Circumstances Beyond Control II
(NOTE: This was not planned. I had thought at the time that the first story, the one I wrote about Emil's life, would be the only one of its kind. However, I got inspired, and this is the second of what will eventually be seven stories about the lives of the Thieves. At any rate, this is the story of Mercy LeBeau, also known as Gambit's sister-in-law. As with the first story, just about everything is made up, including her maiden name. As with everything else, I don't own any of the Thieves, or Remy. I do own Jacques and Helene Cordeau, who I've created to be Mercy's parents, as well as Francois Lapin, who you'll remember from the first story as being Emil's father and Pierre Alouette, who is Genard's father. Suing me would be pointless, as I have no money.)
***
"Mercy, honey, please stop making a fuss about dis." Helene Cordeau pleaded, standing in the doorway of her young daughter's bedroom. "You know he doesn' have a choice in de matter. Jean-Luc said so."
"I don' care." Mercy replied, her voice muffled by the fact that she had her head buried in her pillow. "M'sieu LeBeau doesn' know not'ing. Why can' dey reschedule de meeting?"
Helene sighed. "Petite, I don' know. Dese t'ings are complicated. It's no up to Jean-Luc." She walked across the room and sat on Mercy's bed, rubbing the young girl's back.
Mercy sat up and faced her mother. "Mama, he's goin' to miss my birthday! Dat's not fair!"
"Je sais, ma fille. I realize that. Mais, if you t'ink about it, de boys will be dere. An' dey're your best friends. So it won' be dat bad."
Mercy rolled her eyes, but hid a secret smile at the thought of hanging out with three cute boys for an evening. "De only reason Henri, Genard an' Emil are my best friends is b'cause dere are no other girls around my age. I'm not goin' play with Chloe! She's just a kid."
Helene laughed. "I know that too. Now, are dere any girls from school you'd like to invite?" she asked, trying to get her daughter's mind off the fact that her father would have to miss her birthday to be at a meeting in Paris.
Mercy groaned. "None of de kids at school like me," she said softly. "Not dat I blame dem for it."
Helene tilted her head. "Why not? You're pretty, smart an' charming. Why don' dey like you."
"Mama, are you really dat dense?" Mercy giggled. "Papa is in de Thieves Guild. De kids at school know it. No one really likes de boys either. Same reason."
Helene was concerned by what her daughter was telling her. The idea that the children of the Guild were outcasts at school worried her. She had a feeling the Guild members didn't know a thing about it. "Mercy, I had no idea…"
"It's okay, Mama. We're not dat bad off. It jus' means we stick together." Mercy assured her. An' I guess I don' mind only havin' de boys at my birthday…"
"If you say so, chere. Excuse me, I have to talk to your father about somet'ing." Helene told her.
"Mama!" Mercy said as her mother reached the door. "Don' tell him what I said. De reason none of us ever say anyt'ing 'bout it is b'cause we don' want dem to worry. We're okay. We might jus' be kids, mais, we're stronger den we look."
"Mercy Cordeau, I can' jus' not tell dem! Dat would be like lyin' to dem, an' I won' do dat."
Mercy sighed. "Okay…"
A little while later, there was a knock on Mercy's door. She looked up from the story she was reading for her English class and smiled. "Hi, Papa. Hi M'sieu LeBeau. Come in." she said, putting the book down on her desk and waiting for them. She knew what they were there for.
Jacques looked at his daughter expectantly. "Are you still upset 'bout de fact dat your birthday party will be missin' a few guests?"
"Sort of. But I do understand, Papa. Don' worry 'bout it." Mercy said.
"We're sorry for havin' to miss your birthday, Mercy." Jean-Luc said, smiling at her. "It's not everyday a girl turns thirteen."
"I know, M'sieu LeBeau. But it's okay. I don' mind, really. De boys will be dere." Mercy replied.
"Dat's what we'd like to talk to you 'bout, petite." Jacques said quietly. "Your mother told me somet'ing a little while ago dat disturbs us all greatly."
Mercy sighed. "She had to go an' tell you…I asked her not to, but she said she couldn' lie. I don' s'pose I'd have been able to either."
"Are you an' de boys really outcasts at school, chere?" Jacques asked, deciding to just ask her and get it over with.
Mercy nodded. "Oui," she replied. "It started awhile ago, once we all started growin' up some. De other kids don' like us. We don' mind, we jus' stick together an' don' worry too much 'bout de rest of dem."
"An' it's b'cause we're in de Guild, isn' it?" Jean-Luc commented. He didn't like it at all, and was planning on discussing it with Henri when he got home. As the Guild patriarch, it was part of his job to make sure everything was okay for the Guild members and their families, and the idea that the young people had kept their problems a secret from the adults was discouraging.
"Yeah…dey know de names. Dey know who you guys all are. Dey hear 'bout de t'ings dat happen, an' 'bout de problems wit' de Assassins, an' I guess dey t'ink we're de same as you. Dat's all."
"An' you jus' put up wit' it?" Jacques demanded, appalled.
"Papa, we don' mind it, really! It's not such a bad t'ing. It's not like dey do anyt'ing to us, dey mainly jus' avoid us." Mercy explained, wishing she had never brought the subject up to her mother. Her father and Jean-Luc were overreacting, and she knew Genard and Emil's fathers would do the same thing.
The next morning, the four children, Henri, Genard, Mercy and Emil were sitting on the couch at the LeBeau mansion. The boys hadn't been upset with Mercy for telling her mother what went on at school, it actually gave them all an excuse to stop lying about why they never had any friends over after school except each other.
Jean-Luc, his long brown ponytail hanging over his shoulder, was sitting in the armchair across from them, smoking a cigarette. Jacques was standing on one side of him, Francois Lapin, Emil's father, was on the other. Behind them were Pierre Alouette, Genard's father, as well as the other two members of the Guild, Theoren Marceaux and Claude Poitier. The six men did not look happy with the children, and the children were not happy to be sitting there. They would have much rather been out roaming around somewhere looking for trouble to get into.
"You've all kept sayin' dis isn't a big deal." Jean-Luc said. "But it is. Are you happy?"
"Papa, we have each other, we have you guys, an' we have Tante Mattie. What more do we need?" Henri wanted to know. He was the oldest of the group at fourteen years old. Genard was next, having turned thirteen two months prior to this little group meeting. Mercy was next, at almost thirteen, and eleven-and-a-half-year-old Emil was the youngest. Not counting his sister, Chloe, who was five, but she wasn't involved in this anyway.
"Henri, do you know what dey want for you four?" Theoren asked, deciding to answer the question after seeing that the others remained silent. Henri shook his head. "Dey want you to be safe an' happy. In school, in life, in everyt'ing. Dey worry 'bout you all de time, we all do, b'cause we know it's not easy bein' Guild children. We've all been dere."
"We're not angry dat you didn' tell us, but you should have. We don' bite, you know." Francois said. "Don' t'ink you can' come to us wit' anyt'ing. You can."
"You asked if we're happy." Mercy reminded them. The six men nodded. "Well, I t'ink we are. I mean, what Henri said, we have each other, we're best friends, a team. We don' really need dose kids at school. Dey don' understand us anyway…"
"Okay. We'll let it go at dat. But if somet'ing happens, please promise us you'll tell us. No matter what it is. Dat's de main point of dis meetin'." Jean-Luc requested.
The four kids agreed. They all knew it was a good thing for them that they could go to the adults in the Guild if they needed to. They felt better about the whole thing, and were happy they're weren't in trouble for keeping it a secret.
***
FIVE YEARS LATER
"What if he doesn't ask me?" Mercy asked as she helped her mother do the breakfast dishes. It was a few weeks until her senior prom and she really wanted to go. More importantly, she really wanted to go with Henri. It didn't matter to her that Henri had graduated a year before. He hadn't gone to his own prom, but she hoped he would take her to hers.
Mercy didn't know exactly when Henri went from being one of her best friends to being a guy she had a huge crush on. The only person who knew about it was her mother, who thought it was sweet.
"Honey, relax. No one should miss their senior prom. I know he didn't go to his own, but there is no reason why he wouldn't ask you to yours. Is Genard going?"
"Non…he doesn't have a date. Remember five years ago when we told you we were outcasts? It hasn't exactly gotten any better since den."
"I'm sorry to hear dat, Mercy. Well if Henri doesn' ask you, why don' you ask Genard? It might be good for him, he doesn' get out much…neither does Emil."
"Emil spends all his time in front of his computer. An' Genard…well…I don' know…" Mercy faltered. "I guess I could…but I still hope Henri asks me."
"C'mon, Henri, tell me! Please?" Genard asked as he and Henri entered Emil's bedroom. They had been directed there by Chloe, his younger sister, who was probably the most annoying kid on the planet to the two of them. To Emil, she was perfect. But maybe that was because she worshipped the ground he walked on.
"No, Genard. I'm not gon' tell you." Henri replied. He had a lot on his mind, what with the fact that it was almost time for him to try to become a full Guild member. Plus, he had a well-concealed crush on Mercy. So well concealed that only Genard and Emil knew about it, but Henri had a feeling Emil had forgotten somewhere along the line. It wouldn't have surprised him.
"Aw, please? Are you gon' ask her or not?" Genard persisted. Emil looked from the new hacking program he was working on and finally noticed that his friends were there.
"Ask who what?" he asked.
Henri laughed. "You know, Red, if you would take a moment to pay 'tention to what goes on b'yond dat computer screen, you might not be so out of touch wit' us." He grinned, spinning Emil's chair around.
"Whatever." Emil replied, righting himself in front of the computer and glaring at Henri over his shoulder. "So, what's he talkin' 'bout?"
"I'm talkin' 'bout de senior prom. He won' tell me if he's goin' to ask Mercy or not." Genard replied.
"Why? You gon' ask her if he doesn'?" Emil joked. "I t'ought you didn' want to go to it."
"I don'. An' no, dat's not why I'm askin' him. Henri, come on. Just ask her, would you? You want to, so what's stoppin' you?"
"Persistent, aren' you, Genard?" Henri said with a sigh. "Very well. B'cause you want to know, oui, I am plannin' on askin' her. There, you happy now?"
"Yup." Genard smiled, pushing his glasses up on his nose and peering at Emil's computer screen, trying to make sense of the codes that Emil quickly typed up with ease. "Hey Red, what's all dis?"
Emil sighed and swiveled in his chair. He pushed Genard onto the bed, away from the computer. "'Dis' is none of your business," he said, waving at Genard before turning back to the screen. "Bye-bye, now."
Henri laughed. "Why do I put up wit' de two of you?"
Emil and Genard looked at each other and grinned. Then they looked at Henri and said in unison, "B'cause you love us!"
Henri shook his head. "Yeah, an' dat's s'posed to make me feel better?"
Emil and Genard looked at each other again. "Oh no! He doesn' love us!" Genard exclaimed in mock horror. "Whatever will we do now?"
"Dat's it. I'm never leavin' dis chair again." Emil replied. "My computer, at least, loves me, even if some people don'."
The boys both doubled over laughing at the expression on Henri's face.
"What's de matter, Henri? Can' take a little sarcasm?" Genard asked.
Henri sighed. "I'm goin' to Mercy's. You two clowns have fun."
Helene answered the door when Henri rang the doorbell. "Oh, hello Henri. Come on in." she greeted him with a smile.
"Hi Mrs. Cordeau. Is Mercy around?" Henri asked, stepping into the front hall and getting out of the way so she could close the door behind him.
"She's in her room. You can wait in de living room while I get her for you if you wish." Helene replied, showing him into the living room.
"Merci." Henri smiled, sitting on the couch to wait for Mercy.
A couple of minutes later, Mercy entered the room. Helene wisely didn't join them. She had a feeling the two teenagers wouldn't like to be eavesdropped on or chaperoned.
"Hi, Henri!" Mercy said, a faint blush appearing on her cheeks. Henri didn't miss the blush, but he didn't comment on it either. 'I t'ink she likes me!' he thought to himself with a tinge of satisfaction and relief.
"Hi…I'm not interrupting anyt'ing, am I?"
"Non, I was jus' reading. I could use de break…I don' like Shakespeare. What's up?"
"Oh! Um…I was wonderin' if you'd like to go for a walk or somet'ing?" Henri stammered. "I mean, I know it's still daylight out an' our fathers would probably shoot us if dey found out, but, I don' know I kinda feel like takin' a walk, an'…"
"An' what?" Mercy prodded with a sly grin.
"An', well…I'd like for you to come wit' me, if you want to." Henri said, feeling his face get hot.
Mercy raised an eyebrow, knowing full well that Henri usually did most things with Genard and Emil. "What's wrong wit' de boys?"
"Genard's bein' a pain in de neck. An' I don' t'ink anyt'ing short of a flood, a tornado an' an earthquake all at de same time could get Emil away from dat computer of his."
Mercy laughed. "What else is new? Genard's always a pain in de neck. An' someday, de entire Guild will be glad Emil spends so much time at his computer," she told him. "Aside from dat, oui, I would love to go for a walk wit' you, jus' let me tell Mama."
Five minutes later, the two were walking down the street into town, acutely aware that the sidewalk was barely big enough for two people to walk side by side without bumping into each other. For the most part they were silent, lost in their own thoughts. Henri was trying to get up the courage to ask Mercy the question he came to ask. And Mercy was praying he'd ask her.
Finally, Henri just decided to ask and get it over with. "Um…I kinda wanted to ask you somet'ing…dat's de other reason I wanted to go for dis walk…" he said, biting his lip and silently praying she'd say yes. He'd passed up on his own senior prom the year before because he'd wanted to wait and take Mercy to her own. He thought it would mean more than just taking her to his.
"Oui…?" Mercy asked, hardly able to contain the smile that was threatening to show itself.
"You, um, you don' have a date for de prom yet, do you?" he asked, wishing there was an easier way to ask her. 'I should have jus' called an' asked her, instead of doin' dis in person!' he thought.
"I have a grand total of three friends. What do you t'ink?" Mercy joked. "I don', non."
"Well, I was wonderin', would you, um, like to go wit' me?" Henri mentally crossed his fingers and hoped for the best now that the question was asked.
"Henri, I don' know what to say!" Mercy said, while thinking 'Sure you don'!' and wishing she could jump up and down for joy. She gave him her most charming smile and said, "I would love to. Thank you."
Four weeks later, Henri showed up at the Cordeau house in his Ferrari, corsage box on the seat beside him. The pep talk he'd been giving himself since he left his house wasn't working; he was a nervous wreck. Even the job he'd had to do in order to prove his worth to become a member of the Guild hadn't made him as nervous as this was.
Jacques met Henri at the door, camera in hand. Now that Henri was a full member of the Guild, he could call the others by their first names, instead of being proper about it all the time. "You look nervous, Henri."
"I'm a wreck, but don' you dare tell her, Jacques. I mean it! Is she ready yet or do I have time to sit down an' maybe get a grip?"
Jacques laughed. "She's not quite ready, from what dey're telling me. Helene's helping her fix her hair. I t'ink she'll be down soon. Go have a seat."
Mercy walked down the stairs fifteen minutes later and took Henri LeBeau's breath away. Her long blonde hair was styled up on her head and she was wearing an amazing dark green gown that made Mercy's green eyes seem even greener. She reminded Henri of a princess.
Jacques took a picture of her when she reached the bottom of the stairs, which brought a blush to her already flushed cheeks. "Papa! Don'!" she demanded before stepping down and twirling in front of Henri. "Well? What do you t'ink?" she asked.
Henri felt like he'd died and gone to heaven. He couldn't take his eyes off her. "Wow…" he said, placing the corsage on her arm. "You're…wow." He silently cursed himself for not being able to compliment her properly, but she seemed pleased anyway.
"Merci!" she smiled. "You look pretty spiffy yourself."
They agreed to let Jacques take a few more pictures before heading to the school gym where the prom was taking place. They had no friends there, but they didn't let that bother them. The time they didn't spend on the dance floor, they spent sitting at one of the candle-lit tables talking. They had a great time, enjoying each other's company. At the end of the night, Henri drove Mercy home and, like the gentleman his father raised him to be, he walked her to the door.
"I had a great time tonight, Henri, t'anks." Mercy said, smiling shyly at him, hoping he'd kiss her.
Henri had already decided he was going to kiss her, and he was nervous about how she'd react to it. "So did I…it was a lot of fun."
"Well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow, huh?" Mercy replied, getting the impression he was nervous but not calling him on it or letting him know she knew. She turned towards the door, not wanting to wait all night.
"Yeah…um, Mercy?" Henri asked, moving closer to her. She didn't notice he had moved, because her back was turned and she couldn't see him. She turned back and, with a quizzical expression on her face, said,
"Oui?"
'It's now or never…' Henri thought and with that, he took her in his arms, leaned over and kissed her.
At first, Mercy didn't quite know what to do, but she found herself figuring it out pretty quickly. Somehow, her arms found their way around him and she returned his kiss, willing her legs to not give out on her.
A few minutes later, after they said goodnight, Mercy kicked off her high heels and ran upstairs to her room, amazed that she could actually move. Her whole body was trembling, she felt like she had a whole fleet of butterflies in her stomach. She shut the door quietly and leaned against it for a minute before going to bed.
"Wow…" she said, with a small smile on her face. "I t'ink t'ings are goin' to start getting interesting from now on…"
***
SEVEN YEARS LATER
"I wish Papa was here," Mercy said sadly as her mother arranged the veil on her head. Mercy was twenty-five years old, and it was her wedding-day. She and Henri had pretty much been a couple ever since the night of her senior prom, and a year ago, he had given her a beautiful diamond ring and asked her to marry him.
Helene sighed. "I wish he was too, chere. I know he's watchin' you today, though. I know he'd be proud. He's always hoped for dis, ever since your prom night."
Mercy looked at the reflection of herself and her mother in the full-length mirror before her and smiled even though she didn't feel like it. She was very happy to be marrying the man she loved, but she was sad too. The mirror should have been reflecting three images. Her father should have been there.
When Mercy was twenty-two years old, there had been a huge fight in the streets of New Orleans between the Thieves and Assassins Guilds. Her father, who had protested the fact that she wanted to take part, but didn't stop her, knowing she had earned her place in the Guild of Thieves, had been one of the casualties. His death was the only one the Thieves suffered that day, and it had taken every ounce of strength and determination Mercy possessed to continue as a member of the Guild.
She and her old friend Emil had become closer friends since then, because of the affinity they shared. Four years prior to her father's death, the Assassins had broken into Emil's home while he wasn't there and killed his entire family. Going on wasn't easy for either one, but they were both strong and they succeeded. Emil had gone away to school and come back a trained computer specialist. And Mercy kept going, becoming one of the most loyal members of the Guild. And now she was marrying the heir to the organization, Henri LeBeau.
There was a knock at the door. Helene went over and asked who it was, knowing that Henri was not supposed to see Mercy before she began her walk down the aisle of the intricate cathedral.
"Who is it?" Helene asked through the door.
"Jean-Luc." Came the reply. Helene opened the door and smiled at the well-dressed Guild leader.
When Mercy saw Jean-Luc she realized it was time. "Mama, you better go take your seat."
Helene left, going downstairs to join the rest of the people gathered for the ceremony. Mercy and Jean-Luc looked at each other and smiled.
"You're beautiful, Mercy. Absolutely stunning," Jean-Luc told his soon-to-be daughter-in-law. "Are you ready?" He offered her his arm, and she took it.
"Jean-Luc…thank you for dis. I…" Mercy faltered as they left the room.
Jean-Luc paused and she looked up at him. "He would want me to do dis, Mercy. An' I am more den happy to do it. B'sides, I don' have a daughter, dis is de only chance I'm goin' to get to walk a girl down de aisle!"
Mercy laughed, then took a deep breath and said, " Okay. Let's go!"
At the front of the church, Henri was about ready to ring his little brother's neck. Thirteen-year-old Remy, adopted by Jean-Luc three years ago, could not and would not stand still, and it was driving the already nervous Henri crazy. It was also making Genard and Emil laugh, which didn't help Henri's nerves any.
"Mercy doesn't have any bridesmaids, tell me why I need you three up here with me!" he hissed to them. He glared at his three best men. "You two, stop laughing. And Remy, if you fidget during the ceremony, I will kill you."
Remy looked at brother as Emil and Genard made a gallant effort to stop laughing. They succeeded once they saw Tante Mattie glaring at them warningly from the audience. "But Henri, I hate dis suit…" Remy protested. "It itches."
Henri sighed and looked at the ceiling. "Heaven help me…" he whispered before turning to his brother once more. "I know, Rem. Jus' try to ignore it, okay? Dis is a very big moment for me, you'll understand dat someday, an' I don' want anyt'ing to go wrong. So please don' fidget. Please. I'm beggin' you, mon petite frere. Oh an' don' make dose two morons laugh either, okay? Jus' stand still."
Remy nodded as the music started up. The wedding march played gloriously throughout the church. Henri froze where he was, eyes focused at the end of the aisle. There, he saw his father, looking elegant in his tuxedo. And on his father's arm was the most beautiful woman Henri had ever seen, the woman who was about to become his wife. It was time.
Mercy had never been so nervous in her entire life. She knew, from looking at Henri, that he was nervous too. But they were also very happy. After all, they were celebrating the most important day of their lives with the people they loved. What could be better than that?
When the ceremony was over, and they were in the limo heading to the reception hall, Henri started laughing. Mercy looked at him, confused, while she fingered the gold wedding band on her left hand in wonder.
"What's so funny?" she asked him.
Henri just kept laughing. When he stopped and caught his breath, he said, "It went off without a hitch. I can' believe it. It was perfect. You are so beautiful, Mercy, have I told you that yet today?"
"Um…only about five times since we got into the car, yeah. But it's okay. An' why wouldn' it go off perfectly?"
"Two minutes before de ceremony b'gan, Remy was squirming like someone had sprayed him with itching powder, an' Emil an' Genard were laughing fit to be tied. An' yet, dey all b'haved demselves. I'll have to tell dem I'm proud of dem." Henri explained.
"No wonder you're relieved, den!" Mercy giggled. She, too, was suddenly relieved that all had gone well.
"Yeah…hey," Henri replied, taking her face in his hands. "You know somet'ing?" he asked, his brown eyes filled with warmth.
"What?" Mercy asked.
"I love you."
Mercy gave him her most charming smile and replied, "I love you too."
Their kiss ended just as the limo pulled up outside the reception hall.
***
TWO YEARS LATER
"Mama, what do you t'ink? Is Stephanie Celeste too horrible a name to make a girl live wit' for her entire life? Or what about Marcel Jacques for a boy?"
"Mercy, relax, would you?" Helene sighed. "You have seven an' a half months to come up wit' a name for dis baby, you don' have to do it dis second. But if you want my opinion, dose are both nice names. An' so are all de other names you an' Henri have thrown at Jean-Luc an' me for de past three weeks."
"Mama, you're no help!" Mercy complained. Henri walked in as she said it, and laughed.
"Playin' de name game 'gain, are we?" he snickered. "Helene, you an' Papa may as well get used to it. I have a feelin' we're goin' be runnin' names by you until de day dis baby is born."
Helene returned his smile. "Oh, oui, I know dat. An' b'lieve me, we're both thrilled to pieces. We're only pretendin' to mind when you run names by us. Neither one of us minds in de least."
"Mama!" Mercy protested. "Dat's not fair!"
"Petite, you should know dis right now. Grandparents, especially first time grandparents, are never fair to anyone except their grandchildren."
"Mercy, I t'ink our baby is goin' to be spoiled rotten by our parents. Maybe we should move away." Henri joked.
"Don' you dare!" Helene exclaimed, horrified. "Your father an' I would never forgive you!"
"Jus' kiddin', Helene." Henri assured her.
"Good!"
Two weeks later, Mercy woke up in the middle of the morning with a weird feeling. Something wasn't right, but at first she didn't know what it was. She looked over at Henri, who was still sleeping peacefully beside her. That wasn't it. Frowning, she decided to get up.
'Maybe my baby doesn' like it when I oversleep,' she thought, pushing the covers off and getting ready to climb out of bed. When she pushed the covers off, she froze, suddenly seeing what the problem was. The bed was covered in blood.
"Henri!" she exclaimed in horror.
Henri's eyes snapped open. "What's wrong?" he demanded in alarm, sitting up…and seeing the blood on the bed. Mercy looked at him, tears streaming down her pale cheeks.
"Oh no…" Henri said softly, a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach, as he reached over to hold his wife. "Oh Mercy, honey, I…"
The young couple knew what had happened. All they could do was hold each other and cry out their grief. They stayed that way for a long time before getting up and going to the doctor, who confirmed that Mercy had miscarried.
Their family was told first. Then, the rest of the Guild was gathered and informed. Everyone supported them and did their best to help them get through the ordeal, but in the end, only Mercy and Henri could help each other. They had been so happy, so expectant, so excited to be parents. Now all they could feel was an unbearable sadness. But they knew they could go on, and with the support of the Guild, they did. It was hard, but they made it, never forgetting the baby that would never be theirs in life, only in spirit, but also not staying in the past.
***
THREE YEARS LATER
"Bel, come on! You can't possibly say dis is Remy's fault!" Mercy exclaimed in frustration. Bella Donna just looked at her with a grief-stricken, angry expression on her fine features.
"Who's fault is it den, Mercy?" she demanded. "All I wanted to do today is get married. Not have my husband kill my brother minutes after de ceremony!"
"Dis whole t'ing was a bad idea from de start…" Mercy muttered. To Bella Donna, she said, "Julian started it, you were dere, you heard him!"
Bel glared. "How dare you blame dis on my brother!" she shouted. "Get out."
"Fine. If you won' see reason, dere's no point to me stayin' anyway." Mercy replied hotly, wishing Julian Boudreaux had just kept his big-shot mouth shut and let Remy and Bel be happy on their wedding day.
When she returned to the LeBeau mansion, Henri wasn't there, but Remy was, with Emil and Genard. Remy was as distraught as Bella Donna was, knowing that everyt'ing their fathers had planned for was in ruins. He had not meant to kill Julian, hadn't even wanted to fight him, but when Julian confronted him, he had to, for the honor of the Thieves Guild. It hadn't occurred to any of them that the unification was at stake with that fight, not until it was over. Once it was over, Julian, the Assassin heir, was dead, Remy was responsible, the Thieves didn't know what to do, and the Assassins were furious.
Remy packed his things and left, knowing he would not be able to return for a long time. He said good-bye to his sister-in-law and his friends, wishing there was another alternative, but realizing there wasn't.
Remy's departure from New Orleans tore the Thieves apart. He was only a kid, just eighteen years old. They knew he could take care of himself, but they still worried about him.
One night, a couple of weeks after the fateful day when Remy left, Mercy entered the living room at the mansion to find Jean-Luc and Henri sitting in silence, with concerned expressions on their faces. Mercy sighed and decided to do something about their depressed states.
"He'll be fine," she said, sitting beside Henri. "He was taught by de New Orleans Thieves Guild, remember? B'sides, he took care of himself for ten years b'fore we came into his life, an' he can take care of himself now. I can' stop you from worryin' 'bout him, but dere's no need to keep dwellin' on it. He's a survivor, jus' like de rest of us. An' he'll come back someday."
"We know you're right, Mercy," Henri replied, smiling at her. "It's hard to remember it though. He's a kid."
"I know. De whole t'ing was out of our control. Julian was a jerk for startin' it; Bel's a jerk for blamin' Remy…an' maybe…" Mercy faltered.
"Maybe de whole idea was a stupid one to b'gin wit', non?" Jean-Luc asked cynically. "Marius an' I t'ought it would work, but it looks like we were wrong."
"Maybe de unification of de two Guilds will work someday," Mercy said thoughtfully. "But arranging a marriage between two eighteen-year-old kids was probably not de right way to make it happen."
"De unification will happen someday, Mercy. De prophecies say so." Jean-Luc replied. "It's jus' a matter of time, I guess."
***
THREE YEARS LATER
"Mercy, I'm sorry." Remy said, joining his sister-in-law in the back yard of the LeBeau mansion.
Mercy looked at him and sighed. "I know, Rem. Like Tante Mattie said, it wasn't your fault, don' blame yourself, okay? I jus' can' b'lieve dey did dat…"
"You can'?" Remy was incredulous. "T'ink of all dey've done to us in de past…an' I ain' even been around for most of it. Dey hate us. Dey'd do anyt'ing to hurt us in some way."
"Dat's true. I guess I jus' didn' b'lieve dey'd stoop so low as to do dis…"
"In a way, maybe it is my fault…" Remy began thoughtfully. "If I hadn' accidentally killed Julian an' ticked dem all off, an' left…maybe dey wouldn' have done dis."
"I don' know, I t'ink dey would have done it whether you'd killed Julian or not. Like you said, dey hate us." Mercy replied, giving his hand a squeeze. She knew he wouldn't stop thinking it was his fault, even thought it really wasn't.
A few days before, there had been a Guild meeting at the LeBeau mansion. Jean-Luc and Tante Mattie reminded the others that the tithing was coming up and Tante Mattie made an announcement that shocked and angered the rest of the thieves. Their enemies, the Assassins, were planning on sabotaging the thieves tithe somehow so that the benefactress of the two guilds would get angry and destroy them. It had been decided that Henri would travel to New York to get Remy so that he could help them stop the Assassins. Aside from that, every member of the Guild had to be at the tithing and even though Remy had not been back in three years, he was still considered to be a thief by Candra, the benefactress, and his absence would do more harm than good.
So, Henri had left immediately and flown to New York. He went to the mansion of Professor Charles Xavier, founder of the X-Men. Remy had hooked up with them after befriending one of them two years before, and had been there ever since, fighting for Xavier's dream of mutants and humans living together in peace. Sometimes the members of the Guild had forgotten that Remy was a mutant…the only indication was his strange red-on-black eyes.
Unknown to Henri and the thieves, he had been followed by members of the Assassins, who took the opportunity to kill him as he and Remy prepared to go to the airport and fly back to New Orleans. Those Assassins had paid a dear price for killing the heir to the thief legacy; they paid with their lives. Remy's friend Logan, a mutant warrior with an adamantium skeleton also known as Wolverine, had witnessed the events and killed them. Remy had then taken his brother's body and one of the X-Men's jets and flown back to Louisiana himself.
"I don' know if they were tryin' to kill me or him, Merce." Remy commented. "It could have been either one of us."
"Remy, things have not been good between de guilds since you left. I don' t'ink dey were after you...if dey were, dey could have found you any time dey wanted to."
"Maybe," Remy sighed. "I jus' wish it hadn' happened de way it did…"
"You an' de rest of us, Rem. We all wish it hadn' happened, period. I don' know what's goin' to happen now, but it ain' goin' be good, I jus' got dis feelin'…" Mercy said sadly.
***
TWO YEARS LATER
"Come on, you guys, you know he hasn' been de same since Henri was killed," Mercy said. "B'sides, he an' Marius have always known dis would come to pass. It was only a matter of time b'fore dere would be no choice in de matter for any of us."
"Mercy, it sucks!" Emil complained. "He's throwin' us all together into one Guild, jus' like de prophecies have been tellin' him to do for years, an' he's leavin' us!"
"Emil's right, it's not fair." Theoren agreed. "I can see it bein' de end of one Guild or de other, eventually. Probably us b'cause dey're stronger den we are."
"He's old, guys. It's hard to remember dat b'cause he looks half his age, but dat's only b'cause of de elixir. I hate it as much as you do, mais can you really blame him for wantin' to retire an' get away from all of de crap dat goes on?" Mercy asked.
"Retirin's one t'ing, Merce. Workin' with Bel to join de two Guilds jus' b'cause de prophecies say to do it now, den leavin' us to fend for ourselves is another." Genard replied. "We're screwed."
"I'm sorry you all feel dat way," Jean-Luc commented, joining them in the living room of his mansion. He had been watching them, and listening to what they were saying, for quite some time, and it saddened him that they couldn't even pretend to be more positive about it. He didn't really want to leave them; he loved them all too much to want to cause them any pain, but he also had to do what the prophecies told him to do. And in this case, the prophecies told him to join the two Guilds and leave. Not only that, but one thing they didn't know was he had to appoint his own son, Remy, as the new patriarch of the Unified Guild.
The thieves might not have much of problem with that, although Remy would in all likelihood be harder to convince that it was for the best, but the Assassins probably would. Bella Donna would rather be the leader herself, and Jean-Luc couldn't blame her for that. She had become the matriarch of the Assassin Guild when her father died a year ago, and she was a natural leader. Just letting Remy take over would be difficult for her to swallow.
None of them had been wrong, as it turned out. Tensions ran high in the Unified Guild over the next year, and while neither Remy nor Bel liked the fact that Remy was the leader, the both accepted it. Then all hell broke lose when they realized that the prophecies had also told Jean-Luc to sabotage his own son's leadership. He did it, with the help of Theoren, and Gris-Gris, one of the Assassins, and a vote of confidence had to be held. Remy's fate as Guild patriarch was in the hands of the Guild's members and there was nothing he could do about it.
Remy himself hoped they would vote him out, so he could go back to just being in the X-Men. The vote took place while he battled a member of the legendary Neo, a group of super humans who thought they were more superior than mutants.
As the vote took place, Mercy couldn't believe what she was hearing. Half of the Assassins surprised the heck out of everyone and voted for Remy to remain leader, as did most of the thieves. In the end, it was a tie, to be broken by the last to vote, Bella Donna herself. It was Bel who really surprised Mercy. Bel, who had claimed to hate Remy ever since he accidentally killed her brother, voted to keep him as Guild patriarch.
When the vote was over and the Guild was going to help Remy against the Neo, Mercy asked Bel about her decision.
"I have to admit, Bel, you surprised me back there. I didn' t'ink you liked him."
Bella Donna sighed. "I don', really. I mean, I've forgiven him for killin' my brother, dat was an accident, and I know dat now. Do I want him to be patriarch? Not really, but…"
"But what? You could have jus' as easily voted him out an' maybe b'come de leader yourself. What stopped you?" Mercy pressed.
"De prophecies. Dey told Jean-Luc dat Remy would be de one to lead us to de Resurrection. I have to do what I t'ink is best for de Guild as a whole, not what might be best for us as individuals. We all have to do dat. Dat's why some of de votes went de way dey did. I saw you were surprised by some of dem. I wasn'." Bel explained.
"Dis past year has been so hard…t'ings are changin', aren' dey Bel?"
"Oui, an' oui. Of course it's been hard. You take two groups of people who've hated each other for years an' throw 'em together, tellin' dem they have to be one big group, an' dere's bound to be problems. But I t'ink we're slowly learnin' an' we'll be stronger in de long run b'cause of it. You'll see."
"I sure hope you're right, Bel. I'd hate to t'ink everyt'ing Jean-Luc an' Marius fought for was a waste of time."
"Me too, Merce. C'mon, we're almost dere. Let's go help out our patriarch, huh?"
"We're right b'hind you."