In The Hands of a Stranger

The Choice: Part 2

Remy's sleep was restless as he figured it would be. He rose before dawn and made his way to the kitchen to get a bite to eat. Then he headed straight for the Med Bay. Rogue was still unconscious and to him looked weaker than she had the day before. His anxieties rose at the sight of her pale skin and cold sweaty palms. She was unmoving. If it wasn't for the monitors he would swear she was dead.

He didn't want to take his eyes off her. He thought that if he did she would disappear out of his life forever. Until he met her he was just coasting through life, taking all he could get. She had changed him somehow, made see there was more to life then just existing, but here she was, lying there in that hospital bed, so pale and weak. He just couldn't stand it. He would save her; he had to. Life without her now was too unbearable to conceive.

He didn't know how long he'd been sitting at her bedside. He never tired of her beautiful face. Suddenly he heard footsteps outside the door. He looked up to see Adrienne, the young woman he met the day before, and a blue furred mutant he had never seen before. Was he some sort of doctor? He must have been by the way he was dressed. He wore a white lab coat and stethoscope hung around his neck.

"Monsieur Labeau," Adrienne said. "Did you sleep well?"

"Ain't gonna been restin' good 'til Rogue's outta danger."

"That's understandable," the blue-furred mutant said.

"Monsieur Labeau, May I introduce Doctor Hank McCoy."

Hank reached out his hand. Remy graciously took it. "So when we getting' started?" Remy asked.

"First," Hank began, "we will need to check Rogue's vitals and hook you up to a monitor."

"Dat not necessary. Remy's ain't sick. Rogue da one who in trouble."

"While you're unconscious, I will need to monitor you."

Hank instructed Remy to lie in the bed next to Rogue, Remy never once taking his eyes off of her. Twenty minutes later as the monitors made their continuous beeps, it almost drove Remy crazy, but he would endure it. For Rogue he would do anything.

"Are we ready?" Adrienne turned to Hank and asked.

"Everything's set," Hank said. "The question is, are you?"

"Yes," she said with no doubt in her mind. "Remy?" she said using his first name. He nodded.

Adrienne put her hands on either side of Rogue's head. "Close your eyes and concentrate. Focus all your energies on Rogue's emotions."

Remy did as Adrienne instructed. Almost instantly he could feel a pull, one he couldn't control. He felt himself floating. He tried calling out Rogue's name, but nothing came out. He felt as if he was trapped in a black void, until he heard something. He gravitated towards the noise. It was a girl voice.

He found himself in a bedroom with a teenage girl screaming and boy lying unconscious on the floor. It was Rogue, but a much younger version of her. This was merely a memory. He could see the memory, but he couldn't be part of it. For the first time he realized he truly was in Rogue's mind. It had worked. Adrienne had done it. Only someone like her could have known about his empathic power, even as weak as it was.

His mind was now focussed. Rogue, the real Rogue was trapped here somewhere, and he was determined to find her. He screamed out her name, but he couldn't hear anything. Until...

"Who are you?"

He turned to see a little girl of five, with long brown hair and green eyes, the same green eyes as Rogue's.

"Hey dare," he said, squatting down to her level. "My name's Remy."

"Are you looking for Rogue?" she said, clutching a teddy bear in her arms. She wore a simple green dress and white dress shoes. Was she just another memory? She couldn't be, because he could speak with her and touch her. "Follow me," she said, taking his hand. "This way."