huh?" She wrinkled her nose and laughed. "No, 'cause Ah don't look after mahself... Ah have a bad habit of either only carin' 'bout mahself an' no one else or everyone else an' not me... Which, Ah kinda just demonstrated."

Bobby: "A bit." He mirrored her nose wrinkle, then blinked again, slightly surprised. "Yeah. It's not that we don't think you can look after yourself. You clearly can. At least as far as surviving, anyways."

Rogue: "Yeah... Ah'm just now realizin' this. Still ain't happy that y'all think Ah need ta be looked after." She gave him a light pinch to the bicep. "Ok, to avoid further incidents, don't wake me up by callin' me 'doll' an' leanin' over me," Anna gave a light chuckle.

Bobby: "Ow, woman! More abuse." He sighed gustily and rubbed his arm. "All right, deal. I'll look after from a distance, and poke you with a stick to wake you up."

Rogue: "So now ya gonna give me a chance ta have a weapon 'steada just mah hand?" She arched an eyebrow and smirked at him, "That's real smart of ya, Bugsy."

Bobby: "I could just freeze you awake." Bobby smiled sweetly.

Rogue: Rogue screwed up her face, "That's just mean. Ya ever use ya cold powers ta wake me up Ah will chase ya down an' pummel ya while fully awake an' coherent. Hear?"

Bobby: "I hear, I hear." Bobby stifled a yawn. Now the adrenaline had worn off he remembered how late it was. "Whether I heed, you never know. I can move pretty fast when motivated."

Rogue: "Bet Ah can move faster." She stuck her tongue out at him. "Get up ta bed, sugah. Lorna's probably wonderin' where tha hell y'all are. Might be thinkin' ya back in jail. Ya lil ex-convict you." Rogue hugged him again, "Thanks. An' sorry. Again."

Bobby: "Yeah... she should be out like a light, but you're right." He stood and stretched, scuffing the spot on the carpet with his toe. "Anna. Please. Don't worry about it. Everything's fine. Sure you don't want to come up too?" Bobby smirked. "Didn't even mean for it to be perverted that time. I meant if you want your bed instead of the sofa."

Rogue: Rogue let out a laugh, "Yeah, suuure ya did," she winked at him then shook her head. "Nah... Maybe there's a Twilight Zone marathon on ta help me realize how normal mah life is." She met his eyes and gave him a soft smile, "An' Ah'll be fine. Promise. Just don't stop callin' me Doll."

Bobby: "Okay. Tell Rod hi for me then." He impulsively gave her a kiss on top of her head before heading for the stairs. "Night, Doll."

[wingyding]

D'awwwwwwwww, Bobberz and Roguey cuteness. But sadness for nightmares.

[tears~fall~like~glass]

Hee. Bobby needs to stop trying to wake up people that are having nightmares. Vic guts him, and now Rogue breaks him.