Rhian sat in the kitchen eating a huge plate of eggs, sausage, toast and hash browns with ravenous abandon. She was always starving after an intense session with Victor. She took a sip of coffee and watched Jean's horrified stare. Jean sat across from her eating a bowl of fruit and a cup of coffee. "What were you doing in the woods to work up such an appetite?"
Rhian smirked slightly. 'If only you knew.' She thought. "I was meditating and communing with nature. I was also fasting since I didn't bother bringing supplies with me." She said aloud.
Which wasn't entirely true. Victor would never allow her to go hungry but he did understand her need to fast for twenty-four hours though it bothered him to let his mate go without food. Jean nodded. "I see. I take it you feel refreshed."
"Very. Anything interesting happen while I was gone?"
"Not really. Logan's been stomping around the place in a cranky mood since Friday. I'm guessing you turned him down. Storm had a nightmare and it snowed in the garden and Rogue did what she always does and did nothing at all." Jean bit into a strawberry and watched Rhian.
She was starting to like Rhian. The woman was entertaining, intelligent and completely inaccessible to Jean or the Professor. And Jean was starting to find that she liked that. Rhian for her part was trying not to start liking Jean too much. Friendships made here would have to fall away when she returned to Victor since her mate would never be accepted in the hallowed halls of the School. "Well since Rogue didn't do anything this weekend she must be dieing of boredom. I think I'll take her out to do something since neither of us has class today."
"Is that wise? With her skin and all?" Jean asked concern for Rogue rising to the forefront.
"To tell you the truth I really don't think it'll be a problem. Part of today's outing will be an intense meditative process. I think I know a way to help her control her power." Rhian replied.
"But we've already tried meditation, several different kinds." Jean protested.
Rhian smiled. "Not all meditation involves closing your eyes and focusing your mind Jean. If it doesn't work it doesn't work and we'll try something else."
Jean sighed but couldn't think of anything to say as Rhian dumped her dishes in the skin and rinsed them. She sailed out of the kitchen leaving Jean with her thoughts.
Rhian ran into Logan on her way to get Rogue. Apparently Logan had been lying in wait because he grabbed her and pinned her against the wall. He could smell something very familiar on her. A scent that blanketed her own. He stuck his nose in the crook of her neck and inhaled deeply but before he could place the scent she'd shifted sideways from the world and he fell through her. She glared down at him. "I told you no Logan."
He stood and glared at her. "You smell like a man. Who'd you go see this weekend?"
"That's none of your business." She replied hoping that the musk perfume she'd sprayed on this morning when she'd dressed would cover Victors scent.
"It is if yer giving them inside info on the mansion." Logan growled.
She laughed. Partially because it was absurd but partially because he'd hit the nail on the head. She'd been sharing information with Victor about the goings on in the mansion but only about Logan and Rogue. Victor wasn't interested in the rest. "You're a cranky suspicious bastard today."
He scowled heavily and Rhian began to ghost away from him. "I'm going out again today but this time I'll have Rogue with me so you won't have to worry about me selling information on the School with her as witness."
"Yer up to something and I'll find out what." Logan promised as she walked away from him.
Rhian felt apprehensive about that promise. Something was nagging at her but she couldn't place it so she shelved it and knocked on Rogues door. Rogue answered as usual swathed from neck to toe in layers. Rhian appraised her outfit and shook her head. "That's not gonna work today Rogue."
She slipped into Rogues room and opened the closet. "We're going out today you and I."
"Out? Why?"
"Because I promised you I'd help you get Logan, I just needed time to come up with a plan. The first step is getting out of the mansion for a while. Here wear this." Rhian handed her a pair of leggings, a floor length black skirt and a long sleeve blouse. Rogue changed quickly in the bathroom. When she came back out Rhian looked her over then reached to pluck the top three buttons completely off the blouse leaving a long expanse of Rogues pale neck exposed. "Perfect."
Rogue gaped at her. "That's too much skin Rhian!"
Rhian looked her in the eye her face serious. "Rogue, Logan is never going to take you seriously if you look like a school marm. You need to learn to relax a little. Here in the School everyone knows about your skin so their careful around you. In polite society in the outside world it's considered very rude to go around grabbing at peoples throats unless your plan is to strangle them in which case they deserve a good zap from you. Showing a little skin between collar and chin is perfectly safe. Hell you could probably show off half your cleavage and still be just fine."
Rogue thought about it for a moment then nodded. "Alright. So what do you have in mind?"
"Well first we're going somewhere quiet for a few hours. I have an idea on how we might control your power. Then we're going shopping." Rhian grinned.
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"So the idea is very simple. Psychologists use it to treat people with multiple personalities. They teach the patient to compartmentalize the different personalities and uses a trigger word to bring them forth or lock them away. Jean says you know how to meditate?" Rhian asked sitting cross legged from Rogue on a stone balance beam in a empty playground.
"Yeah."
"Good. Close your eyes and seek out your power. What does it feel like?" Rhian asked and waited for Rogue to slip into the meditative trance. It took about ten minutes. "Rogue. What does your power feel like?"
"It feels like static but softer, like when you run your hand over a computer screen." Rogue replied softly.
"Good, gather that feeling into a small space, pack it into a ball. Draw every bit of it into a ball and hold it." Rhian waited again until Rogue said she had it all. "Build a box around it. Visualize the walls of a box, make it any kind of box you like but it has to have a lid with a lock and key."
Rogue focused and Rhian saw beads of sweat break out on her forehead. The strain of this kind of meditation was incredible. After about half an hour Rogue spoke again. "I got it. My power kept trying to get away but I got it in the box." She sounded triumphant.
"Good. You need to lock the box. Pick a trigger word. Something that doesn't get said often around you. Anyone will be able to unlock the box with the trigger word so it needs to be really unique." Rhian shifted her weight slightly and waited.
"I can't think of anything." Rogue said a little frantically.
"Calm down. I'll help you. How about you use a mythical name? Use the word Freya." Rhian said quickly.
Rogue mouthed the word and visualized locking the box. She opened her eyes slowly and wiped sweat off her forehead with a shaky hand. "Do..do you think it worked?"
"Only one way to tell." Rhian replied and laid her bare fingers on Rogues bare neck.
Neither of them felt anything. Rogue started crying and Rhian pulled her into a hug. "I can't believe it. It's under control."
Rhian pulled away from Rogue and handed her a tissue. "Not entirely. You have to let it out from time to time or it will explode out of the box and you won't be able to get it back in and if someone else says the trigger word you'll have to spend some time meditating to get the box closed again. But this is as close to gone as you can get."
"What does my trigger word mean?" Rogue asked.
Rhian smiled. "She's the goddess of women, the protector of women and children. Makes a perfect trigger word for you. And most people don't say her name anymore."
Rogue nodded, her stomach growled and she pressed her hands to it. "Oh man I'm starving."
Rhian checked her watch. "Not surprising, we've been out here for three hours and that was an incredibly intense session. Come on. Lets go to the mall. We'll get lunch then blow some money on some seriously sexy cloths."
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"Are you sure about this?" Rogue asked looking at herself in the mirror.
She was wearing a black halter-top that clung in all the right places without being slutty. A black leather skirt hung to just above her knees and she wore a pair of what Rhian called witch boots. She looked sexy but something was off. Rhian was considering her image and holding two large bags of cloths. She'd decided Rogue needs a wardrobe overhaul. She snapped her fingers. "I know just what you need. Come on lets go pay for those."
Rogue wanted to scream at the total but Rhian simply paid for the items and they left. "How can you afford to spend that kind of money? That wasn't a conjured card was it?"
Rhian laughed and people around them turned to watch the pair of beautiful woman walking along. "No. It's not conjured Rogue. I wasn't always a school teacher. I have money enough to really enjoy life and sense enough to not squander it unless I think it's a good cause."
Rogue blushed. "I'm a good cause?"
Rhian slung an arm over Rogues now bare shoulders. "Hell yeah. Come on."
Rogue looked at the salon. "You're going to get my hair cut?" She squeaked.
Rhian fingered Rogues long straight single length hair. "You're twenty one and this hair cut does not show it. We're just going to sex it up a little. It'll still be long." She reassured.
Rogue swallowed then nodded firmly. "I'm twenty one. Time to stop feeling like I'm sixteen."
"Atta girl!" Rhian said cheerfully glad to see Rogue finally shedding her timid shell.
The stylist oohed and ahhed over Rogues beautiful hair while Rhian gave instructions. "Sex it up but leave it as long as possible. Maybe give it some curl? Not like mine though, her hair won't tolerate that."
Another stylist looked Rhian's hair over with an appraising eye. "Is that color natural? And the curls?"
Rhian smiled. "Yup. Never touched it with a dye bottle and forget the curling irons."
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Logan prowled the foyer, the game room, the media room and back again. He felt restless and angry. Like someone had encroached on his territory but he didn't know who. It had been almost eight hours since Rhian and Rogue had left the mansion and he was torn between leaving to find them and just plain leaving. He paced back into the foyer and his ears caught the sounds of car doors shutting. He yanked the door open and Rhian half stumbled. She'd been leaning on the door trying to adjust the bags she was carrying. "Thanks Logan. Lets just dump me on the marble huh?"
He snorted. "Where the hell have you been?"
"Out." She replied cheekily.
He looked past her looking for Rogue. He didn't immediately recognize the young woman standing in front of the door. She was stunning, a black halter top and black leather skirt with old fashioned black boots made her body seem impossibly long and lean. He started when he saw the white streaks in her tousle curled hair. Rogue's new hair cut had turned hr long straight thick brown hair into a thick tousle curled mane. It looked fantastic on her. She was wearing very light make up and for a change actually looked twenty one. Rhian reached over and closed his jaw. "And she's got complete control of her skin." She commented before gathering up the bags and climbing the stairs to the teachers wing.
"You can control it?" He asked gruffly.
"Ah can. Rhian taught me how to lock it away." Rogue replied.
Logan eyes darkened slightly and she could tell he was angry about something. She moved towards him. "Do ya like it?"
He gave a her a quick once over and growled. "Yeah. Doesn't change anything though." He stalked away leaving Rogue standing in the middle of the foyer trying not to cry.
Rhian's astral self had watched the entire exchange. It appeared she would have to move to stage two of her plan.
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Author's Chapter Notes:
A little more Logan/Rogue interaction and Rogue gets Sexied up.Hope you like the way I controlled Rogues powers.
Chapter End Notes:
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