The Last Stand
Chapter 1: Not Your Average Damsel
By: Rogue-Slayer13
Disclaimer: I don't own the characters of X-Men; they belong to their respective creators.
Summary: How the third movie would've went if Gambit was in it.
NOTE: I changed somethings in this story to in order to work in some new ideas.
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Tears slid down Rogue's cheek, but she couldn't tell if they were from anger or sadness as she hurriedly stuffed some clothes and a few other items into the duffle bag on her bed. She knew things between her and Bobby hadn't been the same lately, but she didn't realize exactly how much they'd changed until she saw him skating on the fountain with Kitty. Bobby was one of the few students at Xavier's who didn't treat her like a freak because of her power, and probably the only one willing to get close enough to be in a relationship with her. Now that he'd obviously moved on to something better, there was no one left for her to be close to. Rogue wiped away her tears with the back of her hand, before slinging the duffle bag over her shoulder and heading downstairs. She was almost to the front door when a voice stopped her.
"Need a ride kid?"
Rogue turned around to see Logan standing at the foot of the stairs.
"I'll be fine," Rogue replied. "I'm gonna catch a cab."
"All right," Logan commented as he turned to head down the hall.
"Aren't ya gonna tell me to go back up to my room and unpack, or something?" Rogue asked in shock.
"Hey, I'm not your father," Logan replied as he turned back around to face Rogue. "I'm your friend. If you want to go, then I'm not going to stop you. You've just got to make sure this is what you want to do."
"It is."
"Then I'll see you around, Rogue," Logan commented as he turned around once again and headed down the hallway.
"Marie," Rogue called after him, causing Logan to turn to look at her. "My name's Marie."
"Marie," Logan repeated with a nod before walking away.
Rogue watched him walk down the hallway before she turned and headed out the front door of Xavier's.
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"Rogue, I want to talk to you for a second," Bobby said as he tapped on his girlfriend's door.
When he didn't get an answer, Bobby tried the door and was a little surprised to find it unlocked.
"Rogue?" Bobby called as he opened the door and stuck his head inside, only to find the room empty and almost completely stripped of its contents.
Bobby quickly turned and headed back out into the hallway, where he ran into Colossus, who was moving a TV.
"Hey Pete, have you seen Rogue?" Bobby asked.
"Yeah, she left a couple of hours ago," Pete replied as he shifted the TV to his other shoulder.
"Do you know where she went?"
"I think she said something about getting the cure," Colossus said, causing Bobby's face to fall.
"Thanks, Pete," Bobby said as he turned and headed downstairs.
"No problem," Pete called over his shoulder.
Bobby hurried down the stairs and ran straight into Logan, which caused him to fall flat on his back.
"Where's the fire, kid?" Logan asked, as he looked down at Bobby, who was sprawled at his feet.
"Rogue's gone!" Bobby replied quickly.
"Yeah, I know," Logan said as he offered Bobby a hand up. "She left a while ago."
"Well?" Bobby asked expectantly as he got to his feet.
"Well what?"
"Aren't you going to go and get her?"
"It's not Logan's job to watch over Rogue."
Bobby and Logan both turned to see Storm and Hank McCoy coming toward them.
"She doesn't know what she's doing," Bobby explained. "There's nothing wrong with her. She doesn't need to be cured!"
"I'm afraid it's up to Rogue to decide that," Hank said. "We can't make that choice for her, no matter what the risks may be."
"Well, if you're not going to go get her than I am," Bobby commented as he headed for the front door.
"Should I go and stop him?" Logan asked as Bobby stormed outside.
"Let him go," Storm replied. "This is something he needs to do."
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Rogue looked down at her glass of water and then at the almost deserted bar around her, and couldn't help but be reminded of the time she met Logan. Heck, the only different between the seedy little place she was in now and the bar in Canada was that this place didn't have a steel cage in the middle of it. Other than that the two were indistinguishable from each other.
"Why don't you let me buy you a real drink, sweetie?"
"No thanks," Rogue replied as she glanced up to see three men standing next to her. "I'll just stick with water."
"Oh come on," the first guy said as he sat down next to Rogue and his friends came to sit on the other side of her. "One drink won't kill you."
"I'm fine, really," Rogue commented.
"Not even one little drink?" the second guy asked as he put his hand on Rogue's knee. "Please?" The guy began to slowly move his hand farther and up Rogue's leg.
"I said no," Rogue stated as she pushed the guy's hand off of her leg and got up and walked out of the bar.
It was raining outside and Rogue pulled the hood up on her coat before hurrying down the street. She made it a few yards away from the bar before someone grabbed a hold of her gloved wrist and yanked her roughly into a nearby alley.
"When someone offers to buy you a drink, the polite thing to do is to accept," the man from the bar said gruffly into Rogue's ear. "Now if you won't have a drink with us, maybe you'll do something else, huh?"
"Let me go!" Rogue demanded as she struggled to yank her arm free from the man's grasp.
"She's a feisty one, ain't she?" the first man commented with a grin to his friends.
"Yeah, she'll be a lot of fun to play around with," the second man guy commented as he ran a hand down her cheek.
As soon as his fingers made contact with her skin, Rogue felt the familiar pull of her powers as they kicked in. the man let out a groan before falling to the ground unconscious.
"She's one of those damn mutie freaks!" the man holding Rogue exclaimed as he looked down at his unconscious friend and then at Rogue.
"I know just what to do with her type," the second man said, as he pulled a knife out of his pocket and took a step toward Rogue.
As the man took another step forward, what appeared to be a glowing playing card hit his hand and exploded on impact. The man yelled in pain and quickly dropped his knife, so he could examine his slightly singed fingers.
"How'd you do that?" the man demanded as he glared at Rogue.
"She didn't, I did."
Rogue turned her head to see a tall figure standing a few yards away from her, but it was too dark in the alley for her to make out much else about the newcomer.
"Who the hell are you?" the man asked as he glared at the newcomer.
Moving quicker than Rogue thought was possible the new guy lashed out and hit the man in the face with what appeared to be a long staff. The man stumbled back, both of his hands covering his now bleeding nose. The guy took this moment of weakness to hit the man several more times with the bo staff. Upon seeing that his friend was quickly losing the fight, the man holding Rogue tossed her roughly to the ground where she hit her hand and tore one of her gloves, before joining in the fight. The mystery guy pulled out several more playing cards and tossed them at the second guy in quick succession, each one letting off a small explosion as it made contact with its target. The guy landed a good kick to the first man's head, knocking him out before spinning around and slamming his bo staff into the other man's face. Both men crumpled to the ground next to their fallen partner unconscious. The mystery guy then hit a button on the side of his staff, causing it to shrink down to a manageable size before slipping it into one of his coat pockets.
"Are y' okay?" the guy asked as he came and knelt down in front of Rogue.
"Yeah, I'm all right," Rogue said as she looked at the three unconscious men in front of her.
"Y' sure?" the guy asked as he helped Rogue to her feet.
Rogue looked up to reply to her rescuer and froze. Standing before her had to be, without a doubt, the most gorgeous guy she'd ever seen. To say this guy was hot would've been an understatement. He was tall, easily over six feet, with shaggy auburn colored hair that was currently plastered down over his eyes. He was wearing black boots, jeans, a gray t-shirt, a brown trench coat, and a pair of dark sunglasses that completely covered his eyes.
"Y' sure you're okay?" the guy repeated as he looked at Rogue.
Rogue nodded her head and then winced in pain. Reaching her hand up, Rogue pulled it away to find that she was bleeding from a cut on her temple. Just then one of the guys who'd give her trouble groaned and began to sit up.
"We better get outta here before dis place turns into a circus," the guy said as he grabbed Rogue's hand in his own gloved one and lead her quickly out of the alley.
Rogue's mind was busy trying to process all that had happened in the last few minutes and so her body was functioning on autopilot. Rogue followed the guy as he hurried out of the alley, her hand still clutched protectively in his, and out to the street where a motorcycle was parked.
"Hop on," the guy said as he swung a leg over the bike.
Rogue hesitated, her training as an X-Man suddenly kicking in.
"Do y' trust me?" the guy asked as he looked over at Rogue.
"I barely know ya," Rogue replied as she looked at her surroundings, trying to find a place she could run to in case the guy on the bike suddenly got weird.
"Yeah, but do y' trust me?" the guy asked with a ghost of a grin.
Every fiber in Rogue's being was screaming at her to turn around and run, and yet, as she looked at the guy sitting on the bike in front of her in the pouring down rain, Rogue couldn't help but take a step forward. Next thing she knew, Rogue was climbing on the motorcycle behind the guy as he kick started the engine.
"Hang on," the guy said as he revved the engine.
The bike suddenly sped away from the bar, and Rogue quickly wrapped her arms tightly around the guy's waist and buried her face in between his shoulder blades. The guy expertly weaved the bike in and out of traffic, causing Rogue to fear for her safety on several occasions. When the bike finally stopped in a park, Rogue was still more than a little scared from the drive and she didn't immediately let go of her mystery hero.
"Y' can let go now," the guy said as he put the kick stand down on the bike.
"Right, sorry," Rogue apologized as she quickly let go of the guy and got off the bike, a slight blush creeping up her cheeks.
"M' name's Remy by the way," the guy said as he climbed off the bike as well. "Or Gambit if we're talking business."
"Marie, but most people call me Rogue," the southern belle replied. "Ya know I never really thanked ya for saving me back there."
"It was not'ing really," Remy said with a dismissive wave of his hand.
"Oh? So do ya make a habit of saving young damsels?" Rogue asked as she walked around the bike and came to stand in front of Remy.
"I get de feeling dat you're far from being a damsel," Remy replied with a grin as he looked down at Rogue.
"Yeah, well what can I say? I guess I'm just a bad actress."
"Oh and she be a funny one too," Remy replied with a grin as the two began to walk through the park.
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"Are you sure we're doing the right thing by letting Rogue go?" Storm asked she, Logan, and Hank McCoy talked in the mansion's library.
"I can understand why some mutants would want to fit in," Hank replied.
Just then there was a tap at the door and the group looked up to see a young man with blonde hair standing in the doorway. "This might not be the best time," the young man said. "But I heard this was a safe place for mutants."
"It was," Hank said somewhat sadly.
"It still is," Storm stated as she looked at the young man. "What's your name?"
"Warren."
"Hank, tell the kids the school's going to stay open," Storm said before turning her attention back to Warren. "I'll see if I can find you a room."
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Bobby walked into the rec room of the mansion and flopped down on the couch. He'd looked all over the neighborhood for Rogue and all he'd succeeded in doing was getting completely soaked by the rain. Wherever she was, Rogue wasn't hiding in any of her usual hang out spots.
"You okay?"
Bobby looked up to see Kitty standing in the doorway of the rec room.
"I guess so," Bobby replied with a shrug. "I've looked all over for Rogue and I can't find her anywhere."
"You'll find her," Kitty said reassuringly as she sat down next to Bobby on the couch.
"I just hope she's okay is all."
"I'm sure she is," Kitty said as she put a comforting hand on Bobby's shoulder. "Rogue's a fighter, I'm sure she can take care of herself."
"That's what they keep telling me," Bobby commented with a sigh.
"Hey, why don't you go and get changed and then we can watch a movie or something?" Kitty suggested, trying to get Bobby to cheer up some.
Bobby thought about it for a moment before nodding his head. "That sounds all right."
"Great! You go and change and I'll make some popcorn," Kitty said as she headed into the kitchen.
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"I still feel like I should thank ya for helping me out back there," Rogue commented as she and Remy came to stand in front of the swings.
"I told y' already not to worry about it," Remy replied as he sat down in one of the swings and began to push himself back and forth with his feet.
"I know," Rogue said as she sat down in the swing next to Remy and began to swing as well.
The two swung back and forth in comfortable silence, until Remy broke it.
"Wanna see who can go de highest?" Remy asked with a grin.
"You're on Swamp Rat," Rogue replied with a grin of her own.
"Swamp Rat?" Remy asked as he began to swing higher. "How'd y' come up wit' dat one?"
"Ya are Cajun, aren't ya?" Rogue asked, leaning back in the swing so she could go higher as well.
Remy nodded. "Dat I am, chere."
"Well, than that makes ya a Swamp Rat," Rogue stated, earning a chuckle out of Remy.
"How'd y' know I was Cajun anyway?" Remy asked as the two continued to swing higher and higher.
"Between the Southern drawl and the fluent French, there's not much else ya could be," Rogue replied as the two continued to swing high and higher.
"Well, den what's dat make y'?" Remy asked.
"Mississippi born an' bred," Rogue replied with a hint of pride in her voice.
"Why don' we see who can jump de fart'est, non?" Remy suggested with a grin.
"You're on, Cajun," Rogue replied with a matching grin.
"Un, deux, TROIS!"
With that Remy leapt out of his swing and landed gracefully on his feet. He was joined a few seconds later by a not so graceful Rogue, who tripped and stumbled forward. Remy reached out an arm and caught her around the waist, but unfortunately this only served to send them both crashing to the ground in a laughing heap of tangled limbs. The two continued to laugh for several minutes, until they stopped and settled for looking up at the night sky.
"Mind if I ask y' a question?" Remy asked breaking the comfortable silence that had descended on the two.
"Go a head," Rogue replied, still looking up at the sky.
"Where were y' runnin' off to back dere?" Remy asked, rolling onto his side so he could get a better look at the girl next to him.
Rogue turned her head to look at Remy, her own face looking back at her from the reflection in his sunglasses.
"Why do you still have those on?" Rogue asked, gesturing to Remy's sunglasses with her hand.
"Cause de make me look cool," Remy replied with a grin, moving his head slightly so it was just out of Rogue's reach. "Now dat I've answered your question, are y' gonna answer mine?"
"I was gonna go get the cure if ya must know," Rogue replied.
"Well, it's too late to do dat tonight," Remy commented as he got up. "I can take y' home if y' want me to t'ough."
"I don't know if I belong back there anymore," Rogue said as Remy helped her to her feet. "That's part of the reason why I left in the first place." Rogue turned and looked back in the direction of the Institute.
Remy looked around the park until his eyes fell on his motorcycle, which was parked a few yards away.
"Come wit' me," Remy said suddenly as he turned to look back at Rogue.
"What?" Rogue turned to look at the Cajun standing next to her.
"Y' obviously aren't lookin' forward to goin' back home, and it's too late for me to take y' to de clinic tonight. Y' can come crash at my place and I'll drop y' off at de clinic first t'ing in de mornin'," Remy explained. "Alt'ough personally, I don't t'ink dere's anyt'ing wrong wit' y' now, but it's your decision, so I'm not gonna get in de way."
"How do I know ya won't attack me in the night or somethin'?" Rogue asked.
"Well, for starters, de night's half over," Remy pointed out with a grin. "And secondly, if I was gonna do dat, den why would I've saved y' earlier?"
Rogue thought about Remy's explanation for a while before nodding her head.
"I guess that would be okay," Rogue replied.
"Come on then, it's getting' late and you're gonna want to get some sleep if I'm suppose to take y' to de clinic in de mornin'," Remy said as he and Rogue headed back toward his bike.
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To Be Continued . . .
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