Torn Pages 2: Falling

Chapter 11: The Dark Knight & the Goth Princess – Night of the Play (1)

Hush
The time has come
Hush
It has begun
Arise the drama
Of the day
Witness the
Night of the play

Kitty's voice mixed with the humming busyness backstage, but Rogue was herself occupied with peeking through the side curtains that gave her a view of the seated audience.

"He's not gonna show you know."

Rogue whirled around to see Lance who was also already dressed in his knight costume, looking over her shoulder towards the same view she had been looking at.

Adjusting the long dark-haired wig around the frame of her face, Rogue muttered,

"I have no idea who you're talking about."

"He told me has a hot date tonight."

Rogue's grip on the part of the material of her princess costume she was adjusting tightened then. But she quickly said,

"Huh, what Pietro wants to do with his night is none of my business."

"So you were looking for him."

Too late the sly grin on Lance's face made Rogue realized that she'd just been had.

"But he did say he'd drop by in case his date doesn't go well."

"I don't really care, okay?" she snapped as she turned fully away from the curtains and made her way to the backstage commotion.

Of course she didn't care; it didn't matter whether he had showed up either – in the first place, what would it prove anyway?

At least now she could pay her full attention to the play she'd set her heart on.

"It's going to be wonderful, I heard Kitty has been really working hard on this," Ororo was saying conversationally to the professor.

They were seated together with Jean and the rest, except for Logan who as usual was bent on guarding the grounds of the institute despite the high tech surveillance that was set up throughout the area. He promised to watch the recording of the play from Evan when Rogue and Kitty tried to convince him to attend.

"I believe that all involved have certainly done their best," nodded the professor, who was quite proud of his students.

"The dark knight is evil, my sister. They say he steals away souls. Beware he steals yours!"

The princess shook her head at her brother's warning. Despite his good intentions, she knew where it was the real evil lurked. It was here in this very castle.

She had heard of this dark knight – a being with the form of a man, bearing the shield of darkness and taking away the breath of others for he had none of his own.

But he had spared her life – till now it riddled her why he had done so.

Only now, she wished he had, for the conspiracy of this place had cost the lives of their loved ones, and all that was left was of her and her brother.

Alone with this unbearable pain set in their hearts.

The lights stunned him and he froze for a moment.

"K-urt, snap out of it…" Kitty's voice soft but urgent called from the side of the stage.

"It is the cursed sun of the lights that has kept me prisoner all these years!" Kurt cried with feeling as he over came his momentary stage fright.

Kitty smacked her head at the line slip but the audience seemed to be enjoying the play too much to notice. The enthusiasm of the crowd boosted Kurt's confidence and he went on like a true stage actor.

Rogue smiled and joined in the cheer for Kurt who was thoroughly enjoying himself as he got a little spotlight of his own. It wasn't too long before her final scene came up…

There was a hushed silence in the audience as the ending scene came up.

The part where the princess was about to make her final decision.

The scene was set with the princess and the dark knight alone in the palace gardens. It was a romantic setting – with the sparkle of soft colorful lights in the dim background, as the glow alike moonlight illuminated the two characters.

The dark knight had played a role in restoring peace once more throughout the kingdom and eventually helped her brother to regain his rightful place as ruler. Now that was over, he was leaving them. The princess had followed him to bid her own farewell, but in truth she had come to settle once and for all what it was that she was feeling for him, and that was that she had let her heart be stolen by this man whose features were forever locked away in his suit of armor.

"Take me with you," she half-whispered through the darkness.

The dark knight shook his head. He didn't speak much unless necessary and only uttered the simplest of words, which he did so now,

"You belong here."

"No," she shook her head. "I know now where it is I belong and it isn't here – not anymore."

There was hesitance in the dark knight as he struggled with the conscience he still possessed deep within himself. But upon catching the look of determination she had in her eyes, he knew that he too wanted nothing more than to have her presence at his side.

It was then he strode determinedly towards her and it was then the kiss scene took place.

As their lips came into contact, pressed against the silk veil; Rogue felt a tingling sensation unlike any other. A part of her mind was urging her that she was past her sanity because there was just something about this kiss, something more – and it was reacting because this was Lance who was kissing her.

But, the vibe that she was getting from him was a sincere longing that seemed to draw her like a moth towards fire: the risk of being burned, bur not caring – because deep inside, she had always longed for this kind of touch. She forgot herself for a moment – succumbed to this unexplainable passionate heat.

"Lance!"

The nearly screech-like whisper of Kitty's broke the moment just as the audience erupted into a roar of applause and the curtain came abruptly down causing Rogue to break away from the kiss.

Before she knew what was happening in the middle of everything that seemed to happen at once – Lance took her hand in his and led them swiftly towards the back exit.

"Lance are you crazy!" Rogue gasped as the gush of cold night air entered her lungs.

The darkness was slowly drifting away as the clouds moved silently to give way to the moonlight's glow.

There she stood, rigid and downright confused about Lance's sudden strange behavior.

He had his back towards her, as if he was staring hard at something on the ground.

She sighed.

"Lance, if you don't stop foolin around, I sw-"

She fell silent as he turned to face her - just as the moonlight shone it's brightest upon his form.

He took of his mask.

A/N:

Has Lance lost it? Kitty's going to be so mad…

To all those who have given me support and urging to finish this fic even after I'd unintentionally but had abandoned it – sincere thanks goes out to all of you

The Grand Finale very soon to come… :)