The X-men: Night Sounds

Author:  AeLonwyne

Disclaimer:  All characters are Marvel's.  I'm not out for money, just fun.

Pale wisps of moonlight streamed through the open window, of the woman's third floor bedroom, in the west wing of the mansion. The world was silent, and presumably peaceful in the wee hours of the morning. It had to be. Or the X-Men wouldn't be sleeping in their own beds.

THUMP!

Rogue lurched upright in bed. "Huh?" She blinked the sleep from her eyes. "What the heck was that?"

THUMP!

"That had better be a mouse. Cuz if it's Hank mixin his chemicals again, I'm having a Beastie BBQ for breakfast." Rogue grumped to no one, as she jumped out of bed.

THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!

The floor shuttered with each noise. "Good grief sounds like a herd of Juggernauts." Rogue exclaimed as she hurried out her door. In the hallway she nearly ran over Storm, and Iceman, as they too came out to investigate.

THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!

"If that's Beast." Storm began. "I assure you my weather oriented friend that it is not I." Hank said as he came to join them Gambit just behind him. The collective X-Men looked at each other. "I think it's coming from the east wing." Bobby said.

THUMP!

The X-Men walked carefully down the hall. They instinctively fanned out. Storm taking point. Gambit in the rear. As they walked down the hallway the thumping got louder, and more insistent. Finally they reached where the noise seemed to be coming from. The third floor laundry room.

"Bobby open the door." Storm said in a whisper. "You open it." He replied. "Gambit?" "No way Chere." "Ah'll open it." Rogue said exasperated. "Ya' all wait here." Silently she opened the door, and crept inside pulling it shut behind her. It was silent for roughly thirty seconds. Then it began.

THUMP! "NOOO!" THUMP THUMP THUMP! "Stop it! Ahhey! Whoah!" THUMP! THUMP! THUMP! WHACK! SLAM! BANG! BANG! BANG! "Ow! Damn it! You piece of ..." The other X-Men stood there for a moment trying to make sense of what they were hearing, before launching into action.

"Rogue!" Gambit yanked open the laundry room door, and stopped short. The three cards he had been charging in his hand, dropped to the floor, and exploded. BOOM! Gambit was thrown into the air, and came down landing on top of Iceman. They all stood there staring.

Rogue had one arm inside the washing machine, and it was flipping her around like a bucking bronco. "Help! It's trying to eat me!" Rogue gave it a good kick, and it sucked her leg in too. "Let me go! Hey!" Storm hurried over and grabbed Rogue around the waist, and tried to pull her out. "Give us some help here." Storm commanded.

Bobby iced up and shot a few icicles at it but nothing happened. Not even a dent. All the X-men started beating viciously at the temperamental washing machine, to no avail. The washing machine had nearly sucked Rogue completely inside when it suddenly stopped. Storm and Rogue shot across the room into the opposite wall.

"W... What happened?" Rogue asked tentatively. "HrrrmmHmmm." Hank cleared his throat. Rogue and the others glanced over at him. He had a small black cord dangling from his rather large furry hand. "I unplugged it." Jaws 
dropped all around the room. "You unplugged it?" Storm demanded. "Why didn't you do that in the first place?" Bobby asked. "Why didn't you Robert?" Hank replied.

Presently Scott and Jean walked in carrying laundry baskets. And surveyed the scene. "I don't think we are going to get an early start on our laundry Scott." Jean stated. Scott shook his head. "What happened in here?" He asked surveying the scene before him. Storm was adjusting her nightgown, trying to smooth out the tears, and brush off the dust. Gambit was holding an icecube to his forehead. Bobby was rubbing the dirt off his shorts, and Hank was standing with a cord dangling in his hand. Rogue on the other hand, was sitting in the corner rocking back and forth muttering "It tried to eat me. It tried to eat me." Over and over.

"Hank is that the cord to the washing machine? Would you plug it back in? Jean and I have some laundry to do." "Nooo! It'll eat me!" Rogue raved from the corner. "Rogue," Jean started gently, "The washing machine won't eat you." "Yes it will! Look!" She cried holding out her bruised limbs. Scott set down his basket of laundry and took the power cord from Hank, and went to plug it in.

"Ahhhh! Nooo! You can't!" Rogue jumped up and knocked him aside. She proceeded to pick up the machine, and walked out of the room with it. She took it down the hall to the large window at the end, overlooking the pool. With one swift movement she heaved it out the window. SPLASH!

"Hahahahahaha! Now it cant eat me. Muahahahaha! Hahahahahahhaaaa!" Rogue crowed with insane laughter. "Ummm ok now. I think Rogue needs a vacation." Bobby muttered. "Great now how am I gonna do laundry?" Scott mumbled to his wife. Jean just shook her head and gave him a hug.

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK! Rogue sat upright in her bed, and looked around. "Huh?" Rogue stumbled out of bed and opened her door. "Hey Rogue. It's your turn for the washing machine." Scott told her. "Ahhhhhhhh!" Rogue screamed 
and dropped to the floor. "It's gonna eat me it's gonna eat me it's gonna eat me." She whimpered.

"What'd I say? What'd I say?" Jean walked up, "She had a nightmare I believe." She told him with a grin. Scott looked at her. "Jean! You didn't." He said. "I did." She replied grinning wickedly. "Hey you kept telling her to take a vacation. Now she can't refuse. She'll want one." Scott just shook his head. "Besides, just wait till Bobby and Hank wake up. This prank war thing has gone on for sometime. It's my turn to be mean."

Jean crouched down next to the whimpering Southern Belle. "Hey, Rogue. Maybe you need a vacation." Then she and Scott walked away leaving Rogue to mutter to herself on the floor. "It's gonna eat me. It's gonna eat me. It's gonna 
eat me. It's gonna eat meee!"