A/N: An attempt to write a Gambit fic to join up X-Men Origins: Wolverine (SPOILERS) and the timeline Corrinth and I have been writing for the past 8 years or so. I'm not very good at time travel stories, but needs must so here goes nothing…

Disclaimer: I am making no money from this

Not All Those Who Wander Are Lost

01- Poker

The sun was glistening like diamonds on the gently undulating waters of the Mediterranean Sea. The smell of brine contrasted headily with the fumes from the cars and mopeds speeding by on Promenade des Anglais. Across the road, beyond the palm trees, there was a café fronted with a scattering of patio chairs and tables. The redheaded girl was seated at a table just beyond the reach of the crimson awning that hung from the café's front. She had her eyes closed and her chin raised as she enjoyed the warmth of the day on her skin. She was dressed in a navy blouse that was open suggestively at the neck, wedge sandals and white three-quarter length trousers. There was a navy scarf twined elegantly around her neck and sunglasses were pushed up into her hair. As he walked over to her carrying their drinks she opened her eyes and smiled at him…

Somewhere a door slammed loudly, jolting Remy awake. Blearily he wondered how he had ever fallen asleep. He turned his face upwards and shook his wrists. He was a captive. His hands were manacled to the roof of the cage les méchants had locked him in. He couldn't touch anything, which meant he could not use his mutant powers and escape. The situation was worse than hopeless.

Remy was surrounded by misery, amongst other caged mutants like himself. Many of those who had been captured and brought here were little more than children. Remy tried as much as possible not to look at them. The expressions of terror on their faces were too much for him to bear. Instead he concentrated on trying to keep the blood flowing properly through his arms by clenching and unclenching his fists. His fingers were numb, and part of him wondered if he ever did get out of this whether he would be able to hold a playing card again.

He had no memory of his journey to this place. In fact his memories of late had been patchy at best. He knew his name was Remy Le Beau and he knew he came from New Orleans. He had figured out he could play poker with the best of them, and that he was a mutant. Other than that it was mostly a blank. He didn't know who the redhead in his dream was. In fact he couldn't have named another person on the planet. Except one. Except Victor.

Victor was probably the reason Remy had no memory at present. The beating that brute had given Remy had damn near killed him. L'homme sauvage. Remy was a proud man. Knowing that the feral mutant had bested him in a fight and condemned him to this hellhole galled him. But he was also scared of Victor. If he never saw that lumbering oaf again in this lifetime it would be too soon.

"What you lookin' at fils?" Remy asked, seeing that the boy in the next cage was watching him intently. The boy, a scrawny lad with mousy hair and bad breath, blanched as though struck. He moved back to the furthest point of the cage and sunk to the floor of the cell. Whatever this kid's powers were, they weren't worried about him escaping. Indeed the kid just sat down and started twirling his fingers in a spinning motion. Little lights flashed around his moving hands and a web of thin white threads started to appear. Great, thought Remy, dey gone and stuck me in a cell next to Spider-Boy.

There was laugher across the room. Remy knew there was no chance if it coming from the cages. Sure enough three guards appeared, sauntering down the aisle like they owned the place. Remy's brown eyes narrowed. At a cage three from Remy's a blonde girl was too close to the bars. One of the guards made an indecent remark and grabbed at her. She instantly turned herself to crystal and moved away from the bars, shaking with terror. This amused the guards even more as they dragged over some packing crates and took up station not far from Remy's prison. Sitting down, one of them drew a pack of cards from a pocket of his uniform and started to shuffle the deck. Within a few minutes, the guards were engrossed in their game of poker.

Remy watched professionally for a few rounds. One of the guards was quickly building up a substantial pot of winnings, whilst the other two were looking more and more concerned with each hand that was dealt. Remy couldn't see all the cards the guards were dealt, but he could see that the one guard, Higgins, was more than a match for fellow Sergeants Norton and Schwartzer. Maybe, just maybe, Remy could use that to his advantage.

At meal time the next day, it was Norton who came to shove the trays of so-called food into the cages on Remy's block. This was one of very few times Remy was allowed to have his hands free. The whole while he was eating, Norton kept his gun aimed straight at Remy's head. It was quite hard to enjoy your meal when you could almost feel the itch in Norton's trigger finger. The guards to a man hated mutants. Otherwise they would never be able to do their job.

"Playin' poker again today homme?" Remy asked between mouthfuls, trying to keep his tone casual.

"What's it to ya?" the guard growled, shifting his weight from foot to foot.

"Not'ing," Remy replied. "You wanna keep a close eye on Higgins. Every time he bluffs, the guy scratches his right leg."

The guard said nothing. Remy let it lie and finished his meal in silence. He slapped the manacles back on his own wrists, allowing Norton to activate the electromagnetic locks remotely. That night's poker game was a much closer run contest, with Norton winning back quite a lot of the cash he'd lost the day before. Remy didn't expect any thanks, but the next meal he got from Norton was a double portion. He tried not to think of a kid somewhere in the complex going hungry as he cleared the plate.

Schwartzer was a little harder to befriend. That could have been due to the fact he'd lost most of his month's wages to Higgins and Norton. It could also have been that he had drawn the short straw of escorting Remy back to his cage after another round of 'tests' with Dr Frost. Even with a gun lodged in the small of his back, Remy still tried to be amicable.

"You know those poker buddies o' yours are takin' you for a ride ami."

"So?"

"So d'you want help?"

"Not from you, mutie." Schwartzer replied, shoving Remy back into his cell. Remy thought that would be the end of it, but he underestimated just how bad Schwartzer was at poker. That night the guard lost his car, a Pontiac he'd bought with his first pay check, to Higgins. The very next day he was back at Remy's cage.

"Teach me," was all Schwartzer said as he released Remy's hands from the shackles so he could handle the cards. Remy was careful to build up the guard's trust. He didn't even attempt to escape, knowing he would only have one chance and he couldn't blow it. Norton found out about the poker lessons three days after Schwartzer won his Pontiac back. He wanted in. Higgins was soon losing more often than he was winning, and when he found out that Remy was teaching his colleagues he challenged the Cajun to a grudge match. Norton and Schwartzer put down high stakes to join the game. As easy as that, the poker group had grown from three to four, and Remy had found just the opening he was looking for…